The Game of Life

Shanshui Plaza could be considered the largest plaza in Alan City, and every evening it was occupied by square-dancing aunties. The spacious area allowed these aunties from different regions of the plaza to belong to various factions, forming distinct formations. An unsuspecting passerby walking from one end of the plaza to the other would hear at least five different tunes—from the traditional old song “Above the Moon” to the once-popular “The Glamorous Ethnic Style” and the recently rising hit “The Winding Road of Love.” Alan City’s square dance enthusiasts could all find a spot here to call their own.

At other times, it was relatively quiet. Occasionally, the city would organize events, or businesses would rent the space for singing and dancing competitions. With 119 contestants in the second round of the preliminaries, the organizers, intending to finish in one go, found Shanshui Plaza to be an excellent venue for the event.

Jiang Feng was also relieved that the competition venue was finally not in the suburbs. UAL University’s location was already quite remote, and for the previous two rounds, he had to travel from one remote suburb to another. It took three hours on the road for a one-hour competition; half the day was spent just in transit.

Shanshui Plaza, on the other hand, was much closer—accessible directly by subway, without the need to transfer, and just about twenty minutes away.

Traveling light, Jiang Feng didn’t even carry a bag. He simply pocketed his ID card and entry pass and set off with Wu Minqi.

By the time they arrived, Shanshui Plaza was already buzzing with excitement, crowded with a sea of people. Aside from contestants and their families, everyone else was there for the spectacle. Being a weekday, the onlookers were mostly elderly men and women. It was a stroke of genius for the organizers to choose a weekday for the competition, otherwise, the number of spectators would have multiplied several times over, and contestants wouldn’t even be able to squeeze in.

The event staff, a young lady, stood directly on a table by the entrance, holding an electronic megaphone with an amplifier, and shouted, “Competitors, please enter here! Everyone else, please do not block the entrance. Let the competitors in first. Contestants must enter before eight-thirty! Competitors, please enter here! Other people, please do not block the entrance. Contestants please…”

Jiang Feng & Wu Minqi:…

“It seems… we can’t get in.” Jiang Feng lamented. It was all elderly men and women. He didn’t dare to push through them.

“Young man, are you here to watch the competition too?” asked an elderly gentleman with strong teeth, holding a stale but seemingly golden, crispy, and tantalizing fried dough stick from the ditch oil vendor, as he curiously inquired of Jiang Feng, who lingered on the outskirts of the crowd.

“…I, I’m here to compete.”

“Compete?” The old man perked up instantly, mustering all his energy, he yelled at those ahead, “Make way, make way! Don’t delay this young man’s competition. Let the young contestant in first!”

Hearing this, an auntie in front immediately pulled her husband aside, “Did you hear that? Let the contestant in first, what crowd are you joining? Can you even see anything?”

As her husband was dragged out of the way, he also raised his voice and shouted to those in front, “Stop pushing, let the young contestants in first!” “Stop pushing, make way, make way!”

“Let the contestants in first!”

“People in the front, make way!”

In just one short minute, the onlookers—eager to watch the excitement—opened up a path to the entrance for Jiang Feng and Wu Minqi.

Not only was Jiang Feng, who was not so worldly, taken aback, even the seasoned Wu Minqi was a bit stunned.

This kind of preferential treatment, typically reserved for protagonists, would normally follow a standard script in an idol drama: They would just need to walk with a breeze, strike a cool pose, maintain a distant expression, the camera would pull back and slow down, and the background music would start just in time as the surrounding crowd cheered and screamed.

Looking around at the aunties and uncles, Jiang Feng snapped back to reality.

Glancing at his watch, it was almost twenty past, Jiang Feng said, “Let’s go, it’s almost twenty past.”

The two of them walked briskly towards the entrance.

Walk with a breeze, pose cool, and keep a cold expression on your face.

“Look at that young guy, he’s so nervous his face is stiff.”

Jiang Feng:…

Once they got inside, Jiang Feng was still number 13, Wu Minqi was number 39, and their spots were far apart. Holding his number, Jiang Feng was flooded with emotions, thirteen again, he must have some fate with this number.

On the cooking station, there were only spices and seasonings, no ingredients, but there were pen and paper. Most of the participants had already arrived, and outside, a dense crowd had gathered to cheer or just to watch the spectacle, all staring at the competitors inside. Jiang Feng’s position was at the end of a row with twelve people, so being watched by so many made him a bit nervous.

Soon, it was time to close the entrance, and no one was late. The staff somehow managed to bring in plenty of plastic chairs for the elders to sit and enjoy the show. The grandpa who was eating a youtiao squeezed to the front and, seeing Jiang Feng, cheerfully shouted, “Young man, go for it!”

Still full of vigor.

“Hey hey, I can hear you, good.” The organizer’s equipment had been upgraded too, from loudspeakers to microphones, “Everyone, please, I’d ask the audience outside to quiet down a bit. The competition is about to start, and loud noises might affect the performance of the contestants. Please cooperate, thank you.” The onlookers outside complied and quieted down.

“Dear contestants, first of all, I would like to congratulate you on successfully advancing to the second round of the preliminaries! As per our competition format, sixteen contestants from this round will move on. They will then compete with contestants who have also made it into the top 32 from the other three regions for the championship of the Good Taste Culinary Contest.

Likewise, today’s preliminaries will be exclusively live-streamed by Somewhere Live, and all seasonings are sponsored exclusively by Good Taste.” “First off, let me introduce the rules for today’s competition. You have one hour and thirty minutes, and the use of eggs is mandatory, but the rest of the ingredients are unrestricted. Each row has three staff members. Contestants, please write down the ingredients you need on the list and hand it to the staff. However, due to budget constraints, we may not be able to provide some ingredients. We ask for your understanding. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask the staff in your row.”

“There are thirteen judges in total for this competition. The scoring will be the same as the last round, with ten public judges and three professional judges. I believe some of the contestants will be familiar with these professional judges as they were the same as in the last preliminary round. Please rest assured of their expertise. Due to time constraints, I won’t introduce them one by one. Just like the last time, the judges will taste and score in sequential order.” “From now until 9 o’clock is the time for you to list your ingredients; you can start now.” The staff lady put down the microphone.

Jiang Feng checked his watch, 8:37, leaving him 23 minutes to decide what dish to prepare.

From 119 to 16, the elimination rate was still very high. If a contestant was counting on luck and aimed for speed by making something simple like fried or steamed eggs, it would probably be a very ugly defeat.

A dish with eggs!

Jiang Feng didn’t want to make something too homely like stir-fried eggs with chili. Everyone who had made it this far was basically a professional chef, apart from a few who had lucked through. The rest were quite skilled.

What dish should he make?

*Jiang Feng: Could everyone please give Feng a little face and stop upvoting Da Hua! 1 1-