Chapter 42
Chapter 42
Just as Song Xue was celebrating inwardly, Hong Long slammed a hand onto the table and roared,
“Fuck! I refuse to believe a woman can outdrink me! Pour it. I want to find out just how strong this ninety-six-percent liquor is!”
Drink it, you mindless brute, Song Xue thought. I deliberately chose three different kinds of liquor so mixing them would get all of you drunk faster. Once you finish this glass, you’re guaranteed to get drunk!
“Two hundred milliliters of ninety-six-percent liquor in one go…” The round-faced Zhang looked deeply uneasy. “And tomorrow is my home round. If I get too drunk…”
“Then don’t drink. I’ll do it,” Ruirui said.
She was already somewhat drunk herself. But Chen Nuo’s earlier description of her as one of their strongest contenders had kept her going. She wanted to distinguish herself in this game and prove useful.
The moment Ruirui raised her hand, Chen Nuo forced it back down.
“Don’t drink. You and Zhang should both keep your totals from the last round.”
“I’m still all right, Chen Nuo. If I stop now and Song Xue drank the most and then passes the sobriety test, we’ll lose,” Ruirui said.
“Listen to me, Ruirui. Your chances of winning are best if neither of you drinks now,” Chen Nuo said.
“Really?”
Chen Nuo nodded and gestured for them to lean closer.
The round-faced Zhang and Ruirui brought their ears near him. Chen Nuo whispered a question.
Both looked startled when they heard it. Then Zhang shook his head, while Ruirui nodded.
“I have…”
“Don’t say it aloud. I understand,” Chen Nuo said.
In the end, Ruirui, Zhang, and Thomas Feng all withdrew from this round. Only two people raised their hands: Hong Long and Lv Chao.
Lv Chao was clearly in far worse condition than Hong Long. Seated at the table, he swayed uncontrollably from side to side. His eyes were vacant and his lids drooped, as if he might collapse at any moment. No one knew why he was still struggling to continue.
The server used a measuring cup to pour two hundred milliliters of ninety-six-percent Polish distilled vodka for each of the three drinkers. Hong Long sniffed his glass. His head recoiled involuntarily, his features twisted, and even his hand began to tremble.
Song Xue had diverted all two hundred milliliters of Hengshui Laobaigan from the second round into the sanitary pad behind her neck. The pad was now saturated and could hold no more. If the liquor seeped out and wet her clothes, her deception would be exposed. This time, she planned to use a different trick.
She appeared to drain the Polish distilled vodka in one gulp, but in reality, she swallowed only a small amount and held most of it in her mouth. The extremely high alcohol content made her entire mouth burn with pain. She could only endure it and pretend she had swallowed everything.
Half a minute later, Song Xue began the next part of her performance. She clutched her stomach and pretended she was about to vomit. Hong Long gave a vicious grin, believing she had finally reached her limit. If she threw up, she would lose. Then he would win without having to drink the glass of liquor that was practically poison.
Song Xue puffed out her cheeks, creating the impression that vomit was about to burst from her mouth. She immediately covered her mouth with her right hand as though fighting it back. In reality, she discreetly spat the vodka she had been holding into the second sanitary pad hidden inside her sleeve.
Her body language and expression worked together perfectly. She seemed to become nauseated after drinking, struggle desperately to suppress it, and even swallow her own vomit. The entire performance flowed naturally and looked utterly convincing. No one saw through it.
“Did you… actually force yourself to swallow your own vomit?” Hong Long grimaced. He looked closer to vomiting than she did.
“Whatever happened, I kept it down. What about you? Do you dare drink that glass?” Song Xue challenged Hong Long through bleary eyes.
A thoughtless man like Hong Long could never endure such a provocation.
“Fuck!”
He raised the glass and drained all two hundred milliliters of the ninety-six-percent vodka in one go.
Everyone watched for his reaction. Hong Long’s eyes went blank, and his body stiffened. Che Dongming, who sat at the same table, asked,
“Hey, are you all right…”
Before he could finish, Hong Long toppled sideways and crashed down like a mountain, curling into himself like a newborn infant. A moment later, he vomited violently, announcing his defeat. One server came forward to clean the mess while two other male servers helped him to the restroom to continue vomiting.
Yes! I’ve won! Song Xue cheered inwardly.
She had recognized long ago that Hong Long was her greatest threat, and now he was gone. Only Lv Chao remained. Even if he did not drink the vodka, he was already at the end of his strength and might pass out or vomit at any moment. He posed no threat.
Lv Chao stared vacantly at the vodka in his glass. He neither drank nor spoke.
“Mr. Lv Chao, do you still intend to drink the vodka for the third round?” Tina asked. “If you truly can’t continue, you can keep your total from the second round. If you pass out completely like Mr. Hong Long, you won’t even be able to take the sobriety test!”
Lv Chao remained silent. Tina assumed he was too drunk to think and had no choice but to treat it as a withdrawal. She was about to speak when Lv Chao gave a quiet laugh and muttered to himself,
“I really am a worthless coward… If I hadn’t taken part in these games, I never would have understood myself. I used to think I was a real man…”
“What?” Tina looked at him, unable to make out his words.
Lv Chao ignored her. In his drunken state, his speech wandered incoherently.
“Song Xue is prepared to die… If she drinks herself to death, she’ll go keep her husband company… Only a truly devoted woman could say something like that. Why couldn’t I do the same? If I had died in Qianqian’s place, everyone wouldn’t despise me, and I wouldn’t hate myself so much…”
Tears streamed down his face as he spoke. Everyone stared at him. A terrible premonition suddenly rose in Song Xue.
“Qianqian, I know you blame me… When it mattered, I abandoned you to save myself… You don’t have to come for me tonight. I’ll come to you.”
“What are you saying?” Bie Menghan, seated at his table, asked in alarm. Fear showed on her face.
Lv Chao ignored everyone and addressed a server. “Pour me a drink.”
“Sir, the two hundred milliliters of Polish distilled vodka has already been poured for you.” The server pointed to the glass in front of him.
“Increase it,” Lv Chao corrected himself. “Add another three hundred milliliters.”
“Another three hundred would make five hundred milliliters in total. Is that what you mean?” the server asked.
“Yes. Am I not allowed?”
The server looked at Tina. Her mouth had fallen open in shock.
“Mr. Lv Chao, you want to attempt to drink one jin of ninety-six-percent Polish distilled vodka in a single go?”
“Yes. Stop talking and pour it!”
“Are you insane? Drinking one jin of ninety-six-percent vodka at once will kill you!” Bie Menghan cried anxiously.
Lv Chao had already lost his reason and judgment. He spoke again, enunciating every word.
“Pour. Me. The. Vodka.”