"—Choose him! I choose him!" Liu Yufei stretched out his arm, pointing directly at Mu Yiran, his emotions running high.
Everyone looked at him, their expressions varied.
"Choose him! Everyone chooses him! Choose the one surnamed Mu!" Liu Yufei's features were distorted by his emotions. "Those who have been through the first two paintings know that no matter who this person teams up with, he always comes out alone in the end! Where are his companions?! Have you ever thought about where his companions went? Why is he the only one who comes out? Listen—don't be fooled by his appearance. If fewer and fewer of us die, and the last person left is with him, what do you think will happen? He will definitely leave alone, and the rest of us will all die in the painting! So choose him! We all choose him, let him die first! Choose him!"
No one spoke; only Liu Yufei's roar and the dust echoed in the dilapidated house.
"What are you still hesitating about?" Liu Yufei's expression was bordering on madness, gesturing wildly with his hands. "You've forgotten? You don't know, do you—if we don't choose someone before nine o'clock, we'll all die! There's no time! Who can guarantee that you won't be the one randomly killed?! Choose! Choose quickly! Do you want to drag this out until nine o'clock?"
Seeing that everyone was still silent with their eyes downcast, Liu Yufei grabbed the front of the pancake stall owner's shirt, his eyes bulging as he glared at him: "Say it! Who are you choosing?! Choose now! Otherwise, I'll choose you! You know, you'll die! You'll die! Choose now!"
The pancake stall owner trembled, completely losing his will and ability to think, only subconsciously listening to Liu Yufei's words, raising his hand and pointing at Mu Yiran.
Mu Yiran remained calm, his gaze sweeping over everyone present. He spoke softly, "We all know that the rules within the painting are irreversible and unavoidable. So Liu Yufei is right about at least one thing: dragging it out until nine o'clock is pointless. In any case, someone will eventually die here, unless no one wants to leave alive."
The doctor looked up at him. "Yes, whether we like it or not, we can only choose one person according to the rules. Although... it's morally wrong, compared to everyone dying here, we can only choose the lesser of two evils."
"Enough! Stop with the pretense of benevolence and morality!" Liu Yufei interrupted irritably. "Humanity is worthless here! All I know is I don't want to die, and no one's life is more important than my own! Don't tell me you don't think the same way. Everyone knows how selfish people can be! I'm not like you hypocrites who secretly wish for others to die while pretending to be forced into it, arguing about who's more or less important! Stop making excuses for your selfish thoughts! Hurry up and tell me who you choose!"
The doctor, whether his thoughts had been exposed or he simply didn't want to deal with this madman, lowered his eyelids and remained silent.
Liu Yufei became even more agitated, grabbing Wei Dong again and pressing him against his face: "Say it! Who do you choose?"
Wei Dong was completely flustered, glancing sideways at Ke Xun beside him.
Ke Xun remained calm and said indifferently, "I abstain."
Wei Dong quickly followed, "I abstain too, I won't choose anyone, you can choose whoever you want!"
Liu Yufei sneered and released him, "Ha, pretending to be a saint, thinking that not choosing anyone will show your noble humanity? Pushing the burden of murder onto others is more despicable and shameless than actively choosing someone!"
Ke Xun slightly raised his chin, looking down at him calmly, "You're right, I am despicable and shameless, choose me."
Liu Yufei glared at him fiercely, then pressed the doctor, "Who will you choose? Stop talking about morality, choose now!"
The doctor looked at him calmly: "Please let me think about it. After all, this is no different from murder."
Liu Yufei stopped arguing with him and pressed the other two: "If you don't choose someone else, they will choose you. After nine o'clock, everyone will die. It's better for one person to die than for everyone to die. What's there to hesitate about? Voting for someone to sacrifice for everyone is already the best outcome. Someone has to be chosen. Don't hesitate, choose quickly. Time waits for no one. I choose the one surnamed Mu. He's the most cunning. When it comes to personal interests, he will definitely harm others first to protect himself. Choose him! Choosing him will benefit us all!"
"Hey," Ke Xun narrowed his eyes and walked up to Liu Yufei, "Don't go too far. Who others choose should be based on their personal wishes. You're jumping around and interfering, and I won't accept the result of the vote."
Liu Yufei was a head shorter than Ke Xun, so he had to look up to meet his gaze. He sneered, "Whether you accept it or not is irrelevant. As long as the result is out, it will be approved. Who do you think you are?!"
Ke Xun also laughed, but there was no smile in his eyes. "You've already made your choice, right? So if I beat you unconscious now, it won't be considered breaking the rules, right?"
"You—what do you want to do!" Liu Yufei took two steps back in shock and anger.
"I've already made myself very clear," Ke Xun raised his hand, "Who do you think you are? You can give me a new evaluation after you've tasted my fist."
"You two—" Liu Yufei turned around in a panic and roared at the other two, "Choose the one with the surname Mu! Choose the one with the surname Mu!"
"I have something to say." Mu Yiran suddenly spoke, his gaze sweeping over Ke Xun.
Ke Xun turned and walked back: "I love listening to you talk, go ahead."
Wei Dong: "..."
Mu Yiran's gaze swept over the others again: "Since we have to choose one person, there's no need for unnecessary words. Everyone here could be the one chosen, but we are human beings, not lambs to the slaughter. The difference between humans and sheep is that at least humans should have the right to explain why they deserve to be spared. The others can decide who to choose based on each person's reasons. What do you all think?"
"I agree," Ke Xun said.
"I agree too," Wei Dong followed.
"I also think this proposal is very good," the doctor said calmly and rationally, "at least it gives everyone a last chance."
The other two also agreed, while the pancake stall owner remained dejected and silent.
Liu Yufei, however, was agitated: "I disagree! That Mu guy is trying to cheat, he's trying to cheat!"
"Five people agree, one abstains, one objects, the proposal passes." Ke Xun said, taking two steps forward and punching Liu Yufei in the face.
The punch, delivered with restraint, only sent Liu Yufei staggering back three or four steps, two streams of blood running down his face from his nose, and successfully punctured his screams.
"Let's begin," Ke Xun said.
The others ignored the stunned Liu Yufei, exchanged glances, and the doctor asked, "Who wants to go first?"
One of the two men who had been responsible for digging the grave the previous night spoke cautiously, "I know everyone wants to get out alive, nobody wants to be the one chosen. Humanity is out of the question in this situation.
"All I want to say is, I'm just an ordinary citizen. I've lived this long, never done anything wrong, just lived my life honestly every day. My wife divorced me two years ago, abandoning me and our child and disappearing without a trace."
"My child is only three years old this year. My parents are old and in poor health, spending half the year in the hospital. If I die here, I don't know what will happen to my child...
Maybe he won't have enough to eat, maybe he'll starve with wide, bewildered eyes, not knowing why he doesn't have parents, or maybe he'll be sick and no one will care for him, his thin, small body curled up alone and pitifully in a corner..."
"I'm sorry... I didn't mean to use my child to elicit sympathy, but I really don't want to leave my poor child here to die. I just hope that when you vote later, you can consider my situation a little. I thank you all..."
The man was already in tears as he spoke.
A moment of silence fell over the crowd. After a while, the doctor spoke up: "Well then, let me say a few words about myself. I'm a doctor. Although there are no tools or medicines in the painting, I can still provide emergency treatment to the injured in certain situations. I don't know if there will be another painting after this one, or the one after that. If there is, I think my professional skills will be of help to everyone someday. I hope you will consider my usefulness when you vote later. Thank you."
The other person in charge of digging the grave quickly followed up on the doctor's words: "I'm useful too! I'm a private business owner. I have money. As long as you spare my life, I'll give each of you 100,000 yuan after I leave the painting. I guarantee it! If you don't believe me, I can write each of you an IOU for 100,000 yuan right now! No—200,000! I'll give each of you 200,000 yuan!"
"...I'm tempted," Wei Dong whispered to Ke Xun.
Liu Yufei, recovering from his initial shock, disregarded seeking revenge on Ke Xun and shouted, "Don't choose me! I can't die! I'm a doctoral student at a prestigious university in Beijing, a key talent being groomed by the nation! I'm useful to the country! Do
you know how scarce talent is in our country right now? Do you know how difficult it is for the nation to cultivate talent? This country needs me, society needs me for progress, and your future well-being depends on people like me!
You should understand survival of the fittest, right? Whether it's the macrocosm of society or a temporary group like ours, retaining outstanding talent and eliminating useless, mediocre people is the best way to ensure the healthy survival and efficient development of the group!
So you can't choose me! You should choose people who are completely useless to our group! Like him, like them! Use your brains and think about it carefully!"
Liu Yufei pointed at the pancake stall owner and Ke Xun and Wei Dong.
Wei Dong was speechless: "With this kind of quality, a doctoral student from a prestigious university? It's fake, right?"
Ke Xun said expressionlessly, "There's no necessary connection between academic qualifications and personal qualities."
"Then tell me, what merits or uses do you have that make you worth keeping?!" Liu Yufei glared menacingly at the two. "
Oh, I didn't have anything to say at first, but after witnessing your performance just now, I suddenly discovered my own merits," Ke Xun said, "At least I won't bite others to death like a mad dog just to save my own life." "
As soon as he finished speaking, a thoughtful glint appeared in everyone's eyes.
Mu Yiran looked at Ke Xun, his gaze slightly deepening.
This kid really often surprised him.
The way he acted in front of others always seemed somewhat carefree and nonchalant, always giving the impression of a bad boy who did whatever he wanted and wouldn't listen to reason.
But his words just now, whether intentional or unintentional, revealed a hint of cunning that wasn't sharp or incisive, yet could be fatal...
Yes, fatal.
He didn't even need to use a single word to explain why he deserved to stay; he only needed to seize on the point that people cared about most, feared most, and avoided most, using a clear comparison to ensure his invincibility.
—With Liu Yufei's selfish, frantic, and reckless accusations as a contrast, no matter what others did, they wouldn't choose him, because below him was Liu Yufei as a benchmark.
Now that he thought about it, perhaps his initial abstention was also a setup?"
Is he really that smart?
People have a thousand faces.
This Ke Xun... perhaps we really shouldn't underestimate him.