"Huh?"
Seeing the information on the big screen, everyone was stunned for a moment.
Wang Yongxin was the first to stand up, "What's going on? I solemnly declare, I definitely voted yes!"
The others were similarly confused.
"I voted yes too."
"Who would vote no on something that benefits everyone?"
"It's fine, one 'no' vote doesn't affect the outcome."
"It really doesn't affect the outcome, but this means we have a mole among us!"
"The basic rules say there's a special group among the players, who secretly design games to harm us. Could it be that one has infiltrated our community?"
After a brief moment of shock, everyone started discussing animatedly, and the whole hall descended into chaos.
But obviously, under the rule of an anonymous vote, it was almost impossible to single out the person who voted no.
"Everyone, please quiet down a bit."
Li Renshu's voice wasn't loud, but it was steady, and the hall gradually quieted down.
"This is just an insignificant interlude, I don't think everyone needs to worry too much about it.
"Knowing that 7 votes are enough to pass the motion, casting one 'no' vote is meaningless in itself.
"So I believe the only purpose of the person who voted no is to create suspicion and division within the group.
"The more this is the case, the more we must not fall for it.
"As long as we trust each other as much as possible and stand united, those with ulterior motives will never find an opportunity."
Fu Chen also nodded in agreement, "That's right, everyone must not fall into disarray.
"Besides, we can't look at this matter from a purely rational perspective. We also can't ignore the possibility that someone accidentally voted wrong or was just playing a prank.
"Although this possibility is low, it's not entirely impossible in reality."
The two's speeches eased the atmosphere in the hall a little.
After a short silence, Xu Tong said with some anticipation, "So to celebrate, can we have a big feast for lunch today?"
...
A while later, the time reached 9:30 AM.
On the big screen, information continued to appear.
[Chips obtained by players in "Blood Poker" will be converted into visa time.]
[New rules related to the "Community Support Fund" have been detected, now calculating]
[Initial "Community Support Fund" balance: 52775 minutes of visa time.]
[A minimum living allowance will be distributed to all players at the standard of "80 minutes of visa time/person/day".]
[Distribution complete.]
[Current "Community Support Fund" balance: 51815 minutes of visa time.]
[Remaining chips will be converted into visa time for each player.]
[Conversion complete, you can check your personal visa time balance at any vending machine or private computer.]
"It's here, it's here!"
Yang Yuting stood in front of a vending machine to check and found that an extra line had been added to the "Currency" section.
The first line was her current remaining visa time, while the second line had a new special icon, representing the minimum living allowance distributed by the Community Support Fund, which was 80 minutes of visa time.
"80 minutes of visa time for one lunch!
"I can't even imagine how luxurious that is!"
Yang Yuting quickly scrolled down, and sure enough, there were quite a few expensive delicacies inside.
For example, the ones seen before:
[Braised Pork Stir-fry: 1 hour 20 minutes]
[Roast Duck Set: 2 hours]
[10-inch Durian Pizza: 2 hours]
And various other dishes.
Originally, 2 hours of visa time was extremely expensive for everyone, and no one had ever tried to order it, but now, they were no longer so out of reach.
After all, the 80 minutes of visa time belonged to the support fund, and it would be a waste not to spend it. One would only need to pay an additional 40 minutes.
Xu Tong was also scrolling through the menu on another vending machine.
"Hey, I have an idea.
"Since according to the rules, supplies purchased with the 'Community Support Fund' can be freely distributed and used among players and are not considered transactions, does that mean we can pool this money and eat together?"
If everyone spent their own money, it would still be difficult for them to eat to their heart's content.
Foods like roast duck and pizza cost 2 hours for one portion.
Eating this way would make the dishes a bit monotonous, but ordering other foods would be even more expensive, and it would be hard for one person to finish it all.
If everyone chose to pool their minimum allowance of visa time to purchase different dishes, it would obviously be a more cost-effective plan.
Li Renshu said with a smile, "We actually considered this point when we proposed the motion.
"If everyone wants to have a group meal, you can pool this money to eat together; when you don't want to, you can also choose to eat separately."
Xu Tong was very happy, "Great, then let's take a look at the menu for the group meal, shall we?
"Today is the first time we've participated in a game together, it's worth a good celebration. Everyone should choose to eat together, right? No one would eat alone at a time like this, right?"
Su Xiucen quickly leaned in, "Even though it's a group meal, there's no need to order all those pre-made dishes, they're too expensive!
"We can order some semi-finished ingredients, I can cook the simple dishes."
Xu Tong nodded, "Okay, then I'll look forward to Auntie Su's cooking!"
The few of them started discussing the lunch menu animatedly, finally deciding to spend the day's quota of 960 minutes of visa time.
Some dishes were ordered pre-made, like roast duck, pizza, and drinks that couldn't be made by themselves; for others, they purchased ingredients to process, such as green vegetables and home-style dishes.
Soon, ingredients were continuously dispensed from the vending machines, and a few people went to the kitchen to get busy.
Su Xiucen was the head chef, with Yang Yuting and Fu Chen as assistants. The others helped out here and there, and for a time, the entire hall seemed quite lively.
After a few dishes were brought to the table, they went to the vending machine to buy the pre-made dishes.
Before long, a sumptuous feast was ready.
"Come on, let's fill them up!"
Xu Tong extended the red wine bottle towards Jiang He's glass next to her.
Jiang He quickly covered the mouth of her glass, "No, thank you, I don't drink."
Xu Tong shook her head slightly, "If it's an alcohol allergy or for health reasons, I won't persuade you. If not, then have a little. Don't worry, no one will pressure you to drink more.
"After all, today is a day worth celebrating."
Jiang He thought for a moment and moved her hand away from the glass, "Alright then, I'll pour it myself."
This bottle of red wine was also purchased from the vending machine, priced at 1 hour and 20 minutes of visa time. They bought two bottles in total.
Although it was just the cheapest red wine in the vending machine, it still tasted delicious at this moment.
Cao Haichuan remarked with emotion, "If we have group meals every day from now on, doesn't that mean I can use my entire share of the basic allowance to buy cigarettes and then just freeload for food and drinks every day?"
Li Renshu smiled, "You can, but smoking is bad for your health, Officer Cao."
Cao Haichuan waved his hand dismissively, "Hah, at a time like this, who cares about what's bad for your health."
Then he realized his words were a bit of a mood killer and quickly changed the subject, "Alright, alright, let's all toast. Let's hurry up and eat, the food will get cold soon."
With that, everyone raised their glasses, "Cheers!"
In the community hall, for the first time, glasses clinked and joyous laughter rang out.