Cooking Gourmet Meals in the Apocalypse

Chapter 275: Chapter 272: How Could I Not Be Reluctant?

Chen Dingbang wasn’t flustered in the slightest. ”Old Xu, you really need to work on your composure!”

Xu Anguo immediately forced a couple of laughs. ”Shanshan, don’t mind him. Your Uncle Chen just loves to joke around.”

At that glance, Chen Xing felt he was being completely sincere.

She just didn’t quite understand the meaning behind his glare.

’It’s not just because of Xu Anguo,’ she thought. ’There’s real malice in his eyes.’

’He hates me!’

Chen Xing picked up on it immediately.

”Have I done something to offend you?” When it came to Xu Anguo and his associates, there was no need for pleasantries. Her question was blunt.

”Hmph...” Chen Dingbang’s laugh only confirmed Chen Xing’s suspicion.

’This guy really has it in for me.’

”Don’t let your imagination run wild. You’ve never even met your Uncle Chen, so how could you have possibly offended him?”

Chen Dingbang curled his lip, raised an eyebrow, and said with a sneer, ”You’re reading too much into it!”

With that, he shot Chen Xing another glare and walked away.

’Am I reading too much into it?’

Chen Xing didn’t think so.

’I suspected he might be the masked man, but... his build doesn’t look right from the back.’

’The masked man was thin, too, but his shoulders were much broader than Chen Dingbang’s. Their height is about the same, though.’

’Then what about Lu Wanrou?’

’There has to be more to the story between Xu Anguo and Lu Wanrou.’

She glanced over at Chen Dingbang, just as he found a seat and looked back at her.

This time, Chen Dingbang made no attempt to hide his hostility.

Chen Xing wasn’t about to put up with it. If he was going to be hostile, so could she.

Soon, everyone was seated for the meal.

Xu Anguo had Chen Xing sit with him at the head of the table, with Chen Dingbang on his other side.

’This just proves it,’ she thought. ’Their relationship is definitely not simple.’

’And the fact that no one else here seems to find it strange confirms it.’

Throughout the meal, Xu Anguo kept placing food on Chen Xing’s plate, but she didn’t touch a single bite.

As the dinner party was winding down, a covered dish was brought out for dessert.

’Strange,’ Chen Xing thought. ’Why does a dessert need to be so mysterious?’

And, of course, the dish was placed right in front of her.

Xu Anguo looked at Chen Xing, smiling as he lifted the cloche. ”Shanshan, take a look at this...”

Curious, Chen Xing leaned in for a look.

But the moment she saw the puff of white smoke, she knew Xu Anguo had set a trap for her.

A wave of dizziness washed over her, and she instantly lost consciousness.

But her consciousness had already taken refuge in her space.

Her space truly was all-powerful.

As her mind cleared, she heard Xu Anguo’s voice. ”Take more men with you. I want that tiger captured, no matter what!”

Chen Xing’s eyes fluttered. A room full of people was staring down at her.

Their eyes were filled with a mixture of scrutiny and excitement.

Chen Dingbang crouched beside her and pinched her cheek with his slender, pale fingers. ”I hate this trouble-making face of yours more than anything!”

He wanted to destroy it.

But Xu Anguo stopped him. ”Do you want to stop the research? Every part of her is important. Once she’s no longer useful, you can do as you please with her. Isn’t that enough?”

”Hmph. I’m just afraid you won’t be able to part with her when the time comes!” Seeing that Chen Xing wasn’t completely unconscious, Chen Dingbang’s lips curved into a slight smile as he leaned in. ”In a little while, the more aware you are, the more it’s going to hurt.”

”Why wouldn’t I be able to part with her?” Xu Anguo retorted. ”I’m the one who knocked her out, aren’t I?”

Chen Xing didn’t feel any anguish.

She had never held out any hope for Xu Anguo in the first place.

A moment later, she was lifted up and carried out through another door.

’I must be on the other side of the black glass wall now,’ she thought.

’This place is completely different from the living quarters. It’s a replica of the Xingguang Research Institute.’

’Just as I expected. White walls, white lights... all of it in that sterile white I despise.’

Numerous researchers in white lab coats stood in a line, as if awaiting the arrival of someone important.

Before she could be carried into the laboratory, a commotion made Xu Anguo stop.

The men sent to capture Meng Hu had returned, out of breath. ”Director, the tiger you told us about—it’s not in the house!”

”How is that possible?” Xu Anguo said in disbelief, glancing down at the ”unconscious” Chen Xing.

Chen Xing sneered inwardly.

’I knew they were up to no good. I moved Meng Hu into my space before I left.’

’I’ve already exposed my abilities to the masked man at the Research Institute. There’s no way Xu Anguo, as the director, wouldn’t know about it.’

”We searched every nook and cranny. There’s no tiger there!”

Xu Anguo looked toward Chen Dingbang.

Chen Dingbang shot a coquettish glance at Chen Xing and let out a cold snort. ”Guo, she’s nothing like you. So cunning!”

Xu Anguo shot him a look, silently warning him not to misspeak, then turned back to the search party. ”Continue searching for the tiger. Report back the moment you find anything!”

After dismissing them, he ordered the men carrying Chen Xing, ”Get her into the lab! Now!”

He was worried something unexpected would happen.

As the director, how could he not be aware of how powerful Chen Xing’s abilities were?

Without incident, Chen Xing was carried into the white laboratory and strapped to a bed.

Her arms were restrained at her sides, and her legs were bound tightly.

Just as they were about to hook her up to various instruments, Chen Xing’s eyes snapped open.

Xu Anguo was taken aback.

The sedative he’d developed was supposed to induce instantaneous and long-lasting unconsciousness. Without a specific antidote, it should be nearly impossible for someone to wake up on their own.

”What are you doing?” Chen Xing asked, playing along by struggling against her restraints.

’In reality, she could have snapped these restraints with a single strong tug.’

Xu Anguo, for his part, didn’t break character. He continued his benevolent act. ”You suddenly fainted during dinner. I was worried about you, so I rushed you here for a check-up!”

’Could he be any more shameless?’

’Does he really take me for an idiot?’

”If it’s a check-up, why am I tied down?” she asked, continuing to play dumb.

”The examination can cause some discomfort, so...” Xu Anguo began to spin another lie, but was cut off by Chen Dingbang’s laugh.

”Guo, do you really think she’s going to believe that? She’s survived this long in the apocalypse,” Chen Dingbang scoffed. ”Just tell her the truth. You want to use her for your research!”

As he spoke, Chen Dingbang leaned close to Chen Xing, his long fingers tracing her cheek. ”If you tell me where you got that little disappearing trick of yours, I’ll beg your ’father’ here to let you go.”

That ability was far superior to simple invisibility.

Invisibility had its flaws; you could still be hit by a bomb, for example.