Culinary God in Wilderness

Chapter 433: Chapter 267: Two Pieces of Bad News

Although he didn’t win first place, Andre didn’t seem disappointed. He looked about the same as before—still wearing that listless, half-dead expression.

"You’ll be back to see Mia and the kids soon. Excited?"

"Do you even have to ask?"

’Just as I thought.’

The moment his wife and kids were mentioned, an extraordinary smile blossomed on Andre’s face. His entire being radiated with a vibrant energy from the inside out.

The boat sped across the sea, racing toward the morning sun as it followed the coastline straight to Cologne.

The production team had already booked two floors of a local hotel for the staff and contestants. In addition to the crew who had been with them in the forest, there was another team at the hotel providing remote technical support.

The first thing the eight contestants did upon returning to the hotel was, of course, take a nice, long shower. After a short rest, they were free to head to the restaurant floor for a meal.

Lin Chen wasn’t too dirty, so he just took a quick shower. He was lying on the soft, massive bed scrolling through his phone when there was a knock on the door.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

"Lin, come on! Let’s go out to eat!"

Hearing that voice, he didn’t even have to guess. It was definitely Erica, that foodie.

"Alright, what do you want to eat?"

Lin Chen walked over, opened the door, and looked at her with an amused expression.

’If she just wanted to eat at the hotel’s buffet, she wouldn’t have said ’go out to eat,’ she’d have said ’go downstairs to eat.’’

’This girl must still be thinking about the Daxia Cuisine I mentioned yesterday.’

"Hot pot!"

"I knew it. Let me change my clothes."

「Three minutes later.」

Lin Chen knocked on Andre’s door.

"Want to go for hot pot?"

Andre had just finished his shower. His brown hair hung naturally, a towel was draped over his shoulders, and his muscular chest and eight-pack abs were on full display. With his determined face covered in a thick beard, he looked just like Thor.

"Hot pot?"

His eyes lit up when he heard the word, but then he saw Erica pop out from behind Lin Chen and wave at him.

Andre blinked. "I’d love to join, but would I be interrupting you two on a date?"

"Date my ass. You’re all brawn and no brains, you big oaf, so stop overthinking things. We’re just friends, the same way you and I were friends before."

Lin Chen rolled his eyes, speechless. He pulled out his phone and checked the time. "I’ll give you five minutes to get ready. You good with that?"

"Five seconds."

He held up his palm, then turned, grabbed a T-shirt from the bed, and pulled it on. Then he was already heading out the door.

As for his wet hair, he’d just let it air-dry in the warm sun.

Cologne was a relatively well-known international coastal city, and it was the first time any of them had been there. As they strolled down the street, they took the opportunity to sightsee in this Panamanian city, with its Mediterranean flair.

Compared to the modern Panama City, the city of Cologne looked significantly more run-down. Only the buildings near the port seemed relatively new.

As the three of them walked, Lin Chen was on his phone, searching for hot pot restaurants in Cologne.

But as he kept searching, a complicated expression slowly crept onto his face.

"Lin, something seems a little strange."

Erica nudged his arm with her elbow, her eyes drifting toward two Black police officers on patrol not far away.

"We’ve been walking for less than ten minutes since we left the hotel, and that’s already the third pair of patrol officers we’ve seen."

"The atmosphere on the streets is definitely a bit tense," Andre remarked casually. "Don’t stare at the police. They might think you’re up to something. Just act natural."

Lin Chen, who had been glued to his phone, suddenly spoke up.

"My friends, I have two pieces of bad news. Which one do you want to hear first?"

"Two pieces of bad news? Are you sure you didn’t misspeak? Isn’t it supposed to be one piece of good news and one of bad news?"

"Nope, two pieces of bad news. According to my search, while Cologne is one of the more famous cities in Central America, Panama’s second-largest city, and the biggest free-trade zone in the Western Hemisphere... it’s only famous as a port, not for the city itself."

"In fact, it’s the opposite. Cologne is notorious for chaos and danger. It’s the largest city connecting to the Pan-American Highway toward Colombia, its residents have complicated backgrounds, it’s the largest Black enclave in Panama, and crime is rampant. That’s why there are so many police patrolling and maintaining order."

"And as the top three finishers who just won the competition, in the eyes of anyone with ill intentions, we’re basically four and a half million US dollars walking on two legs."

"..."

Erica immediately stopped in her tracks and nervously edged closer to Lin Chen, staying behind him.

"And the other piece of bad news?"

"It seems there’s no Chinatown here. There are hot pot places, but they don’t look very high-quality. After all, there are no large Great Xia supermarkets here. I did find a bunch of Great Xia restaurants that serve stir-fried dishes, though. How about we have stir-fry today?"

"Yes, yes! Whatever you say! Let’s just go, quickly. I feel like every Black person we pass is staring at me."

Erica never imagined this city would be like this. She instantly lost all interest in sightseeing and clung tightly to Lin Chen’s arm, refusing to let go.

Fortunately, they were in the city center, where police were patrolling everywhere, so public order was relatively stable.

Walking down the streets of Cologne, they saw dilapidated, abandoned buildings every short distance. They didn’t look like they were being demolished, but rather like they’d been left to rot for a very long time.

Following the online recommendations, Lin Chen finally led the other two to a well-regarded Sichuan restaurant.

"Welcome! Sit anywhere you like. The menu’s on the table, have a look and see what you’d like."

The restaurant was doing decent business; most of its seven or eight tables were full. There were no servers; the proprietress was running around like crazy, but she still managed to find a moment to greet them.

Most of the patrons were Chinese, with a few Black and white people mixed in. Judging by their attire, they were likely there on business.

Erica only started to relax once she was seated. She furtively craned her neck, trying to see the dishes on the nearby tables.

When a beautiful white woman with a stunning figure suddenly walked into the small, male-dominated restaurant, more than a few heads instinctively turned to look.

The moment he saw Erica, the eyes of a man who looked to be in his early thirties lit up.

"Are you Erica?"

"Huh?"

Erica was lost in a fantasy about all the delicious food she was about to order and never expected someone to suddenly call out her name.

She looked toward the voice and saw a complete stranger, one of the Da Xia People.

"It really is you! Then this must be Andre, right?"

The man stood up, pleasantly surprised, and walked over to their table as other diners watched in confusion.

"I’ve seen your show! Especially you," he said, lightly patting Lin Chen’s shoulder. "You’re incredible! A true pride for all of us Chinese people! The world of survival competition is so tough, and we finally have a Chinese master making a name for himself!"

"Haha, it was just luck. All luck."

Having never been praised so publicly by a stranger before, Lin Chen felt his face flush and quickly offered a polite, humble reply.

The two of them were speaking Chinese, so Erica and Andre, who couldn’t understand a word, just sat there in confusion. Thankfully, Lin Chen was perceptive enough to explain.

"He’s a fan of our show. He recognized us and wants to take a photo. You guys mind?"

"Huh? I’m a star now? A photo? Yes, yes, of course!"

At first, Andre couldn’t be bothered with the hassle, but Lin Chen’s casual comment about how fame could earn a lot of money hit him right in his soft spot. He obediently stood up and cooperated.

After taking the picture, the fan glanced at Erica and gave Lin Chen a conspiratorial wiggle of his eyebrows.

"So, you two... what’s the deal?"

The smile on Lin Chen’s face froze. "There’s... there’s really no deal. I haven’t done anything!"

"Look, man, I’m not trying to tell you what to do," the fan said, "but a gorgeous mixed-race girl like her isn’t something you find every day, especially abroad. Plus, she’s rich and beautiful, and she’s making the first move, right? If you’re single, there’s no harm in giving it a shot. What if it works out?"

"What are you two talking about? Translate for me!"

"Uhh..." Beads of sweat instantly formed on Lin Chen’s forehead. He scrambled to explain, "He said... he said I should take you to eat more delicious Daxia Cuisine."

"That’s it? You two just had a long, rambling conversation, and that’s all he said? Are you pulling my leg because I don’t understand Chinese?"

"Haha," a foreigner at the fan’s table couldn’t help but chime in, "He was telling your friend here to hurry up and start dating you. He said gorgeous mixed-race women like you are a rare find."

"Really?!"

Erica’s eyes lit up. She immediately stepped forward and clapped the fan on the shoulder.

"Nice work! Your table’s on me!"

"No, no, it’s fine! The company reimburses all our expenses on this business trip, so it’s basically free for us anyway."

The fan glanced at Lin Chen, chuckled slyly, and leaned in to whisper something in Erica’s ear. Her eyes grew brighter and brighter as she listened, nodding repeatedly.

GULP.

Lin Chen gulped. He felt a chill run down his spine, overcome with a sense of foreboding.

’When it comes to scheming and coming up with terrible ideas, there’s probably no one on Earth better at it than the Da Xia People.’

"Alright, I won’t bother you guys anymore. I recommend you order the twice-cooked pork here. It’s a great dish for foreigners who haven’t had much Daxia Cuisine before. Most importantly, the flavor is pretty authentic, not one of those Americanized versions."

After all the commotion, the patrons at the other tables grew curious and started pulling out their phones to search online.

All it took was searching the keywords ’wilderness survival’ and ’Da Xia People’ to quickly find the answer.

The proprietress never expected celebrities to visit her little restaurant. Without a moment’s hesitation, she came over and asked for a group photo too, planning to hang it on the wall to cultivate an ’internet-famous’ vibe.

Cologne was the largest free-trade zone in the Western Hemisphere. Wherever there’s trade, you’re bound to find Da Xia People.

And with a constant stream of Da Xia People coming through, an ’internet-famous’ spot would surely be more attractive than an unknown one.

"Ma’am," Lin Chen said to the proprietress, "how about this? I won’t order from the menu. Just bring us a few of your restaurant’s signature dishes."

Lin Chen handed the menu to Erica. "Take a look and see if there’s anything you want. If not, we’ll just let the proprietress pick for us."