In this chapter, the Underground Man explains that he is about to die. He asks the child to tell him what he has just tasted. The child tells him that it is a "kind of wine." The Underground Man says that he has concocted a cocktail that he calls "the lie-yan queen." He explains that the name "lie-yan" means "manic and violent," but that he likes the drink so much that he decides to call the child "little ji-dong." The two men discuss the existence of the underground world and the fact that they are the only underground creatures on the planet. They discuss how they came to be in this place and decide to make a deal.