Chapter 16: Arrival at the Pedestrian Street!
Without a phone or clock, Huai Yu could only determine the time of day based on two things: the morning broadcast and the evening sunset.
Today, the sky was overcast, and she couldn’t tell what time it was. She estimated that she had been hiking in the mountains for a long time, and it was probably no earlier than 2 PM.
She wouldn’t have been in such a rush to go to the trading market if it weren’t for the weather forecast of heavy rain in the morning broadcast. She decided to head out quickly.
The familiar bus stop was located at the edge of Rose Corridor’s District 16, just a five-minute walk from there. Although it was the last stop, the bus terminal was actually in the Jin Yuan community for safety reasons.
It was a setup designed for the plant defense military, but it was also convenient for her.
She noticed a notice posted at the bus stop—there was a bus every half hour, which was good, as it wasn’t too long of a wait.
She put down her heavy red bucket and package, stretched her body, and soon spotted a bus slowly approaching. Since it was mid-afternoon, there were only a few people on board.
Huai Yu was overjoyed!
She hummed to herself as she carried her things onto the bus. The driver gave her a curious glance: “Miss, do you have relatives at the defense military station?”
“Mm!” Huai Yu flashed a bright smile: “My brother is there, I often go visit him…”
She then lowered her head a little shyly, holding her package tighter.
The people on the bus quickly understood—so she’s just bringing supplies for family! No big deal, they’d do the same if they could.
They turned their attention back to other matters.
Huai Yu lifted her head slightly and checked the time on the bus’s large screen: 2:08.
She then asked the driver, “After this month’s free period for the bus, how much will it cost to return?”
The driver answered, “Maybe one or two points? The higher-ups haven’t notified us yet. But our final stop is Hong Sheng Pedestrian Street, which will take about an hour and a half, so it shouldn’t be too expensive.”
“Ah!” The aunties on the bus grumbled: “Two points isn’t cheap! Two points could buy two packs of nutritional liquid for two days! Nowadays, everyone is like moving into a new house—who has extra food supplies?!”
“Exactly!”
The driver wasn’t pleased either: “I don’t set the prices, so what are you complaining about? You all boarded from Jin Yuan, so how could people living in the city center afford it?”
“I heard the former boss there is now recruiting and rebuilding the company. People with more contribution points can even exchange them for cars!”
“Yeah, those capitalists have assets, and they support the country, so they get more points… We’re just ordinary folks…”
The conversation turned into a murmur of complaints.
Huai Yu listened quietly, trying to absorb the unfamiliar knowledge, like how cheap nutritional liquid was…
She assumed there were state subsidies involved, as the price was one point per bag of nutritional liquid, making it affordable for everyone as long as they weren’t lying on the ground waiting to die.
But the bus ride to the Hong Sheng trading market was about an hour and a half. She wondered if the market would still be busy in the evening. Also, how late did the bus run?
“What time does the last bus leave?” she asked the driver.
The driver replied, “The last bus from Hong Sheng leaves at 7:30 PM. It’s getting late—are you planning to head back afterward?”
“Mm,” Huai Yu hesitated a bit: “My brother and sister-in-law just got married, and their house… Well, my brother swapped his points for a small dorm outside.”
“Ah.”
Everyone understood.
Even though the Jin Yuan community was built with homes over 90 square meters, many buildings in the city center had been damaged by plants, and now there were very few places to live. Even after six years, people only had about 20 to 30 square meters per person.
Moreover, since her brother and his wife were newlyweds, Huai Yu, as a young woman, wasn’t living with them.
The older men and women on the bus slowly began to understand.
“So what are you planning to sell?” someone asked, curious about the bundle and the red bucket.
Huai Yu smiled shyly: “My brother… um, he brought back some pine nuts and hazelnuts, and I’m going to trade them for some points.”
“Ah!” The others nodded knowingly: “Must’ve been gathered while clearing invasive plants, right? The defense military’s welfare is great.”
“Yeah, but it doesn’t fetch much. The fruits from invasive plants are highly mutated, they taste bad, and they can’t sell for much.”
“Even a mosquito is meat… Us ordinary folks wouldn’t dare venture into the mountains.”
“Don’t even mention it, my daughter started dating an adventurer. They have to detour through the wilderness from Three Clear Mountains every month for their expeditions…”
“Wow, that pays well! If they find any special species, the research institute offers a good price!”
“What’s the point, though? It’s risky… I don’t approve of it…”
“Miss, have you sold this stuff before? There’s a testing station at the pedestrian street. If your goods don’t pass the tests, you can’t sell them.”
As they talked, Huai Yu quietly listened and absorbed more information. For instance, nutritional liquid is cheap, and she now understood the market flow.
After a while, when the bus had filled up, Huai Yu had to hold the bucket close to her chest as the bus gradually stopped—
[Final Stop—Hong Sheng Pedestrian Street, Arrival.]
In the blink of an eye, everyone on the bus was up and moving, and the bus was empty in no time. Huai Yu followed them off the bus, noticing the huge but somewhat outdated archway at the entrance of the pedestrian street, now adorned with a large banner:
[Hong Sheng Trading Market East Entrance]
The gate was a large, ancient-style archway, likely built to give the street a unique character. But now, the banner covered it up, and Huai Yu quickly glanced past the entrance guards, looking instead at the testing station inside.
Although it was afternoon, the shops on both sides of the pedestrian street were open. The signs displayed various clothing and random brand names.
One shop, called BLUE Luxury Collection, seemed to be selling buckets, bottles, and bowls…
Another shop, XX Silk, had piles of leeks for sale with a special price: Mutation Value 12, Special Price 12 points per kilogram!
Many people were browsing, clearly attracted by the special price.
But Huai Yu thought of how much she had traded for just eleven pine cones…
The defense military was truly kind!
She smiled and headed to the testing station to queue.
The testing station was efficient, similar to a high-speed rail security check. After scanning her ID card, Huai Yu simply placed her items on the conveyor belt and walked through with them.
A minute later, a temporary anti-counterfeit certificate was printed out by the nearby machine.
“Huh?” The staff member leaned over: “Your items are of good quality, mutation value 11.”
Huai Yu smiled shyly.
“Too bad…” The staff member clicked their tongue: “It’s all dried fruit, not very filling… maybe some wealthier families would buy it. Here’s your certificate, and this is your trading wristband. Your contribution points will be credited through this wristband. Just make sure to transfer the points at the counter on the way out.”
“Oh, and by the way,” the staff member added: “We’re not charging stall fees this month, but next month, be sure to prepare contribution points for that.”
Update: There’s another update at 6:30 PM!
Chapter 16: Arrival at the Pedestrian Street!
Without a phone or clock, Huai Yu could only determine the time of day based on two things: the morning broadcast and the evening sunset.
Today, the sky was overcast, and she couldn’t tell what time it was. She estimated that she had been hiking in the mountains for a long time, and it was probably no earlier than 2 PM.
She wouldn’t have been in such a rush to go to the trading market if it weren’t for the weather forecast of heavy rain in the morning broadcast. She decided to head out quickly.
The familiar bus stop was located at the edge of Rose Corridor’s District 16, just a five-minute walk from there. Although it was the last stop, the bus terminal was actually in the Jin Yuan community for safety reasons.
It was a setup designed for the plant defense military, but it was also convenient for her.
She noticed a notice posted at the bus stop—there was a bus every half hour, which was good, as it wasn’t too long of a wait.
She put down her heavy red bucket and package, stretched her body, and soon spotted a bus slowly approaching. Since it was mid-afternoon, there were only a few people on board.
Huai Yu was overjoyed!
She hummed to herself as she carried her things onto the bus. The driver gave her a curious glance: “Miss, do you have relatives at the defense military station?”
“Mm!” Huai Yu flashed a bright smile: “My brother is there, I often go visit him…”
She then lowered her head a little shyly, holding her package tighter.
The people on the bus quickly understood—so she’s just bringing supplies for family! No big deal, they’d do the same if they could.
They turned their attention back to other matters.
Huai Yu lifted her head slightly and checked the time on the bus’s large screen: 2:08.
She then asked the driver, “After this month’s free period for the bus, how much will it cost to return?”
The driver answered, “Maybe one or two points? The higher-ups haven’t notified us yet. But our final stop is Hong Sheng Pedestrian Street, which will take about an hour and a half, so it shouldn’t be too expensive.”
“Ah!” The aunties on the bus grumbled: “Two points isn’t cheap! Two points could buy two packs of nutritional liquid for two days! Nowadays, everyone is like moving into a new house—who has extra food supplies?!”
“Exactly!”
The driver wasn’t pleased either: “I don’t set the prices, so what are you complaining about? You all boarded from Jin Yuan, so how could people living in the city center afford it?”
“I heard the former boss there is now recruiting and rebuilding the company. People with more contribution points can even exchange them for cars!”
“Yeah, those capitalists have assets, and they support the country, so they get more points… We’re just ordinary folks…”
The conversation turned into a murmur of complaints.
Huai Yu listened quietly, trying to absorb the unfamiliar knowledge, like how cheap nutritional liquid was…
She assumed there were state subsidies involved, as the price was one point per bag of nutritional liquid, making it affordable for everyone as long as they weren’t lying on the ground waiting to die.
But the bus ride to the Hong Sheng trading market was about an hour and a half. She wondered if the market would still be busy in the evening. Also, how late did the bus run?
“What time does the last bus leave?” she asked the driver.
The driver replied, “The last bus from Hong Sheng leaves at 7:30 PM. It’s getting late—are you planning to head back afterward?”
“Mm,” Huai Yu hesitated a bit: “My brother and sister-in-law just got married, and their house… Well, my brother swapped his points for a small dorm outside.”
“Ah.”
Everyone understood.
Even though the Jin Yuan community was built with homes over 90 square meters, many buildings in the city center had been damaged by plants, and now there were very few places to live. Even after six years, people only had about 20 to 30 square meters per person.
Moreover, since her brother and his wife were newlyweds, Huai Yu, as a young woman, wasn’t living with them.
The older men and women on the bus slowly began to understand.
“So what are you planning to sell?” someone asked, curious about the bundle and the red bucket.
Huai Yu smiled shyly: “My brother… um, he brought back some pine nuts and hazelnuts, and I’m going to trade them for some points.”
“Ah!” The others nodded knowingly: “Must’ve been gathered while clearing invasive plants, right? The defense military’s welfare is great.”
“Yeah, but it doesn’t fetch much. The fruits from invasive plants are highly mutated, they taste bad, and they can’t sell for much.”
“Even a mosquito is meat… Us ordinary folks wouldn’t dare venture into the mountains.”
“Don’t even mention it, my daughter started dating an adventurer. They have to detour through the wilderness from Three Clear Mountains every month for their expeditions…”
“Wow, that pays well! If they find any special species, the research institute offers a good price!”
“What’s the point, though? It’s risky… I don’t approve of it…”
“Miss, have you sold this stuff before? There’s a testing station at the pedestrian street. If your goods don’t pass the tests, you can’t sell them.”
As they talked, Huai Yu quietly listened and absorbed more information. For instance, nutritional liquid is cheap, and she now understood the market flow.
After a while, when the bus had filled up, Huai Yu had to hold the bucket close to her chest as the bus gradually stopped—
[Final Stop—Hong Sheng Pedestrian Street, Arrival.]
In the blink of an eye, everyone on the bus was up and moving, and the bus was empty in no time. Huai Yu followed them off the bus, noticing the huge but somewhat outdated archway at the entrance of the pedestrian street, now adorned with a large banner:
[Hong Sheng Trading Market East Entrance]
The gate was a large, ancient-style archway, likely built to give the street a unique character. But now, the banner covered it up, and Huai Yu quickly glanced past the entrance guards, looking instead at the testing station inside.
Although it was afternoon, the shops on both sides of the pedestrian street were open. The signs displayed various clothing and random brand names.
One shop, called BLUE Luxury Collection, seemed to be selling buckets, bottles, and bowls…
Another shop, XX Silk, had piles of leeks for sale with a special price: Mutation Value 12, Special Price 12 points per kilogram!
Many people were browsing, clearly attracted by the special price.
But Huai Yu thought of how much she had traded for just eleven pine cones…
The defense military was truly kind!
She smiled and headed to the testing station to queue.
The testing station was efficient, similar to a high-speed rail security check. After scanning her ID card, Huai Yu simply placed her items on the conveyor belt and walked through with them.
A minute later, a temporary anti-counterfeit certificate was printed out by the nearby machine.
“Huh?” The staff member leaned over: “Your items are of good quality, mutation value 11.”
Huai Yu smiled shyly.
“Too bad…” The staff member clicked their tongue: “It’s all dried fruit, not very filling… maybe some wealthier families would buy it. Here’s your certificate, and this is your trading wristband. Your contribution points will be credited through this wristband. Just make sure to transfer the points at the counter on the way out.”
“Oh, and by the way,” the staff member added: “We’re not charging stall fees this month, but next month, be sure to prepare contribution points for that.”
