Chapter 65: Astonishment
Yan Xi Nian showed Xia Lu Nong the materials they had exchanged and then told him they needed to stay another day.
“We need to meet Yacheng’s leader,” Yan Xi Nian said. “You and Kong Zhi can wander around the night market. If all goes well, we’ll leave for the base early tomorrow.”
Xia Lu Nong looked at them nervously. “Will it be dangerous?”
Xia Huo Qu replied, “Probably not. Our base is strong enough that, as long as there’s no conflict, there shouldn’t be any real danger.”
Xia Lu Nong grew more anxious, “But doesn’t that still mean there could be danger?”
Yan Xi Nian laughed, throwing an arm around Xia Huo Qu’s shoulder. He said to Xia Lu Nong, “If there’s any danger, we’ll immediately turn into our beast forms and escape. When you hear the commotion, have Kong Zhi grab you and fly you back, okay?”
Xia Huo Qu elbowed him and frowned, “Now’s not the time for jokes.”
Then he turned to his brother and said, “They’re normal people like us. We don’t have conflicting interests, so it’s unlikely there will be much danger.”
After finishing, Xia Huo Qu swiftly sent Xia Lu Nong and Kong Zhi out to explore the night market.
Yacheng’s night market was famous. It would be a pity to visit and not explore it thoroughly.
Compared to last night, today’s night market was less lively, with fewer stalls and a smaller crowd.
Xia Lu Nong curiously wandered around, observing the scene.
On both sides of the street were food stalls, and behind them were storefronts.
People walked in small groups up and down the street, entering and exiting the various shops.
Many of the food stalls had simple tables and chairs set up beside them, where people were eating.
Each stall had a small, exposed light bulb hanging from it. The soft orange glow illuminated the area around it.
The shops behind the food stalls also had small light bulbs, giving off a rough and simple vibe.
Kong Zhi, carrying a bag of rice, grabbed Xia Lu Nong’s wrist and led him forward, “What do you want to buy today?”
Xia Lu Nong nodded eagerly, looking around in every direction. “I didn’t really look closely yesterday. There’s so much here!”
Yesterday, he had only bought some snacks from the stalls and returned to set up shop.
Now that he was paying attention, he saw that the market sold everything: pots, pans, clothes, bedding, hardware, and even weapons.
Since waking up, this was the first time Xia Lu Nong had properly explored a market, and he didn’t know where to focus his gaze.
Kong Zhi led him through the shops one by one. When the shop owners saw the rice in their basket, they warmly promoted their goods.
“Clothes—high-end clothes—hey, young man, come check out these clothes!” A crisp female voice floated through the night market, her rhythmic sales pitch sounding almost like a song.
Xia Lu Nong was drawn to a nearby shop. When the lady owner saw him, her smile grew even brighter. “These clothes were all top brands before the disaster. With your looks and figure, you’d look amazing in them! Come in and take a look?”
Embarrassed by her compliments, Xia Lu Nong’s ears turned red. He coughed lightly, trying to avoid her gaze, and turned to say something to Kong Zhi.
Kong Zhi paused and pushed him. “Go take a look.”
Xia Lu Nong wasn’t planning to buy clothes, but with Kong Zhi’s encouragement, he was soon captivated.
The clothes were all international luxury brands, made from fine materials with excellent design.
The owner quickly picked out several outfits for him and smiled, “These are all cool and stylish. They suit your vibe. Want to try them on?”
Xia Lu Nong touched his buzz cut, feeling like the clothes matched his hairstyle more than his overall vibe.
Kong Zhi said, “Go ahead. I’ll be outside checking out some other things.”
Xia Lu Nong tried on the clothes, which fit perfectly, making him look tall and lean.
He stood in front of the mirror, admiring his reflection from different angles.
Kong Zhi told the shop owner, “We’ll take this set.”
The owner beamed, “Great choice! This set is perfect for him. I also have some boots—hey, young man, try these on too.”
Xia Lu Nong turned to look at Kong Zhi.
With an encouraging expression, Kong Zhi nodded, so Xia Lu Nong took the clothes and went to the fitting room to try them on.
Xia Lu Nong had a delicate and beautiful face, with a rounded skull, high brow bones, deep and long eyes, a narrow face, and fair skin—his appearance stood out in any crowd. Someone with his looks would look good even in a potato sack, let alone these finely tailored high-end clothes from before the disaster.
When he came out of the fitting room, he seemed to be glowing, instantly standing out from the crowd.
The shop owner’s eyes lit up, and she sincerely complimented him, “Young man, you look amazing in that outfit!”
Kong Zhi couldn’t take his eyes off him and, for once, nodded in agreement.
An hour later, Kong Zhi had traded 20 pounds of rice for 35 pieces of clothing, 10 pairs of underwear, 10 pairs of socks, and two pairs of shoes.
Xia Lu Nong, who had stood still as Kong Zhi dressed him for a long time, finally breathed a sigh of relief when they decided to leave the shop. He never would have guessed that the usually cold and reserved Kong Zhi actually had a knack for styling people.
After finally leaving the clothing store, Xia Lu Nong refused to enter another one, instead pulling Kong Zhi along to explore other shops.
Most of the items sold in Yacheng’s shops could also be found in the marketplace at their base, but not in such variety or with such fine quality.
As they walked down the street, they soon spotted an electronics shop. Inside, they found a wide range of items: cell phones, computers, gaming consoles, e-readers, and more.
Yacheng had electricity, and although it wasn’t connected to the internet, these devices still worked.
Seeing these electronics stunned Xia Lu Nong for a moment. He briefly escaped from the harshness of his current life, suddenly reminded that they hadn’t returned to ancient times but were living in a world that had undergone a near-apocalyptic disaster.
The two of them bought a computer, cell phone, hard drives, and e-readers, along with two portable chargers. All of the devices were pre-loaded with content—movies, TV shows, music, and e-books.
After a tough round of bargaining, they traded 80 pounds of rice for all of these electronics.
Hugging the devices, Xia Lu Nong felt as though he had been transported back to a different era.
The shop owner reminded them that if they ever ran out of content, they could return to copy more at a low cost.
Xia Lu Nong, feeling a mix of emotions, returned to the inn with Kong Zhi, carrying their new electronics.
Previously, he had thought that all the effort spent searching for generator components—and the ongoing work needed to maintain the river to ensure the generator kept running—wasn’t worth it. But after seeing these devices, he realized that they weren’t just looking for generators; they were gradually reclaiming the lost pieces of civilization.
Lost in thought, Xia Lu Nong didn’t respond when Xia Huo Qu and Yan Xi Nian returned, which puzzled them. When they asked him what was wrong, he kept quiet, so they decided to drop the matter and prepare for their journey back.
Xia Lu Nong didn’t know what his brother and Xi Nian had discussed with the people of Yacheng, but their departure was incredibly smooth. No one stopped them, and there was no need for Kong Zhi to secretly fly out with the weapons or seeds. They simply loaded everything onto a truck and drove away.
On the way there, their truck had been filled with crabs and bullfrogs, but on the way back, it carried weapons, live poultry, and grains.
Even though they had traded away more than 80% of the goods they had brought, they still left with over a thousand pounds of various supplies, which perfectly filled their small truck.
The truck had been thoroughly checked and cleaned, so it looked neat, and the cargo was carefully organized.
Xia Huo Qu and Yan Xi Nian took turns driving, while Xia Lu Nong and Kong Zhi rested in the back of the truck, lying among the supplies, playing with their phones as the truck slowly rumbled along.
The weather had grown hot, and outside the truck, the sounds of birds and cicadas were constant. As the truck drove along under the bright sun, a cool breeze swept through.
Xia Lu Nong, lying in the middle of the supplies, would take breaks from his electronics to rest.
The return trip was uneventful, and they made it back to the base smoothly.
Their trip to Yacheng, including the six days spent traveling and the two days staying there, had taken eight days in total.
When they returned to the base, Xia Lu Nong felt as if the whole place had changed a little.
The people at the base hadn’t seen them in a long time, and they were excited to welcome them back, greeting them enthusiastically.
The sheer amount of goods they had brought back, especially the weapons, drew crowds of people who eagerly gathered around, examining everything as if it were a holiday celebration.
The live chickens, ducks, geese, and bamboo rats also piqued the interest of the women at the base, and even the children came over to watch.
Their home was unusually lively, but since Xia Huo Qu and Kong Zhi weren’t very talkative, and Xia Lu Nong was tired, it was up to Yan Xi Nian to do most of the chatting.
Xia Lu Nong overheard some of the conversation and felt like he was listening to an epic tale. The ups and downs of their journey made it sound like they had ventured into some magical world.
The children’s exclamations and gasps of surprise as they listened to the story reminded Xia Lu Nong of watching a monkey show.
Smiling, he went to wash up, then had some food from the canteen before collapsing into bed for a deep sleep.
The next morning, he woke up feeling refreshed and was surprised to find that his brother had also just gotten up and was washing his face.
The water barrel had been filled the day before, so Xia Lu Nong scooped out some water and stood by the eaves, washing his face beside his brother. “It would be nice if our base had running water.”
“We don’t have enough manpower right now. Maybe we can work on it during the winter lull,” Xia Huo Qu replied. “Installing running water is no small task. We’d need to go out and find water pipes first.”
As Xia Lu Nong placed a towel on his face, he mumbled, “Too bad we’re so remote. There doesn’t seem to be any industrial areas nearby.”
“Industrial areas have more mutated plants and animals. They may be convenient, but they’re also dangerous. It’s safer here.”
Xia Lu Nong asked, “What about Yacheng? They have so many supplies—is there an industrial area or big city nearby?”
“Not really. They’re just lucky with their location. After the disaster, the entire ancient town was well-preserved. With a bit of repair, it was livable, unlike us, where we had to start from scratch.”
Xia Lu Nong casually asked, “So why didn’t we find an ancient town like that back then?”
Xia Huo Qu, after brushing his teeth and washing his face, poured the water on the strawberry plants and replied, “There aren’t that many ancient towns waiting for us to settle in. That town wasn’t originally Boss Shi’s territory either; they took it over later.”
Xia Lu Nong was startled, “What?”
But Xia Huo Qu didn’t say more and changed the subject, “What are you doing today?”
Xia Lu Nong replied, “I haven’t been to the fields in a while, so I’ll check on them first. If there’s still time afterward, I’ll take a closer look at the wheat seeds we brought back and see if I can figure out any hidden secrets.”
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Thanks for the chapter!