33 Success

"Have pity on me? Who’s going to have pity on me? I have old folks and children at home, and I’m counting on trading these things to fill our bellies!" The man holding the medical kit nimbly dodged the elderly man who had lunged at him, brushed off his clothes, and walked away.

Watching the old man’s dejected expression, Rong Xianxian took a box of fever medication from her backpack and quietly slipped it into his hand.

The old man looked at the medicine in his palm, then glanced at Rong Xianxian with a look of astonishment.

Rong Xianxian gave him a gentle smile, thinking that if he said "thank you," she would reply that it was no trouble.

Instead, the old man pointed to a small stall nearby and said, "Those are all yours," before taking off at a run, his movements as agile as a young man, not at all like someone his age.

Rong Xianxian was momentarily stunned. She hadn't intended to trade; she had just wanted to do a good deed.

The middle-aged woman next to her looked at Rong Xianxian’s surprised face and said, "Dear, you've been had! That old man Chen’s stall is full of junk. He’s finally found someone to take his things, so of course he’s going to run!"

Rong Xianxian was caught between laughter and tears. "Maybe he was just in a hurry! Well, since I’ve traded for them, I might as well take a look."

It turned out to be silicone material, which could be processed into shoe covers, baby bottles, pacifiers, water bags, and molds. It was very versatile, but unfortunately, in these times, there was no telling where one could find a processing plant. It really was just junk, no wonder the old man had bolted.

"Ma'am, isn't it said that everyone has to work? How are you allowed to sell things here?" Rong Xianxian asked, seeing that the woman looked quite relaxed.

"At first, everyone had to participate in the construction at the work site. A lot of people were dissatisfied and engaged in passive resistance, and the efficiency was terrible. Later, they changed it to a contract system where you earn work points; if you don't work, you don't get points," the woman said with a smile.

Some people brought things they didn't need from home to trade, and a commercial street slowly formed. Strictly speaking, it was only in the last few days that the number of people had increased.

The young, strong, and brave ones who had fought monsters were unwilling to work honestly for points; they formed gangs to scavenge for supplies in the city.

Since they brought back their own supplies, the military didn't have to distribute as much, so the army left them alone.

Looking at that pile of silicone material, it had been very expensive in the past. Adhering to the principle of never wasting anything, Rong Xianxian dragged a large burlap sack behind her when she returned to her tent.

She didn't leave the tent again. She tidied everything up, waiting to get what she needed that night and leave first thing in the morning.

"Er Leng, come on, let’s you and me have a good drink today." Yang Chao draped one arm around Er Leng’s shoulder while pouring wine with the other.

"Hey, Brother Chao, you really are my own brother. I haven't had a drink in over a month; I’ve been dying for it." The burly, red-faced man was filled with excitement, his eyes practically glowing at the sight of the alcohol. He looked at Yang Chao with such gratitude that his naive, foolish expression made Yang Chao’s skin crawl.

Yang Chao had malicious intent and kept pushing the drinks. Er Leng, unable to resist his cravings, accepted everything and soon became heavily intoxicated.

Seeing that Er Leng could no longer articulate his words, and noticing the pitch-black night outside, Yang Chao hurriedly put the wine away. If they kept drinking, Er Leng might just pass out.

"Want a wife?" Yang Chao said with a wink.

"Huh?" Er Leng was confused. Was Brother Chao trying to be a matchmaker for him? If so, shouldn't he be the one treating him to a drink?

"A beautiful woman moved in next door. She's all alone. You know how it is nowadays; a woman with no one to rely on is so pitiful. A strong, capable man like you with no baggage would be a perfect match. Why don't you go in there and ask if she’s willing to be with you?" Yang Chao said earnestly, wearing an expression that suggested he was helping him seize a golden opportunity.

"Ah, but is that right? What if..." Er Leng wasn't very bright. He felt like something was wrong, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

Seeing his hesitation, Yang Chao impatiently interrupted, "What are you afraid of? If she’s willing, it’s a done deal. If she refuses and makes a scene, we’ll just rush over and explain that you were drunk and went to the wrong door. Simple, right?"

"Stop dragging your feet. Are you going or not?" Yang Chao made a move as if to leave.

The safe zone was under military rule with strict governance, but Er Leng’s brain was slow, and with the alcohol fueling his blood, he shouted, "I'll go!"

Yang Chao returned to his own tent with a smug sense of satisfaction and explained everything to Zhang Xiuhua. The family extinguished their lights early and pretended to sleep.

Er Leng tidied himself up as best as the limited conditions allowed and staggered toward Rong Xianxian’s tent.

That tent was incredibly conspicuous, standing out like a crane in a flock of chickens among the dark, dreary tents nearby.

"Hey, where’s the door? This..." Er Leng tried to pull open the fancy tent, but it wouldn't budge. Just then, a delicate hand pulled him inside—Rong Xianxian was afraid he would damage her tent.

The words he was about to speak were swallowed back.

It was pitch black inside the tent, and he couldn't see a thing. The lingering scent of food made him sniff the air involuntarily.

"Smells like roasted meat."

"Who are you? What are you doing here?" Rong Xianxian asked, her voice low.

"I wanted... I wanted to say, you probably need a man," Er Leng gulped and said.

Rong Xianxian wasn't angry; instead, she smiled. *Very good*, she thought. It seemed he knew exactly what he was doing and wasn't innocent at all. In her previous life, she had beaten him half to death, and she certainly hadn't wronged him.

"Then I won't be polite."

Rong Xianxian skillfully gagged him and tied his hands and feet. She found the book in his pocket. She wasn't curious about how he had obtained the *True Spirit Classic*, as luck was sometimes unpredictable.

Her goal for this trip was accomplished. She would head home first thing tomorrow morning.

Rong Xianxian glanced at Er Leng, who was struggling on the floor. In her previous life, she had beaten him half to death out of anger, but it had only ended up harming herself. This time, once she was out of the safe zone, she would let him go. After all, what she had obtained from him was truly a treasure.

Rong Xianxian turned on a small flashlight and began flipping through the *True Spirit Classic*, feeling steady and at ease.

Suddenly, a pain struck her chest. She involuntarily clutched her heart, which felt heavy and dull.

"Rumble..." A rolling thunderclap moved from the distance to nearby. With a "crack," a bolt of lightning illuminated the land, which had been ravaged by wind and rain.

In a dilapidated Taoist temple that looked even more ruined under the raging storm, the atmosphere was stiff, with many monster corpses scattered across the floor.

"Why betray me?" The stunningly beautiful man with a cold expression looked expressionlessly at his former subordinate.

"Boss, you'll understand once you come back with me. Your current decision is very irrational. I am doing this for your own good." The former subordinate, a capable assistant, did not back down.

"Yun Shan, as long as you release me, I can pretend today’s events never happened." The cold, stunning man was none other than Ning Qingyun, and the person he was speaking to was his assistant, Yun Shan.

During the battle with the monsters earlier, two bodyguards had been killed, and Ning Qingyun had been scratched on the arm by a monster!

Taking advantage of the time when Ning Qingyun was injured and running a fever, Yun Shan had sent the other two subordinates away under the guise of finding medicine, cleaned and bandaged Ning Qingyun's wound, and then seized the opportunity to control him.

"Boss, you will thank me later. Once the rain stops, we will return to the capital." Yun Shan was handsome and tall. He had always been meticulous, reliable, and Ning Qingyun's right-hand man. His sudden betrayal had caught Ning Qingyun off guard.

Anger burned in Ning Qingyun’s eyes. It had already been a month; he wondered how Xianxian and the child were doing on their own.