"Sister Yunshu, do you celebrate the New Year where you are?" Xia Qingqing asked curiously.
"Let's celebrate, after all, it's a tradition that's been around for so many years, and everyone wants to have some fun. But I'm all alone, so it doesn't matter whether I celebrate or not," Gu Yunshu's voice revealed a hint of loneliness that made Xia Qingqing feel a little sorry for her.
“You’re not alone. You still have me. My mom will be making dumplings for Chinese New Year. I’ll bring you some over, and we can video chat together on New Year’s Eve to celebrate the New Year together.”
As Gu Yunshu listened to Xia Qingqing's description, her eyes softened: "Okay, then I'll wait to eat Auntie's dumplings."
Gu Yunshu was about to say something more, but was interrupted by a knock on the door.
She frowned slightly. Who would come looking for her at this hour?
"Qingqing, I'll go see who's knocking. We'll talk again next time."
"Okay," Xia Qingqing nodded, then hung up the video call.
......
At this moment, the person outside the door saw that no one opened the door and assumed that Gu Yunshu was not at home, and was about to leave.
Gu Yunshu opened the door and saw a man's back: "Captain Xie?"
The man who arrived was named Xie Jing, the captain of the Qilin Squad within the base. Gu Yunshu had several encounters with him during missions, and the two could be considered to have fought side by side. He was a very capable person.
Xie Jing stopped in his tracks when he heard someone calling his name.
"Is there something you need from me?" Gu Yunshu asked, puzzled.
Xie Jing hesitated for a moment, then looked at Gu Yunshu and asked in a deep voice, "I'd like to exchange some food with you, is that convenient?"
He went to Gu Yunshu's shop at first, but when he saw the sign on the door that said it was closed, he knew he was too late.
But thinking of his younger sister waiting at home, he still didn't want to just let the New Year pass by like this. After all, who knows how many more New Years he could spend with his sister?
Finally, Xie Jing asked around for Gu Yunshu's address and then came looking for her.
Gu Yunshu raised an eyebrow and shook her head, saying, "It's not very convenient. I'm out of food too. Captain Xie, please go back."
Xie Jing clearly didn't believe her words; everyone in the base knew that Gu Yunshu was a dual-elemental ability user with both fire and space abilities.
As a space-type ability user, he didn't believe that Gu Yunshu would leave him with insufficient food.
Whether or not Gu Yunshu is willing to exchange is clearly in her own hands, and Xie Jing cannot force her to exchange unless he offers her something in return.
Xie Jing parted his thin lips slightly: "A level 5 fire element crystal core, would you trade it or not?"
"A level 5 fire-type crystal core?" Gu Yunshu stared wide-eyed, repeating incredulously.
Is this person an idiot? Level 5 crystal cores are so scarce, who wouldn't keep a level 5 crystal core for their own upgrades instead of exchanging it for food?
But she had to admit that she was tempted. Her current ability level was at the peak of level 4, and she was missing a level 5 fire-type crystal core to help her break through to level 5.
Before level 3, the crystal cores are not graded, but once the zombies evolve to level 4, they will have special abilities. Different types of crystal cores exist in the brains of zombies with different special abilities.
For example, if someone like Gu Yunshu wants to upgrade their fire-type ability, they must use a fire-type crystal core to enhance their ability; otherwise, the energy within their body will become volatile.
"Well, why don't you come in first?" Gu Yunshu said with a smile, inviting Xie Jing inside. Her attitude was completely different from before.
Xie Jing's eyes lit up slightly when he heard her words, knowing that she had agreed to the deal.
"What do you want to exchange for?" Gu Yunshu asked. Level 5 crystal cores are so precious, it's impossible to exchange them for just a few pounds of meat.
Xie Jing took out a fiery red crystal core from his pocket and handed it to Gu Yunshu: "Give me what you think is fair. We're acquaintances, and I trust you won't let me suffer a loss."
Gu Yunshu secretly curled her lips. This person was really cunning. He didn't name a price, waiting for her to offer it voluntarily.
Although she was somewhat dissatisfied, she really needed this level 5 fire-type crystal core, so she had no choice but to put up with it.
Gu Yunshu had never traded for a level 5 crystal core before. Most people who traded with her were level 1 or 2 crystal cores, and level 3 or 4 crystal cores were relatively rare.
So for a moment she didn't know how much food to give Xie Jing.
After thinking for a moment, she took out 10 jin of wild boar meat, 10 jin of wild beef, a large handful of vegetables, and about 3 jin of fruit from the system's warehouse.
She looked at Xie Jing tentatively and asked, "Is this enough?"
Xie Jing remained silent, staring intently at Gu Yunshu, his meaning clear: he wanted more.
"I've been very generous. You know how rare food is these days. This is enough for you to eat for many days," Gu Yunshu tried to persuade Xie Jing.
Xie Jing shook his head: "Add a little more. I know you really need this crystal core."
This means that Gu Yunshu's lifeline has been secured. If she hadn't seen this level 5 crystal core, she might not have felt anything, but now that she's about to get it, she really can't bear to give it up.
Gritting her teeth, Gu Yunshu took out 2 jin of rice and 2 jin of flour from the system's warehouse: "Is this okay now?"
She kept all that rice and flour for herself; she wouldn't have given it to Xie Jing if Xia Qingqing hadn't given her 20 jin of it this time as well.
"Thank you," Xie Jing was very happy. With this meat and flour, he could make dumplings with his sister when he got home.
"I didn't expect a grown man like you to know how to enjoy life so much, actually willing to exchange a level 5 crystal core for food," Gu Yunshu finally couldn't help but complain.
However, she didn't think there was any major problem. Xie Jing was powerful and capable of making her life better, so why not?
"The New Year is coming soon, and I want to make something delicious for my sister," Xie Jing explained instinctively.
Upon hearing this, Gu Yunshu was somewhat surprised: "You have a younger sister? How old is she?"
"She's 12 years old, and she'll be 13 soon after the New Year," Xie Jing said, his expression softening considerably as he spoke of his younger sister.
This was much smaller than Gu Yunshu had expected. Xie Jing looked about the same age as her, and she had thought Xie Jing's sister would be at least 20 years old.
If you calculate it that way, Xie Jing's younger sister was only about nine years old when the apocalypse came.
"Here, this is for your sister, consider it a New Year's gift," Gu Yunshu said, reluctantly taking out five White Rabbit milk candies from the system's inventory and handing them to Xie Jing.
Since we've already replaced so many things, a few more candies won't make a difference. Let's just treat them as a treat for the kids during the New Year.
Gu Yunshu would never admit that she was a little envious of Xie Jing. In this terrible world, how could it not be a lucky thing to have family by your side?
Xie Jing stared blankly at the White Rabbit milk candy in his hand, feeling as if a feather had brushed against his heart.
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