After returning to the territory, Ye Miao first ran to the reception hall and posted information to the 20 NPCs that were ready for sale.
Considering that the scene of putting living people on sale was too horrifying, Ye Miao turned all the NPCs back into figurine mode and put them on the shelves.
Of the 20 NPCs, 10 were in white mode. Ye Miao listed them for 300 gold each, which was cheaper than opening blind boxes herself. Of the remaining 10, 7 were blue and 3 were purple. She set the blue price at 1,000 gold and the purple at 3,000 gold.
By this calculation, if all NPCs were sold successfully, she would have recouped 19,000 gold. Rounding it off, that was equivalent to assembling a ten-man combat team for 1,000 gold coins. It couldn't be more cost-effective!
Chu Cheng waited idly by the side. Seeing the price she posted, he sighed meaningfully: "What a profiteer..."
Ye Miao felt no psychological burden at all: "Looking for traveling merchants is so tiring, and I also have to spend time on it. Besides, there are so many attributes of blind box NPCs. If I buy them myself, I may not be able to get exactly what I want. The NPCs I'm selling now all have direct public information. Everyone can just buy what they need. How great!"
"That's right." Chu Cheng agreed.
After Ye Miao listed the last NPC, he turned around and said, "Would you like one? Look... although these aren't dedicated combat NPCs, they have melee and priest skills. If you need one, take it and I'll give you one!"
Ye Miao was very generous, but Chu Cheng thought about it: there are melee fighters, there are priests...
"I don't want it." He refused calmly.
Rather than bringing an NPC with both melee and cleric skills, he'd rather team up with a melee-and-cleric NPC to kill monsters. Besides, bringing an NPC along also requires providing food, so he'd rather provide food for the melee-and-cleric NPC.
Seeing that he didn't seem to be polite, Ye Miao stopped asking questions, turned off the panel, turned around and left the reception hall.
Seeing she had nothing else to do, Chu Cheng went back. Ye Miao found a suitable location and built two more small huts to serve as grocery stores, bringing the total to three. She assigned tasks to the six new white-quality NPCs she had left: two Zhuang and two Cui, three Zhuang and three Cui, and four Zhuang and four Cui, each managing a grocery store. As for Da Zhuang and Cui Hua, who had been drawn originally, they had now reached a higher level and were perfect for the supervisor role. They could consult with anyone with any questions about the three stores.
As soon as the three grocery stores were completed, players gathered around to watch, their eyes brimming with delight. "The grocery store is opening branches? Great! The territory is growing, and sometimes it's quite far to go just to the grocery store. Now that they've opened three more, we can go directly to the nearest one when we need something, and we don't have to wait in line at the same place for so long."
Some are also looking forward to it: "With three grocery stores, won't the variety of goods be even greater? Add to that the upgrading market, and we'll have a more comfortable life in the future!"
Ye Miao, freshly finished with a busy day, didn't explicitly respond to these expectations. From her perspective, she simply did her best to stabilize prices and diversify the product range. If she could sell more, she would certainly do so, but if she announced this in advance, she would inevitably risk disappointing others.
So Ye Miao did not stay in front of the newly built grocery store for long, but went directly to find Xiao Shuai. On the one hand, he brought Da Wu and Xiao Wu, who would help him forge weapons in the future, over there. On the other hand, he built a new supply house next to Xiao Shuai's house for the tailor NPCs Da Cai and Xiao Cai to live in.
Finally, Ye Miao took out an empty red brick courtyard as a "staff dormitory" and let the ten new combat NPCs live in it. Then he called Xiaomei and the blonde girl who had been drawn before and rearranged the patrol work.
There are two key points for the NPC patrol team. First, in light of the previous accidents, there needs to be someone patrolling inside and outside the territory. Second, combat NPCs also need to level up, otherwise if the players level up and they don't, they will gradually be unable to defeat the players who come to provoke them.
There are twelve people in total, including ten NPCs, Xiaomei and the blonde girl. Ye Miao divided them into two teams. Team A is under the charge of Xiaomei, and Team B is under the charge of another purple-quality NPC Xiao A. The two teams take turns leveling up and patrolling, and nothing will be delayed.
As for the patrol range, Ye Miao roughly circled it on the map and told the NPCs not to go too far. They only needed to protect a few key collection areas near the territory. As for places farther away... she couldn't protect members all over the world anyway. Members could decide whether to leave the protection of the territory based on their own strength.
After arranging the team members and the range, Ye Miao went to the warehouse and dug out a few hidden skill cards for them to learn. She also told the two team leaders that if combat skill cards dropped while killing monsters, they didn't need to turn in the white and blue quality ones; they could just learn from someone in the team. As for the purple and gold ones, she would of course collect them. Even if she didn't have any use for them, she could sell them for money!
With everything explained clearly, Ye Miao finally breathed a sigh of relief. For a territory to develop steadily, public security was crucial. Now that she had made these arrangements, she could finally relax for a while.
The next morning, the players went out in groups as usual, some to kill monsters and some to collect. Soon they found a few people wandering around aimlessly. At first glance, they seemed to be doing nothing, but upon closer inspection, they seemed to be exuding an inexplicable vigilance.
The new members, who had never seen an NPC before, whispered to each other: "What are those people doing? Why are they just wandering around here all the time? They don't kill monsters or gather anything. Are they free?"
Someone among the old members quickly recognized Xiaomei and spoke to her with a bit of surprise: "Hey, Xiaomei, aren't you responsible for patrolling the territory? Why are you out?"
Xiaomei replied calmly, "Miss Ye has expanded the team. From now on, we will not only be responsible for the safety within the territory, but we will also help if you encounter bad guys while collecting near the territory."
"That's great!!!" a gathering player immediately exclaimed in amazement. "I'm really bad at fighting. I always panic every time I go out. You guys are so great to have! But..." She immediately realized another problem and paused before asking, "Our territory is so big now. What if I get into danger and you're so far away that you can't hear me if I yell for help? Can we add each other as friends?"
"Of course." Xiaomei readily agreed to this request, as it would help her complete her mission. The surrounding players immediately gathered around and added the NPC as their friend.
Within the territory, the upgrading of small markets is still in full swing.
Ye Miao had completed the renovation of Fang Shuqin and Zhu Yihua's small clinic overnight, and now the consulting rooms and wards were in decent condition. In the rest of the house, Hu Hao, Miao Lin, He Kailai, Dou Yuehui, Zhang Ying, and other teams who had "taken the initiative" had also tidied up the shop and started business with great success.
Not only that, Hu Hao and Miao Lin also bought a blue-quality NPC with simple cooking skills to do odd jobs. The couple was just as bad at naming as Ye Miao. After much deliberation, they decided that since it was a girl, she should be Miao Lin's sister, so they named her Xiao Miao.
The three of them were busy in the store all morning.
"Xiao Miao, make 20 more poached eggs... Never mind, just make 30, otherwise I'll be busy later!"
"Lao Hu, check out table number four!"
"Honey, help me answer it, it's so hot!"
The bright and clean restaurant is both lively and prosperous.
Before noon, Miao Lin had already made a rough estimate based on observation. Taking advantage of a less busy time, she whispered to Hu Hao, "The number of tables is almost three times what we had in the previous RV. Even after deducting the rent, the income will definitely double! We were so lucky to act quickly. If we had hesitated, we would have missed out on a lot of table profits by moving in a day later!"
"Hey, yeah." Hu Hao was washing dishes, looking relaxed. "I don't understand what the other stall owners are hesitating about. Look, the territory has been established for so long, when has the boss ever cheated us? Now that she's upgrading the market, she might make some money, but she definitely won't let us suffer any losses. So, of course, we'd better move in sooner and get settled in!"
"That makes sense." Miao Lin agreed. After a moment's thought, she called over Xiao Miao and said, "That mutton soup with steamed buns is a new dish we unlocked a couple of days ago. Send it to the boss along with some orange soda. Tell her we're celebrating our new house and want to treat her to some new dishes!"
"Okay!" Xiao Miao agreed very readily, and immediately prepared the food and delivered it according to the coordinates sent by Miao Lin.
Seeing this, Hu Hao's mind became active. After thinking for a while, he discussed with Miao Lin: "What do you think, is it possible for us to start a takeout service in the future?"
"Takeout?" Miao Lin was startled, then nodded slowly. "I don't think it's impossible. After all, our territory is bigger now. The residential area hasn't changed, but the market has always been in the southeast corner, getting farther and farther away from the residential area. It's quite troublesome to come here. But..." She thought for a moment, "If we want to do takeout, Xiao Miao alone definitely can't do it. We need two or three more helpers..."
Having said this, the couple looked at each other and made up their minds almost immediately.
"I'll go to the reception hall and buy two white quality ones!" Miao Lin took off her apron and hurried out.
In the apocalypse, spending money wisely is certainly important, but being quick, accurate, and ruthless with limited resources is even more important. There are only so many NPC items for sale in the reception hall, and white quality items are 300 gold coins each. If you buy something you really don't need, it's easy to resell it, but if you hesitate and can't buy it, it will be very unpleasant.
In another store to the side and rear of Hu Hao and Miao Lin's store, six stall owners set up their own cash registers, which were placed on both sides of the store, with tables and chairs in the middle, making it look like a small food city.
They all run small businesses, some specialize in fruit juice, some only sell candy. It is too risky for them to rent a store by themselves, so it is suitable for several people to share a store. Last night someone suggested taking the lead, and everyone hit it off.
At noon, the players who had been out came back one after another to eat, and soon someone poked his head in and asked, "Hey, how many of you are using this restaurant?"
"Yes," the jam vendor at the entrance said with a smile. "They're just snacks. Take a look for what you need. We're having a promotion today. You can get 20% off any purchase from any three stores!"
"80% off!" The player who just walked in had his eyes light up, and immediately turned around to greet his companions, "Come on, come on, there's a discount here! Let's pick it up together, it's a waste not to grab the bargains!"
Following these words, four or five players came running in. They usually went out together to fight monsters, so carrying a little extra buff-enhancing food in their bags made things much easier. They didn't hesitate to buy small treats like jam and candy, and the room soon became filled with a peaceful atmosphere of both host and guest enjoying themselves.
Outside, in the original market, Lu Fucheng still scoffed at the stall owners who had moved into the building. The monthly rent of 3,000 gold coins was a significant expense, and since everyone was just selling food or small items, he was sure they would lose everything.
However, two days passed in the blink of an eye. The first 16 small houses had all been rented out, and Ye Miao built a second batch of 16 houses, which were also mostly booked within half a day.
The original market was obviously much emptier now. The good thing was that everyone had more space, and many people simply occupied the space of two stalls. The bad thing was that many players simply stopped coming here and went to the other side with stores to eat and leave, which directly affected the business of others.
Lu Fucheng was getting a little restless. Although he still scoffed at this "upgrade" in his heart, he subconsciously kept glancing towards the neat rows of small houses all day. Finally, by evening, everyone was packing up their stalls. The ore seller next door not only packed up his unsold goods, but also packed up his cabinets and chairs. Seeing Lu Fucheng's surprised look, he beamed and said, "Hey, thanks for taking care of me these days. I won't be here tomorrow! I rented a shop over there and will be moving in there too!"
"You're moving too?!" Lu Fucheng was surprised. "Those restaurant owners are moving, so why are you joining in the fun by selling ore?"
"How do you call this joining in the fun?" the ore seller said with dissatisfaction. "I've found a forger and a smelter to partner with. From now on, we'll provide a one-stop service, from ore to smelting to weapon forging. The place is spacious and the environment is great, so there's no shortage of customers!"
After saying this, he looked at Lu Fucheng and said earnestly, "I urge you to go too. I heard them calculating the bills when I went to lunch today. They said the number of guests they've received has tripled or quadrupled! Besides, the population of our territory is increasing. As long as the guests keep coming, what's the point of a 3,000 gold coin monthly rent?"
"Three or four times? So many?!" Lu Fucheng was dumbfounded.
"That's not surprising," the ore seller shrugged. "Before, during peak meal times, the market was always packed. But due to limited space, many people had to wait or buy enough for three or four meals at a time. Now that there's room to sit in the store, of course everyone wants to sit down and enjoy a good meal, so customer flow has naturally increased!"
The ore seller finished speaking, put on his backpack, and left feeling refreshed. "Come visit me in the store someday! I'm store number 22, the blue house!"
"...Hello." Lu Fucheng said subconsciously.
He then thought about it for about an hour and finally made a decision that slapped him in the face.
After closing the stall, Lu Fucheng walked into the reception hall with his backpack and decided to rent a room to open a restaurant. However, when he clicked on the panel, the item "Supermarket facade" clearly read "None".
Lu Fucheng felt dizzy.
Red Maple Village.
Xie Liang failed to rob Zheng Minhui, but his mind could no longer calm down.
When the action took place that day, he was also afraid, especially when Zheng Minhui's eyeballs were bulging due to being strangled. The hideous scene was undoubtedly very shocking to ordinary people.
Xie Liang wondered if, if he had succeeded that day and had accumulated a certain amount of savings, he would have tried it again. But now, he had failed at the last moment, and every day recently he had been obsessively imagining what would happen if he succeeded.
If he succeeds, he will have Zheng Minhui's equipment and savings. Apart from anything else, with those things, he will at least have the confidence to leave Hongfeng Village and live in a territory with a more relaxed system, or even directly join the "Pure Land". From then on, his life will no longer be the same.
But why did it fail?
The more Xie Liang thought about it, the more unwilling he became. Finally, one morning, he resolutely went out with his bag on his back, determined to make a fortune no matter what.
This time, he did not bring his wife Zhang Xiaoli along, as he could tell that she did not approve of what he was doing.
He kept on going, arriving near the town of "Get Rich Overnight" near noon. Noon was a prime time for robbery, as most players would return to their territories to eat and rest, with only a few preferring to pack their lunches in their backpacks and eat outside. This meant fewer people were out at noon, making his actions less likely to be noticed. By the time anyone realized someone had been murdered, he would have already fled.
Walking into the rice field calmly, Xie Liang began to look for targets.
When he entered the rice field, there were three players left. After a while, two of them left together, leaving only one person still picking rice in the field.
If they pick more rice, they, mother and daughter, won't have to buy rice for the next half month - Sun Aimei thought as she worked.
Because they were forced to kill monsters in Fearless Village, their cooking skills weren't very high, but now they were slowly learning to make some simple meals. In life, saving on food and oil, salt, sauce, vinegar, and tea was crucial, and Sun Aimei had been trying to cook for herself to cut down on expenses.
Whether in the normal world or the apocalyptic game mode, cooking your own meals is always cheaper than ordering takeout. Even if you just cook rice yourself, you can save a few gold coins. Sun Aimei believes that little by little, it adds up to a lot.
Taking advantage of the last five minutes of cool weather, Sun Aimei harvested two more crops of rice. After putting the rice into her backpack, she stretched her back and prepared to return to town.
However, as soon as she turned around, she felt a sudden sharp pain in her lower back!
"Ah!" Sun Aimei screamed and struggled hard. Xie Liang took a step back and stabbed her again with the knife.
Sun Aimei saw that his fighting skills were not low, and since it was close combat, it would be easy to injure vital parts that could cause heavy damage, and she couldn't help but panic.
She didn't dare confront Xie Liang head-on, and could only stumble and hide in the rice fields. After a few breaths, she managed to calm down, opened the interface and hurriedly sent a message: "Xiaomei!!! Xiaomei, help me!!!"
In the territory, Xiaomei, who was having lunch, was cheered up after receiving the news. She immediately forwarded the message to Xiao A who was on patrol, along with the coordinates sent by Sun Aimei.
Little A quickly replied: "Coming right up!"
"Don't come over here! I have a daughter! I can't die!" In the rice paddy, Sun Aimei felt dizzy as her cooling state ended, and she fell to the ground unexpectedly. Seeing Xie Liang approaching, she cried and begged, "Whatever you want, I'll give it to you! Equipment, gold coins... we can discuss it!"
However, Xie Liang was already rabid with rage. It would be great if the other party was willing to hand over the items directly, but he was also worried about being pursued for revenge later.
But it would be different if he killed someone to silence him. There was no one else around now. If he killed Sun Aimei, no one would be able to find him!
"If a man does not care for himself, he will be punished by heaven and earth. I'm sorry." Xie Liang gritted his teeth and walked towards Sun Aimei step by step.
"Swish——" a feather arrow cut through the sky and pierced Xie Liang's shoulder.
"Who!" Xie Liang turned around suddenly.
"Go!" Little A waved his hand, and the two melee fighters beside him immediately drew their swords to fight back. They were so fast that Xie Liang was blocked before he could escape.
He exchanged two moves with them while brandishing his dagger, and then his formation began to lose its composure. The NPC immediately seized the opportunity and kicked him backwards, sending him crashing to the ground.
The next second, a staff was pressed against Xie Liang's throat. The priest beside him stepped forward to support Sun Aimei and calmly healed her.
Seeing that their side was outnumbered, Sun Aimei breathed a sigh of relief and grasped the pastor's hand with gratitude: "Thank you, thank you! I'm lucky to have you, otherwise I would definitely be dead!"
The pastor supported Sun Aimei. Little A stepped forward and glared at Xie Liang coldly: "You are not from the town where you got rich overnight, are you?"
"No, no..." Xie Liang finally gave in and regretted his words. It seemed as if he suddenly realized that "Pure Land", as a famous territory in T City, must have been coveted by others. It was impossible for him to be completely defenseless.
But this awakening obviously came too late. After receiving his reply, Little A smiled calmly, "That's convenient. If it's one of our own, we'll have to hand it over to Miss Ye."
"What!" Xie Liang's pupils suddenly shrank. The next moment, the mage in front of him, receiving instructions from Xiao A, suddenly cast a spell with the staff in front of him. A sharp pain hit Xie Liang's throat, easily knocking off one-third of his blood.
"No!!!" Xie Liang pushed the staff away in despair, only to be met with another heavy blow.
After three consecutive times, Xie Liang's blood bar was empty, and blood spurted out of his mouth. His eyes were wide open, a bit like Zheng Minhui's expression when he was strangled that day.
In his last moments before he died, he was inexplicably thinking: People really should strive to be good people...
Three seconds later, Xie Liang's corpse vanished, revealing his equipment. Little A collected the two purple items, then glanced at his skill cards. He put the gold and purple cards back in his backpack, along with the blue and white cooking cards. He carefully examined the blue and white combat cards, then passed them out one by one. "These two are control skills, Little D and Little E, learn them. This one's healing, Priest. Hey, these two can inflict negative effects, Little B and Little C each have one..."
After getting rid of a robber, the entire NPC team gained strength, and Xiao A, the team leader, was in a good mood.
"Next time something like this happens, I'll have Xiaomei lead the team." The kind-hearted Xiao A didn't forget his comrades. After all, as an NPC, he was inherently loyal to Ye Miao. It would be best for Ye Miao if everyone improved.
The author has something to say:
I'll give out red envelopes to 50 random comments on this chapter.
I'd like to recommend my good friend Hui Sheng's urban secret love story "Miss Guan is Writing Love Letters Again"
Copywriter:
Campus male god Fu Shichuan is the person Guan Ying has had a crush on since high school.
All the love and excitement in girlhood are related to him.
Guan Ying turned this unrequited love into a novel, which became an instant hit because it was so true and was later made into a TV series and then a movie, earning her an eight-figure income.
She thought that this unrequited love would end there, but unexpectedly, she met Fu Shichuan again at a classmate's wedding!
The male god is still as handsome as ever, and Guan Ying's girlish heart is revived again.
She finally mustered up the courage to start pursuing Dafa.
The mother single solo player posted online asking for advice and anonymously shared her pursuit diary on the forum.
As the male god became closer to her, Guan Ying's posts also became popular on the Internet.
Publishers kept contacting me privately, wanting to buy the posts for a high price, compile them into a book, and then make a movie.
In response, the agent was shocked and said: "You actually made a fortune twice with the same man???"
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