Chapter 103 Too Low
The proprietress was still cracking melon seeds. When she ran over, she put the seeds back into her pocket and clapped her hands. "Girl, a few clips together are four copper coins."
Lu Jiu took 5 clips, which was equivalent to nearly 1 copper coin for an item without attributes.
She had no objection and directly took out four copper coins and handed them to the proprietress.
Seeing her so straightforward and unfamiliar, the proprietress couldn't help but ask, "Miss, aren't you a resident of Yuhong City?"
It's not like she hasn't seen people from outside the city come here before, but it's really rare to see people from outside the city coming here in late autumn.
Lu Jiu nodded, "Yes, I happened to be passing by here and came in to take a look."
The lady boss didn't ask any more questions, but instead pointed at the items on her stall and said, "These are all things I saved from the past. They are very commemorative."
These things are indeed hard to see after the objects on Earth disappear, but few people probably care about them now.
However, Lu Jiu wanted to ask some questions, so he looked at other things carefully with an interested look.
When the boss lady saw her like this, she knew that she was a capable girl who had the spare money to buy this.
Lu Jiu casually looked at the items on the stall and asked casually, "Just now I saw a lot of people talking and seemed to be arguing. Is this often the case here?"
This was like a question asked curiously by a newcomer from out of town, as if they were chatting about family matters.
The proprietress didn't think much of it and immediately got into a chatterbox. "Hey, it's been like this for days. It's all about food for the winter. The ordinary people don't want to sell the food, and the monster hunters aren't happy about it. So there's been a commotion. It's happened in almost every city-state."
Lu Jiu nodded in agreement with her words, "Yes, our city-state also had a commotion. So how did we resolve it here? This matter is a bit tricky."
The proprietress clapped her hands, empathizing with him. "That's right! This is a difficult matter, but here the city lord restricts ordinary people from gathering, and only gives them two plots of land for gathering. The rest are the territories of professional monster killers, but it's usually their families who do the gathering."
Just as Lu Jiu and the others had guessed, the measures taken here directly curbed the collection range of ordinary residents from now on.
"Is that so? No wonder they started arguing. But I heard they'd have to pay 90% of the rent. How are we going to survive then? You never know what will happen in winter."
The proprietress smiled and waved her hand. "That wasn't what they were arguing about. It was that the city lord allowed ordinary residents to collect all the grain from the fields, but they had to pay 90% of it."
Lu Jiu seemed to suddenly understand: "Is that so..."
The proprietress seemed to have thought of something good and said to her with a smile, "My son is out there killing monsters just like you. My parents-in-law and my daughter are out gathering food, and I'm here to look after the stall."
Lu Jiu saw that the proprietress was about 40 years old and was not worried at all about the restrictions on food collection for ordinary residents in the city. He probably guessed that she was a family member of a professional resident.
She smiled and said, "Then you are quite well off, boss lady. I'm afraid you won't lack anything for the winter. Your son can provide you with meat, so there is no shortage of food at home."
The proprietress clearly enjoyed hearing this, the smile on her face never fading. "Yes, there's no shortage of food. My son even sells some to his close teammates. But you're right, young lady. We don't know what the winter will hold, so more food is definitely a safer bet. The city lord's notice is also very good. The ordinary residents already got a lot of food throughout the summer, enough for them to eat for several years."
She was right. The game had not been updated in the summer, and the food outside was refreshed very quickly. It was unlikely that there would be a food shortage in winter, so the residents of the two sides were fighting so badly.
"That's true, but boss lady, do you know what's going on in Longjiao City? When I passed by there, there were so few people in the city. My friend and I were a little worried, so we left quickly and then came here."
When Lu Jiu asked about Longjiao City, the proprietress' pupils moved upwards as if she was reminiscing, then she shook her head, "I'm not sure about that. I just know that someone died there, and I'm afraid it's because of this."
The other proprietresses didn't know either, so Lu Jiu didn't ask any more questions. She just picked a few small items and left.
The proprietress looked very happy. She didn't expect that there are still people buying this.
Lu Jiu only asked at this small stall and did not go to other stalls to continue asking, so as not to attract attention. It is better to mind his own business at the moment.
*
As the sky gradually darkened, Lu Jiu met up with two teammates outside the city. The three of them set out directly to find a suitable place to camp, and then share the news they had learned today.
In the evening, several people were grilling skewers by the campfire.
Lu Jiu told them the information he had heard from the boss lady, and the other two teammates also got the same information.
Zhuang Yun found out more about the gossip in Yuhong City.
Lu Jiu felt a little sorry. "It's about Longjiao City. The proprietress doesn't know much either. She only knows that someone was killed. I guess ordinary residents were scared and didn't dare go out."
Shen Jufeng shook the skewers in his hands, trying to shake off some of the grease hanging on them. "Not only that, it was also a form of invisible protest. I heard from others that ordinary residents of Longjiao City did die, and quite a few of them, almost twenty people. It was considered a serious incident, but few people witnessed it at the time."
Lu Jiu and Zhuang Yun's eyes widened in shock. "Nearly twenty people?! This is a seriously serious situation."
It has only been a few months since they left the peaceful society, and deep down they still feel that they should not touch human life, let alone kill it without hesitation like a wild monster.
Shen Jufeng frowned upon hearing the news. "There's a serious polarization over there. He Ange leans more towards professional players. The few people who caused loss of life were not expelled. This is a gesture of his, so no one is going out."
Zhuang Yun felt a chill run down his spine. "Who would dare go out like this? Killing someone and getting away with it? Doesn't that just show the city lord feels the lives of ordinary residents aren't protected? If someone gets killed while out, they can find someone to reason with."
There are no laws to constrain everyone now, and there is no place to find justice. If he were an ordinary resident of Longjiao City, he would not dare to go out.
Shen Jufeng nodded in agreement. "That's the situation. Several city-states in Jinghe District disbanded in the fall. Ordinary residents are afraid to leave. Winter is approaching, so they all think they can wait until it's over. The person who told me about this has friends in Longjiao City. Although they're professional residents, they don't approve of these actions and think they'll get out of control sooner or later. So, they contacted some ordinary residents they know and plan to bring them here in the spring."
Lu Jiu silently praised this professional resident of Longjiao City. "That's right. With such exploitation and no sanctions, how could ordinary residents dare to stay there? Even professional residents would probably worry about being involved in the dispute. I didn't expect He Ange to stoop to this level."
This guy always acted frivolous every time she saw him, and also when she saw the pharmacy manager in Xuantian City, which made her look down on him.
I didn't expect that as the lord of a city, he doesn't even have any basic rules.
Shen Jufeng: "How could this person know that the development of a city-state cannot be achieved without the support of population? How foolish!"
(End of this chapter)
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