"Wow, is this gold?"
In a dark room completely blocked by curtains, the girl was playing with a bracelet with intricate patterns carved on it.
This was her best trophy of the night.
Under the light, the golden object reflects a light that is hard to look away from.
Whether it is the heavy texture, the mouth-watering luster, or the exquisite shape when you first get it, all of them show that this little thing has an unimaginable value.
This is definitely the gold mentioned in textbooks when I was in school!
But now a new problem arises:
How do you monetize this thing?
The official currency of Hope City - Information Coin has no way to be exchanged for any rare metals. All items in the city that can be purchased through normal channels, and even items traded on the black market, can only be settled with Information Coin except for barter.
The official prices in Hope City have remained almost unchanged for decades.
"So who would want this?"
The girl fell into deep thought.
As a thief, and a thief who is successful frequently, she has a lot of good stuff in her hands waiting to be sold.
But unlike those information coins that are obviously not serial numbers and have different degrees of newness and oldness, these items always have relatively exquisite and memorable shapes.
If she doesn't want to reveal her identity, then it's better to wait and see.
But……
Everything has to start somewhere...
The girl turned her head and looked at her already crowded house, and decided to start cashing in from that moment on.
She pulled a pair of small pliers from her tool kit.
As a skilled maintenance worker, she is adept at using these tools.
After cutting off a small piece of gold, she took out a hammer and smashed it flat with reluctance and grief, so that the pattern on it could no longer be seen.
Finally, she looked at the sky outside which had turned completely dark and put the small piece of thing into her pocket.
After briefly listing the items she planned to buy, the girl rolled up twenty non-consecutive information coins and put them in her pocket.
Even if that thing doesn't sell, I can still buy something good tonight.
Black market, here I come!
In the western area outside Hope City, one kilometer away from the inner city wall, there is a dilapidated wasteland.
This place consists of a group of abandoned factories and a dozen uninhabited low-rise buildings.
Most of the streets in the outer city are as crowded as canned fish, but there is only one reason why this place has been abandoned by both officials and civilians:
This land is not suitable for living.
In fact, ever since a chemical leak occurred here twenty years ago, the area within a radius of nearly two kilometers has gradually become deserted.
At first, the official danger zone designated by Hope City was not that large, but in the following years, residents living nearby began to suffer from unexplained symptoms such as dizziness and coughing.
After a group of people died, the remaining people finally gritted their teeth and moved away.
Between a good death and a miserable life, most people ultimately choose the latter.
About ten years later, the dangerous chemicals here gradually dissipated, and some people gathered here to do some shady things.
Later, this ungoverned area slowly developed and gradually became the new black market center of Hope City.
Although other neighborhoods and urban areas have their own small black markets, if you want to know where the goods are the most and the best, it is still here.
Wager Chemical Plant in the Outer West.
When doing business in the black market, you cannot reveal your true colors, and the remaining chemicals just serve as an urge for people.
Here, wandering around without a mask for more than an hour can cause a mild headache.
After wearing a mask, this time will be extended to four or five hours.
Therefore, whether it is people who come to buy items or people who set up stalls to sell things, they will spontaneously abide by the rules here if they want to live well.
The girl put on the mask and looked at herself in the mirror. The half of her face revealed in the mirror looked very ordinary.
It would be better to say that she is a very ordinary character, with ordinary hair color, ordinary height and body shape, and ordinary job.
Apart from the occasional side job after get off work at the factory, she was indeed unremarkable.
After making sure everything was ready, the girl hid her handy little hammer in her sleeve and disappeared into the gradually darkening night.
After walking through three blocks, the noise of outer-city residents ending their day was left behind.
Continuing forward, when she passed a small patch of half-dead grass, the girl knew that her destination was almost reached.
There were flickering lights in the chemical plant not far away, and the sounds of transactions and bargaining were getting louder and louder.
Under the dim light, underneath the masks covering the faces, were faces that were either flattering or ferocious.
The pursuit of freedom in the nature of human beings has been distorted into indulgence by the high pressure of Hope City, and those accumulated negative emotions are freely released here.
Even wine, which can be considered a rare commodity, is sold here.
It is said that someone came up with the idea of using nutrient paste to make wine.
Ignoring some inappropriate voices for children, the girl walked forward looking for the black market merchant she remembered.
She didn't know the other person's face or name, but she was impressed by the long red hair.
She did not sell any stolen goods, but she bought some special medicines from the other party when her mother was seriously ill.
Although the final outcome did not change, she still remembered the sign on the other party's stall that read "Purchasing Rare Items."
The successful transaction in the past filled the girl’s heart with anticipation.
Maybe there will be good results.
As she was thinking this, the road in front of her was suddenly blocked by a tall figure.
The man stared at the girl's long chestnut hair and half of her face, and lowered his head slightly:
"How about one thousand information coins and spending a night with me?"
This is the downside of the black market.
The lack of supervision means that all kinds of transactions can occur.
But lack of supervision also means that things might end up differently.
"Okay, but not here."
The girl's voice was calm and soft.
There were people walking around from time to time, and they completely ignored what was happening here, as if they were completely accustomed to it.
The tall man was overjoyed when he heard that. In the past, those guys always had to argue with him, and he hated that kind of meaningless arguments the most.
"Let's go somewhere less crowded."
The girl said as she walked towards the basement level of the abandoned factory.
"You don't want to be seen by others, right? After all, it was you who paid for it."
The man nodded, one hand already on her shoulder.
And beneath the coat, the matte hammer head cast a dark shadow.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
