Chapter 46 Chapter 46 The Emergence of a New Market
The sky brightened.
Chang Ruijia picked up the oar again. Now it was no longer a question of whether she wanted to return to the crowd.
But if she wants to continue to survive on the sea, she must face the reality that only people can provide her with more survival supplies.
After tidying up everything on the bed, Chang Ruijia temporarily put down the bed guard that had been erected again.
Looking at the vast and uninhabited sea in front of her, she could only choose a direction according to her heart, shook off her arms that had not moved for many days, and paddled forward fearlessly.
There was no sense of urgency as before when rowing. Feeling the warmth still under the shelter of the sky and the occasional breeze blowing on her face, Chang Ruijia really looked relaxed and comfortable.
According to her previous fate of encountering a market after walking a few steps, Chang Ruijia fully suspected that she was surrounded by a group of markets, so she was not too worried about whether she could find the market.
They stopped and walked along the way, and even at noon, Chang Ruijia stopped to make herself a secret pancake with pickled mustard greens to replenish her energy.
Yes, ever since she discovered that the group of monsters under the sea had disappeared, Chang Ruijia has consciously stopped her extravagant life of eating a bowl of noodles every day. As long as the food can replenish her energy, it is enough.
As for the fruits that appeared on the bed every night, Chang Ruijia deliberately kept them all because she found that people in the market seemed to have a special liking for these fruits.
When she finds the market in the future, if she wants to harvest and exchange supplies every day, in addition to those supplies that can be replenished in one go, fruit is something that can be exchanged on a daily basis.
So now Chang Ruijia no longer has such a luxurious life of relying on fruits to fill her stomach. She only uses a few fruits every day to supplement the necessary nutrition, and the rest of the fruits that are easy to store are kept.
However, sometimes God just wants to play a huge joke on you.
That evening, watching the setting sun gradually setting in the west and the sea still without any human figures in sight, Chang Ruijia remained calm.
However, when there was no sign of any human presence for one, two, and three days, Chang Ruijia's heart, which had been able to hold on, no longer had that calm feeling.
Even though her speed on the first day was not very fast and she did not leave the previous sea area too far, it was a bit strange that she still did not see any trace of human figure after she started to speed up gradually.
Looking at the deserted sea, Chang Ruijia almost laughed out of anger.
In the past, when I didn’t want to interact with people, I would accidentally run into a huge market with a large crowd. But now, when I really want to find a suitable market, I can’t find any trace of it.
God is really against her!
However, Chang Ruijia is not someone to be trifled with.
Since she came to this world and experienced twice that God has the final say on the sea, she has learned her lesson.
On the sea, saving your life is the first priority, and the second is not to go against the evil weather.
So, Chang Ruijia looked at the clear and cloudless sky and threw the oar in her hand to the side.
She gave up.
Feeling the gentle breeze on the sea, Chang Ruijia let the wind and waves on the sea push the bed to other directions, and she turned over leisurely in bed.
What's the point of striving for progress? It's a beautiful day, cloudless skies, a gentle breeze. Wouldn't it be nice to just lie in bed and enjoy the beauty of this moment? Why go against the will of heaven?
It was the hottest time of the afternoon, and Chang Ruijia felt her eyelids heavy for some reason in bed. She simply didn't get up and went back into the tent, falling asleep leisurely among a pile of things on the bed.
When she opened her eyes again, Chang Ruijia woke up feeling contented and relaxed.
The feeling was just like taking a nap by the window in the afternoon, and then opening your eyes to see the sky full of gorgeous sunset.
The gorgeous sunset glows like silk hanging in the sky, and the setting sun that has half sunk into the sea looks like golden powder all over the sky, reflecting each other so well that even the unfathomable seabed is highlighted.
As soon as she opened her eyes and saw such a beautiful picture, Chang Ruijia's mood became better.
Wasn't it just that God didn't want her to fulfill her wish and find the crowd? What's the big deal? Then just forget about it.
Chang Ruijia chuckled in her heart, relaxed her muscles that were stiff from sleeping, picked up the oar beside her and started mumbling to herself.
"I'm not looking for a crowd. Even if I find one, I won't go in. I just want to find a new place. I'll just sleep when I get to this sea area. I suspect it's my unlucky side."
Chang Ruijia muttered a series of words, not knowing whether she was trying to paralyze God or herself.
Anyway, after resting for the whole afternoon, taking advantage of the sunset that was all over the sky, Chang Ruijia once again found a random direction and moved away from the sea area that "influenced" her.
This was not the first time that Chang Ruijia had to travel at night. She rowed the entire night with ease, stopping and starting in the cool breeze. Her physical fatigue level would be refreshed in the second half of the night, so she did not have to worry about being tired from staying up late.
When the sky began to light up again, Chang Ruijia looked at the dense crowds of people in the distance and couldn't help but smile knowingly.
Hey! Isn't this a no-brainer? Sometimes you just have to trick the heavens.
——
When the people gathered in the city noticed the person emerging from the horizon with the sunrise, they did not show any unusual vigilance.
Most people just glanced at her briefly, then turned around and went about their own business. It felt like she was just an ordinary person.
Chang Ruijia really didn't expect the reaction to the crowd gathering point that she had found with great difficulty to be like this.
Judging from the appearance of the first two people she encountered entering the market, she should at least give a curious glance to those who came here. How could she really not feel anything at all?
But what surprised Chang Ruijia even more was yet to come.
As she was energetically paddling her bed and the crowd of people were approaching, a figure suddenly emerged from the crowd and moved towards her with a paper-like shape.
At first, Chang Ruijia thought that she was blocking the man's way, but she didn't expect that even if she changed direction and continued to move forward, the man seemed to be blocking her on purpose.
What is this trying to do?
Instead of moving forward, Chang Ruijia carefully held the kitchen knife beside her and waited for the man to approach, so that she could protect herself immediately if anything went wrong.
"Hello, are you planning to temporarily attend the market to exchange things? Or are you planning to settle down at this gathering point?" Before Chang Ruijia could speak to stop him from moving forward, the man stopped at a perfect place.
She had never expected that the reason the man stopped her was something like this. Chang Ruijia raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Exchange things and settle down? What's the difference?"
"Of course!" As if he was already used to the questions of people coming here for the first time, the man carefully explained to Chang Ruijia, "If you just want to exchange things, we have a separate area on the sea for activities. Anyone who needs can exchange them there."
"If you plan to live permanently in our crowded area, there is another separate area. The living environment there is also safer, but those who want to go there need to go through multiple inspections."
Looking at the man talking so eloquently, Chang Ruijia could tell how proficient he was in this business. He thought he must have made many such introductions.
But what she didn't expect was that such an orderly gathering point was established so quickly in the densely populated area. It was really surprising.
Probably noticing Chang Ruijia's hesitation, the visitor said to her considerately, "It's okay. You can join the exchange area first, and then join again when you think it over. There's no rush to decide right away. I just want to let you know about the area division here."
"Oh, okay." Chang Ruijia nodded. This idea just suited her needs.
This was the first time she had encountered this market, and she didn't want to tie herself up there impulsively, even though her first impression was enough to surprise her.
Sometimes, no matter how much you see with your eyes, it is still far less practical than experiencing it with your own eyes.
Although Chang Ruijia had not directly agreed to join, the man still diligently led Chang Ruijia to the trading area.
"Are the people here participating in the transaction temporarily?" Chang Ruijia said with some surprise as she listened to the crowd that seemed to be getting larger as they got further away.
If there were so many people showing up here every day for temporary transactions, the scale of this market would be a bit beyond her expectations.
"Ah, no," the guide seemed to know what Chang Ruijia was thinking. "Our scale is not enough to attract so many people to travel here every day. In fact, many of these temporary traders are already settled there."
As if he was going to take Chang Ruijia somewhere, the guide turned around and walked into the crowd. He nodded and greeted the people coming and going, while continuing to introduce them to Chang Ruijia.
"The functional divisions within our area are very strict. Regardless of whether you are a settled person or not, as long as you want to trade, you must do so here. So when it's not rest time, it will seem more lively here."
The accommodation and trading areas are completely separated? This reminds Chang Ruijia of the market where Hong Ta and Wu Jin were before.
However, that is only a large-scale trading market formed at a fixed time every day. If you want to exchange at other times, you can always look for people who have the supplies.
She had never seen such a strict separation between transactions and accommodation as here.
"No one who has survived on the sea until now knows the dangers of being swallowed," the guide sighed and said in a dilemma, "To ensure the safety of those who settle here, we can only impose the strictest regulations."
"That's great. This will provide protection for the people who settle here and avoid any chaos and noise." Chang Ruijia nodded in approval.
In troubled times, severe punishments are needed, especially in today's world where a person's life can be easily decided by a random collision. Only such strict methods can be used to protect more people.
"Thank you for your understanding," the guide said wearily. "To make life here safer, we initially considered many methods before finally settling on this simple, crude, and effective solution. Even so, many people don't understand."
Not everyone can understand the painstaking effort of doing this. Chang Ruijia understands that most people will consider issues from their own perspective. Such a strict division is bound to make many people feel extremely troublesome.
However, Chang Ruijia would not say such things in front of the crowd at the market. After all, she was an outsider, and it was enough for her to listen to what the other person said and express her understanding.
As they walked deeper into the market, Chang Ruijia secretly saw many people on the roadside exchanging items.
It had to be said that this was indeed the largest market she had ever encountered. The types of items displayed in front of each person were indeed rich and varied, with all kinds of strange things appearing.
Seeing Chang Ruijia's interest in the surroundings, the man said as he led the way, "Everything in the market is quite casual. You can set up your own stall in the designated areas, or you can walk around and try to exchange for things you like."
Before Chang Ruijia could respond, the man had already stopped at a place on the roadside where there was a large gap between people. "This is the place allocated for you."
It was an open space with people on both sides, Chang Ruijia observed carefully and thought, but it seemed as if there was a rope pulled in front of the open space, strictly regulating the docking position.
Looking at the small sign placed in front of everyone in the market, Chang Ruijia was curious and wanted to take a closer look, but was greeted warmly by the person in front of her.
"Are you new here, little girl? Come over and take a look at what I have here. See if there's anything you like. I guarantee it's good quality, cheap, and great value!"
"Don't be anxious, Old Li. I'll take her to familiarize herself with her location first," the person leading the way greeted the man familiarly, then walked around him and took Chang Ruijia into the open space.
"Okay, okay, no need to rush," said Old Li, smiling. "Brother Wang, are you bringing in new people? They'll all be my neighbors from now on, so there's no need to rush to exchange them."
The voice behind him gradually faded away. The young man who had just been smiling brightly suddenly withdrew his smile, looked at Chang Ruijia seriously and said, "I see you are not that old, sister, I have one last reminder for you."
"The trading area isn't as peaceful as the accommodation area. Don't easily believe what others say, and don't let your guard down during your rest time. Not everyone here is as harmless as they appear."
Seeing the young man who was not much older than her, but was now warning her in a condescending tone, Chang Ruijia nodded in understanding, without making any tactless rebuttal.
In today's world, it is very rare to have such a heartless and unreasonable person kindly remind her.
What's more, Chang Ruijia didn't think she would be the one to be bullied.
If anyone really dares to attack her, he or she must be prepared to be robbed in return.
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