Chapter 30
After Lin Zhen put the feather on Amu, he stood up and walked to the window.
Seeing that Tang Yu'an seemed to be hesitant to speak, she winked at him and smiled.
Tang Yu'an then understood that it was not that Lin Zhen had not noticed Amu's little trick, but he was just pretending not to know and didn't want to expose it.
"Why are you here at this hour? Don't you feel the sun?"
"Oh, I feel so hot."
Tang Yu'an climbed in from the window. As soon as he left the umbrella and stood outside for a short while, he was sweating profusely.
Lin Zhen looked at him and couldn't help but say, "Your physical condition is a bit weak."
Tang Yu'an curled his lips, but he couldn't refute it, because even Xiao Kangkang seemed to be more heat-resistant than him.
"Sister Lin, do you have special abilities too?" he couldn't help but ask.
“No.”
Lin Zhen shook his head and said lightly.
Tang Yu'an couldn't help but blink, "Then you are really amazing!"
Not only is she agile, she also dares to go to the giant lizard's nest to explore alone. It turns out that this is not because she has supernatural powers, but because of the abilities she has cultivated herself?
This is too powerful!
Facing the two young men's admiring gazes, Lin Jue waved his hand and said, "It's just so-so. If it can awaken its special abilities, it can be even more powerful."
Unfortunately, she has shown no signs of awakening.
Originally, Lin Zhen was proud of her skills, but when she was tracking Zhou Qi and Tang Yu'an, she was left far behind. Only then did she realize how big the gap was between ordinary people and mutants.
She had been staying in the deserted city before, and she was a bit like a frog in a well.
Of course, Lin Zhen never thought about becoming a strong person. She felt that it was enough to have enough food and clothing and live a comfortable and carefree life in this wasteland, so she quickly adjusted her mentality.
"Amu has already started hatching the eggs. Can you guys take a look and see if there's anything that needs improvement?"
Tang Yu'an and Zhou Qi had already told her all the knowledge points she knew, so she couldn't say anything else now. Whether she could succeed next depended on luck.
But they still came to Amu and took out the millet grains that it liked to feed it.
"Come on, Amu. It's up to you from now on." Tang Yu'an encouraged.
"Come on! Eat something delicious!"
Amu ruffled the feathers on his head and seemed to be in a very good mood.
After playing with it for a while, Tang Yu'an took out the beer bottle he had picked up yesterday from his backpack and asked, "Sister Lin, I found this bottle. Do you want it?"
Lin Zhen's eyes lit up slightly, "Yes, yes, yes, I haven't picked up a bottle in a long time, let me see it!"
She took the bottle and looked at it in the sunlight by the window.
"You washed it so clean, I can use it directly." Lin Zhen said, "What do you need? I'll trade with you."
"We want the same insect repellent powder we got yesterday." Zhou Qi took over the conversation and went straight to the point.
"Anti-insect powder?" Lin Zhen muttered, "That bottle is not enough to exchange."
"What else do we need to add?" Zhou Qi asked.
Lin Zhen licked his lips and said, "Sugar, or grains. Yellow millet is good."
"Can."
Zhou Qi thought about it and took out a 100-gram bag of millet. If he exchanged it with millet, Amu could also eat it.
It is the main force in hatching eggs, so it still needs to keep up with nutrition.
Seeing that he took out millet, Lin Zhen couldn't help feeling a little disappointed. She actually wanted to eat candy, but when she saw Amu stretching his neck excitedly, she finally accepted the condition.
She took the millet and the beer bottle, then took out two packets of medicine powder and handed them to Zhou Qi - in fact, Zhou Qi only planned to exchange one packet.
[Employee Zhou Qi completed a profitable transaction with a regular customer, earning +95 points and +1 experience point]
Two packets of insect repellent powder, 95 points!
Tang Yu'an's eyes lit up, and she couldn't help but ask, "Sister Lin, is this medicine powder difficult to make?"
"Of course it's troublesome. It takes a lot of effort just to collect the materials." Lin Zhen put the beer bottle away and went to find a container to store the millet she had just bought.
Tang Yu'an couldn't help but look at Zhou Qi.
Without him saying anything more, Zhou Qi nodded and returned one of the packets of medicine powder to Lin Zhen, intending to keep it for later exchange.
When the handover was just completed, the transaction was deemed completed, so as long as Zhou Qi does not trade anything from Lin Zhen, including verbal communication, it will not be considered a loss.
A gift, perhaps?
However, even if it is recorded as a loss-making transaction, it does not matter, because points will not be deducted. At most, Zhou Qi will not be able to obtain employee experience points.
"Just change one pack first." Afraid that Lin Zhen would misunderstand, Zhou Qi added, "We only planned to change one pack originally."
Hearing this, Lin Zhen was stunned for a moment.
In other words, he took out so much millet just to exchange for a packet of insect repellent powder, but she didn't know that so she paid twice the price, and Zhou Qi actually took the initiative to return the extra part she gave?
Lin Zhen looked at Zhou Qi in surprise.
She looked at Tang Yu'an, who was standing next to her with a matter-of-fact look on his face, and couldn't help feeling a little strange in her heart.
Are the people in the fortress so generous?
Although she felt a little silly, she had to admit that she found the two children more pleasing to the eye. After all, who wouldn't like such a generous and trustworthy trading partner?
"Okay, if you need to exchange it again in the future, I will definitely exchange it for you as long as it's in stock!"
Lin Zhen took the medicine and put it back into the bag. "I have other medicines. Do you want to see them?"
"Is there any medicine that can paralyze mutant creatures?" Tang Yu'an asked curiously.
Although you may not necessarily use it, it’s always a good idea to have it prepared.
"Of course." Lin Zhen picked out a bottle from her pile of bottles and jars, "This one, for applying on weapons."
It was a bottle of dark blue liquid in a glass bottle with a stopper made of cloth and wood. Judging from its shape, it should be a bottle used to hold milk.
"Are you giving us such a big bottle?" Tang Yu'an estimated that the bottle was at least 300ml.
"Of course not!"
Lin Zhen gestured with his fingers and said, "I can only give you this much. Don't you have a plastic bottle of alcohol with you? Do you have it with you? I'll pour it for you."
Tang Yu'an took out the alcohol spray bottle, but instead of giving it directly to Lin Zhen, he gave it to Zhou Qi.
So, Zhou Qi successfully traded the paralyzing venom with Lin Zhen, exchanging five rock candies for 20ml.
The dark green liquid was contained in a plastic spray bottle. It looked very viscous and emitted a faint grassy scent, which was surprisingly not unpleasant.
[Employee Zhou Qi completed a profitable transaction with a regular customer, earning +19 points and +1 experience point]
Afterwards, Zhou Qi again exchanged five rock candies for 20ml of venom on the grounds that he felt it was not enough.
"This venom can only be used against mutant creatures."
Lin Zhen warned seriously, "Be very careful when using it. If it accidentally gets on a wound, it may cause necrosis of the muscles around the wound."
“Although it’s not fatal, it could leave you with a disability.”
Tang Yu'an nodded quickly and carefully put the bottle of paralyzing venom into his personal storage, thinking that he would not ask Sister Lin to exchange this kind of poison in the future.
This sounds scary, but Happy Marbles is better.
But he thought about it and asked, "Will this venom be effective against monitor lizards?"
The task of clearing the giant lizard's nest that was triggered that day is still nowhere to be seen.
Hearing this question, Lin Zhen couldn't help but look at him meaningfully and said, "Did you hear it that day?"
Tang Yu'an did not deny it either.
He nodded: "I overheard it by accident. Are you and Grandpa Li going to deal with that big lizard?"
Lin Zhen looked at him strangely.
"Is there something wrong with what I said?" Tang Yu'an was puzzled.
"Who said we have to deal with that big lizard?" Lin Zhen said, "You may not have heard clearly, but that male lizard is already dead. It's the one that bit Old Li that day."
Tang Yu'an's expression also became strange, and he couldn't help but look at Zhou Qi.
Is that the giant lizard that they turned into a big yellow dog?
"How did it die?" Tang Yu'an asked with a little guilt.
"I don't know." Lin Zhen shrugged. "What I saw was that its belly was ripped open, and the female lizard was lying on it and gnawing on it."
"It sounds a bit scary..." Tang Yu'an said.
"Yes." Lin Zhen's expression was solemn. "The female lizard ate the male lizard's flesh and blood, and its mutation level must have increased. We couldn't defeat it before, let alone now."
Female lizards are larger and more aggressive than male lizards.
Before, Old Li only dared to target male lizards. Now that the male lizard is gone, he naturally gave up the idea.
"So you're going to leave that female lizard alone?" Tang Yu'an continued to ask, "Didn't that female lizard lay a lot of eggs?"
"Yes, so we are going to steal the eggs."
Lin Zhen chuckled, then turned to look at Zhou Qi, "How about it? Are you interested in joining?"
"Mutated lizard eggs are quite rare. Not only are they very nutritious, but if you have the patience, you can even hatch a baby lizard and raise them as pets."
So this is what Sister Lin and the others were planning!
"Are lizard eggs delicious?" Tang Yu'an asked.
"It tastes pretty good. Old Li made one for me to try before." Lin Zhen's face showed a look of reminiscence.
However, Zhou Qi heard something unusual.
"So, there are more than just these two giant lizards in the deserted city?" he asked with a frown.
Old Li had obtained a lizard egg before, which meant that this was not the first time the female lizard had given birth, or that other female lizards had given birth before.
Assuming that a female lizard lays thirty or forty eggs at a time, it is impossible for Old Li to catch them all. Even if we exclude those that die in the hands of natural enemies, there should be at least a dozen that survive, right?
"Indeed." Lin Zhen said, "But there is only one female lizard in that nest now."
She explained, "The nest originally belonged to the deceased male lizard. After entering the breeding season, it defeated all the surrounding competitors one after another, and thus won the favor of the female lizard."
"Its opponents were either driven out or eaten."
"Right now... there aren't many male lizards left, and the female lizards are very aggressive after giving birth. Even if other monitor lizards approach, they will be chased away or hunted, so there's no need to worry."
The competition between mutant creatures is quite fierce. After all, with such a large size, it is difficult for ordinary small animals to fill their stomachs, so there are many that attack their own kind.
Zhou Qi nodded and asked, "When are you going to take action?"
"Let's wait until Old Li's injury heals." Lin Zhen replied, "Besides, he said he would take you to the market town first."
"Well, let's see when the time comes." Zhou Qi said.
They didn't have to cooperate. After all, the task issued by the system was to separate all the lizard eggs from the mother lizards. According to Lin Zhen's idea, she and Old Li would only steal one or two eggs at most.
"Okay, I'll tell you when we're ready to take action." Lin Zhen said.
This topic came to an end, and Tang Yu'an asked again: "By the way, Sister Lin, do you know Tie Jin? When you are free, can you take us to find him?"
Lin Zhen raised his eyebrows, "Did Old Li ask you to come to me?"
"Well, Grandpa Li said you can take us there." Tang Yu'an said truthfully.
"Alright." Lin Zhen shrugged. "It's too hot outside now. I'll take you there when it's cooler."
It was a little after noon, the hottest time of the day.
Tang Yu'an didn't want to go out at this time. With Lin Zhen around, it would be difficult for him to use the umbrella. Such a short distance would be enough to burn him to a crisp.
"Then Sister Lin, we are sorry to bother you."
Lin Zhen waved his hand, "What are you being polite about? Come, I'll find you a room."
After the catastrophe, there were uninhabited houses everywhere, and those who chose to stay in the deserted city basically lived alone.
So it's almost one person per building - of course, that's provided you can find a good house to live in.
Lin Zhen took them to an empty room next door, where there were not so many bottles and jars, and no poisonous weeds or mushrooms, so it was safer for them.
"Okay, I'm going to go with Amu, you guys take a rest here."
Only after Lin Zhen left did Tang Yu'an have the time to look around the room. This was supposed to be the master bedroom. He could still see the bed board that had been removed by Lin Zhen in the corner, and the wardrobe that had been damaged to the point that only the main part remained.
I don’t know what the owner of this house has been through or what happened to him later.
I just hope that the end of their original world can come later...
"An An, it's time to eat."
Zhou Qi spread a picnic blanket on the ground and took out the lunch he had prepared in the morning.
He had only eaten one fried bird leg, and now there was one left. He put it directly in Tang Yu'an's bowl and took out the bun to eat.
Tang Yu'an took out a disposable glove, put it on his hand and grabbed the fried bird leg, but he didn't eat it immediately. Instead, he fed it to Zhou Qi's mouth first.
"Brother Xiaoqi." Tang Yu'an urged.
Zhou Qi paused before opening his mouth and taking a bite.
The golden fried bird legs exude a fragrant aroma, the outer skin covered with fried flour is crispy, and the bird meat marinated in sauce is salty, fragrant, tender and juicy. One bite will satisfy your taste buds.
In such a wasteland world, it is rare to be able to eat such delicious food.
Tang Yu'an was so drooling at the delicious taste that after Zhou Qi took a bite, he couldn't wait to take a bite too, and immediately narrowed his eyes in happiness.
Feeling a little thirsty, he took out two bottles of chilled soy milk.
Although he prefers Coke, he remembers his mother saying that drinking too much Coke will prevent him from growing taller, so he doesn't dare to drink it every day.
The two of them ate the fried bird legs one bite at a time, accompanied by soy milk.
After finishing the last bit of meat, Tang Yu'an carefully licked the residue off his gloves. After coming to this world, he deeply realized how hard it is to get food, and subconsciously did not want to waste it.
"Eat some buns."
Zhou Qi handed him a meat bun.
"Yeah, thank you, Brother Xiaoqi!" Tang Yu'an held the bun and started to eat it.
The two of them were in the growing stage and were prone to hunger. In the end, they ate seven or eight buns together before stopping.
Tang Yu'an touched his round belly and sighed with satisfaction.
“The buns are still delicious!”
They made nearly a hundred buns in the morning, which should be enough for them to eat for a week. Tang Yu'an felt very happy when he thought that he would be able to eat them every day.
He thought of something and couldn't help asking, "Brother Xiaoqi, you can make buns and steamed buns, but can you make noodles?"
Seeing that he was already thinking about his next meal right after finishing his meal, Zhou Qi couldn't help but laugh, "Want some noodles?"
"I kind of miss it." Tang Yu'an said, "Although there are still a lot of instant noodles, I feel that handmade noodles are chewier."
"Well, I'll make it for you when I have time."
"Great!" Tang Yu'an hugged him happily, "Brother Xiaoqi, you are so nice!"
Zhou Qi curved his lips slightly, "Aren't you hot?"
“It’s hot!”
Tang Yu'an let him go and showed him his sweaty back. Zhou Qi took a look, took out a towel and water from his personal storage, wet them, and reached into his clothes to help him wipe his body.
After wiping the sweat off his face, Tang Yu'an felt much more comfortable.
"Lie down, I'll fan you."
Lin Zhen may come over at any time, so it’s not convenient to use the umbrella, I can only make do with it.
Tang Yu'an lay down obediently on the picnic blanket. Zhou Qi took a paper fan and fanned him gently.
A gentle breeze blew, and before he knew it, Tang Yu'an fell asleep and had a dream.
In the dream, he seemed to have returned to his childhood.
There was no air conditioning in the summer back then. He and his younger brother Xiaoqi lay on a mat on the cement floor, while his younger brother's grandmother fanned them with a palm-leaf fan and hummed a gentle song to soothe them to sleep.
He turned over and leaned towards Zhou Qi's legs.
When Tang Yu'an opened his eyes again, Lin Zhen had already appeared in the room, waiting for them.
Tang Yu'an woke up instantly and jumped up.
Lin Zhen looked at the picnic blanket on the ground, then at the paper fan in Zhou Qi's hand, and marveled: "You are quite well-equipped."
And I don’t know what they had for lunch, but there was still a faint fragrance lingering in the room.
Thinking of the bacon porridge they had cooked for Old Li before, Lin Zhen felt that he had made a mistake. If he had known earlier, he should have stayed with a thick face, maybe he could have gotten some delicious food.
But there is nothing I can do, I can only wait and see next time I have the chance.
"It's not so sunny outside anymore. Let's pack up and get ready to go." After saying this, Lin Zhen turned around and left the room.
Tang Yu'an wiped his face and asked, only to find out that it was already three o'clock in the afternoon.
"Brother Xiaoqi, why didn't you wake me up earlier?" He muttered as he packed up the picnic blanket.
"Look at you sleeping soundly."
"All right."
Before leaving, Tang Yu'an used the light body technique on Zhou Qi again, and then followed Lin Yu out.
The sun outside was finally not as scorching, but it was still very hot. The earth was repeatedly scorched by the sun, and waves of heat surged. It felt like an egg dropped on the ground would probably be cooked in a short while.
Ten minutes later, they arrived behind an abandoned building.
This building is about four or five stories high, and it has not collapsed. It looks quite intact from the outside. It is the most normal-looking residence among all the customers they have come into contact with.
There was a lot of metal piled up outside the small building, including the shells of abandoned cars and steel bars removed from buildings... Around these old metals, there was an iron net with barbs, which surrounded the bottom of the small building.
This was also the most defensive customer they had ever met.
"Be careful not to touch those barbs," Lin Zhen said. "They're coated with paralyzing venom."
Tang Yu'an couldn't help swallowing.
It seems that this mutant named Tiejin should be one of the richer ones in the deserted city.
But think about it, in such an era, being able to produce metals, and judging by the nickname, being a strong adult male, it is normal for him to own and keep his own wealth.
Lin Zhen led them to carefully avoid the poisonous hooks and came to the door, knocking on a piece of iron hanging in front of the door.
“Dangdangdang——”
The iron sheet made a crisp sound.
Tang Yu'an covered his ears and looked at the map again, but was surprised to find that there was only one green dot - he had marked Tie Jin's name on the way here, and now there was another green dot next to it.
This potential customer should be someone that Lin Zhen has not contacted in the past two days. Now that he has entered his surroundings, he appears on the map.
Are there any guests at Tiejin's house?
As Tang Yu'an was thinking this, footsteps were heard behind the door.
Soon, an adult man with a full beard appeared in front of them.
It was a little different from what Tang Yu'an had expected. Although this mutant nicknamed Tie Jin was indeed quite tall, he should be at least 1.8 meters tall, which was rare in the wasteland.
But he is not muscular, nor does he look that strong, and is even a little thin compared to his height.
He may be richer and live a better life than others, but definitely not as good as people in peacetime.
"Uncle Jin!" Lin Zhen was the first to greet him.
Tie Jin nodded at her, his eyes falling on Tang Yu'an and Zhou Qi, with the vigilance and alertness unique to the natives of the wasteland.
"Who are they? I don't think I've seen them before." He asked Lin Zhen.
"Old Li asked me to bring them here." Lin Zhen said, "They are also my friends."
"Just met?"
"Yes, I will stay in the deserted city for a while. I want to trade some metal with you." Then she lowered her voice and said, "They came from the fortress."
Hearing this, the man couldn't help but look Tang Yu'an and Zhou Qi up and down several times.
The appearance and temperament of the two young men quickly convinced him of this. He nodded gently and said, "Okay, come in."
Tie Jin made way for the passage and waited for Tang Yu'an and the others to enter. He then looked outside the house vigilantly a few times before closing the door again and picking up a large stone nearby to block the door.
Looking at the bulging muscles on his arms, Tang Yu'an decided to take back what he had just said - this Uncle Tiejin is indeed very strong and powerful!
The first floor of Tiejin's house was also full of debris, but not all of it was metal. Tang Yu'an also saw a small boat in the corner.
It was strange. Was there a river nearby? Why would they keep a boat at home? He thought about it and figured it might be like other scrap, just for the purpose of refining the metal.
"Come upstairs." Tiejin walked towards the stairs.
Tang Yu'an and Zhou Qi followed him upstairs. It was not until they reached the third floor that the room became empty.
"You're welcome, take a seat. Since Old Li introduced you here, I'll give you a good price."
"What kind of metal do you want? How much do you need?" The man's voice was rough, and the dark circles under his eyes made him look a little sinister and not to be messed with.
Zhou Qi pursed his lips slightly, took a step forward and protected Tang Yu'an behind him, then took out the dagger that had failed to deal with the mutant pig and had its blade bent.
"Can you help me make a dagger like this?" Zhou Qi asked.
Seeing Tie Jin take the dagger and look at it carefully, Zhou Qi and Tang Yu'an quietly retreated a little, keeping a safe distance.
The atmosphere seemed a little silent.
"This dagger..." The man had just opened his mouth to speak when there was a sudden noise on the stairs.
Tang Yu'an looked up.
I saw a small figure appear on the stairs. It was a little girl who looked only one year old. She held the railing with her two little hands and looked down.
"What's wrong?"
Tiejin asked, "Why did you come down?"
The man who had a serious and fierce look on his face just now put down the dagger and ran over hurriedly.
He gave the little girl a flattering smile, and his rough, deep voice suddenly became soft and gentle, sounding...
So good!
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