Chapter 35
Fu Lehua bought ten jin of gold with 0.1 grams of gold, took one piece for himself, and divided the rest equally between Su Qun and Bai Ji.
'Cactus, non-toxic, edible.'
Fu Le: It's non-toxic and has no medicinal effects, tsk.
Disdainfully, Fu Le gave the palm-sized, bitter-tasting cactus to Su Qun and continued to observe his surroundings.
Fu Le looked at all the ordinary gold jewelry, scarves, hats, and animal skin boots. The animal skin boots were simple in style and not much different from postmodern styles. The only difference was the price and their sturdiness.
Fu Le selected ten pairs of black and gray flat boots and ten pairs of mid-calf boots. The former were for himself and the latter for his mother. The styles were slightly different, and the fur lining was very warm. These were only worn during the dead of winter.
The harsh winter in the post-apocalyptic world only lasts a month. For ordinary people, it's something they can just endure. For the wealthy, they have servants who can make boots. So, this is something that middle-class families buy, and it's expensive, so sales are low.
The shop owner was overjoyed to see a wealthy customer who casually bought twenty pairs of shoes. He grinned from ear to ear and presented her with a fur hat, thanking her profusely for her patronage.
The fur hat was fluffy and very warm.
The hats were nice, so Fu Le picked out six more hats and six fluffy scarves. Because they were pieced together from scraps, each scarf only contained 0.5 grams of gold. Fu Le was very happy with his purchases.
Su Qun and Bai Ji remained quietly by her side, never disturbing Fu Le's shopping interest.
They traveled and stopped frequently, and what should have been an hour's journey took two hours. When they arrived at their destination, Fu Le paid double the fare.
"Do you have any way to purchase the silkworm beast's cloth in bulk? The cheaper the better."
Bai Ji said, “I have a friend whose family owns a cloth workshop with a large output. They often have stockpiles. If you don’t have high requirements for the cloth, you can buy his surplus stock. Although it’s not the newest this year, the quality is no different. It’s all good stuff. He sells the defective products to residents in the suburbs at a lower price.”
Where is his cloth shop?
“The suburbs are where housing and labor are cheapest.”
"Okay, then I'll go check it out when I get back to rest."
As they walked, they finally arrived at the Bliss Mall.
Fu Le looked at the huge stone tablet standing at the entrance, nearly ten meters high, with the words "Paradise Mall" carved in blood red, elegant yet domineering.
The people coming in and out of the gate were all riding in rickshaws (just like the rickshaws during the Republic of China era), wearing clothes of different colors, with clean, non-greasy hair, fair complexions, gold jewelry, and arrogant expressions. They were clearly rich and noble.
Tsk...
The winding road, about four meters wide, was lined with shops, each like a small cubicle. The foot traffic was decent, but not as heavy as the pedestrian streets of later generations.
Fu Le excitedly went from shop to shop, looking at the items in the stores: cloth, clothes, shoes, jewelry, meat... He was dazzled by the variety. Dyed cloth was the most expensive because the dye was expensive. Meat was also expensive because it contained energy and was the most popular food among martial artists. Fu Le touched almost every kind of meat, and before the shopkeeper could lose his temper, he bought a piece of meat for three grams of gold, feeling the pinch for three seconds.
There's so much desert; she could easily slaughter it herself.
"This is a martial arts supplies store; it has everything a martial artist needs," Bai Ji said when she saw Fu Le standing motionless at the entrance of the martial arts supplies store.
"Oh?" She was intrigued by the martial artist's question.
"Beautiful lady, welcome to the shop. Please allow me to introduce you. I have books on martial arts techniques, as well as fist techniques, leg techniques, and various other skills. Although they are all basic, they are very practical. This is a knife, this is a bow and arrow, and this is..." The shop owner warmly welcomed Fu Le into the shop.
“Fu, these are all basic books on opening martial arts acupoints, they’re worthless.” Bai Ji quietly advised after hearing the shopkeeper’s various prices. “Those techniques are also commonplace, used to deceive residents from outside the city and new residents.”
Fu Le: ...
Do you have anything cheap to sell me?
"If Fu wants it, I can help you find someone to buy it; it will only be better than these."
Fu Le looked at Bai Ji in surprise. With such a wide network of connections, how could she have been expelled?
Fu Le's expression was too straightforward, and Bai Ji couldn't help but understand even if she didn't want to. She couldn't help but smile bitterly, "It's a long story. That person is too strong. I can't harm my friend."
Fu Le understood, and roughly comprehended the situation, but was it really as he described?
"oh."
"I want to buy weapons, the kind with high lethality. Do you have any recommendations?"
Bai Ji's need for Fu Le was not surprising, after all, she was a lone wolf who made a living by killing.
"I don't have the channels for that, but I know a shop owner whose family has two weapon makers, both of whom are highly respected by the powerful and wealthy. However, if you want his weapons, you can only exchange them for materials; he doesn't accept gold."
In the dimly lit alley, an old wooden door blocked the tourists' way.
“The alleys behind this door are all privately owned, and there are guardian beasts here.” Bai Ji and the other two stopped in their tracks, and Bai Ji stepped forward and tugged on the bell string hanging on the wooden door.
After a series of clanging sounds, a dark figure peeked out from above the door.
Hiss... A black, long-haired tiger!! A lion's body and a tiger's head.
Fu Le was startled and took two steps back, his mind on edge, ready to pull out the chainsaw at any moment. Su Qun, who was beside him, reacted in the same way.
"Black Tiger, we're looking for Elder Xue to make weapons. We have materials we can trade." Bai Ji stepped forward calmly and bowed respectfully.
Black Tiger's large copper bell eyes glanced at Fu Le, then at the others. Its black nose twitched, as if trying to distinguish each person's scent, before it quickly disappeared through the doorway.
Fu Le: Could it be that the tigers here have the noses of dogs?
"Black Tiger is Elder Xue's old companion, responsible for guarding the gate. It understands human speech. It is still a minor and occasionally jokes with guests. If it behaves strangely after you go inside, please don't be angry, it won't hurt anyone." Bai Ji reminded in advance that Elder Xue was not a good-tempered person, "Elder Xue cares about it very much."
Fu Le nodded, expressing his gratitude for Bai Ji's reminder, "If it doesn't hurt me, then naturally there won't be any problems."
Before long, the wooden door opened, and a little boy appeared on Black Tiger's broad back.
The little boy, who looked to be about ten years old, looked the three of them up and down after he came out. "So you're the ones who asked my grandfather to forge weapons?"
Bai Ji stepped forward respectfully and said, "Yes."
"Come in with me."
As we walked through the narrow alley, we were surprised to find not houses, but a three-story building, which was the only tall building we saw after entering the city.
In the spacious and bright hall on the first floor, I saw a man dressed in a black robe with a brown rope tied around his waist. Behind him were five other men, and judging from their posture, the man in the robe was clearly the leader.
The man had an ordinary face, but a pair of bright brown eyes.
"What weapon do you want to exchange for? Do you have any requirements?" The man in the long robe glanced at the three of them, and after a few breaths, his gaze landed precisely on Fu Le. He went straight to the point without any self-introduction or pleasantries.
"The greater the destructive power, the better," Fu Le said.
"How strong are you?" Upon hearing this, the man looked Fu Le up and down again, and asked in a deep voice.
Fu Le took out a complete skeleton of a Kui bird directly from her space. She couldn't estimate the exact weight, but it was at least no less than two hundred catties.
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