Chapter 201: Chapter 168: The Grandeur of the Convoy
A full five cars, crawling like snails through the crowded throng, were ushered onto a side ramp.
The Defense Army soldiers in charge of quarantine stood waiting by the equipment on one side. The crowd squeezed together tightly, craning their necks like a waddle of penguins.
Pushed to the very front by Uncle Zaozi, Huai Yu stood blankly clutching her woven basket. The car door ahead of them was jammed shut by the sheer mass of people swarming it, prompting the person inside to shout a few curses before violently shoving it open.
"Move, move! We haven’t even tested the goods yet, what’s the rush?!"
Someone grumbled in complaint, "Doesn’t the highway checkpoint have one of those large scanners that can scan a whole vehicle? They always use these small ones. Unloading, carrying it over, and then reloading it... What a hassle."
A nearby Defense Army soldier shot them a look. "Where would the country get the money? Between building houses, repairing roads, and restoring all the basic infrastructure, the funds were drained a long time ago."
Fair enough.
Thinking about how their lives were gradually getting back on track, everyone’s spirits lifted. "I’m just complaining a bit... Take your time scanning. It’s safer this way, prevents smuggling!"
Cars nowadays didn’t really care about overloading; regardless of a vehicle’s condition, people always welded a truck bed to the back. Watching the dozen or so members of the convoy hauling things up and down, someone on the sidelines eagerly reached out.
"Captain Zhao, let me give you a hand!"
"No thanks."
Hearing someone speak his name, Huai Yu finally matched the title "Captain Zhao" to the man. He looked to be around forty and wasn’t very tall, but as he carried the goods, his forearm muscles bulged tightly. He was clearly very strong.
His skin was slightly dark and his eyebrows sparse, but his eyes were sharp as blades. Shooting a smiling glare at the man who had offered help, he said, "Stay away from my truck. Who doesn’t know what you guys are up to? Saying you want to help when you’re all just eyeing my stuff."
It was a blunt accusation, but the man didn’t feel ashamed in the slightest. Instead, he grinned. "Look at what you’re saying. I’m not that kind of person."
"Whether you are or not, I still don’t need your help. What’s the point of hovering around here? Just go wait by the scanner exit over there. If there’s something I can’t be bothered to deal with, I’ll naturally come find you."
He said that, but as Huai Yu stood on her tiptoes to peer at the scanner exit, she realized there were probably even more people over there! It turned out they were just the batch who had missed out on the prime spots.
Captain Zhao unloaded basket after basket from the truck. In the dead of night, with very little lighting, it was hard to see clearly.
Standing on her tiptoes and craning her neck, Huai Yu’s curiosity was palpable. Among this rough crowd of peddlers staying up late to snatch up goods, her fair-skinned, clean, and leisurely appearance was quite conspicuous.
Several people in the convoy glanced at the unfamiliar face, but Huai Yu remained completely oblivious. Instead, she asked the person beside her, "Uncle Zaozi, what are you trying to buy later? If it’s close, I’ll help you snatch it."
Uncle Zaozi chuckled. "Your uncle has plenty of channels. I can buy anything..."
Before he could finish his sentence, the machine ahead let out a sharp BEEP, and the crowd instantly surged forward.
"It’s out, it’s out!"
"It’s a mutated honeycomb, 5.7 catties! It’s packed with bee pupae! There’s even a bit of royal jelly—holy shit, the Mutant Value is only 14!"
"Give it to me! Give it to me! Me—"
The crowd grew restless, everyone pushing relentlessly toward the front. Yet, amidst this chaotic squeezing, an unspoken order emerged:
"600 points!"
"Why don’t you go back and take a nap? You can have anything in your dreams. Pass, next!"
"880! That’s generous enough, right, Captain Zhao?!"
"Get lost, trying to lowball me..."
Beside her, Uncle Zaozi sighed. "He hit the jackpot. How is this Captain Zhao so lucky? An entire mutated honeycomb!"
Huai Yu’s eyes widened as she watched the people ahead step up one by one to shout their offers. If their bid was rejected, they would step aside.
Inadvertently, this hyped up the atmosphere. It not only allowed the Explorers to sell their goods faster and for higher prices, but it also left a sliver of hope for those waiting in the back rows...
Huai Yu instantly understood why everyone, unable to squeeze to the very front, was content to just inch their way forward from the sides. It turned out there really was a chance they’d get a turn!
She was just counting that there were still over a dozen people ahead of them when someone in the middle of the pack suddenly raised a hand.
"Final offer, 1,800!"
GASP!
This price was incredibly staggering; for a brief second, everyone present fell dead silent.
Even Captain Zhao, an experienced seller, was instantly invigorated.
"Deal!"
He took a massive stride over to the bidder. The two men raised their hands and high-fived mid-air with a loud SMACK. The mutated honeycomb was immediately whisked aside by a team member to finalize the transaction.
Just then, the next white plastic basket emerged from the scanner.
"Frozen mutated bullfrog! Shipped fresh on ice. It was frozen the moment it died. Everyone knows our team has someone with a Water System Superpower who can make ice..."
"You’re doing a lot of talking. Is the Mutant Value high?"
Everyone here was an expert. The key selling points of good merchandise would naturally be shouted out right away. Dragging it out with so much preamble definitely meant there was a catch.
Uncle Zaozi perked up. Shoving his burlap sack into Huai Yu’s arms, he declared, "I have a feeling it’s my time to strike! As long as the Mutant Value doesn’t exceed 18, I will—"
"Mutant Value: 21."
The moment this number was announced, the crowd fell silent for a beat before letting out a collective, disdainful, "Tch!"
Once a Mutant Value passed 20, the only difference in the food was between "tasting so bad you want to die" and "tasting worse than death."
Even Uncle Zaozi’s expression contorted into a grimace. It seemed that whether it was peaches or dates, they had already added insult to injury in his less-than-happy life.
Ahead, someone had already picked up the basket, ready to toss it aside. The team members cursed in frustration.
"Fuck! If I knew it was a 21, why would I have wasted my Superpower? Look at how solidly I froze this thing for the whole trip!"
Because of her short stature, Huai Yu couldn’t see what the people in front were doing. But seeing everyone’s attention shift back to the pending items still in the scanner, she grew anxious and quickly thrust her hand high into the air.
"Me, me, me! The mutated bullfrog! I want it!"
Everyone turned their heads in unison. Hearing that crisp, clear voice, they couldn’t help but laugh.
"It has a Mutant Value of 21. If you want it, why don’t you go grab it? What are you waiting here for?"
"Were you actually planning to pay for it?"
"Ah?" Huai Yu let out a sound of surprise. She really had planned to pay for it. She hadn’t expected it to actually be a free giveaway!
Looking back at Uncle Zaozi and recalling how he had said he’d scavenged a basket of dates while squatting at the highway checkpoint, her eyes immediately curved into happy crescents. She skipped over joyfully.
"Thank you, uncles, brothers, sisters, and aunties!"
The little girl was a sweet-talker, which softened the expression of the team member holding the basket. He set the basket down on the grass nearby. "Can you carry it back? Between the meat and the ice, it’s gotta be over thirty catties."
"I can carry it!"
A mutated bullfrog, and it was flash-frozen at that! This was tender meat and high protein! Even if she had to crawl, Huai Yu was going to carry this basket of meat back home!
Uncle Zaozi was a step slower, only just now rushing over with his burlap sack. "Come, come, come! I brought a plastic bag. Let me pack this block of ice up for you."
After the others walked away, he sneaked up to Huai Yu’s ear and whispered, "You’re always asking for things with high Mutant Values. Are you planning to offer them as a tribute to the Rose Corridor?"