Chapter 111: Night Market Schemes and Old Ties

After the first day of the Produce Trade Fair came to a close, the lords broke off to do their own thing. Some went out shopping for supplies, others caught up with friends and loved ones. For their safety, the Safe Zone put everyone up in free hotels and sent out security patrols for protection.

Xia Qing dropped off the treasures she’d traded for at the hotel storage, skipped out on the security escort and simply slung her pack over her shoulder before heading out. Protection was just another word for surveillance, after all. Xia Qing had a long to-do list in the Safe Zone, and some of it she definitely didn’t want anyone keeping tabs on.

Her first stop was Weapon Street. She slipped into a humble knife shop and set her machete down on the counter. “Uncle Huo, do you think this blade can still be fixed?”

The owner, a burly man with a broad, scarred face, lifted his swollen eyelids and stared at Xia Qing. “You’re still alive? Can’t believe it. That’s a first.”

Huo Lei, a Grade Four Strength Evolver, had been a blacksmith even before the Cataclysm and never left the trade. Xia Qing’s machete, slingshot, steel balls, knife and even her kitchen knife had all come from his shop, bought or bartered. Back when her father died, Xia Qing had barely enough food to live on. She’d swallowed her pride, pestering and working for Huo Lei, swinging the giant hammer for two months in exchange for the machete she had today.

“I’ve been out farming. Got lucky. Brought in this grain just a few days ago—give it a try.” Xia Qing grinned and pulled out two vacuum-sealed bags, each holding about two pounds of wheat and mung beans, laying them on the counter. She’d stuck a note on the bags with her latest phone number.

With his fan-sized hands, Huo Lei swept the grain into the drawer before finally turning his gaze to the blade. “Did an Evolved Animal get at it?”

Xia Qing nodded. “Yeah. You think it’s still fixable?”

“Scratches are too deep, even if I patch it up it won’t last. Swap for a new one.” Huo Lei turned back to the inner room, came out with a long case for knives and set it on the counter. “Go on, open it up and see.”

Xia Qing lifted the lid and couldn’t tear her eyes away. Inside was a set of three knives—large, medium and small—all with a deep black finish. After months of working iron herself, she knew at a glance these blades were in a whole different league from her old machete.

She bargained with Huo Lei. “I want all three. Can I get the employee discount?”

With a cigarette clamped between his teeth, Huo Lei cursed at her. “Employee discount, my ass! You’re not staff. Two thousand points—take it or leave it! Not a single point less!”

For knives like these, two thousand was a total steal. Xia Qing handed over her card and paid on the spot, her gratitude genuine. “Thanks a lot, Uncle Huo.”

Huo Lei glared. “Thanks my ass. I’m just running a business here, don’t need your thanks. Get your stuff and scram, you’re an eyesore standing around here.”

No problem!

Xia Qing didn’t hesitate. She fastened the smallest knife to her belt, packed the other two back in the case and into her backpack, then headed out without another word.

Watching her leave, Huo Lei yelled around his cigarette, sounding as fierce as ever. “Next time you come back, bring me some rice!”

Xia Qing glanced back and answered with a smile, “Sure. I’m picking up rice seedlings tomorrow, and once the harvest’s in, I’ll bring you some.”

Not long after the shop door slammed shut, Huo Lei grinned around his cigarette. Honestly, his grin was even scarier than his scowl. A young apprentice poked his head out from the back, voice trembling. “Master, the temperature’s at the mark…”

“The hell you yelling for! I haven’t even warmed my seat yet!” Huo Lei snapped, shuffling off in his straw sandals toward the back room.

Strolling down the street, Xia Qing let the sounds from the knife shop put a quiet smile on her face. Uncle Huo’s place was always hot year round—the warmest place in the Safe Zone. She swung by the hardware and carpentry shops to pick up some essentials and farm tools, dropped all her new supplies back at the hotel, and only then set out to meet Xu Juan as planned.

She’d mapped out the route she was taking in advance.

“Jie-ge, look, isn’t that Xia Qing?”

“You just noticed? I spotted her this morning when the lords entered the city. She’s carrying a pack that must weigh dozens of pounds—who knows how much good stuff she’s got stashed in there. Jie-ge, no way we’re letting her slip by!”

“Yeah, we still need to settle that score from five months ago!”

Zhao Jie spat viciously. “Go on, get some more guys. I don’t believe we can’t take her!”

Moving with the crowd under the streetlights, Xia Qing pretended not to hear Zhao Jie’s crew plotting. She headed straight for the tavern. This was the kind of place where ordinary Evolvers, mostly living on the edge of the Safe Zone, hung out. Whenever people earned some points on a mission, they’d come here for a rare treat.

Xia Qing opened the door. The stuffy, noisy air, thick with the aroma of food, hit her all at once.

“Xia Qing, over here!”

She walked through two groups of people watching her with quiet curiosity and stepped into the private room, closing the bustle outside. “Looks like you’re doing well these days, Juan-jie.”

“If you weren’t coming back, I’d never splurge on a private room.” Xu Juan poured her a cup of hot tea. “Why didn’t you bring Shi Du along for the reunion?”

Shi Du took jobs a lot, so of course he and Xu Juan knew each other.

Xia Qing took a sip of tea, boiled from filtered water, then set her cup down. “If you wanted to invite him too, I called out to him at the Mission Hall.”

Xu Juan laughed out loud. “You still speak as straight as ever. Leaving again tomorrow?”

“Yeah.” Xia Qing replied, but then her ear caught a familiar voice from the private room next door. It belonged to Jiang Quan, head of the Land Management Department of the Hui San Territory, and Secretary Wang from Hui One Base, both of whom had been at today’s passionate trade fair discussions.

“We’re short on new materials—there’s no way we can cover our entire territory with a signal like the Central Base.” There was envy in Jiang Quan’s voice.

Secretary Wang sounded a bit more relaxed now than he had in the afternoon. “We’ve only managed to extend coverage twenty-five kilometers past the Safe Zone. The rest, just like Hui San Base, still needs walkie-talkies or satellite phones.”

“The Main Institute made another breakthrough in new materials research. By the year’s end, the Central Base should have full coverage.” Jiang Quan’s tone was probing. “Secretary Wang, the new materials factory—planning must have started, right?”

Secretary Wang played it coy. “Our department only handles territory tasks. As for progress in other areas, I honestly don’t know.”

Holding her teacup, Xia Qing mulled over the new material they were talking about. It probably had to be tough enough to withstand rodents. She wondered if they’d ever sell it to the public.

“Try the wild chicken—I caught it on my last mission.” Xu Juan didn’t waste a second when the steaming pot of stewed chicken hit the table.

Xia Qing grabbed a chopstick’s worth and tasted it. “Delicious.”

Watching her friend enjoy the meal, Xu Juan sipped tea and brought up Feng Wen. “Feng Wen went through all her brother’s survivor’s benefits and then got together with Tang Rui. If she comes looking for you, you can bet Tang Rui sent her. Word about the Azure Dragon Unit and the Tang Family fighting for turf north of the Safe Zone is spreading like wildfire.”

When Xia Qing saw Feng Wen earlier in her high heels and perfume, she guessed the woman had found a new meal ticket. She just hadn’t imagined it would be Tang Rui.

Tang Rui was Tang Sufeng’s son—famous for being a spoiled womanizer who changed girlfriends faster than he changed outfits. Xia Qing couldn’t imagine what was going through Feng Wen’s head.

Xu Juan grinned as she ate. “Feng Wen’s still dreaming of marrying into the Tang Family. She’s wasted these years for nothing.”