Chapter 139: Trading for Survival: Deals, Dilemmas, and Danger

Weapons and food are the most important supplies in a year of cataclysms. Weapons can be even more vital than food—after all, with the right weapons, you can get more food, but if you only have food and lack firepower or strength, someone will just take it from you.

Xia Qing asked for a massive haul of weapons from the start, never expecting Yang Jin to agree. Even if he cut her offer in half, she would have been thrilled.

To her surprise, Yang Jin didn’t cut down the amount at all—he simply agreed.

“All right. Gasoline and generators have gone up since last month, but since we’re partners, I’ll give you the old rate for points. We still have bullets and grenades in stock too, so those stay at the previous point price as well. Your total comes to… two hundred sixty-one thousand, three hundred fifty-two point four points. Let’s round it out to two hundred sixty-one thousand, which equals two thousand six hundred ten spinach seeds. How does that sound?”

Xia Qing felt like she could float away from sheer joy, though she had to keep her cool. “Deal. But I can’t guarantee delivery in three months. If I fall short on spinach seeds by October, you’ll get what remains in May next year.”

“That’s absolutely fine,” Yang Jin replied without hesitation. “But if it comes to that, next May you’ll need to throw in an extra hundred Greenlight spinach seeds.”

Xia Qing nodded. “Agreed.”

Yang Jin moved on to the next offer. “A few days ago, you watched Captain Tan and his people clear out Territory Nine. You must’ve noticed their new shoulder-fired light grenade launcher, right? This model is accurate up to 300 meters, 80-millimeter caliber, weighs about 8.5 kilos, each shell weighs 1.5 kilos with a full kilo of explosives inside. It can blow up vehicles, even small helicopters. Right now, it’s the most powerful weapon squads are allowed to have nationwide, perfect for Strength Evolvers. I just brought back a batch. I can get you one for a base price of 150,000 points. You want it?”

“Absolutely!” Xia Qing answered without a moment’s hesitation, her eyes practically lighting up with excitement. With that launcher, even if someone brought an armored vehicle or helicopter to raid her territory, she could blast them off the map.

Before Yang Jin could lay out the conditions, Xia Qing heard Boss Sheep’s footsteps outside the room. She shot to her feet. “Hold on a second, my Evolved Sheep is here.”

This door wasn’t the reinforced security one like at home, so Boss Sheep made a racket opening it. Xia Qing hurried to open it before he could start ramming with his hooves and gently whispered, “Didn’t I tell you to stay home and entertain the guests? Why’d you run over here?”

Boss Sheep ignored Xia Qing, squinting at Yang Jin inside the room with clear annoyance.

They were right at a key part of negotiations, and Xia Qing really didn’t want Boss Sheep picking a fight with Yang Jin. Yang Jin was infamous for never letting himself take a loss—if Boss Sheep upset him, how many resources would she have to cough up in compensation?

Xia Qing quickly handed Boss Sheep a block of compressed rations and coaxed him in a low, gentle voice. “He’s Luo Ge and Captain Hu’s partner, just here for business—no need for a strength contest.”

Getting beaten and losing resources as payment? That’s not a trade we want any part of.

Noticing that the Evolved Sheep Xia Qing called ‘Boss’ was eyeing him up, Yang Jin slowly stood, meeting the gaze of this scruffy-looking, shorn sheep.

Boss Sheep saw him rise and set down the hoof he’d lifted to stomp in warning, then backed up a step.

He could tell he was outmatched. Even if Xia Qing insisted he wasn’t very bright, he certainly wasn’t dumb. Yang Jin smirked faintly and sat back down, sipping his tea.

With her back to Yang Jin, Xia Qing didn’t spot his little smile. Since Boss Sheep didn’t come all the way in, she stuffed another ration into his mouth and handed over a small basket. “Go catch some bugs for the fish, big guy. I’ll make you something delicious tonight.”

Boss Sheep squinted at her for a few seconds before grabbing the basket and trotting away.

Xia Qing breathed a sigh of relief, then turned to Yang Jin with an apologetic grin. “Sorry about that. My Evolved Sheep’s got a pretty strong sense of territory.”

“That’s a good thing—a strong sense of territory means he can guard the house,” Yang Jin said, segueing back to business. “Have you already planted your spinach?”

“Just did that two days ago. They haven’t sprouted yet.”

Yang Jin nodded. “Can you trade spinach leaves or stems? Of course, I mean the stems leftover after you harvest the seeds.”

Juice squeezed from the stem and leaves of Greenlight spinach with more than 0.05% Yi element is the key ingredient for premium nutrient solution—it sells for a good price.

Xia Qing nodded. “After I harvest the spinach seeds, the stems can be traded. But I can’t trade leaves grown in the meantime—I already promised them to the Lord of Territory Seven.”

Yang Jin started bargaining. “Every kilo of spinach at six ten-thousandths Yi element content produces about 80 milliliters of juice, which can be refined into one premium nutrient vial. The market price for those is 2,000 points each. I can buy your spinach for 600 points per kilo. Deal?”

Six hundred? That was way lower than Xia Qing expected.

Before she could figure out how to negotiate, Yang Jin refilled her teacup and said calmly, “The Safe Zone Planting Center and the Research Institute do internal spinach trades for about the same rate. Feel like it’s unfair because Zhang San offered you more?”

Xia Qing came right out with it. “Third Brother said with his medicine, I could juice my spinach, add one gram of his stuff to every 15 milliliters, and make a batch of nutrient that’s even better than Premium.”

By those numbers, every kilo of spinach would make five premium vials—so it should be worth 10,000 points. Six hundred was way below her expectations.

Instead of haggling, Yang Jin asked, “Did Zhang San tell you how long that juiced spinach lasts after mixing in his medicine?”

“He said to keep it chilled and drink it the same day,” Xia Qing realized what Yang Jin was getting at. “So if you want to store it longer, you’d have to add preservatives?”

“I have no idea what’s in his medicine, but it’s definitely good stuff.” Yang Jin’s eyes shone, his smile bright. “If you’re willing to split half with me, I’ll give you a price you’ll love. Once I crack the ingredients, we could work together and produce top-grade nutrient solution cheaper, and I’ll up my offer for your spinach stems.”

Xia Qing shook her head at once. “No way.”

Her idol had never said anything, but she was sure she wasn’t supposed to trade the medicine openly. If she gave it to Yang Jin, her idol might blacklist her.

Yang Jin seemed to have expected her rejection. Leaning back, he analyzed the situation for her. “After your Evolved Spinach seeds mature, the stems wither within two days and spoil fast—so you absolutely have to process them into nutrient right away.”

“You making nutrient with your own juicer and medicine doesn’t last, so it’s really best for immediate use while the spinach is still growing and you need premium nutrient. For the big batch of stems you get at harvest, your best bet is to sell them off at once.”

“What happened in Territory Nine’s got the Safe Zone watching closely, and this area is under a microscope. You’d better avoid trading your local produce with anyone other than me or Zhang San. There’s still several months before your spinach is ready, so take your time. Think it over and let me know.”

“Okay.” Xia Qing immediately nodded, then used the chance to ask about Territory Nine. Ever since the incident, Luo Pei had been busy and she hadn’t gotten the whole story.

“I just got back myself, so I’m not sure. But Huo Fenghuang was furious when she heard about Territory Nine and said she’d handle the mess herself.”

Yang Jin warned Xia Qing, “They suspect the only reason Zhang San came here is because there’s some critical resource he needs—which is why Li Si started gathering samples from neighboring territories. Right now, they’re still watching Zhang San, but you have to be careful too. Stick with the other lords’ actions and don’t draw attention to yourself.”

He added, “Don’t worry too much. I’ve set up a maze formation—unless you reveal yourself, Huo Fenghuang’s people won’t find the spring.”

Xia Qing thanked him. “Thanks, Team Leader Yang. Anything besides spinach stems you want to trade for?”

Yang Jin was straightforward. “Yi Stone and clean spring water. Can I see your Yi Stone?”

Didn’t Luo Ge have one? Why did he want to see hers? Xia Qing wondered, but since she happened to have one on her, she figured it wouldn’t hurt.

Watching as Xia Qing took out a pitch-black iron egg, popped it open and revealed the Yi Stone, Yang Jin praised her. “Did you make this Yi Stone Protective Shell? Looks really solid.”

Finally, someone who knew quality. Xia Qing handed him the shell with a hint of pride, staying modest on the surface. “First try. Two days of work for something barely presentable—but at least it’s good enough for my own use.”

Yang Jin unscrewed the case, checking the thickness and weight, and praised her sincerely. “The main job of a protective shell is, of course, to protect the Yi Stone. Yours is sturdier than most of the fancy, lightweight ones traded in the Safe Zone. With a bit of polish and some finishing, you could easily get 200 points for it.”

Now, that’s how you give a compliment—and what a handsome smile!

Floating in her own little bubble, Xia Qing forced herself to stay sensible. “My three Yi Stones are already spoken for, so I can’t trade any more. But I can trade the spring water.”

“What I want isn’t—”

“Baa!”

Before he could finish, Boss Sheep’s call rang out from outside. Yang Jin turned to the window and stood up at once.

Xia Qing, who’d had her back to the window, spun and stood up too, wishing she could just cover her face and pretend none of this was happening.

Her dopey teammate, Boss Sheep, had actually brought the Alpha Wolf over.

So that’s why he’d grabbed the basket and left so quickly! He wasn’t catching bugs—he was off to call for backup.

And the backup he brought? Not bad at all. In fact… downright formidable.