Chapter 1 It's the End of the Year Again

It was the end of the year again, and the exchange was bustling with noise as people crowded around various trading stalls.

"Soft and smooth snow rabbit fur, whole pelts! Five whole pelts for one crystal core, take them all! Properly treated roe deer hides, glossy and smooth – one hide for one crystal core!"

"I'll take all five rabbit pelts and the roe deer hide."

Lou Jia squatted in front of the stall, not bothering to haggle, and cheerfully handed the crystal core to the owner.

The owner smiled when he saw Lou Jia's familiar face and asked, "Buying for the kids at home again, Mr. Lou?"

"Yes."

"Before the last snowfall, I was hunting outside and sorting out the furs. Some seeds fell on them, so I'll give them to you."

With that, he gave Lou Jia a small packet of seeds that he had been carrying.

Lou Jia's Wood-type ability was considered rare in the base, and everyone knew the few Wood-type ability users who were indispensable to the base's food production.

"I can't accept this..."

"Hey! It's no use to me. Even if I hand it over for research to find out what kind of seeds they are, I won't get any benefits. You can plant them for fun. If you really grow something good, you can think of me and sell it to me cheaply~"

"Alright, thank you." Lou Jia didn't decline any further, accepting it and simply saying, "If something good really grows, I'll send a portion to you first, boss~"

After accepting the boss's seeds, Lou Jia continued his New Year's shopping trip with the hides in hand.

Since the base had suddenly undergone reforms in the late autumn, with a new group of leaders at the top, people generally felt much happier living in the base.

Various regulations in the base had changed, and the control over the flow of residents' supplies was much looser than before.

The prices of various necessities and food had also steadily decreased, and everyone was completely relaxed as the end of the year approached.

"Mutated wild boar meat, stamped by the Quarantine Bureau! A whole boar for only ten crystal cores!"

"Damn! You're ripping us off, boss. This pig used to be only two crystal cores. You're increasing the price several times over now!"

The stall owner selling the boar didn't budge on the price, and retorted forcefully, "Where's the rip-off in this price? Before the reform, a pig usually cost this much. It's almost the New Year now, and it's the middle of winter. Is it easy to get one or two pigs?

Besides, it’s almost the New Year, and fresh pork is great for braising, stewing, or barbecuing, isn't it?! You've probably all been eating too much cured meat and getting a heat rash, right?"

The pig seller's rebuttal left the ability users who wanted to haggle speechless.

"There are only two pigs, miss this village and you won't find this shop again!" Seeing a group of people surrounding him but not buying, the owner wasn't worried, and just continued to shout.

Mingmei and Mu Chen were standing in the crowd. Mingmei curiously asked, "Isn't it forbidden to go out of the city to search for supplies after it snows? Where did these wild boars come from?"

"I heard that a patrol team encountered them while patrolling outside the city. These wild boars were a couple with a whole family, bringing a string of more than a dozen piglets. I heard that the piglets were all caught and put in the pig farm by the higher-ups to raise and slaughter.

The two big ones were killed on the spot by the patrol team. After quarantine, the higher-ups allowed them to keep them to sell themselves. The sales are considered a reward, distributed to the people in the patrol team who discovered the wild boars that day."

Before Mu Chen could answer, the people around them who were watching the fun had already started talking, making Mingmei sigh repeatedly at how lucky these people were.

"It's amazing to encounter mutated wild boars outside the base. The pigs have actually run here~"

"That's right! It's lucky they encountered mutated wild boars. If they had encountered zombie pigs... Ah! I can't even think about it~"

Hearing the surrounding discussion, Mu Chen's eyes flickered slightly, but he didn't say anything.

However, Mingmei turned directly to look at Mu Chen and said, "Why don't we buy one? We can share it with Lu Gui and Lou Jia later."

Since Mingmei had already said so, Mu Chen regained his thoughts and nodded with a smile. After paying the crystal cores, Mu Chen agreed with the pig seller on a "delivery to the door" time. The stall owner agreed to this as well.

Actually, Mingmei and Mu Chen had come to the exchange today not mainly to buy things, but to see how their team's sales were doing.

"Lu Xiaoyao and Zhen Po came early this morning, but I haven't seen them all this time?"

Mingmei looked around for a long time, but couldn't see their figures.

"Could it be that the business is bad again this time, and they've retreated home feeling depressed?"

Zhen Po's space was filled with a bunch of messy things he brought back every time they went on a mission. After they overthrew the old fogeys at the top last time, Julian's "father" took over, and the exchange's material transactions became much looser. Zhen Po was finally willing to take out those "treasures" in his space to sell.

Mingmei and the others supported Zhen Po in selling things, but him finding Lu Xiaoyao to sell things together... It wasn't that Mingmei didn't have confidence in them, but the fact was that they always started with high prices and ended with cheap sales.

This time, although they confidently said they guaranteed to make a fortune, Mingmei still had a question mark in her heart.

When had they ever sold things without saying they guaranteed to make a fortune?

"I heard Zhen Po say that they had to prepare some things in advance this time to sell things, so they went out early in the morning. And they said that the things they sell today will only have a good effect if there are many people."

Just as Mu Chen answered, a domineering, strong, spicy smell suddenly filled the air!

"Damn! Is there something wrong with my sense of smell?"

The entire exchange instantly erupted into an uproar.

"I smell it too! Hot pot!"

"Ahhh, really, I smell hot pot! Where did it come from?!"

"Brothers!! Over there, someone over there seems to be selling hot pot seasoning!!!"

"Where, where?"

"Hot pot? Where are they selling hot pot?"

The word "hot pot" was like a drop of water falling into a boiling oil pan, instantly exploding throughout the entire exchange.

Countless people surged in one direction. Mu Chen immediately became alert, and to prevent them from getting separated, he directly put his arm around Mingmei's side to protect her. Mingmei also took the opportunity to reach out and hug Mu Chen's waist.

Usually, her and Mu Chen's intimate actions were still all kinds of holding hands, and they had almost studied all the possibilities of holding hands. The number of hugs was very few.

This time, take the opportunity to hug him - [Hmm... this feels so good, hee hee~]

Gui Gui: [...]

The AI was now very aloof and didn't want to pay attention to its host's boasting!

"I know what Lu Xiaoyao and the others are selling now."

After Mu Chen finished speaking, Mingmei heard -

"Recycle old mobile phones, old computers, old refrigerators, recycle - cough cough cough! Hot pot base, hot pot base! Top-quality mountain-dug hot pot base! Extra spicy beef tallow, fresh and fragrant tomato, and mild and delicious seafood, all one crystal core for two packs! You won't lose out! You won't be fooled!"

Using this old-fashioned thing for the first time, Zhen Po almost made a joke. Then, his penetrating voice continuously shouted into the electronic horn.

"Top-quality mountain-dug hot pot base, miss this village and you won't find this shop again!"

"Is it expired? Is it spoiled?!"

Someone in the crowd quickly raised a question.

You know, many foods before the apocalypse had spoiled and deteriorated even though they were still far from their expiration dates when the end of the world came.

Could this hot pot base also be bad?

"It's not spoiled! Everyone, look at our vacuum packaging, there's no air leakage at all! Also, we have someone here who will eat it for you, our own people are eating it! How could it be bad?!"

Listening to Zhen Po's voice, Mingmei and Mu Chen tried their best to squeeze in their direction. What they finally saw was a small coal stove propped up next to the stall, and Lu Xiaoyao and Lu Gui were doing a live broadcast for others.

The vegetables, wide noodles, and salted pork belly on the table were a mix of meat and vegetables. The two siblings were only focused on burying their heads in the hot pot, and didn't even bother to look up and praise how "awesome" the hot pot base was!

However, just based on their ravenous and hurried eating, it looked so delicious!

With the three senses of sight, smell, and hearing working together, Mingmei soon heard the sound of onlookers swallowing their saliva.

"Buy it or not?"

Someone in the crowd suddenly asked the people around them in a low voice. Everyone looked at each other, and saw two words in each other's eyes - "Buy it."

Zhen Po held the horn and looked at the crowd's reaction with satisfaction, and then shouted, "I'll count down three numbers, three, two, one, take out your crystal cores, buy it!!!!"

"Oh!!"

At that moment, Mingmei only felt as if she had arrived in the monkey mountain area of the zoo.