The next morning, the rising sun illuminated most of the streets.
As Qiu Tong walked along, she was amazed by everything around her.
The streets were bustling with people and the stalls along the road were filled with smoke and activity.
Qiu Tong's eyes lit up. This was a completely different living environment from the post-apocalyptic world.
A large group of people surrounded the entrance of a flour shop at the corner of the street. Qiu Tong curiously looked over and was surprised to see a familiar young face in the middle of the crowd.
Qiu Xingyuan seemed to have fallen into a pile of flour. His hair, face and clothes were all white.
His tiny body was stiff and upright. He clenched his fists and his eyes were distressed. "I've already carried 10 bags of flour inside. You have to give me my salary!"
The boss of the flour shop was a tall and thin man with a shrewd look. He was holding a weight in his hand and his face was filled with impatience. "Get lost. Where did this wild child come from? You said you carried 10 bags of flour? But I didn't see it."
"And you're not an employee of my store. Why should I pay you?"
Qiu Xingyuan pursed his lips even tighter, his little face gloomy.
In order to support his siblings, he had to work to earn money.
However, he was too young and no one dared to hire him. He had finally gotten the boss of the flour shop to agree, but now, the other party was going back on his word!
Qiu Xingyuan jumped forward angrily and tugged hard on the other party's sleeve. "Give me my money! Give me my money!"
The boss of the flour shop swung around hard and the small body flew away. He slammed heavily against the counter, his forehead quickly turning red.
Qiu Tong was shocked and quickly approached Qiu Xingyuan. When she saw the fingernail-sized wound on his forehead, her eyes turned cold.
"You dare to bully even a child. Are you still human?!"
Her bright eyes were lit with anger. The boss of the flour shop denied guiltily. "I didn't do it on purpose. He suddenly pounced over…"
As more and more people gathered around, the boss of the flour shop felt a little remorse. He disdainfully tossed out a penny. "It's just my bad luck. Take the money and get lost!"
Looking at the coin rolling toward her, Qiu Tong's eyes glinted harshly. She raised her hand and smacked the countertop, leaving a deep dent.
"Apologize!"
Her tone was cold and her eyes were filled with murderous intent.
The boss of the flour shop was so scared that his face was pale. He hurriedly picked up the coin and shoved it into Qiu Xingyuan's hands. "Sorry, I was greedy. This is your salary!"
Only then did Qiu Tong reluctantly give a soft snort. She walked up to Qiu Xingyuan and squatted down. "Are you alright? Does it still hurt?"
Qiu Xingyuan did not expect to meet Qiu Tong again. And she had actually stood up for him. For a moment there, his face bore a conflicted expression.
Seeing that blood was still flowing down his forehead, a dark light flashed across Qiu Tong's eyes. Using her own body as cover, she slowly pressed her palm against Qiu Xingyuan's forehead to stop the bleeding.
That was her superpower in the post-apocalyptic era—healing.
A strange warmth spread from her body. Qiu Xingyuan suddenly had the desire to lean closer to Qiu Tong, but he restrained himself.
No, this woman must be regretting yesterday and now wanted to come back to sell them off!
Qiu Xingyuan warned himself fiercely that he absolutely could not trust this woman anymore. He gripped the coin tightly and pushed Qiu Tong away, before running away without looking back.
Qiu Tong didn't even have time to call after him. She could only watch his departing back profile.
She wondered how the other two kids were doing. How did they end up in this situation, where they had to come out to work at such a young age?
Fortunately, Qiu Tong was skilled in detection and easily located Qiu Xingyuan's position. She quietly followed him.
Qiu Xingyuan found Qiu Xingqiao, who had not been as lucky. He had worked the entire morning only to return empty-handed.
The two brothers used the penny to buy two meat buns and brought them to Qiu Xingyu. They lied and said that they had already eaten while out, before desperately gulping down cold water to fill their stomachs.
Unable to bear their hunger, the two boys snuck out of the house again.
Qiu Tong followed them and was surprised to find that they were planning to catch mice in the field. Her heart ached.
At the end of the day, they were just six-year-old children who did not even have the basic ability to survive.
Qiu Tong touched her dismally empty pockets as she gazed meaningfully at the two boys. She then left without saying a word.
The most pressing matter now was to earn money quickly!
She found a clinic on the street and pushed the door open, but there was no one there. She heard movement in the backyard.
The boss was preparing lunch and didn't even look up when he saw someone.
"It's lunch break now. Come back at two in the afternoon."
"Boss, I'm here to look for a job."
Qiu Tong was full of confidence. "I know how to treat superficial injuries. I want a part-time job here."
"You?"
The boss saw that she was young and had patches on her clothes. He could tell from a single glance that she was from a poor family. His eyes flashed with disdain.
"Don't come here and cause trouble. I don't need more workers here!"
"Boss, I really can do it!"
In order to prove her ability, Qiu Tong directly grabbed a fish, which was floating belly-up, from the pond. She pretended to press on a few acupuncture points with her fingers, secretly transferring her power into it.
The boss looked at her coldly and was about to chase her away when his eyes widened in shock.
The fish, which had been on the verge of death, regained its vitality and started wagging its tail vigorously!