Shandela dismounted and casually patted a member of the crowd on the shoulder. When the latter turned around and saw her uniform and badge, his smile immediately froze on his face, "Do, do you need something from me?"
"Don't be nervous, I'm not here to arrest you." She nodded toward the Yeni Temple's main entrance, "I want to ask, what's going on here?"
"Oh, you're asking about this..." The fear in the man's eyes eased somewhat, "I heard there's a pharmaceutical company officially opening for business, holding some sort of opening ceremony. Right now they're giving away sugar, and later they'll also distribute medicine for free."
An opening ceremony?
This event seemed quite novel.
In the past, Shandela had only seen ceremonies for launching ships. It was her first time seeing a company's opening ceremony, not to mention such a loss-making activity as giving away things to the general public.
Merchants appeared to be inherently sensitive about making losses.
