Chuguang was fortunate—along the way, he did not encounter any insurmountable dangers.
Not only that.
When he reached near Bet Street, he happened upon a merchant convoy unloading goods at the entrance.
Old Watt, carrying a hunting rifle, stood nearby, puffing on his homemade dry tobacco, while Old Charlie conversed amicably with the convoy's leader. Nearby, a group of scavengers, under the watchful eyes of the gunmen, unloaded the cargo.
The leader of the merchant convoy, Mr. Li, was a man whose full name Chuguang didn't know. He only knew he was from Stone City, and that he was accompanied by eight gunmen and around twenty mutated yaks.
Periodically, he would bring goods to Bet Street for sale and, in exchange, take back local "specialties."
In the wasteland, especially within urban areas, vehicles weren't as reliable as beasts of burden.
The roads were littered with broken-down vehicles and collapsed ruins, and with the lack of maintenance, many roads were cracked so severely that the roots of plants emerged from them. Most wheeled vehicles could hardly move.
By comparison, donkeys, cows, and horses were reliable. Though they were slow, there were few paths they couldn't traverse.
What's more, they were inexpensive and required little maintenance—just thirty pounds of hay for every hundred kilometers.
Technology wasn't always reliable, at least not here.
Of course, long-distance travel across provinces was a different matter.
Chuguang once saw a half-wheeled, half-tracked cargo truck with a cannon-like barrel as thick as a chimney—quite the punk aesthetic.
But such cumbersome vehicles rarely entered the city; they usually unloaded their goods outside the city and traded with smaller, nearby merchant convoys before leaving.
Chuguang noticed something unusual this time—among the goods being unloaded at Bet Street, there was a woman wrapped in a long robe.
Her hands and feet were shackled, and her ankles bore striped marks, her delicate, fair skin looking nothing like a wasteland survivor, more like an elf from a movie.
Or perhaps she was a "product" cultivated in a petri dish.
"Clones?"
Chuguang had only heard rumors about the slave trade in Stone City, but this was the first time he'd seen it with his own eyes. However, such "luxury items" could only be afforded by the town's mayor, no doubt.
Chuguang didn't approach immediately. Instead, he quietly waited in the shadow of the ruins, watching the transaction unfold.
The "cowboys" were busy, so they didn't linger.
After the goods were loaded, Mr. Li reached into his pocket and pulled out a few white tokens, tossing them like he was giving alms to the scavengers.
Then, amidst grateful compliments, he and his gunmen herded the heavily-laden mutated yaks down the road.
Chuguang followed from a distance, crossing two streets.
But then, the man walking beside Mr. Li suddenly stopped and stared straight at him.
Chuguang, discovered, felt a slight shock.
They were at least a hundred meters apart—how had he noticed him?
But now that he'd been seen, following at a distance was pointless.
Chuguang stepped out from the ruins, raised his hands in a gesture of peace, and approached with a black plastic bag in hand.
At a distance of ten meters, he stopped under a tilted café sign.
This was the safest distance for both parties.
If things turned violent, the carbon nanotube body armor he wore would buy him at least five seconds to escape.
As long as he wasn't shot in the head...
"I mean no harm. I just wish to make a deal with you."
The man called Li squinted, hoisting his shotgun onto his shoulder.
"You're a scavenger from Bet Street?"
"Chuguang."
"I don't care what you're called, and we don't deal in small-time business," the man said, glancing at the plastic bag with a mocking gleam in his eyes. "This little stuff? You'd be better off giving it to that old man Charlie."
Chuguang said nothing. He opened the plastic bag, revealing the contents.
The man's expression faltered, clearly surprised to see that the bag didn't contain old scrap metal or batteries, but something much more valuable.
Chuguang noticed a fleeting glimmer of greed in his eyes.
"Where did you get this?" the man asked.
Chuguang gazed at him and replied nonchalantly, "The sewers, near a mutated leech nest. But even if I told you where, would you dare to go?"
"I was just asking, don't mind me."
The man's greed visibly receded as he handed his shotgun to a subordinate and walked closer to Chuguang.
"How do you intend to sell it?"
Bet Street's standard price was one token for every 50 grams, but the true value of this material was certainly much higher!
Chuguang paused for two seconds, then decided to gamble, quoting five times the standard price.
"I have 2000 grams here. I want 200 tokens."
"Deal."
The man hesitated for only a moment before agreeing, and Chuguang instantly realized he'd underpriced it.
As expected, the mayor must have sold these items to the merchants for far more than that!
These bloody leeches!
Chuguang cursed the mayor and his family silently, wishing him a miserable night.
"Let's be friends," the man said, extending his right hand with a smile, his previous arrogance now gone. "I rarely do business directly with scavengers, but you're an exception... I find you interesting."
Chuguang shook his hand firmly.
"Thank you. I'm Chuguang."
"I know. You mentioned it earlier."
Releasing his hand, the man continued, his gaze fixed on Chuguang. "First, I hope today's transaction remains between us. I don't want that old man Charlie to find out."
Chuguang replied, "He won't know. I have no desire to stir trouble."
"Ha, you're a smart one."
Clearly satisfied with Chuguang's response, the man nodded and added, "I can pay you 200 tokens right now, but... since you'll be using those tokens to buy something, why not just purchase from me directly? You'd save the middleman's markup. I have some surplus supplies—how about an 80% discount?"
Chuguang didn't believe his so-called "80% discount" for a second, but as long as he was selling cheaper than Bet Street, he had no reason to refuse.
"I need weapons. Do you have any?"
"Of course. What kind do you need?"
"Guns."
"Guns, you say?" the man stroked his chin. "How about a 9mm bolt-action iron pipe rifle? It's just 200 tokens, and I'll throw in 30 rounds of ammunition. If you need more, it's one token per round. Fair price."
"80% off?"
"That's already the discount. But if you find that too expensive, I also have cheaper options, like a 100-token iron pipe pistol, 5mm caliber. It's great for dealing with raiders but not ideal for dealing with mutants."
An 80% discount? Sure, I believe that.
Chuguang stared at him and said, "One 9mm bolt-action iron pipe rifle and 60 rounds of ammunition. Additionally, I want 25 tokens for food and supplies."
The man shrugged nonchalantly, "You think you're getting a deal? Fine, here's the deal: twenty kilograms of blue umbrella mushrooms, just consider it an investment. I'll expect to hear from you."
"By the end of the month, I'll be back here. And, if all goes as planned, it will be my last visit this year."
"I look forward to it," the man replied with a smile.
Mutated leeches.
No one wanted to mess with those.
Only God knew how many disgusting pests lurked in their nests. What was worse, normal penetrating firepower didn't do much against them.
Their terrifying regenerative abilities meant that even if they were cut in half, they could split into two new individuals after a brief struggle. And that's not even mentioning the minor holes you could make in their bodies.
As for setting them on fire...
Not only would it likely fail to ignite them, but it would also burn up anything valuable.
A complete waste.
"Oh, about those twenty kilograms of blue umbrella mushrooms. I'll count it as 2000 tokens. You can order from me directly; no need to pick through other people's leftovers."
Noticing Chuguang fiddling with his weapon, the man added, "By the way, I have a little something for you."
Chuguang stopped what he was doing and glanced at him. "How do I know what you have?"
The man snapped his fingers.
His subordinate got the message and handed over a square tablet.
"There are photos. Swipe left and right to choose... You know how to use it. I guarantee the quality, but I can't promise the goods will look exactly like the photos."
Chuguang took the tablet, scanning the images. There were indeed some valuable items. Among them, he found exactly what he needed.
"Done choosing?" the man asked, noticing Chuguang still examining the tablet.
"Yes," Chuguang handed it back. "I'll take a 10kw wood-burning generator and a KV-1 power exoskeleton."
"Good choice. The KV-1 may be basic, but it's durable. But why a generator? You're more likely to run out of batteries than power. I offer a trade-in service for cheap batteries."
Generators weren't