Chapter 617: Chapter 617: The Marketplace
"Indeed, this will affect our profits, so it’s better to report it earlier. But they are so strong, will the higher-ups be able to control them?" One of the people in the room asked.
"We don’t have to worry about that. All we have to care about is that we have reported. The superiors can decide what to do." The leader said dismissively.
The others exchanged glances but ultimately said nothing more.
They were aware that in the apocalypse, profits were important, but survival came first. So, they weren’t about to confront Chu Miao’s group head-on.
Meanwhile, in another part of the mall, Chu Miao stood quietly as she observed the growing crowd around their stalls.
The initial hesitation had completely vanished.
Word had spread quickly.
Within less than an hour, the entire marketplace knew that there was a group of people selling high-quality supplies at reasonable prices.
People who had been too afraid to approach at first were now squeezing through the crowd, clutching whatever they had to trade.
Most of them brought crystal cores, others had jewelry, and there was a group of people that brought antiques.
It was a rare sight where things of high-quality were traded for food.
Even rare materials scavenged from dangerous areas were brought out.
To them, these things had once been priceless, but now, they held no value.
Compared to a bag of rice or a bottle of clean water, they were nothing.
"Boss, we’re running low on the smaller packages." One of the team members reported.
Chu Miao nodded. "Adjust the exchange ratios slightly. Don’t let everything run out too quickly."
"Yes."
Even though Chu Miao wanted to help, she couldn’t let those with more resources take everything.
It doesn’t matter that they have a lot of supplies. Those couldn’t be exposed.
So, they had to ration the supplies and limit the amount everyone could buy.
Even though they had abundant supplies inside the Soul Ring, she didn’t intend to flood the market.
Too much generosity would only invite suspicion.
She has strength, but she had no plans of using it just to protect their supplies.
Nearby, Chu Hao leaned lazily against a pillar, watching the crowd with a grin.
"Who would’ve thought we’d end up running a marketplace in the apocalypse?"
To someone like Chu Hao, who had been doing business diligently with his father at their Chu Corporation before the apocalypse, this felt as if he had gone back in time.
Although it was on a small scale, it still have that feeling of conquering the business world.
"Just a year ago, these people were living normal lives." He muttered.
"Yet, now they’re fighting over vegetables like it’s some treasure."
Yin Wei, who was standing beside him sighed, but he agreed with him.
At another stall, Li Pan was carefully weighing rice for a woman holding a small child.
The child looked thin and his cheeks were sunken.
However, his eyes... were still very bright.
"Please... this is all I have." The woman said softly, placing a handful of crystal cores on the table.
Li Pan had insisted on coming when she heard that they were coming to the market to sell supplies.
She hadn’t expected the place to be so lively. It wasn’t as bustling as a normal market before the apocalypse, but compared to other places, it brought back a touch of human civilization.
Li Pan looked at the number of crystal cores the woman had placed on the table and realized that it wasn’t even enough for half a kilogram of rice.
She looked at the crystals then at the child in the woman’s arms in conflict.
Eventually, she scooped a little more rice and put it in the bag with a one-liter bottle of water then gave the bag to the woman.
She was aware that she might have been tricked. However, she wanted a clear conscience even more.
She looked at the woman, then at the bag again and eventually, picked up a piece of pork and stuffed it into the bag before shoving it into the woman’s hands.
The woman froze for a moment, then quickly tried to push the bag back to Li Pan.
"I didn’t give enough for this. Please take it back." she said softly.
One could tell that she was reluctant to return the food, but she still did it.
Seeing this, a warm smile appeared on Li Pan’s face.
"Consider it a discount for today." She said with a smile and quickly placed the bag in the woman’s hands and let go.
The woman’s lips trembled.
"T-thank you..."
She bowed repeatedly before leaving quickly, afraid that someone might notice.
From a distance, Chu Miao saw everything, but she did nothing and said nothing. Instead, she looked away.
Kindness was not forbidden, as long as it didn’t hurt the interests or safety of the sect.
As time passed, the market grew even busier.
It was hard to believe that in less than four hours, that place would be nothing more than a wasteland with hurricane winds ruling.
Inside a heavily guarded building not far from the mall, several figures sat around a large table.
They were dressed well and looked healthy. They didn’t look like people who had suffered a year of the apocalypse.
The atmosphere was tense.
"You are saying there are new traders?" One of them asked, his voice low.
"Yes." A subordinate standing beside him replied respectfully.
"They appeared today as soon as the peaceful window started."
"And?" The man asked again.
"They are selling large quantities of food, water, and even fresh produce."
The room fell silent.
Fresh produce? Even for them, they had to pay a high price for researchers to find a way to grow a small batch of vegetables because the soil and water has been affected by the zombie virus.
Yet, now they were told that there were people who not only grew vegetables, but they had so much that they were selling them in large quantities.
How could they not be shocked?
"Do we know where they came from?" Another person asked.
"No." The subordinate replied.
"We couldn’t find which base they came from or who they are associated with." He added slowly.
"Then what about their strength?" Another person asked curiously.
"They are very strong. We sent one brother to test the waters and he was terrified into fleeing. He didn’t even see how he was attacked when he caused trouble. In fact, none of us saw how he was attacked." The surbodinate replied quickly.
That answer caused several people to frown.
In this world, not being able to sense someone’s strength usually meant one thing.
They were far above you.
"That’s... troublesome." Someone muttered.
The man at the head of the table finally spoke.
"Did they cause any trouble?"
"No."
"Did they break any rules?"
"No."
"Then what’s the problem?" He asked calmly.
The others looked at each other.
"The problem is..." one of them said slowly, "they are disrupting the market."
"Yes, if things keep going like this, no one else will be able to sell in the market except for them. With how low their prices are, who in their right mind would go seeking other traders selling at double the price?" A middle-aged man sitting on one side spoke.
"And people will start depending on them instead of us." another one said.
Indeed, this was the truth.
In the apocalypse, or even before, control over resources meant control over people.
The leader leaned back slightly, his fingers tapping the armrest of his chair.
"So... you’re saying they are a threat."
"That is the absolute truth."
"For now, leave them alone. They haven’t become a threat yet. They paid the entry tax before setting up their stalls, they didn’t provoke anyone, and didn’t cause chaos. Moreover, from what you said, they are strong and cautious. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be in the dark about their origin. So, don’t provoke them for now." The leader explained.
"So what do we do?" someone finally asked.
The leader smiled faintly.
"We will observe them for now. Don’t take action without permission." He answered immediately.
"We can learn everything about them during this period. If they become a threat, we will find a way to eliminate them. But for now, stay put."
If Chu Miao was here, she would probably laugh her head off.
How could these people be so over-confident?
At the market, the four-hour window was slowly coming to an end.
The sky was beginning to darken once again.
A faint whistle of wind could already be heard in the distance.
"It’s time, let’s go back." Ye Xuan said to Chu Miao quietly.
Chu Miao nodded her head before turning to the people from their sect who were still selling supplies.
"Start wrapping up, we are going home."
The team moved quickly. They stopped trading immediately after hearing Chu Miao’s order.
"If you still want supplies, come back tomorrow earlier." One of the people selling their supplies said.
As some people were starting to protest, everything in front of them disappeared into thin air. Both the supplies and the table.
This shocked those standing around so much they froze.
