Whole School Transmigrated: I Have 3 Daily Intel

Chapter 14: Chapter 12: Crazy Haggling, Are You Even Human?

"Selling medicine, selling medicine! One packet of cold medicine for two packs of instant noodles, or food of equal value! A box of anti-inflammatories starts at ten packs of instant noodles..."

"Come take a look! Snacks, all spicy sticks and potato chips! If you’ve got a craving, you can trade other food for them. Bread, instant noodles, sausages—we’ll take anything that fills you up."

"Pots, bowls, and pans! All sorts of seasonings! And most importantly, this hot pot base! It’s the last one, so get it while you can!"

"Selling toilet paper! Trading starts at one roll! As long as it’s edible, I’ll trade for it. Bulk discounts available..."

Strolling through the Central Square, Chen Chong and his two companions watched the bustling scene with great interest.

He had to admit, there were quite a few people selling things at this trading market. No wonder it attracted such a crowd.

You could find almost anything here.

Besides the basic, common items, some people were even selling homemade weapons.

Or, perhaps, ready-made building materials.

These "weapons" appeared to be iron pipes sawed off from who-knows-where, with a bit of cloth hastily wrapped around them for grips.

Despite their crude construction, quite a few students went up to inquire, making no effort to hide their desire to buy.

After all, there were very few weapons available at the school.

To this day, many students were only armed with mop handles and wooden sticks they’d picked up outside.

Even though there were railings everywhere around the school that could be turned into iron bars, you still had to be able to saw through them.

The fact that this student could break off iron pipes and sell them was a skill in itself.

At least, Chen Chong was certain he couldn’t do it himself without any tools.

He had no idea what method the student had used.

Chen Chong was a little struck by this. ’It seems most of the students are starting to adapt to life after being transported.’

’They understand how to trade items for food to maximize their chances of survival.’

’Otherwise, a place for bartering like this trading market wouldn’t exist.’

’It’s only the second day, too. As expected, university students are highly adaptable.’

Looking at the dazzling array of items before them,

Chen Chong and Xu Jun’s hearts burned with excitement.

These were all valuable goods, from medicine and snacks to something as seemingly insignificant as toilet paper.

In this primitive world, every modern, industrially manufactured item used was one less that existed.

As time went on, they would only become rarer.

Take toilet paper, for instance. You could live without it. Worst case, you could use strips of cloth to wipe your face and hands. After taking a shit, you could just wash yourself or resort to the most primitive method: wiping with a stick.

But having it would improve that particular experience by several levels.

The same went for snacks. While they weren’t as filling as instant noodles or bread, they were more important for satisfying cravings.

Then there were the daily necessities: firewood, rice, oil, salt, and various seasonings; clothes, pants, and shoes; dish soap and body wash...

Although it was possible to make paper by imitating papermaking techniques, the process was complicated, and the texture would surely be nowhere near as soft as modern tissue.

Besides, Chen Chong didn’t know how to do it. He just wondered if there were any students with that kind of talent among the school’s population.

If someone really knew how, they could make up for the lack of paper in the future.

There were many other things like this that could be produced or substituted, though the quality would inevitably be much worse.

But there was no telling when that would happen.

For now, the best choice was to hoard what they could, when they could—especially irreplaceable things like medicine...

"How much did you bring with us?" Chen Chong asked, looking at Xu Jun.

Xu Jun opened the black bag he was carrying and took a look. "I brought three cups of instant noodles, three sausages, ten small bags of bread, and about half of the kiwis we picked earlier, so around twenty of them."

They had prepared these items intentionally.

The point wasn’t to trade everything away, but to have enough capital on hand to bargain with confidence.

After all, the whole reason for coming to the trading market was to exchange for useful things.

Chen Chong had planned for this, preparing some food in advance for bartering.

"Can you go any cheaper on the anti-inflammatories?"

"No can do. This stuff is rare. One box has a whole blister pack, a full ten pills. It’s well worth ten packs of instant noodles," the chubby vendor said, shaking his head.

Chen Chong picked it up to take a look. It was an unopened box of anti-inflammatory medicine containing a ten-pill pack. The expiration date was still a long way off, so there was no worry of it being expired.

For him and his group, who often went in and out of the jungle, having anti-inflammatories was essential.

In their current environment, scrapes and scratches were unavoidable. If they got injured while hunting in the future, this medicine would be a form of insurance.

"It’s too expensive. Go a little lower."

Chen Chong looked at him, trying to haggle.

But the chubby vendor was stubborn. "Can’t go lower. Like I said, this is a rare commodity that dwindles with every use. Ten packs of instant noodles or food of equal value is a great deal."

"It’s rare, sure, but anti-inflammatories aren’t even the best option among medicines. Plenty of other drugs have anti-inflammatory effects. Your price is too high. If you can’t be flexible, I’ll just have to go see what other students are offering. You’re not the only one selling medicine in this square, after all."

Chen Chong wanted to get the medicine, but that didn’t mean he was a sucker.

He was buying this purely to be prepared, just in case; it wasn’t an absolute necessity.

For now, the value of ten packs of instant noodles or equivalent food far outweighed a single box of anti-inflammatories. Even with a subordinate like Wang Biao who could hunt for food, it didn’t mean he could afford to squander it.

These modern foods with long shelf lives were far more valuable than fresh food; they were the last-resort rations for emergencies, and it was best to keep as much as possible.

Seeing Chen Chong get ready to leave, the chubby vendor grew anxious.

Just as Chen Chong had said, medicine was important, but many people either hadn’t realized it yet or, if they had, couldn’t prioritize trading food for something that was only useful in special circumstances.

He’d been manning his stall for almost two hours. Plenty of people had looked, but not a single person had bought anything.

Worse, a "competitor" not far away was undercutting his prices to steal business. If he didn’t sell something soon, he’d be starving.

"Wait! I’ll give you a number. How about eight packs of instant noodles?"

"Nope." Chen Chong shook his head. "Five packs."

"Five packs?" The vendor’s eyes widened. That was half the starting price. "Seven packs. That’s my final offer."

"Five packs," Chen Chong repeated, remaining calm.

"Impossible." The vendor’s face turned red. "Six packs is the best I can do. Take it or leave it."

Chen Chong didn’t say a word. He really turned and started to walk away with Xu Jun and Wang Biao.

Now the vendor was truly panicked. ’Damn, this guy doesn’t mess around! He really just left!’

"I’ll trade! Bro, I’ll do it, alright?"

The vendor completely gave in. He was genuinely starving.

Even though five packs wasn’t his ideal price, he had to agree, having not eaten all day.

He’d finally found someone willing to trade; he couldn’t let him get away.

Chen Chong turned back again. "I’ll take two boxes. Is there a discount for that?"

"You already haggled me down from ten packs to five, and now you want another discount?"

The vendor was exasperated. ’I’m already down by half, and you want to cut it even more? Are you even human?’

...