Volume One, Chapter 13: That Jinx Wu Xingxue Cursed Me

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The safe zone was divided into upper, middle, and lower districts, each with its own supply center, much like the large shopping supermarkets of the pre-apocalypse era.

Clothing, food, shelter, transportation—every kind of necessity could be found there.

The greatest difference between a supply center and a supermarket was that the center not only sold goods, but also purchased supplies from residents.

That was the kind of transaction Wu Xingxue was making now.

As soon as she finished speaking, the middle-aged man opposite her brightened. “We’re old acquaintances by now. I trust you, so there’s no need to waste time asking the appraisal office.”

The man was named Liu Cheng, and he was in charge of purchasing. Wu Xingxue used to come here every month to buy supplies. With her straightforward personality and her status as an ability user, she had always gotten along fairly well with several of the workers.

Liu Cheng estimated the price. “Four fruits. I’ll give you twelve hundred and fifty Union credits.”

He added, “Don’t think I’m lowballing you. Your stuff is certainly rare, but you know the safe zone is right behind the supply center. We can’t offer you a very high price.”

Wu Xingxue nodded. She naturally understood.

If she sold a single fruit directly in the appraisal hall, it could fetch eight hundred to a thousand Union credits. If she put it up for auction, the price could go even higher.

But the current circumstances did not allow for that.

Wu Xingxue was alone and without support now. Everyone knew that without her ability, she was an easy target. If she sold the fruits on the spot and walked away with more than four thousand Union credits on her, there would certainly be people willing to take the risk, even if it meant facing severe punishment from the Inspection Office.

Not to mention that Shen Chi and Wu Yumian were watching nearby.

Meng Wei’s place was another possible way out, but he was an explorer—what would he want with fruits that gave people fair skin? He did not deal in reselling supplies either. If Wu Xingxue went to him, he was kind enough that he might reluctantly buy them out of sympathy. That, however, was not what she wanted.

Wu Xingxue treasured the goodwill of the people around her and did not want to waste even a little of it.

After thinking it over, she decided it would be better to come directly to the supply center. The price was lower, but at least it was safe and convenient.

She could exchange the money directly for supplies. No one would be foolish enough to risk robbing someone over supplies worth only a thousand Union credits. They were difficult to carry and run with, whereas a single identity card was far easier to fence.

Wu Xingxue exchanged the fruits without hesitation, but as she did so, she began to ponder.

If she could open a shop and regularly purchase goods from the mysterious person in her space, she would be much safer with a permanent storefront. No one in the safe zone would be bold enough to rob an established shop.

Her safety would increase tremendously, and she would earn more as well.

The only prerequisites were that the translator had to work properly, that the other party possessed enough fruits with special effects, and that they were willing to trade with her.

Wu Xingxue was not discouraged. She would do whatever occurred to her, and if this path failed, she could always think of another way.

She had just exchanged the fruits for supplies and was about to leave when Liu Cheng suddenly called out, “Since you’re here, why not pay the Wu family’s supply bill for next month while you’re at it?”

Wu Xingxue paused, then smiled. “Let the members of the Wu family pay for their own food.”

Over at the appraisal hall, Wu Yumian, Shen Chi, and the others ran three blocks as though they were being chased by dogs before ducking into a narrow alley, gasping for breath.

“Have all these people gone completely insane over money?” Shen Chi’s clothes were crooked, and he looked utterly disheveled.

The whole thing was bizarre.

After Wu Xingxue left, he had intended to chase after her and bring up the beauty fruits. But the moment he moved, someone stopped him.

Two brothers had appeared from nowhere. Dressed in rags, they dropped to their knees on the spot, crying so hard that their noses ran.

After recounting their miserable circumstances, they simply collapsed at his feet and refused to get up.

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They insisted that the living bodhisattva, the great saint, save their lives.

Shen Chi had been about to teach them a lesson when Wu Yumian stopped him.

He could only watch as Wu Yumian smiled and transferred two hundred Union credits to them.

“You shouldn’t have given them any money, Yumian! Anyone could tell those two were con artists. And even after you gave them two hundred, they still complained that it wasn’t enough!”

Shen Chi was furious.

Behind him, the five teammates who had suffered through the ordeal for no reason wore faintly resentful expressions.

In their eyes, Wu Yumian was kind—far too kind.

Almost foolishly so.

Sweat streamed down Wu Yumian’s face in the late-autumn heat, and her long hair was a tangled mess.

Seeing the resentment on her cousin’s and teammates’ faces, she groaned inwardly. Did they really think she had not known those people were scammers?

She knew perfectly well. She simply had to pretend otherwise.

By then, she had been pushed into a corner. If she refused to pay, those people would accuse her of hypocrisy.

Then all the effort she had put into everything before and after would have been for nothing.

Wu Yumian was exhausted, so she had treated the two hundred credits as money spent to avert disaster.

She had never expected that once the first people started, those behind them would be impossible to stop.

It was not only the ones in rags. Even people dressed neatly swarmed over to tell them how difficult their lives were and how desperately their families needed help.

Their group had fought desperately to force their way through the crowd and escape.

At that moment, Wu Yumian wished she could skin Wu Xingxue alive for causing all this trouble.

Seeing that she was dispirited, Shen Chi thought he had been too harsh and hurried to placate her. “I didn’t mean to blame you. I just think those people went too far.”

“I’m sure they only got carried away for a moment. Everything will be fine tomorrow.”

Would things really pass that easily?

Unease stirred in Wu Yumian’s heart.

But this was not the time to dwell on it. She lifted a sweet smile and said softly, “Thank you, Cousin. I’m fine.”

Then she turned to the five teammates. “I’ll treat you gentlemen to a meal. I heard Pingyang Restaurant has fresh baby bok choy today.”

When the resentment faded from their faces and they became affectionate toward her again, Wu Yumian finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Then she thought of the prices at Pingyang Restaurant, and her heart ached once more.

The ninety-thousand-Union-credit mutant-plant parrot was gone. She had even given away two hundred credits. Now she had to spend at least another thousand treating these five men to dinner as an apology.

Why had she been so unlucky today?

Wu Xingxue was a jinx. She was her curse.

Wu Xingxue carried the supplies back to Granny Qin’s home. Although she occasionally felt eyes settle on her along the way, no one ultimately dared to take the risk.

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“Granny Qin, I’m back!”

“Why are you only back at noon? Are you hungry? Grandma saved you some food. Come and eat!”

Wu Xingxue had barely closed the door when she heard the reply.

Granny Qin’s two-story building had originally been a small family supermarket. The first floor was a spacious storefront, though not very suitable for living. The shelves that once stood there had long since been emptied.

The living quarters were all upstairs, and Granny Qin’s voice had drifted down from there.

Wu Xingxue carried the supplies upstairs and saw two clean paper parcels sitting on the battered wooden table in the little sitting room.

Inside were potato cakes.

Beside them stood a bottle of purified water produced in the safe zone. It was completely transparent, with no advertising label whatsoever.

Wu Xingxue pressed her lips together. The potato cake in her hand was cold and hard, yet it felt scalding.

Like a piece of red-hot charcoal clenched in her palm.

The potato cakes were also produced in the safe zone. Each one was only about the size of a palm, difficult to swallow, and scratched the throat, but they contained extracts from mutant plants that could increase one’s sense of fullness to a certain extent.

With supplies scarce, ordinary people ate only two meals a day. One potato cake per meal was enough.

Even if it did not fill them, they dared not eat more. As long as they did not starve to death, that was enough.

Granny Qin had probably not wanted to make her uncomfortable. She had not even come downstairs, merely telling Wu Xingxue that she had left food for her—and, afraid she might still be hungry, had left two cakes.

The old woman lived alone. At her age, she could not find work, and her savings were probably nearly exhausted. Even so, she still wanted to treat Wu Xingxue a little better.

To be kinder to the young woman who had once saved her son.

Whether it was pity or gratitude, that kindness was genuine and weighty.

Meanwhile, Shen Chi, who had grown up alongside her, had done nothing but curse her. He had not even asked where she was living or what she was eating.

Wu Xingxue lowered her eyes, her long lashes concealing the thoughts moving within them.

After a few seconds, she took a large bite of the potato cake and called out, “Granny Qin, come quickly! Look what I brought you!”

Wu Xingxue had always been clear about kindness and grudges. If someone showed her one measure of goodwill, she repaid them tenfold.

The Wu family was the Wu family. They might be heartless, but that did not mean Wu Xingxue believed everyone in the world was like them, or that she should shut herself away and resent heaven, earth, and all of existence because of them.

It was not worth it.

There were still so many beautiful things in the world waiting for her.

As she watched the old woman approach with the aid of her cane, Wu Xingxue felt that perhaps she should have a serious discussion with the mysterious person about conducting larger-scale trades.

Granny Qin’s little building was quite suitable.

It would be a shame not to reopen the shop.