Chapter 575: Chapter 576: If Scared, Then Donât Come Chapter 575: Chapter 576: If Scared, Then Donât Come Old Ha had grain, and Su Shu had medicine; it was mutually beneficial, so they struck a deal immediately.
When following Old Ha to the back to get the grain, he also asked her how much medicine she had on hand and if she was willing to keep trading with him.
It wasnât just rice and flourâif she needed other food items, he could get his hands on them, as long as Su Shuâs medicine could be traded for something even better.
As for what was better, that could be discussed further.
However, Su Shu didnât take the bait.
She had plenty of medicine, but it was impossible to reveal it now, and even if she wanted to trade, she definitely wouldnât trade so much at once.
It was too dangerous!
Eventually, she only traded for ten kilograms of rice, the kind that comes in individually packaged bags from the supermarket.
It wasnât much, but it still startled Zhan An behind her.
That was already quite a bit!
Old Haâs storage location was very hidden, concealed by a large iron door. For small trades, items were passed through a little window in the door.
If the quantity was larger, they would open a crack in the door to hand out the goods.
Inside was pitch-dark; one couldnât even see a personâs face, let alone outsiders seeing what it was like inside.
After trading for rice and five kilograms of flour, half of Su Shuâs stock from her belt bag was gone.
Old Ha, puzzled, asked, âThatâs all youâre trading?â
He was very interested in everything she had. Hearing this, Su Shu thought it over.
âI only brought this much with me this time. Itâs not easy to keep anything these days. Taking half out to trade, I still need to swap the rest for other things to use, so letâs just trade this much,â she said.
She couldnât say that this was all she had, but she also couldnât say she had lots at home. Su Shuâs words were very subtle.
If she admitted to having only this much, the other party might harbor ill intentions, and whether they could leave safely was uncertain. But if she suggested that she had more of the desired items at home, it would allow for the possibility of future cooperation.
The safety factor would certainly be a little higher.
If she had come out alone today, she wouldnât have to worry.
But Zhan An was with her, and if anything went wrong, regret would come too late.
So she used the excuse that she only had a little to exchange, attempting to lower the potential danger in the otherâs mind.
Old Ha stared at her belt bag for a long time, reluctantly asking, âDo you want to trade for anything else? I have friends who have some other things; shall I ask around for you?â
âNo need to trouble yourself. Iâll just exchange for some daily necessities in the black market,â she responded.
All eggs shouldnât be placed in one basket. She hadnât planned to trade with just one person; it was unsafe.
Old Ha hinted, both in and out of his words, that the black market was too chaotic and mixed and that it would be better to trade with just him. Trading too much, showing off too muchâif someone saw and got bad ideas, what then?
Su Shu frowned slightly, not pleased. His words carried a hint of threat and intimidation, and indeed, he was speaking to the wrong person.
He was simply implying that it was better for her to cooperate with him.
Su Shu casually remarked, with a deliberate hint of pride and stubbornness, âPeople raised in the compound donât fear danger. If they were, they wouldnât come to trade.â
Upon hearing the words âthe compound,â a flash of light crossed Old Haâs eyes, and he probed, âHow will you guys go back? Be careful, alright?â
âThe way we came is the way we will go back. If we really canât walk anymore, we might as well hitch a ride on a military vehicle on the way. Anyway, itâs on the route,â Su Shu said nonchalantly.
With that, Old Ha asked no further.
It turned out she was associated with military personnel, and he didnât want to get involved in that trouble; his earlier condescension disappeared, and he said no more.