Chapter 31: This cabbage is of higher quality than the noble-special supply

In the wasteland world, Ye Heng led several squad members back to the outskirts of Zone 13 again.

"Wait for me outside; don't casually show off the supplies the goddess gave us—I'll be back soon."

After giving those instructions, Ye Heng went straight to the watchtower.

Luo Song's attendant recognized Ye Heng and immediately ushered him into the tower.

Besides Luo Song, several strong-looking awakened individuals were also present.

"Captain Luo, that's the situation; I hope you can assign a team to act with us."

Luo Song was talking with the opposing team leader; upon seeing Ye Heng enter, he immediately dropped those people, rose to greet him, his smile sincere and eager, as if he had become a different person.

"Brother Ye Heng, what wind blew you here? Please, please come in!"

Several awakened individuals belonging to Zone 13 never expected the defense team captain to be so enthusiastic toward a civilian, even somewhat fawning; their gazes all fell on Ye Heng.

Team Leader Song Zhi, about the same age as Ye Heng, fixed his sharp gaze on Ye Heng.

"Captain Luo, I came to discuss business with you, but you have guests; I'll come back later."

Ye Heng saw that Song Zhi's group was not to be provoked; his main purpose today was to find a suitable self-defense weapon for Lin Meng, and he didn't want to stir up trouble.

Who would have thought Luo Song would outright issue an eviction order to Song Zhi.

"Gentlemen, I have more urgent matters to discuss with Brother Ye Heng; sorry to leave you."

Without waiting for Song Zhi's consent, Luo Song grabbed Ye Heng and hurriedly left for his private rest room.

"Captain, what does Luo Song mean? He sidelines us to receive that civilian? Has he made a mistake?"

"Damn it, we're a B-rank exploration team; Luo Song actually dares to look down on us—he's giving himself face."

The team members were fuming, but Song Zhi remained calm, frowning as he said:

"Luo Song isn't someone who oversteps; that civilian named Ye Heng doesn't seem simple."

At that moment, someone in the team suddenly recalled something and muttered softly.

"I heard that at the trade fair a few days ago, someone produced a very rare fruit, and Luo Song invited them to the watchtower—likely a private deal; do you think that person might be him?"

"Impossible; we know the civilians' living conditions—let alone fruit, they don't even have rotten vegetable scraps to eat, where would they get fruit?"

Song Zhi said nothing, lowering his head in thought.

Inside the rest room, Ye Heng stated his purpose directly and produced a large cabbage.

"Captain Luo, I came to ask you to sell me a self-defense weapon suitable for a woman—its lethality shouldn't be too great; ideally, after use it can instantly subdue the enemy, and afterward leave no trace for investigation."

"The payment is this cabbage; the quality of my cabbage should be better than yours cultivated in purified soil."

The moment Ye Heng produced the cabbage, Luo Song froze.

Could he not see it? This cabbage is of higher quality than the noble-supplied cabbages.

"Brother Ye, where did you get such fine cabbage?"

First were grapes never seen before, then top-quality fresh oranges, and now this exceptionally fresh, plump cabbage—even in the resource-rich First Special Zone, such items are hard to come by.

Ye Heng is clearly just a civilian; how did he obtain such rare supplies?

Upon hearing that, Ye Heng's face instantly darkened.

"Captain Luo, I'm afraid I can't tell you that; if you insist on prying, I'll have to go elsewhere."

Ye Heng had already gauged the other's attitude; after the first transaction, he had confidence and didn't need to be overly cautious, lest people think he was easy to bully.

When it's time to warn, one cannot be polite with these upper citizens.

Luo Song indeed stalled, his eyes darting, then hurriedly apologized.

"Brother Ye, don't be angry; I was inconsiderate. Everyone has secrets—I'll keep quiet from now on."

Rather than risk offending Ye Heng without guarantee of an answer, it's better to honestly build a good relationship with him, so future chances to trade good goods from him remain.

Having realized this, Luo Song became polite again.

"You just said you wanted a woman's self-defense weapon? I actually have one that meets all your conditions; I'll go get it now."

Luo Song hurried off, afraid that if he was slow, the cabbage would fly away.

After the person left, Ye Heng immediately contacted Lin Meng.

Lin Meng happened to be free, researching whether crystal stones could upgrade the second space, and soon heard Ye Heng's voice.

"Lin Meng, I'm inquiring about a self-defense weapon for you; once I have it, I'll bring it into the space for you to see—if you like it, I'll trade for it right away."

Lin Meng didn't expect Ye Heng to truly take this to heart, and with his strong initiative, he had it arranged so quickly.

"Okay, thank you."

"Actually, I'm the one who should be thanking you; those cabbages you gave are extremely precious to us."

Lin Meng set down the crystal stone and entered the first space.

"When I return this time, I'll help you buy more seasonal vegetables; that kind of cabbage is cheap where we are."

Upon hearing that, Ye Heng became even more excited.

"Lin Meng, I really don't know how to thank you enough; you don't realize that in our place, even though most humans have found shelters, as long as one doesn't leave the shelter, they won't be attacked by zombies or mutant beasts."

"But the resource problem is growing worse; contaminated water and soil still cannot be purified, only a little soil can be planted, and that exists only in the purified zones, which we civilians cannot access."

"Adults can barely survive, but the weak elderly and children easily fall ill; without fresh vegetables to supplement vitamins, many die from malnutrition."

After hearing that, Lin Meng felt heavy-hearted; people living in the apocalypse must not only guard against zombies and human evil, but also endure scarcity—starving, malnourished, living is just waiting to die.

Such days are hard enough for adults, let alone those born as new humans in the apocalypse.

She thought and then said:

"Like this, I'll also provide some nutritional supplements for you—vitamin and calcium pills and the like are easier to store and convenient to take."

"Really? Lin Meng, if we had such supplements that would naturally be best; our storage conditions are indeed limited, making it hard to preserve fresh items—I just don't know the price of these supplements; I'll quickly look for something valuable."

Ye Heng longed greatly for the nutritional supplements Lin Meng mentioned; in the zones, most people rely on daily supplements to sustain life.

However, those high-and-mighty upper citizens never allow the supplements to leak out.

They monopolized the supplement manufacturing technology.

Civilians outside the high walls who want supplements can only pay an immeasurable price, purchasing them from the black market.

But even if they pay more, the supplements they obtain contain a large amount of impurities, and many people cannot tolerate them after taking them.

What Lin Meng gives must be the best.

While Ye Heng inwardly anticipated, he also secretly swore in his heart that he must quickly find more valuable items for the goddess.