Chapter 573: Chapter 429: Hoarding Thousands upon Thousands for Natural Disasters, Raising a Child, I Let It Go 17
“Ah, if I could go back to before, I would definitely eat three big bowls of rice, steaming hot. For such a long time, eating bits of dry grass, tree bark, and chunks of ice every day, I’ve felt like I’m just walking dead. If I could have a full meal, even just a biscuit, I would brave any danger.”
“Really, I’m just too hungry, I could almost eat people now! If it weren’t for the teacher saying we could eat some bark and grass, and some ice, I would have started eating people already!”
“I hope things will get better after this!”
While everyone was chatting, suddenly someone saw strangers appearing on their turf.
A few people immediately became alert, standing up and asking, “Who are you? How did you get in?!”
The strangers they referred to were Su Zhiruan and Wen Qingyu.
“We apologize for the intrusion, we’ve come to propose a trade.” Su Zhiruan spoke calmly, her right hand holding a handgun with unlimited bullets, casually playing with the engravings, “The reward for the trade is generous, for instance, I can provide food and water daily for those who participate in the trade.”
The people around were stunned.
Some naturally didn’t believe it, thinking these were just two naïve children playing a prank.
But some saw the gun in Su Zhiruan’s hand and stepped back warily, not speaking first.
Of course, there were those who were fearless.
“Food and water every day, hahaha!” The first person who asked about Su Zhiruan’s identity laughed out loud, glancing sideways at Su Zhiruan, “Little girl! Who do you think you are?!”
The rest, upon hearing about clean food and water, all cast hungry, wolf-like gazes, seeing that the speaker was a frail young girl accompanied by a scholarly-looking man, they scoffed, their expressions showing disbelief in her words.
A pretty boy and a young girl, they must be here playing house.
“Stop joking, which family’s children are you? Go home now, being able to survive on your own is already quite an achievement, don’t joke about these things, or if you really meet bad people, beware they don’t eat you and leave nothing behind.” A bespectacled middle-aged man stood up; he hadn’t spoken until now, his tone still quite mild, his scholarly demeanor apparent, suggesting a well-educated background.
“Alright, alright, life is hard enough, let these kids go.” Someone stood up to echo him.
Su Zhiruan saw that they did not believe her, but she wasn’t in a hurry.
She noticed a tall platform nearby and walked over to it.
Their current location was a gymnasium of a primary school, a venue that apparently often held events, so there was a huge platform at the far west end.
The corner on top still had a microphone among other clutter, dust, and debris. The platform was far from the central fire and was cold and uncomfortable, so no one went up there, but Su Zhiruan lightly climbed to one corner and jumped up, uncovering the long-sealed microphone. She gently tapped it and found it still worked.
Her series of movements flowed smoothly, leaving the crowd clueless about her intentions, all eyes focused on her.
“For the past six months, we have experienced the greatest disaster in human history. After much thought, I have come up with this plan, which you might all consider.”
Su Zhiruan spoke calmly, her demeanor bearing an authoritative air after her experiences in all those Small Worlds.
“Frankly, I want to build a shelter,” Su Zhiruan stated succinctly and clearly.
Sure enough, as soon as she finished this statement, everyone fell silent simultaneously.
She continued, “I want to build a shelter, but I need manpower. I can offer compensation, namely food and water, fulfilling mutual needs.”
“You are staying here, and this place is also a shelter. I want to build a shelter too, but much larger, several times larger than this, capable of accommodating many more people than this place. Everyone coming here would be protected,” Su Zhiruan succinctly described her idea.
“…Girl, you are thinking too simply. What are you really after by doing this? All this effort with no personal gain. You reveal your resources, then build a shelter open to everyone.” The middle-aged teacher who initially spoke, now shaking his head in disbelief, adjusted his glasses, trying to dissuade Su Zhiruan, “Besides, the natural disaster will soon pass, everyone will return to their homes, society will rebuild, what’s the use of building a massive shelter? It will only be said that you’ve occupied the land.”