The bells of Origin Territory rung loudly. Soon, the shops on the streets began to open up gradually.
The sun had just risen.
The two entrances in front and behind Origin Territory were swung open by the guards, indicating that the night curfew was over.
In the doomsday wasteland, there was no such thing as rest.
Everything should be started and completed as soon as possible.
The caravans that stayed in Origin Territory after selling their stolen goods would rush to leave with their belongings and continue their travels.
The travelers who arrived outside the territory would also quickly enter the territory to find a place to eat, rest and run their errands.
A week had passed after the heavy snowfall came to an end.
Countless caravans that were forced to hide due to the disasters had grown accustomed to continuing their trades in such harsh environments and slowly returned to their regular schedules.
As a result, Origin Territory recovered somewhat to its former glory.
Inside the San Yuan Hotel near the small market to the right side of Origin Territory, Su Mo pushed open the room window and curiously observed the various stalls that had been set up outside.
Although the location was not as good as the territory of the official guest house in Origin Territory, where you could see a variety of large shops downstairs, nor was it better than the Fortune Hotel located in the center of the territory with guards nearby, the only reason Su Mo chose this location was because of Huang Bin’s previous report.
It was realistic!
‘It’s the same as in modern cities. There are mainly travelers trading in the central market of the territory. Many commodities are available, but the prices are extremely high.
‘Meanwhile, this place is full of locals. Even though the variety of goods may be limited, the prices are definitely cheaper!’
Most of the people who could set up their stalls in the current location were locals of the territory.
They brought the rewards from lucky bags and resources they found in the mountains to be sold in their stalls.
Occasionally, there would be a few rare items, and if you were lucky, some nearby refugees would sell items that they scavenged from the ruins.
As for why there were no “outsiders” here picking up the cheap stuff, according to Huang Bin it was because they were…
Xenophobic!
Knock! Knock! Knock!
A sudden knock on the door sounded as Su Mo was deep in thought.
Su Mo had already instructed the soldiers before they entered Origin Territory that they only needed to knock twice if they wanted to enter his room.
However…
“Come in…” Su Mo turned toward the door.
The door opened and it was none other than the short guard, Huang Bing who had separated from them last night.
Unlike last night’s outfit, Huang Bing had ditched his decent guard uniform and was dressed in coarse cotton clothing similar to that of the local refugees.
It could be seen that Huang Bin had put some extra thought into being a good guide for one day of food. “Mr. Yang, the morning market has already opened. It’s best to set out now if you’d like to buy meals or precious goods.
“The local stalls will close up if you depart later.”
“Oh? Do they close so early? It’s only half past six in the morning. It’ll only be ten something after three to four hours.”
‘Why would they close so early?’ Su Mo was puzzled.
“Despite being locals, these people also belong to a territory and will have to complete their daily tasks delegated by their respective territories.
“Most people set up stalls for trading as early as possible so that they can return to their territory by eight or nine to complete the tasks assigned by their territory lord,” Huang Bing explained patiently.
“You can actually look at it this way. Completing daily tasks assigned by territory lords is like our regular job on Earth. We have to ensure the quality and quantity every day to receive our rations. Otherwise, we will be dismissed and unemployed.”
“Those who set up stalls can be considered doing a part-time job to earn some extras. How much earned is all up to fate and luck. It’s impossible to rely on trading to survive.”
“What about you?” Su Mo raised his eyebrows.
“Me?” Huang Bing was taken aback by the question.
He smiled and shook his head. “The guards work three days per week and are paid five days of food rations. Thus, I have four days of free time every week to work part-time to make up for the insufficient meals for the other two days.”
Through their vague conversations, Huang Bing could sense that the bearded man dressed like a mountain bandit seemed different from the usual visitors that he served.
He was like a lion inside a wild cat-infested wasteland.
Although they both belonged to the cat family, there was a huge gap in strength between the two.
Moreover, he even had the same name as a god from Huaxia mythology.
It had been a long time since Huang Bing had seen a person with a look of contempt.
This came as a surprise to him.
