Chapter 242 - 209: Which Team?

Chapter 242: Chapter 209: Which Team?

The drive from the Rose Corridor to the trading market took an hour and a half in total. By the time Zhou Qian endured it to the end, he felt as if the whole world had brightened.

Who knew that when he turned around, he would see that same middle-aged woman getting off at this stop too? His face paled!

The woman had mostly given up after his previous explanations, but not entirely. She couldn’t help but add, "Young man, when you have money, the proper thing for a grown man to do is get a nice place to live. You can’t just keep spending it all on lavish meals and fine dining."

She looked at Zhou Qian again. Her female companion pulled her arm and whispered, "Forget it, forget it. The Defense Army isn’t a logistics unit; it’s way too dangerous..."

"I just think the young man looks so impressive! You know my daughter likes this type... Tsk, but you’re right. This brother and sister have been so poor for years. Just look at their clothes and shoes... I guess any money they make goes straight into their stomachs... Never mind then..."

Tugging at each other, the two women walked further away and soon entered the trading market.

Zhou Qian curled his finger and turned to flick Huai Yu on the forehead, who was happily watching the drama unfold. "You spew total nonsense, yet you still won’t admit it!"

The most absurd part was that her nonsense had reached the ears of half the bus. Eventually, everyone had chimed in on the discussion, unexpectedly resulting in two sets of parents arranging blind dates for their kids for the next day...

If not for that interlude, how could Zhou Qian have been delayed for so long?

In short, he glared at Huai Yu. He could never again trust this seemingly frail little girl!

Huai Yu rubbed her forehead, looking aggrieved. "I live alone, and they were asking so many questions. I was scared. So I just borrowed your authority..."

Now that someone as tall and sturdy as Zhou Qian had sat next to her on the bus, everyone probably believed her even more. But she wasn’t afraid of anything anymore.

She let out a soft sigh.

Seeing her downcast, submissive look made Zhou Qian feel somewhat uncomfortable. It took him a long time to finally say, "Forget it, forget it. You do need to keep your guard up when living alone. Let’s go. We need to hurry and sell these vegetables before they get crushed."

He slung the two sacks of vegetables over his shoulders and walked ahead like a towering mountain.

Behind him, Huai Yu gleefully smiled again.

When they arrived at the trading market this time, Zhou Qian truly experienced Huai Yu’s great connections.

Around ten o’clock was the peak time for many people living far away to bring their goods in for trade. There was a short queue in front of the testing station. Zhou Qian had obediently carried his sacks over to stand in line.

However, when the staff saw Huai Yu standing to the side, someone immediately waved and called out, "Hey kiddo! Why haven’t you been here for so many days?"

While speaking, they familiarly led her toward the VIP room.

The VIP room was now open, and someone else was being tested ahead of them. Zhou Qian put down his sacks and stood in the back. He turned around to see two staff members looking at him warmly.

"You must be Little Yu’s brother, right? Oh my, you look incredibly heroic and extraordinary!"

"Indeed! The brother and sister do look a bit alike."

One had dark skin, was tall and sturdy, and wore a serious, expressionless face. The other had pale skin, looked frail, but had a sweet smile...

The two staff members were purely being polite.

Zhou Qian ground his teeth secretly. He thought that living alone justified telling a few lies, but he had never told her to spread those lies all over the world!

This little liar!

Looking at Huai Yu again, he saw her touching her face in horror and asking in a trembling voice, "Mister, how do I look anything like him?"

Zhou Qian was so rugged-looking! She had looked in the mirror, and she knew she was quite pretty!

The two staff members instantly burst into laughter.

"Little Yu, how old are you? Why are you acting just like my daughter?"

The man, clearly a father, rubbed his weathered face. "Whenever someone says she looks like her dad, she throws a crying fit at home... I don’t look that ugly, do I?"

"I don’t look that ugly either, do I?" Zhou Qian also stared at her and asked.

He wasn’t ugly, true, but she was a vain girl who loved beauty!

Seeing that the person ahead had left, Huai Yu quickly pushed him. "Hurry up and get tested."

The test results were good once again. A Mutant Value of 13 was neither high nor low. It was considered high quality, but not too rare.

Huai Yu familiarly pulled out several handfuls of cowpeas and stuffed a bunch into each person’s hands.

The four staff members politely declined at first but eventually accepted the gifts. Then, the "brother and sister" were pulled aside separately for a chat.

The female tester spoke to Zhou Qian meaningfully. "Little Yu’s brother, I know you want to toughen the kid up, but she’s a grown girl now. The world is stable these days; there’s no need to dress her so shabbily.

"Look, she wears these same few clothes back and forth. It’s really unnecessary.

"And those shoes look a bit small on her to me."

On the other side, the male tester also had something to say to Huai Yu. "Do you know the stall that sells rice, flour, grains, and oil in the market? Yesterday, someone ordered thirty catties of top-grade white sugar but ended up not wanting it.

"I know you two have some savings. You can go check it out. That stuff is expensive, but it’s hard to find."

The "brother and sister" walked out of the testing station with different expressions on their faces. Huai Yu said gleefully, "Brother Zhou Qian, let’s give the vegetables to Boss Tang first in a bit, and then hurry over to buy the sugar!

"The half-jar of rock sugar I bought last time is almost gone now.

"The man at the testing station said it’s of good quality. It would be a pity to miss it."

She chattered and calculated her plans all the way, only to find that Zhou Qian hadn’t spoken a word. Looking up, she saw him carrying a large sack on each shoulder, his face completely tense.

His steps were brisk and forceful; with every stride, it looked as if he were trying to crush the stone slabs beneath his feet.

Huai Yu was puzzled.

After a while, she finally heard Zhou Qian grit out, "Hurry up and sell the vegetables! Once we’re done, we’re going to buy you clothes and shoes first!"

Now, probably the whole world knew that Huai Yu had an unreliable older brother!

Huai Yu looked bewildered. "I did plan on buying some... Hey, wait for me!"

Having not been there for many days, Boss Tang’s shop remained the same—spacious and rarely visited.

But seeing how swiftly he collected goods every time, it was obvious that he hadn’t lost a single client.

The first thing Huai Yu did upon entering was lean over the counter to look at the game console worth 2,000 points.

Then, looking at the vegetables she had brought, a surge of heroism instantly welled up inside her. "Boss Tang, I’m here!"

Boss Tang had been dozing with a magazine covering his face. Hearing her voice, he instantly woke up. A wide smile then bloomed like a chrysanthemum across his pale, plump face that resembled a soup dumpling. "Little Yu is here?"

Then he looked at Zhou Qian. "Oh my! Is this your—"

Before he could finish his sentence, Zhou Qian interrupted with an answer. "That’s right. Her brother."

Boss Tang was stunned for a moment, then laughed again. "I knew it! What kind of person could have such good stuff every day? Which squad in the Guard Army are you in?"

Zhou Qian was speechless. The Guard Army?

He stared at Huai Yu. Seeing the little girl guiltily turn her head away again, he twitched the corner of his mouth. "Do you want the vegetables?"

Boss Tang was a shrewd man! He immediately knew that the other party didn’t want to talk about it. Looking at the two bulging sacks, he quickly nodded. "Absolutely! I’ll take as much as you have!

"Little Yu, what vegetables did you bring today?"