Chapter 51 Wholesale Market

The next day, the last of the light mist completely dissipated, but at the same time, the rain grew heavier. Half of the people who had planned to go to the Wholesale Market saw the torrential downpour and the puddles already deep enough to cover their ankles, and they immediately lost heart. In the end, only twenty or thirty people were willing to go.

In densely populated areas, traffic jams were severe, making it impossible to drive. They could only walk or ride bikes, so the shared bikes on the main roads became a hot commodity during the disaster.

Although Bai Xiao found them difficult to ride, for ordinary people, having a bike was much less exhausting than walking. Moreover, a bike could carry more supplies, many times better than carrying them by hand.

Most of those who could travel long distances had their own bikes, and those who didn't had found ways to get bikes from outside yesterday.

Early in the morning, everyone armed themselves and gathered downstairs. Each person pushed their own bike, setting off either alone or in pairs.

Bicycles were precious now. On the way, they encountered several groups who looked at them with murderous intent when they saw them riding bikes, but ultimately, they were deterred by their numbers and didn't actually make a move.

The roads were slippery in the rain, so they couldn't ride very fast. It took about an hour to reach the Wholesale Market.

Upon arrival, the group first found a relatively hidden place that offered shelter from the rain. To protect the bikes from being stolen, they agreed that half of the people would watch the bikes while the other half searched for supplies, rotating after two hours.

They drew lots to determine the order.

Among these people, Bai Xiao was only familiar with Zhao Fangzhe and Shi Jun. Shi Jun was in the first batch with her, while Zhao Fangzhe was in the second.

"Take this bow for now to help everyone with self-defense."

Everyone had brought sharp weapons like kitchen knives or fruit knives when they came out. Seeing that the others only had short blades, Bai Xiao decided to leave her Compound Bow, which was hidden in her large bag, and a box of arrows with Zhao Fangzhe for self-defense. After all, her bike was also there.

Zhao Fangzhe was very excited. He already knew how to use a bow. He had been worried that if the dozen or so people staying behind encountered a larger gang, they wouldn't be able to hold them off. With this bow, they could strike first from a distance, greatly increasing their safety.

Large logistics trucks frequently entered and exited the Wholesale Market, so it was in a remote location with few residential areas nearby, mostly built near the suburbs along the main road.

The market was huge, with about a dozen sheds shaped like vegetable greenhouses. Different sheds held different wholesale goods, and the category was written on the door of each one.

Food, clothing, daily necessities, home furnishings, electronics, hardware and building materials, flowers and plants, auto parts—everything was there.

Each shed had several shops of various sizes. Now, some of the shed doors had long been broken, while others were still intact.

No one was in the mood to check the broken sheds; they just followed the signs toward the Food Area.

The rain poured down, pattering loudly against the raincoats. After a while, even through the rain hats, their heads felt a bit sore from the pounding. The world was a blur behind a curtain of rain, so damp it was suffocating.

The rain hit the ground, sending up countless splashes. The ground in the park had already turned into streams. Due to the terrain, the muddy yellow rainwater from the road also came rushing in, and in some places, the water was already halfway up their calves.

A dozen people trudged through the heavy rain. After turning corner after corner, they finally saw the sign for the Food Area.

Everyone was overjoyed, but as they drew closer, they noticed the door lock seemed to be open. Their hearts sank, and their pace gradually slowed.

They were worried that a gang had arrived early and claimed it for themselves, and even more worried that the supplies would be completely gone.

Bai Xiao hadn't originally intended to look for food, but if she didn't go to the Food Area upon entering, it would be equivalent to telling everyone she wasn't short of food, which was definitely not a wise choice.

She planned to follow them to the Food Area for a raid first and then find an opportunity to do her own business later.

The closer they got to the open shed entrance, the more nervous everyone became. One by one, they pulled out their weapons and held them in front of their chests for defense.

Shi Jun crouched down and approached the door first, using a stick to pry open the door, which had been left slightly ajar.

With a creak, the door was easily opened. After a long moment, there was no movement inside.

Everyone emerged from behind Shi Jun and peeked inside. In the hallway, cardboard boxes were in a chaotic mess, clearly having been looted.

After traveling over ten kilometers through the rain and swallowing a belly full of cold wind and rain, were they really going to return empty-handed?

The men's eyes turned red with desperation as they charged inside, searching every shop like a swarm of locusts.

The more they searched, the more disheartened they became. The shelves and warehouses of the rice, flour, and oil wholesalers were basically empty. The shops selling instant noodles, ham sausages, and other ready-to-eat goods also had no stock left. Meat, vegetables, and fruit were out of the question.

Bai Xiao's guess was correct; most of the food had basically been taken away by the Disaster Relief Department. In the massive Food Area shed, only a small amount of whole grains, dry goods, seasonings, and snacks remained that hadn't been fully moved out.

Among them, the most convenient things to eat were the snacks. Whole grains and dry goods required cooking, and with the current power shortage, it was uncertain if they would be able to cook later. Naturally, everyone first gathered various high-calorie, small-volume snacks into their backpacks.

Even a starved camel is bigger than a horse. Even if only these few types of items remained in the Wholesale Market's Food Area, the quantity was still quite considerable. Everyone stuffed their backpacks as if they had struck gold, only wishing their bags were larger and could hold more.

Seeing everyone busy packing things, Bai Xiao followed suit and symbolically packed a bag before quietly slipping away. Two sheds away were the Electronics Area and the Daily Necessities Area.

She had to hurry and find a radio and shelves.

There was far more stock left in these two areas than in the Food Area. radios were quite rare in modern society; if anyone still used them, it was probably only the elderly.

No shop in the Wholesale Market specialized in selling them. Bai Xiao searched through many shops for a long time and finally found an old radio in a shopkeeper's counter. It was clear the owner had used it for a long time.

As long as it worked, Bai Xiao wasn't picky.

Before leaving the Electronics Area, Bai Xiao also took many accessories she felt might be useful in the future.

She couldn't choose assembled shelves. She only had one storage space, and it wouldn't fit many fully formed shelves. Unassembled ones were different; a single storage space could hold many of them.

After finding a specialized store, Bai Xiao quickly selected a batch of shelves and assembly tools according to the dimensions she had determined earlier, waiting until she got home to assemble them and organize her ten storage slots.

After loading the shelves, half of the remaining space was still empty. It wasn't easy to make this trip, so Bai Xiao continued to search for daily necessities, stuffing in anything she felt might be useful.

Two hours passed quickly. When Shi Jun came out to find her, the two met between the two sheds.

"Lass, what were you doing all by yourself?" Shi Jun asked anxiously, wiping the rainwater from his face.

Shi Jun was a cheerful and honest man, and Bai Xiao didn't dislike him. She reminded him, "I'm afraid there might be a complete power and internet outage in the future, so I went to find some walkie-talkies and radios. I suggest you prepare some too."

"Right, right, that makes sense. I'll tell everyone and we'll look for them together." Shi Jun nodded repeatedly and turned back to call the others.

Once everyone entered the Electronics Area, Bai Xiao stayed outside to keep watch.

Before long, a group of people wearing various colored raincoats appeared from a distant corner. At first, Bai Xiao thought it was the people guarding the bikes who couldn't wait and had come to find them on their own.

As they drew closer, she realized there were as many as twenty or thirty people in this group, clearly not the people they had come with.

She hurriedly went inside and shouted toward the hallway, "Someone's coming outside! Are you guys done searching for supplies?"