38: Jiang Fei was robbed while setting up a stall

Jiang Fei was eager to exchange for gold to unlock the Supermarket, so she woke up very early the next day.

She first went to 2203 to return the plates, then put on her protective gear and went downstairs alone.

Half of the people on the second floor were gone.

Those who remained were people who hadn't received supplies and were waiting for the rubber dinghies and wooden boats to return.

Lin Bo from the community wasn't there; a new face was working with Feng Chenlu.

Noticing Jiang Fei coming downstairs, Feng Chenlu picked up her notebook and walked towards her, smiling, "It's good you came down; I won't have to climb 22 floors to find you."

"We need to survey the survivors in Building A. Which unit do you and your friends live in? What are your names?"

"I'm Jiang Fei, unit 2202. Lu Yu is in 2203, Xiao Chuxia in 2201, and Ling Zhaorui in 2103."

Feng Chenlu lowered her head and wrote each name down, then tactfully said, "Starting today, Lin Bo and I will manage Building A. If you encounter any problems, you can come to me."

Having been colleagues with Lin Bo for a year, Feng Chenlu knew how vindictive and petty he was.

Yesterday, she had said something to Lin Bo, and today he feigned illness and took leave, dumping all his work on her.

Unit 2202 was young and lived alone; what if Lin Bo bullied her?

Girls should, of course, help girls!

Feng Chenlu, who had just arrived at Building A, didn't know the notorious reputation of the 22nd floor and treated Jiang Fei as a younger sister.

Jiang Fei replied with an "Okay" and left Yulan Garden in an inflated rubber dinghy.

The fountain area of Central Square was on the easternmost side.

The surrounding trees were more than half submerged, with only branches exposed, which could be used to secure the rubber dinghies.

The authorities sprayed the Central Square daily to clear water snakes, so there were almost no snakes, insects, or venomous mosquitoes to be seen here.

Not many people came for free trade today. Jiang Fei chose a conspicuous spot, parked her rubber dinghy, took out the sign she had written overnight, and placed it beside her.

Written in red pen on the cardboard was—

"[Buying gold, underwater metal detectors, diving suits, bartering]"

For her first trade, Jiang Fei didn't bring too many items. She only displayed 5 boxes of self-heating hotpot, 2 bottles of 700ml shampoo, 10 energy bars, and 1 foot-pedal generator on the rubber dinghy, all of which were supplies that were no longer available.

However, Jiang Fei waited all morning without a single customer.

Just as she was bored and dozing off, a man wearing a protective face mask paddled over in a large plastic bathtub.

"Little girl, I have a gold ring here. Can I exchange it for all your food?"

The man pulled out a gold ring; it was crudely made and very light in color.

Jiang Fei didn't even need to put it into the Supermarket to know it was fake: "I only accept real gold."

Unexpectedly, Jiang Fei saw through it at a glance, and the man smiled awkwardly, "How about this? I'll give you a piece of information, and you give me an energy bar."

"You don't have to worry about me lying to you. I'll tell you first: there's a store called 'UN' on the commercial street in Lincheng. It's three floors tall and sells all kinds of diving equipment, including underwater metal detectors."

At this point, the man lowered his voice, "The owner of UN went on vacation before the typhoon, so the store has been closed. You can secretly go and take things tonight; you won't have to spend a cent."

Hearing this, Jiang Fei threw an energy bar to the man.

Regardless of whether the information was true or false, the man had pointed her in a direction.

Previously, the water level was too high, and commercial streets typically had two or three-story shops that were already submerged, so she had forgotten about such a good place for a '0-yuan purchase.'

She would go check it out tonight.

The man took the energy bar but didn't leave. He paddled a bit closer, nearing Jiang Fei's rubber dinghy.

Jiang Fei quietly gripped her paddle.

"I don't really want this anymore. Can I exchange it for biscuits?"

"Huh? You don't have any here. Never mind... A centipede!"

The man suddenly shouted, actually intending to quickly snatch the self-heating hotpot from the rubber dinghy.

Before his hand could touch it, Jiang Fei swiftly swung.

"Ah!"

With a splash, the man was knocked into the water, truly screaming this time.

"Something seems to be biting me! Let me up quickly!"

The man, holding the energy bar, tried to climb onto the rubber dinghy.

Jiang Fei ruthlessly pushed him away with her paddle.

Go back to your bathtub!

Unable to get onto the rubber dinghy, the man had no choice but to retrieve his own bathtub.

Just as he managed to climb in, a military-green rubber dinghy approached.

"Trouble is forbidden in the free trade zone. Who started it?"

The man falsely accused, "Of course it was her!"

"I came over to see what was written on the cardboard, and who knew she just knocked me into the water without a word! Comrade, you must uphold justice for me! My foot was bitten by a centipede!"

Jiang Fei: "He tried to steal my things."

"The energy bar he's holding is mine."

The man stiffened, then guiltily argued, "This is my own item. You say it's yours, do you have proof?"

"Yes, I do." Jiang Fei calmly picked up the other energy bars:

"I was afraid someone would steal my things and claim them as their own, so before I came, I drew a circle with a red marker on each packaging bag."

The soldier took the energy bar to inspect it and confirmed it was as Jiang Fei described: "Official regulations state that those who steal supplies lose their qualification to enter the free trade zone."

The man panicked, "I didn't steal the energy bar! She exchanged it with me! I told her a piece of information!"

Jiang Fei mimicked the man's earlier tone and retorted, "Do you have proof?"

The man choked.

He didn't have a voice recorder or camera, how could he prove it?!

Just then, a patrol boat approached.

The person sitting on it was Xu Qianyao.

"What's going on?"

The soldier briefly explained the situation.

Xu Qianyao understood: "Take him out of here."

The man was led away by the soldier, looking distraught.

Xu Qianyao looked at Jiang Fei: "Although you're not wrong, fighting is not allowed in the free trade zone. Next time, if you have any issues, you can ask the authorities to help you resolve them."

"That... Miss Jiang, you previously mentioned reading a novel at a school. Which school was it?"

"Lincheng University of Architecture."

Jiang Fei directly exposed Xu Qianyao's intentions: "You're looking for that novel, aren't you?"

"I read that novel years ago; it's probably gone now."

"Last time, I just remembered to tell you about it; it has no relation to reality. You also told me it was all fake."

To get information from someone like Xu Qianyao, she had to do the opposite.

"If only it were fake." Xu Qianyao sighed and quietly repeated:

"Last time, I was chatting with Director Ning and told him about this. As a result, we received news that day that experts predicted a cold snap, and the higher-ups have already taken measures."

"Director Ning also became vigilant and specifically sent people to test the water quality, where they discovered mosquito eggs. That's how we managed to control the venomous mosquitoes in time."

Xu Qianyao spoke casually.

Jiang Fei's heart, which had been in suspense, settled.

So it was a coincidence, not that someone else had been reborn like her.

"Captain Xu! Director Ning is looking for you!"

Hearing someone call him, Xu Qianyao responded and said to Jiang Fei, "You should come out less often these days. None of us know when the weather will turn cold."

This girl was his grandmother's Benefactor; he should take care of her if he could.

After Xu Qianyao left, Jiang Fei was contemplating whether to pack up her stall when suddenly an iron fork extended from her side.

The sharp iron fork could pierce her rubber dinghy at any moment.

"Don't shout, don't look back. Hand over all the supplies in your rubber dinghy."