novelsite Chapter 182 A Sea of People
Chapter 182 A Sea of People
The man subconsciously moved closer, even ignoring the cold, and carefully picked up a few sea buckthorn berries from the edge of the open bag by sticking out two fingers that were red from the cold from his tattered gloves. He examined them carefully, then put them under his nose and smelled them—a unique, fresh, and intensely sour fruity aroma filled his nostrils.
But then, he decisively shook his head, a look of disappointment and "it's nothing special" on his face. He pursed his lips, tossed the fruit back into the sack, and said with a hint of disdain, "Oh, so this is it! Too sour! Astringent! It won't fill you up, it's not very useful, just a snack at best." After saying that, he seemed to have lost all interest, shrank back, wrapped his tattered cotton coat tighter, and turned his attention back to the slowly moving line in front of him, no longer glancing at them.
Some refugees who had initially cast curious glances quickly lost their enthusiasm and turned indifferent after hearing the keywords "sea buckthorn," "acidic," and "not enough to fill their stomachs."
At a time when the survival threshold is repeatedly lowered by the harsh cold, and when most people are still worrying about the most basic food, fuel, and a roof that doesn't let them breathe, this wild fruit, which cannot be immediately converted into heat to fill their stomachs and has an extremely sour and astringent taste, is certainly not a hard currency that people would envy. It is more like a kind of "luxury" that belongs to the "upper class" who have already solved their basic needs and have the extra energy to consider nutritional balance and disease prevention.
Xu Xiaoyan was not surprised by this reaction; in fact, she had expected it. She simply nodded calmly, without offering any explanation or argument. She silently tightened the sack again, carefully tied it with a rope, and made a secure knot. The difference in their value perceptions was on full display at this moment, beneath the city gate.
This little incident did not cause any further ripples. The four ignored the surrounding noise, probing or indifferent gazes, and tacitly remained silent. Pushing their carts, they joined the end of the relatively smooth line of residents returning to the base, and moved little by little with the crowd toward the city gate that gleamed with a cold metallic luster.
Behind me, the suppressed commotion in the refugee procession, the intermittent crying of children, and the occasional impatient shouts of guards were gradually replaced by the regular "beeping" of the turnstiles and the low conversations of the residents ahead.
After successfully passing through the security checkpoint of the Fourth City, the familiar "Mid-City Number" flashed on the screen again. Entering the inner side of the city wall, although it was still cold, the scattered lights and smoke from the Fourth City settlement that grew along the city wall brought a subtle sense of security as we returned to the "human realm".
But the four dared not delay for a moment. After entering the city, they did not even stop to catch their breath. They immediately dragged the heavy trailer, turned around, and walked quickly toward the trading center, which was located at the junction of the outer city and the middle city and was also one of the core commercial and logistics hubs of the entire Linchuan base.
The base streets were even more deserted and quiet at night than during the day, with only a few hurried figures and the occasional vehicle equipped with snow chains and heavy thermal covers.
The streetlights were sparsely lit, indicating that electricity had been prioritized for more important areas. The cold wind howled and whistled through the buildings, whipping up the snow on the ground and stinging the face. The wheels of the trailer made a dull rolling sound on the road surface, which had been cleared of the main road but was still covered with a layer of hard snow, becoming the most prominent sound on the quiet street.
However, upon arriving at the entrance of the iconic and magnificent building of the trading center, they were utterly stunned by the sight before them, and even stopped in their tracks, the trailer screeching to a halt.
The once spacious glass revolving doors of the trading center were now completely blocked by crowds! Not only the entrance, but also the huge, cracked glass curtain wall inside, where the high-ceilinged lobby, originally used for events or displaying large merchandise, was now packed with people!
People crowded into every corner: some sat or lay directly on the cold marble floor, with rags, cardboard or thin luggage under them; some leaned against the bare walls or supporting pillars, closed their eyes to rest, their faces full of sleepiness; others huddled in slightly sheltered corners such as under the escalator or behind the information desk, tightly wrapped in everything they could to keep warm.
Wang Xiao gasped in disbelief, exclaiming, "My God... what's going on? Why are so many people crammed here?! This... this is several times more crowded than the market we saw before leaving the city! It's like... like a refugee camp!" His voice trembled with shock.
Xie Yingtang frowned, his expression grave. He grabbed a middle-aged man who was struggling to squeeze through the crowd, his face showing obvious impatience and irritation. He asked politely but firmly, "Excuse me, sir, why are there so many people at the trading center today? Is there some special event? Or has something happened?"
The man, his arm grabbed, instinctively tried to shake off, but seeing Xie Yingtang's relatively polite attitude, and glancing at the several trailers piled high with supplies behind him and his three equally travel-worn companions, he suppressed his anger, scoffed, and spoke with a tone full of sarcasm and a deep sense of helplessness, "What else could it be? An event? Ha... It's just a bunch of people with no points, no supplies, and nowhere to stay, all coming here to enjoy the warmth and escape the cold! At least there's official electricity here, and although we can't run the central air conditioning at full blast, it's warmer than outside. We can endure it for a while, it's better than freezing to death outside!" He pointed to the sea of heads inside, "Look, it's all here!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a man standing next to him, arms crossed, neck hunched, leaning against the doorframe watching the commotion, chimed in, his voice numb: "I heard the base is having a headache over this. They can't manage it, and they can't drive them away. If this continues, forget about normal transactions, the trading center will be packed with people! Everyone's just there to get in the heat, and people who really want to buy or sell things can't get in! I think things will get out of hand sooner or later."
Looking at the haggard-looking crowd before her, Xu Xiaoyan couldn't help but ask, "Is it because... you can't afford the electricity and heating bills?"
The man who was initially questioned shook his head and explained, "It's not entirely because they can't afford it. Look at all these people here." He gestured towards the crowd, "They're obviously refugees who just fled from out of town. How many points do they have? They're lucky to have made it this far. Who among the locals wants to drag their families here and suffer like this? To smell this? If they had a heated kang (a traditional heated bed) and a stove at home, even if it's just burning scrap wood, if they had a separate, well-ventilated room, who would want to be crammed together here, competing with strangers for this pitiful warmth?"