Apocalyptic Hoarding Diary

Chapter 222 Information Gap

Some people were quietly going in and out, mostly carrying document bags or tool bags. Through the fairly clean glass window, she glanced quickly and saw someone inside hunched over a large table, seemingly sketching complex mechanical blueprints. There were also some charts on the wall. The atmosphere there was focused, serious, and completely different from the struggle for survival.

After observing for a short distance, Xu Xiaoyan's answer gradually became clearer, colder, and more real. Zhongcheng was not just an area with better living conditions, but a high wall built with points and permissions. Inside the wall was a relatively stable order, a spark of industry and technology that had not been completely extinguished, a more secure basic material supply system, and a technical and management team that provided operation and maintenance support for the entire base. This was one of the core areas that prevented the base from completely regressing into a primitive tribe.

Compared to the apocalyptic chaos and sell-offs in the outer city, this place seemed to be just an orderly relocation preparation. Some cafes on the street were still open, with a few customers sitting by the window, cups with faint steam in front of them, talking in hushed tones. Although their expressions were solemn, they did not have the panic of the outer city on the verge of collapse.

On a large screen at a street corner not far away, a promotional video introducing the various districts of the dungeon, though somewhat crudely produced, was playing on a loop. The people who stopped to watch had expressions more like they were examining a policy change that was relevant to them and that they needed to understand, rather than the complex look of those in the outer city who were grasping at a straw.

The contrast was so stark that Xu Xiaoyan, who had just come from the outer city's "hell," felt a strong sense of unreality, as well as a deeper curiosity.

Finally, as she passed a small shop with a sign that read "Seiko Timepiece," she stopped. The shop's glass was sparkling clean, and inside, the counter displayed some watches, pocket watches, and small clocks, most of which were old but spotless. She hesitated for a moment, took a deep breath, and pushed open the glass door with the "Open for Business" sign.

The sensor on the door emitted a crisp "ding-dong" sound.

The shop's interior was even smaller than the exterior, only about ten square meters. The glass display cases were covered with dark blue velvet, and various electronic watches and a few mechanical watches were neatly arranged on them. The styles were old, but they all seemed to be well maintained. There was a faint smell of machine oil and electronic components in the air.

Behind the counter, a slightly overweight middle-aged man with thinning hair was carefully wiping the edge of a silver watch face with an extremely soft chamois cloth, his movements focused.

Hearing the door open, he almost reflexively looked up, his face instantly breaking into a warm, friendly smile, his voice gentle and enthusiastic:

"Welcome! Miss, feel free to browse. These are all older styles, but they keep accurate time and are well-maintained." He put down the watch and cloth in his hand, wiped his hands in front of him, and quickly but politely looked Xu Xiaoyan up and down from head to toe—her tightly wrapped old coat, her ordinary scarf, and her cautious eyes.

His smile remained unchanged, and his tone was still warm, but Xu Xiaoyan keenly sensed that beneath that warmth lay an indescribable, faint sense of detachment and scrutiny, as if he were assessing the true purchasing power and intentions of this "outsider."

"Take a look, if you like anything, you can take it out and try it on. At this time of year, it's good to have a reliable watch to tell the time," the shopkeeper continued. His words were ordinary, but they stirred something within Xu Xiaoyan.

Xu Xiaoyan walked to the counter, but her gaze did not fall on the various watches that were polished to a shine and reflected a cold, hard luster under the counter light. Instead, she raised her head and looked directly through the glass counter at the slightly chubby boss behind it, who had a formulaic smile on his face.

"Boss, excuse me, I just came from the outer city." She first pointed out her "background," which might make the other party more willing to say a few more words from a "condescending" perspective. "I wanted to ask, why do the people here... all seem so calm? Do they not know about what's happening in the underground city, or...?" She left her question unanswered, her gaze fixed on the boss's face, observing his most subtle reactions.

The boss paused in his wiping of the watch face, his憨厚 smile seeming to freeze for a moment. Then, the smile deepened, and he said in a matter-of-fact, even somewhat nonchalant tone:

"The underground city? Oh, girl, who doesn't know about that? It's on TV every day, on the radio, on the big screen. You can't avoid hearing or watching it." He casually pointed with his chin towards a certain direction outside the shop and into the distance, where the flickering light of a large screen could be vaguely seen. "However," he changed the subject, his tone revealing the self-awareness of a "Midtown resident," "the situation here in Midtown is indeed quite different from your Outer City."

He paused, seemingly giving Xu Xiaoyan time to process this "different" statement, before continuing in a steady voice, as if stating an ordinary fact: "The people here, while not everyone is super rich, have all accumulated some wealth over time. The 3000-point threshold for Zone D isn't entirely out of reach for most people. You start in Zone D, pay a few points, and you can have your own single room. You don't have to squeeze into those dormitories with dozens or hundreds of people, nor do you have to worry about the 0.5-point heating fee every day. With basic security and a decent environment, what's there to panic about? Just get ready and prepare."

He spoke lightly, using phrases like "grit your teeth" and "tighten your belt" in this context, almost with a Versailles-like ease. The numbers that outsiders would have to risk their lives, sell everything, or even take desperate gambles to reach seemed here to be just a hurdle that required "a little effort."

The boss seemed to notice the complex emotions that flashed across Xu Xiaoyan's eyes, but his smile remained unchanged. "Besides," he continued slowly, his fingers unconsciously tapping lightly twice on the gleaming glass counter, making a soft tapping sound. "Even if you're really short on cash right now, or don't want to spend all your hard-earned savings on that 'entry fee,' there are other ways. You won't end up like some people outside... sigh." He didn't specify what those "people outside" meant, but everything was left unsaid.

Xu Xiaoyan's heart skipped a beat. "Another way?"

The boss looked at her, seemingly pleased with her current focus. He lowered his voice, adding a touch of mystery, as if sharing "insider information," "As long as you have the skills, the real expertise—whether it's repairing machines, fiddling with those old circuit boards, programming, knowing a bit about medical care like bandaging and injections, or any other practical skill… go to the official trading center in Midtown. There's a closed-door 'Junior Technician Qualification' testing center there. Give it a try. If you pass, hey!" He raised an eyebrow, giving her a knowing look. "The D-zone entry qualification, directly granted! No need for those 3000 points!"

Xu Xiaoyan's heart skipped a beat for a moment, then began to pound wildly against her chest, and she even heard a brief buzzing in her ears.

Technician exam? Basic qualification? Direct access to Zone D?!

Official announcements! Those official announcements that were played on a scroll, posted on walls, and repeatedly broadcast made no mention of this! The announcements repeatedly emphasized only cold, hard numbers: Zone E 0.5 points/day, Zone D 3000 points, Zone C 6000 points… points, points, points! It forced everyone onto the same brutal track called the "points race," making people believe it was the only valid currency, the only ladder.

But now, the watch shop owner, in such an ordinary tone, tells her that there is another way! A way hidden beneath official rhetoric, a way that doesn't require that astronomical number of points! And this way is clearly not open to everyone.

Shock and an indescribable chill gripped her simultaneously. She couldn't help but take a step closer to the counter, her speech quickening involuntarily, her voice filled with urgency and confusion. "So... all those people from the outer city who desperately squeezed in, lined up at the central city gate, even willing to pay 0.5 points to get in, were they all here for this technician exam? But... why? Why not just announce it directly on the official website? Wouldn't it be more... fairer to let everyone know about this pathway? Wouldn't it allow more skilled people to..."

"Kid," the boss interrupted her, this time genuinely chuckling softly. The laugh was short and dry, filled with the wisdom of someone who had been through it all, insightful about the ways of the world, and even tinged with a hint of pity. "You're just too... too naive."

He wasn't angry; instead, it was as if he had heard some interesting idea. He stopped leaning against the counter, straightened up, walked around the counter, and strolled unhurriedly to the shop entrance. With his back to Xu Xiaoyan, he looked at the pedestrians on the street outside, who walked with composure and whose expressions, though solemn, were calm. He also looked at the relatively clean street and orderly buildings.

His voice was lowered even further, as if afraid of being heard by "his own people" outside the door, or as if to make sure Xu Xiaoyan could hear this "cruel truth":

"In this world, everywhere needs 'distinction' and 'hierarchy.' Think about it," he turned his head slightly, glancing at Xu Xiaoyan out of the corner of his eye, "If everything is laid bare, and we try to achieve absolute fairness, how do we distinguish between the outer city and the middle city? How do we differentiate... those who do manual labor and earn hard-earned money from those of us who rely on our skills and brains? How do we differentiate... people from different levels?"

He turned around and faced Xu Xiaoyan again. At this moment, the honest smile on his face seemed to have faded a bit, revealing a more genuine expression underneath, a mixture of worldliness, helplessness, and the calm of a beneficiary.

He looked at Xu Xiaoyan's eyes, which widened instantly, filled with disbelief and a sense of shock as if her understanding had been overturned. His tone became flat, even somewhat cold:

"These messages, these 'connections,' are 'exclusively' for people in Midtown. It's not explicitly stated, but everyone understands, and everyone tacitly guards this line, even informing everyone in Outer City?" He shook his head. "Wouldn't that create chaos? Can the trading center handle the limited capacity for assessments? Everyone will want to try their luck, and truly capable people might get buried. Besides," he clicked his tongue lightly, "why should we? We Midtown residents paid a price to move in, and we earned our place through our own abilities. This... convenience, shouldn't we be entitled to it?"

"Deserved..." Xu Xiaoyan murmured repeatedly, feeling the word stuck in her throat like ice crystals.

The shop owner seemed to have said enough. He walked back behind the counter, his posture relaxed again, and his tone returned to its previous homely sigh, as if those sharp words hadn't come from him at all. "We all have relatives, friends, and old acquaintances in the outer city. Who doesn't have a few poor relatives?"

He said this with perfect ease, "Because they know us, they have an extra path, an extra opportunity. Sometimes, a message, a word, can change many people's situation. That's called—" He paused, looked at Xu Xiaoyan meaningfully, and clearly uttered three words: "information gap".

It turns out that behind the seemingly unified, authoritative, and universally applicable official announcements lies a tacitly understood and tightly-knit hierarchical division and resource allocation logic. It turns out that the "road" to a relatively safe and dignified living area is not just a single-plank bridge built of points.

However, some roads do not appear on public maps and guides. They are intentionally or unintentionally hidden and only open to specific groups of people, becoming "privileged roads" circulating within that circle!

It turns out that the so-called "fairness" is sometimes just a facade to appease the public, beneath which a complex undercurrent of identity, relationships, existing resources, and personal networks is surging.

Xu Xiaoyan didn't know how she accepted the boss's perfunctory "Let me check the time again?", or how she mechanically shook her head, turned around, pushed open the jingling glass door, and walked onto the street.

The door closed behind me, shutting out the faint smell of engine oil from inside the shop and the owner's face, a blur of honesty and worldliness. The sunlight outside still carried the pale white of winter, brightly shining on the orderly street. Pedestrians still hurried along in an orderly fashion, and the distant broadcasts were still clear. Everything looked the same as when I had just gone in.

But in Xu Xiaoyan's eyes at this moment, the entire scene of Zhongcheng seemed to be covered by a gray, cold filter. Those clean streets no longer represented order and hope, but were more like clearly defined hierarchical lines. The calmness of those pedestrians was no longer just due to "accumulating enough points", but also due to the fact that they were in a circle where information was protected and opportunities were prioritized. The sense of "stability" that permeated the air now smelled of an exclusive and closed atmosphere.