Shen Lu turned and left, intending to go back to the previous spot to look for her tools.
When the metal tower collapsed, all she could think about was running, and she didn't grab a single tool.
But she searched and searched, yet Shen Lu couldn't find the place where she had dropped her tools.
Those were tools she had spent money on, and now they were lost after just a few days of use.
Shen Lu was heartbroken.
Moreover, without the help of her tools, her scrap-collecting speed immediately dropped.
Seeing that the sun was about to reach its zenith, Shen Lu had no choice but to head back.
Her haul today was mediocre, only enough to trade for half a bucket of water and a one-jin bag of egg puff powder.
Luckily, she still had some metal left over from yesterday's collection; otherwise, her plan to launch her malatang would have to be postponed.
[Ding dong~ New quest issued: Please sell 25 cups of mint water, 15 egg puffs, and 10 servings of malatang.]
Looking at the newly issued quest, Shen Lu pursed her lips. 'I have to go buy another set of tools today. Without tools, I can't collect much metal, and I won't be able to trade for more ingredients.'
'If I don't have enough ingredients, a one-day quest will drag on for two. My efficiency will drop, and my dream of living a good life will just get farther away.'
Shen Lu returned to her rented room and redeemed three large daikon radishes and half a jin of kelp.
"Ah, I forgot to buy a knife." Shen Lu smacked her forehead. 'How could I forget something like that?'
Both the daikon and the kelp needed to be cut.
Shen Lu shamelessly went to find Granny Jin and successfully borrowed a kitchen knife.
"Granny Jin, I'll return it as soon as I'm done."
After she finished selling her things, she would go to the general store to buy scrap-collecting tools and a knife as well.
Shen Lu was a decent cook. In her past life, she had loved experimenting with food, posting short cooking videos online every day. She had even amassed over a hundred thousand followers, making her a minor influencer.
She peeled the daikon and sliced it into round pieces.
Normally, her habit was to parboil the daikon in plain water before adding it to the broth. But with her limited resources, she didn't have that much water to waste, so Shen Lu put it directly into the hot pot machine.
The kelp was even simpler to prepare. She just had to wash it and cut it into pieces about half the size of a playing card.
This time, Shen Lu prepared two soup bases: one mild and one spicy, to cater to customers with different tastes.
With the malatang ready and the egg puff batter mixed, Shen Lu was ready to set up her stall.
The light rain outside hadn't stopped. Shen Lu glanced at the malatang machine, then at Fu Cheng on the bed.
She was only one person; she couldn't push the cart frame and the malatang machine out at the same time.
But without Fu Cheng, her lucky goose, Shen Lu was afraid business would be slow to come.
She had to admit, she'd much rather sell out everything in an hour than squat by the roadside on Gold Street for four or five hours.
Just as she was worrying about this, she suddenly heard a noise outside her door.
Shen Lu looked through the window and saw a truck with a cargo bed stop at the entrance of the building across the way. Two stocky men got out and entered the building.
A moment later, one of them came out carrying a corpse on his back and tossed it into the cargo bed.
Shen Lu: !
'Could these be the specialized corpse collectors Granny Jin told me about?'
Shen Lu poked her head out and was surprised to find that she recognized one of the two corpse-carriers.
It was the big guy who was chasing Zeng Xiaodao yesterday.
An idea flashed through Shen Lu's mind. She threw on her raincoat, ran outside, and called out to the big guy just before the truck started.
"Hey, brother! Wait a second!"
Wang Daguo, sitting in the passenger seat, pointed to his own nose. "You calling me?"
'Do we know each other?'
Wang Daguo looked Shen Lu over from head to toe.
A very pretty young woman. Her whole body was covered in a drab, gray raincoat, which only made her fair, glowing face seem as delicate and lovely as a flower petal touched by morning dew.
"Got a body for collection?" Wang Daguo asked.
"No. Are you busy in a bit? I'd like to hire you for a small job."
The man in the driver's seat nudged Wang Daguo. "You lucky dog. Never mind, the next stop only has one body. I can collect it myself. You go on with the little lady."
His colleague had clearly misunderstood something, but he only hinted at it with his eyes and didn't say it out loud. In front of the young woman, Wang Daguo found it hard to argue.
Wang Daguo remained motionless in the passenger seat. "I'm busy. I have things to do."
'No matter how pretty the girl is, she can't get in the way of me making money. I have a family to support.'
"I'll pay you," Shen Lu said, her eyes widening slightly. "And it won't take much of your time. You can go back to what you were doing right after."
"Stop dawdling, Wang Daguo! Are you going or not? If not, I'm really hitting the gas," his colleague said, growing impatient.
Shen Lu held up a number with her fingers. "Help me move some things, and I'll give you this many Star Coins."
20 Star Coins.
Wang Daguo was shamefully tempted.
The corpse collection job only paid 80 Star Coins for a whole day's work. Shen Lu was offering 20 Star Coins right off the bat. How could he not be tempted?
Besides, she did say it wouldn't take much time.
Wang Daguo got out of the truck without another thought. As he closed the door, he told his colleague, "You go on ahead. I'll find you as soon as I'm done here."
His colleague pouted, cursing Wang Daguo under his breath. 'What was all that drama for? He should've just gotten out earlier.'
He stepped on the gas, and the truck quickly left the Seventeenth District.
Wang Daguo dusted off his hands. "Alright, tell me. What do you need me to do?"
"Move things," Shen Lu said, leading him toward her rented room. "Help me move my things to Gold Street. And if you're free around three or four in the afternoon, you can check on me on Gold Street. If I haven't gone home yet, you can help me move them back."
"Two trips for 20?"
"20 for one trip, 40 for two," Shen Lu said, glancing at him. Before opening the door, she gripped the anti-pervert baton in her palm.
'Even though I don't think the big guy is a bad person, what if he suddenly gets any funny ideas?'
Wang Daguo was surprised and, at the same time, a little uneasy.
'Based on the girl's description, the job sounds easy. For her to offer 40 Star Coins... no matter how you look at it, it sounds like a trap.'
Wang Daguo's heart sank, and he prepared to bolt the moment he noticed anything strange.
CLICK.
Shen Lu opened the lock, and the aroma of malatang wafted out to greet them.
Smelling the fragrance of food, Wang Daguo grew even more nervous.
'Who, that can afford to eat a proper meal, would live in the Seventeenth District?'
'Oh, but who knows if that's even the smell of real food.'
Wang Daguo had the immediate urge to run, but then Shen Lu pointed at Fu Cheng. "There's a cart frame outside. Help me carry him onto it. Then wait for me, I'm going to buy a large umbrella."
She couldn't let Fu Cheng get rained on. The rain was so filthy, and he was already injured. It would be a huge pain if he got sick from a soaking.
Pausing at the door, Shen Lu warned Wang Daguo in a serious tone, "I know Xue Can from the Gale Mercenary Corps. You'd better not steal anything of mine, or I'll make sure you die a very ugly death."
Wang Daguo fell silent for a moment. 'Doesn't that sound a lot like a fox borrowing the tiger's might?'
Shen Lu jogged off into the curtain of rain to buy a large umbrella. Wang Daguo stood in place for a moment before finally doing as Shen Lu had said and carrying Fu Cheng to the cart frame.
Wang Daguo scratched the back of his head. 'The girl has such clear, pure eyes. She can't be a bad person, right?'