The moment things kicked off, it was clear they were aiming big.
Jing Shu felt a restlessness stirring in her chest as she watched the exchanges begin. Beside her, Fan Jianqiang yawned and adjusted his heavy coat, his breath hitching in the cold air. "Just wait, take it slow," he muttered. He knew better than to covet any of these treasures. The Imperial Capital was full of hidden masters, and it was better to keep a low profile.
Lao Gong stepped forward, his bald head reflecting the flickering torchlight as he invited the first person onto the central platform. "Let's welcome Mister Liu."
A middle-aged man in a Zhongshan suit and a felt hat walked up, his expression solemn. He pointed at the display shelves, where towers of paper rolls were stacked neatly. "These are three thousand rolls of well-preserved, pure wood-pulp toilet paper. I won't accept virtual coins, only food. I want items with a long shelf life. As always, the price depends on the quality and rarity. If you are interested, bring your goods to the exchange clerk for assessment."
He had likely been a paper manufacturer before the world turned cold. It was a massive offering, and the sight of that mountain of toilet paper was genuinely shocking to everyone in the tomb.
Fan Jianqiang looked at the stack with a hint of disappointment. "If only he would take virtual coins. But whatever, it isn't really a necessity. Splash some water and wipe with a cloth. Worst case, scrape with a rock. Who needs paper?" Still, he couldn't help envying those who could still afford such a luxury.
Jing Shu gripped the handle of her case. "I wonder how the exchange rate works; is it expensive?" Her household still had a decent supply, but she needed extra for herself every month, and with so many people at home, the stock disappeared fast. Besides, items like this would only get rarer as the years passed. It was better to stock up now.
Song Bin looked uneasy, his eyes darting between the paper and the crowd. He didn't know how to price anything in this environment either. Fan Jianqiang simply snorted. With his status, even he would not consider using precious food to trade for something like toilet paper.
At first, it seemed as though hardly anyone would exchange for something so nonessential during a food shortage. Within minutes, however, several people walked up with various supplies to trade. Even the man who had just sold grilled meat at the entrance brought a long, skinny sausage to swap for a single roll. Once a third of the stock had disappeared, the crowd thinned. The market was reaching its limit, and by then, Jing Shu had a rough grasp of how bartering worked in this tomb.
Mister Liu's expression began to cloud with disappointment as the line slowed. Food was getting scarcer for everyone.
Jing Shu's mind spun quickly. One roll barely lasted her family three days, even with careful use. That meant about one hundred twenty rolls a year, not counting special circumstances. She had stocked up significantly in the past, but only half of that remained now. It was only the fourth year of the apocalypse, and nobody knew how long this world would last.
Just then, a woman from the Diamond Zone walked up, her heels clicking against the stone floor. She wore a crisp black uniform and glasses. After bowing politely, she spoke with a clear voice. "Our boss wants to buy out the rest of the toilet paper. We will exchange fruit cans that don't expire. The rate is one can for eight rolls. Are you interested?"
Her family had likely run a fruit-canning business in the past.
Mister Liu hesitated, his brow furrowed. Fruit cans were a nice treat, but they were not a staple. He could not use that many. If the woman had offered meat cans, he would have taken them all without a second thought.
He picked up the loudspeaker. "Is anyone else still looking for toilet paper? If not, I will trade the rest to her."
From her spot in the Silver Zone, Jing Shu shouted, "Here, here, we want the paper!" She waved for Song Bin to help her with the two black cases.
"Holy shit, what the hell are you doing? You are using food to trade for paper? Don't drag my score down," Fan Jianqiang hissed. He clutched Song Bin's arm as if the man's movement would doom his membership status. They had told him not to ask questions, but he couldn't help himself.
"Silver Membership Zone? It doesn't look like they brought anything valuable," someone in the crowd whispered.
Mister Liu looked disappointed again as he saw the newcomers. He assumed they were just small-scale customers. After calling out a few more times with no response from the Gold or Diamond zones, he finally turned to Jing Shu. "What do you want to trade? Bring it out so we can evaluate it."
He didn't show any condescension, but his interest was clearly fading. The woman in black tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear while eyeing the girl wrapped tightly in an oversized cotton coat.
Jing Shu looked plain and ordinary, except for that heavy case in her hand. Everyone wondered what could possibly be inside. How much food could a girl like that actually bring?
At first, nobody paid her much attention. Even Mister Liu was starting to regret not taking the fruit cans immediately.
Then, a loud boom—!
The sound echoed across the stone chamber, bouncing through the tomb with a natural, heavy reverberation. Every head in the central chamber turned at once.
"What the hell is in that case? Why is it so heavy?"
People assumed the container itself was heavy, until Jing Shu dropped it with that earth-shaking thud. Even Song Bin's mouth fell open, and Fan Jianqiang froze in place, his eyes wide.
Jing Shu unlatched the case and pulled back the inner layer. Inside were two enormous smoked hams. They were the kind of meat that made mouths water instantly—deep, rich black-pig hams with a perfect curve and dense, massive muscle. The people standing nearest caught the faint, salty aroma of cured pork drifting through the air.
A collective gulp swept through the room.
An instant uproar followed. Everyone on site was stunned. It was the fourth year of the apocalypse. Frozen meat still existed in some deep vaults, but fresh pork was a luxury beyond imagining, and even cured meat was nearly extinct. Food still existed, but top-quality items were rare. Only the truly powerful hoarded treasures like these, yet almost nobody ever brought them out to trade in a place like this.
Mister Liu completely lost his earlier calm. He circled the ham with wide eyes, his felt hat nearly falling off as he leaned in. Even President Gong walked over to get a better look. The bosses from behind the decorative screens in the Diamond Zone rushed out to see the prize.
Lao Gong swallowed hard, his eyes fixed on the glistening fat. "I'm taking a tax cut later. I'm slicing a few pieces for myself."
Mister Liu couldn't stay composed. "How are you planning to trade this ham?" His eyes glistened with greed. He had wanted meat cans, but this ham was worth hundreds of them.
Jing Shu casually lifted one of the hams to show its size. "It's a thirty-jin ham, top-quality and perfectly preserved. It can last several more years. How many rolls can I trade for it?"
"I will buy both hams and give you all the remaining paper," Mister Liu offered immediately, his voice desperate.
The loud snap—! of Jing Shu closing the case rang out like a gunshot.
In that moment, she did not look like a plain girl anymore. Her presence sharpened and pressed down on Mister Liu like a physical weight, leaving the man struggling to breathe. "It seems Mister Liu doesn't want to do business. There are plenty of people here. I will find someone willing to trade for what I need."
"Yeah, you can't be too greedy. Lao Liu, come on, can you even eat two hams? Let us have a slice."
"We have got plenty of stuff to trade too."
Mister Liu gritted his teeth, realizing he had overplayed his hand. "Fine. I will give you one thousand five hundred rolls for one ham. That's dozens of times more than I offer for any other food. The rest I will trade for fruit cans."
One jin of meat for fifty rolls of paper.
Jing Shu paused to think. Their black pigs at home and the ones in the space were practically overflowing. Grandpa Jing slaughtered several pigs every year, and their home was filled with smoked meat and hams to the point they were running out of storage space. Trading for so much toilet paper in the Imperial Capital was actually a great deal.
Mister Liu grew anxious. Seeing her hesitate made him regret his greed. He wondered if he should have added a little more to the offer earlier.
===
Beside Xiao Dou, and red nematode, another hook points for me is her 'big black case'. It kind of her own version of Doraemon's pocket.