"If you want in, state your price."
As soon as Lin Wu finished speaking, the reactions of the three people outside were worlds apart.
Wang Defa froze for a second, then lunged toward the door as if catching a lifeline. He pointed at himself and scrambled to shout, "I have a watch! I have car keys! I still have money in my phone! Let me in first, I'll give you everything—"
Su Yu, the woman clutching the child, didn't move. She gritted her teeth and slowly lowered the bag from her back, unzipping it with trembling hands. She began pulling things out.
A gold bracelet. Two rings. A necklace. And a jewelry box that had clearly been grabbed in a frantic hurry from home.
She cradled everything in her arms, not even wiping her tears, though she fought to keep her voice steady. "I don't know if these are worth anything now... but they are real gold. Please, just look at them. As long as you save my daughter, I'll trade them however you want."
Lin Wu didn't speak immediately. The system panel floated up before her eyes.
[ NATIVE TRADE ITEM DETECTED: GOLD JEWELRY ] [ PURITY ASSESSMENT IN PROGRESS... ] [ VALUATION: 1x BASIC FEVER MEDICINE, 4x BOTTLED WATER, 6x BREAD ] [ NOTE: EARLY STAGE OF ORDER COLLAPSE. PRECIOUS METALS RETAIN HIGH POTENTIAL FOR VALUE STORAGE AND FUTURE TRADE. ]
Lin Wu's gaze fell on the child. The little girl was semi-conscious, her cheeks flushed deep red, her wet eyelashes stuck to her skin. Even her small hands clutching her mother's neck lacked any strength.
She glanced at the scratches on Su Yu's arm. They were shallow—clearly sustained while fleeing.
"What's your name?" Lin Wu asked.
"Su Yu," the woman replied instantly. "And this is my daughter, Sui Sui."
"Where did those scratches come from?"
Su Yu turned pale, instinctively hugging her daughter tighter. "It wasn't from those things. I scraped it climbing over the iron gate of our neighborhood. I haven't been bitten, and I don't have a fever. If you don't believe me, you don't have to let me in—just save my daughter. Please."
Qi Ye, standing to the side, glanced at her and spoke in a low voice. "She's not lying. Her breathing and pupils are normal."
Lin Wu tilted her head toward him. "You can tell just by looking?"
"In the wasteland, if you can't tell an infected from a living person, you die very quickly," he replied calmly.
Lin Wu nodded, then tapped the door's access permissions. A new option appeared on the golden light screen.
[ SELECT ENTRY TARGET ] [ HINT: AUTHORIZED INDIVIDUALS MAY PASS THE RULE BARRIER; UNAUTHORIZED ENTRY IS STRICTLY FORBIDDEN. ]
Lin Wu's eyes flickered. This was even more useful than she had thought. She reached out and tapped the screen.
"Su Yu, Sui Sui. Access granted."
As the words fell, the golden patterns around the doorframe shimmered. Wang Defa saw the opening and lunged forward, trying to slip in with them.
The moment he touched the threshold, he hit an invisible wall. Bang! He was sent flying backward, landing hard in the rain, his glasses skidding across the pavement.
Lin Wu looked at him, her voice indifferent.
"I said: Your daughter can enter. You can't."
Su Yu froze, staring at the door in disbelief until Lin Wu spoke again. "What are you waiting for? Bring the child in."
Snapping out of her daze, Su Yu staggered across the threshold. The moment she entered, she stiffened.
It was so warm. Outside, the wind and rain smelled of copper and rot, as if the whole world was decaying. But inside, the lights were bright, the air was clean, and the shelves were as tidy as if nothing had happened. Even Sui Sui, who had been shivering in her arms, instinctively quieted down.
Su Yu's tears finally spilled over. She hadn't cried while climbing the walls or when she was pushed down in the dark streets, but stepping into this warm light made her feel like she had been pulled back from the brink of hell.
"Put the items on the counter," Lin Wu said.
Su Yu hurriedly arranged the jewelry. Lin Wu weighed the gold bracelet in her hand, then turned to grab a box of Ibuprofen, two bottles of water, two packs of toast, and a small bag of children's biscuits.
"One box of fever medicine, two bottles of water, two packs of bread, one bag of biscuits." Lin Wu set the items down. "Give Sui Sui small sips of water first, then half a pill. If the fever stays high after twenty minutes, we'll observe further."
Su Yu blinked. "But didn't the system say... I mean, didn't you say it was worth four bottles of water and six loaves of bread?"
Lin Wu looked up, her fingers tapping the counter.
"That was the base valuation." She tapped the surface again. "Right now, the whole city is dark. Medicine and clean water are rarities. I'm running a business, not a charity."
The words were blunt, but Su Yu didn't get angry. Instead, she nodded vigorously. "Of course, of course. Being willing to sell to me is already a lifesaver."
Lin Wu watched her for two seconds, then tossed an extra bottle of water onto the pile.
"This one's a gift."
Su Yu's eyes reddened again as she thanked her repeatedly.
Outside, Wang Defa watched through the glass, his eyes red with jealousy. He pounded on the door, roaring, "Why?! Why can she go in and I can't?! Lin Wu, you're just getting back at me!"
Lin Wu didn't even turn her head.
"Correct," she said calmly. "You can interpret it that way."
Wang Defa choked on his words, nearly fainting from rage. At the counter, the system chime rang on cue.
[ FIRST NATIVE TRADE COMPLETED ] [ REWARD: BASIC STORAGE SPACE x1, HEMOSTATIC SPRAY RECIPE x1, STORE REPUTATION +2 ] [ HINT: NATIVE CUSTOMER CHANNEL OFFICIALLY OPEN. OWNER IS ADVISED TO ESTABLISH A PRICE LIST AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. ]
A new panel appeared before Lin Wu.
[ BASIC STORAGE SPACE: 10 CUBIC METERS ] [ STATUS: BOUND TO OWNER ] [ DESCRIPTION: STORES NON-LIVING MATERIALS. ACCESSED BY THOUGHT. ]
Lin Wu's breath hitched. A good item. This was far more useful than a few extra bottles of water. She glanced at the heavy crate of water at her feet and willed it into the space.
The crate vanished instantly. In its place, a tidy icon appeared in her storage panel.
Her eyes lit up. She finally understood why people got addicted to "Cheat Systems." The feeling of "I need it, and it provides" was incredibly satisfying. She willed the water back out, and snap—it reappeared on the floor. The whole process took less than a second.
Su Yu was busy tending to the child and didn't notice. Qi Ye saw it, his eyes narrowing slightly, but he asked nothing. Smart people knew better than to pry into a boss's trump card.
"Lin Wu! They're coming again!" Wang Defa's voice shrieked, now filled with pure terror.
At the end of the street, several dark shadows were charging toward the store at high speed. Unlike the stiff zombies from before, these were faster—they were hunters.
Su Yu turned pale, hugging Sui Sui tight. Qi Ye gripped his blade, his gaze cold. But Lin Wu stood her ground, watching as the monsters lunged.
The golden barrier flared. Thud! Thud! Thud! Three shadows slammed into the barrier as if hitting a high-voltage grinder. They didn't even have a chance to struggle before they were turned into piles of ash, swept away by the cold wind.
Su Yu stared, frozen. She had been so focused on medicine that she hadn't realized what this shop truly represented. Wang Defa, being the closest, nearly had his soul jump out of his body. He scrambled back toward the door, muttering, "Save me... save me... I don't want to die..."
Lin Wu looked down at him and spoke. "You want to live? Fine."
Wang Defa's eyes lit up. "Really?"
"Of course." Lin Wu smiled thinly. "I value honesty in my business." She picked up a bottle of water and shook it. "Now, state your price."
Wang Defa froze. His watch was broken. His car was useless. His money was digital air. For the first time, he realized how truly poor he was.
"Warehouse!" he suddenly screamed. "The warehouse on the back street! I rented one—it's full of two truckloads of drinks and snacks! I have the keys! I'll trade that!"
Lin Wu's eyes finally moved. Now that sounded like a deal.
[ TRADE INTEL DETECTED: BACK STREET WAREHOUSE LOCATION + KEYS ] [ ASSESSMENT: HIGH PROBABILITY OF ACCURACY ]
"Address," Lin Wu said.
Wang Defa spilled everything. Lin Wu slid a bottle of water and two packs of bread through a tiny slit in the barrier. "A deposit. Once I verify the warehouse is real, I'll decide if you're worthy of coming inside."
Wang Defa grabbed the food like a starving dog, his expression a mix of humiliation and greed.
Lin Wu ignored him and turned back, ready to organize her storage, but then the welcome bell chimed again.
Ding-dong—
The sound didn't come from the front door. It came from the Wasteland Gate.
Snow swirled in, bringing the heavy scent of gunpowder. A massive shadow appeared behind the snow curtain, dragging something heavy.
[ WASTELAND CUSTOMER #2 ARRIVING ] [ WARNING: HIGH-THREAT LEVEL. CUSTOMER CARRIES HIGH-VALUE CARGO. ]
Qi Ye tightened his grip on his sword. "Owner... the one coming this time... I don't think he's here for noodles."
Lin Wu looked toward the gate. Her eyes didn't show fear; they began to glow with anticipation.
High threat? High value?
"Perfect." She tapped the counter three times. Tap. Tap. Tap. "Looks like we have our first 'Big Fish' of the night."