Chapter 46: The Middleman

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Chapter 46: The Middleman

At last, Gu Pan and Lu Ruisheng were able to seek out a middleman and discuss trading supplies. After breakfast that morning, they rode a snowmobile to the entrance of the City Psychiatric Hospital.

The area had once been something like a flea market, so it had naturally become a place for trading supplies.

They got off the snowmobile some distance away, stored it in their space, and then walked toward the gathering crowd.

There were more people than they had expected. They had not seen so many strangers together in a long time, nor had they witnessed such a lively scene. They could not help feeling somewhat excited.

Gu Pan looked over the crowd but did not find anyone with impaired mobility. That made sense, too. Perhaps the man had not become crippled until later. When she had met him in her previous life, it had been about half a year from now. Who knew what might happen during those six months?

Everyone was dressed like enormous bears, wrapped so tightly that only their eyes were exposed. Even their eyes were rimmed with frost. How could anyone tell who was who?

Gu Pan could only find a crowded spot and ask around. “Gentlemen, do any of you know someone called Liang Zi?”

At that moment, a man wearing a red scarf stood up and asked cautiously, “Why are you looking for Liang Zi?”

The moment Gu Pan heard his accent, that familiar feeling returned. It was him—the man who could not distinguish between certain consonant sounds. In her previous life, however, he had not worn such an eye-catching scarf.

She hurriedly explained, “A friend told me about this place. I came here to trade supplies. She said she had traded with someone named Liang Zi before, and that he was a good person, so she sent me to find him.”

The man relaxed when he heard that. “You startled me. I thought I’d offended someone. My name is Liang Zi. I’m the only Liang Zi around here. If you’re sure this is the place your friend meant, then she was talking about me.”

Gu Pan glanced at Lu Ruisheng and nodded, telling him that this was the man who had helped them in their previous life.

Lu Ruisheng understood at once. He stepped forward and said to Liang Zi, “Then shall we step aside and talk?”

Liang Zi was still wary. He pointed toward an unoccupied spot not far away. “Let’s talk up ahead.”

That place was close enough to their base for him to feel secure, yet far enough away that no one there could hear their conversation.

Gu Pan and Lu Ruisheng had come out of gratitude in the first place, so they naturally followed his wishes and went with him to the empty area ahead.

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Once they stopped, Gu Pan asked, “We wanted to ask how food and gold are being exchanged these days.”

“You know this is the apocalypse now. Gold isn’t the most valuable thing anymore. It used to be hard currency, but even gold has depreciated badly. Yesterday, one hundred grams of gold could buy five pounds of rice. Today, it only gets you four.”

Most of the individual buyers Liang Zi encountered were wealthy families looking for food. Judging by Gu Pan and Lu Ruisheng’s clothing, he assumed they were from a rich family with some gold or silver jewelry to exchange for grain.

Gu Pan realized he had misunderstood and lowered her voice. “We have supplies. We want to exchange them for gold.”

At that, Liang Zi’s eyes widened. “You have supplies to sell?”

Then he continued, “I could tell the moment I saw you that neither of you was ordinary. You both carry an air of distinction. You must be extraordinary people.”

Gu Pan laughed. In her previous life, when she had met him, he had been utterly dispirited and hardly talkative at all. He had crouched beneath a wall. At that time, Gu Pan and Lu Ruisheng had been at the end of their rope. Knowing that the watches they possessed were worthless, they had not dared approach the busier middlemen. Instead, they had gone over to ask him on a whim, and he had actually helped them.

But Gu Pan could not say too much now, so she brought the conversation back to supplies. “From what you’re saying, this isn’t the best time to make the exchange?”

After some hesitation, Liang Zi nodded. “Although I’d like to do business as soon as possible, if I’m being honest, you should wait a little longer. The timing will be better. The fact that you found me through a friend means we were meant to meet. I can’t take advantage of you. Meeting people who look as prosperous as you do is an honor for me.”

Gu Pan could not help laughing aloud. “We’re wrapped up so tightly that you can barely see our faces, and you can still tell we look prosperous?”

Liang Zi was not embarrassed in the least. “A person’s appearance reflects the heart. From the way you carry yourselves and speak, it’s obvious you’re capable people. I don’t need to study your faces to know you’re destined for wealth.”

Smiling, Gu Pan took two packets of compressed biscuits from her backpack and handed them to him. “Then we’ll take your good wishes. We may come to consult you often in the future. When the time is right, we’ll make the trade. We can’t let you do all this for nothing. It isn’t easy to find someone we can trust, so we’ll compensate you each time.”

Liang Zi immediately felt awkward accepting them. “No, really, I haven’t done anything. I can’t take these.”

Lu Ruisheng took the biscuits from Gu Pan and placed them directly in Liang Zi’s arms. “It’s only right. We’ll be working together for a long time.”

Liang Zi accepted the biscuits and introduced himself with a smile. “My name is Shi Liang. I live nearby and come here every day, so you’ll always be able to find me. You two are benefactors of mine. If I can borrow some of your good fortune, perhaps I’ll be able to live well in the future too.”

Gu Pan truly had not expected this Liang Zi to be so cheerful and so eloquent.

Looking at him now, Gu Pan guessed that his wife was still alive. “You’re dressed so neatly. Your wife must be a very tidy person.”

Shi Liang was especially proud when he heard that. “My wife really is a tidy person. Even in weather this cold, she boils water for me every day and keeps everything clean. Look at this scarf—she just knitted it for me. Having such a good wife is truly my blessing.”

Hearing that Shi Liang’s wife was still alive, Gu Pan was delighted as well. “Then treat her well. Now that we know each other, don’t hesitate to come to us if anything happens. We may not be able to help with everything, but we do have some connections when it comes to supplies.”

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Shi Liang was overjoyed. “That’s wonderful! I really have met benefactors today. You two look so deeply in love—you’re sure to grow old together and live a happy life.”

Hearing him use every blessing he could think of, Gu Pan smiled. “You will too.” She glanced at her watch. “It’s getting late. We should be leaving.”

“I’ll see you out,” Shi Liang said, then realized that they were not at his home. Where exactly could he see them to? He scratched his head. “I’ll watch you go.”

“We’ll be seeing each other often from now on, so there’s no need to be so formal,” Lu Ruisheng said.

Shi Liang looked completely surrounded by pleasant surprises. “Then come to me whenever you need to ask about something. I don’t just know the prices of goods—I have plenty of information too.”

Gu Pan nodded. “All right, then. We’ll be going. Goodbye.”

Shi Liang watched them walk far away, still waving at them.

After they had gone some distance, Gu Pan sighed. “In our previous life, it took another six months before we crossed paths with him. By then, his wife was gone and his leg was crippled. He had no vitality left at all. I thought he was simply an introverted person, but that wasn’t the truth. The apocalypse had worn him down until he no longer resembled himself.”

Lu Ruisheng put an arm around Gu Pan’s shoulders. “I truly can’t imagine what we went through in our previous life. But in this life, I won’t let you suffer again.”

“We had no choice back then. When you think about it, surviving three years without foresight or a personal space was already an extraordinary accomplishment.”

“The one thing I’m grateful for is that no matter how hard life became in our previous existence, I was always by your side. At least I was there with you.”

“You don’t know how important companionship is to a person during the apocalypse. That’s why, after you were killed, I couldn’t go on living alone. My heart had already died.”

Lu Ruisheng tightened the arm around Gu Pan’s shoulders. “In this life, we’ll live well.”

“Mm. We will.”

End of Chapter

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