"You always like to joke, but..."
Old Bird's expression grew serious. "What are these little monsters peeking around for? They don't look like ordinary zombies!"
"You noticed?"
"Of course. When we encountered them just now, they were like scouts. It's a shame I was a bit heavy-handed and accidentally killed them."
Old Bird was still apologizing for it.
Fu Yunting said, "Stay for a couple of days, let me see your combat strength too."
"You should have said so earlier! If you had, I would have brought a team over for you to see the power of pure meat!"
An Nuan felt he was being suggestive, but had no proof.
Everyone carried the items to a corner of the yard.
Insects weren't suitable to be brought inside, they only came to get some when Coco was eating.
Old Bird took out two bamboo cages from his pocket.
"I happened to come across them when I was leaving, so I caught them for you to play with. City kids have never seen this before, right? Crickets, and these ones have even evolved golden horns. They're quite a rarity in the mountains now!"
Fu Yunting wasn't interested in this sort of thing.
But he knew that good crickets could be sold for a sky-high price back in his grandfather's time.
He wondered how much they were worth now.
As the thought crossed his mind, Er Gouzi jumped out with a pant.
Er Gouzi: [Master, are you looking to sell them together? 1 million each, or 2.2 million for both!]
"So expensive?"
Old Bird chuckled. "Money is practically useless now, but I didn't expect these two things to be so valuable."
"You're talking nonsense!"
Fu Yunting grabbed Er Gouzi. "You'd better think clearly about the price before you speak!"
Alas, he couldn't fool him!
Having a well-informed master was a disadvantage.
He should tell the systems to find a poor kid next time, someone easier to fool!
Er Gouzi: [Hmm... 1.2 million at most. I'll give you both for 2.5 million, this is a friend's price.]
"Two million. Not a cent less."
[Don't!]
Fu Yunting squeezed the small bamboo basket, which was already deforming.
Er Gouzi, afraid of harming the crickets inside, frantically circled in mid-air.
[Two million it is, but for both, it'll be a total of four million!]
"Take it."
Fu Yunting tossed the crickets to it, and Er Gouzi swallowed them in one gulp.
Many people in the multi-dimensional world enjoyed playing with crickets, let alone these two with golden horns. They were priceless treasures in many worlds.
This time, even the main system was urging it to trade quickly. Four million was a guaranteed profit!
Er Gouzi chuckled foolishly.
Fu Yunting said, "You'll go to Hai Changfeng later. He'll give you the item list. Cash out the four million before you leave."
Er Gouzi pouted and floated towards Hai Changfeng.
Master was so stingy, he couldn't wait even a moment and wanted the money back before it was even warm!
That was stating the obvious.
He earned interest on money deposited in banks, but not a single cent on the trillions stored with Er Gouzi.
So why wouldn't he cash it out? Keep it for decoration?
An Nuan and the others took their slippers, invited them in to sit for a while, and then took them on a tour of the community.
The community was now ridiculously large, and it took some time to get around even by electric cart.
An Nuan had set up public bicycles in the community, costing three points for a monthly pass, and electric scooters for five points a month.
On-duty staff that day didn't need points and could use public facilities freely.
Old Bird rode a bicycle, winking at the girls along the way.
"Hey there, beautiful! Want to go on a vacation to our hot spring resort? The scenery is great, and we have wild game to eat. Want some?"
The girls giggled and splashed water in his face.
Song Yan criticized, "That's going too far! Water resources are precious. So many people outside can't get enough to drink, and you're wasting it!"
"Captain, we were wrong."
"Don't be angry. I'll give you my chicken wings tonight!"
"What's so good about your chicken wings? My candied chestnuts are delicious! Captain, come to my place for candied chestnuts!"
Lü Tian slung an arm over Song Yan's shoulder and grinned at the group of beauties. "Who's treating us to food? Am I included?"
"Hehe, yes, if Captain Song gets a bite, the vice-captain gets a bite!"
Old Bird cozily squeezed in. "You like chestnuts? I have a lot too. I'll bring some for you next time!"
The girls giggled again.
This time, they didn't splash water in his face, but threw a handful of dirt at him, then ran off.
Old Bird spat out the dirt. "Girl, the women in your community have quite a temper! They get physical after just a few words!"
Girl? Was she talking about me? An Nuan blinked.
She smiled. "A strange old man suddenly appeared. Throwing a handful of dirt at you is the least of it! Let me introduce you to our core members."
An Nuan introduced all the core members.
For those at the base, tower, and seaside, after a brief greeting via video, it was almost time for dinner.
With many guests at home today, An Nuan was too lazy to cook in the villa and arranged for everyone to eat at the cafeteria.
The wall between two private rooms was removed early, and three large round tables were set up.
Most of the community's core members had arrived, along with some who had finished their work and came to join the fun. The second floor was packed, and the kitchen department continuously served them dishes.
Fish roe tofu, shredded eggplant in garlic sauce, steamed fish, stir-fried kidney flowers, fatty intestine and taro chicken, sweet and sour pork with pineapple, sweet and sour pork ribs, spicy chicken cubes, minced meat and egg custard, stir-fried mushrooms with truffle, Cantonese crispy quail, Peking duck, and a seaweed and egg flower soup with celery sprinkled on top, refreshing and palate-cleansing.
Old Bird's mouth was watering, and his two companions weren't much better.
Lao Wai's eyes almost popped out of his sockets when he saw a basin larger than his head filled with minced meat and egg custard.
Lao Wai wiped his drool with his sleeve.
"Good heavens, when we came, we heard people gossiping that your community was wealthy. I didn't expect it to be true!"
"The mushrooms are fine, Little Ting must have sent them to you. But where did the celery come from? It can't be this fresh if it came from the freezer!"
"Look at this quail leg!"
Lao Wai didn't hesitate, tore off a leg and stuffed it into his mouth, crunching on the bones.
One word: delicious!
Another word: crispy!
Dipped in pepper salt, it was heaven!
Guo Yun gnawed on the sweet and sour pork ribs, nodding incessantly. "It doesn't taste like frozen goods. What technology does your community have to keep the meat so fresh!"
They all knew that after more than a year of the apocalypse, resources would become increasingly scarce.
Frozen goods could still be found.
After all, previous food storage and production were based on billions of people and foreign aid.
With half the population gone, if the remaining resources were distributed reasonably, they would be enough for survivors for many years.
But that only applied to things that could be stored. Things that couldn't be stored for a long time were another matter entirely.