Dimensional Store: Welcome to the Apocalypse Apartment - Chapter 5

But his instincts, honed by years of walking through dangerous territories, made him restrain himself.

Suppressing the urge to agree immediately, he asked, “How do we make the trade?”

“No rush, let’s start with small business,” Gu Huaiwei said after some thought. “Five liters of oxygen and ten kilograms of fresh water, I’ll give you a friendship price-five Gold Coins.”

In recent years, the price of gold had been rising steadily, from just over two hundred to five hundred seventy-five yuan.

In this world, a Gold Coin weighed nearly thirty grams. Even if the purity wasn’t high and there were impurities, a single Gold Coin could be sold for over fifteen thousand yuan in the Real World.

Five Gold Coins amounted to more than seventy thousand.

Enough for Gu Huaiwei to flip some goods.

Xiao Youqi’s mind was a whirlwind of thoughts.

Five liters of oxygen plus ten kilograms of fresh water, for only five Gold Coins!

That was unbelievably cheap.

Xiao Youqi’s breathing grew slightly heavier. After the nuclear explosion, all that remained on the surface were giant craters, ruins, yellow sand, and dust.

The Underground City was divided into ten districts, and the surviving humans relied on extracting underground water to live.

Underground water was rare and expensive-a pot of fresh water cost one Gold Coin.

Life was hard; they could only savor the sweetness of water in small sips, then collect urine and sweat, filter it, and recycle it.

Gu Huaiwei was only asking for five Gold Coins. In Xiao Youqi’s eyes, she was practically a Wasteland philanthropist.

Xiao Youqi forced down the upward curve of his lips. “I’ll go with your plan.”

Hearing his affirmative answer, joy crept up Gu Huaiwei’s slightly upturned eyes and reached her brows.

She did the math in her mind.

A five-liter oxygen tank cost just over a thousand, and ten kilograms of bottled water was even cheaper.

She was making a killing on this deal.

The two quickly reached an agreement, promising to deliver within three days.

After work that day, Lin She had already drawn four versions of promotional posters on the computer.

Before leaving, Gu Huaiwei checked his work.

She had to admit, it was very professional.

There was a comic style, pixel style, diffuse style, and glitch style.

The color schemes were bold, full of tension and artistry.

Then, baring her teeth, Gu Huaiwei patted his shoulder from behind and said, “Lin She, no need to make it so complicated. I have just one request: make the text big and eye-catching.

Finish it for me by tomorrow morning, and we’ll print and post it right away.”

Then Gu Huaiwei saw Lin She twist his head back at an uncomfortable angle.

His dark green pupils widened slightly, as if in disbelief.

Then, with a hint of grievance, he turned his head back, deleted all four drafts, and made a huge poster with a red background and bold yellow letters.

“Yes, yes, that’s exactly what I meant.” Seeing Lin She grasp her meaning, Gu Huaiwei clapped her hands encouragingly. “Keep it up, work hard, you’re the best employee.”

Closing time was midnight.

She left through the employee passage, stepped out the door, and returned to the Real World.

Neon lights stood quietly on both sides of the road, dim and lifeless. The streets were tranquil and empty, with only the silvery moonlight spilling onto the asphalt, casting a faint glow.

With the noisy vehicles gone, the whole city had fallen asleep. A gentle breeze brushed Gu Huaiwei’s hair, bringing a refreshing chill that cleared her mind.

She took off her heavy disguise glasses and pulled out her phone to contact her best friend.

“Lingxi, I’m coming over now. Is it convenient?”

“Oh my god, Huaiwei, you finally called me!” A girl’s delighted voice came from the phone’s receiver. “Of course it’s convenient-a thousand times convenient! I live in a remote place now, so be careful on the road!”

After breaking with her family, Mu Lingxi had been helping her sister with work. After her sister disappeared, she hadn’t found a job yet and was temporarily renting in an urban village.

Gu Huaiwei hailed a taxi and paid with the last of her change.

The elderly woman driver watched her count out a handful of coins again and again in the rearview mirror, and finally couldn’t bear it, so she rounded down the fare for her.

Mu Lingxi, wearing a red headband and holding pepper spray, turned on her flashlight and waited nervously at the dark entrance of the alley.

There were no security cameras in this alley-it wasn’t safe.

When Gu Huaiwei saw her, she hurried forward and grasped her warm hand. “Let’s talk inside.”

“Mm.”

Once inside, Mu Lingxi locked the old iron door from the inside.

Gu Huaiwei went to the bathroom first, borrowed Mu Lingxi’s makeup remover, and washed the foundation off her face.

Murky water flowed into the drain, and the mirror reflected the tired face of a young girl.
Her long black hair cascaded down like a waterfall, with damp bangs clinging to her forehead, droplets of water not yet dried.

A tiny red mole at the corner of her eye adorned her delicate face, adding a touch of allure to her feline gaze.

The biggest difference between her and her sister was these restless eyes.

The orange-yellow desk lamp illuminated the small room, adding a sense of warmth.

After showering, Gu Huaiwei sat barefoot at the foot of the bed, wearing Mu Lingxi’s pajamas, legs crossed.

Mu Lingxi was drying her wet hair with a towel.

Having learned about Gu Huaiwei’s recent troubles, she said indignantly, “Those people are so unreasonable. How could they go to your rental and splash paint everywhere?”

Gu Huaiwei leaned back on the bed, sighing softly, “My sister is missing, and I’m the only one the creditors can find. Of course they’re taking it out on me.”

“If you can’t rent a place, just move in with me.” Mu Lingxi tossed the towel aside and climbed onto the bed to sit, “Sister Changge’s disappearance isn’t something we can solve in a hurry.

She’s not here, but you still have me.”

Changge, Huaiwei’s sister.

Gu Changge was her elder sister.

Gu Huaiwei’s gaze softened. Adversity reveals true friendship; after bankruptcy, fair-weather friends scattered, and once-kind people became ugly, some even came to kick her while she was down. Only Mu Lingxi stayed by her side.

Unfortunately, Mu Lingxi herself was struggling, and Gu Huaiwei didn’t want to burden her any further.

“Darling, in this tiny place of yours, if two people eat together, one has to sit on the toilet. I’d better not trouble you.” Gu Huaiwei lay back on the soft bed, “Don’t worry about me. I’ve already found a place to stay.”

“Where are you staying?”

“At my sister’s old workplace.”

“You’re taking over for your sister?!” Mu Lingxi’s expression froze, worry flashing in her eyes. “No, that’s too dangerous! Before, Changge never let you get involved in her business. If she were here, she’d definitely stop you!”

Mu Lingxi had helped Gu Changge with sourcing goods before, but those goods always disappeared without a trace… She felt that Gu Changge was in a business that made money fast, but was extremely dangerous.

Sudden wealth always brings unease…

Gu Huaiwei propped her head with one hand, lying sideways on the bed. Her black hair spilled over the white sheets like climbing vines. She smiled, “My sister isn’t here now, so I get to make my own decisions.”

With Gu Changge around, she was the obedient, well-behaved little sister following behind.

Without Gu Changge, the wildness inside her would grow and spread through every limb.

She wanted to find her sister, and continue the business they once ran…

She had too much to do. Even knowing the road ahead was dangerous, she would never back down.

Gu Huaiwei’s expression was resolute, and Mu Lingxi could only compromise.

“Fine, I can’t talk you out of it. But promise me you’ll be careful!”

Mu Lingxi knew Gu Huaiwei was not someone who could tolerate a quiet life.

That strange, mysterious job brought great wealth, but it was also like a giant mouth that swallowed Gu Changge whole.

Mu Lingxi was afraid Gu Huaiwei would vanish from the world just like Gu Changge.

Gu Huaiwei patted her hand, her gaze a little vacant as she stared at some imaginary spot on the ceiling. “Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing.”

She wouldn’t disappear mysteriously like her sister.

After the small talk, it was time for business.

“Lingxi, I have to go back to work at seven tomorrow morning. I have some gold here-can you help me sell it tomorrow?”

“Sure, leave it to me.” She agreed without hesitation.

“A few days ago, you lent me six thousand yuan for food. I’ll pay you back ten thousand.”

“No rush.” Mu Lingxi shook her head repeatedly. “You were so broke you had to work in a nightclub just to get by. I can’t take extra money from you.”

“Your parents cut off all your cards. In a few months, you’ll need to pay tuition. As long as you refuse to marry that abusive rich kid, they’ll definitely use tuition to threaten you.”

Before, Gu Changge would help Mu Lingxi.

Now, with Gu Changge missing, Gu Huaiwei wanted to continue what her sister had done.

“I…” Mentioning this made Mu Lingxi frustrated. “Worst case, I’ll drop out and get a job. I don’t believe I’ll starve without my family.”

She was majoring in financial management at university, and each semester’s tuition was a hundred thousand yuan.