Doomsday: Gain experience by hunting

A few words convinced Tang Tang that Zhou Bing was okay.

Tang Wen wasn't in a hurry to leave either. He took the rou jia mo from his sister and strolled through the market while eating.

The market ground was marked with white rectangles, about the size of parking spaces.

Some people, like Tang Tang, pushed wooden carts displaying needles, thread, bamboo chopsticks, wooden bowls, paper, and cloth.

Combined, it resembled a general merchandise store.

Moreover, they accepted not only copper coins and silver but also bartering.

Bustling and haggling.

Tang Wen's spirits immediately lifted.

The negative emotions from a day and night of fighting and fleeing were gradually diluted by the atmosphere and vitality of the marketplace.

Perhaps the guards were risking their lives outside, hoping their families could have the leisure to stroll here.

And Tang Wen, he hoped that everyone who came would buy one of his rou jia mo.

Hmm?

His attention was drawn to several books on the ground.

《Iron Palm》《Iron Elbow》《Iron Head》

Tang Wen stopped.

The stall owner, an old man, greeted him, "Young man, if you fancy any, feel free to pick them up and have a look."

"What's the price for each?" Tang Wen asked casually.

"This," the old man looked at Tang Wen, "Fifteen"

Before he could finish, Tang Wen started to walk away.

"Ten copper coins, just ten copper coins each."

"Alright," he turned back leisurely and squatted down.

He casually flipped through these martial arts manuals, feeling rather speechless.

Iron Palm involved poking sand, and it mentioned needing to soak hands in medicinal herbs, but it didn't specify which herbs, only saying to ask at the clinic.

Iron Elbow and Iron Head were much the same, with similar training methods.

He shook his head and stood up. Although the old man was unwilling, he didn't try to stop him.

Clearly, he also knew the quality of the secrets he was selling.

After wandering around, Tang Wen noticed a stall selling hairpins.

The stall owners were a grandfather and granddaughter. Their clothes were clean but faded. The old man seemed unable to speak, communicating with others through gestures.

The granddaughter was about thirteen or fourteen, with a pair of small pigtails and a shy smile.

Tang Wen approached for a closer look. They were all wooden hairpins.

"Young man, you're handsome. Buying a hairpin for your sweetheart? This old man's hairpins are cheap and beautiful. Pick a few more."

"You sly fox, you can't take your eyes off a handsome young man!"

"Selling a few more for you to wear?"

A cheerful and flirtatious voice, accompanied by a fragrant and warm breeze, wafted over.

A group of women wearing fur coats, red lipstick, and scant clothing in the biting cold, walked over, giggling.

They dispersed around Tang Wen in twos and threes.

Their fox-like eyes scrutinized him from head to toe.

Tang Wen felt a little uncomfortable. These teachers, no, these special workers.

Why were they wandering around the market so early in the morning instead of sleeping?

This group of women had an extremely discerning eye for men.

They sensed Tang Wen's hidden embarrassment and moved even closer to him.

They squeezed together, with people on both sides.

"Ouch!"

"Young man, you bumped into my sister."

"What should we do?"

"What to do? Of course, the young man should compensate with his hehe."

"Hahahahaha"

The commotion was considerable, attracting many people's attention.

"Go, go, go, all of you. What do you look like?"

A composed and dignified woman stepped forward and shooed her sisters away.

She lowered her head and apologized to Tang Wen, "I'm sorry, my sisters are used to fooling around. Please don't take it to heart. If you like any of the hairpins, I'll buy them for you as compensation."

Tang Wen noticed that although they wore expensive fur coats, they had simple wooden hairpins in their hair.

And looking at the stall-owning grandparents, he saw gratitude in their eyes.

Tang Wen shook his head, "I'm giving it as a gift, it's better to buy it myself."

With that, he picked out two wooden hairpins with relatively unique designs.

He dropped 10 copper coins, stood up, and prepared to leave.

The dignified older woman smiled, "Handsome young man, next time you go to Yihong Brothel, just ask for Liu Niang! I'll properly make amends then."

Tang Wen's heart fluttered, "We'll see."

He hurriedly walked away, only silently remembering the name "Liu Niang" in his heart.

Of course, this was just simply remembering the name and had no other meaning.

Behind him, the women watched his back, talking and laughing.

As if betting on whether he would go.

Tang Wen snorted in his heart: I, a dignified official member of the hunting squad, would definitely not go to such a place!

Well, at least not anytime soon.

At the market entrance.

Under Tang Tang's curious gaze, he magically produced a wooden hairpin with a flip of his hand.

"What a waste of money, this little piece of wood is worth seven and a half catties of millet!"

The little sister snatched it away and smiled, her eyes curving, "Confiscated! What else did you buy?"

Tang Wen wordlessly took out the other one.

Tang Tang was a little angry, then immediately realized, "It's for Sister Bing?"

"Yes."

"Then it's too cheap, a little embarrassing to give."

Thinking this, Tang Tang began to worry. Her family didn't have a house in the inner city, her younger brother's status and martial strength weren't as high as Sister Bing's, and her family background wasn't as good either.

What to do?

Would Sister Bing agree?

Tang Wen didn't know what she was thinking, stood aside, and helped sell rou jia mo.

"Handsome young man, so you and Miss Tang are family!"

"Give me three rou jia mo."

"Save one for me."

A group of women chattered and winked playfully at Tang Wen in Tang Tang's stern gaze, then walked away with their rou jia mo.

Tang Tang looked at their enchanting backs and muttered a few words, "Not striving for improvement, they're young now, what will they do in the future?"

The siblings sold out their rou jia mo early, and Tang Wen pushed the cart towards home.

Back home, Zhou Bing was already waiting for them.

After the two women exchanged concerned words, Zhou Bing said to Tang Wen, "Starting tomorrow, everyone in the team except you and me will be going out on patrol."

"Has everyone returned?"

"Yes, everyone in our team has returned."

"That's good."

The two spoke with a heavy tone, and Tang Wen's relaxed mood became tense again.

The matter was not yet resolved.

Zhou Bing led the siblings to her master bedroom, lifted the wooden board under the table, revealing a steel plate.

Opening the steel plate revealed a dark hole in the ground.

"This?"

Tang Wen and his sister were a little confused.

They had lived in the house for so long, and had been to the master bedroom, but didn't know there was a secret passage here.

Zhou Bing explained, "We haven't figured out the origin of that 'awakened one' yet, but we've confirmed that the two of us are the primary targets. Commander Zhao and the General sent word back, telling us not to go out and to protect ourselves."

"Live in the underground passage?"

Although they hadn't been down there, they could imagine that it would be dark, cold, and damp.

"No! This underground passage isn't just a shelter. It also leads directly to the General's mansion. We'll go out at noon to buy some things, creating the illusion that we're staying indoors. In reality, we'll go to the General's mansion through the secret passage. At that time, this place will become a trap."

Tang Wen understood: there might be people from the Black Mountain Camp in the inner city.

It was normal to think so, their guard camp often received news from the Black Mountain Camp.

Everyone was the same.

Tang Tang asked worriedly, "Can I still sell rou jia mo?"

Uh?

Tang Wen and Zhou Bing exchanged glances, the latter smiled, "Let's go to the General's mansion to practice martial arts first! We'll talk about it after this period passes."

"Practice martial arts? Alright."

Tang Tang nodded in agreement.

At noon, the three went out.

Amidst the surprised gazes of passersby, they bought back two whole carts of food.

Then they locked the door from the inside.

Like squirrels fleeing, the three carried large bundles on their backs and stepped into the underground passage.

PS: Seeking tracking! There are already 15,000 words of saved manuscripts! There will be a big outbreak on the shelves! Let's strive for a burst of 30,000 to 50,000 words on the shelves!