As a city built by a business group with a strong commercial flavor such as the Coal and Steel Federation, Heiyan City’s commercial district is naturally located in the best part of the city—the Upper East Side, which is far away from the production area and downwind. Yancheng's business district is very prosperous. Several commodity exchanges whose transaction volume would make ordinary people daunted are established in prosperous areas of the business district. Black Flame City's abundant coal and steel production supports the prosperity of this city. From morning to night every day, It seems that there are trains transporting these specialties from Black Flame City to the outside 24 hours a day.
The small grocery store where Zhang Tie worked was located somewhere in the prosperous business district of Black Flame City. However, compared with the magnificent facades and residences of those large business groups, free trade bodies, and exchanges, Zhang Tie's The location of the small shop where I worked was much more remote and well-traveled. Less than three hundred meters away from that small shop was the train station of Black Flame City, where people from all walks of life came and went. The shop itself It is right next to a flea market formed spontaneously by local residents and foreign pioneers. It is quite lively with people coming and going every day. But you can tell from the clothes that most of the people hanging out in this area every day are... The reasons why these little people from the middle and lower classes hang out here are, in addition to the physiological motivation of filling their stomachs, other things that have been rumored for countless years and have never been verified, such as a certain ornament on the street. It’s a fairy tale about a street stall owner who one day received a great item and became prosperous from then on. It is these fairy tales that support many ordinary people to hang out in this neighborhood day after day, year after year, and also support groups of pioneers who come from far away to dress up and march in high spirits. Go to the unknown land to the west and north of Black Flame City. Of course, if you have enough luck and vision, you may find some good things here.
When Zhang Tie came to the grocery store, the fat body of the grocery store owner Tang De was curled up on the recliner at the entrance of the store. Tang De was enjoying the afterglow of the sunset while half-opening his eyes and looking at the street indifferently. Among the crowds of people coming and going, only when some plump or beautiful women passed by the door of the grocery store, Tang De's fat fish-like head would turn slightly and stare at those women for a long time.
As usual, the first thing Zhang Tie did when he came to the grocery store was to clean the store, then inventory and tidy up the containers and counters, and then he started making calculations and remembering the accounts. After staying here for a year, Zhang Tie felt that his biggest achievement was that he learned how to use that strange mathematical tool called the abacus. This is a very practical skill that was not taught in school, but Zhang Tie estimated that , this skill should be helpful for his future work - his father has been thinking about finding himself a job as a bookkeeper at the coal exchange in Black Flame City. Of course, this can only be considered after he has completed his military service. . For ordinary people, after completing their military service, they can have a job in the city. No matter what they do, as long as they can fill their stomachs, it is already very good.
Just after the accounts were settled, customers came into the store. Tang De's fat pig-like body was still lying on the chair without getting up. Zhang Tie closed the account book and began to greet them.
"Excuse me, what do you want to buy?" The new guest is in his 40s. He is still wearing the work clothes of a loader and unloader at the train station in Heiyan City. His whole person still smells of soot. He estimated the time. At this time, the city is in the city. The factory should be off work, and this person probably dropped by after work.
"I want to see white crystal!" said the 40-year-old loader at the railway station while browsing the boxes containing crystals behind the counter. In those boxes, there are a variety of crystals, but most of them are ordinary. First-grade crystals, and a few second-grade crystals. Among all crystals, white crystals are the most common. There are natural and artificial crystals. For crystals of the same size and color, double-headed ones are more expensive than single-headed ones. Natural ones are more expensive. It is much more expensive than the artificial one. The artificial one looks more beautiful, but in terms of effect, it is not as good as the natural one. I heard that before the cataclysm, the biggest role of crystal was just decoration, and its functions and secrets in helping the human body to practice are still there. It was not known to the public, but now, even the aunts running stalls on the street know about it. Crystals in this era are standard strategic materials and one of the sources of confidence for human beings to survive in this era.
"Is that all there is?" The 40-year-old man had a slightly disappointed expression on his face. It seemed that the ordinary goods on the counter did not satisfy him. The man's expression was slightly beyond Zhang Tie's expectation. You should know that even if The price of these ordinary first-grade crystals is not cheap for ordinary people.
"There are better products in the store, but they are more expensive. Do you want to take a look?"
A smile appeared on the man's face and he patted his pocket. Zhang Tie stopped talking. After putting on a pair of white gloves, he turned around and took out a more delicate box from the drawer of the container at the back and placed it carefully. On the counter, when opened in front of the man, there were also four white crystals in the box, two double-headed crystals and two single-headed crystals. The color was crystal clear with only a few impurities, but the most eye-catching thing was Inside these four crystals, there is a layer of hazy shadow like fine sand, which suddenly appears in the shape of a pyramid. Among them, the pyramid in the two-headed crystal that is the best and largest. When you look carefully, the crystal Every side of the pyramid inside shines with an inexplicable brilliance - this is a miraculous workmanship between heaven and earth, and a natural gathering of energy in the universe. The greatest effect of white pyramid crystal is not only to quickly help users enter a meditative state and calm their mind, but also to allow users to use the power of the pyramid in the crystal to absorb the energy of the universe faster and stimulate the body's energy during practice. Potential and vitality.
Sure enough, the man in his 40s couldn't look away when he saw those pyramid shadow crystals. His expression was similar to Zhang Tie's when he saw these three-grade white crystals. Crystals are already the most high-end goods that can be found in this small grocery store. The price of each crystal is more than two gold. In Black Flame City, one gold coin can buy enough food for an ordinary three-mouthed person. Two months of free-spirited life.
The price was marked on the label under each crystal in the box. The man saw the price, but he still pointed to a single-headed crystal hesitantly and asked Zhang Tie, "This... can it be cheaper!"
"218 silver, this price is already very low. Everything in our store is clearly marked with price. I would like to ask, do you want to give this as a gift
"Well, my son will be 16 years old tomorrow. I want to give him a surprise. My son is a genius!" At this point, the 40-year-old man smiled, and his face that still had soot suddenly became full of warmth. There was also pride. The smile on the man's face reminded Zhang Tie of his father.
"Okay, for that 215 silver, I will give you another packaging box and two taels of crystal sand. This is the lowest price and discount we can give you..." Zhang Tie said sincerely, this is indeed what the store gave. Bottom line of transaction. The loader, who is in his 40s, has probably asked about the situation and reputation of this grocery store. Maybe it was introduced by a friend. The price is very reasonable in Heiyan City. Furthermore, he heard that there are also packaging boxes and crystal sand for free. Agree.
The man carefully took out the money bag from his clothes. After paying two gold coins and 15 silver coins, he took the things wrapped in iron and the gift of crystal sand and left. For business of more than two gold coins, in the store It can be considered a big deal. Maybe the store's luck ran out today. More than an hour after the man left, except for two people who wandered in for a stroll, there was no more business in the grocery store.
Zhang Tie was sitting behind the counter, holding his chin with his hands, looking at the street outside, thinking about what happened today, in a daze...
The sun finally set and it became dark outside. The dead fish sitting on the deck chair finally moved, twisted its body, stood up reluctantly, and moved the chair back into the store.
"Why, were you beaten today?"
The scars on Zhang Tie's face made the grocery store owner gloat.
"No, I fell down!" Zhang Tiezui said firmly.
"Okay, kid, stop pretending. What's so embarrassing about this? When I was your age, I wouldn't have fought three or five times. I would either beat someone or be beaten. It was perfectly normal. I lost. Just find the place!" the grocery store owner said carelessly.
At the moment, all Zhang Tie was thinking about was how embarrassed he was being seen by Teacher Dinah today. When he heard Tang De say this, he just muttered helplessly, "What if the situation can never be recovered again?"
"Boy, so you are still young. There is no place that you cannot win. There are only idiots and cowards who dare not win. If the opponent is stronger than you, then you have to work ten times harder to surpass him and then beat him up. You have to look for teeth all over the place. If you still can't beat him, then you can come here to cover up your face and beat him behind the back. You can do some dirty tricks or beat him with bricks. Just don't let him know who you are!" The grocery store owner is very sinister! As he spoke and made gestures, Zhang Tie was slightly stunned. Seeing Zhang Tie's stupidity, the grocery store owner seemed very dissatisfied. He patted Zhang Tie's shoulder hard, "Boy, I think you're not a bad person. I have just passed on my decades of experience in life to you. When your fists are not good, you can use this to make up for it..." The grocery store owner pointed at Zhang Tie's head and raised his head proudly, "Today Let me teach you a famous saying - a soft tongue can break hard bones, and a wise head is better than any magic weapon!"
Tang De's last words made Zhang Tie's heart move slightly. The young man thought it made sense, "Who said this?"
"Tang De!"
"Tch, I don't believe it!"
"If you don't believe me, I won't let you have dinner today as usual!" Iron Rooster said stingily as usual.
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