Chapter 1794 - 972: Northern Territory Federation_2

Squeak—

The door was pushed open, and a muscular man sitting on the side glanced at him but ignored him, continuing to drink alcohol alone.

The inside environment was completely different from the storm outside.

This was a small bar with only a few kinds of alcohol, and judging by the looks, these drinks were mixed using industrial alcohol.

But even so, they remained expensive.

Although the taste was bad, it could still get you drunk.

Inside this small bar, there were only two dim lights and four or five tables.

Near the door sat a muscular man, while at another table, a man seemed to be passed out drunk.

Behind the counter was a skinny old man with glasses, who lowered his head again after seeing the young man enter.

"Uncle Diao, I’m trading fish for grains." The young man walked over and placed the fish on the table.

The skinny old man put down the glass he was wiping and lifted the fish by the grass rope tied around its mouth, weighing it.

Having walked in the rain for a long time, the fish wasn’t lacking in water, still alive and lively.

He smiled and said, "Not bad, this one should be to the liking of people over in the Inner City."

Then he asked, "I can give you half a pound of Xiao Mi."

The young man pressed his lips together and said, "But this one is bigger than the last one I gave you, why is it still just half a pound of Xiao Mi? It’s all stinking, old Xiao Mi, the last batch you gave me was spoiled."

The skinny old man put down the fish, glanced at the young man, and asked, "Do you want it or not?"

The young man was a bit angry, but there was nowhere else he could exchange food, so he gritted his teeth and said, "I want it!"

The skinny old man expressionlessly pulled down the grass rope from the fish’s mouth and threw the fish into a bucket.

The fish fell into the bucket and swam around happily.

The skinny old man took a funnel, pouring half a pound of old Xiao Mi, and went to the counter.

The young man quickly unzipped his jacket, pulled out a black plastic bag from inside, which contained a wrinkled burlap sack.

As he unzipped his jacket, his bony ribs were exposed, looking very frail.

The old man poured the Xiao Mi into the burlap sack, and the young man weighed it, looking at the skinny old man with suspicion.

But ultimately, he said nothing.

He rolled up the burlap sack containing the half-pound Xiao Mi, then wrapped it in the black plastic bag and tucked it into his jacket.

He opened the door, ready to run out.

Suddenly, the skinny old man said to the young man:

"Be careful, don’t get caught. If the inspection team catches you, you’ll be in trouble."

The young man paused, glanced at the skinny old man, and nodded slightly.

Then he rushed out without looking back.

After the young man left, Uncle Diao thought for a moment and said to the muscular man drinking at the entrance, "Barbarian Bear, later take this fish and my treasured bottle of wine to the Second Young Master."

Barbarian Bear put down his drink and said, "Uncle Diao, every time you have good stuff, you send it to him, but he doesn’t give us any benefits, why should we!"

The skinny old man glared and cursed:

"Are you stupid? Do you think anyone can run a small tavern by the Inner Wall Gate? In this world, you always need connections; if you don’t have people behind you, you’re sooner or later going to get wiped out. Go quickly, stop talking nonsense, it’s pointless explaining to you."

Barbarian Bear muttered a few words, but didn’t argue further.

He really didn’t think much of that Second Young Master, just relying on family...

.....

The young man’s face was excited as he hugged the pouch of Xiao Mi in his jacket, slinging a fishing net over his shoulder, and ran towards a slum between the inner and outer walls.

In this Northern Territory Federation, those living inside the wall were people of power and influence, while those living outside were the impoverished.

The number of impoverished was vast, with their shacks densely and irregularly scattered between the outer and inner walls.

The young man hugged the half-pound of Xiao Mi in his jacket, thinking: If my sister sees this later, she’ll probably be overjoyed.

Just like a child in second grade before Doomsday scoring one hundred percent on a test, eagerly running home to show their parents; or someone who struck it rich, buys a car, and gifts it to their spouse.

This pride and anticipation brought a smile to the young man’s face.

The shack they lived in was on the outskirts, so he arrived quickly.

But in the storm, he saw a man walking out of the shack he shared with his sister.

This man was fastening his belt, the upper half of his clothes only half worn.

Upon seeing this.

Boom!

The young man’s mind felt like it was about to explode.

His eyes widened.

"Damn you, Zhao Ergou, I told you not to come, yet you still came. Today I’ll kill you!"

The young man charged forward.

The man named Zhao Ergou suddenly heard the young man’s curse, his eyes darted nervously, trying to escape frantically, but his belt wasn’t fastened, running a few steps, he stumbled over his pants.

The young man rushed forward and put the once-precious fishing net over Zhao Ergou’s head.

Punches flew like Rufeng, furiously pounding Zhao Ergou.

"I told you not to come, yet you insist, you dog Zhao Ergou, damn you! Coming back, repeatedly!"

The young man punched Zhao Ergou wildly while cursing.

Zhao Ergou was covered by the fishing net, curling up to avoid getting hit in vital spots.

"I did give something, damn it!" Zhao Ergou complained as he was beaten.