Chapter 1522
Road Picking
Chapter 1522 Road Picking
On the mountain of garbage, a thin figure carefully peered down into the uneven pits of trash.
"Clang, clang—"
The dull thuds of metal colliding and bodies slamming together gradually became clearer, accompanied by cries of pain.
"Judging from the noise, there's a lot of good stuff... Hopefully, we can snatch some from those jackals..."
Before he could finish speaking, a dark shadow slammed down on his head.
"Damn it!" His hands instinctively loosened, and he tumbled and slid down!
He finally managed to fall to a stop on flat ground, but he didn't dare to relax at all. He scrambled to his feet, pulled out the weapon from his leg, and shouted fiercely at the place where the figure was standing.
"Who! Who the hell attacked me?!"
"Hey~ a kid's here!" Antonio whistled, looking at the small boy who was barely taller than his armpit and was wielding a sharpened piece of iron as a weapon. He crossed his arms. "Hey, don't go that way..."
The unfamiliar and strange accent set off alarm bells for the short man.
I vigorously wiped the eyepiece, which was obscured by something, with my dirty gloves, but the more I wiped, the dirtier it became.
"Who the hell do you think you are?! You think I'll listen to you...?"
Suddenly, my legs gave way and I sank into a sticky substance.
When I tried to pull my foot out, the sole of the shoe seemed to be glued on, and I couldn't move it at all.
"Tsk!" Antonio spread his hands and sighed helplessly, "There are consequences for betraying other people's good intentions."
The short man suddenly pulled open his goggles and saw three well-dressed men wearing familiar but clearly cleaned helmets, all facing him. He instinctively tried to back away.
Unfortunately, one of his feet was stuck in the dark, molten material, leaving him unable to move, and he ended up sitting down on his bottom.
"Who...who are you?!"
His mouth and nose were covered by a gas mask, with only his bright eyes showing.
With feigned anger and a barely concealed but easily detectable fear, he tried to bluff by pointing the "weapon" in his hand forward, while his other hand subtly reached for his feet...
“Oh,” Antonio’s tone suddenly softened considerably, “and she’s a young lady… Don’t be afraid, young lady, we are all good people…”
Lin Fan looked uncertainly at the small man in front of him, whose gender was completely obscured by dirt, and glanced suspiciously at Antonio.
How did you figure that out?
“You have to believe I have a special talent for judging women!” Antonio said confidently with a smile.
Lan Bingru thought of Bonnie from Anniemo, pursed her lips, and ultimately didn't speak.
Lin Fan chuckled softly and walked towards the trapped little guy.
Antonio had a feeling that Lin Fan's words were directed at him, but he had no proof, so he quickly added, "There's no need to hit this little girl, she's not a threat at all..."
"Big brother," Lin Fan put his hands on his hips, gesturing for him to look around, "you've beaten this whole area down, is there anyone left who can ask questions and lead the way?"
The entire pit was filled with people lying on their backs. They had all started fighting at the slightest disagreement.
Lin Fan didn't have any special feelings for Old Finch's old ship, but whether from the perspective of resource recycling or scientific research value, the ship should be kept for the Noah, so how could it be allowed to benefit these people?
This contest, which was so one-sided, didn't even require Lin Fan to lift a finger.
She simply grabbed two purification helmets, cleaned them carefully, and put them on herself and Lan Bingru. Then, turning around, she found Antonio standing alone...
Luckily, another person rolled down, otherwise, she was prepared to use some stimulating methods to wake the person lying down.
To show his sincerity, Lin Fan took off his helmet, tossed it behind him, and as he approached, he spread his hands to show the other party that he was not carrying any weapons.
"Sorry, we startled you. We just wandered into this place by mistake and meant you no harm."
Lan Bingru leaned closer to Antonio, who was holding Lin Fan's helmet, and whispered, "Is it okay for Lin Jian not to wear a helmet?"
"A few minutes won't hurt, just think of it as holding your breath," Antonio said nonchalantly. "The air quality is a bit poor, but it's not fatal for us. Consider it detoxification, don't worry!"
As Lan Bingru felt relieved, she subtly curled her fingers. Sure enough, she had dragged the team down again…
The short man glanced warily at the people lying scattered on the ground, not believing Lin Fan's words.
"They tried to steal our things. I was just fighting back in self-defense. I only knocked them down; I didn't kill them. I held back." Lin Fan took a few steps closer, squatted down, and said gently, "You should be able to tell, right?"
The short man looked around again. Sure enough, he heard gasps of varying depths. None of the people had any blood on them, and he even made eye contact with a few people who were peeking in.
Feeling slightly more at ease, but not relaxing her grip on the short blade in the slightest: "...What do you want?"
"You know about the garbage transfer ship, right?" Lin Fan seemed oblivious to the other party's wariness and spoke with a smile. "We want to take the next transfer ship to leave. Maybe you know the unloading location and time of the transfer ship and can help us get on that ship."
"...I know, but not just anyone can get on that ship. First, you can't be a prisoner exiled here, and then you need a lot of money..."
After glancing at Lin Fan and his companions' attire, the short man paused for a moment and asked, "Do you guys have money?"
"Are you referring to the fare, or the payment you're owed?" Lin Fan asked with a smile.
The short man took a deep breath and announced a number.
"If it were me, I would need this much money for the ship. For you... it might be even more expensive."
Lin Fan nodded: "I understand, thank you for reminding me. So you also want to leave here, is that right?"
"Who wants to stay in this lousy place!" the short man suddenly said indignantly. "It's just that I haven't saved enough money..."
"You're not an exiled prisoner?" Antonio asked curiously, bending down behind Lin Fan.
"You're the criminal!" the short man glared at Antonio. "How old am I? What kind of stupid crime could I have committed to be exiled to this godforsaken place?"
"Then what are you doing here?" Antonio asked with a smile, not annoyed.
"I! I don't know either... but they all say I'm not a criminal." The short man was initially very assertive, but his confidence waned as he spoke. "Anyway, I'm not a criminal. Otherwise, even if I saved up enough money, the transit ship wouldn't dare take me out; they would be held responsible."
"Understood." Lin Fan nodded. "If you can successfully get us onto the transit ship, we'll cover your fare."
"Really?!" Her small eyes suddenly lit up.
“How could it be fake?” Antonio chuckled. “It’s not a lot of money…”
Suddenly, he felt his toes being stepped on. Lin Fan's heel had pressed down on him without him noticing, forcefully trying to shut him up.
"I can transfer part of the deposit to you now. What about your personal terminal?" Lin Fan smiled gently.
"A terminal?" The short man shook his head. "I don't have one. That thing... is useless here."
The next second, a black bracelet appeared in front of me.
"Deposit." Lin Fan handed it forward. "It's temporarily owed to you. We'll take it back before we board the ship and exchange it for the fare. Or you can keep it, and this amount will be deducted from the fare."
The short man snatched the bracelet, pressed it twice to confirm that it could be turned on and used, and then he came to life.
"The connecting ship won't arrive for a while. You'll need a place to rest and eat, right? I'll cover everything and make sure to get it onto the ship for you. How about I pay you this as extra? It's definitely worth it!"
"Okay." Lin Fan didn't intend to bargain with her.
A wristband is not worth much money.
"Then it's settled!" The short man smiled and fastened the terminal to his wrist. Then, no longer on guard, he turned the short blade toward the sole of his shoe and began to cut.
"Boss, wait a moment, it'll be ready soon!"
"Why go through all this trouble?" Antonio reached out to help, but Lin Fan stopped him.
“We don’t know what to call you yet,” she asked.
"Lu Shi!"
The short man quickly turned his head, his crescent-shaped eyes filled with laughter.
"My name is Lu Shi! Boss, just let me know if you need anything!"