Chapter 109: Gentle and Invincible Zhao Zhenzhen

No. 101 Zhenzhong Avenue looks like a bar from the outside, but the interior has been modified to such an extent that even the workers who built the bar can't tell it's there:
All the walls except the load-bearing walls were knocked down and all the partitions and rooms were demolished.
The 150-square-meter rectangular store space is divided by a simple and crude waist-high counter. Half of the counter is a semi-open kitchen, and the other half is filled with large shelves reaching the ceiling and filled with bottles and jars.
If Wagner could find references from his life experience for the semi-open kitchen and oversized shelves... then the fragrant, completely new foods in bamboo boxes, iron plates and plastic basins on the counter, and the undead wearing aprons standing in the kitchen cooking food, were beyond Wagner's comprehension.
Wagner smelled the aroma as soon as he entered the door, but before he had time to pay more attention to the rare things on the counter, his eyes were glued to the undead who skillfully chopped a whole cabbage into shreds with a strange square knife and then threw it neatly into the big pot...
"Hey, man, have you been drinking so early in the morning?" An old man who was about to enter the door saw Wagner blocking the door for a long time and complained in dissatisfaction.
"Sorry." Wagner quickly stepped aside.
The old man glared at Wagner, then walked in with a clay pot in his hands. He trembled as he walked to the counter and called out to the clerk who was sweating as he packed the cooked food into strange square boxes one by one: "Good morning, little Brooke. Please give me some of the pastries from yesterday, not the sweet ones, and a bag of salt."
Brooke, a young boy who was preparing lunch boxes for the town hall, put down what he was doing and said, "Good morning, Grandpa Andre, are you talking about dumplings?"
"Yes, yes, that's it. The name of this thing is so strange that I can never remember it." The old man nodded repeatedly, put the pottery jar on the counter, and took out a small stack of copper coins. "Please give me a bag of salt first, and the rest of the money can be used to buy that kind of pastry."
Brooke took the money and counted it, saying, "Here are eleven copper coins in total. White salt costs eight copper coins a bag, and dumplings are two copper coins for ten. If you use three copper coins, I'll give you fifteen. Is that right?"
"That's right." The old man nodded repeatedly, smiling.
When Wagner heard the two men calculating the price of salt with copper coins, he thought he had heard it wrong - he was not a man without life experience, he remembered that a jar of salt sent to their family by a grocery store with which he had a good relationship cost two silver coins. What could a few copper coins buy? A tablespoon of salt?
Then, he saw... ...the young man named Brooke put the copper coins into the inner drawer of the counter, turned around, took a small bag wrapped in translucent plastic, which was slightly larger than an adult's palm, from the shelf, and handed it to the old man.
The old man took the bag, which looked quite heavy, and quickly stuffed it into the inner pocket of his shirt with a dexterity that was not in line with that of an elderly person...
Wagner opened his mouth and immediately looked at the shelf where the boy took the item.
That row of shelves was filled with small packages of salt. Each bag was not large. Wagner estimated that each bag weighed about one kilogram.
About a pound of salt can be bought with eight copper coins? !
Wagner put his head in his hands again.
The Rhine Kingdom is not near the sea, and salt is brought in by caravans from the coastal countries in the east. Because the territory of Innadri is located at the hub of the land trade route, the price of salt is cheaper than other places. Ordinary people can buy a jar of five kilograms of salt from a grocery store for two silver coins.
Of course, the price of salt is acceptable to middle-income earners like Wagner. After all, a jar of salt will be used by the family for several months. But for ordinary people, it is very difficult... Most families pool money with relatives and neighbors to buy jars of salt and then package them themselves. Housewives have to be as frugal as possible. Every time they cook soup, they only use their little fingernails to pick up a little salt and put it in. As long as it tastes salty, it's fine.
A shop run by undeads must be related to Rex and Yang. Where do they get so much cheap salt? Wouldn't they go bankrupt if they sold it to the townspeople?
Yang: Really not... How cheap is salt in China? The wholesale price of a 400-gram bag of refined iodized salt is a few yuan per bag, and the manufacturer can also customize it for you - this batch of salt delivered to the Undead Chamber of Commerce is customized, with a cartoon skull and the common text logo of the Undead Chamber of Commerce printed on the packaging bag...
Wagner was still thinking about the lawsuit when he saw the young boy Brooke opening a strange bamboo box (actually a steamer) and using a pair of long wooden sticks (which were chopsticks) to skillfully pick up the strange pastries in the box, counting them while putting them into the old man's jar.
Buying ten of these small pastries for two copper coins is not that exaggerated.
At this moment, Brooke accidentally broke a piece of pastry, and a small ball of fragrant meat rolled out.
Brooke groaned in annoyance, quickly picked up the meat ball that fell on the counter and ate it himself, then said to the old man embarrassedly, "This doesn't count, I broke it."
The old man swallowed his saliva and nodded, waiting eagerly for Brooke to continue packing dumplings for him.
Although that sweet pastry (that is, glutinous rice balls) was delicious, his little grandson had not eaten meat for a long time.
Wagner was stunned: "... (゜ロ゜)"
Wait—is there meat in that pastry?!
Fifteen meat-filled pastries for three copper coins?
The hands that had just been put down were raised again, hugging the head...
Brooke put fifteen freshly frozen dumplings into the old man's jar, took a small bag, poured some black stuff into it, and handed it to the old man: "Ms. Zhao said that dumplings will taste bland if they are not eaten with vinegar. Remember to bring an extra bowl next time."
The old man thanked her repeatedly and walked away happily holding the jar...
Brook clapped his hands, looked at Gwana who was still standing at the door, and said politely: "Sir, is there anything I can help you with?"
Wagner calmed himself, took out the copper coin Yang gave him, and walked to the counter: "Yang asked me to get breakfast for three people... He said it was a standard meal, one of which should be less spicy."
"Is this Lord Yang? Three servings? Mr. Yang has guests." Brooke became even more respectful. He took the coins with both hands and put them away. He took out three lunch boxes from under the counter and quickly filled them with food...
The so-called standard meal...is a four-plus-one fast food meal.
All the meat dishes were semi-finished products - those instant meals that Chinese people eat when they order takeout, which taste almost the same no matter which store they come from, from fried chicken nuggets, fried chicken fillets, and popcorn chicken to Dongpo pork, braised pork, twice-cooked pork with fish sauce, braised eggplant, homemade tofu, potato beef, shiitake mushrooms, braised pork, Kung Pao chicken, black pepper chicken fillets, spicy chicken offal, braised spare ribs, curry potato chicken... they all were available.
You can buy it on Taobao. The processing method is similar to instant noodles, and it is even easier than eating instant snail noodles...
These meal kits are instant foods. The Chinese people’s picky taste buds can tolerate them and they never get tired of them. Of course, people in this world will not dislike them either.
The price is a bit higher than that of frozen food, and there is a high chance that there will be leftovers if all the dishes are cooked, so we simply launched the so-called standard meals. We only prepare four kinds of meal packs every day, and then use the fresh vegetables bought at the market to make some vegetarian dishes and add them in...that's four plus one.
The clerks at the city hall consume a lot of mental and physical energy every day. They can eat the standard work meal just like Hal and his friends (paid for by Rex). Those who are still recuperating in the resettlement site are a level lower, with only two-plus-one meals and enough rice (paid for by Rex).
The four dishes served today are shredded pork with fish flavor, braised eggplant, Kung Pao chicken and spicy and sour shredded potato. Supervisor Lowell cannot eat spicy food, so his portion has less braised eggplant and more spicy and sour shredded potato. The shredded pork with fish flavor and eggplant are not given that extra spoonful of red oil to make them look more attractive.
Wagner, who was watching Brook loading the dishes at close range, had a dull expression on his face again...
He had eaten a lot of delicious food, but he had never heard of these foods that exuded an indescribable and tempting aroma.
Especially when Brook was putting hot rice into the lunch box, Wagner was completely stunned.
People in this world also eat rice, but very few people eat it.
It’s not that people in this world dislike rice, but the requirements for agricultural technology, farmland irrigation, climate and geographical conditions for growing rice are much higher than those for growing wheat, barley, corn, potatoes and soybeans.
The agricultural sector is in a state of decline, and farmland irrigation is inadequate. Even in places where the climate is suitable for growing rice, only wheat fields and corn fields can be seen in the countryside. Under the influence of such objective conditions, people's plates must only contain bread, corn, soybeans, and various processed potatoes.
A similar situation exists on Earth. Influenced by China, a major agricultural country, East Asian countries have been eating rice for hundreds of years, just like China, while Europe on the same continent is still eating black bread.
As far as Wagner knew, apart from some nobles who would grow small plots of rice on their own estates for a change of taste, he had never heard of rice cooked in a roadside delicatessen like this, where anyone could buy it by paying - such a sumptuous meal for only fifteen copper coins!
When Wagner left with three standard meals packed in his hand, he saw several housewives coming in with glass plates with lids, buying single portions of dishes at the price of three copper coins per small portion to feed their families…
After Wagner ate the food in his lunch box, he felt even more relaxed - he originally thought that the strange stew (self-heating hot pot) he had last night was a way for Yang to win people's hearts, but now it seems that he was overthinking!
People only eat things with rich flavor. It's just that he is ignorant!
The delicacies he had eaten before did not live up to their reputation!
In the Chamber of Commerce cafeteria branch, not long after Wagner left, the orc girl Lika, who was washing potatoes in the backyard, came in, wiping her hands and said to Brooke, "Have you packed the Town Hall's portion? It's almost time."
Brooke, who was packing small portions of dishes and dumplings for the guests who came in one after another, said quickly: "It's ready, you can send it."
The orcs are much stronger than humans and the undead. They are fast and have great endurance. They can deliver meals all over the town in half an hour at most. Lika swiftly put dozens of meal boxes into a specially made large backpack, put it on her back, and said, "I'm going to deliver the meals, Brooke, Sister Zhao!"
Brooke waved her hand, and Sister Zhao, who was busy in the kitchen, also responded: "Be careful!"
After two days of opening, the townspeople were still not used to buying condiments and spices other than salt, but were keen to buy salt if they could save a few dollars; if they had more spare money, they would buy some dishes or meat dumplings or sweet rice balls for their families.
Especially since a small portion of the dish can be bought for three copper coins, it is more popular than the meat dumplings. The townspeople do not eat them directly after buying them, but spread these quick-made dishes with excessive seasoning on bread instead of butter...
When Lika came back from delivering the food, there were more customers coming, and Brooke couldn't handle it all by herself, so she also tied on an apron and put on sleeves and went behind the counter to help.
The construction sites on the main avenue in the town recruited many townspeople as temporary workers. The townspeople received daily wages and had some spare money on hand. In addition, temporary workers were not provided with work meals like the contract workers of the Environmental Sanitation Bureau (ordinary contract workers only had instant noodles with a lot of vegetables grown by local farmers). In order to be more energetic to cope with the afternoon work, they were willing to spend a few copper coins to improve the taste.
It was almost noon when the number of customers gradually decreased. Brooke, who was sweating all over, was finally able to sit down and rest for a while. Zhao Zhenzhen, whose skeleton was covered with moisture due to the steam, could also leave the kitchen.
"Speaking of which, a very strong man came this morning to buy breakfast for Mr. Yang. Is he Mr. Yang's customer?" Brooke took the cold boiled water handed to him by Lika and asked Zhao Zhenzhen curiously.
Zhao Zhenzhen didn't have any contact with Wagner at the time, but she used the identification technique on Wagner... and really knew his origins: "He's not a guest, he was given to the player yesterday... The leader of those people who were kidnapped from outside the town by my undead compatriots was this man, Wagner Peter, a member of the Innaderi City Defense Force."
"Oh, so you are from the city defense army." Brooke nodded and took a sip of water.
Two seconds later, with a "puff", Brook sprayed out the water that he had not had time to swallow.
"Hey, what are you doing!" Lika, with her super quick reflexes, stepped in front of the counter in time to prevent Brook from contaminating the goods, but her apron was covered with his saliva, and she was so annoyed that her eyebrows raised.
"Ahem, sorry, ahem! Innadri City Defense Force?" Brooke looked shocked.
"Do you know him?" Zhao Zhenzhen, who was wiping his own skeleton with a towel, looked over with sharp eyes.
"How could we possibly know each other? We didn't even have time to flee when we knew the city defense troops were coming." Brooke sighed, "The small team I was in before wasn't strong enough... very weak. We couldn't register as a formal mercenary group. We could only take on odd jobs that the mercenary groups didn't value to make a living. When the city defense troops patrolled the city, the first targets they attacked were people like us."
"Because you will do bad things?" Lika asked curiously.
"No! It's because we don't pay taxes on our income." Brooke said helplessly, "The missions we can take on don't pay much, how can we live if we have to pay taxes?"
"Oh - what will happen if you get caught?" Lika became even more curious. She grew up on a farm and was sold directly to Westham after leaving the farm. She had never seen a big city.
"You will be classified as practicing illegally and will be subject to compulsory supervision for at least three months." Brooke said helplessly, "You will not be locked up and fed for three months. Instead, you will be sent to a workshop to work. Your salary will be forcibly taken away and you will not get it until three months later. Those workshops are not good places. They torture people to death. They are not the same as factories... I heard that few people who enter the workshops can survive for five years."
After a pause, Brooke shrugged, his young face revealing a sense of vicissitudes that did not match his age: "I was once caught and almost sent to the workshop. Fortunately, my companions gathered ten silver coins to redeem me. In order to pay back the money, we worked for the gang in the East Warehouse District for more than half a month for nothing."
"I see... No wonder you always want to find your companions. They are really nice people." Lika nodded.
After the undead conquered Westram, his companions who had been trying to find a way to save Brook lost contact with him.
This is actually not difficult to understand... If you haven't come into contact with the undead for a period of time, who would have thought that these dark creatures have such a surprising inner self beneath their terrifying appearance - not only can they get along well with the living, but they also pursue public order. The night before yesterday, an undead even caught a thief, and the commendation certificate was posted at the gate of the town hall!
Although in people's eyes, the photo of the undead on the certificate is almost the same as the photo of the undead mayor...
Brooke sighed: "I just hope that after they hear about the peaceful coexistence of the undead in Westram with the people, they will come back to me."
"I will definitely do that." Zhao Zhenzhen patted the young man's thin shoulder. "When the time comes, you and Lika will take on more important tasks. You have to learn how to do business with Brooke's companions and sell the goods of our Undead Chamber of Commerce to the outside world. Let people know that we, the undead from Tarantan, are willing to help them use cheap and affordable spices. When people see the sign of our Undead Chamber of Commerce, they will know that we come with the goodwill of friendly and fair trade."
"We the undead ourselves will tell the outsiders that we hope to eliminate misunderstandings and hostility, but the outsiders will not accept it. Prejudice is something that is difficult to change once it is formed." Zhao Zhenzhen said gently, "So, my fellow undead and I, as well as your respected Lord Rex, can only hope that reliable young people like you can help us take this difficult first step. Only you can do what we cannot do."
For a boy like Brooke and a girl like Lika, if you force them to do something, they will only rebel. If you change your approach and tell them "We all trust you", "We need your help, this is a very important thing that only you can do", then they will really do it for you even if it means risking their lives...
After Zhao Zhenzhen's words without even wasting a word, the orc girl Lika and the boy Brook were so moved that they almost swore on the spot that they would give their lives to Tarantan in this life and would never let Zhao Zhenzhen, Mr. Rex, and Lord Yang down...
In the morning, Zhao Zhenzhen presided over the work at the Chamber of Commerce canteen branch and prepared the dishes to be sold throughout the day. In the afternoon, she had to go to the town hall to help.
Ji Tang took Rex to the countryside for research. While he was away, Zhao Zhenzhen had to keep an eye on things - like if there were any emergencies at a construction site, or if a clerk encountered a problem.
The twenty-six clerks employed by the town hall are responsible for all aspects of work in Westham. They have gradually adapted to the change in their status, but the residents of the town may not be able to adapt, at least they are not used to being told what to do by people they used to look down upon.
This is especially true for female clerks. Many of the temporary workers hired by the townspeople often deliberately embarrass them when they are accused of being lazy or corrected for doing something wrong - the kind of embarrassment that makes them unable to express their grievances.
It is so easy to make things difficult for and humiliate young women with a not-so- glorious past. There is no need for physical conflict. Just a few suggestive words in a sarcastic tone, or a look or expression of contempt, can hurt these girls' already scarred hearts.
Zhao Zhenzhen had just been looking through Ji Tang's handwritten work diary in Ji Tang's office when Ms. Shirley came in, looking worried.
Ms. Shirley closed the door and said awkwardly: "Ma'am, I... I don't know what to say..."
As soon as Zhao Zhenzhen saw her like this, she knew something was wrong, so she immediately asked Ms. Shirley to sit down, poured her a glass of water, and chatted with her about some small things in her recent life with concern. She waited patiently until she relaxed before asking questions.
"I, I dare not tell Mr. Rex. I'm afraid he will be disappointed..." Ms. Shirley took a deep breath and said with difficulty, "Hilary Riley...she is very sad. She wants to give up her clerical job."
Zhao Zhenzhen said softly, "Relax, Shirley, this is not your fault, nor is it Hillary's fault. We just ran into trouble. What we need to do is to solve the trouble instead of blaming anyone. Don't you think so?"
"...Yes, ma'am."
"Can you tell me what Hilary Reilly is suffering from?"
"She... there was a man at the construction site she was in charge of who once... bought her." Shirley lowered her head in embarrassment. "That man was blackmailed by Hillary's boss and had to sell the carriage to get away. He and his family hated Hillary very much."
"I understand." Zhao Zhenzhen said solemnly, "Thank you, Shirley, thank you for caring about Hillary, feeling sad for her pain, and running around to help her."
Shirley was stunned.
She didn't expect that Zhao Zhenzhen would actually stand on Hillary's side and thank her on Hillary's behalf - this proved that Zhao Zhenzhen did not look down on Hillary, and that the undead lady respected Hillary and them.
The discomfort and grievance that Shirley had been suppressing in her heart suddenly burst out and she burst into tears.
Zhao Zhenzhen brought her a handkerchief, and after she vented her emotions for a while, she whispered, "Let's go see Hillary. She needs us."
Seeing the young girl hiding on the balcony and crying secretly, Zhao Zhenzhen stretched out her arms and said, "Seeing you so sad, I really want to hug you like a friend, but I'm worried that you won't be willing to be hugged by a ghost like me."
Hillary Reilly threw herself into Zhao Zhenzhen 's arms...
Zhao Zhenzhen stroked Hillary's back and said gently, "Thank you for your hard work, Hillary. Thanks to you and others who visited every household, we can know how many households live in the town and how many people there are in these households. When we arrange the renovation of the main road in the town, we can estimate the number of townspeople we can hire. The town can carry out work in an orderly manner now, all because of your hard work."
"I've seen the construction site you're in charge of. You've done a great job, Hilary. So many townspeople have worked in an orderly manner under your leadership and arrangement, earning a stable daily wage and alleviating the financial pressure on their families. This is all thanks to you..."
"We are clearly working so hard to improve the living conditions of the townspeople, but the townspeople don't understand. They misunderstand our intentions and don't understand our approach... But we know why we are sweating, right? We are working to make this town better and to give the people living here hope..."
"The construction site you are in charge of is going to be transformed into a sugar factory workshop... After the sugar factory is built, we will move the machines in and purchase corn from farmers to solve the problem that farmers have difficulty selling corn at a good price after the harvest. We will also hire workers to solve the problem that some young people in the town have difficulty finding jobs..."
Zhao Zhenzhen did not say a word to ask Hilary to forget the past and the pain. She just recounted the significance of Hilary's work and her contribution to Westham like a gentle older sister. After Hilary finished crying, she did not mention giving up her clerical job and went to work with Ms. Shirley with red and swollen eyes.
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