Apocalyptic Hoarding Diary

Chapter 223 Differences

For the first time, she felt so clearly that she, and the countless faces struggling in the mud, panic, and despair of the outer city, were truly standing outside an invisible yet solid high wall.

Disasters may be physically equal, but when it comes to how to avoid them, how to allocate resources for survival, and how to obtain better evacuation qualifications, the "class code" and "circle rules" that originated in the old era but are now being re-emerged in a more naked way in the apocalypse have already been quietly activated and are operating efficiently.

The last vestige of linear belief she held—that "as long as I work hard to accumulate points, I can improve my situation"—was shattered by the stark reality of the complex rules before her, resulting in clear and irreparable cracks.

She stood there for maybe only a dozen seconds, maybe a minute, as the cold wind blew across the street, stinging her scarf and cheeks.

The sharp pain jolted her awake.

Lamenting the passing of spring and autumn is useless; anger and injustice cannot change reality. Recognizing the cruelty and injustice of the rules is only the first step. More importantly, it is about how to survive under these rules, and even... how to exploit the loopholes in the rules.

Now that this hidden "path" has been discovered, even if it is not currently open to her, the information itself is a resource.

She took a deep breath, the cold air filling her lungs, suppressing her turbulent emotions and allowing her brain to return to calm operation. She took out her phone; the screen reflected a cold light in the slightly gray sunlight. Her fingertips were a little stiff from the tension before and the cold now, but her movements were steady.

She opened her contacts and found her chat with Xie Yingtang. Their last conversation was a simple exchange about accumulating points. Her fingers tapped rapidly on the virtual keyboard, making a soft clicking sound.

How's your points accumulation going?

The message was sent, and almost immediately, the chat box displayed "The other party is typing..." A few seconds later, a reply popped up: "[Still a little short, but almost there. I sold some spare parts and tools I had saved up. The price was lowered, but I still got some. Then I took a few urgent orders from a repair team. The pay was high, but they were rushing us. Give us another two or three days, and we should be able to collect enough points.]"

The text was brief, but Xu Xiaoyan could sense the hardship behind it—selling belongings, accepting demanding rush orders, and meticulous budgeting… all of this was done to accumulate points.

She looked at the words "points" and "almost there," and pursed her lips. 3000 points in Zone D was a number that people from outside the city could barely dream of.

She exited the text chat interface and clicked the "voice call" button.

"Beep—beep—" The phone rang for about two rings before being quickly answered. The background noise was a bit noisy, with the faint sounds of metal tools clashing, someone shouting something in a hurried tone, and the deep hum of machinery.

"Xiao Yan?" Xie Yingtang's voice came through, clearly panting, as if he had just finished physical labor. The background noise made his voice sound distant. "What's wrong? What happened?" His tone was concerned and a little wary.

"Brother Xie, I'm in Midtown," Xu Xiaoyan said bluntly. "I've found out something, and it's very important." She paused, letting the weight of her words carry.

"You say it," Xie Yingtang's voice immediately became serious, and the background noise seemed to decrease, as he may have moved to a relatively quiet place.

"The official trading center in Midtown has a closed-door 'Junior Technician Qualification' assessment point," Xu Xiao said slowly but clearly. "Those who pass this assessment can directly obtain access to Zone D without spending 3000 points."

A deathly silence fell over the other end of the phone. Even the faint background noise seemed to have been abruptly cut off by an invisible hand, disappearing completely. Only the slight hissing of the electricity indicated that the call was still going on.

A few seconds later, Xie Yingtang's voice came again, extremely low, as if afraid of being heard by anyone. His voice was filled with disbelief, almost trembling shock, and forcibly suppressed excitement. "...What? A qualification certificate? Direct entry into Zone D? The official website...the official website didn't mention it at all!" His question came out of his mouth because the news was just too overturned.

"Yes, it wasn't mentioned," Xu Xiaoyan replied succinctly. "This is news from 'Central City Exclusive.'" When she said "Central City Exclusive," her tone was devoid of emotion; she was simply calmly stating a fact she had just glimpsed, a cold rule. "The assessment content will probably be related to your skills: repair, assembly, and perhaps some basic blueprint reading or principles. I think," her tone became certain, "you and Wang Xiao should both come and try immediately."

She paused, considering the extreme sensitivity of the information and the potential chain reaction and risks, and added in a more serious tone, "Don't make a fuss yet. Just the two of you come over and find out the situation—the specific content of the assessment, the pass rate, whether there are any other hidden thresholds or fees. If... if this path really works, you won't have to work so hard." Her voice lowered, worried that this path would be quickly blocked or cause new chaos and injustice.

"Understood! I understand!" Xie Yingtang's voice rang out, barely able to contain his excitement, which he forcefully suppressed, transforming it into a deep, powerful tremor. "Wang Xiao and I will pack up right away! We'll find a way over there immediately! Xiao Yan, thank you! I'll remember this favor!"

After the call ended, Xu Xiaoyan stood on a somewhat deserted street corner in the city, holding her phone. What she had done might have been insignificant, but at least she had tried to point out the gap in that high wall to two people outside who deserved a helping hand.

Xu Xiaoyan held her phone tightly in her hand. The metal casing transmitted a slight warmth from the electronic components after they had been working. Through the thin fleece of her gloves, it warmed her slightly cold palms. This warmth briefly dispelled the chill in her fingertips, but it could not dispel the heavy feeling in her heart about the newly revealed understanding.

The people in Midtown are so calm not only because they have the hidden alternative path of "technician assessment", nor only because they are generally more likely to meet the D district's point threshold, but perhaps the deeper reason is that their source of "points" and their entire network of channels for acquiring and exchanging resources are probably on a completely different level from those outer-city residents who struggle to make ends meet and rely on selling their last possessions to save their lives.

She looked up, her gaze sweeping over the leisurely figures on the street, past the relatively tidy shops on both sides, and finally settling on a blue street sign with white lettering. On the sign, a clear arrow pointed to the fork in the road on the right, and below the arrow was a line of simple Song typeface text: "Central City Third Material Points Exchange Point".

That place is probably another core of the calm and confidence of the Central City, a key node in their resource circulation system. She wants to see for herself what resources are flowing in the hands of those who don't have to worry about basic qualifications for the dungeon on the "inner side" of this world that is divided by "information gap" and high walls; and what different portals the official seemingly unified exchange system opens for these "inner residents".

Without any hesitation, she adjusted her collar and walked in the direction the arrow indicated.

After passing through two relatively quiet streets, the building of the exchange point came into view. It was completely different from the surrounding shops with various signs and even some decorations. Its style was cold and pragmatic. It was a square, low, single-story building covered with matte silver-gray alloy panels. The lines were hard and there were no windows, only slender ventilation openings at the top of the walls.

The building's facade has no fancy signs or logos, only a long, dark blue electronic display screen embedded above the entrance, silently scrolling the words "Midtown Third Material Points Exchange Point" in a cold, sans-serif font, exuding an unquestionable official aura.

Unlike the bustling, noisy crowds at the exchange points in the outer city, where anxiety seemed to solidify, there were only a few people coming and going. They walked unhurriedly, their expressions relaxed, some carrying light metal briefcases, others simply empty-handed. Occasionally, someone would exchange a few words in hushed tones, their expressions as indifferent as if they had just gone to a convenience store and completed a routine shopping trip, rather than engaging in a crucial transaction that might concern their survival resources.

As Xu Xiaoyan approached, the heavy alloy automatic door sensed her presence and silently slid open to both sides, revealing a bright passage. She stepped inside.

The temperature difference between inside and outside is quite large, creating a striking sensory impact. The hall is spacious and bright with a high ceiling. Several fluorescent lights embedded in the ceiling illuminate every corner clearly. The floor is covered with light gray non-slip tiles, which are as smooth as a mirror and reflect the image of the ceiling lights.

Several rows of sturdy metal chairs were placed against the wall, most of them empty, with only a few people sitting quietly waiting. Most of them were looking down at their personal terminals or tablets, relaxed, without any urgency or anxiety.

Directly opposite the entrance is a row of more than ten open service windows. The countertops are made of dark gray synthetic material, and are spacious and clean. Behind each window sits a staff member wearing a crisp dark blue uniform, with their hair neatly combed. There are both men and women, and they all look quite young. Their faces have a standardized calm expression formed through rigorous training.

There was none of the hustle and bustle of the outer city, where one had to shout through a megaphone to maintain order. There was no pushing or shoving, and you couldn't even hear loud talking. Both parties in the transaction kept their voices down. Occasionally, there was the slight hum of staff operating instruments or the sound of buttons being pressed. Everything was carried out in an efficient, quiet, and almost solemn order.

Xu Xiaoyan's gaze was drawn to the huge electronic screen on the left side of the hall. The screen was clearly divided into several sections, scrolling information in real time. The two most eye-catching sections with the largest font were "Today's Redemption List" and "Today's Redemption List".

The list is laid out neatly, with clear items and well-defined categories. It is followed by constantly changing reference prices for points, and there are smaller sections next to it displaying information such as "Requisition of Urgently Needed Supplies," "Reference Prices for Technical Standard Components," and "Identification Instructions for Special Items." The entire screen is like a calm wall of data, silently demonstrating the flow and rules of resources here.

Instead of immediately bothering the staff, she walked to the electronic screen and pretended to browse it. The items on the redemption list made her secretly alarmed: in addition to common metals, tools, and electronic product parts, there were also "specific unopened medicines of certain models", "complete technical drawings or data storage media", "high-precision measuring instruments", "rare chemical reagents", "specific animal and plant seeds or samples that have undergone quarantine"... These things were either nowhere to be found on the redemption list at the outer city, or were simply listed as "other valuable items that need to be identified".

The list she redeemed made her pupils shrink slightly: "Specified thermal underwear set", "High-efficiency water filter", "Miniature planting light set", "Specific entertainment data package", "Premium nutritional supplements", "Quality controllable seasoning set"... Even further down the list, she saw words like "Limited time and quantity: Fresh fruit" and "Baked pastries". The points following them made her quickly do a mental calculation, which showed that it was roughly equivalent to the hard-earned money of an ordinary worker in the outer city for almost half a month.

What can be exchanged here has long since transcended the scope of "basic survival supplies" and begun to touch upon the levels of "quality of life", "technology continuation" and "specific needs".

She composed herself and walked towards a temporarily vacant window. The female staff member behind the window looked to be in her late twenties, with a neat ponytail and a standard smile on her face—neither overly warm nor indifferent, just a formulaic service gesture.

She looked up at Xu Xiaoyan and asked in a calm tone, "Hello, what kind of service do you need?"

"I... want to see the exchange details first," Xu Xiaoyan said, her voice sounding a little dry in the overly quiet hall. She subconsciously cleared her throat.

"The lobby screen displays a real-time updated list of deposits and withdrawals, as well as a standard points comparison table," the staff member said calmly, tapping a few times on the internal terminal in front of her. "If you need to check the detailed classification or appraisal standards of a specific item, or if you have special or large-volume items to exchange, you can make a preliminary inquiry or schedule an assessment here." As she spoke, a touch screen about the size of a tablet computer lit up on the gray table in front of Xu Xiaoyan, with a user-friendly interface and clear categories.

Xu Xiaoyan stretched out her fingers, which were wearing half-finger gloves, and swiped the screen. The rules were extremely detailed and well-organized. Each redeemable item had a picture example, a detailed specification description, requirements for its condition (new or used) or completeness, and the corresponding basic points range.