Abnormal Gourmet Chronicle-Chapter 876 - 436: Life (Part 3)

Zhao Cheng'an swaggered into the city with Xia Sheng and Chen Qiusheng. It was obvious he rarely came to the city. After squatting outside the city for two months, everything seemed new to him just like Xia Sheng, and he wished he had eyes on the back of his head to look around with no blind spots.

When the three of them entered the city, it was almost completely dark. Beiping City at night had nothing to do with bustle and excitement—there were no night markets, nor was it brightly lit. Even the houses where ordinary residents lived were completely dark.

Lighting a lamp at night was a luxury, and one should economize whenever possible.

Of course, the three of them couldn't visit places that were brightly lit.

Chen Qiusheng led Zhao Cheng'an and Xia Sheng to the entrance of the bathhouse, where many rickshaw pullers were waiting and resting beside their rickshaws. When they saw someone coming, their first instinct was business, but upon seeing Zhao Cheng'an, they were all shocked.

How should I put it, the city had many beggars and commoners. Sometimes it was hard to visually distinguish extremely poor commoners from regular beggars, as everyone was equally dirty and shabby, wearing tattered clothes. No one could look down on anyone.

But someone like Zhao Cheng'an, who wrapped himself up like a mudman, was truly rare.

Although rare, the bathhouse attendants were evidently well-versed and had seen all kinds of patrons. They enthusiastically approached. Chen Qiusheng, who clearly knew the prices well, directly handed the money to the attendant and instructed him to take the two to soak in the most ordinary public pool.

The attendant scrutinized Zhao Cheng'an carefully, looking troubled. He explained to Chen Qiusheng that this guy was too dirty. If he soaked in the regular pool, others wouldn't be able to use it afterward, and he could only bathe in the more expensive private tubs, where everything was replaced for each customer.

Chen Qiusheng was a little reluctant, but facing Zhao Cheng'an's eager eyes, he sighed, gritted his teeth, and paid the extra money.

"Mr. Chen, are you really not planning to buy me? I don't want money!" Zhao Cheng'an's eyes shone brightly as he watched Chen Qiusheng pay, looking as if he had found his ideal boss.

Startled, Chen Qiusheng waved his hands repeatedly, indicating he couldn't afford it, and left to buy clothes for the two.

"Xia Sheng, your new boss is really nice, I'm so envious of you." Zhao Cheng'an cozied up to Xia Sheng with a familiarity that needed no introduction.

Xia Sheng wasn't socially anxious, but he wasn't quite used to someone as naturally sociable as Zhao Cheng'an. He merely stepped back two paces to maintain distance from Zhao Cheng'an, silently observing the situation.

Zhao Cheng'an didn't mind Xia Sheng's attitude. His entire being was filled with the joy of bathing in a private tub, happily following the attendant inside.

I tell you, spending several times the amount really did make a difference in the experience, and Zhao Cheng'an even got free peanuts with his bath.

Zhao Cheng'an, in good faith, only ate half a dish of peanuts, pocketed the rest, didn't share with Xia Sheng, and saved them for Chen Qiusheng, who went out and bought them each a set of affordable, slightly old but not new hemp clothes.

True, the clothes Chen Qiusheng bought had a few patches, but they were already considered quite nice, better than what Cai Tou wore. Qin Huai had counted before, and there were at least a dozen patches of various sizes on Cai Tou's clothes; these two outfits had only four or five patches, clearly much newer.

Once clean and shaved, the difference between the two became apparent.

Xia Sheng, theoretically a nine-year-old but in reality only seven, was visibly sturdier compared to children held by traffickers of the same age. However, from Qin Huai's perspective, he was still extremely malnourished, just a skinny little kid. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

Zhao Cheng'an was a good head taller than Xia Sheng, appearing much sturdier, and seemed capable of beating up eight Xia Shengs. Compared to what Cai Tou called "medium grade goods," Zhao Cheng'an would definitely be considered premium, with at least two customers asking for his price every day.

Chen Qiusheng clearly didn't expect this dirty and even a bit scary mudman to be so healthy, even robust. He asked, "How old are you?"

Zhao Cheng'an wasn't very sure, "Twelve or thirteen years old, I think."

This age was quite ambiguous in this era. He could be considered a child, but could also be used as an adult.

Hearing Zhao Cheng'an say this, Chen Qiusheng was even more surprised, scrutinizing Zhao Cheng'an up and down carefully, "What's your name, your parents..."

"I haven't given myself a name yet, nor do I have parents. I've been in Beiping for two months just wanting to find a stable job." Zhao Cheng'an's face was filled with a longing for stable work, "I've already thought about it; I don't have a name right now, so when I find a job, I'll let my new boss give me a name, making it easier for them to call me."

Chen Qiusheng was deeply shaken by this unique job-hunting method, even beginning to doubt if this kid was a bit mentally off, appearing both clever and silly.

"These two months, how have you been in Beiping...?" Chen Qiusheng began doing a background check.

"Stealing!" Zhao Cheng'an proudly declared, standing tall when talking about his skill, "Mr. Chen, I'm exceptionally good at stealing; I've survived on theft for these two months! At first, I wanted to beg, but then I found that what I begged for wasn't as good as what I stole. The beggars in this city gang up, and if I enter their territory, they gang up to beat me."

"I can handle one, two, three, or four, but if there are too many people, I can't win. I don't want to die so quickly, stealing is safer!"

"At the start, I searched for a job while stealing, but found that the city's hiring requirements were too high. They either required literacy or abacus skills, and I know neither."

"The ones with low requirements offer too little in salary and demand endless work, with a risk of being beaten for poor performance. It's not that I'm afraid of dying from exhaustion—I certainly won't die from exhaustion now—I mainly think there's too little money, and getting beaten doesn't add to my earnings."