Add Bookmark | Recommend this book | Back to the book page | My bookshelf | Mobile Reading

Free Web Novel,Novel online - All in oicq.net -> Sci-fi -> wasteland

Volume 1 Chapter 209 Tax Collector

Previous page        Return to Catalog        Next page

    Chapter 209 Tax Collector

    The man is short, about forty years old, with a rather cumbersome belly. There is a ring of sparse and messy black hair around the top of his bald head, and there are dense beards of different lengths on both sides of his cheeks.  These hairs, which had obviously not been trimmed for a long time, were connected together and almost completely obscured his entire face, making it difficult to see his true face.

    He strode to the dining table, pulled out the chair and sat down. His eyes, sunken in wrinkles and dust, kept looking back and forth at Lin Xiang.  After a few minutes, he slowly asked: "I heard that guy Bernie do you want salt?"

    Lin Xiang smiled, picked up the empty glass at hand, filled it with wine, and handed it over.

    The man was wearing a shabby woolen coat, which was already a very rare luxury item among the residents of the wasteland world.  But it's really old, and its surface is covered with patches, big and small.  It can be seen that the owner cares about it very much and is extremely careful when wearing it.  But this does not stop the ravages of time on the clothing itself. There is still a lot of wear and tear on the collar and cuffs. Through the hem of the clothes that is blown up by the wind from time to time, you can even see wisps of degraded fabric fibers.

    ¡°The quantity I need is huge.¡±

    Lin Xiang picked up his cup and took a sip, then continued: "To tell you the truth, we need that thing urgently. Otherwise, we wouldn't have come all the way here."

    These words are half true and half false. The cruel living environment has made the residents of the wasteland world become cunning. There is almost no so-called trust between strangers.  Even if both parties really have interests and needs, it must be established under the premise of spending a lot of time and clarifying each other's identity and purpose.

    This Asian man possesses powers equivalent to the third level of evolution. The scale of Hongwan's suppression is not large, and the residents are only armed with some homemade gunpowder guns and sharp cold weapons.  Of course, this is just the surface that can be observed by the eyes. Maybe these people living by the sea secretly have some trump cards unknown to outsiders But in Lin Xiang's view, these things have no effect in front of him.  To any effect - he could easily massacre an entire town if he wanted to.

    Therefore, he doesn¡¯t mind playing a trump card that should be hidden first.  If the other party is smart enough, it should not be difficult to see the sincerity shown by him, as well as the strong strength that is not said in the words, half hidden and half hidden.

    The middle-aged man had no intention of touching the wine glass handed to him.  He squinted his eyes and stared at Lin Xiang for a while. His scrutinizing eyes fell on the skull symbol embroidered with black silk thread on the other person's chest. He said slowly: "I know this pattern. If you are one of their people, you should  You get what you want when you want. Not to mention the lack of supply of salt.¡±

    "You're right."

    Lin Xiang lowered his head, dusted the skull logo with his fingers, and said in a magnetic voice: "Everything in this world has exceptions. Haha! How to put it I need salt, this is reality.  "

    The man looked at him carefully, without any force or coldness in his eyes.  His expression was a little hesitant, and there was even a hint of fear for some unknown reason.

    Or, it should be said that it is instinctive alertness.

    It can be seen that this is a very cautious and cautious person.

    He finally picked up the wine glass and slowly brought it to his mouth. Suddenly, he quickly closed his slightly parted lips, as if he had made up his mind, and said seriously: "We only have two tons in stock. If you want it, you can do it now."  Deal. Bernie said, you have the skull and crossbones, and I just want that currency.¡±

    Lin Xiang smiled and nodded: "No problem. However, as a buyer and considering future transactions, it seems that you should tell me your name."

    The middle-aged man took a sip of wine to dispel the cold alcohol, and a piece of softness frozen by frost and snowflakes quickly melted on his face.  He licked his lips and showed a hesitant and careful smile: "My name is Tang Hu."

    ¡­¡­

    Like the tone that makes up this radiation world, salt is also gray.

    There are no large-scale salt fields in Hongwan Town, only some rough salt ponds made of smooth stones on the beach.  Every summer, the rolling sea water pours into the salt pond along the ditch, and slowly evaporates under the heat of the sun and heat waves, leaving behind a thin layer of light gray salt crystals.  As for now, the ditch connecting to the sea has long been blocked, and except for the messy garbage and the frozen water in the depression, the salt pond is empty.

    ?According to Tang Hu, salt production is just a sideline business for the residents of Hongwan Town.  The land here is not suitable for farming, and fishing is the main means of livelihood.  Of course, this is only limited to activities very close to the coast.  Everyone knows that going to the open sea will bring greater rewards, but no one is willing to risk the windThe threats of storms and marine mutant creatures run so far.

    The price of salt given by Tang Hu was very reasonable, a full 95% lower than the price the Luton family sold it to Hidden Moon City.  Lin Xiang was not surprised by this.  The harsh environment and traffic conditions mean that almost all settlements in the wasteland have little contact with the outside world.  Especially those places that are remote and not connected to old roads, and no one has any contact with them.  Naturally, the goods in the hands of local residents cannot be mentioned as foreign trade. They have no means of transportation and no energy.  Taking Hongwan Town as an example, Lin Xiang believes that if he continues to persist, it is entirely possible for Tang Hu to lower the price by half on the current basis.

    This unrefined coarse salt contains a large amount of impurities and radioactive dust. Even so, it is still one of the daily necessities for all civilians in the entire Sosbia trading area.  Like all living things on earth, humans are struggling to integrate into new natural environments.  The threat of radiation to them is no longer as obvious as in the old days. The new generation of humans in the wasteland world have been able to adapt to a certain degree of radiation and even eat food containing trace amounts of radioactive dust.

    Looking at the huge bags of salt neatly stacked in the back of the truck, Lin Xiang took out a stack of counted skull coins from his pocket and handed them to Tang Hu, smiling and saying: "The trade between us will continue.  I need more than salt."

    "You mean fish?" Tang Hu turned his head and glanced at the half-dried fish fillets hanging under the eaves not far away.

    ¡°All edible seafood, including fish.¡±

    Lin Xiang took out cigarettes from his pocket, took out two and handed them over: "The quantity I need is large, and the price is completely reasonable. If you don't like banknotes, I can also exchange it with other physical objects of equal value. Flour,  Corn, weapons, uniforms whatever you need, I can provide it."

    These words aroused a flurry of surprised comments among the small town residents who were watching.

    An old woman with a stooped figure and wrapped in a thick coarse cloth apron tried her best to open her eyes that were squeezed into lines by wrinkles, and asked eagerly: "Corn and flour? You, are you telling the truth?"

    Lin Xiang did not answer.  He turned around and snapped his fingers at the sergeant standing in the truck. The latter nodded knowingly, took out a tortilla weighing about half a kilogram from the storage bag placed in the compartment, and jumped out of the car.  Pass it into the old woman's hand.

    Gently stroking the rough biscuits with her wrinkled hands, the old woman brought her face very close and greedily smelled the unique sweet aroma of the tortillas.  After a long time, he reluctantly raised his head, grinned his dry, toothless lips, and said with a satisfied smile: "Yes, this is corn You want fish, right? I'll change it, I'll change it for you -"

    The residents of Hongwan Town have much more goods than they imagined.  Dried fish, kelp, shellfish A large basket woven with thick rattan was moved onto the back of the truck, and the canvas food bag originally filled with corn crackers and bread also quickly shrank.  In terms of the actual exchange ratio, Lin Xiang did take a big advantage.

    "We have traveled a long distance, and vehicle wear and tear, energy consumption, personnel guard expenses, etc. must be taken into consideration. These are essential costs. Of course, I can provide maps, and you are very welcome to trade in my territory.  .Similarly, you can also exchange for enough supplies at a small price."

    This explanation is reasonable and well-founded, and Tang Hu and others did not delve into this aspect.  Nuclear war destroyed the old era. Due to the different environment, marine life reproduced much faster than land life.  Offshore fisheries that were closed due to overfishing in the old days have been fully restored in nearly a century.  Especially in the summer, when fish schools move along the ocean currents to form a fishing season, fishing boats going out can get extremely rich harvests every day.

    The residents of Hongwan Town are not short of food.  Although eating fish can be regarded as a kind of happiness, they also look forward to the presence of bread or other agricultural products on the table.  In the absence of transportation means for long-distance trade, such an idea is tantamount to wishful thinking.  Therefore, they do not feel that Lin Xiang's exchange is a kind of exploitation.  On the contrary, these strangers, who were fully armed, frighteningly powerful, yet polite and always kind, finally gave themselves the opportunity to clear out all the inventory in the warehouse.

    Lin Xiang always had a comfortable smile on his face.

    Hidden Moon City is in great need and is willing to purchase every product in Hongwan Town.  Citizens' single food ration content needs to be changed. They also like fish and kelp on their plates.  This would not only get rid of Sosbia's control over the supply of salt supplies, but also open up a new trade route.  By using seafood, mainly fish, a wider variety of supplies can be obtained from residents living in other inland towns.

    Hidden Moon City can produce enough electricity, huge fleets of vehicles capable of transporting goods back and forth between coastal towns and the interior.  This trade was so profitable that it even led more people to set up settlements along the trade routes.  By that time, Hidden Moon City will be able to be self-sufficient in most of the materials it needs, and its area of ??control will also expand accordingly, and there will be no need to continue to make ends meet with Sosbia and Ferdinand.  As for the Luton family and the Alejandro family they will be annexed or directly destroyed.

    Hongwan Town has a small population and a very limited number of products.  Of course, it is impossible to meet Lin Xiang's overall strategic needs by relying on one small town alone.  He would also continue to send more armed caravans along the coast to trade with all the surrounding settlements.  Lin Xiang has even considered whether he should send managers and troops to establish a stronghold under direct jurisdiction in an important coastal town, conduct unified management of all purchased materials, and form a stable and strong trade line with Hidden Moon City.  ¡­

    The snow is getting heavier and heavier.

    "This damn weather let's go! Go have a drink to warm yourself up, I'll treat you."

    Looking up at the falling snowflakes, Tang Hu shook his head, reached out and patted Lin Xiang on the shoulder, turned around and strode towards the tavern.

    ¡­¡­

    The burning fire was bright and warm. Without any instructions, Nelia had already offered a bottle of whiskey, as well as Hongwan Town¡¯s unique delicacies such as grilled fish, fried scallops and shrimp and crab meatballs.  Not only that, she also put on a pink short skirt with a very low neckline.  Although the texture of the skirt was slightly rough, it perfectly outlined her hot figure, making the man's eyes always focus on the two high bulges on her chest.

    Nilia seldom does this. There is no man as handsome as Lin Xiang in Hongwan Town.  Moreover, his wallet is big and thick enough.  Especially his clear, watery eyes fascinate Nelia every time she looks at them. She can't help but feel dry. Even in the deepest part between her legs, she can clearly feel the warmth and moisture.  .

    "I need more salt. Of course, I mean the next transaction."

    The taste of whiskey is very light, and you can drink it as if it has been mixed with water - this is already the best wine in Hongwan Town.  Lin Xiang didn't say anything. He just took a sip and redirected the topic to what he was interested in.

    "no problem."

    Most of the alertness on Tang Hu's face has dissipated, but he still retains some necessary vigilance: "If your price is the same as this time, I guarantee that you will be able to get enough goods."

    He is a cautious person.

    "If there are no emergencies, we will come back in no more than half a month at most."

    With that said, Lin Xiang raised his cup: "Happy cooperation."

    "ßÑ¡ª¡ª"

    The wine glasses collided together and made a crisp sound. Before the two hands holding the glasses could retract, an engine roar suddenly came from outside the tavern.  Then came a shrill, chaotic noise.

    In an instant, everyone sitting in the tavern showed fear and shrinkage.  The smiling Nelia's face turned pale, and Tang Hu's body was trembling involuntarily.

    "What's going on?" Lin Xiang looked at him inquiringly.

    "He is the tax collector of Cangying City." Tang Hu clenched his fists tightly and slowly released them. A trace of blazing anger appeared in the depths of his eyes, and then quickly extinguished.

    "Taxation?" Lin Xiang looked at him doubtfully.

    "Cangying City is the largest settlement in the surrounding area. They control the trading rights of dozens of small villages and towns, including Hongwan Town. Each settlement must pay a certain amount of tax. If they refuse, they will send armed personnel  A complete blockade was imposed on the town, prohibiting the entry and exit of supplies and caravans. Using this method, Cangying City controlled the quantity of medicine, food and other supplies in all settlements. They forcibly purchased the inventory we had at a very low price.  Then sell them to foreign caravans to earn high profits. These guys are very cruel, they will kill every resister, and even massacre the town."

    Tang Hu¡¯s voice became lower and lower, and in the end it was almost inaudible.  There was only the breathing that came out of his chest, heavy, full of unwillingness and helplessness.

    Lin Xiang turned around and his eyes slowly peeked out through the gap in the tavern window.

    There were seven people outside the house, five men and two women.  The men were all strong and carried imitation assault rifles.  The woman looks average, but has a good figure, a thin waist and plump hips, and she looks very hot.  They were wrapped in thick leather coats, but their legs were stretched with thin stockings, and they wore nothing on their lower bodies.

    There were bursts of unbridled laughter in the carriage.

    "Stop making trouble, it's time to work¡ª¡ª"

    Sitting in the driver's seat is a special?The stalwart man turned off the engine, jumped out of the car with a curse, raised the assault rifle in his hand and fired randomly into the sky, while at the same time yelling at the top of his lungs into the empty town streets: "Everyone get the fuck out of here."  Gather, move quickly, my patience is limited¡ª¡ª"

    People in twos and threes appeared on the street, all holding more or less belongings in their hands.  Some were a pack of dried fish weighing dozens of kilograms, and some were a few crumpled banknotes.  More and more people gathered, and the materials piled up in the open space in front of the vehicles also became a mountain.  People's faces were full of expressions of fear and surrender, but hatred and anger could be faintly seen in the depths of their eyes.
Didn't finish reading? Add this book to your favoritesI'm a member and bookmarked this chapterCopy the address of this book and recommend it to your friends for pointsChapter error? Click here to report