Chapter 251: Buying Spring Festival Couplets
Sierra Sullivan instinctively reached for her phone to check the date.
But after putting her hand in her pocket, she remembered her phone was useless—a heavy, useless brick. She had tossed it into her storage space a long time ago. It had probably run out of battery and shut down by now.
Although she wore a watch, it only told the time, not the date.
Sierra Sullivan withdrew her hand, her expression unchanging. She didn’t feel the least bit awkward.
As long as she didn’t act embarrassed, any awkwardness was someone else’s problem.
But since no one was paying attention to her, no one else was embarrassed either.
Jayce took Sierra Sullivan’s hand directly. "Stop thinking about it. We can just go over and ask."
They were already selling spring couplets. Even if it wasn’t the New Year today, it must be close.
With Jayce holding her hand, Sierra Sullivan took Candice Tate’s hand, and the three of them quickly walked over to the shop selling spring couplets.
Like them, quite a few people had been drawn over by the spring couplets.
As they got closer, Sierra Sullivan heard someone ask curiously, "Why are they selling spring couplets already? Is it the New Year? I lost track of the date after I lost my phone. Time just... slips by..."
The man shook his head as he spoke.
Many people nearby nodded in agreement when they heard him.
They all felt the same way.
The days passed one by one, but they had no sense of it.
Seeing the spring couplets now felt both familiar and exciting.
But mostly, it just felt wistful.
So much time had passed without them even realizing it!
’Have we really been struggling to survive in this apocalypse for so long?’
The person selling the spring couplets was a young man, probably in his twenties or thirties. Though his body wasn’t fat, his face was quite round. With pale skin and a ruddy complexion, he looked healthy at a glance.
Before the apocalypse, the general aesthetic leaned toward a thinner, more delicate build.
Whether male or female, being tall and skinny was more popular.
But now, as far as the eye could see, most people were just skin and bones.
Their clothes hung loosely on their frames, swaying back and forth as they walked.
Under these circumstances, the popular aesthetic had shifted toward a plumper look.
Anyone who was fair and plump would definitely turn heads on the street and be more well-liked.
As for the reason?
It was simple.
In the current living conditions, anyone who could still eat well enough to be plump and healthy was definitely not short on supplies.
Either they were capable themselves, or their family was.
If you got together with someone like that, would you ever have to worry about the future?
Just like now. After getting a clear look at the vendor selling the couplets, many people’s eyes began to light up.
The young women were thinking of themselves.
The older ones were thinking of their daughters.
Being stared at by so many people with such intensity, the man felt a little embarrassed.
He scratched his head and pointed to a clock on the wall that everyone had overlooked. "Everyone, look! It has the time! And the date!"
Sierra Sullivan instinctively looked in the direction he was pointing and, sure enough, saw a clock hanging amidst a pile of spring couplets and New Year’s paintings.
It wasn’t the traditional round type, but a square one.
It not only displayed the time but also the year, month, day, and day of the week.
Sierra Sullivan had seen clocks like this before, but she had always found them a bit clunky and overly formal, so she hadn’t been a fan.
But looking at it now, she thought this clock was absolutely wonderful.
’I’ll have to ask this man where he bought this clock. I want to buy one and hang it on the living room wall at home.’
While thinking this, Sierra Sullivan didn’t forget to look closely at the date on the clock.
This clock not only showed the Gregorian calendar but also the lunar calendar.
Taking a closer look, she realized tomorrow was New Year’s Eve!
It was really almost the New Year!
Although she was a little surprised, now that she knew, she couldn’t just ignore it.
Celebrating the New Year was a deeply ingrained tradition.
Even in the apocalypse, they were at least stable for the moment. If it was time to celebrate the New Year, then they should celebrate it.
After most of the others had finished buying their couplets, Sierra Sullivan stepped forward. "Boss, I’d like some spring couplets, too! Three sets, please!"
"You got it! One set is five Contribution Points, so three sets are fifteen Contribution Points."
The price wasn’t outrageous, but it definitely wasn’t cheap either.
But scarcity drives up value.
This was probably the only shop in all of Subterra selling spring couplets. There was no way to compare prices, which meant there was no room to haggle.
Sierra Sullivan took out fifteen Contribution Points and handed them over.
As she paid and he handed over the goods, the smile on the man’s face grew even wider.
"Come again!"
Sierra Sullivan smiled but didn’t hurry off.
"Boss, I was also wondering, where did you buy this clock? I’d like to get one too!"
"Oh, this thing!" The vendor laughed heartily. "This wasn’t something I bought. I specifically scavenged for it, and it took a lot of effort! You know how it is. When people go out to find supplies now, they’re looking for things to eat, things to wear, things to use. Very few people pay attention to the time, so naturally, no one goes looking for these. I, on the other hand—"
This guy must have been a businessman before. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be such a smooth talker.
Sierra Sullivan’s head started to ache from his chatter, but she understood what he was getting at.
His meaning was obvious: he had them for sale, and if she wanted one, he was the only person to go to. She wouldn’t find one anywhere else.
"Is it battery-powered?" Sierra Sullivan asked. "Do you have batteries?"
Sierra Sullivan had stockpiled plenty of batteries herself, but she still wanted to ask if he had any.
’If he only sells the clock but not the batteries, then he can’t ask for too high a price.’
It wasn’t that Sierra Sullivan was short on Contribution Points, but that didn’t mean she was a fool with too much money, nor did it mean people could just rip her off.
"What kind of question is that? If I’m selling the clock, of course I have batteries! This one uses them. Let me tell you, you’d better buy a bunch. Otherwise, once my batteries sell out, trying to buy them from somewhere else won’t be so easy."
Sierra Sullivan understood.
’So it’s a bundle deal.’
’Not just a bundle deal, but he’s also creating artificial scarcity.’
These were just sales tactics, his way of making a living. There was nothing shameful about it, and Sierra Sullivan didn’t mind.
She was just curious how many Contribution Points he was going to ask for.
"Boss, since we’re being direct, just give it to me straight. The clock and the batteries—what’s the price?"
"Alright! You’re a straightforward person, so I won’t waste your time with more nonsense. The clock is one hundred Contribution Points! The batteries are D-size, it takes two at a time, one Contribution Point per battery. You tell me how many you want. And let me tell you, my prices are very fair. You won’t find this deal anywhere else!"