svetikya Chapter 46 Intelligence: "Piglets"?!
Chapter 46 Intelligence: "Piglets"?!
"Ah~!"
"The moon is so round tonight!"
Late at night, Shen Lang leaned against the windowsill, looking up at the night view.
A crescent moon hung in the sky, bringing a sliver of light to the dark alleyway.
Although the place I live in now charges money, and the monthly rent is as high as 15 yuan.
But I have to say the environment is so much better!
The alleyways are quiet at night, and even the sounds made when someone passes by are very faint.
Unlike the police station dormitory, where a passing person in the middle of the night would cause an earthquake-like sound, with the floorboards making muffled thuds.
If you add a woman's screams to that, it's even harder to fall asleep peacefully.
But now they can enjoy the tranquility of the night, and the landlady, Liu Su'e, is also used to going to bed early without any disturbance.
If you wish, you can also sit on the rooftop terrace to cultivate your mind and spirit.
The comfort level is far superior to that of the old dormitories in the police station.
In particular, the bathroom has a separate flush toilet, which is usually kept clean and has no odor.
You can now wash up without rushing, unlike before when you had to take a shower in the toilet and endure the stench that assaulted your senses, forcing you to finish quickly in no time.
I just took a shower and enjoyed it so much!
This bathing method, which became popular in later generations, was a luxury in Shanghai.
Leaving aside the water bill, the kerosene alone is something that ordinary people can't afford.
Shen Lang was used to enjoying life and thought the 15 yuan monthly rent was a great deal!
To think I could find such a nice place for just 15 yuan in a month is simply a dream.
Most importantly, based on his observation of Liu Su'e, this landlady must have come from a wealthy family and had high standards for her quality of life.
So when a large number of refugees flood into the concession, they certainly won't cramm the houses like cans just to collect rent like other landlords.
The most important thing is that it won't affect my future life.
Otherwise, dozens of strangers, all poor refugees fleeing from war, would suddenly flood into the house, their eyes green with greed for survival.
Then the things I've hidden won't be safe anymore.
Who knows when it might be stolen, and then you'd be in trouble if you had to sell your secret for money.
Shen Lang never gambles on human nature, because human nature is the most vulnerable to testing!
To gamble on the humanity of a group of refugees and displaced people is suicidal; if the gamble fails, there will be no hope of redemption.
This is also one of the reasons why I decisively paid a year's rent after observing the landlord's personality.
"Phew!"
Shen Lang exhaled a puff of smoke and casually tossed the cigarette butt onto the stone slab downstairs.
He paused for a moment as he watched the cigarette butt fall to the ground and scatter sparks.
Suddenly it dawned on me that I seemed to have gotten used to this kind of uncivilized lifestyle!
In the past, if someone threw a cigarette butt from an upper floor, they would have complained about how rude they were.
However, they have adopted the lifestyle of their predecessors and seem to have become accustomed to being an uncivilized person.
Spitting indiscriminately, cutting in line or not paying when buying things, and littering cigarette butts and peanut/sunflower seed shells on the street.
Aside from not urinating or defecating in public, they seem to have done everything that lacks manners.
However, without moral constraints, it seems quite enjoyable...
Just as I was feeling a bit sentimental, a mechanical notification suddenly rang in my mind.
【Ding! 】
[Today's intelligence has been updated. Read it now?]
The old alarm clock on the desk, missing a leg, had its hands pointing to exactly midnight.
"The system refresh is really punctual!"
Shen Lang raised an eyebrow, a hint of anticipation on his face.
I've gotten used to waiting for the system information to refresh, and each time it feels like opening a blind box, full of anticipation.
Gently close the windows and keep the room absolutely quiet.
Then he sat cross-legged on the edge of the bed, adopting a meditation posture.
He snapped his fingers only after he had found the most comfortable position.
Pa~!
"Reading!"
In an instant, a semi-transparent notification panel appeared out of thin air, and a series of intelligence reports were displayed one by one.
[Today's Information.]
1. Today, the exchange rate of silver dollars to legal tender is at a 12% premium.
[2. News spread that Liu Su'e had rented the attic room to the police.]
[3. A brawl broke out at the Sanjiaodi vegetable market, resulting in 2 deaths and 13 injuries.]
4. A mouse has entered the east wing and is digging a hole under the bed.
[5. A man in Fu'an Lane lost all his family fortune gambling and committed suicide by swallowing razor blades.]
6. Three people, all young and strong men, have gone missing in Baoyu Village.
7. The two people kidnapped in Baoxing Village have been smuggled overseas as "piglets."
[8. The admission tickets for the Cinque Terrell nightclub have been adjusted to three tiers: 0.2, 0.5, and 1 yuan.]
[9. Mr. Chen, the owner of Huifa Trading Company, received orders from the Special Higher Police for the latest sabotage operation against the Nationalist government.]
[10. Huayang Textile Factory's stock price fell by 0.2 yuan.]
All ten pieces of intelligence were displayed before us.
Shen Lang narrowed his eyes and carefully read each piece of intelligence.
I was not at all surprised by the changes in the exchange rate between the legal tender and the silver dollar.
The situation is relatively stable now, so the purchasing power of fiat currency is also relatively strong.
However, as the war spreads, the legal tender will also depreciate rapidly.
We're only at the very beginning!
A brawl broke out at the Sanjiaodi vegetable market, which was probably another fight over territory.
Don't be fooled by the fact that the wet market only sells vegetables and meat; whoever controls the wet market is essentially holding a treasure trove.
In addition to collecting protection fees, they can also manipulate prices.
For example, they would force all fishmongers to buy their fish, then sell them for a few cents more, making a fortune in the process.
That's why the term "vegetable tyrant" came about!
Who wouldn't be envious of such a stable source of wealth?
In particular, some emerging gangs need money to grow and expand, and to recruit more people, they need to seize control of territory.
Therefore, the Sanjiaodi vegetable market is notorious for its chaos, with territorial disputes occurring at any time.
Changing kings and flags on the city walls has become commonplace.
Gangs in Shanghai were practically legalized. Fights and even shootings happened every day, and nobody cared if a few gang members died.
When Shen Lang saw the two consecutive kidnappings, a thoughtful look appeared in his eyes.
The so-called "piglets" are actually labor traffickers.
From the late Qing Dynasty onwards, large numbers of people were imprisoned like piglets and then sold abroad to do hard labor.
These people were deprived of their freedom and forced to do the most dangerous jobs, with an extremely high mortality rate!
Although the trafficking of "piglets" seems to have disappeared due to increased international pressure, it is only on the surface.
However, some still secretly sell them under the guise of recruitment or even kidnapping.
Shen Lang looked at the two consecutive news reports about selling "piglets" with a very complicated expression on his face.
I don't know whether to call them unfortunate or lucky.
Although it was tough, at least we were still barely surviving.
If it were decades from now, they wouldn't even be able to survive; they would be dismantled and sold off!