DSAW Ch.367

Chapter 367 – The Rich Woman

 

Tu Ran had run out of money in her account, but she still had many questions left unanswered.

Thus, this scene appeared in front of the exchange counter.

On the neat, clean, deep gray polished stone surface, a pile of miscellaneous items was stacked.

There was everything: a large, green-glowing, water-like stone-carved tree, a small, glittering diamond, smooth-polished skulls of unknown animals, brown boxes scattered everywhere, bottles, jars… the works.

“Only two star coins?!” Tu Ran pinched the goose egg-sized diamond, nearly thrusting it into the guide’s eyes. “This is a diamond! It’s this big!!”

The guide brushed her hand away and lifted his head from the pile of items. “Just carbon.”

Tu Ran: “…”

She silently put the diamond back into her space. Well, she wasn’t going to sell it.

When she returned to Blue Star, this diamond would be enough for her to lie down in peace.

She sat on a high chair in front of the exchange counter, propping up her chin as she looked at the pile of items in front of her… all of them taken from Xie Xie’ao’s collection. Except for the inner core, she had taken everything out. Rubbing her eyes, Tu Ran didn’t hold much hope. “How much are these worth in total?”

The guide had already spread everything out and was using a large machine to scan all the items.

Three minutes later…

“Nine thousand one hundred and two star coins.”

Tu Ran almost fell off her chair. “Did you make a mistake?” Her eyes swept across the various treasures in front of her.

How could all of this together be worth less than ten thousand?!

“No mistake,” the guide placed the device in his hand aside and pressed both hands on the stone surface. “These items may look good, but they are not practical. In other worlds, they could be used as collectibles, but in the world of Rulers…” He shook his head regretfully. “The world of Rulers doesn’t need vases.”

Tu Ran, whose entire collection had been referred to as “vases,” felt her heart sink. She propped her forehead with one hand and waved the other dismissively. “Forget it, take it all away. Nine thousand is fine.” She had to worry about food and lodging, after all.

Now that her account balance was at zero, both food and shelter were a problem.

She would think of another way to consult the Hundred-Eyed Elf later.

The guide waved his hand, and several attendants came over to collect all the items from the table and took them away into their space pouches.

The guide, meanwhile, used a card reader to add money to Tu Ran’s account.

Tu Ran jumped down from the high chair, too disinterested to look at the small amount in her account, and called to Tang Ying to leave.

“Where to?”

Without hesitation, Tu Ran replied, “Make money.”

Tang Ying silently followed her, clearly agreeing that solving the money problem was the most pressing issue.

Since entering the underground, they hadn’t gone back up. The underground, as the guide had said, had everything. If they had money, they could stay indefinitely.

Standing in the elevator, Tu Ran pressed the “0” button.

Ground floor.

When the elevator door opened, Tu Ran’s eyes immediately landed on the light blue flower in the vase.

Next to the vase, a child was sitting there, staring blankly.

When Tu Ran stepped out of the elevator, the child briefly glanced at her, his gaze indifferent. He didn’t say anything and returned to his daze.

As Tu Ran walked out of the elevator, she noticed his employee number: 125, the guide.

He was waiting for his next customer.

Tu Ran averted her gaze and saw that Tang Ying had already opened the skylight and stepped outside.

Tu Ran immediately followed her.

The blood-red sky, a rare sight, greeted her eyes.

Tu Ran faced their destination. “We’re going to find the City Lord.”

The City Lord’s residence was a well-kept secret to outsiders.

In the Border City, being the city lord was a job that often led to assassination, not just due to competition from rivals but also because of the hatred some radical star factions held for the Wuma Star. As a result, City Lords became frequent targets of their anger.

Tu Ran had only spent seventeen minutes talking with the Hundred-Eyed Elf before leaving a minute early, saving a hundred thousand star coins. With that sum, she had consulted a regular attendant for an hour, during which she inquired about the location of the city lord’s residence.

Two dark figures ran through the shadowed alleys of the Border City.

They weaved left and right, blending into the crowds.

Today, the crowds in Border City were unusually restless.

What was usually a street filled with an air of hostility now seemed to have an odd festive atmosphere. The black-robed figures were conversing among themselves, and more black-robed figures from other streets kept flowing into the area.

In the time it took for Tu Ran and Tang Ying to exchange a few glances, the entire street had been packed with black-robed figures. It became difficult for them to navigate through the crowd toward the city lord’s residence.

“Is money being thrown around again? Do you think this information is reliable? Last time, I waited for nothing.”

A voice came from behind, and through the voice converter, it was transformed into the language of the Green-Eyed Tribe.

They were discussing why they were blocked here.

Tu Ran subconsciously straightened her back, her ears under the black robe also perking up.

“This time it’s for real, haven’t you noticed? Every thirty days, she comes to throw money around. The last time, it was only nineteen days before news spread, so it was definitely fake. I can’t believe you actually believed it.”

“Thirty days, why such a long gap?”

“Who knows? But as long as there’s money, it’s good enough. You can’t expect her to come every day.”

Thirty days—just about the length of one month on Blue Star. Tu Ran wondered if there was any connection.

She continued eavesdropping, while Tang Ying, knowing what Tu Ran was doing, didn’t pull her away from the crowd.

“I’m curious which star she’s from, to be so wealthy. And look at us, from Jian Star—all poor people,” the person behind her said, sounding quite dejected. “Though I can’t see what the people under these black robes look like, I’m sure that half of them on this street are from our Jian Star.”

One of his companions spoke to comfort him. “What’s the use of money? Aren’t they still homeless?”

“Sigh, I don’t even know what the Rulers see in us. We don’t have any energy, not even a usable production chain. It’s a hassle just to feed the people on our own star, and yet the Rulers haven’t blown us up yet.”

This struck a chord with the two, and for a moment, they fell into silence.

Tu Ran turned her head slightly and spoke coldly, cutting to the heart of the matter, “Because labor is cheap and abundant, and the sense of trust that other worlds can’t match.”

The two behind her: “…”

First, they felt the sting, then came the anger.

The black-robed person from the unknown star actually spoke so poorly of their star. Jian Star may not be great, but it was still their hometown!

“So, which star are you from? You must be really impressive, right?”

“Jian Star,” Tu Ran said with a straight face, making up a lie. When you’re out in the world, your identity is whatever you say it is.

The two behind her: “…”

They were both from Jian Star, both poor people waiting for handouts, and at that moment, they recognized each other as fellow countrymen. Their eyes seemed to well up with tears, and it almost felt like they were about to hold hands and share a drink.

Tu Ran seized the moment. “I just arrived a few days ago. I heard someone’s giving out money today, so I came over. What’s the deal? Is someone really giving out money? How much? When did it start? What’s the person’s name?”

“Yeah, someone’s giving out money. They came on a skyship. Thirty days ago, they gave out money once, and I grabbed over five thousand star coins. It’s more than I earn in a month doing hard labor. They’re such a kind person.”

A month later, Tu Ran could still hear the joy in the person’s voice. She felt lucky to have shared in that moment, but now she needed to ask the important questions.

Before she could speak again, another person from Jian Star with gray-brown eyes glanced at her. “Today’s the fourth time. Everyone calls her Li Fupo.”

Tang Ying asked, “Did you give her that nickname?”

“No, she told everyone to call her that,” the Jian Star person said, snapping out of his excitement. “She never told us which star she’s from, just told us to call her ‘Fupo.’ And she’s definitely rich. The money she gives out is more than my monthly salary…”

He was lost in his thoughts again.

Tang Ying was speechless and looked at Tu Ran, only to see her with her gaze lowered, her expression distant.

Tang Ying had seen Tu Ran like this before. Whenever she was about to find a location or someone, she’d wear this expression.

Tang Ying had heard about her ability called [Sense of Direction].

But she didn’t know what Tu Ran was looking for with this sudden shift in demeanor.