Han Qingying’s gaze was drawn to the food and water on the shelves, her stomach twisting with hunger as her body cried out in protest.
The earlier dash for survival had drained much of her strength and fluids. Under the scorching heat, water was scarce, and she was both parched and overheated—it had been far too long since she’d had a proper drink.
The sign on the shop door read “General Store,” which meant it was likely a place for buying and selling, right?
If the items here were indeed for sale, that would be perfect. She’d give everything she had just to buy some water—with water, she could survive longer.
“Excuse me, is anyone here?” Han Qingying called out cautiously, peering around as she noticed the empty checkout counter, hoping to summon the shopkeeper.
The air remained still for a few seconds, with no response. Just as she was beginning to lose hope, thinking the shop was deserted, a gentle, low-pitched young man’s voice reached her, soothing her frayed nerves. “Welcome. How can I help you?”
After receiving the mechanical notification, Qin Zhiyuan cautiously approached his Lego Store. The next moment, the tiny figure’s voice clearly transmitted into his mind.
He had initially worried that someone so small might have a voice too faint to hear, but fortunately, the System’s mysterious power delivered the sound directly into his consciousness, crisp and unmistakable.
[The Host may freely converse with them. The System will automatically broadcast and adjust the volume for you, and translation is available even if languages differ.]
[In the eyes of humans in the Miniature World, everything in the store appears normal; they won’t realize it’s made of Lego.]
[However, the items are still essentially plastic and cannot be sold normally. The shopkeeper must provide the goods themselves. For any other questions, the System can be summoned at any time.]
Qin Zhiyuan roughly understood the store’s operational mechanisms and nodded. Then, tentatively, he opened his mouth to greet the other party and ask what she needed.
As the shopkeeper’s voice sounded, Han Qingying instinctively searched for its source but found only the voice itself—no person in sight. Her eyes swept the entire shop without spotting a single soul.
Perhaps the shopkeeper wasn’t in the store and was speaking to her via voice through something like a camera? A flicker of doubt arose in her mind as she pondered silently.
But none of that mattered now. The most important thing was buying water—she was dying of thirst, her head spinning on the verge of heatstroke. The intense exertion in the sweltering heat was pushing her to her limit.
Han Qingying hesitated for two seconds, her cracked lips parting slightly as she asked softly, “Excuse me, can Points Cards be used for payment here?”
After the Post-apocalypse, the old monetary system had completely collapsed. Now, human settlements, bases, and markets uniformly used Points Cards for swipe payments.
Points could be earned through labor—such as joining official teams to clear Mutant Beasts, exploring and searching for supplies to hand over excess resources, or working in the Underground Cultivation Zone, among other tasks.
But these might not be universally accepted outside; many traders didn’t want Points, preferring barter or similar methods instead. So, she asked in advance.
Almost the moment her words fell, a System prompt sounded in Qin Zhiyuan’s mind.
[Currency discrepancy detected. Host gifted one POS Machine.]
[In the current world, 1 Point = 10 RMB in the real world.]
[The System will deduct 20% of the revenue as commission. The remaining 80% can be exchanged by the Host into RMB or directly used for base construction, item exchange, etc.]
A brand new POS machine silently appeared on the counter. Han Qingying, focused on the merchandise, didn’t notice this miraculous sight.
Soon, the young man’s clear and gentle voice came again, “Of course, what would you like to buy?”
Hearing the response, Han Qingying felt a surge of joy, a glimmer of hope flashing in her eyes. She licked her dry, cracked lips and eagerly expressed her desire, “I… I want to buy some drinkable water.”
In the High-Temperature Apocalypse, water had become one of the most precious resources—scarce, priceless, and exorbitantly expensive. Faced with this opportunity, how could she not be excited? If she could buy some water, it would be absolutely wonderful.
Qin Zhiyuan stroked his chin. The products on the store shelves were all made of Lego bricks and couldn’t be consumed. If he wanted to sell water, he’d need to find another container and method.
He looked at Han Qingying in the Sand Table, who appeared to be less than 20cm tall, and fell into deep thought.
An ordinary 500ml bottle of Nongfu Spring mineral water was something a normal human could easily hold, but for a miniature person only a dozen centimeters tall, it would be overwhelmingly large.
A 500ml bottle of mineral water stood 22cm tall—taller than she was. Giving her the entire bottle was clearly impractical, and she wouldn’t be able to drink from it anyway.
He needed to find another container to hold the water and place it in front of her.
“System, if I reach in to place something, will she see my hand?” He was worried his large hand might cause panic.
[No, from their perspective, objects will simply appear and float over.]
Reassured, Qin Zhiyuan reached out and unscrewed the cap of the mineral water bottle.
Then, he filled the cap with water and gently placed the cap, now brimming with sweet mineral water, at the entrance of the store.
From Han Qingying’s perspective, this scene was utterly bizarre, causing her to gape in astonishment.
Out of nowhere, a “container” filled with water suddenly appeared at the store entrance, as if by magic or divine intervention—utterly unbelievable.
Upon closer inspection, the container resembled a bottle cap, but it was proportionally enlarged to the size of a large bowl, filled with clean, clear water.
Han Qingying’s eyes widened in shock and confusion, her face a mask of disbelief.
Had she encountered a ghost? Or perhaps a deity?
How could something appear out of thin air? Was this why the shopkeeper remained unseen—because humans couldn’t see ghosts or gods?
And why was the bottle cap so large? Could the shopkeeper be a giant?
Han Qingying felt a twinge of fear, but she was desperately thirsty. Her dry, cracked throat felt as if it were on fire, and her body was weak from dehydration.
She could have endured the darkness if she had never seen the light. When there was no water, she thought she could hold on for another two days. But now, seeing so much water, she could bear it no longer.
If the shopkeeper wanted her dead, there would be no need to give her water. Since he had provided it, he surely meant no harm.
In the face of such extreme thirst, all doubts and fears were temporarily set aside. Her rationality had long since snapped.
Overwhelmed with excitement, she stepped forward, quickly walked out of the store, and with both hands, lifted the large “bowl” filled with water. Bringing her lips close to the surface, she drank greedily, gulping down mouthful after mouthful.
Cool water flowed down her throat, each sip like nourishing long-parched earth, gradually restoring some vitality to her exhausted body.
Han Qingying’s throat made a satisfied swallowing sound as she immersed herself in this hard-won sense of relief, a long-absent look of relaxation appearing on her face.
As most of the bowl of sweet water entered her stomach, Han Qingying’s consciousness, muddled by extreme thirst, gradually cleared, and her rationality slowly returned.
She jolted suddenly, as if struck by a bolt of lightning, the contentment on her face instantly fading, replaced by overwhelming panic and regret.
A terrifying thought flashed through her mind—it was over. She had drunk so much water without restraint; how much would this cost? Even if the shopkeeper meant no harm, she still had to pay!
She knew all too well how precious water was in this post-apocalypse world, with prices outrageously high, and her Points Card was already nearly depleted.
If she hadn’t been truly desperate, with insufficient Points to exchange for food and water to survive in the base, why would she have risked her life, wandering alone on these perilous streets?
Han Qingying slowly lowered her head, almost burying it in her chest, her face burning with shame and unease. Her hands instinctively clenched the hem of her clothes, knuckles turning white from the force, fingertips trembling slightly.
If she couldn’t pay, would this shopkeeper—who might be a ghost, a god, or a giant—simply crush her to death?
She opened her mouth, her throat feeling choked, her voice weak and hoarse, “How much does this water cost?”
As soon as the words left her mouth, Han Qingying regretted it. Her voice was as faint as a mosquito’s buzz, and the shopkeeper probably couldn’t even hear her.
Qin Zhiyuan frowned upon hearing her question. “System, what’s the current price of a bottle of water in their world?”
[For an equivalent amount scaled down to 500ml, it would likely cost over ten Points.]
Converted to over a hundred yuan, that was far too expensive. Qin Zhiyuan was momentarily stunned.
He intended to earn more money before exchanging for the potion, converting it into yuan to pay for his mother’s hospital fees, but he hadn’t planned to be this ruthless.
After thinking for two seconds, he softened his tone to soothe her anxiety. “Drink up. A bowl costs only 1 Point.”
Han Qingying jerked her head up, her eyes wide with surprise and disbelief. “What? That cheap?”
In their base, water prices were exorbitantly high. Based on past experience, this much water would have cost at least ten Points, and it was so scarce that it was often unavailable even at a price.
She almost doubted whether she had misheard or if this mysterious shopkeeper was deliberately teasing her.
Qin Zhiyuan seemed to guess her thoughts and explained, “Yes, only 1 Point. The prices here might be different from where you’re from.”
One Point still earned him eight yuan, and this was just a tiny fraction of a single bottle of water. As a true-blue socialist youth, charging any more would truly weigh on his conscience.
The shopkeeper’s voice carried a reassuring force, gradually dispelling Han Qingying’s doubts. She immediately drank the remaining water in the bowl clean.
Although this large "bowl" of water had temporarily quenched her thirst, in the high-temperature apocalypse, having more water reserves meant an extra glimmer of hope for survival. She wanted to stock up.
She clenched her fists slightly, gathering courage, and once again mustered the nerve to ask. Her voice carried a hint of caution, along with an undeniable trace of anticipation.
"Um… I'd like to buy some more. Do you have bottled water I can take with me?"
In the room where he controlled everything, Qin Zhiyuan heard Han Qingying's question and couldn't help but rub his temples, a troubled expression appearing on his face.
A 500ml bottle was definitely out of the question—too large. The smallest-sized bottled water he had at home now was the 250ml mini bottle.
But for the petite Han Qingying, even this was like a massive "super-large barrel of water." He wasn't sure if she could carry it or how she would transport it back to the base.
After a brief silence, Qin Zhiyuan could only say helplessly, "We just opened and haven't stocked much. Currently, we only have super-large barrels of water. One barrel costs 10 Points. Would you like it?"
Upon hearing this, Han Qingying's eyes instantly lit up. Without hesitation, she eagerly agreed, "Yes, yes, yes! I want it!"
She still had over ten Points left, just enough to pay. It felt like heaven was helping her, and Han Qingying was overjoyed.
"Alright, please wait a moment. Payment is at the checkout counter," Qin Zhiyuan replied.
Han Qingying carefully pulled a card from her tattered pocket—it was her Points Card.
She walked to the checkout counter, looking around for the payment spot, and finally noticed the brand-new POS machine.
"Is payment done here?" Han Qingying asked uncertainly.
"That's right. Just swipe your Points Card on the POS machine," Qin Zhiyuan answered. He didn’t need to handle this—the System would automatically calculate and deduct the payment for him.
Following Qin Zhiyuan's instructions, Han Qingying swiped her card. After a faint electric hum, the words "Transaction Successful" appeared on the POS machine screen, and 11 Points were deducted from Han Qingying's Points Card.
With the payment completed, a heavy weight finally lifted from Han Qingying's heart.
The next moment, a System notification sounded in Qin Zhiyuan's mind.
[Congratulations, Host, on completing your first transaction since opening!]
[Now issuing the Novice Poverty Alleviation Gift Pack!]
Author's Note: