My Dating Sim Just Got an Update - Chapter 54

After Qi Sheng left, Chen Gu started sighing and groaning with a look of profound regret. Ren Chenxi watched his miserable display and couldn’t help but laugh. “Alright, stop crying. I still have another generator.”

Although she was a bit reluctant to part with the funds, Ren Chenxi realized her demand for electricity would only increase, especially with winter approaching. After hearing Chen Gu and the others describe the living conditions in the corrugated iron shacks, she knew that a southern winter was nothing to scoff at. To prepare for the cold and to add some entertainment to her boring post-apocalyptic life, she bit the bullet and decided to spend another 50,000 crystals on a second crystal core generator.

The moment the words left her mouth, Chen Gu let out a cry of pure joy. “An—another one? A crystal core generator? Like the one Qi Sheng just bought—the one that fills 10,000 mAh with just a single Level 1 core?”

“Yes, yes, it’s a crystal core generator…” Ren Chenxi repeated helplessly, seeing how worked up he was.

“Then.  how many cores are you selling it to us for, Sister Xi? Is it still 60,000 Level 1s, or.”

“Forget it, don’t worry about it,” Ren Chenxi said, waving her hand with rare generosity. “This generator will be for both of our buildings to use together. Do you know how to wire it up?”

“Aaaah! Thank you so much, Sister Xi!” Chen Gu was so excited he nearly lunged forward to give her a bear hug, but he was frozen in place by the icy glare from Mu Ning, who was standing right beside Ren Chenxi. Awkwardly retracting his raised arms, Chen Gu let out a goofy chuckle. “Don’t you worry, Sister Xi. All of us guys know how to handle the wiring. We’ll get the power banks in the girls’ building hooked up in no time.”

Ren Chenxi first converted the scattered low-level cores from the two black bags into 150,000 crystals, then spent 50,000 of those to purchase the generator. In an instant, a brand-new crystal core generator, identical to the previous one, appeared at her feet. As soon as he saw it, Chen Gu crouched down and hugged the machine like a long-lost relative. Mu Ning glanced at the device and then turned to Ren Chenxi.

“Since it’s for both buildings, we should pay for half. Chen Gu, go grab thirty—”

“No need!” Ren Chenxi interrupted, clutching her plastic bag. “You paid the deposit for the first generator, didn’t you? Look, there are 500 Level 3 cores in this bag. It’s an even trade.”

“…”

Mu Ning frowned at the black plastic bag, her expression darkening with displeasure. She opened her mouth to explain something, but Ren Chenxi shoved another bag into her hand.

“Oh, and this candy bag the one you used for the deposit. I’m returning it to you.”

Squeezing the delicate, beautiful velvet pouch, Mu Ning looked at Ren Chenxi searchingly. “You must know this was Ren Muhui’s bag, right? Why don’t you want it back?”

At the mention of that name, Ren Chenxi’s face fell. “Why would I want it back? So I can be disgusted by it every day? So, it can remind me daily of the stupid things Ren Muhui used to do?”

“You think everything Ren Muhui did for me. was stupid?”

If it wasn’t stupid, what was it? Ren Chenxi thought. Her former self, whose heart and mind had been entirely consumed by Mu Ning, had been foolish, pathetic, and utterly ridiculous. She took a deep breath, but when she met the clear, visible sorrow in Mu Ning’s eyes, her frustration deflated. She let out a long, weary sigh. “Forget it. The past is in the past.”

It’s over; stop thinking about it! Just try to get along with Mu Ning as a completely new person.

Taking another soft breath, Ren Chenxi looked at Mu Ning calmly and continued, “Since you’ve actually kept something ‘he’ gave you, you might as well hold onto it.”

Mu Ning gripped the soft velvet bag tightly. Her lips trembled, and finally, she managed to breathe out three faint words: “I am sorry.” Of all the many exquisite gifts Ren Muhui had once given her, this handmade velvet pouch was indeed the only thing she had kept. In fact, she had never even tasted the chocolates that were once inside.

Did she regret it? Deeply.

Carefully tucking the velvet bag into a hidden pocket in her clothes, Mu Ning forced a bitter, difficult smile at Ren Chenxi. “You’re right. I will cherish this bag.”

Ren Chenxi looked away, unable to bear the sight of Mu Ning’s eyes, which looked as though they were about to overflow with tears. To think that such a cold, detached “Ice Queen” could make a face like she was about to cry. But why do it in front of me…

Tightening her grip on the black plastic bag, Ren Chenxi pursed her lips and handed it back to Mu Ning once more. “Your deposit.”

Mu Ning sniffled and reached into the bag, taking out the cores one by one. However, she only counted out 200 Level 3 cores. “Keep the rest.” Before Ren Chenxi could protest, she added quickly, “Take them. I know you need crystal cores. Besides, you were about to sell this generator to me anyway, so paying half is already a steal. A generator this good will save us far more cores in the future, won’t it?”

Chen Gu, who had been squatting on the floor, had clutched the generator nervously when the tension between the two women flared up. He had been racking his brain for a way to break the ice, terrified that they would start fighting again and the generator would be taken away. Fortunately, Sister Xi didn’t seem to want a fight. Seeing the atmosphere soften, Chen Gu jumped at the chance to chime in.

“Yes, exactly! Sister Xi, just take the cores. The Boss is right—this generator is precious. You saw how desperate Qi Sheng was; you know how rare this tech is. Since we’re sharing it between two buildings, only paying half is a huge bargain for us!”

Seeing Chen Gu look so genuinely embarrassed about “taking advantage” of her, Ren Chenxi felt a bit guilty herself. She had padded the original asking price by an extra 10,000 Level 1 cores. If they were truly splitting it fairly, she really should have let Mu Ning take another 50 Level 3 cores.

While Ren Chenxi hesitated on how to return the extra 50 cores, Mu Ning spoke up again. “Actually, 30,000 Level 1 cores isn’t much at all. We can use this generator to sell electricity in the base. If we set our prices a bit lower than that Level 3 Lightning user, we’ll make the cores back in no time.”

Ren Chenxi’s eyes lit up. Right! With such an advanced generator, why should she only use it for herself? She could totally follow that Lightning user’s lead and sell power to the base. It would earn her more cores and break that guy’s monopoly, which would indirectly benefit all the other survivors. It was a win-win.

In truth, before Mu Ning made that suggestion, Ren Chenxi had been a bit blinded by the massive profits from the two machines she’d just sold. She had been tempted to search the Doomsday Mall for more high-tech crystal-powered products to sell to Qi Sheng at a premium. However, the greed had only lasted a moment. She looked at the two Level 5 ability users beside her and regained her composure.

Her explanation for where the first two machines came from was already incredibly vague. If she suddenly produced a whole line of gadgets, it would definitely invite unwanted suspicion. Even if she didn’t sell new types of machines and just sold more of the same generators, people would wonder how she came to possess so many “rare” items.

Ren Chenxi knew all too well that having treasure without the strength to protect it was a death sentence in the lawless apocalypse. People would resort to any dark, inhuman method to get their hands on what she had.

In this cruel world of the “survival of the fittest,” reselling system products might bring a temporary windfall and allow her to pull more high-level cards, but it would also draw dangers she couldn’t yet handle. Sure, she might have cards to deal with a few people or even a crowd. But what if she caught the eye of the strongest powerhouses from other bases? What if she ran into a military force equipped with both abilities and heavy weaponry? Moreover, why should she be so confident in her luck? What if she didn’t pull the higher-level cards she needed? And even if she could protect herself, could she protect her friends or Tantan?

No, it was better to keep a low profile. To get crystal cores, she didn’t necessarily need to sell high-tech mall products. She could sell common pre-apocalypse items that people were desperate for. Or she could keep hunting zombies and mutated beasts. For instance, that Level 7 octopus lurking at the bottom of the South Sea?

Even after a full night’s sleep, she was still obsessed with that octopus worth 1 million crystals. And beyond the million-crystal boss, the coast was crawling with mutated seafood no, monsters worth 100,000 crystals each!

Noticing Ren Chenxi’s vacant stare, Mu Ning realized she had been spaced out for a while. She gently tugged on the black plastic bag still in Ren Chenxi’s hand. “Are you going to take the rest of the crystals?”

The cool, crisp voice snapped Ren Chenxi back from her daydreams. She looked at the Level 5 display next to Mu Ning’s health bar and sighed softly before taking the bag back.

The female lead of the game is only Level 5! And you, the sister of the male lead, think you can skip ahead and challenge high-level bosses?

Gathering her thoughts, Ren Chenxi put the entire bag into her inventory right in front of Mu Ning. She looked at her and said bluntly, “Fine, I’ll take the rest. From now on, we split the profits from selling electricity fifty-fifty. But… you have to be the one to handle the sales!”

Ren Chenxi wasn’t stupid. She was a newcomer who hadn’t even established a foothold yet. She had no standing to challenge the veterans who monopolized the power business. Naturally, she needed Mu Ning a Level 5 ability user who had contributed significantly to the base’s safety to be the face of the operation.

Mu Ning understood that Ren Chenxi wanted her to draw the heat from that Level 3 user, and she nodded readily. “Deal. I’ll have Chen Gu put out some word in my name so anyone needing power can come to us. But how should we set the price…”

As Mu Ning was speaking, Zhang Tongqi’s annoyed voice called out from the doorway: “Boss! Someone’s here to see you!”

Hearing that impatient tone, Mu Ning instantly knew who it was.

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