Chapter 280: The Price of Life

Seeing this, Jian Changsheng’s expression changed, and he quickly walked over.

He touched the woman’s nose with his finger; there was still a faint breath, but her body temperature was slowly dropping… The other women saw this, their eyes filled with numbness. They stiffly moved their bodies and continued walking toward other streets.

It wasn’t that they didn’t want to save her, but they had no way to do so… Moreover, their own condition was no better than the woman who had fallen. They didn’t know when they might collapse themselves, and there were people at home waiting for them in agony.

“Hey… hey?” Jian Changsheng tried calling out twice, but the fallen woman didn’t respond at all; she remained unconscious.

Jian Changsheng looked around, but saw no one else. Leaving her like this would almost certainly mean death… After struggling for a long time, he gritted his teeth, hoisted the woman onto his back, and turned back toward the courtyard.

Creak—

He pushed open the courtyard gate again.

Chu Muyun and Bai Ye were both startled to see Jian Changsheng return suddenly. Seeing the figure on his back, a look of confusion appeared in their eyes.

“What is this……”

“She’s about to freeze to death. Isn’t there a fire here? Let her warm up a bit.” Jian Changsheng laid the woman down by the bonfire, his breath forming clouds of ice mist as he spoke.

Chu Muyun narrowed his eyes, placed his fingertips on the unconscious woman, and spoke slowly:

“It’s hypothermia. When the human body is exposed to extreme cold for a long time, its own temperature drops. You might even feel very hot, start taking off your own warm clothes, and eventually freeze to death……”

“Can you cure her?”

“……This isn’t a question of curing. As long as the body can be warmed up, she’ll naturally be fine. But if she can’t be warmed up……” Chu Muyun didn’t continue. “By the way, where did you bring her from?”

“My doorstep.”

“Do you know her?”

“……No.”

Jian Changsheng lowered his head slightly, seemingly feeling a bit guilty… He knew this was Chu Muyun’s house after all, and doing this was truly a bit inappropriate.

Fortunately, Chu Muyun wasn’t angry, but nodded calmly.

“I see.”

Bai Ye kept his head down the whole time, saying nothing.

Jian Changsheng breathed a sigh of relief in his heart and was about to turn and leave when Chu Muyun’s voice sounded again.

“Little Jian.”

“……Yeah?”

“You know, we can’t save everyone… right?”

Jian Changsheng was silent for a long time, gave a muffled “yeah,” and pushed the door open to leave…

Chu Muyun watched his departing back and let out a long sigh.

……

Goya Hotel.

“Chairman, our shops are about to be crushed by people coming to buy coal!”

The squinting man followed Yan Shang, the chairman of the Star Chamber of Commerce, walking quickly through the brightly lit corridor, speaking in a deep voice.

“Almost everyone in the city is looking for coal, and our Star Chamber of Commerce holds sixty percent of Aurora City’s coal reserves. Our boiler plant is already blocked solid by people coming to buy coal, and the people in line are almost fighting… What should we do next?”

“Scientific regression… and at a time like this.” A sharp glint flashed in Yan Shang’s eyes. “It seems Heaven does not wish for my Star Chamber of Commerce to perish!”

“You mean……”

“Have the chairmen of the other two chambers of commerce arrived?”

“They have, they’re waiting for you in the lounge.”

Yan Shang walked straight to the door of the lounge. Just as he was about to push it open, he seemed to think of something and turned to the squinting man. “Has ‘Lifu’ been activated?”

“Yuzi has already gone.”

“Good.”

Yan Shang pushed open the lounge doors with both hands.

In the opulent room, two figures were sitting on a snow-white sofa, wearing only thin shirts, seemingly discussing something. Seeing Yan Shang walk in, both stood up to greet him with a smile.

“Chairman Yan, in all of Aurora City, it’s warmest right here.”

“Upon hearing your invitation, I rushed over from the chamber immediately. Just as you said, the coal in our warehouses is still being held.”

Yan Shang took off his coat, sat on the sofa on the other side, and spoke unhurriedly:

“Let’s skip the pleasantries… Currently, the Star Chamber of Commerce holds sixty percent of the coal reserves in Aurora City. Your two chambers, Silver Moon and Cold Spring, hold thirty percent combined, and the Enforcers hold ten percent… What do you two think of the current situation?”

The two chairmen spoke thoughtfully:

“The sudden collapse of the heating system means the coal in our hands has become the scarcest resource in Aurora City. Perhaps… we could appropriately raise the price?”

“Indeed, times have changed… Business is all about timing, location, and people. Now is our chance to make a fortune… We came here to discuss with Chairman Yan how much to raise it by……”

Yan Shang said lightly: “Oh? How much do you think is appropriate?”

The two chairmen looked at each other and simultaneously held up two fingers, crossing them in front of their chests. “……Ten times?”

“Ten times?” Yan Shang shook his head. “It seems you two are not well-informed……”

“What do you mean, Chairman Yan?”

“Just a few minutes ago, news came from the Aurora Base that Aurora-kun has gone missing……”

“What???” The two chairmen were shocked.

“Aurora-kun’s disappearance means the countdown to Aurora City’s destruction has begun… and it also means that the citizens scrambling to buy our coal now will be dead before long.” Yan Shang pointed at the two of them. “But you and I are different. Our businesses span other major realms, so we have obtained tickets for the last inter-realm train. We can retreat unscathed… Therefore, this will be the last business deal we conduct within the Aurora Realm.”

“Then… what do you mean… what price is appropriate?”

Yan Shang smiled slightly and slowly raised five fingers.

“Fifty times?”

“No, fifty thousand times.”

“Fifty thousand times????” The two chairmen widened their eyes in disbelief. “The current market price of coal is about one copper coin per kilogram… Fifty thousand times, that’s fifty thousand copper coins per kilogram?! That’s the income of a middle-class family in Aurora City for several years without eating or drinking!”

“Fifty thousand copper coins… that’s enough to buy half an apartment in Aurora City, and now it can only buy one kilogram of coal? This… this isn’t even enough to burn for a day?!”

Even the two chairmen, who considered themselves ruthless enough, were shocked by the astronomical price Yan Shang threw out. How was this any different from directly taking the lives of those residents?

“Coal? Do you think we’re selling coal right now?”

Yan Shang sneered.

“What we’re selling… is the lives of those ordinary people.”