When Ding Meng walked in, Vader's face actually revealed a rare trace of a gentle smile. Even the appraiser at the side looked at him with a trace of expectation in his eyes.
"Looks like your harvest today isn't small?" Vader asked thoughtfully as he stared at Ding Meng's bag.
Ding Meng ignored him and walked straight to the workbench. From the bag, he took out a handful of small stones that sparkled like grains of rice and placed them on the workbench. The appraiser's eyes immediately widened. Based on his three years of experience working here, he could tell that this was a diamond, and a pretty good one at that.
Although there were tens of thousands of workers in this place, what the people outside dug out every day was nothing more than "gold sand and stone", "crystal ore rough embryo", and "associated source". If they were lucky enough to dig out "gold-containing shale", they would be considered quite lucky. Very few people could dig out diamonds, let alone diamonds of such good quality.
As expected, the screen on the wall soon displayed the evaluation results:
Material: Diamond Ore
Quantity: 96 grams
[Grade: C]
Exchange Value: 2,688 points
When the appraiser raised his head again, he looked at Ding Meng with an unconcealable look of astonishment. He knew very well what this exchange value meant.
Even the pile of D-grade Crystal Source Ores that Ding Meng had sent over yesterday was worth 644 points. Most of the laborers in the plaza outside were earning less than 200 points every day. Those who could earn more than 200 points could be counted on one's fingers.
The appraiser's gaze couldn't help but fall to the side. At this moment, Vader had already stood up, the smile on his face growing wider. "Number 8208. If I remember correctly, your name seems to be Ding Meng, right?"
In this place, the workers' names were replaced by numbers. As the person in charge of the center, it was already commendable that Vader could remember his name.
Ding Meng still didn't show much of an expression. He only replied indifferently, "Yes, sir."
Vader walked up to him. "Congratulations, Ding Meng. You've broken our center's record. The exchange value for a single transaction is as high as 2,688 points, which is our highest record here. Feel free to exchange anything you want."
Ding Meng did not stand on ceremony and immediately said to the appraiser, "20 nutrient supplies."
According to today's exchange rate, 20 nutrient solutions were worth 1,000 points. Although the total price was shocking, it was enough to ensure that Ding Meng would not suffer from hunger for the next week.
The so-called nutrient supply in this exchange center was not an injectable nutrient solution, but a transparent test tube. The blue liquid inside was a low-polymerized compressed energy mixture. It could be directly taken orally to maintain the various energy and vitamins that the human body needed every day.
Now, the 10 test tubes were neatly placed in an exquisite iron box. The faint blue color was very moving.
"I also want six healing mixtures," Ding Meng said again.
The Healing Mixture was also not a highly condensed energy product. It could only be used to deal with minor illnesses such as colds, coughs, colds, and inflammation. Exchanging six bottles at once meant that the treatment would take two days, which meant that the patient had been sick for some time.
"But you don't look sick." Vader's smile finally disappeared when he said this.
Ding Meng seemed to know what he was suspecting, so he simply explained, "Number 2187 has been sick for five days."
Vader frowned, as if trying hard to recall what Number 2187 looked like. "You're friends with Number 2187?"
Ding Meng's expression immediately turned cold. "I don't have any friends."
Vader was very satisfied with this answer. In this place, people could die at any time, and it was not easy to stay alive. What friends, dignity, trust, and the like were more important than nutrient supplies?
As for the legendary love, there were no female creatures in this place to speak of.
"But you want the Healing Mixture," Vader retorted.
Ding Meng said indifferently, "I don't mind not having it. But if Number 2187 dies, it will be very difficult to find so many diamonds in the future."
So this was the reason. Vader pondered for a while and said, "I agree to the exchange."
Ding Meng immediately bowed his head. "Thank you, sir!"
After putting the six test tubes filled with green liquid into the metal box, Vader spoke again. "You've spent a total of 1750 points. You still have 938 points left. What else do you need?"
Ding Meng didn't answer immediately. Instead, he turned his head to look at the appraiser beside him. The appraiser actually understood. "Sir Vader, Mr. Ding Meng, I'll continue working in the next room. You can continue chatting."
It wasn't until the appraiser walked into spare room No. 2 next door that Vader smiled meaningfully. "Since you're the Taobao champion, I can make an exception this time. But your request must be within the scope of the base's principles before I agree."
Ding Meng nodded and went straight to the point. "Sir, I've been feeling a little unwell recently. I need a medical pod to check my body."
The base's medical pods were relatively advanced medical devices. In principle, they were only available to the mercenaries stationed in the area. Low-level laborers like Ding Meng and the others had no right to use them. This was also one of the rules of this place.
Vader stared coldly at Ding Meng. "You know the rules here."
"I know."
Ding Meng's expression didn't change in the slightest. During this period of time, he had already figured out the big and small rules of this place, including some unspoken rules that couldn't be brought to the table.
Suddenly, Vader realized that there was something extra in his palm. He spread it out and saw that it was actually a gemstone that emitted an amber luster. Its size was at least the size of a watch. Even though he had seen all kinds of rough diamond in the center, he couldn't help but be secretly surprised at this moment. This was because he knew that a diamond of this quality couldn't be simply evaluated by numerical values.
Ding Meng still didn't show any expression. "I dug it up today. I'll give it to you, sir."
Vader's gaze turned even colder. "Are you bribing me?"
"You're wrong, sir."
Ding Meng's cold tone suddenly had a trace of emotion. "I just want to live."
Vader was still staring at him closely. From the outside, Ding Meng didn't seem to be the tall type. On the contrary, his figure was somewhat thin and short. The laborers in this place toiled in the harsh mining areas and weathered areas all year round. Every day, they could only rely on one or two bottles of cheap nutrient solution to survive. Most of them were sallow and emaciated, and looked malnourished.
From the day they were sent here, their fates had already been decided. They would either struggle here, or struggle until they finally died powerlessly. Therefore, the laborers in this place gradually transformed into two types of people. The first type became the wild beasts that fought for other people's things in the plaza outside, and the second type became the lifeless, crippled people who waited for death.
Vader carefully sized up Ding Meng. He suddenly realized that apart from the dirt on his face, Ding Meng's facial features could actually be considered regular. There was even a trace of sharpness amidst the regularity. Although his face was still somewhat immature, there was a kind of heroic spirit pulsating between his brows that others didn't possess. This was what a young man should look like.
Which young man with vitality wouldn't be afraid of the sudden and unknown arrival of death?
Vader suddenly lowered his head and reached out to press a few buttons on the wristwatch on his wrist. The sophisticated instrument immediately constructed a wide virtual screen between the two of them. Not only did it display Ding Meng's image and data, it also displayed his personal information.
Name: Ding Meng;
Age: 20;
Serial Number: F3-8028;
Origin: Linda Department — TOP45 — Planet of Thorns' 88th Camp NF;
Events: None;
… …
Ding Meng wasn't surprised by this at all. Instead, he calmly said, "Sir, I know you're also from TOP45. I also know that you still have a few months before your contract ends. If you accept my gift, not only will you be able to live on when you return to your hometown, you'll live a better life than I do. I don't ask for much. I just want to live on."
His words were simple, but they revealed an incomparably resolute tone.
Vader stared at him for a long while before finally nodding. "Come with me."