One in the afternoon.
Zhao Hengping and his family arrived at their new home in the Yue Bay District by taxi.
The driver kindly helped with unloading their luggage and drove away.
Some people entering and leaving the community curiously sized up the family.
Most of the attention was on the eldest daughter, Zhao Xiaoying.
Because she was truly beautiful, no less than a celebrity known for her looks.
Even women couldn't help but glance a few more times at such a pretty girl.
Zhao Xiaoying felt the icy cold air and shivered, "It's so cold!"
Zhao Hengping tightened his coat and consoled, "Meteorologists have analyzed that in about two months, the temperature in the central Great Xia will rise, and it won't be this cold then."
Zhao Xiaoying pouted, "In two months, summer will be over."
Mother Zhao Aixia said, "You're not wrong, experts have said this year is indeed a 'year without summer.'"
Zhao Hengping pulled along two suitcases, saying, "Let's go, it will be warm once we get inside."
The family went into the community with their luggage.
Zhao Xiaoying followed closely behind her father, curiously glancing around.
The overall impression of the community for her was summed up in one word—old!
Although it was well-maintained, with the snow on the roads cleared and no dirt or mess around.
Yet from many aspects, one could see that the community was built quite some time ago.
Zhao Xiaoying thought of high-end residences in foreign countries and secretly wondered, "Is our family experiencing a social fall?"
It seemed so.
After rounding a corner.
Zhao Hengping pointed ahead with a smile, "Building twelve is over there, our apartment is unit 802."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Xiaoying looked over, her gaze first sweeping past Building twelve, then locking onto a silhouette walking ahead.
From behind, it appeared to be a male.
He wore a helmet, carried a large plastic bucket in each hand, and had a big backpack on his back, making for a rather peculiar sight.
Zhao Xiaoying guessed in her heart, "Is he a delivery guy?"
She knew that to maximize resource utilization, Great Xia's logistics industry had been consolidated into one company by the authorities.
The unusual appearance of this person made her immediately think of the delivery personnel traversing the streets and alleys.
After a moment.
The delivery guy seemed to hear something behind him and glanced back.
His front side came into view, but due to wearing a cold-mask, only a pair of eyes could be seen.
Those eyes were strikingly lively, causing Zhao Xiaoying to take several more looks.
She was quite pleased to see the guy's gaze meet hers, with a hint of amazement flashing in his eyes.
Zhao Hengping proactively greeted, "Hello!"
The guy responded, "Hello!"
He suddenly asked, "Are you moving to unit 802 in building twelve?"
Zhao Hengping was a bit surprised, "How do you know?"
Zhao Xiaoying widened her beautiful eyes.
The guy laughed, "What a coincidence, I'm your downstairs neighbor in unit 702."
Zhao Hengping exclaimed, "That's really quite the coincidence."
The guy set down the two buckets with a "thump thump" sound, clearly indicating their heaviness.
He pulled down his mask and extended his right hand, "My name is Yang Fan, welcome to the Yue Bay District!"
Zhao Hengping quickly shook the offered hand, "Thank you!"
Zhao Xiaoying glanced at him and assessed in her mind, "Quite a bit of charm there!"
Young son Zhao Xiaolong moved close to the bucket and curiously asked, "Uncle, what's in the bucket?"
Zhao Aixia touched her son's head and corrected, "Call him brother."
She noticed that the guy appeared to be in his early twenties, so calling him uncle didn't fit.
Zhao Xiaolong corrected himself and promptly said, "Hello brother."
Yang Fan chuckled and opened the bucket lids, "For calling me brother, you can choose two fish."
The family was collectively surprised.
The two large buckets were packed with fish of varying sizes, probably weighing no less than fifty pounds.
Zhao Xiaoying glanced from the fish buckets to Yang Fan, greatly astonished, "This person is really strong."
Zhao Hengping couldn't help but ask, "Where did you get so many fish?"
Yang Fan pointed towards the east, "That's the Lanjiang River, and there are plenty of fish in the river."
Zhao Hengping realized, "With the temperature this low the river must be frozen over, probably not easy to fish."
Yang Fan casually said, "It's simple, just break the ice."
Zhao Hengping, having some experience, knew it wasn't that simple.
If it really were so easy, the fish in the Lanjiang River would've been extinct long ago.
This middle-aged man thought for a moment and sincerely said, "Thank you for your kindness, but we can't just take your fish for free. Let us pay for them instead."
Yang Fan made a suggestion, "How about this: I give you two fish, and you buy two more at half price, how about that?"
Before Zhao Hengping could speak.
Zhao Aixia happily replied, "Mr. Yang, thank you very much."
As Great Xia had fully implemented a rationing system, one could only shop at Great Xia Business Communication, making it hard to buy more things. The opportunity to buy a few more fish wasn't something she'd pass up.
Yang Fan waved his hand, "We're all neighbors, no need to be so formal, just call me 'Xiaoyang.'
He pointed to a fish, "This type, the Huajiang Bream, has almost no bones and is very tender, I recommend you buy this."
While saying "recommend," his right hand quickly grabbed several larger fish and skillfully stringed them together with a single rope.
Yang Fan weighed them with his hand and reported a number, "Twelve pounds seven ounces."
He quickly pulled out a small electronic hand-scale and hung the fish on it.
"Beep!"
An electronic voice confirmed, "Twelve pounds seven ounces."
Not a fraction off.
The family was instantly impressed.
Zhao Hengping gave a thumbs up, "Impressive!"
Zhao Xiaoying glanced at the electronic scale, then at him, feeling a bit of admiration.
Turns out the guy is a fish seller, judging by his skill, he's probably been selling fish at the market for many years.
Yang Fan chuckled again and said, "I remember Great Xia Business Communication's price is eight per pound, and at half price it's four, just give me fifty."
Zhao Hengping quickly said, "No, that's too little, I'll give you a hundred."
Anyone with sense knew that for scarce resources, the official prices were just for looking, you couldn't actually buy them for that.
Purchasing through private channels, you couldn't get it for eight, or even eighteen.
After a brief negotiation, they settled at eighty.
Yang Fan bid them farewell and left with the two large buckets.
Zhao Xiaoying watched his back, suddenly feeling a fascinating sense of encountering a "Great Xia character."
Zhao Aixia sighed and commented, "Xiaoyang is a good person."
Zhao Hengping agreed wholeheartedly, "Also, a very capable person."