Chapter 31

When you encounter such a stingy guy who is seriously doing something he considers very important, if you can't immediately bring him gold or benefits, then don't disturb him. Instead, wait patiently for him to finish what he's doing. This is the experience Zhang Tie learned from Tang De, so after entering the room, Zhang Tie didn't speak, but stood a bit awkwardly in front of Manager Hans' large desk, patiently waiting for the fatso to finish cleaning the beautiful buttons on his coat. At the same time, he quietly observed the most luxurious room he had ever seen in his life.

Indeed, it was the most luxurious room Zhang Tie had ever seen in his life, because in his 15 years of a miserable green life, he had never been to any high-end places. Fortunately, his life in the杂货店 (general store) had trained him to have a discerning eye. When he walked into the office, he identified the floor as made of cedar wood, Manager Hans' desk as made of nanmu wood, and the other few pieces of furniture and cabinets seemed to be made of the more precious golden pomelo wood. In a corner of the office, Zhang Tie also saw a huge natural single-crystal quartz, weighing over five kilograms, placed in a basin of quartz sand—truly, this was the first time Zhang Tie had seen such a large crystal. Before the Great Catastrophe, people only used crystals for decoration, but after the Great Catastrophe, the true function and knowledge of crystals were popularized. A common understanding in this era was that any natural crystal weighing over three kilograms could be called a "crystal generator." This type of crystal, no matter where it was placed, could gather energy and magnetic fields, purify and enhance the energy in the surrounding area of several dozen square meters, which was greatly beneficial to health and cultivation. Some people even believed that if one often stayed in such a crystal energy field, it could purify negative energy and bring good luck...

Such a crystal generator weighing over five kilograms and of decent quality, Zhang Tie estimated, would cost at least 40 gold pieces...

Zhang Tie sighed, "Damn, he's really rich." Such a crystal was at least grade 4, and Tang De's store didn't even have one. It was already considered a "strategic material" and could not be bought in ordinary stores. Only some stores with special operating rights could sell them. In Black Flame City, the Coal and Steel Federation's direct business groups monopolized the sale of such grade crystals.

Knowing that Zhang Tie had entered the room, Manager Hans, who had been cleaning the buttons on his coat, took a full three minutes before he sighed contentedly, put away the velvet cloth and monocle, and placed them in the drawer. Then he looked at Zhang Tie.

"Very sensible young man!" Manager Hans praised, seemingly very satisfied that Zhang Tie hadn't disturbed his refined interest. "Now, let me see what you have!"

Because he was so fat, Manager Hans' face looked like a steamed bun that had been punched, with all his facial features buried in the layers of fat. Compared to him, Tang De's figure could be described as slender.

Zhang Tie stepped forward, handed the letter of introduction from Captain Collin to Manager Hans with both hands, and stood properly in front of the large desk, putting on an honest look. "I am a student at the Seventh National Male School. Captain Collin said he has a good part-time job for me here!"

"Ha, good, of course it's a good part-time job..." Manager Hans took the letter, glanced at it casually, and laughed. Then he looked Zhang Tie up and down with a gaze that made Zhang Tie a bit uneasy. "The part-time job is after school, from 6 PM to 11 PM. So, young man, how many days a week can you come here?"

"Monday, Wednesday, and Friday evenings..." Zhang Tie thought for a moment and replied. He had to go to Tang De on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and help his mother at home on weekends, so the remaining time was only Monday, Wednesday, and Friday evenings.

"Only three days a week, a bit less, but okay..." Manager Hans took something out of the drawer, quickly wrote something on it, and spoke in a rapid-fire manner. "The part-time job pays weekly. When there's work, it's 70 copper coins per hour... If you perform well, it can increase. You must report for duty at 6 PM on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. If you're one minute late, you work for free that day. Other expenses you incur are not reimbursed by the War Hall. If customers give you tips, you can keep them. Captain Collin should have told you what this job is about..."

"Captain Collin said..." Zhang Tie was about to repeat the beautiful promises Collin had made, but the door to Manager Hans' office was suddenly pushed open, and a man rushed in without knocking. "Manager, the guest in Room 6 is getting impatient..."

"Where's Harry?" Manager Hans stood up from behind the desk and suddenly shouted angrily. "Harry didn't come today? Offending our God, these noble guests, these wealthy patrons, do you want me to be stripped and thrown into the sewers?"

"His contract ended yesterday, and Harry quit!" The man who came in replied with a bitter face. "I already reported this to you. What should we do now..."

Manager Hans' angry voice suddenly stopped, and after two seconds, both men's eyes suddenly focused on Zhang Tie. Manager Hans smiled gently. "You... young man, what's your name? Come over and sign the contract. You're lucky... um..." The fat on Manager Hans' face trembled painfully. "I'll give you an extra 10 copper coins per hour. This part-time job is yours!"

Zhang Tie felt secretly pleased. He didn't expect to encounter an old employee skipping work on his first day, and this high-paying, good-benefit job that could exercise his body and put him in contact with many wealthy and important people, and maybe even beautiful women, fell into his lap.

You see, when you have good luck, there's nothing you can do about it. He had only been there for less than an hour, and Manager Hans had already increased his pay. This was the first paid job Zhang Tie had ever had in his life.

So, without hesitation, Zhang Tie didn't even read the contract carefully, took the pen Manager Hans handed him, and signed his name on the paper in a few swift strokes.

As soon as Zhang Tie signed, Manager Hans quickly put the contract in the drawer. Before Zhang Tie could say anything, the man who had rushed in was already dragging him out, and Manager Hans called out, "This kid stinks of sweat. Give him a bath..."

Zhang Tie didn't expect to really get this high-paying part-time job, and to really find a job at the Iron Thorn War Hall. Working for 80 copper coins an hour, he could earn two silver coins in just four or five hours a week. Two silver coins! Happiness came so suddenly that Zhang Tie's head was still a bit dizzy, and he just mechanically let others handle him, feeling like a can on a factory production line, fully experiencing what it was like to be part of an assembly line—being rushed to take a quick shower, then dressed in a set of soft cotton and linen clothes and socks, and then pulled to one side, where another layer of something like padding or armor was put over the clothes, covering his chest, back, crotch, and sides of his arms, looking quite impressive. Finally, when someone put a large helmet-like guard over his head, covering half of his face, Zhang Tie felt something was off. Was this the work uniform? It seemed a bit strange, and he felt a bit weird.

However, before Zhang Tie could ask, he was taken to a room...

The room was large, nearly 200 square meters. The floor was a layer of elastic, non-slip rubber, and the four walls were large, padded sections. There was only one person in the huge room, a little kid, about 11 or 12 years old, with brownish-red hair, wearing a white training suit, and a cold expression, practicing on a dummy in the room.

Zhang Tie saw the little kid, and the little kid saw him. The little kid stopped his movements, and Zhang Tie put on what he thought was a warm and friendly smile, walked up to the little kid, and bent down. "Little friend..."

Without any warning, the little kid delivered a fierce roundhouse kick, hitting Zhang Tie squarely in the head. Zhang Tie didn't even have time to make a sound or finish his sentence. He blacked out and fainted in shame...

...

After an unknown amount of time, Zhang Tie woke up with a sneeze, feeling his head as if dozens of little people were drumming inside, still a bit dizzy and disoriented.

"Kid, you're awake..." Standing in front of Zhang Tie was a bald, muscular man in his thirties, with some bruises on his face. Seeing Zhang Tie open his eyes, the man smiled, put away a small porcelain bottle he had been holding near Zhang Tie's nose, and then started changing his clothes from a storage box.

Zhang Tie sat up, realizing he was lying on a wide bench. There were four or five people in the room. Before he could say anything, he felt a wave of nausea and saw a trash can in the corner of a storage cabinet. He covered his mouth and ran over, retching into the trash can. He even cried, but only a bit of sticky saliva came out, nothing else. After a while, Zhang Tie felt his head finally clear a bit, and he sat back on the bench, shaking his head hard, trying to remember what had happened...

Wait, Zhang Tie suddenly stood up, looking around. Where was that little kid? If I see you again, I'll beat the crap out of you!

"Kid, we're called sparring partners, but in a bad way, we're human punching bags. Being a human punching bag also has its techniques. A little skin and flesh injury is nothing, but you must protect your head and below. I've never seen anyone as stupid as you, offering your head to be kicked..." Another man, who had finished changing, walked over, patted Zhang Tie on the shoulder, and then left the changing room with his bag.

What, sparring partner? Human punching bag? Zhang Tie was dumbfounded...