Cave Refuge

After greeting the two guests inside, Mrs. Thompson took out two more stools from the Storage Space for them to sit. Then, she continued to pour tea for them from a teapot, also retrieved from the Storage Space.

Leo King and Thomas Jefferson weren't too surprised by the empty room that only had a single set of table and chairs; after all, they knew that the registration formalities for the three members of the Thompson Family were only completed yesterday by Leo King himself, so the empty room didn't faze them.

Furthermore, compared to the empty room, once the two guests were seated, they noticed how naturally Mrs. Thompson took out the tea set from the Storage Space to serve them tea, a sign that the Thompson Family probably partook in tea regularly, with Mr. Thompson likely a tea aficionado in particular.

Moreover, by the strong, dark color of the tea in the cups, they could tell that the tea they'd been served was at least from the first few brews; otherwise, the color wouldn't be so rich, nor the aroma so intense.

After taking a moment to taste the tea, Mr. Thompson initiated the conversation, "May I know what brings you two here today?"

Mr. Thompson had his suspicions about their visit upon seeing Leo King, but he couldn't be too direct since he had brought along another person who was a stranger to him.

Hearing Mr. Thompson's query, Leo King glanced at Thomas Jefferson and noticed his expression, then spoke up, "Actually, we are here unannounced, mainly to inquire if we can purchase some more wine from you. I won't hide it from you, yesterday evening when I was about to enjoy the bottle we purchased from you, it was carelessly noticed by others, so... sigh..." Leo King then gave another glance towards Thomas Jefferson.

Before Mr. Thompson could respond, Leo King continued, "Of course, the price will not be the same as yesterday. I understand, of course, that yesterday's price was definitely discounted. So, I brought a friend this time and we are prepared to pay the original price, whatever it may be."

Upon hearing that Leo King bought the wine from Mr. Thompson at a much lower price the previous day, Mr. Thompson and Zachary realized that although the two men came together, they did not seem very close, which was why the talk of paying the full price was brought up.

After all, no price was actually discussed when the wine was delivered yesterday. If Leo King had come with a close friend, they could have hinted that the wine was received as a favor without making it explicit, and requested a discount for the purchase today.

Upon hearing that the purpose of their visit was to buy wine, Mr. Thompson first checked his Storage Equipment for bottled bulk wine. After verifying he still had a fair amount left, he then slowly said, "I do have some stock left, but the quantity is not much.

As you know, during the flood disaster staying in the Water Base, getting brewing materials was extremely difficult. If not for my foresight in stockpiling some wine before the disaster, plus my careful rationing during the disaster, the remaining wine would have been long gone."

Hearing that Mr. Thompson still had wine, the visitors breathed a sigh of relief. Despite all the difficulties mentioned earlier, as long as he indicated that he still had stock in the end, it naturally implied he was willing to sell. The only issue remaining was the price.

Price was not a challenging factor for either Leo King or Thomas Jefferson. Despite his modest official position, Leo King, who worked at the reception center of the base, could expect an informal income dozens or even hundreds of times higher than his official salary at times like these.

And he didn't need to break any laws to earn it. If he encountered settlers who were 'sensible' like the people from the Thompson Family, he would proactively offer reminders and help them secure better resettlement benefits.

As for those who were stubborn and lacked understanding of social customs, making their lives difficult would be below him; the best course of action was to follow regulations. After all, the Officials had established clear procedures and benefits for settlement.

But if he did not proactively offer reminders and help expedite the process for families like the Thompsons', they certainly would not have been able to complete all the resettlement procedures in less than half a day.

Thus, for strangers, it was unnecessary to target them. Adhering to the official procedures, completing the entire process would take at least two to three days.

Even after following the whole resettlement process, when it came to buying or renting housing, although they would be shown several properties according to their household registration, it was undeniable that among the houses brought out by the property department, there were no prime housing options.

Those prime properties were naturally controlled by the housing department's staff, who would only bring them out for people who understood the way of the world.

And considering what the survivors who were just about to settle in the Magic Capital Base would value the most in their hands, it definitely had to be food. However, most people wouldn't seek help with food (snacks) or wine as Zachary did; instead, they would ask for Leo King's assistance with items that might seem valuable but were irrelevant for daily survival.

If you find the above explanation a bit roundabout, to put it simply, during times of famine, although the price of food would not be as high as antiques, when it came to the mid-phase of famine, even with highly valuable antiques, it would be difficult to exchange them for food from others.