Apocalyptic Hoarding Diary

The waiter thought for a moment and then gave a number.

"6000 points".

Xu Xiaoyan's mind went blank. How many points did she have in her account? 5534.92.

Six thousand points, which is more than four hundred more than her entire net worth.

She stared at the waiter, opened her mouth as if to say something, but her throat seemed blocked, and she couldn't make a sound.

A set of crossbows costs six thousand; she suddenly felt ridiculous.

I was just mentally planning how to negotiate the price, how to bargain, how to get the other party to lower the price, how to play hard to get, how to retreat in order to advance, and how to get the other party to make concessions on their own initiative.

And what happened? They quoted a price, and she didn't even have the right to negotiate.

Even with a 9.5% discount, it's still 5,700 yuan. It's really unnecessary to spend all your savings on a bow and arrow!

Unless the price drops to 5000 points!

Xu Xiaoyan looked up at the waiter, wanting to say something, but swallowed the words back.

The waiter was still looking at her, his eyes full of expectation.

Xu Xiaoyan opened her mouth, but in the end she could only manage a bitter smile. "It's too expensive, I can't afford it."

The waiter paused for a moment, his expectation slowly turning into disappointment.

The silence lasted for two or three seconds.

In those two or three seconds, Xu Xiaoyan heard her own heartbeat and the commotion of people fighting over the eggs.

"Are you really not going to reconsider?" the waiter asked, his tone still carrying a hint of reluctance.

She moved closer to Xu Xiaoyan and lowered her voice, "I can apply to see if we can get a lower price."

Her tone was urgent, and her eyes were fixed intently on Xu Xiaoyan.

Reason told her that the cost of this crossbow was what it was, and six thousand was already a discounted price. How could it possibly be reduced to five thousand? That's a difference of a whole thousand points!

She stood there, looking at the waiter's expectant face, and suddenly didn't want to act anymore.

All that talk of feigning weakness, retreating to advance, and haggling techniques—all those roundabout ways and petty schemes seem meaningless now. So what if I can't afford it? What's the point of pretending?

She sighed, "It's not that I don't want to buy it."

She said directly, in a very calm voice, "I only have 5000 points on me, and I can't afford to give up even one more."

She paused, looked into the waiter's eyes, and said, word by word, "Unless you are willing to sell me the crossbow and those hundred arrows for 5000 points, there is really no way."

As soon as she said those words, Xu Xiaoyan felt a sudden sense of relief.

There's nothing to hide. This is the price she can offer. If you can buy it, great; if not, oh well. That's just how it is. Whatever.

The waiter was stunned, his eyes fixed on Xu Xiaoyan, but his gaze was unfocused, as if he was looking at Xu Xiaoyan, or perhaps at something else—he was probably calculating the bill in his mind.

Her fingers unconsciously twisted the hem of her dress, making the red fabric crumpled. Her other hand gripped the tablet tightly, her knuckles turning white.

Xu Xiaoyan looked at her without saying a word.

At this point, nothing you say will make a difference. Just state your bottom line and then shut up. Let the other party think about it. The more you talk, the more the other party will feel that you still have room for negotiation. If you don't speak, the other party will become anxious.

After five seconds of silence, the waiter finally spoke.

She looked up at Xu Xiaoyan and said, "Wait a minute, I'll go talk to the store manager."

After saying that, without waiting for Xu Xiaoyan's reply, he turned and left, his red figure quickly disappearing into the depths of the shop.

Time passed second by second, and there were fewer people in the shop than before. The wave of people grabbing eggs had probably dispersed, leaving only a few middle-aged women still counting their spoils.

After a while, I caught a glimpse of a red figure emerging from the depths of the shop.

Xu Xiaoyan looked up and saw that it was the waiter. Behind her was another person, a chubby man, wearing different clothes than the waiter, a dark blue shirt and black pants, with a slightly protruding belly, and he swayed a little when he walked.

His face was round, his eyes were small, and when he smiled his eyes narrowed into slits, making him look a bit like the Maitreya Buddha in a temple.

"You're the one who wants to buy the precision crossbow, right?" He walked up to Xu Xiaoyan and looked her up and down.

Xu Xiaoyan nodded without saying anything.

The store manager nodded and then said, "Let's make this clear first." His voice was not loud, but it was steady, and he pronounced each word clearly. "I can sell it to you for 5000 points at a fixed price, but our company does not cover after-sales service."

He paused, looking into Xu Xiaoyan's eyes, "If you want to repair the crossbow later, or continue to order matching arrows, the price will be very high, so you should be prepared."

After saying that, he crossed his arms and waited for Xu Xiaoyan's reaction.

She paused for two seconds, then nodded repeatedly.

"Okay," she said, "I understand that after-sales service is not included."

After nodding, she suddenly remembered something and asked, "How much does it cost to order arrows?"

"Two points per item, minimum order of 1000 items," he said calmly, as if he were remarking on the nice weather.

"So expensive?" she blurted out, her voice trembling.

She looked at the store manager with a complex expression, a mixture of surprise, hesitation, heartache, and a hint of "this is too much!"

The store manager smiled when he saw her expression.

"Custom-made items are never cheap," he said, with a hint of self-assurance in his voice. "You're lucky with this price."

He paused, then took a step closer to Xu Xiaoyan:

"To tell you the truth, the person who ordered it has already paid 3000 points, otherwise we definitely wouldn't sell it to you at this price."

I see, no wonder the store manager agreed so readily.

The person who skipped out on the order has already paid three thousand, and the store has already recovered part of its costs. As long as the selling price isn't too outrageous, they'll not only break even but definitely make a profit.

No matter how you calculate it, the shop owner won't lose money.

She nodded and said no more.

"Okay," she said, her voice regaining its calmness. "I'll buy it." She looked at the saleswoman and gestured for her to wrap the items up.

The waitress's face lit up with a big smile. She jogged over to the display shelf and carefully picked up the crossbow. "I'll wrap it up for you right away."

She took a black box from under the counter.

The box has a hard outer shell that feels like some kind of plastic, but is more durable. It has metal trim around the edges, locks, and handles, and looks very sturdy.

"This is the original packaging box," the saleswoman said. "It's waterproof, fireproof, and shockproof, so you can rest assured." She then placed the box on the ground, unlocked the latch, and lifted the lid.

The box was lined with black foam, cut very neatly, just enough to hold every part of the crossbow in place.

She placed the crossbow inside; the bow arm fit into the left groove, the bow itself into the middle groove, the scope into the upper groove, and the grip into the lower groove—a perfect fit.

Then the waiter put the box of arrows into the case, closed the lid, fastened the lock, and handed the case to her.

If you enjoy stories about surviving the apocalypse by stockpiling supplies, please bookmark: Apocalypse Stockpiling Survival Story