Tehran Grocery Store: My Intelligence is Priced Clearly

"Old Mu, the case of Lao Gan Ma chili sauce you bought on credit last week, along with these two packs of toilet paper, is worth a total of 387 million riyals."

Zhang Jian slammed the calculator on the counter, tilted his head, and gestured a number to the bearded Iranian old man by the door.

"Zhang, your price is too high. The Afghan shop next door..."

"Does the Afghan neighbor have Lao Gan Ma (a popular chili sauce)?"

Old Mu choked.

Zhang Jian turned the calculator around to show him, tapping his fingers on the counter.

"The genuine products from Guizhou are more expensive to ship by sea than the goods themselves. Go to the bazaar and ask if there's another shop there."

Old Mu sighed and obediently took out a few more banknotes.

"Zhang, I was just venting. Fine, give me another case."

Zhang Jian bent down to reach for a cardboard box at the bottom of the shelf, bumped his lower back against the shelf, and cursed under his breath.

The 20-square-meter shop is crammed with shelves full of various daily necessities imported from China.

Instant noodles, hot pot base, power bank, LED light bulb, nail clippers, and even a few pairs of Warrior shoes.

Zhang Jian has been running a shop here for three years.

My trip to Tehran was purely accidental.

After graduating from university, I followed my fellow villagers into foreign trade, traveling to Dubai, Istanbul, and finally Tehran.

As a result, his fellow villager left after working there for six months, but he stayed and didn't leave.

the reason is simple.

There is a market for Chinese goods here, and the competition isn't too fierce.

A 26-year-old Chinese man runs a grocery store in the Middle East. It sounds surreal, but he's doing alright.

After deducting rent and payment for goods each month, I can still save two or three thousand US dollars.

"Zhang, have you heard?"

Old Mu took the change, but didn't leave immediately, lowering his voice.

"America's aircraft carrier has arrived again; it's said the Fifth Fleet has been expanded."

"I've heard about it."

"Aren't you afraid?"

Zhang Jian neatly arranged the banknotes and stuffed them into the drawer.

"What's there to be afraid of? We've been arguing for years, all bark and no bite."

"Didn't we have a fight with Israel not long ago? The Twelve-Day War didn't really do anything to us."

"International regulations prohibit the demolition of civilian buildings."

"We're not actually in that much danger."

Old Mu shook his head, turned back before leaving with his things in his arms.

"Zhang, I advise you to think about a way out."

"This time is different, over there..."

Before he could finish speaking, the rest of his words were drowned out by the sound of the door closing.

Zhang Jian didn't pay much attention.

In the Persian Gulf region, rumors of impending war circulate every few days; hearing them so often is like crying wolf.

Besides, the embassy hasn't issued any evacuation notice. If something really happened, they would definitely notify us in advance.

He leaned back in his chair and picked up his phone to browse the news for a while.

Domestic military bloggers have been arguing about it for a long time.

Some analysts say the US and Israel will take action, while others say they won't; opinions are divided, and it's like a marketplace.

Zhang Jian exited the app.

After thinking about it, I decided to send a WeChat message to the domestic supplier.

"The next shipment will be delayed by a week; shipping has been quite unstable lately."

Put down your phone.

He stood up, stretched, and prepared to go to the back warehouse to check the inventory.

The moment he turned around.

A sharp whistling sound instantly tore through the sky!

What followed was a continuous, dense whistling sound, rising and falling in waves.

Zhang Jian was stunned.

He had heard that voice in a short video.

This is... a missile?!

The next second, the earth trembled violently.

"Bang!"

The shockwave from the first explosion shattered the glass door of the grocery store!

Debris flying everywhere!

"Hold!"

He hadn't even finished cursing.

A second explosion followed immediately.

In an instant, the roof was ripped off!

The flash arrived before the sound, and Zhang Jian felt a complete blank before his eyes!

Immediately afterwards, the shockwave swept across from the northwest.

He felt as if a truck had hit him head-on in the chest, and he was thrown into the air.

It was then slammed hard onto the ground.

He slammed his head against something hard, and everything went black as he passed out.

I don't know how much time has passed.

It could take a few seconds, or it could take a few minutes.

Zhang Jian was awakened by the choking.

My mouth and nose were full of ash, and my lungs felt like they were burning with every breath I took.

He tried to move his fingers; his right hand could move, but his left hand was pinned down and he couldn't feel it at all.

Something was pressing down on my back, so heavy I could hardly breathe.

Concrete fragments?

Or perhaps it's a prefabricated panel; he couldn't tell the difference.

My ears were filled with a buzzing sound.

He could feel blood flowing down his forehead and into his eyes, making it impossible for him to open them.

"Help, help me..."

No one answered.

Zhang Jian tried to move his body, but a sharp pain shot through his back, almost causing him to faint again.

pain!

It hurts so much!

My right leg is also somewhat unresponsive, and the area below the knee is ice cold.

He dared not look down, afraid of seeing something he didn't want to see.

Another explosion was heard in the distance.

Which round is this?

Lying among the ruins, Zhang Jian suddenly realized something very clearly...

He might die here.

In Tehran, beneath the ruins of a pile of Yiwu small commodities, there wasn't even a single person to collect the bodies.

His mother is still waiting for him back in his hometown.

He just made a video call, saying he'll work for a few more years and then go back home.

I'll find a wife, have a baby, and then take good care of her.

Tears mixed with blood streamed down his face.

No.

I can't die!

Zhang Jian gritted his teeth and frantically dug through the rubble with his right hand.

The heavy weight on his back made every breath extremely difficult for him.

He dug a small crack, and air rushed in, carrying the smells of burning and blood.

He leaned in and sucked hard.

Just then.

A blue light suddenly appeared in my field of vision.

It wasn't the firelight outside the ruins, nor the afterglow of an explosion.

It was a semi-transparent square frame, floating steadily about thirty centimeters in front of him.

[Host vital signs detected are approaching critical levels...]

[The global battlefield intelligence analysis system is in operation...]

[New player tutorial loading: 30%...60%...90%...]

Zhang Jian thought he was hallucinating.

Excessive blood loss, brain hypoxia, and near-death experiences are all plausible explanations.

But the blue panel didn't disappear for a long time; instead, it became even brighter.

[Instructions complete.]

[System Core Function Overview: The host can obtain precise data on enemy military operations in real time by consuming "Intelligence Points" or directly consuming currency.]

[Data includes, but is not limited to: airstrike schedules, impact coordinates, troop movement routes, base coordinates, personnel, weapons, and equipment, etc.]

Currently supported currencies: USD, EUR, CNY. Exchange rates fluctuate in real time.

Zhang Jian stared at the words in front of him, his mind blank.

what is this?

Use money to exchange for intelligence?

Exchange combat intelligence with the US and Israeli militaries?

He felt like he was going crazy.

Or he is already dead.

Isn't the concept of a system just something from novels?

How could this actually happen in reality!

But the words on the screen were still scrolling.

[New player gift pack has been distributed: 100 intelligence points.]

[Would you like to spend 100 intelligence points to check air raid warning information for the current area for the next hour?]

【whether】

Zhang Jian stared at the word "yes" and spat out a mouthful of bloody phlegm.

"yes!"

The blue panel has been refreshed.

A set of data popped up instantly.

[Warning Information]

[Source: US Navy Fifth Fleet CVN-78 "Ford" Carrier Strike Group]

[Attack method: Modified AGM-158C LRASM long-range anti-ship missile, ground attack mode]

[Target Area: Western Tehran, Sector TH-07A (Current Host Location)]

[Estimated strike time: 14:42 local time]

[Countdown to strike: 00:58:33]

Fifty-eight minutes!

Less than an hour later, the next wave of missiles will land on his head!

A line of large red text popped up at the bottom of the panel, flashing on and off, which was unsettling to look at.

[New player quest triggered: Survive.]

[Mission Objective: Evacuate sector TH-07A before the countdown reaches zero.]

[Failure penalty: Death.]

Zhang Jian tilted his head to the side, pressing it against the gravel. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, and he couldn't help but let out a self-deprecating laugh.

Fifty-eight minutes.

Evacuate?

He can't even lift his left hand, how can he retreat?

[Dear brothers and sisters, my new book is released! Please add it to your favorites! Wishing you all a happy new year filled with handsome men and beautiful women, and overflowing wallets! Sending love!]