City of Time: Falling into the kill zone at the start

Chapter 83 Ximen

On the morning of August 14, 294 AD.

Inside the south gate, the only circular bus in District 18 finally arrived.

Lu Chen was seen off by Yu and paid the fare for the [15 hours] ride.

—The fare for a total of ten stops from the South Gate to the West Gate.

After paying the fare, Lu Chen sat down in the front left seat by the window, beginning his journey.

Just like Yu said.

The circular bus line stops every 20 kilometers.

The car wasn't exactly dilapidated; at least it looked newer than the scavengers' pickup trucks.

But the speed is extremely slow.

Lu Chen also paid special attention to this—it took more than an hour for the bus to travel one stop, which is 20 kilometers.

Based on this calculation, the bus's speed should be around 20 kilometers per hour, or even slower.

It's more like a sightseeing bus than a public bus.

Lu Chen wasn't in a hurry to get going, so he was happy that the bus would travel slowly so he could take in the sights of District 18.

At 7 a.m., the bus departed from the South Gate and stopped at the northwest corner of the city about 5 hours later.

Just like at the previous stops, a few passengers got off the train, and a few new passengers got on.

The driver stood up from the driver's seat, registered the new passengers' drop-off points, and then watched them pay the fare.

He then closed the car door, took out a water bottle and a piece of black bread, swallowed them whole, and then closed his eyes in the driver's seat to rest briefly.

Outside the bus, a blue robot plugged in a charging plug at the back.

As for the passengers inside the vehicle, they all clutched their backpacks tightly, their heads either resting against the windows or against the back of the seats in front of them.

"Does it need to stop and recharge every 100 kilometers?"

Thinking this, Lu Chen turned his gaze to the window, curiously observing the 'scenery' on both sides of the street.

The bus travels clockwise around the 18th district, with the city wall always on the left and shops and factories inside the 18th district on the right.

Lu Chen watched the whole way, feeling slightly disappointed.

—From the moment he set off until now, the scenery Lu Chen has seen along this 100-kilometer journey is exactly the same as that near the South Gate.

It consists of shops, factories, apartments, and the occasional clinic.

The only difference was that Lu Chen did not find any buildings resembling "recovery points" along the way.

That's normal.

The hibernation pods that scavengers retrieved from outside the city were ultimately transported into the city through the south gate.

Placing the resuscitation point near the South Gate, opening the hibernation pods "nearby," and conducting a resuscitation ceremony for the revived individuals is undoubtedly the most reasonable arrangement.

...

The bus stopped for about two hours and then departed again around 2 p.m.

After walking for more than 5 hours and 100 kilometers, we arrived at our last stop of the day, Ximen Station, before 20 p.m.

This time, all passengers got off the bus, and no new passengers boarded.

The driver also got out of the car, closed the door, and quickly disappeared at the end of the street.

Lu Chen knew that this bus had finished its "work" for the day.

The buses will resume their journey at 7 a.m. tomorrow, continuing their loop around the 18 districts.

Tonight, Lu Chen needs to find a place to stay by himself and get back to the station before 7 a.m. tomorrow to catch the bus again.

The same will be true for the next two days.

I get off the bus around 20 p.m. every night, find a place to stay before 23 p.m., and rush back to the station at 7 a.m. the next day to pay the fare again and take the bus.

In other words, Lu Chen has less than three hours of free time between getting off the bus at 8 PM today, tomorrow, and the day after, and the curfew at 11 PM.

During these three days, Lu Chen could spend about 3 hours each night near the West Gate, North Gate, and East Gate.

As for other stops, buses only stop for 3-5 minutes, so you have to hurry even if you just want to use the restroom.

With his backpack in hand, Lu Chen glanced at the bus parked at the station, then subconsciously looked down at the timer on his left arm.

【00:77:05:38:16】

...

When Lu Chen left the city last time, he gave his extra 83 days to Yu, and the two of them deposited them in the bank together, saving the service fee for one person.

The two stayed outside the city for 6 days, and of the 7 days they each took with them, less than 1 day remained.

As for the bank service fee, it was deducted for [6 days], with Lu Chen and Yu each receiving [3 days].

So, on the day he returned to the city, August 11, Lu Chen got back his 80 days.

Today is August 14th, and another 3 days have naturally passed.

Subtracting the black bread from the past few days, and the 15-hour bus fare Lu Chen paid this morning...

Lu Chen only has 77 days left to use up his time.

...

Lu Chen and Yu's "joint account," which is the savings inside the "capsule," remains unchanged from the original "12 years."

The one year they received in exchange for selling the three solar panels was also stored in a capsule by the two of them.

Lu Chen and Yu's total assets over time amounted to a full 13 years.

Yu Ze insisted on paying for the upgrades to the pickup truck's range and charging speed himself.

The reason is simple: that pickup truck belongs to Yu.

After the modification, the pickup truck's performance improved, which also increased the value of Yu's own assets.

As for whether Lu Chen also enjoyed the convenience brought by modifying the pickup truck?

Yu stated that the 4-6 split between the two had already provided Yu with this compensation.

There's no reason for Lu Chen to share the cost of modifying the pickup truck as well.

"So stingy yet so generous, it's really hard to understand..."

After sighing for a moment, Lu Chen followed the street and quickly found the location of the hotel.

There are also rope hotels near the West Gate.

Moreover, just like the area near the South Gate, there are hundreds of meters of rope hotels, totaling thousands of hotels, forming a "hotel street";

What surprised Lu Chen was that, in addition to the rope hotel that he was used to, this hotel street also had makeshift hotels that he had only seen in the black market.

There are quite a few, easily over a hundred.

It was just different from the enclosed modular hotels that Lu Chen had seen in the black market;

—The makeshift hotels near the West Gate, like the Rope Hotel, are semi-open-air.

The pavilions, much like the Rope Hotel, are divided into long, narrow spaces using either wooden planks or cement.

The price is also much cheaper, only [1 hour and 15 minutes] per night, which is half the price of a black market makeshift hotel.

Realizing that he wouldn't have to experience sleeping suspended on a rope again tonight, Lu Chen breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Having memorized the location of the hotel street, I set off towards the nearby shops.

Lu Chen only glanced at the buildings and shops he saw near the South Gate.

If there are buildings, shops or people that Lu Chen has never seen before in the South Gate, he will subconsciously take a second look.

After walking several hundred meters, Lu Chen finally stopped at the entrance of an alley.

Looking into the alley, at the few figures swaying, arm in arm, some even vomiting against the wall, Lu Chen couldn't help but widen his eyes slightly.

"bar?"

"A tavern?"

...

"People at the bottom of society who can't even afford water can actually afford alcohol?!"