Chapter 98: Payment Required Before Starting Work

In the past, Shi Tiexin’s day labor jobs never paid more than four or five points a day at best, and on the worst days, sometimes only two points. So he was quite satisfied with this wage.

“No problem.”

“Good.” Captain Chen said something that took Shi Tiexin by surprise: “Pay up.”

“Pay?” Shi Tiexin almost thought he misheard. I came here to work and earn money, and I haven’t made a single cent yet, and now you want me to pay first? What kind of payment is this?

“Yes, pay—one hundred and sixty points.” Captain Chen looked somewhat uninterested in explaining further. “Hurry up, don’t waste time.”

Shi Tiexin cautiously asked, “A deposit?”

Some unscrupulous companies charged temporary workers a deposit, then found all sorts of excuses to deduct money from it. Working for such a company meant you might end up losing your deposit instead of making any profit. If this was one of those companies, Shi Tiexin would turn around and leave immediately. Working to lose money like a fool was out of the question, and he would warn Big Baldy to stay far away from that security firm.

“A deposit?” Captain Chen frowned. “Do you think we’re some kind of shady scammers? Besides, Situ Zhennan has already vouched for us with his reputation. You might be able to run, but that old guy won’t.”

Shi Tiexin was puzzled. “Then what is this one hundred and sixty points for?”

“Isn’t it obvious? Uniform fees!” Captain Chen pointed to the security guard standing by the building’s entrance. “You don’t think the company will just give you a full set of clothes and protective gear for free, do you? Look at that hat, gloves, tactical belt, and those shoulder insignias. Do you think one hundred and sixty points is expensive for all that?”

Shi Tiexin looked at the guard, especially at the intimidating shoulder patches, and had to admit honestly, “Not expensive.”

“Then pay up.”

“I don’t have the money.”

“Hm?” Captain Chen raised an eyebrow, his face darkening. Is this kid messing with me?

Shi Tiexin didn’t dodge the question and explained seriously, “I really don’t have the money. I just got out of the hospital yesterday and I’m already a thousand points in debt. I really can’t afford one hundred and sixty points for the uniform.”

Captain Chen studied him carefully and after a moment seemed convinced he wasn’t lying. His tone softened a bit. “Alright then, if you don’t want to buy, you can rent. You’re only a temporary worker anyway, won’t be here long. When you leave, the company will depreciate and buy back the gear. It’s a hassle going back and forth otherwise.”

“Thank you, Captain Chen! How much is the rent?” Shi Tiexin didn’t even mention borrowing; in this world, no one gives help for free. Just like you can’t expect someone to hand you a cultivation manual, you can’t expect anyone to lend you work clothes.

It sounds ridiculous, but deep down, the two things are essentially the same.

“Three points per day.”

Three points?!

That rent was not cheap at all. Perhaps Captain Chen was renting out his own clothes, making a little extra cash. Deducting these three points, Shi Tiexin’s daily income would shrink to seven points.

Seven points was still decent, but the key was that dropping from ten to seven points left a significant gap in repaying his first debt installment. If he fell behind... he guessed Captain Chen wouldn’t be able to stop the nurse in charge. And certainly, she wouldn’t intervene on his behalf.

What to do?

Look for another job? But there was no job paying ten points, or even seven points.

Then borrow money?

Ha! Not to brag, but among the over two thousand minors in the orphanage, Shi Tiexin was the only one capable of pooling enough to purchase the six fundamental mind techniques, the basic energy cultivation, and the basic boxing manuals, with a little savings left over. He was the richest in the orphanage, and no one else had the means to help him pay off his debts.

Besides, everyone was barely scraping by—no one could help anyone else. Even with his reputation as Iron Overlord, borrowing money still didn’t work.

Seeing Shi Tiexin’s hesitation and inner struggle, Captain Chen grew impatient. “Are you renting or not? Buy, rent, or leave—choose.”

“Rent.”

No other choice but to rent for now and figure out the gap later. At worst, he could pick up another temp job and work two shifts. No time to overthink it; better to move forward first.

“Why didn’t you just say so earlier? Wasting time.” Captain Chen strode ahead. “Follow me!”

Shi Tiexin followed him, and as he left, he glanced at the front desk girl again. This time, there was no sweet smile, no gentle gaze—only coldness, indifference, and complete disregard.

That front desk girl was probably another struggling survivor, saving every ounce of energy, every emotion, even every expression for the moments that truly mattered.

Shi Tiexin was very familiar with this near-cold calculation.

The boys and girls living on the seventeenth floor were much like that. In fact, these types of youths were already among the most motivated.

Not long after, Captain Chen arrived at a locker room. He opened a locker and tossed a pile of clothes into Shi Tiexin’s arms. “Jacket, pants, shoes, hat, tactical belt, gloves. When I bought these, they were a bit big on me. They should fit you just fine—put them on quickly.”

Indeed, these clothes were Captain Chen’s own.

Shi Tiexin didn’t fuss and immediately started changing. Captain Chen glanced over and noticed the bruises on Shi Tiexin’s back, his tanned skin, his sturdy build, and well-defined, separated muscles. Then he turned and pulled something else from the locker, tossing it over.

Shi Tiexin caught it—it was a pair of sunglasses, black with reflective lenses, looking pretty cool.

“The sunglasses don’t count towards the fee—they’re a gift from me. Don’t break them; if you do, you owe me a thousand points.” Captain Chen sized him up. “You’ve got a good physique. Work hard, and I can recommend you for related jobs in the future.”

“Related jobs?” Shi Tiexin was startled and quickly buttoned his jacket to hide his good build. Could Captain Chen be moonlighting as a pimp? No, no. He wasn’t desperate enough for that—he wasn’t prepared to sell himself!

“Maybe later,” Captain Chen said without elaborating. “Get dressed and get to work.”

Just like that? No training at all? Temporary workers really were unreliable.

“Where to?”

“The Star Meat Processing Plant. Be there by eight; you’ve got twenty minutes. Find Old Wei there; he’ll arrange your shifts. Got any other questions?”

“One.”

“Ask.”

“Captain Chen, what’s your rank?” Shi Tiexin pointed at his shoulder insignias. “Your patches look impressive.”

“All security patches look that way—they’re self-printed, and some look pretty fancy. If you buy your own set, we’ll print yours to look just as impressive! Alright, no more questions? Get going. If you’re late by even a minute, I’ll dock you a point!”