The most enjoyable part of cooking a meal is not the process, but the time when the prepared meal is brought to others and watched them eat happily and comfortably.

Lao Xu was so hungry that he took the big bowl with both hands, looked at the fragrant, half-fat and half-lean meat in the bowl, and pulled up the chopsticks and gobbled them into his mouth. Unexpectedly, halfway through eating, the meat sandwiched the rice and suddenly stuck in his throat, Lao Xu looked at Qiu Qiong in fear, and pointed to his neck with one hand.

Qiu Qiong hurriedly put down the pot, rushed behind Lao Xu, and slapped him on the back with palm after palm. Lao Xu's face turned red instantly, and his eyes even turned white, he didn't choke to death, but he was probably slapped to death by Qiu Qiong.

However, fortunately, at the last moment, Qiu Qiong pulled her right hand behind her, pressed down her legs, and after a long breath, kicked hard with her back foot, and the strength was immediately transmitted from the soles of her feet to her arms. Immediately afterwards, Qiu Qiong gritted her teeth, held her breath and stared at the center point of Lao Xu's back, and in a roar of "hey", her right palm slashed down with all her might.

"Poof!" Lao Xu finally squirted out the stuck flesh, but at the same time, he was already stunned by Qiu Qiong, and he threw himself into the sand with a "swish", almost dying.

"Lao Xu!" Qiu Qiong exclaimed, quickly turned Lao Xu over, and pressed his thumb his person, "Don't have anything wrong with you!" Feed! Wake up! ”

After a while, just when Qiu Qiong was in a hurry, Lao Xu finally opened his eyes, sat up straight suddenly, covered his chest with one hand, gasped for breath, looked around in panic, and shouted.

"Little Joan! Where am I now? ”

Qiu Qiong was stunned, and replied with a quick blink: "We are in the desert." ”

"Desert? ...... "Lao Xu vented all his strength, stretched out his arms and collapsed on the sand, and said repeatedly, "That's good, that's good......"

"Are you alright?" Qiu Qiong carefully poked Lao Xu's waist.

"Ouch, Joan, let me tell you, I just went to a white place, and there was nothing there! I'm on my own! I thought I was dead, but suddenly a pair of hands grabbed me into the air and threw me to the ground very cruelly! I was about to fall to the ground, and suddenly, I came back! You say it's magical, it's not magical! With that, Lao Xu hiccuped and slowly closed his eyes.

Qiu Qiong served herself a bowl of rice at this time, chewing and swallowing slowly, while thinking about what Lao Xu had just said: "The white and vast place...... Kunlun is also a white place...... But I'm living so well, how can I dream of going back there? ”

Suddenly, Lao Xu snapped his fingers in front of Qiu Qiong, and her eyes widened in surprise, "Xiao Qiong, how do I feel that you have a lot of worries after leaving Lazy Town?" ”

Lao Xu's words can be said to hit the nail on the head, Qiu Qiong only felt that her heart was hit hard, and replied with a wry smile: "Actually, it's not a worry, it's just that I have left a more stable environment and have more worries." ”

"What's there to worry about?" Lao Xu raised his hand and pointed ahead, and said unhurriedly, "Life is like this desert, it seems that there is no end, and there is no road to go, but as everyone knows, its charm lies in the fact that as long as you go firmly in any direction, you can get out of this desert." It's just that some candidates have a farther path, while others are closer. But it doesn't matter, the most terrible thing is that a person has too many worries and can't move forward, causing him to go around in circles all his life and never get out. ”

Qiu Qiong's eyes reflected the flickering flames, and she gradually frowned, and hugged her legs with both hands. She thought that Lao Xu's words sounded very reasonable, but when she thought about it carefully, it seemed that something was missing.

At this time, Lao Xu patted Qiu Qiong's shoulder with one hand and said with a smile: "Don't worry!" You won't be trapped in this desert! ”

"Why?"

"Fool, because of me! Who knows this desert better than I do? With me showing the way, you don't have to worry about getting lost! ”

"Cut ......" Qiu Qiong glanced at Lao Xu with disgust, and then buried her face between her knees, but the corners of her mouth suddenly couldn't help but rise.

The silent hour passed quietly, and the endless starry sky silently watched the two people with their own hearts. For a while, the wind became heavier and the temperature became colder and colder, as if everything was falling, but the fire in front of them burned more and more fiercely.

Suddenly, Qiu Qiong raised her head in surprise. Just when she was about to look at Lao Xu, Lao Xu suppressed his low expression with a smile in time, and asked with concern, "What's wrong?" What do you remember? ”

Qiu Qiong shook her head and said slowly: "I didn't expect anything else, it's just ...... Lao Xu, I don't think I have asked you yet, what kind of town is Greedy Town? ”

Lao Xu was shocked and secretly rejoiced: "Greedy Town? This little girl is finally curious about the affairs of Greedy Town! ”

I saw Lao Xu slowly stand up, put his hands behind his back, and walked to the other end of the fire. Suddenly, Lao Xu raised a finger and pointed to the far east, where the town of Greed ended. After taking a deep breath, Lao Xu put on the posture of a storyteller and finally spoke.

"The people in the greedy town are completely different from the people in our lazy town, we are lazy and they are greedy. It is precisely because of this greed that they pay attention to personal interests in everything, and they are quite shrewd in dealing with others, and everyone is a material for doing business! It was simply impossible for the people of other towns to take advantage of them. ”

But they are not endlessly greedy. For if they are endlessly greedy, who will do business with them? Therefore, when dealing with partners, they appear to be very selfless, and in the case of ensuring that their own interests will not be damaged, they will meet all the requirements of partners, and they are often very reasonable when distributing benefits, and often feed people to their fill! Because of this, the towns are willing to sell their specialties, and the greedy towns have used this to develop and expand the commodity trade. ”

"Today, the commodity trade in Greedy Town is very well developed and mature, and it has become the most prosperous and 'cultural' town of the seven major towns. Every day, you can see people from other towns coming from far and wide, and ships and trucks crowding the mooring area every day! Xiao Qiong, only there can you really feel what it means to 'there are people outside the people, and there are towns outside the town'! If we are a small town in Lazy Town, then Greedy Town is a bizarre metropolis! ”

Qiu Qiong was stunned, pouted and said hesitantly: "Is it so exaggerated?" If Greed is as good as you say, then everyone should go and live there. ”

Lao Xu chuckled, shook his hand and replied, "Of course what I said is not an exaggeration!" Greed has everything in the town, and in the case of our lazy town's sapient machines, it's just an ordinary commodity in a sea of goods. However, if you want to settle down in Greed, I don't think many people will be willing. ”

"What? Not many people want to?! Why is that? Qiu Qiong scratched her head, and a big question mark hung above her head.

"It's also because of their greed! They are not only greedy for personal gain, but also for personal status and power, and with these, people will naturally divide into different classes. In Greedy Town, everyone's identity is determined by a small sign. The bronze medal represents the people at the bottom, the silver medal represents the middle class, and the gold medal represents the top class with status and power. ”

"Not only that, but the town is also divided into different classes, with the Bronze Ring, the Silver Ring, and the Gold Medal Center. Those on the higher level can go to the area on the next floor, that is, those with silver status can go to the copper ring. However, people on the lower floors are not allowed to move around the areas on the higher floors, not even to wander around or pass by. ”

"Their class status is now solidified, which means that from the day you are born, you will be in that class for the rest of your life. No matter how hard you try, there is no way to change it. Moreover, if you want to achieve a jump in the status class, there is only one way to cast a good tire. ”

As he spoke, Lao Xu took out the silver medal that belonged to him from his waist bag. Qiu Qiong held it in the palm of her hand, and under the firelight, it could be seen that the front was engraved with the words "Greedy Town Identity Authentication Plate", and the back was engraved with the four big characters of "Senior Merchant". There is also a line of "Merchant Origin" under the big characters, and three small words "Lazy Town" are printed next to it.

"Such a small brand determines a person's life? Is there a way out for the people at the bottom? ”

Qiu Qiong seemed to feel the coldness of reality, and couldn't help but feel terrible in her heart, if a person can never improve the status quo and achieve the upgrading of living conditions or classes, then what is the point of working hard for a lifetime?

"A way out? When a person finishes eating every day and all he thinks about is how to eat the next meal, does he still have the strength and mind to think about his own way out? No, that's the pity of those bronze medalists. That's why I say that few people would want to live there, and if they get bronze status, it will be tantamount to living in hell. ”

Qiu Qiong gasped, and said with a gray face: "This is too terrible, how hopeless their lives are." Fortunately...... Luckily, I came to Lazy Town, not Greedy Town. ”

Lao Xu sighed helplessly, he couldn't help but feel sorry for their hopeless life. However, the most pitiful type of people that make Lao Xu feel are by no means those who hold bronze medals, because they can't see hope, so they don't look at it.

But there is a group of people who can see hope, and their lives will not fall to the point of embarrassment, but the pressure on their shoulders is much heavier than that of other classes.

- They are middle-level people with silver medals.

"The people who live in the silver ring, in my opinion, are no better than the people in the copper ring." Lao Xu sighed, "Although they can create more income and their living conditions are quite good, generally speaking, they have relatively many family members, and they have to take care of the old and the young, and their fixed expenses are very high." Moreover, the prices and living expenses in the silver ring are quite high, which also leads to their extremely high cost of living. ”

"Even if you have more income, how much can you have left? So, they tend to be under more pressure and more in more ways! On weekdays, they are like a robot who can only work heavily, and rarely have time to enjoy life! Moreover, they, like the people of the copper ring, are simply not able to improve the status quo. ”

"And those who hold the gold medal status control the capital in their hands, and they don't need to work hard for life. People living in the central area don't know what hunger, fatigue and stress are, because everything is provided free of charge. It's full of gold, and they're living like a fairy. ”

After listening to Lao Xu's words, Qiu Qiong just smiled coldly, shook her head, and said angrily: "They are all people, why is there such a big difference!" In this way, you people in Lazy Town really live better than immortals! ”