Chapter 79: The Wound of Happiness

"I want three civilian passes that can get us into the dockyard tomorrow! Otherwise, I'll go sell them myself!" Lynn deliberately spoke with a cold tone to force the war profiteer's hand.

The gaunt man frowned, but then grinned, "Hey, buddy, don't joke around. If you try to sell them to someone else, you'll be in trouble with the MPs! How about this, I'll give you a pound of black bread, a sausage, plus three passes!"

Lynn shook his head, "I need passes that can get us into the dockyard tomorrow!"

The gaunt man also shook his head, "Those passes are worth at least half a kilo of black bread each, and besides... I don't have anything smaller than 228 right now unless you're willing to take the risk and wait!"

In a time of war and unfamiliar territory, waiting was too risky. Lynn thought calmly, realizing that the war profiteer might not have passes for the next couple of days. Everyone understood that life was more valuable than anything else. Normal people wouldn't trade passes for a bit of bread or gold and silver. Many would instead trade food and valuables for an earlier chance to board. In this light, Lynn's special pass should still be quite valuable.

With this in mind, Lynn revealed his final card, "Besides what you've said, add a working wristwatch. If that works, we have a deal!"

The gaunt man frowned, hesitated, but then glanced around and finally said to Lynn, "Follow me!"

This method of transaction reminded Lynn of those peddlers selling smuggled shoes. They would lure customers to the place where they kept their goods – either a damp basement or a stuffy attic, the cheapest rental spaces with a pervasive smell of rubber that made people unwilling to stay longer.

Following the gaunt man into a building, Lynn remained cautious, discreetly tucking a shotgun into his coat, adopting the posture of a gangster ready to draw a gun at any moment, just like in the movies. The wooden and stone structure was three stories tall, with a gaping hole blown into the roof by a bomb, making the corridor exceptionally bright. Climbing the damaged stairs to the second floor, Lynn noticed that almost every room had been forcibly opened or pried open. It seemed the owner had locked all doors and windows before leaving, hoping to preserve everything as much as possible during their absence. Unfortunately, although Allied bombing and the Soviet siege hadn't completely destroyed the city, the original inhabitants had never had the chance to return. "Königsberg" would soon become a name only found in history books.

With such heavy resentment building up, Lynn suddenly had a strange thought: perhaps the history of this world would undergo significant changes because of his arrival?

Entering an unlocked room, Lynn spotted a woman sitting on the bed. She looked to be in her thirties, thin, and pale, sharing the same non-pathological weakness as the gaunt man. Upon seeing Lynn, a man in military attire carrying a long gun, enter, she immediately showed a look of fear in her eyes, and her right hand under the blanket seemed to be clutching something. When she heard that the gaunt man had come to sell passes, she breathed a sigh of relief.

In this chaotic era, being cautious was normal, but having spent a long time with the Goatbeard family, Lynn had grown accustomed to being relaxed without any guard.

The gaunt man crawled under the bed and pulled out a box, opening it in front of Lynn. From various-sized parchment packages, he took out a large and small one and then stuffed the box back under the bed.

"A pound of black bread, a sausage!" The man said as he opened the parchment. The large package contained a whole loaf of black bread, while the small one held a sausage about two fingers long and as thick as a thumb. Satisfied, he took out three passes from his pocket and then removed a steel-colored mechanical wristwatch from his wrist – everything seemed to have been prepared according to Lynn's request in advance.

The barter transaction was straightforward. Using his left hand, Lynn pocketed the sausage and passes, checked the watch – the hands were still moving, indicating it was five ten. He then tucked the bread, wrapped in parchment, under his arm. After the gaunt man carefully confirmed the special passes he provided, Lynn nodded to the woman who had been watching him with curious eyes, "Good luck to you both. Goodbye!"

Although the woman didn't speak, her reluctance to part with what Lynn took was evident. This made Lynn think that perhaps the gaunt man wasn't just trying to profit from the war by selling passes but, like himself, was trying to get his loved ones out of this dangerous war zone through his own efforts. A privilege pass might be valuable enough to exchange for more valuable items from other soldiers, or even to impersonate an SS officer – Lynn didn't want to spend more time pondering these matters. With darkness falling, he hurried back to the inn, even jogging a few steps, finally returning just before nightfall.

Taking a deep breath before entering the room, he felt a mixture of fear and excitement. Having witnessed life and death on the battlefield, he now feared unexpected tragedies.

He held his breath and entered the room, relieved to find the young woman and Little Caprice safe and sound, with Goatbeard also back from the balcony, still reading.

"Hey, look what I brought back!" Lynn smiled as he held up his "spoils" and deliberately made a noise by shaking the parchment containing the bread and sausage.

"Daddy's back!" Little Caprice leaned happily against her mother, her small eyes turning into crescent moons.

The young woman didn't say anything but watched Lynn with a slightly embarrassed smile, her eyes revealing a complex mix of emotions.

No longer a lovesick youth, Lynn still felt a strange sense of excitement at this moment.

"Well! And three passes that can get us into the dockyard early tomorrow!" He said, walking to the table and quickly unwrapping the parchment.

Since the moment he entered, Caprice's gaze hadn't left Lynn, so when he took out the sausage, she immediately exclaimed in surprise, "Oh, it's sausage! Mommy, it's sausage!"

How long had this poor child gone without meat? Lynn felt a pang of sadness – a child without a father was truly pitiable!

Different from the Chinese sausages directly packed with meat and air-dried, European sausages, whether pure meat or mixed with starch and spices, looked more uniform in color. Some were smoked, and others needed to be grilled before eating – it was said that there were thousands of different ways to make sausages in Germany alone. Lynn picked up the sausage and sniffed it; thankfully, it was cooked. Otherwise, without fire or electricity, he wouldn't know how to eat it.

Holding the sausage wrapped in parchment, Lynn sat down beside Little Caprice on the bed, saying, "Come, eat! Unfortunately, we don't have hot soup!"

Although Little Caprice had been eagerly eyeing the sausage, she shrank back into her mother's arms and said in her light, innocent voice, "Daddy, you eat first!"

Lynn didn't expect such words from a three-year-old child, and he hesitated for a moment, looking at the young woman. Happiness tinged with sadness was evident on

 her delicate face.

"Daddy has already eaten!" Lynn said, uttering the familiar lie from his mouth, feeling bitter inside – how sad his parents would be in that world if he were electrocuted! 

Caprice hesitated for a moment, then picked up the sausage and looked back at her mother, saying obediently, "Mommy and Grandpa will eat together!"

The young woman just silently stroked her daughter's hair, her eyes already sparkling with tears.

Lynn sighed and said softly, "Everyone takes a bite, and we'll save the rest for tomorrow, okay?"

Little Caprice nodded vigorously.

"Then let Caprice eat first!" Lynn, still feeling helpless and worried about the other world, managed to force a smile.

The little girl, both eager and reluctant, took a small bite of the sausage.

Seeing the small teeth marks on the sausage, Lynn felt like laughing and crying at the same time.