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Chapter 319: The Moon is Rounder on the Sixteenth¹

“Take a look at this—a copper telescope. It’s got some real weight to it. The whole thing has been distressed to look antique, and the lenses are polished crystal. You can see through it incredibly clearly.”

“And this catapult. Don’t be fooled by it being a size smaller; it should be a one-to-one scale replica. I tested it out, and it works. It flings things quite far. If a stone actually hit someone on the head, I’m afraid it really could kill them.”

Sister Yu patted the wooden frame beside her.

The throwing arm was very long, and the base stood about a meter high.

Yan Yu was completely stunned.

“Sister Yu, where did you get all this stuff?”

“Some I traded for with other platform users, and some I salvaged myself. There’s really quite a lot of stuff underwater. If I weren’t physically unable to move it all, I feel like there’s even more you could use,” Sister Yu said with a hint of regret.

“I have to say, the scenic area didn’t skimp on quality at all. The materials are solid. This catapult hasn’t even fully dried out yet, but that doesn’t hinder its use at all.” Sister Yu herself was quite amazed.

“You should take this back and dismantle it. Once you’ve figured out how it works, build a big one and see if you can sell it to the government… that’s what they’re called, right?”

She certainly had a bold imagination. Yan Yu feared she didn’t have that much courage.

This fell under the category of siege weaponry; it was likely regulated even more strictly than the Iron Crossbows.

“Sister Yu, what would you do if I didn’t trade for them? Carry these things on the road forever?” Yan Yu asked curiously.

“No way. They take up too much space and they’re heavy. Aside from you, no one else I can connect to would have a use for them. If showing them to you didn’t work, I’d just leave them behind.” She walked in a circle, gesturing for Yan Yu to look at her surroundings.

“This is a tower on the edge of the scenic area. The top three floors are above water and habitable. The people who were here before must have left, which worked out perfectly for me. If I leave things here, I doubt anyone will touch them. You can’t eat or drink them, and there are no scrap collectors around now. No one would even want them if I took them apart to sell the copper.”

That made a lot of sense.

But if that copper telescope was traded to her side, it would be worth a fortune.

Setting aside its practical use, it was perfect for the Arrow Tower being built in the village. Crystal… solid copper… it was all worth a lot of money!

She wanted the small catapult too. Her family already had an Iron Crossbow; she wasn’t afraid of having one more item that couldn’t be exposed to the public.

If she missed this chance, there wouldn’t be a next time.

Yan Yu consulted with Yan Lao’er and quickly finalized the items they wanted to exchange.

“The telescope, the catapult, the nail molds, the two stoves, and both crates of hot and sour rice noodles—we want them all. And the medicine…”

In truth, Yan Yu also coveted Sister Yu’s inflatable boat, assault boat, sleeping bags, and diving suits…

But she knew that bringing those things to her side would be inappropriate for the era.

While they were talking, Yan Yu moved her base of operations from the riverbank to the cellar of Granny Rong’s house.

Sister Yu shouted loudly, “I want the dog and the charcoal!”

In that moment, her voice drowned out the sound of the rain, ringing out exceptionally clear.

Yan Yu prepared to trade over two chicken drumsticks, braised pig offal, fried tofu, starch noodles with vegetables, and mooncakes.

As for the braised fish, she remembered Sister Yu saying she didn’t want to eat fish.

The trade didn’t go through.

Both of them had quite a lot of items; it was unclear which side was causing the imbalance.

They had to test it bit by bit.

In the end, it was only after Sister Yu withdrew one crate of rice noodles and most of the medicine that the trade was successfully completed.

Yan Yu dictated the activation and ownership commands.

Sister Yu, on the other side: “…”

How strange.

But none of that mattered; it didn’t affect her love for the furry companion one bit.

Both of them knew time was tight and they couldn’t waste a single second.

They could only bid each other a reluctant farewell.

The moment the screen switched back.

“Dad, you stay here. I’m going into the mountains to harvest some trees myself.”

She couldn’t cross the river anymore; there wasn’t enough time, so she had to head into the nearby mountains.

To avoid being seen as unusual by the villagers, she could only head toward the steep, rocky cliffs.

Her father couldn’t handle that terrain.

It was better for him to stay behind.

Yan Yu didn’t even have time to look closely at the items she had just traded for before she went galloping off on the donkey.

Yan Lao’er sighed. At a time like this, he certainly couldn’t cause trouble for his daughter.

He could only call out a reminder: “Don’t forget the count! I’d rather you sell less than get the number wrong!”

He was a bit worried about her going into the mountains alone, but he kept telling himself she had the donkey, so she should be fine.

Relying on her great strength, Yan Yu hugged the donkey’s neck tightly.

Time was being counted by the second. Every time the number in the top left corner changed, it tugged at her tense heartstrings.

After touching twenty-eight trees, Yan Yu decisively stopped.

While riding the donkey back, she clicked on the flashing Free Market icon.

The moment he saw the little transmigrated sister on the other side, the young man’s expression softened, and a hint of gentleness appeared in his eyes.

Yan Yu was also pleasantly surprised to see him.

“Big Brother, how are you? Is your injury healed?”

She had kept the scene she saw last time tucked away in a corner of her heart. Just because she didn’t want to recall it didn’t mean she had forgotten.

“It’s all healed. The snake meat you traded over was very effective, and with those medicines, my injury healed very quickly. I’m fine now.” His tone was earnest and soft. “Thank you, little sister.”

“My name is Qin Huai,” he introduced himself. “It was my name both before and after transmigration.”

“And you? What’s your name?”

Yan Yu was stunned for a moment.

Although she hadn’t used the platform many times and hadn’t connected with many people, she had noticed that everyone had a tacit understanding not to mention their names.

Like the Uncle—when he mentioned the person with a background similar to hers, he always referred to him as “that guy.”

Having no name also meant that memories of a person would fade faster as time passed.

Subconsciously, no one wanted to accept the worst possibility—that they would never meet again.

They maintained a connection that was both friendly and distant.

She quickly snapped out of it and gave a sweet smile. “Brother Qin Huai, my name is Yan Yu. You can call me Xiao Yu².”

The young man whispered her name back to himself, seemingly in no rush to trade anything.

That wouldn’t do.

She still had a dog to trade to him.

“Brother Qin Huai, I got a bionic mechanical dog from the Uncle. Its functions are incredibly powerful…” She repeated the same pitch she had given Sister Yu, making it even more concise and precise.

“Do you like German Shepherds? I chose this breed because they’re used a lot by the military and police. They’re smart, alert, and understand human nature, so it can easily hide its identity as a bionic dog.”

“If you have it with you outside, you won’t have to worry about its safety at all. If necessary, you can even have it carry you to escape. Normally, having it pull a cart or carry things couldn’t be more convenient.”

“Really, trust me, having a dog is great. I traded one to Sister Yu, who’s in a natural disaster setting, and she loves it. Hehe, besides the one I saved for you, I couldn’t resist getting an extra one for myself.”

Yan Yu really loved the Uncle’s bionic machines; they were just too useful.

She sincerely hoped that of the people she connected with, everyone who needed one would have a dog.

“Also, isn’t today the Mid-Autumn Festival? Haha, even though it’s almost over, at least we caught the tail end of it. As the old saying goes, the moon is rounder on the sixteenth!”

“My family made mooncakes and some home-cooked dishes. Brother Qin Huai, you should take them all in the trade. Try my dad’s cooking.”

A partner who would never betray him—the appeal of this to him was immense.

And the mooncakes and food made by the little sister’s family.

Qin Huai wanted them all.

(End of Chapter)

Translator’s Notes