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Chapter 318: Gouzhu¹

“58 is also a pretty good number. Do you like it, Uncle?” Yan Yu suggested with a grin.

“Every ten districts is a different social circle. You have no idea how messed up it is. 58—’I² will prosper’—I’d love that! But unless I get a Medal of Merit, I’m afraid I won’t be able to live inside the 60s for the rest of my life.”

“What’s a Medal of Merit?”

“It’s a kind of merit stamp on your personal credit sheet. It’s too hard to get. I’ll just stick to grinding out years in logistics. Once my credit level goes up, I can go scavenge trash in the 6-series districts. The medical models you want will be much easier to find there. Most importantly, I won’t have to assemble things in secret anymore. I could apply for a small personal repair shop and get a corresponding recycling quota. Heh, I won’t say I’ll strike it rich, but with a little shop like that, life would just keep getting better…”

The uncle spoke fly-specked with spit as he imagined his future, his eyes reflecting various data streams and radiating light.

Yan Yu listened silently, only answering a word or two when he asked about the requirements for the dogs.

By the time she rode the donkey to the riverbank, the uncle on the other side had already begun testing.

Yan Yu also heard the names of the three dogs in advance; they were very casual.

“Gouzhu No. 1, Gouzhu No. 2, Gouzhu No. 3, beginning self-check… Power system green, bionic system green, ownership program importing… Matching skeleton, loading skin… Final weight calibration… Done and finished!”

“Uncle, there’s a river in front of me. Get your water containers ready, let’s begin!”

Time was limited, so Yan Yu didn’t dawdle.

“Wait, wait, just a sec.” The uncle performed another series of operations. Several robots appeared in the background, carrying standard water storage tanks and laying them flat on the ground.

“Standard one-cubic-meter size. Put your hand in the water and tap upward on your interface. Keep adding until you hit 30 and see if it goes through. If not, then reduce it.”

Yan Yu nodded and noticed the changes on the interface. She increased the number from 1 to 30, but the transaction wouldn’t budge. She reduced it bit by bit until it finally settled at 24.

Swish!

The hand she had extended into the water felt instantaneous dryness.

A section of the surrounding water was invisibly sucked dry, making the underwater creatures clearly visible.

A few fish that happened to be swimming by experienced a moment of turning belly-up, only to be washed away in the next instant by the downstream flow…

If fish had expressions, they would certainly be bewildered at this moment.

“8 cubic meters of water per dog. Ga-ga, not bad, not bad at all.” The uncle on the other side looked excitedly at the filled water tanks, his mouth unable to stop grinning.

The robots proceeded to seal the lids and transport the water tanks away.

With the dog transaction complete, the two traded food.

The bamboo tubes Yan Yu had placed in the wooden crate were all filled with Nutrient Solution.

The uncle also got to eat the mooncakes made by the Yan family.

After clearly seeing the words engraved on them, he took a bite, then an even more aggressive second bite, a third… until his mouth was stuffed full.

The moment the screen cut off, Yan Yu saw tears welling up in the uncle’s eyes.

She looked past the screen in front of her at the river that flowed incessantly.

That incredible scene just now felt like a mere illusion.

Yan Yu took out two bamboo tubes, handed one to her dad, and hugged the other, taking two large gulps.

The Nutrient Solution tasted a lot like rice cereal mixed with vegetable and fruit juice. It wasn’t exactly bad; it was just a very high-end synthetic flavor.

She sighed, crouched down to wet her hands, and patted her face.

Then she clicked on a flashing icon.

“Why is there water on your face? Is it raining where you are?”

Yan Yu breathed a huge sigh of relief. What luck—she had connected with Sister Yu!

“No, the weather is great here. It hasn’t rained for many days. I just washed my face,” Yan Yu explained with a smile.

“Sister Yu, look, what did I prepare for you?”

She ran over to the three dogs and hugged one of them, her smile brilliant. “Remember what I told you last time? I just traded for these dogs from the uncle. They’re still fresh and hot!”

Sister Yu’s breathing quickened slightly, her gaze fixed on the dog in Yan Yu’s arms, unable to look away.

“You really traded for them? Oh my god! It’s so big!”

“I traded for three. This one for you is a German Shepherd. Look at this head, look at this fur—so handsome! To adapt to extreme weather, it’s equipped with multiple power supply systems. Solar and wind are basic configurations, and it can also be powered by bio-electricity generated by petting it. Don’t be fooled by it having the weight of a normal dog; its pulling force is a full thousand jin. The uncle said that’s the standard value; it might decrease in extreme environments, but it’s enough for you. Pulling carts, pulling boats, or carrying heavy loads is no problem. You can lie on it and practice mastering your balance; at a critical moment, it can carry you to escape for your life. The uncle said it runs extremely fast, though you shouldn’t use that speed lightly. What it’s best at should be special terrain, like mountains or jumping over obstacles. It can even climb trees. The prototype was said to be a mechanical beast with certain combat functions, though it’s probably limited to primitive biting. The Bionic Skin is just like a real dog. Based on my family’s experience with trading for cows and cats, you can actually treat it entirely as a real dog. Its system has been upgraded; not only can it heat up, but this time it can also cool down. You can think of it as a portable air conditioner, heh! I especially like this point, but using it this way consumes more power. You have to ensure its energy supply. So, if it’s always cloudy and raining on your side with no sun or wind, you’ll have to pet it more. Pet it whenever you have nothing to do…”

Sister Yu’s eyes glowed as she listened, dancing with excitement.

“I’ll find some things for you. See what you want. Besides medicine, I think you can use these too.”

Sister Yu began to display her goods.

“This is something I traded from someone else—a mold specifically for making nails. Pour molten iron into it, and after it cools, you get iron nails like these. The method is very primitive. Since you guys have found a place to settle down long-term, having nails will definitely be convenient for nailing doors and windows or making furniture. Of course, the premise is that you need a furnace to melt iron.”

Through the screen, Yan Yu saw a mold with many holes.

It did look very old.

Sister Yu’s introduction continued: “Your family should be able to use this too, right? It’s a stove used for heating in the old days. Just burn wood or charcoal. The chimney on top is made of sheet iron, in several sections, so it can reach quite far. Look, there’s even an iron hook. These iron rings on top can be taken off layer by layer, making it easy to put in honeycomb coal³.”

She paused and asked, “Do you know what honeycomb coal is?”

“I know. I even know about anthracite,” Yan Yu said proudly.

Sister Yu looked delighted.

“I have two sets of these stoves.”

“And this… I have to give this a grand introduction, haha! Bet you didn’t expect this—Hot and Sour Rice Noodles! These two big boxes are full of them.”

“And this, a handmade wool blanket, woven bit by bit. It even has patterns. If the world hadn’t gone to chaos, how much would this sell for…”

(End of Chapter)

Translator’s Notes