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Chapter 320: “Gouzhu, Don’t Get Cocky!”

The world he inhabited still possessed some treasures.

For instance, the Strength Potion he had traded last time.

There were also miraculous fruits produced by powerful mutant plants, which were said to be able to turn white hair black and regrow flesh on bare bone.

Obtaining Strength Potions was extremely difficult; it would be hard to secure a second one in the short term.

The fruits condensed from those mutant plants were even harder to come by. He had only heard rumors of them and had never seen one himself.

Every time the Platform opened, he usually exchanged for small amounts of food and water.

Exchanging for that much snake meat last time was the largest transaction he had made since the Platform first opened.

Qin Huai looked around, feeling his own destitution for the first time.

He… didn’t seem to have much to trade.

By this time, Yan Yu had already ridden the donkey back to Granny Rong’s house.

Seeing his hesitation and glancing at the time in the top left corner, she grew anxious.

She began to manually swipe through his inventory list herself.

“A boat? Brother Qin Huai, you have wooden boats there, don’t you? Let me see,” Yan Yu said impatiently.

Qin Huai obediently took a quick walk around his surroundings.

On this end, Yan Yu was already discussing it with her father.

“The Big Brother doesn’t have much to trade, but he seems to be at a shipyard—the kind that makes antique-style boats. They’re all wooden. Dad, how about we get one?”

Yan Lao’er hesitated. A wooden boat was certainly good, and buying one would cost a lot of silver. Trading dog for it was a fair deal.

But where would they put it once it was traded over?

“We could make a run for the riverbank now, but we wouldn’t be able to explain where it came from,” Yan Lao’er said anxiously.

Yan Yu replied, “We’ll find a way. Dad, if we miss this chance, there’s no telling if there’ll be another. I think it’ll fit in the cellar.”

Hearing his daughter say this, Yan Lao’er nodded.

“Then let’s trade!” Yan Lao’er muttered. “Good thing we dug the cellar big enough.”

Trading dog along with the food for just one wooden boat was clearly not enough.

After confirming the size of the cellar on the other side, Qin Huai set to work. He dismantled the wooden canopy from the top of the boat and stacked a second wooden boat on top of it. He stuffed the two dismantled canopies, along with a pile of nearby timber and various miscellaneous items, into the boats.

When the two wooden boats appeared before the father and daughter.

Yan Lao’er roughly understood why his daughter wanted to trade for these wooden boats—they looked remarkably unremarkable.

Only the canopies on top were different.

Aside from the hulls being wider than the small boats they had seen outside Longxing City, they were virtually identical.

The spacious cellar suddenly became cramped.

Yan Lao’er looked at the cellar exit and began to ponder.

It was easy to put them in, but hard to pull them out. If they wanted to get the boats out later, they would have to enlarge the exit.

The opening wasn’t the main issue; as long as the inside of the cellar was reinforced, they could just expand the exit outward.

The key was being able to move the hulls.

If their family didn’t have an ox, a donkey, a dog, and a daughter with Herculean strength, they wouldn’t even be able to dream of it.

Yan Yu told him the command to activate the dog. She said a phrase, and Qin Huai repeated it.

Gouzhu No. 2¹ was officially online. It shook its body and sat majestically beside its master, pricking up its ears and looking around vigilantly.

From time to time, those ears would twitch.

“Brother Qin Huai, the dog’s belly can store food and water, and it has heating and drying functions. If you have leftover meat, you can make jerky. Hehe, I just stuffed some dried fish in there for you…”

Qin Huai saw the dried fish, as well as the homemade food she had mentioned.

“I put a knife in there for you to use for self-defense.”

He hadn’t mentioned it earlier because he wasn’t sure if it could be traded, but now that the knife was gone, it meant it had gone through.

There were also some snacks like candy, chocolate, and biscuits that he had specifically collected in the days leading up to the Platform’s opening.

A young girl should like them.

Yan Yu was pleasantly surprised; she hadn’t expected the Big Brother to send a knife over.

“Thank you, Brother Qin Huai. I’ll put it to good use.” She said somewhat sheepishly, “That Strength Potion from the last trade… I accidentally drank it. Now I’m stronger than my dad. Brother Qin Huai, what happens to other people after they drink the potion?”

Qin Huai asked her in detail about the circumstances that day.

Learning that the potion had gone straight into her mouth the moment she opened it, he looked thoughtful.

Hearing about her experiments with her own strength, he couldn’t help but curl his lips into a smile.

“You might be the youngest person to ever take a Strength Potion. The effects haven’t fully played out. Since there’s no precedent, I’m not sure if your strength is fixed at its current level or if it will grow as you get older.”

“It can still grow?” Yan Yu exclaimed.

Qin Huai nodded contemplatively. “It’s a possibility. So you should pay close attention to changes in your body and ensure you have enough nutrition. If your whole body feels hot and you feel like you have endless strength, you can try doing some high-intensity exercise to burn it off.”

He gave this advice based on his own strength-based superpower.

Yan Yu looked down at herself; she didn’t feel any discomfort.

“I think I’m okay. Aside from getting stronger, nothing feels wrong,” Yan Yu said.

Qin Huai said, “That’s good. Having more strength will never be a disadvantage. But if someone bullies you and you have to take action, you should still be careful.”

Yan Yu thought the Big Brother was going to remind her to use less strength so she wouldn’t break people.

She didn’t expect…

“Don’t let anyone see you. Remember to clean up the tracks. There is still order where you are, so don’t invite trouble.”

Yan Yu: …

Thanks for the lesson.

As expected of a Big Brother who had carved a bloody path to survival.

“By the way, Brother Qin Huai, have you reached a new base city yet?”

Qin Huai paused. “Not yet. I plan to find a suitable place to build my own shelter first.”

“An underground shelter?” Yan Yu blurted out.

“Yes, it will likely be built underground.”

This was a decision he had made after careful consideration.

He was currently in the stage of searching for a suitable location.

Not wanting to say more, he had to remind the little sister on the other side.

“Xiao Yu, look at the time.”

Looking at the few remaining seconds, Yan Yu said hurriedly, “Brother Qin Huai, I’m closing it now. I still need to buy some things.”

Qin Huai gave an “mm” and said softly, “Goodbye.”

Yan Yu waved with a smile.

Qin Huai glanced at the long knife placed to the side.

He walked over, gripped it, and drew it from its sheath.

The blade was forged as a single piece with no hammer marks, yet it was incredibly sharp.

With a slight movement, a shimmer seemed to flash across it.

The dog followed him step for step, then suddenly turned its head toward a certain direction.

It nudged its master with its head and gave a “Woof.”

Qin Huai looked in the direction it was barking.

His gaze gradually turned cold.

“Watch the stuff.”

As the words fell, man and blade charged forward…

…

The screen switched, and Yan Yu almost immediately began a shopping spree.

She cleared out the shelves of grain and seasonings.

Various fabrics, cotton, and thick, heavy quilts.

Seeds.

Hoes, shovels, axes, fish spears, and a pair of scissors.

Yan Lao’er asked, “What are you buying scissors for? We have them at home.”

“These are to be kept aside. They won’t be used for anything except the day Mom gives birth,” Yan Yu said.

Yan Lao’er understood; his daughter wanted to prepare a brand-new pair of scissors for her mother.

Although they had alcohol for disinfection, unused scissors were still better.

It also felt more reassuring.

This balance was well-spent.

When the timer hit the final second, Yan Yu lunged at her dog.

She hugged it adoringly, stroking its fur incessantly.

She uttered the command she had recited in her head several times:

“All units, move out! Gouzhu No. 3 has arrived on the battlefield…”

The dog looked at her.

Yan Yu looked at it with a complicated expression and said, “Gouzhu, I’m Don’t Be Reckless².”

Gouzhu stared at her for five seconds, then nodded.

(End of Chapter)

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Translator’s Notes

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1. Gouzhu No. 2: The name ‘Gou zhu’ (苟住) is a pun on the word for dog, ‘gou’ (狗). While the translation ‘Gouzhu’ captures the survivalist meaning of the slang, the Chinese readers perceive a double entendre where the mechanical dog’s name literally sounds like ‘Dog-Stay.’ This explains why the characters find the naming convention both humorous and appropriate for a robotic pet. ↩
2. Don’t Be Reckless: The phrase ‘Bie lang’ (别浪) is the counterpart to the survivalist ‘Gou.’ In Chinese internet culture, ‘lang’ implies someone who is overconfident and puts themselves in unnecessary danger to show off. By identifying herself as ‘Don’t Be Reckless’ (Bie lang) to the dog ‘Gouzhu’ (Gou zhu), Yan Yu is completing a famous gaming couplet used to remind teammates to play safely and avoid throwing away a lead. ↩