Chapter 43: Second Platform Activation

Li Xuemei and Yan Yu were sipping powdered milk from their bowls, taking small, slow sips with eyes squinted in blissful synchronization.

Just looking at his wife and daughter made Yan Lao’er happy. His gaze lowered to settle on his wife’s belly, making him grin even more foolishly.

She even brought her dough board, clearly craving something.

Yan Lao’er slammed and kneaded a ball of dough. Even kneeling on the ground, he could whip up a pot of proper hand-pulled noodles!

Eggs, soy sauce, and a bit of shredded jerky for flavor—both of his signature mixed seasonings went in.

When the oil hit the hot pan, a salty, fragrant, and spicy aroma burst out.

Li Xuemei touched her belly. She had just drunk a bowl of milk, but smelling that aroma made her hungry all over again.

As soon as the noodles were cooked, Yan Yu couldn’t wait any longer.

Tossed with sauce, she dug in with gusto.

Her cheeks puffed up like a little squirrel with a mouthful of hazelnuts.

Midnight.

【Please confirm if the surrounding environment is safe?】

A kind and gentle female voice chimed in. With her mouth still full of noodles, Yan Yu mumbled, “Yes!”

Row after row of shelves she had dreamed of appeared neatly lined up.

Yan Yu hurriedly swallowed her noodles, handed her bowl to her dad, and started rattling off prices at lightning speed.

“Rice 2.8—flour 2.4—salt 1—”

…

Learning from last time’s mistake, they were determined to record all the prices this time, as well as the goods they planned to sell to the Platform. No more going in blind—they needed to know which prices were high and which were low.

The Free Market icon kept flashing, but Yan Yu didn’t stop.

She was thrilled to discover that the goods on the shelves had changed since last time.

【Brown Rice—2.8】【Coarse Flour—3.9】【Mung Beans—4.2】【Red Beans—5.9】【Black Beans—6.6】

Not only were there new items, but quantities seemed to have increased too.

No time for details, she kept reading.

【Dandelions—12.8】【Elm Seeds—53.8】【Wild Chrysanthemum—14.6】

No!

Her heart hurt!

Where were her sweet potatoes, potatoes, and corn!

Li Xuemei and Yan Lao’er each grabbed a stick and started writing on the ground—one focusing on names, the other on numbers.

Once cross-checked, they were all set.

Yan Yu gloomily opened the Free Market.

The punk-styled uncle appeared online.

“Hey little sis, what took you so long? I’ve been dying here waiting for you!” He was overjoyed to see Yan Yu.

The beef was so delicious!

He had carefully, painstakingly dissected it, wasting not a single bit.

The cowhide had been completely stripped, packed with preservative gel, and stored as his most prized possession!

Even if it could never see sunlight, just looking at it made him feel happy!

“Uncle, last time my shelves still had sweet potatoes, potatoes, and corn. This time they’re all gone! Replaced with dandelions, elm seeds, and wild chrysanthemum…”

Yan Yu’s little face scrunched up, looking utterly pitiful.

“Hahaha!” The uncle had zero sympathy and even laughed happily.

“I told you before—the store contents change. It scans your environment and adjusts. All wild greens, huh? Are you outdoors now?”

“Spot on!” Yan Yu praised without much soul in her voice.

“Then why didn’t they stock more for you, and even cleared some items off the shelves… Anyway, enough about that. You know your situation better than me. What do you want to trade this time?”

“Hehe! How about another Mechanical Bionic Ox? Pretty useful, right?” The uncle enthusiastically promoted, “Since you’re out in the wild, the Exploration and Collection Robot is perfect for you! Tell you what—get me another… pig, sheep, donkey, whatever, I’ll trade it to you. Guaranteed value for qian!”

“Bionic robots look human, don’t they? How am I supposed to explain suddenly having another person around?” Yan Yu really wanted one, but it wasn’t realistic. If only they were rich enough to afford servants, she’d definitely buy one.

“Then how about this? I’ll redesign it as a dog, bird, whatever animal form you like. Much easier to explain. Or hey, remember you mentioned spiders and lizards before? That’s doable too!”

Looks didn’t matter, practicality did.

“Sure! No problem at all! Customer requests come first. But fair warning, humanoid Exploration and Collection Robots have both exploration and collection functions. If I change the appearance, there’s gotta be a downgrade. Collection functionality would pretty much be scrapped—I’d have to remove it…

Hmm, a cat or dog’s still okay, but if you want a spider or lizard, I’ll need to adjust the speed settings. Can’t make it too crazy.”

Yan Yu: …

If you hadn’t explained in detail, she would’ve happily settled for a single exploration function. But now that he said it like this, it felt like a huge loss.

Thinking it over, a robot that could both scout and collect, bringing things back on its own…

Versus a robot pet that just scouts and reports back, leaving her to fetch things herself…

Why did the gap feel so huge?

Imagining a cat dragging back a water bucket… utterly ridiculous.

“Uncle, better not downgrade it. Going from high spec to low spec makes me feel bad.

Besides, I don’t have pigs, sheep, or donkeys right now, no qian to buy them.” Yan Yu looked pitiful again.

She was broke—pockets emptier than her face.

“Can’t you go hunting? Rabbits, pheasants, wild boars—aren’t those always super easy to catch in novels?” The uncle anxiously offered ideas. Whether he got to eat meat this time all depended on this little sister from ancient times.

The other players—he privately called them “unlucky fools”—were absolutely deserving of that title. Only this little sister was, to date, his biggest client!

“Hunting?” Yan Yu thought of that green-speckled mountain. “But no one in my family knows how to hunt. And I doubt there’s much game in these mountains. Can your robot detect prey?”

The uncle’s eyes lit up—he had a great idea.

“Of course it can! As long as you set the target, it’ll search just fine. But let’s talk hunting first—little sis, no skill starts fully developed. I think you and your family can train up some hunting skills.

Think about it—you’re already in the wild, perfect opportunity. If you guys really get lucky and bump into something, not knowing how to hunt would be such a waste!

But don’t worry, that’s what I’m here for. Brother’s got your back.

Crossbows are super easy to make. I can whip one up for you in no time. You just need to practice your aim.

Only thing is, adding a sight is tricky—materials are a bit out of spec…”

As he talked, he tapped away on a virtual screen beside him.

Before he finished speaking, the design was done.

He pulled the screen over for Yan Yu to see. “Look! Totally retro crossbow—compact, sturdy, long-range, powerful. With alloy arrowheads, any prey that shows up in front of you will fall at your feet! Hahaha!”

Yan Yu: …

Why are you more excited than me?

(End of Chapter)