"I seem to remember you never cared for these snacks. Could it be that you only like them now because you got them from Yezi-jie?"
Fu Shiyi grinned wickedly, his teeth on full display as he shot an impish look across at Fu Jingchuan. His third brother had never had any women around him—until Yezi-jie. Of course, the matchmaking sessions arranged by the old man didn’t count.
Fu Shiyi had always believed that no one was worthy of his cold, taciturn brother. Now, looking at the two, though—brother and sister, they didn’t quite seem a match!
Ye Xiaoshu was capable, ranked first on the fear-list, had a spirit beast by her side, and was an ability user. In fact, it was San-ge who fell short and couldn’t quite keep up.
"Say one more word and I’ll make sure you regret it when we get back."
Fu Jingchuan spat out a whole duck bone, face expressionless, picked up a jin of duck necks, and left.
"Hey, hey, ge, I’m sorry! These are mine—I bought them. At least leave me a couple bites!"
Fu Shiyi was dumbfounded.
By the time he chased him to the door, Fu Jingchuan had chucked everything into the warehouse, hands empty. Fu Shiyi didn’t even have a place to cry about it.
…………
[Item introduction:
Advanced Protective Shield—Binds to boat, functions automatically, blocks sea monsters and artillery (ps: usable only in Survival at Sea game, one bind per boat only)
…………
Intermediate Steel Fishing Spear—Designed for catching fish; success rate 89%. Chance to fish up a treasure chest: 10%.
Advanced Auto-Fishing Net—Place in water, enables automatic fishing mode, small chance of retrieving treasure chests.
Basic Cotton Earplugs—Effectively blocks noise.
20-inch Cream Cake—Delicious dessert, popular among humans. Excessive consumption may cause weight gain.]
Ye Xiaoshu stashed all the loot from her treasure chest away in one go.
Her warehouse was absolutely bursting at the seams.
She kept the strawberries for herself and for Da Piaoliang—they both loved them, and with no fresh fruit on the sea, this was her vitamin ABC supplement.
As for the hotpot, she saved it for a midnight snack.
After hacking at ice half the day, throwing in beef and mutton for hotpot to replenish her strength was only natural, right?!
Blueberries—she wasn’t overly fond, so she traded away a jin.
The cake she cut into pieces and traded for supplies at the marketplace.
[Huh? Wait, did I just see… cream cake?]
[Blueberries? Does Dadlao have so many he’s selling the surplus?!]
[My god! How many supplies does Dadlao actually have?!]
[I got it! I never realized greasy cream could taste so good! Used to live off low-fat meals every day—so much good food wasted. Now I regret it so much!]
The lucky one who snatched the cake was Shen Xingchen. Ever since her last trade with Ye Xiaoshu, she’d been stalking her account nonstop, scoring whatever went up for sale in a flash.
Even Pang Youxing on the Iron Ship got a share of Ye Xiaoshu’s cake.
Meanwhile, the chat room brimmed with players complaining about their lack of braziers.
Ye Xiaoshu, efficiency itself, listed a batch right away.
But even with the crafting station puffing smoke, the demand was simply too much. The crowd was insatiable.
[Arghhh—I was just a step too slow!]
[Did Dadlao just list spicy duck necks? Was I so hungry I hallucinated?]
[Bro, you weren’t dreaming—I got some! Damn tasty. I’m saving them to savor, one bite of beer, one bite of duck neck—now that, that’s living the godly life!]
[Damn! Dadlao’s listing more again!]
[Say, has anyone gotten onto the floating ice? I heard there are treasure chests up there!]
[Nope—can’t see a single floe around me. Just got a handful of fist-sized broken ice bits.]
[Anyone have an extra iron shovel on board? I found one at noon, had no idea what it was for, just dumped it.]
[Idiot, you can dig up treasure chests on the ice with an iron shovel. I found a silver chest on the floes—got a parka and canned meat. I’ll eat well for days… How lucky is that!]
[I feel like I missed out on a fortune. Is it too late to fish my shovel back out now?]
[Way too late! There are fierce beasts below every floe—it’s suicide to try for chests now!]
[Set foot on a floe, you’ll be attacked! Treasure or not, your life is only one.]
The comments section refreshed with tales of beasts lurking beneath the ice.
Ye Xiaoshu finally confirmed the presence she’d sensed on the ice—beasts guarding the chests.
Thank goodness… just chest guardians. Those things? She’d chop them down one by one, or two at a time if they came in pairs, no fear at all.
So long as it wasn’t that bizarre Gui… she was safe!
Her moment of anxiety was quickly replaced by relief—nothing had happened, even after boarding the boat.
That night, the sea was uncannily calm.
Rocked to sleep by the waves, Ye Xiaoshu had no inkling that, just beneath the hull, a massive creature lurked, debating whether to flip the iron boat overhead.
Lin Qingyue floated in the freezing water, gaze complex as he stared at the minuscule fishing boat. Before the game, he’d sworn to kill that woman… Now, she was right there, and yet he could not make a move.
All he had to do was overturn the boat, drag Ye Xiaoshu down to the bottom, drown her… and half the plan would be complete.
Through his last round's observation, Lin Qingyue realized Ye Xiaoshu’s resurrection wasn’t infinite—she could only revive at fixed intervals. Catch her at the right time, and killing her would be effortless.
Ye Wanwan glared resentfully at the trade platform "I’m Your Dad." Someone like that, how could she be so lucky—so many resources! If it were her instead, she’d lead everyone to a better future!
At least luck hadn’t yet deserted her. With the brazier her brother had ported over and landing in the newly designated safe zone, she’d managed to cling to life.
"Wanwan… I made fish soup. It didn’t turn out too pretty, I’m afraid."
The gentle words eased the ferocity in Ye Wanwan’s face. After a few breaths, she once more became the sweet, lively girl everyone knew.
Qin Zaozao, face flushed with embarrassment, brought over a bowl of fish soup. She glanced into the greyish concoction, cheeks coloring deeper.
Mom had told her to take care of her sister, but even as the older one, this was Qin Zaozao’s first attempt at cooking. Surely Wanwan wouldn’t mind, being so sweet-natured?
"Thank you, jie… I love it. Let’s eat together."
Ye Wanwan stumbled over, cheeks rosy, but when she saw the murky, unidentifiable fish soup, her face changed instantly, a flicker of distaste in her eyes.
Floating in the big bowl were several pale, half-raw hunks of fish, blood not yet congealed, salt crystals still hard and undissolved.
‘Unappetizing’ hardly began to describe it. It was a dish bred in the darkness, and possibly lethal.
Had it not been for ten years of Qin Zaozao’s doting care, Ye Wanwan might’ve suspected she was being pranked on purpose.
"Jie… are we… really going to eat this? Is it even edible?"
Ye Wanwan forced a smile, but she’d rather starve.
"Wanwan doesn’t like it? Then I’ll make it again!"
Qin Zaozao dumped the fish soup and ran off to the deck to try again.
One thing was clear: Qin Zaozao’s devotion to her sister was unshakable. That blatant favoritism… but the flames of hope in Ye Xiaoshu’s heart had been quietly snuffed out.