From Robinson Crusoe

Chapter 47 The most useless episode (please subscribe)
Heavy rain.

It was dark outside. Chen Zhou stepped out of the cave, and the only sound he could hear was the continuous rain.

The brim of the wide-brimmed hat was bent downward by the raindrops as big as beans, and the fabric was soaked in just a few seconds.

Tightening his collar to prevent rain from flowing down his neck into his clothes, Chen Zhou lowered his head to identify the road and walked down the platform.

The sun has not yet risen, and darkness is the main color of the world.

The view was obscured by the rain, everything was immersed in blurry water marks, and the familiar ups and downs of the slopes became unfamiliar.

The sand on the edge of the platform had not been consolidated and had begun to turn into mud and water under the impact of rain, with some soil layers consisting of fine stones even sliding down in large pieces.

Seeing this scene, Chen Zhou reminded himself not to forget to build a wall or a retaining wall on the edge of the platform. Then he held down his hat that was about to be blown away by the wind with one hand and pinched his collar with the other hand and quickly rushed to the fields not far away.

In the light of lightning, he saw the scarecrow at the edge of the field soaked like a drowned rat.

The strips of cloth that used to flutter in the wind now all hung down, no longer arrogant, and its shrunken size made it look even more miserable.

The flags hung with rabbit skins were also blown askew, and one of the unstable poles was even blown to the ground, stuck in the puddles and covered in mud.

There was no water in the ditches of the fields as yet, as the soil, tortured by the drought, was greedily absorbing moisture.

The rice seedlings, barley and wheat were all bent down by the rain, bending into bow shapes and swaying in the wind.

Their stems and leaves are so slender, yet so tough and tenacious.

Washed by the rain, the crops have swept away their former gray and dusty appearance, revealing fresh and new green.

Chen Zhou breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that the precious crops were still in good condition.

With his boots full of mud, he slowly walked through the rice fields, inspected the barley and wheat along the ditches, filled the soil on the ridges that had collapsed due to the rain, and straightened the crops that were about to be crushed...

Only after he was sure that the two hundred or so precious eggs could withstand the wind and rain on their own did he hurried back to the cave.

After staying outside for nearly half an hour, Chen Zhou's wide-brimmed hat and thick clothes were all wet.

After all, they are just everyday clothes made of cloth and a few leather materials, not raincoats, and cannot withstand the test of long-term heavy rain.

The bonfire in the kitchen was burning brightly, and the rabbit meat porridge in the large iron kettle was gurgling, emitting a meaty aroma.

The burning firewood crackled and the heat waves baked Chen Zhou's face red.

He took off his hat, wiped the remaining rain off his face, took off his clothes, hung them on the rack and put them by the campfire to dry.

Caught between the cool breeze and the heat wave, Chen Zhou's back and chest were exposed, and his whole body was reflected in a copper-red color. He held the wooden bowl, scooped out a large spoonful of meat porridge, blew on the hot air, and chewed and swallowed in small sips.

Compared to the time he got soaked on the boat, he was much better prepared this time.

After a bowl of meat porridge, the part facing the campfire was roasted, and my stomach felt warm.

He turned sideways again, enjoying the delicate and long-lasting massage of the heat wave, and served another bowl of porridge.

After filling his stomach and drying his body, Chen Zhou took off his boots and warmed his feet. He added some firewood and walked back to the bedroom on the gravel floor in the cave that hurt his feet.

There was no fire in the bedroom, and the temperature dropped suddenly.

Grinning, Chen Zhou walked across the gravel ground and stepped onto the wooden floor. He brushed off the pebbles stuck to the soles of his feet, walked quickly to the low cabinet beside the bed, took out a pair of thin underwear and put it on. Only then did he feel a lot warmer.

When putting on socks, looking at the red soles of his feet, Chen Zhou vowed to cover the entire house with wooden floors.

The rainy season was about to come, and he didn't want to experience the same thing a second time.

……

The bonfire burned until the rain stopped.

The sun has risen long ago, but the sky is still gray and overcast. Who knows, it might rain again at any time.

This kind of weather is a holiday given by God. You can temporarily stop outdoor work, stay at home to rest or do some light work indoors.

Chen Zhou put on his still damp clothes, put on a brimmed hat, picked up his hatchet and dagger, and prepared to go out.

The reason is simple - today is the day when the eighth mysterious reward arrives.

I was worried that the reward would be something that was afraid of getting wet in the rain, and I was also afraid that I would get wet for too long and suffer from hypothermia, or catch a cold and die.

Chen Zhou waited patiently until the rain stopped, and finally made up his mind to go and take a look.

If the reward this time is really a precision instrument that is afraid of water, or ironware that is afraid of moisture, or even a book or electronic product, his loss will be huge.

After training Lai Fu, who insisted on following him, to go back to the cave to rest, Chen Zhou went to the beach alone.

Walking on the wet forest path, my feet kept slipping.

Fortunately, I had a hatchet with me, so I cut off a thick branch and trimmed off the branches to use as a walking stick.

Trying to slow down his pace and make sure every step was firmly on the ground, Chen Zhou took twice as long as usual to reach the beach.

Shortly after the rain, the waves rolled up turbid foam and the beach was filled with a stronger fishy smell than usual.

The cardboard box containing the reward was wet by the rain and turned dark brown. The surface was soft and the outline of the object inside was already visible.

It was a long object that looked similar to a ruler or a sheathed sword, but the thickness was not quite right.

Its shape was very simple, and Chen Zhou didn't feel that it was a book, electronic product or precision instrument. It could be an iron tool.

The scotch tape wrapped around the box kept its general shape even after it got wet.

The rain started to fall as soon as it started. At this point, Chen Zhou had no interest in enjoying the joy of opening the blind box. He quickly pulled off the wet corrugated paper and was stunned when he saw what was inside.

It was three long wooden strips stacked together.

The top stick is the longest, the middle stick is the second longest, and the bottom stick is the shortest.

Judging from the visual, their lengths are about 70, 50 and 30 centimeters respectively.

All the wooden strips are roughly the same in shape, with one end square and the other flat. There is a hole in the square end and a small yellow rope tied to it.

Their workmanship conforms to the characteristics of modern assembly line technology, with fine polishing, and a layer of varnish applied to the surface of the reddish-brown wood, which has water droplets hanging on it because it has been wet.

The square-headed handle is engraved with non-slip bamboo-like protrusions, adding detail to the wood strips.

Although it makes it look more refined, it cannot change the fact that it is a cheap item.

When Chen Zhou saw this thing, he felt inexplicably familiar. He vaguely remembered where he had seen something similar, but he couldn't remember where for a moment.

But no matter what the functions of these three wooden sticks are, they are destined to be the three most useless rewards received so far.

The electronic wooden fish can be watched for fun, the butt plug has metal parts, and the silicone mobile phone case can be cut open to serve as an airtight seal.

What can these three wooden sticks be used for?
There is a lack of everything on the island except wood.

He picked up the wooden sticks depressedly, grasped the longest square wooden handle, and stuck it on the ground as a walking stick. Chen Zhou suddenly had an idea and finally remembered what this thing was.

In rural areas in the north, it is cold outside and hot inside in winter, so people often have to switch between large cotton shoes and slippers when entering and leaving the house.

Low-top shoes easily get snow in them and are not suitable for northern regions with heavy snow.

Large cotton shoes are usually high-topped. If you use your hands to carry your shoes when changing, your fingers will easily smell like stinky feet.

The ancient nobles could not stand this, so they gradually developed a tool called a shoe horn. Its lower edge is arc-shaped, polished and smooth, and its shape fits the heel of the person, which can replace the human hand to help put on shoes.

When Chen Zhou was a child, he saw an old man putting on shoes with a shoe horn.

The old man was nearly 90 years old at the time, and the shoe horn he used was a piece of white copper. It had accompanied him for more than 30 years, and was buried with him after the old man passed away.

Maybe it’s because modern sneakers are becoming looser and more ergonomic.

Since the old man, Chen Zhou has never seen anyone use something like this.

“Well, it can’t be said that this thing is completely useless.

When I am in my fifties and can no longer bend down, I will probably have to rely on this to put on my shoes."

Separate the three shoe horns and weigh them one by one.

The weight is neither too light nor too heavy, just the right amount, especially the longest one, which feels like a baseball bat when you swing it, and it makes a whirring sound.

Chen Zhou sighed softly.

"It's still the excellence of modern craftsmanship that an ordinary shoe horn can be made so exquisitely and polished so delicately."

After speaking, he added another sentence.

“It’s more comfortable to hold than a 17th-century ship’s rudder.”

As he muttered to himself, he put away the three shoe horns and looked at the sky, which was even darker than before.

The rain has been brewing for four or five hours, and it's hard to say when it will start. If we don't set off early, it will be troublesome to be intercepted on the mountain road.

Just as he was about to return to the cave, Chen Zhou casually glanced at the sea and suddenly found two small black dots floating among the turbid waves.

He didn't bring a telescope with him, so he squinted his eyes, focused the light, and tried hard to observe the two small black dots. He suspected that they were two turtles swimming on the sea and were about to come to the shore.

On second thought, something is not right.

“The turtles in the documentary don’t have the habit of swimming on the water surface, they usually stay submerged.

The wind and waves are so strong now, it is more energy-saving to swim underwater. If I were a turtle, there is no way I could float to the surface of the sea."

"If they're not turtles, could they be barrels from the ship that drifted here?"

Analyze carefully.

Chen Zhou felt that he had searched thoroughly enough when he was moving supplies from the ship, and there shouldn't be any left behind barrels.

If there were merchant ships or pirates passing by nearby, the wooden barrels on their ships would not be able to successfully cross the ocean and reach the shore.

"What it is?"

Chen Zhou had passed by the beach countless times, but this was the first time he saw such a strange thing.

He stopped his steps and observed for a while, and found that the two black spots were still approaching the shore.

At their current speed, they will reach the coast and land in another half an hour. Chen Zhou couldn't help but feel a little panicked.

Because he thought of a new possibility - the two black spots were the canoes of the cannibalistic natives, and in order to avoid the coming storm, they planned to land on the island for shelter.

There was no shelter on the beach, so the natives most likely headed for the woods after landing on the island.

If he went a little further, the native would see densely packed huts and hillside camps, and the supplies he had worked so hard to accumulate would fall into the hands of these barbarians.

His mentality was no longer as peaceful as when he was just watching. Chen Zhou quickly ran back to the camp, put down his shoe horn, found the low-quality monocular telescope used to trade with the natives, took a metal knife, and returned to the beach with an axe.

All the high-quality matchlock rifles in the camp were taken to the mountain, leaving only a few badly worn antiques.

Necessary tools such as cleaning rods, lead bottles, and lead bullets were not left in the camp. If natives in two canoes really came ashore, the best option would be to temporarily avoid the attack.

On rainy days, the matchlock rifle was sometimes not effective, the gunpowder could not be ignited, and the crossbow could not deal with so many people.

If the natives wanted to move the supplies away, he could only let them do so.

After all, the canoe has limited carrying capacity, and even if it is fully loaded, the natives cannot take away much.

Moreover, they did not know the treasures and would only take away the useless glass beads and ceramic dolls first. At most, they would take two boxes of short axes and iron knives, which would not have much impact on life on the island.

He raised the telescope, adjusted the distance between the front and rear lenses, and searched among the waves.

The rolling waves disturbed the vision.

With his eyes wide open and changing direction frequently, Chen Zhou discovered that the two small black dots had disappeared.

"What the hell?
I have been resting well and getting enough sleep during this period, and my vision in both eyes is over 5.0, so it is impossible for me to have hallucinations!"

He picked up the telescope again and searched carefully again.

The sea is still as rough as ever.

Foam surged to the edge of the beach, the light was dim, and the world looked like a plain landscape painting. Apart from the reefs, ocean, sky, and beach, not even a single annoying seabird could be seen.

Raindrops fell from the clouds, wetting Chen Zhou's hand holding the telescope. He slowly put down the telescope, still confused.

"Why did it disappear for no reason?
You haven't logged in yet?"

The rain was still light. Chen Zhou took off his hat and scratched his head. He suddenly remembered that there was a treasure in the camp - a statue of Wang Lingguan.

If the statue were brought back to modern times and sold for at least seven or eight thousand yuan, and if it were melted into pure copper on the island, its effect would be far beyond that of other materials.

If the natives saw the statue, they would definitely think it was the creation of their gods, and then regard the supplies in the camp as gifts from gods, and then regard this beach as a land blessed by gods.

Who knows, they might send indigenous priests and dozens of indigenous warriors to be stationed here in the future. If that happens, he will have no good days.

"No, let's wait and see."

Since he had guessed that the natives had landed, Chen Zhou ran back to the sparse woods along the coast, crouched behind a slender tree, concealed his body, and continued searching like a thief.

This time his observation range was no longer limited to the sea, but also included the beach.

The telescope moved left and right, and the surface of his clothes got wet again. Chen Zhou didn't care and his eyes swept across the ground little by little.

Finally, he found the two black spots again on the beach far to the right.

Those are two seals.

One big and one small, they had just emerged from the sea and were slowly changing their bodies into pupae in the waves, moving towards the beach, one in front and one behind.

The seal is not big in size, but round in shape, with shiny skin that has a rubbery texture when wet.

As they moved forward, the front of their fat bodies looked like balloons filled with water, hitting the ground and causing a series of tremors in their flesh, which made Chen Zhou imagine -

How much oil should be in there!
　Thanks to: My Dad, Zhizhi丶丶, and Classmates Are All in Love for their rewards. Thank you all!

　　感谢：Dennyの豪、书友尾号4280、书友尾号3297、让我想想AE86、大家继续继续、流浪到非洲、指指丶丶、书友尾号7698、汤圆和包子、天空与海拉、氧化年华、明月十四夜、鬼大、书山老林、风的咆哮1994、毙了狗的人、书友尾号7412、五金小黑猫、baihuashu123、雷霆之狂、千山独绝、祖贤是最美哒、撞钟的和尚、追风的你、珞珈山刘某人、月色下灬、曾心实意的月票，感谢各位支持！
　　The double update 1/15 has been completed. The first order result will be calculated at 1500 o'clock tomorrow, which means more than double updates in a month.

　　Others update 10,000 or 20,000 words at a time, but I update 30,000 words in half a month. I am more persistent than them!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)