While the construction workers were helping to change the tire, the ones who had gone after the robbers came back.
"How'd it go? Where are they?" the foreman asked.
"They got away," one of the workers said, frustrated. "They jumped off the highway embankment and disappeared. But while they were running, they dropped some of the cash. We picked up whatever we could. Not sure if it's all of it."
The two workers pulled the money from their pockets and handed it over to Chu Yian.
Compared to the thick wad she'd thrown out earlier, this one was noticeably thinner. After a careful count, only 5,400 yuan remained.
"Is some of it missing?" she asked.
Seeing the look on her face, one of the workers blanched and quickly clarified, "This is all we found. We didn't take a single cent!"
"No, no, I didn't mean that," Chu Yian said quickly, waving her hands. "If it weren't for you guys, I wouldn't just be out some cash—I might not even be alive right now."
She pulled out ten crisp 100-yuan bills and offered them to the foreman. "Thank you for your help. Please let me treat you all to a good meal tonight—just take this."
"No need for that," the foreman said, shaking his head. "You just ran into bad luck. We happened to be here, that's all. We can't take your money, young lady."
Still, he efficiently finished swapping out her tire and casually grabbed a case of bottled water from the back of her trike.
"We've been working nonstop. We're parched anyway—consider this our thank-you. But it's getting dark, and you shouldn't be out here alone. Head on home."
Chu Yian didn't insist. She bowed deeply to the group, then drove her Foton Five-Star back home at full speed.
Truthfully, what happened with those two robbers tonight was terrifying.
Back at home, she downed two big gulps of water before she finally calmed down enough to think clearly.
She mentally reviewed what had gone wrong.
First of all, it was too late at night and too dark outside. Even with her vehicle, if someone had tampered with the road, she wouldn't have had a chance to escape.
Second, she had underestimated just how ruthless people could be. Some robbers won't let you go just because you cooperate.
She blamed herself for not being prepared. From now on, she needed to carry a weapon.
If not a baton or a big blade, then at least a kitchen knife.
She thought this over, went to the kitchen, and grabbed the meat cleaver she used for chopping meat. She gripped it by the handle and gave it a couple swings through the air.
Next time, if she ran into bad guys—
She'd toss a Treasure Chest Grandpa, then swing the knife and go full berserker.
Speaking of Treasure Chest Grandpa, the conjuring skill's cooldown had finally finished. But she'd been out all day and hadn't had time to use it.
What would she get this time?
Chu Yian reached into the chest, full of anticipation.
Please be something useful. A crossbow or even a gun would be perfect.
[An expensive electro-capacitive mechanical keyboard]
[Note: Will be reclaimed after the current round of the game ends.]
[Item Description: "Language is the sharpest weapon, and writing is its blade. This electro-capacitive keyboard lets you type ten thousand words without fatigue. Write like a poet, argue like a lawyer—conquer your enemies with eloquence!"]
Chu Yian stared blankly at the keyboard in her arms.
Was the Treasure Chest trying to turn her into a keyboard warrior?
You've got to be shitting me.
$@%!#&%!!!
Her face stayed expressionless, but in her heart, she was absolutely cursing it out.
Day Five of the Game
After last night's experience, Chu Yian made a clear plan:
Go out in the morning to stock up, then come straight back.
Food supplies had dwindled, so today's run was mostly to restock those.
And of course—like always—gasoline was a must-buy.
Even after the robbery, her remaining funds were still enough to get by.
9:00 a.m.
The outdoor temperature had already hit 40°C (104°F).
As she drove home, she passed the construction site again and saw the same workers still hard at it. The engine of her trike roared as she sped by, pulling into her yard.
From the well, she pulled out the ice-chilled watermelon she'd placed there that morning.
Then, she loaded it onto her trike and drove back toward the site.
"Beep-beep!"
She parked under a scorched tree whose leaves were nearly brittle and honked twice, then got out and looked up.
The workers immediately recognized her vehicle.
One of them waved from the scaffolding and rasped out with a parched voice, "What're you doing, little sis? We're almost done for the day—we don't need more water."
"Want some watermelon?" Chu Yian grinned.
She pulled a massive watermelon wrapped in blankets from the back and placed it on a makeshift table beside their water bottles and tools.
In the peak of summer, watermelon was a sacred gift.
Especially iced watermelon.
The workers climbed down one by one. When she cut it open, the cold from the watermelon wafted into the air, and the pink-red flesh practically sparkled.
"Now that hits the spot!"
"Damn, this weather is hell."
"Thanks, little sis."
…
The group of sun-darkened workers dug in gratefully.
"No problem," Chu Yian said with a nod.
She'd never been on a construction site before—only ever seen them from afar. Now that she was here, she curiously wandered around.
There were thumb-thick rebar rods, full-metal sledgehammers, steel saws, and all kinds of tools she didn't even recognize.
One massive iron sledgehammer caught her eye immediately.
Even the handle was made of metal—it looked solid and brutal. If that thing hit someone, their organs would probably get jumbled and their skull would split open.
Even if she didn't use it, just carrying it on her shoulder would be intimidating as hell.
She felt tempted to ask if the foreman would sell it to her.
She tried to lift it.
She couldn't.
As someone who struggled to carry a thirty-pound watermelon, she had clearly overestimated her strength stat.
The hammer weighed nearly 100 pounds.
Even after putting all her effort into it, she couldn't budge it an inch.
The workers behind her broke out into unrestrained laughter.
Fine. So she couldn't lift it.
Chu Yian walked away like it was no big deal and instead picked up a one-meter-long steel rebar rod lying nearby. It was thinner than the hammer, but still heavy, and—bonus—it had a sharpened tip.
That would work just fine.
"Sir, could I buy one of these from you?"
"You want this thing?" one of the workers asked, a little surprised.
They looked at her, standing there with a cleaver in her right hand and rebar in her left, and paused.
The foreman chuckled and said, "If you want it, take it. We've got plenty of those lying around."
After all, she brought them watermelon and water—hard to say no to that.
The site had no shortage of rebar, bricks, and cement. Giving her a piece or two wasn't a big deal.
"Just don't go doing anything illegal with it," the foreman said seriously. "We're all law-abiding citizens here."
"Of course!" Chu Yian nodded earnestly.
As long as the other party followed the law, she'd be a model citizen herself.
She tossed the steel rod and her cleaver into the back of the trike. Then she glanced over at the unused cement in the mixer and the scattered bricks nearby. Suddenly, an idea lit up in her head.
"Sir, would you mind selling me some of those bricks and cement?"