Chapter 502: Showing Off the Dog

I only just learned human daily routine, why aren't humans sleeping at night?

Although strange, 001 still responded immediately: "Lao Da! I'm here!"

It had tried its best to keep its voice the same as usual, but Cheng Shuili still noticed something odd; she raised an eyebrow and asked, "Are you sleeping?"

On 001's electronic screen appeared a somewhat embarrassed smile, and it honestly spoke its thoughts.

Cheng Shuili nodded, no longer pursuing it, and directly stated her purpose for calling it: "Search the World Channel to see if there are any comments about there being no water in the territory."

Although the World Channel had only appeared for one day, as a channel where anyone can speak, the amount of information accumulated in just one day is also a massive volume that an ordinary person would find difficult to handle.

But for a system like 001, handling it is not difficult at all.

"Okay, Lao Da, I'll start the search now."

On 001's electronic screen, the data stream rolled by quickly, and it soon gave the results.

"Lao Da, according to the search, the World Channel today mentioned a total of 417 pieces of information about the territory having no standing water or similar descriptions."

"Most of them are questions or guesses; only 32 can be confirmed as clear statements claiming their territory was unaffected by the flood or had very little standing water."

"These 32 pieces of information come from different major regions, with the IDs belonging to scattered forces. Do you need to retrieve the specific content and ID information?"

Cheng Shuili's eyes flickered slightly.

Thirty-two……

It was a bit more than she had expected, but considering the player base of the entire game world, this proportion is actually insignificant.

It seems whether there is standing water is indeed related to the terrain.

This was the first time Cheng Shuili realized this; she rubbed her forehead, rushed to the territory overnight to check the water level, and only after confirming that this amount of water would have no impact on the entire territory did she let out a sigh of relief.

The warehouse is located on higher ground, so this water won't reach it anytime soon, but if the water level continues to rise, who knows.

Either way, it's still best to make preparations in advance.

Cheng Shuili had just finished organizing the manpower when she spotted Zhou Zhuxing waiting in the corner from afar, occasionally glancing her way—clearly there was something he wanted to discuss with her.

Beside them stood Yu Bing, so exhausted she had lost all human shape.

One of them stood ramrod straight, the other bent like a bamboo stalk weighed down by heavy snow, as boneless as could be, pressing against Zhou Zhuxing—a contrast that could not be more stark.

After Cheng Shuili finished handling things here, she then walked over to the two of them.

Yu Bing saw Cheng Shuili approaching and finally perked up a bit; she yawned, raised her hand, and enthusiastically greeted Cheng Shuili: "Boss! Boss! Our family's wooden one has something to say to you!"

This so-called "our family's wooden one" must refer to Zhou Zhuxing.

Cheng Shuili stepped closer, raised her hand, and pressed it firmly against Yu Bing's head, giving it a rough rub: "You're this exhausted and still came along? Go back to sleep."

"I'm not tired!" Yu Bing protested, shaking from the rub, trying to sound tough and widening her eyes, but the next second she couldn't help but let out a huge yawn, instantly deflating.

Cheng Shuili ignored her, turning her gaze to Zhou Zhuxing: "What's the matter?"

Zhou Zhuxing hesitated for a moment, glanced at Yu Bing standing nearby, then, as if encouraged, furrowed his brow slightly and said: "Lao Da, was that breakfast this morning meant to comfort me and Huo Po? Because there's no water in the safe zone, we went ahead and harvested all the crops early."

Cheng Shuili nodded, accepting this without hesitation—after all, that was exactly the purpose of that meal.

But… Zhou Zhuxing and the two of them have come over just to say this.

Cheng Shuili looked at Zhou Zhuxing, her tone calm: "After all, you've been busy for so long with no good outcome; a meal can also count as a comfort for you."

Zhou Zhuxing nodded, pointing at the farmland in the territory already submerged by water, and gave a small smile: "Now perhaps we can prove that our decision was not wrong."

Cheng Shuili followed her finger and saw that the once vibrant farmland was now completely submerged under murky water.

The water surface reflected a faint night light, making that area appear even more desolate and lifeless.

So that's what they wanted to say.

Cheng Shuili glanced at Zhou Zhuxing—this guy wouldn't have such thoughts on his own; fortunately Yu Bing was also there, so she must have been brought over by Yu Bing.

Zhou Zhuxing is the standard type of technical talent—able to talk at length in his own specialty, but when it comes to other matters he's as dense as a log, unable to even grasp what the person speaking to him means.

And Yu Bing is this talent's external emotional intelligence supplement.

She worries that Zhou Zhuxing's overly dull personality will annoy Cheng Shuili, the boss, and lead to a bad outcome in the future.

Although it's unclear when she came to be seen this way in Yu Bing's heart, Cheng Shuili actually finds it rather amusing.

Her subordinates, this bunch of people, each with distinct personalities, combined make for quite a unique flavor.

She withdrew her gaze, looked again at the flooded field, and her voice sounded steady in the night: "That's right, the choices we made were not wrong."

Cheng Shuili wasn't just referring to this harvest‑rush incident; she was also talking about the original decision to take them in.

Zhou Zhuxing didn't understand; back when she and Yu Bing relied on each other, she forced herself to think about these things.

A smart brain is smart wherever it's used, and bargaining with Cheng Shuili only makes it sharper.

Nowadays, life in the safe zone is easy; the tasks the boss assigns are just things she likes, so she naturally doesn't bother with irrelevant matters.

But Yu Bing understood; although she isn't particularly bright, she at least has a normal person's emotional intelligence, which actually makes her stand out between the two.

Cheng Shuili watched the two of them walk away, feeling quite moved.

The environment influences people, and also changes them.

Faced with different circumstances, people are never the same.

Just like those threatening remarks she saw on the regional channel right after waking up.

A chair…

By now, it has also become something to be fought over.

After lying back down on the bed, Cheng Shuili found she couldn't sleep; she opened the regional channel, intending to see how the chair situation developed, scrolling back for a while before finally finding the chair owner's post.

He also seemed to realize he had kicked a hornet's nest; his tone shifted from initial smugness to flustered and blustering defensiveness: "Are you guys sick or something? It's just a broken chair! If you've got the ability, go find it yourself—what's the point of staring at me?"

Such an excuse comes across as pale and powerless amid the crowd's fury, actually seeming more like a provocation.

"A broken chair? What are you showing off with a broken chair? Now you know to be afraid?"

"Find it? In this pitch‑black, raging flood, where are we supposed to look? Contribute your broken chair, let everyone take turns sitting on it—maybe then we'll spare your life!"

"Stop wasting words on him! Once the water recedes, let's form a team and go pay him a visit!"

Count me in! I've long found these show-off dogs unpleasant!