Chapter 6: Someone Looking for Trouble

The dark‑red sky gradually deepened, like diluted blood, casting an ominous twilight. After watching this scene long enough it ceased to be frightening; Cheng Shuili only had a slight objection to the lifeless background.

"Open at 3 p. m. …"

She murmurs the radio's announcement repeatedly, glances at the system time—now 14:55.

"I definitely won't make it today."

Cheng Shuili pouts; even if she sprinted at top speed now, she couldn't reach that so‑called Jiao Yi Zhan within five minutes. Besides, the coordinates on the radio were garbled, just a string of indistinct numbers.

Looks like you need luck to trade.

"Forget it, maybe later."

Cheng Shuili doesn't stop until an hour before dark, at seven o'clock, when she finally eases the vehicle and starts scouting for a suitable overnight spot by the roadside.

The system warned that at night you cannot leave the vehicle's six‑meter radius.

"The night is always unknown; the unknown means danger."

Cheng Shuili repeats the system's opening notice. She's never eaten pork nor seen a pig run, but she guesses monsters might appear after dark.

Dry shrubs line both sides of the road, and the distant mountain silhouettes blur in the dusk. Cheng Shuili opens the system panel, checking today's mileage—80 km, far exceeding the required 50 km.

"Exceeding the mission, just as I expected."

She smirks proudly.

A small, level clearing appears on the right side of the road ahead, with sparse shrubs and relatively open sight.

Cheng Shuili brakes the shopping cart, and the advertisement sound cuts off abruptly.

"That's it."

She jumps out, circles the clearing once to confirm nothing's amiss, then pulls a 10‑meter rope and a utility knife from the cart's storage compartment.

Cheng Shuili cuts the rope into three pieces, ties one to the cart's axle, then halves the empty mineral‑water bottle she drank earlier, attaching the halves to the rope to make a simple alarm device.

Whenever something appears, the two bottle halves will clack together, producing a sound.

Cheng Shuili is a light sleeper; that sound is enough.

She stretches the other two rope sections into a triangle around the clearing, about five meters from the cart.

"Perfect."

Cheng Shuili brushes dust off her hands, satisfied with her creation.

Although it's still the Newbie Protection Period and monster spawn rates should be lowered, caution never hurts.

After setting the warning line, Cheng Shuili returns to the cart, takes out a box of new self‑heating rice and the half‑eaten canned yellow peaches.

The sky has fully darkened; the dark‑red heavens have turned deep purple, and a few weak stars flicker like broken advertisement pixels.

Steam from the self‑heating rice curls up in the night air as Cheng Shuili sits cross‑legged beside the cart, eating while sorting today's haul.

【Player: Cheng Shuili】

ID: AAAJCCJ8888

Username: Wu Ya Zuo Fei Ji

Vehicle: "Supermarket Promotion Special" electric shopping cart (Current charge 790%)

Health: 60 (Title buff active, don't remove the title lightly.)

Strength: 30 (Why hasn't it changed?)

Stamina: 30 (No progress at all.)

Agility: 30 (Surviving on the road is like rowing against the current.)

Overall Combat Power: 45 (You've regressed.)

Supplies: vehicle upgrade core x1, pre‑made dishes x9, self‑heating rice x3, self‑heating hot pot x4, 500 ml bottled water x5, compressed biscuits x1, utility knife x1, rope x3 sections, thick coat x1, matches x15, foldable Engineer's Shovel x1, multivitamin tablets x500, 5 L gasoline x1, Vehicle Upgrade Material Fragments x7, vintage radio x1.

Cheng Shuili: "……"

This broken system's snark is surprisingly flamboyant.

Just three more fragments and I can upgrade the vehicle…

Cheng Shuili bites the tip of her chopsticks, calculates, and decides she still needs to check the market, aiming to upgrade the vehicle today!

As soon as she opened it, she saw a familiar user @‑ing her.

【Wise College Student】: @Wu Ya Zuo Fei Ji, you a big shot bullying someone as unnoticed as me? I don't believe you didn't see the private message; not replying means you're guilty!

【Wise College Student】: Everyone, let's be fair! Vehicle Upgrade Material Fragments, we all know how important they are, right? Wu Ya Zuo Fei Ji, that damn dog, traded me four fragments for a box of self‑heating rice! And that's four fragments!

【Wise College Student】: I watched the market all afternoon; you can get self‑heating rice for just two fragments! @Wu Ya Zuo Fei Ji, you a big shot still shortchanging me? Give me back the fragments!

【A Piggy】: Good drama, love it, keep performing.

【Relieved】: I think the college student makes sense, isn't Wu Ya a big shot? We can't make a fuss over just two fragments, right? Maybe Wu Ya could compensate with a box of self‑heating rice.

【Place Where the Wind Blows】: Support! Support!

Cheng Shuili cracks a cold grin, raises her hand to open a private chat with 【Wise College Student】, screenshots, blocks, all in one swift motion.

【Wise College Student】: You still blocked me? @Wu Ya Zuo Fei Ji @Wu Ya Zuo Fei Ji @Wu Ya Zuo Fei Ji, have you no shame? Will you give more? If you don't compensate me, I'll keep @‑ing you in the channel so everyone sees what kind of face you big shot have!

【Relieved】: Big shot, if you keep acting like that it's kinda… It's just a box of self‑heating rice, feeling shortchanged is normal, just compensate and it's over.

Where's this saint?

Cheng Shuili furrows her brows and types a line of text.

【Wu Ya Zuo Fei Ji】: 【image】 Fool x, look closely, you started it yourself.

Cheng Shuili attaches a screenshot of 【Wise College Student】 initiating the trade.

【Wise College Student】:???

【Wu Ya Zuo Fei Ji】: You're here refunding me as a minor? If everyone acted like you—unhappy and whining—who would dare trade in the future?

【Cao Mei Xiao Ying Tang】: Support Wu Ya big shot, if everyone is like this ear‑nose, after trading will I still need a "never regret" note?

【Liang Shan Bo Yu Zhu Ying Lai】: Pure passerby, supporting Wu Ya big shot. Feel sorry for the big shot, a smooth trade got ripped off. Indeed, top‑quality ones are everywhere.

Cheng Shuili isn't someone who can't tell right from wrong; seeing these comments also makes her feel warm‑hearted.

【Wu Ya Zuo Fei Ji】: Thanks everyone, those dog things who like to backtrack, don't come to the Huo Huo Trading Market. @Shi Ran, Shi Ran big boss is so generous, we're only a few people, could you each send a box of self‑heating rice?

The big boss opened the group!

【Cao Mei Xiao Ying Tang】 grinned, they also found Shi Ran constantly displeasing, and immediately followed the big boss's lead!

【Cao Mei Xiao Ying Tang】: Only knows how to celebrate others' generosity? Again ears and nose?

【Liang Shan Bo Yu Zhu Ying Lai】: Wow, Wuya Dalao certified a new big boss! @Shi Ran, isn't it just a few boxes of self‑heating rice? Shi Ran big boss won't be unable to produce them, right?

Cheng Shuili stared at the screen and kept watching, and in the end Shi Ran didn't say anything further.

This matter is over, but the feud has already been set, Cheng Shuili added Shi Ran to the blacklist, and if there's any way to take revenge in the future…

"Heh," Cheng Shuili smiled, "don't blame her later."