From Robinson Crusoe

On February 1661, 2, a new rain sounded the harbinger of the rainy season.

The clouds blocked the sun, and the light in the cave was dimmer than usual.

Light the chandelier and light the stove.

The sound of burning firewood spread from the kitchen to the bedroom, with crisp "crackling" sounds occurring from time to time.

With the door tightly shut, there was no cool draft in the room, the lights were bright and steady, and the warmth from the wall of fire grew stronger.

Chen Zhou stood in front of the bedroom window with his hands behind his back. The brand new window frame, which had been painted, was tightly embedded in the outer wall, and looked exceptionally neat.

The not-so-clean glass was covered with a curtain of raindrops brought by the slanting wind.

The water marks washed away the dust on the glass surface, blurring the scene in the distance.

The sky and the earth look like oil paintings inlaid on these small square pieces of glass, and they look somewhat like the style of Van Gogh's paintings.

The cat still liked warm places and moved closer to the fire wall.

Last night's laundry and towels were still hanging on the drying rack.

Tizi was lying lazily and relaxed against the wall, with Gangdang and Huiqiu snuggling up to it, its tiger head with its belly facing the sky, restlessly using its claws to hook the corners of its clothes. Soon, the tips of its claws got caught in the fabric of its trouser legs, and it meowed anxiously.

Lai Fu lay upright beside Chen Zhou, with his eyelids drooping, and looked at the drizzle outside the window with his master.

The sound of rain was so quiet, without lightning or thunder.

Just standing quietly like this and gazing into the distance can calm one's mood, as if blending into the breeze outside, blowing over the hills and drifting towards the ocean.

……

The dry platform was initially hit by raindrops, causing wisps of smoke to billow up. The small pits that held the water were like dimples in the earth, blooming one after another.

But in the blink of an eye, the dusty smoke disappeared and turned into winding streams, filling the pits and flowing to other places.

In such weather, even someone like Chen Zhou who can't sit still wants to take a good rest for a day or have a good sleep.

He added some firewood to the stove and returned to the bedroom, thinking about taking a hot bath at home later.

Today's bedrooms can be said to be "small but complete".

After entering the door, there are clothes hangers, shoe racks, storage boxes and a row of unknown wild flowers that are about to bloom along the windows.

Walking forward on the wooden floor, there is a fire wall extending from the kitchen partition wall. In front of the fire wall is a clothes drying rack, and on the inside is a desk.

On the edge of the table was a matte black wooden shelf made of ironwood, divided into several separate spaces. Some were filled with Chen Zhou's homemade pink and purple ink, some were filled with ink brought down from the ship, and the most exquisite wooden grid contained the small bottle of ink that came with the pen.

Because this bottle of ink is too precious, Chen Zhou has hardly used it.

In addition to the wooden rack designed to be "cat-proof", there is also the paper and pen that Chen Zhou often uses, as well as the book "Robinson Crusoe" on the table.

There is a floor lamp next to the table, which is the main light source for Chen Zhou when he studies and works.

In addition to the comfortable wooden chairs, there is also a tall shelf behind the table. The shelf is made of brighter pineapple wood boards and a milky white wooden board. On it are the books that Chen Zhou brought from the ship, including "An Overview of Intangible Cultural Heritage: A Complete Book of Bamboo Weaving, Rattan Weaving and Straw Weaving".

Of course, the number of books Chen Zhou has collected so far is not large, not enough to fill the entire shelf, so there are also small pottery and homemade wooden models made by Chen Zhou, as well as a few bottles of good wine that he has looted.

Pottery is not as beautiful as porcelain, and Chen Zhou's craftsmanship is not very good, so it looks quite ugly.

However, after making so many of them, it is inevitable that some fine works will be produced. Among them, "Running Laifu", "Grape Family" and "Flock of Sheep" are very lifelike.

Especially the "Running Laifu", although it looks rough, its shape has the charm of Laifu, and the joyful and excited spirit can be seen at a glance.

Thanks to Chen Zhou's consistent seriousness and pursuit of perfection, the wooden model looks tightly structured and beautifully shaped.

The several model machines placed at the bottom of the shelf are the best among them. No matter whether it is an earthen rice huller, a foot-operated pestle, a water-operated pestle, or a grinding wheel, they are all real machines that can be used directly, but their efficiency is much lower.

The storage rack occupies the left half of the bedroom, and the partition wall between the right side and the storage room leaves an aisle more than one meter wide.

Further in is Chen Zhou’s rest area.

In addition to a bed, the rest area is also equipped with storage facilities such as a cat bed, a chinchilla box, a mirror, a wardrobe, and a bedside table.

Due to space limitations, the furniture is not arranged in perfect order, but it can be considered neat and clean.

In particular, the furniture moved from the captain's room and the first mate's room, all of which are European retro style, unify the style of the entire bedroom.

On the inside of the horizontal bed and bedside table, close to the wall of the gravel cave, there is a longer and taller storage rack.

Behind the shelf is a gravel cave wall that is still under expansion.

Without it, the "primitive-style" yellow sandstone would be visible from the bed, which would lose its beauty.

……

The walls on both sides of the bedroom are hung with paintings carefully selected by Chen Zhou.

There are the raging waves of the ocean, the lush and beautiful forests, the vibrant rock beaches, the evolution of cave dwellings, the naughty moments of kittens, the scenes of harvest, and the warmth of Lai Fu sleeping peacefully...

Recently, two new paintings were added to it, depicting a tall and strong man with a crew cut and a huge dead fish.

The man with a crew cut was very young, but his face looked a little weathered from the sea breeze and years of work.

There is a sense of free and unrestrained heroism in his facial features. He has a beard and holds a pen and paper in his hands. In the painting, he smiles particularly brightly, revealing a row of neat teeth. The look he gives the big fish is full of boasting and pride, even a little arrogant.

But this is understandable. If any other fisherman caught such a huge fish with simple homemade fishing gear, he would probably laugh more wildly and crazily than him.

Beyond the two new works, at the end of all the paintings, hangs a bright red Chinese knot, which leaves a festive and hopeful ending for Chen Zhou's works.

……

That day, it rained intermittently all day long and Chen Zhou did not do any work.

He read for a few hours and took some notes.

During this period, he had some new inspiration for the improvement of firearms and the weaving of rattan armor, and he drew a few simple designs.

After a hot bath, I tidied the house, cooked a nice dinner, and drank a few glasses of rum.

After having a full meal and drinking a lot, and feeling slightly tipsy from the alcohol, he teased the little chinchilla for a while, then brought Grape's family over one by one, biting their ears and burying their heads in the cat's belly.

Listening to their impatient cries or comfortable purring, enjoying the touch of their soft fur and paw pads, I fell asleep before I knew it.

……

After the rest day, it rained again.

Chen Zhou took a day off and slept for a full ten hours. When he woke up on February 2, he felt refreshed and full of energy.

Unfortunately, the weather was not good and he didn't have the opportunity to work outside. So he moved his work place from outdoors to indoors and started digging an ice cellar - the container had been moved back a long time ago, and now all he needed to do was create a space to store it.

The volume of the container is less than two cubic meters, and including the reserved space, the work can be completed in less than a day.

What Chen Zhou needs to consider is whether to put it underground or to dig a hole in the wall and put it inside the wall.

After some thought, he decided that the container still couldn't hold enough items.

In the future, we may need to store large amounts of goat milk, meat, fruits, grains and vegetables. One container alone cannot meet the demand. It is better to first use the container to make a small freezer and then dig a large cellar later.

The small freezer is designed for convenience. It can be placed in the wall and taken out whenever needed.

A large cellar needs to be dug deep, and the internal space needs to be wide enough, with a wooden ladder going up and down. The main purpose is to store more and for a longer time.

……

After determining the target, he changed into work clothes, selected an area in the kitchen to place the container freezer, cleared out the surrounding objects that were afraid of getting dirty or touched, and started working without further ado.

We worked until dark and the space to accommodate the containers was finally cleared.

After lighting the oil lamp, Chen Zhou pushed the cart in the rain to transport the container to the kitchen. It took him almost two hours to stuff it into the dug gravel hole, fill the gaps on the edges, and build a circle of stone frame around the door for decoration.

As for how to put water into the box, mix saltpeter in the water, and divide the storage areas for different items, that is something to be considered later.

I worked a whole day and only took a short break for lunch.

Chen Zhou felt that all the abundant energy he had in the morning was almost used up.

I took off my work clothes that were covered with sand and mud, boiled a pot of hot water and soaked my feet.

Sitting at the kitchen door, looking at the water droplets still dripping outside the window, and remembering that there would be a mysterious reward tomorrow, Chen Zhou could only helplessly pray that tomorrow would be a sunny day, and then returned to the bedroom to rest exhausted.

……

On February 2, God was very kind and the rain stopped after two days in a row. Only some dark clouds like old cotton wool appeared in the sky.

After waking up, all my fatigue disappeared. I put on my clothes and folded my bedding while feeling grateful for my good physical condition.

He washed and cooked as usual, then looked at the weather outside. Worried that it might rain on the way back, Chen Zhou put on his leather raincoat, put on his straw hat, picked up his backpack, and headed straight for the beach.

Lai Fu has been basically left alone these days, and his personality has become more and more wild. As long as Chen Zhou doesn't discipline him, he will run around everywhere like a little bully who does whatever he wants.

When he went out, it followed Chen Zhou. Not long after he got off the platform, crossed the fields and entered the forest, this guy quietly slipped away.

Chen Zhou didn't know what fun things there were on the island that could make Lai Fu linger there. He only knew that this guy liked to go to the mountains and didn't go to dangerous places like the deep pools in the forest or the seaside, so he just left it there.

In order to make it easier to transport building materials in the future, if he saw bumpy roads or tree roots and shrubs blocking the road when he was going down the mountain, he would stop and repair them.

After so many times, this already flattened forest path has become a simple road for carts to travel on, but it takes a little longer.

In this way, when the sun was high in the sky and the wind rose and the clouds dispersed, Chen Zhou leisurely arrived in front of the wooden and stone wall.

Glancing casually at the middle of the sand, he discovered that this time the mysterious reward seemed to have "bounced back" and had become much larger.

The entire box wrapped in black packing cloth was lying flat on the beach. Its length and width seemed not much smaller than a flat double mattress. It was so large and thick that Chen Zhou couldn't help but wonder what was inside.

After climbing over the wall and getting closer, he simply grabbed the bottom edge of the box and tried to lift it up.

It was much lighter than he had imagined. He could hear the collision of objects inside when he shook it gently. He guessed it should be an assembled object. It was possible that it was a gift package, but the probability was too low.

He took out a dagger and cut open the wrapping cloth, then opened the side of the carton, and a pile of small packaging boxes of various sizes came into view.

Chen Zhou was stunned, rubbed his eyes, and his voice was full of disbelief.

“Is it really a big gift package?

No way! "

He couldn't believe that he had received three bad rewards, but the fourth time he got something good, so he hurriedly took out the small boxes inside the big box and opened them one by one to check.

At first glance, this reward is really a big gift package, and it is not an ordinary gift package, but a "fishing gift package" that specializes in one thing.

The largest of them is a fishing box.

This fishing box is not simple. It has a handle for carrying, a foldable backrest and seat cushion, and a large parasol is inserted on top to protect against wind and rain. It has four small wheels underneath, making it easy to push.

Open the lid of the box, and you will find a storage area for various fishing gear accessories, and several accessories are also given away.

Unfortunately, Chen Zhou only knew how to discuss those curious topics in the fishing bar, or laugh at the fishermen who were empty-handed. He knew nothing about professional fishing equipment and had no idea what these accessories were used for. He could only think about figuring it out slowly in the future.

Of course, the design of this fishing box is not actually excellent. It is one of those products that is multifunctional for the sake of being multifunctional. It is a jack of all trades, but poor at anything.

Sitting on its plastic seat is not comfortable at all, and it even hurts my butt a bit.

Its folding backrest also has no leather padding, and the joints are not very stable. When folded, you can feel that the structure is noticeably loose.

A person of Chen Zhou's body type wouldn't dare to put his entire body on it, or else it would be crushed.

The most important thing is that the internal space of this fishing box is less than 110cm long. If you hook a big fish, it will not be able to accommodate it.

……

In addition to the fishing box and the detachable parasol, this fishing gift pack also includes a double-layer fishing rod bag, three fishing rods, a scoop net, several boxes of fishing line, a fish guard bag, a fish guard, some baits, floats, and some accessories that Chen Zhou needs to research on his own.

Although there are a lot of things in the gift package, none of them look very high-end and even look cheap.

Whether it is the fishing box with a plastic seat, the thin steel umbrella pole, the fish protection bag with a smell of artificial leather, or the light fishing rod, they are all silently telling of their value.

Chen Zhou estimated that this gift package would only be worth about 700 to 800 yuan, which might not even be as valuable as a fishing rod of some anglers.

To exaggerate a little, the durability of these fishing rods is probably far inferior to the long ironwood pole he made himself.

But to be honest, these three fishing rods are all hollow and much lighter than his long pole that can be called an iron rod.

Although the quality of the rewards was not satisfactory, Chen Zhou could not find fault with it.

After all, there are many things here that he cannot make or can make, but are of poor practicality.

For example, the reel, various types of fish hooks, grouped fishing lines and more sensitive and quick-reacting floats are all defects that he urgently needs to improve in fishing.

After organizing the items in the box, he really wanted to express his dissatisfaction with the quality of the rewards, so that the program crew would feel bad and give him some compensation next time.

However, his acting skills were not sophisticated enough. As he was cleaning up, he almost couldn't help laughing out loud when he thought about the possibility of catching a bigger fish in the future.

He kept reminding himself to be content, quickly closed the carton lid, closed the packaging bag, dragged the large and light "fishing gift bag" outside the wooden and stone wall, and started the day's work with an unconcealable good mood. (End of this chapter)