From Robinson Crusoe

Chapter 96 Steel Blind Box
After Xiao Huihui and Tizi were mixed together, Chen Zhou discovered that the sayings "love grows over time" and "one is first to see the moon when he is near the water" were really true.

Our ancestors were always able to prove the value of a civilization that has lasted for five thousand years in strange areas.

It was the mating season, and Xiao Huihui and Tizi soon became inseparable.

However, their relationship is not all smooth sailing - don't forget, Grape has a suitor, a big black cat who lingers on the edge of the woods all day and never leaves.

……

Since June 6, Chen Zhou has been treating Xiao Huihui's wounds every day.

The stubborn "third cat" fought fiercely with Xiao Huihui that day, but finally managed to escape successfully.

But one cannot escape the fate. On June 6, when Chen Zhou took Lai Fu out, they found it dying under a big tree.

With no one to take care of it, the injury on its head worsened badly, its eye socket became ulcerated, and it had been targeted by greedy flies, leaving it completely blind in one eye.

There were also parasite eggs laid in the wounds on its body. After Chen Zhou killed it, he saw wriggling insects in the wounds.

On this island lacking top predators, wild cats are considered to be animals at the top of the food chain, but their lives are like walking on a tightrope; if they are not careful, they will fall into the abyss of death.

If the creatures on the island were smart enough and knew that there was such a good treatment as Grapes, with food and shelter provided and they only had to catch mice and rabbits, they would probably be willing to do anything to live in the cave.

It is no wonder that after living on the island for a few years, Robinson's house became overrun with cats, and he even had to shoot some to death to eradicate the problem.

Survival in the wild is so difficult, who wouldn’t love a free meal ticket?

……

June 6th, the day before the mysterious reward arrives.

That day, Chen Zhou completed the manufacture of the foot-operated pestle, successfully processed the husked and selected rice for food, and scooped out some rice to eat.

When he was a child, electric rice cookers were not popular in rural areas.

My grandfather worked away from home and my grandmother was illiterate, so she was more accustomed to eating rice over the stove fire.

Cooking rice is not as easy as cooking it in a rice cooker.

You need to put cold water in the pot first, wait until the cold water is half hot, and then put the rice in the pot.

The firewood is burning vigorously and the warm water is about to boil. At this time, use a colander to scoop out the half-cooked rice in the pot to prevent it from being cooked into pieces. Then put the rice into a basin and continue to simmer it in the pot with the remaining fire.

Generally speaking, when the firewood in the stove is burned out, the rice is cooked.

Even though they are both rice, the taste and texture of rice cooked in a rice cooker and rice boiled in a pot are very different.

The rice is very watery and lacks stickiness. Each grain is distinct, fragrant and glutinous, and has the smell of firewood from the stove. It is hard to forget once you have eaten it.

For Chen Zhou, making rice is more than just a way of cooking.

The rice grains, which were slightly dull in color and lacked a lustrous luster and looked very bad, were just like his hometown, which was remote, backward and dilapidated in the eyes of outsiders, but was also the most precious memory of his life.

He barely completed the entire process of scooping out the rice using a large iron kettle and two canning bottles. After 269 days, he finally tasted rice again.

The rice in two cans was actually not enough for Chen Zhou to consume in one meal.

However, the yield of the first crop of rice is limited, and most of the grains are used as seeds for the next season. The remaining grains can barely be consumed for four or five days. They are scarcer than meat and have become a luxury.

He didn't dare to eat too much, so he fried some seal meat to go with the rice. While eating the rice, Chen Zhou missed the taste of his grandma's food.

……

Also on June 6, he enjoyed a dramatic farce.

By that time, Ti Zi's estrus had ended, and the relationship between her and Xiao Hui Hui had improved greatly.

Xiao Huihui has changed from his usual bullied appearance and can freely enter and leave the kitchen to taste his favorite dried fish at will.

Grape became pregnant with Little Gray's seed around June 6-17 and resumed her old ways, continuing to strike fiercely at the mice around the fields.

When going out hunting, Xiao Huihui always accompanies him.

It suffered some hardships in its childhood, and has been living a pampered life since being rescued by Chen Zhou. It does not know how to hunt at all, and does not know the habits of mice or birds. When hunting with Ti Zi, it often ruins a good hunt and scares away the prey.

But Ti Zi did not despise it for being stupid. She always acted like Xiao Huihui's mother, taking it to track, learn, and practice. Sometimes she would even catch mice alive and give them to Xiao Huihui as toys.

In Chen Zhou's opinion, it feels like an old wife and a young husband.

On the afternoon of the 24th, Tizi went out, and Xiao Huihui followed him shamelessly as usual.

At that time, Chen Zhou was weeding in the fields. He was squatting and working on the field. His waist was aching, so he took a rest at the edge of the field with a small hoe in his hand. He happened to see the big black cat coming out of the bushes and stopping the young couple.

It first pointed its spearhead at Xiao Huihui, and after cautiously looking at Chen Zhou who was watching the battle, it decisively began to attack.

It took Xiao Huihui a lot of effort to beat a skinny kid like the third cat. Facing a more experienced opponent, he was defeated in just a few rounds and became the one running away.

Chen Zhou was extremely protective of his child and how could he bear to see his own child being bullied? So before he could attack with his small hoe in hand, Ti Zi, who was next to Xiao Huihui, got angry first.

It started a fight without declaring war, but instead thrust its claws in and forcefully joined the fight between the big black cat and the little gray cat.

With sufficient nutrition, its weight is even greater than that of the big black cat, and its fighting skills are on par with those of the big black cat.

In a one-on-one fight with a big black cat, the female may be at a slight disadvantage due to the disadvantageous physical condition of the female.

If we add Xiao Huihui, a new force who can fight and carry the enemy, we will be able to crush them and win the game.

The big black cat had long harbored a secret resentment towards Little Gray for taking away his sweetheart. He finally managed to stop Little Gray, but he never expected that the couple had such a harmonious relationship and even had the trick of mixed doubles. He was soon beaten back by Tizi's cat punch and Little Gray's wild boar chase.

But this is a forest after all, and there are trees everywhere.

It seized the opportunity, leaped onto the tree trunk, gripped the bark with its claws, and climbed up quickly as if it were walking on flat ground.

Grapes followed the big black cat relentlessly, but Little Gray suffered from his weight and could only stay at the back and eat the exhaust gas of his wife.

The big black cat was very agile. It fought with the Grape couple for a long time and avoided most of the attacks. Only a few tufts of its fur were caught. It had enough energy to escape. It quickly shook off Grape behind it and escaped with the help of the branches at the top of the trees.

Back on the ground, Tizi saw that Xiao Huihui was injured again, and licked its fur tenderly like an old mother, which made Chen Zhou shout in his heart -

"No, this is a deformed love!"

……

On June 6, Chen Zhou got up early and was lighting a fire in the kitchen to cook. When he saw Tuozi and Xiao Huihui snuggling together, he smiled with relief.

After filling his stomach, he put on his backpack and took his tools and rushed to the beach.

The only remaining grain processing machine was a stone mill with the lowest technical requirements. This time he planned to find two large enough stones near the beach, cut them into thick blocks, and then shave off the edges and corners bit by bit to make them into hexagons or octagons for later use.

Barley and wheat mature late and are just beginning to bloom, so he still has plenty of time.

In addition to cutting stones and grinding materials, he also plans to walk towards the "Robinson Crusoe" to explore the pigeon cave and the traces of the wild goats there.

He found nothing last time he searched for bird eggs on the gravel slope. After such a long time, he really missed the taste of bird eggs. If there were no eggs in the pigeon hole, he could catch a few wild pigeons and take them home to make soup.

As the saying goes, those who run on the ground are not as good as those who fly in the sky, and those who fly in the sky are not as good as those who swim in the water.

The "poison tester" in his family has not grown up yet, so he still dares not eat fish he doesn't recognize. He has to wait at least a month and a half before he can slowly explore new dishes for seafood, but he can try poultry. This trip, the backpack he carried was prepared for the pigeons, and he got up early on purpose to make time to find pigeon holes.

……

Having experienced 17 mysterious rewards, Chen Zhou felt nothing when facing the 18th reward.

He had long seen through that the rewards for the challenge would not be anything amazing that could dramatically improve his quality of life.

Food, materials, tools, or some nonsensical little toys, expensive and useless industrial products, what else can the Space-Time Administration provide besides these?
Their means have been exhausted, their creativity has been exhausted -

Chen Zhou always thinks so.

He walked with a ruthless step, swinging his body behind Lai Fu, like a lunatic who had just escaped from a mental hospital. He jumped to the wooden and stone wall and looked into the center of the reward area.

"What the hell?
What the hell is this? "

Chen Zhou thought he would no longer be shocked, but the moment he saw the reward, he lost his usual calmness.

In the center of the sand, a huge metal block about one meter square was lying on its side.

The surface of the block was coated with a layer of gold paint, which sparkled in the morning light.

The soft sand was pressed down by it, leaving a dent, which shows that the metal block is quite heavy.

When he first saw the cube, Chen Zhou thought that the Space-Time Administration was kind enough to reward him with a piece of pure gold.

A closer look revealed that the dream of getting rich was shattered in an instant.

He quickly recognized the unique texture of the golden chemical paint, and his heart immediately sank.

Despite this, he was still very curious about what this metal cube was.

He often spends time on forums and major video platforms, and has browsed countless videos and pictures, but this is the first time he has seen something so special.

"Could it be some alien technology?"

With this thought in mind, Chen Zhou moved the outer wooden boards and stones away and came to the metal block.

He looked at it from all angles until he squatted down and looked at the bottom of the block sunk into the sand, and then he realized what this thing was.

This is a safe!

And it was a safe that had been used by someone.

The box has a total of six sides, five of which are very flat and the gold paint on them is not damaged.

The only thing on the safe door was a combination lock that looked like a ship's rudder. The lock handle showed signs of long-term use, and a layer of gold paint had fallen off, revealing a silver-white base color.

He took off his backpack, grasped the downward-facing door of the safe, and turned the safe over. Chen Zhou could see the entire door clearly.

This is a safe with a mechanical combination lock. The outside is covered with thick steel plates. The combination is a roulette type, with a total of nine digits.

Judging from the degree of wear and tear on the door, the owner of the safe had used the box frequently. If you look closely, you can even see blurred fingerprints and traces of sweat on the silver-white steel handle.

This safe can be said to be the most special reward Chen Zhou has received since the challenge began.

First of all, it is the only one of the 18 prizes that is "second-hand" rather than a brand new item.

Secondly, the safe itself is an item similar to a "blind box", which protects and shields the property or other things inside it. It is not like other prizes, where you can see what the prize looks like by gently tearing it with your hands.

"It has been used. Is it empty or does it contain the original owner's belongings?"

After straightening the safe, Chen Zhou squatted in front of the door and squinted his eyes to look at the scrambled numbers.

“Is there a possibility that this number is the correct password?

I’ll try it first.”

Although he knew his idea was unrealistic, Chen Zhou still wanted to try his luck. He straightened the metal turntable, grabbed the handle on the side and turned it hard.

Not moving.

“How about trying 888888888? Rich people like lucky numbers like this.”

Adjust the dial and try again.

Failed again.

"Is it a factory reset? Try 123456789."

The third attempt still failed.

Chen Zhou scratched his head.

"The B-Space Administration is really disgusting. They left a safe with a nine-digit code here for me to try. It will take me forever to open it.

The mysterious reward is to open a blind box, and you give me the entire safe.

Blind boxes inside blind boxes, playing Russian dolls, right? "

He randomly shuffled the numbers and tried again. The result was naturally the same as the previous times: he couldn't open it at all.

"Oh my god, I'm afraid this safe is empty, and after I open it with all my might, there's nothing inside.

From my understanding of the challenge, the chances of receiving an empty safe are not only possible, but high."

"But this thing is right here. I won't give up until I open it and see with my own eyes what's inside!"

With such a huge super blind box placed in front of him, Chen Zhou couldn't resist the desire to open it. He temporarily put aside the arrangements for building wooden and stone walls and cutting stone materials, and concentrated on trying the code.

In the blink of an eye, the sun has risen from the sea level and the temperature on the beach has been rising step by step.

Under the wide-brimmed hat, Chen Zhou was dazzled by the numbers on the roulette wheel. His mind was filled with all kinds of numbers, a mess.

Suddenly, he slapped his head.

“Fuck, I’m such a moron, why didn’t I just adjust the safe and put it on the beach?
When the next mysterious reward comes, no matter how strong it is, it will be cut open, and then the truth about what is inside will be revealed, right?
There's no need to sit here and try out the passwords one by one. It's just a waste of time."

After thinking of the correct solution, Chen Zhou immediately gave up the complicated roulette wheel and picked up the safe by grabbing its bottom.

Even though this thing is only one meter square, the box is made of a lot of thick steel plates and is extremely heavy.

As soon as he picked it up, the unexpected weight almost made Chen Zhou drop his foot.

After a simple estimate, he felt that the box might weigh about 120 kilograms.

Straightening his back, he tried to shake the box in his arms vigorously, attempting to determine by the sound whether there was anything in the safe.

But unfortunately, perhaps because the box was too thick, or there was a sound insulation layer inside, or the items inside were light or had soft edges, he did not hear any sound.

Unable to believe that the safe was actually empty, he took a few steps on the beach with difficulty, leaving a line of deep footprints. He placed the safe next to the wooden and stone wall, preparing to build it into the wall and cut it along with the wall.

(End of this chapter)