Shipgirls and Salted Fish Commander, Port Survival Guide

To prevent Jing Su from discovering it, Changdao deliberately placed the camera more than ten meters away. At such a distance, both he and Jing Su could still hear such a clear electrical sound, which obviously meant there was a serious problem with the system. This could not be explained by a simple overload fault; only active battery discharge could cause this situation.

Therefore, Long Island needs to rush back to check if the data is still there. If it has been deleted, he should forcibly remove the memory card himself. Even if someone deleted it in Yuan City, it shouldn't be completely deleted, or there might still be a chance to recover it.

'Phew, these are precious memories of being with the Commander, more important than game saves. I won't allow anyone to make them disappear!' Long Island thought to himself.

They disappeared in a flash from Changdao, leaving Jing Su standing there.

"Hey, wait, even the Exterminator can't run this fast."

Looking at the dusty, travel-worn Long Island, Jing Su thought to herself, "That's what I'm complaining about."

'If I remember correctly, Long Island was a converted merchant ship, right? Its top speed was only 14 knots, wasn't it?'

As she watched Changdao Island disappear into the distance, Jing Su thought to herself, "To be honest, Changdao Island truly deserves the title of 'quirky and clever,' or rather, whether you call it quirky and clever or lively and active, it's just very cute."

Not long after Long Island left, a flash of light appeared where Jing Su couldn't see it.

Although it was unclear why Changdao had left in such a hurry, it must have been something very important to her. Since it was important, Jing Su decided not to try to persuade her to stay.

Jing Su never interferes with the ship girls' attitudes. If they want to play together, then let them play happily together. If they want to be close, she won't object. If they need her help, she will do her best.

"To be honest, I'm starting to feel like if we keep doing this, we'll become like an old married couple... um, that doesn't seem right either."

'Hey, is it already this late?'

After a moment of random thoughts, Jing Su's watch vibrated twice, reminding him that they had arrived at the restaurant and needed to eat quickly.

He glanced at his watch and realized it was already 11:30 in the morning. This startled Jing Su; he hadn't expected the day to pass so quickly.

'Hmm, that seems about right. I just woke up and hadn't even finished breakfast when I was dragged out of the garden. After a flurry of activity, I was approached by Bremerton, then Belfast, and then Long Island. I've experienced quite a few things this morning.'

Sure enough, time always flies when you're with a beautiful girl.

However, since it's lunchtime, let's hurry up and grab something to eat; I'm definitely a bit hungry.

Since transmigrating to this world, Jing Su has used her experience from her previous life to take care of her body, and her gastrointestinal problems have been greatly alleviated. It can be said that as long as she eats on time, she is not prone to getting sick. At most, she might have some cramps before going to bed at night, but that is harmless and she can just eat some snacks to fill her stomach.

Now that she had a plan, Jing Su got up, dusted herself off, and prepared to head to the cafeteria. Eating on time is important, no matter the time, especially lunch, as it determines how she feels in the afternoon and evening.

'Oops, something's wrong. Where's the mess hall at the White Eagle base?'

Just as he got up and was about to take a step forward, Jing Su was dumbfounded and stood there in a daze. He realized a very serious problem - he had no idea where the logistics department was located. He could see a lot of buildings nearby, but he couldn't find a single ship girl. The only one who might know the way, Long Island, had just disappeared.

'It's strange, with such a large area, how come there isn't a single ship girl in sight?'

"Commander, do you need any help?"

Chapter 240 Now is not the time to strike.

With her silver braids, cross necklace, chubby cheeks, and big eyes, paired with a form-fitting nun's habit and white stockings, her first impression is that of a gentle, considerate, lively, and comforting person—a reliable and dependable companion.

Indeed, that's true. If Jing Su were to create a ranking of gentle ship girls in the port area one day, this girl in front of him would definitely be on the list, easily making it into the top ten.

However, what truly impressed Jing Su about her was that this ship girl was an absolute ship girl enthusiast.

Well, ship girl enthusiasts are not uncommon in the port area. They are usually the leaders of the faction. For example, Bismarck and Frederick the Great from the Ironblood faction have many ship girl enthusiasts! Hutten is a staunch Frederick the Great enthusiast, but her enthusiastism is different from the usual one. It is more like a soldier's worship of a general.

Although Frederick the Great's ship is technically the same name as Hutten's in terms of status, it's hard to say who is older or younger (we're only discussing seniority, not size).

Aside from Friedrich Hutten and his sister, there's also the veteran sister-obsessed Portland. As a ship girl who can't stop talking about her sister Indianapolis, Portland practically wears the word "sister-obsessed" on her face.

The person in front of me is roughly the same.

"Long time no see, Goddess of the Kitchen God~" Jing Su greeted the person after recognizing them.

As mentioned before, after the art style of the ship girls transitioned from 2D to 3D, there were some differences compared to their appearance in the game. Jing Su could not recognize a particularly large number of ship girls at a glance. In fact, even in the game, Jing Su could only say that she had an impression of a considerable number of ship girls, but she could not say for sure who they were at first glance, or she could recognize their nicknames but could not recall their names.

Furthermore, due to the limitations of the art style, a considerable number of ship girls do look very similar, and they can only be distinguished by their clothing and hairstyles.

The fortune teller in front of him could recognize her by name, since her features were quite distinctive. There weren't many nuns in Hong Kong who wore nuns' habit in their daily lives, and since it was a White Eagle camp stronghold, the number was even smaller. With a quick recollection, he could guess her identity.

Moreover, Jing Su, the goddess of the hearth, does indeed have an impression of her, because she is an absolute corporate fanatic. Whether in history or in the game, her bond with companies is so strong that it's no exaggeration to say they are like sisters.

However, unlike Portland's situation where she ignores her sister Indianapolis after three sentences, Vestal's relationship with Enterprise stems more from historical factors, as evidenced by her voice line: "I am Vestal, a dedicated maintenance ship, and I once served as Enterprise's personal caretaker for a period of time."

During that special period in history, the only person who stayed by the company's side was the goddess of the hearth. She pulled the company back from the abyss time and time again in desperate situations. In fact, according to real history, the goddess of the hearth not only carried out maintenance work for the company, but also carried out battlefield maintenance for many other ships. However, the company was the most famous, the longest-lasting, and the most influential among them.

According to Belfast, if the company were to go berserk one day and Jing Su were not around, then the only one who could bring the company back would most likely be the Goddess of the Hearth.

"Commander, it's been a long time." The Vess was delighted to hear Jing Su's words. After all, she was a well-known figure in the port and knew that Jing Su had lost many memories. There weren't many ship girls that he could call by name directly, and she was one of them. How could she not be happy?

"Seeing the goddess of the hearth makes my whole day feel refreshed." Jing Su said this from the bottom of her heart. It has to be said that there really is such a being in the world. Just being with her, even without saying a word, makes you feel happy. The goddess of the hearth has such magic: a cheerful and gentle smile, a beautiful figure, and heartfelt, overflowing thoughtfulness.

Although the Vesta always says that she is the company's full-time nanny and talks about how the company is doing, in reality, her gentleness is extended equally to every ship girl. No matter how old or young the ship girl is or which faction she comes to, as long as the other party needs help, the Vesta will do her best to help them solve their problems.

"I'm so happy to hear that from you, Commander! We're finally reunited. Commander, have you been eating well while I was away? Have you been staying up late? Please take good care of yourself!"

For her, taking care of the company is the top priority, and taking care of Jing Su is also the top priority. There is no distinction between the two. In fact, it can be said that taking good care of Jing Su is equivalent to taking good care of the company.

"Well, I don't know if I'm taking good care of myself. Although I want to take care of my body, in real life, I always have to deal with this or that. Sigh, I can't help it~" As she said this, Jing Su's mind was filled with images of those hot-bodied, considerate 'flower thieves' who would sneak up on her late at night. She realized that it wasn't that she didn't want to take care of herself, but she was just too caught up in the situation and had no choice.

"I heard some bad news from your words, Commander. As the leader of the port, you must take good care of your health. If something happens to you, the sisters in the port will be heartbroken." Hearing Jing Su's words, the female hearth goddess put her hands on her hips and said angrily.

"Yes, yes, yes, the goddess of the hearth is right." Jing Su nodded hurriedly. He now understood why the Valkyrie Enterprise, who was so powerful on the battlefield, was like a well-behaved child in front of the goddess of the hearth. Who wouldn't be intimidated by her aura? Especially when you know that she is really doing it for your own good and that what she is doing is indeed for your own good. There is no way to refute her, so you can only lower your head and admit your mistake.

"Commander, you can't be so perfunctory with your words~ Seriously, you're just like Enterprise. You keep saying you're fine and will definitely take care of yourself, but then you turn around and do whatever you want. I was wondering why Enterprise never takes care of her health; it turns out she learned it from you."

Commander, as the leader of the port, you must set a good example. Hmm, as expected, I have to take charge personally. So, Commander, from now on, I will take care of your daily life. Hmm, 24-hour care, responsible for all aspects of the Commander's life.

Commander, your health is very important; you must take good care of it. This is no small matter and requires careful planning.

Perhaps angered by Jing Su's perfunctory attitude, or perhaps it was premeditated, in any case, after Jing Su made his apology, the Kitchen Goddess took the opportunity to say a series of words that left Jing Su completely bewildered.

"Huh!?" Jing Su was stunned by the Kitchen Goddess's blunt words and matter-of-fact expression. He wanted to say something, but didn't know how to start. He felt like something was wrong, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

"Yes, I know what you mean, Commander." Before Jing Su could say anything, the Goddess of the Hearth interrupted and said seriously, "Although as a nurse, I am theoretically supposed to treat everyone equally and not show favoritism to the Commander, from a personal point of view, I still have to give the Commander, who has no self-awareness, some special services."

Oh dear, oh dear, this is really worrying. If we follow the plan, what if we turn the commander into a useless piece of trash?

Commander, you won't become a useless piece of trash, will you?

Hmm, but thinking about it carefully, turning the commander into a useless piece of trash isn't such a bad idea, right? That way, the commander will never be able to leave me again, hmm, the commander will never be able to leave me~

As she spoke, the goddess of the hearth's complexion began to turn rosy, and her words became increasingly dangerous.

"Ahem, anyway, it's lunchtime now, let's go eat." Seeing that the situation was developing in a strange direction, Jing Su quickly interrupted the goddess of the hearth's dangerous thoughts and diverted attention with another topic that no one could find fault with.

"Hoo hoo, oh dear, it's already this late. Yes, we need to hurry up and eat. Commander, please come with me, I'll take you to the canteen. Hmm, the nearest canteen should be in this direction!" Hearing Jing Su say that it was time to eat, the female kitchen god belatedly realized that she had come to find Jing Su for the first time.

Yes, she came to see Jing Su for two purposes. One of them was what she just said: to express her intention to take care of Jing Su in the future, thus silencing the other ship girls in advance, especially that Royal Navy ship girl who took over taking care of Enterprise's daily life!

Secondly, she naturally relied on her seniority to suppress the ship girls from other factions, preventing them from snatching Jing Su away.

If a ship girl from another faction were to steal the commander from the Eagle Union faction on their territory, they would be laughed at by that faction for the rest of their lives.

Therefore, after internal discussions, the White Eagle camp's leadership ultimately decided that the Goddess of the Hearth would take the initiative and abduct Jing Su first!

Don't be fooled by the fact that Garden and Bremerton went out one after another before Vestal, doing almost everything they could and couldn't do. But that was a sneak peek and couldn't be brought to the table. If you did that, other ship girls might say the same thing, so it doesn't count.

Now, this is a formal announcement to the other factions: Commander, the White Eagle faction has taken them! Don't think about anything else.

Sending the Goddess of the Hearth to the rescue can be seen as a balancing point within the White Eagle faction. As mentioned before, the White Eagle faction has the most factions in the entire port area. Even with the development of the port area to this point, or rather, the development of the White Eagle faction itself to this point, no one has emerged as a leader that everyone agrees on.

All I can say is that the Eagle Union faction is truly full of talent, with a considerable number of powerful ship girls. In terms of strength, Garden, Enterprise, and even Yorktown are among the top. However, simply looking at strength is not enough to convince everyone, even for other factions. In terms of ability, Lexington, Saratoga, and Helena are all excellent managers. If all else fails, St. Louis can manage the Eagle Union faction quite well as well.

In terms of seniority, the Eagle Union faction is even more formidable. All the ship girls mentioned earlier have extensive backgrounds and have made significant contributions both historically and in the development of the port.

Given this situation, deciding who to send, or rather, who would be the least out of place, became the core of the White Eagle camp's discussion. After some deliberation, they decided to send Vesta.

First, there's her identity. She's one of the few ship girls in the Eagle Union faction whose caregiving skills are maxed out. In terms of simply taking care of people, many ship girls can do it, such as Yorktown and Helena. Both of them can take very good care of Jing Su.

The female Stove Goddess is different. She can not only take good care of people, but she can also turn Jing Su into a cripple. It's even exaggerated to the point that he can't live without the female Stove Goddess's presence.

Taking care of Jing Su until she becomes a cripple is part of the port area's plan, so sending her there is just right.

Furthermore, there is more than enough information about the Goddess of the Hearth in the Eagle Union camp. First of all, the port's veterans and the company with outstanding achievements are on the Goddess of the Hearth's side. Whether in history or in this world, the Goddess of the Hearth is the senior whom the company relies on the most.

In addition, whether she is a repair ship or a nurse, the ship girls of the Eagle Union have all been taken care of by her in their daily lives to some extent. To put it bluntly, everyone owes her a favor, so no one can say anything if she goes.

It can be said that the Goddess of the Hearth has a very clear label in the White Eagle camp, and even in the entire port area - a corporate fanatic. As a corporate fanatic who can't stop talking about companies, the Goddess of the Hearth can always make companies blush in public.

Everyone believes that the goddess of the hearth is taking care of Jing Su, and there's a high probability that she's genuinely doing so.

Most importantly, having her take the lead would minimize the resistance from other factions, or rather, lower their guard.

After all, the biggest identity of the Goddess of the Hearth on the front line is that of a nurse, and Jing Su happens to have some stomach problems. It is only natural for a nurse to take care of a patient, and no one can find fault with it. In fact, many ship girls from other factions have even suggested that the Goddess of the Hearth take care of Jing Su, because they all agree that the Goddess of the Hearth can cure Jing Su's health.

Of course, there is an uncertainty in this plan. Everyone knows that it is acceptable to let the female Kitchen Goddess take care of Jing Su. Everyone is convinced. But the question is, who can guarantee that the female Kitchen Goddess will really only take care of Jing Su?

If the goddess of the hearth gets other ideas, she has a huge advantage.

Based on the surveillance footage, it seems that the thing that everyone was most worried about has happened.

"Wow, sister, sister, is this what the goddess of the hearth looks like? She, she, she! No, I have to go find the commander!"

"Wait, Jiajia, now is not the time to strike. Let's observe for a while longer."

"But, sister, if we delay any longer, the commander will be taken away by someone else."

"Hehe, I told you, now is not the time to strike."

Chapter 241 We really can't let the Commander be alone with you guys.

The White Eagle faction's canteen gave Jing Su a different experience; to be precise, every faction's canteen offered a novel experience.

In the Donghuang camp, everyone eats around a table, which is a very Donghuang way of eating. It feels like going to a restaurant for a meal. People gather in groups of three or five around the tables, and the dishes are classic Donghuang dishes. If you break it down, all eight major cuisines are represented, and eating there feels like home.

The Royal Navy faction prefers buffets, where you can help yourself to whatever you want. The canteens are generally not very big, or rather, the larger canteens are used as banquet venues. In the Royal Navy faction, everything else may be skipped every day, but afternoon tea is a must. In fact, it can be said that a considerable number of Royal Navy ship girls can skip dinner, but they must have afternoon tea.

Some small boats might gather in twos and threes to play games and might forget about afternoon tea, but for anyone who considers themselves a lady, knight, or even an elegant person, afternoon tea is an indispensable part.

At the urging of the ship girls, Jing Su also ate afternoon tea for several days in a row. During this process, Jing Su finally understood why so many ship girls liked to eat afternoon tea. It wasn't just a self-proclaimed ladylike behavior, but more so, it was for the sake of eating snacks.

It's similar to the morning tea in a certain southern province where Jing Su lived in her previous life. For afternoon tea, it doesn't matter which tea it is, or even whether there is tea at all. What matters is the snacks.

Yes, you can compromise on anything else for afternoon tea, but the pastries must be the best, the ones you love.

In fact, if we consider the customs of the royal faction in real-world countries, this would indeed be a standard afternoon tea. This is more about replenishing energy between breakfast and dinner. Yes, according to traditional British customs, or rather, the productivity of the Industrial Revolution era, people at that time only ate two meals a day, one in the morning and one in the evening, with an interval of more than ten hours in between.

It would be quite hungry to go such a long time without eating anything in between. So, it is said that it was originally a duchess who would sneak into the kitchen in the afternoon to find something to eat. Later, she would specifically choose the afternoon to entertain her friends. Gradually, this practice spread, and that's how afternoon tea came about.

However, as more and more people started having lunch, the number of people actually willing to have afternoon tea gradually decreased in the real world.

Therefore, after trying afternoon tea a few times, Jing Su lost interest in such things. Strictly speaking, it wasn't that he lost interest, but rather that once he joined an afternoon tea event hosted by a ship girl, the atmosphere of the entire afternoon tea would take a complete 180-degree turn in a short time, becoming completely different. In fact, if he encountered some people with strong personalities, it was questionable whether he could even stand up and walk out of the venue.

In particular, a certain Illustrious-class ship girl, a seasoned otaku, suddenly invited Jing Su to her room for afternoon tea. At first, Jing Su thought, "Oh ho, has the otaku changed her ways? There must be something fishy going on." She didn't want to go at first, but Illustrious persuaded her. Illustrious said that her sister had finally mustered up the courage to leave her room, and if the commander didn't go, it would deeply hurt the girl's heart.

Since Guanghui had said that, what could Jingsu do? With tears welling up in his eyes and wiping them away, Guanghui was incredibly devastating. Jingsu surrendered on the spot. After a flurry of activity, he rushed to the scene, and then, supporting his back, he walked out of the room step by step, his face pale.

With his legs trembling, eyes listless, and steps unsteady, Jing Su once thought he was about to die.

After that, Jing Su dared not go to the afternoon tea event that the ship girl mentioned. Even if she wanted to go, she had to make sure there were at least three ship girls present, not two. If they were sister ships, then she wouldn't go even if there were five or six. One Radiant-class ship had already almost made her unable to leave the room. If she encountered two sister ships, she was afraid she would be turned into a dried-up corpse.

While enjoying afternoon tea at the Royal Army camp, the experience at the Eagle Union camp's base is quite different.

The situation on the White Eagle side is quite like a university cafeteria. If the Eastern Empire camp is like a wedding banquet and the Royal camp is like a buffet, then the White Eagle camp is like the cafeteria hall.

Jing Su's feeling wasn't just a random feeling; the most direct observation was that you had to pay to eat in the White Eagle camp's canteen!

Yes, whether in the Eastern Empire camp or the Royal camp, food and lodging are all provided by the camp. However, in the White Eagle camp, food and lodging cost money, and even if you build your own house, you still have to pay a maintenance fee regularly.

Not to mention the various water, electricity, and even internet fees. In short, in the White Eagle camp's territory, no matter what you do, you have to spend money. Jing Su once saw a little yellow chick asking passing ship girls for tips.

This really stumped Jing Su. It was one thing for the ship girls to give each other money, but if she remembered correctly, Little Yellow Chicken was a pure robot, so what did it need money for? Did they have to pay to store their intelligent pets in the Eagle Union camp?

When asked why this was the case, the goddess of the hearth gave two reasons.

One reason is that the Eagle Union's base is too far from the front line and is often harassed by various Siren warships. The Eagle Union's ship girls have put in a lot of effort to protect the base. As the only faction in the entire port area with daily patrol missions, Vestal felt that paying for her own safety was no problem.

Even if they are all allies in the same camp, they are working hard for the safety of the base. Wouldn't it be hurtful not to give them some tangible support?

Furthermore, given the frequent harassment, the White Eagle faction's base was the most expensive to build in the entire Hong Kong region. When other factions were looking for their bases, they would usually find an island and then renovate it. But the White Eagle base was different; they built an island first and then did all sorts of work on that artificial island.

This resulted in the White Eagle faction's base having the highest maintenance costs in the entire Hong Kong region, naturally requiring various fees.

Of course, this is just a reason used by the Eagle Union for external propaganda. If you analyze it carefully, it is actually a bit untenable. After all, no matter how much the ship girls are willing to pay, the number is so small, and the scale is so small, how much money can they pay?

The real reason is actually traditional habits, and most importantly, the White Eagle camp is too divided.

As the most divided faction in the entire Hong Kong region, the Eagle Union faction appears quite harmonious on the surface, with everyone being close and loving, and helping each other on the battlefield. However, in private, different ship girls form groups based on their own sister ships and dislike each other's policies and ideas.

Noisy and disruptive behavior is practically the norm for the White Eagle faction.

How divided is the White Eagle camp?