◎Returning Fully Laden◎
“It really is a durian tree! I’m actually seeing a real live durian tree!”
Yan Lan was so excited she nearly jumped for joy. Durian was one of her absolute favorite fruits.
People’s opinions on durian were polarized, those who loved it praised its fragrance, while those who hated it complained about its stench. She, without a doubt, was at the very top of the lover’s camp.
“So, do you like durian?” Yan Lan looked at Ji Zhou expectantly.
Her expression was conflicted, part of her hoped he’d say yes, and another part hoped he’d say no.
Ji Zhou couldn’t guess what she was thinking, so he simply told the truth. “I suppose I quite like it.”
Yan Lan winced slightly. “Is that so?”
Ji Zhou quickly added, “But you can take more of it. I like it occasionally, but I get tired of it easily if I eat too much.”
“Really? That’s simply—” Yan Lan’s head shot up, her eyes sparkling, though her tone was one of exaggerated pity, “—such a shame.”
After settling the distribution of supplies, Yan Lan practically sprinted toward the durian tree. Xueqiu, who usually loved to eat, pinched his nose and flew far away.
It was an old tree, heavily laden with fruit. The durians clustered tightly on the branches, hanging like golden lanterns.
The durians were at peak ripeness, their intense fragrance wafting through the air. Yan Lan took a deep breath, feeling as though her entire being was cleared and refreshed.
Ji Zhou strolled over leisurely and couldn’t help but let out a soft laugh at the sight of her.
Yan Lan turned to look at him. Ji Zhou quickly averted his gaze from her face. “It’s getting late. We should hurry and pick them.”
Yan Lan nodded eagerly. “Okay.”
The two of them first picked the durians from the lower branches, stacking them in an open area.
It had to be said, these durians were magnificent. The fruits were oval-shaped, plump and round, like oversized lychees. Each one had at least five segments of flesh, and each fruit conservatively weighed over seven jin (about 3.5 kg).
Soon, all the low-hanging durians were picked. The two stood together, exchanged a glance, then looked up at the tree.
Ji Zhou asked, “Should I climb up and pick them?”
Yan Lan immediately vetoed the idea. “No, I’m afraid I might miss and they’ll fall and get smashed.”
She had watched many videos, catching durians required serious skill. If you weren’t careful, the ripe fruits would split open on impact.
Ji Zhou gave Yan Lan a once-over. “Then you go up? But this tree is pretty tall.”
Yan Lan tilted her head, thinking. She wasn’t good at climbing trees either.
As she hesitated, an idea suddenly struck her. She pointed at the little spirit pinching his nose. “I’ve got it, let him do it!”
Ji Zhou clapped his hands. “Right! He can fly.”
Xueqiu’s fur stood on end. He looked at the two of them in horror…
Can you even human? Making a little spirit who hated bad smells pick durians?
But he had no choice. Yan Lan quickly handed him a knife, placed him on a branch, and gave his bottom a little push.
Xueqiu felt wronged. He pursed his lips in resignation.
One by one, he sliced the durians off like cutting watermelon, his movements swift and decisive. The two below caught them with great delight.
Xueqiu glanced down at the pair, who were laughing and joking with each other. For the first time, he felt a little… superfluous.
Channeling his sorrow and indignation into strength, he worked with lightning speed. Soon, the last durian was picked.
Yan Lan looked at the pile of durians stacked into a small mountain in front of her. Unable to suppress her smile, she pressed her palms together and said, “Alright, let’s start dividing the spoils.”
One for you, one for me, they divided them one by one. After splitting off a few dozen, Ji Zhou stopped her. “I have enough. You can have the rest.”
Yan Lan’s eyes narrowed into slits with joy as she swept the remaining durians into her backpack. “Really? Well, I’m awfully embarrassed about that.”
Xueqiu shot her a sideways glance. You don’t look embarrassed at all.
This was an old tree, it had produced 80 durians in total. After giving 30 to the man, she still had 50 left.
A full 50 durians, enough to last her a very, very long time!
Picking durians had taken a lot of time, and it was nearly 5 o’clock.
Yan Lan looked around, planning to use the last remaining moments to pick up a few pieces of wood.
“Oh, by the way, can I add you as a friend?”
Yan Lan paused, not sure how to answer.
“What, is it okay for you to tease me, but not for me to add you as a friend?” A teasing voice sounded behind her. Yan Lan felt a bit embarrassed, the memory she had deliberately tried to forget was brought up again.
“Haha, how could I be so petty? Since the world channel is open, go ahead and add me.”
When the time came, the two were teleported back to the highway.
Yan Lan looked at the new profile picture that had appeared in her friends list and murmured to herself, “Ji Zhou… that’s a pretty nice name.”
After a long, hard day of work, she sat down on the sofa and pulled out a large durian. The moment Xueqiu saw the golden-yellow fruit, he pinched his nose and jumped far away.
She went to wash her hands, then took out a plate and placed it on the dining table.
People who love durian love opening them, especially the thrill of the “blind box” experience, and most of all, the joy of finding a “thank you” durian packed with flesh.
She made a slit at the bottom of the durian with a knife, then pried it apart with her bare hands. The durian split into two halves.
The two segments before her were bursting with plump, fragrant flesh. The unique aroma made her feel as if she were in a tropical jungle.
She quickly opened the remaining segments, carefully scooping out the flesh and placing it on the plate. There were six chunks in total, each as thick as an arm.
Overjoyed, she couldn’t resist taking a photo and posting it in the group chat.
“Holy crap, my favorite! So the big shot found durians!”
“So plump, so fat, I’m drooling.”
“Why did I only find corn, while some people find durians?”
“Look on the bright side, corn is a staple. It fills you up!”
“Based on my experience, Boss Yan definitely has more than one durian. She probably found a whole tree full!”
“Come to think of it, that really seems plausible. A whole tree’s worth, that must be so many! So jealous.”
“Big shot, are you selling any? (pitiful and cute)”
Yan Lan: “Yes, I did find a durian tree. I plan to sell a few today, but only in exchange for blueprints~”
She couldn’t finish all six segments of flesh by herself. She sent three of them to Shi Yuanyuan, Yuan Zhou, and Luo Wen respectively.
When she sent one to Shi Yuanyuan, he happened to send her a durian segment at the same time, equally golden and plump.
Yan Lan’s heart stirred, and she asked, “This is…?”
Shi Yuanyuan: “Hehe~ Remember my cousin I told you about? When the world channel opened, I found him. He gave this to me. Go ahead and eat it, I still have another one!”
Yan Lan: “What’s your cousin’s name?”
Shi Yuanyuan: “Ji Zhou. I mentioned him before. You didn’t forget, did you?”
Yan Lan glanced at the familiar name in her friends list and felt a surge of emotion. She had indeed forgotten, but now she remembered.
After she listed the durians in the trading center, a player quickly contacted her.
“Boss Yan, are you there? I have the sunglasses blueprint. Could I trade it for a durian? Hehe~”
Blueprints were always precious, and this was one she had been wanting, the sunglasses. So she readily traded a whole durian for it.
The player who received the supplies happily carried two portions of durian flesh and went to make a post to show off. After the first instance, the world channel was unlocked, allowing players to create posts and reply to them.
However, the trading center was still limited to within the same zone.
The next player was a male player she recognized, she remembered his name because he had said his dungeon had a lot of wood.
“Hello, I’d like to trade 10,000 pieces of wood.”
10,000 pieces!
Had he used all his inventory slots just for wood? What a bold move.
Yan Lan asked, “Besides durian, what else would you like to trade for?”
The player replied, “200 pieces of charcoal and some fruit.”
200 pieces of charcoal would be more than enough to get through the remaining days, plenty left over, in fact. He was probably planning to trade some of that charcoal for other supplies.
Yan Lan estimated the value and replied, “In addition to 200 pieces of charcoal, I’ll give you 50 rolls of toilet paper, one pair of sunglasses, 3 pomelos, 3 apples, and one segment of durian.”
The player was thrilled by the list of supplies. With plenty of wood available now, the exchange rate had risen back to 10 pieces of wood for 1 piece of charcoal.
He had expected her to drive a hard bargain, but she turned out to be very generous.
200 pieces of charcoal could also be traded for many other supplies. The sunglasses would prevent snow blindness, very useful.
As for the fruit, he had thought Yan Lan might give him a few steamed buns, but fruit instead!
Fruit was extremely valuable in this game. In all his days playing, he had only ever gotten a single small orange from a chest. And that one segment of durian, just looking at it made his mouth water.
This dungeon had indeed been a huge success!
He rubbed his lower back, which was sore from picking up wood, and eagerly agreed. “No problem.”
Yan Lan: “The charcoal, toilet paper, and sunglasses might be a bit delayed. I haven’t made them yet.”
“No problem~”
After the trade was complete, the player proudly took a photo and posted it in the group chat, sparking another wave of envy.
No sooner had that transaction ended than another player came calling.
“Hello, I have 10,000 units of cotton. Are you interested?”
Cotton could be used to make clothes, blankets, towels, and even sanitary pads. And unlike wood, cotton wasn’t that common.
Yan Lan was very tempted. She asked, “What’s your expected price?”
“A bit of charcoal, one men’s coat, a few pairs of men’s underwear… and, um, could I have one segment of durian? It’s my favorite.”
50 units of cotton could be made into one bolt of cloth, and one bolt of cloth could be used to make one coat or ten pairs of underwear. Yan Lan calculated the price based on the cotton dosage and made an offer: “200 pieces of charcoal, one coat, ten pairs of underwear, three pomelos, three apples, and one durian.”
Her charcoal was extremely precious in the freezing snowfield. Offering him this much charcoal was also a form of security.
As expected, the player readily agreed. “No problem.”
She then traded with several other players, acquiring some wood, food, and assorted fabrics.
After gathering all the materials, Yan Lan immediately set to work producing.
First, she fulfilled all the pending orders. After clearing her debts, she listed new charcoal and clothes in the trading center.
She produced 3,000 pieces of charcoal at a rate of 5 seconds per piece, and made 50 coats for men and 50 for women at a rate of 30 seconds per coat. Once production was complete, she handed the charcoal over to Shi Yuanyuan to sell.
The volume of trade was enormous, but fortunately, Shi Yuanyuan had two reliable helpers. She heard that Xiao Hei and Xiao Huang had discovered a resource point in the dungeon, Xiao Hei got a box of corn, and Xiao Huang got a box of instant noodles.
Since coming out of the dungeon, she had been busy working. Dinner was just a quick bite. By the time she finished everything, it was already 10:30 PM.
Yan Lan rubbed her sore lower back, hurried through her bedtime routine, and climbed up into the bed.
She lifted the bed curtain, and there stood a fluffy little white ball on her pillow, staring at her with a puffed-up, angry expression.
She traced back in her mind and remembered what she had promised him during the day.
So that’s why he had circled around her twice and then disappeared, instead of helping her. She had thought he couldn’t stand the smell of durian, but it turned out he had been hiding up here, sulking.
She poked his chubby cheek with her finger and chuckled softly. “Alright, first thing tomorrow morning, I’ll make you chicken soup.”
Xueqiu’s cheeks remained puffed out, like a little frog.
“I’ll give you all the chicken legs, okay?”
Finally, Xueqiu’s anger subsided. He flew up to her face, gave her a little peck, and fell into a deep sleep.