Chapter 37 - 14: Rainy Night
Closing the lid of the wooden box with the axe, Chen Zhou couldn’t help but think.
"During those years living on the island, did Robinson ever regret the poor quality of his axe?"
Unfortunately, Robinson is dead, and this question will never be answered.
Leaving the cargo hold, Chen Zhou arrived at the independent storeroom next to the kitchen. This room is located almost directly below the stern cabin and is slightly more spacious than other storerooms, with a door equipped with a latch as well.
Inside the room are large barrels of black bread and a few specialty foods for high-end sailors, including white bread wrapped in oil paper, better-looking and tasting cheese, and dried meat.
Empty burlap sacks are stuffed in gaps between the black bread barrels, with some remains of bran and rice grains at the bottom.
Chen Zhou knew that the rice and barley seeds in these sacks could germinate, so he took the sacks, planning to place them properly in upper wooden boxes to avoid dampness and mildew.
While exploring, there were always unexpected surprises on the ship; unbeknownst to him, it had already turned dark.
Having not been this busy in a long time, working from morning to night without a break, as the corridor grew dim, fatigue quietly crept up all over Chen Zhou’s body.
The sun sank behind distant mountains, and the glow of the oil lamp appeared increasingly bright.
His face bathed in the warm, dim lighting, Chen Zhou stretched his stiff limbs, deciding to end the day’s work.
Before that, he planned to have a hearty dinner, then sleep soundly, so he would be in the best shape to welcome tomorrow.
Dragging his heavy steps to the storeroom, he took a clean piece of white bread, returned to the kitchen to pour a large mug of hot water, warmed the remaining cheese stew, threw a couple of flatbreads to the big dog, and covered the iron can’s lid.
With a slow, dragging sound of his boots, Chen Zhou stepped onto the stairs.
The big dog, happy to receive a reward from its owner, held the flatbread proudly, chin high, claws tapping onto the wooden floor, making a clattering noise, closely following behind him.
The sound of rain was continuous.
Millions of silver threads swayed in the night sky, landing on the deck, creating a series of transparent ripples.
A mist-like vapor enveloped around the oil lamp, dimming the light, casting a hazy filter over everything.
The natural white noise returned the world to a primitive serenity.
After placing the sack properly, he returned to the first mate’s room, closed the window, and lit the pendant lamp.
The faint warmth of the candle flame toasted the solitary heart of the foreigner.
Dragging the armchair out, he sat in front of the navigation table and brewed a cup of hot tea.
The fragrance diffusing from the Silver Cup, Chen Zhou stirred the stew with a delicate silver spoon, taking small bites of the white bread.
The big dog lazily curled up on the carpet beside the table, forming a "C" shape, soon snoring softly.
The sound of the rain grew louder, crashing onto the roof of the stern cabin, while dull thunder joined in the symphony.
Chen Zhou’s chewing noise was drowned out by the torrential rain.
He paid no mind, simply removing his dampened outerwear, hanging it up to dry on the rack.
Thus, maintaining an unhurried pace, he finished his meal. Chen Zhou tidied up the dishes, took out pen and ink, recalling the knowledge shared by alleged industry experts online, writing it down to avoid future forgetfulness.
He then took the booklet recording the quantities of supplies, documenting all the discoveries made while exploring the ship today, including the can of grease he discarded.
During this, he paused occasionally, silently recalling if any details were missed, ensuring completeness, only closing the notebook once the ink had dried.
Lastly, Chen Zhou took a few large sheets of parchment and began drafting plans for the raft using the ruler on the desk.
The scales on the ruler were in unclear units, feet, inches, or meters, greatly affecting Chen Zhou’s calculation of dimensions.
Luckily, having drafted countless CAD drawings in university, he had a precise grasp of proportion; although slightly affected, the mortise and tenon raft’s structure was simple, requiring more thought but ultimately completed smoothly.
With the blueprint ready, he would be fully prepared to commence work formally the next day.
Previously, while working for others, Chen Zhou would always try to save steps, doing only what wasn’t pointed out by the leadership.
Now, concerning his work efficiency, Chen Zhou not only crafted the blueprint but also formulated a simple schedule, stipulating the progress to be completed daily to motivate himself to work hard.
"Indeed, working for oneself allows for harsh exploitation, enduring any hardship without complaining of fatigue."
Busy for more than two hours, the sea had fully entered into late night, and the rain had ceased.
Opening the window, the clouds were transformed by the wind into a chaotic swirl.
The sky was clear, stars twinkling, and the moonlight was bright.
Capping the nearly empty ink bottle, he blew out the lamp, and Chen Zhou, aching all over, lay on the hammock, without the energy for idle thoughts, quickly falling asleep.
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October 2nd, the third day after the challenge began.
No rain fell in the latter half of the night, and Chen Zhou slept till dawn, waking to a brilliantly sunny morning.
Before sleeping, he vaguely remembered needing to observe the high tide timing, but once lying in the hammock, sleepiness overtook him, leaving no time to remove his clothes before losing consciousness, only recalling it upon waking.
But the timing had already been missed, so he would have to wait until tonight.
After a night’s fermentation, yesterday’s all-day fatigue turned into sore limbs and tense muscles, leaving Chen Zhou very uncomfortable.
However, much still needed to be done.
Less than 23 days remained.
To be safe, two days before the storm arrives, he had to leave this ship doomed to wreck, transport all supplies to the island, and construct a Shelter capable of withstanding wind and rain.