Goodness, thank goodness I had the foresight not to spend a fortune building my own kitchen—otherwise, it would have been a total waste now.
But just having a stove in the kitchen isn’t enough. I still need to set up some tables and cabinets for cooking and storage.
Jiang Lai was very satisfied with her upgraded Level 4 residence: two bedrooms, one kitchen, and one bathroom.
After circling around the house several times, Jiang Lai had a clear idea of what furniture she still needed.
Unfortunately, while she knew what she wanted, her wallet was embarrassingly empty…
After upgrading to the Level 4 residence, she had almost completely run out of wood and nails.
No matter how many design ideas she had, a clever woman can’t cook without rice.
In the end, it all boiled down to one word: poor.
After the extreme cold ended, the weather suddenly shifted from winter to spring, and the temperature seemed to be rising even more.
The blazing sun shone on the sea, making the water sparkle.
Jiang Lai had long since taken off her down jacket and winter boots, changing back into the tracksuit she wore when she first entered the game.
The sudden temperature rise made her feel hot and restless, and with the sun beating down, she felt both hot and parched, her whole body uncomfortable.
After gulping down half a bottle of water, Jiang Lai finally felt a bit better.
Thinking for a moment, she took out a watermelon from her backpack.
She used a kitchen knife to cut it in half, putting one half back into her backpack.
Jiang Lai hadn’t forgotten that Haibao was supposed to get a share of the watermelon—she’d promised to save some for the next time Haibao came by.
The watermelon was huge, and Jiang Lai cut half of it into twenty pieces, each about the size of her palm.
She picked up a piece and took a bite—delicious!
The cool, sweet watermelon was so refreshing that it seemed to calm the heat in her stomach.
One piece wasn’t enough, so Jiang Lai ate two more in a row before she finally felt satisfied.
She sent one piece each to Qi Jingxing and Chang Fa via trade.
“Try this watermelon—see if it’s sweet.”
“Watermelon!”
“So good!!”
“Thanks, it’s really sweet.”
Both replied quickly.
“Jiang-jie, first oranges, now watermelon—you’re like a fruit tycoon! Do you have any extra watermelon? Can I trade for some?”
Chang Fa had already been craving the oranges Jiang Lai posted in the group chat earlier, but he didn’t have any glass to trade for them.
Now there was watermelon, and Chang Fa couldn’t hold back anymore.
“Sure, trade me wood or nails. How about ten units of materials for one piece of watermelon?”
Jiang Lai still had fifteen pieces left, and her plan was to trade them all for upgrade materials.
Both Chang Fa and Qi Jingxing were well-off, so it made sense to do her first watermelon business with them.
Ten units of materials for a small piece of watermelon wasn’t cheap, but since watermelon wasn’t a survival necessity, anyone willing to buy it wouldn’t mind paying the price.
“Deal! I’ll take three pieces.”
Chang Fa quickly transferred thirty units of materials.
“Is there enough left? I want three pieces too.”
Qi Jingxing also sent over thirty units.
Both of them were considerate—their trades were half wood, half nails.
In an instant, Jiang Lai was down to nine pieces.
She messaged Li Xue, who had traded with her before, to see if she wanted to trade for watermelon.
Li Xue’s eyes lit up when she saw the picture of the watermelon and immediately bought five pieces, telling Jiang Lai to let her know if she ever had other kinds of fruit in the future.
That left four pieces of watermelon.
Jiang Lai couldn’t bear to eat them herself, so she used her usual advertising tricks in the channel.
But with only four pieces left and lots of buyers, Jiang Lai raised the price to fifteen units of materials per piece.
Everyone in the channel was interested in the watermelon.
But not many were willing to spend on something just to satisfy a craving. Most people just drooled over the photos, leaving a few envious or sour comments.
Bai Yin licked her lips when she saw the watermelon.
The weather had warmed up so fast today that even the biscuits she was chewing tasted bland and scratchy.
But she just couldn’t bring herself to spend the money.
After thinking it over, she opened her chat with Chang Fa and gave him a little “hint.”
Fortunately, Chang Fa caught on quickly.
“Sorry, they’re all sold out.”
Jiang Lai replied honestly when Chang Fa asked if he could buy some watermelon for Bai Yin.
There were only four pieces left, and they were in high demand.
If Chang Fa had wanted some for himself, Jiang Lai might have cut a few more pieces from her backpack for him.
But if it was for someone else—sorry, no can do.
“Oh, okay.”
Chang Fa felt a bit regretful. Why had he been so greedy and eaten all the pieces himself, without saving any for Yin Yin? He really wasn’t being considerate—no wonder Yin Yin wouldn’t agree to date him.
After a round of self-reflection, Chang Fa went to apologize to Bai Yin.
“I thought you two were really good friends, but even you didn’t manage to get any, Chang Fa-ge.”
Bai Yin was fuming when she heard the watermelon was sold out.
“That’s not it—I did get some. Jiang Lai gave it to me first, but I ate it all.”
Chang Fa explained, a little embarrassed.
When Bai Yin heard he’d eaten it himself, she got even more annoyed.
“Didn’t she have some left? You only got one piece, same as everyone else. I guess in Jiang-jie’s eyes, you’re no different from anyone else.”
“Um, actually… I ate four pieces…”
Chang Fa was even more embarrassed.
Bai Yin was speechless.
She was so angry she bit her already dry lips until they bled.
But Jiang Lai knew nothing about any of this, and it had nothing to do with her anyway.
At this moment, Jiang Lai was happily playing designer and carpenter.
She made a bed, a table, and two chairs for the second bedroom.
Her sister and Shuangxi would probably be staying with her for a few days.
Jiang Lai also built two cabinets, one for each bedroom.
The cabinets could be used to hang clothes or store daily necessities—very convenient.
In the kitchen, Jiang Lai made two long tables, placing them against two walls to form an L-shape.
On the remaining wall, she built another cabinet for storing dishes.
There wasn’t much she could do to modify the bathroom, so Jiang Lai turned her attention to the open space on the raft.
At the front entrance, she built a square table fixed to the raft, with four curved-back chairs.
It was the perfect spot for working, having a drink, or eating something.
On the right side of the open space, Jiang Lai carefully designed a rocking chair swing. She could sit or even lie on it, basking in the sun, daydreaming, or taking a nap—just thinking about it made her happy.
She left the center area open, partly because it made the entrance look more spacious.
Later, she could use the space for exercise, opening treasure chests, or making tools—having a big open area would be much more convenient.
Jiang Lai and her sister are independent—at most, they’ll stay together for a few days, but they won’t live together or share a life! Her sister has her own storyline. Family members support each other’s growth, but they’re not dependent on each other, so don’t worry!
(End of this chapter)”
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