Reborn One Week Before the Apocalypse

Chapter 245: Chapter 235: First Time Going to Sea

”Milk powder? Th-that’s too precious!”

Da Yu was startled by Tang Mo’s words, completely overwhelmed.

He knew, of course, that milk powder was the best thing for Xiao Yu right now.

But milk powder was a nutritional supplement and incredibly precious. The rice she’d given him was already worth far more than the rent; he was too embarrassed to accept her milk powder as well.

”I’m not giving it to you for free. Let’s make a deal.”

Since Tang Mo planned to stay here for a while, there would naturally be many things she’d need a local’s help with.

”I’ll provide you with milk powder and some other food. In return, you’ll take me out to sea. All the catch from every trip will belong to me. How does that sound?”

He’d inherited his father’s knack for fishing and was now an experienced fisherman himself. After his parents passed, he used their leftover savings to buy another fishing boat.

Going out to sea only yielded things from the ocean, and they had more than enough of that. Whatever they couldn’t eat fresh, they’d dry and save for later.

What they could catch was nowhere near as valuable as what Sister Tang Mo was offering him.

But Da Yu also knew Sister Tang Mo was intentionally trying to help him and clearly wasn’t short on supplies. After thinking it over for a long time, he finally agreed.

He could go without good food, but the milk powder was just too precious for Xiao Yu. He really couldn’t bring himself to refuse.

’I’ll accept this favor for now. I’ll definitely find a way to pay her back in the future,’ Da Yu resolved in his heart.

In truth, Tang Mo really did need a guide to take her out to sea and help her get the lay of the land.

Besides, she was going to be living here for a while. She couldn’t very well be eating and drinking her fill while these two children watched. That would be too awkward.

It was better to frame it as a deal—a win-win where neither party lost out.

The two agreed to set out to sea at six the next morning, and Da Yu hurried off to boil some water.

Tang Mo not only gave Da Yu several cans of milk powder but also threw in a few baby bottles. Xiao Yu was three, but her body was the size of a one or two-year-old’s; it was a critical time for her to be getting milk.

Because milk powder was so nutritious, Tang Mo had stocked up on a lot of it at the start of the apocalypse.

But to her surprise, she had never once lacked for nutrition since the apocalypse began, so she’d never had any use for the milk powder.

As for her younger brother, Yangyang, her stepfather doted on him to the point of giving him the moon and the stars, so he had even less need for the things in her Space.

The supermarket in Tang Mo’s Space automatically restocked itself completely with every upgrade, providing an endless, inexhaustible supply.

The two newly added warehouses were also piled to the brim with Crystal Coins and all sorts of food and water.

When it came to supplies, Tang Mo truly wasn’t lacking.

The only thing Tang Mo needed now was to find any way possible to increase her strength and face the many unknown challenges that lay ahead.

For their first meal there, Tang Mo took out a piece of frozen pork, some green vegetables, and a bag of rice.

Da Yu was an excellent cook. Before long, he had served up a delicious-looking meal of three dishes and a soup.

The three of them ate. Two of them had the meal, while the little one clutched a baby bottle, not letting go, taking sip after sip of the milk powder she’d never tasted before.

Tang Mo was used to being on her own. Except for her time at S Base, she rarely got to eat such a hot, freshly cooked meal.

The pre-made meals she had collected in her Space before the apocalypse were almost all gone.

She was always so busy with various things at S Base that she never remembered to restock them.

She truly hadn’t expected a fifteen-year-old kid like Da Yu to be such a good cook—even better than the Wen Family’s chef.

’Looks like this deal was definitely worth it!’

’I even get a personal chef for free.’

”From now on, when we’re not out at sea, could you help me cook some extra meals? I want to save them for later. I’ll pay you for your work.”

”No problem!”

Da Yu was still feeling indebted and was eager for a chance to do more for Tang Mo, so he agreed in a heartbeat.

Early the next morning, Tang Mo was already up. She watched Da Yu feed Xiao Yu one bottle of milk and leave another one beside her.

Before they left, Tang Mo took a small teddy bear from her supermarket and placed it beside Xiao Yu.

”This way she won’t be so lonely at home by herself.”

”What are you looking at me for? Let’s go.”

Seeing Da Yu staring at her with an incredulous look, Tang Mo just flicked her hair and walked out the door.

Da Yu followed silently behind. He just hadn’t expected that Sister Tang Mo, who seemed so cool and unfazed by everything, could be so thoughtful.

Da Yu’s boat was a second-hand vessel he’d bought from a neighbor with the savings his parents had left him.

He had been going out to sea with his father since he was seven or eight. Now, at fifteen, he was already an experienced fisherman.

Da Yu rowed for only about fifteen minutes before the boat came to a stop.

Tang Mo stood and looked back toward the fishing village. She could still faintly make out its small houses.

”This distance is far enough. We can catch the fish we usually eat from here.”

Da Yu could see that Tang Mo seemed unsatisfied, so he explained.

”Does everyone normally fish around this distance? I thought you couldn’t catch ocean fish this close to shore. Aren’t they usually found in the deep sea?”

’Wait a minute,’ Tang Mo suddenly thought. ’This is the ocean. How can you catch fish this close to shore just by rowing a small boat?’

This wasn’t like the little creek back at her school.

”It wouldn’t have worked in the past. Back then, the village fishing boats had motors, so they’d go out much farther and were more professional. But now we’re short on fuel, so we can only row by hand. It’s like we’ve gone back decades. The good thing is, there seem to be more fish in the sea since the apocalypse. Otherwise, everyone in our fishing village would have starved to death by now.”

In the past, you definitely wouldn’t have been able to catch any ocean fish this close to shore, in such shallow water. But now, everything was different.

The fish were different now, too.

Tang Mo dipped her hand into the ocean, feeling the cold water. She peered down into the azure depths—an unknown mystery that humanity, in this post-apocalyptic world, could no longer explore.

”Most people fish in this spot. That way, we can be sure to get home before sunset.

There might be more types of fish if we go further out, but it’s also more dangerous.”

With a little sister to care for at home, Da Yu didn’t take risks. As long as his catch was enough for him and his sister to get by, that was sufficient.

Da Yu’s fishing equipment was all in order. He picked a spot, cast his net, and after a little while, hauled it back in. There was always something in it, more or less.

Tang Mo looked at the fish Da Yu pulled up in the net, picking one up to examine it closely.

Back in the fishing village, all she had seen were dried fish. This was the first time Tang Mo had ever come into close contact with a live fish from the sea.