Fatty's cooking skills were indeed excellent. When he wasn't experimenting with bizarre dishes, his culinary talent could rival some master chefs.
Wu Tianzhen, in front of Fatty and Zhang Qiling, always wore his thoughts on his sleeve. Sitting at the dining table, his inability to eat and his hesitant expression were almost forming an emoji to be smashed onto the table, a stark contrast to Black Glasses humming a tune beside him.
Zhang Qiling had overheard his question earlier. Seeing the expressions of these two, he knew Black Glasses was up to his old tricks, attempting to tease Little Wu.
This ship certainly wasn't bought by Black Glasses. It wasn't because Black Glasses was short on money. In fact, despite often appearing penniless, with his abilities and having lived for so many years, it was impossible for him to have no wealth at all.
Moreover, his roguish yet subtly noble demeanor was not something one could acquire from a life of hardship.
Zhang Qiling was certain the ship wasn't his purchase because Black Glasses seemed to have a peculiar fondness for maintaining a certain persona. With such absurd dedication, he would never splurge on buying a ship.
He had dealings in grey, even black, markets. Perhaps the ship was acquired through a double-cross, and it wouldn't matter if it was damaged. There likely wasn't anyone who would dare to confront Black Glasses.
Thinking this, and seeing Wu Tianzhen so disheartened that he was starting to scoop air with his spoon, Zhang Qiling spoke:
"This ship, it's fine."
Black Glasses, beside him, wore a disappointed expression, unable to continue his amusement. Zhang Qiling glanced at him, and Black Glasses shrugged and began eating his fish.
Hearing Zhang Qiling's assurance, Wu Tianzhen breathed a sigh of relief and finally picked up a piece of food.
But soon, he realized something was amiss.
... Little Brother only said the ship was fine, he didn't say Black Glasses didn't steal it?
Wu Tianzhen: ...
Never mind, the food is too delicious. He knows nothing.
---
Although Black Glasses appeared unreliable, he was actually very dependable when it came to important matters.
The ship was fully equipped with lifeboats, provisions, and even fishing nets, all neatly arranged. While this was likely prepared by the unfortunate soul who was robbed, it still counted as Black Glasses' contribution.
Fatty rummaged through the supplies and even found several sets of diving suits. Although their performance wasn't as good as the ones they had "acquired" from Song Shuning, they could serve as backups.
For a moment, the group of "robbers" reached a happy consensus – why refuse freebies?
The ship was technologically advanced and could navigate automatically once a destination was set. However, it also had a manual control station, allowing for a switch to manual steering in case of signal interference or unexpected malfunctions.
"Wait, something's wrong?" Wu Tianzhen, watching the ship begin to move in an unknown direction, suddenly thought of an important question.
"Although it's good that we can switch to manual at any time..."
"But none of us know how to drive a ship?!"
With the shock of discovering this oversight, he cast a curious gaze at Zhang Qiling across from him. He saw Zhang Qiling calmly swallow his food and look up, saying nonchalantly:
"I do."
"I do too~" Black Glasses chimed in from the side. His eyes, hidden behind his sunglasses, flickered over Fatty and Wu Tianzhen as he said, "Hiss— Oops, it's not just you two here, is it? You don't know how to drive, do you?"
"??? No, how many people here can drive a ship?" Wu Tianzhen looked at Zhang Qiling in disbelief, only to see Zhang Qiling's placid face practically screaming, "Isn't knowing how to drive a ship basic operating procedure?" For a moment, he even felt that he and Fatty had been implicitly abandoned by Little Zhang, and this guy named Black had ascended to the top of Little Zhang's best friend ranking.
Fatty, oblivious to Wu Tianzhen's secret ranking of "Zhang Qiling's Best Friends," and completely unaware that Wu Tianzhen had arrogantly placed himself above Fatty, let out a "Yoho!" upon hearing the topic of Zhang Qiling driving the ship and promptly served Zhang Qiling another chicken leg.
"Amazing, our Little Brother even knows how to drive a ship!" He looked at Zhang Qiling eating the chicken leg with immense satisfaction, and a scene suddenly flashed through his mind.
... Come to think of it, if Little Brother knows how to operate a high-tech ship, does he really not know what a carousel is?
Fatty and Wu Tianzhen exchanged glances. Though their thoughts differed, they both felt the same shock.
To alleviate his guilt from forcing Zhang Qiling onto the carousel earlier, Fatty turned and pretended to struggle with opening a can, but his mind was in turmoil. With a burst of effort, he snapped the pull-tab.
"Uh, Tianzhen." He didn't dare look in Zhang Qiling's direction, afraid he might burst out laughing remembering "The Melancholy Carousel Little Zhang," and could only seek help from Wu Tianzhen, who was mentally comparing his own importance to Black Glasses.
"Do you have any steel rods or anything like that? Help me open this can!"
"Huh? How could I possibly have—"
Just as Wu Tianzhen was halfway through his sentence, a dazzling golden light flashed!
Black Glasses' well-defined fingers held a card that looked incredibly familiar. He laughed with extreme arrogance.
"Here, use this to open it. It's quite sturdy."
"It's fine if it breaks, I've already spent all the money inside anyway~"
Zhang Qiling: ? Didn't you give the money jar to the city management?
Black Glasses noticed his gaze, skillfully spun the card between his fingers, indicating that with his hand speed, let alone a card, he could even stealthily snatch the city management's leather belt.
Wu Tianzhen, observing the silent exchange between the two, calmly identified the card number again.
... Good, it's that one.
The atmosphere fell silent for a few seconds. He slammed the table and stood up!
"Little Brother!!!!! Didn't you say you lost the card?!"
"Why is it in his hand ahhhhhh!"