446: Default first mate

Yang Qi wanted to go to the shipyard to check the progress of the *explorer*’s modifications. However, the shipyard wouldn't open until tomorrow, and he had already seen it before the New Year, so there probably wasn't much to see now.

For the next few days, Yang Qi and Bai Xue didn't consider going out to sea, choosing instead to stay home, rest, and relax.

They were too lazy to even cook every day, so they would mooch meals off his mother when it was time to eat, living a very comfortable life.

After such a long period of recuperation, Coal finally recovered completely. As soon as it was mealtime, it would carry its dog bowl in its mouth and follow Yang Qi to mooch food.

Yang Qi had no choice but to buy an identical stainless steel dog bowl and leave it at his mother's house.

"You little brat are being overly fussy! Can't you just use that original plastic bowl?"

Yang Qi pointed at Coal and scolded it laughingly.

It turned out his mother had prepared a plastic bowl for both dogs to use as a dog bowl.

For some reason, Coal recently refused to eat anything from that dog bowl; even when mooching food, it insisted on bringing its own bowl.

Seeing that carrying it back and forth was too troublesome, Yang Qi had to buy two more bowls for it. One was intended for use on the boat.

That day, Yang Qi and Bai Xue took Coal and prepared to go to the Maternal Grandfather's house to catch some Native Chickens.

Most of the first batch of chickens had been given to Zhang Jun and Tang Long. He had kept fewer than twenty for himself, and the second and third batches were already being raised sequentially.

"Maternal Grandmother and Maternal Grandfather, these are gifts we bought for you. Please be sure to eat them!"

Bai Xue handed the nutritional supplements and several sea fish in her hands to the Maternal Grandmother.

"Oh my! It's Little Xue and Xiao Qi! Come, come, have a seat first. Maternal Grandmother will pour you some tea!"

The Old Lady was very happy to see them.

"Maternal Grandmother, no need to trouble yourself. We won't drink tea; we just came to catch a few chickens and then we'll head back."

Yang Qi and Bai Xue quickly stopped the Old Lady who was about to pour them tea.

"Don't talk nonsense, catching chickens isn't urgent. Drink tea first, and I'll make you something to eat."

The Old Lady held onto them and wouldn't let go.

Yang Qi and Bai Xue had no choice but to sit down and drink tea, but since they had just eaten breakfast not long ago, how could they possibly let the Old Lady cook for them?

"No, Maternal Grandmother, we just ate breakfast. We're not hungry, just a little tea is fine."

But there is a kind of hunger called, "Maternal Grandmother thinks you are hungry!"

So the Old Lady insisted on cooking, and Bai Xue held her back, leading to a brief tug-of-war.

Just then, Bai Xue's eldest Cousin, Chen Sheng, walked in. Seeing the Old Lady and Bai Xue struggling, he said with a smile:

"Oh my! What are you two doing? Wrestling?"

"Little Xue, you're no good! You can't even beat the Old Lady! Hahaha."

Chen Sheng burst into laughter after speaking.

"Don't talk nonsense, scram! I want to cook for your sister and them, but they won't let me!"

The Old Lady glared, then complained to her Eldest Grandson.

The youngest son and the Eldest Grandson are the lifeblood of the elderly!

That saying holds true; the Old Lady truly doted on this Eldest Grandson. Among all her grandsons, he was the only one who could joke around with her.

"Grandma, you should rest! What time is it? It's too early for lunch! Don't worry, Little Sister and Brother-in-law will definitely eat here today. Leave it to me!"

"I promise I'll hold them here until they've eaten before letting them leave!"

Chen Sheng pounded his chest loudly in front of the Old Lady.

"Really?"

The Old Lady looked at her Eldest Grandson with some suspicion.

"Absolutely true! Trust me, you sit down first!"

Chen Sheng helped the Old Lady sit down.

"Yang Qi, you guys came over today to catch chickens, right?"

Chen Sheng turned around, offered Yang Qi a cigarette, and asked.

"Yes, Cousin."

Yang Qi smiled and lit Chen Sheng's cigarette.

In fact, they had agreed before the New Year that he would join the crew. A ship as large as the *explorer* certainly couldn't be operated by just Yang Qi and Bai Xue, even with Yao Shanshan included.

However, Yang Qi and Bai Xue had discussed it and decided they would be extremely cautious when recruiting crew members to sail on the *explorer*.

Character was definitely the primary factor, and for some important positions, they needed experienced veterans with solid skills.

As Bai Xue's Cousin, Chen Sheng and the Bai Dahai family were well-known to them. He was loyal, righteous, meticulous, and filial.

After learning more about him, Yang Qi planned to train him to be the First Mate and a future Captain. Furthermore, he already possessed a seaman's certificate and a vessel operator's license.

Before the New Year, Yang Qi had already helped him register for training for the *Certificate of Competency* and multiple *Training Qualification Certificates*.

"I see your dog is quite remarkable!"

Chen Sheng looked at Coal squatting by Yang Qi's feet and couldn't help but comment.

"Yeah, it looks pretty smart, it just eats a little too much."

Yang Qi looked at Coal, patted its head, and joked.

"We have two friends in our village who took a few dogs yesterday and caught several Wild Rabbits on the back mountain."

"Why don't we call them up and give it a try?"

Chen Sheng suggested.

"Sounds good! Let's go have some fun; I've never done this before! Coal, you need to show some spirit, got it? Remember that you are a good dog!"

Yang Qi thought for a moment and agreed, then spoke earnestly to Coal.

Coal turned its head and glanced at its owner, feeling like he was up to something mischievous, but it had no proof.

Before long, Chen Sheng finished his call and returned.

"Yang Qi, let's go! They are waiting at the Village Entrance."

"Little Xue, are you coming?"

Yang Qi asked.

"I won't go. I'll stay and chat with Maternal Grandmother. You guys go! Be careful!"

Bai Xue shook her head and replied.

Yang Qi saw Chen Sheng holding a Snakeskin Bag and said speechlessly:

"No way, Cousin, you're bringing such a big bag? Are you that confident? What if we come back empty-handed?"

"I think your Coal can definitely do it! Let's go!"

It seemed Chen Sheng had great faith in Coal's abilities.

"Coal, you better put in some effort! Don't mess up. Let's go."

Yang Qi got up, took Coal, and followed Chen Sheng toward the Village Outskirts.

When the two arrived outside the village, Yang Qi saw two young men waiting there with two Sighthounds.

"Brother Sheng, you guys are here!"

"Yes. Have you been waiting long? Let me introduce you, this is my Brother-in-law, Yang Qi, from Bai Xue's family."

Chen Sheng introduced them to the others,

"Yang Qi, these are Chen Gang and Chen Lin."

Yang Qi stepped forward, offering cigarettes as he spoke:

"Hello everyone, just call me Yang Qi. Cousin said you guys are amazing, I'm just here to have fun."

"Hello, Yang Qi."

"Hello, Yang Qi! Don't worry, we'll definitely let you taste some Wild Rabbit meat today."

The few people were all young, and after the introductions, they got acquainted. When the three dogs met, they didn't bite each other.

Yang Qi even had a feeling that the two Sighthounds looked at Coal with a slight avoidance in their eyes.

Meanwhile, Coal just glanced at the Sighthounds twice and then looked away, displaying a sense of disdain.

"Holy Crap, is this guy looking down on them?"

Yang Qi couldn't help but complain internally.