Chapter Eighteen: Tina’s Misunderstanding

Jia Zhengjin and the blonde girl, Tina, still couldn’t communicate, but some basic gestures and movements were barely understandable to her.

“Tina!” Jia Zhengjin called her name, waving at her, and she hobbled over to him.

Then Jia Zhengjin pointed at the room, then at the door, and then outside, mimicking monster movements. Although the blonde girl was amused, her frail body trembling with laughter, she still managed to grasp the idea that it was dangerous outside, so she obediently stayed in the room.

When Jia Zhengjin took out some roasted meat and mimed eating, that needed no explanation.

A man from Earth and a girl from another world, like two mutes, could only exchange the simplest information through basic sign language, aside from knowing each other's names.

“This herb, apply it to your wound!” Once he got a bit more familiar with Tina, Jia Zhengjin took out a crushed green herb and pointed at her cleaned injury.

Tina stared at him in confusion, but after he repeated himself several times, gesticulating and demonstrating, she finally understood. She let him apply the herb to her wound and wrap it up.

“This medicine works really well!” After bandaging her, Jia Zhengjin lowered his head to let her see, “The wound will disappear once you recover fully. Just stay in the room and rest until your health is back to normal—your leg won’t hurt anymore!”

“Mapulu-shu!” The blonde girl didn’t understand what he was saying. She placed her hand on his head and smiled, uttering a phrase.

“If only I had a portable translator!” Jia Zhengjin sighed, “Hey! You, Tina!”

“Tina!” The blonde girl pointed at herself and nodded.

“That one, Little Ash!” Jia Zhengjin pointed to the small dog-headed creature.

“Owei!” The blonde girl’s pronunciation was always off, but she pointed to the dog-headed creature as well.

“You two, guard the house!” Jia Zhengjin pointed to the floor, then took out an iron pickaxe and mimed mining, “Me, Jia Zhengjin! Going to mine! Do you understand?”

Tina watched his comical gestures and couldn’t help but let out a crisp, melodious laugh. She even mimicked his mining pose, laughing as she did.

“Rest up!” Jia Zhengjin could only gesture sleep and say, “Tina, sleep! Don’t go outside! Understand?”

“Rest up!” Tina clearly learned his catchphrase, nodding happily and repeating it, though it was unclear whether she understood or not, “Rest up! Rest up…”

How exhausting! This mismatched conversation left Jia Zhengjin frustrated. But seeing Tina’s happy smile, he relaxed again. “Do as you please! I’ll get to work, you and Little Ash keep an eye on the house!”

“Rest up!” The blonde girl raised both hands in a celebratory gesture, causing her ample chest to bounce.

Jia Zhengjin nearly had a nosebleed and quickly grabbed his pickaxe and left.

“Clang! Clang! Clang…” Not far from home, Jia Zhengjin mined, the iron pickaxe thudding against stone.

During this time, Tina peeked out the door several times, confirming that he was nearby before returning to the room to stay put.

With Tina staying inside, Jia Zhengjin felt much more at ease. Even he had to be extremely cautious outside; encountering a more dangerous creature could easily cost him his life.

After leveling up, he had unlocked the workbench. All he needed was to mine enough iron ore and smelt fifty iron ingots, then dig for copper and smelt enough copper ingots to make it. Both iron and copper ore were nearby, and timber was everywhere.

If he could build the workbench quickly, he could manufacture better weapons, tools, armor, and even many essential household items. Right now, this was crucial—no time could be wasted!

Moreover, the stones he mined could be used to build bricks. Soon, he would build a new room for Tina close by. His current house was too small; two people and a dog made it feel cramped.

For now, he’d make do, but once things settled and the basic tools were ready, he’d construct a larger, more beautiful home. The current box-like room was easy to build, but its appearance was woeful—just a temporary shelter for the early days. What Jia Zhengjin truly wanted was the majestic castle he spent over a month building in the game before crossing over.

Mining was tedious and dull, but Jia Zhengjin was used to it. After several hours of hard labor, he reaped substantial rewards. Though he was still far from having the materials needed for the workbench, he was steadily making progress.

As dusk fell, though his stamina was holding up, Jia Zhengjin decided to stop for safety’s sake. With some daylight left, he decided to build Tina a new house, since he had enough stone blocks.

But plans rarely keep up with change. Just as Jia Zhengjin packed up, ready to build the house before sunset, the sky suddenly darkened and raindrops began to fall.

Soon, torrents of rain poured from the sky, an intimidating sight!

“What kind of crazy weather is this?” Unlike on Earth, the downpour came without warning, drenching Jia Zhengjin instantly. Cursing, he dashed home, stripped naked by the fire to dry his clothes. But the next moment, seeing Tina sitting inside with a flushed face, head lowered and eyes closed, he suddenly remembered he wasn’t alone anymore!

He felt awkward for a moment, but couldn’t possibly put his wet clothes back on. Fortunately, he had hastily made a set of fiber armor and quickly covered his bare body. “Um, I didn’t mean to!”

“Mapulu-shu!” Tina hugged her chest, blushing as she glanced at him, then seemed to struggle internally for a while before finally standing up. Her injury had healed, and now she could walk normally.

After rising, Tina stood in place, nervously rubbing her fingers. After a long moment, she took a deep breath and slowly walked up to Jia Zhengjin, kneeling before him. She spoke a string of words completely unintelligible to him, her sapphire eyes shining with shyness.

The gist of her words was: “A mighty hero has saved my humble life! If it is your wish, I am willing to serve by your side for life, to follow you always!”

Apparently, she misunderstood Jia Zhengjin’s motives for taking off his clothes, leading her to make this choice after an intense internal struggle.

“What are you saying?” Jia Zhengjin had no idea what she meant, but in the next moment, the blushing girl stood up, her dress slipping off her shoulders, and his nose began to bleed instantly…