Help with an instruction in a crochet pattern please!

[Mykittensmittens]

would someone be kind enough? Im
an experienced crocheter. Usually when I see an instruction in brackets, it would indicate to me this is an instruction to repeat a certain number of
times but this isn’t the case here.

It’s row 28 I’m stuck on. It’s a jacket for an amigurumi animal and this is the front panel. I assume it’s working around the armhole where the sleeves will be stitched in.

i don’t understand the bit in brackets. Am I meant to slip-stitch, chain and DC into that same single stitch? I’m so confused! Thanks.

That's how I would read it - slip stitch, chain and 1 DC into the same stitch.

Thanks. I just can’t see how you’d do that - create a slip, chain one and then DC just creates a lump 😂

It creates a chain space to work into on the way back

Thanks - I’ll give it a go! Perseverance and all that.