Chapter 107 Chapter 107 Strawberries and Plums
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The sky was gloomy and the drizzle fell like silver threads.
The endless water surface was rippling with layers of ripples, and a dark green boat was drifting alone in it. The bow of the boat broke through the rain curtain, and the hull rose and fell slightly with the waves.
Raindrops hit the boat awning, making a "crackling" sound. All around was desolate and lifeless, only the boat was sailing towards the distance, gradually disappearing in the depths of the misty rain.
After entering the Huangjiang River Basin, Gu Mengran became emo and no longer had his previous enthusiasm. He moved a recliner to lie next to Liang Zhao early in the morning, staring blankly at the water in front of him, and no one knew what he was thinking.
Liang Zhao had been paying attention to him for a long time and glanced at him frequently, but Gu Mengran didn't react at all. If he hadn't opened his eyes, Liang Zhao would have thought he was asleep.
The unhappiness was visible to the naked eye, and Liang Zhao could feel it without asking the reason.
The turbid waves surged wildly, swallowing up all the ups and downs and contours. The river that I passed a year ago, the road that I walked a year ago, all disappeared in the rain washing day and night, leaving only the vast and boundless water.
Mountains, forests and rivers are all submerged in water as time passes. This civilization is disappearing and gradually becoming history, and an empty and desolate water world is born.
As a survivor who witnessed this process, I feel both fortunate and unfortunate.
It is normal to have some emotions, but you cannot get too hung up on them and continue to be depressed.
Seeing the distraught Gu Mengran, Liang Zhao did not speak to comfort him directly. He clenched his fist to his lips and coughed twice, and said casually: "My throat is a little itchy, Mengran, can you help me get a glass of water?"
Hearing this, Gu Mengran didn't even raise his eyelids. A bottle of mineral water suddenly appeared in his palm. He unscrewed the cap attentively and handed it to Liang Zhao silently.
Quick and decisive, without saying a word.
Liang Zhao was stunned for a moment, took the water from him, took a sip, screwed the cap back on and put it aside.
"Cough, cough, cough, cough..."
As soon as the water bottle was placed on the ground, Liang Zhao started coughing again. Gu Mengran finally moved, looked up at him, and immediately covered his forehead with his hand hanging by his side, "Why are you coughing? Did I infect you? Fortunately, you don't have a fever."
"No, I don't have a cold." Liang Zhao said calmly, "My throat is just a little itchy. Maybe eating some fruit will help?"
Gu Mengran glared at him and climbed up from the recliner with the help of the armrests. "An itchy throat is a sign of a cold. What fruit should you eat? What should you take is medicine."
As he spoke, he took out various medicine bottles from the space and began to prepare medicine on the spot.
Liang Zhao's eyelids jumped, and he hurriedly stopped her: "Meng Ran, you can't take random medicines. You really don't have a cold, and there are no other symptoms except an itchy throat. How about a cup of instant powder?"
Just take it as prevention.
Gu Mengran frowned slightly and looked at him suspiciously, "Are you sure?"
"Yeah." Liang Zhao nodded.
"All right."
Gu Mengran got up quickly, returned to the cabin to boil water and wash the cups, and soon brought back a cup of steaming cold medicine.
This little episode did not affect his daze. He handed the powder to Liang Zhao and watched Liang Zhao drink it bit by bit. Then he lay back on the recliner and stared blankly at the water in front of him.
Liang Zhao: ...Just drink a cup of cold medicine for nothing.
Determined not to let him think too much, Liang Zhao remained silent for less than two minutes. He tapped the rudder with his fingertips and spoke again: "It's strange, why does my mouth have a tasteless taste? Meng Ran, I want to eat some fruit."
The creaking recliner suddenly stopped moving. Gu Mengran raised his eyes slightly and looked at Liang Zhao with interest. "The sun is rising from the west. You actually brought fruit twice today? What do you want to eat? I'll get it for you."
Liang Zhao smiled and started ordering: "Strawberries, pineapples, kiwis..."
"So many." Gu Mengran was stunned.
Complaints aside, if a person with a low appetite suddenly wants to eat something, there is no reason for him to be unsatisfied.
Gu Mengran climbed up from the recliner again, went to the rear cabin and moved the folding table to the cockpit, then put the recliner back into the space, replaced it with a small stool, and finally brought over a mini bucket.
The bucket was filled with clear mountain spring water. Gu Mengran sat on a small stool and took out the food Liang Zhao ordered one by one. There were bright red strawberries, golden pineapples, and furry kiwis...
The folding table was soon filled. Gu Mengran washed the strawberries, put them on a plate, and placed them on the dashboard very considerately. He raised his chin towards Liang Zhao and said, "Eat them first. I'll take care of the rest."
The bright red strawberries were big and plump, and the rich sweet fragrance was particularly tempting, but Liang Zhao just glanced at them indifferently and looked at Gu Mengran aggrievedly, "Are you going to eat them like this?"
"No, what else?"
Gu Mengran looked back at him in confusion, "Use a toothpick to eat it?"
"That's not necessary, I just feel like something is missing, for example..." Liang Zhao pointed at the tip of the strawberry, his mouth slightly raised, and looked at Gu Mengran with expectation in his eyes, "What can I do with an extra black plum here?"
"Strawberry with black plum?"
"Um."
"Okay, sure."
Gu Mengran had tried this novel way of eating strawberries and black plums before, and it tasted pretty good, but it was Liang Zhao who suggested it... weird, very weird.
After bringing the strawberries back and taking out a bag of dried black plums from the space, Gu Mengran sat back at the folding table and cut the strawberries one by one with a knife. As he cut them, he was tempted by the sweet fragrance of the strawberries, so he cut one and ate it, even the ones that were damaged.
Half an hour later, Gu Mengran burped a burp with a mixture of pineapple and strawberry flavors, and in the glass fruit plate on the table were... half a piece of pineapple, seven or eight strawberries, and two kiwis.
Liang Zhao turned his head and saw this scene. He raised his eyebrows and looked at him with a smile.
Gu Mengran blushed and stammered, "I'll wash it for you again."
"No, this is enough." Liang Zhao chuckled and gently reminded: "Eat in moderation, don't eat too much sour food, be careful not to sour your teeth."
Gu Mengran tried to bite his teeth and smiled, "It's okay, it's not sore."
The purpose of deliberately making trouble for Gu Mengran was actually to find something for him to do so that he would not have time to be emo. As a result, the busyness did not make him forget his troubles. Instead, a big fruit meal made him happy.
It can be considered that the goal has been achieved.
Liang Zhao picked up a strange-shaped strawberry and put it into his mouth, his eyebrows slightly curved and he smiled silently.
Some were happy while others were sad. Gu Mengran patted his bloated belly and said with a sad face, "Oh, I'm so full. I don't even need to eat lunch. I have to do something to help digest the food."
"What for?" Liang Zhao asked him.
Gu Mengran held his chin up and said, "Good question. I don't know either."
The trip to the East China Sea was a boring and long process. There was very little to do in the narrow cabin. Liang Zhao was like a machine. He got up every day and sat on the bridge, driving the boat seriously for the whole day.
As for Gu Mengran, he didn't have to do laundry or cook, or mop the floor or wash dishes. He could just tidy up the cabin in his spare time, return to the space every night to feed the livestock, and then... sleep and eat, eat and sleep.
What can I do? Gu Mengran pondered for a long time, and the only thing he could think of was to grow vegetables in the space, which would not only provide a place to expend energy, but also yield a harvest.
But, sailing was boring enough, and he just walked away, leaving Liang Zhao alone...
Forget it, I can’t bear to do that.
After hesitating for a long time, Gu Mengran just walked back and forth in the cabin a few times. When his stomach was not so bloated anymore, he strolled to the control panel, took out a tablet from the space, and sat on a small stool to watch a movie.
Then he discovered a pattern: when he was concentrating on watching the movie, Liang Zhao didn't say a word, sometimes glancing at the screen, sometimes glancing at him. But once he started to lose focus, Liang Zhao immediately asked him to get something, or pulled him to talk.
Worried that it was just a coincidence, Gu Mengran tried again. The movie on the screen switched to an empty shot. He raised his chin slightly, squinted his eyes and looked thoughtfully at the water in front of him.
30 seconds, one minute, one and a half minutes...
"What are we having for dinner? How about we cook hot pot?"
In no more than two minutes, Liang Zhao's deep voice rang in his ears.
Gu Mengran suddenly turned his head, staring at him with burning eyes that contained a hint of disbelief.
Without replying or saying anything, Liang Zhao raised an eyebrow, "What's wrong?"
Not wanting to beat around the bush, Gu Mengran said directly, "You're acting so strange today. What do you want to do? You want to keep me quiet, right?"
"Yeah." Liang Zhao admitted frankly: "I won't let you rest."
Gu Mengran was confused, "Why?"
"What do you think?" Liang Zhao said with a smile, "You were staring at the water in a daze, your face full of unhappiness, and I don't know where your soul went. How could I dare to let you let your imagination run wild?"
"Oh, that time." Gu Mengran touched his nose and said without confidence: "I didn't have any wild thoughts. I just saw that the beautiful country disappeared so quietly, and I felt a little sad."
Liang Zhao let go of the rudder with his left hand, grabbed Gu Mengran's hand in the air, and gently squeezed it twice. "It's easy for people to have some negative emotions when they stay in a closed environment for a long time and lack social interaction. Don't underestimate these emotions. I've seen crew members suffer from mental illness because of this, and even..."
Gu Mengran held Liang Zhao's warm hand, as if he had found an interesting toy. He pried open his fingers one by one and nodded in agreement. "Indeed, the cabin is so small and narrow that we can't do anything. There are only two of us in the cabin, so we can't even play Landlord."
"Oh, apart from eating and sleeping every day, I'm so bored! I don't want to play games, listen to music, or watch movies. Life is so boring..."
Gu Mengran kept talking more and more excitedly, while Liang Zhao, who was sitting next to him, looked increasingly unhappy and serious, his calm eyes filled with deep worry.
"but!"
Just as Liang Zhao's lips moved and he was about to speak, Gu Mengran grabbed his hand and suddenly lifted it up, kissing the back of his hand, "What are you thinking about? I'm not depressed, I'm not depressed! It doesn't matter where I am or what I do, having you is enough."
"Two lifetimes, Liang Zhao, I finally became your boyfriend, I even laughed secretly at night, how can I give up-"
“Hey!”
Before he could finish his words, Liang Zhao stood up suddenly, then leaned over to Gu Mengran, put his hands quickly across his shoulders and around his waist, and then lifted him up with force.
Before Gu Mengran could react, he had already held her horizontally in his arms.
The unmanned boat drifted with the current. Liang Zhao held Gu Mengran in his arms and walked briskly. He lifted the dark gray curtains that separated the cabin and walked straight to the stern.
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