Chapter 60 Chapter 60 Prepare for a Rainy Day
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The air was filled with a strong stench, and the shadow of death loomed over this winding mother river. The calm river surface seemed to be covered by heavy snow, and everything in sight was a dazzling white.
The Wind Wing was still moving forward, and the number of rotten fish and shrimp pushed to the shore by the waves did not decrease, but increased. The dead bodies of dense schools of fish were scattered all over the land, and some were chopped into pieces by the propellers. The foul smell of filth made the river water even more turbid.
The four of them looked out the window together, and were controlled by this strange and shocking scene for more than ten minutes.
No one spoke, and the atmosphere in the cab was tense and depressing.
The sun was blazing high overhead, but Zheng Yijie felt an inexplicable chill on his back. He tried to hold it in but couldn't help it. His lips trembled slightly, and he suppressed his fear and broke the long silence: "What on earth is going on? Isn't it too exaggerated? Why are there more and more cases?"
The old man, who had decades of sailing experience, had never seen such a spectacle. He was stunned for a moment, tapped the glass with his knuckles, and frowned, "Is it due to lack of oxygen caused by the hot weather? There are indeed too many of them, it's a bit scary."
"Not quite right." Liang Zhao stared at the river and analyzed in a deep voice: "The high temperature has lasted for a long time, and it didn't just get hot in the past one or two days. No abnormalities were found along the way. The oxygen content in this section of the river can't have dropped drastically."
"Then, what's going on?" Zheng Yijie was a little panicked.
Meng Gaoyang shook his head, "I don't know, but it should be okay if I don't go into the water, right?"
The three of them were discussing with each other, while Gu Mengran just stared at the river in silence, his lips stretched into a straight line and his brows furrowed so tightly that they could kill a mosquito.
He did not repeat the route of his previous life, and the people he met and the things that happened to him were completely different from those of his previous life. The unknown was frightening, especially when facing situations that were out of his control and beyond Gu Mengran's expectations.
According to common sense, the death of a large number of fish is either due to lack of oxygen or poisoning caused by harmful substances in the water. As Liang Zhao analyzed, it is most likely the latter, and the Huangjiang River is polluted.
But what could have contaminated it? Gu Mengran had no idea.
Water flows to the lower places, what happened upstream? If it was just the water source that was polluted, it would be fine. Anyway, with the space in hand, the Fengyi did not need to use river water. The only thing Gu Mengran was worried about was some kind of virus.
In his previous life, he followed Gu Decheng's family until the water level rose and the city was almost submerged, and he was forced to leave Xinjing. During this time, he also heard some rumors, such as that the foreign survivors were suspected of carrying the virus, had a high fever, and had ulcers all over their bodies.
The reason why it was just a rumor was that it was quickly debunked by the military. The virus that did not cause any trouble was forgotten in minutes, and Gu Mengran did not take it too seriously.
Now it seems that the rumors may be somewhat true. Just because Beijing, which was taken over by the military, is peaceful, does not mean that the same is true in other places.
After all, as the old saying goes, after a great disaster comes a great epidemic. Not long ago, we experienced a major earthquake, which caused countless deaths and injuries. The human bodies buried in the ruins were fermented by high temperatures, and it is very likely that an epidemic would break out.
The three people next to him were still discussing fiercely, and Gu Mengran was shocked by his own guess. Whether it was a virus or a plague, the fish in the Huangjiang River died so much, and something big must have happened upstream.
You need to make some preparations in advance!
Gu Mengran could no longer keep calm, so he hurried to the open space behind the cockpit and took out some large items from the space one after another.
Zheng Yijie was steering the boat while chatting with the old man and Liang Zhao. At first, he didn't notice what Gu Mengran was doing. Until a circle of something like barbed wire was piled up at his feet, he looked back and saw that the floor behind him was already full.
His attention was instantly diverted. Zheng Yijie stretched out two fingers and twisted the wire mesh, and asked curiously: "What is this?"
The old man answered casually: "High-voltage pulse power grid, also known as electronic fence, you haven't seen it? Some residential areas have this installed on their walls."
Zheng Yijie remembered that he had seen it on the wall. But... he asked again: "What are you going to do with this? Install it on the boat?"
"That's right." The old man nodded. "Electronic fences are rarely installed on river ships, but they are basically necessary on sea ships to prevent pirates."
"Oh, if a bad guy comes aboard, we're going to electrocute him?"
"Haha! That's what happened."
After saying this, Zheng Yijie let go of the electric fence and picked up a water gun from a pile of messy supplies. He looked at it over and over again, "Why does this look like a high-pressure water gun? What is it used for? To wash the boat?"
"It's a high-pressure water gun. It has the same function as an electric grid. It's installed on the deck railing to prevent pirates." The old man answered patiently, and finally picked up Zheng Yijie's words and made a joke: "If a bad guy gets on board, just use the water gun to spray him."
Curious Zheng Yijie nodded without even a second's pause, and then asked again: "Hey, what are you doing with all this now? Weren't we just discussing the fish?"
The old man couldn't answer this question and turned his attention to Gu Mengran.
The two burning gazes were like thorns on his back. Gu Mengran looked up at the two of them and said seriously, "Something may have happened upstream. I'm worried about the outbreak of plague or virus, so I plan to make some preparations in advance."
"Plague?!" Zheng Yijie's voice suddenly rose several degrees, and he was obviously frightened. His face turned pale. "No way? The plague can infect fish? Then, can that person still survive?"
The old man was also a little surprised, but not as much as Zheng Yijie. He frowned slightly and held his chin and said, "That's not right. A plague or a virus, shouldn't we be well protected? What are you doing with the electric grid and the water gun?"
Questions came one after another. Gu Mengran had no choice but to stop what he was doing and continue to answer their questions: "I'm not sure if it's a plague, but what I can be sure of is that the water source is polluted, and the upstream must be unsafe."
"Grandpa, you've noticed along the way, right? The area that was hit by the flood was probably above Shancheng and below Xinjing. We walked past that area on the shore, and now the Huangjiang River is getting calmer and calmer."
"Isn't it good to be peaceful?" Zheng Yijie asked.
Gu Mengran shook his head. "Peace is good, but too much peace is not good. We will probably pass Lingjiang Port the day after tomorrow. If it is not affected by the flood and the river is calm, what is the probability that we will encounter a ship there?"
Zheng Yijie froze, a crack appeared on his face, "Very big!"
Where there are boats, there are people, maybe quite a few people. The abnormality in this section of the river basin is most likely caused by Lingjiang Port.
"No one knows what exactly happened. We have to focus on both epidemic prevention and defense." Gu Mengran stood up on his knees and pointed to the two portions of supplies on the ground. "Send one portion to Xu Xinghe and the others in the evening, and remind them by the way."
The miscellaneous supplies are divided into two parts, high-voltage pulse power grid, high-pressure water gun, water pipes; alcohol, disinfectant, disposable medical masks, N95 masks, hand sanitizer...
Gu Mengran was extremely grateful that the preparations before the disaster were sufficient.
Gu Mengran, who was on "vacation" and felt dizzy, didn't want to worry much. He would talk about the evening in the evening. After explaining the important matters, he rubbed his swollen solar plexus, raised his foot and walked back.
However, before he left the cab, the old man who had vowed last night not to worry about Gu Mengran suddenly stopped him and asked uncertainly, "Then, will the transaction continue tonight?"
Gu Mengran paused and smiled, "Go ahead. The waterline of the Giant 5 is too low. Help them share some of the burden. I'm afraid that some fish will float onto the deck and die. Oh, yes, contact Zheng Yijie on high frequency and ask them to turn off the sprinkler system immediately."
"Ok, no problem."
At one o'clock in the morning, Fengyi and Juqing 5 successfully docked in a relatively wide channel.
Hearing the sound coming from the deck through the window, Gu Mengran put on his slippers, put on a mask, walked out the door, went down the stairs to the first floor, and slowly climbed onto the stern deck.
It was late at night, and the steaming deck was brightly lit. Grandpa and Liang Zhao were standing by the chain locker and fender respectively, one coordinating with the cab to lower the anchor, and the other tying the cable thrown over by the Giant Engine 5.
The two ships were moored side by side, and the nearly fully loaded Juqing 5 was much shorter than the Fengyi. Gu Mengran stood by the fender and could clearly see the other ship's deck, watching Xu Xingran and the girl named Xu Yue busy filling the empty barrels with oil.
After roughly counting the oil drums on the other side's deck, Gu Mengran estimated that they would be busy until morning. He stretched and was about to help with the work when Xu Xingran, who was below, noticed something and suddenly raised his head, "Xiao Gu, thank you!"
The same mask was already on, so it was self-evident what he was thanking her for. Gu Mengran stopped and responded with a smile: "You're welcome, Sister Xu. Compared with your fuel, this little thing is nothing."
"That's different. These things you sent here are life-saving." Xu Xingran said a few polite words. Not wanting to waste too much time, he hesitated for a moment and asked directly: "Grandpa Meng said that something might have happened upstream. Is it really a plague or something?"
Gu Mengran shook his head. "It's just a guess. Don't panic. We should prepare in advance and take good precautions."
Xu Xingran was obviously relieved and nodded repeatedly, "Yes, it's time to prepare in advance. We will install the power grid and high-pressure water guns after we transport the oil drums."
It is easy to communicate with people who are willing to listen to advice. Gu Mengran waved at her and quickly walked to the crane.
They rolled up their sleeves and prepared to work. The old man came up behind them and slapped Gu Mengran on the shoulder. "What are you doing? Why are you a sick patient here interfering?"
Gu Mengran was patted on the shoulder without any preparation. He shivered with fear. He turned around and saw that it was the old man. He glared at him helplessly and said, "You suddenly jumped out and scared me. What else can you do? Of course you are here to help with the work."
"Go, go, go back to your room. I don't need your help." The old man pinched Gu Mengran's shoulders and pulled him back with a little force.
Gu Mengran staggered back a few steps, grabbed his grandfather's arm and coaxed him, "Grandpa, I'm much better now. I can help you. Otherwise, the two of you will be busy until morning."
"Go back quickly, don't dawdle."
The old man pushed him again, with a firm attitude.
Gu Mengran pursed his lips reluctantly, and wanted to fight for it again, but the next moment, the old man suddenly yelled at the top of his voice: "Liang Zhao! Take care of your Gu——"
"Don't, don't make trouble Grandpa, I have something else to do, I'm leaving first!"
Gu Mengran turned around and left, almost escaping.
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