Chapter 90 Chapter 90 Helpless
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As the meeting was coming to an end, Liang Zhao took Gu Mengran out of the main hall smoothly. After they were completely out of the sight of the group of people, he immediately quickened his pace, pulled Gu Mengran into a nearby alley, and pushed open an old wooden door.
He inserted the bolt from the inside with one hand, and without a moment's pause, Liang Zhao grasped Gu Mengran's wrist, exerted a little force, pinched his shoulders and gently pulled him into his arms.
Fear, confusion, resentment... Gu Mengran never said a word, but Liang Zhao felt many complex emotions from him.
It was definitely not as simple as an accidental shipwreck. Liang Zhao lifted up his rain hat that was soaked by the rain, rested his chin against Gu Mengran's furry head, and patted his back lightly with his palm as if coaxing a child, soothing him patiently and gently.
Without saying much or asking many questions, Liang Zhao was like a large comfort dog, soothing Gu Mengran's emotions through physical contact and companionship.
This method was very effective. After only a few minutes, Gu Mengran came back to his senses. He raised his hands and hugged Liang Zhao back, tightening his arms as if he wanted to rub himself into Liang Zhao's body.
"Okay, okay, it's okay." Liang Zhao let him hold him, lowered his chin, and gently rubbed his soft hair with his lips. "You know that person, right? Can you tell me what happened? It's okay if you don't want to talk about it. I'll take you home, okay?"
Gu Mengran still didn't say anything, he buried his head in his chest and shook his head.
Shaking your head means denying. Don't know? Don't want to say? The answer is obviously the latter.
Liang Zhao's eyes darkened, and he pinched his slightly cold earlobe with his fingertips, leaning close to his ear and whispering, "I've seen the Yongyue, and in that dream, you fell off the ship. I know they're not good people, and they bullied you, right?"
As soon as these words came out, Gu Mengran, who was curled up in his arms, trembled again.
But before Liang Zhao could open his mouth to comfort her, Gu Mengran raised his head from his arms, clutching the raincoat, like a puppy drenched in the rain, with his hair hanging on his forehead and his eyes slightly red.
As if he had suffered a great injustice, Gu Mengran frowned, pursed his lips, and complained sadly: "Not only are they not good people, those bastards are rotten to the core! They rely on a broken ship to do evil, bully the weak, and take human lives lightly..."
Obviously furious, Gu Mengran wanted to use all the critical idioms. Liang Zhao listened patiently, hugged him tightly, and patted his back from time to time to comfort him.
After venting his anger, Gu Mengran gradually calmed down. He buried his face back in Liang Zhao's arms, sighed helplessly, and said in a muffled voice: "Do you find it strange? It was obviously, obviously just a dream..."
"No, it's not strange." Liang Zhao stroked the red corners of his eyes with his thumb. It was as if his heart was pierced by a sharp weapon, and his eyes were full of heartache.
How could it be just a dream?
Although the specific reason is unknown, all signs indicate that Gu Mengran has experienced it personally and suffered great harm as a result.
Broken legs, disfigured face... the image of Gu Mengran, who was desperate and collapsed with no will to live, emerged in Liang Zhao's mind. His breathing became more and more rapid. He could no longer regard it as a dream.
"Liang Zhao?"
A soft call brought Liang Zhao back to his senses. He lowered his eyes to look at Gu Mengran's full eyes. Liang Zhao rubbed his head and smiled softly, "I'm fine."
Gu Mengran obviously didn't believe it and looked at him suspiciously, "Don't think too much. Some bad things did happen, but it's just a dream, don't take it seriously."
"Why are you comforting me instead?" Liang Zhao tilted his head and looked at him.
Gu Mengran took a deep breath and said, "Because I'm fine now. I've figured it out."
Gu Mengran had never thought that he would meet Yongyue and Dong Hongbo again after living a completely different life. After all, it was the closest experience to death, so it was unlikely that he would not have some psychological trauma.
The evil cruise ship and the hypocritical captain, just one look from afar can easily bring back those unpleasant memories and the fears buried deep in your heart.
Revenge, revenge for my past life self!
Gu Mengran’s first reaction when he saw Dong Hongbo.
After a burst of cursing and venting, he gradually calmed down and realized that he was not alone now. He had a boat, a home, relatives, friends, and a lover.
I encountered the Yongyue earlier than in my previous life. I had no idea of their situation or how many men they had. I was completely in the dark. It was very difficult to do something under their noses.
It is said that happy people give in. If you accidentally step on dog poop, just change your shoes. It is not worth it to sacrifice yourself and your family for a group of vicious dogs just to vent your anger.
Gu Mengran tried to persuade him for a long time and finally convinced himself, and in return he said he had figured it out.
The voice gradually faded away, and Liang Zhao looked at him without blinking, without saying a word.
Gu Mengran felt a little guilty when he was staring at him. He stiffened his neck and turned his face away, "Why are you staring at me like that?"
"It's okay, as long as you figure it out." Liang Zhao lowered his eyes, his smile froze, and he hugged him tighter with his arms.
Gu Mengran believed it to be true without noticing the change in Liang Zhao's expression.
His tense expression slowly relaxed. Gu Mengran buried himself in Liang Zhao's arms and thought for a few seconds. He poked his arm and said, "You should also know that dreams and reality are related to each other. Those people are probably not good people. I think we still need to remind the villagers and tell them not to get on the boat."
Just now in the main room, Gu Mengran was distracted half of the time and obviously didn't notice the details.
Liang Zhao rubbed his head, his expression becoming more serious. "It's a bit troublesome. They are not discussing, but threatening. Tomorrow is a deadline. If Sister Fang fails to give a satisfactory answer, they may use violence."
"No way?" Gu Mengran was stunned for a moment. "There are more than a hundred people in the village. Even if they are a little older, they have the advantage of being numerous. One person with a stick can beat them out, right?"
Liang Zhao said confidently: "There are still people on the boat, most of them are young people. It is not clear how many people there are, but they must be sure of their chances before they make this trip."
Gu Mengran took a deep breath, "That's strange. Captain Dong is not a kind man. If he was sure of his actions, couldn't he just take action directly? Why is he trying to use courtesy first and then force?"
"After all, there are more than a hundred people in the village. If it's not an overwhelming advantage, the risk of direct action is still very high. I guess the difference in numbers between the two sides is not big. Of course, the most important thing is that they have Xiao Zhou."
Liang Zhao sighed, "Xiao Zhou is originally from Shijin Village. It seems that his influence in the village is not inferior to that of Duan Yueyan and Sister Fang. His words are very convincing. He doesn't need to convince everyone. It is enough to shake some people's hearts."
An inexplicable chill crept up his back. Gu Mengran stared at Liang Zhao with dull eyes and murmured in a low voice, "Yes, they don't need these elderly people at all. They just want supplies. The supplies in the village are stockpiled by everyone. When the time comes, some people are willing to leave and some are unwilling to leave. They will naturally have conflicts over how to distribute the supplies."
If all the villagers work together and face the outside world in unison, they still have the power to resist.
But the seemingly solid collective relationship is often very fragile and can be broken by a little bit of interest. Then it will fall apart and be defeated one by one...
However, Dong Hongbo is cruel and ruthless. No matter whether these villagers choose to leave or stay, it will be difficult for them to have a good outcome.
People are not plants. After being neighbors for almost a year, Gu Mengran likes this village from the bottom of his heart, especially the naive Xiaodong, the loyal Sister Fang, and the talkative ladies...
“Bang!”
Before Gu Mengran could think of a countermeasure, the wooden door behind him was pushed hard by someone.
The wooden door that had been bolted and opened a crack bounced back. A familiar male voice came from outside the door, "Strange, why can't it be opened? Is the door broken?"
"Xiaodong?" Liang Zhao asked.
"Liang, Liang Zhao?" Xiaodong's puzzled voice sounded outside the door.
There was silence for a moment inside and outside the door. Liang Zhao let go of Gu Mengran in his arms, raised his hand to move the bolt, and opened the wooden door. Xiaodong, who was covered in dampness, stood blankly at the door.
They stared at each other in silence for a while. Finally, Xiaodong broke the silence. She looked at Liang Zhao and then at Gu Mengran, and said unhappily, "I have been looking for you two for a long time, and you ended up hiding in my house and locked the door?"
Liang Zhao nodded as a matter of course, "Your house is the closest, so I'll lend it to you for a while."
"What about that group of people? Are they really staying in the village tonight?" Gu Mengran asked hurriedly without giving Xiaodong a chance to complain.
After saying this, Xiaodong looked around furtively, then pushed the door open and entered the house, bolted it again, and deliberately lowered his voice and said, "Don't mention it. Sister Fang and I just settled them down. What a bunch of crap, they are so arrogant, their noses are almost pointing to the sky."
Gu Mengran was extremely anxious. Seeing that Xiaodong still had the heart to complain, he glared at him with a look of disappointment, "Don't worry about their attitude at this time. I can tell you very clearly that those people are not good people. They will not take you away at all. They just want your supplies."
As soon as he finished speaking, a sad sigh echoed in the room.
Xiao Dong scratched his head randomly and said with a gloomy face: "Sister Fang also said that. I was so naive to think...I thought my cousin really came back to save us! I am so confused. How did we do anything wrong to him that he had to -"
"Stop complaining, Xiaodong. We should think of a solution now." Gu Mengran interrupted him, his brows furrowed tighter and tighter, looking more anxious than Xiaodong, the person involved.
"What can we do in one night? At worst, we can fight them to the death." Xiaodong hung his head, his eyes gradually turning red.
Gu Mengran said with a light "tsk". "Don't say such angry words. Where is your brother Duan? I haven't seen him for a long time. What is he thinking?"
"Brother Duan is out." Xiao Dong sniffed. "We have been looking for a boat for a while. We have searched everywhere nearby but to no avail. Brother Duan took Uncle Luo and the others out this morning. He said he wanted to go a little further to Huangjiang to have a look."
Huangjiang? Nowadays, there is water everywhere. It is good enough to be able to distinguish the directions of east, south, west and north. If you are not familiar with the terrain, you will get lost. I don’t know what they are thinking about going to Huangjiang.
The backbone is not here at the critical moment, and it’s probably too late to make any progress.
Gu Mengran felt a little headache, he raised his hand to rub his temples, and looked at Xiaodong with helplessness, "I don't know if you have any countermeasures, you are hesitant and unwilling to say. A large village of people can't run away, the most urgent thing is to stabilize those uncles and aunts first, so that they don't start a quarrel before others take action."
"I know." Xiaodong nodded like a chick pecking at rice, and then he seemed to think of something, and suddenly looked up at Gu Mengran with a hint of reluctance in his eyes, "You guys can rest in my room. It will be dark soon, so find a chance to leave."
"Their people are wandering around the village, and there are people guarding the entrance. You have to go around the hillside at the back. Remember to be careful not to alarm them. When you are done, get back to the boat quickly. Don't think about anything else, and leave immediately."
It was the first time that Gu Mengran heard Xiaodong speak in such a serious tone. He was slightly stunned for a moment. After thinking about the meaning of his words, Gu Mengran met his gaze and narrowed his eyes. "Is it your decision or Sister Fang's decision?"
"Sister Fang." Xiaodong said honestly.
At the critical moment, the foreign aid was pushed away, and Gu Mengran felt an indescribable feeling in his heart.
Grandpa and Zheng Yijie don't know the situation yet, so the Wind Wing will definitely have to go back. As for whether they can help -
"Xiaodong, come here for a moment."
Liang Zhao's low and hoarse voice interrupted his thoughts. When Gu Mengran raised his head, Liang Zhao, who was beside him the previous second, had already walked to the door of the inner room, and his hand was even on the doorknob.
Gu Mengran was stunned. Before he could react, Xiaodong walked over quickly, and then the two of them went into the house together. With a creaky sound, they locked him outside the door alone.
Huh? Huh? Talking in private without him? Gu Mengran was completely confused.
He was not left alone for too long. After about ten minutes, the door opened again and Xiaodong and Liang Zhao came out from the inner room one after another.
Xiaodong didn't stop, but nodded to Gu Mengran in a friendly manner, then pushed the bolt, opened the door, and walked out.
Liang Zhao stood beside him again. Gu Mengran turned his head to look at him, frowning slightly, and asked impatiently: "What do you mean? Why did you call him away alone?"
"Nothing." Liang Zhao lowered his eyes and looked at the empty floor. He chuckled softly, "Give him some advice."
"What trick can't I listen to?"
"It's a rather despicable move. I don't want you to hear it."
"But I'm curious!"
"I'll tell you when I get home tonight."
…
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