Chapter 111 Golden Hook Fishing - Twenty-Five Small Islands
【Small Island】
Searching during the day was indeed much easier than at night. Over this boundless sea, helicopters took off wave after wave since last night. Unexpectedly, the ship where Chen Hui and his group were located was the first to be found.
The ship's lights were conspicuous at night, making it easy to spot. However, Lin Xingmian and Xu Zhiyu's life pod had no lighting equipment, and they hadn't been found even by midday when the sun was high in the sky.
Exhausted, Ayu was catching up on sleep on the deck. She had been up all night and hadn't eaten for a long time, so she felt weak all over. Before falling asleep, she was still worried about whether the two of them would be able to get home alive.
The sun was blinding. Xingmian pressed a button, and the hull rose to block out the glare. He moved to the pier and sat down, feeling drowsy but afraid to sleep, for fear of missing any rescue signals.
He leaned back against the ship's wall, glanced at his sleeping sister, then turned to look at the vast sea, and sighed deeply in his heart.
Before setting off to find his sister yesterday, Lin Xingmian did copy the note according to the text message. But in reality, this note was the biggest clue he left for his father.
At that time, Chen Hui's men appeared as insiders of Yunyue Manor, and he could no longer distinguish which people in the manor were his own and which were informants.
His every move was under Chen Hui's surveillance. His sister's life was in their hands, and he dared not make any extra moves before figuring out their purpose. So he had no choice but to play along and write down the note that the threatening man thought was foolproof.
Given Lin Xingmian's personality, he would want to keep his whereabouts and activities a complete secret from his father, so how could he possibly leave a note to tell his family?
He always acts first and reports later, waiting for his father to find out and then hold him accountable. The sky may fall, but he would never be so obedient as to report to Lin Shukai.
That person had planned everything meticulously, but he hadn't anticipated that Lin Xingmian, seemingly obedient, was actually a rebellious son.
However, the clues were indeed left behind, and he couldn't predict whether his father and the others would look for them in the direction of the dock in time. Saying that they would definitely be found was just something he deliberately said to comfort Xu Zhiyu. Right now, looking at the sea where the water and sky meet, under the blazing sun, his throat was dry and sore.
We can't just let the life pod drift away like this!
Looking back at his sister's sweet sleeping face in the cabin, he shook off his jumbled thoughts.
There must be a way, there must be a way...
I must bring her back alive. He made a silent vow to himself, then carefully observed the direction of the sea's surface ripples and the sun's position, trying to discern a direction that would allow him to reach land as quickly as possible.
Lin Xingmian recalled the direction of the sunrise in his mind, using the few tools and items in the cabin to represent the locations of various continents, oceans, and the morning sun, trying to analyze the general direction of rowing that might lead to encountering small, isolated islands.
The most pressing issue right now is to solve the problem of food and clothing. He can withstand hunger, so it doesn't matter if he has one more or one less meal. But his sister loves to eat, so we need to land quickly and find her something to fill her stomach.
...
Xu Zhiyu slept until sunset. When the boat docked, Lin Xingmian lost his grip and the bottom of the cabin slammed into the rocks with a "thud," waking the sleeping Zhiyu.
The loud noise terrified her. She suddenly opened her eyes wide and sat up quickly. As soon as she bent her leg, she felt a tearing pain in her thigh tendons. A wave of weakness and soreness immediately made her face contort in pain.
"Hiss—" She grimaced and raised her hands to slap her thighs, but found that her wrists were also sore and painful.
Xingmian, who was busy mooring the boat outside, thought his sister had bumped her head inside. He quickly tied the rope, climbed into the cabin, and asked, "Where did she bump her head? Let me see."
Xu Zhiyu hurriedly waved her hand: "No, no, I didn't bump into anything, it's just..."
My legs and back are just sore...
She couldn't say anything more; her face turned as red as a persimmon, because the crazy scenes from last night flooded into her mind almost instantly.
"Just what?" His gaze expertly swept over her body, checking her thoroughly. Only when he found no wounds did he feel relieved.
Xu Zhiyu was extremely embarrassed: "It's nothing, it's nothing."
After saying a few words, she was much more awake. Thinking about the tremor she had just experienced, she assumed they were back at the dock and asked Xingmian with delight, "Are we saved? I was just jolted awake... The ship has docked?!"
Xingmian licked the tip of her canine tooth and forced a smile: "We've docked, but this isn't the Shanghai port."
Xu Zhiyu looked at his strange expression, her eyes filled with confusion: "Then where are we?"
After saying that, she used the side of the boat to push herself up, wanting to go out and take a look, but her legs were trembling.
"I don't know either. It looks like an island from a distance, but I've never seen it on a map. It looks like a very small island, and I don't know what's on it." He explained, seeing through Xu Zhiyu's embarrassment, and without hesitation bent down and picked her up.
"If you feel uncomfortable, you should say it. Is it so difficult to say 'My legs hurt, honey, hug me~'?"
"Pfft—Lin Xingmian, I'm really impressed by you." Xu Zhiyu, who was originally full of worry, was amused by his words. She affectionately hugged his neck, her ears burning, but her heart was filled with sweetness. "Just a little kid, and you're acting all old..."
"Huh? What old?" he interrupted her deliberately. "Just say it out loud."
Xu Zhiyu: "Pah! No way!"
Lin Xingmian: "It's only a matter of time."
Finally, noticing her flushed cheeks, he deliberately added, "In fact, it already is."
Xu Zhiyu pretended not to hear because she was embarrassed. Xingmian carried her down from the boat. The sky was not completely dark yet. She looked at the green forest in front of her, took a deep breath of fresh air, and then struggled to get down.
He had no choice but to give in and put her down.
However, after floating on the water for a while, the moment my feet touched the ground, it felt unreal; my already weak legs almost made me kneel down.
“I knew this would happen. I held you, but you wouldn’t let me and insisted on getting down.”
Xu Zhiyu said angrily, "Why did you do those things instead of conserving your energy at such a crucial moment! Who made me like this?"
“Those things? What things?” He knelt down on one knee in front of her. “Didn’t I ask you before I did it? You agreed to it yourself.”
"Hey! You..." she complained, but her hands expertly wrapped around him, and she leaned her body against Xingmian's back. "I...I, so you mean I agreed to something wrong? I shouldn't have agreed?"
Lin Xingmian carried Xu Zhiyu on his back: "That's right."
Xu Zhiyu: "Okay, okay... You better remember this..."
She was furious and decided to hold this kid accountable in her heart!
Creak, creak...
He carried her along a path that didn't look like a trail, leading deep into the jungle. It was clear that no one had ever walked on this path before; it was covered with fallen leaves and dead branches. He took each step carefully, first gently testing the ground before firmly setting his foot down.
Often, a large hole might be hidden beneath a path covered in fallen leaves.
As she ventured deeper into the forest, Xu Zhiyu turned her head, curiously surveying her surroundings. The towering trees almost completely blocked out the sky, with only slivers of somber white light filtering through the leaves. A chilly wind made her feel cold, and she tightened her embrace around Xingmian's neck, her heart pounding.
"Are you planning to spend the night on this island? I find it a little scary..."
While observing the road conditions ahead, Lin Xingmian replied, "You haven't eaten all day, aren't you hungry?"
After he finished speaking, Xu Zhiyu, who hadn't thought of this before, suddenly felt very hungry. They hadn't eaten for four meals since last night.
Something flashed through Xu Zhiyu's mind, and she suddenly asked in surprise, "Did we float here or did you paddle here?"
Lin Xingmian: "It swam over."
Xu Zhiyu: "Paddle over here??? My god, weren't you asleep? You've been rowing the whole time I fell asleep?"
She was both shocked and heartbroken. This man hadn't slept for so long and now he was carrying her on his back, bearing a heavy burden! Her hands were aching terribly from rowing yesterday, and Xingmian had rowed from dawn till dusk today. You can imagine how much pain his wrists must be in.
Although she felt a little cold, when she looked up she saw that his temples were slightly damp, with tiny beads of sweat.
"I want to get down, I can walk by myself." She felt heartbroken, pouted slightly, and stubbornly struggled on his back.
She kept fidgeting behind her, and Lin Xingmian couldn't do anything about it. She said, "If you're uncomfortable, don't force yourself. I don't feel your weight at all."
Xu Zhiyu took a step, and her legs were indeed sore and weak, but fortunately, only the first few steps were particularly uncomfortable, and she could still walk by gritting her teeth.
She complained, "I don't know who's being stubborn..."
She was talking about him, but her heartache was practically overflowing from her eyes.
Lin Xingmian said, "Alright, then I'll hold your hand. Let's walk around here and see if we can find some edible fruit or water to replenish our fluids. We still need to go back to the boat to sleep before it gets completely dark. We can't see anything at night, and it's not safe on this island."
Xu Zhiyu and he held hands.
He added, "Let's stay here tonight and come back to the island early tomorrow morning to check if anyone is there. Do you want to come with me tomorrow morning or wait for me on the boat? We just arrived here tonight, and everything is uncertain. I don't feel comfortable leaving you alone on the boat. I think it would be safer if we were together."
Xu Zhiyu: "Of course I'm going with you. I'm just worried about you going into this forest alone!"
Xingmian smiled and said, "Okay."
As darkness fell and visibility decreased, the only sounds were the rustling of leaves in the wind and the drawn-out chirping of birds, which sounded desolate in the quiet air.
They had gone very deep into the forest, where the trees towered into the clouds and there wasn’t a single bush on the ground, let alone any edible fruit.
A cool breeze blew in gusts, making the hairs on Xu Zhiyu's body stand on end. Her teeth chattered uncontrollably as she spoke: "Mianmian, why don't we go back first... and see if there's any seafood on the beach that we can get to grill? I remember there was something to start a fire on the boat. It's so eerie in here..."
Xingmian stopped in her tracks, pulled the trembling girl into her arms, and nodded.
However, just as the two were preparing to return along the straight line they had come from, it got dark faster than they expected, and the tall man even vaguely saw a fire in the distance.
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