Lin Yusheng heard the door open; it must have been that woman.
She walked up to Lin Yusheng, who smelled the aroma of food. It wasn't particularly fragrant, but Lin Yusheng had been starving for days, so she still swallowed hard.
Perhaps knowing that the woman meant her no harm, she opened her eyes.
She was in the cargo hold of a fishing boat, and the fishy smell made her nauseous.
There was only a small window on the wall in front of her, which vaguely told her that it was still daytime outside.
"You're awake? Get up and eat something."
The woman had rough skin and a rather robust build, like someone who worked long hours.
Lin Yusheng's throat was so dry that she couldn't speak. The woman helped her up and then gave her some water.
"Thank you, ma'am. Could you tell me where I am now?"
The old woman remained silent for a while, her face showing reluctance.
Lin Yusheng said, "Auntie, you just need to tell me how far it is from here to the Island of the Dead Slave."
The old woman met Lin Yusheng's relatively calm gaze with surprise.
"Since you know where you're going, how can you remain so calm? Aren't you afraid?" the old woman asked.
Lin Yusheng smiled bitterly, "I'm afraid. I'm terrified of dying, terrified of never seeing my family and the people I love again. But being afraid is the most useless thing, isn't it?"
The old woman sighed and told her, "It's still two days' journey."
Lin Yusheng thought to herself: Although the fishing boat is old and worn, it is not slow at all. It seems that this is not just an ordinary fishing boat, but also a tool for communication between the island of Wannu and the outside world.
Judging from what the boatmen said, they must be transporting trafficked women for certain organizations or individuals on the island of the Dead Slave.
The woman asked, "What are you thinking about?"
Lin Yusheng snapped out of her daze. "It's nothing."
The woman brought the food to Lin Yusheng. There was only one bowl, with rice topped with a few green vegetables and a fish that looked terrible.
"Just eat whatever you have."
Lin Yusheng shook her head and said, "I'm not hungry."
It wasn't that Lin Yusheng was being pretentious, but the dilapidated fishing boat smelled really bad, and with the sea bobbing up and down, she really had no appetite and even felt like vomiting.
The woman carefully examined Lin Yusheng's expression.
Lin Yusheng was embarrassed. "Is there something on my face?"
Her hands and feet were tied, so there was no way to confirm.
The woman frowned and said, "Don't you know you're pregnant?"
These words exploded in Lin Yusheng's mind like a thunderbolt.
Lin Yusheng's mind went blank for a long time. She asked anxiously, "Auntie, are you... are you telling the truth?"
“I learned some medical skills in the village before. I took your pulse when you were unconscious. Although you were still in the early stages of pregnancy, you were indeed pregnant, less than two months along.”
Lin Yusheng's first reaction was not joy, but worry.
This child came at the worst possible time; she had no idea how dangerous the road ahead would be.
The old woman handed the bowl to her again, saying, "Although there's a 90% chance this child won't survive if we go to the Island of the Dead, no mother would abandon her child. Please eat something."
"My skills can't compare to those of chefs in big cities, but this is all I have here."
Lin Yusheng numbly accepted it, said thank you, and her hands were trembling.
She had prepared herself to die, but the arrival of this child shook her resolve.
She now carries two lives on her shoulders, one of which is her and A-Ye's child. If it weren't for this unexpected turn of events, the arrival of this child would have been something to be happy about.
The old woman untied the ropes binding Lin Yusheng.
Tears streamed down her face unnoticed as Lin Yusheng listlessly picked at the food in her bowl.
The old woman was also a mother, and she felt terrible, but she didn't have the ability to sympathize with others, especially since she was one of the people who had harmed her.
After Lin Yusheng finished eating, the old lady left.
After that, Lin Yusheng developed a low-grade fever.
The climate at sea is quite different from that on land. In addition, Lin Yusheng was already in poor health, and spending every day in such a harsh environment made her body unable to withstand it.
She woke up groggily to find that it was already dark.
This means we are closer to the island of the Dead Slave.
She learned from Lu Jing that a new force had risen on the Island of the Dead. Lu Zhengye had transferred most of his confidants to Lucheng in order to seek revenge. At this time, the Island of the Dead was probably calm on the surface, but undercurrents were surging.
She didn't know what choice Lu Zhengye would make, but she hoped he wouldn't come.
Even if she were to die, she would not blame him.
As she thought about it, Lin Yusheng began to sob softly.
She might have the courage to face the dangers ahead if she were alone, but now that she is carrying another little life on her back, she is not so brave.
The old lady came in and saw this scene.
She sighed, then carried a basin of clean water to Lin Yusheng's side, squatted down and said, "Don't cry, we'll be there soon."
Lin Yusheng looked at the old woman, her expression pleading for the first time.
She placed her only hope on her.
Based on the footsteps she'd heard outside over the past few days, she could roughly estimate that there were at least 20 strong men on the ship. Her body was too weak to even resist, making escape under these circumstances impossible.
Lin Yusheng grabbed the old woman's hand and pleaded through tears, "Auntie, please save me. If I fall into Cao Da's hands, they will use me to threaten my lover. If I am still alone, I will have to choose to die. But I have a child now. I don't want to die. Auntie, you must have a child. Can you understand how I feel?"
"If you help me this time, as long as I live, I will definitely repay you. I can give you a lot of money so that you don't have to do this kind of work that is against your conscience and illegal anymore."
The old woman, her previous kindness gone, shouted, "Impossible! If you leave, the whole boat will die!"
Lin Yusheng was speechless. She wanted to try again. "Then can you talk to them? Just say that I am the eldest daughter of the Lin family in Lucheng. As long as they send me back, I will definitely repay them with a lot of money, and the amount will only be more than the amount I receive."
"Shut up!" The old woman was very agitated; she was visibly frightened.
The old woman gripped Lin Yusheng's shoulders with such force that she almost crushed them.
"I only showed you some kindness because I felt sorry for you, but if you try to escape, I'll be the first to stop you. If people outside think I said something to you, I won't see the sun rise tomorrow."
"Young lady, please have pity on me. I have elderly parents and young children to support. Please have mercy on me."
Lin Yusheng felt a sense of despair.
Just how ruthless were these people that the old woman was so afraid of losing her life because of a few weighty words?
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