The person being told this story is called Zhang Xu. His family lives in Tuntun City. His grandfather’s generation has been fishing at sea to make a living.

Lin Mo listened very carefully, and the following narration was mainly carried out from Zhang Xu's perspective.

"In a good year, you can earn an average person's annual income in just a few fishing trips. But it's also really dangerous. It's common to drift on the sea for a month or so. My dad said that his eyelids were twitching during that trip, which was not auspicious, but the fishmongers offered a high price, so he prayed to the sea god and said that after this order, he would take a few years off and hand over the boat to me. Who would have thought that he would never come back..."

Those who take their boats out to sea have a shrine at home, which houses the god of the sea. They worship the god before every voyage in order to pray for safety.

In fact, it is just to seek psychological comfort.

Everyone knows that if you want to be safe when going out to sea, you need to rely on experience and skills, and on the fishing boat under your feet.

Especially fishing boats, which are the fishermen's homes on the sea. If something happens to the boat, the people on board will certainly be gone. In the past, there were countless cases of accidents that resulted in nothing but loss of everything.

In the past, we used to have small fishing boats, and it was a 50/50 chance of survival when we went out fishing. Later, we saved some money and got a big boat, which was much safer. We could return with a full load, and the money we earned was enough to support us for half a year. If we were lucky, we could catch a tank full of good fish and retire right where we were.

Apart from those who set up companies, those who go out to sea on a ship are generally family members, either father and son or brothers, or relatives.

Trustworthy.

Zhang Xu moved some things onto the boat, including food and drinks. Generally, when going out to sea, one would eat, drink, defecate and urinate on the boat for more than ten days, so it would not do without some supplies.

There were four people on the ship this time, Zhang Xu, his father, his uncle and his cousin.

Zhang Xu was the youngest, but he worked very efficiently. He untied the boat's ropes, and the boat sailed out of the dock amid the roar of the diesel engine.

There are many boats at the pier.

Some go out, some come in.

The docks are crowded with people every day, and some seafood is sold right there. Some gourmets like fresh food, so they wear big slippers, shorts and vests, and walk around here to buy a bunch of freshly caught seafood. They go home to fry or stew them, and pair them with condiments and wine. That's a wonderful life.

This is daily life at the dock.

What people who go out to sea like most is to see the crowds on the pier when they come back.

Zhang Xu knew that the four of them would have to spend the next ten days on the boat.

The days on the ship were boring and tedious, with no novelty at all.

But the four of them have become accustomed to it. Chatting and playing poker can help them pass the time. Of course, once they get there, they have to start working, and it is common for them to not sleep for a whole day and a whole night.

Zhang Xu's father was calm on the boat, and he was at the helm most of the time. Years and long sea experiences had formed deep dark wrinkles on his face, and his eyelids were drooping, but there was a kind of determination in the tiny slits between his eyes.

My uncle loves wine and always carries a bottle of wine with him, but his experience is second only to Zhang Xu's father and he is a good wine drinker.

My cousin recently got a girlfriend and he always brags about her in front of Zhang Xu, saying that you should also find one. He also said that his girlfriend was so soft and moist in bed.

Zhang Xu asked how soft and smooth it was.

"This is hard to describe. Even if I describe it, you still won't understand."

My cousin looked like he deserved a beating.

The days at sea passed slowly. Because the sea water was fluctuating, the people on the boat were also swaying. Zhang Xu still remembered that when he went out to sea for the first time, he would vomit every few days.

At that time, his father didn't let him vomit on the boat, but asked him to vomit into the sea, saying that it would be a snack for the fish in the sea.

When I heard this, I felt disgusted.

They thought this time would be just like the usual, busy and bustling, and then return with a load of fish, but none of the four people on the boat could have imagined what kind of horror they would experience this time.

Nightfall.

On the dark sea, the lights on the ship swayed up and down, and sometimes, left and right.

Fish, shrimps and crabs were stewed in the cabin, all of which were seafood caught this time.

People on boats eat this.

Moreover, they know very well what kind of fish is fresh and tender, and what kind of shrimps and crabs are delicious. Eating a bowl of hot food with a small cup of wine is the best feeling.

While eating and discussing the harvest, Zhang Xu's father asked his uncle, "What are you looking at outside?"

My uncle has good eyesight. He pointed to the distance with his chopsticks and said, "Look, is there a boat over there?"

"Boat?"

There are definitely more than one boat on the sea, but most of the time they won't encounter any, mainly because the sea is too vast, especially at night, and they rarely encounter other fishing boats.

No one paid attention to it at first.

Zhang Xu's father even called over the radio, but there was no response from the other side.

Generally, those who work at sea are aware of the fixed frequencies and keep their machines running most of the time, mainly because they are afraid of missing any notifications.

"Forget it, never mind, let's eat."

A few people continued to eat.

But soon they discovered something was wrong. The ship seemed to be floating towards them.

Although they are all fishing boats, it is dangerous to get too close to them. Bumps and collisions are never a good thing.

Zhang Xu's father called out again, and this time his uncle also walked to the side of the boat and spoke with a light.

It means telling the other person not to get any closer, as you might bump into them if you get any closer.

"Something's wrong. The other party didn't respond." said my uncle.

"Besides, it was dark on that boat, with no lights."

Later they realized that the ship did not sail over, but floated over.

And when I looked closer, I actually found that I recognized it. It was a boat from the same pier. The boat owner's surname was Jiang, and he was a very honest man.

"Is there anything wrong?"

"Go, turn off the engine, and let's float over there."

The four men were all veterans. When the boat approached, they hooked it with a pole with a hook, slowly pulled them together, and then tied them with ropes. They could then climb directly from one boat to another.

The fishing boat was really dark and there was not a single light on.

"Are you all asleep?"

"Impossible. This boat owner surnamed Jiang is not at sea for the first time. It is impossible for him to sleep so soundly. Someone must have taken turns to watch the night. I think there is a high probability that something has happened. Let's go and take a look. We are all out on the road, so we should help if we can."

That's the rule.

If you encounter problems at sea, you must lend a hand to each other. This is called mutual help. Otherwise, if you encounter difficulties in the future, you may need help from others.

"Leave two people on the boat. Xiao Xu, you and your cousin stay on the boat. Your uncle and I will go up and take a look."

After Zhang Xu's father gave the instructions, he crawled over, followed closely by his uncle.

Although the two ships were very close to each other, the two men crawled over, walked into the cabin, and soon disappeared.

The sound of the sea water would cover up some noises. At this moment, Zhang Xu and his cousin were watching carefully. It was the first time for them to encounter such a thing. They were very excited and nervous, but not afraid.

After a while, Zhang Xu's father and uncle came back.

Both of them looked extremely unhappy.

"Boss Jiang is dead, and everyone on his ship is dead."

"This is too unlucky. The problem is that their deaths are quite strange. There are no external injuries on their bodies. Two of them are on the bunks under the cabin, and one is lying on the ground."

"Like he fell into a deep sleep."

"Nonsense! I've lived so long and I've never seen five people on a boat fall asleep."

"Or maybe it's gas poisoning?"

"No, there is wind around the person upstairs. It's not a closed room. Where would he get gas poisoning?"

"So, he died of poison from eating poisonous seafood?"

"You think Chiang Kai-shek is a novice? He won't eat anything messy."

"And did you notice their expressions?"

"Nonsense, how could I not notice that expression? I'm considered brave, but I saw Lao Jiang's death just now. I'm not afraid of you laughing at me. I was almost scared to pee my pants at that time."

"This is too weird. So, what should we do?"

"Report, see if we can get someone to come over to rescue us. If that doesn't work, we can pull their boat back."

"Ah, then we haven't filled the hold yet, there's not enough fish."

"Is this the time to worry about this? We can't just abandon Chiang Kai-shek and his men at sea. If this doesn't happen, it's fine. But if it does happen, we can't just sit there and watch."

The people in charge on the boat were Zhang Xu's father and uncle. They discussed it and reached a consensus.

Turn on the radio first.

But something strange happened that night. The radio could neither send nor receive any signals.

It's like something is interfering with the radio waves.

After a whole night of hard work without any result, Zhang Xu's father decided to return home at dawn.

Let's tow the boat and the body back first.

Fortunately, it was a small fishing boat. If it was bigger, it would not be able to be pulled back. However, because they were towing a boat, Zhang Xu and his team's speed was greatly reduced, and they had to be careful along the way. My uncle later went to the boat and found that the engine was intact and there was plenty of fuel, so they could just drive it back.

The two ships went back one after the other.

But the real danger and terror came when the sun was about to set that day.

Because everyone is sleepy.

Tired.

They hadn't slept the whole night and had been busy all day, so they were already sleepy and tired, so they stopped to take a nap.

Not all of them slept. Zhang Xu's father and uncle were busy running around, so the two of them went to sleep first. Zhang Xu and his cousin watched them, and they took turns in the second half of the night.

It was late at night, and they were both very sleepy. Their cousin asked if it was time yet. Zhang Xu said no.

"Then I'll take a nap first." My cousin closed his eyes.

"Okay, you take a nap, I'll go drain the water." Zhang Xu stood up, went to the stern, took off his pants and started draining the water. The sound of the water was very crisp. After draining the water, he came back and found that his cousin had fallen asleep.

Zhang Xu was afraid that his cousin would catch a cold, so he looked for clothes to cover him. But the next moment, his cousin suddenly twitched, his eyes suddenly opened wide, and an expression of extreme fear appeared on his face.

Zhang Xu was startled, but subconsciously thought that his cousin was playing a prank.

The other party has a criminal record.

"Stop it."

Soon Zhang Xu discovered that his cousin really was not making a fuss.

At this moment, the other person's eyes were almost popping out, foam was coming out of his mouth, and he was soon breathing out more than he was breathing in.

Not moving.

This time Zhang Xu was confused.

He found that his cousin was motionless and hurried over to check.

"Dead?"

Zhang Xu was stunned for a moment and his mind went blank.

What’s going on? How could my cousin die peacefully?

Zhang Xu, who was at a loss, started shouting and looking for his father and uncle, telling them about this.

But what followed was the moment when Zhang Xu collapsed even more.

When he found his father and uncle, he discovered that they were also dead.

The death was still horrific and hideous.

It was like seeing a ghost.

"Playing?"

Zhang Xu felt as if the sky was falling and the earth was splitting apart, and his head felt as if he had been punched, leaving him dizzy.

In addition to panic and fear, there is more sadness. After great sorrow, there is crying, and that is real crying.

Zhang Xu said that he had never cried so sadly or so loudly in his life, but was crying useful? The answer was no.

Although he knew it, Zhang Xu said that if he didn't cry at that time, he might go crazy on the spot.

"Expert Lin, can you imagine how desperate I was at that time?" Zhang Xu asked when he got to this point.

It can be seen that the young man's face is full of tears.

He still can't let go.

This is normal. No one can let it go.

"Sorry, I can't imagine it, but you still made it through, didn't you?" Lin Mo thought about it and gave a more pertinent answer.

Of course, the other party has not yet mentioned the real key point.

The next step is.

After calming down, Zhang Xu continued his story.

"I cried for a long time and called for help on the radio, but there was no response. At that moment, I felt that this vast ocean was so strange and so terrifying. Loneliness was like countless terrifying bloodthirsty ants gnawing at my body."

Just imagine, a person is already extremely sleepy, and then he suffers this kind of blow and then cries bitterly, and his body is basically drained of everything.

It is easy for people to faint at this time.

Zhang Xu fainted.

But he didn't expect that the world in his dream was so real and so terrifying.

After falling asleep, he suddenly opened his eyes and looked at everything in front of him with some disbelief.

He saw the terrifying blood moon and an enormous ship parked nearby.

Strangely, Zhang Xu did not find the bodies of his father, uncle and cousin on the boat.

At that moment, Zhang Xu, who didn't know he was in a dream, thought that everything before was a dream, and what he saw at this moment was reality, because he hoped that his father and others were not dead.

"I saw the big ship with Silence written on the side of it."

There was fear flashing in Zhang Xu's eyes.

Even though it was just a memory, this fear seemed like an unbearable burden that could crush him at any time.

"I've never seen such a big ship before. It looked very strange, like an old cruise ship. The scariest thing was that there were many people on the ship and they were looking at me."

"I felt something was wrong. Those people on the Silence didn't look like living people. They had an inexplicable malice and were surrounded by the breath of death. They looked at me as if they were looking at some mortal enemy."

"Someone got off the boat and seemed to be coming towards me. I felt like I was doomed."

"But then, I saw my dad. He had no mouth, as if he had never had this organ. I saw him kneeling beside those people, begging them. I knew that my dad was asking them to let me go..."

The whole classroom was silent at this moment.

Hundreds of people listened quietly to Zhang Xu's story.

Although it was only through language, because the other party spoke well, the feeling was as if we were there, and even such a picture popped up in everyone's mind.

Under the terrifying blood moon, everything seemed to be tinged with blood. On a huge ghost ship, countless terrifying ghosts looked at Zhang Xu on the boat with ill intentions. Some ghosts wanted to come down to catch him, but at this time, Zhang Xu's father came out to beg for mercy.

"What a great father!"

Someone couldn't help but mutter.

Some girls with shallow eye sockets were already in tears; they were sentimental and felt something touching in the video.

There are also some boys wiping their tears at this moment.

However, some of them felt guilty and wiped their tears secretly for fear of being seen by others.

"What happened next?" Lin Mo asked.

"Later, I woke up and it was raining in the real world. The cold water woke me up. I was so scared that I didn't dare to sleep anymore. I couldn't sleep either. All I could think about was my dad kneeling on the ground. After that, I drifted on the sea for a few days. I don't remember how I was rescued in the end."

Lin Mo nodded.

"Expert Lin!" Zhang Xu suddenly said at this time: "I know you want to find the Silence. I want to help you. I can help you."

Lin Mo smiled: "You want to rescue your father?"

Zhang Xu nodded.

"But you have to know that after so long, he might have died."

Lin Mo is a straightforward person. What he said is not only a possibility, but also a high possibility.

This is called worst-case scenario planning.

"I understand, but as long as there is a glimmer of hope, we must work a hundred times harder. Isn't that what you said?"

This time it was Lin Mo who was confused.

Have you ever said this yourself?

But even if I did, how did you know that? At this time, Crow came over and gave Lin Mo a look, signaling Lin Mo not to ask nonsense questions.

Lin Mo understood immediately.

This must be the "famous sayings" effect. They find some inspirational articles to package it and say that they are quotations from themselves or other senior experts, so that people can accept it more easily.

This thing has been used in the education field for thousands of years from ancient times to the present. It's an old routine.

Lin Mo turned around and said to Zhang Xu: "Come and help me think about where we saw the Silence."

Lin Mo agreed.

Zhang Xu was very happy.

Lin Mo was also very happy.

Because he finally found clues about Silence.

In other words, if you really want to accomplish something, you must never do it alone, you must mobilize the power of the masses.

This is true for running a business, doing business, and investigating strange incidents.

"Okay, today's lesson is over, get out of class dismissed!"

Zhang Xu followed Lin Mo out of the classroom with excitement, and others looked at him with envy.

In the eyes of these students, Lin Mo is the "big boss" of the General Administration's expert group. Zhang Xu can follow the big boss before he even graduates, so it will be difficult for him not to be successful in the future.

For Lin Mo, the concepts of working alone and borrowing a student from the General Administration to conduct the investigation are completely different.

The former can do whatever he wants without even having to report it.

For the latter, he had to report. Fortunately, he was no longer an ordinary member of the expert group. He was the team leader and had considerable decision-making power. For example, when investigating the "Silence", he only needed to write a report. If the director approved it, there would be no problem.

I was so idle yesterday, but I didn't expect to be so busy today.

But Lin Mo likes this kind of busyness.

He personally waited in the director's office for instructions. When the result came out, he took Zhang Xu on a train to Tuntun City that day.

(End of this chapter)