"Brother, it seems that the little girl is the only one on this cruise ship."
The captain listened to the tall man's words, exchanged a glance with him, and instantly understood what the other man was thinking.
"Let's see how it goes first."
"Hey, is anyone home?" the three asked loudly as they walked inside, their eyes darting around as they casually looked at the cabin.
Their shouts didn't wake Su Qingci, but they did startle Si Gui, who was resting in her room.
He rubbed his eyes, scrambled to his feet, and the first thing he did was quickly check on Xu Dasheng's condition beside him.
Seeing that his breathing was steady and his complexion was much better, I finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Hearing the door open behind them, Gao Dafa and the others turned around at the same time.
"Excuse me, I'd like to ask you something..."
"Hey, isn't that the rascal who came with us on this sea voyage?"
The tall man looked Si Gui up and down. "What are you doing here? Were you also pulled up by that little girl on the boat?"
"Where is she?" the tall man asked, looking towards the room behind Si Gui and examining the quilt that was bunched up on the bed.
Annoyance flashed in Si Gui's eyes. "What are you doing? It's impolite to run around and shout like this."
The tall man poked Si Gui's forehead hard with his finger. "What's with all this talk about manners? Do you even know what manners are? We just wanted to thank her!"
"How long have you been up here? Have you met anyone else?"
As Su Qingci walked up from the lower deck, she saw the three "management" crew members surrounding Si Gui's cabin door.
"What are you doing?"
The tall group turned around and smiled when they saw Su Qingci appear behind them.
"Girl, thank you so much. If it weren't for you, we don't know how long we would have been adrift at sea, and we might not even have survived."
The other party immediately expressed their gratitude, and Su Qingci could only politely reply, "It's nothing, we're all compatriots from the same country. Besides, it was just a coincidence that I ran into them. Anyone would lend a hand."
The captain pushed past the tall man and spoke with a gentlemanly air, "This isn't just a simple helping hand; it's saving a life, yes, it's a life-saving grace."
The three of them thanked Su Qingci sincerely once again.
All three were humble and polite, and the atmosphere was very harmonious.
Knowing that Da Long was an excellent helmsman, Su Qingci asked him several professional questions in a row.
Da Long used a sextant to analyze the situation and informed Su Qingci of the approximate location of the cruise ship at sea.
Su Qingci was completely bewildered. She had drifted all the way down from the north and thought that driving north back would take her home...
Seeing that Da Long spoke eloquently, Su Qingci, who was terrible with directions, thought for a moment and led him to the control room, letting him take the helm and adjust the direction.
Everyone wanted to go home, and she would provide fresh water and food before they went ashore.
Looking at the complex control panel in front of him, Da Long skillfully maneuvered the ship to find its direction.
At the same time, he explained the function of the handle and buttons to Su Qingci.
Qianfu, who was on deck, also quickly woke up, and, still feeling dizzy, headed towards the cabin.
Unlike the three tall men, he wasn't sitting in a lifeboat, nor did he change his clothes and eat food as soon as he boarded the ship, like Si Gui.
He soaked in ice water all night and fainted as soon as he got on the boat. He didn't know if he had caught a cold, but he felt dizzy and unsteady on his feet, like a noodle.
He wanted to ask the boatman for some food.
Su Qingci knew the principle of not flaunting wealth, so she only gave them enough dry food and water to survive each day.
That evening, the tall guy and his team finally confirmed that Su Qingci was indeed the only person on the entire ship.
On the deck, where the sea breeze was blowing, the three leaned against the railing and discussed things in hushed tones.
"Brother, if we continue in the current direction, we'll be taken back inland."
"Even if we get ashore, how to get home is still a big problem. And what should we do when we get back? Work like those thugs and risk our lives?"
The captain fell silent. With no communication between the two sides of the strait, returning home was indeed a major problem for them.
Moreover, they are now penniless and have no relatives or friends in the inland areas.
Seeing the captain remain silent, the tall man tentatively said, "Brother, although this cruise ship is not as big as our fishing boat, its equipment, whether it's the engine or the hull, is on a completely different level from ours."
The captain raised an eyebrow. "You mean?"
“We’ll have Da Long adjust the direction and head towards the island. Don’t think that just because she’s a little girl or there are a few more people, we can make the decisions once we’re on our territory.”
"By then, not only will the issue of returning to the island be resolved, but with this cruise ship, we won't be left with nothing."
"We can recruit fewer crew members, go back to our old business, and slowly build up our business."
The captain listened to the tall man's words, a greedy glint in his eyes. "Big Dragon, take control of the cruise ship and head towards the island."
"The Ghana has sunk. You should know that even if you go back, no one in the industry, except me, will dare to hire you."
Da Long looked up at the captain and saw him staring at him with a stern expression. He nodded silently.
That night, Da Long secretly changed direction and headed towards the island.
......
Inside the crowded train station, the tall Xu Tieniu squeezed out from the exit.
The familiar streets in front of me have changed dramatically.
Xu Tieniu put the bag in his hand at his feet, took off his hat, patted off the dust, and then put the hat back on, pulling the brim down to cover the scar at the corner of his eye, as well as his hawk-like eyes.
Having found the right direction, he picked up his luggage from the ground and strode away.
I transferred from a train to a long-distance bus, then to a short-distance bus, and finally to a shuttle bus.
We finally arrived at our destination – Taiping Commune, Xiangnan Brigade.
Upon arriving at Xiangnan Village, Xu Tieniu, who had been exuding a menacing aura, immediately lost his imposing presence. His upright back hunched slightly, and a slight smile appeared on his lips, instantly transforming him into a kind and honest old man.
He held up the note in his hand and strode into the village.
It was afternoon, and children were chasing and playing by the roadside. Smoke was rising from the rooftops of many houses.
"Uncle, who are you?"
A seven or eight-year-old child covered in mud stood in front of Xu Tieniu, looking bewildered as he asked.
Xu Tieniu looked down and grinned, then patted his little head. "Good boy."
"Uncle is here to find someone. Is this the Xiangnan Brigade?"
"yes!"
"Do you know where the brigade leader's house is?"
"If you answer correctly, I'll reward you with a candy."
"I know."
The other two children's eyes lit up, and they mustered up their courage to come closer. "I know too, Uncle, I know too!"
"Get out of here. I was the one who said that first, hmph."
"Uncle, come with me, I'll take you to the brigade leader's house."
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