Chapter 13 Chapter 13 Arrived as expected
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"Blah, blah--bang!"
Thick fog filled the space between sky and earth. The river was surging. The water seemed to be stirred by an invisible force. The waves condensed into a thick wall of water, violently hitting the ship.
The waves were more ferocious than the last, like a cunning and vicious beast, lifting the Wind Wing high up and then bringing it down heavily, demonstrating its terrifying power to tear everything apart and mocking the insignificance and incompetence of mankind.
The situation was worse than expected, and the driver's cabin was in chaos.
The huge waves lifted up the stern of the ship, and the three people hiding under the cockpit were suddenly thrown toward the inner fender, truly interpreting what it means to be hit against the wall and unable to get out.
There was no buffer. The next second, huge, irregular waves suddenly lifted the bow of the ship. The ground tilted severely, and the U-shaped steering platform firmly embedded in the ground suddenly turned into an upside-down water cup.
There are no handles or support points. Once they are thrown out of the driving platform, they will face free fall, rolling from one end of the cockpit to the other in just a moment.
Fortunately, Gu Mengran and Liang Zhao were tall, and they sandwiched Meng Gaoyang in the middle, straightened their legs and stretched their arms, and stuck themselves firmly between the driving platforms.
But the downside of doing this is that in an instant, waves hit from the side and back, and the three of them fell heavily to the ground, tumbling into a heap.
Time seemed to stretch infinitely. It was only one or two minutes, but Gu Mengran felt like a century had passed. Over and over again, ups and downs, the giant pendulum made him dizzy and his internal organs were almost dislocated.
If the situation on the river is like this, the situation on the ground... will only be more serious.
"Bang!"
The wave came again, with a huge humming sound, and hit the Wind Wing with the force of thunder. The impact was stronger than every previous wave, and it seemed that it wanted to overturn the Wind Wing.
The ship shook violently, and even after dropping the anchor, the Fengyi was still thrown four or five meters away by the huge waves. The entire ship tilted 45 degrees to the east, causing half of the stern to be submerged in the river water in an instant.
"Warning, warning, the ship is listing badly! The ship is listing badly!"
"Warning, warning, the deck is flooded! The deck is flooded!"
For a moment, the cab was like a bustling city, with red police lights flashing and warnings sirens blaring.
"No, no, we have to steer the ship. If we continue like this, the Wind Wing will sink!"
The boat was shaking and even tilting. Gu Mengran managed to steady himself despite feeling dizzy. Grandpa, half of his body supported, immediately passed him and tried to get out of the cockpit.
"Grandpa!" Gu Mengran and Liang Zhao reached out and grabbed Meng Gaoyang almost at the same time.
The boat tilted 45 degrees, and it was difficult to stand, let alone steer. If another wave hit it, the consequences would be disastrous. But Fengyi could not sink. It was the hard work of Gu Mengran and his grandfather, and their future home. It could not sink.
Gu Mengran gritted his teeth and was about to go out to steer the boat himself when he looked up and met Liang Zhao's gaze.
Without saying a word, the two smiled at each other and nodded in tacit understanding.
Military coats, helmets, bungee cords for loading cargo…
Gu Mengran took out a lot of things from the space and distributed them to his grandfather and Liang Zhao one after another.
Although clothes and hats cannot prevent falling, they are still very effective in preventing collisions.
After settling the old man down and getting dressed neatly, Gu Mengran tied one end of the elastic rope around his own waist and the other end around Liang Zhao's waist, so that even if one of them was thrown out, the other's strength could serve as a buffer.
It was time to test their arm strength. The Wind Wing was tilted severely, and it was obviously not realistic to walk to the front of the driving platform normally. Fortunately, they were right below the driving platform, so they just had to lean out their upper bodies and slowly stand up with the strength of their upper limbs.
There was no time to lose. Gu Mengran exchanged glances with Liang Zhao, then half of his body immediately stuck out of the driving platform and attacked the platform with his hands and feet.
Liang Zhao stretched out his hands to grab the driving platform, and moved himself out from under the driving platform with the strength of his arms alone. Then, with a perfect pull-up, he stood easily in front of the driving platform.
The advantages of being tall and exercising regularly were fully demonstrated. The two of them clearly moved at the same time. When Liang Zhao reached the top, Gu Mengran was still at the foot of the mountain and had just begun to climb out.
The situation was critical and Gu Mengran had no time to defend his pitiful self-esteem. Liang Zhaokuan's large and rough palm was close at hand. He grasped it without hesitation and used the force to stand up.
As luck would have it, the shaking stopped just as the two of them reached the driver's seat. Gu Mengran checked the time and saw that it was three minutes. The strong earthquake had lasted for exactly three minutes.
The engine started, and the main engine system of the Fengyi began to operate. The right rudder was turned to coordinate with the engine propulsion, and the tilted hull was adjusted back little by little.
"Bang——"
With a loud bang, the suspended right wing of the Wind Wing touched the water surface again, and the suffocatingly quiet cockpit was gradually filled with the sound of rapid breathing.
"Huh!" Meng Gaoyang took a deep breath, bent over and crawled out from under the cockpit, panting and shouting, "It was a close call. The earthquake was too strong. The empty ship was almost overturned!"
"The magnitude of the earthquake is very high. I don't know what the situation on the ground is like." Liang Zhao was sweating all over. He leaned against the driving platform to take off his thick coat and slowly took off his helmet.
However, no one who survived the disaster could be happy. The earthquake came as expected, which also meant that Gu Mengran’s "predictive dream" was coming true little by little.
The old man had a sad face and sighed, "Yeah, the Huangjiang River seems to be on fire, and the ground... ah!"
"There's no signal on this phone either." Meng Gaoyang took out his phone and took a look at it, then turned to look at Gu Mengran, "Mengran, is this earthquake completely over?"
The military coat wrapped around him like a quilt, Meng Gaoyang was sweating all over but didn't dare to take it off, just waiting for Gu Mengran to speak. But he waited and waited, and Gu Mengran stood there like a statue, motionless and silent.
"Gu——"
Meng Gaoyang was about to call him again when Liang Zhao suddenly raised his hand to interrupt him.
The fog became thicker and thicker, the yellow fog turned into black fog, the glass was stained with a layer of gray ink, and it was almost impossible to see anything standing in the driver's cabin.
But even so, Gu Mengran still insisted on looking out the window, his brows furrowed, his lips pressed into a straight line, and it was unknown what he was thinking.
"Are you scared?" Liang Zhao leaned closer, his tone softer than ever before.
Gu Mengran still said nothing and shook his head slightly.
"What's the matter?" Liang Zhao reached out and patted his shoulder, a faint smile on his lips, and whispered: "Don't be afraid, it's okay, we are safe."
"No." Gu Mengran was so hot that he unbuttoned his jacket and took off his helmet. He turned to face Liang Zhao, looking a little helpless, his hands wandering around the operating table in boredom.
After a moment's silence, Gu Mengran raised his hand to fan the air, and a silent sigh escaped from his lips, "It's too risky. I just think, I think my decision was too hasty to take you and grandpa to sit on the river and do it."
"Actually, there is a way to avoid it. I should have cleaned up the space in advance and put the Wind Wing inside. Then we could go to the space, ahem, hide there, and wait until the earthquake is over before coming out. Then you and Grandpa wouldn't have to suffer this."
Gu Mengran became more and more annoyed as he spoke, and slapped him on the forehead with his backhand.
Liang Zhao wanted to stop him, but he was too late. He put his hand back silently. "Don't think like that. Natural disasters and man-made disasters are what we have to face. You can hide from them for a while, but not forever. You should practice our survival ability. What if you are not around? We can't rely too much on space."
"How could you not be by my side?" Gu Mengran turned his head to look at his grandfather and then back at Liang Zhao, his tone particularly firm: "We will never separate, we must always be together."
Liang Zhao laughed dumbly, "Okay, we won't separate them. I'm just assuming."
With this interruption, most of the depression in Gu Mengran's heart was instantly relieved.
The fog was too thick, the signal network was disconnected, and he had no idea what was happening around him. He glanced at the high-frequency signal on the console, and Gu Mengran's eyes lit up, and he immediately took two steps forward.
VHF-CH16, a universal channel for international shipping.
Gu Mengran adjusted the channel and just picked up the walkie-talkie when the high frequency suddenly exploded.
"Earthquake, earthquake! A massive earthquake has occurred near Anchang Port. The Panshi has capsized severely. Call for help! Call for help!"
"Can you hear me? Traffic control! The boat is sinking and no one is out yet. Help!"
"Heshanda calls for help, someone on the boat fell into the water, someone fell into the water!"
"The engine room of the Axe Boat is flooded, the hull is - hissing..."
"The fog is too thick. Will help come? It's over. It's all over!"
The shocking calls for help and desperate cries, the situation on the river surface is urgent.
The VHF coverage area is limited, and the calls for help on the walkie-talkie are basically from the Anchang Port terminal and anchorage. Should they respond? Can they respond? In the case of visibility less than one meter and unclear exact location, should they rescue?
The intercom became a hot potato, and Gu Mengran didn't know whether to take it or put it down. Just when he was hesitant, Liang Zhao suddenly snatched the intercom from his hand and gently put it back on the console.
"Can't save him." Liang Zhao said these three simple words with a calm expression, without a trace of emotion.
"for--"
"It hasn't been saved yet, why can't it be saved?"
Just as Gu Mengran was about to speak, Meng Gaoyang took off his military coat and angrily walked towards Liang Zhao, "Is this your first day on a ship? When you receive a call for help during the voyage, as long as conditions permit, you will rescue anyone who falls into the water, and help those who can't run. Have you forgotten the rules left by our ancestors?"
The old man's tone was too aggressive. Gu Mengran was worried that the two of them would quarrel at this critical moment, so he quickly pulled his grandfather and gently persuaded him: "Grandpa, don't be anxious. Listen to what Liang Zhao has to say. Why are you yelling so loudly?"
After being scolded, Liang Zhao remained calm and patiently explained to Meng Gaoyang: "Master Meng, the problem is that the current conditions do not allow it. The visibility is too low, and the ship——"
"Visibility?" Meng Gaoyang laughed and interrupted Liang Zhao again: "Who sails a ship with only eyes? Are radar, AIS, and satellite navigation just for show?"
"Grandpa!" Gu Mengran glared at his grandfather angrily, turned his head and raised his chin towards Liang Zhao, "Don't worry about him, just continue."
Liang Zhao was interrupted frequently, but he was neither annoyed nor angry, and continued: "Low visibility is only one of the reasons. The Fengyi just capsized, the stern deck was flooded, and the engine room was also very likely to be flooded. We haven't even checked the Fengyi carefully yet. If we rashly start a rescue, we will only put ourselves in danger or accidentally injure the people who fell into the water."
What he said made sense, and Gu Mengran nodded repeatedly in agreement.
Meng Gaoyang also heard it, and he felt like a deflated ball, his whole body instantly wilting.
The old man was born into a fishing family and was most loyal to the "code of conduct". When he heard that the ship was in distress but failed to lend a helping hand in time, it was like putting him on the spot and making him feel very uneasy.
It was not easy to stand aside and watch. Gu Mengran felt uncomfortable, but no matter how uncomfortable he felt, he would not risk the Wind Wing for a group of unrelated people.
Wait, the Wind Wing can't be moved easily, what about the diesel boat?
At this juncture, helping with rescue and salvaging ships is like a pipe dream. Even dispatching the Wind Wing will be useless. But if we ignore the ship and only want to save people... a small diesel boat will be enough.
An immature plan came to his mind, and Gu Mengran was about to tell his grandfather and Liang Zhao about his idea, but before he could open his mouth, the high-frequency sound rang again.
"Zizi--Heng...Zizi...Sheng flipped on its side, huh%@#! Fengyi, can you hear me, Fengyi? Heng Rongsheng flipped on its side, please help! Please help!"