Chapter 130 New Journey

*

The heavy snow that covered the earth finally died down, and the temperature quietly broke free from the shackles of winter, like spring bamboo shoots accumulating strength in the mountains and forests, slowly breaking through the ground and gradually warming up.

The sky was gray and the sound of bells clanging could be heard early in the morning on the surface of the sea.

Boats that rise and fall with the waves are bustling with people, holding shovels and hammers, removing ice and snow, busy preparing for the end of the cold winter and the beginning of the journey.

A small ship has its advantages. The Giant and Ever Leap had just started to clean up, and the deck of the Wind Wing had already been cleaned. Liang Zhao and Xu Xinghe, who had some free time, carried sacks, while Gu Mengran and Zheng Yijie carried foam boxes and climbed the gangway to the Giant.

The gangway was slippery and difficult to walk on, and the four men were carrying heavy objects, so it took them more than ten minutes to climb the short flights of stairs and successfully reach the top.

Zheng Yijie and Xu Xinghe visited the Giant for the first time. Standing on the shoulders of the Giant, the open-air deck, which was several times larger than a football field, came into view. They were both stunned and stunned.

The huge creature is parked nearby and can be seen every day.

Looking from below, it seemed huge, unimaginably huge. But when they actually stepped onto the deck, the azure sea was completely blocked by the hull, and the flat, wide deck stretched as far as the eye could see. It was as if the disaster had not happened and they were still standing on land.

"My God, it's really... what a big ship."

There were a bunch of adjectives in his head, but when he opened his mouth, it became a huge ship. Zheng Yijie was just about to make up for it when he heard Xu Xinghe's excited voice trembling: "Is this really a ship? It feels like a moving castle, so big, so cool, so domineering!"

So cool and domineering...adjectives that are similar in meaning.

It seemed that there was no food to be produced, and Zheng Yijie felt relieved.

Attracted by the majestic and magnificent Colossus, the two stood still and could not move.

As they walked, they realized that two people were missing. Gu Mengran turned around and saw Zheng Yijie and Xu Xinghe still standing at the entrance of the gangway, looking around curiously like children entering a big city for the first time.

The box of soil was so heavy that his arms were sore. Gu Mengran shouted helplessly, "What are you two doing? Are you going to leave or not?"

The two men seemed to have just woken up from a dream and ran after him, carrying their things.

Suddenly forgetting what they were here for, Zheng Yijie looked at Gu Mengran eagerly as he stepped forward, panting and begging, "Gu Mengran, can we take a look at the Giant first? This is the first time I've seen such a big ship, and I'm really, itching to death."

Like a kid seeing Transformers for the first time, Zheng Yijie was both excited and thrilled, but Gu Mengran was not going to satisfy him. He strode forward and said, "Let's get down to business first. I'll take you to a better place to visit later."

Zheng Yijie asked hurriedly: "What place——"

"Xiao Gu, Xiao Liang! Why are you here?"

As they approached the stern deck, more and more people were working around. One of the familiar crew members saw them and waved to them from a distance.

After all, they had lived on the Giant for some time, so most of the residents recognized Gu Mengran and Liang Zhao. As soon as they finished speaking, the busy people on the deck stopped what they were doing and stretched their necks to look over.

"Xiao Liang and Xiao Gu, what have you been busy with recently? I haven't seen you two for a long time."

"Hello good morning, what do you have?"

"Hey, how come you have time to come to the Giant today? Have you finished removing the ice?"

…

The three ships were all busy with their own things and we hadn't seen each other for some time.

The residents were more enthusiastic than each other. Gu Mengran could only stop and respond one by one: "Good morning! Like you, I've been busy catching fish and crabs recently. As for us? The Wind Wing has been packed up, and it was packed up before dawn. These things? Keep it secret for now, you will know later."

"Wow, so mysterious?" The middle-aged man looked at the sack on Liang Zhao's shoulder with great curiosity, grinning with a wicked smile, "It looks heavy, do you want help?"

"I'll do it!"

A young man stood up.

Gu Mengran hurriedly shook his head, "No, no, you guys are busy."

"Okay then, Brother Gu, you're looking for the captain, right? They're in the cab, the elevator is open today, you can take it up."

"Okay, thanks."

The things in his hands were too heavy, so Gu Mengran did not linger for long. He said thank you and led the three people straight to the stern deck.

Ding Pengyi had contacted Captain Ding via high frequency in advance, and he had specially arranged for the crew to wait for them on the first floor. Although he was familiar with the Giant, Gu Mengran did not refuse. After all, it was not good for outsiders to walk around in someone else's house without the owner's company.

As soon as they entered the stern deck, they ran into a crew member. The person who came was also an old acquaintance, a young crew member who had driven the lifeboat to bring them back.

After greeting each other and chatting for a while, the man led them through the corridor and to the elevator entrance with ease.

Fortunately, the elevator happened to stop on the first floor. Gu Mengran walked into the carriage holding the foam box. For some reason, looking at the elevator that was so ordinary before the disaster, he inexplicably felt as if he was in another world.

City roads, high-rise buildings, cars and airplanes...

Everything seems to have happened in the previous life.

"bite--"

They reached the top floor, and the cockpit was next to the elevator, but Gu Mengran and his crew did not go in directly. Instead, they placed the sacks and foam boxes at the elevator door and asked the crew to help call Captain Ding out.

Ding Pengyi arrived very quickly. Before he could catch his breath, the door opened. Captain Ding walked briskly to Gu Mengran with his signature smile, "Mengran is here, Liang Zhao, and here are two little brothers, little, little..."

Having only met them two or three times, Ding Pengyi couldn't remember the names of Zheng Yijie and Xu Xinghe. Gu Mengran was about to introduce them, but Ding Pengyi raised his index finger and shook it twice, saying with great certainty, "Little Zheng, Little Xu!"

"Wow, Uncle Ding has a good memory. He actually still remembers us." Zheng Yijie's little mouth was full of honey and he came up and called him uncle.

Ding Pengyi fell for it, reached out and patted him on the shoulder, and said cheerfully: "How could I not remember that you two, like Meng Ran and Liang Zhao, are all good guys."

The chat didn't last long because Ding Pengyi saw something piled on the ground.

Ding Pengyi glanced at two bulging sacks and two foam boxes covered with black plastic bags, frowned and looked at Gu Mengran, and said unhappily: "Didn't I tell you on the high frequency just now? You can talk about things, I welcome you to come, but don't bring anything."

"Do you think your uncle Ding is a vegetarian? You know how much seafood we can catch when we drag the net down." Ding Pengyi pretended to be disgusted and waved his hand, "We don't need you to do this. You can take it back later. You won't feel tired carrying it around."

Obviously thinking that they had delivered the seafood, Gu Mengran chuckled and quickly explained: "Uncle Ding, this is not--"

"Uncle Ding, if you say no, you mean no."

Gu Mengran was interrupted and looked aside decisively. Liang Zhao, who had successfully received the signal, bent over, quickly untied the rope that tied the sack with one hand, and opened the black plastic bag on the foam box with the other hand.

A touch of emerald green suddenly entered his sight, and Ding Pengyi's pupils shrank suddenly. As Liang Zhao pushed the sack open, revealing a pile of round, ping-pong-ball-sized potato eggs, he staggered back half a step, almost forgetting to breathe in excitement.

After two minutes of silence, Ding Pengyi swallowed his saliva, pointed at the sack, and asked stutteringly, "Where did this come from? Potatoes...potatoes?"

It can be seen that potatoes have not been seen for some time.

Gu Mengran leaned over and picked up two potatoes from the sack, then handed them to Ding Pengyi with a smile, "They are potatoes, we grew them ourselves. Uncle Ding, take a look at them."

"Did you grow them yourself?" Ding Pengyi took the small potato and looked at it again and again under his eyelids. "It's really a potato! When did you grow it? How did you grow it? Where did you get the seeds?"

Gu Mengransi was not panicked at all after being asked three or four questions in a row. She responded calmly: "To be honest with you, Uncle Ding, I bought some seeds while stockpiling supplies before the disaster. I bought some seeds of various fruits and vegetables."

"A year ago when we were still in Fengjin Lake, we had no vegetables to eat, so we thought about planting some. We got some soil from the nearby hillside and put it on the boat." Gu Mengran kicked the foam box with his toes, "Just like this, we planted it directly inside."

As he spoke, Gu Mengran raised his hand and pulled Zheng Yijie, who was sitting idle, over to introduce him to Ding Pengyi solemnly: "Little Zheng, Zheng Yijie, he graduated from Agricultural University and can be said to be an expert in plants. Although it has been raining since the high temperature, under his guidance, we have really grown vegetables."

Upon hearing this, Zheng Yijie's face instantly turned red, and he waved his hands repeatedly, "No, no, no, I only know a little bit, I'm not an expert."

Gu Mengran ignored him. "Anyway, we never lacked vegetables after that. This batch of potatoes was planted with other vegetables about four months ago. Later, the weather turned cold and the Fengyi ran out of fuel. The electricity was cut for a while, and it was the only one that survived."

Ding Pengyi gradually came to his senses, pinched his chin thoughtfully, and muttered to himself: "Can you grow vegetables without the sun? These potatoes are not big, but the yield is still amazing! Two whole sacks, such a small foam box can actually grow so many potatoes?"

"This is only half of it. We kept the other half for ourselves to eat." Gu Mengran touched his nose and said calmly.

Ding Pengyi suddenly raised his head, grabbed Gu Mengran's hand, and said urgently: "Mengran, do you have many seeds? Can you give us some as well? We will exchange them with you for fuel oil and seafood!"

"Uncle Ding, what are you talking about?" Gu Mengran held Ding Pengyi's hand and frowned in dissatisfaction. "If you hadn't provided the fuel, we would have frozen to death long ago. How could we have a chance to grow vegetables? Don't say such polite words."

Without giving Ding Pengyi a chance to speak, Gu Mengran continued, "Grandpa wanted to tell you before, but I think soil is hard to find now. In addition, the weather was cold some time ago, and the vegetables planted in the cabin were basically frozen to death. Only the potatoes survived. I'm afraid it's a false alarm."

"Now that the weather has warmed up, the potatoes have started to grow again after being raised for a while. They are growing well and the yield is very good. We are here today not only to give you potatoes to eat, but also to use these potato lumps to prove that growing vegetables on a ship is really possible."

Ding Pengyi: "Okay, okay, this is really great news!"

"We're leaving today. It would be best if we can find land in the Pacific Ocean. We can grow vegetables and fish and be self-sufficient. It doesn't matter if we can't find any. Our Giant is big enough. We can get more soil and grow a lot of vegetables. We don't have to worry about not having enough seeds. Many vegetables can be saved when they mature. We don't have to worry about that in the future!"

Ding Pengyi became more and more excited as he spoke. He held Gu Mengran's hand tightly, his face flushed, and his body trembled slightly with excitement.

Talking about the future, a faint smile appeared in Gu Mengran's eyes, "Yes, Uncle Ding, don't worry, and there are many varieties of fruit and vegetable seeds, so you don't have to worry about getting tired of eating."

"You are smart, you know to buy seeds." Ding Pengyi smiled and patted Gu Mengran on the shoulder. "Yes, no matter how much food there is, it will be eaten up one day. It's not okay to have only spending and no income. Why didn't I think of it at the beginning?"

Gu Mengran smiled, "You thought of that, too. Didn't you teach us how to fish?"

Ding Pengyi laughed loudly, his eyes sweeping across the green potato leaves on the ground. He tilted his head and looked puzzled, "Why did you bring these two boxes of potatoes here? Are you worried that I won't believe them just by looking at them, and I must see how they are grown before I believe them?"

"That's not the case." Gu Mengran shook his head. "These two boxes are for you. There are potatoes that haven't been dug yet. Can you explain it better?"

Ding Pengyi: "Who should I explain this to?"

Gu Mengran: "The crew and residents of the Giant."

"Oh, right!" Ding Pengyi suddenly understood and nodded, then asked, "Then why did you put a black plastic bag on the box? Isn't it good news that the potatoes have grown? Are you afraid of people seeing it?"

Gu Mengran smiled and met Ding Pengyi's gaze. He stared at him for a full half minute before he spoke slowly: "We still lack soil, so growing vegetables cannot be implemented for the time being. As for whether to tell them and when to tell them, Uncle Ding, you are the supreme commander of the Giant, and we cannot make decisions on our own."

After saying this, Ding Pengyi became serious for a second, looked at Gu Mengran with complicated eyes for a long time, and sighed sincerely: "Good job, Gu Mengran, with the style of your grandfather in his past, you have a bright future!"

…

The Giant was a large ship, and it would take some time for the main engine to warm up, so they couldn't leave for a while. Therefore, after finishing their business, Gu Mengran and the others were not in a hurry to go back.

With Captain Ding's permission, Gu Mengran fulfilled his previous promise and brought the curious babies who were boarding a supertanker for the first time to the best viewing platform of the Giant - the cockpit, where they felt what it meant to be majestic and experienced what it meant to be lonely at high places.

But the two curious kids, Zheng Yijie and Xu Xinghe, were still not satisfied. They insisted on taking Gu Mengran for a walk on the deck after the event. Thinking that it was still early, Gu Mengran accompanied them. The result was -

"Gu Mengran! Does it take so long to deliver something? What on earth are you doing? You don't even want to work anymore. Are you going to live on someone else's boat and never come back?"

The intercom rang, and the old man's angry voice rose to the sky.

Gu Mengran exchanged a glance with the three of them without saying a word. They turned around and ran towards the gangway in tacit understanding.

The water tank was full, the fuel tank was full, the Fengyi was preheated and could set sail at any time. Gu Mengran really couldn't think of what else was left to do, but that didn't stop him from walking in front and being the first to run back to the Fengyi.

But when he rushed into the driver's seat in a hurry, Gu Mengran was dumbfounded again.

"Three."

"I can't bear it."

"I want it, I'm against Q!"

A small folding table was placed next to the driving console. The old man who had been furious just now was sitting around the table with his two sisters, smiling and holding a handful of poker cards in their hands.

That's right!

They were playing cards, chatting and laughing, and the atmosphere was quite harmonious.

Seeing them push the door open, the old man even raised his chin with a smile, "Are you back? Go to the warehouse and get a stool."

Gu Mengran: ...Was that shout just now just an illusion?

"Grandpa?" Gu Mengran walked up slowly, stood beside the old man, and asked tentatively: "You are in a hurry to call us back, what else is there?"

"Oh yeah!"

The old man seemed to have finally remembered, he slapped his thigh and stood up, stuffed the poker cards into Gu Mengran's hands, and then pressed him on the stool, "I have to go to the toilet, you play for me. Don't lose to me, Gu Mengran, I have a good hand."

Before he finished speaking, the old man rushed out of the driver's seat.

Sitting at the table with the poker in his hand, Gu Mengran was still a little dazed, and it took him a few seconds to come back to his senses.

That's it? Calling them back in such a hurry is just for this?

After spreading out the poker cards and taking a look, Gu Mengran's eyes went dark.

A good hand that is not even worth a pair of three!

Probably to avoid the bad hand of cards that couldn't connect straights or make pairs, Gu Mengran just lost a game, and the old man finally came back.

Not caring at all about the outcome of the previous game, the old man picked up Gu Mengran and sat down to continue playing.

There was no entertainment after the disaster, and poker was one of the few entertainments. Zheng Yijie and Xu Xinghe also became interested, and hurriedly moved a few stools back and joined in excitedly.

Gu Mengran was not very interested, so he walked to the window alone and looked at the misty sea in front of him through the windshield.

They were alone for no more than two minutes. The hands hanging by his side were wrapped in a touch of warmth. Gu Mengran raised the corners of his mouth slightly, and with a glance, a pair of concerned eyes came into his sight.

"What are you thinking about?"

The others were absorbed in playing poker and had no time to pay attention to them. Liang Zhao held his hand as if no one was around, his knuckles inserted into the gaps between their fingers without restraint, and interlocked their fingers.

A warm feeling surged in his heart. Gu Mengran was no longer afraid of being seen. He gently held Liang Zhao's hand, and the smile in his eyes deepened. "I'm thinking about our future."

"Oh? Have you thought about it? What will our future be like?" Liang Zhao lowered his eyes and smiled, and asked with interest.

Gu Mengran did not answer but asked: "What do you think?"

"Our future is bright." Liang Zhao held Gu Mengran's hand tightly, his tone firm.

Gu Mengran looked at the sea ahead and chuckled: "The road ahead is unknown. We have never walked on this road before. How do you know that there will be light?"

"Because of you."

Gu Mengran looked at the sea, Liang Zhao looked at Gu Mengran.

Gradually, an invisible force pulled them together, and their eyes intertwined in mid-air. Time seemed to stop at this moment, and everything around them slowly disappeared, leaving only each other in their eyes.

"Woo, woo, woo, woo—"

The long and deep sound of the whistle rang out, like the roar of a sea monster, shaking the heaven and earth.

The dark clouds rolled up like thick ink, and the rainstorm that had been brewing for a long time was about to come.

On the boundless sea, the roars rang out one after another, echoing like a huge bell. The high-speed rotating propellers broke through the water surface, splashing water everywhere, and the three ships lined up in a row, like arrows shot from a bow, stepping on the white waves to embark on a new journey.

There is an unknown ahead, and there is also a future ahead.

Go and have a look.

Wind Wing, Ever Leap, and Colossus—set sail!

--over--