Chapter 17 Chapter 17 Strange Sounds

*

The wind blew on the river, the waves surged, and the thick fog made the river surface eerie and dark. Not a single ray of light could be seen. It was as if one was in hell, and even the air was suffocating.

"Buzz buzz buzz buzz—"

The engine continued to run, and the huge humming sound was like thunder. The Wind Wing set off again, passing through layers of fog, like a lonely boat drifting on the sea, riding the wind and waves, all the way to the east.

More than an hour after setting out, the Fengyi maintained a steady speed. Meng Gaoyang, who was on duty, relaxed and leaned back in the captain's chair to rest, his eyes slowly moving from the rudder to the folding chair next to him.

Next to the driving platform, Gu Mengran, who was supposed to rest in the bedroom, suddenly had an idea and set up a folding moon chair in the driver's room.

He lay leisurely on the moon chair which had a very good wrapping feel. There was a folding table next to him with snacks and fruits on it, making it look like a picnic.

The old man was somewhat speechless. He must be enjoying himself, leaving his bedroom to lie down and coming to the driver's room to mess around. He was worried about the Wind Wing, and he stared at the ceiling with a dull look in his eyes, and his thoughts had long gone to who knows where.

He couldn't stand it any more. Others were on duty while he was on vacation. This grandson-in-law was disgusted no matter how he looked at him. Meng Gaoyang coughed lightly and scolded him unhappily: "You put out a mess and don't want to eat it. Hurry up and clean up and go back to your room to sleep. Aren't you on night duty tonight?"

Gu Mengran, who was daydreaming in space, turned a deaf ear and stared at the ceiling motionlessly.

"Mengran, Gu Mengran! Did a heavenly dog ​​bite your ears?"

"Ah?" Gu Mengran woke up as if from a dream. He looked around and looked at his grandfather blankly, "Grandpa, are you calling me?"

Meng Gaoyang: "...There are only two of us in this room. Who else could it be besides me?"

After a few words, Gu Mengran became distracted again.

This kid looked like he had lost his soul after breakfast. He must have been worried about something. Meng Gaoyang was no longer in a hurry to offend him. He even straightened his back and softened his tone, acting like an elder who cared about the child.

"Meng Ran, did something happen to you? Your grandpa looks worried and sad. If you have anything to say, tell him. Don't keep it to yourself."

After saying this, Gu Mengran let out a long sigh and immediately sat up.

He looked very confused, his lips moving as if he wanted to say something but stopped.

After a long while, Gu Mengran glanced at the crystal clear grapes in the fruit plate and said in a hoarse voice: "Grandpa, wine becomes more fragrant as it ages, is it the same for people?

A person who has never been involved in cooking may become a great chef after learning, but is it possible for a hard-hearted egoist to become a kind-hearted person who is willing to sacrifice himself for others? "

"Hiss." The old man took a breath of cool air, pinched his chin and said thoughtfully: "This is still a bit difficult. People are selfish. It's easy for good people to become bad, and bad people to become good... unless their conscience is awakened."

Gu Mengran stopped talking, his eyes wandering around and he looked increasingly confused.

The old man cleared his throat and said, "It's not impossible. People are complex and diverse. Maybe he experienced a strong emotional shock, woke up, and decided to be a good person."

What grandpa said may seem reasonable at first glance, but in reality it is totally irrelevant.

Liang Zhao is not a bad person at all, and it is inappropriate to compare good and bad people.

Unable to figure it out, Gu Mengran grabbed his hair irritably.

Meng Gaoyang saw his reaction. Although he didn't show it on his face, he became more and more curious. Seeing that he didn't intend to continue the topic, Meng Gaoyang didn't bother to hide his curiosity and asked tentatively: "Is this him... Liang Zhao?"

A stone stirs up a thousand waves. Gu Mengran's eyes widened and he shuddered. "How is it possible! Grandpa, don't talk nonsense. Liang Zhao, he is not selfish."

This reaction is real!

The old man laughed, ignoring Gu Mengran's fierce look, and said directly: "Don't be secretive, tell me, is Liang Zhao's personality different from that in your dream?"

The guess was too accurate. Gu Mengran didn't have time to be shocked. He wanted to struggle, "Grandpa, what are you talking about? Liang Zhao and I have been friends for many years--"

"I don't know him, but how can I not know you?" Meng Gaoyang snorted and laughed, his eyes full of innuendo, "Based on the way you usually get along, do you look like old friends? You're only half-acquainted, at most old classmates who haven't seen each other for many years, but you don't even have a close relationship."

As if he had lost all his means and strength, Gu Mengran wilted like an eggplant hit by frost, "Okay, Grandpa, you guessed right."

The old man smiled proudly, "Tell me more and I'll analyze it for you."

He was feeling suffocated as he couldn't solve the mystery. Since his grandfather had guessed it anyway, Gu Mengran simply ignored his own disability and disfigurement and told his grandfather roughly how Liang Zhao risked his life to save him in the "dream" and how he treated him well.

I thought my grandfather was going to analyze the matter with him again, but as soon as he finished speaking, the old man immediately made a "tsk" sound and stared at him as if he was a fool.

"What's wrong?" Gu Mengran's heart skipped a beat.

"I find you a bit dull. You have been brooding over Liang Zhao's big personality changes, but have you ever thought that maybe he has never changed, and the problem is actually with you."

Gu Mengran was confused: "Huh?"

The old man was so disappointed that he shook his head helplessly and explained: "You still don't understand this? It's obvious that you shouldn't treat them differently! He doesn't care whether others live or die, but he will do his best to help you when you are in danger."

"Have you ever thought that the boy likes you, too?"

*

After chatting with his grandfather, Gu Mengran hardly slept for a whole day and night.

He couldn't sleep during the day because he was thinking about things, and he couldn't sleep at night because he was on duty at the steering ship. He pinched his arms and forced himself to get through the whole night. Gu Mengran was so sleepy that he was blurred in consciousness and began to stagger when he walked.

However, being alone gave him plenty of time to think, and regarding his grandfather's guess yesterday, Gu Mengran came to the conclusion that it was impossible, absolutely impossible.

Liang Zhao was struggling alone in the cruel end of the world. He felt lonely and wanted a companion to talk to, so he saved him and kept him. He treated him well only because he cared about their friendship as classmates and didn't want him to give up hope of life and live well.

Of course, this is not the most important thing. The main reason why Gu Mengran was sure that Liang Zhao could not like him was that Liang Zhao had said in person that he liked girls.

There is no need to dwell on these things in this life again.

Regardless of the reasons or personalities, Liang Zhao is still Liang Zhao and will always be his companion and family.

The time jumped to half past seven, and there was still half an hour before "getting off work".

Gu Mengran got down from the chair yawning, twisted his neck and stretched his arms.

He had only done half of a set of stretching exercises when he heard a light cough from behind. Gu Mengran turned his head sharply and saw Liang Zhao leaning against the door of the driver's room with a tray in his hand. He didn't know how long he had been looking at him.

When their eyes met, the air stagnated for a moment, but the next moment, Gu Mengran's nose moved slightly, and a familiar fragrance wafted into his nose.

"You made breakfast?" Hunger overcame embarrassment. Gu Mengran put away his half-pressed legs and walked quickly towards Liang Zhao.

Liang Zhao entered the door before him and placed the tray in his hand on the driving platform.

Gu Mengran took a closer look and saw that it was the same as yesterday, still porridge and buns, but these two bowls of porridge... were a little too weird.

The yellow viscous liquid was mixed with black, granular, unidentified objects. It was more like a bowl of paste than a bowl of porridge. It smelled quite fragrant, with a hint of burnt aroma, but the appearance was hard to describe.

Gu Mengran looked at it for a long time but couldn't figure out what kind of porridge it was. He looked at Liang Zhao blankly, "Is it corn paste? I can smell meat. Corn paste with meat grains?"

"No." Liang Zhao touched the tip of his nose unnaturally, and his voice was pitifully small. "It's century egg and lean meat porridge. I cooked it myself. I didn't control the heat well, so it's a little burnt."

Century egg and lean meat porridge? Who can tell the difference?

Gu Mengran, who had never seen dark cuisine before, was stunned, but when he heard that Liang Zhao cooked it himself, he was slightly startled and couldn't help but think of his grandfather's nonsense yesterday.

Liang Zhao cared about his words. He mentioned it casually yesterday, and the preserved egg and lean meat porridge was served today. Gu Mengran was not so narcissistic as to think that Liang Zhao must have feelings for him, but he just felt it was strange and his curiosity was about to overflow.

"It's a bit too mushy. Don't eat it yet. I'll go get something new to eat."

The long silence gave Liang Zhao the wrong signal, and he turned around and walked away with the tray. Gu Mengran suddenly came to his senses and stopped him in time.

"No, it's just a paste. It smells good and it will taste good." Gu Mengran snatched the tray from Liang Zhao and put it back on the driving platform. He picked up the spoon in the tray, scooped up a spoonful and put it into his mouth.

After swallowing a spoonful of the sticky preserved egg and lean meat paste, Gu Mengran licked his lips with an unsatisfied look when he saw Liang Zhao still looking at him, and praised with a smile: "It's delicious, and has a nice burnt aroma."

I'm not lying, it tastes really good, but it's a bit pungent in the throat.

After breakfast, they had already reached the destination to get off work. Gu Mengran did not rush back to sleep because the oil tanker of the Fengyi was almost out of fuel and needed to be refilled in time.

Refueling a ship is quite troublesome, and it is usually done by docking with an oil tanker at a port or a floating gas station to refuel.

But Gu Mengran had the space in his hands. As soon as the Fengyi stopped, Liang Zhao stayed in the cockpit and stared at the fuel gauge. Gu Mengran went down to the bottom deck wearing a gas mask, groped in the thick fog, found and opened the fuel hatch, and started to refuel quickly.

The space saved a lot of trouble, but the oil tanker of the Fengyi was too large.

He squatted on the deck for more than two hours. When the oil tank was filled, Gu Mengran's legs were numb, his consciousness was blurred, and his body no longer belonged to him.

The hatch cover was restored and Gu Mengran walked back with heavy steps.

The distance was not too far, and it only took Gu Mengran five minutes to find the cabin door based on his memory. But just as he grasped the door handle and was about to push the door open, a shrill scream came into his ears over the hum of the engine.

The sound was very strange, like the howl of an animal or a howl, it just sounded for a moment and then disappeared.

For a moment, Gu Mengran thought he was hallucinating from staying up all night. He pretended not to hear it and was about to go into the house, but the next second, the scream became louder and louder, echoing in his ears with great clarity.

"Ah ...