Chapter 4 Chapter 4 Wind Wing

*

Gu Mengran was obsessed with convincing Liang Zhao, and if that didn't work he would start to get crazy. Even if Liang Zhao misunderstood him and thought the gold was divine gold, he had to let Liang Zhao get on board.

But he never expected that Liang Zhao actually agreed after he just made the proposal?

"Don't be in a daze, eat first."

The colander collided with the porcelain bowl, and the crisp "ding-dong" sound broke the silence.

The shrimps soaked in soup slid into the bowl. Liang Zhao withdrew his hand very naturally. Gu Mengran was slightly startled. For a moment, he seemed to see the shadow of his previous life in Liang Zhao.

Gu Mengran was puzzled. He picked up his chopsticks and poked the shrimps, and asked in a low voice: "You agree to this? Aren't you going to ask about the salary?"

"What a coincidence. I've been looking to change a ship recently, but haven't found a suitable one. As for the treatment, since you took the initiative to invite me, the treatment should not be too bad." Liang Zhao said without changing his expression, and then picked up a piece of beef from the red soup.

"But..."

Liang Zhao slowly put down the fat beef that was about to reach his mouth and looked at Gu Mengran with a slightly serious expression, "The yellow fog has a great impact on the shipping industry. It is not wise to buy a boat and open a floating supermarket now."

Gu Mengran nodded pretentiously, "Yeah, I know that too. The old man has some spare money and always wants to spend it, and I have no choice but to play with him and try to minimize the loss."

The shrimp was cool, so Gu Mengran used chopsticks to split it in half, dipped it twice in the dipping dish, and slowly put it into his mouth.

□□It’s bouncy and has a light tomato flavor. It’s delicious.

Liang Zhao was a man of few words; it was mostly Gu Mengran who did all the chattering at the dinner table.

But he answered every question. In order to get close to Gu Mengran, he asked all kinds of questions and inquired about the current situation. Liang Zhao patiently answered them one by one and chatted with him in a casual manner.

After the meal, the strange feeling of meeting again after a long separation gradually disappeared, and the distance between them disappeared - at least that was what Gu Mengran unilaterally thought.

After finishing dinner, Gu Mengran came out of the mall and went into the alley behind the mall. After a while, the red old man's car staggered and stopped in front of Liang Zhao.

“Ding Di——”

After two clear whistle sounds, the car window slowly rolled down. The driver smiled even more brilliantly and waved quickly out of the window, "Get in the car, Liang Zhao. Where do you live? I'll take you home."

Liang Zhao took two steps forward, stood in front of the car window and looked down at him, "No need, I live nearby."

"Ah?" Gu Mengran's eyes dimmed, and he pursed his lips in disappointment. "Okay. As agreed, you must come to see me in ten days. I'll send you the address on WeChat when I get home. You can send your luggage in advance. Remember, don't forget!"

Liang Zhaozheng nodded, "Got it, I'll call you. Wutian, drive slowly, be careful, and send me a message when you get home."

Gu Mengran hummed softly, his eyes feeling a little warm for some reason.

The brake lights went out, and the car started again, gradually moving away.

Liang Zhao stood motionless by the roadside, watching the old man in red happily merge into the traffic and into the yellow mist until he completely disappeared.

“Pah.”

The lighter lit up and then went out, and a cigarette appeared between Liang Zhao's bony fingers.

Sparks flickered, and wisps of smoke climbed up his angular profile. From beginning to end, Liang Zhao's expression did not change at all, and his eyes were still fixed on the busy street.

When the incense burned out, his thin lips moved, and his calm eyes were filled with a hint of nostalgia.

"Gu Mengran, long time no see."

*

Before dawn, Gu Mengran got up in a hurry to wash up. He was so excited that he almost didn't sleep all night, and there were purple circles under his eyes and two big dark circles.

When he opened the door, he ran into his grandfather. Looking at his grandfather's panda eyes, Gu Mengran instantly felt balanced.

Today is an important day, it would be strange if I didn't sleep well.

After washing, changing clothes, and taking relevant documents and certificates, Gu Mengran and his grandfather drove out in a hurry in their Old Man Car. They bought some breakfast and ate while on their way, rushing to the shipyard without stopping.

After an hour and a half's drive, the Red Old Man Le passed through the thick yellow fog and drove to the southern suburbs of the city, a large-scale shipyard with a strong industrial atmosphere.

Grandpa was in charge of the purchase of the ship, and Gu Mengran was completely clueless about the delivery process. However, after entering the shipyard, the huge ships that towered into the sky made his eyes light up again and again.

The old man drove at full speed and followed the signposts to the shipyard wharf. On the way, the old man finally showed kindness and gave a few simple explanations to clear up the confusion of Gu Mengran.

Generally speaking, ship purchases must be booked in advance with a shipyard, because shipbuilding must be carried out at a dock or slipway to facilitate the launching of ships. However, the number of slipways at a shipyard is limited, and the shipbuilding cycle is long, and one must queue up to wait for a slipway.

At least half a year, at most a year.

Therefore, a new profession was born - ship dealer.

Speaking of boat sellers, the old man looked disdainful. "Boat sellers are terrible. They will occupy the dock first, leaving people who really need boats to wait in line. Those who are in a hurry to use the boats have no choice but to pay a higher price to the boat sellers."

"We must resolutely boycott these ship traders who maliciously occupy the docks and make huge profits! Haha, the shipping market has been bad in the past two years, and the turtle sons are bound to suffer miserably."

Gao Yang bared his teeth and smiled gloatingly, "There are also advantages to buying a ship from a ship dealer. They usually wait until the shipyard has finished building it before selling it, which shortens the ship purchase cycle and also includes the formalities. It's like spending money to buy time."

Gu Mengran raised his eyebrows and said thoughtfully, "Oh, so what grandpa meant by using connections... is actually buying a boat from a boat dealer who 'firmly resists'?"

The old man's face flushed instantly, and he stared at Gu Mengran with gritted teeth, "Your grandfather used to work in shipping. Do you know anything about shipping? Where can I find acquaintances on the inland ships on this river?"

"I understand."

A smile won't disappear, it will just shift, Gu Mengran said with a smile.

Special times require special treatment. The shipbuilding cycle is at least half a year, and they can't wait.

While we were chatting and laughing, we arrived at the shipyard dock.

The spot ship purchased was missing the Jishui ritual. Gu Mengran's ship was already safely moored at the shipyard dock, waiting for acceptance by the ship owner.

Feng Yi is 69 meters long, 14 meters wide, 4.9 meters deep, and has a full load capacity of 3,000 tons.

The color of the hull is particularly bright, red below the waterline, dark green above the waterline and the deck, and the superstructure is white. The material used is a steel single deck, which is strong, wear-resistant and corrosion-resistant.

Unlike other bulk carriers moored at the pier, which have superstructures such as forecastle or poop at the bow and stern, the Feng Yi was modified according to the standards of a supermarket ship, with a new two-story superstructure welded directly on the flat and wide deck.

To put it simply, the superstructures of other cargo ships are limited to the bow and stern, occupying only a small part of the deck. However, the Wind Wing is equivalent to carrying two thousand square meters of large flat decks on the hull, leaving little open-air deck area.

The magnificent view from afar is not much different from a small cruise ship sailing in the Yellow River. When he climbed up to the pier to observe it up close, there were only two words left in Gu Mengran's eyes - shocking.

After the basic inspection of the ship was completed, the person in charge, Shan Shan, arrived late and led Meng Gaoyang and Gu Mengran on board.

The moment he officially stepped onto the deck along the gangway, Gu Mengran inexplicably felt a strong sense of belonging in his heart, because he knew that this ship would be their home from now on.

Gu Mengran participated in the interior design of the building with his grandfather, so he knew what it looked like inside.

But the experience of looking at the drawings is completely different from that of walking into the building in person. As soon as he entered, Gu Mengran was stunned by the bright and spacious "hall" in front of him. His lips were slightly open and he could not utter a word. He almost forgot to breathe.

The first floor has the largest area and serves as the supermarket's main sales floor.

Today, it was just the stage of picking up the ship, and the cargo shelves had not yet been brought in, so what was in front of Gu Mengran was a spacious and neat ship building that was comparable to a shopping mall lobby.

There are no partitions on the first floor. Standing at the door, you can see the entire building at a glance.

The ceiling lights shone brightly, the gray marble floor tiles were like mirrors, and the white walls were spotless... If the boat had not been swaying slightly with the river, Gu Mengran would have thought he had accidentally entered someone's renovated supermarket.

Perfect, quite perfect.

Before the disaster, social order still existed. In order to enter the water smoothly, they could only modify and renovate the shipbuilding according to regulations. The advantage of not making any partitions is that as long as there are enough materials, it is convenient to modify it after the disaster.

Gu Mengran and my grandfather were both very satisfied with the first floor, not to mention the second floor.

The Fengyi has a forward cockpit design. Going around the ship and entering the second floor from the open deck at the stern, there is a huge living room, the giant living room of nearly 150 square meters that Gu Mengran had always dreamed of.

The entrance, floor tiles, wall tiles, TV wall... all the decorations that a mainland living room should have are complete, and the space is so large that it is at the level of a luxury home. Even the person in charge couldn't help but say, "How grand! Such a large area is used as a living area."

Gu Mengran smiled and laughed, "I can't afford land on the mainland, so I can only realize my dream of a mansion on the ship."

Next to the living room is the dining room and a semi-open kitchen, plus a water bar. The decoration is very simple, but the basic supporting equipment such as stove, bar, cabinets, etc. are all available, just waiting for the kitchen utensils to be added.

Further in are the bedrooms, two master bedrooms and four guest bedrooms. All the rooms are designed as suites, and each room has a separate toilet and shower room...

In addition, there are two inconspicuous warehouses of 100 square meters in the back.

And finally, the brain of the Wind Wing - the cockpit.

Standing in the cockpit with tempered glass on three sides, you can have a very clear view of the majestic Huangjiang River and the ships entering and leaving the port.

There are so many instruments and equipment on the cockpit that it is overwhelming. Gu Mengran only found time to take the seaman's certificate exam last year and has never been able to practice on board. He only knows how to steer the ship and look at simpler equipment such as radar and electronic navigation charts.

Meng Gaoyang, who used to be a captain, is different. He looks at the familiar instruments and equipment in front of him, his heart filled with nostalgia and emotion.

After coming out of the cockpit, the person in charge offered to take them to the cabin.

If the cockpit is the brain, then the engine room is the heart of the ship.

Gu Mengran was not interested in this, so his grandfather followed the person in charge and went to the open deck outside the cockpit alone, enjoying the river breeze and thinking about what supplies to buy next.

Furniture, household appliances, fuel, various large equipment...

And the time left for them is only half a month.