Chapter 62 Chapter 62 Maritime Affairs

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The sun rose early, and the hot and dazzling light shone through the clouds, covering the silvery-white Huangjiang River with a layer of golden light, just like the sunflower fields in the memory of midsummer.

Through the telescope, the flower field turned into a field of corpses in a second. The bright sunlight made the view clearer. Among the dense schools of dead fish, one could see at a glance the corpses with pale skin that had swollen several times due to long-term immersion.

There were not just one or two bodies. After confirming what they were, Gu Mengran took a quick look and saw seven or eight. Then he suppressed his nausea and counted them carefully. There were at least thirty bodies floating on the river ahead.

The bodies were in different states because they fell into the water at different times. Most of them had already begun to rot, and along with the nauseating stench, the flesh and blood gradually separated from the skeletons and merged with the turbid river water.

Most of them died within three to five days. They lay in the icy river water, their bodies becoming extraordinarily large, standing out among the dead fish with their bellies turned up, like inflated balloons that would burst with a poke.

In order to count more carefully, Gu Mengran found that although the time of death was inconsistent, these corpses had one thing in common, which was -

Their exposed skin was not smooth. Their arms, necks, and even their swollen bellies were all covered with dense red rashes. Perhaps the itchiness had invaded their bone marrow, and bloody scratches could be seen everywhere on their bodies.

The scene was a bit too horrifying. Although many people died in the earthquake and many corpses were seen along the way, more than 30 corpses were soaked in the water at the same time, rotting and stinking. Some of them even became giants. It was simply horrible to watch.

The water was rippling, and the Fengyi was completely stable, only a thousand meters away from Lingjiang Port.

Even though he was wearing long sleeves and long pants, Gu Mengran felt a chill on his back.

It was a bit troublesome. He put down the binoculars, took a deep breath, and tried his best to suppress the nausea in his throat.

Although it was uncomfortable, it was still bearable. He, the person who had been watching for the longest time, had not yet been hurt when, the next second, a dry groan that shocked the heavens and the earth and made the ghosts weep suddenly sounded beside him.

Obviously, he was disgusted enough, Zheng Yijie bent over and vomited continuously.

Nothing came out, just dry vomiting. Two minutes later he raised his head, his face was pale, his eyes under the black frames turned red, and tears kept rolling down his cheeks.

A bottle of mineral water appeared out of nowhere in Gu Mengran's hand. He handed it to Zheng Yijie and asked softly, "Are you okay?"

Zheng Yijie couldn't wait to take the mineral water, raised his head and gulped down half a bottle. His complexion gradually returned to normal. He sniffed and said, "No, nothing happened. What happened? Am I dead? Is this hell?"

No one could answer this question. Seeing that the old man's face was not looking good, Gu Mengran took out a bottle of mineral water and handed it to him. He also took out a bottle of Fengyoujing and applied it evenly on the temples on both sides.

"Oh! It's really a ghost." The old man finished drinking the water and put the bottle under his armpit. He decisively stretched out his hand to Gu Mengran, "Give me some too. I feel a little disgusted."

"I want one too!"

Each person applied some medicated oil, and the strong minty smell filled the cab. The uncomfortable and nauseating feeling was gradually suppressed, and the air became exceptionally fresh.

The refreshing effect of Fengyoujing was well-known. The coolness stimulated his temples, and Gu Mengran became much more awake. But no matter how awake he was, he couldn't think of a solution for what happened here and how to deal with the current situation.

"What happened is not important." The old man turned around and looked at the river again. This time he did not use a telescope. He looked at the vaguely visible ships through the glass and said seriously, "What is important is these wayfaring boats. I don't know if there are people on them, what is the purpose of stopping here, and how we can get through."

Zheng Yijie took off his glasses, wiped his tears with a tissue, and helped analyze the situation: "Isn't there a tributary next to the bridge? Can we go around it?"

Gu Mengran lowered his eyes and looked at him as if he were a fool. "Waterways are different from landways. You can't just go around and get through."

"What can I do? Force my way in?" Zheng Yijie paced back and forth anxiously.

"It won't work." The old man, who was paying special attention to the ships, shook his head. "Those ships are connected by cables, and each one is bigger than the other. If we force our way in, both sides will be hurt. It will be troublesome if we damage the Wind Wing."

Zheng Yijie: "Then, then use the high frequency to call? See if there is anyone on it. If there is, we can discuss it with them. If not, we can move over and move the boat away?"

Gu Mengran frowned and sighed helplessly, "It won't work. Look at the corpses in the river. There must be some infectious disease outbreak here. Even if there's no one near, do you dare to get on the boat?"

"Neither this nor that works. What should I do?" Zheng Yijie grabbed his hair irritably.

Everyone was at a loss. The cab gradually became quiet, with sighs heard one after another. The air became dull and depressing. Even through the glass and the mask, one could vaguely smell the stench of decay on the river.

“Sizzle, sizzle—”

A burst of white noise broke the silence. Gu Mengran thought Heng Rong Sheng 2 was trying to contact him, but when he looked up, he saw Liang Zhao adjusting the high-frequency channel.

With a click, channel 22 jumped to the public channel, and a hoarse male voice came immediately:

"Attention, ships approaching, attention, ships approaching, this is the Lingjiang Port Maritime Patrol Team, please maintain a speed of 4 knots and berth at the water service area, there are injured people here who need help, thank you for your cooperation!"

He used a very formal tone, repeated three times in a row, and indeed sounded like a maritime officer.

Everyone stayed where they were just now, no one was going to pick up the pager to respond, even the most enthusiastic old man frowned, his eyes revealing vigilance.

There were no other ships in the river basin. Apart from Heng Rong Sheng 2, the only ones who could call upon the Feng Yi were the blocking boats.

It's the end of the world. Anyone who takes a walk on land will know that social order no longer exists. At this critical juncture, are we seeking help in an official tone and fooling fools who don't know the situation?

It was not possible to completely ignore it, after all, he had to find a way to get through. Liang Zhao pondered for a moment, raised his head and looked at Gu Mengran, then, with the other's approving eyes, reached out and picked up the pager.

"Hello, Lingjiang Port Maritime Patrol Team. This is the Fengyi. We have received your message and can cooperate with the berthing, but we have observed a large number of dead fish and floating corpses in the channel. We are not sure about the specific situation ahead. Please explain in time."

The other party was silent for so long that Gu Mengran thought there would be no response. Then the high frequency sounded again: "Hello Feng Yi, we are the survivors who gathered here after the earthquake. Some of us are maritime and staff members of Lingjiang Port, and some are crew members."

"We stayed at the port after the earthquake, helping and supporting each other and overcame the difficulties together. Until recently, a highly contagious chickenpox broke out in Lingjiang Port, and many people were infected."

"We didn't respond in time, the protective measures were not in place, and there was a shortage of medicine. In the end, more than 30 people died because they didn't get timely treatment. The corpses were also contagious. We had limited conditions and couldn't handle them. We could only throw them into the river."

He answered every question with a sincere tone and a friendly attitude. Meng Gaoyang and Zheng Yijie looked at each other and immediately believed most of it. Their expressions relaxed visibly.

Liang Zhao stopped talking in a pretentious tone and became an ordinary crew member again. He was a little timid when facing maritime affairs and asked with some worry: "Is the chickenpox under control now? This river basin doesn't look very safe. Will we be infected if we go there?"

The other party answered quickly and firmly: "It's under control! After a period of isolation, the last chickenpox patient has recovered. You should know that chickenpox is a self-healing disease. As long as the fever does not continue, it will naturally get better in about seven days."

"Since the situation is under control, why don't you go ashore? What are you doing stopping the boat here?" The old man was so curious that he couldn't help asking.

"Are you the captain?" Noticing that someone else had changed, the other person was more polite and friendly. "We have been to the shore. We landed not long after the earthquake. But the nearest town to Lingjiang Port is only a small county town. There is no rescue there at all."

"Then the weather got hot and we had nowhere to go so we returned to the port. At least here we have boats, air conditioning, a water service area next to us, and no shortage of fuel."

"As for blocking the way... I'm sorry to say that you should have discovered from downstream that this area of ​​water has been polluted by us. There are a lot of dead fish and carcasses, and the whole area is like a stinking ditch. We are not blocking the downstream, but the upstream. If there are boats coming, we must tell them not to touch the water as much as possible to prevent infection."

"Oh, so that's how it is." The old man completely relaxed his guard and instantly became an enthusiastic crowd. He quickly walked to the driver's seat and took the pager from Liang Zhao: "So what help do you need now?"

"Medicine! Any medicine, ahem, trauma medicine. One of our crew members was injured while working on the deck." The other party paused for a moment and smiled dryly, "Also, food and water. If you're interested, what's on board your ship?"

The old man was about to answer when Liang Zhao spoke first, "We have the ore, food, and medicine on board, but not much. If you need it, we can give you some of it. How many people are on board?"

"We are not many, only about a dozen of us left. If it is convenient, please give us some food and medicine evenly, a small portion will be enough. If you want to continue sailing, leave more for us. We will figure out a solution in the next few days."

The other party is not greedy at all and seems to care about them a lot.

The old man felt relieved, and even a little impatient, but Liang Zhao didn't give him a chance to speak. He took away the pager when he was not paying attention, and said in a dilemma:

"We are facing a problem now. There are too many dead fish along the way. Our propeller blades are overly worn and the efficiency is obviously reduced. There are still many dead fish in this section. If we continue to drive through like this, our propeller will be scrapped."

"So what do you mean?" the other party asked hesitantly.

Liang Zhao: "Help me clear the channel and assist us in completing the berthing."

Without much hesitation, the other party responded, "Okay!"