Chapter 1 The Gulf of Mexico: Your brother is being too controlling.
When more than thirty missed calls came into view, Yi Lanjia really felt like she was doomed.
"Your brother is being too controlling. Does he really have to interfere when you're on a short trip?"
Across the table, Qiao Zimu took a sip of rosé sparkling wine and murmured his accusations.
Lan Jia was struggling with how to respond, so she decided to avoid her stern brother's judgment for a while.
Having just bought a new phone, she put the faulty phone (with the SIM card removed) into a sealed plastic bag and said dejectedly, "That's why I secretly came out without telling him."
During the summer vacation, while Meng Cenjun was away on a business trip, she and her friend Qiao Zimu flew to the Gulf of Mexico for a cruise. After a week of cruising at sea, they planned to arrive in Hong Kong tonight.
"After we disembark, come with me to find a repair shop; there are a lot of important documents inside."
"Who told you to be so focused on finding someone's ring on the beach that you didn't even notice your phone was submerged in water?" Qiao Zimu said irritably, exchanging the cut steak with her.
Lan Jia naturally enjoyed his service and mumbled, "A golden wedding anniversary ring is very meaningful, and I can't bear to see the elderly looking helpless."
The cruise ship stopped at a resort island midway through its journey and encountered an elderly couple who were very anxious because they had lost something. Seeing them hunched over searching under the scorching sun, their eyes blurred by the harsh sunlight, she couldn't bear to stand idly by.
"If only you cared about the people around you this much," Qiao Zimu muttered to himself.
She didn't hear what he said clearly, and just as she was about to ask, a familiar feeling of weightlessness, like the eve of falling asleep, suddenly washed over her.
Lan Jia leaned uncontrollably towards the [unclear - possibly a place name], and in her panic, she tried to grab something, only to see the tables and chairs also tilt and overturn.
In an instant, the huge restaurant was filled with the sounds of heavy objects falling to the ground and cups and plates shattering, and the panicked screams of the travelers rose and fell.
"Lan Jia!"
When Qiao Zimu saw her fall, he tried to help her up, but he couldn't stand up due to inertia. The two of them grabbed each other's arms and moved with difficulty, barely managing to lean against the heavy brown pillar.
Before they could catch their breath, a strong tremor, like an 8-magnitude earthquake, spread through the cabin.
Lan Jia stared wide-eyed, stunned, as the rising waves, like angry pythons, surged toward the cruise ship. The icy seawater, like snake tongues, licked the portholes again and again, like a scene from an apocalyptic disaster movie.
We had received warnings beforehand that Hurricane Morton, a Category 3 storm, had made landfall on the Gulf Coast of Florida, and the cruise ship had increased its speed to 28 knots as it headed toward the dock. However, we did not expect to encounter a storm at sea just as we were about to dock.
Land creatures always have a deep-seated, natural fear of the ocean. The entire cabin felt like it was being held in the hands of some Cthulhu-esque monster, and might be crushed to pieces at any moment.
As the slaughter began, Qiao Zimu closed his eyes and instinctively tightened his grip on Lan Jia's hand.
After an unknown amount of time, the rocking of the ship gradually subsided.
"Ladies and gentlemen, this is a general emergency signal."
Ladies and gentlemen, this is a standard emergency signal.
The captain's voice came over the loudspeaker, reassuring everyone to stay put.
However, most passengers had become so nervous that they lost their minds and began to flee aimlessly. Amidst the blaring alarms, staff members anxiously tried to maintain order, and the scene was in complete chaos.
Lan Jia took a few deep breaths and raised her hand to wipe the cold sweat from her forehead.
"Are you alright?" Qiao Zimu's face was pale, but he was still paying attention to her.
She shook her head, and the two helped each other to their feet, preparing to move to a safe place.
Just as I took a step, I saw someone suddenly fall to the ground in front of me, blocking my way.
Lan Jia was startled. Upon closer inspection, she saw that it was the silver-haired old lady who had been sitting at the next table. She was convulsing and gasping for breath.
She could endure two hours of scorching sun for a stranger's ring, so she certainly couldn't stand idly by in this situation.
Are you alright?
Without hesitation, Lan Jia squatted down to check and heard the old man's breathing wheezing, as if he were pulling a broken bellows.
The two exchanged a glance and immediately realized that the asthma had flared up.
"Do you have any medicine with you?" she asked, leaning close to her ear.
Patients usually carry it with them at all times.
The old man shook his head, his face turning purplish.
Lan Jia sensed something was wrong and made a quick decision, saying to Qiao Zimu, "Contact the staff to see if they can find a doctor. I need to go back to the cabin."
"But it's dangerous for you to be alone!" As soon as the words were spoken, a stack of bone china plates from the nearby cabinet crashed down and shattered into pieces.
Qiao Zimu hurriedly reached out, his fingertips barely brushing against her arm, but he still couldn't stop her.
The situation was critical, and Lan Jia ran forward without looking back. Fortunately, the first-class cabin was close to the restaurant, and she stumbled through the panicked crowd and made it back to her room safely.
I opened my suitcase and quickly rummaged through it to find a light yellow storage bag, which contained my usual aerosol spray.
She secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but then became anxious again when she thought about the old man's condition. She grabbed the medicine and rushed out of the room.
Having run here with all my might, I was fine, but now, standing in the strangely sloping corridor, illuminated by the eerie, flickering lights, I suddenly felt my steps falter and my legs tremble.
She swallowed hard in fear, deciding to press on despite the danger. But the storm returned, and huge waves crashed against the ship. Lanca felt dizzy and was thrown heavily against the walls, her bones aching from the impact.
The medicine bottle rolled forward with a clatter, but she didn't care. She crawled forward almost pathetically and finally managed to grab it back into her hand.
After finally reaching the restaurant, they saw Qiao Zimu talking to a staff member from afar, both of them looking extremely anxious.
When he saw her appear, it was like a savior had descended; he waved to her with great joy.
"here!"
Lan Jia, panting heavily, was about to rush over when a sudden jolt occurred. A metal dining car with slippery wheels came hurtling towards her. She froze for a moment, instinctively dodging forward, but stumbled and fell heavily to the ground.
The metal food cart slammed into the wall with a loud, explosive sound.
Lan Jia struggled to lift her head and saw that the cold, hard metal block had been dented and deformed from the impact. She stood there stunned, still unaware that she had almost been smashed to pieces.
Just then, her phone started buzzing in her pocket, startling her.
She guessed who was calling, but her eyes immediately welled up with tears, and a wave of emptiness and helplessness washed over her.
"Lan Jia!" came a shout from ahead.
As the waves began to subside, Qiao Zimu ran toward her in a panic.
"Are you alright?" He reached out to help her up, his face pale with anxiety.
"Never mind me, where's the doctor I told you to find?"
"How could you leave an old man there alone?" Lan Jia was immediately furious.
"I've asked the staff to take care of him and I've already contacted a doctor. There are just too many injured people on the ship, we're really overwhelmed," Qiao Zimu explained quickly as he pulled her along at a brisk pace.
Lan Jia broke free, shoved the aerosol spray into his hand, and gave him a push: "You know how to use it, hurry up and go!"
Qiao Zimu stumbled from the push and turned around to look at her in surprise.
"Go quickly!" she urged emphatically.
He seemed to realize something, his eyes filled with disbelief. However, the situation was urgent, and after glancing back at her several times, he still rushed over there reluctantly.
Lan Jia watched as he skillfully performed first aid on the elderly man, and her heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down.
She pulled her arm out from behind her back to check it; it was covered in blood.
That fall was really hard, and my whole body is still in a lot of pain.
He limped and staggered forward, then suddenly remembered the phone that had been ringing for ages.
I reached for my phone, opened the screen, and saw that another missed call had appeared.
Lan Jia sighed, sensing impending doom, but still dared not call back.
Qiao Zimu on the other side had finished his treatment. Fortunately, the old man only had a mild attack, and after taking a few doses of medicine, he was fine.
The ship's doctor arrived late, and after a thorough examination of the old man, praised him for his proper handling of the situation.
Lan Jia arrived at some point and gave him an approving smile.
Qiao Zimu didn't respond. He stood up expressionlessly and reached out to grab her wrist.
"Stop, stop, stop... be gentle!" Even though she hadn't used much force, Lan Jia still winced in pain.
Only then did he see the gruesome wounds, and his eyes immediately welled up with tears.
After a raging storm, the cruise ship finally docked safely.
Galveston Harbour was hit by torrential rain, and a sense of impending hurricane hung in the air under the gloomy sky.
Lan Jia and Qiao Zimu disembarked after completing the formalities.
The wound on her hand had been treated simply, but there were too many pieces of glass embedded in it, so the ship's doctor told her to go for a follow-up appointment as soon as she got ashore.
Qiao Zimu, carrying his luggage, with swollen eyes, kept glancing at Lan Jia, who looked exhausted.
Having been pampered since childhood, how could she have suffered like this? The more she thought about it, the more guilty she felt. Even though he was right under her nose, she still failed to take good care of her.
Seeing him drooping like a rabbit, Lan Jia laughed at him for being spineless: "I'm the one who's hurt, why are you crying? You're such a little brother."
“I’m only three months younger than you,” he accused with a stern face.
Then, thinking back to the dangerous situation just now, he became indignant again.
"And you too, couldn't you let me go get the medicine? It was so dangerous and you still rushed forward, we couldn't stop you! You went through all that trouble to save people, and in the end you didn't even get a thank you, and you even got yourself killed, what was the point?"
"Does saving someone have to come for something in return?" Lan Jia kicked him irritably. "It's just something I did on the spur of the moment. You business people always love to haggle over every little thing."
"You're not bothered by this, but what about me? What would I do if something happened to you? Do you know how scared I was? Yi Lanjia, can't you even consider my feelings?"
Seeing his sudden outburst, Lan Jia was stunned. After thinking it over carefully, she realized that she had indeed acted rashly.
"Alright, the situation was urgent, I didn't have time to think about these things at the time. Young Master Qiao, I hurt your fragile heart, can you apologize?" She patiently explained to him.
"Who asked you to apologize?" His expression darkened further.
She stared at him, then suddenly laughed, "Next time you say something tough, please wipe away your tears first."
He turned his head away angrily, and after a long while, he managed to suppress his emotions and speak with difficulty:
"You always make me feel useless."
"Lan Jia, you can actually tell me to do anything."
"No matter what difficulties you encounter in the future, please ask me for help immediately, okay?"
Faced with his earnest questioning gaze, Lan Jia felt a secret stirring in her heart.
The rain was heavy and rapid, pattering against the umbrella and falling down, splashing around their feet and forming a misty natural barrier.
Unfortunately, the untimely ringtone instantly shattered the atmosphere.
She tensed up and quickly said, "Quickly, get my phone down for me."
Qiao Zimu put down his luggage, rummaged through Lan Jia's crossbody bag, found the item, and handed it to her.
He took the umbrella and together they stared intently at the caller ID.
Lan Jia's heart pounded like a drum. She was about to answer the phone when she realized her fingertips were trembling. Helplessly, she exchanged a glance with Qiao Zimu. With his encouraging look, she finally resigned herself to her fate and moved the phone to her ear.
I pressed answer button, and there was a two-second silence on the other end before a cold voice came through the receiver: "Where are you?"
Brief, yet extremely intimidating.
The citizens outside the port were evacuated home, and a conspicuous black sedan was quietly parked on the empty roadside.
The car door opened, and a long, black umbrella was unfurled. A tall, slender figure walked toward the port.
Lan Jia was walking hesitantly in the heavy rain when she vaguely saw a figure ahead and stopped in her tracks.
As the person approached, they breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing them. "Young Miss, we've finally found you."
Lan Jia recognized him as Meng Cenjun's assistant, and felt a mix of emotions, both relieved and uneasy.
"Brother Qin, where's my brother?"
"I'll wait for you in the car." Zhou Qin nodded to Qiao Zimu and took the luggage.
Did he say anything?
"No, they just sent me to pick you up."
Lan Jia thought to herself, "Oh no, now I'm not sure just how angry Meng Cenjun is."
Seeing the troubled look on her face, Zhou Qin couldn't help but offer a few words of advice: "After finishing his work in California, your husband rushed over as soon as he heard about you. The hurricane is about to hit Texas, and the nearby airports are all closed. It's been a very difficult journey."
She lowered her eyes, feeling inexplicably depressed, and remained silent.
Qiao Zimu glanced at Lan Jia secretly and whispered comfortingly, "I'll be there for you if you get scolded."
She forced a smile, but wasn't in the mood to respond.
The three quickened their pace and left the access road, finally spotting the parked car.
Zhou Qin was responsible for carrying the luggage into the trunk.
Lan Jia hesitated for a long time, not daring to go in.
Qiao Zimu knew there was someone in the back seat, and exchanged a bitter look with her, indicating that he couldn't help.
Zhou Qin then came over, opened the car door for her, and gestured to her.
Having no other choice, she had no choice but to bite the bullet and get into the car.
"Young Master Qiao, over here."
Qiao Zimu sighed inwardly and went to the passenger seat.
As soon as Lan Jia sat down, she felt herself instantly enveloped by a cold and suffocating atmosphere.
She pressed herself against the window, staring straight ahead, barely daring to breathe.
The car slowly started moving, heading towards midtown Galveston. They would need to stay at the hotel for a few days until the storm passed before taking a private plane back home.
Lan Jia clutched the wet plaid skirt hem on her knees, looking like a chipmunk trapped in a cage, completely lost and helpless.
After what seemed like an eternity, the person beside him finally spoke in a deep voice:
"How did you get your hand injured?"
A note from the author:
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com