Chapter 4

The night at sea was an endless expanse of blackness, with the once pure azure waters now turning into waves of dark water. The rocking of the ship varied in intensity, sometimes light, sometimes heavy.

Qin Yao sat in the cabin, feeling drowsy yet unable to sleep, as if she was suffering from insomnia. Her body felt a strong sense of weightlessness, and a long ringing sound echoed in her ears.

After shifting through several uncomfortable positions, Qin Yao covered her mouth with a handkerchief, feeling dizzy and on the verge of vomiting.

In the darkness, the person next to her grabbed her wrist. Qin Yao looked up and met a pair of eyes as black as lacquer.

Gu Cheng massaged a few acupuncture points on her hand and asked, "Feeling better?"

Qin Yao slouched in the chair, unwilling to open her eyes like a dead pig, enduring Gu Cheng's rough massage. This guy wasn't gentle at all, applying too much pressure, causing her immense pain.

Tears welled up from the pain.

Qin Yao sat up straight, quickly pulled her hand back, and said repeatedly, "I'm fine now."

She gasped a couple of times and looked at her hand, seeing a large area of interlaced crescent-shaped marks.

All of them were "pressed" out by Gu Cheng.

Whether it was according to traditional Chinese medicine acupuncture points or not, she didn't know, but it sure hurt a lot, painfully waking her up, with the roaring in her ears diminishing.

"It's really uncomfortable on the ship." Staying in the cabin felt like being wrapped in a balloon with thin oxygen, as if an invisible air pressure was pressing down on her.

Gu Cheng chuckled, "This is nothing compared to a storm."

Qin Yao leaned closer, curious, and asked him, "What do you do when you can't sleep at night on the ship?"

The young girl's face was full of curiosity and inquiry, her eyes wide like a cat's, bright as stars over the sea.

"Go out and look at the stars."

So the two of them sneaked onto the deck to look at the stars. The cabin was stuffy, but the deck had a strong wind, with ropes encircling the ship, not very high, and a few life buoys tied to them.

Qin Yao stared at the railing, her heart filled with apprehension, unable to stop herself from wildly imagining.

"Don't you think the design of this railing is unscientific, with too big a gap at the bottom? If you slip, you'd just slide out?" Qin Yao tugged at Gu Cheng's clothes and pointed to the abyss-like sea below.

Gu Cheng strode to the railing, turned back to see Qin Yao's resolute refusal to come closer, stifled a laugh, and pulled her, "No one's that foolish."

With both hands on the railing, Qin Yao felt like she was going crazy, as if standing on a rooftop, hallucinating a fall (or a plunge into the sea).

—She realized marrying a fisherman could be dangerous too.

The night watch marine police saw them leave the cabin and thought they were educated youths planning to flee the country. He warned, "At this point, even if you jump into the sea, you won't make it to Hong Kong alive, only to feed the fish."

"We're not educated youths." Gu Cheng negotiated with the marine police for a few words. Qin Yao didn't know what they said, but the police allowed them to continue enjoying the breeze on the deck.

Sitting on the deck, Qin Yao curiously asked Gu Cheng about his past fishing experiences, and he briefly recounted a few stories for her.

The vast waters of the South China Sea, besides Hainan Island, contained countless other islands. Many fishing boats and fishermen would dry fish on the islands in the South China Sea and then return.

Sometimes, when the weather wasn't cooperative and they encountered typhoons, they'd be stranded on an isolated island for a long time.

Fishing at sea also often led to encounters with fishermen and troops from other countries.

"Can you see a large area of coral in the shallow waters of the island? Beautiful coral? And can you also find natural pearls?" For Qin Yao, Gu Cheng's stories were like a wonderful adventure.

The natural environment was excellent, with few people on the islands and little pollution. There were vast areas of coral, and natural pearls hadn't been artificially harvested yet. The sea contained many natural treasures.

"No wonder going out to sea makes people feel exhilarated." Qin Yao listened with endless fascination and longing.

When the fishing net was cast, one never knew what treasures would be brought up. This uncertainty and full expectation of rewards were as addictive as a draw card game in later generations.

Gu Cheng's mouth twitched: "..."

"Hey!" Qin Yao leaned closer, whispering into Gu Cheng's ear, "Have you ever retrieved something like... equipment or detection devices deployed by other countries? Wouldn't there be a reward for turning it over to the state?"

Qin Yao rested her chin on her hand. She had heard that some fishermen became wealthy by retrieving equipment. If they retrieved a large item, the reward could be hundreds of thousands.

At this time, there probably wasn't that much, maybe only a few hundred or thousand yuan, but still a considerable amount. Initially, much military equipment relied on reverse engineering, thanks to the deep-water torpedoes launched by the other side, contributing to technological advancements on our side.

"No." Gu Cheng's expression was strange. He narrowed his eyes, his handsome face turning cold, looking at Qin Yao with a wary gaze.

Why would an ordinary young girl ask such a question?

"Oh." Qin Yao nodded, not dwelling on the question, listening to all these fresh and interesting stories, a gentle smile on her lips, feeling the cool night sea breeze, and sensing the once turbulent sea water beneath her feet becoming gentle.

When they reached the island, she wanted to see the coral, pick banana leaves, eat colorful rice cakes, and go beachcombing, collecting small seafood with salt, grilling oysters, clams, and mantis shrimp...

Perhaps she might also have the chance to experience a not-so-romantic love.

Qin Yao glanced at the young man beside her, her lips pursed in a gentle smile.

In that era of high housing prices and high living costs, it was hard to find true love in the hustle and bustle of modern cities. Most relationships were tainted with materialism and desires. In this era, not driven by materialism, perhaps she could find genuine feelings.

It was strange, others introduced her to elite professionals in finance and law, but she found herself interested in a fisherman, even fantasizing about a simple and interesting life on the island.

"Gu Cheng!" Qin Yao looked at him with a smile, then quickly reached out and wiped his face.

Since the first day, she hadn't checked Gu Cheng's affection towards her. By now, what would his real affection be? A stranger like Xu Wei had an affection of 50 towards her after just one meeting.

Surely Gu Cheng's wouldn't be that low? They had spent quite some time together.

"Would you like to check the affection?"

Qin Yao closed her eyes and chose "Yes" with utmost sincerity and anticipation. At that moment, she was like a fisherman who had cast his net, waiting to see the fruits of his labor.

"His favorability towards you -30 (He is full of suspicion towards you)"

-30?

Qin Yao was stunned on the spot. In the night breeze, Gu Cheng's handsome profile looked more mature and steady than during the day, exuding a masculine charm.

She had thought that Gu Cheng might not have a high favorability towards her, but at least it would be in the tens, right? But it was negative! Negative!

The cold sea breeze mercilessly hit her face. Qin Yao, in a daze, took two steps forward. She placed her hands on the railing and looked down at the dark, ink-colored sea. The deep, mysterious water stretched to the horizon, cold and enigmatic.

The sea water continuously hit the ship, creating sprays that unexpectedly splashed onto Qin Yao's face.

The spray fell on her face like mist, and she licked her lips, tasting the salty bitterness of the sea water.

Even the sea water was mocking her wishful thinking.

—Love, my ass.

*

Back in the cabin, all her illusions shattered. No more expectations. Qin Yao strangely fell asleep. The next day, everyone's mood was low. Qin Yao ate a little and continued the journey on the ship, rocking until the evening. That day, she didn't speak to Xu Wei and didn't say much to Gu Cheng either.

She only heard Tian Shuyun chatting noisily with a few female educated youths about marriage and relationships.

The ship arrived at Coconut City at 8:30, after about twenty-six or twenty-seven hours of sailing.

As the ship docked, people disembarked orderly. Qin Yao, who had rested all day, was full of energy. She quickly grabbed her suitcase and backpack, avoiding Gu Cheng's face.

She didn't say goodbye to Gu Cheng. They were strangers to begin with.

Knowing Gu Cheng's true favorability towards her, Qin Yao felt uncomfortable being around him all day. Indeed, she was no longer the pretty school flower but a 140-pound overweight woman. People might not say anything to her face, but who knows how much they despised her behind her back, shamelessly clinging and being annoying.

Full of suspicion towards her, what was he suspicious of? That she was wishful thinking? That she harbored ill intentions towards him?

"One room, for one night." Qin Yao took out her introduction letter, filled in all the details, and prepared to rest for the night at the guesthouse.

She carried her luggage upstairs. The accommodation was on the second floor. Opening the door, there was a faint dampness. The room was simple, furnished with only basic bamboo furniture.

The water flow in the toilet was minimal, taking a long time to fill a basin. Qin Yao simply wiped her face and washed up, then quietly lay on the bed. After a while, she thought of something and took out a slip of paper from her backpack. On it, in flamboyant handwriting, was an address.

Qin Yao tore the slip of paper into shreds and threw it into the trash without any hesitation.

She thought: "Dear brother, thank you for hating me so much and still accompanying me to watch the stars."

But, never again.

*

"Qin Yao."

As they disembarked, Gu Cheng called her several times. The young girl, lost in the crowd of educated youths, pretended not to hear, as if the boat ride had taken her life, eager to get off as fast as possible.

At that moment, her luggage didn't feel heavy anymore.

Qin Yao's mood was low all day. Gu Cheng thought she was seasick, uncomfortable after a day on the boat, and would feel better after resting on shore.

Gu Cheng deliberately kept his distance from her, and after disembarking, he ran into familiar comrades at the port, briefing them on a few matters.

"Captain Gu, are you on leave? What's with the attire?"

"I was on a business trip."

Gu Cheng retrieved a package he had stored at a comrade's house, which contained his military uniform. Tomorrow, he would submit his documents and get them stamped at the local office before returning by ship.

After finishing these tasks, Gu Cheng found himself inexplicably back at the port dock, but he couldn't see the familiar person.

"It's so late, she must be resting," Gu Cheng thought, feeling somewhat irritated. Qin Yao hadn't spoken to him much that day, which made him uncomfortable. Not only did she not talk to him, but she also didn't offer him any food or candy. Before disembarking, she hadn't said a word, eager to get off the ship.

It was as if she had completely ignored him.

He found his feelings strange. He had suspicions about Qin Yao, but she was just an eighteen-year-old girl, seeing the sea for the first time on a ship, filled with whimsical fantasies, asking a few naive and silly questions. He had been too paranoid.