"Nonsense, what does it matter to us whether a Chinese woman lives or dies?" Takeuchi Yako retorted, unaware that a surge of anger was already blazing in Chen Xiao's eyes!
What does it have to do with anything?
Chen Xiao bit his lip, then gave a bitter smile, staring at Takeuchi Yako: "What does it matter! Well said! Well said! I've been fighting for my life outside just to protect your prince! Actually, whether your prince lives or dies has nothing to do with me!"
After saying that, he glared at Takeuchi Yako and suddenly sneered, "You...you're lucky, you're a woman!"
After saying that, he didn't even glance at Sato, and turned to walk out the door.
"Hey! What do you mean by that?!"
Enraged, Takeuchi Yako drew his katana halfway out.
"You're a woman. That's why I won't hit you." Chen Xiao snorted and strode to the door. "I've done what I was supposed to do! From now on, your lives and deaths are none of my concern!"
"Chen Xiaojun?"
Tang Ying called out, her face showing a strange expression, as if she didn't understand why Chen Xiao had suddenly turned hostile: "You..."
"Goodbye!" Chen Xiao said with a gloomy expression.
Damn it! These Japanese!
He walked quickly toward the door. The Japanese bodyguards seemed to want to stop him, but Chen Xiao raised his head and snorted. Takeuchi Yako behind him sneered, "Let him go! Our prince doesn't need a Chinese person to protect him!"
Chen Xiao laughed twice and had already walked to the outside corridor when he heard a series of hurried footsteps behind him. He turned around and saw Tang Ying, who was still wrapped in her coat and barefoot, running after him.
"Why did you follow me?" Chen Xiao's expression was not good.
"Grandpa...Grandpa said I have to follow Chen Xiaojun no matter what," Tang Ying replied timidly.
Chapter 153 [Things Have Changed...]
"What... should we do?"
Zhang Xiaotao, who had finally squeezed onto the deck, stared blankly at the chaotic and crowded people in front of her, feeling somewhat lost.
At this moment, there was no order on the deck. Passengers of all ages and genders were crammed together. Although the crew did not dare to leak the news that the ship was about to sink, all sorts of alarming rumors were still spreading among the crowd. People were screaming, shouting, pushing and shoving each other, and some even fell and were trampled and injured.
At times like these, the ugly aspects of human nature, such as selfishness, darkness, evil, violence, and so on, can be revealed when facing a desperate situation. People can tear off their usual pretenses when they are about to face a desperate situation. At this time, escaping for their own lives is the most important thing. Who cares about others?
Several crew members tried to maintain order, but were violently pushed aside by a group of passengers who rushed forward. Among them were some young and strong men who simply swarmed forward, crowding and jumping onto the lifeboats, which were only half-deployed. They then pushed and shoved each other desperately. As the number of people on the lifeboats increased, some hot-tempered men, their eyes already red, forcefully kicked back the hands that were climbing on them. For a moment, cries and screams rose and fell.
In some places, there were instances of passengers trying to snatch guns from crew members. Fortunately, these crew members were professionally trained and managed to maintain a safe distance while firmly guarding their weapons.
Gunfire erupted from three directions on deck; crew members were firing warning shots. But the collapsed order and the broken humanity, amidst despair and fear, ironically produced a near-perverted "courage." Faced with the gunfire, some, already on the verge of madness, had only one thought in their minds:
Charge! Get to the lifeboats first! As for the guns these crew members have—there are so many of us, and they only have a few guns. They might not even be able to hit me!
Even worse, some people started taking advantage of the chaos. Behind the crowd, several young and strong men began robbing single young people, the elderly, children, or women—human nature is often like this; once the mask of civilization is torn off, there is always room for some barbaric evil to flourish.
Zhang Xiaotao stared blankly at the chaotic deck, which resembled a battlefield. She still clutched the fireworks in her hand, oblivious to the fact that while she herself wore a panicked expression, the elegant middle-aged woman beside her remained remarkably calm. Her captivating eyes detachedly observed the diverse faces of the crowd, the gaze in them unreadable—was it pity or some kind of mockery?
The ship's tilt was the main source of everyone's fear. Everyone was worried that if they didn't make it onto a lifeboat before the ship sank, they would lose their lives. The crew had limited manpower, which was stretched thin as they had to maintain order and also operate the lifeboat landing gear.
"This, this, this..." Zhang Xiaotao's lips moved. She murmured to herself, her eyes filled with fear and panic, "This...it's just like in the movies..."
"This is humanity." Fireworks beside her seemed to smile. Zhang Xiaotao felt her palm being gripped by the other's hand. Although Fireworks' fingers were icy cold, the grip on Zhang Xiaotao's hand was firm. It was this firmness that gave Zhang Xiaotao a strange sense of comfort. She then heard the elegant woman slowly say, "This is humanity, this is human nature. Whether white, black, or yellow… most human nature in the world is like this. Humans are inherently animals cloaked in civilization. When that cloak is torn away, what remains is only bestiality."
As she spoke, the elegant woman sighed, then pulled Zhang Xiaotao aside, causing them to retreat to the very back of the crowd.
"What do we do?" Zhang Xiaotao looked at the woman. She was already somewhat flustered, acting involuntarily. Yet, she placed her support on this woman—that's how people are; when you're panicked, if there's someone beside you who remains calm, you naturally develop a sense of dependence on that person.
"Don't panic." Fireworks looked at Zhang Xiaotao, noticing the sweat on the pretty girl's forehead, and reached out her other hand to gently stroke Zhang Xiaotao's forehead, saying softly, "You're a good girl. Don't worry, you won't die here, I'm very sure of that."
Zhang Xiaotao had no idea that the person next to her was the world's greatest prophet—since Yan Hua said she wouldn't die here, then there was absolutely no problem.
Zhang Xiaotao's body was trembling slightly, whether from the cold sea breeze on the deck or from her inner fear, she didn't know.
Whoosh!! Bang!!
At the stern, crew members had already launched signal flares into the sky. In the darkness, the flares shot up into the night sky, their light reflecting off the stars, before slowly gliding down to the horizon. This sight caused a brief moment of silence among the crowd, but then, an even greater panic swept over them!
The screams and gasps seemed to erupt again suddenly, and even more violently than before!
"Madam! Madam!!"
A crew member squeezed through the crowd, spotted Zhang Xiaotao and Yan Hua, and rushed over: "You two, get to the front! Women and children can go on the lifeboats first! Don't just stand here like idiots!"
The conscientious sailor's rebuke only made Yan Hua smile. Then, the sailor shoved two life jackets into the hands of the two women and growled, "Quick! Follow me, I'll get you through!"
With that, he charged forward with all his might. Using his strong body, the crewman forced his way through the crowd with the two of them. Some of the people around him who were desperately pushing and shoving were enraged by this action, and soon punches and kicks came from all around. The crewman took a few hits, but he knew that he couldn't get entangled in the crowd at this time, otherwise he would probably get stuck in the already frantic crowd.
"Don't stop! Keep moving forward!"
"Stop pushing!"
"Why were they allowed to leave first?!"
"Mommy! I want my mommy!"
"I don't want to die here!"
"Get out of my way! Get out of my way!!"
"Let me go first! Let me go first!"
Voices, filled with anger, sorrow, and malice, relentlessly assaulted Zhang Xiaotao's ears, nearly causing her to faint. At that moment, Yan Hua, however, seemed far stronger than her. Almost as if Yan Hua was pulling Zhang Xiaotao along, the two miraculously squeezed through the crowd with the crew member to the edge of the deck. There, several crew members were forming a human wall, desperately maintaining the last line of defense, while three others were frantically lowering lifeboats. Someone saw their companion approaching with two women and quickly sent two people to assist them, managing to pull them out of the crowd.