The icy aura within Acheng's body began to melt away at this moment. The eldest brother shook his body vigorously, and he quickly regained consciousness, swaying as he asked, "Big brother, what are you doing?"
"Why are you asking me this? I should be asking you! How did you end up here? Didn't I tell you to go buy gasoline? Did someone attack you?" The leader asked in a deep voice.
The third brother was also searching around to see if anyone was there.
Acheng paused, then shook his head, carefully recalling the events before finally remembering what had just happened. He touched his head, frowned, and said, "No, no one attacked me. I just tripped and fell when I got here..." After a moment's thought, Acheng added, "I remember now. Last month, I was sleeping in my room when I suddenly got up to pee. I tripped and fell in the bathroom—no, no, not tripped, but fainted. It seems like that happened just now too. I guess I might be a little anemic, so I faint occasionally."
The eldest brother snorted and said, "So young, how come you got this disease? In our line of work, good health is the most important thing."
After saying this, the eldest brother beckoned to the third brother and said, "Third brother, no need to check, there's no one here."
The eldest brother had basically ruled out the possibility of an attack or ambush; it seemed that Ah Cheng had simply fainted and was looking for trouble. After thinking for a moment, he said angrily, "Third brother, you take the can to the gas station and buy some gasoline. Ah Cheng and I will wait for you in the car. Go quickly and come back fast."
The third brother responded, then picked up the jug from the ground and walked towards the gas station.
About twenty meters away from them, Zhou Xuan pulled Yu Qi close and quietly hid behind them. Yu Qi heard the conversation of the gang members and was so frightened that she trembled.
Zhou Xuan used his solar flame ability to dispel most of Yu Qi's coldness. Yu Qi only felt a little warmer, but she didn't know it was Zhou Xuan who did it. Her shivering disappeared without her noticing.
Zhou Xuan whispered to Yu Qi, "Let's go around from that side, but be careful not to make any noise."
Yuqi followed Zhou Xuan around the road with trepidation. Fortunately, they did not disturb the boss and Acheng. After getting onto the highway from the other side, the two of them walked across the road.
As Zhou Xuan explored ahead, he reached a fork in the road. One path led back to the city, while the other led to the seaside, where Zhou Xuan's ship was moored.
Zhou Xuan took his phone out of the plastic bag, checked the time—it was almost ten o'clock. Fu Gui had arranged to meet him at ten o'clock. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Miss Yu, if you take this road, you won't run into the thugs who sell gasoline. Then you can hitch a ride back. Those three thugs won't know you're still alive, so you're safe."
"No, no, no!" Yuqi suddenly grabbed Zhou Xuan's arm tightly and said urgently, "I can't leave you. It will be dangerous for me to go back now. I have to stay with you and hide."
Zhou Xuan was taken aback. Yu Qi continued, "You heard it too. The person who harmed me was my second brother, and I can't even be sure if it was him. Maybe the real culprit is someone else. I'm in a very dangerous situation right now, so I can only beg you to let me stay with you for a few days. I can only go home after we figure this out."
Zhou Xuan frowned, realizing he had shot himself in the foot and brought trouble upon himself.
But then again, what Yuqi said made sense. It's just that she came to him instead of someone else, but now he was going out to sea on a ship. He couldn't possibly bring her on board, could he?
"No, I need to get on the ship and head out to sea now. It's already arranged with Fugui. We'll board at 10 o'clock, and Uncle Yu and the others will set sail promptly after they board at 12 o'clock. If you come with me, how am I supposed to work?"
Zhou Xuan shook his head and then said, "Besides, women are not allowed to go out to sea on the ship."
Yuqi hurriedly said, "That boat belongs to the Yu family. What's wrong with it? If I say it's okay, then it's okay. Besides, hiding on the boat now is actually the safest place for me. If the people who harmed me think I'm dead, that would be the best outcome, because it means I'm safe. I can also take this opportunity to find out who harmed me."
Zhou Xuan sighed, thought for a moment, and then said, "Alright, here's what we'll do. You come with me secretly onto the ship and hide in my room. Don't make a sound and don't let anyone notice. You never know if the people on the ship aren't accomplices of the murderer who killed you."
Yuqi nodded. If the murderer was indeed her second brother, then the ship was also their family's property. It was perfectly normal for the workers on the ship to have a relationship with her second brother. Although she still didn't believe deep down that the murderer behind the scenes was her second brother, all the clues from beginning to end showed that he was connected to her second brother. Yuqi was feeling dejected.
The memory of escaping death was still weighing heavily on Yuqi's mind, making it hard for her to relax.
Because he was worried about running into Fugui and letting him discover that Yuqi had boarded the ship, Zhou Xuan had to have Yuqi come with him on the ship beforehand. Based on the last experience, if he was careful, Yuqi could hide in the ship's room and still not be discovered. Besides, Yuqi was right. Given Uncle Yu's personality, if Yuqi was in trouble, he would definitely do his best to help. As long as he could keep it from him for now, that would be fine.
Of course, it would be best if Yuqi stayed on the ship without being discovered by others until they returned from the voyage. On the ship, most people wouldn't go to his room. Apart from playing cards and chatting in the main cabin, he would spend the rest of his time sleeping. Then, once they reached their destination, he would cast his nets, fish, and get to work.
When they arrived at the fishing boat, it was ten minutes to ten. Zhou Xuan first slipped onto the boat to check, and finding no one there, he returned to the shore and called out Yu Qi, who was hiding to the side. The two of them then secretly boarded the boat.
Zhou Xuan opened his cabin door and let Yuqi hide in the room. He then instructed her, "Lock the door first. It can't be opened from the outside. I'll sit in the cabin for a while and wait for them to come over."
Yuqi nodded, closed the door, and locked it from the inside. Zhou Xuan was taken aback. That was true, but she had occupied her room. What would she do if Uncle Yu and the others had nothing to do after boarding the ship and were told to go back to their rooms to sleep? It would be troublesome if others saw that her door was locked from the inside.
Zhou Xuan turned on the ship's lights and sat on the deck to look at the stars. But for the first time ever, the thought of looking at the stars made him think of Wei Xiaoqing.
At Hong Ge's house, on the rooftop, the time he spent watching the stars with Wei Xiaoqing on the rooftop came back to him, and Zhou Xuan couldn't help but smile. Memories are always beautiful.
Upon hearing the sputtering of a motorcycle, Zhou Xuan turned around and saw that Fu Gui was arriving in his brother's car.
Actually, Uncle Yu didn't expect Zhou Xuan to come to the ship with Fu Gui at 10 o'clock to prepare, because his rank and status were far higher than the other workers on the ship. However, Uncle Yu didn't explain this to Fu Gui, and Fu Gui liked to chat and play with Zhou Xuan, so he made an appointment to come with him again, just like last time.
But we'll just chat today, because we're heading out to sea at noon. There won't be enough time to order chicken for a quick meal, and if Uncle Yu finds out, he'll be in big trouble.
After Fugui's younger brother dropped him off at the shore, he rode his bicycle back. Fugui saw Zhou Xuan sitting on the deck with the lights on, and immediately walked over to the boat with a smile, saying, "Brother, why are you here so early? Hehe, well, come on, let's have a drink and a snack."
As Fu Gui spoke, he placed the large plastic bag he was carrying on the deck, took out the contents, and found two lunch boxes. He opened the lids to reveal roast duck and roast chicken, as well as more than a dozen bags of snacks.
Fu Gui handed several bags of squid strips to Zhou Xuan, saying, "You eat this first. This is seafood produced by our Jiang family factory. It's fresh squid strips, very fragrant and delicious. You eat this first, I'll go to the boat and get a few cans of beer."
Seeing Fugui walk into the boat, Zhou Xuan suddenly remembered Yuqi hiding in his room. His heart skipped a beat. He was afraid Fugui would find him, so he quickly got up and followed him inside.
Fu Gui went to the storage room and got some beer, then a few cans of seafood. His hands were full, and Zhou Xuan didn't help him. He just let him carry them, closed the storage room door, and followed behind him.
Fu Gui didn't think much of it, but since his hands were full, he didn't look at the other rooms.
They went back to where Zhou Xuan had been sitting, sat down, opened two cans of beer, handed one to Zhou Xuan, took the other for himself, and without a word, took a big gulp before letting out a long sigh and praising, "That feels so good!"
After taking a big gulp of wine, Fu Gui held up the jar to Zhou Xuan, who also took a sip. He didn't use his special ability to convert and absorb it; if he were to get truly drunk, he would like to forget his longing, forget his current troubles, and forget everything.
As the ancient poem says, "What can dispel sorrow? Only wine." But Zhou Xuan drank more than half a can of beer, yet his mind remained perfectly clear, without a trace of drunkenness. His worries were still swirling in his head.
Fu Gui took another sip and then said, "Brother, I think Miss Yu is acting strangely towards you."
Fu Gui's inexplicable remark startled Zhou Xuan, who quickly asked, "What's wrong?"
Could it be that Fugui had already discovered that Yuqi was hiding on the boat?
Volume 1, Chapter 456: The Princess's Revenge (Part Two)
Chapter 456 The Princess's Revenge
Zhou Xuan had some doubts about whether Fu Gui really knew something was wrong. Although he had no relationship with this second young lady of the Yu family, if he were found hiding in Fu Gui's room right now, he would be in deep trouble.
This might attract comments like "a toad trying to eat swan meat" or "not knowing one's own limitations." Although we now live in a technologically advanced society, the rigid class mentality still exists among the wealthy upper class. It's not like the daughter of a high-ranking leader can marry an ordinary person; this society is still very realistic.