Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
It turned out that the young man had not deceived Li Hong. Just a few minutes later, the speedboat zipped across the sea surface and arrived at the designated area, coming to a halt.
Looking around, Li Hong noticed that there was not a trace of the submarine in sight, which made him feel anxious.
They had all arrived, yet the submarine had not surfaced as promised. Could something have gone wrong?
The speedboat remained idle on the empty sea surface for too long, and it was likely that they would be detected by the ever-watchful satellites. At that point, they would truly be trapped with no way to escape.
As the few people on the speedboat grew increasingly restless, the once calm sea surface below them suddenly began to churn violently.
Even in the dead of night, under the faint moonlight, they could see a dark shadow growing larger beneath the water's surface ahead.
"It's here!" The young man breathed a sigh of relief; he had genuinely worried that something might have happened to prevent the submarine from arriving.
Li Hong also felt a weight lift from his heart. The submarine had finally made it as promised. Once they boarded it, they would no longer have to live in constant fear and anxiety.
The submarine surfaced quickly, and amidst the swirling waters around them, a dark vessel gradually revealed itself.
As the submarine completed its ascent, an older man controlling the speedboat swiftly maneuvered it closer.
Just as they approached the towering body of the submarine, the hatch on top opened instantly. Several sailors quickly emerged and tossed down a rope ladder for climbing.
Li Hong held Yuchen in one arm while tightly gripping the ladder with his other hand. Battling against the biting sea wind, he swiftly began to climb upward.
Behind him was Lin Ruxian, her face pale. The effects of seasickness made it nearly impossible for her to stand upright, but ultimately her will to survive overcame her discomfort as she climbed the ladder with great effort.
Once they reached the hatch and confirmed their target was in place, the sailors retracted the ladder and led Li Hong's family into the narrow cabin. The hatch of the submarine closed behind them, and the Chief Engineer quickly issued orders for descent.
As the Submarine began to sink, the nearby speedboat also disappeared into the night along another route.
The young man did not board the vessel with Li Hong and the others; instead, he drove away in the speedboat with the older man, taking advantage of the darkness.
Inside the Submarine, Li Hong realized that this was truly not a place for people to stay. Even after many adjustments had been made, it was normal for someone new to feel dizzy in such a cramped space.
Lin Ruxian, for instance, was nearly leaning against the wall as she moved slowly forward. She had already felt unwell before entering this unusually stuffy environment, and now it was even worse.
Li Hong, however, was not seasick. Having lived alone before, he had grown accustomed to such oppressive surroundings and felt considerably better.
As for the air quality, there was no need to expect too much. After all, when Li Hong was at home as an Otaku, he could survive in a room filled with swirling smoke; this air was hardly a problem.
However, just because he could tolerate this environment did not mean that the two women could. Transitioning abruptly from the swaying sea surface to an atmosphere akin to that of a long-distance bus was uncomfortable for anyone.
While they were all feeling uneasy, a man adorned with shining stars stepped forward.
After bowing respectfully to Li Hong, he smiled and said, "Thank you for your hard work on the way here, Mr. Li. I am Liu Wenbo, the Captain of this Submarine."
"Hello, Captain Liu!" Li Hong shook hands with Liu Wenbo.
Noticing Lin Ruxian swaying precariously beside Li Hong and Yuchen in his arms looking pale, Liu Wenbo said, "Mr. Li, I won't take up much of your time after your long journey. You should go rest; you'll have more energy to return home after a good rest."
With that, Liu Wenbo turned to give some instructions to a Lieutenant Aide and then turned back to Li Hong with a smile. "The Submarine is simple; please don't mind it too much, Mr. Li. I appreciate your understanding."
"It's alright, it's alright. We're very grateful to have a place to rest," Li Hong said with heartfelt appreciation to Liu Wenbo.
This was only natural; a Nuclear Submarine was not built for the comfort of the Sailors aboard. Every inch of space had to be sacrificed for performance. Expecting any sort of comfortable resting environment on a Submarine was nothing short of a dream.
However, Li Hong didn't mind. After all, during their escape, having a place to rest was already a pleasant surprise for them. If they were to be picky, they wouldn't know how they would end up.
Soon, under the guidance of the Lieutenant Aide, Li Hong's family finally received their own private room.
It was clear that this was a temporary space cleared out from some Sailor's dormitory. In the cramped cabin, even someone as tall as Yao Ming would have to bend down to move around. The room was divided into three levels, with two rows of bunks on either side, enough to accommodate six Sailors.
This was quite something; after all, this cabin was only a few square meters in size. The passage between the bunks was barely a few dozen centimeters wide—too narrow for even a hefty person to pass through.
At the far end was a combined area for the toilet, shower, and washbasin.
After taking a look around, Li Hong felt genuine sympathy for the living conditions of the Sailors aboard the Submarine. The air was already stifling enough, and having to live in such cramped quarters must be tough for those serving as Submariners.
But there was no way around it; to maintain excellent performance, the design of the Submarine could not afford significant changes. Moreover, the function of a Submarine differed from that of surface vessels; being too large would actually be counterproductive.
While larger warships could enhance deterrence—at least on the Sea Surface—that wasn't the case for Submarines. The bigger the Submarine, the more likely it would be detected by local reconnaissance. What good is a Submarine that reveals its whereabouts?
For these reasons, the internal space of a Submarine is indeed very limited. Within that confined space, there must also be room for weapons, reactors, and various devices.
Once all these were installed, there wasn't much space left over. Thus, accommodations had to be arranged in such a makeshift manner.
Gently placing Yuchen on the bed and covering her with a blanket, Li Hong then helped the visibly pained Lin Ruxian to sit on the lower bunk across from him.
"How are you feeling? Any better?" Li Hong asked with concern.
Earlier, he had been too preoccupied with holding Yuchen and the urgency of the situation to check on Lin Ruxian. Now that things had calmed down a bit, he couldn't help but inquire about her condition.
Shaking her head slightly, Lin Ruxian replied softly, "It's nothing serious. I’ll just rest for a bit."
"What symptoms do you have? I can ask Captain Liu if there are any medications on board," Li Hong offered.
After a moment's hesitation, Lin Ruxian nodded and said, "I feel dizzy, and I have nausea—really intense nausea. My whole body feels weak; that's about it."
"Alright, you rest for now. I'll go ask them," Li Hong said as he helped Lin Ruxian lie down before hurriedly exiting the cabin.
Comment 0 Comment Count