readsfreenovel Chapter 156 Going to the Island
Chapter 156 Going to the Island
The boat rocked again.
Song Huan didn't move; she squatted there, her hands resting on the railing.
Her forehead was pressed against her arm, and her bangs hung down, covering half of her face.
Xiao Yunqing stood to the side, still clutching the pack of tissues in her hand.
The sea breeze blew in from the side, salty and wet, and blew her hair onto her face.
She glanced at the sea.
Very big.
It was a grayish-blue color, stretching all the way to the horizon, with no end in sight.
Waves pushed in from afar, one after another, causing the boat to rock.
She suddenly found the sea a bit annoying.
How can it be so big?
Why haven't they arrived yet?
Song Huan moved slightly, taking her hand off the railing and bracing herself against the ground, trying to stand up.
Xiao Yunqing bent down and touched his arm.
He stood up straight, his face looked unwell, and his lips were pale.
A thin layer of sweat appeared on his forehead, which was dried by the sea breeze, leaving a white residue.
"Are you feeling better?" she asked.
"Um."
He took the pack of tissues, pulled out another one, and wiped his forehead.
Chen Xu was still squatting nearby, his face facing the sea, motionless.
Zhao Qihang walked over from the other end of the deck, carrying two bottles of water. He saw Chen Xu squatting there, walked over, and squatted down next to him.
"Are you alright?" He handed her a bottle of water.
Chen Xu took it, but didn't drink it; he put it on the ground.
Zhao Qihang patted his back with considerable force, causing Chen Xu to lean forward slightly.
Chen Xu turned his head and glanced at him.
The look in his eyes was hard to describe; it wasn't anger, nor gratitude, it was just a glance.
Then he turned his head and glanced at Xiao Yunqing and Song Huan.
Song Huan leaned against the railing, with Xiao Yunqing standing beside him, her hand on his arm, not letting go.
She took out a tissue from her pocket, pulled out another one, and wiped Song Huan's mouth.
Chen Xu withdrew his gaze and turned to look at Zhao Qihang.
Zhao Qihang was squatting down, his hands resting on his knees, staring blankly at the sea.
Chen Xu stared at him for two seconds.
Zhao Qihang sensed it, turned his head, and the two looked at each other.
"Are you fucking an idiot?" Zhao Qihang said. "I'm not going to wipe your mouth for you!"
Chen Xu didn't say anything and turned back.
Zhao Qihang scratched his head, picked up the bottle of water from the ground, unscrewed the cap, and handed it to Chen Xu.
"Drink some water, don't get dehydrated later."
Chen Xu took it, took a sip, and then handed it back.
Zhao Qihang caught it, screwed on the cap, and placed it on the ground.
Neither of them spoke; they just squatted there, looking at the sea.
The boat rocked again.
The whistle sounded, a long, drawn-out blast.
Xiao Yunqing stood on tiptoe to look ahead. The dock was getting closer. There was a gray-white cement platform with several people standing on it, wearing orange vests and holding ropes in their hands.
"We're almost there," she said.
Song Huan saw it too.
He bent down to pick up the bag that was placed at his feet.
His hand had barely touched the bag strap when his other hand was faster.
Xiao Yunqing picked up the bag and slung it over her shoulder.
The bag strap was digging into her shoulder, so she tilted her head back and reached for her pink backpack.
Both bags were hanging on my body, one on my left shoulder and one on my right shoulder.
The strap was tight, and my shoulders slumped down a little.
She gritted her teeth and remained silent.
Song Huan was stunned for a moment and looked at her.
"Let's go," she said, tugging at his sleeve. "You'll feel better once we get off the ship."
The steps were narrow, and she walked ahead, carrying two bags on either side. As she crossed the steps, she shifted her body slightly, and the bags scraped against the iron railing with a dull thud.
Song Huan followed behind, reaching out to help her carry one.
She didn't turn around and walked away quickly.
Stepping onto the concrete of the dock, she turned around and looked at him.
"Are you feeling better?"
Song Huan nodded.
His face was still pale, his lips were bloodless, and sweat was breaking out on his forehead again.
She quickly pulled out another tissue from her pocket, took one out, stood on tiptoe, and wiped his forehead.
The movement wasn't gentle; the tissue brushed against him, lifting up his bangs as well.
He took half a step back.
"Don't move," she said.
He stopped again.
She wiped it twice, leaving a damp patch on the tissue, which she then held in her hand.
He then took a water bottle out of his pocket, unscrewed the cap, and handed it over.
Song Huan took it and drank two sips.
The water was warm; it slid down my throat and warmed my stomach.
"Thank you," he said.
Xiao Yunqing didn't say anything, but tightened the cap on the water glass and put it back in her bag.
I looked down and rummaged around for a bit, and found a piece of chewing gum with green wrapper and mint flavor.
Hand it over.
Song Huan took it, tore it open, and stuffed it into her mouth.
The minty flavor exploded on my tongue, cool and refreshing, and it cleared my head a little.
He chewed a couple of times, then looked at the two bags on her body.
The strap of her pink backpack slipped off her shoulder; she lifted it up slightly, and it slipped down again.
"Give me the bag," he said.
"I can do it."
She gritted her teeth, forcing out the words through the gaps between them, her chin held high, refusing to look at him.
The bag strap slipped down again, but this time she didn't try to catch it; it just hung there.
Lu Xu stood on the open ground in front of the dock, holding a small flag in his hand. It had a blue background with white lettering that read "Jiangcheng No.1 Middle School".
"Class Four! Assemble here!"
Xiao Yunqing pulled Song Huan's sleeve and walked in that direction.
She walked quickly, swinging her two bags around on her body without paying any attention.
She walked to the side of the line, let go of his hand, and stood next to him.
Lu Xu called out names one by one, glancing at Song Huan a little longer when he called his name.
"You look so pale?"
"seasick."
Lu Xu nodded without saying anything more.
The tour guide was a young woman wearing a red vest and holding a megaphone.
She stood at the front of the line, her voice coming from the loudspeaker, sounding a bit shrill.
"Students, come with me, let's go to the campsite to put our luggage away first."
The campsite is not far, about a ten-minute walk.
Two buildings stand side by side, with gray-white walls and three stories high.
The building on the left has a sign that says "Boys' Dormitory" on it, and the building on the right has a sign that says "Girls' Dormitory".
Lu Xu stood between the two buildings, hands on his hips.
"You have half an hour to pack your things and come down to assemble. Don't go to different dorms or wander around."
Zhao Qihang was the first to rush into the boys' dormitory building, followed by Chen Xu, who walked slowly and still looked unwell.
Song Huan stood at the door, and Xiao Yunqing took the bag off his shoulder and handed it to him.
He took it; the bag strap still held the warmth of her shoulder.
She swung her arm, her shoulder ached, and then spun around twice.
The movement was small, but his brow furrowed slightly.
"Go upstairs," she said.
Song Huan nodded and turned to walk into the building.
After taking a couple of steps, I heard no sound from behind.
He glanced back.
She was still standing there, looking at him.
When she saw him turn around, she paused for a moment, then lowered her head and unconsciously touched her clothes with her fingers.
Song Huan turned back and went upstairs.
Xiao Yunqing stood downstairs, watching his figure disappear at the top of the stairs.
She looked down at her shoulders.
The bag strap left a red mark on the T-shirt where it had been pulled.
She pressed it with her hand; it hurt a little.
It turned red after I carried it for a short while.
He carried me on his back since I was a child.
I carried it from kindergarten to elementary school, and from elementary school to junior high school.
She pursed her lips, slung her bag over her shoulder, and walked toward the girls' dormitory.
After putting my luggage away, when I came downstairs, the sun was already high in the sky.
The tour guide stood at the entrance of the cafeteria, holding a megaphone.
"Students, we'll have lunch here. It's all freshly caught by local fishermen this morning."
The cafeteria was large, with more than a dozen round tables covered with white tablecloths.
The dishes have been served, with large and small plates filling the table.
Boiled shrimp, steamed crab, stir-fried clams, braised fish, squid rings, and conch soup.
These items would cost several hundred dollars to buy in a big hotel.
But at the dock market in the early morning, you can get everything for just a few dozen yuan.
Zhao Qihang sat down, his eyes lighting up.
"Wow, this is so lavish."
He was the first to pick up his chopsticks, took a shrimp, peeled it, put it in his mouth, chewed it a couple of times, and then went to pick up a crab.
Chen Xu sat next to him, a bowl of rice in front of him, untouched.
He looked at the seafood on the table, and after a while, his gaze shifted to the plate of stir-fried vegetables.
He picked up a piece with his chopsticks, put it in his mouth, chewed it twice, and swallowed it.
He picked up another piece with his chopsticks.
Song Huan sat opposite him, with a bowl of rice in front of her.
He picked up his chopsticks, took a piece of fish, glanced at it, and put it back.
I picked up another shrimp, glanced at it, and put it back.
Finally, he picked up a piece of green vegetable with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth.
With his mouth full of crab meat, Zhao Qihang mumbled, "Aren't you going to eat any? This crab is incredibly fresh."
Song Huan shook her head.
Chen Xu also shook his head.
Zhao Qihang peeled another shrimp, stuffed it into his mouth, and said, "Then you guys are at a loss."
Xiao Yunqing sat at the table with the girls, together with Zhou Shan and the others.
There was a table of dishes in front of her, but she barely touched them.
His gaze kept drifting towards the table next to him.
Song Huan sat there, picked up a piece of green vegetable with her chopsticks, put it in her mouth, chewed it twice, swallowed it, and then picked up another piece.
She frowned.
"Song Huan!" she called out.
The sound wasn't loud, but since the two tables were close together, both could hear it.
Song Huan raised her head.
"Eat more."
After she finished speaking, she turned to look at Zhao Qihang and said, "Zhao Qihang, put more food on his plate."
Zhao Qihang, still chewing on crab meat, paused for a moment before realizing what was happening.
He picked up a piece of fish with his chopsticks and put it in Song Huan's bowl.
He picked up another piece of spare rib and put it in Chen Xu's bowl.
"Eat, eat, don't be shy." He patted Song Huan on the shoulder with a smile, "You're welcome, I'm just being helpful."
Song Huan looked down at the piece of fish in the bowl, but didn't touch it.
Chen Xu also looked down at the piece of pork rib in his bowl, without touching it.
Zhao Qihang had already turned back to continue peeling shrimp.
Zhou Shan sat next to Xiao Yunqing, picked up a clam with her chopsticks, put it in her mouth, chewed it a couple of times, and smiled.
"Just spoil him."
Xiao Yunqing turned around and looked at the bowl in front of her.
"He's so big, but he eats so little." She picked up a piece of green vegetable with her chopsticks, stuffed it into her mouth, and chewed it vigorously. "I'm afraid he'll starve to death."
Zhou Shan didn't reply, and picked up another clam.
Xiao Yunqing glanced at Song Huan's table again.
He was still sitting there, the piece of fish in his bowl untouched, though he did eat a few bites of vegetables.
Her face was still pale, a little better than when she was at the dock, but her lips were still bloodless.
She looked away and took a bite of rice.
I chewed it twice, but couldn't swallow it.
He raised his head again.
"Zhao Qihang, move the plate of vegetables in front of you to him."
Zhao Qihang was struggling with a crab when he heard this. He put down the crab claw, picked up the plate of stir-fried vegetables, and placed it in front of Song Huan.
"Yours," he said.
Song Huan glanced at the plate of green vegetables, then looked at Xiao Yunqing's table.
She was eating with her head down, moving her chopsticks quickly, without looking at him.
He picked up a piece of green vegetable with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth.