Chapter 884: The Strange Fish
On the deck of the Golden Edge, the long-awaited relaxation time sparked a burst of cheer among everyone.
They leaned over the railing, ignoring the bitter cold that had dropped to more than ten degrees below zero, greedily breathing in the outside air, crisp and salty.
Zhu Yunque and Su Nuanxi stood by the railing; Zhu Yunque held Tommy, bundled up tightly in her arms.
Compared to the others, the two could only force smiles.
Because recently, they had not only worried about the sea monster attacks and the pursuit from the Columbus military.
Their greatest trouble did not come from outside, but from the baby they cared for together.
A one-year-old child was incredibly restless, with completely irregular sleeping and eating patterns.
Often waking up in the middle of the night with a loud cry, causing Zhu Yunque and Su Nuanxi to lose sleep throughout the night.
From their initial overflowing maternal love, to gradually losing patience, and now on the verge of collapse.Looking at the cold sea water before her, Zhu Yunque suddenly had this thought—just throw him away!
No one was paying attention anyway; throwing him away would make it as if this never happened.
After all, she was the one who saved him initially, so throwing him away now would not be a betrayal.
This terrifying thought chilled Zhu Yunque’s back as she snapped back to her senses.
How could she have such a wicked idea?
No, she wasn’t that kind of person.
She was kind; she was just too exhausted.
At that moment, Zhu Yunque happened to see Zhang Weiwei not far away, playing with some students.
She was with several students from Star Island, trying to hook frozen fish on fishing hooks and casting them into the sea.
Her husband, Li Zongyu, stood smiling beside them, giving pointers on casting technique.
They looked so harmonious.
Zhu Yunque had a thought.
"She’s a teacher, so she should really like children. She probably knows better than I do how to take care of a child."
Zhu Yunque did not think she was shirking responsibility.
She felt she was simply looking for a better nanny for Tommy.
So, Zhu Yunque carried the child and walked toward Zhang Weiwei.
Seeing Zhu Yunque, Zhang Weiwei and Li Zongyu politely greeted her.
They had known Zhu Yunque for some time and were aware she was a family member of a leader in the Jiangnan Region.
However, on this ship, Zhu Yunque seemed to have little say.
Plus, her previous self-righteous tantrums had caused the passengers to look down on her internally.
"Miss Zhang, you seem to really like children."
Zhu Yunque looked at Zhang Weiwei, forcing a smile.
Zhang Weiwei didn’t quite understand her intention but politely replied, "Originally, my husband and I planned to have a child this year. Who would have thought something like this would happen later."
Zhu Yunque’s eyes brightened. "In that case, have you considered adoption? Look, this baby is so adorable."
"As long as you are willing to raise him, I can provide all the food he needs."
Eagerly, Zhu Yunque handed over the child.
But Zhang Weiwei and Li Zongyu both looked awkward.
Li Zongyu awkwardly scratched his nose.
Zhang Weiwei smiled faintly and looked at Tommy in Zhu Yunque’s arms, first complimenting, "Such a cute baby!"
"But honestly, with our current situation, it’s already difficult enough to take care of ourselves. We really can’t support another child."
Zhu Yunque’s smile stiffened.
The handoff failed.
"I thought... you liked children."
Zhang Weiwei smiled politely. "We do like them, but it depends on the circumstances, right?"
"When the environment isn’t suitable for reproduction, even animals stop breeding."
"We don’t even have children of our own, let alone," she glanced at the blue-eyed foreign baby, "raising someone else’s child."
They politely apologized to Zhu Yunque.
Zhu Yunque’s expression darkened but she could only helplessly hug Tommy and walk away.
Zhang Weiwei and Li Zongyu watched her leave.
Zhang Weiwei whispered, "Should we say she is kind or naive?"
Li Zongyu sighed, "Maybe both! But in the current environment, having both qualities is a kind of cruelty."
Soon, they pushed Zhu Yunque’s matter to the back of their minds and cheerfully continued fishing.
Suddenly, a fisherman’s fishing rod bent sharply, and he shouted excitedly, "Got one! I got one!"
He pulled hard on the rod, trying to reel the fish in.
"What a strong pull, it must be a big one! I guess a hundred pounds!"
But the harder he pulled, the heavier the force on his hands became.
Just as he planned to make a final effort to haul the big catch from the sea, a huge force suddenly came from the opposite direction, dragging him into the water.
A splash rang out.
Laughter sounded nearby, but Old Tian shouted, "Quick, pull him out!"
In such cold weather, being that far from me, you could freeze to death in no time!
Realizing the severity, people hurried to grab rope ladders to rescue him.
But then, the water surface violently churned, and black blood bubbled up.
The fisherman struggling underwater thrashed his arms on the surface a few times, then completely stopped moving.
The air suddenly fell silent.
Had the fishing person been eaten by a fish?
Before they could react, a dreadful scream came from another direction.
The sharp "whoosh" sounds of things flying through the air never ceased.
From the west side of the Golden Edge, black shadows burst out of the sea one after another, rushing straight at the people on the ship!
"Thunk!" "Thunk!" "Thunk!"
Five or six passengers were pierced by the black shadows and fell to the ground immediately.
The deck echoed with wails.
Old Tian looked closely and realized that what pierced the passengers were horrifying mutant fish.
They were over three meters long, jet black like crude oil, eyeless, with two rows of sharp teeth in their mouths.
Most terrifyingly, each had a spiked horn over a meter long on top of its head!
After piercing the passengers’ bodies, the fish began voraciously gnawing on their internal organs, quickly turning the deck into a pool of blood.
"Mutated swordfish!"
Old Tian quickly recognized what they were dealing with.
He grabbed his gun and, while clearing the mutant swordfish from the ship, shouted, "All passengers, get back into the cabins! Workers, grab your weapons!"
The crew, experienced at sea, did not panic.
Mutant swordfish could still be handled with firearms.
For a moment, passengers scrambled in panic toward the cabins, while Old Tian led people to clear the darting swordfish outside.
Author's Note