Niu Ying
Chapter 8 Embarkation
When it happened, Wang-laoyezi hadn't arrived yet. Even if he had known later, he wouldn't have gotten involved or asked questions, and he hated people who were ignorant and spread wild rumors and speculations.
Now, hearing what Lin-laoshi said, Wang-laoyezi interjected, "Lin-laoshi, we're both getting on in years. Living well is already reducing the burden on society and everyone else. Even if Xiao Jia told you, what could you do to help? Besides, Xiao Jia is just with the property management. The police haven't released the investigation results yet, so what inside information could she possibly know?"
Lin-laoshi didn't like hearing that. She was a member of the community, and now that the matter was affecting all the residents, what was wrong with her asking about it?
"How do you know I can't help? She was among the first to arrive at the scene. Although I can't offer any practical help, my life has been affected, so at least I have a right to know, don't I?"
Seeing Lin-laoshi getting more and more agitated, Jia Wenjun quickly tried to appease her, "Lin-laoshi, our property management only rushed over after the incident was discovered. When we called the police, they told us not to disturb the scene, so we didn't go inside either. We're just like everyone else, we don't know any inside information. If the police need any assistance from our residents later, we'll inform everyone in the group chat."
"I wouldn't even bother if someone fell onto my balcony. Are you really that curious, Lin-laoshi?"
A loud, energetic voice rang out from above. Everyone looked up and saw Anna walking down from the deck with a smile, wearing a clean and neat sun and wind-proof outfit. The slightly tight clothes outlined her not-so-slim figure. Although she was also in her early forties, her face was still full of collagen due to frequent cosmetic procedures and proper maintenance, but when she smiled, it gave people a somewhat stiff, inflated feeling.
She was saying it with a smile, and she was also the sponsor of this yacht trip. Even if Lin-laoshi was unhappy, she couldn't show it on her face, and only said awkwardly, "Boss Anna, you're a busy person with many important matters, so naturally you don't care. We're retired and have nothing else to do, so of course we have to care about things happening in our neighborhood."
Anna came down and stood next to Jia Wenjun, still smiling, "What you said is true, it's on my balcony, I have to take care of it no matter how busy I am. But I'm not a professional detective, why would I go looking for trouble? Women who worry too much are prone to wrinkles. Don't you know how expensive it is to get rid of a wrinkle these days? Lin-laoshi, we women should love ourselves, worry less, and keep ourselves beautiful so we can feel great."
"Sister Na is right, Lin-laoshi, the results will be announced when there are results. We're here to have fun today, why worry about those things? Just live each day to the fullest and be happy." Sun Jiaojiao came over, took Lin-laoshi's hand, and put a handful of sunflower seeds into her palm, "I roasted these myself, they're really fragrant, try them."
Sun Jiaojiao was helping Anna speak, so Lin-laoshi naturally didn't want to become the target of public criticism. She took the sunflower seeds, ate them, and said, "That makes sense, these sunflower seeds are indeed fragrant."
Although the incident of the 1501 girl jumping off the building had been going on for nearly a month, everyone was reluctant to mention it. Especially Anna, she got a headache whenever this matter was brought up, so she had a bone to pick with Lin-laoshi for bringing it up. Fortunately, she was sensible enough, so she suppressed the anger of continuing to argue with her.
Jia Wenjun knew what Anna was thinking and changed the subject, "Sister Anna, there are still some people who haven't arrived yet. Should we let the residents who arrived first take their luggage on board?"
Anna nodded, "That's what I mean. Let me tell everyone, there are six rooms on the boat, rooms number one to seven, no number four. There are a total of thirteen people and a dog on board this time. Old Hu's family of three will stay in one room, and the rest can pair up as they wish, two people per room. I'm staying in room three, and I still need to chant Buddhist scriptures at night. Whoever wants to stay with me can move their luggage in. It's best if they also believe in Buddhism, so we can be considered half soulmates."
"Sister Anna, does it matter what gender I am? Do you think I'm okay? If it is, I'll start believing in Buddhism now. I want to be your soulmate." Lu Maowang joked with a smile.
"Go look in the mirror first, see if you have a soul? Soulmate, find a cool place to stay." Anna retorted without any politeness.
Everyone laughed, but Lu Maowang wasn't annoyed and laughed along with them.
What Anna meant by saying this was that she wanted Jia Wenjun to stay with her. But Jia Wenjun didn't say anything the whole time, so she didn't bother to force her.
Jia Wenjun really didn't want to stay with Anna. She hadn't been sleeping well lately. She was already very tired during the day on the boat, and at night she wanted to find a roommate who went to bed early and was a light sleeper. Zhao Di and Anna were ruled out, leaving only Lin-laoshi and Lili. Although she would have to spend effort dealing with either of them, she was more willing to share a room with Lin-laoshi, so when boarding the ship, she told Lin-laoshi in advance that she would stay with her.
Bai Ma Shan just picked up his suitcase, looked up, and saw a few people walking not far away, and waved, "It's true that arriving early is not as good as arriving at the right time. Look, people are here."
Everyone followed his line of sight. At the entrance of the pier's trestle bridge, Zhao Di, Gong Dalong, and Lili were walking over, chatting and laughing.
"Everyone arrived so early. I just went to buy something else, so I'm late. I'm sorry, I'm sorry." Gong Dalong clasped his hands with a smile, and he and Lili walked over quickly carrying mineral water.
Following behind Manager Gong was Zhao Di. When she saw Jia Wenjun standing by the boat, she rolled her eyes at her openly and greeted everyone except Jia Wenjun.
Jia Wenjun was too lazy to pay attention to her. After putting her things down, she came down again to help Lin-laoshi with her things.
By the time everyone was standing on the deck, it was already past 9 o'clock. Only the old Hu family of resettled households hadn't arrived yet.
Everyone followed Anna to visit the yacht first. In order to curry favor with Anna, Lili specially stayed in the same room with her.
Manager Gong didn't know that Jia Wenjun could fish. Seeing that she had also brought a fishing tackle box, he thought she was putting on an act, and deliberately taunted her on the surface, "Xiao Jia, you only brought one rod? So many of us are relying on you for our food at sea these few days. Can you do it?"
"Probably not, so we still have to rely on you, Manager Gong." Jia Wenjun responded with a smile to this smiling tiger.
"What rely or not rely? Everyone, including you and me, is going to pitch in on this trip. Our community residents are full of crouching tigers and hidden dragons. Are we still afraid of not being able to eat seafood?" Manager Gong took out a colored flag printed with the logo of the residential complex and yelled at the owners on the deck, "Our sea fishing trip will definitely be a fun and fruitful one, right?"
"Right!" Lili immediately echoed loudly.
Zhao Di, who was live-streaming, looked displeased. The voices of these people were too loud, which had already affected her live-streaming commentary.
Jia Wenjun was already numb to Gong Dalong's words and deeds. Looking at Sun Jiaojiao and Lu Maowang who were cheering, her expression was indifferent, and she turned around and went to pack her fishing tackle box.