When Jiang Si and Qin Shen returned to the Icebreaker, the mooring lines connecting the two ships were left in place, and Dr. Shire’s anxious heart finally settled.
Once the lingering fear subsided, the crew mbers surrounded Jack and gave him a brutal beating on the ground.
Jack’s wife tried to stop them and was injured in the process.
Of the onlookers, only Dr. Shire went to intervene; everyone else just stood by and watched.
If Jack was willing to push crew mbers out to die just so he could get ashore, who was to say he wouldn’t betray them all next ti?
It would be better if soone like that was beaten to death.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief when Jiang Si and Qin Shen returned safely. Shen Baoying hurried over and asked, "Are the people on that ship all taken care of?"
Jiang Si nodded. "All taken care of. The ones who are left should be completely obedient now."
Shen Baoying patted her chest. "That’s good, that’s good."
The mont Jiang Si was "shot" and fell was just too realistic and terrifying.
The instant Shen Baoying saw it, she felt her heart stop. Any sympathy she’d had for Dr. Shire and his people vanished in that mont.
Even if Jiang Si had said she was going to leave them all here, Shen Baoying would have thought nothing of it. ’The cruise ship still has so many supplies, anyway. They’re getting off easy.’
Unwittingly, she too was quietly changing in this dog-eat-dog apocalypse.
She just hadn’t noticed it yet.
Niu Niu, wanting to lighten the mood and cheer everyone up, said with a sweet smile, "The fireworks earlier were so pretty. They must have been celebrating for us, that we’ll be able to leave here safely."
Everyone looked at Niu Niu and broke into a smile in spite of themselves.
In the frozen landscape, even the slightest movent would leave you drenched in sweat.
Wearing a thick Antarctic suit and stepping into the twenty-seven-degree cabin, Jiang Si’s back was soaked in no ti.
Shen Baoying had already drawn baths for the two of them. "Sisi, Xiao Shen, go take a shower first. When you get out, we’ll eat snail noodle soup." Her expression faltered, and she rembered to ask Qin Shen, "Xiao Shen, can you eat snail noodle soup? Since you grew up abroad, it might not suit your tastes. I can make you dumplings or noodles instead. I have braised beef sauce, too."
Everyone turned in unison to look at Qin Shen. He thought for a mont. He’d eaten snails before, so snail noodle soup should be no problem.
He nodded. "I’ll eat it."
Jiang Si read his expression and asked, "Have you ever had snail noodle soup? It has a... pungent sll. So people can’t handle it."
’If Niu Niu can eat it,’ Qin Shen thought, ’a little stink can’t be that bad. It’s probably like stinky tofu—the more you eat, the better it tastes.’
He nodded and said, "I haven’t, but I can give it a try."
Jiang Si smiled. "Mom, go ahead and make him a serving of the snail noodle soup, but make a serving of dumplings too. If he can’t finish it, give it to Dad. He’ll eat it."
Jiang Linhai laughed heartily, patting his stomach. "That’s right, I’ll eat it! Xiao Shen, don’t be afraid. Give it a try. It’s delicious."
"We didn’t like it at first either, but after a couple of tis, we grew to love it."
They all talked warmly, like a real family, and a slight smile appeared on Qin Shen’s face without him even realizing it.
The rooms on the Icebreaker were basic, but they had all the necessities. Jiang Si soaked in the bathtub for a while.
Having survived in the apocalypse for so long, she was used to doing things quickly. In less than half an hour, she had dried her hair and reappeared before everyone.
Who would have thought that Qin Shen would be much faster than her.
He was already sitting at the dining table, just waiting for Jiang Si to co out so Shen Baoying could put the noodles in the pot.
Seeing Jiang Si, Niu Niu imdiately waved her over with her small hand. She glanced at Qin Shen and said, "Big Sister, sit here."
Jiang Si sat down next to Qin Shen, and everyone smiled knowingly.
Jiang Si didn’t think it was a big deal, but when she glanced at Qin Shen, she couldn’t help but feel a little embarrassed.
Thankfully, the strong, pungent aroma of the snail noodle soup gave her an excuse to change the subject. "So stinky! I haven’t had this in so long, I’m not used to the sll anymore."
Jiang Linhai chuckled. "You get used to it when you start eating." Then, like a father-in-law sizing up his son-in-law, he looked at Qin Shen eagerly. "If you don’t like it, just say so. Don’t force it. We don’t lack for food. Even if we ran out, I could go chop so ice and catch a couple of fish for you." His favoritism was almost excessive.
Jiang Si’s face flushed. She was about to tell her dad to stop talking nonsense—’if Qin Shen wanted fish, would he really need you to catch it?’—when Shen Baoying brought over a huge, heaping bowl of snail noodle soup.
Stinky as it was, the color and toppings were first-rate and tempting.
Pickled bamboo shoots, braised egg, dried radish, pickled long beans, wood ear mushrooms, tofu skin, bok choy, fried tofu puffs, pickled mustard greens, and crushed peanuts, all mixed with a rich sauce and chili oil, then topped with the ultimate soul of the dish—scallions and cilantro. Jiang Si took a deep breath, her appetite thoroughly whetted.
She stirred her bowl and took a couple of noisy slurps. Lifting her head, she caught a glimpse of Qin Shen out of the corner of her eye. It was his first ti eating snail noodle soup, yet he was eating with even more gusto than she was.
Qin Shen was more of a at-eater, so she wasn’t sure if he was putting on such an enthusiastic performance just to please Shen Baoying. He even said, "It’s delicious."
Shen Baoying bead with joy. "As long as you like it! Eat plenty of the dumplings and beef, too."
Taking another slurp of her noodles, she instantly felt she was overthinking things.
Shen Baoying’s snail noodle soup really was delicious. ’How could anyone not like it?’
After the al, everyone reeked of snail noodle soup.
Big Black and Little Black sniffed at them with disgusted looks on their faces before retreating to their doghouses to gnaw on fragrant, aty bones.
Little Black’s fra was already as strong as Big Black’s, and he even showed signs of surpassing him.
It was a world of ice and snow outside. And while the dogs couldn’t contribute much and ate a lot, their presence made the ship feel full of life.
While airing out in the main hall, everyone asked Jiang Si what should be done with the bodies under the ship.
When the Icebreaker started moving the next morning, the bodies would likely be crushed.
The general consensus was that the dead should be respected and at least given a dignified end.
But Jiang Si felt there was no need to waste energy on the dead. Besides, if the people who knew them didn’t care, there was even less reason for them to.
Jiang Si looked at everyone. "Have we not seen enough corpses already?"
Her one question silenced them all.
It was true. On the cruise ship alone, there were tens of thousands of bodies. Why should they care about these few?
By morning, the blizzard had subsided. It was a vast, white expanse of ice and snow; without goggles and a face mask, it would be damaging to the eyes and skin.
Jiang Si and Qin Shen, bundled up tightly, stood before the glass of the cockpit and started up the Icebreaker.
Jiang Linhai, Lu Zhifeng, Shen Baoying, Zhang Qingfang, and Niu Niu—everyone who could help ca to coordinate. At first, there weren’t enough people to get it running.
The main principle of the Icebreaker was to create fissures in the ice through impact, then use its sharp bow to repeatedly grind over them, carving out a channel.
"BANG! BANG! BANG—"
The Icebreaker ramd the ice again and again. The surface that had frozen over the previous night gradually broke apart. Cracks spread with a CRACK-CRACK-CRACK sound, and the bodies from last night tumbled into the frigid sea.
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