Chapter 111: Chapter 110: Rejection
The next morning, the sun rose, filling the sky with colorful clouds. The white snow reflected shades of pink, red, purple, and gold. It was a breathtaking sight.
Jiang Si went up on deck, raised her binoculars, and finally saw the coastline of the Northern Continent.
More wary than happy, Jiang Si said to the others, "Everyone, be careful."
"Okay."
Half an hour later, the Icebreaker could go no further.
The vast Northern Continent looked as if it had never been inhabited. The snow was thick, reaching depths of ten to twenty meters in some places.
However, they hadn’t discovered any other dangers for the time being.
Perhaps the mutated creatures had hidden away from the cold, or perhaps this area was simply clear of them.
In any case, being safe was a good thing.
The people on the yacht were both thrilled and terrified to see the continent.
The snow was so deep, even deeper than in Antarctica. ’If we have to cross that on foot, can we really survive?’
’If we fall into a snowdrift, we won’t even be able to save ourselves, let alone find our remaining family.’
In reality, most of them suspected their families were already gone.
At that moment, many gave up on the idea of disembarking. But those whose homes were in the coastal cities of the Northern Country urgently pleaded with Dr. Shire. "Doctor, please, go talk to them! Ask them to go to Man City. We can dock there. If there are no survivors, we won’t even get off the ship. That way, everyone can survive!"
Mike, who wanted to follow Jiang Si’s group, was the first to object. "Don’t piss them off. The fact that they’re willing to take us to shore at all is already a huge blessing."
’If everyone stays, my share of the supplies will be smaller.’
’And he couldn’t have that.’
Everyone knew what Mike was up to, so they ignored him and continued to press Dr. Shire. "Doctor, please, we’re begging you! What if they agree? If the city is still operational, that would be good for them too, right?"
"And we could all be saved, couldn’t we?"
His words swayed everyone on the ship.
’If the city is still running, we won’t have to live this desperate life anymore.’
’We wouldn’t have to be so wary of each other, living in constant fear.’
Even if no one was left alive in the city, they might be able to scavenge for supplies.
It was better than landing here, where there seemed to be no hope at all.
With everyone watching, Dr. Shire called Jiang Si again.
Jiang Si had just been about to tell them she was retracting the tow cable.
Dr. Shire chose his words carefully. "Miss Jiang, could I trouble you to take us a bit further, to the coastal city of Man City? We can give you fuel as compensation. Please, I’m begging you. If we land here, we might not live to see tomorrow. We will all pray to God for you!"
Going to Man City would take another full day.
She discussed it with her group. "Should we give them a lift?"
Jiang Linhai frowned. "I think it’s a bad idea. Guns are legal in the Northern Country, so a lot of people are armed. Going to Man City would be far more dangerous. The sea is frozen, the Icebreaker is slow, and one wrong move could get us trapped. We’d become a target for everyone."
Everyone agreed with Jiang Linhai. They weren’t short on supplies. Finding a deserted stretch of coastline to land would be safer, and they could live a relatively comfortable life.
Once they reached a consensus, Jiang Si replied to Dr. Shire, "We refuse your request."
Hearing her cold, blunt words, a chill ran through everyone on the yacht.
They cursed inwardly, ’Those damn Yellow Monkeys have no sympathy at all.’
’Even if they were afraid of danger in Man City, they could have at least dropped us off somewhere nearby!’
But no one dared to say another word. Dr. Shire, also afraid he wouldn’t get the ice crawler, hastily ended the call on the walkie-talkie.
Jiang Si’s group moved quickly. The tow cable connecting the two ships was released. Everyone was still torn about whether or not to disembark.
In the end, over twenty of the most determined decided to risk it all to find their families.
To reduce the risk, the twenty-odd people split into three groups. They banded together, heading in the same direction. By pulling a long train of shopping carts and taking turns to rest, they could conserve their energy.
Dr. Shire worried they would take the ice crawler from him. After all, he was old and weak. If they ran into danger, he would surely be the first one they abandoned.
He didn’t trust a single one of them and ultimately decided to set off alone.
He told the others he planned to stay behind. After saying their goodbyes, they took as many supplies as they could carry and began the arduous trek toward the shore.
Once they were some distance away, Dr. Shire took out his walkie-talkie and told Jiang Si he was coming over to pick up the ice crawler.
Since Jiang Si had made a promise, she wouldn’t go back on her word.
Soon, Dr. Shire drove the ice crawler out from the hold of the Icebreaker.
The people who remained on the yacht were suddenly furious. Dr. Shire had an ice crawler and hadn’t offered to take a single one of them.
He’d even used the excuse of giving supplies to the "yellow-skinned monkeys" to make off with a large cache of supplies.
If they weren’t afraid he’d made some deal with the "yellow-skinned monkeys" and would be protected by them, they would have rushed down and seized the ice crawler for themselves.
They watched Dr. Shire drive the ice crawler away until it was just a speck the size of a grain of rice. Only then did they go back inside the cabin, preparing to get the yacht moving again.
Suddenly, a horn blared from the yacht. Mike’s voice boomed out, "Miss Jiang! Can you let us keep following you? We can repair boats! We can help you break the ice! When the ice crawler fails, we can clear a path for you with our own lives! We don’t need anything, just let us tag along for your protection!"
’There are still twenty people left on that boat. Mike’s group only has five, and no guns. If they did, I’m sure they would have rushed us by now.’
’Protection, my ass.’
Jiang Si didn’t believe him for a second.
She completely ignored them and said to her crew, "Keep going. Pay them no mind."
No response came from the Icebreaker; instead, it only moved further and further away.
Mike knew they had been rejected.
His men instinctively looked to him as their leader. "Mike, what do we do now?" they asked.
"Are we supposed to just sit here in this frozen wasteland and wait to die?"
Mike watched the Icebreaker’s slow progress ahead, gritted his teeth, and said, "Remember how we once modified a boat to use as an icebreaker? Let’s get to it!"
Everyone’s eyes instantly lit up. "Yeah!"
’If they could successfully modify the yacht, they could continue to advance across the ice.’
The Icebreaker advanced another hundred meters or so, and the channel of water in its wake began to freeze over at a visible rate.
It quickly sealed the yacht off behind them.
Everyone on the Icebreaker finally relaxed.
However, less than half an hour of the English lesson from Jiang Si and Qin Shen was enough to leave them all drained.
"Learning English is so hard," Zhang Qingfang sighed.
Jiang Si said coaxingly, "Learning English is like farming, Grandma. You can’t expect a harvest in a single day. You have to cultivate it slowly. Everything’s difficult in the beginning. After a while, you’ll feel a real sense of accomplishment."
