Chapter 619: Chapter 431 True and False Rumors_2
Hearing how understanding Dong Tianyu was, Gordon once again picked up his cup and gulped down his drink; then, without waiting for Dong Tianyu to pour more, he naturally grabbed the liquor bottle, filling his own cup, before lifting the bottle and asking Dong Tianyu, who was filling tea into his cup, "How about you have a bit too?"
Seeing that Gordon really intended to pour him a drink, Dong Tianyu raised the teapot in his hand and hastily declined, "I’m fine with tea, we’re all friends here, it’s better to be casual."
Hearing what Dong Tianyu said, Gordon didn’t press him to drink; instead, he picked up his cup and downed it again, but unlike his previous hurried manner, this time he drank at a much slower pace, savoring the drink rather than guzzling it down.
After setting down his cup, Gordon came back to his senses and, looking at the barrel of white liquor under the table, he started to speak with a bit of confusion, "This is grain alcohol? It’s not mixed with industrial alcohol?"
When Gordon asked this, Dong Tianyu immediately replied, "Would I ever serve you mixed alcohol? Although I’d hate to open the good stuff, I still can bring out something like this loose white liquor."
"You still have good liquor?"
Looking at the excited expression on Gordon’s face, Dong Tianyu nodded naturally, "Nothing too high-end, but I still have a few bottles of the basic Maotai, and also some other kinds that were around the same price before the disaster."
Upon hearing Dong Tianyu say this, Gordon momentarily forgot the purpose of his visit and directly pleaded with Dong Tianyu, "Bro, you’re my real brother, just tell me how much and spare me a few bottles."
Dong Tianyu didn’t pay attention to the eager look on Gordon’s face; instead, he asked, "We can talk about that, but tell me what you really came here for this time."
Reminded by Dong Tianyu’s question, Gordon remembered the purpose of his visit and said, a bit embarrassedly, "I mainly came over to ask if you still have any hams? I’d like to buy a whole leg."
Hearing Gordon’s question, Dong Tianyu suddenly became curious. Ham was something that, due to the weather conditions, wasn’t easy to air-dry naturally, but whether through the special abilities of some Awakeners or by using machines to dry it, acquiring ham was still quite simple if one was willing to pay the price.
"Can you tell me what you need the ham for? There are so many types of meat available outside; why do you insist on buying ham?"
After hearing Dong Tianyu’s question and taking another glance at the barrel of liquor under the table, Gordon froze, his mind seemingly engaged in a fierce battle. Finally, with a helpless sigh, he spoke in a hushed and mysterious tone, "The upcoming matter is rather secretive; just keep it to yourself, and don’t go spreading it around."
Seeing how solemn Gordon was, Dong Tianyu didn’t say much but instead became very serious before saying, "Rest assured, whatever you tell me goes in my ear and won’t come out of my mouth."
After receiving Dong Tianyu’s assurance, Gordon cautiously began, "I’ve heard that there’s an Awakener with divination powers in the Imperial Court, who has predicted that a flood disaster will soon strike again, and that it will be accompanied by a violent storm, much more severe than the last one."
Hearing Gordon’s words, Dong Tianyu casually asked, "And then what? What does this have to do with you wanting ham?"
"Don’t rush me, let me explain slowly. Based on the Awakener’s prediction and the Kyoto staff’s estimates, once the flood hits, the ensuing storms are sure to be fierce. According to the safety provided by boats during the last flood, surviving on them this time would be nearly impossible.
Therefore, many people aware of this have set their sights on those aircraft carriers moored out at sea. Aside from high ground, the aircraft carriers can easily withstand harsh weather at sea once the floods arrive."
"I know submarines could work too, but you’re no stranger to the living conditions aboard submarines; it’s fine for a short stay, but living there long-term could drive someone insane. So, our remaining options are really just high mountains and aircraft carriers."
"Since no one knows just how high the flood waters will rise, living aboard an aircraft carrier seems to be the safer choice for greater peace of mind."
Having listened to Gordon ramble on without getting to the point, Zachary couldn’t help but interject, "Ham!"
Upon hearing Zachary’s interruption, Gordon rolled his eyes involuntarily and then started speaking, "I know, don’t rush me, I’m getting to the relationship between the two now."
Although a few aircraft carriers are nominally under the control of the Imperial Court, at this time, the only carrier they can fully control is the Kyoto, which holds sway over the Ji Yun and the Hei Long.
The other carriers, while nominally obeying the Imperial Court’s orders, are actually influenced by it only in name, since their supplies come from other cities.
If it doesn’t affect their own interests, they’ll listen to the Imperial Court. But once it touches on their interests, they might not give the Imperial Court any face," he continued.
Gordon noticed that although Zachary was not speaking, his facial expression seemed to be constantly reminding him.
Gordon actually felt a bit helpless too; if he didn’t clarify the ins and outs, it would be impossible to understand the situation. However, seeing Zachary’s silent urging with his expression, Gordon decided not to elaborate further and directly said:
"Since you don’t want to know the ins and outs, I’ll just keep it simple. The captain of the Ji Yun now is Westley, who likes eating ham. So, everyone is sending him ham, hoping to secure a good spot on the ship when the time comes."
Hearing this, Zachary continued to ask, "Why give him ham? Aren’t there other carriers?"
At this query, Gordon rolled his eyes again and said, "See, I was explaining all that to make the situation clear to you, but you got impatient and kept pushing. Now that I’ve said it, you’re asking about the reasons, what do you expect me to do?"
After hearing Gordon’s complaint, Zachary stood up and left the tea room, then took two sets of bowls and chopsticks from the storage space, along with some snacks, before returning to the tea room.
Gordon’s complaint vanished instantly upon seeing the snacks in Zachary’s hands, shortly followed by him cheerfully saying to Zachary, "You really get me, all right, I admit I’m in your hands."
He then rose to help Zachary tidy up the tea table, set the snacks in order, and Zachary put away the tea cups and the teapot. He then poured himself a cup of liquor and suggested, "Drink and talk?"
On hearing this, Gordon immediately replied joyfully, "You do understand me, let’s drink and talk."
After the liquor had made its rounds three times, Gordon resumed their previous conversation, "You don’t know, although it seems like the Imperial Court still has three carriers, in reality, the only one we have a chance of boarding is the Ji Yun.
As big as the aircraft carriers are, during an actual flood catastrophe, service crew are indispensable to keep the carriers operating. So, by then, the number of people who could actually board would be around ten thousand at most, maybe just over twenty thousand.
So just the officials and their families in the Imperial Court are enough to fill the Kyoto. And let’s not even talk about the Hei Long; looking at the name, one knows the supplies mostly come from my hometown, so there’s no need to consider the Hei Long either.
Which leaves only the Ji Yun as the option left, the Ji Yun usually refuels at Otsu Port, which is close to us, making it convenient for boarding. Thus, now in Kyoto, those who know the news are all eager to establish a relationship with Westley, regardless if the message is true or not."
Caught off guard by Gordon’s sudden revelation, Zachary blurted out, "Rumor?"
