Blinded by Lust chapter 25

They stopped twice at Cherbourg to unload the cargo. After loading at the next port, Wu Bie and his crew were preparing to head back.

“We won’t be stopping much on the way back. We’ll resupply at Lorient.” Wu Bie was shopping while on a voice call with Zhanyan. “I need to stock up a lot. You wouldn’t believe it—last time we were stuck at sea so long, I was left with only one bottle of Coke. I had to buy instant noodles from a colleague, and he charged me five hundred. What a jerk.”

Huo Zhanyan listened quietly. With Wu Bie about to return, he still wasn’t ready to tell him the truth. What should he do?

After talking for a while, Wu Bie noticed that Zhanyan was unusually quiet. “Babe, why aren’t you saying anything? Don’t get me wrong, but you don’t seem too excited about my return?”

Zhanyan immediately denied it. Wu Bie was thrilled, unaware of the fear and anxiety swirling in Huo Zhanyan’s heart.

“Wu Bie, I…” The words were on Huo Zhanyan’s lips, but he swallowed them back. “I’m just a little nervous…”

Wu Bie chuckled. “What’s there to be nervous about? It’s not like we’ve never met before. And I won’t be back right away—it’ll take nearly two months. Isn’t that enough time for you to mentally prepare?”

Two months wasn’t a short time. It was as if fate had given him a chance.

“It’s just that being at sea means the signal won’t be great, but I’ll send you a message every day to let you know I’m safe. And if there’s a signal, I’ll definitely video call you.”

From the time they met to when they became familiar with each other, they started with text messages, then moved to voice chats, and now video calls. They had barely gone a day without contact. Wu Bie had long gotten used to this routine, and now, facing such a long separation, he was already feeling restless, even though the ship hadn’t set sail yet.

“You’re driving me crazy! I won’t see you every day; don’t you think I’m going to miss you to death?” Wu Bie was standing in line with a bunch of things, waiting to pay. Feeling bored, he flipped through his photo album. Wow, his album was full of videos and pictures of himself. The only few pictures of Zhanyan were screenshots from their video calls.

Wu Bie didn’t even have any photos of her in his album. If people knew, they would probably laugh at him.

“Why don’t you send me a few pictures so that when I’m on the ship, I can look at them and think of you?”

Zhanyan never hesitated when it came to things like this. “Sure.”

“If anything comes up, just send me a message. Oh, and if you need money—”

“Wu Bie.” Zhanyan interrupted him. “I don’t need money, and you don’t have to explain so much. You already promised to send me daily updates to let me know you’re safe. That’s enough.”

The sea isn’t like land. One moment it could be calm, and the next, there could be raging waves. Wu Bie had spent years at sea, so he couldn’t help but think more carefully. If he said too much, Zhanyan might start to worry.

“Alright, alright. I won’t say more. I’ll definitely return safely.”

The town’s facilities were outdated, even the cashier’s machine was ancient. The cashier’s attitude was indifferent, and Wu Bie had been in line for quite a while without moving forward. He decided to pick up a few more things.

“I haven’t even gotten you a souvenir yet. Let me see what I can find.”

The cities where Wu Bie’s ship docked weren’t particularly bustling, with few tourist spots, and there weren’t many local specialties either. The small shops mostly sold local snacks, which would probably never make it to Zhanyan before Wu Bie ate them on the way. After searching for a while, he found a small handcrafted wooden lamp.

The little lamp was delicate and charming. Wu Bie thought Zhanyan would like it the moment he saw it.

“I picked something for you.”

“What is it?”

“You’ll know when you get it.”

Wu Bie was thinking that Zhanyan, always alone now, might feel scared at night. A small night light would surely be convenient, and if only he could give it to her right away—it would be even better since he wouldn’t be able to accompany her for the next two months.

“So mysterious, huh?”

Wu Bie smiled. Just as he put the nightlight into his basket, he heard a familiar voice from behind the shelves.

“Hurry up! How can you be so clumsy? You can’t even push a shopping cart properly?”

Wu Bie peeked through the shelves and saw Tan Yi, looking frustrated as he pushed a shopping cart. There was a tall man next to him. Wu Bie tilted his head, trying several angles before finally recognizing the man. It was Qin Mochong.

Qin Mochong was casually throwing snacks and drinks into the cart, while Tan Yi trailed behind him like a little sidekick. After they were done browsing the snack aisle, they headed to another section.

Qin Mochong, speaking casually since they were surrounded by foreigners, said, “Should we buy some condoms?”

Tan Yi was momentarily stunned by the question, unsure whether to nod or shake his head.

“Why aren’t you saying anything? Even though I’m the one using them, you’re the one benefiting.” Qin Mochong teased Tan Yi, waving a box of condoms in front of him. “It’s all in a foreign language. I heard you’re good at languages; what does it say on the box?”

Tan Yi’s face flushed with embarrassment. He wanted nothing more than to disappear into the ground. But he couldn’t fight Qin Mochong, so he just stood there, mortified.

“Have you had enough?”

“Fine, if you won’t say, I’ll just put it back.” Qin Mochong casually tossed the box of condoms back onto the shelf and started walking away.

After a moment of hesitation, Tan Yi begrudgingly grabbed two boxes. Just as Qin Mochong had said, after all, he wouldn’t be the one suffering.

Seeing the two of them approaching, Wu Bie shuddered at the thought of what they’d done together. He quickly grabbed his basket and left.

While those two were enjoying their fiery passion, Wu Bie and Zhanyan were still stuck in a long-distance, “green” relationship. Wu Bie couldn’t tell if he was jealous or just disgusted.

Back at the port, the cargo was almost fully loaded, and the crew was making the final preparations. Wu Bie had just put his things in his room when he received a selfie from Zhanyan.

In the photo, Zhanyan had even changed into a different outfit. Seeing her picture made Wu Bie feel sentimental. He wasn’t thinking about Zhanyan in a lustful way like a pervert; he was just relieved that she looked healthier, as she had been too thin before.

Wu Bie set Zhanyan’s photo as his phone’s wallpaper, took a screenshot, and sent it to her. Then he initiated a video call.

“I set your photo as my phone wallpaper. Now, every time I unlock my phone, I can see my wife.”

When Zhanyan wasn’t arguing, her eyes always looked so tender when she gazed at Wu Bie. “Are you about to set sail?”

Wu Bie nodded. “Just one last look. Once things get busy, I won’t have time.”

“Kiss me before you hang up.”

Wu Bie was more than happy to oblige. He didn’t just kiss once; he almost kissed the camera lens to pieces, planting several smooches. “Alright, talk to you later. Don’t forget to eat.”

For several days, the voyage was smooth. As he had promised, Wu Bie sent Zhanyan a message every day to let her know he was safe. Whenever the signal was strong enough, they even video chatted, though the connection often cut out. At least they were able to see each other from time to time. But on the morning of the tenth day, when their ship was sailing in the Naya Sea, they encountered a typhoon.

The alarm in the cockpit wouldn’t stop blaring. Everyone gathered together, too preoccupied to think about anything else. After some discussion, the captain decided there was no way to avoid the typhoon, and they would have to face it head-on.

Through the windshield, the sea was dark and ominous. The distant sky was filled with thunder and lightning, and waves reached as high as ten meters. The lower deck was completely submerged, and everyone retreated to the living quarters, halting all work on the deck.

Wu Bie had been at sea for over ten years, surviving countless storms, big and small. But even so, the extreme weather sent chills down his spine.

In such conditions, it didn’t matter if you could swim. If something went wrong, there was no chance of survival.

The captain remained in the cockpit while the others were ordered to return to their rooms, Wu Bie included.

The room was in disarray from the rocking of the ship, but Wu Bie didn’t bother tidying up. He lay down on the bed, took out his phone, and, signal or not, sent a message to Zhanyan.

“Not much luck, we encountered a typhoon.”

“The weather forecast from the meteorological station says the wind will get even stronger tonight.”

There was a window in Wu Bie’s room. He originally wanted to film a video for Zhanyan, just like usual, and even if he couldn’t send it now, he could show it to her after they were safe.

But just as he was about to get up, it felt as if a huge wave crashed into the ship. The entire ship shook violently, and he tumbled straight to the floor. Items scattered all over the ground, with no sign of stopping.

Wu Bie felt a pang of unease. He grabbed the edge of the bed and lay back down.

“Baby, send me your address. I’m really afraid that in the end, I won’t even know which hospital you’re in.”

The message never went through. Wu Bie didn’t turn off his data, but the lamp on the desk shook so hard it almost hit his face. He tossed his phone aside and grabbed the lamp.

Sailing is a career that requires courage and determination. Wu Bie thought he wasn’t an unlucky person. Meeting Zhanyan at this age was proof enough of his good fortune. He stroked the lamp’s stand, convinced that their ship would safely cross the Naya Sea.

He swore to himself that the first thing he would do when he got back was to meet Zhanyan, tell her all about this voyage, and then stay and marry her. They would stay together, help Zhanyan heal her legs, and after Zhanyan finished college and they’d had enough of their time together as a couple, they’d have eight or even ten kids.