Chapter 1000: Save One, Sink One

Two rescue boats came.

After one boat drove over from far to near, not long after, another light spot appeared in the distance.

When the first boat just approached the Fengshou and his boat, one could already see the words "Maritime Bureau" engraved on the second boat.

The rescue boat didn't approach the two boats tilted on the reef at the first opportunity, but first approached them to understand the situation.

Ye Yaodong also called his father and the others up; it was time to help later.

And Uncle Pei on the Fengshou was also called up by the people left on guard.

At this time, everyone was concentrated on his boat, discussing the rescue.

He also told everything he had seen and heard, excluding the part about salvaging the crate and discovering the canned goods.

It wasn't until the other rescue boat also approached that they had discussed a strategy and were ready to start executing it.

They had already been delayed for four hours, and it was already past ten o'clock at night. Rescue operations should be done sooner rather than later.

"It's fortunate that the tide is rising now, not receding bit by bit. If it were receding, the hull would have tilted and capsized long ago, and it wouldn't have lasted this long. At most, it would have sunk in two hours."

"Let's try later and see if both boats can be safe. We can be considered to have come quickly. Fortunately, it wasn't too far away, and we were able to make it in time."

"Don't talk, hurry up, time waits for no one. It's just right to take advantage of the rising tide now. In another hour, the water will rise to its highest point. Let's all help together now."

When the officials were discussing the plan, there was no room for them to interject at all. They set the plan directly.

It was only at the beginning when they were asking about the situation that Ye Yaodong had a chance to speak. Later, they didn't pay any attention to him at all, and didn't even ask if they needed to cooperate. They only directed him when it was time to act.

He couldn't even figure out if they were from the province or the city. The accents were similar, just the tone was different, and he couldn't make it out.

It was indeed true that everyone was on the way back and hadn't run very far. Otherwise, if they waited for the tide to recede, they would only be able to see people, not the boats.

"Comrades, you go with us, tell the two boats in trouble about the rescue plan. Later, you'll need to help tie the tail of the fishing boat with a cable and pull it out."

"Okay, okay, okay." Ye Fu immediately smiled and nodded in agreement.

"We'll come one boat at a time. We must let the fishing boat stacked on top be out of danger first, before we can rescue the fishing boat tilted because of the reef."

"We rely entirely on your command. Whatever you say we should do, we'll do."

"That's fine, then we'll go back to the boat, and you follow along."

Those wearing uniforms turned and went back to their own boat. When their boat started moving, Ye Yaodong had long since gone to the cockpit to drive the boat and follow.

Rather than standing on the side like a lackey, not being looked at, he might as well just avoid it, out of sight, out of mind, and return to the cockpit.

The two maritime rescue boats went over and negotiated with them, and they agreed without hesitation.

And they cooperated fully, helping to tie the cable at the stern of the boat, while the other end was tied to the Fengshou and the Dongsheng.

They were indeed good at ordering people around. If there were fishing boats, they would just order the fishing boats to do it while they directed from the side. If there were no fishing boats, they would definitely do it themselves.

But this was also good. The work was done by them, and the two fishing boats would definitely have to thank them properly later. This way, it wouldn't be in vain that they had been delayed for four or five hours for nothing.

"Now the tide has risen high enough. After the cable at the stern of your collection boat is tied, open to full power and reverse. And you two fishing boats, pull the cable from behind and also run at full power. Watch my flag for command. When I wave it down, do it at the same time."

"Okay, okay, understood."

When Ye Yaodong heard this, he also returned to the cockpit from the steering tower.

At this time, the cargo ship below had already tilted sixty degrees, and the boat stacked on top of them was no better. Not only was the bow raised, but it also tilted about forty or fifty degrees.

"You guys be gentle, don't..."

The people on the cargo ship shouted there, but not long after, the roar of the machine sounded, and no one heard what the other was shouting.

The people on the collection boat wouldn't care about them and just added full power to reverse on their own.

It was just that because the collection boat was full of cargo, the tonnage was extremely heavy. When it added full power to reverse, it pressed the cargo ship down even harder.

Ye Yaodong and the Fengshou only listened to the command, pulling that boat and just running. When the collection boat shook violently and sprayed a large splash of water, just as it let the bow retreat from the stacked cargo ship, a scream was heard on the sea surface.

That cargo ship, at a speed visible to the naked eye, changed from a sixty-degree tilt bit by bit to ninety degrees, and then with a boom, the cargo on the boat poured into the sea, the boat capsized completely, and the personnel all fell into the water.

And after the side of the boat entered the water, it sank to the bottom of the water at an extremely fast speed visible to the naked eye.

Ye Yaodong widened his eyes in the cockpit and immediately stopped the reversing boat.

The people on the several boats also opened their mouths wide, stared at the sea surface, and kept saying words of regret.

Everyone just felt regret. Probably only the people on the cargo ship had the heart to kill.

The people on the collection boat were also looking at each other there.

They had finally managed to wait for the rescue team to come, but they didn't expect that only their boat was safe and out of danger, while the other boat sank directly because their boat was pressing on it and reversing...

They were also at a loss for a moment, but more of it was relief. Fortunately, it was their boat that was pressing on top.

The two boats were about the same size, and both were full of cargo. According to tonnage, the collection boat was probably heavier.

However, if their boat hadn't been pressing on top, maybe the one being dragged would have been the cargo ship, and it would probably have been in the same situation as them, directly out of danger.

Their boats were still tied with cables. The accident happened too suddenly, and the ropes hadn't been untied yet. So at the first moment of the accident, they were still staying in place, and the two boats of the Maritime Bureau immediately drove over to pick up people.

The three boats stopped around and watched, discussing endlessly.

"It just capsized? Sigh, so much cargo, it was probably the life savings of everyone on the boat?"

"Who says it isn't? Such a big boat, and it was full of cargo, and it just capsized... This is too regrettable..."

"Those boxes don't seem particularly heavy, and they're still floating on the sea. Should we help salvage them first?"

"These two boats, one hit a reef, and the other hit it, stacked together. At that time, I thought that if this collection boat reversed and pulled down, would it cause that boat to bear more weight and capsize directly? I didn't expect it to really happen..."

"There's no other way. The two boats were stuck there for several hours. No matter what, we had to find a way to separate them. We could only pull the collection boat down from the cargo ship. Otherwise, if we waited for the tide to recede, both boats would sink..."

"It's miserable. I don't know what cargo is in those boxes floating on the sea? I don't know if they can be soaked in water. If we can salvage some, maybe we can save a little, so they won't lose everything."

"That's true. The two boats over there haven't come over yet, they probably haven't finished salvaging people. These boxes are floating everywhere on the sea. Should we drive over and help salvage them first? At least it won't let people lose too miserably."

"Then let's all help?"

"Help, help, salvage as much as we can. We'll see how they handle it later..." Uncle Pei followed along and said, "It's a pity. Maybe it'll still be useful if we salvage it."

"Then let's go separately and help salvage. Salvage as much as we can, and we'll see how they handle it later..."

The two boats moved and left the original place.

And because of the collision, the hull of the collection boat had some damage. The current situation was that it was best to go to shore for repairs immediately. They didn't dare to move randomly, fearing a breakdown or water seepage, so they just stayed in place and watched.

Anyway, this grudge was settled, and it was settled deeply. Even if they helped salvage the cargo, people wouldn't appreciate it, but would only hate them even more. Why wait to be hated and lead people to the boat to find trouble for themselves?

It was better to keep a distance. After reaching the shore, hurry up and go their separate ways. In the vast ocean, it would be hard to meet again in the future. What's more, people had lost their life savings, and wanting to make a comeback was even more difficult.

Facing them head-on was not as good as avoiding them.

The Dongsheng and the Fengshou chased those boxes on the sea surface to salvage them, but they couldn't run too far. After salvaging enough, they returned.

Anyway, it wasn't their cargo, just do their best. And it was also cargo of unknown origin with something fishy.

By the time the two boats returned one after another, the three boats over there had already gathered together, and they were cursing each other until their faces were red and their necks were thick. They were almost about to fight. If it weren't for the people from the Maritime Bureau, they would probably have fought to the death.

"This... what should we do now?"

Ye Fu instinctively said a sentence in their local dialect, but found that no one paid any attention at all. Both sides were still cursing each other, and the Maritime Bureau people were pulling and persuading there. No one listened to him at all. He looked at Ye Yaodong.

"What should we do? It's all over, we can't just keep watching them argue here. How long will they have to argue?"

Ye Yaodong helplessly replied, "You ask me, who do I ask?"

"Ask them. Now that the rescue is finished, should we go directly to shore, or what? We need to have a plan, we can't just stop on the sea and watch the two families argue."

"I'll ask and see."

He cleared his throat and interrupted the noisy crowd.

"Ahem, the boxes on the sea just now, our two boats helped salvage some. The boat has already sunk, so there's probably no way to salvage it. So you see if we should go directly to shore first? After calculating the losses, we can discuss it later? Arguing here now is useless."

"How many boxes did you salvage?"

"I don't know, didn't count. I have about a dozen here, and the Fengshou over there shouldn't be much different. We didn't dare to run too far, fearing that you wouldn't be able to find us later."

"Many thanks. Are you going to shore?"

"We originally planned to drag a few more nets and go home tomorrow. But since such a thing happened tonight, going to shore early doesn't matter."

"Good, then the cargo will be temporarily placed on your two boats. Let's all go to shore together, and we'll talk after we reach the shore." The leader on the cargo ship glared fiercely at the people on the collection boat and pointed with his index finger, "Let you dogs off for now, we'll settle the score after we reach the shore."

The people on the collection boat saw that they looked like they were going to eat people, and they were also a bit panicked.

"You hit the reef yourself, what does it have to do with us? The rescue was also arranged by the Maritime Bureau..."

"No need to talk nonsense, go back directly. Trouble the leaders and comrades to take us back together. This collection boat must also go back with us. Our fishing boat sank directly, and they also have joint responsibility. We must discuss compensation. You are also witnesses."

"No, we just followed the command. We didn't know your boat would sink. It was you who hit the reef yourself, you can't blame others."

"Hitting the reef doesn't necessarily mean my boat will sink. If the rescue boat came, maybe my boat would be safe and sound. But it just so happens that your boat crashed into it and stacked on my boat. Then of course you have responsibility. Now your rescue is successful, but our boat sank because of you. You must compensate."

"Who knew such a thing would happen..."

"So you must compensate..."

The two sides, from the continuous cursing just now to the endless arguing now, also made the people from the Maritime Bureau have a headache. They had to shout loudly, forbidding them from arguing, and by the way, took both boats to shore together.

And their two boats also followed behind, intending to go to shore together.

Not to mention the reward, just the cargo that fell into the sea, they helped salvage it, and it was still on their boat.

This thing was no less than a hot potato. It could probably only be safely placed on their boat. If they put the cargo on the Maritime Bureau's rescue boat, those people definitely wouldn't dare.

It was just that on the way back, they also encountered some floating boxes, and each of them looked at them with heartache.

"Dongzi? After we reach the shore, shall we return these boxes on the deck to them?"

"Otherwise?"

"Then... then return them. It's better to avoid trouble. Return them after reaching the shore. Anyway, it has nothing to do with us. And the two crates in the cabin..."

"Just leave that there and don't move it. The boxes are all opened, and it's impossible to restore them to their original state and take them back. Can't expose it."

"I was also thinking of leaving it at home."

The Dongsheng had been following behind the Maritime Bureau. Father and son looked at the familiar sailing route and also knew that this boat wasn't heading in the direction of the province. It was highly likely that it was heading to the city.

This meant that the two rescue boats were from the city. It's just that he didn't know where the people on the collection boat and the cargo ship were from.

"The people on those cargo ships look quite fierce..."

"Of course. All their life savings sank into the sea, wouldn't you be fierce? If our boat was the same as his, would you be angry? Would you be fierce? Wouldn't you want to smash the other person's boat to pieces? If it were me, I'd have the heart to kill."

"That's also true." Ye Fu echoed and then added, "Can't talk nonsense. People sinking is people, can't hang yourself on your lips."

"Hmm."