Ye Feng grabbed an extra-large landing net, scooped up the grouper, and turned to Wang Liang and Zhou Yang. “Come and help, quickly!”
“Coming!” Zhou Yang was the quickest; he strode over, and together with Ye Feng, they hauled the large grouper up and placed it into another live-well.
Ye Feng, Wang Liang, and Zhou Yang stared at the grouper, which was even bigger than the first one, feeling completely dumbfounded. When had giant grouper become so easy to catch?
Han Xiaorui packed up her gear and said with a smile, “Thank you all for your help; we’ll head back now. Whenever you have time, I’d like to treat you to a meal.”
Ye Feng declined. “It was just a small effort, and you’ve assisted in our work as well.”
Just then, Ye Feng spotted a ship approaching from a distance through his binoculars. His expression changed drastically—it was a foreign vessel! He realized that the object they had just salvaged bore foreign markings. “Comrade Han, hurry and start the boat! A foreign ship seems to be heading toward us.”
Han Xiaorui was alarmed. She turned to look and saw that he was right. As she accelerated, she secretly used her water-based powers to stir up waves, creating resistance to slow the Japanese ship down. Her boat, though modified, could only reach a top speed of 22 knots, while the vessel behind them was much more advanced and significantly faster. Han Xiaorui felt a pang of regret for wasting twenty minutes on fishing. Had she known it was this dangerous, she would have fled the moment they hauled the object up.
Ye Feng immediately opened a case, pulled out a radio transmitter, and began tapping out a message rapidly. “Zhou Yang, determine our coordinates, now!”
Zhou Yang took out a compass and a sextant. He used the compass to measure direction and the sextant to observe the solar/lunar altitude relative to the horizon at a specific time (Greenwich Mean Time), reflecting it as an angular reading. By checking a specialized table, he could pinpoint their exact longitude and latitude. Zhou Yang calculated quickly, found their position, and reported it to Ye Feng. Ye Feng immediately transmitted the coordinates.
The message was received by their special unit’s station, decoded, and reported upward. Shencheng immediately dispatched five naval ships to intercept at maximum speed.
Wang Liang watched through the binoculars as the foreign warship pursued them relentlessly. He hoped the intercepting ships would hurry, but he noticed the gap between them and the pursuing vessel wasn’t closing. Don’t these foreigners want their equipment? he wondered. Wang Liang deliberately provoked Han Xiaorui, hoping to make her nervous enough to lose focus. “We shouldn’t have gone fishing. If we had left twenty minutes earlier, that foreign ship wouldn’t be able to catch us.”
Han Xiaorui knew Wang Liang was right. Although she felt frustrated, she didn’t argue. She focused entirely on piloting the boat, aiming to cross the maritime defense line at the fastest speed and shortest distance possible to reach safety.
“Money-grubbing and short-sighted,” Wang Liang pushed further.
Ye Feng, having just finished the radio transmission, translated the situation and exhaled slightly. “Wang Liang, hold your tongue. Comrade Han makes her living by fishing. We should be grateful she provided us with this lead. The fuel for this trip isn’t cheap and isn’t being reimbursed; she’s paying for it herself, which is only natural. You have no right to criticize her.” He added, “The reason this situation is critical is that the object we salvaged is clearly vital. The foreign ship has been searching for it, and we just happened to find it first.”
Hearing Ye Feng’s defense, Han Xiaorui felt relieved. “You’re right; it was my fault today. From now on, I’ll prioritize official business.”
Han Xiaorui’s steering skills were exceptional. She used her water-based powers not only to impede the foreign vessel behind them but also to propel their own fishing boat forward with increased force. Wang Liang was rebuked until his face burned red. “I didn’t mean it like that—I was just anxious. If we get caught, who knows what will happen?”
Ye Feng looked at Wang Liang with sharp, cold eyes. “If we get caught, we hold out to the end. Our predecessors could sacrifice everything; why can’t we?” Looking at Wang Liang, he realized that while he was barely passable in normal times, he was useless in a crisis—worse than Zhou Yang, who had just graduated. Ye Feng gave Wang Liang a very low rating and decided that once they returned, he would report this and have him moved to a desk job. “Pick up the binoculars and keep observing,” Ye Feng ordered. “Zhou Yang, update the position.”
“Yes, sir!” Although Zhou Yang was nervous, seeing Director Ye so calm and composed helped him steady his nerves and perform his duties methodically.
Hearing that five ships were coming to support them, Han Xiaorui no longer felt afraid. They were less than twelve kilometers from the maritime defense line; if they could hold out for another half-hour, they would be safe.
On the foreign warship, the captain was puzzled. They were running at full speed, yet they couldn’t seem to gain any ground, maintaining only twenty knots.
“Captain, the gap between us and the fishing boat is growing wider. Should we continue the pursuit?”
If they let the boat escape, the equipment would be gone. The captain hesitated; if they opened fire on a civilian fishing boat, it would violate international law. Other nations would then feel entitled to attack their own fishing boats in retaliation. If he failed to retrieve the detector, he would at most be blamed for dereliction of duty and have to write a few reports. If he sparked an international conflict, he would be dismissed. After weighing the risks, Ichiro Watanabe ordered, “No, keep pursuing at full speed.”
It was this hesitation that gave Han Xiaorui and her group the chance to escape.
Han Xiaorui’s power was draining rapidly. She gritted her teeth, her face pale, but she couldn’t stop. She didn’t want Ye Feng and the others to be in danger because of her fishing, so she held on tight. The foreign vessel continued the chase, its speed increasing, and it slowly began to close the distance. Han Xiaorui broke into a cold sweat.
Seeing her condition, Ye Feng said, “Comrade Han, don’t be afraid. Even if we are caught, you are just a fisher; they shouldn’t make things difficult for you.”
It wasn’t fear—it was exhaustion. But she couldn’t admit it. “I’m not afraid. Hold on tight; I’m going to accelerate again.”
As she spoke, the waves beneath the boat seemed to swell, and the speed increased, widening the gap once more.
Five nautical miles to the defense line… four… three…
“Captain, what should we do? They are about to reach the defense line!” a crew member warned. The captain hesitated again.
Just then, Han Xiaorui saw five black dots on the distant horizon. “Our ships are here!”
The Chinese naval vessels caught sight of them and immediately broadcast a warning over the public radio frequency: “You have approached the Chinese maritime defense line. You are ordered to return immediately! Return immediately!”
The foreign captain saw the five naval ships and replied, “We are searching the high seas for a marine probe that was salvaged by your country’s fishermen. Please return it immediately.”
Hearing this, Han Xiaorui rolled her eyes. They had already arrived; if they handed the items over now, wouldn’t the whole trip be in vain?