Chapter 594 - 394: Change

Chapter 594: Chapter 394: Change

At the docks.

A group of dockworkers had just finished a strenuous shift.

They straightened their sore backs and wiped the sweat from their brows.

Their gazes subconsciously followed the retreating River Beach, their faces filled with confusion.

In their eyes, the River Beach was the star crabbing boat of the year, having made a name for itself in the Bering Sea.

They’d heard it had set the record for the highest crabbing earnings in Alaska during the season.

It returned with a full hold every time it went out, and even the regular crew members had earned several hundred thousand US dollars.

"A crabbing boat this good... why would it come to the Aleutian Sea to fish for Atka mackerel?" one of the workers couldn’t help but ask, smacking his lips and breaking the silence. His words were thick with confusion.

The other workers beside him nodded in agreement, and they all began to chime in.

"Exactly. The crabbing season hasn’t started yet, but even if they’re prepping early, they shouldn’t be catching these small fish. How much money can that possibly make?"

"Don’t tell me the captain’s gone broke. Ignoring the fat crabs to mess with this small-time stuff."

The workers’ voices rose and fell with doubt.

Little did they know that there was a much deeper reason behind the River Beach’s current course of action.

Meanwhile.

The retreating River Beach had already been swallowed by the vast sea, leaving only a long trail of white wake.

And the unanswered riddle at the docks.

.....

When Feng Shan was gently awoken by a rich, meaty aroma.

Three hours had quietly passed.

He slowly opened his eyes, and the first thing he saw was the inner wall of the snow cave, illuminated by the dancing flames of a fire.

Patches of light flickered across the rough animal hides and packed snow, and for a dazed moment, he couldn’t tell what day or time it was.

His throat moved instinctively as his nose greedily captured the enticing, meaty scent.

It was the savory aroma of seared beef fat and a rich bone broth, mixed with the subtle sweetness of onion, coalescing into a warm cloud of steam in the cold snow cave.

Feng Shan propped himself up comfortably, his spine letting out a series of small, crisp cracks, like a thawing ice river stretching out.

Squinting to adjust to the firelight, he finally took in the scene before him.

Nash sat before the fire, intently poking the firewood. The flames licked merrily at the iron pot set over the blaze.

The pot was mottled with specks and scorch marks; Feng Shan had seen it just a few hours earlier in a tent at the Bear Tribe camp.

The scalding broth bubbled inside, and the grease that occasionally spilled over congealed into a thick, white ring on the rim. The meaty aroma wafted out from the constantly churning vortex within.

On the other side of the fire, Liu Lan was wrapped in an animal-hide blanket, curled up in a corner like a round little cub.

She held a walkie-talkie, chattering away animatedly, her little flushed face smudged with soot.

"Fiona, you know what? I built a super awesome snow-cave house! And Tyson and Prince are helping me guard the door..."

Her bright voice was full of the cheerful relief of someone who had survived a disaster. The gasps and laughter from the walkie-talkie, mixed with the bubbling of the pot, wove a warm symphony inside the snow cave.

When Nash caught sight of Feng Shan awake, the tension that had been gripping him instantly eased.

He swallowed and called out in a low voice, "Khilla."

His voice was thick with an indescribable gratitude.

Before the word was even out, Nash moved onto his knees in front of Feng Shan and kowtowed heavily, his forehead nearly touching the icy ground.

Feng Shan quickly dodged to the side, using his knee to block Nash’s shoulder and push him back up.

He cursed with a laugh, feigning annoyance.

"What the hell are you kneeling for? A man kneels to heaven above, to the earth below, and to his parents in between. Don’t go kneeling to me for no reason!"

"Liu Lan, come here! Who are you talking to?" Feng Shan turned and called to the little girl by the fire, deliberately using a light tone to break the somewhat heavy atmosphere.

Liu Lan came bouncing over, still draped in her blanket. The animal hide slapped against the snow wall, knocking loose a few fine flecks of snow.

She waved the walkie-talkie in her hand, her eyes curving into crescents.

"I’m talking to Fiona. She doesn’t want to be Princess Elsa anymore, she wants to be Princess Anna. But I’m not switching with her. I’m Princess Anna."

As she spoke, she gave a haughty little wrinkle of her nose, just like a possessive kitten guarding its food.

"Alright, Princess Anna, can you let me borrow the walkie-talkie for a second? I need to say a few words to the cabin," Feng Shan said, pushing himself into a sitting position and holding out his hand.

Liu Lan giggled and stuffed the walkie-talkie into Feng Shan’s palm.

Taking the device, Feng Shan pressed the talk button. "Fiona, give the walkie-talkie to Yves. I need to speak with him."

While he waited, he glanced at Nash, who was adding wood to the fire. The firelight stretched his silhouette long against the wall.

In less than a minute, a crackle of static came from the walkie-talkie, interspersed with Yves’s slightly hoarse voice.

"Boss, are... you... alright?"

The blizzard outside was causing his voice to break up, but it didn’t prevent them from communicating.

"I’m fine. How are things at the cabin?" Feng Shan held the walkie-talkie to his ear, his eyes fixed on the leaping flames in the fire.

"Everything’s normal at the cabin. Nash said the blizzard on the Mossy Wasteland was too strong, so you dug a snow cave to take shelter for now. That was the right call. Wait for the storm to die down before you head back. Safety first."

Yves’s voice was steady and strong, but it made Feng Shan’s gaze drift unconsciously back to Nash.

He saw Nash poke the firewood, causing the flames to flare up, illuminating his face in fits and starts. His expression was as indifferent as if he were recounting some trivial, everyday matter.

Feng Shan understood instantly.

’This man, always so quiet, had silently concealed the fact that Liu Lan had gotten frostbite and then been healed.’

’He used the excuse of a bad blizzard to give me some breathing room.’

"We’ll head back when the storm dies down," Feng Shan said, pulling his gaze away. His voice softened unconsciously.

’Nash had done the right thing.’

’The fewer people who knew about Liu Lan’s frostbite, the better.’

’Otherwise, how could he explain how a child who had suffered severe frostbite in a cold snap—to the point of necrotic limbs, sepsis, and critical infection—could be perfectly healed?’