NOVPUBHearing someone shout like that, the captain was flabbergasted.
With people crammed against each other in the compartment, where could a fire have come from?
The captain shot a look at two smugglers.
"Go check what’s going on quickly. If there’s nothing serious, keep them quiet. It’ll be troublesome if we run into a sea patrol boat later."
When the two smugglers opened the partition, they immediately saw flames shooting up.
"Damn, it really is on fire!"
"Quick, get a bucket and start scooping water to douse it!"
Luckily they were at sea; the two smugglers grabbed buckets and started filling them with seawater, pouring it directly into the compartment.
After a lot of back and forth like this and once the compartment flooded, the fire was finally extinguished.
The smugglers urgently inquired, "What exactly happened; how did a fire suddenly start? Whoever has a lighter, hand it over!"
The smugglers were extremely angry.
The space in the compartment was cramped, and it was surrounded by many flammable materials.
That’s why they had explained more than once to these people, emphatically telling them not to smoke in the compartment, and especially not to bring alcohol, lighters, or other flammable and explosive items.
Otherwise, like what just happened, if a fire suddenly broke out in the compartment and someone died, their sins would be grievous.
Originally, it was just a crime of smuggling, but if it suddenly became a case of manslaughter, they could forget about ever returning to their country.
Someone pointed at Lu Ping, whose hair had nearly all burned away, and said, "We have no idea what happened. We were sleeping soundly when he suddenly burst into flames, and the fire kept growing. We couldn’t put it out no matter what we did."
Could there be such bizarre occurrences?
The smugglers felt their scalps tingle and their eyelids twitch uncontrollably.
Could it be that the Goddess Mazu didn’t want them to venture out to sea?
Was this a warning from the heavens?
After thinking for a moment, one of the smugglers said, "Alright, alright, the fire is already out now, but the water in this compartment isn’t going to drain anytime soon. You’ll just have to bear with it for a while."
The smugglers then turned to Lu Ping.
"Kid, you shouldn’t have anything like a lighter on you, right?"
Lu Ping shook his head, still visibly shaken.
Although the flames hadn’t disfigured him, only burning away his hair and jacket,
the sensation of being engulfed by the flames still left Lu Ping in shock.
The experience was too terrifying; he could see nothing clearly, only feel the scorching burn.
That sense of desperate isolation was an awful ordeal Lu Ping never wanted to endure again in his life.
Just then, the captain said to the smugglers, "There’s a sea patrol boat ahead, quickly close the partition and don’t let the police notice!"
The smugglers gestured to the group of stowaways to be quiet, then closed the partition and stepped out as if nothing had happened.
Shortly after the smugglers had left, a vast sea patrol boat had already approached them.
"Secure the boat; we are about to come aboard for an inspection," came the voice.
Fortunately, there were no waves at the time, and several sea patrol officers boarded the boat smoothly.
Two were responsible for checking documents, while the others began wandering around the boat, looking for any stowaways or the like.
The boat was only so big, and after the officers had made their rounds without any discoveries, they reported back.
The team leader handed the documents back to the captain and then advised patiently, "It’s getting late, and the wind is strong at sea. I suggest you come out again tomorrow morning when the visibility is better, and the chance of accidents is lower."
The captain expressed his gratitude repeatedly, saying if it wasn’t for the sake of earning a living for his family, he wouldn’t be operating the boat so late.
The team leader was easy to talk to, and after confirming there were no issues with the documents, he gestured to leave.
Just then, panicked cries once again came from inside the cabin.
"Fire! Fire again! Is there anyone who can come and put out the fire right away?"
Upon hearing this sound, the coastguards all froze in unison at first.
Impossible!
They had already inspected the cabin thoroughly, not even a child could fit in there, how could it possibly accommodate an adult?
But they had all clearly heard the shout just now, and it was definitely the cry of an adult.
Which meant that someone was indeed calling for help.
The complexion of the team leader turned grim in an instant.
"Speak, what exactly is going on? From where did that shout we just heard come from!"
The captain said with an embarrassed face, "It’s a misunderstanding, officer, what sound? We didn’t hear anything, could it be that you heard wrong?"
The team leader gave a cold laugh.
"We heard wrong? You mean to say that so many of us coastguards are standing here and could still mishear?"
No sooner had the team leader finished speaking than the cry for help came from the cabin again.
This time, the coastguard guarding the door immediately sensed something was off.
He stamped his foot on the floor, and as expected, he found that the wooden floor under their feet was hollow!
It was just that at this moment they simply couldn’t find a way to lift the partition.
The team leader glared at the captain.
"Open the compartment immediately, or else I’ll treat it as obstruction of official duties, and I can arrest you right now!"
"Think carefully about how you want to choose!"
In fact, the captain was also very anxious now.
After all, someone inside the compartment was crying for help, which meant there must have been some kind of danger in there.
Just as the team leader was about to resort to force, the captain sighed, pressed a switch, and the partition automatically popped up.
The coastguards opened the partition and immediately saw a man enveloped in flames, hopping and jumping around on the spot.
What’s this, Revenge Flame limited edition?
"Quick, put the fire out!"
The coastguards were all well-trained, so the speed of extinguishing the fire was much faster than the first time.
After the flames were completely out, the coastguards began to register them, asking why they were on a smuggling ship, and then repatriated them, forbidding them from leaving the country.
"Well done, captain, I never expected your small ship to carry so many people."
The team leader counted.
The team leader said to the captain with a sneer, "Now you are in trouble."
According to Huaxia’s law, smuggling activities are absolutely not allowed.
And all cases of murder, severe disability, and the like that occur during smuggling will be dealt with as normal criminal cases.
The captain fell to the ground with a thud.
All he wanted to know now was how Lu Ping, that damn guy, managed to set him on fire for no reason!
This was too much of a pitfall!
"Send a few people to catch all these smugglers."
Upon the team leader’s order, everyone was taken away.
The captain was filled with regret.
If only he had listened to Mazu’s words!
Now he had truly been planted!
