Translator:
Henyee Translations
Editor:
Henyee Translations
The chaos on the Aurora Borealis cruise ship continued.
People walked around in the cabins, packing their luggage frantically. They feared that they would be evacuated in a while, and they would become the ones left behind.
Either someone leaked the news, or perhaps the news was reported on TV, the rumors that they were followed by pirates spread crazily in the cabin.
Someone ran to the captainâs cabin and knocked on the door, asking for the escape boats to be put down. Some people even asked for life jackets to be issued. Once the ship was boarded by pirates, they would jump into the sea and escape.
When people encountered dangerous situations, they would often do ridiculous things.
Except for a limited number of diesel-engined speedboats, the rest of the rubber boats were only to keep people afloat at sea and wait for rescue. Not to mention that there was the risk of being overturned by the waves.
As for the life jackets...
That was a creative idea, to say the least.
More and more people gathered in the captainâs cabin. The bodyguards of the Royal Guards had to join the security team and maintained order outside the captain. The chief mate on board also tried to calm everyoneâs uneasy emotions.
Even though they were safe for the time being, that might not remain true for long.
After Wang Peng reported the situation on the satellite phone, Lu Zhou asked Wang Peng to take him out of the captainâs cabin. He wanted to return to his room to rest for a while.
However, just as they were going down the stairs, they suddenly met two acquaintances.
They were Prince Frederick and his beautiful wife, Princess Sophia. Princess Sophia was crying, and her head was lying on Prince Frederickâs shoulder, as if she had lost her soul.
Even though they had nothing to do with him, no one would turn a blind eye to such a thing. When Lu Zhou saw that the little princess was not by the two of them, he had a vague guess in mind. He asked kindly, âWhat happened?â
Princess Sophia looked up and saw Lu Zhou and Wang Peng. She grabbed Lu Zhouâs arm and said in a pleading voice, âMy Lilia! Sheâs gone! I beg you, please help me.â
Lu Zhou glanced at her and saw that her eyes were red. It was like her whole person was drowning, desperately grabbing on to everything around her.
He had no doubt that she needed all the help she could get.
Prince Frederick was calm. He at least had a trace of reasoning ability. He gently pulled his wifeâs arm.
âPeople from the Royal Guards are already looking for her, they just need a little time.â
âThose trash donât care about us!â She pushed her husbandâs arm away and covered her face. She sobbed and said, âThe royal name means nothing to them, they donât care about us. Look at them, they donât care!â
âYouâre overreacting...â
Wang Peng looked at Princess Sophia, who was crying, and took a step forward.
He had an expressionless look on his face. He did not care about these things at all, so he spoke in a polite voice.
âSorry, Princess Sophia, we have more importantââ
âItâs okay, please donât panic, Princess Sophia, your daughter will come back to you.â
Wang Peng looked at Lu Zhou, who interrupted him. He almost suspected that there was something wrong with his ears.
Princess Sophia, who was still crying, raised her head and looked at him in disbelief.
âAre you... willing to help me?â
Lu Zhou nodded and spoke in a gentle voice.
âOf course, I am also very worried about the safety of the little princess. I hope she can return to you as soon as possible.â
Prince Frederick held his wifeâs hand again, squeezing it gently. He was looking at Lu Zhou with some hesitation.
âAre you... sure?â
Even though the relationship between the two countries was temporarily in a honeymoon period, both Sweden, China, and he knew that his daughter was not worth the risk of Academician Luâs life.
A problem with the princess was just Swedenâs own problem.
But a problem with Lu Zhou wasnât as simple as a diplomatic dispute.
Lu Zhou looked at Prince Frederick, and he spoke with a smile.
âItâs fine, itâs nothing difficult.â
After asking for Prince Frederickâs room number, Lu Zhou led Wang Peng to the other end of the cabin. Wang Peng looked at Lu Zhou from behind and said, âWe shouldnât be distracted. I am worried that there may be other dangers on board.â
This wasnât Lu Zhouâs responsibility...
Even if something happened to the little princess, no one would blame the scholar or China. People would put the blame on the pirates.
âPeople all over the world know that the Swedish royal family is the poorest royal family in the world. Even if there are some well-known entrepreneurs and rich people on board, they are far from being rich enough to be a target. Not to mention that even if they receive a ransom, it will be difficult to get away. Obviously, the pirates are not looking for money, theyâre coming after me.
âSo, weâll be fine.â
âButââ
Wang Peng wanted to say something, but he was interrupted by Lu Zhou.
He smiled and continued, âLike I said, itâs not a big deal.â
In fact, the main reason was that Chen Yushan liked the little girl. If the little girl was in danger, like she fell into the water or something worse, Chen Yushan would definitely feel sad.
Of course, this was just an excuse.
Perhaps the real reason was that Lu Zhou was a nosy person.
Wang Peng sighed and gave up.
âHow are you going to find her? I donât have enough manpower on my side.â
âThis is a good question. Give me one minute.â
Lu Zhou reached out his index finger and tapped lightly on the AR glasses.
âXiao Ai, help me find a little girl on the boat. Her name is Lilia, the little princess of the royal family. I donât have a picture of her, but you should be able to find it online.â
[Okay, Master! (ŕšâ˘Ěáâ˘Ě)Ůâ§]
Xiao Ai controlled the quantum computer. It was almost omnipotent in the online world. Even though the surveillance on the cruise ship was not connected to the internet, there were things connected to the cruise ship that could be used as a proxy.
Xiao Ai had instantly gained control of the monitoring system.
It retrieved the height and other physical characteristics of the little girl. It quickly scanned the entire Aurora Borealis ship.
Lu Zhou reached out his hand and gently held his glasses. He smirked and said, âWe found her.â
Wang Peng looked at Lu Zhou in disbelief.
He wanted to ask âAre you sure?â, but Lu Zhou would never joke about this kind of thing, so he changed his words.
âYour glasses... How much is it?â
âYou think this pair of glasses was behind this? Donât even think about it, itâs mine.â Lu Zhou smiled faintly and said, âThe target is in the utility room at the end of the second floor. The room number should be B2771. Letâs go over.â
Wang Peng nodded.
âOkay.â
Lu Zhou followed Wang Pengâs footsteps to the utility room at the end of the ship.
This was mainly for storing cleaning supplies that were temporarily unusable, so generally, no one would enter here.
The door was locked. Lu Zhou was curious about how the naughty little girl slipped away. He didnât waste too much time on such minor matters. His index finger tapped on the frame of his glasses. After that, the electronic lock was unlocked.
Wang Peng turned the door handle first and cautiously opened the door.
Lu Zhou watched his cautious movement. He smiled and shook his head before following him into this fairly spacious storage room.
There was no ambush here, only a little girl in a dress. She was sitting in a corner while holding a rag doll tightly.
Her big emerald eyes stared at the two people who appeared at the door. Princess Lilia was shocked.
âWhy arenât you guys hiding?â
Lu Zhou felt like this question was a bit funny. He walked to her and squatted down. He then asked with a smile, âWhy should we hide? Itâs just a small accident. Good kids donât run around.â
âLilia is not running around. Lilia is just escaping.â
Lu Zhou couldnât hold back. He smiled and shook his head.
Escape?
Weâre in the ocean, where can you escape?
The little princess sitting on the ground complained, âYou donât believe me. Iâm telling the truth. Some people are saying that pirates are here. And I canât find mom and dad. Lilia has to hide from the pirates!â
âGood kids should go back to their rooms instead of making their parents anxious... Wait, you said someone said that pirates are coming?â
âYes.â Lilia nodded. She looked at Lu Zhou curiously and said, âDonât you know? Everyone is saying that.â
Lu Zhou and Wang Peng looked at each other with a moment of realization in their eyes.
Sure enough, there were insiders on the ship.
Even if there were rumors, they wouldnât be so consistent.
Besides, the rumor was spread before he used satellite images.
Even if the news came from the captainâs cabin, the timing didnât make sense. Someone was deliberately creating chaos, and they intended to take advantage of the chaos...
A searching icon flashed in the upper right corner of the glasses.
After 30 seconds, a line of text appeared in Lu Zhouâs field of vision.
Xiao Ai: [Master, Xiao Ai found a few suspicious people in the bottom layer of the ship. Ď(â§ĎâŚ*)âŞ]
Lu Zhou: âMark them for me.â
Xiao Ai: [Ok! (ŕšâ˘Ěáâ˘Ě)Ůâ§]
Soon after, a surveillance stream was displayed. While everyone went to the restaurant and prepared to follow the instructions to evacuate, a few suspicious people walked against the crowd and walked to the bottom of the cruise ship.
Judging from their clothes, they were wearing the uniforms of the hotel staff. Finally, they disappeared from the surveillance screen. Xiao Ai marked their current location on the map.
âWang Peng, look at your phone.â
Wang Peng turned on his phone without any hesitation and played the surveillance video that Lu Zhou had just sent.
When he saw the unusual people, he frowned.
âBefore boarding, there were two security checks. Apart from us, no one should be able to bring weapons on board.â
âDoes this include the Royal Guards?â
Wang Peng was taken aback for a moment. He then nodded.
âI see...â
They did not bring weapons on board. They planned to use the equipment belonging to the Royal Guards.
Even though these equipment were all light weapons, it was enough to do many things in the midst of the chaotic situation.
If the piratesâ attack was unsuccessful, they would be the backup plan.
Wang Peng put away the phone and said, âIâll be back. You stay here, donât walk around.â
Lu Zhou smiled and said, âI donât plan to go anywhere, but you should be careful. There were six people.â
Wang Peng smiled suddenly. Even Princess Lilia couldnât help but notice the murderous expression in that smile.
âOnly six?
âEven sixty is not enough.â
After that, he walked out of the door.
The door of B2771 was closed. Before leaving, Wang Peng turned on the lights in the storage room for Lu Zhou.
It was safe here.
The monitoring system was being controlled by Xiao Ai. No one could find him even if they searched the entire cruise ship. He just needed to wait here quietly for the chaos to end. After that, he could hand the little princess to her parents. Everything would be solved.
Lu Zhou was thinking about whether to use his AR glasses to pass the time and watch a movie when a timid voice suddenly came from next to him.
âI heard.â
âHeard what?â
âThe pirates will take us away.â
â...â
Lu Zhou thought this was ridiculous. If the pirates couldnât demand ransom, why would they take any hostages? But seeing how this was just a six-year-old girl, he didnât bother to correct her.
âThen what?â
âThen kill all the men, then all the womenââ
Lu Zhou immediately covered her mouth nervously.
âWho told you these things?â
Princess Lilia blinked and spoke innocently.
âI read it online.â
âI think people who told you these things should go to jail.â
Lilia asked curiously, âThen... Should Mr. Andersen be in jail? I love his stories the most.â
Lu Zhou: âWhat you read is definitely not the normal version...â
âWhat should I do, Iâm very scared.â Lilia suddenly hugged her head. Her body leaned against the corner. She suddenly thought of something terrifying, and her shoulders trembled as she said, âWhat if they throw me into the sea and feed me to the fish?â
Feed you to the fish?
Lu Zhou couldnât help but shake his head.
He was thinking about how to comfort her when he suddenly thought of a good idea. He snapped his fingers and said, âDonât worry, I can show you a magic trick.â
Lilia looked up at Lu Zhou and spoke curiously.
âMagic?â
âThatâs right, magic.â
Lu Zhou stood up from the floor and extended his right hand to the little girl sitting on the ground. âGet up, letâs go to the porthole.â
She gracefully placed her hand in Lu Zhouâs palm. Lilia said, âCanât you just do it here? The boat is shaking, itâs tiring to stand up.â
âIâll make sure you donât fall. This magic trick is only for bad people...â
Lu Zhou looked outside the porthole. The cargo ship was getting closer.
On the other hand, a green dot was getting closer and closer on the map on his AR glasses.
âWhere is the magic?â Lilia tilted her head unhappily. She looked at Lu Zhou and grumbled, âAre you lying to me, Mr. Scholar?â
âAnyone who knows me knows that I never lie. Look out the window.â Lu Zhou reached out his index finger and gently pointed at the cargo ship that was getting closer. He said softly, âAbracadabra.â