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After we all sat down again, I intentionally glanced at Li Xin, who was also looking at me with a gaze full of hostility. Jiao Ba spoke up this time, asking, "Jenny, how did you manage to escape? What about the Bearded Man's men?"
Jenny replied, "They all left. After you went with the Bearded Man to Wreck, we were waiting for news on the fishing boat. But after waiting for a long time without any updates, someone from the Bearded Man's side said that Wreck had disappeared. Then the remaining people just returned to their own fishing boats and left. It was that simple."
"What did you say? They left by boat?" I was puzzled. But there was no one on that boat! I intentionally looked at Mai Lao and Jiao Bayi; they both showed expressions of disbelief.
"Jenny, are you sure they left on their own fishing boats?" Mai Lao asked again.
"Yes, I'm quite sure because the Bearded Man's fishing boat was docked right next to ours. After they boarded their boat, they left quickly. Li Xin and the other sailors saw it too," Jenny said, glancing at Li Xin.
Li Xin nodded and said, "That's true; they left quickly. Some of them said this place was too eerie and that they needed to leave fast. The rest just ran away."
Jiao Ba, smoking a cigarette, asked, "Jenny, do you know whose fishing boat we came here on?"
"It seems... oh yes! That fishing boat belongs to the Bearded Man," Jenny seemed to suddenly realize.
"Yes, it's the Bearded Man's fishing boat, but when we boarded, there was no one on it! So where did his men go?" I looked at Jenny and asked. I couldn't shake the feeling that something was off; was Jenny lying? Or was there something hidden in all of this?
According to Jenny, the Bearded Man's men had already left by boat; there was no reason for them to suddenly disappear altogether, leaving only an empty boat drifting on the Sea Surface. I really couldn't understand it; my first instinct was that Jenny's words were false.
But then again, it didn't make sense for her to lie like this. Moreover, Li Xin confirmed that they indeed left on their own. Considering the fishing boat we arrived on, they should have been able to figure it out—how could they possibly say something so full of holes?
"Jenny, when did the Bearded Man's men leave?" Jiao Bayi asked seriously.
Jenny thought for a moment and said, "Probably a few hours after you left! I can't remember the exact time; Li Xin, do you recall?"
"I can't remember clearly; it should have been a few hours later. But I do know that someone mentioned Wreck had vanished, and that's why they hurriedly left," Li Xin said coldly.
“Mai Lao, what do you think is going on? Why is there not a single person on Bearded Man's ship? According to what they said, they should have left by boat, so how could there be an empty ship?” Jiao Ba asked Mai Lao.
“Jenny, Li Xin, are you both telling the truth?” Mai Lao did not answer Jiao Ba but instead questioned them.
“Mai Lao, I don’t know about others, but you’ve known us for so long. Do you really think Li Xin and I would lie to you?” Jenny replied, somewhat angrily, her tone heavy. However, from her words, it was clear that they had known each other for a while. Li Xin seemed the same way, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that the problem lay with one of them. Yet, I couldn’t recall what exactly it was.
Mai Lao nodded and said, “That’s true. Jiao Ba, I can’t figure this out either. Do you think they might have encountered some danger? Or were they attacked by something?”
“There are no signs of struggle on the ship, nor any serious damage. It doesn’t look like it was attacked at all. Besides, even if they were attacked, it’s impossible for everyone to just disappear without a trace!” Jiao Ba continued to question skeptically.
At that moment, Shunzi suddenly spoke up: “Could it be something man-made?”
His words seemed to trigger a realization in me. If someone had killed them and then thrown their bodies into the sea while erasing all traces from the ship, that wasn’t impossible. But who would do such a thing? What would their motive be? I couldn’t understand that; things were becoming more complicated.
We exchanged glances, and Jiao Ba said again, “I think Shunzi has a point. It might really be man-made. If someone wanted to silence them, it’s certainly possible.” After he spoke, he scanned the room with his eyes.
Jenny snapped back angrily, “Jiao Ba, are you implying that you suspect me?”
Jiao Ba shook his head and replied, “Jenny, don’t misunderstand me. I’m not suspecting you; I’m just voicing my thoughts. This situation is indeed strange. We drifted at sea for an entire night before discovering Bearded Man’s fishing boat, yet there isn’t a single person on board. Considering what you said earlier, doesn’t that seem odd?”
Jenny scoffed lightly and said, “I’m telling the truth; they really did leave by boat. As for why they all disappeared, how would I know?”
I exchanged glances with Jiao Ba again. He continued, “This situation is indeed puzzling. But I can assure you it’s definitely not an accident; the most likely scenario is foul play—someone silencing them. Mai Lao, what do you think?”
Jiao Ba tossed the question back to the old man. Mai Lao adjusted his glasses and said, “It’s not impossible. Jenny, after they left, did anyone go missing from our ship?”
The old man's reasoning was quite professional; if we could find out who left the fishing boat during that time or if someone was unaccounted for, that person could very well be the mastermind behind this. But what I wanted to know more was whether Bearded Man's group had any connection to that man in black.
"Jenny," she said, shaking her head awkwardly, "No! I haven't seen anyone leave! In this vast ocean, who could possibly track a fishing boat?"
After she finished speaking, a crucial question suddenly struck me: "Jenny, how did the Bearded Man know about the Nautical Chart? I can't imagine you told him, right?"
"What are you joking about? How could I possibly tell him something so important? I don't even know him!" Jenny replied with an angry expression.
"You don't know him? Then how does he know you? And how does he know about the Nautical Chart? Also, when did you first meet the Bearded Man?" Jiao Ba asked, voicing my own questions.
Jenny said seriously, "I really don’t know him, and I have no idea how he knows about the Nautical Chart. I remember the first time I saw him was in Seaside City. It was the second day after I arrived there. I ran into him downstairs at the hotel where I was staying. He seemed to be waiting for me on purpose. When he saw me, he asked about the Nautical Chart and said he would pay any price I asked. I was really surprised because I didn’t know anyone in Seaside City."
"Who introduced that traitor named Gangzi to you?" I squinted and asked. If we could find out who made the introduction, then everything would soon become clear.
"He came over with other sailors; no one introduced him," Jenny firmly denied.
"Then where did these sailors come from? Don't tell me you just picked them up off the street; there must have been someone who introduced them too?" Jiao Ba inquired from the side.
Jenny glanced at Li Xin and Mai Lao before saying, "I'm not too sure about that either. At that time, I was just looking for a few companies, and these sailors were all introduced by those companies."
I thought carefully for a moment, feeling like I had missed some important clue, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't recall what it was...
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