At noon, the scorching sunshine desperately tried to boil the Coral Sea water to cook a large pot of assorted fish soup that could be consumed by people all over the world.
On the rippling blue sea, the whaler Nagatsuka Maru, which was far away from the regular route, had already increased its speed to 18 knots and was diligently chasing the huge group of whales not far ahead.
Thanks to the chat in the captain's room just now, Wei Ran, who was supposed to go to the warehouse to work, also entered the command room with a camera at the invitation of Captain Fernando and watched the whole process of the captain instructing the sailors to hunt down the whales.
After getting permission from the other party, Wei Ran took a few photos of the sailors in the command room. Fernando, who invited him up, also introduced in his spare time, "There are about two groups of whales we are hunting so far.
There are more than ten, and we can probably catch a quarter of them, and if we are lucky, we may be able to kill half of them."
Before it finished speaking, the whaling cannon on the bow of the ship had already opened fire. Through the glass window of the command room, Wei Ran could clearly see that the javelin fired with a white rope hit it easily.
A whale appeared on the side of the ship, and everyone in the control room immediately let out a burst of cheers.
But this time, the whaling ship did not stop or slow down, and even the sailors on the deck did not salvage the hit whale.
Under the puzzled gaze of Wei Ran, the whaling cannon on the bow fired again, and a particularly conspicuous inflatable float appeared at the tail of the rope dragged by the javelin that was first fired and hit the target.
As the whaling cannon fired again and again, javelins were shot out one after another, and the originally blue sea surface was also dyed with masses of red. In the center of the constantly rolling red sea water, there was also a conspicuous floating in the center.
Inflatable float.
Just when Wei Ran tried to raise the camera several times and failed to press the shutter several times, Fernando walked up to the Japanese hemorrhoid flag hanging on the wall on the side of the command room with excitement, stretched out his hand from under the flag, and fixed it on the wall.
On the knife holder above, he took off a katana that was fixed on it with a belt, put it on the floor as a cane, folded his hands, and put his palms on the handle of the knife.
In addition to this bastard practice posture that made Wei Ran want to chop him, Fernando's original command in English was also switched to Japanese broadcast through loudspeakers throughout the ship. And those who were busy in the command room and even on the deck
The sailors also responded loudly to the corresponding orders.
Under this efficient killing, in less than an hour, the last whale in sight was hit by a javelin fired from a whaling cannon.
"Captain! A total of 11 sperm whales have been killed, all of which are sperm whales!" A sailor reported loudly from the loudspeaker in the control room, followed by a cheer from everyone except Wei Ran.
"Good job, let's get started!"
Fernando bent over the fixed microphone on the podium and issued new orders.
Soon, the whaling ship started busy salvaging after going around in a circle. Weiran also left the command room at the invitation of Fernando, who still had a camera hanging around his neck but had a samurai sword in his hand.
Went to the stern deck.
Almost at the same time they stepped onto the deck, the last captured whale had been pulled up through the ramp trestle at the stern of the ship.
"Victor, today is a good day for the harvest. Please help us take some photos."
As he spoke, Fernando handed the camera hanging around his neck to Wei Ran, and then pointed at the whale that had just been pulled up with his samurai sword, "Just take pictures of the hard-working sailors at work. It's best.
A photo was taken of each whale as it was pulled up."
"Mr. Nagatsuka, don't you mind appearing on camera?"
When Wei Ran took the camera, he deliberately used Japanese and deliberately used the surname Nagatsuka to call the captain, "This is a memorable day for the captain of a whaling ship."
"It's my honor." After Fernando said this, he resumed driving with his hands holding the samurai sword, and even straightened his waist and tucked in his belly.
Are you posing with me together?
Wei Ran muttered to himself, raised the Nikon camera, put the bloody scene of whale slaughter on the deck, and Fernando, who looked like a smug villain on his face, into the frame and pressed the shutter.
After taking five or six photos from various angles for Fernando, the latter took over his camera with satisfaction. At the same time, he pointed at the second sperm whale that was about to be pulled up and said, "We have gained a lot this time. Wait.
After we fish out all these whales, we can return home."
"So fast?" Wei Ran asked subconsciously.
"We have limited cargo capacity"
Fernando explained, "And we don't have a lot of supplies. If we send these harvests back first, and then purchase more supplies, we can go further."
Let’s just say that I didn’t have the money to buy extra supplies last time I sailed...
Wei Ran muttered to himself what he had guessed was the truth, but he asked, "Does that mean we are still docking at Sydney Harbor?"
"No, we are going to Brisbane Port," Fernando explained. "We will definitely gain more on the way back."
Before he finished speaking, someone among the sailors on the deck blew a whistle, and immediately after, four busy sailors quickly ran into the cabin. When they came out again, each of them had a lot of money in their hands.
Got a whaling gun.
Soon, the four sailors ran to the edge of the deck and fixed the butts of their whaling guns on the railing with iron pins.
"It's a shark or dolphin stealing meat."
Before Fernando finished speaking, two of the sailors opened their mouths in no particular order and shot out the small javelin connected to the rope from the barrel.
Soon, the third whale was pulled up, and a little later, several dolphins with small javelins stuck in their bodies were also pulled up! The four sailors who originally used whaling guns also changed their tools.
, skillfully slaughtered and cut the struggling dolphins into large and small pieces of meat.
This chapter is not over, please click on the next page to continue reading! "Their tail fin meat is very delicious, especially when making sashimi. You can try it for dinner."
After Fernando finished speaking, he turned and walked towards the command room, "Victor, just stay here and take pictures for everyone."
Looking at Fernando's back, Wei Ran hid the murderous intent in his eyes and continued to watch the slaughtering and salvage of whale carcasses on the deck through the camera lens in his hand.
Wei Ran couldn't describe how big a sperm whale was. Perhaps the only accurate word he could think of was "mountain of meat."
But the whole process of such a mountain of meat, from being towed to the ship, cut into pieces, and then sent to the refrigerated cargo hold on the lower deck, only takes half an hour or at most 40 minutes. And the upper deck of the stern of this whaling ship, once
You can kill three whales at the same time!
In less than two hours, the 11 sperm whales hunted previously, as well as 7 additional sharks and more than 20 dolphins caught along the way, all became the trophies of this boat.
And the only traces that prove that they once existed in this clean sea are the track on the sea that was stained red by the blood washed off the deck, and the various marine creatures that swam over after smelling the smell of blood.
With the help of Fernando's temporary identity as a photographer, Wei Ran was able to follow the last whale's cut body into the assembly line on the lower deck, and witnessed with his own eyes the entire process of refining whale oil and filtering spermaceti oil.
He even saw a few sailors hiding on the lower deck, surrounding a young dolphin that was still alive on the table, tasting intoxicated the fish that a Japanese sailor had cut off the skinned tail fin.
The twitching lump of flesh.
With an expressionless face, he took a group photo of the sailors who were surrounding the young dolphin and smiling at him. Wei Ran, who left here quickly, couldn't help but think of those man-eating demons in the jungle and Helen's Reef.
The man-eating Wendigo reminds me even more of the little arm that was hit beside me in the explosion on the battlefield in Teng County, and the string of Five Emperors' coins that remained on the arm.
"vomit--!"
While running back to the upper deck, he finally couldn't help but feel nauseous. He lay down on the railing and began to retching facing the blood-stained water outside the ship.
"Victor, what's wrong with you?" At this moment, Karan and Valoro walked out of the cabin carrying a long-handled brush and a tin bucket respectively.
Waving his hands to indicate that he was fine, Wei Ran calmed down and then asked, "Aren't you helping in the kitchen?"
Karan spread his hands and said nonchalantly, "I just heard Hugo say that it seems that the captain decided to eat whale meat today to celebrate. Now the kitchen is filled with the most skilled sailors, and we can't help at all, so
I was ordered out to clean the deck."
"Where's Hugo?" Wei Ran spat towards the outside of the boat and continued to ask.
"He has been helping to operate the radar all day today," Valoro hinted, "It seems that he has a bad stomach."
"I guess it's because I drank too much fish soup last night," Karan added with a wink.
Before Wei Ran could ask any more questions, the Japanese second officer on the ship also shouted to Wei Ran and asked him to go down and open the door of the warehouse.
Just like yesterday, what the other party picked up this time was still two boxes of sake, some beer and some vegetables.
Just after sending away the second mate, the first mate also came over with a dozen sailors. After Wei Ran registered them one by one, he sent barrels of spermaceti oil and refined whale oil into the warehouse.
"Victor"
After all the oil drums were put into the warehouse, the first mate signed and said, "Tell your friends for me to come and join our celebration tonight. This time we can have a few more drinks, and we don't have to drink them tonight."
work overtime."
"We will make it to the appointment on time," Wei Ran responded with a smile.
"Bring your camera with you"
The first mate handed the signed record book to Wei Ran, "How about you take some more photos for us then?"
"No problem" Weiran promised again.
Not long after seeing off the first mate, Japanese music was once again played from the speakers throughout the whaling ship, and Japanese songs sang by groups of sailors could even be heard throughout the ship.
In this warm atmosphere, Wei Ran shuttled among the sailors with the camera in his hand and took photos of them. The upper deck at the stern was also carefully watched by sailors including Karan and Valoro.
Cleaned up and set up small tables one by one.
When night fell, the speed of the whaling ship slowed down a bit and the music played louder.
On the brightly lit upper deck at the stern, a barbecue grill with a length of four meters was also set up. Several Japanese men who had changed their clothes were also standing behind the barbecue grill, either busy grilling food or frying food.
Make tempura, stew oden and other snacks.
The festive scene gradually became more tidy with the arrival of Captain Fernando, who had changed into a kimono, but Wei Ran, Hugo and Valoro all frowned and cheered.
Looking around, Fernando didn't say anything, just waved his hand.
Soon, sailors one by one brought plates of food, which were delivered to each table like water.
Among the food that was served, there were teppanyaki steaks that were still sizzling and dripping with oil, sashimi that made the four Weiran people sitting around the table frown, and grilled meat on a barbecue not far away.
Fresh seafood skewers and freshly baked tempura.
And when the sailors delivering food to each table didn't bring a dish, someone would loudly tell them in Japanese what dish it was.
"Victor, what's wrong with you?" Hugo looked curiously at Wei Ran, whose face became increasingly ugly and asked.
However, before Wei Ran could answer, four small plates were brought to the table that made everyone at the table wide-eyed.
Each of these small white porcelain plates holds an eye, an eye as big as a child's fist!
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! "What... what is this..." Valoro waited until the sailors came back with four small dipping bowls, and then asked with a trace of panic.
A question that both Hugo and Karan were curious about came up.
"Eye"
Wei Ran sighed and translated the introduction from the sailor into English, "The eyes of a dolphin."
"Well!"
Karan was the first to get up in a panic, covered his mouth and ran to the corner of the deck where the light could not reach, and started vomiting.
"This is so scary..." Hugo said with his Adam's apple twitching, obviously frightened by this dish.
“This is whale meat cooked in Yamato, with whale meat and offal inside”
Wei Ran picked up a pair of kuaizi on the table, pointed to the dishes that had just been served, and explained them one by one according to the introduction of the sailors, "This is the dolphin tail fin and whale tail fin meat sashimi platter, and this is the whale tongue sashimi."
, this is dolphin heart sashimi, this is fried whale meat, this is teppanyaki whale steak, and this, this is..."
"That's enough, that's enough Victor."
Valoro frowned and stopped Wei Ran, "Is there nothing we can eat here? I don't want to eat raw food, it will make me think of rain..."
Valoro didn't say everything he remembered, but Hugo suddenly got up and ran to the corner, lying down next to his eldest nephew Karan, holding on to the guardrail and started retching.
"The next ones should be able to... forget it."
Wei Ran shook his head. The sailors brought bowls of Japanese ramen, but the bucket used to cook ramen not far away was the same soup bucket they used to make fish soup yesterday - he didn't want to
Eat anything cooked in urine buckets and spittoons.
"Let's eat this." Wei Ran picked up a piece of tempura, "This is a vegetable."
"Let them remove these things first, especially these eyes."
Valoro said with difficulty, "I'm sure that Hugo and Karan will not come back unless this is removed."
Hearing this, Wei Ran glanced at the plate, stopped the sailor who was about to serve the ramen to them, and expressed the dietary demands of the people at the table.
Under the slightly contemptuous gaze of the sailor, the ramen, the sashimi, and the robbed eyeballs were all taken away. Hugo and Karan were also called back by Valoro.
While the four people at their table looked on with frowns, the sailors at the tables around them were enjoying all kinds of raw food and those giant eyes that were simply boiled.
As Captain Fernando, who was sitting at the head of the table, toasted again and again, these harvest sailors also cheered one after another.
In the middle of the celebration, at the suggestion of the chief mate, who was about 1.75 meters tall, the sailors cleared two areas in the middle of the deck to play judo and sword fighting, and Captain Fernando actually took the lead in starting a game.
mouth.
Soon, someone brought wooden swords and various protective gears. Obviously, this kind of entertainment project was probably the "corporate culture" of this ship.
Although the dinner just made Hugo and others feel a little nauseous, and they were not familiar with the detailed rules of these two confrontation games at all, this gamble aroused their interest, and even Wei Ran also tried to prevent himself from being too abrupt.
, joined in the fun and took out a few banknotes to place a bet.
After several consecutive blows, the first mate, who had won five consecutive games on the judo field, tore off his clothes and started provoking with his tendons stretched all over his body.
However, at this time, Wei Ran noticed that Valoro and Hugo frowned in no particular order, especially the former, who had a clear look of anger on his face.
Before the usually good-tempered big boss Hei took a step, Wei Ran, who was confused, and Hugo, who seemed to see something, reached out almost at the same time, grabbing Valoro's wrists one from the left and the other from the right.
After simply looking at each other, Wei Ran and Hugo worked together to pull the tensed Valoro towards the edge of the deck, where the light could not reach the shadow.
"What's wrong?" Wei Ran waited until his back was against the guardrail before he asked in a low voice.
"Are they from your tribe?" Hugo did not answer Wei Ran's question, but looked at Valoro who was holding the pipe so tightly that the muscles of his entire arm were bulging.
"It can't be wrong, it must be." Valoro gritted his teeth and said.
"Can any of you explain it to me?" Wei Ran asked confused.
"Waloro's tribe is considered a relatively civilized tribe."
Hugo sighed and explained, "Before World War II, they hunted birds of paradise and exchanged those beautiful feathers for various things that were not available in the jungle."
After a pause, Hugo pointed to himself, "My parents were in the bird-of-paradise business at that time. Whether it was a living bird of paradise or its feathers, they could be sold for a big price as long as they were shipped to Europe. It's no exaggeration.
Even the Queen of England once bought the Birds of Paradise we shipped to the UK."
"so..."
"It was only after we cooperated with Hugo's father that our tribe began to break away from its previous life, at least it no longer cannibalized people."
"Both Valoro and I were not born yet," Hugo added helpfully.
Valoro reached into his pocket and took out a small leather gold coin bag. Untying the leather cord at the top, he poured out a necklace from inside and handed it to Wei Ran.
Taking the necklace, Wei Ran could clearly see through the light in the distance that the necklace, which was worn with a leather cord, was fixed with beaks with pulp.
"After we hunt the bird of paradise, it's best if it's still alive. If we accidentally kill it, we can only sell the feathers to Hugo's father."
Valoro pointed to the patinated beaks on the necklace and said, "The dead birds of paradise, especially the blue birds of paradise, their beaks are blue and white, very beautiful, we will kill the dead birds of paradise."
The beak of the bird of paradise was carefully removed and a rope was threaded through the nostrils to make a necklace.
Since the collaboration with Hugo's father, the beaks have become as popular as seashells and snail shells."
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! "And only their tribe will make necklaces with only bird beaks, because it means wealth and also means being a good hunter." Hugo added.
"Just like the necklace the first mate wears around his neck."
Valoro took the necklace Wei Ran returned and carefully put it into the small leather gold coin bag. After carefully tying it tightly, he added in a dull voice, "People in our tribe will not give this kind of necklace to others, let alone
It will not be sold, and no one will buy our necklace.
And since the end of World War II, we no longer catch birds of paradise. Even mine was left to me by my father before he died. He was a very good hunter when he was young."
"So the first mate has been to the Kokoda Trail?" Wei Ran said with a frown.
"if not?"
Valoro clenched his fists and asked an unanswerable question, "I have to get that necklace back. Hugo, Victor, do you remember what happened in the jungle? Do you remember Kaikai and
Susu?"
"Let's go"
Hugo was already taking steps as he spoke, "Let's challenge the first mate and see if we can find a way to win his necklace."
"At least ask where he got the necklace."
Wei Ran looked at Waroro as he spoke, lowered his voice and asked, "Everyone knows that you are from Papua New Guinea, right?"
"No one knows." Valoro shook his head, "I smuggled to Australia with the help of Hugo and Callan."
"That's good, how about we keep this matter a secret for now?"
Wei Ran moved his fists as he spoke. Although he didn't know the rules of judo, if he just hit the opponent, it wouldn't be that difficult.
"I'm an aborigine from the outback of Australia." Valoro looked natural and found a new hometown for himself. "Friends, how about I come first? I want to get that necklace back in person."
After a short pause, the old black man added, "It's best to kill it!"
