"What's wrong?" Song Qingshu asked, completely bewildered.
Huang Rong hurriedly explained, "I haven't lived on Peach Blossom Island for so long that I forgot to watch the weather here. Just now, a large number of seabirds were resting along the shore. Normally, they should have been feeding at this hour. If they're resting this early, a storm is probably coming."
Song Qingshu froze. "You can tell a storm is coming just from that? What if those birds are simply tired from flying?" The sky was somewhat overcast, but the sea was calm. It did not look like a typhoon was approaching.
Seeing that he remained unconvinced, Huang Rong grew both angry and anxious. She pulled him back as she said, "Of course it isn't just that. Normally, at night the wind blows from the island out to sea, while in the daytime it blows from the sea toward the island. But now the wind direction is exactly the opposite, which proves a storm is about to arrive."
Song Qingshu was startled. A commander must understand the heavens above and the land below. I'm far too lacking in this regard. If I encountered something like this in a naval battle someday and failed to notice it in advance, that would be disastrous.
Just as he was about to say something, a fierce gale suddenly sprang up, making it difficult to keep his eyes open. Song Qingshu looked toward the sea and saw towering waves rolling across the water. An endless mass of black clouds was rapidly approaching from the horizon, with flashes of lightning and rumbles of thunder faintly visible within.
Song Qingshu could not help staring in disbelief. "Isn't this changing a little too quickly? Just now, the sky was perfectly clear."
Huang Rong gave a bitter smile. "The weather