Church's Diary, Part Seventeen:
Mr. Stone finally woke up. He was very weak, as if he had been seriously ill. The doctor suggested that he continue his IV drip, but he said he didn't need it and only asked us for some nutritious porridge.
Ivan and Boris have almost fully recovered, especially Boris, who is full of energy. He gets along very well with Anderson and often helps him repair his boat.
And you know what? Boris and Ivan were incredibly knowledgeable about the ship's equipment; they fixed a lot of problems. Anderson secretly told me that these two must have served in the military, and on some of the best warships or submarines.
From their demeanor and Boris's casual remarks, I had already suspected that they were likely from a military background, though not as accurately as Anderson had deduced.
If our guess is correct, their reluctance to discuss the cause of their accident is understandable. But this thought also makes me a little worried. Could the tsunami we experienced and the previous strange occurrences really be related to military operations? And were they the soldiers who nearly perished in those operations?
In the South Pacific, theoretically only the United States could orchestrate such a large-scale operation. New Zealand lacks the capability, and Australia wouldn't conduct military experiments so far from its homeland, especially since this is within the United States sphere of influence. But given the United States military action, why are there two Russia soldiers present? And what's more, there's an Asia lying there!
The more I thought about it, the more confused and incredulous it seemed. A strong smell of conspiracy lingered in front of my nose, and I even sensed some great, unknown danger.
Let's leave quickly; everything will be fine once we're back on land.
However, before we could even adjust our course, we discovered another terrible thing.
The incident stemmed from a watch Boris was wearing on his wrist.
He was on deck with Anderson, enjoying the breeze and rambling on about all sorts of things. I deliberately let Anderson talk to him more so I could glean some information from him.
Boris asked Anderson, "Guess how many Christmases I've spent at sea?"
Anderson laughed and said, "It doesn't matter which number it is. Christmas is still a long way off; it's only August now. If you're still on the ship four months from now, then we can talk about this again."
Boris looked at Anderson in surprise, then raised his wrist to check the time, slapped his watch hard, and said, "Are you crazy, Anderson? Tomorrow is Christmas, tomorrow, you know! Have you drunk seawater and gone mad, saying it's only August!"
Anderson grabbed his wrist, stared at his watch, then looked at his own wrist. I could see the look of surprise gradually hardening on Anderson's face.
Then, Anderson rushed over nervously, grabbed my wrist, and looked at my watch. I said, "What's wrong, Anderson?" Anderson said, "Go look at that guy's watch. The date on his watch is December 24th."
I said, "How could that be?" But I still looked to Boris, who was slowly walking over, for confirmation. He said, "That's right, it's Christmas Eve today. Shouldn't we relax together?"
Scientists' various advanced electronic watches were destroyed in this tsunami and EMP disaster, but most of my sailors wore waterproof mechanical watches. The calendars on our watches showed that we were still in August. I also have a paper calendar in my captain's cabin, and I tear off a page every day. Moreover, I have a habit of keeping a diary, so I trust that I won't get the date wrong.
However, both Boris and Ivan's watches showed it was December, and tomorrow was Christmas. They both insisted that the date was absolutely correct.
I don't think they had any reason to lie to us, and it's impossible for them to have planned it all in advance, adjusting the dates on all their watches. Most importantly, the Sun in the sky and the temperature at sea don't lie. Although the ocean doesn't have the same temperature variations across the seasons as the land, the difference between winter and Xia Tian is still quite noticeable.
Robbins remained silent after hearing the news. He had made this guess a few days ago, but no one wanted to believe it. He first went to Pardik's room, where he was recuperating from his injuries, closed the door, and the two talked for a long time. Later, he called Mrs. Larry over.
I don't know what they were talking about or why they were being so mysterious, but I think it must be related to time travel. Pardik is a space physics expert, and if anyone on the ship could explain time travel, it would probably be him.
Moreover, Pardik was seriously injured, and the ship's medical resources were limited, especially after many pieces of equipment broke down. They could only rely on primitive methods to help his broken bones heal. Fortunately, his concussion was not severe. Given such a serious injury, one should not disturb him. Mr. Robbins must have felt that the situation was a bit serious, or thought of something else that he had to ask Pardik.
But good heavens, what on earth is going on? Why are they being so secretive?
Later, he and Mrs. Larry came out of Pardik's room, and I thought they were going to announce something, but they didn't. They went together to Arthur Stone's room. But this time they probably felt they shouldn't avoid me, the captain, so they greeted me and said they needed to confirm some things with Mr. Stone and asked me to come with them.
Ivan and Boris seemed uneasy about us, following us nervously. Robbins and Mrs. Larry didn't stop them. This led others who wanted to go to follow. Alice stayed close to Mrs. Larry, and several other scientists followed closely behind.
However, I later learned why Robbins and Mrs. Larry didn't stop others from going, because it wouldn't make a difference if more people went. After Mrs. Larry went in, she incredibly began to speak fluent Chinese with Mr. Stone, while the others couldn't understand a word they were saying.
During my many years at sea, I've met crew members of many different nationalities, including China, of course. So I've learned a little Chinese and can say some common phrases like "hello," "have you eaten?", "goodbye," and "damn it." But if you asked me to listen to a conversation between two China people, I honestly wouldn't be able to process it at all.
When I listened to Mrs. Larry speak Chinese, it sounded like she was singing. The only thing I could understand was her pronunciation of Stone's name, although the syllables sounded a bit strange, like " Situ."
Mr. Situ always had a warm smile on his face. Although it was a lazy smile, perhaps due to his health, it had a deep and comforting power, making you feel as comfortable as if you were bathing in a spring breeze when you saw him. I saw a light in Alice's eyes, even though I was sure she didn't understand a word.
The conversation didn't last long; Stone seemed unable to hold on any longer, though he maintained his composure throughout, almost making one forget he was a patient.
Mrs. Larry ended the conversation, and everyone except Ivan and Boris left Stone's room. I saw Mrs. Larry and Robbins ' expressions change, and I wondered what had happened.
I knew things must be very serious. Mr. Robbins didn't explain anything to me, he just asked me to go full speed ahead immediately and find land as soon as possible.