Trafford's Trading Club

560: Chance！ 560: Chance！ Editor: TheSloth “Just wandering around the ship…

Hmm, let’s meet at the restaurant for dinner.”

“Is it Ms.

Ren?”

Luo Qiu nodded.

At this moment, he and You Ye were already at the atrium near the bow; the Baiyu Cruise hadn’t officially set sail yet, so the breeze wasn’t too strong.

Some of the passengers were still boarding—it would probably be another hour before departure.

By the looks of it, by the time Baiyu Cruise reached open waters, it’d already be deep into the night.

To truly see the ocean, that would have to wait until tomorrow morning.

Still, many early-boarders had left their cabins and started exploring—the group not far from Luo Qiu was likely made up of co-workers, now gathering for a big group photo before departure.

Luo Qiu generally didn’t like crowded places, so he pointed to the second level of the atrium.

“Let’s go up.”

But at this moment, You Ye said, “Master, there’s a pickpocket over there.”

Luo Qiu looked over.

He saw a man, about twenty-seven or twenty-eight, dressed casually with a camera hanging from his neck; his movements were practiced, and he deftly lifted valuables from people’s pockets during the jostling.

Judging by the man’s smug expression, he hadn’t even set sail yet and already had some decent loot.

But Mr.

Pickpocket suddenly looked alert and glanced in the direction of Boss Luo and You Ye.

Yet, faced with the near-invisible presence of the club’s master and maid, the pickpocket didn’t notice anything amiss.

He frowned, scolded himself for being paranoid, and quickly left to find somewhere new to operate.

“Pretty cautious guy.” Luo Qiu said casually, then headed toward the observation deck on the second tier of the cruise.

But there was a sign up front saying it wasn’t open yet…

Supposedly, there was a pool and a mini playground upstairs—it just wasn’t ready yet.

So Boss Luo and his loyal maid became temporary gatecrashers…

But it seemed they weren’t the only ones.

Once Luo Qiu got upstairs, he discovered someone else had beaten him to it.

The man, about thirty to forty years old, wore a rumpled suit without a tie, and was sneakily hiding under the third-floor observation deck, fiddling about.

He had a small notebook in his hand, scribbling things unknown.

“This area’s not open yet, what are you doing up here?”

Just then, a deep voice sounded behind the sneaky middle-aged man, scaring him half to death.

He turned to see an old man in uniform.

This old man was exactly the one Boss Luo had seen quarreling with someone at the dock…

Luo Qiu showed a hint of interest and walked closer to the pair.

The middle-aged man frowned, “You…

you’re the captain of Baiyu Cruise?”

“I am.” The old man—the captain—nodded and, clearly not in the mood to chat, said directly, “This area opens at three in the afternoon.

If you’re bored, go spend time in the cabins—there are plenty of shops and entertainment spots inside.”

The middle-aged man responded smoothly, “Captain, can’t you make an exception…

here’s my card.

My surname is Qian, Qian Guoliang.”

Qian Guoliang pulled a business card from his pocket and handed it to the old captain.

The captain frowned at it and seemed a bit startled, “You’re with Carnival Cruise Group?”

Qian Guoliang chuckled, “Yep, I’m one of the company’s engineers.

Truth be told, we’re designing a new kind of cruise ship lately, so I came to Baiyu Cruise looking for inspiration.

This ship’s being retired after it sails back, so it’s a rare chance…

Hope you don’t mind, sorry.”

The captain just shook his head, “Every place has its rules.

If I say it’s not open, then it isn’t.

Please leave.

You can look for inspiration later; this won’t make a difference.”

Qian Guoliang kept smiling, “Captain, Baiyu Cruise was brought in by our group—produced by us, you know…

Can’t you really make an exception?”

The old captain grunted, “So what if you made it?

Baiyu Cruise was sold long ago to our company; it’s private property now.

I’m telling you to leave right now—did you hear me?”

“Captain, our companies cooperate all the time.

Isn’t this a bit much?”

“Do I need to call someone to throw you out?” the old captain said gruffly.

Seeing he couldn’t argue his way through, Qian Guoliang gave in.

“Alright, alright!

I’ll come back later—no need to make this ugly for anyone.”

Saying this, Qian Guoliang put away his notebook, turned, and left under the captain’s stare—but he quietly snorted, muttering, “Old fogey, no sense of humor.”

When he saw Qian Guoliang go down, the old captain finally sighed, grabbed a nearby mop, and began scrubbing at the footprints Qian had left on the deck.

But he’d barely started cleaning before he was covered in cold sweat, his lips taking on a tinge of blue.

The old captain took a few deep breaths, sighed again, slumped down, and stared dazedly ahead, murmuring lonely, “Old man, machines falling apart…

I can’t keep up anymore.”

After a long while, the old captain got to his feet, patted his seat, and walked back into the Baiyu Cruise.

“Master, if this captain goes out to sea, it’s going to be tough for him.” A glint flashed in You Ye’s blue eyes as she quietly said next to Luo Qiu, “As for this Qian Guoliang, he was lying just now—he’s not here for inspiration, more like searching for something.”

Luo Qiu walked over to where the old captain had sat, reached out, and touched the spot the captain had patted.

Suddenly he said, “Let’s just watch for now.

Sure, buying intel would give us all the answers at once, but that would spoil the mystery a bit.”

You Ye nodded.

…

…

Baiyu Cruise had officially set sail.

At mealtime, Ren Ziling and Lizi arrived at the restaurant together, to find Luo Qiu and You Ye already there, having secured a table.

“Aren’t you guys hungry?

You could’ve ordered something after grabbing the spot—it’s buffet style, you know.” Ren Ziling looked at the pair just sitting at the empty table, surprised.

“I’m not hungry.

We’ll wait for Uncle Ma to get here.” Luo Qiu replied calmly.

“Old Ma?

Bet he’s being dragged all over by your aunt right now…

Anyway, I’m parched, I’m going to grab some drinks.” Ren Ziling said as she briskly headed for the drinks station.

Lizi sat down, looking at Ren Ziling’s retreating back and rooting quietly: Sister Ren!

Chance!

Ren Ziling reached the drinks area, sneaked a glance back, saw Luo Qiu and You Ye watching the restaurant’s foreign singer perform, and her lips wound into a sly, shadowy grin.

She took a tiny box out of her bag, kissed it gently, and whispered to it, “Medicine, oh medicine, whether I get a grandchild depends on you!

You’ve got to be super effective!

Bodhisattva bless me, please!”

Like a pious auntie worshiping Guanyin at the temple.

Just then, Auntie Ren took a small pill from the box, crushed it hard, and sprinkled it into a glass of watermelon juice, shaking it like she was conducting a ritual.

“Hmm, just as Lizi said, it doesn’t taste weird at all!”

In no time, Ren Ziling carried back four drinks on a tray, serving them up like a waitress.

“Lizi, this papaya milk is for you!”

Lizi quietly glanced down at her own chest, took the drink with resignation…

What could she do?

She was desperate too.

“You Ye, here!

This strawberry smoothie is my special recipe for you!”

“Thank you.” The loyal maid accepted it with both hands.

“Kid, don’t say I do nothing for you!

Fresh watermelon juice!

You’d better be grateful!” Ren Ziling grabbed the glass and handed it to Luo Qiu.

But before she could set it down, a hand shot out and snatched it—right out of Ren Ziling’s grasp.

“Ah!

I’ve been out all day, I’m dying of thirst!

Perfect, watermelon juice—I love it!”

The newcomer was none other than Officer Ma, big cop Ma Houdede.

He didn’t say another word, just drained the whole glass, then licked his lips and said, “Ziling, got any more?

That was good…

Huh?

Why do you look a little off?”

All you could hear was Ren Ziling gritting her teeth and hissing under her breath beside Officer Ma, “Ma Houdede…

I!

Will!

Never!

Forgive!

You!”

“What?”

It was just a glass of watermelon juice…