Chapter 13 Chapter Twelve

"Well, what's that sound?" said the captain. "There's a ship coming toward us." His hearing was indeed so keen that Dr. Saunders could hear nothing.Staring into the dark night ahead, the captain took the doctor's arm, rose silently, crept into the cabin, and returned to the deck, a revolver in his hand. "Caution is the boat." At this time, the doctor also vaguely heard the creaking sound of the oars rubbing against the rusty oar racks. "The life raft of the schooner," he said. "I know, but it's so late, what are they doing here? It's not necessarily to exchange pleasantries."

Listening to the gradually clear sound, the two quietly waited for the life raft.Now they could not only hear the sound of splashing water, but also the outline of the lifeboat appeared indistinctly in the night. Against the backdrop of the dark sea behind, it looked like a small black dot. "Hey, there..." Nichols suddenly called out, "Hey, boatman!" "Is that you, Captain?" A man's voice came from the water. "It's me, what are you doing here?" The captain stood on the gunwale, his revolver hand hanging naturally.The Australian kept rowing.

"Wait until I get on board," he said. "It's late now," Nichols yelled. The Australian stopped the boatman. "Could you wake up the doctor? My Japanese crew look horrific, and seem to be failing rapidly." "The doctor is right here, pull over." The life raft was up again, and the captain leaned forward to see that there was only the Australian and an Australian in the boat. "Do you want me to come?" Dr. Saunders asked. "Doctor, I'm sorry to disturb you now, but he is really very ill." "I'll come with something."

He staggered down the cabin and grabbed a small bag full of first aid supplies.He climbed over the side of the boat and slowly descended into the life raft.Then the Australian native rowed back quickly. "You know," said the Australian, "divers aren't easy to find these days, let alone Japanese, and they're the only seafarers worth a good salary. They're in high demand in Australia, and none Not to my employer. If this guy dies, my business will go down. I mean, I'll have to go all the way to Yokohama to find another diver, but I'll probably be there for nothing for a month, but still Can't find the right person."

The diver is lying on a lower bunk.The stench in the crew quarters was unbearably hot.Two Aussies were sleeping, one of them lying on his back and snoring.A third Aborigine sat cross-legged on the floor beside the patient's bed, staring at the Japanese lying on the bed with no emotion in his eyes.A hurricane lantern hung dimly from the beam.The diver was dying, he was awake with his eyes open, but when the doctor came to his side, those oriental black eyes remained motionless, still staring blankly ahead.Some people may think that those frozen eyes make people think that he has already left his body and gone to the Paradise of Paradise, and any short existence in the world will not be able to regain his favor.Dr. Sanders gave him a pulse, put his hand on his forehead that was already soaked in cold sweat, and gave him an injection.He stood beside the Japanese bunk, looking at the body lying there, thinking.

"Let's go up and get some air." After a while, he said, "If there is any situation, ask this person to come up and call me." "Is he dying?" asked the Australian when they were on deck. "It seems so." "God, I'm so unlucky." The doctor smiled.The Australian asked him to sit down.This night was as peaceful as death.Distant stars twinkle in the sky, and the calm water reflects the sky full of stars.The two sat in silence.It has been said that if a wish is strong, it will come true.The Japanese lay there, dying, unconscious, convinced that this was not the end, but a new beginning; The sun will still rise the next day.Somehow the karma will continue to be passed on, just like before this, he has already gone through reincarnation after reincarnation.When he was dying, his only emotion might be just curiosity—he longed to know what kind of posture he would be reborn in, and this unknown also made him feel happy.Dr. Saunders dozed off as he thought.A black man ran up and tapped him on the shoulder, waking him up.

"Come on." The dark sky in the east is gradually brightening up. Although the sky is not bright, the bright stars have already disappeared, and the sky looks vague.The doctor went down to the crew accommodation.Divers are rapidly depleting.His eyes were still wide open, but he could no longer feel a pulse, and he was enveloped by a cold breath of death.Suddenly, he began to murmur something that seemed to be Japanese politeness.His voice was low, but his demeanor was humble and relieved.Then, he died.The other two sleeping Negroes were also awake by this time.They were sitting alone on the edge of the bed, without trousers, their black legs hanging in the air.The other squatted on the ground with his back to the Japanese, buried his face in his palms, as if he wanted to escape the imminent death.

The doctor returned to the deck and told the captain the bad news.The captain shrugged. "These Japanese are really weak," he said. Dawn gradually came over the sea.The first ray of sunshine in the morning dyes the calm sea surface in a soft and cool color. "Well, I'm going back to the 'Fenton,'" said the doctor. "Our captain will set sail at dawn." "Have some breakfast before you go back, you must be starving." "Just a cup of tea." "I've got a great idea. I've got some eggs for the Japanese guy, and he can't eat them now, so let's have some bacon and eggs."

He shouted to the cook. "I just want to eat bacon and eggs." He said expectantly, rubbing his hands together, "It must be very fresh." It was not long before the cook brought in steaming bacon and eggs, tea and some biscuits. "God, it smells so good!" said the Australian. "It's weird, but I can't get enough of bacon and eggs. I eat it every day when I'm home. Sometimes my wife will change it for me, but I still eat it." Bacon and eggs are my favorite." When the Australian native was sending the doctor back on the life raft, he suddenly thought that death is actually a more strange thing than the captain eating bacon and eggs for breakfast.The flat sea shone like polished steel.The sea is a soft light blue, reminiscent of the boudoir of an eighteenth-century marquise.To a doctor, human death is a very strange thing.Human beings have undergone a very complicated evolution since the beginning of the world, generation after generation, and finally have the current form.Everyone has the blood of countless fathers, and so does this pearl diver. To die miserably is absurd in itself.

Captain Nichols was shaving when the life raft reached the side of the "Fenton".He reached out and pulled the doctor onto the boat. "How's it going?" "he died." "I guessed it. What about his funeral?" "I don't know, I didn't ask. I think I probably just threw him overboard." "Like throwing a dog?" "yes." The captain's excitement surprised the doctor. "How can you do that, British ships don't do that anyway. He should be buried well, I mean, give him a good prayer or something."

"But he's a Buddhist, or Shinto or something." "I can't help it. I've been at sea for thirty years, and I've grown from a boy to a man. If someone dies on an English ship, there's an English funeral. Doctor, you must know that in the face of death, Everyone is equal. And in this situation, just because the guy is a jap, or a nigger, or an Italian, can't stop him from burying them properly. Hey, guys, lower a life raft, hurry up! I'll be there myself The schooner. You've been away so long that I expected this to happen, so I was shaving when you came back." "What are you going to do?" "Talk to the captain of the schooner. We have to do the right thing and see him off with dignity. I stress that on every boat I've been on. It's left in the hearts of the crew. It’s rare to have a good impression. So if something unexpected happens, they can at least count on a decent burial.” The captain lowered the life raft and sailed towards the schooner.Then Fred Black came aft.His hair was disheveled, his skin was light, and his eyes were blue and spring-like, like the young Bacchus in a Venetian painting.Seeing him so arrogant and rude, the tired doctor felt jealous for a moment. "Doctor, how is the patient?" "died." "Some guys always take advantage of it, right?" Dr. Saunders gave him a sharp look, but said nothing. After a while, they saw the life raft return, but Nichols was not on board.The native Australian named Utan, who spoke good English, told the doctor that the captain had sent them all to the schooner. "What the hell is it again?" Blake asked. "Come on," said the doctor. So the doctor and Blake climbed out of the boat, followed by the other two crew members. "The captain said everyone, and the Chinese boy also went." "Come down, Akai." The doctor said to his servant.At this time, Akai was sitting on the deck and casually sewing buttons on his trousers. Akai put down the needle and thread in his hand, and with his usual friendly smile, he jumped onto the life raft nimbly.Then the party sailed towards the schooner.Captain Nichols and the Australian were already on deck waiting for them when they climbed up the side ladder of the schooner. "Captain Atkinson also agrees with me that a ceremony should be held for the poor Japanese," said Nichols, "but since he has never been through such a thing before, let me preside over him in a respectable manner." funeral." "That's it," said the Australian. "I know, this is not my place. If a crew member dies while at sea, the captain should read the prayers, but unfortunately, there are no prayer books on board, and he is like a canary to a steak. At a loss. Am I right, Captain?" The Australian nodded gravely. "Aren't you a Baptist?" said the doctor. "Normally, yes," said Nichols, "but for ceremonies like funerals, I usually read from a prayer book, and I should read it from a prayer book. Now, Captain, I'm waiting for you." When you're ready, let's gather everyone and start the ceremony." The Australian walked forward, and a minute or two later, he walked back. "It's almost there, just the last few stitches," he said. "Small holes are repaired in time to avoid suffering from big holes." Captain Nichols said.To some extent, this answered the doctor's inner confusion. "How about waiting with a drink?" "No need, captain. Let's drink after the ceremony is over, business first, pleasure later." Then, a crew member came up. "It's all right, boss," he said. "Okay," Nichols said, "Come on, guys." He straightened his body and was full of energy.His small, fox-like eyes were focused, burning with raging anticipation.He suppressed the joy in his heart—all of this could not escape the eyes of the doctor. He silently observed the expression of the captain, secretly exclaiming.Clearly, the captain enjoyed the occasion.They came to the stern.The crews of the two ships were all Australian natives. Some of them stood idle, some smoked pipes, and some sucked their butts with thick lips.On the deck lay a bundle that looked to the doctor like a sack of copra.It was so small that it was hard to imagine that what lay inside was a man who had once been alive. "Is everyone here?" Captain Nichols asked.He looked around and said, "Don't smoke. Be respectful to the dead." The crew put down their pipes and spit to extinguish their cigarettes. "Stand in a circle. Captain, you stand next to me. I'm only here to help, and I don't want you to think I'm upstaged by you. Hey, are you all ready?" Captain Nichols' recollection of the funeral prayers is very sketchy, and most of the beautiful sentences he read were fabricated by himself.Still, he's intensely focused and religious enough to feel phony.Finally, he said a loud "Amen" and ended the prayer. "Now sing the hymn." He looked at the Australian native and said, "You all went to mission schools, I want you to sing with your voice so that he can hear it even when he comes to Makassar. Come on, let's sing together. Go forward, warrior Christians, go forward as if you were going to battle." He sang suddenly, his voice hoarse, the melody out of tune, and he could scarcely have sung the beginning if the crew hadn't joined in.Even so, there was an uncontrollable excitement in his voice.They sang vigorously, their deep and deep voices flying over the calm sea.When they were in their hometown, they had all learned this hymn and were familiar with every word and sound in the song.However, because of their varying utterances and strange intonations, it sounded so strange, not like a hymn at all, but more like the vulgar rhythmic shouting of a crowd of savages.Their singing is filled with all kinds of wonderful sounds, from the throbbing of drums to the tinkling of strange instruments.The sounds recalled the dark rituals performed at the water's edge that night, and the still-dried blood dripping drop by drop from the human sacrifice.Akai was dressed in a neat white gown, and stood a little distance away from the black people nonchalantly and gracefully. A hint of contemptuous surprise appeared in his beautiful and clear eyes.After the first stanza was sung, the captain, without warning, sang the next stanza.However, when they sang the third verse, the captain clapped his hands hard. "Enough," he said loudly. "It's not a damn concert. We don't want to stay all night." The crew stopped abruptly, and the captain looked around gravely.The doctor's eyes fell on the bundle of little sacks surrounded by them on the deck.For some reason, he imagined the diver as a child.Yellow skin, black and big eyes, playing on the street of a small town in Japan; in spring, my mother took me to enjoy the cherry blossoms.Mom wears a beautiful kimono, clogs on her feet, and delicate hairpins on her carefully coiled hair; on holidays, she will go to the temple, where he can be sent a piece of cake; or once, he also Dressed in white clothes and leaning on a gray cane, he embarked on a pilgrimage with the whole family, standing on the top of the sacred Mount Fuji and looking up at the sunrise. "Next, I'm going to say this prayer: 'Therefore we entrust him to the vast sea', and when you hear that, lift him up, I don't want to see any mistakes, grab him, and then Just throw it into the water at once, understand? Captain, it is best to have two people come." "You, Bob, and Joe." After hearing the captain's order, they took a few steps forward and grabbed the corpse together. "Not yet, you two asses!" cried Captain Nichols. "Wait till I'm done!" Then, without even pausing to catch his breath, he began to pray.He spoke for a while, when he could no longer think of the right words, and then, raising his voice a little, he said: "We therefore obey the commandment of the Almighty, and bring our dead brother to his spirit: So we entrust him to the vast sea..." He gave the two crew members a solemn wink, but they stared at him with their mouths wide open, "Okay, I don't want to spend the whole night, Throw the body into the sea, damn it!" Startled, Bob and Joe leapt to the sack lying on the deck and threw it overboard.The sack fell into the water, causing a big splash.A satisfied smile appeared on Captain Nichols' face, and he continued: "Let his flesh rot in the sea, and seek eternal life in the presence of the Father when the sea gives up the dead in it. Now, dear brethren, let us say our last prayer together, and I will hear every Words, let my Lord hear your voice. Our Father in heaven..." The captain faced the crew and chanted aloud. Except for Akai, the rest of the people also chanted together. "Well, that's all, folks," he went on, in an overly friendly tone, "I'd be glad to have the opportunity to preside over this sad funeral with dignity. We're going to die, the most law-abiding family Bad things happen, but I want you to know that if you're going to be taken someday to 'there' where no one ever comes back, as long as you're on a British ship with a British flag, you're guaranteed to get a respectable buried like the godly people of Jesus Christ. In other times I would have asked you to give three cheers for your Captain Atkinson, but now we gather for this poor man, our My heart is deeply saddened, so I hope you will silently cheer three times for your captain. Father, Son, Holy Spirit, Amen." Captain Nichols turned aside politely, like a priest stepping down the altar.He held out his right hand to the captain of the schooner, and the Australian captain took it enthusiastically. "My God, you did a great job!" he said. "Practice makes perfect," said Captain Nichols modestly. "How about a drink now, guys?" "Just what I want," said Captain Nichols, and then to his crew, "Go back to the Fenton, Tom, and you'll be back for us later." The four crew members walked towards the life raft step by step.Captain Atkinson brought a bottle of whiskey from the cabin, and some glasses. "That's just the way the priest is," he said, raising his glass in salute to Captain Nichols. "It's just a belief, and you have to have that belief. I mean, I didn't think of him as a mean Japanese when I conducted that ceremony. To me, he and you, F Rhett or Doc is the same. That's Christianity."