Chapter 3 third chapter

A morning breeze blows from the northeast.Captain Zou gave orders to the helmsman to slow down.The second sail, the small middle sail and even the long sail have all been rolled up, and only the big triangle sail is hung on the boat, slowly approaching the island.Even if there is a strong wind on the sea, the hull can still be close to the island to avoid. Governor Camilleke watched from the taff rail, and the captain maneuvered carefully from the bow. This is a small island that cannot be found on the chart, and it is hard to say that there is no danger nearby.It seems that the surrounding calm sea has no exposed reefs, it is impossible to identify what is going on underwater, there is no sign of progress, and there is no sign of hidden reefs. It seems that you can approach it with confidence.When the boatswain probed the depth of the water, he did not find any sudden heightening on the bottom of the sea.

The fog on the small island has receded, and the sun is shining obliquely on the island from east to west. Looking at the small island from a distance of one nautical mile: it is indeed a small island, nothing else.It does not appear that any power other than Great Britain will occupy the island, since it is really of little value. The island was just born, and the predatory British had not yet had time to turn it into another, so naturally no one would put it on the latest charts. The structure of the small island is similar to that of the general sea island, showing an irregular oval shape.The circumference is about 2 meters, the length is about twice the width, and the surface is flat.This is by no means a pile of rocks, but the product of a steady rise due to the acidification of the earth's crust.It will never rise suddenly, but is formed by the slow rise of the sea floor.There are no jagged edges around the islet, and no divided bays.It is not like a shell with various postures, but like the top of a well-proportioned oyster, more like a beetle, with low surroundings and high middle, and the highest point is only 150 feet.

There is no trace of vegetation on the island, let alone trees.Without the footprints of explorers, there will be no homes.It was a barren land that no one knew about, and Kamilk could not have used it as an absolutely safe and reliable vault.It's really ideal, which is countless times better than giving wealth to the bottom of the sea. "What a masterpiece of nature!" thought the captain. The two-masted sailboat moved forward very slowly, retracted the triangular sails, and ordered to drop the anchor when it was only 200 meters away from the island. The anchor went down to a depth of about 45 meters and bit the bottom of the sea.

The rocks on this coast where the sailboat is docked are extremely gentle, and the boat can actually get closer without danger.Just in case, it is extremely appropriate to keep this distance. After Captain Zou gave the order, he boarded the stern deck and asked. "Your Excellency, do you want to prepare a big sampan?" "No, we need a small boat, just the two of us going ashore." "Obey!" After a while, the two boarded the boat.The captain sat in the bow, holding two light oars, and Governor Kamilk sat firmly in the stern.After paddling for a while, the boat dropped anchor and landed against the back of a gap, and our "His Excellency" has since occupied the island.

There was neither a flag-raising ceremony nor a salute.The first occupant here is not a country but a person.He only stayed on the island for more than 3 hours. The captain and the governor first discovered that the small island does not stand on the sand base, but has an inclination of 5 to 60 degrees, out of the water, and its foundation is the seabed. After a round of inspection, their feet are full of sparkling spar, a kind of unpolished natural beauty.The surrounding coast has not been washed by waves.On the dry crystalline surface, there are only a few narrow grooves with a small amount of rainwater.On this barren island, the only thing that can be seen is the feces discharged by pairs of seagulls. Seagulls are the only life phenomenon on the island.

After the two of them walked around the island for a week, they walked towards the high place in the center of the island. The shining, clean rocks, without any trace of damage, all showed that no one had ever been to this island. They sat side by side on the highest point 150 feet above the sea, curiously admiring the sky in front of them. The boundless sea, the reflection of the sun, did not see any land, this is not a small island in the Cyclades Islands.There is no change on the sea here, and there are no sails on the boundless sea.The brig at the moment is a lonely boat in the sea.Stopping here for just a few hours will never be detected.

"Today is September 9th, are you sure where we are?" Kamilke asked. "Sure, Your Excellency!" Captain Zou replied. "If you are worried, I can check it carefully." "It's extremely important how you explain that the island is not on the chart." "I see that it is the latest one to be born. If you come next time, I can find it here again." "Yes, Captain, we will come after the turmoil. Even if these riches are buried under rocks for decades, they will be safer than staying in my home in Aleppo. Here, whether it is the vice-king of Mali, or his son Iprakin, And that shameless Mhaad, it is impossible to steal it. I would rather let this treasure sink to the bottom of the sea than leave it to Mhaad."

"If you really fall into the sea, it will be a lifelong regret." Captain Zou said, "The sea will never return the sunken things to the owner. We are so lucky to find this island. It will be kept for you The treasure will be returned to you when you need it.” "Yes!" Kamilk stood up and said, "Move quickly! Don't let anyone see our ship..." "As ordered." "No one on board knows where we are now?" "I repeat, sir! No one knows." "You don't even know what the sea is?" "Yes, no one even knows whether it is the waters of the New World or the waters of the Old World. During the 15-month long voyage, they don't know where they passed." They walked towards the concave and convex, and the boat was docked there.

When boarding the ship, the captain said: "After this operation is completed, will you return to Syria?" "I'm not going to go. I will return to Aleppo's home after Iprakin retreats and King Mahmud resumes his rule." "Haven't you ever imagined that one day the deputy king will be able to unify the whole country?" "No, I don't think so," exclaimed Governor Kamilk.This statement made him lose his former calmness. "Syria will be annexed by Deputy King Ali and ruled by the King of Turkey. . . . Allah does not want this arrangement!"

"Where do you intend to hide, sir." "I'm not going anywhere! Now that my treasures are well hidden, let them stay here. Captain Zou, we will continue sailing as before..." "Obey!" In a few moments Governor Kamilk and his old companion returned to the brig. Near nine o'clock, the captain made another observation of the sun in order to determine the longitude accurately.At noon, when the sun hits the meridian, the data is taken again to determine latitude. He measured the height of the warp with a sextant, and followed the instructions of "Your Excellency" to keep improving.After recording the results in detail, and returning to the cabin to calculate accurately, the height of the warp was calculated, and the orientation of the island was completely determined.

The captain had already ordered that 3 wooden barrels, tools, foreign picks, cement and other things be loaded onto the boat. Before 10 o'clock, everything was ready.The boatswain led 6 sailors to board the boat.The sailors are used to obeying orders. They have no doubts about the origin of the three wooden barrels, what they contain, and why they are buried.They are like machines that will work, so there is no need to worry about leaks. The governor and the captain sat in the stern of the boat, and within a few oars they reached the island. After going to the island, the most important thing is to choose a suitable place. It should not be too close to the shore, for fear that the climate will deteriorate during the spring and autumn equinoxes and will be impacted by the waves; it should not be too high to avoid collapse. Under the rock, its top is the commanding height of the island, facing southeast. According to the captain's instructions, the sailors moved down the barrels and tools, and started digging at the designated place. The rock texture is very hard, and the construction is extremely difficult. The gravel fragments hit by foreign picks must be carefully collected so that the wooden barrels can be put into the pit for burial. It took a full two hours to finally complete a nearly 6-foot-long The square hole, this is a veritable deep ditch, a dead man can be put into it, and he will be able to rest in peace forever without being disturbed by the storm. The oak barrel was finally put in, and Governor Kamilk wanted to take another look at it for the last time. At this moment, Captain Zou thought to himself: Your Excellency’s attitude is really strange, will he regret it, give up the plan, withdraw his life, and take away the wealth... No, he gestured with his hand to continue working. The 3 wooden barrels are tightly arranged side by side, and they are fixed firmly after stirring with lime water and gravel.After repeated smearing evenly, it is exactly the same as the rocks on the island.Cement is used to lay stones on the top until the ditch is filled and integrated with the island. It is impossible for any wind, rain, thunder and lightning to damage its plane, let alone discover that the treasure is hidden here. However, an indelible mark must be made so that the treasure hunters can recognize it at a glance, so the boatswain used a chisel to carve a mark on the rock standing behind. These are two "K"s together, the two letters of Governor Camilco's name, as is his usual signature. The large safe containing 3 oak barrels has been sealed, so there is no need to stay here any longer.This is an absolutely safe place, if the Governor and Captain Zou carry this secret into the grave in the future, no one will know it even until the end of the world. The bosun had arranged for the sailors to return to the big ship first, but the "Your Excellency" and the captain continued to stand by the sea and watch.After a while, the boat came back to take them back to the anchored brig. It was 12 o'clock in 15 minutes, the weather was fine, the sun was sunny, cloudless, and the sun's meridian was approaching.The captain brought the sextant again and prepared to measure the height of the meridian again.From this data the latitude is deduced.Then use the latitude to calculate the hour angle based on the observation at 9 o'clock, and finally get the longitude.The error of the position of the small island calculated in this way does not exceed half a nautical mile. As soon as the captain finished his calculations, the door opened, and Governor Kamilk came in and asked: "Is the location fixed?" "It's settled, Your Excellency." "Give me." The captain handed him a piece of paper on which to record the results of the calculation. Governor Kamilk read with all his attention, as if he wanted to engrave the location of the island in his mind. "This paper is yours!" he said to the captain. "But what about the voyage diary from the 15-month voyage?..." "That journal, sir, no one can get it..." "Just in case, destroy it immediately..." "Obey!" Captain Zou took the records, which recorded in detail all the routes and different oceans that the brigantine sailed through, and threw the pages of the logs into the lights and burned them. The governor and the captain passed a long time at anchor. Nearly 5 o'clock in the evening, the sun set in the west, piercing through the gaps in the clouds, casting a straight beam of light, and the brilliant golden light sprinkled on the sea. Captain Zou shook his head, years of experience told him that this astronomical phenomenon is not a good omen. "Your Excellency," he said, "there is too much moisture here, there will be strong winds, and there may be storms at night... This small island cannot be avoided; before dark, we can sail more than 10 nautical miles from here "There is no need to stop here, Captain," replied the governor. "Let's go immediately!" "Do you need to measure the height again?..." "No need, Your Excellency, the other party is sure of me, just as I believe that I am my mother's son." "Good! Set sail." "yes." The sailing was quickly ready, the anchor was moored and the sail was set, and the ship quickly left the island and headed northwest. Kamilk stood at the stern of the ship, staring intently at the nameless island in the dim light until the outline was blurred and the stone pile disappeared.The Egyptian tycoon firmly believed that as long as he wanted, he would be able to return to the island and get back the treasures—diamonds, gold and silver treasures worth 100 million francs!

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