Chapter 199
Words:1556Update:22/06/27 05:22:28
"What do you mean your house was invaded last night?" Zhang Heng asked Vincent, who looked a little nervous.
"To be honest, I don't really know what happened. I went to bed early last night, and in the middle of the night, I opened my eyes groggily. I saw the window was wide open, and a shadow was standing next to my window. He was looking for something in the cupboard with his back to me."
"How did you know he was looking for this?" Zhang Heng asked, pointing at the book of love poems that he brought back from Clark's ship.
"Because he turned my bedroom upside down. The thirty-three Spanish gold coins I got from the voyage were in the cupboard, but he didn't touch them. There was still some change on the table, and he only took the inventory of supplies and goods from the bookshelf, but I put the book of love poems under my pillow."
"Wait, why did you put this under your pillow?" Anne raised her eyebrows.
The young doctor's face turned red. He opened his mouth, but he couldn't say a word for a long time.
Zhang Heng sensed his embarrassment and took the initiative to change the topic. "Did you see his face?"
Vincent nodded, a look of fear on his face. "He wasn't human. His clothes were wet, as if he had just been fished out of the water. There was a strong salty smell, and water droplets dripped down his sleeves and trousers to the ground. Seaweed and shells were hanging on his hair and clothes."
The young doctor could not help but shiver when he recalled the horrible scene. "I pretended to be asleep, but I secretly opened my eyes a little. I saw his hands and the side of his face. They were covered in scales. After that, he seemed to notice me. He turned around and grinned at me. I was so scared that I fainted. When I opened my eyes again, it was already morning.
I quickly ran out of the house. "Vincent then took out three notebooks." Actually, I've translated most of these things. There are only a few pages of the supply record left. I'm sorry I didn't take good care of them. "
"No, you've done a good job. Thank you for your hard work." Zhang Heng took the notes. "I have a presumptuous request. Can I take a look at your house?"
"Of course." The young ship doctor nodded and said, "You are welcome to visit."
The three of them arrived at Vincent's residence. It was a small wooden house, but it was big enough for one person to live alone. There were many plants planted nearby, some of which were rare on the island. Zhang Heng recalled Billy mentioning that Vincent liked botany when he introduced him to Zhang Heng.
The walls of his house were covered with vines and looked very beautiful. Billy's house was separated by a fence.
The helmsman of the Jackdaw was taking a stroll in the yard with his two-year-old daughter. When he saw the three of them approaching, he greeted them and handed his daughter over to his wife. Then, he walked over to them.
"You're here for that matter, right?"
"Can you wait for me for a moment?" Vincent opened the door and looked at Annie, feeling a little embarrassed.
"This is your home. You have the final say," Zhang Heng said.
A look of gratitude appeared on the young ship's doctor's face. He slipped through the gap in the door and closed the door as fast as he could. After a while, a clanging sound could be heard coming from inside.
Zhang Heng took the opportunity to ask Billy, "You live next door to him. Did you notice anything unusual last night?"
The latter shook his head. "I sleep like a log as soon as I get back to land. I didn't know what happened until he knocked on my door in his pajamas this morning. The kid was really scared last night. I've never seen him so flustered before."
After a moment of hesitation, Billy asked, "Do you think this matter has something to do with the ghost ship?"
"I'm not sure yet." Zhang Heng thought about the strange storm that the Jackdaw encountered on its way back to Nassau. All the signs pointed to the supernatural. The most logical explanation was that the owner of the ghost ship wanted to retrieve his belongings. However, for some reason, Zhang Heng felt that something was amiss.
That was why he suggested to take a look at Vincent's house.
After a while, the young ship doctor opened the door and invited the three of them in.
During this time, Vincent had already cleaned up the living room. He even took out a pack of tea leaves to make some water, but Zhang Heng did not have the time to drink it.
The three of them walked into the young ship doctor's bedroom. The first thing that caught their eyes was the densely packed plant specimens and sketches on the wall, followed by the clothes and boots scattered on the floor.
Vincent looked a little embarrassed. He did not have the time to clean up the place. But for a single man, his bedroom wasn't that bad. Zhang Heng had seen dormitories that were worse than this when he was living on campus.
After glancing at the plant specimens, Zhang Heng then squatted down and touched the floor with his finger. There were a few wet spots on the floor, and they were still damp. The uninvited guest must have stayed there for a long time, including the cabinet and the bed.
Other than that, Zhang Heng also found two small shells and a scale on the floor. This seemed to confirm the young ship doctor's story. As for the fishy and salty smell, it was much fainter because of the ventilation.
Zhang Heng then walked to the window, where the uninvited guest came and went. There were two pots of unknown plants on the windowsill, but one of them had been knocked over. Underneath it was a small garden.
"Can I?" Zhang Heng looked at the young ship doctor. After getting his permission, he climbed up the windowsill and jumped into the garden.
Zhang Heng tried to step on the soil under his feet. "How often do you water the house?"
"Hmm, once a week. I'll ask Nettie when I go out. The last time she watered the house was five days ago."
Nettie was Billy's wife, and she had helped Vincent a lot after he moved here. That was also why Vincent was willing to work on the Jackdaw as a ship doctor after Billy asked him to.
Zhang Heng walked around the garden and saw a few houses nearby. So, he and Anne went to visit them one by one. Unfortunately, they didn't get any useful information. Vincent's house was invaded in the middle of the night. At this time, everyone was fast asleep, and no one saw the suspicious figure that the young ship doctor described.
They had lunch at Billy's house. Vincent was still in a daze. It was obvious that what happened last night had affected him quite a bit. It was only when the young ship's doctor got Billy's permission to let him stay at his house for two days that Vincent showed a grateful expression and cheered up a little.
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