Chapter 155: The drifting of Uncle Johnny

The helicopter finally picked up Yang Sheng and his group. Although at that time we were all very tired and silent, we still felt that the appearance of Yang Sheng and his group was like a dream, more like a farce. If it weren’t for the fact that Patel’s body had been taken away by him, this hour-long period of time would have been so confusing that it would have been really hard to accept such a dramatic change.

Before, there was still a glimmer of hope that the thing we weren’t sure would become a reality—finding the Master and the others—had somehow become something within reach. Even the missing Xiao Chengqian’s cousin was standing right in the middle of us. Who could accept this change right away?

It was only after Xiao Chengqian and his party had left for ten minutes that Chengqing, as the first person to react, said with a sigh, “Ghost Bay, what difference does it make if the answer is the same as before when we didn’t have any certainty? But Chengqian’s cousin is indeed standing here. Chengyi, I’m afraid our plan is going to change a lot.”

“Chengyi, I still have other relatives in their hands, I…” Speaking of this, Xiao Chengqian, who had been holding his cousin’s hand motionlessly, could not help but open his mouth with a look of sadness and joy.

I felt a sudden wave of unease in my heart. From the current situation, it seems that the order to kill me has been lifted. It’s ridiculous that Yang Sheng thought he could threaten me, and then lifted the order… I never thought that the real core of the four major powers was Yang Sheng!

Fate is really a coincidence. When we couldn’t find a place to stay in China, Yang Sheng happened to find the trail of Master and his group and actually brought back two of them… But this great piece of good news has now become an excuse to coerce me… Before, I had to be hunted down, and even if I could find all the Kunlun objects, it would be the same, because I am the “destroyer.”

Now I am their tool for finding the Kunlun artifacts, because they have the leverage to force me to do it. Even though Yang Sheng’s last words made me very curious, he actually had a sense of the Kunlun artifacts… But is that really the truth?

Was it really being chased? Or was it being coerced? What difference did it make?

Plus the inexplicable, the paranoid, and also the happy, as if I had found a breakthrough and could convince Yang Sheng… and the inexplicable and confused future… I simply cannot give myself a reason not to be bored.

“Chengyi,” Xiao Chengqian called out to me, looking at me with almost pleading eyes.

I didn’t know what to say, so I stood up and patted Xiao Chengqian on the shoulder. I couldn’t treat my friends lightly, so I whispered to Xiao Chengqian, “Give me a little time, okay? I can’t figure out the future right now either.” At this point, my eyes fell on the corpse of Uncle Johnny, and I said with a hint of bitterness, “I don’t know if it’s my fate to have a rough time. Just when I saw a glimmer of hope, like when Uncle Johnny gave us the addresses of the five remaining souls, and now we’ve even broken one of them, if we just keep going like this, we can reach Penglai and see Master and the others… but then this inexplicable twist appears… really, I’m very confused, give me a little time.”

Xiao Chengqian stood up and patted me on the shoulder, too. He didn’t say anything, but his inexplicable trust was all that was needed.

“Who will ask Singh to bring the boat in? Uncle Johnny still has one last wish.” No matter what the future holds, there is one thing that we should do right now.

The sudden change interrupted our sadness. Now, when I talk about it, everyone’s mood becomes sad and heavy again. Chengyuan choked and whispered, “If Uncle Johnny were still alive, in this situation, he would tell us what to do, right?”

This made me feel sad. Yes, this grumpy but lovable old man, without him, I suddenly felt helpless again… I admit that I am dependent, but this is definitely not cowardice. Just like one day when I am very old and my parents are still alive, I still feel that I have a support, otherwise… This is a feeling that cannot be expressed in words, but can only be understood.

In the end, it was Hui Gen and Tao Bai who called in Singh. The Johnny Dreamer that Master Johnny had made was still there, as good as new, and of course it was still usable.

“Chengyi, you promised me that you would bring it back to its owner.” On the Penglai, Singh was pulling on my collar and yelling at me in English that was barely coherent.

He looked at the body of Uncle Johnny and almost didn’t recognize it. Maybe he couldn’t accept it. Yesterday, he came to the ship to pick up some things. In just less than a day, Uncle Johnny had aged so much and died? Singh’s face was streaming with tears. He was crying so hard that he couldn’t even recognize himself. His emotions couldn’t find a place to vent, so he just poured them all out on me.

I was in a daze, and I didn’t care about Singh’s anger, because I was back on the familiar Penglai. My eyes were filled with illusions, and I occasionally saw Uncle Johnny fishing on the edge of the deck, occasionally saw him drinking at the bow, and occasionally saw… everything here was filled with the scent of the time he lived with us. Returning to a familiar place made my heartache and regret more real, but it was full of contradictions and illusions.

I couldn’t explain it to Singh in detail. I had told myself before that I would take responsibility for his anger, even though I was also very sad.

In a state of emotional turmoil, Singh wept for half an hour, finally calming down a little. He squatted on the ground and muttered, “He was my master, but in my heart, he was also a father-like figure. How could he… just go like this? I always thought he would exist forever… forever. You know? Even if I die one day, he will still exist like this.”

No one could respond to Singh’s words. Tears were in everyone’s eyes. I walked a few steps and took out a bottle of Macallan 12 from a familiar place on the Penglai. I unscrewed the cap and took a deep drink. I could still hear the tone of voice with which Uncle Johnny had introduced it to me, and I could still see the details of his expression.

“I shouldn’t blame you, Chengyi!” After muttering for a long time, Singh finally became a little sober and looked at me apologetically.

I took a sip of the drink and said, “I don’t care. I just want you to know that I’m really sad too.”

“No, it’s just a problem of losing control. You know what? The owner came back and took a lot of things. Before he left, he told me that he didn’t know what would happen to him, maybe he would die… But no matter what happens, you guys are always the most trustworthy people. Let me trust you just like I trust him… I just…” Singh’s expression was full of guilt.

I took another sip of wine and simply patted him on the shoulder and said, “Just get the Johnny Dream on board somehow.” Hearing what Singh had just said, I was actually so sad that I didn’t want to speak.

The speed of the Penglai was very slow, and it dragged the Johnny Dream out of the deep pool and out of the tributary… We didn’t stop along the way, even though after the battle there were neither vicious fish nor vengeful spirits… We just didn’t want to stop. This was a matter of fulfilling Uncle Johnny’s last wish, and I wanted to complete it as soon as possible.

From the afternoon to late at night… the Penglai finally returned to the mainstream of the Ganges. Under the moonlight, the Ganges was quiet, and the lonely Penglai, a group of inexplicably lonely people… were all because we had lost a person.

The boat was moored on the bank of a remote section of the river. We were all solemn, and the last wish of Uncle Johnny was actually just a beautiful funeral that belonged to him. Now we were going to fulfill this funeral.

The Johnny Dreamer was still tied to the Penglai, slowly floating in the water. I carried the body of Uncle Johnny and walked a few steps in the water, placing his body on the Johnny Dreamer… Singh wiped his body, while Cheng Xin Ge and the others changed Uncle Johnny into clean clothes.

Throughout the whole process, we were very careful not to touch the fragile red flower, because until the end, Uncle Johnny had held it tightly in his hand… We were also very quiet. At a funeral, you shouldn’t be too sad. In fact, the correct attitude should be to be happy for his release and to wish him well on his journey to the other side of happiness… But if everyone could do that, then the world wouldn’t be in such a mess.

Soon, Uncle Johnny’s body was already taken care of, with a clean face and clean clothes… This was what he had asked for, to take nothing with him, just to be clean.

“This is Dia,” I said, pointing to the red flower, and whispered to Uncle Johnny.

Then I took out the wooden eagle that he had given me before he died and said, “This is Patel. You said that you made it with your own hands when you were ten years old and gave it to him. He wore it, and it contained all the beauty of Patel, and it was enough to represent Patel.”

While I was talking, I carefully tied the wooden eagle to a small string and put it on Johnny’s wrist.

Finally, I pointed to the pendant on Johnny’s chest and said, “This is Alina, your wife. Dear Johnny, you have all the people you said you needed. Johnny’s Dream can set sail. You said, take them with you to the land of dreams…”

After saying this, I walked over, untied the ropes of the Johnny Dream, and we all jumped into the water at the same time, pushing the Johnny Dream until it was in a position where it could drift on its own, and then we let go.

I was unaware that two tears had already fallen down my face.

This was the last wish of Uncle Johnny. He wanted to drift on the Johnny Dream with the four most important people in his life: Dya, Patel, Alina, and himself. They would drift to the other side of happiness, live happily together, and finally live away from the hustle and bustle of the world. In that place, there would be no caste, no class, no unfairness, only infinite happiness of loving and relying on each other.

“When they were very young, the master and his family went to a family estate… It was near the Ganges River…”

Many years ago, the young Sharma and Patel took their young daughter to a family estate, which was close to the Ganges. This was the first time they had seen the great mother river, as they had always lived on the estate.

“Brother, is this the Ganges?” asked Diya, her hands held by the two men.

“Yes… this is the Ganges,” Sharma replied, a little excited.

“It is our mother river. According to legend, it came from the sky. Every drop of water is sacred.” Patel crouched down and gently hugged Dya, then explained in a soft voice.

“Can we follow it to the sky? I really want to see it,” said Dya, who was very happy to hear Patel.

“We don’t have a boat, otherwise I would like to float on the Ganges, maybe I could even reach heaven!” After all, Sharma was still young, and he suddenly became upset.

“Yes, a raft would be good, but we don’t have the strength to build one, and the adults wouldn’t allow it.” Infected by the mood of Dya and Sharma, Patel also sighed, and his steady demeanor rarely revealed such youthful fairy-tale dreams.

“Then we’ll definitely build a raft and take a risk on the Ganges. Maybe we’ll really reach the heavens where the gods live.” Sharma’s eyes sparkled with excitement.

“Really? Brother, brother Patel, let’s pinky swear…”

“Pinky swear.” “Pinky swear.”

The moonlight is quiet, and the twilight envelops the Penglai. It is getting farther and farther away. Is the moonlight of this night the same as that of the other night? The wind blows it and covers everyone of you. Yes, it is the same! In the vow of that year, it must be even more blissful to have an extra Alina.

This is what you, Uncle Johnny, told me. With one more, there is one more bit of happiness. You drift away together.