At 4:27 PM, Zhao Guofu’s boat moored alongside a cargo ship anchored in the Baoshan Water Area.
Through the binoculars, one could clearly see the crew on the cargo ship lower a rope to hoist up a hose, then everyone got to their roles—some set up pumps, others connected the tubing, some opened valves, and started pumping oil under the broad daylight, bustling with activity.
Han Yu was stunned, he handed the binoculars to Zhang Ping: "Brother Zhang, take a look."
Around 1:30 PM, 001 had caught up with Zhang Ping and Yang Yuan’s cargo ship. They were embarked midway on 001, while the original cargo ship was sent back by its pilot.
Holding the binoculars, Zhang Ping carefully observed for a while, frowning, he said, "It looks a bit like they’re extracting oily wastewater."
"Speaking of oily wastewater, the cargo ships anchored in Binjiang Waters also have oily wastewater. Why would he go out of his way to come here to collect it?"
"Then they’re using the cleanup as a cover to pump oil!"
"The audacity, I thought they would wait until dark to act, we even prepared illumination rocket shells."
"Director Yu, what do we do now?"
Han Yu glanced at two children who were fastened with safety ropes, lying over the deck railing and vomiting, he said indifferently, "We’re here, we’ll prepare quickly and check them in five minutes."
"You don’t need to do anything, just keep vomiting and stay safe."
Most people get seasick the first time they’re on a passenger ship, let alone a small tug like 001.
Teacher Yu’s students were a bit stronger than Political Commissioner Wang back in the day; they held up when entering the main waterway, only feeling nauseous and swollen-headed. Yet, when 001 sailed into the Baoshan Water Area, which had much rougher waves compared to Binjiang Waters, they couldn’t bear it anymore and rushed out of the command cabin, clenching the railing, leaning over the side vomiting into the river.
Xiao Gong was somewhat concerned, he bent down to check the safety clasps on their bodies, patting their backs lightly: "I know it’s tough on you, but it’s okay, you’ll feel better after vomiting."
Zhu Baogen, after so many years, still believed that the traditional remedy against seasickness worked, he kindly suggested, "Grab some Anchor Chain Mud and roll it into mud balls to eat, you didn’t believe me before, now you understand how tough it is."
"Thank you, Uncle Zhu, I... wa..."
"If you can’t eat the mud balls, you can drink some water mixed with Anchor Chain Mud."
"No need, I... I’m... I’m fine."
"Throwing up and you still say you’re fine, I really don’t know how Teacher Yu taught you."
Comrade Old Zhu shook his head, walking towards the stern to prepare the ropes.
Xiao Gong confirmed they’re securely tied, so they wouldn’t fall into the river while vomiting, and hurriedly entered the command cabin, going below to retrieve weapons and ammunition.
Seasickness is nothing unusual.
Han Yu, careful not to accidentally step on them, walked from the port side to the bow, pulling out his pistol, removing the magazine, checking the blanks on top, and spoke: "Captain Fan, later we’ll approach Zhao Guofu’s boat. The current is quite strong here, we’ll need to drop the anchor to avoid collision."
"Understood, don’t worry."
"Uncle Zhu, you stay at the stern guarding the winch, Xiao Gong, you at the bow. Follow Captain Fan’s orders, when he says to drop anchor, do it immediately."
"Don’t rush to reply; I haven’t finished."
Han Yu looked up at the flag on the ship’s mast, checking the wind direction, and continued, "After dropping the anchor, get ready to tether. It won’t be easy for the cargo ship to set sail, Zhao Guofu can’t escape either, so there’s no need to rush, make sure what’s taut."
Xiao Gong hastily said, "Yes!"
Han Yu turned back and said, "Brother Zhang, Brother Yang, and I will jump over, first control Zhao Guofu, but don’t handcuff him. Confirm whether he’s pumping out fuel instead of wastewater before handcuffing."
Jumping onto a boat moored beside the cargo ship wasn’t technically difficult, nor was there danger in today’s mild wind and waves.
Zhang Ping replied without hesitation: "Yes!"
"Alright, quickly check your gear, Captain Fan, weigh anchor!"
Following Han Yu’s command, Captain Fan powered up 001, steering at full speed towards the cargo ship anchored in the river.
Zhang Ping, Yang Yuan, and Xiao Gong wore steel helmets, carried Type 81 rifles on their shoulders, and had ammunition belts strapped around them, looking imposing.
Xiao Chen was envious and eager to join the action, but he not only felt dizzy and swollen-headed but also had a churning stomach, leaning over the side, unable to get up.
Xiao Li was in a similar situation, only able to vomit while inwardly anxious.
This area is one of the busiest waterways of the Yangtze River, with many nearby docks all requiring tugboats, especially large cargo ships entering the Huangpu River from Wusong Port about five kilometers ahead, all needing tugboats to lead due to the narrow waterway crowded with large and small vessels, without which collisions are likely.
Zhao Guofu and the crew on the cargo ship noticed 001 approaching, but didn’t take it seriously, outright assuming it was just an ordinary small tugboat.
Getting closer, Han Yu could clearly see without binoculars, several crew members on the cargo ship leaning over the side, joking with Zhao Guofu on the small boat, barely making out the rumbling noise of the diesel pump.
"Xiao Gong, come here, don’t let them see you."
Xiao Gong ran to the right side of the pilot house, grinning, "Stay low for now, we’ll surprise them in a bit."
Seeing Xiao Gong’s excited demeanor, Han Yu was reminded of the times he conducted law enforcement on the river with his master, he patted his arm, "Don’t celebrate too early, what if they are really cleaning waste?"
"Anything is possible."