Chapter 313: How They Managed This

Zeyu carried the lower-deck plan downstairs after breakfast, folded to show the passage they needed.

He had gone to bed thinking about the vehicles above it and woken wondering what else the ship carried.

For the first time since leaving the tower, he had needed Hanchuan to remind him to finish eating before he started work.

The others followed him through the door beside the forward hold.

Zhiyi wore her new shoes with a fresh dressing over her heel, and Hanchuan kept her beside him as they approached the stairs.

Jingwei went ahead with the flashlight while Shichen checked the plan against the signs on the wall.

They searched the rooms along the passage first.

Zeyu tried not to hurry through them, opening cupboards and looking beneath workbenches even when their contents seemed obvious.

They found cleaning supplies, spare fittings, and a workshop with enough room for Shichen to spread out the manuals he had been carrying from cabin to cabin.

At the far end, Jingwei opened a heavy door and held it while Zeyu brought the light through.

The stairs descended beside another vehicle deck.

From the landing, Zeyu could see the roofs of several trucks, followed by two taller vehicles parked near the opposite wall.

He moved the flashlight slowly across the nearest one, catching a dark window and the edge of an awning folded against its side.

He stopped halfway down the next step.

"Shichen, bring the light over here," Zeyu said, leaning against the railing for a better view. "Those two at the back. I think we’ve found something worth coming down for."

Shichen directed his beam across the second vehicle. It had a white body, a narrow side door, and windows set above the height of the neighboring trucks.

Beyond it stood another motorhome, slightly shorter but wide enough that Zeyu could make out the outline of a bed through its rear window.

He was smiling before he reached the bottom of the stairs.

The passage between the cargo rows was clear, though he had to step around the straps securing a nearby truck.

He waited for the others before approaching the larger RV, letting Jingwei check the space around it while he examined the tires and the lower bodywork.

Protective film remained on the door trim. A paper label inside the windshield carried a vehicle number and a destination he didn’t recognize.

"They’re new," Zeyu said, brushing dust from the corner of the glass. "Or they haven’t gone much farther than the loading yard. Look at the seats."

Zhiyi came beside him, standing on her toes to see past the dashboard. Hanchuan rested a hand at her waist while she looked inside, then she turned toward Zeyu with an expression he hadn’t seen since they found the cargo ship.

"We could use them when the water freezes," Zhiyi said. Her fingers tightened around Hanchuan’s sleeve as she looked back at the vehicle. "We wouldn’t have to carry everything to the winter houses."

Hanchuan studied the RV before answering.

Zeyu knew he was thinking beyond the seats and the roof, considering the height of the ship, the unknown water beneath it, and the distance they might have drifted by then.

"If we can get them off and find a route," Hanchuan replied, drawing her closer. "But yes, sweetheart. This gives us something to work with."

Zeyu tried the side door.

It was locked, but through the cab window he could see a key attached to the steering wheel, just as it had been in the van upstairs. The driver’s door opened when he pulled the handle.

He climbed onto the step, reached inside, and carefully freed the tag.

"I’m going to open the living area," Zeyu told them, coming back down with the keys. "Give me a moment to check it before everyone comes in."

The door opened into a narrow space beside a kitchenette. Zeyu stepped up, ducking his head out of habit, and found he didn’t need to.

The ceiling was high enough for him to stand comfortably. Plastic covered the cushions around a small table, and cardboard protected the floor beneath his feet.

He walked through slowly, opening the bathroom door before checking the sleeping area at the back.

The bed still had its mattress wrapping, with loose fittings packed on top. No supplies had been stocked in the cupboards, but the storage spaces were deeper than he had expected.

When he returned to the entrance, Zhiyi was waiting below the steps.

"Come and have a look," Zeyu said, offering her his hand. "Mind the cardboard. It slides a little near the door."

She stepped inside with Hanchuan behind her, then stopped beside the table. Zeyu watched her take in the seats, the cupboards, and the passage toward the bed. She touched the edge of the counter before looking at him.

"It’s smaller than ours," Zhiyi said quietly. "But there’s somewhere to lie down."

Zeyu followed her gaze toward the rear. Their mobile base had been built around everything they thought they would need.

He remembered measuring the aisle and changing the seating because he wanted her comfortable beside Hanchuan. This one belonged to a stranger’s order, with cupboards he hadn’t chosen and fittings he hadn’t checked.

He could still make it useful.

"There’s another one beside it," Zeyu replied, opening the cupboard above the table. "We don’t have to fit all six of us into this one with everything we’re carrying. And we’ve got time to find out what needs changing."

Shichen came aboard while Qinghe and Jingwei looked at the second RV.

He checked the available space with the same careful interest he had brought to the mobile base, pressing a hand against the table before examining its mountings.

"We’ll need to see how these are insulated," Shichen said, looking toward the window. "They might be comfortable on a cold holiday. That doesn’t tell us how they’ll do in the Freeze."

Zhiyi sat at the table while Hanchuan checked the seat beside her. She rubbed her hands together, watching Shichen examine the window seal.

"The beds need to stay warm even if we have to stop," Zhiyi said. "Last time, there were nights when we couldn’t keep walking, but sitting still made everything worse."

Hanchuan lowered himself beside her and enclosed her hands in his. Zeyu looked away long enough to study the empty cupboards, giving them a moment before he spoke.

"Then that goes near the top of the list," Zeyu said, taking the notebook Shichen offered him. "Heat, fuel, and somewhere to sleep when we can’t travel. We’ll check what these already have before we start pulling anything out."

Jingwei appeared at the doorway with another set of keys.

"The other one’s clear," Jingwei reported, handing them to Zeyu. "Qinghe’s checking the storage. There’s a bed in the back and another sleeping space above the cab."

Zeyu turned the two sets over in his palm. They were ordinary keys, each with a numbered tag, but he found himself closing his hand around them before either could slip.

Hanchuan helped Zhiyi stand, then looked from the kitchenette to the narrow passage.

"Start with a full inspection," Hanchuan told Zeyu. "Write down what we need, including what it will take to get them onto the deck. We’re not leaving the ship just because we’ve found something with wheels."

"I know," Zeyu replied, placing the keys carefully inside his pocket. "But when we do have to leave, I’d like these to be ready."

He went back down the steps with the notebook. Shichen joined him beside the front wheel, and together they looked toward the ramp at the far end of the hold.

It rose out of sight beneath a low crossbeam.

Zeyu glanced back at the RV’s roof, then opened the notebook to a clean page.

"Before we do anything else, we need a tape measure," Zeyu said, watching Shichen follow his gaze. "I want to know how they got these down here."