Vixen Above, Mensao Below (5)

"Teacher?"

As soon as Song Jia asked that, the elevator doors closed with a soft 'whoosh.'

Song Jia looked at Gu Yuan and explained, "Teacher, I have somewhere to be right now, so please let me go."

She tugged her wrist away from his grip, but Gu Yuan only tightened his hold on her.

"Miss Ye, I've heard that you created trouble with your classmates? This was just after I told you to forget what happened between us. Did you think you could get my attention like this?"

His face was stern, his eyes cold.

Song Jia made a '囧' expression. Wasn't it him holding her hostage right now? She was clearly telling him to let her go!

"Teacher Gu, I don't have the habit of clinging to people who don't like me. What happened earlier had nothing to do with you." Song Jia made tears appear at the corner of her eyes, making her irises look even bluer than they already were. "So please let me go."

Let go already, bastard, or I'll really drop kick you!

Gu Yuan was stunned at her sudden display of vulnerability. Not to mention, Song Jia had already wiped off the thick make-up that Ye Jia usually wore. Right now, with her face bare and a few strands of her hair plastered to her forehead, along with Ye Minzhe's blazer that was too large for her, she looked like a pear blossom drenched under spring rain. It was a kind of fragile and pitiful beauty.

"You..." As if he had been burned, Gu Yuan dropped his hold on her wrist.

"Thank you, Teacher Gu."

Immediately, Song Jia breathed a sigh of relief and pressed the button for Deck 0.

Stepping away from Song Jia, Gu Yuan became suspicious again after he took in her action. "Deck 0? Miss Ye, that's no longer part of the passengers cabin, but for the crew members of the cruise ship."

"I'm looking for someone." Song Jia tried to be as vague as she could.

"Looking for someone? You know someone working in this ship?"

"You could say that, yes. Teacher Gu, are you going somewhere? I could press the elevator button for you."

Song Jia wanted to get rid of him as soon as possible.

"Miss Ye, it's not safe for a minor to go around places like that without any escort. I'll go with you."

Song Jia really wanted to shake the man beside her. He was always telling her to stay away from him, but he kept involving himself in her business. What kind of sick game was he playing at?

"Then suit yourself, Teacher Gu."

When the elevator slid open with a soft 'ding,' the two of them stepped out onto the crew deck, which would be the lowest deck on the cruise ship with the exception of the orlop, where the lines and cables were stored.

They both walked down a narrow corridor with doors lining both sides like a college dorm. Fluorescent lights concealed behind frosted glass panels in the ceiling shone down evenly on them. Song Jia saw that the only difference from the passenger decks were the bulletin and the white boards filled with flyers and reminders written in black ink.

"Miss Ye, what's the name of the person you're looking for? It's better if we ask around, it will save time."

"His name is Tan Peng, he's part of the entertainment crew." Song Jia pretended to look concerned. "I heard he was sick so I wanted to visit him."

The two of them wandered for a while before finally meeting a crew member that looked shocked to see them.

"Are the two of you passengers? This area is prohibited, it's for crew members only!"

"En, we know." Gu Yuan took the initiative to ask him. "Do you know a crew member named Tan Peng? My student knows him, and she's worried because he's sick. We won't be long, we just wanted to check up on him."

"Tan Peng?" The crew member furrowed his eyebrows. "Isn't that the intercom announcer? There are different cabins for crew and staff. Crew members like us help operate the ship, while the staff deal with guests. Tan Peng is probably the latter. You'll find him on Deck 1."

"Thank you for your help."

Moving as one, the two of them returned back to the elevator. Gu Yuan pressed the button for Level 1. Without warning, the whole ship suddenly shook. Song Jia bumped her shoulder against the elevator walls as the elevator stopped with a jolt. The lights inside the elevator turned off, plunging the two of them in darkness.

"What's going on?!" Gu Yuan exclaimed in alarm.

They could hear the creaking and straining of the interior steel girders as they moved in response to the undulating shock waves. Song Jia slid down into a sitting position and tried to find something to hold onto. Fortunately, the tremors stopped after two minutes, the power returned, and the elevator lights came on. But the elevator doors stayed closed.

Song Jia glanced up at the pale and sweaty Gu Yuan, who immediately pressed the emergency button. But all they heard were the familiar beeps with no one speaking to assure them over the intercom.

"What kind of cruise ship is this, how can they not quickly respond to an emergency?" Gu Yuan shook his head in disapproval before pulling out his phone. He looked at Song Jia. "Miss Ye, are you alright? Don't worry, we'll be fine."

Song Jia shakily stood up. She really wanted to whack Nova for giving her such a terrifying transmigration mission. She would definitely demand for some hazard pay when she returned.

"I'm fine, Teacher."

Gu Yuan saw that the wifi server was still down, and when he tried to call someone, he saw that there was no signal. He knew that while on a cruise, making calls weren't always possible. Especially right now, when the cruise ship was in the middle of the Pacific.

He raked a hand through his hair in frustration. "Miss Ye, it seems that I can't call someone for now. Let's wait for a while, someone will definitely rescue us."

He went in front of the elevator panel and began pressing buttons randomly. Song Jia leaned her head against the wall and closed her eyes.

Like this, they stayed in that position for more than three hours. Soon, it would nearly be six o'clock.

"Teacher, we can't stay here like this. Obviously, the rescuers aren't coming. Something must have happened to the ship. Let's try prying the elevator doors open."

"Miss Ye..." Gu Yuan paused, and then nodded. "Alright, let's do what you said."

They positioned themselves on opposite sides, trying to get their fingers between the doors. But there must be a locking mechanism in place, because the doors didn't budge.

"I think the elevator is stuck between decks," Gu Yuan said. "Even if we open it up, we won't be able to get out."

He walked to the farthest right side of the elevator and looked up at the emergency hatch. "We can climb out from there, and try opening the doors to Deck 1. It shouldn't be too far. But this way is very dangerous. If the elevator suddenly started working..."

"Teacher Gu, I'll go first." Song Jia didn't hesitate. She looked at him and asked, "Can you give me a lift up?"