Chapter 333: Pirates

With Liu Kangbo's fainting, the explosive performance of Liu Yun on the screen in the venue also came to an end, and the screen went black again. However, the hundreds of guests in the venue could not remain calm, as news that the cruise ship was being targeted by a destroyer began to spread rapidly, although no one knew where the information had come from.

At this point, regardless of age or gender, everyone stopped caring about the wedding and started to ignore the Liu family's security personnel. They rushed out of the banquet hall from every entrance and made their way to the top deck of the cruise ship.

The pale sunlight scattered over the vast, endless sea, with cold winds raging and waves rolling. The Liu family's cruise ship had slowed down at some point and was now moving forward slowly. Behind it, indeed, a slightly smaller vessel was following closely.

On that silver-gray missile destroyer, a flag fluttered conspicuously in the wind, visible from a great distance—it was a pirate flag!

This ancient flag is something many people may never see in their lifetime, but even if they hadn't seen a real one, they knew what it represented—pirates.

Pirates had modernized; they came to rob in an advanced missile destroyer!

The guests looked at the main cannon, missile heads, and various missile launchers on the ship, most of them turning pale and trembling. If even a single shell was fired at the cruise ship, it would result in massive casualties!

What made things worse was that their ship was a cruise liner with no defense mechanisms or countermeasures, and to make matters even worse, the ship had stopped! The guests began to scatter in panic, and some even started considering whether to flee to the lifeboats to escape the cruise ship.

At this moment, Liu Kangbo, who had been revived by a private doctor, walked out of the cabin and came to the deck. He took a megaphone and shouted, "Everyone, calm down! Don't panic!"

Liu Kangbo's face was ashen. He was beyond furious. It was evident that someone had set up this elaborate scheme, and it was no ordinary person.

To have abducted Liu Yun silently and arranged everything in such a foolproof manner, and now to have a pirate ship threaten them, this was no ordinary feat.

But Liu Kangbo was a seasoned man who had faced many storms. After thinking for a long time, he knew he had to stay calm. If he lost control, the guests would definitely scatter like headless chickens.

As for An Xin, she was pulled into a corner by her father, An Zaihuan. An Zaihuan, looking nervous and disheveled, glanced back and forth between the destroyer behind them and Liu Kangbo, not knowing what to do.

An Xin had already taken off her wedding dress and put on a coat before walking out of the cabin. She wasn't nervous at all; instead, she was curious about how Yang Chen had managed to bring a warship here. It seemed too incredible!

"Everyone, listen to me! There's no need to be afraid! Even if that's a pirate ship, it's only one ship! I've already sent someone to contact the Japan Self-Defense Force Navy in Ishikari Bay. As soon as they get the message, they will come to our aid immediately! We are in their territorial waters, so they will definitely come to rescue us! By then, the pirates will have no escape!" Liu Kangbo shouted loudly.

With Liu Kangbo's announcement, the guests finally calmed down a bit. They whispered among themselves, nodding in agreement, thinking that it made sense. Surely, Japan wouldn't allow pirates to wreak havoc in its territorial waters.

At this moment, a male assistant, whom Liu Kangbo had sent to contact the Japanese Self-Defense Forces, ran up to him. Liu Kangbo laughed and said, "Look, we've got a reply already!"

However, just as Liu Kangbo finished laughing, the man cried out loudly, "Chairman! Chairman! It's terrible! Our ship has somehow left Ishikari Bay and entered international waters! The Japanese Self-Defense Forces said after scanning with radar that this area is outside their jurisdiction!"

"Boom!"

The scene became chaotic again. The guests were horrified, and the little hope they had just felt was shattered once more!

According to international law, once a ship is about 22 kilometers from the coast, it is considered to be in international waters. For island nations like Japan, a cruise ship can enter international waters in no time.

Once in international waters, issues of legality and protection become ambiguous and complicated.

Liu Kangbo cursed angrily, "Don't they even care about humanitarianism?! We are facing pirates! Pirates! There are hundreds of people on this ship under the threat of artillery fire!"

The man, with a tearful face, replied, "Chairman, you know that Japan's military actions are restricted by the United States. Without U.S. approval, they can't operate in international waters. Moreover, we aren't Japanese; we're all Chinese. Japan said we should contact the Chinese Navy."

"Damn Japanese bastards!" Liu Kangbo cursed a few more times. Suddenly, he remembered something and asked, "Where's the captain?! Where's the captain? How did the ship get into international waters?!"

The male assistant looked helpless and said, "Chairman, I forgot to tell you. We just received the news that the captain and the other crew members operating the ship have all disappeared. We can't reach any of them…"

"What?!" Liu Kangbo's legs went weak, and he almost collapsed, being held up by two bodyguards. Trembling, he said, "So that means…"

"Yes, our ship can't move now," the male assistant said, his expression twisted in despair.

Liu Kangbo widened his eyes, feeling a dizzying spin, unable to utter another word. Meanwhile, many of the other guests, especially the women, started wailing loudly upon hearing the news, crying out that they didn't want to die, creating a scene far more chaotic than one could imagine.

At this moment, the destroyer behind them, which had been silent all this time, sent over an audio signal.

The cruise ship's public address system suddenly turned on automatically, and a man's deep voice came through, speaking in heavily accented, imperfect English.

"Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. Do not be surprised to hear this voice. I am the commander of the missile destroyer Hatakaze behind you. My name is Balbot Hussein Macedonia, but you can call me Captain Macedonia. I am here to make an important announcement about why I have a missile aimed at your cruise ship today. The reason is simple: the Liu family, specifically Mr. Liu Kangbo and his son, have done something that deeply displeased a dear friend of mine. Now, I am giving everyone on the cruise ship five minutes to make a decision between two choices. The first option is that you can find a way to get Mr. Liu Kangbo off the cruise ship immediately. In that case, the missile, which is currently targeting him, will not hit the cruise ship. The second option is that you can bravely choose to stay with Mr. Liu and face the possibility of being buried at sea together. Oh, by the way, this area of international waters is frequented by tiger sharks. These sharks can devour an adult in just two bites, so you might get a chance to witness that firsthand. Hehe. That's all I have to say. Your five minutes start now..."

Although Captain Macedonia's English was not very good, more than half of the people on the cruise ship understood it. Many of them showed expressions of panic and glared at Liu Kangbo with intense hatred.

Even many of the Liu family's subordinates and bodyguards looked at Liu Kangbo with strange expressions.

As for those who didn't understand English, once they heard the translation, they began crying out in despair or cursing loudly. However, the target of their curses wasn't Captain Macedonia but Liu Kangbo, who had brought this misfortune upon them!

Liu Kangbo swallowed hard, looking at the hundreds of strange gazes on the deck. He started to feel a chill deep inside. He had no idea who Macedonia was, nor who his friend might be, but it was evident that all of this was targeting the Liu father and son!

"Everyone, calm down! They are trying to sow discord among us! I am the owner of this ship! I will never abandon you and put you in danger! You have to trust me! I will immediately send someone to contact our Chinese Navy nearby! They won't dare to launch the missile lightly! They are just trying to scare us!" Liu Kangbo shouted loudly.

However, the group of guests on the deck clearly did not trust him. The looks of hatred in their eyes grew even more intense.

At this moment, An Xin, who had been quietly staying in a corner, cleared her throat and suddenly spoke up loudly, "It's not a question of whether you will abandon us; it's about how we should treat you. Should everyone die for you, or should you sacrifice yourself so that we can all live?"

Liu Kangbo's nerves tightened, and he turned around, pointing at An Xin and cursing, "You wretched girl! How dare you speak to your elders like that?! An Zaihuan! Control your daughter! We are supposed to be in-laws! How can you be so heartless and cold-blooded?!"

Unfortunately, at this point, An Zaihuan had also grasped the reality of the situation. Although he had wanted to ally with the Liu family to gain favor and support, he now realized that their lives were in immediate danger, and such concerns became secondary.

Seeing that Liu Kangbo was talking to him, An Zaihuan quickly turned his head away, closed his eyes, and pretended not to hear, worried that he would be implicated.

Liu Kangbo's heart sank as he realized the gravity of the situation. He quickly commanded the bodyguards around him, "Quickly instruct all the crew members to guide the guests to the lower decks. It will be temporarily safer there. We'll wait for the rescue forces to arrive!"

However, after he finished speaking, the bodyguards and company officials around him showed awkward expressions and did not move, deliberately avoiding eye contact with Liu Kangbo.

Liu Kangbo's face turned ashen as he finally realized that in the face of life and death, all the loyalty he had bought with money was crumbling away!

Suddenly, Macedonia's voice came over the loudspeaker again: "Dear guests, there are now three minutes left. Our missile has already been loaded into the launcher. Oh, I forgot to mention, it's a nuclear warhead missile with enough power to destroy five cruise ships. So, when you say goodbye to this world, it should be painless, hahaha…"

As soon as this message was broadcast, the deck erupted into chaos. Many of the guests, especially the young men, rushed straight at Liu Kangbo without hesitation.

"You old fool! Are you trying to get us all killed?!"

"Throwing a wedding while having enemies! You should die!"

"Everyone, let's throw him overboard!"

"Don't throw him into the sea! What if the others can't see it? Put him on a lifeboat and send him out so they can see him!"

The men shouted loudly, ignoring Liu Kangbo's desperate struggles. They lifted him and charged towards the nearest lifeboat station!

Several of the Liu family's bodyguards and servants did not intervene, allowing the guests to proceed with their actions. When Liu Kangbo cried out to them for help, they instinctively turned their backs on him. Many even tore off their uniforms and mingled with the crowd to avoid being implicated in the guests' hatred.

Liu Kangbo could only watch helplessly as he was thrown into a lifeboat. As the lifeboat's ropes were lowered, he felt as if he was being sent to hell.

"No! Don't leave me behind…"

Finally, Liu Kangbo could no longer maintain his dignity and began to cry and plead, tears and snot streaming down his face.

Ultimately, the lifeboat landed in the seawater. Liu Kangbo clung to the bow of the lifeboat, shouting for someone to pull him back up, but no one paid him any attention.

Suddenly, the cruise ship emitted a loud "wooo" from its horn—it was moving!

"Damn it! Didn't they say the captain was missing?!"

Liu Kangbo cursed loudly, but his voice was drowned out by the sound of the ship's horn.

As the cruise ship started moving, it stirred up huge waves.

The small lifeboat Liu Kangbo was in was hit by the waves and was instantly pushed far away from the cruise ship, quickly drifting out of reach.