Love letters are not allowed in the exorcism notebook!-Chapter 469 - 47 The Function and Meaning of Signal Flags

(Chapter 46 was automatically deleted by the system. The keywords the monk mentioned were "darkness," "life acreage," "cathedral." If readers encountered any strange grammar in the previous text, such as words being out of order or sentences cut off, don’t doubt it, that’s because they were censored, and unfortunately, they can’t be changed back.)

After buying incense from the foreign monk for nineteen dollars and ninety cents, Li Mumu finally realized that the Black Granny Temple was not the kind of deceitful place commonly seen on the streets.

Seizing the opportunity during lunchtime, Li Mumu took the chance to take a few young people out—the eldest girl had been clamoring to eat seafood, but the adults at home didn’t have this in mind, so the family split into two groups, each going their own way in terms of food.

Apart from the eldest girl, there were two boys, one a handsome guy, and the other a little cousin, a mischievous child who was clearly a handful.

The older brother’s name was Ma Hanwen, the eldest girl was Ma Yaya, the little cousin was Ma Mingwu, and the one in split pants who couldn’t speak was called Young Girl.

Compared to the older generation, the younger ones clearly had less guile and could hardly keep things to themselves.

Li Mumu took them to a seafood restaurant by the dock, ordered a pot of stewed sea fish, and water-boiled crabs and prawns, then everyone just dug in voraciously.

Northerners don’t eat seafood as lightly as Southerners; they must have strong flavors. Especially, they find it difficult to appreciate the practice of simply steaming and then pouring hot oil over seafood.

Don’t talk about whether it’s fresh or not; it’s a matter of regional environment.

We don’t mind you dipping mango and lychee in soy sauce, so you shouldn’t mind us dipping water-boiled crabs in soy sauce either.

Of course, mustard is a must. This method of eating, which came from Fusang, is very much in line with the tastes of the northerners.

Li Mumu peeled a shrimp and just as she put it in her mouth, she caught a glimpse of Ma Hanwen, the handsome guy, holding a crab split in half and furtively glancing her way with hesitation.

He obviously wanted to show his caring side, but he couldn’t swallow his pride to actually offer it.

In reality, regardless of gender, as long as someone’s good-looking, they wouldn’t lack admirers, a normal trait for biological courtship. Where can you find so many cute girls throwing themselves at fat nerds for free in the real world? That’s just a fantasy in anime...

Neither the good guys nor the good girls remain single until graduation from college.

Li Mumu, leveraging her own strengths, gave Ma Hanwen a slight smile and tentatively asked, "Brother Hanwen, what are you all doing here searching for the Black Granny Temple?"

Men, especially naive virgins, tend to lose all reason in such situations and start thinking with their "second brain."

"It’s about one of our great aunts..."

"Cough cough—!"

Ma Yaya put down her crab and gave him a fierce glare, "Did you forget what grandma told you?"

Ma Hanwen frowned and said, "Miss Li has been running around with us. What’s wrong with talking about it?"

Ma Mingwu, stirring up trouble on the side, chimed in, "Exactly! It’s not like it’s something shameful. What’s there to hide?"

Ma Yaya said angrily, "Isn’t it because it’s shameful that we can’t talk about it?"

"What’s that got to do with us? We’re not the ones with something to hide!"

Just as they were about to start arguing—by Northeastern standards, this was considered normal conversation—Li Mumu quickly intervened, "I’m sorry, I didn’t know there was more to the story. If it’s inconvenient for you to talk about, then don’t. It’s okay."

What man can withstand such cajolery? Ma Hanwen immediately waved his hand and said, "You’re overthinking it, Miss Li. It’s not that it’s a matter we can’t talk about. It’s mainly that we’re reluctant to air our family’s dirty laundry for fear of ridicule. Simply put, there’s a great aunt in our family who lost contact years ago. Recently, some people from the military came to Tianmen to help out and brought news that they’d seen her, but she..."

"She got involved with foreigners."

With Ma Yaya’s blunt honesty, seeing her brother spill the beans, she stopped beating around the bush, "Our whole family is on the move this time to clean house!"

Ah, this...

"Do we have to clean house just because we got involved with foreigners?

As a member of the Sea Turtle Sect, Li Mumu suddenly felt a bit guilty.

"Don’t talk nonsense; it’s not that simple,"

Ma Hanwen chided his younger sister and turned to Li Mumu, "The deities we worship in our area are a bit different from those inland, and the taboos are also distinct. This lady here has gotten involved with foreigners and crossed some lines... But after all, it’s thousands of miles away; there might be some misunderstandings involved. So this time grandma brought us down the mountain to see what’s the situation with this Black Granny Temple."

They’re already calling it the dark Holy Mother Cathedral...

But I’m not any better, so I’m not one to talk.

Li Mumu felt even more guilty.

A hearty seafood meal satisfied the young people completely, leaving them full and content. Li Mumu originally intended to pick up the tab as a way of treating everyone, but as soon as she stood up, she was firmly pushed back into her seat by the older girl, while Ma Hanwen got up and paid the bill.

It still counted as Li Mumu treating.

Which left Li Mumu feeling quite embarrassed.

With full bellies, the older girl demanded to see the sea.

Like a child from the mountains seeing the ocean for the first time, akin to southerners beholding snow, the excitement was indescribable.

The only regret was that, in those days, there was nobody to develop tourism, and the beaches near the docks were not of particularly good quality; they were filled with stinky fish and rotten shrimp, reeking atrociously.

But for kids leaving home for the first time, these were trivial matters.

"Wowww—Big brother, look, there are seagulls! And ships!"

The older girl and her young cousin ran about the dock like fools, drawing the curious glances of the dockworkers.

Looking at Ma Hanwen’s face, it was apparent he also wanted to let loose, but with a beautiful lady beside him, he was somewhat restrained.

"There are foreign ships too! So many foreigners!"

Just then, a large ocean liner was slowly docking, and the older girl’s face was alight with curiosity, "Mumu Mumu, what’s that thing they’re throwing down from the ship?"

Li Mumu smiled and explained, "That’s the ship’s anchor. The waves at sea can be incredibly fierce, not to mention the tide rises and falls. When a ship docks, it must lower its anchor to fix it to the seafloor. That way, no matter the tide or the storm, the ship will stay in place and won’t be washed away by the sea." 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

"And what about those colorful little flags?"

"Those are called signal flags, a kind of universal nautical language. Since the sea is vast and boundless, and ships can’t communicate with each other, they use these flags to convey information. Each flag corresponds to different numbers and letters. When hung on the same rope, they can form a word that conveys a message."

"Look at that ship with two sets of signal flags. Normally, one set represents the ship’s identity, and the other its current action. If I’m not mistaken, it’s indicating that the Elizabeth Civilian Ship is requesting permission to dock."

"Wow, it’s so complicated. I thought they were just for decoration."

The older girl exclaimed sincerely.

Li Mumu thought to herself that there was another, more important purpose—to command the fleet’s other vessels during a naval battle using flag signals.

The anchor roots in the seafloor, the signal flags flutter in the sky.

These are the advanced technologies invented by humankind in their quest to conquer the sea.