Chapter 96 Destruction and Courage

After hearing Fang Senyan's explanation, President Wilson sighed in disappointment, looking as if he had aged several years out of nowhere. He then slumped wearily onto the cold iron chair beside him, pressing his fingers hard against his temples. Because the airship was floating after all, to avoid accidental injuries during violent shaking, the furniture and such were fixed in place, so they weren't very comfortable.

Zi looked at the respectable president and couldn't help but feel a little emotional. Obviously, compared to former presidents like the father-son duo Bush, Clinton with the Lewinsky scandal, and Nixon with Watergate, Wilson truly seemed like a saint. Zi pulled President's female assistant Sally aside, and before long, Sally brought over a basin of hot water and then busied herself in the galley behind.

Soon, a steaming hot towel, thick, warm cocoa, and a large sandwich revitalized President Wilson. Logically, under psychological and physiological pressure, the president should have been extremely exhausted, but he still insisted on seeing how the rest of the people on the giant airship were doing before resting. To show respect, Fang Senyan and his party accompanied him.

Here, it must be said that Fang Senyan and the others' preparations were quite thorough. At this time, the airship staff were distributing a series of essential supplies to everyone in an orderly manner, including a number plate, a set of toiletries, and a gray blanket that was coarse to the touch but large and thick enough.

In this way, even those who had just boarded the airship and lost all their possessions at least had a safe place to lie down and rest, a bed that might not be too comfortable but could keep them warm. In addition, because the number of rescued people exceeded previous expectations, some people could only sleep on the floor in the corridors.

Many people, upon seeing Fang Senyan and the President, were moved to tears. Some even struggled to prostrate themselves before them, kissing their feet. It was clear that the President and Fang Senyan's prestige among the survivors had reached an extraordinary level.

After accompanying the President on a tour of the two giant airships, President Wilson, despite maintaining a critical eye, finally nodded in approval. At this time, because it was a special period, everyone was required not to leave their cabins and wander around at will. Dinner was distributed in a fixed sequence by special dining carts. Only those with number plates could eat. The dining carts had two huge aluminum buckets on them.

As the saying goes, food is the first necessity of the people. President Wilson was naturally very concerned and went over to check the situation. He found that the first aluminum bucket was full of square, highly compressed biscuits. Each person could get a piece the size of a cigarette pack, and biting into it could almost break your teeth. The biscuits in one aluminum bucket could supply at least a dozen cabins.

The second aluminum bucket contained very hot, thick soup, mixed with chopped carrots, a lot of butter, shredded meat, and corn kernels. Everyone was given toiletries, including a military canteen and a large lunch box, and everyone could get a full box.

President Wilson also took a portion of dinner and ate with the people, listening to their voices and opinions. For the President personally, this dinner certainly didn't have much flavor, but the high-density compressed biscuits soaked in the thick soup were filling enough to satisfy an adult, and there was a lot of butter in the soup, which was greasy, but it was very helpful for restoring energy and resisting the cold. It was clear that the organizers had put a lot of thought into it.

During the meal, there were some discordant voices, namely, some people couldn't get used to such simple food, so despite the signs strictly prohibiting food waste, they threw it away.

This behavior attracted the attention of the security personnel and was quickly punished. The number plates of those who threw away food were taken away and would not be returned until thirty-six hours later, which meant they would face the embarrassing situation of going hungry for at least four meals.

Overall, President Wilson seemed very satisfied with the orderly order on the entire airship squadron. At the same time, the control room transmitted an emergency signal: the tsunami was coming soon. In order to cope with the upcoming bad weather, the airship would ascend with all its might and forcibly close all external exits.

At the same time, warnings were continuously broadcast throughout the entire airship squadron:

It is hoped that all passengers will stay in their cabins and not go out, and grab onto stable objects. In addition, if passengers are confident in their physical condition, they can go near the portholes to bid farewell to our great, beautiful, magnificent, and majestic Washington for the last time.

The distant tides were vast and turbulent, piling up on the horizon like dense clouds, frantically attacking. The highest waves overlooked the land, inevitably submerging it. At the crest of the waves, even an aircraft carrier, symbolizing mankind's most powerful conventional military force, was swept along. The stars and stripes were clearly visible on it, and then... it brutally crushed the White House!!

President Wilson's tears slid silently down his wrinkled, aged cheeks at this moment. The capital that once represented the most powerful country in the world was reduced to fragmented ruins in the unprecedented tide!

In this instant, this elderly black man, this president who could face life and death with equanimity and share the joys and sorrows of his people, burst into tears, completely losing his composure!!!

This sad emotion spread throughout the airship, and cries rose and fell.

The terrifying waves surged over in an instant, wiping out the architectural history and civilization that had been soaked in the blood and sweat of generations. All that could be seen was a vast expanse of white, a color that was truly despairing! In the distance, where the sky and the ocean met, the inky black clouds, as solid as mountains, stood tall, surging wildly, with faint flashes of lightning inside.

Fang Senyan felt the atmosphere of loss, sorrow, and despair, and instinctively felt that he should say something, so he walked up to President Wilson and said earnestly:

"Mr. President, Washington may be buried deep in the sea, but why do these three words move us so much, why do they bring tears to our eyes? The meaning behind it, the spirit it represents! Is definitely not just these four words: 'despondent sadness'. If we miss it, then it is enough to engrave it deep in our memories, but if we are pained by its demise, why not rebuild a new Washington with our own hands in the future? Rebuild a more magnificent city! You must know that before 1700 AD, this was still a wasteland beside the Potomac River!"

President Wilson raised his eyes. Although his red eyes were still full of tears, if you looked closely, his fists had clenched again.

Fang Senyan continued:

"According to reliable information, the flood will only cover the earth for a maximum of ten days, and then it will recede. At that time, we will still be facing a brand new Earth. Mr. President, I strongly disagree with one sentence you have repeatedly emphasized. You said you are the last president of the United States of America, but I believe that as long as there are people alive, as long as everyone cherishes the dream of rebuilding their country, then the United States of America will not perish!"

Everyone looked at Fang Senyan, even President Wilson looked at him in surprise. Then, the presidential assistant Sally took the lead and clapped her hands with tears in her eyes, followed by the others around her, and finally even President Wilson joined in.

Fang Senyan saw that the morale of the group had been restored, knew that his words had worked, smiled slightly, and then shouted loudly at the engine room:

"Hey, Shant, we're ascending too slowly! We have to fly above those terrible thunderclouds before they arrive."

Shant was a technician personally trained by Doctor Octopus and had served on the airship for a full three hundred hours, so he shouted skillfully:

"I'm doing it! Our current altitude is three thousand seven hundred meters. When the storms and thunderstorms come, the strong winds they bring will make our ascent faster!"

In the next half hour, all the passengers had a good experience of traversing through the thunderclouds. To think that lightning and wind were raging just a thin bulkhead away, the feeling must have been very stimulating.

Fortunately, the goddess of luck still favored them. Only one giant airship was struck by lightning, but it could still barely fly. Soon, the airship ascended to twelve kilometers above the ground as expected. In this mid-latitude region, it was already at the top of the troposphere.

Thus, one could see the dark, water-filled cumulonimbus clouds below, with lightning flashing, while they were like small boats drifting with the current, moving rapidly in the strong winds. This was also within the previous design plan. The strong winds posed no threat to the huge and solid airship envelope, just as no matter how turbulent the water flow, it was impossible for a hollow, sealed can to sink permanently underwater.

At this time, the entire airship squadron entered a period of stability. Their expected period of drifting in the air would exceed seventy-two hours, and then the angry Earth would slowly restrain its anger. The vast majority of people on the airship squadron also fell into a deep sleep in exhaustion and fear, while Fang Senyan and the others drank thick, bitter coffee with President Wilson, not falling asleep, because they still had more important things to do now.