Xiao Daidzhao

Growing up with eccentric materialistic parents who left him in the care of his grandfather for a job overseas, Zhang Heng had learned to adapt and be unfettered by the oddities and challenges in life. But he would soon learn the baffling truth about the world he thought he knew when one day at midnight time froze and he found himself in a world so quiet and still it was deafening. That night, he discovered that he had 24 hours more than everybody else and thus, marked the beginning of his adventures. The mysteries surrounding his newfound ability only deepened when a strange old man claimed to have given Zhang Heng that ‘gift of time’ and recruited the young man to participate in a cryptic ‘life-changing’ game on his behalf. Little did Zhang Heng know that accepting those terms meant embroiling himself in many versions of reality and exposing himself to the hidden secrets of the world—a decision he could never undo.

48 Hours a Day

"Is this why you wanted me to recruit ten French-speaking men back on the island?"

"Yes. We will keep thirty men on deck, pretending to be sailors of a merchant ship. Mm, try to pick those who don't look aggressive and appear thinner and weaker. The rest will wait in the secret mezzanine. Oh, right, the cannons. We have too many cannons on board, get rid of half of them."

"Are you serious? Keep only sixteen cannons to battle against the most powerful English warship on the Caribbean?"

"Trust me, it wouldn't make a difference even if we had thirty-two cannons—not when you're up against the Scarborough." Orff shrugged. He glanced around and asked, "Anymore questions?"

"Even if we do as you say and are lucky enough to be able to trick the people on the Scarborough into believing that we are a French merchant ship, and successfully connect the bridge, we are still at a disadvantage in terms of manpower." Zhang Heng who had been quiet all along also spoke up.

Ambush II