Meanwhile the sailors were rejoicing, the captain Anton Platov, as usual, remained indifferent to common joy and delight. Tall, thin, in his smart marine uniform, fastened with all buttons, being a living embodiment of order and discipline, he was carefully examining the shore through a telescope. He could see some port buildings, piers and ships, on decks of which the sailors were sunbathing, bashfully exposing their pale winter bodies. But, apparently, the captain could not find what he was looking for, and therefore he frowned.
– What are you sad about, captain? – asked the chief mate approaching him. Artem Sinitsyn was older than his captain, he was a heavy steady man in his fifties. However, now the chief mate was smiling broadly like a boy, sharing common joy of the crew.
The captain shrugged – he did not want to talk to anyone. Neither he wanted to offend the chief mate with his silence, which he could take as a reproach, so he briefly dropped, changing the topic: