sbdcsierra Chapter 287 Encounter!
Chapter 287 Encounter!
However, the group remained calm, as they were used to it. They didn't even flinch, sitting firmly and continuing to discuss the next steps of the rescue plan. After a while, a soldier rushed in and whispered a few words in Zhou Zhennan's secretary's ear. The secretary's expression changed, and he informed the soldier. After the soldier left, the secretary went to Zhou Zhennan's side and whispered a few more words. Zhou Zhennan's brows furrowed, and his hand holding the pen trembled slightly.
The others noticed something amiss and asked:
"Old Zhou, are you alright?"
Zhou Zhennan told the truth.
"During the aftershock, some medical personnel involved in the disaster relief were buried underground, and soldiers are currently carrying out rescue operations."
He did not mention that the medical staff member was his own daughter.
He then whispered to his secretary, "Go and take a look; I can't leave right now."
The secretary then hurriedly left.
Meanwhile, Zhong Yuemin happened to receive orders from above to participate in the rescue because he was close to the location where the medical staff were buried. When he arrived at the scene, doctors and nurses in white coats were digging with their bare hands into the rubble of a collapsed building, occasionally shouting down to those below. He noticed the name tags on their chests; it wasn't the military hospital where Xiaobai worked. For some reason, he had a bad feeling and hurriedly went forward to inquire about the situation.
Survivors were found under the rubble. After much effort, a passage was cleared, but the trapped person had been buried for many days without water and was exhausted. They could not be freed immediately, and without timely treatment, their life was in danger. A medical worker risked the collapse, carrying an IV drip of medicine, and climbed in to give the person an infusion and replenish their nutrition. However, just as the person entered, an aftershock occurred, and the passage that had just been cleared was completely blocked again. The fate of the person inside was unknown.
Zhong Yuemin and his team immediately joined the rescue efforts, and Zhou Zhennan's secretary also arrived quickly. Upon seeing Zhong Yuemin participating in the rescue,
"Yuemin, what are you doing here?"
As Zhou Zhennan's future son-in-law, Zhong Yuemin, who was serving as the leader's secretary, naturally knew him. He also knew that Yuemin's unit had come from thousands of miles away for this disaster relief effort. However, he had been too busy with other troop deployments and hadn't seen him before. He never expected to run into him here.
Both sides were surprised. Zhong Yuemin said:
"Brother Li, what brings you here?"
The secretary was taken aback by Yuemin's somewhat 'calm' expression.
"You don't know yet?"
"Ah, what do you know?"
"The medical staff member buried below is Xiaobai. Commander Zhou is currently in the command center discussing disaster relief matters and doesn't have time to come over. Let him come and take a look."
"what?!"
Zhong Yuemin was startled. Without saying another word, he turned and ran to the ruins, addressing the soldiers below:
"Dig, dig quickly, clear the passage as fast as you can, hurry..."
He also dug with all his might, from daytime until about ten o'clock at night, and finally dug through the buried passage again. Zhong Yuemin picked up a flashlight and was about to crawl in when Man Tun said:
"Yuemin, take a break. You've been working for over ten hours. I'm going in to rescue people."
"Mantun, don't argue with me about this. You all wait outside. I'll go in, and once I find the person, I'll let you in!"
I lay prone on the ground, crawling into the opening. The passage was narrow, making even turning over difficult. I could only use my elbows to push myself forward, inching in like a maggot. In such a confined, dark space, it was a true test of willpower. The unknown fear and the constant danger of aftershocks and collapse would be unbearable for most people. After crawling for about ten minutes, I had only moved forward about ten meters—truly a slow, inching motion.
"Xiaobai, where are you? Xiaobai..."
Buried somewhere below, Zhou Xiaobai was curled up like a wounded kitten. In the dark, cramped environment, a second collapse had occurred during the aftershocks. A concrete slab above had fallen, and perhaps by some stroke of luck, it broke off in half, standing upright and supporting the collapsed rubble above. This provided her with a small space to stand; otherwise, she would likely be dead.
She closed her eyes to rest; fear was useless. She could only wait for rescue. So, she tried to calm herself and conserve her energy—that was the most important thing. After being in the darkness for so long, her head felt foggy. Someone was calling her; it sounded like Yuemin's voice. Then she gave a sad laugh. It seemed to be a hallucination. She knew Yuemin had come to help with the rescue, but in a city of over a million people, with collapsed buildings everywhere, how could she possibly run into him while buried under the rubble? Besides, Yuemin didn't know she was in Tangshan.
But the shouts grew more and more real, and closer and closer.
"Xiaobai, where are you? Xiaobai..."
Zhou Xiaobai listened carefully, confirming that she wasn't hallucinating and that it was indeed Yuemin's voice. She quickly responded.
"Yuemin, I'm here, Yuemin!"
Zhong Yuemin followed the sound and crawled inside. The passage twisted and turned, with exposed sharp steel bars and gravel. His body was chafed in many places. He admired Xiaobai, this delicate girl, for climbing in alone, carrying medical equipment. She was amazing. The sound seemed to be right in front of him, but it took him another twenty minutes to finally see the person. When he shone his flashlight, there it was, his wife's beautiful face, dirty and filled with fear, anxiety, and surprise.
When Zhou Xiaobai saw that it really was Yuemin, her beloved had suddenly appeared and rescued her when she was at her most helpless and terrified. At that moment, her strong heart could no longer hold back; her eyes reddened and her lips trembled.
"Leap People!"
Zhong Yuemin crawled with difficulty to the girl's side. The cramped space was barely enough for him to sit up halfway. Covered in dust, he hadn't even had a chance to catch his breath when the girl hugged him tightly, as if afraid of losing him again.
Feeling the girl's trembling body, he gently patted her back to comfort her.
"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, your man is here!"
He offered words of comfort, wiped away the girl's tears, and said:
Are you hurt anywhere?
Zhou Xiaobai shook his head. "Yuemin, how did you know I was buried inside?"
“I was doing rescue work nearby when I received the notification from above, so I rushed here. Your dad’s secretary said you were buried underground. I dug for more than ten hours and finally managed to dig a passage through you.”
Zhou Xiaobai was deeply moved. Seeing her beloved looking disheveled and with his hands all scraped raw, she said, "Thank you!"
"Say no more. You're really something, sending a girl like you into this mess. What if something happens to you, your parents, and me?!"
"I'm a doctor, this is my duty!"
"By the way, what about the injured people buried underneath?"
Zhou Xiaobai pointed to the area not far behind him.
"Her right leg is trapped and she can't move. I gave her an IV drip earlier, but she's currently unconscious and breathing very weakly. We need to move her out for treatment as soon as possible."