mijobooks Chapter 94 If the Sky Falls, I'll Be There
Chapter 94 If the Sky Falls, I'll Be There
Chapter 93 If the Sky Falls, I'll Be There
Under Zeng Huihuang's leadership and command, after five hours of fighting, the breach at Wushan Water Station was finally completely sealed.
It was already 11:30 a.m., and the torrential rain had long since stopped, but the thick fog that lingered in the mountains was slow to dissipate, and the leaden-gray sky made it hard to breathe.
Everyone's face was etched with exhaustion, their heads drooping, devoid of any energy.
Chen Ya, along with Song Qiuyu and the company's second wave of rescue workers, brought steaming hot boxed meals and fruit. Exhausted and hungry, everyone rushed forward, and a long queue formed instantly.
"President Zeng, please move to the car to eat." The office specially prepared special meals for Zeng Huihuang, Song Jiehui and others. Given their status, they shouldn't be squatting in the mud eating boxed lunches with ordinary employees.
Unexpectedly, Zeng Huihuang's face darkened instantly, and he retorted sharply, "Nonsense! What time is it? Why are you still making exceptions for us!" Before he finished speaking, he walked straight to the food cart, picked up a very ordinary boxed meal, turned around and squatted on the ruins of the water station, and began to eat slowly and deliberately.
It seems that only through such a self-destructive method can one express respect for and reflection on this accident.
In just a few hours, Zeng Huihuang, who had left home in a suit and tie and looked radiant, was now covered in mud, his face etched with lines of fatigue, his cheeks sunken, his jaw protruding, and a thick layer of stubble on his chin.
He squatted there, like a stone statue washed by rain, lonely, desperate, and with a lingering worry. He chewed his food for a long time before swallowing it with difficulty, whether it was a toothache or the heaviness in his heart that made it impossible for him to eat. Anyone who saw him couldn't help but feel a pang of heartache.
Seeing this, the other executives who came with him dared not make any exceptions. Song Jiehui took the lead, picked up his boxed lunch, and squatted down next to Zeng Huihuang.
Soon, the group of people squatted in a row, looking like a row of stone statues squatting on a toilet, a scene that was somewhat comical, yet strangely heartwarming. Only Lin Chen, Tang Xin, and Zhang Junmin suffered. The executives swarmed in and snatched up all the lunch boxes left for them. Chen Ya shrugged, looking helpless: "I prepared them according to the number of people, who could have imagined—"
Lin Chen glanced at the air-conditioned car parked next to him; the window was half-rolled down, and the large portions of meat and fish inside were clearly visible. He turned to Tang Xin and gestured with his chin: "Come on, let's eat inside."
Before he finished speaking, Lin Chen had already pushed open the door and gotten into the car, grabbed a braised chicken leg and started gnawing on it with gusto, his mouth dripping with oil.
Tang Xin was so anxious outside the car that she kept stamping her feet, but she couldn't help but feel a little hungry.
It wasn't until Lin Chen insisted on giving her a shiny, oily chicken leg that she hesitated for a few seconds, but ultimately couldn't resist her hunger and started to eat heartily, completely forgetting her previous concerns.
After everyone had eaten and drunk their fill, the emergency situation at the scene was basically under control.
Song Jiehui cleared his throat and began to arrange the next steps: the rescue team was divided into two groups, one group stayed at the water station to reinforce the dike, and the other group immediately went down the mountain to help the local village officials check the disaster situation from house to house and count the casualties. According to the rules for disaster reporting, core data such as the number of affected people and the number of dead and missing must be reported within 24 hours, without any delay.
Lin Chen wasn't on the original list, but he volunteered to go anyway.
After traveling through two villages in a speedboat, the scene before Lin Chen made his chest feel as if a huge boulder was blocking it. Many mud houses were washed away by the flood and were broken into pieces, with furniture and appliances soaked in muddy sludge, reduced to piles of rubble.
Several elderly people sat on the ruins, slapping their thighs and weeping uncontrollably. The village chief kept repeating that it was thanks to the advance notice that the villagers evacuated in time, preventing major casualties. But Lin Chen glanced at the list in his hand, which clearly showed "three missing" marked in white.
The search and rescue operation continued until 5 p.m., when Lin Chen finally dragged his leaden legs back to the company's temporary base camp in the town to replenish his strength. His hands and feet were already numb from the cold.
Just then, Tan Huasheng led a team of rescuers back from downstream. His appearance was simply appalling; his camouflage uniform was soaked in mud and clung tightly to his body, his face and hair were covered in mud, and one of his boots had a large hole in it, revealing an ankle that was red and swollen like a steamed bun.
Upon seeing Zeng Huihuang and Song Jiehui, Tan Huasheng knelt down with a thud. Whether from exhaustion or on purpose, his voice was so hoarse it was almost inaudible: "President Zeng, I'm so sorry everyone. The downstream current was too strong, and the inflatable boat almost capsized several times. We risked our lives, but people still went missing... I have no face to see you!"
As he spoke, he raised his hand to slap himself in the face, but Zeng Huihuang grabbed his wrist.
"Comrade Watson, get up." Zeng Huihuang supported his arm, his tone heavy with sorrow but unable to hide his praise: "You have done very well. In such extreme weather, to save so many lives is a tremendous achievement! You are exhausted, go and eat something and get some rest."
Tan Huasheng scrambled to his feet, wiped the mud and tears from his face (they were probably real), and choked out his determination: "President Zeng, as long as there's still one person left to find, I won't rest! I came back just to grab a quick bite of bread and then immediately went back to continue the search and rescue. Please don't stop me."
As soon as he finished speaking, he grabbed a piece of bread, took two bites, and was about to rush out when his legs gave way and he collapsed to the ground.
Wow, that's truly moving and inspiring.
Several people immediately surrounded him, helping him up and saying, "Take a rest. You haven't had a drop of water or a bite to eat. Even an iron body can't take this."
Zeng Huihuang also put on a stern face and ordered in a deep voice, "Tan Huasheng, I am now ordering you to rest immediately."
"President Zeng, President Zeng." Tan Huasheng was then "reluctantly" helped down.
Lin Chen stood outside the crowd, coldly watching his deliberately exposed swollen ankle and his perfectly timed tragic performance, feeling a wave of nausea wash over him.
He really wanted to rush up and yell, "Let him go! Let him go!"
If they really wanted to save lives, why bother running back to base camp for bread? Would the assault boat really be short of food?
All I can say is that her acting skills are even better than Zeng Huihuang's. No wonder the entertainment industry can't produce any good actors these days; it seems that all the talented ones have gone to work for Xinhai Group.
At 10 p.m., the company held its first special meeting on disaster response in the temporary conference hall of the Wushan Town Water Supply Center. These were all high-ranking company executives, and Lin Chen was not even qualified to attend.
Zeng Huihuang sat in the main seat, with Song Jiehui and Tan Huasheng on either side. The other department heads took their seats in order, with the seating arrangement clearly defined and not allowed to be disorderly in the slightest.
The atmosphere at the meeting was exceptionally solemn, with everyone wearing just the right amount of seriousness on their faces.
Zeng Huihuang rubbed his bloodshot eyes, picked up a preliminary statistical report, cleared his throat, and spoke first: "Comrades, after a day and night of arduous struggle, the emergency response to the Wushan water station breach has achieved a phased victory! The breach has been successfully sealed, and the rescue and relief work is nearing its end. I must fully acknowledge and praise everyone's efforts for achieving such results in such a short time!"
As soon as he finished speaking, thunderous applause erupted in the conference room, each round louder than the last, as if it would lift the roof off.
Zeng Huihuang raised his hand to quiet the room, and all was silent. He swept his sharp gaze across the crowd and continued, "This accident was sudden and caused serious losses. Now, the outside world and the provincial company are waiting for our report. Tang Xin, please give everyone a briefing on the casualties and losses caused by this disaster."
Tang Xin had been waiting with a thick stack of documents. She stood up and read them out in detail, one by one: the area of farmland damaged in ten villages, the extent of forest collapse, the number of collapsed roads and bridges, the number of houses collapsed and damaged, the property losses of villagers, and the number of livestock drownings—the information was clear and the data was detailed.
After listening, Zeng Huihuang frowned slightly and asked in a deep voice, "Have all these data been completely compiled? It must be watertight and comprehensive! This is our responsibility to the people; not a penny of compensation should be missed, and we will fully cooperate in rebuilding where necessary!"
Tang Xin nodded: "That's all we have so far."
Zeng Huihuang then changed the subject, his tone becoming earnest: "We must also fully consider the impact of secondary disasters. Some areas may appear unaffected now, but further collapses could occur, leading to even greater losses. Our Xinhai Group absolutely cannot let the affected people suffer even the slightest bit less!"
Tang Xin was completely bewildered: "Then—how do we calculate these additional losses?"
Zeng Huihuang's face immediately darkened, clearly showing his displeasure.
Seeing this, Tan Huasheng immediately chimed in, his tone carrying a hint of "guidance": "Director Tang, how can you be so confused? Report it according to the three-to-one ratio! Report three times more, and you can't go wrong!"
Tang Xin was stunned for a moment, then realized what she meant and quickly nodded, "Okay, I understand."
Zeng Huihuang's expression softened, and he looked at Tang Xin, his tone serious: "Have you compiled the personnel statistics?"
Tang Xin took a deep breath, her voice slightly tense: "A total of—six people."
Zeng Huihuang's face froze instantly. He leaned forward slightly and pressed, "Tell me the details, what exactly happened?"
"Liu Yifan from Elephant Village is known for his stubbornness," Tang Xin said in a low voice as she flipped through the documents. "At the time, village officials went door-to-door trying to persuade people to evacuate, but he refused to listen. He refused to believe the flood would come and insisted on staying in his old house. As a result, when the floodwaters rushed in, he didn't have time to escape and was swept away by the flood. Later, rescuers found him in a ditch downstream."
"It's good that we found it." Zeng Huihuang subconsciously replied.
Tang Xin paused, then uttered a few words with difficulty: "There's no heartbeat anymore."
"No heartbeat? As long as the person is alright, that's fine."
Tang Xin lowered her eyes: "The person—is gone too."
Zeng Huihuang said "Oh," and waved his hand, "Okay, you can continue with the next one."
"The situation in Owl Village is the most serious. Almost all the houses in the village have been destroyed by the flood, which has also triggered a small-scale landslide." Tang Xin's voice grew heavier and heavier. "There was an elderly man named Guan Shengtuan who was living alone in the village. He didn't keep up with the group when they evacuated, and now... the whole village has been buried by the mountain and turned into ruins. There's no way to find him."
Zeng Huihuang's brows furrowed deeply: "How do you know what happened if you haven't found anyone?"
Tang Xin explained, "The village has compiled a list of all the evacuees, and Guan Shengtuan's name is indeed not on it, nor has anyone seen him leave."
"That's uncertain. He's a grown man; he might have gone to see relatives or friends. Even if he hasn't, it should take at least 72 hours before a missing person report can be filed." Zeng Huihuang's tone was resolute: "Next."
Tang Xin continued reading: "Over in Rat Village, the flood washed away a utility pole, which happened to hit Liu Ba, a villager who was passing by, and he died on the spot..."
Zeng Huihuang immediately pressed, "Was it hit by a utility pole, or was it electrocuted?"
Tang Xin shook her head: "The scene is too chaotic, so we can't confirm it for now."
"This needs to be clearly distinguished." Zeng Huihuang's tone suddenly became serious.
"If we were hit by falling debris, that was caused by the flood, and the responsibility lies with us; if we were electrocuted, that was just a regular electrocution, and it has no direct connection to the breach of the dike at the water station. We cannot confuse the two."
Tang Xin hesitated for a moment: "Then... how do we calculate this?"
"Let's put aside anything that's unclear for now," Zeng Huihuang said firmly. "Let's move on to the rest."
"There were two young men in Xiaohu Village, Dahu and Erhu," Tang Xin said, her voice tinged with complexity. "When the flood came, everyone was busy evacuating, but these two brothers secretly slipped back into the village, hoping to steal something in the chaos and make a quick buck. As a result, they were swept away by the sudden flash flood as soon as they climbed into someone's yard."
After listening, Zeng Huihuang scoffed, his tone tinged with disdain: "What do you call this? Eliminating a scourge for the people! These two deserved what they got for their own actions! Besides, theft is their personal behavior, not within our company's jurisdiction, and has nothing to do with us."
Tang Xin nodded silently, turned to the last page, and said in a softer voice, "The last one is Bao Daqiang, an employee of our water station. He rushed to the scene to check the equipment immediately after the emergency at the water station, but was accidentally swept away by the swift current and his whereabouts are still unknown."
Zeng Huihuang's eyes suddenly lit up, and his tone became more serious: "This is a role model for our Xinhai. We must dig deep into his story and write it thoroughly, and see if we can apply for him to be recognized as an advanced model."
Tang Xin looked at the data in her hand, somewhat bewildered: "Then... how do I calculate the final number of people?"
Zeng Huihuang picked up the water glass on the table, took a sip, and said in a light tone, yet with an undeniable authority: "It's very simple. Liu Yifan is one, Bao Daqiang is one, and the others are either missing, their situations are unclear, or they brought it upon themselves. They are not included for now. We must be realistic and not make wild guesses."
Tang Xin was stunned for a moment before replying in a low voice, "Okay."
Zeng Huihuang looked around and asked in a deep voice, "Does anyone have any further questions?"
The meeting room was completely silent; no one dared to utter a single word.
Zeng Huihuang: "If there are no problems, that's fine. Is that all for today? The investigation into the cause of the accident will begin tomorrow. Meeting adjourned."