Chapter 24: The Abandoned Woman of the 1980s Remarries After Surviving a Disaster

Qin Fengnian raised his hand to touch her face and said in a relaxed tone, "I need to stay here and work with the rescue team to reassure the people and prepare for escape. You go out with your brother and sister-in-law. I'll be there soon."

Rongzhen's eyes turned red. "Are you sure you'll be okay?"

"I promise." Qin Fengnian sighed, hugged her one last time, and pushed her towards Brother Zhang and his wife. "Brother and sister-in-law, please take her out."

Tears blurred Rong Zhen's vision. She knew that if she stayed, she would not be able to help much. Instead, it might distract Qin Fengnian and hold him back.

Brother Zhang and his wife took her and hurriedly said, "Don't worry, brother-in-law. We will protect her. You should be careful too."

They took advantage of the opportunity to get their bodies wet, and luckily they managed to grab a water tank and a square table, planning to use them to rush out of the sea of ​​fire.

Rongzhen was protected in the middle by them, with a wet cotton curtain wrapped around her body and a soaked towel covering her face.

She handed the other towel to Qin Fengnian and said tearfully, "I'll wait for you outside."

"Well, hurry up, there's no time left." The fire had already spread to the wood in the building, and thick smoke began to fill the air.

Qin Fengnian tied a towel to block the erosion of high-temperature smoke, and threw everything he could find at the weakest part of the fire wall.

In the chaos, those who didn't get the escape tools were crying in despair, and those who got them were not very happy because no one dared to take the lead in rushing out under the fire.

Qin Fengnian's sudden action brought them hope. A short gap was temporarily opened in the blazing fire road. Brother Zhang and Sister-in-law Zhang held Rong Zhen in front and behind and rushed in that direction with all their strength.

Even though Rong Zhen was reluctant to leave and wanted to stay, she did not dare to waste the little chance of life that Qin Fengnian had fought for them.

The fire was fierce and the flames were burning. The moment of walking through the sea of ​​fire was so long that it felt like going through an entire lifetime.

She didn't know what happened in between or when she successfully broke out. She only remembered the orange flames brushing against her hair, the smell of burning lingering at the tip of her nose, the voices of her elder brother and sister-in-law becoming abstract and blurred, and the world seemed to turn into an old silent film in an instant, with the pictures passing by frame by frame.

It was not until the air suddenly became fresh, her vision changed from black and white and full of orange to the clear blue sky, and a circle of anxious faces surrounded her head, that she seemed to finally regain her senses and realized that she had successfully crossed the sea of ​​fire and came out.

"Comrade, what's going on in there? Have you seen my daughter?"

"My son was in there too! Damn it! Who did this? I curse his ancestors for eight generations!"

"Has the fire brigade arrived? Where are the factory leaders? Come and put out the fire and save people—"

The chaotic voices came into Rong Zhen's ears, which made him wake up quickly after he fell to the ground due to exhaustion. He endured the pain and climbed up to seek help.

Brother Zhang and his wife fainted after bringing her out, and were quickly carried to the hospital by kind people.

As a relatively conscious person who was specially protected by them, Rong Zhen carried the hopes of everyone inside and the hopes of the anxious family members outside on his shoulders.

The factory director and other leaders had already arrived at the scene. When they learned that someone had risked their lives to rush out from this side, they immediately came over to inquire about the situation.

Wang Fengxian and Zhang's father came with them. When they saw their daughter in such a miserable state, they almost hugged her and burst into tears on the spot.

But saving lives was the most important thing, so Rongzhen only had time to tell them the whereabouts of her elder brother and sister-in-law, and then devoted herself to the rescue operation.

She told the factory director about Qin Fengnian's plan, and also informed him that the culprit was suspected to be Li Jun.

Why is it suspected? Because the commotion was too big. It is obviously unlikely that Li Jun, an ordinary worker who was fired, could do it alone, unless someone helped him.

Perhaps those people were the lurkers that Qin Fengnian and the factory director wanted to lure out, but they probably didn't expect that the other party would be so bold and so ruthless, catching them off guard.

Rong Zhen didn't dare to think about what Qin Fengnian would go through in there, and whether he could come out alive.

She could only let her body mechanically follow the arrangements to do some rescue work, and let her mind think about other things, so as not to panic and collapse.

Finally, the fire department arrived with a water truck and the rescue team was assembled.

The place where Rong Zhen escaped from was quickly cleared by them after the fire was put out, revealing Qin Fengnian standing tall behind him and the panicked crowd huddled behind him.

"Ah, we're saved, we're saved!" Everyone inside and outside the fire cheered in unison, crying and laughing with excitement.

Rong Zhen met Qin Fengnian's determined and tired gaze from a distance, and saw him utter two words with concern in his eyes.

"Don't cry."

The two were far apart and Rongzhen couldn't hear him, but she understood what he meant. She raised her hand to touch her face and felt her hands were wet.

It turned out that she was also crying without realizing it.

"Okay, I won't cry. I should be happy." Rong Zhen wiped her face and happily squeezed through the crowd to the front.

After the escape passage was opened, the crowd rushed out. Qin Fengnian walked calmly at the end and was suddenly caught in Rong Zhen's arms.

The couple hugged each other tightly, just like other people who survived the disaster and hugged their relatives and friends excitedly and rejoiced. No one would scold them for being inappropriate at this time, there were only tears of emotion and thunderous applause.

After all the trapped people were rescued, the cafeteria seemed to have finally completed its mission and collapsed completely with a loud bang.

Everyone who escaped death was very grateful, but their families and the factory leadership team watched with gritted teeth.

Fortunately, only a cafeteria was lost. Although it was heartbreaking, at least no one was killed. But even so, they were still extremely angry.

This is abhorrent! Whoever did this must be found and shot! Shoot!

Because the incident caused such a big stir, the Public Security Bureau was alarmed and they quickly sent people over.

The serious crime squad was immediately dispatched, cooperating with the factory director to capture Li Jun who was on the run and hiding, and then they pulled out the radish and brought out the mud to arrest the other participants, including those from inside and outside the factory, and there were quite a few of them.

This was considered a major case and was reported in the newspapers that day. Even reporters from the provincial TV station rushed to the machinery factory overnight to interview the matter.

As a fearless hero who saved lives in the face of danger, Qin Fengnian should have been the center of public attention, the first to be interviewed by reporters and receive everyone's praise and applause. However, due to work needs, he discussed with the factory director and gave the opportunity to show his face to others, while he remained perfectly invisible.

So Brother Zhang and Sister-in-law, who woke up in the hospital, were the first to be affected. They were bandaged and looked confused. Reporters took pictures of them and published them in provincial and Beijing newspapers.

Although the couple were commended, promoted, and given salary increases afterwards, and enjoyed many benefits, every time they thought about their silly mummy-like appearance being seen by the people of the whole country, their toes started to iterate and they could dig out a courtyard house on the spot.

Many people were injured in this incident. Even Rong Zhen, who had the least serious injuries, had half of his hair burned off and blisters on the soles of his feet.

Qin Fengnian had burns on his arms and legs, and his short hair was curled by the burns. The couple were both admitted to the hospital afterwards.

The hospital specially arranged a single room for them, which was just right for the two of them. They didn't have to squeeze with other people, and it was also a protection for them.

The Public Security Bureau sent two plainclothes comrades to stand guard in front of their ward door to prevent any escaped criminals from coming to retaliate.

After all, during the period when they were recovering from their injuries, the serious crime squad's arrest operation was carried out swiftly and mercilessly. No one involved in this incident was spared, and no one's pleas for mercy were of any use.

Under such thundering circumstances, the truth soon came to light.

On the day Rong Zhen and Qin Fengnian were discharged from the hospital, the factory director took time out of his busy schedule to come and pick them up in person and revealed the relevant inside story.

Just as they speculated, Li Jun was not the main culprit, but just a pawn thrown out by the people behind the scenes to cover up the crime. There were other people who actually planned the attack. Now they have all been arrested and will be judged by the law.

"So we are not the main cause?" Rong Zhen asked this question on behalf of Qin Fengnian, and understood what was bothering him and keeping him awake these days.

In fact, it wasn't just him. Before she found out the truth, she was also worried and sleepless because she thought it might be her fault.

The factory manager shook his head decisively: "Of course not."

That group of people mainly wanted to plan a terrorist attack to provoke the government, disrupt our production and public morale, and it would be even better if they could take the lives of several important scientific researchers in the process.

So the main cause is certainly not Qin Fengnian and Rong Zhen. They are just victims at most. One is a mechanical genius who those people want to persecute, and the other is used by those people as a trigger to stimulate the actions of chess pieces. They are two unlucky guys.

The unlucky Qin Fengnian Rong Zhen: “…………”

This is really bad luck. I have to go back and sit in a fire basin and soak in mugwort water.

Wang Fengxian had prepared these things long ago. As soon as the two of them walked out of the hospital gate, she directed the four children to splash mugwort water on them to ward off bad luck.

There was a pedal tricycle parked nearby, with a small pedal bench at the back and a brazier filled with thatch under it.

Father Zhang struck a match, bent down to light the brazier, and urged his daughter and son-in-law to get in the car quickly.

Seeing this situation, the couple looked at each other for a moment, with similar expressions of joy and helplessness on their faces.

"Oh, what a sweet trouble." Rong Zhen sighed, and she and Qin Fengnian held hands and stepped over the brazier together, and got on the tricycle to go home.

As for Brother Zhang and Sister-in-law Zhang, they are still being interviewed by reporters in the hospital. Their injuries are already more serious than Qin Fengnian's, but now they are happy with it and decide to stay for a while longer. Anyway, the medical expenses and hospitalization fees will be reimbursed by the factory.

However, even though Rong Zhen and the other man's injuries were not serious, the factory director still approved a long vacation for them.

The couple took the opportunity to recuperate at home, staying at home and enjoying themselves leisurely. Occasionally, Wang Fengxian, who came to visit them, would pass on some news from the factory.

It is said that Li Jun was shot, and several others were shot. Moreover, because the situation was so widespread, many people in the factory were transferred, exiled, or even fired, leaving many positions vacant. Now everyone is no longer afraid and is scrambling to get a job.

Wang Fengxian asked Rongzhen if she wanted to take the opportunity to change her position, such as a more promising secretarial position, a more lucrative accounting position, or a purchasing position that allowed her to travel around.

Rongzhen feels that her current job is pretty good and has no plans to change positions.

Wang Fengxian changed her own job and jumped from the workshop to the logistics department to become a small leader. She has been very high-spirited recently and walks with a breeze.

Father Zhang is still working as a fitter and is not interested in these things.

Brother Zhang and Sister-in-law Zhang enjoyed some glory, and after the excitement died down, they stayed at home to recuperate. The future was visibly bright, so the two were not in a hurry.

If they are not in a hurry, there will be others who are.

The vacant positions were like fat meat left there, and were quickly divided up by the surrounding wolves.

Then some people were promoted, some were transferred to other positions, and some were lucky enough to be transferred from branch factories.

With the arrival of these lucky people, one evening someone knocked on the gate of Rongzhen's house.

Qin Huaiyu ran to open the door and saw the person outside and cheered in surprise: "Aunt Jiaojiao? Why are you here?!"

Qin Huaijin stood up and rushed to the door. He pushed his brother aside and saw that it was indeed their dearest and most beloved Aunt Jiaojiao. She had actually come here all the way from the northwest. Was she here specifically to visit them?

The two brothers couldn't help but feel emotional when they thought about it. They turned around and said happily to Qin Fengnian and the others, "Uncle and aunt, Aunt Jiaojiao, who used to take good care of us, is here."

"Hello, I'm Yu Jiao." The visitor outside the door unveiled her mysterious face, waved and smiled gently at them, making people feel inexplicably familiar.