Chapter Sixty-Five: Safe Arrival at the Base
"What if something happens to you?"
He Mingzhou's tone carried a hint of reproach, but more than anything, it was filled with worry.
Xinli understood the meaning behind his words, smiled and said, "Don't worry, I never do anything I'm not sure about."
Even if you're confident, it's not enough!
He Mingzhou held Xin Li's hand and looked at her earnestly: "Protecting the people is our responsibility. Don't joke with your own life."
"Xinxin, promise me you won't do such dangerous things again."
Xinli nodded: "I promise you."
He Mingzhou smiled, kissed Xin Li's lips, and then turned to look out the window with some worry.
"At this rate of rise, the water will probably reach the second floor by tomorrow morning. The rescue team will arrive tomorrow morning, but the timing is uncertain. The uncertainty brought by the wind and rain is too high. We can only try to hold on until the rescue team arrives."
Xinli said, "It's okay, we'll definitely be able to wait."
Looking at Xin Li's confident demeanor, He Mingzhou gave a helpless smile: "If everyone trusted us like you do, that would be great."
Xin Li seemed to realize something and raised an eyebrow, asking, "Did you run into some stubborn people again today? Is that why you were delayed?"
"Um."
He Mingzhou rubbed his temples helplessly: "An elderly couple. We told them that our boat can seat two people and everyone can walk, but the old lady said she was scared and refused to get on. The old man actually thought the old lady was useless and pushed her into the water, wanting to get on the boat first."
"The old lady was already quite old, and she was quickly swept away after being pushed into the water. Fortunately, she could swim and managed to grab onto a big tree with all her might, which prevented her from being completely swept away. It took our people a lot of effort to rescue the old lady."
"But the old lady is breathing more and more out of breath. I have already sent someone to take her to a safe place. Zhang Chen is there. I don't know if there will be any good news."
She was already old, and then she was so frightened, and she had been in the water.
On an island where medicine and food are scarce, no one can predict the fate of that old woman.
"Where is that old man?"
A fierce glint flashed in Xin Li's eyes: "What he did was no different from murder, was it? Does someone like that need to be protected?"
He Mingzhou patted Xin Li's head, as if he were soothing her irritated hair.
"That's not how it works. Anything can happen in the face of immense survival difficulties, and the old man may not have done it on purpose."
"Even if he did it on purpose, we can only deal with this after everything is over and everyone is free. Right now, rescue is more important than anything else. Our goal is to maximize the survival rate of everyone on the island."
Xin Li snorted angrily.
"This truly proves the saying: 'Husbands and wives are like birds in the same forest; when disaster strikes, they fly away separately.'"
The older people get, the more afraid they are of dying.
"We won't do that."
He Mingzhou held Xin Li's hand: "I will never do that to you."
Xin Li glanced at He Mingzhou in surprise.
This man, who had always been aloof, was surprisingly eager to express his inner emotions today.
Xin Li guessed that He Mingzhou was deeply moved probably because he had seen so many scenes of life and death separations.
She sighed and hugged He Mingzhou's waist: "I believe you."
Just for the fact that He Mingzhou came back to find her all by himself today, Xin Li deserves to trust He Mingzhou.
"Let's take a break."
"There's another tough battle to fight tomorrow."
Xin Li nodded, curled up in He Mingzhou's arms, and was enveloped in the scent of the sea. She quickly fell asleep.
He Mingzhou looked at Xin Li's sleeping face in his arms, a faint smile flashing across his face.
He leaned in very gently and placed a light kiss on her forehead.
He had never imagined what kind of person would stand shoulder to shoulder with him.
It wasn't until today, when he saw Xin Li rushing towards him through wind and rain without hesitation, that He Mingzhou finally understood what it meant to be inseparable in life and death.
He always felt that he had no other attachments in this world besides his family, and was willing to dedicate his life to the people.
But now he finally has other things to worry about.
This person understands him, trusts him, and comprehends him.
He Mingzhou felt a surge of passion coursing through his heart.
He held Xinli tightly in his arms and slowly closed his eyes.
The sound of wind and rain was still mournful, but at this moment it became the best lullaby.
The next day, Xinli woke He Mingzhou up.
He Mingzhou opened his sleepy eyes and realized that he had actually slept all night.
"How did I fall asleep!" He Mingzhou sat up with a start. "Did the water flood in?"
Xin Li smiled at He Mingzhou: "We were very lucky, the rain stopped just as dawn was breaking."
He Mingzhou turned his head in disbelief and saw that the outside was indeed the familiar sunny day.
If the familiar island hadn't been transformed into a vast ocean, he probably would have thought the previous typhoon and torrential rain were just his hallucinations.
"Has the rain really stopped?"
Xinli nodded: "Moreover, the water only flooded the first floor; the second floor is still fine."
Xin Li was glad that she and He Mingzhou had already moved all the things from the first floor to the second floor.
If it weren't for He Mingzhou being there, I would have preferred to store the furniture directly into the space, so that it would never have been soaked in water.
But considering that those things were all external possessions, and there was no need to expose her personal space for such things, she moved the furniture to the empty room on the second floor as He Mingzhou had instructed.
They were lucky; the water didn't reach the second floor at all.
The storm has now stopped, and all we need to do is wait for the tide to recede, and everything will return to normal.
"Sister Xinli, are you awake? My mom has made breakfast."
Xiaohua gently knocked on the door.
He Mingzhou quickly got up and changed his clothes.
"Why is Aunt Yang making breakfast at this time of day?"
The kitchen is located in a low-lying area, so it's inevitable that the kitchen will be affected when the first floor is flooded.
Xiaohua pointed to the balcony: "My mom brought some pots, pans and other kitchenwares over last night."
"Making breakfast is still an option."
Xinli and He Mingzhou went out onto the balcony together and found that breakfast was indeed a simple bowl of noodles.
But Aunt Yang is a very good cook; she can make even simple vegetarian noodles look, smell, and taste delicious.
The four of them ate breakfast together, and the rescue team arrived shortly afterward.
"Deputy Division Commander, the storm has stopped. The division commander said that we need to clear the drainage channels next."
"Everyone will be able to go back to their homes soon."
He Mingzhou nodded and turned to look at Xin Li: "You go with Aunt Yang to find Sister Lu. Go home after things are mostly settled here."
"good."
Xin Li boarded the rescue team's boat and soon arrived at a safe location.
Zhang Jinhua breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Xin Li, Aunt Yang, and Xiao Hua arrive together: "It's good that they're safe, it's good that they're safe."
Seeing Zhang Jinhua's haggard face, Xin Li frowned and asked, "Sister-in-law, what happened here?"
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