At 8:00 a.m. on August 26, the rain was still pouring down outside the tunnel. The dense sound of the rain seemed to become a persistent background noise after a while, making people feel helpless but also getting used to it.
The people in the tunnel spent a terrifying and painful night, and almost none of them slept well. While taking care of their frightened or injured family members, they also worried that the wolves or wild beasts in the mountains would come again. They spent the night in a daze, keeping warm by the fire.
When the next day dawned, almost everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
The light brought not only a sense of security, but also the bloodstains in the tunnel that could no longer be concealed by the night, and the high fever and illness that came with the sudden relaxation after a period of tension.
"Dr. Liu! Please come and see my child! He has a high fever! He couldn't be woken up this morning!"
"Dr. Liu! I think I have a fever. Do you have any fever reducers?"
Hearing the shouts coming from all around him, Liu Jin gently pressed his temples through his glasses. He and the other four doctors on the train had been treating the wounded who had been bitten by wolves all night.
Even though they had done everything they could, they had far too few medicines and medical tools at their disposal. Not only had they run out of cold medicine, but they also had no gauze left. They could only tear strips of some relatively clean clothes to stop the bleeding of the injured person.
They managed to care for all the injured throughout the night, but the medication and bandaging techniques they used were extremely basic, barely enough to stop the bleeding and sustain life. In such rudimentary conditions, they simply couldn't do any more.
In this situation, where would there be any extra medicine to treat fever and colds?
So Liu Jin could only rush to the people who were calling for him and teach them how to use first aid ice packs to cool down the child or themselves.
Dr. Liu tried to find a bittersweet humor in using rainwater to wet his clothes and make strips of cloth to cool them down, thinking that at least he wouldn't lack cold water while it was raining.
But the current situation is far worse than they expected; everyone's physical condition is simply too poor. Just as Lu Chengfeng had anticipated, let alone leading everyone forward today, some people might not even be able to endure sitting still in this tunnel.
Thinking of this, Liu Jin glanced into the distance along the train tracks. They had already struggled so much just to stay here; what about the two who had traveled through the night in the rain? Where were they now? Were they alright?
Based on his knowledge of the average person's running speed, they could cover about five or six kilometers per hour in such rainy night conditions. If they ran and stopped frequently throughout the night without taking long breaks, it would have been nearly ten hours since 10 p.m.
They should have already covered most of the distance, right? If they're moving fast, they might be able to reach Hailan Station around 9 or 10 a.m., and then the train from Hailan Station could pick them up before noon.
If only it could really be like that, Dr. Liu sincerely hoped. But he also knew that this was the best-case scenario he could imagine.
What if those two encounter some unknown danger on the road, or something happens to them because they are too exhausted from running for a long time...
Dr. Liu glanced at the sky, then at his watch. He thought to himself that he would rather the two men be a little slower; as long as they could bring rescue before nightfall, they would be heroes to everyone.
He took a short breath and quickly returned to the crowd to continue his work. Meanwhile, at the tunnel entrance, Song Sanchuan and Jin Mantang were discussing Gou Fugui and Xie Tianlang's itinerary.
"Last night was so chaotic my mind went blank, and I actually watched Fu Gui leave with our boss!" Song Sanchuan slapped his thigh, his face full of regret. "Our boss should have gone by himself, or had Captain Qin accompany him. We shouldn't have let Fu Gui go!"
Jin Mantang was displeased upon hearing this: "What's wrong with my brother Fugui? Are you looking down on my brother Fugui?"
Song Sanchuan rolled his eyes: "It's not that I look down on him, although your brother Fugui is quite capable and good at fighting, he is still a human being, you know?"
No human can beat our boss. His freakish physique and strength are simply superhuman!
"During the army's cross-country training exercise, he arrived three hours earlier than the second-place finisher. In the red-blue exercise, he single-handedly tracked down the red team's headquarters and wiped out the blue team's command post! The most terrifying thing was that once a gang of international drug traffickers provoked my boss, and he stayed up for six days and seven nights, chasing after the entire gang and taking them all down by himself!"
As Song Sanchuan spoke, his face turned green: "My dad, cough, no, our eldest brother is a tireless beast! He can run dozens of kilometers in one night without a problem, but Brother Fugui probably can't keep up."
"I guess Brother Fugui will be left in a safe place by our boss to rest, and then he can go find rescue on his own."
With this explanation, Jin Mantang also realized the difference in physical condition between the Fu Gui brothers and Captain Xie.
He thought about it and had nothing to say, because even though he had a natural brotherly affection for the Fu Gui brothers, he really didn't think that the Fu Gui brothers were the kind of ruthless people who could run dozens of kilometers in one night and keep up with that werewolf's speed.
After all, Brother Fugui is still a human being.
The one who killed the wolf with his bare hands might be a different story.
"Okay, let's not talk about that. When will Captain Xie arrive with the rescue team? It's already eight o'clock. Can they arrive before noon?"
Jin Mantang looked at the terrible situation inside the tunnel and was filled with worry.
At this moment, Song Sanchuan couldn't help but feel proud: "You're underestimating our boss by saying 12 o'clock! Our boss can run 10 kilometers in an hour without any problem. Now that it's raining and the road is slippery, let's say 8 kilometers. He's probably already at the station by now!"
"Ten o'clock! You'll definitely see my boss arrive with the train to rescue us before ten o'clock!"
Song Sanchuan didn't deliberately amplify his voice, but he also didn't intentionally lower it. Firstly, besides Jin Mantang, many other people around him heard his words, and then many people felt hope rising in their hearts.
If a car can really come at 10 o'clock, that would be great!
But while some people have high hopes, others don't believe it.
Isolated by the crowd, Song Bo sneered and said sarcastically, "Don't even mention ten o'clock. It would be good enough if they could even find reinforcements. Maybe they'll just leave once they get there. Why should they come back to suffer?"
Hua Yingchun was annoyed whenever she saw this man: "Do you think everyone is as shameless as you! Don't judge others with your own narrow-mindedness. Don't you even look in the mirror and see if you're worthy?!"
Song Bo's expression darkened instantly. Just as he was about to say something more, a commotion broke out at the back of the tunnel.
Even faster than the crowd were the Labrador, Husky, and two small Teddy dogs lying at the back of the tunnel. They pricked up their ears and excitedly ran towards the back at the first moment.
"Woof!"
"Woof woof woof woof!"
"Woof! Awooo~"
With the husky's excited howling, the people in the tunnel saw the rather strange-looking black train with smoke billowing from its engine.
At the front of the black train, Gou Fugui and Xie Tianlang, who had just been discussed, were sitting there. A long-haired young man with a small patch of white hair stuck his head out of the window and greeted them with a bright smile.
"Brothers! Dad's here! Aren't you happy?!"
If his words hadn't had such a wide reach, he would probably have been met with a resounding welcome. However, although everyone was exhausted and in pain, their minds remained clear.
"Fugui'er!! I knew you could do it! My god, you got here so fast! Awesome!" Jin Mantang was the first to cheer for his brother Fugui, while also giving Song Sanchuan a particularly smug look.
See? Who said my brother couldn't keep up with your captain? He's doing just fine, isn't he? And he even brought back a whole train!
Song Sanchuan, Qin Feng, and Lu Hu were also a bit shocked. It was only a little past eight in the morning, and the fact that Gou Fugui and their captain were able to drive over meant that they had already arrived at Hailan Station at six o'clock.
This speed was already their captain's limit; if Gou Fugui had slowed them down even slightly, they probably wouldn't have been able to maintain this pace. Perhaps, the two of them traveling together even provided some kind of advantage?
But this is just too unbelievable!
Song Sanchuan stared intently at the wealthy beauty, as if trying to pierce a flower from her face. But he was rebuked after less than three seconds.
"What are you looking at? If you have nothing better to do, hurry up and help help push the cart. Can't you see that everyone inside needs to get to the hospital right away?"
Song Sanchuan glanced at Gou Fugui a few more times, thinking that this guy was also a weirdo, and then went back to work obediently.
The train that Gou Fugui and Xie Tianlang brought back was not the well-equipped train that everyone would expect. In fact, it wasn't even a passenger train at all.
"When we arrived at Hailan Station, there were hardly any people at the station. It's just a small town, and because it's very close to Hailan Lake, the continuous rainfall caused the lake to flood. Many staff members had to take leave to go back for disaster relief."
"Moreover, this station is just a transit station, and there are no passenger cars available. In the end, the old stationmaster found an old coal car for us so we could get here."
While helping those who needed to carry their luggage, Gou Fugui explained to everyone, "So we'll just have to make do with this coal train for now. Please bear with it, everyone. Once we get to Hailan City, we can go straight to the hospital. The old stationmaster there has already had things prepared."
No one disagreed with what the long-haired youth said. Even if he and another tall youth had brought the train back overnight in the rain, they would still be heroes in everyone's eyes just because they were willing to make the trip.
"Thank you, young man. It's already very kind of you to have a car to pick us up. What are you complaining about? When I was young, I rode in a donkey cart. This car is much faster than a donkey cart, isn't it?"
"Yeah, yeah, we're not picky, having a car is already great. I really can't walk an inch right now. You're amazing, bro! You're in great shape!"
Badger Fugui, who loved hearing others praise him, chuckled twice, raised his chin, and shoved his brother into the still somewhat blackened coal car.
His actions made Xie Tianlang, who had been watching him out of the corner of his eye, curl the corner of his mouth and help the other old man into the carriage.
When they arrived, the tourist train they took had a total of thirteen carriages, but now this old-fashioned coal train only has five carriages.
But the five carriages were enough to fit more than 500 people. Although the coal-hauling carriages had no soft seats or neat, bright windows, they only had two sliding doors that opened wide on both sides.
But sitting in this carriage, with everyone huddled together, I actually felt a strange sense of warmth and security.
When the train whistle sounded, the group of pedestrians whose journey had been abruptly ended finally continued their journey.
The coal truck arrived at Hailan Station at 10:00 a.m., and three buses were already waiting outside the station to take the injured to the hospital as soon as possible.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief upon arriving here; they had finally returned to the safe and convenient modern world.
This time, the people who gathered together on the train will part ways here, each heading towards their own destination, no longer traveling together.
"It's raining non-stop and the sea level is rising very fast. It seems like Fuzhou is about to be flooded too. Since you're already here, don't go back. Go to Qingchuan and find some work or take refuge there for now."
Gou Fugui was talking to Lu Chengfeng and the ticket inspector.
We've been through thick and thin together, so a little reminder doesn't cost anything.
Lu Chengfeng and the ticket inspector both felt Huan Fugui's care, and they both showed genuine smiles.
"Don't worry, Brother Fugui. Now that we're here, we definitely won't go back. But we still need to ask our superiors for permission to transfer us. We should be going to Qingchuan afterward, and I hope we can meet again then."
At this point, Lu Chengfeng suddenly bowed to Gou Fugui and Xie Tianlang: "Thank you so much for bringing the car back. You did what I wanted to do but couldn't. You prevented me from completely failing in my duty."
Badger Fugui grinned and pulled the man up: "What dereliction of duty? You've done a great job. Alright, enough with the mushy stuff. See you later."
After saying that, Brother Badger Fugui was about to leave with his dog when he turned around and saw the ticket inspector hugging and petting the husky and German Shepherd tightly.
Even as the animals were about to leave, he quickly took out a can of meat from his backpack, opened it, broke the meat into pieces, and distributed them to the animals.
Then, when he looked up and saw Gou Fugui and his group silently watching him, the loving smile he had been giving the cats and dogs froze instantly.
"cough."
"...I don't like them."
"I'm just repaying the life-saving grace."
Badger Fugui: "Oh."
As he was leaving with the animals, the ticket inspector gritted his teeth and said, "Wait, let me take a picture with them!"
This parting is a farewell, and he doesn't know if he'll ever see them again. He sincerely hopes that these kind and courageous lives will survive to the end.
So ticket inspector Wang Minghui's phone now has a photo of him with five dogs, four cats, two squirrels and a bird.
He named this group photo "Little Hope".
9:30 p.m. on August 26.
After a long bus ride that lasted all afternoon and evening, Gou Fugui, Jin Mantang, Xie Tianlang, and three others finally arrived in Qingchuan City, the center of the Qingchuan Plateau.
Located 20 kilometers outside Qingchuan City, is the Jin family's private planting base.
When Jin Mantang excitedly opened the electronic gate of the base in the pouring rain and rushed into the brightly lit base hall shouting "Grandpa!", what he saw made his blood boil.
"Grandpa? What are you all doing?! What are you trying to do to my grandpa?!"
The old man in the white coat, surrounded by a group of burly men, looked up abruptly when he heard Jin Mantang's voice. His expression first showed surprise, then quickly turned to anxiety and worry.
"Run! These guys are thugs trying to rob our base! Get out there and call the police!"
However, the old man's warning came too late. Several strong thugs had already rushed towards Jin Mantang, one of them grinning and swinging a stick at him.
"Kid, you've delivered yourself to my doorstep, you can't escape now!"
Grandpa Jin was extremely anxious as he watched his grandson about to be beaten, but he suddenly realized that his grandson was not afraid at all in the face of this group of vicious men.
In the past, he would have run away begging for mercy, right? Could he be scared out of his wits now?!
Then he saw his grandson take a deep breath and reveal a sinister grin:
"Trash! You're the one who can't escape!!"
"Dad! Help me hit him!!!"
Grandpa Jin was taken aback.
Wasn't the child's father abroad? How come he's back too?
Then Grandpa Jin saw a tall figure dart out from behind his grandson, and with a faster and stronger move than the burly man, knock the burly man flying with a single blow!
Then four tall and strong young men appeared behind them. The one in the lead was extremely tall and handsome, and he kicked over another person who was rushing towards him.
Five minutes later, Grandpa Jin looked at the thugs lying on the ground, and then at the five young men standing next to his grandson.
The old man, with his shrewd wisdom, decided not to pursue the matter of his grandson calling him "Dad" just now. He understood that it was merely a contest between young men.
"Hahaha, isn't Dad amazing? I told you it was worth calling him Dad! I could take on ten more like this!"
Jin Mantang: "..." Damn it, if I hadn't lost a bet on the way here and the matter hadn't been so urgent that I didn't have time to explain, do you think I would have actually shouted!
Grandpa Jin: "..."
Although I've decided not to pursue this matter, it's a bit much for you to shout at me like that to my face.
Then, Old Master Jin glared at Jin Mantang with exasperation, "You good-for-nothing! All that money can't even make you a father?!"
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