After receiving the order, the signalman immediately called the local garrison at Banqiao Reservoir, but strangely, the call was also unsuccessful.
The signalman also sensed a hint of unease from Lu Zhan's series of unusual actions and said nervously:
"Reporting to the battalion commander, the call still...can't be connected."
This is certainly very abnormal. Although we cannot conclude that there is a problem with the garrison, at least the local communication lines seem to be completely disconnected.
Lu Zhan made a prompt decision and said:
"Send a telegram instead. An urgent one, no, an extremely urgent one! Ask them to report back immediately about the safety of the local reservoir after receiving the telegram!"
It seems that the communication lines in the upstream reservoir area have been completely destroyed. Now we can only hope that there are no problems with the other party’s military communication equipment and lines.
Another trace of gloom passed through Lu Zhan's heart, and he suddenly remembered what Shao Jingque said. In the dream, the local garrison sent two telegrams to the higher authorities, but the other party did not receive them.
Does this imply that there is a malfunction in the military communication equipment or lines of the local garrison?
Then can we still receive this urgent telegram he sent?
"Report to the battalion commander, sent!"
Right now, Lu Zhan could only try his best to concentrate and not think about the worst-case scenario:
“How long will it take for the other party to receive it?”
"Report to the battalion commander. Normally, it should take less than an hour, but the rain is so heavy here that I wonder if it will cause problems with the military lines..."
Lu Zhan's heart sank again. Even if the route was not affected, it would take nearly two hours to go there and back, and it would be completely dark by then. If there was really a dangerous situation in the upstream reservoir, the later they evacuated, the more dangerous it would be.
But now he had no better solution. After all, apart from his imagination and Shao Jingque's nightmare, there was no substantial evidence to prove that there was any danger in the upstream reservoir.
Even if he contacted the headquarters now, he had no reason to convince the other party to believe his guess.
But human life is at stake. After some inner struggle, Lu Zhan asked the signalman to call the command center where Fan Tuan was located.
Not long after, Fan Yingguang's voice came from the other end of the phone:
"Hello, I'm Fan Yingguang."
Lu Zhan took a deep breath and, without any evidence, expressed his concerns about the Banqiao Reservoir upstream.
Fan Yingguang frowned, his expression solemn:
"Do you have any evidence to prove what I'm saying?"
Lu Zhan paused, knowing that he would probably be scolded, but still gritted his teeth and said:
"No, but I previously tried to contact the Banqiao Reservoir and the local garrison separately, and found that both of their daily communication lines were interrupted. This is enough to indicate that the area they are in may have been in danger due to the heavy rain."
"I've carefully looked at the location of the Banqiao Reservoir on a map. It's basically at the highest point in the Henan plain. Nearby is the large Shimantan Reservoir, as well as dozens of small and medium-sized reservoirs downstream."
"If the Banqiao Reservoir were to burst, the huge amount of water released instantly would inevitably trigger a chain reaction of breaches at a number of reservoirs downstream, putting the people living in the affected plains downstream in great danger."
"Therefore, I suggest that until the Banqiao Reservoir is confirmed to be safe, all military and civilians in the towns downstream should evacuate to the highest point of the nearby mountains for safety."
As soon as he finished speaking, Fan Yingguang's angry voice came from the receiver:
"That's just nonsense!"
"I told you to lead the team and evacuate the residents of Anfeng Town to a safe area as quickly as possible. Instead of completing your mission, you're looking at maps and researching reservoirs. Do you think you even understand this?!"
"If there were a problem with the upstream reservoir, the expert team in the rear would have already informed the headquarters and issued further instructions. Do you think you are more capable than the experts?!"
"It's easy for you to say it, but do you know how much loss of life and property this rainstorm has caused to the people of Henan Province?"
"Now, just because of your personal conjecture, you're forcing all the military and civilians in the town to evacuate to the mountains. Do you realize how massive this migration will be, how many problems will arise during the process, and what the consequences will be?!"
When Fan Yingguang heard Lu Zhan's words "there is no evidence", he was so angry that his head hurt. He simply couldn't understand how the outstanding young officer he had always been optimistic about could say such a self-evident statement with such impunity!
The person on the other end hung up the phone with a "click".
The signalman looked at Lu Zhan and didn't dare to speak. He had heard most of the conversation between the two of them. At this moment, his heart was pounding with panic and he could only stare at his battalion commander.
Based on his understanding of his own battalion commander, Battalion Commander Lu is definitely not a person who speaks nonsense, and he would never fabricate facts in order to take credit. He felt that since Lu Zhan said so, he must have his reasons.
Lu Zhan put down the microphone with a frown and raised his hand to rub his eyebrows.
As he expected, without evidence, Fan Tuan would never accept his so-called advice.
Is it possible that we can only leave it to fate and secretly pray that it was just a nightmare of Shao Jingque?
Just as I was thinking about whether there was any other way, the second company commander Bi Guoguang had already led the team back to the town office.
"Reporting to the battalion commander, all thirteen employees of the slaughterhouse have been evacuated."
As soon as he finished speaking, a man hurried in from behind him. He was wearing a baggy shirt that was wrinkled and stuck to his body from the rain. His bangs also blocked his eyes. As soon as he entered the door, he cried to Lu Zhan:
"Commander, help! The lives of dozens of people in our factory are depending on you!"
Lu Zhan's expression suddenly became stern. According to the previous analysis, the slaughterhouse was the last area where people were trapped. How come there is another trapped factory area now?
He was about to ask a question when Bi Guoguang, looking depressed, pulled him back, preventing him from getting closer to Lu Zhan:
"Director Zheng! I've already told you, our army only saves people, not pigs! Why don't you understand?"
Director Zheng of the slaughterhouse howled even louder, pulling hard at Lu Zhan's sleeve and not letting go:
"Commander, those pigs are much more valuable than my life. Please send me back and rescue the pigs!"
Bi Guoguang shook his head as he listened. It took a lot of effort to rescue Director Zheng from the living pigs on the roof. He had listened to his nagging all the way, and he didn't expect that he would cry in front of Captain Lu now.
Lu Zhan's face looked unhappy. At the moment, he was worried about the safety of the people in Anfeng Town and even the entire downstream area of Banqiao Reservoir. However, the director of the slaughterhouse in front of him was only concerned about asking him to help transport the pigs out of the factory.
He calmed down and explained to Director Zheng solemnly:
"Comrade, our troops have received orders. After rescuing all trapped residents in Anfeng Town, we will immediately rush to the next disaster site. There are many more people like you who are in dire straits and waiting for our rescue. Please understand."
After explaining to Director Zheng, Lu Zhan sighed inwardly and said to Bi Guoguang with a heavy face:
"Notify everyone to get ready and prepare to depart to support Tianxing Town where the Second Battalion is located."
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