Jiang Linchuan nodded to Political Commissar Wang in acceptance of the task, when a clear voice suddenly came from the side, "Political Commissar Wang, I also want to help."
He turned around abruptly, and Xu Xinghe was looking at him too.
Their eyes met.
He refused sternly, "No, you can't go."
Snow disasters are not a simple matter.
The first thing we have to face is the omnipresent bitter cold.
Prolonged exposure to cold can damage the body, especially the hands and feet. Some people even lose their fingers after being outside for a few hours.
Because cold can cause people to lose many sensations, including the sensation of pain, he couldn't bear to let Xu Xinghe suffer like that.
Xu Xinghe's eyes widened, and her little mouth immediately pouted. "Jiang Linchuan, how can you be so mean to me! Disaster relief is everyone's responsibility, why should I have to stay at home?"
She took two steps forward and stood in front of Political Commissar Wang. "Commissar, please let me go with you. You know Jiang Linchuan is a very stubborn person. He may promise to only give orders and not do anything, but when the time comes and he sees everyone busy clearing the snow, can he really hold back?"
She pointed to Jiang Linchuan's back, "His injury looks healed, but he still needs to rest for a few more days. He can't overexert himself, or it might leave lasting health problems. I'll go with him so I can keep an eye on him. If he dares to disobey, I'll cry right there and then."
Xu Xinghe patted her chest and said, "Once those few days are over and his condition is completely stable, I promise I won't interfere anymore. He can do whatever he wants!"
Political Commissar Wang couldn't help but laugh out loud at the scene before him.
He had lived most of his life, and this was the first time he had ever seen someone talk about surveillance so confidently, and yet he couldn't find any fault with it.
Jiang Linchuan is indeed a restless person, so having Xu Xinghe go and keep an eye on him is not a bad idea.
“Alright.” Political Commissar Wang nodded and made the decision. “Then let Comrade Xiao Xu go with us. The team needs someone to do some work like boiling water and delivering things. Even though it’s cold, some exercise will keep him healthy.”
"Thank you, Political Commissar!" Xu Xinghe immediately beamed with joy, then turned to look at Jiang Linchuan triumphantly, her eyes practically radiating smugness.
Jiang Linchuan was utterly helpless; it was too late for him to disagree now.
Fine, let her go if she wants. With her by my side keeping an eye on things, maybe I really will listen to her.
And so, Xu Xinghe became a member of the team.
Due to the urgency of the situation, the soldiers lined up and set off towards the surrounding villages and towns that afternoon.
Snowflakes rustled against the winter military cap, and goose-feather-like snowflakes continued to fall from the pale gray sky, adding an inexplicable sense of oppression.
The soldiers stood in neat rows, their cotton-padded coats layered under thick military overcoats, complete with gloves and scarves. They carried shovels and brooms on their shoulders, and their backpacks were stuffed with compressed biscuits, spare cotton-padded jackets, and cotton-padded shoes.
Because of the heat from their breath, a layer of white frost formed on everyone's eyelashes.
"Let's go!" With Political Commissar Wang's order, the team moved out of the door like a long dragon, their footsteps crunching in unison on the snow.
Considering Jiang Linchuan's health condition, he was sent to the nearest Hongxing Village again, so that if any problems arose, he could be brought back for treatment as soon as possible.
Xu Xinghe also carried a small bag and followed closely behind Jiang Linchuan. Inside the bag were a water bag filled with hot water and a bag stuffed with steamed buns.
As we left the military base and entered the path, the undisturbed snow was very thick, and we sank very deep with every step.
Fortunately, she had put on high boots beforehand; otherwise, the snow would have melted immediately upon entering, easily causing frostbite.
The cold wind felt like knives scraping against her face. Xu Xinghe raised her hand and pulled her scarf up to cover half of her face, leaving only her bright, dark eyes visible. Only then did she feel a little more comfortable.
After walking for about an hour, we finally saw the outline of Hongxing Village in the distance.
What should have been a half-hour journey was stretched to more than twice as long due to the snow-covered ground.
Once inside the village, the road became much easier to walk on. Most of the snow had been cleared away and piled high on both sides of the road. Xu Xinghe felt that she could sink into it completely, with only her head sticking out at most.
There's an old tree at the village entrance, and now a group of people are standing under it. Faint cries can be heard drifting in the cold wind, making one's heart inexplicably tighten.
Jiang Linchuan quickened his pace, snowflakes splashing at his feet.
Only when I got closer could I see that someone was indeed crying.
What happened?
Village Chief Li was overjoyed to see the soldiers approaching. "Commander Jiang, you've finally arrived!"
He pointed to a place not far away, where there used to be several mud-brick houses, half of which had collapsed, with thick chunks of snow still hanging from the broken beams, and broken bricks and tiles mixed with frozen ice piled on the ground.
A group of villagers stood aside, wailing and lamenting.
Half of them were local residents, and the other half were labor camp prisoners who had been sent to the countryside.
Village Chief Li said in a heavy tone, "This snowfall was too strange. Who could have imagined it would be so heavy? Several old houses in the village collapsed as a result!"
The wailing person next to them immediately chimed in, “We thought we had plenty of time, and we could raise the money to repair it in a month, but… the snow was just too heavy! Who would have thought that the house would collapse overnight! This damned God, He really doesn’t want us to live!”
Xu Xinghe noticed that the other person's cotton-padded jacket was very worn and patched.
It seems he wasn't deliberately delaying or unwilling to make repairs, but rather simply didn't have the money.
Anyone with a little money will make themselves a set of warm clothes so they don't freeze.
An elderly woman wrapped in a tattered cotton-padded coat rushed over, grabbed Jiang Linchuan's arm, and cried, "Comrade Jiang, you must help us! In this cold weather, without a place to live, aren't we going to die?"
They could stay with other villagers, but the problem is that nowadays every household has a large population, and there aren't enough houses. No family wants to be separated; if everyone lives in their own home, they're essentially living under someone else's roof.
Winters in Heilongjiang Province are very long, and they can't just leave their houses unattended and shamelessly live in other people's homes forever.
Xu Xinghe gripped the cloth bag tightly in her hand. She grew up in the south, where it was not spring all year round, and she had never seen snow.
Even if it snows in the south, it basically melts as soon as it hits the ground.
Unless you happen to be there at the right time, if you wait an hour or two, the ground will already be a wet puddle.
In her previous life, she had only read about it in newspapers and never imagined that the real winter would be so cruel.
A perfectly good home has been turned into ruins. Even if it is covered in snow, it is no longer a beautiful sight. You can't even cry freely anymore, otherwise, if tears flow down your face and the cold wind blows, you will easily get frostbite.
Jiang Linchuan helped the old woman up. "Don't worry, we've brought people with us and will be here to help soon."
He waved his hand, "First clear the snow, grab whatever is usable, and then start repairing the house."
After saying that, he looked at Xu Xinghe with a reassuring look in his eyes, "Don't be afraid, go and help boil some hot water to warm them up."
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