She remained silent. She only knew a little about it; she wasn't a professional, so she really didn't have any solutions.
"Is there anything else I should be aware of, or is there anything I can do?"
Doctor Qin chuckled.
"What, you've softened your heart again?"
Jian Dan turned her head and looked at a wounded man lying on the ground not far away. His whole body was covered in black, except for the glaring blackish-red stains on his legs, which were wrapped in thick bandages. She gestured towards him.
"Is this a leg injury?"
Doctor Qin followed his gaze, paused for two seconds, and
"His leg was hit by the beam and fractured. Below the knee, the bones were shattered. Using his other leg and arm, he managed to crawl several meters through that tiny gap and bang on the iron pipe for more than two hours until they heard him and were finally rescued. However, the damage was too severe, and there was no hope of recovery."
Jian Dan didn't say anything; her gaze shifted to the wounded person beside her.
Continue speaking softly,
"This one is also a veteran; his wife and children live in the family compound."
Before coming here, my parents didn't value me back home. I was skinny and small, and my family bullied me. They even scared me. I was three years old and still wet my pants. Coming here was a do-or-die situation.
After arriving, most people chose to farm or raise pigs down there, since the work points there were higher than in the village. Most families would be quite happy about that.
When he was released, his parents forced him to sign a substantial IOU for retirement expenses. Knowing that the wages in the coal mine were higher than those in other places, he applied to come here, hoping to earn some money to send back home so that they could get rid of poverty as soon as possible. His child was only six years old, and his wife worked in a greenhouse down there. The couple could save quite a bit each year.
He was still smiling when I treated his wounds, saying that if he worked hard for a few more years, he could pay back his parents' money, and then he would be set on having a wife and children for the rest of his life.
Now, only one arm is left...
"That man over there is an old man in his fifties. He came with his son. His son didn't want him to work so hard, but he didn't dare. He said he didn't want to hold his son back, and that he wouldn't work too hard. He just wanted to earn a few extra dollars so he could have more meat for his grandchildren..."
......
Doctor Qin, who was used to seeing life and death, choked up a little when talking about these things.
“They are all ordinary people, but they are also someone’s son, father, and husband. They have someone to care about and someone to worry about. If their families knew, how heartbroken would they be?”
Simply leaning against the door frame, he observed that some of the recalled veterans had chosen coal mines, which he had heard of. These were all normal jobs, open to all, so naturally, they couldn't say anything.
But when something like this happens, everyone bears responsibility, and it goes without saying that they all feel terrible.
"They, yes, it's almost Chinese New Year, and this has happened,"
"Doctor Qin! Doctor Qin! Quick, someone come and lend a hand!"
With the help of headlamps, efficiency immediately improved. Several more waves of wounded were brought in during the latter half of the night. Jian Dan couldn't sleep either, so she simply helped out here, doing things like boiling water, and she wasn't idle at all.
As dawn approached, Jian Dan returned to the kitchen and cooked several pots of meat soup. Two of the wounded, who had minor injuries, also came over to help her tend the fire.
The ruddy-faced man was not very old, probably in his forties. He was quite talkative, and before the meal was even finished, he became very familiar with the group, talking at length about his family and their experiences working in the mine. He tried to remain calm, but in the end, he couldn't help but sigh.
"Sister-in-law, do you think all those brothers down there will be rescued safely?"
Jian Dan wasn't there, and asking her was just seeking psychological comfort; Jian Dan knew that too.
"Good people are always blessed. You are all good people, and you will all be safe and sound."
The tall man had barely spoken since he came in, just working silently with his head down. When he heard them talking, he stared at the firelight without saying a word, though his hands trembled slightly. Jian Dan noticed all of this, but didn't know how to comfort him, so she simply assigned them some work.
"Brothers, there's boiling water in that pot. Could you help me carry it over so they can have some water to warm up?"
With two people, each with an injured arm, this job is perfect for them.
Upon hearing this, he hesitated for only two seconds before getting up and getting into the zone.
At this time, it's good to have some work to do.
Two people carried a large bucket filled with hot water, while Jian Dan carried a not-so-small bucket containing dozens of bowls behind them, heading towards the mine.
As dawn broke, the temperature outside was quite low. Stepping out of the kitchen, I quickly and decisively sneezed, then instinctively pulled my cotton-padded coat tighter around myself.
"Let's go."
This is the coldest time of the year. Anyone with a brain can imagine what it must be like to work outdoors non-stop in the middle of the night. If those people hadn't been constantly rescuing people, they probably would have frozen to death.
The people she saw were all busy, and she didn't recognize anyone. Jian Dan didn't hesitate. She told them to put down their water buckets and called people over to drink water. She herself walked a little further away and looked around at the nearby ruins.
Not far away, several people were struggling with a large, irregularly shaped rock, which presented no suitable starting point.
In addition, given the weather, even if the rock was blasted open yesterday, a single night would be enough for it to freeze back to the ground. Therefore, it hadn't been moved for half a day, and they had to carefully hold it up to avoid crushing the people underneath again.
"Over there, over there, be careful,"
"No, we can't handle it without calling a few more people."
"Let's try again. Looks like one, two, three!"
"Oh no, my hands are frozen stiff, I can't use them!"
"you,"
Then another weak voice came out.
"You don't need to bother, don't, don't save me, I, I can't go on, go save someone else,"
"No, brother, you can't give up. We'll move it right away."
"Hang in there a little longer, brother. Think about your family. Can you bear to see them outlive you? It's the Lunar New Year. Don't you want to go home and celebrate with your family?"
"Cough cough! I can't bear to leave, brothers, I can't hold on any longer, you guys go, I know, cough cough, I know the army won't mistreat my family, I'm at ease, cough cough!"
"I'm so tired, I really can't hold on any longer,"
The sound grew weaker and weaker, and the workers became agitated.
"Hey? Bro, bro, wake up! Can't you sleep?"
"Wake up, wake up! We'll get you out of here soon, you can't sleep, bro!"
"Help! Help! There's still someone here!"
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