Chapter 322 Rescue
The torrential rain poured down from the east side of the harbor to the west side, showing no signs of stopping.
Soon after, the authorities issued a citywide warning, advising residents not to go out for the time being.
The port city is located by the sea, and natural disasters of varying degrees often occur in the summer. However, it is relatively rare for a sudden rainstorm like today to occur without any warning.
Despite the heavy rain and wind, people in the port city noticed that helicopters were landing around the city one after another.
...
The area around the mountains in the city has been cordoned off, and rescue vehicles have filled the surrounding roads.
Outside the police cordon, a group of people were wailing and lamenting—the elderly, the young, men, and women…
Inside the cordon, the mountain range in front of them looked as if it had been cut off by a knife, one half standing upright, the other half like a huge pool of soft mud, collapsed onto the endless ground.
There are muddy yellow waters flowing from the surrounding earth veins, which are unknown where they come from, and then disappear underground.
Tu Chaoxi stood outside the crowd, completely soaked, with rain dripping from the brim of her hat. The phone in her hand was lit up, and she was still dialing numbers.
A deep, resonant voice suddenly reached my ears.
"You are Tu Yao's older brother."
Tu Chaoxi was about to dial the next number with trembling hands when she heard this and immediately turned her head to look.
He was a middle-aged man in a suit and tie, with sharp eyes and a strangely familiar aura.
He was soaked to the bone, and his shiny black leather shoes were covered with layers of mud.
They are clearly coming out from behind the cordon.
Tu Chaoxi moved her pale lips slightly: "...You are Xu Chi's older brother."
The two older brothers had both heard of each other, but they never expected their first meeting to be like this.
Xu Cang knew what he wanted to ask, and said in a deep voice, "The rescue team is carrying out rescue operations and surveying the current situation separately, predicting whether there will be secondary dangers, and formulating rescue plans."
"At the same time..." he paused, "confirmed the missing persons."
Tu Chaoxi's expression suddenly calmed down.
"You've already been inside. What's the current situation?"
A look of surprise flashed across Xu Cang's eyes; he knew Tu Chaoxi.
He expected to see an impulsive, irritable, hot-blooded, or tearful older brother.
Tu Chaoxi understood his gaze and gave a self-deprecating laugh: "...I already had these emotions four years ago."
"elder brother!"
"Teacher Tu!"
Just then, several voices came from afar.
Tu Chaoxi quickly looked up and saw Nan Ke, Lin Yue, Cheng Sangsang, and Xu Bai running towards him in the night.
Tu Chaoxi suddenly felt a little dazed... This moment today felt so much like four years ago.
But he can no longer do what he did four years ago, unable to do anything but vent his emotions.
Before they could ask any further questions, someone from the rescue team finally came out and announced the list of missing persons.
As the names were read out one by one, Tu Yao and Xu Chi were not among them.
A glimmer of hope ignited in everyone's hearts.
Cheng Sangsang grabbed Xu Bai's hand, "You didn't Tu Xiaomao and your uncle, did you...?"
The next second, a middle-aged man in a rescue suit walked towards them, his expression somber.
"To avoid public outcry, we haven't released Xiao Xu's name yet. According to information provided by Xiao Xu's bodyguard, Miss Tu Yao and Xiao Xu should be together."
With just one sentence, everyone's face turned pale instantly.
"The other people in distress are all staff members of this herbal medicine base. We have just surveyed the terrain, and the danger covers tens of thousands of square meters around it. Experts have just simulated the disaster situation and can roughly determine the location of these staff members. Rescue operations are currently underway."
Cheng Sangsang couldn't wait to ask, "What about Tu Xiaomao and Xu Dong? Where are they?"
The rescuers sighed: "...The experts just said that a horizontal gully has appeared near the mountain. Under normal circumstances, gullies will change the landform."
"The terrain has changed, and the level of danger is incalculable. In addition, the surrounding signal stations are still under repair, which will greatly reduce our rescue speed."
In other words, Tu Yao and Xu Chi are currently in a very dangerous situation, and their location has not yet been determined.
Cheng Sangsang's legs went weak immediately.
He murmured, "How could this happen... Tu Xiaomao was showing us her herbs just yesterday..."
"...The signal station is under repair, so we can only search manually right now."
Nan Ke suddenly spoke.
Everyone instinctively looked over, and he was still wearing a tuxedo, the hair wax on his head melted by the rain and stuck to his forehead. His usually gentle appearance was more disheveled than ever before.
They had obviously just come from a performance.
Rescue worker: "This is all we can do for now; we have mobilized as much manpower as possible."
"The signal station is expected to be repaired in two hours, at which point the search will be able to proceed more quickly."
Nan Ke lowered her eyes and nodded, "Okay, then I..."
Before he could finish speaking, Tu Chaoxi's eyes sharpened, and she immediately interrupted, "I'll go."
Nan Ke looked up, "...Brother."
Tu Chaoxi took off her coat and said calmly, "I know what you're going to do. You and Lao San stay here. I'm going to find them."
Almost the instant Nan Ke spoke, Tu Chaoxi knew what he was thinking.
But everyone knows that it is a hundred times more dangerous inside than the rescuers described, and he will not entrust the risks and hopes to any of his family members.
Before Nan Ke could refute, Lin Yue had already stopped Tu Chaoxi.
He said in a hoarse voice, "Brother, I'll go. I don't want to stay here."
The grip on his wrist was swift and decisive, and her gaze was exceptionally firm.
Tu Chaoxi felt a lump in his throat. His third son had long since grown into a solid and steady adult.
He understood what Nan Ke and Lin Yue meant.
They had already endured the unknown pain once four years ago, and they could not and should not endure it a second time.
Can……
Tu Chaoxi swallowed the sob in her throat: "At least one should be kept."
He looked at Nan Ke and said in a deep voice, "...At least one must be spared."
They are no longer drifting duckweed; besides Tu Xiaomao, they have family and people who care about them.
We cannot all throw ourselves into dangerous situations.
Beside them, Xu Bai and Cheng Sangsang's eyes were completely red.
Xu Cang also sighed softly, looking at the boundless darkness before him, his eyes reddening.
Just as the stalemate was at its peak, the roar of a helicopter suddenly rang out overhead.
It quickly stopped in the open space next to it.
The cabin door opened, and through the rain, the elderly woman, still dressed in a dark cheongsam with her white hair piled high, walked steadily in, supported by the butler.
"……grandmother."
Tu Chaoxi, Nan Ke, and Lin Yue froze, and subconsciously stepped forward.
Madam Jiang and Xu Cang nodded slightly in acknowledgment, then looked at her three children.
The three grown-up kids, each with their own achievements, are now in their own sorry state.
"...Go, all of you."
Everyone was stunned.
Tu Chaoxi: "Grandma..."
Madam Jiang raised her hand and said softly, "I can bear all the consequences."
"You may go."
Tu Chaoxi finally let out a single tear, the one she had been holding back until now.
"……good."
"Dad, I want to go save my uncle and my older sister too."
Xu Bai suddenly turned to look at Xu Cang, his usual childishness and playful demeanor completely gone.
Xu Cang had only raised his hand halfway, and before he could even wipe his eyes, he paused for a few seconds before lowering it back down.
"knew."
Standing nearby, Cheng Sangsang hung up the phone, shrugged, and said firmly, "I'm going too. My uncle said it's up to me to decide!"
...
Three minutes later, everyone had changed into their rescue suits and were about to catch up with the main force when Cheng Sangsang's phone suddenly rang.
It is Chu Yun.
After listening for a while, Cheng Sangsang bit her lip, "Teacher Tu, Chu Yun said she can't contact Tu Xiaomao anymore, could I...?"
Tu Chaoxi was silent for a moment, then turned to Jiang Liqing: "Uncle Liqing, could you please find someone to pick up Tu Xiaomao's friend?"
Jiang Liqing held Madam Jiang firmly and nodded: "...Okay."
The two watched as a group of people walked resolutely and hopefully into the night.
...
The moment the rocks fell, Xu Chi acted decisively, ran to the other side of the ditch, grabbed Tu Yao, and rolled her as far as possible in the opposite direction.
The violent earthquake, the gushing water from underground, and the onslaught of dust and sand—each danger could be fatal.
Miraculously, after the earthquake, they landed in a wide, almost flat area.
All around was quiet, and even the rain was scarce.
Xu Chi subconsciously raised his hand and touched a rough, somewhat prickly surface.
It's a tree root...
It was a whole row of tree roots.
Despite the ground subsidence caused by the earthquake, it remained firmly rooted, forming a ring-shaped flat area.
...Tu Xiaomao's suggestion to plant trees actually created a safe zone for them on this rainy day.
"...Xiaochi."
A muffled sound came from his arms, breaking Xu Chi's tense state.
"We're safe for now, aren't we?"
"yes."
Ke Xuchi held her tightly in his arms, protecting her beneath him.
Although the surroundings had returned to calm, they seemed to have landed in a safe place.
He gently reassured her, "It's safe now, Tu Xiaomao."
"Don't be afraid, it's okay if you are, I'm here."
Upon hearing the word "safety," Tu Yao pouted, and tears suddenly welled up in her eyes. She wiped them lightly with her soaked clothes.
As the moisture seeped through, Xu Chi keenly sensed something amiss.
Her tone tightened: "Are you hurt? Did it hurt a lot when you fell?"
Tu Yao wanted to shake her head, but after holding it in for a while, she couldn't.
She whispered, "...Xiao Chi, my hand hurts."
"It started hurting four years ago."
Xu Chi's eyes reddened almost instantly.
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