Chapter 206
“Uncle Zhengui, I’ll go over there with Meng Yingying first,” Song Nianchu said, glancing at Wu Zhenggui.
“All right.” Wu Zhenggui nodded.
He knew that Song Nianchu had been spending a lot of time with Meng Yingying lately, and that almost all the new products at the canning factory had been handed over to Meng Yingying.
Assuming they were going to discuss matters concerning the canning workshop, he did not ask any further questions.
Song Nianchu led Meng Yingying to a secluded spot. Only after making sure that no one else was paying attention to them did she stop.
“Yingying, what did you want to tell me?” Song Nianchu asked, looking at Meng Yingying seriously.
For a moment, Meng Yingying did not know where to begin.
She had just heard that the dam in the neighboring county had collapsed, and the news had left her completely stunned.
She remembered this incident. It was supposed to happen a year later, but she had no idea why it had suddenly occurred so much earlier.
She wondered whether this was the butterfly effect caused by her rebirth. But she remembered that the disaster had been extremely tragic, with many people losing their lives.
There seemed to have been an epidemic afterward as well. Combined with the dam collapse, it disrupted every aspect of daily life and even led to several years of famine.
Back then, in order to survive, Third Wu’s family had even considered selling her in exchange for food.
It was only after she suddenly became pregnant that they had no choice but to abandon the idea.
“What’s wrong?” Seeing that Meng Yingying remained silent, Song Nianchu asked again.
“Chu, don’t go this time.” Meng Yingying grabbed Song Nianchu’s hand.
“Why are you saying that all of a sudden?” A hint of scrutiny appeared in Song Nianchu’s eyes.
“I…” Meng Yingying did not know how to explain it. She certainly could not tell Song Nianchu that she had been reborn.
“Chu, believe me. I would never hurt you. The dam has collapsed, so a lot of people over there must have died. There could even be a second collapse. If you go this time, you might not make it back.” Meng Yingying tightened her grip on Song Nianchu’s hand.
She was not lying about the possibility of a second collapse. As far as she remembered, another collapse had occurred less than a week after the first one.
That accident had been even more serious than the first. Many of the technicians who went there to carry out repairs had lost their lives, which made the subsequent restoration of the dam extremely difficult. It took a great deal of time before it was finally rebuilt.
“Yingying, I know you’re worried about me. But there are still so many people from our village over there. Whether they’re alive or dead, I have to bring them back. Their families are waiting for them to come home.” Song Nianchu could sense Meng Yingying’s urgency. From the look in her eyes, she could also tell that Meng Yingying knew something about the situation that they did not.
When Song Nianchu had first arrived in this world, her mind had been completely blank. She had not even known what kind of place it was.
It had taken her more than half a month to learn that the level of social development here corresponded roughly to that of the 1970s or 1980s in the real world.
However, there were also some minor differences, so she had begun to wonder whether this might be a parallel timeline.
Yet Meng Yingying seemed to know something about how certain events would unfold in the future.
Song Nianchu had already suspected this the last time. Now, seeing Meng Yingying like this, she became even more certain.
“But if you’ll die by going there, will you still go?” Meng Yingying’s eyes grew moist.
“Maybe I won’t,” Song Nianchu replied with a smile.
Meng Yingying opened and closed her mouth, but for a long while, she did not know how to respond.
“Yingying, you’re trying so hard to stop me. Do you know something?” Song Nianchu asked tentatively.
If Meng Yingying really could predict future events, then perhaps this trip would be safer if she could get her to reveal a little more information.
“I…” A conflicted look flashed through Meng Yingying’s eyes.
She was worried about Song Nianchu, but she was also afraid that revealing the truth about her rebirth would expose her.
“Chu, I had a dream…” After thinking it over for a long time, Meng Yingying finally chose a tactful way to warn Song Nianchu.
“A dream?” Song Nianchu asked, puzzled.
“Yes. I dreamed that after the dam in the neighboring county collapsed, many people died. The authorities sent a large number of people there to carry out rescue operations, but then the dam collapsed a second time. Even more people died in that disaster…” Meng Yingying recounted the events slowly.
“You really dreamed about it?” Song Nianchu stared intently at Meng Yingying.
“Yes.” Meng Yingying nodded. “At first, I thought it was just an ordinary dream. But when I heard that the dam in the neighboring county had really collapsed, I remembered it. Maybe it was some kind of warning.”
“If that’s true, then I have to go even more,” Song Nianchu said firmly.
“Why?” Meng Yingying asked, confused.
“Didn’t you just say that the second collapse might kill even more people? We can’t let the number of casualties increase.” Song Nianchu’s voice was resolute.
Meng Yingying fell silent.
Hearing this, she suddenly had no idea how to answer.
She was just an ordinary person. Her previous life had been an utter failure, and even after being reborn, she was still just an ordinary person.
She had no special skills and no golden finger like the protagonists in those novels.
After being reborn, those protagonists were always granted all kinds of abilities. Yet even when she had tried to avenge herself, she had nearly lost her life in the process.
She could not be a savior. Her greatest wish was simply to live out this life in peace.
But Song Nianchu was the person who had pulled her out of the mire. She did not want her to suffer even the slightest harm.
And if she could truly stand by and do nothing, then Song Nianchu probably would not have helped her back then either.
Meng Yingying sighed inwardly.
“Chu, I seem to remember that the second collapse happened about a week after the first one. If you insist on going, you must remember this time frame. Even if it was only a dream, it would be best for you to keep an eye on it.” Meng Yingying fixed her gaze on Song Nianchu.
“I’ll remember.” Song Nianchu nodded firmly.
Meng Yingying carefully searched her memory once more.
“I also remember that the second collapse may have been caused by a leader’s mistake in directing the operation. I think his surname was… Tian. I don’t remember his exact name.” Meng Yingying tried her best to recall every detail she had known in her previous life.
At the time, she had not gone to the neighboring county to help with the rescue efforts, so she knew nothing about what had actually happened at the scene. Later, she had only heard a few scattered details from other people.
“His surname was Tian? I’ll remember that.” Song Nianchu nodded heavily.
“And the water over there may have been contaminated. Remember not to drink untreated water there. I think many of the people who drank it later contracted an epidemic.” Meng Yingying issued another warning.
“All right.” Song Nianchu acknowledged her.
“Is there anything else? Let me think.” Meng Yingying murmured under her breath.
The events had happened so long ago that the memories were extremely hazy. Besides, she had thought at the time that the matter had nothing to do with her, so she had not paid much attention to it.
Now, all she could feel was regret. She wished more than anything that she could go back and investigate everything properly.