Chapter 212
“Okay.” Mu Shi’an answered, then led everyone in overturning all their previous calculations and starting over.
Those people had already witnessed Mu Shi’an’s abilities, so they cooperated with him wholeheartedly.
Meanwhile, Song Nianchu had returned to the front line to continue the rescue efforts.
After this period of rescue work, Song Nianchu and the others had saved quite a few people from the brigade.
But they still had not found Mu Jingmei. At the same time, they had not found her body either.
However, after so many days without any news, she was probably in grave danger.
Mu Shi’an had not come over before, so Song Nianchu had not known how to tell him. Now that he had arrived at the scene, there was no way to keep it from him.
Song Nianchu sighed softly. She thought that if she and Mu Shi’an ever had children, she would have to teach them properly from a young age.
Otherwise, if they grew up to be someone like Mu Jingmei, it would truly be exhausting enough to take twenty years off her life.
At lunchtime, Song Nianchu counted all the survivors from the brigade who had been rescued so far.
There were two hundred and five in total.
More than half of those two hundred and five people were injured. Very few had escaped unscathed.
Fortunately, there were not many who were seriously injured. The roads had also been cleared over the past two days, and some of the critically wounded had already been transported out.
Of those two hundred and five people, eight had already died by the time they were found.
Song Nianchu did not send those eight bodies to the mass burial pit.
The other bodies had been taken there for collective burial because their identities could not be confirmed right away, there was no way to contact their families, and it was even less possible to return each body to its relatives individually.
After all, the rescue operation was still underway, and there were already too few people to begin with. The bodies also could not be left outside for too long, so collective burial had been the only option.
But their own brigade had sent people to help with the rescue. Having the brigade’s people personally transport these bodies back did not violate any regulations.
After all, since ancient times, people had believed that fallen leaves should return to their roots.
Those who died far from home always hoped to be buried in their homeland.
Song Nianchu had the people from the brigade send the eight bodies back first, while she stayed behind to continue the rescue work.
Day after day passed, and before long, it was already the sixth day.
These past few days, Song Nianchu and Mu Shi’an had both been busy with their own tasks. Seeing each other even once a day had become a luxury.
But it was already the sixth day. According to Meng Yingying, the dam would suffer a second collapse tomorrow.
Song Nianchu could not wait any longer, so she went to find Mu Shi’an during the lunch break.
It was the same tent as before. When Song Nianchu entered, Mu Shi’an was holding a corn bun in one hand and a pen in the other, working through calculations on a sheet of paper.
Tian Daqing and the others were much the same, working without pause.
Seeing how focused they were, Song Nianchu did not know for a moment whether she should speak.
Perhaps it was some kind of telepathy. Mu Shi’an seemed to sense her gaze and looked up.
“Chu.” Mu Shi’an rose in surprise.
The others heard his voice and looked up as well.
Song Nianchu felt a little awkward under their gazes.
“You keep calculating. I’ll step outside for a moment.” Mu Shi’an said this to Tian Daqing.
“Okay.” Tian Daqing nodded. His eyes behind his glasses were frighteningly bloodshot.
They had barely rested these past few days. Only when they were too exhausted to stay awake would they slump over nearby and sleep for half an hour.
“……”
Mu Shi’an led Song Nianchu out of the tent.
The cool breeze outside blew over them, and Mu Shi’an felt his muddled mind clear slightly.
“Your eyes are full of broken blood vessels. You haven’t been resting properly these past few days, have you?” Song Nianchu asked, looking at him with concern.
“I’m all right. I often stayed up late when I was conducting experiments in the laboratory.” Mu Shi’an could still hold on.
There were simply several sets of data that never came out correctly. He suspected that there had been a problem with their previous measurements.
“Shi’an, how is it going on your end? Have you managed to calculate anything?” Song Nianchu asked.
Mu Shi’an shook his head.
“Even you can’t figure it out?” A trace of gloom entered Song Nianchu’s eyes.
“One of the figures must be wrong. I’ll go back to the dam with Captain Tian later and take the measurements again,” Mu Shi’an said.
“It should be very dangerous there now. You shouldn’t go back and risk yourselves.” Song Nianchu thought that if things really did not work out, she could ask Zhao Yuanshan to evacuate everyone first.
“I know.” Mu Shi’an nodded.
“Shi’an, why don’t you go back today?” After thinking it over, Song Nianchu still wanted him to leave first.
“Go back?” Mu Shi’an had not expected her to make such a request.
“Yes. You’ve already helped them so much. Let them handle the rest of the calculations themselves.” Song Nianchu forced a faint smile.
But Mu Shi’an felt that there was something hidden in her eyes.
“Chu, this is the most critical moment. I can’t leave yet.” Mu Shi’an had always believed in seeing things through.
Since he had come, he had no intention of leaving before he had figured everything out.
“But…” Song Nianchu was about to say more when Mu Shi’an interrupted her again.
“Chu, don’t worry. Nothing will happen to me.”
Looking at Mu Shi’an like this, Song Nianchu truly did not know what to say. After thinking for a moment, she spoke.
“At the latest, leave tonight. If you still haven’t made any progress by then, withdraw with the people from the brigade.”
“Why do I have to leave today?” Mu Shi’an sensed that something was off in her tone.
“Because we’ve dug out the bodies of some more villagers. They can’t remain here for too long, so I want you to take them back.” Song Nianchu tried her best to make her expression appear natural.
If Mu Shi’an found out that the dam was going to suffer a second collapse, he would definitely refuse to let her stay here alone.
“Bodies?” Mu Shi’an’s expression shifted slightly when he heard that.
“Yes.”
Mu Shi’an moved his lips, as though he wanted to ask something, but in the end, he swallowed the words.
At the same time, the hand hanging by his side clenched tightly.
“Shi’an, are you worried about… your sister?” Song Nianchu saw through his thoughts and asked the question for him.
Mu Shi’an froze. In the end, he still spoke.
“Is she alive, or… is she dead?” His voice was hoarse as he said this.
Although he had been completely disappointed in Mu Jingmei, he still could not remain unmoved in the face of news about her death.
Ever since he learned that the dam had collapsed, he had been thinking about it constantly. After coming here, his heart had grown even more unsettled.
But during this time, he had forced himself not to think about it. To the point that he could no longer tell whether he truly did not want to hear even the slightest news about her because he had been disappointed beyond repair—or whether he was simply afraid of hearing bad news.