Chapter 1220: Do Your Best and Take Up Responsibility!
Wei Xiaolin tried the walkie-talkie. Indeed, there was only static. She could no longer hear the shouting from the other end.
Wei Xiaolin took the walkie-talkie and headed elsewhere to seek out a signal. Wei Shengli took out a knife and started to cut off the small bits of shrubs and dried branches around them before throwing them into the distance. The lesser the fuel, the slower the fire would spread. Even though it was an utterly inadequate measure, Wei Shengli still wanted to do something…
The only thing Wei Xiaolin could do was desperately search for a signal, and at the same time, she kept repeating on the walkie-talkie: “Fire on Mountain No. 7. Hurry, we need to put out the fire! My dad can’t take it anymore, hurry up…”
Meanwhile, at the forest ranger station.
“There’s a fire at the Greater Khingan mountains. Requesting backup!” a man shouted while calling the police.
“Please explain the situation of the fire. If the fire isn’t too big…” the person on the other end of the line replied.
“F**k! Don’t you understand what a mountain fire is? It’s huge! One minute slower and the forest will be burnt down. Do you understand? Quickly call the firefighters over!” the man shouted.
“We’re already in contact with the firefighters.” The person on the other end of the line was obviously stunned by the shout.
The man on the other side had already charged out with a fire extinguisher. Even though the fire extinguisher was useless, now… he couldn’t care less.
At the foot of the mountain, Liu Yu looked back and happened to see thick smoke rising into the sky. She exclaimed, “Dad, look! There’s smoke coming from the mountain!”
Liu Guangcai said, unfazed, “It’s probably some family tending to the graves.”
Liu Yu shook her head. “Isn’t there too much smoke? It’s black… It’s almost blotting out the sky.”
When Liu Guangcai heard that, he thought that something was amiss. He looked up and his face turned pale. He shouted, “Oh no, there’s a fire!”
Xia Hui exclaimed, “It looks like it’s coming from Grandma’s grave!”
When Liu Guangcai saw the huge fire, his lips trembled as he said, “Let’s go… Hurry up and leave! This fire will be reaching us! Quickly run!”
With that said, Liu Guangcai picked up Liu Yu and ran off.
Liu Yu shouted, “Put me down, put out the fire first!”
Liu Guangcai said, “This is a mountain fire! It’s useless even if the firefighters come. Run!”
Xia Hui ran as well. As she ran, she turned her head and saw flames roaring towards the sky. They could already see the flames.
The two ran down the mountain with all their strength. Thankfully, the three of them had already gone down the mountain and were very far away from the origins of the fire. Otherwise, the three of them would definitely not be able to escape. Once they reached the foot of the mountain, Liu Guangcai dropped Liu Yu onto a tractor.
Liu Guangcai yelled, “Xia Hui, look after the child! Drive home and find someone to help fight the fire!”
When Xia Hui saw that Liu Guangcai was about to run back with a axe, she hurriedly grabbed Liu Guangcai and asked, “What are you doing?”
Liu Guangcai said, “Although the road is wide, the fire is too huge. Once the fire sweeps over, this anti-fire strip will burn over. I have to do something…”
Xia Hui screamed at the top of her lungs, “Are you crazy? You’re alone! You won’t be able to chop down such a huge mountain alone!”
Liu Yu shouted, “I’ll help.”
Xia Hui snapped angrily, “Shut up!”
Liu Yu dared not say a word.
Liu Guangcai patted Xia Hui on the shoulder and said, “Dear, listen to me. We must be the culprits of this fire. Once the fire starts, I don’t know how much it will burn. How can I leave as you say? It will be against my conscience. I regret not listening to our daughter. I just wanted to go home earlier without completely putting out the fire. But now, whatever I say is useless. I can’t ignore the fire. Otherwise, I won’t have the face to see my daughter, nor can I bring myself to return to the village. Listen to me. Leave immediately! If you want to help me, get someone!”
Xia Hui looked at Liu Guangcai’s determined gaze and gritted her teeth. She nodded and left with Liu Yu on the tractor.
Only then did Liu Guangcai carry his axe and look at the thick smoke in the distance. He wiped his nose and said, “I’m going all out!”
With that said, Liu Guangcai charged into the mountains. He knew that he couldn’t do anything, and he could do nothing to change the situation. However, he wasn’t hoping to do any of that. All he wanted to do was contribute. Otherwise, his conscience wouldn’t eat at him. It was a feeling worse than death.
Not long after, the sirens broke the silence of the distant mountain. But when the firefighters arrived, they were dumbfounded.
“Oh my G.o.d, it’s such a huge fire…” One of the firefighters stared at the fire in front of him with his mouth agape. He then looked at the three fire engines and said with difficulty, “It’s such a huge fire. Even if we pour all the water in the fire engine out, it’s useless, right?”
The captain said, “We need support. Little Li, hurry up and report to the higher-ups. The more support we have, the better! Make it clear, the higher-ups know what to do. Everyone else, gear up and follow me into the mountains!”
“Captain, what about the vehicle?” someone asked.
“Ignore it. Brothers, I won’t be giving you any political cla.s.ses this time. I just want to ask you, are you afraid of dying?” asked the captain.
Everyone shouted in unison, “Soldiers aren’t afraid of death! Soldiers aren’t afraid of death!”
“Then cut the c.r.a.p. Get the equipment and prepare to head up the mountain!” the captain shouted.
Little Li immediately shouted, “Captain, what about me? I want to go too!”
The captain said angrily, “Why are you wasting time with me? You are in charge of contacting the higher-ups.”
“Captain…” Little Li was indignant.
The captain said, “This is an order!”
Little Li was helpless.
After the captain finished speaking, he brought everyone into the mountain. They were firefighters. They knew very well that it was useless for them to face such a huge fire in the mountain!
“Captain, I’m afraid we won’t be able to do anything,” a veteran asked in a low voice.
The captain said, “What can we do? Do your best and take up responsibility!”
The veteran nodded and asked softly, “Why didn’t you let Little Li come?”
The captain said, “His brother was also a firefighter who sacrificed himself in a fire last year. His family is still in grief. Their family has already contributed a life to the country. It can’t be any more. I want to leave some seeds for their family…”
“Captain, is it that dangerous this time?” the veteran asked.
The captain nodded and said, “I’m afraid that there will only be more danger, are you afraid?”
The veteran nodded and grinned. “I’m not bragging this time. I’m really afraid.”
“Why aren’t you turning back if you are afraid?” the captain asked in surprise, “Don’t you usually have diarrhea whenever you encounter any problems? Or having the urge to pee?”
The veteran shook his head and said, “It’s different this time. I’ll do my best and take up responsibility”
…
The fire was far more terrifying than anyone could imagine. With the help of the northeastern winds, it spread very quickly.
Wei Shengli stood amidst the tailwind, so everything was fine. Following the fire wasn’t too dangerous.
However, Liu Guangcai was suffering headwinds. The fire swarmed over as though it was the end of the world.
An hour had pa.s.sed. There were no reinforcements—nothing. Liu Guangcai wiped the sweat from his forehead.
At that moment, a black shadow shot out from the tree and landed with a thud. It crashed beside Liu Guangcai. Only then did Liu Guang see that it was a squirrel that had been charred black. It was already hyperventilating.
More importantly, the squirrel had a baby squirrel around its chest! The baby squirrel looked at Liu Guangcai in panic…