Scholars in the courtyard

The next day, at four in the morning, the sky was slightly bright.

As the sun shone on Sijiu City, it illuminated the surroundings and made the whole city restless.

People began to walk out of their homes and look around.

Some people came to the houses that needed help and helped to sort out the ruins.

Then, management units at all levels began to exercise their powers and led people to start working.

Many workers also came to the factory to check the situation.

Then, information from all parties was gathered, and under unified command, actions were quickly launched.

The first thing to be restored was electricity.

Last night, the power department had summoned people to check the lines, find problems and then deal with them urgently.

At dawn, power supply had been restored to important departments in Sijiu City, especially the telephone had been connected, allowing all parties to communicate in time.

Steel plant.

Yang Xiaotao was guarding the big pot in the cafeteria, stirring with a spoon.

When he came to the back kitchen, there were a lot of things, but he couldn't handle it alone.

Besides, he was also sleepy and hungry, so he simply made some noodles.

There were ready-made instant noodles in the space, and Yang Xiaotao didn't pick and choose, just put them in one package at a time.

Then he threw in the eggs and chopped green onions, added oil and salt, and the pot of egg noodles was ready.

"Mr. Yang, your phone!"

Just as Yang Xiaotao tasted the salty taste, a person ran in from outside, it was the director of the institute, An Zhongsheng.

"Phone? Whose phone?"

"It seems to be Secretary Liu, who wants to talk to you!"

Yang Xiaotao immediately handed the spoon to An Zhongsheng, "You let everyone eat something."

Then he ran to the office.

When he arrived at the office, Wangcai was still wagging his tail and sleeping with his eyes closed.

"Secretary Liu, I'm Yang Xiaotao!"

"Xiaotao, I just received news from above!"

"This time, an earthquake occurred in Shunde, Hebei Province, and the preliminary magnitude was estimated to be 7.0."

"Shunde, that place is not far from Shicheng!"

Yang Xiaotao still had an impression of Shunde, which is located in the south of Shicheng.

But the Sijiu City, which is farther away, has such a big impact. What will happen to Shicheng, which is closer?

And how terrifying is the epicenter?

Hebei Province is a densely populated province. How many people will be affected by this 7.0 earthquake...

Yang Xiaotao just felt a chill on his back.

Originally, I guessed that the earthquake might be around Sijiu City, but I didn't expect it to be so big.

A magnitude of 7.0, this is definitely a natural disaster!

What Yang Xiaotao didn't know was that this earthquake really occurred in history, and the magnitude was 6.8.

It's just that this time is a little different from history. The magnitude reached 7.0, and it also brought greater losses than the original time and space.

While Yang Xiaotao was still sorting out the information, Liu Huaimin's voice came again.

"This is a call from Mr. Chen. The area around the epicenter cannot be contacted now, and we don't know what's going on inside."

"I contacted the machine tool factory in Shicheng, but I couldn't get in touch."

Yang Xiaotao instantly understood what was going on.

Last time, Chen Bin and Pang Guo were sent to Shicheng to repair machine tools. They haven't come back for more than half a month.

When he contacted the other party, many parts were damaged and needed to be replaced.

Later, the other party felt that they were capable of manufacturing it, and they also wanted to save some face, so they made it by themselves.

As a result, it took a week, but it still didn't work, so they asked the machinery factory to help make it and send it over.

It was just sent out a week ago. I don't know what the situation is now, but the people are definitely still in Shicheng.

"Have you contacted the Seventh Ministry of Machine Building?"

"I asked, but there is no information over there either, so I don't know the situation."

Yang Xiaotao's heart tightened, "Does the superior have any arrangements?"

"According to the news from Mr. Chen, the nearest military militia has been sent to conduct search and rescue assistance."

"There is no other good way!"

Yang Xiaotao was silent for a moment, and then said, "I'll talk about it when I get back!"

After that, he hung up the phone, took Wangcai out of the office, and drove to the machinery factory.

Along the way, he saw people around busy cleaning up the streets, and the scattered autumn leaves and branches were sorted out.

Some collapsed houses were also urgently cleaned up.

There were still many ambulances running in a hurry on the road, and some people were pushing carts to the hospital.

Yang Xiaotao looked serious and drove quickly to the machinery factory.

I didn't find it when I came last night, but now it's dawn, and I also found that the machinery factory was affected by the earthquake.

The security department at the door has been fully martial law, and the workers in the factory are also urgently cleaning up.

Yang Xiaotao hurried to the office and saw Liu Huaimin on the phone.

He found a place to sit down and then rubbed his temples.

"Yes, we do have people in Shicheng."

"Yes, yes, more than one, we must find them!"

"Local militia? No, we can't contact the place, so we can only ask about the situation nearby!"

"Okay, thank you!"

After hanging up the phone, Liu Huaimin looked serious.

"Is there any problem with the steel plant?"

Seeing Yang Xiaotao sitting aside, he hurriedly asked.

"It's OK. One converter was damaged and several people were injured!"

"How is Director Guan?"

"Not sure. I didn't have time to ask."

The two talked for a while, and Liu Huaimin put the topic back to the phone call just now. "I called my colleagues in Baozhou. There was an accident on the railway from there to Shicheng, and they are repairing it."

"What's the situation in Shicheng? Do they know?"

"Well, I know a little bit. Many places are on fire and communication is impossible."

"Then, our people..."

Ring, ring, ring

The phone suddenly rang, and Liu Huaimin picked it up immediately.

"Hello, this is Liu Huaimin!"

"Commander, you say!"

"Yes, I understand, we will arrange it immediately!"

After hanging up the phone, Liu Huaimin stood up, "It's Mr. Chen's call. He is going to the south now. Let the troops around Sijiucheng go south to rescue immediately."

"The armored vehicles of our machinery factory have been requisitioned. As the vanguard team, we will set off immediately. At the same time, the gas stations along the way should be prepared to prepare fuel for the team."

"Someone will come to call the car soon. Please say hello to Lao Xu at the gas station as soon as possible!"

After Liu Huaimin finished speaking, Yang Xiaotao did not move, but pondered for a moment and asked, "Are they going to Shunde?"

"Yes. Over there Waiting for rescue!"

"Passing by Shicheng?"

"Probably!"

Yang Xiaotao looked up, "Then I'll take people with me, and we'll go to Shicheng!"

"No!"

"Old Liu, we've sent the people out. If we delay for a minute now, it could be more dangerous!"

"If I don't go, and something happens, we won't be able to get over it."

Liu Huaimin's face was tangled, "But, it doesn't have to be you!"

"Only if I go, I won't regret it."

Seeing Yang Xiaotao's firm words, "Besides, Mr. Chen, such a high official, has gone, so what if I go?"

At this point, Liu Huaimin couldn't make up his mind for a while.

"Xiaoqiang, get Old Yang!"

After thinking about it, he decided to let Yang Youning come to persuade him.

Xiaoqiang at the door immediately opened the door, and Yang Youning, who was also on the phone, said a few words and came over immediately after hanging up.

"What's wrong?"

"What are you going to do?"

"Stop messing around!"

When Yang Youning came in and saw Yang Xiaotao and the other two standing there, he immediately stepped forward to make a joke.

"Old Yang, Xiaotao is going to Shicheng!"

"Why?"

Yang Youning frowned, and then Yang Xiaotao told him the situation.

"No! You're not allowed to go!"

Yang Youning immediately refused, and then without waiting for Yang Xiaotao to speak, he added, "If anyone wants to go, I'll go!"

"I'm familiar with that place!"

"Don't get involved. At your age, you don't know who will rescue whom along the way!"

"That's right, don't make a fuss!"

Yang Xiaotao and Liu Huaimin immediately retorted, and Yang Youning pouted.

"Let's just leave it at that. They're in urgent need of a car over there. I'll go and discuss with Lao Liang to see who to send!"

Yang Xiaotao knew that this matter couldn't wait, so it was better to cut the Gordian knot and be straightforward.

Seeing that Yang Xiaotao had gone out, Liu Huaimin had no choice.

He knew in his heart that it was necessary to send people to rescue at this time.

But who to send was really worth considering.

And what Yang Xiaotao said made sense. Old Chen had gone, so it was reasonable for the machinery factory to send the second-in-command.

Yang Xiaotao came to the training department and told the situation. Liang Zuoxin immediately asked people to gather armored vehicles and said, "Don't go, I'll take people!"

"Forget it, Lao Liang, it's better for me to go!"

Yang Xiaotao spoke, Liang Zuoxin was silent for a moment, and then said, "Not long after you left last night, Siheyuan sent some food and left some for you!"

"Then you have to hurry up, I didn't eat tonight, I just made noodles, and then a phone call came..."

Not long after, at the entrance of the machinery factory.

The entire factory, including the newly produced armored vehicles, had a total of 32 vehicles, neatly arranged.

Yang Xiaotao sat in the last one, chewing a steamed bun in his hand, with Wang Hao and Zhou Kui sitting next to him.

Zhou Kui took the initiative to go, and he would not listen to anything.

Wang Hao is a part-time driver, and he has to take turns driving on the road.

The driver is Niu Jun, the former team leader. After hearing about this, he rushed over immediately.

The reason for going is that he is familiar with that road.

Of course, he also has selfish motives, that is, he wants to show off.

When he was in the steel mill, he was implicated in Wang Weijun's affairs because he met the wrong people and didn't know people well, and he lost his position as the team leader.

Later, he also stepped up step by step, but there was still a hurdle in his heart.

This time he went south to get rid of this hurdle.

As for the co-pilot, Chen Gong was sitting there, and he was squinting his eyes at the moment.

In Chen Gong's words, he was familiar with the place.

Whether it was the machine tool factory or the famous factory in Shicheng, he had dealt with it many times, and when he needed help, he would give him a face.

After everyone considered it, they agreed to let him follow.

In this way, the entire rescue team had a total of five people plus a dog.

In addition, they also brought some tools, medicines, coats, and water and food for several people on the road.

"Be sure to drive slowly on the road and follow the team!"

"Whatever happens when you get there, safety comes first!"

Yang Youning was nagging on the side, looking a little worried.

Liu Huaimin said nothing and smoked a cigarette.

Liang Zuoxin handed a pistol to Yang Xiaotao, "Take it for self-defense!"

Yang Xiaotao took it and finished eating the steamed bun, "By the way, go and tell my family."

"Got it!"

"Don't worry!"

Everyone nodded.

"Also, you should pay attention to Director Guan."

Yang Xiaotao thought of something, and Yang Youning nodded, "Don't worry, I have arranged someone to wait in the hospital. No news now is also good news."

Yang Xiaotao nodded, and at this time, a trumpet sounded in front of them, and everyone knew that it was time to set off.

The next moment, the driver from the army in front immediately started the armored vehicle and slowly left the machinery factory.

Niu Jun started the car and followed the team.

"Take care!"

"Be safe!"

The shouts of the crowd came from behind, and Yang Xiaotao and others waved and slowly closed the car door.