Read Novel Full Chapter 516: Evacuation Crisis (1)
Chapter 516: Evacuation Crisis (1)
Ivanov brought a considerable amount of medicine, including anesthetics, all taken from the United Base.
Jiang Ning first injected the special medicine, then administered an injection of anesthesia, cleaned the festering wound, disinfected it, and stitched it up.
“Ivanov, if you want to save your leg, you must avoid certain foods. You can’t eat meat or drink alcohol. Eat more vegetables.”
Jiang Ning adjusted his medication, then gave him 5 kilograms of vegetables and told him to come back to change the dressing in two days.
After closing the door, she talked to the siblings about what was happening at the base.
“If all goes well, Zhao Quan should have returned to the warship by now.”
Jiang Ning was tired and went back to lie on the bed to rest.
Huo Yishen saw that she was not in a good mood and envied those who could go home.
Not only Jiang Ning, Doudou was also obviously depressed but just pretended not to care.
Huo Yishen patted her shoulder.
Doudou was very sensible, “Brother, I’m fine.”
Gains come with losses. If they hadn’t left earlier, things might have turned out worse.
Apart from the cold, the Arctic wasn’t so bad.
Huo Yishen went back to the room, wanting to say a few comforting words to Jiang Ning, but unexpectedly, her mood had already improved.
The words he was about to say were left unspoken.
Two days later, Ivanov came to change the dressing.
He didn’t forget to tell the news, “Yang and He have left.”
There were more than 30 Chinese people in the base, and they all chose to leave.
Ivanov was very generous. He gives each of them 5 pounds of potatoes and 3 pounds of seal meat, and asked them to set off with the hunting team so that they could take care of them on the way.
“If everything goes well, they should be able to reach the landing port the day after tomorrow and follow the other survivors back to your country.”
His lengthy speech was mostly to earn some gratitude.
Jiang Ning responded decisively to satisfy him, “Ivanov, thank you for your help. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have been able to get home.”
“Hahaha, what are friends for?”
With the Chinese leaving the Arctic, Ivanov could finally sleep soundly.
***
Two days later.
The wind started blowing, and light snow fell.
The coast was densely packed with people wearing tattered coats, their hands and feet covered in frostbite.
Some were wrapped in animal skins, while others held the bags with holes in their arms tightly.
Dull, numbed eyes repeatedly looked out toward the vast ocean.
A ship not far away sailed with a five-star red flag on it.
The flag was faded and torn, yet it still fluttered proudly in the cold wind.
The ship was also packed with survivors, and a middle-aged man at the bow shouted loudly, “Fellow countrymen, don’t push or panic. Our country promised to take us to a new home, and it will keep its word.”
“Everyone, keep an eye on your belongings. The closer you are to go home, the more you should pay attention to safety. Don’t get separated from your companions and let others take advantage of you.”
Standing on the ship, he gazed at the dense crowd below, his frown growing deeper.
A staff member next to him voiced concern, “Captain, with the group the Russians sent yesterday, we have no more than 300 people. How did so many arrive all at once?”
Zhou Zhijie had a bad feeling. “The Arctic environment is too harsh. Knowing that China has set up a new home and even sent people to pick them up, who wouldn’t want to leave this miserable place?”
It wasn’t just people of other ethnicities; there were also many individuals from other East Asian countries stranded in the Arctic.
With the same skin tone and similar faces, they usually kept their distance, but now they had decided to stick together, which made the situation quite complicated.
Zhou Zhijie had already noticed many unfamiliar faces in the crowd. They weren’t Chinese, yet they had blended in, trying to get through unnoticed.
“Do they plan to pretend to be someone else to get on the ship?”
Zhou Zhijie was more concerned about something else. “Pretending to be someone else is the least of my worries. I’m worried they’ll use the chaos to steal our fellow countrymen’s bags, or even documents proving they’re Chinese.”
After saying that, he spoke loudly again, reminding everyone to stay alert and protect themselves from theft.
“Captain, it’s not just a lot of East Asian faces. Several foreign gangs have shown up too, and they’re armed.”
These gangs usually dominated the coastline and made a living from robbery with the help of a few guns.
Why were they all showing up together today? What were they planning?
While they were worrying, a black fighter plane flew across the horizon.
Flying low, its deafening sound shook the air.
The fighter plane circled over the Arctic coastline, while a massive warship sounded its horn and approached from the distance.
A bright five-star red flag fluttered proudly in the wind.
The coastline erupted in excitement.
They are coming!
The army of the new homeland had arrived.
Their faces were just skin and bones, their eyes blurry, but they were doing their best not to cry.
The fighter plane returned, landing precisely on the warship to deliver an urgent report.
After a while, the warship slowly approached and stopped at sea, more than 300 meters away from the shore.
Then they started releasing three military assault boats that could carry 50 people each.
A total of 120 armed soldiers came ashore.
Leading them was Vice-Captain Liao of the warship, who held a megaphone and addressed the crowd on the shore:
“Fellow countrymen, we are here to bring you home.”
Cheers erupted from the survivors on the shore.
“Please don’t panic. Step back and line up. As long as you’re a fellow citizen of China and wish to go to the new homeland, we won’t leave a single one of you behind.”
Vice-Captain Liao quickly identified the boat flying the Five-Starred Flag and directed the three assault boats toward it.
Zhou Zhijie excitedly got off the ship and asked the survivors on the ship to hold hands and form a human barrier to persuade the crowded crowd to retreat and clear a place for the soldiers to land.
He rushed forward to tightly grasp Vice-Captain Liao’s hand. “Comrade, greetings! We are survivors from the official Sichuan base. We drifted to the Arctic over two months ago. There are 219 compatriots on our boat.”
Afraid that the other party would not believe him, Zhou Zhijie shivered as he pulled out documents hidden in his clothes with his frozen hands. “This is my ID card and my work badge…”
After verifying the information, Vice-Captain Liao expressed deep admiration. “You’ve endured so much. Thank you for leading our fellow countrymen to survive in the Arctic. We’re here to bring you back.”
The simple acknowledgment of “you’ve endured so much” brought Zhou Zhijie to the brink of tears.
In his lifetime, he had finally waited for this moment.
When entering the sea, there were nearly a thousand people on the ship, but now only 219 are left. If they had not believed in the power of the country, they might not have been able to hold on until today.
It was too hard.
Natural disasters are too hard.
Zhou Zhijie quickly calmed down and explained the situation. “Aside from those who have passed away, there are fewer than 300 people along the Arctic coast. But today, five to six hundred people showed up, many of whom aren’t even from our country.”
At the same time, he reminded them about the several evil gangs that used their power to bully others. “They must be planning something. You need to be very careful.”
Vice-Captain Liao reassured him. “Don’t worry. We have strategies in place.”
To avoid accidents, the warship had intentionally delayed its landing until the scheduled time.
Reconnaissance pilot Zhao Quan had already reported the situation, and Vice-Captain Liao asked further, “I heard the Russians have a base in the Arctic, and there’s a group of Chinese survivors there. Have they arrived?”
“They came. They arrived last night. The leader’s surname is He.”
After learning the name of the person in charge, Vice-Captain Liao called out, “He Tianming, please step forward.”
He Tianming, who was squeezed in the crowd, quickly moved forward with the other survivors.
“Hello, I’m He Tianming. There are 31 of us, all from the Jiacheng Base in Guangdong Province.”
“Jiacheng Base?” Vice-Captain Liao scrutinized him. “Where in Guangdong are you from?”
“Fengcheng.”
Fengcheng? It so happened there were people from Fengcheng on the warship.
Vice-Captain Liao scanned his team, then pointed to someone. “You, come over here.”
The named soldier stepped forward.
“They’re all from Guangdong. You’re responsible for verifying their identities. Once confirmed, have them board the ship.”
The young and thin soldier examined He Tianming for a long moment before exclaiming in surprise, “It’s you?”