Chapter 256: Chapter 253: Turning Point, Sorrow

“Comrade Xiao Wang, don’t be nervous.” The great leader smiled and waved his hand, holding the documents and sitting on the sofa next to Wang Liansheng. Secretary Wu brought over the leader’s teacup.

The leader picked up the teacup, smiling warmly at Wang Liansheng, “Quickly try it, the tea can’t steep for too long, or the aroma will dissipate. It’s just right now.”

Wang Liansheng smiled, picked up the teacup, took a sip, and lifted his eyes to meet the leader’s gaze, which was full of expectation.

He tugged at the corners of his mouth with a smile, “Good tea, very fragrant.”

The leader slapped his knee and laughed, shaking his head as he laughed, “Director Wang is speaking the truth. It shows that he’s an honest person, a straightforward person indeed.”

Secretary Wu laughed by the side, “He’s indeed an honest person. Back in the day when we were in the same study group, a teacher made a mistake on a question, and he deliberately went to the teacher’s house to point it out.”

The leader laughed again, and Secretary Wu followed suit, even Wang Liansheng awkwardly joined in the laughter.

After the laughter, the leader finally got to the main topic, gently patting the materials on the table, “I’ve read the documents you wrote. It’s very well written.”

Wang Liansheng instinctively wanted to say a humble sentence, but the leader stopped him with a raised hand, “This material is well-reasoned, and it has a refreshing perspective on the issues. You’re very diligent… We want the people to live a good life, but we can’t just fish by draining the pond or kill the hen to get the eggs.”

The leader seemed to be stirred, lowering his head to look at the documents on the table, slightly furrowing his brow, as if deep in thought.

Wang Liansheng was unsure about the situation, looking up to see Secretary Wu, but Secretary Wu had already returned to his own desk, writing something with a pen without looking at him.

Wang Liansheng had no choice but to look away and wait quietly.

Finally, the leader sighed, turned back to Wang Liansheng, “Xiao Wang, we didn’t think this through.”

This was the leader admitting fault to him. Wang Liansheng dared not accept it. Besides, the primary responsibility should not have been his, as he was just following instructions, the main leader in their department should bear the responsibility.

Furthermore, at that time, the country and the people were desperately poor, and they desperately wanted to attract investment, to promote development. It’s understandable they didn’t anticipate such issues with protection.

“Leader…” Wang Liansheng started, only to be stopped again by the leader.

The leader smiled to ease the atmosphere, “It’s good to discover mistakes and correct them in time, right? I’ve already discussed this with Lao Bai from your department. Before, you were in the reception group, and you are familiar with Mr. Lian. Please communicate with him about this matter and try to negotiate a solution as soon as possible to effectively prevent resource destruction.”

Wang Liansheng walked out of the leader’s office in a daze and made his way back to his own office.

Upon his return, colleagues in the office greeted him warmly, as if he had never left or stopped working.

After exchanging pleasantries, as he arrived by his desk, someone came in at the entrance, smiling and greeting, “Liansheng, come here for a second.”

The voice was gentle, the tone intimate; it was the leader Bai from their department.

Wang Liansheng followed him to Leader Bai’s office, where Leader Bai’s attitude had reverted back to his usual kindness. They chatted about mundane matters for a while before getting to the topic at hand. After expressing regret for any grievances Wang Liansheng might have experienced, Leader Bai explained that upon detailed research into Wang Liansheng’s suggestions, they decided to let him rest for two days. As the great leader had said, they entrusted him with re-establishing connections with Chinese expatriates and encouraged him to do well and strive to achieve results.

Wang Liansheng adopted a modest and cautious demeanor, patiently listening until Leader Bai felt he had said enough before he personally escorted him out of the office.

Leader Bai also assigned two subordinates to assist him, provided him with a separate office, and granted him the use of a vehicle…

——

Ling Chengyan walked out of the hospital room, with Geng Wei following behind, both of them very quiet.

Yang Hua’s leg was crippled, not only sprained but half of it was fractured. He could never play basketball again, nor serve as a special forces soldier.

The two silently walked out of the hospital room, and finally, Ling Chengyan spoke, “Have Yang Hua’s parents been contacted?”

Geng Wei nodded, his voice a little hoarse, “We’ve contacted the local authorities, bought train tickets for his parents. They left last night and should arrive this afternoon.”

Ling Chengyan lifted her head, gazing blankly at the distant sky, squinting her eyes, “Arrange for a car to pick them up from the station, and make sure to look after the elderly, don’t let them get too agitated…”

Geng Wei nodded heavily.

Their training exercise wasn’t completed. Recalling what happened that night, even Ling Chengyan still felt a lingering fear.

After setting up camp, Ling Chengyan allowed the soldiers to rest. She had a young man who had been bitten by a poisonous snake placed in her tent, and she sat at the tent’s entrance, waiting. In five hours, she needed to give a second serum injection.

Soon, it began to rain.

Ling Chengyan called over two people to bring raincoats to the on-duty sentries, while she herself wore a raincoat and circled the camp, concentrating on checking the condition of the hillside above the campsite.

The area she selected for encamping was under two large overhanging rocks, also on a large expanse of bare rock underfoot, with no signs of instability at the rock bases.

Returning, her shoes were soaked through, and her pants were wet up to the knees.

The temperature in the mountains was already low, and it dropped further after the rain. Ling Chengyan felt too cold outside the tent, so she entered the tent and sat beside the young man bitten by a snake.

As raindrops hit the tent, producing a repetitive and monotonous sound, Ling Chengyan hugged her knees and quickly started to doze off.

Suddenly, the alert sentry issued a warning again.

Simultaneously, Ling Chengyan sprang up, rushing out of the tent.

Holding her breath and listening for a moment, trying to block out the sound of the rain, she made sure she heard a faint rumble.

“Squad One, stay put. Squad Two, follow me!” she shouted, bringing the soldiers who had scrambled out of their tents, rushing toward Captain Han’s camp.

Because it was the dry season, the rivers and streams had little water, with no hidden dangers.

They never imagined the rain was light here, but it was pouring at the mountain top, causing a flash flood.

In the chaos that ensued, Captain Han’s squad lost five people.

Their own team suffered no fatalities, but several soldiers were injured, Yang Hua being the most severely injured. With a comminuted fracture in his left calf, compounded by the distance to bring him out from the mountains, they missed the best time for emergency treatment, resulting in an infected leg that had to be amputated.

Geng Wei observed the melancholic Captain, feeling troubled, and tried to comfort her, “Captain, if not for you rushing down there to pull Yang Hua back, he would have been swept away. You did your best, don’t feel so bad.”

Ling Chengyan shook her head, “Yang Hua can’t do heavy or labor-intensive work even if he changes careers now.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep