Sweet Nostalgia of the 80s

Chapter 251: Chapter 249: Wildfire

”We have to fight it even if we can’t extinguish it!” Qin Ru Hai hurriedly put on his shoes, opened the door, and ran outside.

”Hey, husband! Be careful!” Li Junping called out worriedly.

”I know.”

All the able-bodied men in the village had gathered, holding various tools, some with brooms, some with shovels, standing in the raging wind listening to the village secretary’s instruction: ”Fellow villagers, a wildfire started last night because of lightning. The fire is now very fierce and large, and I know it is very dangerous to fight it. Nevertheless, we must go. If the fire continues to spread, our crops in the fields will suffer. For the sake of our collective property, everyone let’s follow me to fight the fire!”

After the village secretary’s instruction, the villagers shouldered their tools and scattered, running toward the fields and the mountain.

***

Qin Jian was woken up by the thunder in the middle of the night and couldn’t fall back asleep. He suddenly noticed that it seemed somewhat light outside, checked the time, and saw it was only four in the morning on an overcast rainy day. Why did it seem like there was a glow outside, illuminating half the sky?

He quickly got out of bed, put on his shoes, and ran outside to see, only to discover the raging wildfire burning away. The fierce wind fanned the flames, and even the falling rain was useless against it.

With the rain being light and the fire intense, the raindrops that fell into the fire not only did not cool it but served as fuel instead, making the fire burn bigger and brighter. He saw the fire spread across the entire mountainside, and if it weren’t controlled, the crops in the fields would be reduced to ashes.

If the wind picked up any more, it could even reach the village.

Qin Jian made a decisive decision and went to knock on Jian Ying’s door. He had barely reached the door when Jian Ying came out already dressed.

Seeing the fire, he gasped, ”Qin, what should we do? Should we also join the disaster relief effort?”

”Yes. We must go. There’s still work we haven’t finished in the mountains, and some equipment not yet retrieved! We have to go! Besides, with a big fire in the village, we can’t just stand by and watch!” Qin Jian said sternly, ”Jian Ying, go talk to the people from the electric power office. Let’s go to the mountain together to put out the fire!”

After a brief discussion, the dozens of people working in the village decided to go up the mountain to fight the fire. They couldn’t just watch everything be consumed by the wildfire. So, led by Qin Jian and Jian Ying, a group of people joined the fire-fighting team without hesitation.

Because the wildfire was so massive, it alarmed even the villagers, and women, children, and the elderly stood in their courtyards, anxiously hoping the rain would grow heavier and the wind would stop soon to extinguish the wildfire quickly.

By the time it was light, the fire was still as intense as ever.

Some villagers had already been injured and were being brought down, with women, children, and the elderly terrified, fearing that their family members would perish in this sea of fire.

In their turmoil and worry, someone mentioned that they heard that people from the design institute and electric power office had also rushed to extinguish the fire, so there should be no problems—relax.

With only two village officials left, one being the women’s director and the other a production team leader with impaired mobility, they were so frightened they felt like their souls were flying away.

”We can’t go on like this. I think we should send a telegram to the town mayor. If we continue like this, there will definitely be loss of