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Chapter 189: Chapter 189 Earthquake 5
"These three dogs have been wandering around since they were puppies, and I watched them grow up. I had no idea they were so intuitive. If it does turn out to be an earthquake tonight, I’ll bring them three chicken legs tomorrow."
"Count me in, I’ll also buy some."
"I was wondering why my normally obedient dog was barking so much tonight. It turns out it was sensing an impending earthquake, showing it’s quite intuitive too."
The crowd carried on their mystical conversations about the dogs’ abilities, leaving Tong Yao feeling a little overwhelmed as the three dogs were almost elevated to the realm of supernatural beings.
However, she had no mood to bother about such things at the moment. Turning to Si Boyi, she said, "Hurry up and find a phone booth with Xiaohui to call the village and inform them. I’m heading back to the family courtyard."
Given the current situation, it seemed that everyone firmly believed in the earthquake alert, and were unlikely to complacently stay at home. Even if they stayed indoors, they would be alert, hence they wouldn’t be at much risk. Concerningly, the people in the family courtyard might dismiss the warning, thinking it to be superstitious due to their educated backgrounds.
It was only when reminded by Tong Yao that Si Boyi and Si Xiaohui remembered that they had yet to inform the village. Seeing her walk away quickly, Si Boyi shouted, "Sister-in-law, stay safe." He then sprinted towards a phone booth, only to find it crowded with people lining up to make calls.
The two were so anxious that they were going in circles, but there was nothing they could do except wait for others to finish. Some impatient people tried to cut in line only to be hastily thrown out by the crowd.
*
On her way back to the family courtyard, Tong Yao was followed by the three dogs. However, they stopped at the entrance. Seeing her heading inside, Xiaohei barked nervously.
"Boss, come out quickly, don’t stay too long. The earthquake is coming."
Seeing Tong Yao disappear into the entrance, Da Huang walked in circles anxiously, whimpering, "I finally found a master, what if she gets crushed to death by the earthquake?"
Xiaohua barked at Da Huang, "Shut up, be a doomsayer."
Tong Yao quickly reached the family courtyard building, where she saw a frail figure crouching on the doorstep. As she approached, she realized it was Guo Nan.
"Why are you sitting here alone?"
"Tong Yao, you’re back?" Guo Nan brightened up on seeing Tong Yao and quickly walked over, "I heard from Mrs. Li about the earthquake, I was too scared to sleep, so thought I might just stay downstairs."
The building was deserted at night, the nearby dogs kept barking unbearably loud, causing unease. Strangely, there were no mosquitoes biting people tonight. All these signs felt bizarre, yet everyone refused to believe Li Nuanchun’s words.
Guo Nan did feel a little foolish for her behavior, but she felt safer outside.
She had watched a movie about earthquakes, and as a nurse, she found the scenes too gruesome. She watched it once and dared not watch it a second time. She couldn’t even imagine what it would be like if such a thing were to happen in reality.
Tong Yao looked up at the building, "Where’s Mrs. Li?"
"It seems she has gone out on her bike, probably to inform her family." In reality, Guo Nan had thought about going back to inform her family, but her home was quite far, there were no buses at night, and walking back would take until midnight.
With a resolute look, Tong Yao asked, "Does no one else believe in the earthquake?"
"Yes." Guo Nan nodded, seeing Tong Yao’s calm demeanor, she felt uneasy, "Tong Yao, will there really be an earthquake tonight?"
If there were really an earthquake, how could Tong Yao be so calm?
Shouldn’t people panic when they hear about an earthquake?
Tong Yao nodded, having run around, she was drenched in sweat, her clothes sticking to her body uncomfortably. Without having much time to explain, she replied, "There’s a strong chance of an earthquake. If you’re scared, squat somewhere with light! I’m heading to the hospital to check."
Surprised, Guo Nan asked, "Shouldn’t we call the people upstairs down?" She had thought Tong Yao had come to evacuate the people from upstairs.
"Didn’t Mrs. Li already call them?" Tong Yao raised an eyebrow nonchalantly and stated, "The people living upstairs are all young and agile, they can run away quickly if an earthquake occurs. I don’t need to worry about them."
Zhao had gone to Jiang City Medical University to give a lecture recently, and Li Nuanchun had returned to her family home. As for the other people on the upper floors, they could scramble to escape when the earthquake strikes!
The real concern was the hospital, which was full of patients, they needed to be moved to a safer place first.
"I’ll, I’ll go with you." Guo Nan quickly followed Tong Yao. She dared not return to the dormitory, and it was eerie to stay alone here late at night. She might be able to help if she stayed with Tong Yao.
Under Dai Liwen’s arrangements, all the patients who couldn’t move were transferred to the courtyard. The duty doctors and nurses were busy shuttling back and forth. Tong Yao looked at the crowd and frowned instantly. The gathering of so many people could easily lead to a stampede if an earthquake occurred.
She found Dai Liwen in the crowd, "Doctor Dai, I think it’s best for us to disperse and wait in the open space outside the hospital. It’s dangerous for us to be squeezed together here, especially if an earthquake occurs."
Many of these individuals couldn’t even move on their own. Once the survival instinct kicked in amidst an earthquake, who would care about them?
Dai Liwen was frantic. Carrying the immense pressure of relocating hospital staff, he even had a quarrel with the doctor on duty. The Dean was alerted as well, and was probably on his way. Seeing the crowd gathered downstairs discussing fervently, he wondered if he was going insane. He had actually begun to believe Tong Yao’s words about the earthquake.
If there was no earthquake, this incident would be quite a disaster for him.
But with things having progressed this far, and his firm belief in an impending earthquake, the situation was beyond repair.
Upon seeing Tong Yao, he didn’t hesitate to seize her arm and pull her to the side, asking anxiously, "Tong Yao, are you sure there will be an earthquake tonight? Is there any other evidence?"
Seeing Dai Liwen’s disheveled state, Tong Yao honestly replied, "Dr. Dai, the chances of an earthquake happening tonight are high, but I can’t guarantee it for sure. But since everyone is already here, let’s be comprehensive in our actions. Get everyone out onto the roads. We can decide what to do from there." She couldn’t guarantee that Xiaohei’s intuition would be 100% accurate.
Dai Liwen felt as if he’d had a taste of his own medicine. He was full of regret, lamenting like an old villager, "Oh! You’ve really set me up this time."
Tong Yao: ...
Having no way out, Dai Liwen gritted his teeth and followed Tong Yao’s advice, commanding everyone to evacuate. The on-duty doctor, however, observed coldly, letting them handle the chaos.
Guo Nan and Tong Yao joined in to help move the patients. They assisted those who had difficulty walking, asking everyone to disperse after moving outside so as not to crowd at one spot.
