Free Web NovelChapter 244: Chapter 244: Fate Changed
An explosion. Everyone saw the explosion. With the blast, everyone’s heart leaped into their throat.
Sun Jiaming was standing right beside Gu’er the moment the sound erupted. He was very close to her, and when she cried out Liu Yuan’s name and her body swayed, he was there to steady her.
"Don’t panic. From the sound of it, the explosion wasn’t that big. Most of the goods inside have already been moved out. Liu Yuan will definitely be okay."
Sun Jiaming’s voice was low, but it had a wonderfully calming effect.
Gu’er’s heart began to steady.
’Liu Yuan will be okay.’
At that moment, Lin Shan and the others were already arranging for people to go assess the situation.
A short while later, quite a few people emerged from the factory building. Several of those at the front had their faces covered in something black, and a couple were being supported by others.
Gu’er spotted Liu Yuan at a glance.
Although his face was also smudged with black and he looked a bit disheveled, he was fine. No one was helping him; he walked out on his own.
Gu’er felt her eyes instantly well up with tears.
’Liu Yuan is alive! Liu Yuan didn’t die! He didn’t die!’
Seeing Liu Yuan, Sun Jiaming, Li Zhi, and Dingzi all breathed a sigh of relief. If something had really happened to him, none of them would have been able to forgive themselves.
Liu Yuan walked up to them. Seeing Gu’er’s tear-streaked face, he felt a tremor in his heart. He hadn’t expected her to care so much about him. Liu Yuan’s mind was in turmoil. The explosion had just happened a short distance away from him; he had barely escaped being caught in the blast.
When Gu’er had told him about it before, he hadn’t taken it seriously, thinking she was just being an alarmist. But because he knew her intentions were good, he had still requested the day off. Now, however, he knew Gu’er hadn’t been worrying for nothing. If the higher-ups hadn’t come for an inspection today, then all the goods piled haphazardly inside the factory wouldn’t have been moved out.
Many of the workers were on 24-hour rotating shifts. People get tired. Sometimes they’d doze off, falling asleep right there at their machines while they were still running automatically. It was incredibly dangerous. Just like today—someone was just a little careless, and it caused an explosion. Fortunately, most of the materials had been moved out. Otherwise...
Liu Yuan didn’t dare to imagine it. If all those goods had still been there, the explosion would have been nothing like this. He might have been blown to bits.
Everyone was out. After inquiring about casualties, they learned that a worker had made a mistake, accidentally causing the explosion. Luckily, there weren’t many goods inside, so the blast radius was small. Only two people were injured, neither of them seriously, and there were no fatalities. It was a great stroke of luck.
"It’s a good thing we came today and the goods were all moved out. If we hadn’t come and everything was still inside, who knows how many casualties there would have been with an explosion like that, or how great the loss to the country would be."
Li Quanyou’s expression was grim. Although he was here for an inspection, deep down he never wanted an accident to happen. An incident would not only affect this district but the entire city. Moreover, the safety of the masses couldn’t be guaranteed. How would they answer to the workers? ƒreewebηoveℓ.com
Yu, the District Chief, along with the factory director and the supervisor, could barely stand steady.
None of them had expected an accident, but they also understood that what Li Quanyou said was true. If they hadn’t come to inspect today, an accident would have happened sooner or later.
But if they didn’t use those old machines, they couldn’t keep up with production quotas.
If the workers didn’t work around the clock, output wouldn’t increase. It wasn’t that they didn’t know the risks; they needed results, they needed production volume. So they’d gambled on a bit of luck, thinking maybe nothing would go wrong. But now something had, and right in front of so many people.
"Now is not the time to talk about this. The problem has occurred, so we need to solve it quickly. Secretary, Chief Yu, you need to give the orders. How to handle this, how to manage the aftermath, how to reassure everyone—you need to make a decision fast."
Lin Shan’s face was also dark. Although this incident meant he was in the clear—on the contrary, because he had led the inspection, proven the factory had problems, and caused the goods to be moved, thereby reducing casualties and minimizing losses, he might even be credited for it—the incident would still have some negative impact on the city.
The expressions on the Secretary’s and District Chief Yu’s faces could no longer be described as merely grim. They gave Lin Shan a deep look, unable to decide if they were grateful or resentful. But Lin Shan was right; the matter needed to be dealt with immediately.
Gu’er took no part in how that group of people handled the situation or managed the aftermath, because she was no longer needed.
Gu’er, Sun Jiaming, Dingzi, and Li Zhi walked out of the factory. Liu Yuan didn’t go with them, as he was a factory worker and had to await instructions.
"It really exploded. It actually exploded... If they hadn’t moved all the goods out today, I can’t even imagine how many people would have died or been injured."
Li Zhi mumbled, still unable to process what had happened. It wasn’t that he was timid, but the shock of the event was immense. Gu’er had said the factory would explode, that something would happen to Liu Yuan, that people would die. Although he had convinced his father and come along himself, deep down, he hadn’t believed it. But now it had exploded. An accident had happened. He had no choice but to believe.
Sun Jiaming, Gu’er, and Dingzi didn’t respond.
"Gu’er, are you some kind of fairy sent down from heaven? Did the gods tell you? How else could you have known?"
Li Zhi stared at Gu’er again, his intense gaze making her uncomfortable.
"I just had a dream."
Gu’er was feeling somewhat relieved now. Only two people injured, and minor injuries at that. Compared to her past life, this was an incredible blessing.
An accident had occurred, so maybe the factory director and supervisor would be criticized or face other disciplinary action, but compared to her past life, these were minor issues.
Most importantly, Liu Yuan hadn’t died, and he hadn’t married Huang Mingyu. His fate had changed. The people who were supposed to have died, the families who were supposed to have been left heartbroken and in despair—they were all okay. That was what made her happiest.
"You sure know how to dream. That was way too accurate," Li Zhi said with a cheeky grin. "Hey, you should dream about me, too! See if I’ll get rich in the future, what kind of wife I’ll marry, how old I’ll live to be, how many sons and daughters I’ll have."
Gu’er glanced at him. She hadn’t known Li Zhi in her past life, so she had no idea what his fate was. But not knowing wasn’t a bad thing. Just like her and Sun Jiaming, their fates had already completely changed. Isn’t not knowing what tomorrow holds more exciting?
"You? You’ll marry ten wives," Gu’er joked off the top of her head.
"And have a hundred sons," Sun Jiaming added, playing along.
"And a thousand daughters," Dingzi chimed in.
"Get outta here! You guys trying to work your buddy to death? I don’t want that!"
Li Zhi playfully punched Sun Jiaming and Dingzi, and they all burst out laughing.
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