Chapter 14

The tall team member nodded. "What about you, little one?"

Yun Nian shook her head. "My back hurts a little, but I can bear it."

"Since neither of you has any injuries that affect your mobility, come with me right away. We'll head to the hospital in town. There are volunteers there who can help you contact your embassy and get home."

"Okay. About how far is the hospital from here?"

"About ten kilometers. I'll take you to the truck first, and the driver will take you there."

After the two search-and-rescue team members discussed it, the shorter one led them to the parking spot, while the taller one continued searching this area for survivors.

"Watch your step. Don't step on anything sharp, and follow my footprints."

The shorter team member walked ahead, clearing obstacles with his professional gloves.

Perhaps out of consideration for Su Cheng's and Yun Nian's physical condition, he didn't ask them to run, but walked very quickly.

Under the blazing sun, a large patch of Su Cheng's back was soaked with sweat.

Yun Nian wiped the sweat from her forehead but kept close behind like a little grown-up.

Even though they were sweating from the heat, no one wanted to linger in an area where another tsunami might strike at any moment.

Yun Nian asked softly, "Sir, how can I find my mom and dad?"

The shorter team member looked at her tenderly. "You don't need to do anything. The government and the embassy will help you. A lot of families are looking for their children. Your mom and dad might be among them."

"...Thank you, sir."

Perhaps because he had rarely seen a child as well-behaved and strong as Yun Nian since the tsunami, the shorter team member's gaze softened. "Would you like to rest a while? Or do you need me to carry you on my back?"

Yun Nian shook her head. "Thank you, sir, but I can manage."

The shorter team member looked at Su Cheng. "Has she always been this strong? Are you her older sister?"

"I'm not her family, but she really has been strong all along."

Su Cheng continued, "How large an area did this tsunami affect? Is the place we're going safe enough?"

Her questions were blunt, but they were exactly what someone worried about getting hurt again after a disaster would say.

"This tsunami affected dozens of countries, but please rest assured. The town we're heading to was built above the highest tsunami wave ever recorded, at an elevation of over ten meters."

"Okay, thank you."

"You're welcome."

Suddenly, Su Cheng heard a faint sound, and at the same time, the shorter team member stopped.

Only then did Su Cheng realize that her hearing could already rival that of someone with professional training.

Besides her hearing, her sight, sense of smell, and sense of taste had all improved greatly compared to before. This was probably the sensory enhancement brought about by the Gene Lock.

Seeing them both stop, Yun Nian asked in confusion, "What's wrong?"

The shorter team member made a shushing gesture. Holding his breath and concentrating, he listened carefully for quite a while before determining the direction.

"I hope I heard that right."

He quickened his pace, leading Su Cheng and Yun Nian to the right.

Crossing the barren mud, they reached several fallen trees. A foam box caught on the trees was the source of the sound.

Su Cheng and the shorter team member walked over. Sitting inside the foam box was a brown-haired boy of only three or four, with a strip of cloth tying him to the box.

The boy's cries were hoarse, and his cheeks were bright red. He wore only swimming trunks, and his skin was mildly sunburned, but he had no serious wounds. Seeing strangers, he stopped sobbing. Rather than being frightened, he innocently spread his arms.

"Poor, lucky little guy."

The shorter team member took the water flask from his waist, poured water into its cap, and fed it to the boy, then dabbed water on his face to cool him down.

The shorter team member untied the cloth around the boy and lifted him out of the box. "This child's running a high fever. He needs to get to the shelter for treatment as soon as possible. We'll have to hurry."

Naturally, Su Cheng and Yun Nian had no objections.

The three quickened their pace and reached the place where the truck was waiting.

It was a transport truck with a cab in front and an open bed in the back that could seat multiple people.

The driver was a thin, dark-skinned man.

Waiting beside the truck, the driver looked in surprise at the people running toward him and said something in the local language that Su Cheng couldn't understand.

The shorter team member motioned for Yun Nian and Su Cheng to get in, then placed the boy in Su Cheng's arms.

"I'll leave him with you, ma'am. I still need to search for other survivors. Just take the child to the hospital, and someone will take over."

Su Cheng held the sleeping boy, his body burning with fever. "...Okay."

The shorter team member went over to the driver's seat and exchanged a few words with the driver. Su Cheng guessed he was explaining the situation.

Vroom, vroom, vroom...

The driver soon started the truck. The shorter team member turned around and headed straight back toward the muddy ground without pausing.

Yun Nian stared at the shorter team member's red-clad figure shrinking in the distance. "Those men are amazing..."

Su Cheng didn't disagree. She, too, greatly admired these fighters who were willing to brave danger to rescue others.

The vehicle traveled over uneven muddy ground, jolting and shaking whenever it hit stones. Su Cheng could only hold the child with one arm and grip the truck's side panel with the other hand.

"Whimper..."

The boy in her arms whimpered in discomfort.

"Will he find his mom and dad?"

Yun Nian's voice was very soft. She was asking about the boy, yet seemed to be asking about herself as well.

One tsunami had torn countless happy families apart.

Su Cheng recalled the strip of cloth that had bound the boy to the foam box. That was probably the last thing his parents could do to give him a chance to survive...

Su Cheng wasn't good at comforting people. All she could say was, "He will..."

Yun Nian lowered her eyes and buried her head in her knees. No one spoke again for the rest of the journey.

The vehicle left the mud for level ground. Only after an hour did Su Cheng see buildings; they had probably reached the nearby town.

There were quite a few people on the main street. Due to exposure to ultraviolet rays, the locals here had fairly uniformly dark skin. Since the temporary shelter had been set up in town, other, lighter-skinned people could also be seen coming and going along the street.

Open-air stalls selling food and fruit lined the street. Away from the area ravaged by the tsunami, there was finally a sense of human life.

After passing through the main street, the truck stopped in front of a hospital.

Many canopies had been erected on the open ground outside the hospital, where many disaster survivors were staying temporarily. People of all skin colors came and went.

Holding the boy, Su Cheng got out with Yun Nian.

The driver stuck his head out the window and pointed toward the hospital, signaling for them to go straight inside.

"Thank you!"

After thanking him, Su Cheng held the boy and remembered to glance sideways and remind Yun Nian, "Stay close. It's crowded here. Don't get lost."

Yun Nian gripped the hem of Su Cheng's clothes. "Okay."

Su Cheng went around the crowd and canopies and entered the hospital lobby.

In the hospital lobby, a group of people surrounded a registration desk made from two tables pushed together, where two female volunteers in work uniforms were recording information.

Su Cheng squeezed into the crowd and looked at the woman handling registration. "The rescue team saved this child after the tsunami. Who should I hand him over to? He has a high fever and needs treatment."

The woman didn't understand what Su Cheng was saying, but the moment she saw the boy, she understood what Su Cheng meant.

The woman took the child. "Are you his family?"

The woman spoke English, but the short sentence was simple enough for Su Cheng to understand. "No."

Su Cheng wanted to explain that the child had been saved by the rescue team, but she didn't know how to say it in English.

Her spoken English had been mediocre back when she was in school, and she never used English after she started working. Her skills in the language had long since fallen into disuse.

Who knew there would even be a language barrier in the instance...

Seeing that Su Cheng couldn't speak English, the woman didn't dwell on it. She turned and said a few words to her colleague, then left with the child in her arms.

This little interruption didn't stop the others from continuing their discussions with the other registration worker.

Listening to their rapid English, Su Cheng could only tell from their expressions that they were agitated. She couldn't understand what they were saying.

Su Cheng glimpsed the word "name" in the registration worker's notebook. She recognized that word, and looking at the entries, they all seemed to be names.

Su Cheng looked at Yun Nian. "Can you speak English?"

Yun Nian nodded. "Basic communication isn't a problem."

Su Cheng was surprised. So capable at such a young age?

"It looks like this registration worker is recording people's names. You can ask about your family."

Yun Nian's eyes briefly lit up. "Okay. Wait here for me a moment."

"Okay."

Su Cheng stepped back, away from the registration desk, and found an empty spot where she could wait without getting in anyone's way.

The entire hospital was noisy. Doctors and nurses hurried about, their faces exhausted. Even in a corner of the lobby, people whose conditions weren't too serious were lying down on IV drips, showing just how scarce beds were.

Su Cheng lifted the hem of her shirt and quickly checked the bruising on her abdomen. It hadn't disappeared.

Although it no longer hurt on its own, she still felt a momentary dull pain in her abdomen whenever she made a particularly large movement.

It seemed her self-healing ability repaired simple wounds quickly, but needed some time to repair damage to internal organs.

Su Cheng had originally planned to get a scan and an examination at this hospital, but there were simply too many injured people here. Patients in worse condition than her were everywhere, and there was no telling how long she would have to wait for her turn.

Besides, she couldn't communicate in the language.

"I'll just rely on self-healing to repair it slowly. I'll deal with the specifics once I get back to the white examination room in the apartment."

Author's note:

None.

Chapter 14

When Yun Nian squeezed out of the crowd around the registration desk, she had a sticker with her name on it on her arm.

Yun Nian hung her head dejectedly. "She couldn't find my mom's or dad's names in her records."

Su Cheng patted her shoulder in comfort. "Don't worry. They're definitely looking for you too. We can try the next hospital and look elsewhere."

"What about your family? I want to help you find them too."