The lifeboat’s fuel was limited, so they had to return. Without a fixed route, their return path wasn’t the same as the way they came.

Unpredictable as life is, they saved a mother and child on their way back.

When found, the mother was clinging tightly to a not-so-tall plum tree. Her child, not yet two years old, was held up by her on a thin branch. Relying solely on her willpower, she stood on a small branch at the base of the plum tree, holding the branches and her child tightly in her arms.

After being discovered and rescued by Ling Chengyan and the others, the mother was almost completely unconscious, yet the moment Ling Chengyan held her child, she suddenly opened her eyes.

Ling Chengyan said, "We are soldiers, here to rescue you."

"Child..." She uttered just one word in a low voice, then fell completely unconscious, her arms releasing the child as if she was relieved, like a weight had been lifted.

Ling Chengyan handed the child onto the boat and then, with Wu Qingyun and Liu Xianghu, also rescued the mother, who was about to slip into the water, onto the boat.

The mother’s body was very cold, with only a little warmth left at her heart. Ling Chengyan checked her breathing, which was almost undetectable, and couldn’t feel her carotid pulse either...

Ling Chengyan laid her flat, making room and signaling Wu Qingyun, "Try to resuscitate her."

Wu Qingyun had trained in battlefield first aid and acted as the team’s medic during field survival training, so he knew some emergency measures.

He nodded, stepping forward to perform CPR and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on the woman... After three rounds, Ling Chengyan took over... When Wu Qingyun resumed for a second time and completed the second set of CPR, the woman suddenly coughed and started breathing again.

Saving this mother and child made their lengthy night of search and rescue worthwhile.

They delivered the mother and child to the waiting ambulance nearby, then returned to the temporary camp, where they haphazardly slept clothed for two hours. By dawn, they set out again to continue rescuing.

After three days and nights of continuous rescues, they saved six people but found over ten bodies.

Once, when their boat was searching the waters of what seemed to be a village, several young men took turns calling out, "Is anyone there? Anyone?... "

Amidst the cries that rose and fell, a person suddenly floated up beside their boat. A drowned corpse that had been soaking floated silently from the depths, face down and limbs half-extended.

One young man standing at the boat’s edge exclaimed in shock, nearly losing his balance and falling into the water. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

The sky cleared, and it rained no more.

On the second day of Ling Chengyan’s search and rescue, they received news that the broken embankment at Xu Family Gate was blocked.

On the third day, they heard that the river’s water level was continuously dropping, and the floodwaters outside the embankment were receding quickly as well.

Three days passed, and a lot of water receded, with higher roads gradually resurfacing.

Construction teams with vehicles and equipment began road repairs, and with road accessibility, rescue supplies were shipped in batch after batch.

Ling Chengyan led the team from initially rescuing survivors to now searching for missing people and the bodies of victims.

On the fifth day, when they returned with another body, they saw a dozen large trucks parked outside the command post, each with a large red banner depicting "Eastern Province..."

The previously despondent Liu Xianghu suddenly stood up, pointing at the vehicles and shouting, "Captain, look, look, they’re from our hometown!"

Ling Chengyan had already noticed, and to respond to his subordinate, he nodded cooperatively. "Let’s get off the boat and check how many people have come. Let’s have the cooks prepare a big meat dish and invite our fellow countrymen to eat together."

Liu Xianghu suddenly clutched his stomach and leaned over the boat’s edge to vomit, but kept his face turned to maintain a forward view.

There was another one following behind, already beyond recognition after soaking for days, and he dared not look too closely.

Once ashore, Ling Chengyan first contacted local personnel to hand over the body they brought back and was busy filling out search location, time, and other details when Liu Xianghu ran over cheerfully, exclaiming loudly, "Captain, guess who’s come?"

Ling Chengyan continued writing without pause, responding casually, "Is it your brother-in-law?"

Liu Xianghu’s eyes widened, and after a long pause, he said, "Captain, you must have known beforehand. My brother-in-law must have called you before coming, right?"

"No," Ling Chengyan replied flatly, completing the final word, checking for errors, then putting down the pen, handing over the completed report, and leaving.

"Captain, captain, brother-in-law rarely comes; at least take a day off to keep him company..." Liu Xianghu was anxious as he followed Ling Chengyan.

Ling Chengyan couldn’t help but sigh, turning to the trailing Liu Xianghu and said, "The flood control and rescue work is almost complete. Next is the rebuilding effort; we’re not engineering troops, so there’s no use in staying."

"What?" Liu Xianghu jumped in shock, seemingly too stunned to think straight.

Smiling, Ling Chengyan shook his head and continued striding purposefully toward the large trucks parked outside the command post.

When Ling Chengyan met Wang Liansheng, he was already wearing an apron, busy with team members acting as temporary cooks, diligently preparing food. A master chef, Wang Liansheng, had several temporary cooks assisting him.

The aroma of fresh cooking wafted out, and Ling Chengyan stopped at the door, sniffing, "Hmm, it’s clam meat omelette!"

As long-time partners with many eyes watching, the couple reunited in a foreign land couldn’t do much more.

Yet, Wang Liansheng looked at his now much thinner wife, his eyes full of heartbreak.

His gaze was filled with reluctance and heartache, but his face was adorned with a smile.

He examined his wife with a gentle smile, saying, "You’ve lost a lot of weight."

Ling Chengyan shook her head, "We’ll nourish back at home."

Wang Liansheng’s expression relaxed, and he nodded with a smile, "Yes, we’ll nourish back at home."

Originally, Ling Chengyan shared a tent with Fu Qiang, but when Wang Liansheng arrived, Fu Qiang took the initiative to offer to stay elsewhere, but Ling Chengyan stopped her.

Most of those involved in the flood defense were male, and in this area, only Ling Chengyan and Fu Qiang were female officers. Evicting Fu Qiang left her, a young single woman, with nowhere to stay. If she couldn’t find shelter, would she have to huddle under a thin blanket in the open air for a night?

Ling Chengyan brought Wang Liansheng to the command post outside, standing by the overflowing waters. Arm in arm, Wang Liansheng first said, "I volunteered to deliver supplies just to see you..."

He eventually extended his arm, embracing his wife.

Though usually indifferent to dressing or attire, appearing neat and spirited, Ling Chengyan had never (seen him) appear so disheveled as now.