Soldiers Assault: Starting from the 7th Steel Company

Chapter 168 A Heartbreaking Farewell

After hearing what the railway said, Chen Jiang was momentarily stunned.

It wasn't until Chu Ning spoke up, "Let's stop here for today. I received a call that I have to rush back. Apparently, someone was in a car accident."

"Yes, my Party Secretary was in a car accident, and they took him to your hospital," Chen Jiang said with a serious expression.

"Huh?" Chu Ning was a little surprised, but quickly recovered. "Then let's go quickly. You can ride in my car with me."

After Chen Jiang paid the bill, he got into Chu Ning's Volkswagen Polo.

During this period, being able to afford a private car is extremely difficult, because in addition to the cost of fuel, maintenance and insurance, there are also huge expenses for road maintenance fees every year.

Chu Ning's POLO was a manual transmission, but she drove it very smoothly and steadily. In addition, there were very few cars on the road at this time, so they arrived at the hospital in just 20 minutes.

Upon arriving at the hospital, Chu Ning and Chen Jiang parted ways. She needed to change into her work clothes and get to work, while Chen Jiang needed to head straight to the emergency room.

When he arrived at the emergency room, he witnessed a heartbreaking scene: Yuan Lang had been hit and was unconscious, suffering from severe internal bleeding. He was rushed to the operating room for surgery and was on the verge of death. The driver and Anya were pronounced dead at the scene.

Chen Jiang was somewhat taken aback; how could something have happened so suddenly?
His legs felt like they were filled with lead, and he moved heavily to sit down on a metal chair next to him.

The cold chair mirrored his current mood; the glaring lights in the corridor shone on the stark white walls, and the air was thick with the smell of disinfectant.

Several medical staff were pushing a stretcher covered with a white sheet slowly past, the wheels making a dull rolling sound on the ground.

"Is it Anya?" Chen Jiang's throat tightened, and his voice was almost squeezed out from between his teeth.

He reached out with trembling hands, wanting to lift the white sheet for another look, but was stopped by a nurse beside him.

Because the bodies of those involved in traffic accidents are often unrecognizable, they cannot be viewed by the public immediately. They must be processed by a mortician at the funeral home before they can be seen.

"Sir, please accept my condolences." The nurse saw that Chen Jiang was a lieutenant and whispered, "Why don't you go and check on the other injured person first? He's being treated in operating room number 3."

Chen Jiang then seemed to wake up from a dream and stumbled towards the operating room.

On the way, he bumped into a nurse carrying a tray of instruments, and the metal instruments scattered all over the ground.

"I'm sorry, I..." he apologized instinctively, but then he heard hurried footsteps behind him.

"Chen Jiang!" Chu Ning had already changed into surgical scrubs and was wearing a mask. "I just heard... Oh my god, how could this happen?"

"Dr. Chu, hurry up, it's about to start!" someone shouted from afar.

Chu Ning bit her lip and said quickly, "I will do everything I can to save him. You go to the rest room and wait." After saying that, she turned and ran towards the operating room.

Chen Jiang stood frozen in place, his mind replaying the scenes from earlier that day—he and Yuan Lang chatting and laughing, even talking about throwing a celebration banquet for Chen Jiang and the others when they got back; Anya was still reflecting on the minor flaws in her presentation slides, and how had things changed so quickly?
He mechanically walked to the bench outside the operating room and sat down, only then noticing that his hands were trembling uncontrollably.

The phone in my pocket suddenly rang again; it was a call from the brigade leader, Railway.

"Captain," his voice was hoarse and unlike his own.

"Chen Jiang, the traffic police have caught the driver who caused the accident. He's a drunk bastard!" Tie Lu said angrily on the other end of the phone. "That guy ran a red light in his truck and crashed into Yuan Lang's military vehicle. Then, knowing he'd caused a huge disaster, he actually drove off."

Chen Jiang couldn't continue listening to what was said after that. His mind was blank, and he just stared blankly at the red light on the operating room door. Suddenly, he felt that all of this was absurd and unreal.

The sky outside the window was pitch black, and his haggard face was reflected in the glass.

After an unknown amount of time, Tie Lu and his men finally arrived. Seeing the anxious expression on the captain's face and the exhausted looks on Qi Huan and the others behind him, they knew that the men must have rushed here.

"How is the situation?" Railway asked anxiously.

Chen Jiang explained the current situation in detail. Even though the railway is known for its composure, he was now somewhat at a loss.

He kept getting updates by phone throughout the journey. The traffic police hadn't told him about the injuries or fatalities, only that he was being taken to a military hospital for emergency treatment. He never expected...
"Yuan Lang absolutely cannot be harmed, you must hold on!" He said this to the operating room door, but he was also speaking to himself.

"Captain, don't worry. He's been through a hail of bullets from the Party Committee, this little injury is nothing! Besides, the military hospital has sent the best doctor to perform the surgery, he will definitely pull through!" Chen Jiang hadn't even seen Yuan Lang's injuries, he only knew that he was bleeding heavily, but now it was a test of willpower and luck.

There was nothing more the railway could say; all they could do now was quietly wait for the surgery results.

The surgery lasted a really long time, until the early hours of the morning, before the operating room door finally opened.

When the surgeon, Chu Ning, came out, he had already taken off his mask, and his face was terribly pale.

Railway and Chen Jiang stood up at the same time.

"How is he?" Railway asked anxiously.

Chu Ning's eyelashes fluttered a few times, and she smiled slightly: "He should be alright now. His willpower is incredibly strong; he pulled through. But he'll need to be hospitalized for observation for a while, and it's hard to say whether there will be any long-term effects."

"Thank you, doctor! Thank you, doctor!" Tie Lu's voice trembled with excitement. He was genuinely afraid that Chu Ning would say his partner wouldn't wake up.

Hearing that Yuan Lang's life has been saved is already a relief; everything else is trivial.

He felt a huge weight lifted off his shoulders, but was also slightly dizzy, his ears ringing. He stumbled, but fortunately Chen Jiang caught him.
"Captain"

Chen Jiang exclaimed in surprise.

"It's nothing serious, I just might have a little low blood sugar." Tie Lu waved his hand. He had been so busy during the day that he hadn't even had time for dinner, and now he was really feeling the strain.

"Sir, I have some biscuits in my office, shall I get them for you?" Chu Ning was quite attentive to Chen Jiang's leadership.

Railway glanced at the beautiful military doctor in front of him. She must have been exhausted from the surgery, so he quickly declined, "Isn't that a bit much? You've been busy for so long, go and rest first, it's already very late."

"There's nothing to be embarrassed about. I ate a big meal for dinner. Besides, it's normal for us doctors to work night shifts and stay up late." Chu Ning was very generous in this regard. He instructed Chen Jiang, "Take good care of the commander. I'll go get some biscuits now."

Then he strode away.

"Do you know this doctor?" Tie Lu wasn't stupid; he could clearly tell from Chu Ning's tone that she was very familiar with Chen Jiang.

“Yes, friend,” Chen Jiang replied.

"Oh, not bad." The railway was unaware of Chu Ning's relationship with Gao Jianjun. It was just that Chen Jiang was getting on in years and could definitely consider his personal life, and this Dr. Chu was quite good.

But with this situation arising within the team, he didn't have the time or inclination to pay attention to it, so he simply nodded and sat down. With Chu Ning's dry rations and milk, Tie Lu's condition did indeed improve significantly after eating.

Then he asked, "Where are they?"

Chu Ning understood what he was asking, and hesitated for a moment before answering, "I suggest going to the morgue tomorrow after the mortician has finished preparing everything."

Railway understood what she meant and could only nod painfully.

"Captain, go and rest for a while. I'll take care of things here," Chen Jiang advised.

Indeed, Yuan Lang wouldn't be out of the operating room for a while. Even after he did, there was no point in leaving the railway here. Besides, there were still two people's funeral arrangements to be made, and reports to the military region to be submitted. There were just too many things to do.

"Yes, sir, please go and rest for a while. We will take good care of Commissioner Yuan." Chu Ning had already learned about the patient's information from the nurses' station.

Despite the strong persuasion of his entourage, Railway realized that there was no point in staying any longer, so he had to find a place to stay for the night. Before leaving, he instructed Chen Jiang to keep an eye on things, and that someone would come to relieve him at dawn.

Chen Jiang nodded.

Chu Ning had surgery today, so she switched shifts with someone else to take the night shift. But even on night shift, she was still very busy. After making Chen Jiang a cup of hot water, she went off to do her chores.

Chen Jiang waited until Yuan Lang was wheeled out of the operating room and into the ward, and all the instruments and tubes were inserted before the ordeal was considered over.

Seeing how badly Yuan Lang, who used to be as fierce as a tiger, was hit this time, Chen Jiang felt a pang of sadness.

He stood by the hospital bed, looking at Yuan Lang's pale face. The ventilator was running rhythmically, and the fluctuating lines on the electrocardiogram monitor were the only comfort at this moment.

"Captain," Chen Jiang called softly, his voice choked in his throat.

He recalled Yuan Lang's agile figure on the training field, and his decisive command during missions, but now he could only lie here, motionless.

Hurried footsteps echoed down the corridor. Chu Ning pushed open the door and entered, holding a freshly taken CT scan. "The situation is better than we expected," she said quickly. "At least there's no intracranial bleeding. The main issues are four broken ribs and a ruptured spleen, which is a stroke of good luck amidst misfortune."

Chen Jiang nodded. He knew that Chu Ning had done her best in treating Yuan Lang. It was late at night, and there were no other doctors around. It was only because of Chu Ning's superb medical skills that it was possible that an ordinary person could not say for sure.

Chu Ning softened her voice: "Why don't you take a nap? I've finished everything else and will have some free time."

“You must be tired too, go and rest. I’m a former special forces soldier, I can go for days and nights without sleep without any problem.” Chen Jiang smiled.

Just kidding. Chu Ning is a girl. She's already performed such a long surgery and still has to work overtime. She's not made of iron. How could she let someone else take her place?

Besides, Yuan Lang is a man, and it would be inconvenient for a girl to be alone with him.

Chu Ning didn't try to persuade him anymore; she simply went out and brought him in a small blanket.

“I have two, you can take one to use first,” Chu Ning said, knowing he might refuse, so she gave him a reason he couldn’t refuse.
As expected, Chen Jiang did not refuse upon hearing this.

After Chu Ning left, he couldn't sleep. He just stared blankly at the dripping IV. Finally, in the middle of the night, he couldn't hold on any longer and fell into a deep sleep.

He had a very long dream in which Anya repeatedly apologized to him for not improving the information system to its fullest potential.

When Chen Jiang smiled and told her it was okay, the two assassins suddenly reappeared. But this time, they couldn't kill them. Instead, they were brutally beaten by the assassins. Even though Anya was also kidnapped by them.

He could only shout in his dreams.

"Wake up, Chen Jiang~"

He heard someone calling him, and when he opened his eyes, he saw Chu Ning looking at him with concern.

Only then did he realize that he was soaked in cold sweat.

"I'm sorry, I had a nightmare," Chen Jiang apologized repeatedly.

“Your nightmares are really scary. I’m mainly worried that you’ll disturb the patients’ rest.” Chu Ning glanced at Yuan Lang, who was still fast asleep.

"What time is it now?" Chen Jiang felt like he had slept for a long time and was afraid of affecting Yuan Lang's medicine.

"It's only a little past four, it's still early," Chu Ning replied.

"Huh?" Chen Jiang was quite surprised, because he felt like he had slept for quite a while. "You didn't sleep all night either?"

Chen Jiang noticed that Chu Ning's eyes also seemed to be bloodshot.

"Don't think that only special forces soldiers stay up all night. We military doctors also often stay up all night," Chu Ning replied with considerable pride.

Chen Jiang felt a little guilty. He guessed that Chu Ning was also worried about this place, so she came over to help watch over it after he fell asleep.

So he lost his sleepiness and began to ask about Yuan Lang's recovery progress.

Chu Ning spoke frankly, saying that it all depends on the patient's physical condition, but it will definitely take a long time to recover to normal levels, and the high-intensity training they did before may not be possible in the future.

After daybreak, Chu Ning took Chen Jiang to the hospital cafeteria for breakfast. When they returned to the ward, Yuan Lang finally woke up. Upon seeing Chen Jiang, he immediately asked about Anya's condition.

Chen Jiang considered that Chu Ning had told him that Yuan Lang should not be too emotional because he had just undergone major surgery, so he could only lie to his friends and say that Anya was not seriously ill and was recuperating in another ward.

Hearing Chen Jiang's answer, Yuan Lang finally breathed a sigh of relief. After all, the information system had only been developed recently. Although several more talents had been recruited, they all seemed to be inferior to Anya in terms of skill level.

When asked about the driver's condition, Chen Jiang could only say that he was seriously injured.
He felt his face burning with embarrassment after telling two lies. Fortunately, Xu Sanduo and Cheng Cai arrived at that moment and helped him take over, so he quickly slipped out of the ward.

Three days later, a memorial service for Anya and the driver was solemnly held at the city funeral home. The gloomy sky seemed to be mourning as well, and a light drizzle fell on the cement ground in front of the funeral home, forming small puddles.

Because Anya's brother could not be contacted and Yuan Lang was unable to attend, Chen Jiang became Anya's family member, wearing a small white flower on his chest and a black armband on his arm.

The family of the young driver were weeping terribly at the funeral; it was a tragedy of parents outliving their child.

Compared to the young soldier, Anya had very few family members; only Chen Jiang was on the "family" side accompanying her.

After being carefully restored and made up by the mortician, her body seemed to have regained her youthful and beautiful appearance, even though her face was deathly pale and devoid of any color.

The flowers and cypress trees surrounding her body further emphasized the cruel truth: she was gone.

(End of this chapter)