Double evil in the business district

The flames shot up into the sky, illuminating Xiao Yue's face. The piercing noise from the intercom pierced her eardrums like a knife. The loss of communication meant they were completely cut off from the outside world, isolated and helpless. She took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down. Now was not the time to panic. She had to lead everyone to survive.

"Engineer Li!" Xiao Yue rushed to Engineer Li, who was slumped on the ground, and shook his shoulders vigorously. "Cheer up! Tell me how many people are still trapped! Where are they!"

Engineer Li stared at her with empty eyes, his lips trembling, but he couldn't speak. Fear and despair enveloped him tightly, making him lose the ability to think.

Xiao Yue turned to look at the panicked employees around her and shouted, "Don't panic, everyone! We will definitely be rescued! Now, everyone, listen to my instructions and gather in an open area!" Her firm tone and calm attitude were like a shot of adrenaline, gradually calming the panicked crowd.

Meanwhile, Shen Ting and Firefighter Zhou had already rushed into the fire. Thick smoke billowed, and the heat wave hit them, making it almost impossible to breathe. Visibility was almost zero. "Boss Shen, this is too dangerous. We must retreat!" Firefighter Zhou's voice was hoarse, and he was coughing from the smoke.

"No! There are still people trapped inside!" Shen Ting's voice was firm and powerful. He used the weak light to carefully search every corner, not missing any glimmer of hope.

Suddenly, a huge steel frame fell from above. Firefighter Zhou quickly pushed Shen Ting away, but he was hit and let out a painful groan.

"Firefighter Zhou!" Shen Ting's heart sank suddenly, and he hurried forward to check Firefighter Zhou's injuries.

While waiting for relief supplies, time seemed to stretch endlessly. The employees' spirits grew increasingly low, and fear and despair spread among the crowd. Xiao Yue continued to encourage everyone and maintain order, but she grew increasingly anxious. The delay in the arrival of relief supplies meant that the longer they were trapped, the greater the danger.

"Mr. Xiao, when will the relief supplies arrive?" an employee asked in a trembling voice.

Xiao Yue pretended to be calm and replied, "It will be here soon, just hold on a little longer!" But she knew in her heart that she had no idea when the relief supplies would arrive, or even if they could still get rescued.

Just then, an employee pointed into the distance and shouted, "Look! There are car lights!"

Everyone's eyes were fixed on the distance, and they saw two dazzling beams of light piercing through the night sky and slowly approaching.

The flame of hope rekindled in Xiao Yue's heart. She clenched her fists tightly, praying that this was really the arrival of relief supplies.

However, after the vehicle came to a complete stop, the person who stepped out was not a rescue worker, but... Director Chen. With a meaningful smile on his face, he slowly walked towards Xiao Yue.

"Mr. Xiao, thank you for your hard work." Director Chen's voice was particularly harsh in the night sky. Director Chen's hypocritical concern made Xiao Yue feel a chill. She suppressed her uneasiness and asked in a cold voice, "Director Chen, where are the relief supplies?"

Director Chen smiled and said slowly, "Relief supplies? Mr. Xiao, now is not the time to worry about relief supplies. The company is facing a huge crisis. We should be more concerned about how to stabilize the situation and minimize the losses."

Xiao Yue's heart sank. She realized Director Chen's intention wasn't to rescue them, but to take advantage of their misfortune. "Director Chen, the most important thing right now is to save them! Everything else can be dealt with later!"

"Saving lives is of course important," Director Chen said with a hint of sarcasm in his tone, "but we must also act within our capabilities. You can see the current situation. The rescue is extremely difficult. Instead of wasting resources, it's better to focus on handling the aftermath and minimizing the losses." He looked around, his eyes landing on the exhausted employees. "Everyone, I know you're all working hard, but now is not the time to complain. The company needs us to unite and overcome this difficult time together. Although President Xiao and President Shen did their best, they also bear responsibility for this accident."

Director Chen's words were like a bomb dropped on the crowd. Some shareholders who did not know the truth began to whisper and questioned the leadership abilities of Xiao Yue and Shen Ting.

"Yes, the losses from this accident are too great. Can the company survive?"

"Boss Xiao and Boss Shen lack experience, and they didn't handle this matter properly."

"We should reassess their leadership capabilities and select more suitable people to lead the company out of this predicament."

Listening to the discussions around her, Xiao Yue's face became increasingly grim. She knew that Director Chen was using this incident to try to sideline her and Shen Ting.

At this moment, Shen Ting walked out of the fire scene. He was covered in ash and his face was covered in smoke, but his eyes were still firm. He walked to Xiao Yue, held her hand tightly, and gave her silent support.

"Director Chen, the rescue work isn't over yet. It's too early to talk about this now." Shen Ting's voice was low and powerful. "We should focus on saving people instead of blaming each other here."

Director Chen sneered, "Boss Shen, you should take care of yourself first. You bear the unshirkable responsibility for this accident."

Shen Ting ignored Director Chen's provocation. He turned to look at Doctor Zhao and said, "Doctor Zhao, how is the injured patient?"

Doctor Zhao took off his mask and said tiredly, "There are many injured people, and the situation is not optimistic. Our medical resources are limited, and I'm afraid..."

Before he could finish his words, there was another commotion in the distance. Ambulances roared in, bringing much-needed medical supplies and personnel.

Seeing this scene, Xiao Yue and Shen Ting breathed a sigh of relief. They knew that the battle was not over yet, but at least they saw hope.

Director Chen's face darkened. His plan was disrupted. He glared at Xiao Yue and Shen Ting fiercely, then turned and left.

Under the cover of night, rescue efforts continued intensively. Engineer Li wiped the sweat from his face and pointed to the blackened blueprints in his hand. He spoke anxiously, "I need more time! The supporting structures near the explosion site are severely damaged. If they're not reinforced in time, there's a fear of a secondary collapse. The biggest problem now is a ruptured underground water pipe, which is pouring into the collapsed area and further eroding the foundation. I need to recalculate the load-bearing capacity..." His voice trembled, clearly indicating the immense pressure he was under.

Shen Ting frowned. He knew time was of the essence, but he also understood that haste makes waste. "Engineer Li, please let us know what you need. We will fully cooperate."

"I need a water pump, a more powerful one! And steel for reinforcement, the more the better!" Engineer Li almost shouted.

Shen Ting immediately arranged for personnel to mobilize supplies. He knew that this would be a race against time.

Elsewhere, Nurse Wu's voice sounded particularly weak amid the clamor of the rescue scene. "Gauze... hemostat... morphine..." she repeated over and over, a hint of despair in her tone. There were too many wounded, and medical supplies were severely insufficient. A young worker lay on a stretcher, his face pale and his breathing weak. Nurse Wu bandaged his wound with trembling hands, only to discover she had run out of gauze.

"Nurse, my leg... hurts so much..." The young worker uttered a few words with difficulty, beads of sweat the size of beans rolling down his forehead.

Nurse Wu held back her tears and held his hand tightly: "Hold on, you'll be fine!" But she knew in her heart that without enough medical supplies, this young life might very well be lost.

Xiao Yue's heart ached as she watched everything unfold before her. She knew this disaster wasn't just natural, but man-made. Director Chen's scheme sent a chill through her bones. If she focused her energy on fighting him now, it would inevitably hinder the rescue efforts. But if she allowed Director Chen's scheme to continue, Xiao Enterprises would likely collapse. Then, she would lose all support, leaving her powerless to carry out the rescue.

She took a deep breath and tried to keep herself calm. She walked to Shen Ting and whispered, "Shen Ting, Director Chen..."

Shen Ting held her hand and gave her a firm look: "I know, I will handle it." He knew how much pressure Xiao Yue was under at the moment, and he had to be her pillar so that she could devote herself wholeheartedly to the rescue work.

At this moment, trucks loaded with supplies finally arrived at the scene. Xiao Yue was delighted, but when she saw the amount of supplies, her face turned pale. These supplies were far from enough...

She walked up to a worker who was complaining about the lack of supplies. Just as she was about to explain, she heard a cold voice from behind her: "Boss Xiao, it seems you are not focusing on the rescue."

Xiao Yue turned around and saw Director Chen standing not far away, a sinister smile on his face. He looked around and raised his voice, "Everyone, did you see that? This is Director Xiao's ability to get things done! There are so few relief supplies. Where did she spend all the company's money?"

Whispers were heard again in the crowd, and dissatisfaction began to spread.

Xiao Yue clenched her fists tightly. She knew that a bigger storm was about to come... She turned to look at Shen Ting, her eyes filled with helplessness and anxiety. She said in a voice that only he could hear, "Shen Ting, I..."