Chapter 24

Li Zhenzhen was determined to go her own way. She pulled a raincoat out of the wardrobe and threw it on without hesitation, leaving behind a sharp remark:

“Fortune favors the bold—never heard of it?”

“Hesitate all you want, but that’s a sack of grain and three fat fish out there. If you don’t want them, I sure do.”

Once the raincoat was on, she immediately pulled the door open and dashed into the pouring rain, disappearing from sight.

Sun Fangfang was about to follow her lead and open the door as well, but Zhu Qinghan stopped her.

“Fangfang, trust me, will you?”

“Fixing the dam is way too dangerous. Look at how hard it’s raining! If the floodwaters sweep you away, that’s your life gone!”

After all, among the people in the house, Sun Fangfang was most familiar with Zhu Qinghan.

Thanks to her heartfelt pleading, Sun Fangfang finally gave up the idea.

“Alright, alright, I’m not going. Happy now?”

Only then did Zhu Qinghan breathe a sigh of relief.

…

All afternoon, Deng Zhilan quietly stayed inside the house.

She followed Qin Ping’s lead and had already knitted the beginnings of something with the yarn in her hands.

She was planning to knit a small hat for the baby in her belly.

Just then, there was another knock at the courtyard gate.

Deng Zhilan’s heart skipped a beat—could it be Wei Yanzhen, back so soon?

She hurried to her feet and quickly went to open the door.

“It’s me, I’m Granny Luo from next door.”

Standing at the door was Granny Luo, holding a worn-out umbrella. Her hair was half white, and deep wrinkles lined her eyes.

Deng Zhilan was a little surprised, unsure of why she had come over.

“Auntie, is there something you need?”

“I just wanted to chat with someone. The rain’s coming down so hard—it’s making me anxious.”

Deng Zhilan stepped aside to let her in, and Granny Luo entered the courtyard.

She immediately noticed how the once dilapidated house had been tidied up spotlessly by its new residents. Even the furniture had been polished to a shine.

Granny Luo found a stool and sat down, letting out a heavy sigh.

“My eldest son, Luo Yisen, also went to help fix the dam.”

“You folks just moved here, so you wouldn’t know—our brigade’s dam breaks almost every year. People always get sent to fix it, and… every now and then, someone dies doing it.”

“Once the rain gets too heavy, the floodwaters rush in—it really can drown a person.”

Qin Ping, sitting in the main hall, was of the same generation as Granny Luo. As a mother herself, she deeply understood what Granny Luo was feeling.

She comforted her, saying, “Our Yanzhen used to be in the army. He’s been through many major missions—disaster relief, flood rescues, opening roads through floods. Don’t worry, he’s gone to help with the dam too. He’ll be fine.”

Granny Luo could only tighten her grip on the prayer beads in her hands.

Forcing a smile, she changed the subject, chatting with Deng Zhilan and Qin Ping about other things.

No one brought up the heavy topic again.

…

Deng Zhilan had slept all afternoon.

By the time she got up again, it was already dark outside.

She walked into the main hall, sensing a heavy atmosphere hanging in the room.

“Mom, Dad… has Yanzhen come back?”

The rain outside hadn’t stopped, and the darkness felt almost suffocating.

Qin Ping and Wei Xiaotian both had complicated expressions on their faces. It was Qin Ping who finally spoke first, walking over and gripping Deng Zhilan’s hand tightly.

“Lanlan, you need to prepare yourself mentally.”

Deng Zhilan’s heart tensed.

“Word around the brigade is… the educated youth camp was flooded.”

“Yanzhen hasn’t returned yet. Something might have happened to him.”

Deng Zhilan simply couldn’t believe it!

Wei Yanzhen was the male lead of the original story. Even if everyone else died, there was no way he would be in danger.

“Mom, I don’t believe it! I’m going to find him!”

She couldn’t sit still any longer.

She flung open the door, ready to rush out in search of Wei Yanzhen.

Qin Ping grabbed an umbrella and chased after her.

“Lanlan, the rain’s too heavy—come back!”

But Deng Zhilan paid no attention. She ran into the downpour, the rain soaking her hair and clothes in seconds. Stumbling and slipping, she pushed on toward the educated youth camp, her heart screaming with one thought: I must find Wei Yanzhen.

When she arrived, all she saw was a vast stretch of floodwater. Most of the houses had been destroyed—only fragments of broken walls remained.

Deng Zhilan was overwhelmed with anxiety, shouting Wei Yanzhen’s name at the top of her lungs—

“Yanzhen! Wei Yanzhen!”

“Where are you?!”

Her voice was quickly swallowed by the wind and rain.

Suddenly, she spotted something hanging from a tree not far away.

As she got closer, she realized—it wasn’t Wei Yanzhen.

It was a dead body!

Deng Zhilan’s face turned pale as a sheet. She staggered back in fright.

Then, a warm chest appeared behind her.

She turned and looked. “Yanzhen…”

“It’s me.”

Wei Yanzhen’s face was filled with worry as he quickly brought her to the shore.

“Why did you come here, sweetheart?”

“It’s too dangerous here—you shouldn’t be here!”

Deng Zhilan clung to him, overwhelmed with emotion. She had finally found him.

“I was afraid something happened to you.”

But Wei Yanzhen didn’t dare to relax for even a second, nor could he bring himself to tell her the full truth.

“I’m taking you away—right now. You can’t stay here.”

Deng Zhilan pushed back, “Then what about you? If we go, we go together.”

But Wei Yanzhen shook his head.

He had once been a soldier, tasked with protecting the country—and even though he’d been sent to the countryside, that responsibility hadn’t changed.

“I can’t go.”

“The dam still isn’t fixed.”

In that moment, Deng Zhilan felt a deep ache for this man. How many times must he have faced danger like this before?

That must be why he feared neither death nor the unknown.

She knew she shouldn’t hold him back—couldn’t become his burden.

So she obediently followed him away.

But just as they were crossing a waterlogged pit, Wei Yanzhen suddenly tackled her to the ground.

“Sweetheart, watch out!”

—Bang! A gunshot rang out.

Things were far more serious than Deng Zhilan had imagined. Her heart nearly stopped.

Thoughts flew through her mind—There was never a gunfight in the original story! Not in Dongfeng Brigade!

Elsewhere, Feng Zhijun heard the gunshot and rushed over to assist.

Behind them, the sounds of bare-chested fighting echoed through the night.

Wei Yanzhen shielded Deng Zhilan’s belly with his body, helping her roll down to a safer area at the base of the dam.

“Sweetheart, hide here.”

He pulled out a sickle from somewhere and was about to charge out when Deng Zhilan stopped him.

“Yanzhen, what’s going on? Tell me the truth—please!”

Wei Yanzhen let out a deep sigh and pulled her into a tight embrace:

“There are spies in the brigade!”

“They sabotaged the dam. That’s why the youth camp was flooded.”

Deng Zhilan’s eyes widened in shock.

“Then… what do we do now?”

Her voice trembled.

Wei Yanzhen gently stroked her back and tried to comfort her:

“Don’t panic. I’ll deal with the spies.”

“But it’s too dangerous to leave right now. Sweetheart, hide here. Someone from the brigade will come and get you. Go with them when they do.”

Deng Zhilan clutched his shirt tightly. After a moment’s hesitation, she finally nodded.