Chapter 219: An Oddball with a Tragic Past

Su Ruo felt that her rebirth back counted as having weathered storms, but when the earthquake struck, she still couldn't help feeling startled.

"Don't be afraid!" At that moment, Song Jingyu's voice came from above her head, making Su Ruo inexplicably feel a sense of safety.

After her rebirth, everything Su Ruo wanted had to be won by herself; she had never thought of relying on anyone in the past, nor had she ever thought of depending on others.

But at this moment, in this life-or-death situation, she suddenly realized that being protected by someone wasn't bad either.

The earth shook violently twice more, then gradually returned to calm.

Song Jingyu immediately got up to check the situation; at that moment everyone was terrified, their eyes full of fear.

Because of this aftershock, the already difficult rescue work became even harder.

Su Ruo walked out of the tent, and Song Jingyu said, "Take care of yourself." Then, without looking back, he ran off to join the rescue.

Su Ruo looked at his back, his clothes stained red with blood again; she opened her mouth but ultimately said nothing.

She saw the light fall on those green figures, and for the first time understood that there is a spirit called mission.

Saving lives at any cost is the mission of Song Jingyu and his team.

Because of this aftershock, the number of injured increased, and consequently Su Ruo and her team became even busier.

The instructor quickly finished counting heads and reminded Su Ruo and her team to always pay attention to safety.

Then they plunged once more into the tense rescue work, enduring several days and nights of torment; this group of Medical Academy newcomers gradually came to accept death, and to accept that some things are beyond their control.

At the same time, they became more deeply aware of their shortcomings, realizing that each time their skills were lacking, it could cost a life in their hands.

So they held themselves to stricter standards, refusing to give up on any life, and silently swore in their hearts that upon returning they would study medicine more diligently and treat their medical profession with solemnity.

Song Jingyu promised to come back every day to change the dressing, but in reality he simply couldn't do it.

To prevent Song Jingyu's wound from becoming inflamed and worsening, Su Ruo gave him the best antibiotics and anti-inflammatory medicine.

Song Jingyu thought Su Ruo would blame him as before, but she didn't; she merely told him to take care of himself.

The two of them—one saving lives, the other treating illness—over many days of interaction gradually developed an unspoken understanding.

They respected and admired each other; they felt something like friendship but a step beyond, a feeling that slowly flowed between them.

After over a month of nonstop work, the rescue effort was finally drawing to a close, during that month-plus.

Su Ruo and her fellow Medical Academy members, together with the soldiers who joined the rescue, though exhausted, reaped gratitude from many; looking at those sincere faces, they all felt that everything they had done was worthwhile.

But there are always exceptions—for example, a patient Su Ruo took charge of, a girl named Wang Lihua; when Song Jingyu brought her in, her right leg had already been severely crushed by a beam for too long and was necrotic.

The girl also fainted from the pain; Su Ruo examined her condition and realized that to save her life, an amputation was necessary.

Su Ruo hesitated not at all and immediately performed the surgery on the girl.

When the girl woke up and saw that she had lost a leg, she burst into tears, hoarsely questioning the young nurse who cared for her: why had they cut off her leg?

The older woman beside her quickly comforted her: "Miss, so many people died in this disaster; just being able to keep your life is already good."

The older woman had also lost an arm, but people can still live well; hey! As long as you stay alive, there is hope.

But the girl didn't calm down because of the older woman's safety; instead she angrily shouted:

"You old immortal, what are you, daring to compare yourself to me! You're just an old bag of bones that might last a few more days; I still want to marry and have a family—how can I live without legs?"

The older woman's face turned livid from the girl's scolding, and she wanted nothing more to do with her; others who had initially pitied the girl and wanted to comfort her a couple of words fell silent upon seeing her behavior.

Su Ruo walked in, gave the girl a cold glance, and thought that after her rebirth she had already encountered enough oddballs, so the girl's behavior came as no surprise.

In this world, there are certainly many good people who make it ever more beautiful.

But it cannot be denied that this world also contains many oddballs; when others help them, they never feel grateful for it.

Instead, when they encounter difficulties and setbacks, they blame society and fate for being unfair.

The girl before us is clearly such a person; reasoning with her is useless, because she simply won't listen to any reason, only immersing herself in her own world.

Su Ruo's gaze turned icy as she looked at her; the girl's body trembled at that look, and she dared not speak out again.

Su Ruo's look grew ever more contemptuous; this was someone who appeared strong but was weak inside, bullying the soft and fearing the hard.

"Your surgery was performed by me; if you have any complaints, you can file them with the higher authority. Now please stay quiet and don't disturb the other patients' rest."

"If you continue to shout and yell, I have the right to ask you to leave."

"If you are dissatisfied with my treatment, you can also seek help from others; I have no objection."

Having said that, Su Ruo stared at the girl without blinking, as if the girl uttered another word she would immediately be expelled.

The girl's body involuntarily trembled; outside lay so many corpses and homeless people, and in her current condition, being cast out would surely mean death.

Moreover, her leg had been amputated and she was still in recovery; without anesthetic, even if she didn't die of illness or starvation, she would die from pain.

So the girl was very aware of the situation and dared not speak again.

Everyone saw the girl no longer causing a ruckus and breathed a sigh of relief; although she had temporarily quieted down, every time the young nurse came to change her dressing, she would find fault, nitpick, even hurl insults, and after a few times no nurse was willing to attend to her anymore.

Out of professional duty, Su Ruo reluctantly took over the task of changing her dressing, for she could not bear to watch her die from a festering wound.

Although the girl was arrogant toward others, the moment she saw Su Ruo she became meek, knowing that Su Ruo would never indulge her, and that if she provoked Su Ruo's anger, Su Ruo might very well throw her out directly.

But the girl's mischief didn't end there, especially after she learned that her parents and younger brother had all perished in this disaster.