Chapter 702: Saving the Sister and Brother

He Yuzhu said nothing, leaped down from the shovel loader, and took off running toward the ruins.

The ruins were piled up like a small hill, with steel bars and concrete tangled together, crisscrossing in a jumble.

Underneath a floor slab, two children were pinned, one boy and one girl.

The children's mother had a face covered in dust, her lips so dry they were peeling; she couldn't say a word, her bloodshot eyes fixed intently on the rescue workers.

Several rescue team members crouched by the edge of the floor slab, sweating profusely with anxiety, not knowing where to put their hands.

"This is Rescue Team Captain Yan Zhilei, and this is Deputy Commander-in-Chief He!" Ershuan hurriedly introduced.

"Deputy Commander-in-Chief?" Yan Zhilei frowned, his tone full of impatience. "I asked for experienced rescue personnel; what are you doing bringing me a Deputy Commander-in-Chief?"

He Yuzhu ignored his comment entirely and lay flat on the ground.

Yan Zhilei was stunned for a moment, only then realizing—this "Deputy Commander-in-Chief" was the second-highest-ranking official here.

He hurriedly crouched down and pointed at the floor slab, saying, "Look at this slab, it's like a seesaw. If you lift this end, the person at the other end will be crushed to death; if you move that end, there's no way out for this side... I'm truly at my wit's end. I asked the lady, and she said... if there's really no other way, save the boy."

He Yuzhu crouched down and peered through the gap beneath the floor slab.

The two children were lying side by side; the girl's leg was pinned under a section, and she was crying from the pain, her tears washing two white streaks through the dust on her face.

The gap on the boy's side was larger; he stared wide-eyed, looking out in terror, his whole body trembling, terrified that he might die just like that.

He Yuzhu felt a sudden pang in his heart, as if someone had gripped it tightly.

A scene flashed through his mind—how was this exactly the same as the plot in that movie?

He shook his head vigorously, a strange, indescribable feeling welling up inside: was this world... actually real?

But the current situation allowed him no time to think.

He circled the floor slab, crouched down to carefully examine the support points, and gestured with his hands a few times. Before long, he had a plan in mind.

He pulled a piece of candy from his space, handed it to the little girl, and comforted her softly, "Fang Deng, don't be afraid, Uncle will definitely save you. Don't hate your mother."

Upon hearing this, the little girl burst into tears, crying heart-wrenchingly.

Yan Zhilei was stunned, staring straight at He Yuzhu—the little girl's name had been called by her mother just now, but this Deputy Commander-in-Chief hadn't been present at all; how did he know it?

He Yuzhu ignored his gaze and said loudly, "Move aside, I'll do it alone."

"Deputy Commander-in-Chief, don't joke around!" Yan Zhilei's eyes nearly popped out. "This floor slab weighs at least two thousand catties!"

He Yuzhu understood that these men weren't snapping at him only because he was an official.

"If there are too many of you, the force won't be distributed evenly, and it'll be easier for something to go wrong," he said, his tone calm but unquestionable. "I'm different; I know how to apply force. The moment I lift it, Commander Yan, you pull the boy out; Ershuan, you're responsible for pulling the girl."

Yan Zhilei wanted to say something else, but as soon as he met He Yuzhu's eyes, the words on the tip of his tongue were swallowed back down.

Ershuan gritted his teeth: "I'm ready!"

Yan Zhilei also nodded hurriedly: "I'm ready too, let's do it!"

He Yuzhu crouched down, took a deep breath, hooked his hands under the edge of the floor slab, and secretly channeled the power of the system.

He exerted force suddenly—a full five thousand catties of strength! The floor slab rose with a groan, and the two other slabs pressing down on top were jolted upward.

With lightning speed, he kicked a stone into the gap, and the stone propped up the floor slab that was about to fall.

Ershuan was quick-witted and agile, pulling the little girl out from the gap in one go.

Almost at the same instant, Yan Zhilei also pulled the boy out.

Just then, the two floor slabs that had been jolted upward came crashing down with a "Boom—"

They slammed heavily onto the slab that had been pinning the children, and that slab shattered instantly.

The spot where the little girl had been lying was now completely crushed, with not even a gap to be seen.

The two children had been saved in the blink of an eye.

Yan Zhilei held the little boy, his eyes full of disbelief: "Deputy Commander-in-Chief... you have natural-born divine strength! One person is stronger than the five of us combined!"

He Yuzhu smiled: "It's nothing so mysterious; I just knew where the stress points were and used a bit of leverage."

Yan Zhilei wanted to press for more, but people over there had already placed the two children on stretchers.

The little girl lay on the stretcher and turned her head to look at He Yuzhu—she knew in her heart that this person was her savior. Without him, she would have died here today.

Tears flowed silently down her cheeks.

He Yuzhu turned around and strode toward the shovel loader to continue saving people.

His efficiency in saving people was terrifyingly high; as long as he detected a person's breath, he could rescue them in less than ten minutes.

The only pity was that there were always people following him, getting in the way and significantly slowing him down.

In the Ninety-five Courtyard, the East Cross Courtyard was now packed full.

Those with good relations with the He Family had squeezed in, and even those with average relations who could swallow their pride to beg the He Family had moved in.

Xu Damao's wife, Liu Sanmei, also went to find Shen Guizhi, wanting to move into the He Family home, but was flatly refused by He Yulu.

He Yulu had looked down on Xu Damao since she was a child, and after growing up, she wouldn't even acknowledge him.

Xu Damao had no choice but to set up a small tent in the middle of the courtyard and make do.

Liu Sanmei was so angry she cursed: "Xu Damao, you dog, who can't you get along with? You just have to go against the family with the highest-ranking official in this courtyard; what are you hoping for?"

Xu Damao retorted grumpily: "Their family has no good people. Besides, with dozens of men, women, and children squeezed together, how uncomfortable is that! Isn't our shack just fine?"

Liu Sanmei slapped her arm with a "slap," killing a mosquito, and said through gritted teeth: "I heard it's going to rain tonight; if it rains hard, our broken shack won't hold up at all!"

Xu Damao rolled over and muttered: "That stinky girl He Yulu has been at odds with me since she was little. When we were kids, I'd badmouth her brother, and she couldn't do anything to me, so she'd just glare at me. It's even worse now that she's grown up; she won't even talk to me. Of the whole He Family, she's the most petty. Even He Yushui still calls me Brother Damao."

In the front courtyard, Yan Bugui was standing at his doorway, feeling his way through the dark to direct Yan Jiecheng to take measurements.

Yan Jiecheng asked, puzzled: "Dad, what's the point of me measuring these dimensions? Everyone else is just setting up a shed to make do; are you trying to build a proper house?"

Yan Bugui pushed up his glasses and revealed a crafty smile: "Our family has always been short on rooms. Although Jiefang isn't coming back to live here, your brother Yan Jiekang will have to come back sooner or later. He's penniless; can he really expect to be allocated a house outside? It's better to take advantage of this earthquake to build two more rooms; in the future, you and he can have one each."

Yan Jiecheng's eyes darted, and he smiled: "Dad is still the one with the long-term vision. But if we build two proper rooms, what if they get knocked down by an aftershock?"

Yan Bugui pushed up his glasses again and said unhurriedly: "We'll lay the foundation first and set up a shed on top. Once this earthquake period passes, we'll stack the bricks for the walls, and then we can use them as proper rooms."

Yan Jiecheng gave a thumbs up: "Then if the whole courtyard does the same, will there even be room for anyone to walk in this courtyard?"

Yan Bugui gave a cheeky grin and, with a look of absolute confidence, began counting on his fingers: "In this courtyard, only our family and the Liu family are short on rooms. The He Family has the East Cross Courtyard, Xu Damao has two rooms and no children, and Yi Zhonghai has now taken the old lady's house, so he even has a place for his son to bring home a bride..."

Listening to Yan Bugui count through the families one by one, Yan Jiecheng nodded: "I think if we build an addition, Wang Zhifu across the way will definitely have to build one too. Even though he only has one son, could he just sit by and watch us take advantage of the public space?"

Yan Bugui waved his hand: "That's none of our concern."

Yan Jiecheng perked up: "According to what you're saying, tomorrow I'll go to the factory and find a few people who actually know how to build houses, and under the guise of repairing our own house, we'll lay the foundation and put up a shed on top."

Yan Bugui nodded, his eyes squinting as he smiled like an old fox: "That's the way. Remember, you have to pay for the construction."

Yan Jiecheng rolled his eyes, his face full of reluctance: "Dad, isn't this going too far? Why should I pay to build a house for my younger brother?"

Yan Bugui spoke unhurriedly: "If you don't want to build it, that's fine too. I'll build these two rooms, and once I've finished, I'll rent them to you and collect the rent."

Yan Jiecheng opened his mouth, but for a moment, he was completely speechless.