Forced to marry a disabled man in the countryside? I'll repay you tenfold!

Squad Leader Ma rubbed his hands together, saying, "I have to go too. We only managed to salvage the meat and chestnuts; all the flour, corn, and other grains are still there—our food supply this time!"

Zhou Yanshen put down his luggage and wiped his sweat: "We only took half of our luggage; we didn't have time to bring some food and other necessities."

The medic was even more anxious: "I only took out a little antibiotics; a lot of other medicines and surgical instruments are still lying there. What if someone gets injured..."

Su Wanqing interrupted her directly: "Don't go. No matter how important these things are, they're not as important as your lives. What if there's an earthquake when you go? What if you get buried alive? Nobody knows when an earthquake will come. We can't gamble."

The two old men were shivering from the cold—it was almost freezing at night in the mountains in autumn. Old Zhang was huddled up, hugging his arms, while Li Guodong's legs were numb with cold. They were in such a hurry to get their documents and important files that they had forgotten to bring their own clothes!

The other surveyors hesitated, saying, "Why don't we go get a few more clothes? It'll only take a few minutes, a round trip. Otherwise, these two old comrades will really get sick from the cold."

At this moment, Li Guodong's male student stepped forward: "I don't think an earthquake will happen so soon. I'm fast on my feet, so I'll go get some clothes and blankets for the teachers. We've been here for a while now and haven't seen an earthquake, so how could it be so strange? Besides, it would be even more troublesome if the two elderly people got frostbite and fell ill. We also need to bring back the equipment, otherwise the entire mission will be ruined."

He looked around, his tone earnest: "I suggest we go get something, otherwise we'll be at a disadvantage. Or... how about a vote?"

Commander Zhao hesitated for a moment, then looked at Su Wanqing, "Su, what do you say?"

Su Wanqing shook her head: "I suggest we don't go yet. Let's make a fire to keep warm and get through tonight."

The male student protested, "What if there's no earthquake? Are we just going to sit here and wait? Until tomorrow? Until the day after? We didn't even bring enough food! Even if there is an earthquake right away, it would be good if we could run fast and grab some things. This is all the government's money!"

Li Guodong suddenly spoke up: "Alright, that's enough."

The male student was taken aback: "Teacher?"

Li Guodong crossed his arms. "We two old guys deserve it for sleeping naked. As long as we make a fire to keep warm, it's fine. As long as the data wasn't lost, that's all that matters. If I had sent you to get something and there had been an earthquake, and you had been buried there, Lao Zhang and I would have lived with guilt for the rest of our lives."

The male student stared at him in disbelief—when did the teacher start trusting Su Wanqing so much? He was scolding her yesterday, and now he's like this?

He couldn't help but ask, "Teacher, you...you really believe what she said about an earthquake?"

Li Guodong turned his face away and snorted irritably, "It's not that I believe her. But lives are at stake. What if something happens? I'd rather freeze than let you take the risk."

Old Zhang nodded in agreement, "Yes, yes, I wouldn't dare let you take any risks. If something really happens, this old man will regret it for the rest of his life. Alright, just stay here."

The male student was still unconvinced and muttered under his breath, "It only took a few minutes, what are the chances of that happening..."

Before the words were finished—

The ground suddenly shook!

Everyone lost their footing and staggered. Then, a deafening roar came from underground, a sound like a mountain collapsing and the earth splitting open, making everyone's eardrums ache.

"Hold on tight! Everyone lie down!" Commander Zhao yelled at the top of his lungs. "Hold each other down and get down!"

Zhou Yanshen instantly opened his arms and tightly embraced Su Wanqing, his body half-bent over, using his back to create a safe space for her, his legs firmly planted on the ground to support her.

Despite being tightly protected by him, Su Wanqing was still thinking of others and shouted loudly, "Everyone watch your step! If you feel the ground cracking, run to an open area! Cover your head with your hands and protect your vital organs!"

She kept her Insightful Eyes constantly scanning the surrounding ground—thankfully, the plain was indeed safe; there were no cracks or collapses.

"Look over there!" someone exclaimed in alarm, pointing to the distant mountains.

With a deafening roar, the mountainside where they had previously camped seemed to have been struck by a giant's fist, the entire slope slid down, boulders rolled, and dust billowed into the sky. What was a picturesque place just seconds before was now completely unrecognizable.

"That side collapsed too!"

"So much dust! I can't see anything!"

Screams erupted as everyone lay prone on the ground, watching helplessly as the familiar forest crumbled before their eyes. If they had been ten minutes later… no, even five minutes…

No one dared to think further.

"They'll definitely be buried alive..."

"That's all good. We're safe here, but if we'd been buried, all we'd find would probably be bones."

"Isn't that just causing trouble for the country?" Li Guodong lay on the ground, watching the billowing dust, a chill running down his spine. He remembered what the male student had said earlier—"How could it be that fast?"—Fast? This isn't fast enough?

The earthquake lasted for about half a minute, paused briefly, and then began to shake violently again. Aftershocks followed one after another, lasting for more than half an hour before gradually subsiding.

Feeling the tremors, Su Wanqing whispered, "This should be an earthquake of around magnitude seven."

No one had a clear idea of ​​what was going on, but they all felt it was terrifying.

Once it was completely quiet, everyone collapsed to the ground, panting heavily, as if they had just escaped from the jaws of death.

Commander Zhao struggled to his feet, staggered to Su Wanqing, and bowed deeply. His voice was hoarse: "Little Su, I won't say anything more. You've saved my life several times already. From now on, if you ever need anything, just say the word, and I'll go through fire and water for you without batting an eye."

Old Zhang also stood up, supporting his back. "Girl, you saved our whole family. If we had stayed in that place... I'm afraid my old bones would have really died here. I won't thank you enough. If you ever need my help in the future, just let me know."

Li Guodong stood there, his face turning pale and then flushed.

He recalled the words he had said to Su Wanqing a few days ago—"young brat," "half-baked," "relying on luck"... Now these words were like slaps to his face.

That half-baked guy, he's more like it!

He took a deep breath, stiffened his neck, and walked over, awkwardly saying, "Comrade Xiao Su, I, Li Guodong, have lived half my life and consider myself quite capable, and I've never been one to submit to anyone. Today... today you saved all of our lives." He paused, his voice lowering, "What I said before was wrong. You have real skills, great skills. This old man... is convinced. From now on, when you're looking for minerals, do exactly as you say!"

After saying that, he turned and left without waiting for Su Wanqing's reaction.

He's old; he can't compare to the young people anymore.

The female students exchanged bewildered glances—when in his entire life had their teacher ever apologized to anyone? Bowed his head? However, she was also impressed.

Su Wanqing was helped to her feet by Zhou Yanshen. She patted the dirt off her clothes and said, "Alright, alright, no need to thank me. I didn't come here to thank you. I'm just glad everyone is alright."

Although she saved herself and others in the process, she was happiest because she had saved so many people who were destined to die. She probably had a lot of merit to be rewarded.