From humble beginnings to the pinnacle of life

I didn't delve too deeply into it and told her the truth: "Su Qing's test results are not optimistic. The doctor diagnosed her with severe chronic intestinal mucosal damage and signs of impending intestinal failure. She can't go on this trip."

I had already made the preparations and was ready to receive everyone's comfort.

As is customary, everyone would have advised Su Qing to relax and rest, promising to accompany her again next time.

But in reality, he was completely disappointed.

As soon as I finished speaking, the courtyard remained deathly silent, without a ripple.

Luo Peng lowered his head, unconsciously turning the lighter in his hand repeatedly, without saying a word, his face full of dejection.

A Qiu's brows were tightly furrowed, her eyes filled with helplessness, revealing no emotion whatsoever.

Wang Ge kept his eyes downcast, his calm face expressionless, as if he were completely vacant.

No one was surprised, no one felt sorry, and no one even looked up at her.

At that moment, my heart sank.

A strong sense of unease instantly swept over my body, and a chill inexplicably ran down my back.

It's too quiet, unusually quiet.

If it were just Su Qing who was unable to move forward, the whole team would definitely not be in such a lifeless state.

A bold and terrible guess instantly exploded in my mind, my face darkened abruptly, and I pressed him urgently:

"Why aren't you all saying anything? Something's wrong, what happened?"

My gaze quickly swept across the faces of everyone present, and my palms clenched slightly with nervousness.

Su Qing, who was standing nearby, also noticed that the atmosphere was not right, and quickly spoke up to ease the tension: "Don't be like this. Although I can't go, you can still leave as planned. Don't worry about me."

After a brief silence, Wang Ge finally slowly raised his head.

I've known him for so long, and I've never seen him so out of control.

He, who was usually calm and composed and never panicked in the face of adversity, now had a face full of solemnity and helplessness.

He stared at me intently and said, word by word, "Lin Ye, there's no need to arrange the rest of the itinerary."

"Not only can Su Qing not go, but none of us can go to the Qiangtang no-man's-land."

boom!

These words struck me like a thunderclap, exploding in my mind.

The entire courtyard fell into complete silence; even the sound of the wind rustling through the leaves seemed to vanish instantly.

My pupils suddenly contracted, my mind went blank, and I was completely stunned, unable to recover for a long time.

I stood there stunned for several seconds before I managed to find my voice and mechanically asked, "What do you mean?"

Wang Ge raised his hand and rubbed his temples vigorously, then slowly explained, "While you were at the hospital, I contacted the local weather station in Qiangtang, as well as friends who frequently travel through uninhabited areas, and control stations along the route, to repeatedly verify the latest weather and road conditions."

"Everyone gave the exact same answer, so I don't recommend going through with it."

My heart tightened, and I immediately stepped forward, asking, "Why? What happened?"

Wang Ge lowered his head and lit a cigarette. He took a deep drag, his tone growing increasingly heavy:

"In the past two weeks, the Qiangtang region has experienced a series of extreme weather events."

"Wide heavy snowfall and sandstorms have struck in succession, with some areas experiencing precipitous temperature drops and terrifying temperature differences between day and night. Roads are largely icy, permafrost collapses are frequent, and there is also persistent severe convective weather, with visibility in the wild less than ten meters."

"The weather station issued the highest level of risk warning, and the entire crossing route was completely closed."

I stood there completely stunned, unable to come to my senses for a long time.

I've imagined countless possible endings.

I anticipated that Su Qing would be left behind alone with regret, but our whole team set off as scheduled.

I had considered postponing the trip, or taking a few days to rest before setting off.

I never expected this outcome.

It turns out that it wasn't that Su Qing's health was failing her, nor that she was dragging the whole team down.

From the very beginning, fate never intended for our journey through the no-man's-land to begin smoothly.

I suddenly turned my head to look at Su Qing beside me.

She stood there blankly, her eyes glazed over, completely stunned.

On the way here, she kept blaming herself, feeling that she had ruined everyone's expectations by eating random things and that she had dragged the whole team down.

She suppressed her guilt and regret, silently processing all her grievances and accepting her fate.

But now, the truth is laid bare before us.

A hospital diagnosis has just sealed her fate, ending her solo travel plans.

In just two hours, the weather station's warning effectively sealed our fate.

An overwhelming sense of destiny swept over me, making my chest feel tight.

Wang looked at us and continued in a deep voice:

"I have confirmed this repeatedly. This is not a short-term weather fluctuation, but a large-scale and continuous extreme weather event. The time for it to improve is impossible to predict."

"We can't afford to wait. Funding, supplies, and travel schedules are all mismatched. There's simply no way we can afford to wait."

"Considering all risks and the actual situation, this trip across the Qiangtang region has to be cancelled."

After a long silence, Luo Peng finally let out a heavy sigh and cursed under his breath:

"Damn it! After all this preparation and hard work to get to Lhasa, who would have thought we'd be ruined by the weather?"

A Qiu shook his head and said in a deep voice, "Everything was ready, but then this natural disaster happened. It's such a pity."

People finally spoke one after another, but every word they uttered was tinged with regret.

At this moment, no one mentioned Su Qing's health problems anymore, and no one thought she was a burden to the team.

Everyone knew perfectly well that even if Su Qing were perfectly healthy, our journey to the no-man's-land would still be impossible.

Su Wan, who was standing to the side, remained silent throughout, her expression cold and indifferent.

It was as if this upheaval that left everyone stranded was of no importance to her.

She has always been rational and calm, having long seen through the pros and cons, and her emotions are never easily swayed by external factors.

Everyone sighed and felt helpless, but Su Qing, filled with guilt, was gently caught by fate and spared the torment of self-destruction.

But after a brief moment of relief, a tremendous pressure suddenly crashed down on me.

Others only saw the regret of the trip being canceled, but what I saw was the catastrophic trouble I was about to face.

I am the person in charge of this project in the no-man's-land, the one who spearheaded the signing, and also the biggest beneficiary.

All the expectations of everyone, the investment from the client, rested on my shoulders.

Even if the trip is canceled due to force majeure, commercial contracts never show mercy.

The client invested a large sum of money, only to end up with nothing, with no results or returns. They will definitely hold the responsible party accountable to the end.

In the end, all the responsibility and losses will be attributed to me.

Risk and reward are always directly proportional; those who enjoy the greatest benefits must bear the greatest consequences.

It was at that moment that my gambler's mentality was completely unleashed.

I cannot admit defeat, and I absolutely cannot give up in such a disheveled state.

Even without logistical support, even if the road ahead is fraught with danger, I will still brave it!

Once the thought arises, it can no longer be suppressed.

I suddenly looked up at Wang Ge, who had remained silent the whole time.

At this moment, I desperately want to receive a word of support from him, even just a word of encouragement, which would give me more confidence.

But he remained silent, his eyes filled with complex emotions, making it impossible to discern his attitude.

I stopped looking at the crowd; I had made up my mind completely.