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墨書 Inktalez
"Ring, ring, ring..."
The alarm clock on the vanity started ringing, but Ming Juan, who was carefully getting ready beside it, pressed it down with one hand. At this moment, Ming Juan was still unaware of what was happening, as she styled her hair in her room, filled with anticipation for Miao Chengmin's surprised expression when he saw her new hairstyle. Before the alarm rang, she had been awakened by some noises outside. When she opened her door and saw the living room looking the same as always, a strange sense of crisis began to echo in her mind for reasons unknown...
"How strange." Ming Juan could feel something pulling at her, as if trying to tell her what was happening. Gently placing down her perfume bottle, Ming Juan stood up and leaned against the wall decorated with colorful paintings, gazing out at the small town.
On a warm winter day, the sun should have been intoxicating; the passing vehicles and the calls of street vendors made Ming Juan feel closer than ever to the human warmth she believed she belonged to. However, the plume of black smoke in the distance did not seem like it belonged in this town at all...
"Darling, it's time to get up~" Ming Juan picked up her phone and sent this sweet message to Miao Chengmin. She thought he was still asleep next door.
Holding up her phone, Ming Juan placed Miao Chengmin's avatar above the city in her eyes. They used a couple's profile picture; Miao Chengmin's handsome male avatar looked down over the city, merging with the morning light. In Ming Juan's eyes, this representation of her beloved made her feel deeply enamored.
Her gaze became dreamy as she smiled and caressed the phone screen, as if touching Miao Chengmin's cheek. How firmly she believed in their future together, how certain she was that Miao Chengmin would take her home...
"Buzz!"
The sudden ringing of the phone instantly snatched away the image of Miao Chengmin from Ming Juan's eyes. She gradually came back to reality, mocking herself for overthinking things just after waking up. After nearly half a minute of ringing, she finally answered without even checking who was calling.
"Hello! Ming Juan, are you awake?"
"Fei?" Hearing that voice, Ming Juan recognized it was Yu Feiyao, but the tone sounded as if she were urging her to pay rent.
"Juan, hurry! I sent you my location, come quickly!" Yu Feiyao bent over anxiously, staring at the raging flames upstairs.
In the time that Ming Juan had gotten up, Miao Chengmin had already gone in and out of the fire scene three times!
"What’s going on? Why are you in such a hurry? Are you in U City?" Ming Juan asked slowly, completely unaware of the situation.
"Oh no!" Yu Feiyao was so anxious that she started shaking her fists. "You need to come now! Miao Chengmin is in danger!"
"What?!"
Recalling that vague sense of crisis from earlier, that heavy feeling that seemed ready to crush her under its weight, countless bad possibilities flooded into her mind in an instant... even...
"You wouldn't joke about this just to see me, would you, Fei? He's at our place." As she struggled internally one last time, Ming Juan walked out of her room to check on Miao Chengmin.
"Chengmin, are you sleeping?" she called out at his door.
Silence.
With wide eyes, Ming Juan immediately pulled open the door. The bed was already empty of her beloved's presence; staring at the vacant room filled her mind with images of black smoke seen from the window...
"I'll be there soon!"
Meanwhile, at the fire scene...
"He’s out!"
"Quickly, go help him!"
The fire had not spread further, but thick smoke still billowed ominously from the area. The shop's characteristic wooden structure was now almost responsible for taking many lives due to its very nature.
"Chengmin!" Li Tao, along with Yu Feiyao and others rushed forward as this time, Miao Chengmin emerged from the inferno supporting an older man. His face was covered in black marks; fortunately, his clothes were wet beforehand which provided some protection—only a few areas were burned—but from his haggard expression, it was clear that each time he rescued someone was a battle against death itself. It was hard for Li Tao and Yu Feiyao to imagine that just escaping such a fire was already a stroke of luck; yet here was Miao Chengmin, who had gone back into the flames four times!
Yu Feiyao helped support the rescued man and handed him over to bystanders. Grabbing hold of Miao Chengmin, Li Tao pointed towards the direction where sirens could be heard coming from across the street and said: "You've gone in four times already; go rest now! The fire truck has arrived!"
Taking deep breaths desperately, Miao Chengmin straightened up and looked towards where Li Tao pointed. The fire truck was getting closer and closer; this time,Li Tao refused to let go of him no matter what—he truly feared that Miao Chengmin, like a runaway horse, would turn around and rush back into the flames again. The sight of his exhaustion and scorched body made Li Tao feel for the first time how close he was to death.
"It's too far." Miao Chengmin bent down, his red-hot hands resting on his knees, trembling all over. "They're too far away, and there are still people waiting to come out inside!"
"Then don't go in!" Li Tao shouted, grabbing Miao Chengmin's shoulder. "I don't want you to die!"
"Are you saying you want those trapped inside to die?!" Miao Chengmin pushed his hand away, pointing at the fire scene. "I estimate there are at least five people trapped inside! The best escape time from the fire on the third floor definitely won't exceed three minutes, and at least seven minutes have already passed! Do you want to watch them burn alive or suffocate?!"
"But..." Li Tao started to say something, but Miao Chengmin cut him off, saying, "I'm sorry, this is my job."
"But you still have Ming Juan!" Yu Feiyao turned around to echo Li Tao's words, making a final plea to Miao Chengmin.
As expected, Miao Chengmin hesitated. His tightly furrowed brows slowly relaxed as if all his strength had drained away, and his arms drooped down. He turned to look at the fire scene, remaining silent.
Perhaps this was the hardest choice Miao Chengmin had ever faced: on one side was his own life; he had loved ones and reasons to live. If he rushed into the flames, there was a possibility he might never come back. On the other side were lives trapped by the fire, still waiting for rescue...
Miao Chengmin patted the layer of soot on his sleeve, rubbed his face vigorously with both hands, and sighed. He didn't look at Li Tao and Yu Feiyao; under their gaze, he entrusted them with a message: "If I go in this time and never come out again, please tell Juanzi that I love her. Tell her not to be sad about my departure. I... I also want..."
Miao Chengmin wanted to clarify that he was just this kind of person, this kind of firefighter. In their eyes, courage was a necessity; determination was the only reason for separating from family. Saving lives was their mission.
He still wanted to say that even without a firefighter uniform, he was a firefighter.
"You!" Li Tao reached out his hand, but Miao Chengmin was ultimately their former university track team captain. With a swift burst of speed, he dashed forward, leaving Li Tao unable to catch him!
"Come back alive!" With nothing left but a final prayer, Li Tao helplessly shouted at the distorted figure disappearing into the flames.
After going back and forth several times, Miao Chengmin had already carved a path through the fire. Skillfully entering through the door, he continued shouting, "Don't be afraid! The firefighters are here!"
This time, the responding cries for help were noticeably weaker. Miao Chengmin's judgment was correct; those trapped had long missed the best escape time, and their life signs were rapidly diminishing!
"There’s no other way." Miao Chengmin thought as he pulled open a burning piece of equipment with gloved hands, his mind racing. "This time we must save everyone!"
In a room completely engulfed in flames, a family stood on relatively safe ground waiting for rescue! The child had already fainted and collapsed in his father's arms. Upon seeing Miao Chengmin clear the obstacles and reach them, the three immediately covered their mouths and ran outside. Miao Chengmin endured the searing pain as he held up the debris with his hands and shouted hoarsely to the family that had already escaped: "I've cleared a path in the hallway; just run outside! Hurry! Cough! Cough...!"
Outside, Ming Juan's taxi arrived simultaneously with the firefighting rescue vehicles. Ming Juan sprinted through the crowded crowd to Yu Feiyao's side and grabbed her hand, asking urgently, "Where's Miao Chengmin? Where is he?!"
Yu Feiyao looked up and exchanged a glance with Li Tao; they remained silent while pointing toward the third floor engulfed in flames.
Meanwhile, Luo Lin and other firefighters had donned their gear; high-pressure hoses were raised and ready to be deployed!
"Where is Miao Chengmin?"
Luo Lin pulled down his mask and looked back at where Miao Chengmin should have been sitting.
"Why is he inside?" After getting out of the vehicle, Luo Lin heard Ming Juan questioning a couple nearby.
"Chengmin... he wanted to save people," Li Tao explained. "He said he's a firefighter; even without his uniform, rushing in is what he should do..."
Luo Lin's heart sank: He went in without a uniform? But Miao Chengmin was still new...
"No way." Ming Juan said as she took off her coat and placed it over her head. "I need to find him."
"What are you talking about?!" Yu Feiyao quickly grabbed Ming Juan's arm. "It's fine! He'll be out soon! He has already saved four people!"
Luo Lin turned to look at Ming Juan. Although he didn't know her personally, he was sure she was the one Miao Chengmin had been in contact with.
"We assure you that everyone will be fine," Luo Lin couldn't help but say to the three of them. "The lives of our comrades are our lives."
In the midst of the flames, that family of three emerged covered in flames. The firefighters rushed forward to extinguish the fire on them.
"How many people are still inside?" Luo Lin asked.
"I don't know, but there's a young man claiming to be a firefighter still in there!" the father explained, holding the unconscious child.
Inside the inferno
"Quick! Go!" Miao Chengmin directed everyone remaining to run toward the escape door he had pried open. While looking around to see if anyone else was left behind, a cracking sound suddenly came from above! Miao Chengmin looked up and saw that a light tube's cord had been burned through! Startled, he quickly dodged, and the light tube fell at his feet, exploding upon impact, followed by a sharp pain in his ankle!
"Ah! Hiss..." Miao Chengmin cried out in pain; his sock had been burned through, and a shard of glass had pierced his flesh! An overwhelming sense of fatigue began to take over his body. He dropped the pole he was using for support, fully aware that if he didn't get out soon, he would likely succumb to carbon monoxide poisoning...
"You should leave too; there shouldn't be anyone left!" the last person to exit shouted while covering their mouth, looking back at Miao Chengmin still standing in the flames.
Miao Chengmin took one last look around; indeed, there was no one left, but...
The lifeless woman was still lying there, flames already licking at her body, seemingly intent on consuming her entirely!
Miao Chengmin paused for a moment, then resolutely made up his mind. He limped forward, pushing aside the burning obstacles with all his might, trying to pull the deceased woman up!
"I don't want you to miss your last chance to see your loved ones!" Miao Chengmin grunted as he dragged her toward the exit...
Almost there...
Almost!
He didn't want to give up on anyone trapped here!
However, Miao Chengmin failed to notice that beneath the sparking electrical box, flames were rapidly rising...
"Ah!" Miao Chengmin instinctively shouted. He tried to lean against the wall, but it was too hot. This made him lift his head; fatigue and despair intertwined in his thoughts. In a daze, he seemed to see Ming Juan's smiling face—was that an electric spark? No, it was clearly...
My beloved...
I have always loved...
My partner...
At the moment when the flames met the electric sparks, Miao Chengmin finally relaxed—he closed his eyes and savored how the fire caressed him tenderly like love, enveloping him...
"Boom—"
"Get down!"
Firefighters immediately shouted at the crowd! An explosion erupted from the flames on the third floor, accompanied by a massive shockwave and a shower of glass shards. Amidst the panicked screams of the crowd, the flames gradually revealed their grim trophy—
A row of charred remains on the third floor, firefighters slowly raising their heads through the black smoke, the acrid smell of smoke filling the air, and Ming Juan collapsing to her knees in tears...
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