Help others? It's better to help yourself - Chapter 48

Rebirth doesn’t make one smarter. What Xu Jing’an gained over others were just experience, knowledge, and opportunities.

When she first arrived in H City, she felt both the relief of escaping the Xu family and the tension of entering an unfamiliar environment. She was thrilled when she discovered that the golden finger had a search function. She was overjoyed. With a place of her own, her heart felt more at ease.

But not long after, she began to think: Everyone says there are so many spies nowadays, and with all the corruption, people with bad character—if they’re exposed and sent off to eat peanuts, that would be a contribution to the country by eliminating pests.

And with this awesome cheat, why not gather some hidden gold, antiques, jade, emeralds, jewelry, and so on? She had no attachments anyway, and if life didn’t work out here, she could always go abroad or to Hong Kong. Anywhere would do!

But the result was unexpected.

After a year, as the search range expanded to cover the entire city and county, the golden finger grew stronger, yet she still couldn’t find the information she was looking for.

The greater the expectation, the greater the disappointment! She became extremely impatient, feeling as though she had missed out on billions. Her mind kept cursing, dissatisfied with the useless cheat.

Until one night, she dreamed of her previous life—an ordinary life, spent as cannon fodder in the three books. Xu Jing’an suddenly woke up with a realization.

Human desires are insatiable, and greed has blinded her eyes.

Without the golden finger, Xu Jing’an wouldn’t even be able to live the life she’s living now. She has always been an ordinary person, so she would continue to live an ordinary life. Those who are too greedy never end up well. Wanting everything means, in the end, they will lose everything!

…

Two years passed in the blink of an eye, and it was now 1973.

The family was busy, and aside from the children growing up day by day, there was no significant change in their lives. Xu Jing’an was very satisfied with the current situation.

On May 1st, Labor Day, the factory organized a singing, dancing, and choir competition.

The performers wore neat and uniform outfits, and some even brought cosmetics.

It is human nature to want to look beautiful, but in this environment, no one dared to dress or wear makeup in an unconventional way. The only exception was during performances. Everyone accepted that performers on stage wore beautiful makeup and colorful costumes.

During this period, influenced by the classic model operas “Dujian Mountain” and “Harbor”, rouge became the mainstream makeup. Bright red blush was applied to the white faces.

Xu Jing’an looked at the terrifying white faces, the bright red blush, and the heavy dark eyebrows, repeatedly shaking her head, refusing to join in.

During the competition, she strongly insisted on standing at the back, pushing herself into the crowd. Otherwise, with everyone else made up and her being the only one not wearing makeup, she would stand out too much!

…

Just as Xu Jing’an thought everything had returned to normal, she suddenly heard a loud “bang” of thunder.

Before she could react, she heard people shouting “Explosion!” and rushing toward the door. She quickly ran to the window and looked outside, only to see a mushroom cloud rising in the southwestern sky!

A group of people from the security department had already gathered in the square. 90% of them were veterans, and as soon as they heard the explosion, they instinctively rushed out.

Immediately after, the factory’s loudspeaker made an announcement: The gates are to be locked, and no one is to leave unless there is a special circumstance. Everyone must return to their posts and not leave without permission, with each department’s leader being responsible.

The security department split into two teams: one to increase patrols and the other to conduct a thorough inspection of the entire factory.

All staff members immediately sprang into action, and Xu Jing’an could feel the tension in the air.

Wu Sufen pulled Xu Jing’an to thoroughly inspect the data room, leaving no corner unchecked.

“Sufen, I didn’t realize it was an explosion until just now. This is the first time I’ve seen something like this in my life,” Xu Jing’an said as she worked carefully, chatting with Wu Sufen.

“Our steel factory processes iron, which requires a lot of coal. Every place that builds a steel factory is usually surrounded by many coal mines,” Wu Sufen, being a local, knew more than Xu Jing’an.

She whispered, “Coal mining, stone quarrying, and mountain excavation—all rely on explosives. The Fengfeng mining area has several coal mines, and they’re very close to us. If someone wanted to steal some explosives, it wouldn’t be impossible.”

Xu Jing’an nodded, understanding. From the sound, it seemed to be near the steel plant. The southwest area of the city’s outskirts, and most likely, the water plant had been the site of the explosion.

When the lockdown order was issued, the purchasing person from the cafeteria had just returned with supplies. The lunch for the day was now secured.

The security department conducted a thorough search of the entire factory, uncovering several areas with aging wires and catching a few workers who had stolen scrap materials from the factory.

These workers were caught at such a critical moment and were immediately fired by the factory leadership, fined for damages, and then sent to the northwest for 10 years of reform.

For a time, the workers in the factory were all shocked, and even the few who had been sneaky and petty thieves became more cautious.

The lockdown was lifted at 4 p.m., and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

As expected, Shen He did not return that evening.

The next day, Xu Jing’an heard rumors that the windows of the dormitory and office buildings at the water plant had all been shattered, with no one escaping unharmed. The scene was horrific, with rescue workers, police officers, and soldiers carrying out many casualties, including a pregnant woman.

Seven days later, the investigation results were made public.

Liu Mou, a farmer from Fengfeng, had carried explosives to his wife’s workplace due to a marital dispute, causing a massive explosion that killed 20 people on the spot, left 8 others fatally injured, and 17 more severely injured. Liu was killed instantly in the explosion.

It was said that several innocent passersby were hit on the head by bricks blown from the explosion. A family living near the water plant had a pregnant woman who was seven months along, and she was so frightened by the blast that she went into premature labor on the spot.

It truly was a stroke of bad luck!

As these words were spoken, the sound of people gasping for air could be heard.

That night, seven days later, the elderly and children were all asleep.

Shen He, with a scruffy beard and a tired face, his wrinkled clothes carrying a strong smell of smoke, quietly entered the house.

Xu Jing’an, hearing the noise, quickly got up. Since Shen He had not been home recently, she didn’t dare to fall into a deep sleep.

As soon as she opened the door, Shen He had already come in.

She hurriedly drew water for him to wash his face and took off his coat. She brought down the chicken soup she had been simmering on the stove and prepared a large bowl of chicken noodle soup, adding pieces of stewed chicken, cracking two eggs into it, and sprinkling some cilantro on top just before serving. She also brought over a stack of pancakes she had just cooked that evening.

Shen He ate without even lifting his head. Xu Jing’an felt a pang of sympathy as she watched.

After eating three pancakes and a bowl of noodles, Shen He finally felt like he was alive again. These past few days had been so busy that he hadn’t had time to eat, let alone drink water.

Seeing his wife bring over a large cup of wheat milk, Shen He’s heart felt warm.