Zhou Dana saw Zhou Xiaoying's face turn pale white and her whole body trembling. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up instantly.
He took a step forward, his voice trembling, "What happened to Pandi? Tell me quickly!"
Everyone's heart was in their throat, and their eyes were fixed on Zhou Xiaoying's face.
"I... Aunt Pandi fell into the mud pool!"
What? Zhou Dana's vision went black, and he stumbled and almost fell. He only stood firm by holding onto the tree next to him.
"Save her! What are you all standing around for! Go call the people at the oil well quickly!" He turned his head and shouted to the women watching the excitement behind him.
After shouting, he rushed towards the mud pool like crazy. The clods of dirt under his feet tripped him, and he almost fell several times.
"Pandi! Pandi!" His voice cracked from shouting.
Seeing this, the two public security officers immediately bypassed him, ran in front, and shouted as they ran, "Masters of the oil well! Save her quickly! Someone fell into the mud pool!"
The workers next to the oil well were burying their heads in twisting the oil pipes. Hearing the shout, they immediately threw down the tools in their hands.
Seven or eight people picked up the thick wooden poles and canvas stretchers for building the frame and ran towards the mud pool.
The foreman leading the shift shouted with a hoarse voice, "Be quick! Take the long poles! Step firmly, don't slip in with her!"
Zhou Xiaoying's legs were as soft as noodles. Supported by several women, she followed behind, crying out of breath.
"...Aunt Pandi heard the public security comrade calling her, threw down the vegetables in her hand and ran. When she ran to the edge of the mud pool, her foot slipped and she planted into it..."
When everyone ran over, they saw the muddy and black mud bubbling.
Zhou Pandi had already sunk to her armpits, her two arms flapping in vain in the mud. The more she struggled, the faster she sank. It was about to reach her neck.
Zhou Dana's eyes turned red, and he lifted his foot to jump into the pool, but was grabbed by a quick-eyed worker.
"Do you want to die! This mud can suck people in alive!"
While speaking, two young workers had already steadily extended the thick wooden pole to Zhou Pandi's side. Several other people pressed the wooden pole aside and shouted, "Grab the pole! Grab it quickly!"
"Spread the canvas on the ground! Wait to pull her up and carry her directly!" A worker shouted, and several people immediately squatted down and unfolded the canvas.
The women and children watching were frightened pale. Some covered their mouths and didn't dare to look. Timid children were scared to tears.
Zhou Dana's wife, Wang Jinzhi, wearing an apron, staggered over.
As soon as she arrived at the edge of the pool, she collapsed on the ground. Her heart-piercing cries made people's hearts tighten. "Pandi! My Pandi!"
Zhou Dana tightly clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white. His eyes stared at the dark mud, and his whole body trembled uncontrollably.
He muttered repeatedly, "God bless... God bless..."
"Go call Old Zhang to drive the truck over! Take her to the county hospital! Quickly!" The foreman roared to a young worker.
The worker ran off, shouting as he ran, "Old Zhang! Old Zhang! Drive the truck over quickly! Save her!"
The oily truck of the oil well team was parked in an open space not far away. It was usually used to transport tools and materials, and in an emergency, it was an emergency ambulance.
Here, everyone worked together, stepping on the solid soil slope at the edge of the pool, and slowly pulled Zhou Pandi towards the shore.
The mud covered her face and body, and her mouth and nose were full of mud. She was so suffocated that she was almost out of breath.
Zhou Dana's heart ached. He wanted to reach out to help her but was afraid of hurting her, so he could only grit his teeth.
Wang Jinzhi cried and rushed forward, but was held back tightly by several women. "Sister-in-law, don't make trouble! Wait until the child is pulled up!"
With the strength of nine bulls and two tigers, they finally lifted her onto the canvas. Several workers quickly wrapped her tightly, carried her and ran to the truck.
The foreman shouted behind, "Put some straw mats in the carriage! Don't bump her!"
After lifting Zhou Pandi onto the truck, Zhou Dana and his wife also climbed into the carriage.
The truck rolled up a cloud of dust and sped towards Qingshan Street.
On the other side, Zhou Zhaodi stood in the crowd eating sunflower seeds, with a numb schadenfreude on her face.
She always felt that her parents favored Zhou Pandi. When the oil well team recruited temporary workers, her parents let Zhou Pandi go, leaving her out.
Now that Zhou Pandi was in trouble, not only was she not worried, but she felt very happy.
She twisted her bottom and walked back, humming a little tune.
Yesterday she went to Zhao Qingjiang to take her pulse. Zhao Qingjiang said she was pregnant. At that time, she was so shocked that she almost jumped up. "Really? You didn't make a mistake, did you?"
Zhao Qingjiang twisted his beard and smiled. "This pulse beats evenly and smoothly. It can't be wrong! Go back and rest. Don't run around blindly. It will only work if the fetus is stable!"
She was pregnant with a child. Let's see if Wang Qingshan dares to hit her in the future, and let's see if those two old guys dare not obey her!
The more Zhou Zhaodi thought about it, the happier she became. As soon as she got home, she told them about her pregnancy.
The old Wang couple were indeed overjoyed. Mother-in-law Li Yuzhen carefully instructed, "Zhaodi, you must be careful in the first three months."
Zhou Zhaodi squatted on the chair, squinting and said, "Your grandson is hungry and wants to drink egg tea!"
How could Li Yuzhen dare to neglect it? She quickly touched two eggs in the chicken coop and went to the kitchen.
In the past, Wang Qingshan would definitely not spoil her treacherous and gluttonous nature.
But now she was pregnant with the Wang family's seed. Even if she was greedy, he had to endure it. He originally squatted at the door smoking, but also hurried up to the kitchen to help boil the pot.
Zhou Zhaodi looked at his back, and the corners of her mouth curled up proudly.
After drinking the egg tea, she clamored to eat sunflower seeds again. Li Yuzhen asked Wang Qingshan to go to the street to weigh half a catty of five-spice sunflower seeds.
Today, hearing that Zhou Pandi had an accident, she was not in a hurry. She ate sunflower seeds and wandered slowly to the entrance of the village.
At this time, seeing Zhou Pandi being taken away, she turned and sat under the shade of a tree by the road, continuing to eat sunflower seeds.
"Zhaodi, Pandi is like that, why don't you go and see?" A woman came over and asked.
Zhou Zhaodi didn't even lift her eyelids. "What's there to see? I'm not a doctor, and it's useless to go."
Before long, a group of women gathered under the shade of the tree, and someone mentioned the public security coming to identify people.
"What medicine is this public security selling in the gourd? They brought an old man to identify people, I don't know what they are doing."
"Isn't that right! The branch secretary asked Xiaoying to call Pandi. Xiaoying said that Pandi ran away in fright when she heard it was the public security. As a result, her foot slipped and she fell into the mud pool." A woman took over the conversation, her eyes darting towards Zhou Zhaodi.
"Zhaodi, do you know what's going on?" Someone asked.
Zhou Zhaodi spat a ground of sunflower seed shells and rolled her eyes. "How would I know!"
The women whispered to each other, suspecting that the person the public security wanted to find was actually Zhou Pandi. Otherwise, why did she run?
While discussing, they saw the two brothers Wang Haihu and Wang Hailong wandering over from the small path in Donggou.
The two were disheveled, their clothes covered in sweat stains, and a sour and smelly smell could be smelled from afar.
The attention of the women was immediately drawn away. Someone cursed in a low voice, "Why are these two goods back? They were only locked up for a few days and they were released?"
"That's right, sneaking around all day, why not lock them up for a lifetime!"
When they got close, the women covered their noses and asked, "Are you two alright?"
Wang Haihu raised his chin proudly. "Of course we're alright! We just suffered for a few days when we were locked up!"
"That's right, caused me to squat in the cell for ten days!" Wang Hailong followed and cursed.
During the strict anti-crime campaign, all the petty thieves and local hooligans in Qingshan Commune were rounded up.
The commune had limited facilities and couldn't hold too many people. Those involved in minor offenses were locked up for a few days, given a stern lecture, and then released.
The Wang Haihu brothers had acted under the orders of Wang Jieshi. Since they hadn't caused any serious consequences, and no one came to bring them meals—and the commune certainly wasn't going to feed them for free—the two were let go.
However, Wang Haichao and Wang Haibao had committed serious crimes and were transferred to the county. Wang Haichao was sentenced to five years, and Wang Haibao to three.
Wang Jieshi was also sentenced to five years. Although he was granted a sentence to be served outside of prison, he had to go to the police station every month to report on his thoughts and behavior.
At this moment, Wang Jieshi was lying stiffly on a rock-hard wooden bed, his heart filled with bitter resentment.
He clutched shredded pieces of paper in his hand, his dead, fish-like eyes staring up at the leaky roof.
A few words squeezed through his gritted teeth: This is not over!
