Chapter 573: Reduced to Ashes

Chapter 573: Leveled to the Ground

Jiang Yu went to work as usual, but as soon as she entered the factory, Director Zheng called her into his office.

Director Zheng clearly hadn’t slept all night either, his face unusually haggard.

"You're pregnant now—you need to take care of yourself."

Jiang Yu smiled bitterly. "Do you think I could sleep last night?"

Director Zheng sighed softly and remained silent for a long while.

Then, finally, he looked at her and said, "Jiang Yu, you need to prepare yourself."

This preparation, of course, was for the disciplinary action she would face.

Newspapers were flooded with earthquake warnings, causing widespread social unrest.

The central government had even expended vast resources evacuating civilians and stockpiling supplies.

They'd even mobilized military districts, ready to provide disaster relief at any moment.

If the earthquake didn’t happen, all this would've been for nothing. As the one who initiated the earthquake warning, Jiang Yu would undoubtedly face punishment.

Not just her—even he wouldn't escape blame.

Jiang Yu said solemnly, "Director, no one wants this earthquake to happen more than I do."

She wished Jiang Ting had lied to her.

She also wondered if the butterfly effect might change things. If something as unbelievable as Jiang Ting’s rebirth could happen, perhaps altering history wasn’t impossible either.

Yet, in the end, Jiang Yu's hopes were dashed.

The quake hit without warning. Sitting in her chair, Jiang Yu clearly felt the shaking.

The teacup on the desk rattled violently, its lid clattering against the cup with a crisp sound.

Jiang Yu gasped and quickly steadied herself against the table.

Director Zheng reacted first, steadying her.

"Let’s go!"

As soon as they stepped outside, the tremors grew even stronger. Jiang Yu felt as if the entire factory office building was swaying, making her stagger.

"Get downstairs—out to the open!"

"Director, what about you?"

"Go on ahead! I need to get to the broadcast room!"

Director Zheng escorted Jiang Yu to the stairwell. He had duty—he couldn’t abandon the factory’s workers and leave first.

Jiang Yu moved fast, racing all the way down to the first floor.

By then, many others already felt the earthquake and were pouring outside.

Her heart pounded. Standing among the crowd, Jiang Yu looked back at the shaking buildings.

Even the factory office’s main gate looked like it might fall apart.

Out of breath, she turned and hurried into the first-floor logistics department.

"Xiao Liu, where’s the megaphone?"

The logistics clerk turned, saw her, gritted her teeth, and ducked back inside to grab the megaphone.

"Boss Jiang, you should get out of here first."

Even without an earthquake, with this stampede, someone could easily knock Jiang Yu over.

Jiang Yu flicked on the megaphone and climbed onto the steps.

"Evacuate calmly! No pushing! Move to open areas!"

She kept shouting, her voice raw and breaking.

But the panicked mob, bolting for the exit, ignored her.

Survival instinct had them running—faster, faster!

With nearly ten thousand workers, a stampede was bound to happen.

Jiang Yu’s voice turned ragged, her words lost in the chaos.

"Sis! Sis!" Lin Chang’an materialized next to her.

"Yue sent me! Beicheng’s not shaking as bad—buildings should hold. He says wait here!"

He grabbed the megaphone and took over shouting.

Security was outnumbered ten to one by the workers.

The crowd surged like a flash flood.

Jiang Yu slumped under the eaves, wiped out. A sleepless night and today’s rollercoaster had emptied her.

If Beicheng was this bad, how bad was Huangcheng—ground zero?

Meanwhile, over at the Textile Industry Revolutionary Committee HQ.

The second the shaking started, shouts of ‘Evacuate!’ rang out.

Jiao Zongyao stumbled to the window, gripping the shuddering frame, stunned.

"No way..."

The earthquake had truly struck!

"Jiao, quit stalling—let’s move!"

Jiao Zongyao snapped, "Get Huangcheng on the line—now!"

"If Beicheng’s like this, Huangcheng’s lines are dead. Even with news, it’ll be hours before we hear squat!"

Hell, that intel goes straight to Beijing—way above our pay grade.

Jiao Zongyao’s face went black, fists white-knuckled, joints popping.

"I'm not leaving! It might just be a minor earthquake, not even coming from Phoenix City! Just a little quake—Northern City’s seen worse. What's there to be afraid of?"

He wouldn’t budge, refusing to believe the earthquake warning was real.

He wouldn’t give in until news came from Phoenix City.

Jiang Yu stayed sitting on the ground, watching the chaos unfold below the steps.

After who knows how long, the tremors gradually subsided.

Most of the workers had already evacuated by the time she finally saw Factory Director Zheng emerge from the broadcasting room.

He hadn’t left either. When he saw Jiang Yu, his face darkened as he walked over.

"Are you going home, or…?"

Jiang Yu got up from the ground, her face pale.

"I’m heading back to the office—I need to wait for word from Phoenix City."

"Let’s go."

She’d only taken a couple of steps when she saw He Tingyue sprinting toward her.

As soon as he got to her, he looked her up and down.

"Are you alright?"

Jiang Yu shook her head. "I’m fine. I stayed here the whole time and didn’t go down."

He Tingyue let out a quiet sigh of relief, taking her hand as they climbed the stairs while he reported to Factory Director Zheng.

"Thirty-two people got hurt in the stampede, but nothing serious. They’ve already been sent to the hospital."

Factory Director Zheng nodded. "Round up the factory execs—emergency meeting! Get everyone here—nobody’s leaving the factory tonight. Pull every string to get updates from Phoenix City. The security department and transport team must remain on standby, standing by for disaster relief!"

Now it was just a waiting game.

Time dragged on, fraying Jiang Yu’s nerves with every second.

If He Tingyue hadn’t packed some hard-boiled eggs when they left home, she’d have probably passed out from hunger.

The first one back with news was Elder Jiang.

He’d come to find Jiang Yu, only to find the Second State Cotton Mill almost empty.

Returning to the residential compound, he learned the factory executives were in a meeting.

"Phoenix City—a major earthquake!"

The room went dead silent at his words.

The warning was real—but who’d ever want it to be?

Jiang Yu sagged, exhaling a long, tired breath.

In a daze, it hit her—the last glimmer of hope was gone.

History was set in stone.

Elder Jiang's eyes welled up with tears, "In just a few dozen seconds, the entire city was nearly leveled! The devastation is unimaginable!"

Ninety percent of all buildings collapsed!

Jiang Yu closed her eyes, unable to imagine what Huangcheng looked like now.

But she knew the immense impact this would have on the people—turning a century-old industrial city into rubble.

Factory Director Zheng clenched his fists, his voice hoarse: "What about the casualties?"

Elder Jiang shook his head, "Aftershocks keep hitting—we can’t get an accurate count yet."

He could hardly imagine how many more lives would’ve been lost if there had been no earthquake warning for this sudden disaster.

His gaze fixed on Jiang Yu, his heart stirred with emotion, and tears welled up in his eyes.

History cannot be changed, and humans cannot defy nature, but they can do everything to reduce the damage.