Five yuan a box, with ten catties per box—this price was indeed quite a bargain.
Wen Nuan walked over to the table to take a look and even reached out to gauge the weight. “Five yuan a box is actually pretty good. Bai Lu, if you run into that pear seller again tonight, could you get a box for me?”
“Of course, but if they don’t show up, you can’t blame me!” Although she would definitely bring the pears back, Bai Lu made sure to clarify the possibility beforehand.
“That goes without saying.” Wen Nuan counted out five yuan and handed it to Bai Lu.
Seeing this, the others also counted out five yuan for her.
Once everyone had taken their toiletries to go bathe, Bai Lu picked out six pears and headed to the Head Nurse’s home. There were six people in the Head Nurse’s family, including the elderly and children. Giving them one pear each to try was just a friendly gesture, not considered “gift-giving” in a formal sense.
When the others returned from washing up and saw that Bai Lu was nowhere to be found, they assumed she had gone out again to prepare for her year-end wedding. Since they all had to work during the day, they only had time for personal matters after hours.
Jin Jialiang really did have it easy; he didn’t lift a finger, leaving everything for Bai Lu to handle alone.
Bai Lu purchased ten boxes of pears from the “Universal Mall” and placed them directly into the “Universal Warehouse.” Only when she was near the hospital did she take several boxes out of the warehouse and strap them to her bicycle. Back at the dormitory, she moved the boxes one by one into the room and placed them on the floor by the table, so the others would see them as soon as they woke up. The quality from the Universal Mall was guaranteed, so she could just grab any box without needing to inspect them individually.
Traveling back and forth like this every night made Bai Lu exhausted. After washing up, she fell asleep the moment her head hit the pillow, not wasting a single second.
However, Bai Lu’s sleep didn’t last long before she was awakened by an urgent knocking on the door. Being the first to wake, she rubbed her eyes and jumped out of bed, rushing to open the door. She found the Head Nurse standing outside with an expression of extreme urgency.
“Head Nurse, what happened?” Bai Lu asked worriedly.
“The hospital just received word that a geological disaster occurred in neighboring Suzhou City. There is a critical shortage of medical personnel. Higher-ups have ordered our hospital to send two-thirds of our staff. Everyone, pack your essentials quickly, fill out your support applications at the hospital, and then head to the county hospital to assemble. At dawn, we’ll take the county hospital’s vehicles to Suzhou City,” the Head Nurse said breathlessly.
While the Head Nurse was speaking, Bai Lu had already woken up the remaining nurses. After hearing the news, everyone was completely alert, their sleepiness vanishing instantly.
The Head Nurse added, “Volunteering is important, but the patients currently in our hospital are equally important. Therefore, Zhou Juan and Yang Taohua, you two will stay behind. Everyone else, pack your things and come with me immediately.”
The nurses quickly pulled out their suitcases and began packing.
Once ready, they lugged their luggage to the front of the hospital to fill out their support applications. After the Head Nurse and the hospital administration stamped the forms, everyone gathered in front of the building. Once the doctors and nurses had all arrived, they rushed toward the county hospital. Since they couldn’t call for vehicles in the middle of the night, the hospital arranged ox carts for them, with several people to a cart.
Their location was relatively remote; it was a four-to-five-hour trip to the county hospital, and another four to five hours from there to Suzhou City. This meant they would likely arrive in Suzhou City around noon the following day.
Bai Lu leaned against Wen Nuan, her mood persistently low.
Thinking she was upset about being unable to prepare for the wedding, Wen Nuan said, “Bai Lu, I’m sure Jin Jialiang will understand. Marriage is a matter for two people anyway. You’ve already prepared so much; it’s only right to leave the rest for him to handle. He has no reason to blame you.”
“It’s not because of that. I just feel… sigh, human life is so fragile in the face of nature. Why do things like this have to happen?” Bai Lu shook her head helplessly. Her somber mood wasn’t because of Jin Jialiang, but rather out of sympathy, heartache, and a sense of powerlessness for the victims.
As a medical professional, Bai Lu had to rush to the scene whenever such a disaster occurred. Witnessing the shocking scenes in person was a completely different experience from seeing them on television or in the news.
The Head Nurse addressed the group: “Everyone, try to catch some sleep now! Once we arrive tomorrow, we’ll be busy, and there might not be any time to rest. You’d better gather your strength while you can.”
Everyone understood that a tough battle awaited them. One by one, they closed their eyes and leaned against their luggage to rest.
As a nurse with experience from multiple frontline missions in her past life, Bai Lu knew that what they would lack most were medical and living supplies. While ordinary people could donate living supplies, it was nearly impossible to rely on donations for specialized medical equipment.
While everyone else was resting, Bai Lu quickly logged into the “Universal Mall” to search for medical supplies. To her surprise, the mall actually carried them.
Without hesitation, she ordered a batch of:
Patient uniforms, medical gauze, masks, and disinfectants.
Cotton swabs, medical gloves, and syringes.
Cold medicine, painkillers, anti-inflammatory drugs, and fever reducers.
Even after wounds are treated, survivors are prone to infections and fevers, making these medicines indispensable and highly sought-after in disaster zones.
Though it was summer, the temperature at night was still quite low. Despite wearing autumn clothes, the nurses felt a chill. Such temperatures would be difficult for the elderly, women, and children to endure, so Bai Lu also ordered blankets and extra clothing.
Children would undoubtedly be terrified and crying after such an event. Bai Lu ordered twenty more jars of the lollipops she had bought previously—roughly two thousand pieces—hoping they could provide some comfort to the little ones.
Finally, she bought items that could provide immediate energy: bottled water, bread, biscuits, ham sausages, canned food, and chocolate. The rescue site would be filled with medical staff, soldiers, rescue teams, private volunteers, and survivors—all of whom would need timely nourishment. Only with a healthy body could they better participate in the rescue efforts.
Bai Lu spent over a million mall coins on these supplies. Though it was a bit painful to see the balance drop, she did it willingly, wanting to contribute her humble part to society.
By the time they reached the gates of the county hospital, the horizon was beginning to turn pale. The morning chill made them shiver uncontrollably. In front of the county hospital, many doctors and nurses were already busy. Upon seeing their arrival, officials checked their ID cards and support applications before directing them onto the transport vehicles.