flstandardbreds Chapter 141: Man can conquer nature
Chapter 141: Man can conquer nature
From morning till night, and from night till morning, Aran was bustling with people and brightly lit. The cannons on the huge space battleship were covered, leaving only the searchlights shining on the ground day and night. The medical room on the Watchtower was the closest surgical center in the entire disaster area that met the requirements for surgery.
Those who are rescued and still alive will be divided into three categories: those with minor injuries will be sent to the resettlement point for simple treatment, those with general injuries will be sent to the medical center at the resettlement point for treatment, and those with serious injuries will be urgently carried onto the MI-08 transport helicopter and urgently sent to the warning ship.
Blood flowed from the helicopter landing platform all the way to the medical ward. The elite Western Military District medical team stationed in Brittany performed surgeries on the wounded day and night. Most of them were doctors with many years of experience, but the old-fashioned butcher-like doctors were not the same as the medical science established in Amelansi today. So, although many of them had practiced medicine many times before, after being quickly trained from the new medical school, the level of many doctors was actually just so-so.
However, they are also among the most experienced in clinical medicine at Imellan. Many of these doctors previously came from the rural mobile doctor system established by Alice, also known as barefoot doctors. Through years of practical experience in rural areas, they accumulated a wealth of clinical medical experience, summarized the slight differences in physical conditions among various ethnic groups, and wrote many books, which were published in Imellan's authoritative medical journal, The Lancet.
The operating lights were on 24 hours a day. As more and more wounded were brought in, the medical team requisitioned every corner inside and outside the medical room. The ship's mess hall was also requisitioned as a ward. The surgeon operated for nine consecutive hours before he could take a short break. After drinking a whole bottle of glucose water, he went back into the operation.
In disaster relief, a key factor is productivity. After 13 hours of emergency repairs, the railway to the disaster area was reopened, and a brand-new diesel locomotive carrying supplies and personnel arrived at the scene, along with a temporarily converted mobile medical room and Trian's medical team.
Supplies and people poured into Aran from all directions, followed by newspapers and media. Early journalists upheld their professional principles and reported the facts as fairly as possible.
Twenty hours after the disaster, telegraph and cable lines in Aran were restored. Although Aran had been able to send messages through the radio on the watchtower, civilian news finally reached Aran as the telegraph network was rebuilt. The port newspaper in the central region of Hira became the first news outlet to report on the disaster relief efforts in Aran.
Aranya Earthquake – Unprecedented National Unity!
An earthquake and the relief efforts demonstrated the qualities of a modern and efficient government to the entire nation and the world. The photo of Alice speaking amidst the ruins was also sent far and wide with the newspapers, showing the public everything about Alice.
From the perspective of the people in the disaster area, today's earthquake is completely different from those of the past. In the old days, no government provided them with relief, and few people cared about them. Nobles often fled their people at the first sign of disaster. But now, the Amelianchi government and her army, united by a sense of national responsibility and nationalism, are going against the tide and saving their people.
The military arrived in 2 hours to provide disaster relief, medical teams from various regions arrived in 4 hours, air force ships arrived in 6 hours, railways in 12 hours, and communications were restored in 19 hours... Amid grief and ruins, steel and flesh and blood built a wall of defense!
Amelia's productivity was the source of all this. Agricultural development led to high-yield crops, while industrialization brought trains, automobiles, spaceships, helicopters, telegraphs, radios, and industrialized food. This surging productivity also brought about social change, enabling the government to quickly organize and mobilize resources and manpower.
This was a battle to make up for the losses with production, and also a test of the national spirit of Amelansi. Alice stood amidst the ruins, her petite figure inspiring everyone. When the soldiers saw her standing on the ruins, they knew she was among them. When the disaster victims saw the princess, whom they had only ever seen in newspapers and portraits, standing here, they knew they had not been abandoned or hated, and that the whole country was saving them.
Some find satisfaction in the act of being saved, and the tricolor flag in their hearts seems even more radiant; others find solace in being saved, and gain a deeper understanding of the word "nation."
Alice simply wandered around, and the soldiers and civilians running through the ruins finally resonated with the image of her homeland in her heart.
"Excuse me! Please move aside! Quick! She's dying!"
A group of soldiers carried a stretcher towards her and her party. Someone tried to step forward, but Alice raised her hand and stopped them.
"Hurry! Don't delay the best time for rescue!"
Someone looked up and saw that white figure. In the rush of the moment, they were momentarily dazed, but the scene was unforgettable.
"Your Highness, you should rest... You've been walking around here for over ten hours..."
"Are they resting? No, now is not the time to rest. Our understanding of disaster relief is far from sufficient. If any link goes wrong, if we fail to save even one life that can be saved, it will be unforgivable for our country!"
Alice spoke with victims and soldiers throughout the disaster area, checking the details and priorities of various tasks. She had only one thought in her mind: she had to do her best. She knew she couldn't compare to a truly modern country like her homeland, but she had to do her best under the current conditions.
At the resettlement site in the early morning, the lights were still on, and every tent was filled with survivors of the disaster, who were grieving but still held onto hope.
Alice casually lifted the door of a tent. Inside, there were still some lights. The family of three sat on the edge of a folding bed. The summer night in Aran was cool, neither too hot nor too cold, which was perfect for search and rescue and post-disaster living.
"Hello, are you local residents? I'm sorry to bother you, is this a convenient time for you?"
Alice looked at the family of three inside; they had some minor injuries, but their expressions were natural.
"Ah, you are...?"
"We are from the resettlement site command committee. We would like to ask what you need..."
Alice was wearing a coat, her silver hair covered by the hoodie. She planned to go among the disaster victims, because their feelings were the most important.
The family of three paused for a moment, then said tremblingly, "Do we need anything? What else do we need... How dare we say we need anything?"
The mother, holding her child, said, while the man stood up: "Really... thank you... My wife and child were buried under the rubble. It was the soldiers who dug them out and gave us a place to stay, a bed, and hot meals. What more can I say?"
Alice nodded.
"I heard that Princess Alice personally issued the disaster relief order, and she's here too. When have we ever seen a prince, princess, or empress help us? Not under Her Majesty Alicia, not under Ekevich, but Princess Alice truly treats us as her subjects..."
"We thank her, thank her Amelansie, thank the Amelansie army. When have we ever seen an army like this?"
"We don't need anything, but things might be tough from now on... Our house collapsed, and we might lose everything we have..."
"Don't worry, the government will make arrangements for you, and things will get better from now on."
"How could I dare?"
"Because we are all citizens of America, we grew up under the tricolor flag. Citizens contribute to the country, and the country provides protection for its citizens. This is the meaning of the country."
"The meaning of the nation... Thank you, Miss. By the way, are you Princess Alice's maid? I'd like you to convey my thanks to her..."
"Thank you? If you want to thank someone, thank the soldiers, doctors, and all the rescue workers. She... her sacrifices may not have been more than theirs. So, I won't bother you any longer. I wish you all safety."
"Thank them... Yes, Miss. May you be safe, and may Her Highness the Princess be safe as well."
Alice went outside, and her maid Rafis walked towards her. Alice looked up and saw helicopters constantly flying overhead, huge sky warships and beams of light hanging down, and bricks and rubble on the ground, as well as people helping with disaster relief.
"Miss, what's wrong with you?"
“I… I just suddenly thought of a phrase.”
Maid Raphis shook her head, while Alice gazed at the sky warship and uttered the phrase in the common language of this world—English from her previous life:
"Man can conquer heaven."