Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
An atmosphere like that made one feel a sense of desolation permeate in the silence.
Nian Xiaomu continued moving ahead.
When she came closer to the front gate of the factory, the suppressed cries of the workers became more audible.
Many of them were old workers who had worked in the clothing factory for their whole life and refused to have their injuries tended to. They were kneeling at the entrance of the factory and sobbing like children.
Manager Hong was amongst them.
When Nian Xiaomu saw him yesterday, he was still wearing his work uniform and keeping the factory clean and tidy inside out.
He pleaded with her earnestly to not shut down the clothing factory and assured her that they could definitely operate it properly.
During the last night, it seemed as if he had aged over ten years.
His face had traces of being exposed to thick smoke as more than half of it was charred.
The same applied to his clothes. The sleeves of his shirt and the ends of his pants had been burnt off. Part of his skin which was exposed had been burnt too, but he refused to have his wounds bandaged.
He was kneeling at the entrance, looking aimlessly at the clothing factory that had been reduced to ruins while murmuring to himself, “Gone. It’s all gone…”
Hearing his words, Nian Xiaomu’s eyes felt hot and she bit her lip as she tried to stop herself from crying.
“Vice-President Nian!”
Someone amongst the crowd noticed Nian Xiaomu and yelled out loud.
Everyone’s eyes turned to Nian Xiaomu’s direction.
Realizing that it was really her, it was as if they had seen their family member and they continued to bawl devastatingly.
One of the workers’ children had grown up in the factory and was just a four to five-year-old little fellow who was not much older than Xiao Liuliu.
The little boy went up to her in an adult-like manner and asked her with tears filled in both eyes, “Sister, will we still have a home in the future?”
Just a simple line like this was enough for the tears Nian Xiaomu had been suppressing in her eyes to rush down her face instantly.
She squatted down and carried him in her arms before wiping the dirt from the thick smoke that had accumulated on his little face.
“Yes! Definitely! It’s alright that the factory has been burnt down. I promise all of you that I will investigate the cause of this matter clearly and rebuild this place. I won’t let this skill that all of you are passionate about to be lost, nor allow any of you to be homeless!”
Nian Xiaomu took the little boy’s hand and stood up from the ground, making a solemn promise to all the factory workers gathered at the entrance.
Hearing her words, the dull and gloomy eyes of the workers who were still bawling brightened up instantly.
Filled with surprise, they stood up from the ground and gathered around her.
“Vice-President Nian, do you mean it? Will you really help us rebuild the factory, and not let it close down?”
After the fire, all of them hated themselves for being useless.
They could only watch as their factory was being burnt down.
Those workers who would not shed even a tear no matter how hard things were, bawled like children for the very first time.
Now that they heard Nian Xiaomu promise to rebuild the factory, all of them wiped their tears away and looked at her agitatedly.
Even Manager Hong, who was still in despair, did the same.
The moment he saw Nian Xiaomu appear, he thought that he would hear her announce the news of shutting down the factory. Little did he expect this…
Manager Hong hurriedly crawled up from the ground and completely disregarding his injuries, squeezed through the crowd all the way to Nian Xiaomu.
With tears brimming in his eyes, he looked at her and asked, “Vice-President Nian, what did you just say? You’re willing to rebuild the factory?”
“Yes! The factory has been burnt down. I can relate to the devastation all of you have. But, now is not the time to be upset. The fire would not have started for no reason, and at such a fast speed too. You are the manager, you can’t collapse now. You need to protect everyone and check who is injured and tend to their injuries. Then, you need to cooperate with the relevant department to investigate the cause of this incident!”
