The fire at Wanyuan Residential Complex was finally extinguished sometime after eight that evening.
When the body of Zhou Ying, a firefighter from the Aixin Bridge Station, was carried out, a suppressed wave of sobbing swept through the scene. The commanders and firefighters who had just finished fighting the fire stood in two lines, their faces smeared with grime and their bodies weighed down by exhaustion, watching their fallen comrade being carried away.
Chen Xiaofei, the brigade commander of the Hongwu Brigade, along with the political commissar, deputy brigade commander, and others, had rushed to the scene after hearing the news.
Chen Xiaofei solemnly called out, “Salute—”
The firefighters and commanders all raised their right hands. At the same time, all nine fire engines sounded their sirens, the mournful wails making the night seem even darker.
Chen Xiaofei assigned another station to clean up the fire scene and ordered everyone who had participated in fighting the fire to go back and rest.
One fire engine after another drove away. Ren Yi didn’t leave immediately. Instead, he walked over to Chen Xiaofei.
“Captain Chen.”
Chen Xiaofei nodded. “You’ve worked hard.”
Ren Yi looked into Chen Xiaofei’s eyes. “Captain Chen, Staff Officer Xu and Captain Qian’s command had no problems.”
Chen Xiaofei turned to look into the distance. “Qian Yue’s emotional state is terrible right now. You were there at the time. What exactly happened?”
Ren Yi’s gaze was gloomy and grief-stricken. “During the rescue, an aunt insisted on going back to retrieve her belongings. She ignored everyone’s warnings and ran back into the fire. Zhou Ying went back to save her, and then the floor… collapsed.”
Chen Xiaofei took a deep breath and closed his eyes for a moment before saying heavily, “Ren Yi, I know you’re worried about Qian Yue, but why the floor collapsed, whether excessive water application caused uneven loading, whether there were obvious signs of the steel beams deforming—those are all things Qian Yue is responsible for. Why didn’t the commander notice them? Those are all his ‘problems.’”
Ren Yi bit his lip, his heart filled with unwillingness and grief.
He knew Chen Xiaofei was right. When a life was lost, the entire chain of events had to be analyzed thoroughly, and everyone from the lowest level of command to the highest had to bear responsibility, including Chen Xiaofei himself.
But a fire scene was a battlefield of life and death, with circumstances changing in an instant. Who could guarantee that their orders were one hundred percent correct? Was Qian Yue responsible? As the on-site commander, yes. But had he actually made a mistake?
Chen Xiaofei saw what Ren Yi was thinking. He patted Ren Yi on the shoulder and sighed. “I know what you’re thinking. No one wanted this to happen, but it did happen. We need to sort out everyone’s responsibilities clearly, so that those who come after us can learn from it and we can do our best to prevent something like this from happening again.”
Ren Yi nodded. “I understand.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll handle Qian Yue’s situation properly. Go back and get some rest.”
——
After Ren Yi returned to the station, he took a shower and then fell into a dazed sleep.
Because of what had happened, the brigade’s annual competition was canceled. Based on the results from the first day, Phoenix Station still came in first place, but no one paid any attention to it.
In the Wanyuan Residential Complex fire, a total of six people, including Zhou Ying, died, while thirty-two were injured. Five of them were seriously injured and remained in critical condition.
After dinner, Qu Yangbo gathered everyone for a meeting and provided psychological counseling for all of them. In particular, the two squads that had participated in the rescue were bound to be in very low spirits for some time.
After the meeting, Qu Yangbo said to Ren Yi, “Take two days off.”
Ren Yi nodded. “I was planning to take some time off too. I just called Staff Officer Xu. I want to participate in the fire investigation.”
“You volunteered to participate in the fire investigation?” Qu Yangbo thought for a moment. “That’s fine too. Did he agree?”
“Yes. The Fire Investigation Division has always been short-staffed, and I’ve worked with Gong Yingxian before.” Ren Yi sighed. “Let’s try to get the results as soon as possible.”
“They haven’t even determined whether it was an accident or arson, and you’re already planning to work with the police?”
“I’ll be going on behalf of the Fire Investigation Division. Gong Yingxian will definitely come along.”
“Why? The bar case was special, but a residential fire in broad daylight is usually an accident. It hasn’t reached the point where the police need to get involved, has it?”
Ren Yi paused before saying quietly, “Gong Yingxian is particularly fixated on fire-related cases. And he went with me to Wanyuan Residential Complex this time. He’ll definitely want to know as soon as possible whether it was an accident.”
“Fixated?” Qu Yangbo frowned in confusion.
“Yes, fixated.” Ren Yi understood Gong Yingxian’s fixation—the determination to approach and challenge fire even though he feared it and hated it.
“All right. Don’t worry about things at the station. Gao Ge and I are here. I’ll notify you if anything happens.”
Ren Yi managed a smile. “Thanks, my virtuous wife.”
Qu Yangbo laughed as well. “Now get lost.”
——
When Ren Yi returned home that night, his father was already asleep. His father was a light sleeper, so Ren Yi tiptoed around as soon as he entered. Unexpectedly, his phone suddenly rang.
Ren Yi quickly answered and lowered his voice. “Hello?”
“Ren Yi, is it convenient to talk?” A pleasant male voice came from the other end.
“Qi Xiao? Wait a second.” Ren Yi went into his room and closed the door before returning to his normal volume. “Go ahead.”
“I saw you on TV. The Wanyuan Residential Complex fire.”
“Oh.” Ren Yi deliberately sounded relaxed. “I even made it onto TV?”
“…Are you okay?”
Ren Yi was silent for a moment. “I’m fine.”
Qi Xiao said gently, “Hey, I saw that one of your fellow firefighters died, so I was really worried about you. You weren’t injured or anything, were you?”
Ren Yi smiled faintly. “Really, I’m fine. Don’t worry.”
“Do you have any time off recently?” Qi Xiao asked. “Let’s meet up. I miss you.”
Ren Yi hesitated. Normally, if Qi Xiao asked him out while he happened to be on leave, he really had no reason to refuse. Yet this time, he hesitated.
Still, he agreed. “Sure. I have a few things to deal with. I’ll come find you after I take care of them.”
“I’ll wait for you.” Qi Xiao suddenly gave a low laugh. “It’s the first time I’ve seen you wearing your firefighting gear. You looked especially handsome.”
Ren Yi laughed. “You can come to the station when you have time. We wear it often during training.”
“Sure. I’ve always wanted to come take a look.”
After hanging up, Ren Yi collapsed onto his bed. His mind replayed everything that had happened at Wanyuan Residential Complex the day before. As sleepiness gradually overtook him, all the images became blurred, except for Gong Yingxian’s deep, tranquil eyes, which instead became increasingly clear…
——
Early the next morning, Ren Yi drove Ren Xiangrong to the little shop where their family of three used to frequently eat breakfast. Afterward, the two of them went for a walk in the park.
Ren Xiangrong sat in his wheelchair, sunlight falling across his face and illuminating a quiet, peaceful smile.
As Ren Yi pushed Ren Xiangrong along, he brought up the recent death of the firefighter. After listening, Ren Xiangrong said, “Old Chen was right. Maybe the floor collapse really was related to excessive water application. Maybe that station commander really didn’t anticipate the deformation of the steel structure in advance. Although he wasn’t primarily at fault, as a cadre, the more authority you possess, the more responsibility you have to bear.”
Ren Yi had been a station commander for less than two years. During his career as a firefighter, he had only experienced one death of a fellow firefighter at his side. It was a wound he never wanted to recall for the rest of his life. But at that time, he hadn’t been the commander, so it wasn’t his responsibility to bear.
This time, however, he couldn’t help putting himself in Qian Yue’s position.
If he had been Qian Yue, could he have done better?
Those who served as commanders all had one fundamental principle: they could never send their firefighters somewhere they themselves wouldn’t dare to go. If they led their people into danger, they had to do everything possible to bring them back out alive.
But even if they tried their hardest not to make mistakes and did everything they could to protect every single person, they could still encounter accidents that were impossible to resist.
Whenever Ren Yi thought about what Qian Yue must be feeling right now, he found it difficult to breathe under the weight of it.
Ren Xiangrong patted Ren Yi’s hand. “I know you’re afraid. Who isn’t afraid? Back then, several of our squads entered the Baosheng Chemical Plant together. In the end, hardly any of us made it out alive. Who could you blame then? Can you blame the woman who insisted on going back for her bracelet? She lost her own life too. What good would blaming her do?”
Ren Yi’s nose stung slightly, and he remained silent.
“A true warrior is afraid, but does not retreat,” Ren Xiangrong said solemnly.
Ren Yi nodded bitterly. “Dad, I will never retreat.”
“Ah, whenever I think about the Baosheng Chemical Plant, I still feel awful.” Ren Xiangrong smiled bitterly. “Back then, the higher-ups wanted to give me a First-Class Merit. Getting a First-Class Merit while still alive was incredibly rare. But I refused no matter what. Oh, unless I died—then I could accept it with a clear conscience. Otherwise, what right did I have to receive the same merit as those comrades of mine who sacrificed their lives?”
“The information about the Baosheng Chemical Plant is hard to find online now. Was it ultimately determined to be a production accident?”
“Yes. Those who were supposed to be sentenced were sentenced, and those who were supposed to be punished were punished.” Ren Xiangrong sighed. “That chairman even committed suicide out of guilt, but what good did that do? No one could come back.”
Ren Yi wanted to ask more, but he was afraid his father would become suspicious. Besides, there wasn’t much point in asking. He had already decided that unless Gong Yingxian brought it up himself, he would continue pretending he knew nothing.
The two of them walked around a little longer before returning home.
After lunch, Ren Yi left his father in the care of the nanny and drove to Wanyuan Residential Complex. He had arranged to investigate the scene with Gong Yingxian.
When he arrived, someone had gotten there even earlier than him. It was Zhang Wen, the assistant assigned to him by the Fire Investigation Division. He had also been assigned to the bar case last time.
“Captain Ren.” Zhang Wen was taking photographs downstairs in the residential complex.
“Xiao Zhang.” Ren Yi nodded. “You’re here early.”
“Yeah. I’m taking some environmental photographs first.”
He looked like he had just graduated from college. He wore black-rimmed glasses, and his bangs were slightly long. He was refined and somewhat shy, with a slender build. The clothes he wore always seemed oversized and ill-fitting.
“Zhang Wen, the Fire Investigation Division is so short-staffed right now. I hope you can develop as quickly as possible and start conducting investigations independently.”
Zhang Wen smiled. “Captain Ren, I’m a contract worker. I’m not like you guys. It would be great if I could become a permanent employee. Otherwise, I probably won’t be able to do this for many years.”
“You’ll only have a chance of becoming permanent if you do a good job, right?” Ren Yi patted Zhang Wen on the shoulder. “If you need to build up experience at a station, I can arrange for you to intern at mine. If you’re doing fire investigation, you need to thoroughly understand fire scenes, whether before or after the fire has been extinguished.”
“I actually had that in mind. I’ll apply to the higher-ups first. Thank you, Captain Ren.” Zhang Wen hesitated before asking Ren Yi about becoming a permanent employee.
Ren Yi didn’t know much about the internal situation either, so he could only tell him whatever he knew.
The two of them had barely spoken a few sentences when Gong Yingxian arrived.
Gong Yingxian looked Ren Yi over. “Are you feeling better?”
Ren Yi smiled. “I’m fine. Shouldn’t I be asking you that? You didn’t throw up after you went home yesterday, did you?”
“I’m doing my best to overcome it.”
“Then today…” Ren Yi pointed upstairs with his thumb. “How about I go up first? If I find anything, I’ll let you know.”
“No. We’re going up together.” Gong Yingxian answered without hesitation.
Ren Yi said helplessly, “Are you really okay? We have to climb more than twenty floors. You’re a big guy. If something happens to you, I can’t carry you.”
“I don’t need anyone to carry me.”
Gong Yingxian put on his mask and entered the building first.
The elevator had naturally been damaged, so Ren Yi had to climb all those floors again. But this time, he wasn’t carrying any equipment, so it was much easier.
Gong Yingxian walked ahead, barely even breathing heavily. It wasn’t until the final few floors that he began to show obvious signs of panting.
Ren Yi refused to be outdone. Although he had been exhausted for quite some time, he deliberately maintained a calm expression until he could no longer keep up the act.
Gong Yingxian glanced back at him and said sarcastically, “Do you need me to carry you?”
Ren Yi raised an eyebrow. “I do. Come on, come on.”
As he spoke, he even cooperatively opened his arms.
“But I don’t want to carry you.”
Gong Yingxian shot him a sideways glance and continued walking upward.
Ren Yi shook his head with a laugh.
Compared with the two men’s excellent stamina, Zhang Wen quickly couldn’t keep up. He was also carrying a huge toolbox filled with equipment commonly used for fire-scene investigations.
By the time he gasped his way up to the twenty-second floor, the two of them had already found the point of origin and were examining it.
“This is the point where the fire started.”
Ren Yi stood in front of an apartment on the western side of the twenty-second floor. The number plate on the door had melted, but judging from the surviving digits on either side, this was apartment 2209.
In front of 2209 was a burned shoe rack, several shoes, and some charred material that was difficult to identify.
On the floor was a clearly irregular patch that looked noticeably different from the surrounding area. The tiles had changed color and had begun to bulge.
Ren Yi pointed at the floor. “Judging solely by the naked eye, this should be a trace of low-level burning caused by a flammable liquid. Now that I think about it, I probably smelled gasoline when we were fighting the fire.”
Gong Yingxian narrowed his eyes. “Gasoline arson?”
“The smell of gasoline wasn’t very strong at the time, and the fire scene didn’t display any of the characteristics of a gasoline fire. So the gasoline was only an accelerant, used to ignite something else.”
Ren Yi looked at the wreckage around them. “But what was here? Shoes? There’s no way shoes could have burned like this.”
Gong Yingxian crouched down and used his gloved hand to rummage through the charred debris on the floor. After a moment, he picked up a melted and deformed metal can.
He looked up at Ren Yi.
“What would you put in a hallway?”
“Uh… a shoe rack, an umbrella stand…” Ren Yi thought hard.
Gong Yingxian said,
“Trash.”