A man in a suit was trapped under a toppled shelf, with layers of falling goods pinning him inside. In the corner not far away, a bomb with a timer was flashing red, accompanied by the terrifying "beep beep beep" sound.
Shen Xian stared at the bomb timer, his face pale, his fingertips trembling imperceptibly.
"Call the police!" Gu Chen commanded calmly as he arrived.
Behind him, a few bold staff members and journalists followed in twos and threes, with several fearless journalists still taking photos.
"It's too late!" Shen Xian said, looking at the timer counting down from five minutes and slightly turning his head to speak to the people behind him.
"Everyone, evacuate immediately, hurry!"
He shouted loudly and looked back, "There's less than five minutes left, go quickly!"
As soon as they heard there was less than five minutes before the bomb would explode, people scattered like birds and beasts, running frantically outside.
In a moment, the noisy warehouse quieted down as the crowd fled.
"Boss, save me!"
The person trapped under the shelf was none other than Gu Chen's assistant, Zhang Chi. His face was red with the strain, his eyes begging Gu Chen, who stood not far away.
"Do you have any ideas?" Gu Chen didn't leave. He asked Shen Xian anxiously, who stood in front of him. This woman, unafraid of death, didn't run; or perhaps, she could do something?
Shen Xian turned to glance at Gu Chen, behind him was empty space. In the vast warehouse, only the three of them remained...
Shen Xian nodded slightly, her movements stiff, her eyes rimmed red. Her body was shaking, but her gaze was unexpectedly firm. She reached out and took scissors from the shelf nearby. Her hand shook violently—her body seemed beyond her control...
"Please save me, save me." Lying on the ground, Zhang Chi saw the girl hesitating to move forward and wanted to desperately grasp the last straw, he called out weakly for help.
Four minutes thirty seconds, four minutes, three minutes fifty-five seconds...
Time was slipping away by the second!
The red numbers plummeted, the ticking sound piercing Shen Xian's eardrums and rushing into her brain, the explosion sounds, calls for help, blood blurring her eyes, the warm weight on her shoulders, all the auditory, visual, and sensory perceptions chaotically scrambled in her mind.
"It's too late!" A low, anxious voice pulled Shen Xian out of the chaos.
Shen Xian's focus returned, and she looked at the man on the ground—his face showing fear, helplessness, pleading, and—a thirst for life.
The pain in her left shoulder intensified. Shen Xian mustered all of her strength to walk to the bomb in the corner. She quickly analyzed the construction of the bomb, raised her right hand, and locked the scissors onto one of the yellow wires.
Gu Chen had already reached Zhang Chi's side, holding Zhang Chi's upper body, anxiously watching the frail figure in front of him.
It was a matter of life and death!
Shen Xian's hands trembled, and large drops of sweat fell. Without hesitating, she closed her eyes and cut down hard.
"Beep—" Finally, when the red numbers stopped at 00:45, she halted the explosion.
Gu Chen sighed in relief, almost imperceptibly. He lowered his head and comforted the desperate Zhang Chi, "It's okay now, the danger is over."
Zhang Chi looked at Gu Chen gratefully. The intense tension, coupled with the severe pain in his leg, caused him to faint.
Gu Chen looked up at the thin figure in the work uniform who squatted there motionless, not knowing what she was thinking.
Shen Xian stared at the bomb in front of her as if she had used up all her strength, allowing sweat to drip down her face. She had no intention to wipe it away, feeling a penetrating, bone-chilling pain in her left shoulder.
The pain seemed to travel along the blood vessels of her left shoulder, burrow into her heart, then spread throughout her body, gnawing away at her very being.
Medical staff and police quickly arrived, and the unconscious Zhang Chi was rescued from beneath the shelves and taken away in an ambulance.
"Thank you!" Gu Chen strode over, extending his hand toward Shen Xian, who was squatting on the ground.
Shen Xian seemed like her soul had been drained. She lifted her head to look at Gu Chen, her unfocused gaze gradually sharpened under his scrutiny. She didn't speak nor did she take his extended hand, instead, she struggled to her feet on her own.
Her steps were slow as she walked outside.
Outside the warehouse, upon hearing that the bomb had been defused, the staff and media journalists gathered again. They didn't know what had happened inside, only hearing that apparently, a female librarian and General Manager Gu had not come out.
Could it be the librarian who defused the bomb? Why was there a bomb in the Shen Fei Logistics warehouse? Was the bomb prepared for today's visit by Gu Chen? Could a mere librarian really have the skill to defuse a bomb? Or did she have some special identity?
These questions troubled everyone at the scene, especially the journalists. If they could get the scoop on this, it would certainly be far more interesting than simply reporting on the high-tech warehouse of Shen Fei Logistics.
Think about it, a mere warehouse librarian possessing the rare skill of bomb defusal, saving two lives and goods worth millions in a warehouse with her own ability—it was nothing short of a legend!
Thus, when Shen Xian slowly walked out, the journalists swarmed around her.
"Was it you who defused the bomb?"
"How does a librarian have such skills, was it luck or have you received some training?"
"Are you really just a warehouse manager? Or do you have some special identity?"
"Can you tell us what happened inside? Was the bomb defused by you or by General Manager Gu? Why didn't you run away?"
...
A barrage of questions was hurled at Shen Xian, their cameras nearly touching her face. In the commotion, Shen Xian's hat was nearly knocked off, and the harsh flash of the cameras brought her back to her senses. She hastily adjusted her hat, lowering the brim to shield her face.
Seeing her step back, the journalists pressed in even closer.
In her panic, Shen Xian bumped into someone behind her; avoiding the cameras, she buried her face into the chest of the person who had just saved her and Zhang Chi.
Gu Chen, who had rescued them earlier, did not push her away. Instead, he pulled one side of his suit jacket aside with one hand to cover Shen Xian's face and placed his other hand protectively on her shoulder.
"We will cooperate with the police's investigation regarding today's incident and hold a press conference afterward to explain the situation. Right now, the police are still checking for any other potential hazards. For your safety, please leave the area as soon as possible," Gu Chen said in a deep and authoritative voice. Even after such a life-threatening crisis, he remained as dignified and composed as ever. Having finished speaking, he proceeded to escort Shen Xian through the crowd and out of the warehouse.
Although Gu Chen mentioned that there could be dangerous objects still around, the journalists were unwilling to leave in pursuit of the exclusive story. After all, the police were now present, and there wasn't likely to be any significant danger; the crowd refused to give up and followed the two of them.
Gu Chen frowned and gave a meaningful look to the Publicity Department's Director Li Fei, who was waiting outside.
Li Fei immediately understood, stepping forward to block the relentless journalists, and began utilizing his professional skills—crisis public relations.