one

The sea in January, cold, magnificent, silent, that she deeply loves

Then she watched in disbelief as the driver crawled out from the airbag, unfastened the seatbelt, and ran away without looking back

Zhao Yimei briefly fainted due to anemia, and when she regained consciousness, she found herself lying in an off-road vehicle. In the front seats were two men, dressed in camouflage uniforms, with the five-star red flag emblazoned on their shoulders

The wind fell upon her eyes, fine sand covered her eyelashes, resembling trembling butterflies. Zhao Yimei endured the excruciating pain and suddenly smiled

Everything happened too suddenly. Zhao Yimei, sitting in the back seat without fastening her seatbelt, was thrown to the ground and violently collided with the car door. In an instant, the world spun around her, and the intense pain surged up only after the fact. Zhao Yimei felt as if all the bones in her body had shattered.

The local delta region is facing crises, political assassinations, street gang conflicts, armed robberies, violent crimes, smuggling, electoral violence, terrorist attacks... Everyone is experiencing a survival crisis

In the next moment, someone opened the car door, and the bright sunlight shone directly into Zhao Yimei's eyes. Before she felt dizzy, she could only see that the person was wearing camouflage clothing, likely a soldier.

In that moment, Zhao Yimei felt the wind

In this world, where can one find a place that is absolutely safe

I apologize for the trouble caused to you

Zhao Yimei quickly hailed a taxi outside the airport, too lazy to haggle over the fare. After giving the driver the address of the hospital, she leaned against the glass window, remaining still as she gazed outside.

The air conditioning in the car was not turned on, and the recirculator was blowing out hot air, making the atmosphere stuffy and uncomfortable. Zhao Yimei remained silent, as if she had lost all her senses

Lei Kuan, the man sitting in the passenger seat, introduced himself and then pointed to his companion, "Deputy Team Leader Lu, Lu Qiao."

Here, malaria is as common as catching a cold or fever. After reading the email, Zhao Yimei picked up her phone and called the contact. The other party answered quickly, and Zhao Yimei got straight to the point: "Hello, I am Rose. I have arrived in Khartoum and have received the email. You do not need to apologize, nor do you need to send a car to pick me up. I have the address and can go there by myself."

Do not speak, I just administered glucose to you, your physical condition is very poor

Zhao Yimei walked carelessly under the scorching sun, pondering: Has God ever truly cared for all living beings?

However, the other party did not speak to Zhao Yimei again

Moreover, she truly has no strength left at all

At that time, she was still keen on chasing the snow season to ski in the Alps, soaking in hot springs in Iceland, and deep diving. As for tropical climates, Zhao Yimei's greatest concession was Hawaii. This was because it offered luxurious beach hotels, perfectly sculpted handsome men, and top-tier sports cars that roared through the night

Thank you, Zhao Yimei repeated once again

Zhao Yimei spoke in a hoarse voice: "Thank you"

The other party seemed somewhat surprised: "Rose... you should know that the public safety here is not as good as in China."

Zhao Yimei disembarked from the plane and found a new email. Upon opening it, she saw an apology letter from the reception party, informing her that the driver originally scheduled to pick her up had contracted malaria. Due to the recent hot weather, there were too many patients seeking medical attention, making it impossible for them to arrive on time for her pick-up. They requested her understanding and assured her that they would rush to the airport as soon as they had available personnel, asking her to wait for a short while.

The more she tried to stop the car with her feeble strength, the more it ignited her will to survive. It felt as if an entire century had passed when Zhao Yimei suddenly heard a voice in Chinese: "There is someone in the car!"

Africa, a land abandoned by God. Sudan, on the other hand, is one of the most unstable and poorest countries on this land.

The other party, seeing her insistence, and constrained by the fact that the hospital truly could not spare any personnel, repeatedly apologized and expressed their welcome and gratitude for her arrival

Zhao Yimei originally intended to nod, but found that any movement caused her significant pain, so she merely blinked her eyes and said: "Yes, Zhao Yimei, you may call me Rose"

Perhaps it is because she has lingered at the threshold of death too many times in her life, that this thought merely flashed through her mind and then came to a halt

The capital, Khartoum, has officially entered the scorching heat of summer, with average temperatures reaching 40 degrees Celsius. The sandstorms of the Sahara Desert are also beginning to stir, and walking on the streets, one feels as if everything is ablaze

Zhao Yimei collapsed against the car door, feeling that her arm had completely lost sensation, blood gushing out and pooling on the dirty ground, the metallic scent of blood filling the air. Zhao Yimei was well-versed in various first aid knowledge and understood that she should open the car door and escape at this moment. This inferior, old car could not withstand a collision, and under such high temperatures, it was very likely to explode.

Indeed, I did not consult the almanac before going out, Zhao Yimei collapsed in a pool of blood, squinting her eyes, she thought to herself: What if I were to die like this?

She smiled, where there is wind, there is hope

However, there is currently a gang shootout outside, with knives drawn and bloodshed, and she is completely unaware of the situation outside the vehicle. If she rashly rushes out now, the likelihood of being mistakenly injured is even greater

It is truly the wind, carrying fine sand, that unexpectedly reminds her of the sea. The sea in January, cold, magnificent, and silent

I know. Zhao Yimei interrupted the other person's words decisively, saying, "I know where I am."

Zhao Yimei remained silent. She traveled all the way from Mexico back to the United States, then flew from Los Angeles to Cairo, purchasing the most recent ticket from Cairo to Khartoum. She sat on a bench at the airport for an entire night, having been on the move for three days and two nights without rest, crossing over half the globe. Coupled with the scorching sunlight, her body had reached its limit

The man driving glanced at her; it was the same person who had just opened the door to rescue her. The man sitting in the passenger seat looked somewhat surprised and turned to Zhao Yimei, asking, "You’re awake?"

The driver engaged her in conversation while driving, inevitably circling back to a few questions: What is your name, where are you from, and what brings you here

The desert was once the place that Zhao Yimei detested the most, as in her impression, it represented heat, barrenness, and lifelessness

Only then did the other party realize: "Chinese people?"

The intense sounds of fighting outside gradually quieted down. Zhao Yimei thought to herself: Perhaps it was due to excessive blood loss, yet she still felt her consciousness was relatively clear. She gritted her teeth and, with her still movable left foot, trembled as she kicked the car door. But the car door remained unmoved; how could she die here? Zhao Yimei gritted her teeth and continued to kick the car door, one kick after another.

After a long and arduous journey coupled with two sleepless nights, even if she were to change to another man, she would still collapse. Zhao Yimei, however, did not explain or complain, merely stating: "It's alright, I can endure it."

The car entered the town, and the driver was still chattering away, introducing Khartoum to Zhao Yimei. However, before he could finish his sentence, a pickup truck came rushing around the corner. In a moment of panic, the driver abruptly turned the vehicle ninety degrees, and in the blink of an eye, a deafening crash echoed through the air

Do not move around, I have just performed a simple treatment for you. Your right hand is fractured, and the specifics of the internal injuries will only be known after the X-ray. Are you feeling any discomfort? I originally intended to take you to the hospital," the man explained, "but having received a warning about a sandstorm, I can only take you back to our base for now, where there is a military doctor.

Zhao Yimei hung up the phone and walked out of the airport. What came into view was a landscape of yellow earth, with a few trees visible in the distance, but they appeared to be already dead. Zhao Yimei raised her hand and could faintly feel the wind.

Fortunately, she had not yet lost her hearing, and she heard the sound of wheels followed by a loud commotion. Someone was striking with a weapon, and Zhao Yimei understood Arabic. Connecting this with the earlier sight of the driver fleeing in a panic, she deduced that she had encountered a gang conflict

Zhao Yimei arrived in Sudan on the first day of April