As Yang Jian and the others were discussing returning home for the New Year, they suddenly heard a commotion outside.
"Oh my god, someone on the tower crane at the construction site opposite is about to commit suicide."
"Damn, judging by the figure, it looks like a woman. What could she be so desperate about?"
"Probably demanding wages. This kind of thing happens every year before the holidays."
"No way, this power plant project shouldn't be behind on wages, and it's not even time for settlement yet."
"The power plant might not be behind on wages, but many workers have gambled away their year's earnings. It's not impossible for someone to commit suicide out of despair."
"Let's go take a look."
The discussion outside the dormitory was loud. Yang Jian quickly ran out and looked towards the construction site opposite. Indeed, a slender figure was on the long arm of the tower crane, swaying precariously.
Liang Liang, wearing slippers, also ran out. "Holy crap, it really looks like a suicide."
"Let's go see."
Yang Jian said and ran towards the construction site opposite. Liang Liang went back to the room to change his shoes, and San Pang followed behind. It was the dead of winter, and it was very cold outside.
When they reached the construction site opposite, Yang Jian realized that the crowd of onlookers had more than doubled. People were everywhere, clustered around the tower crane.
He couldn't get to the front for a while, only hearing the voice of a middle-aged police officer speaking through a loudspeaker.
At this moment, the siren of an ambulance was heard from the construction site entrance, followed by the arrival of fire rescue vehicles.
Yang Jian and the other two followed the rescue vehicle to the base of the tower crane but were stopped outside the cordon.
This tower crane wasn't very high, perhaps only thirty meters, and it was mobile, running on rails.
There was indeed a woman on the tower crane, Yuan Tao, Feng Taiping's wife. She was now near the end of the tower crane's boom. Her thin frame seemed as if it could be blown away by the strong wind at any moment. Her originally sallow cheeks were frozen red by the biting cold wind.
"Yuan Tao, don't do anything foolish, come down quickly."
The one speaking now was Feng Qiang. He had been negotiating with the project department, and Yuan Tao climbing the tower crane was not part of his plan, which caught him off guard.
"I don't want to live anymore. Taiping needs an amputation, and with the old and young in the family, I can't support this household alone."
Yuan Tao, hunched over, leaned against the steel frame, tears streaming down her face.
"You come down first. Aren't I trying to find a solution for you? The project department has already agreed to compensation."
"Brother Qiang, don't lie to me. I heard that the project department only plans to give ten thousand yuan, calling it humanitarian aid. Taiping's amputation surgery will cost eighty thousand. He gambled away all his wages, and life is impossible from now on. It's better to die and end it all."
"Yuan Tao, you can't think like that. Taiping is already in this state. If you also have an accident, who will take care of the elders at home? What about the two children?"
"Didn't the project department boss say that Taiping's injury didn't happen on the construction site, so they are not responsible for compensation? Then I'll die on the construction site, and they'll have to compensate. I just want to use this compensation to pay for Taiping's surgery and leave a way out for the children."
Yuan Tao's idea was so bizarre that everyone present found it absurd, yet no one could laugh. How desperate must one be to have such an idea and take such drastic action.
While Feng Qiang was trying to persuade her, rescue personnel were climbing the tower crane, attempting to approach Yuan Tao to rescue her. At the same time, safety airbags were being placed on the ground.
Yuan Tao clearly saw this but did not stop them, nor did she make any threats. Her face showed a calm and detached expression of someone resigned to death.
Yang Jian felt a vague sense of unease and involuntarily shouted, "Sister, don't do anything rash. I'll pay for your surgery."
"That's right, sister-in-law. Come down quickly. We'll all raise money for you. Life isn't that difficult. For the sake of the children, you can't seek death!"
As soon as Yang Jian spoke, people in the crowd immediately responded.
"Sister, come down quickly. We'll raise money for you."
"That's right, we'll all raise money for you. Look how many people there are, we can definitely raise enough for brother's surgery and your family's living expenses."
More and more people were shouting, all hoping to prevent a tragedy.
Yuan Tao looked at Yang Jian. "Thank you, my good brother. You are a good person, and God will bless you. But I really don't want to live anymore. I've been seriously ill for a long time, and this worthless life won't last a few more years. Living is a burden to the children. Dying can create some wealth for them."
"Don't say that, sister. You can get treatment for your illness too."
Seeing Yuan Tao's grip on the steel frame slowly loosening, Yang Jian shouted hysterically.
A plump middle-aged man also shouted anxiously, "Sister-in-law, our boss has already agreed to give money. The surgery fees will all be covered."
Upon hearing this, a smile appeared on Yuan Tao's face. Then she leaped, her body falling towards the ground like a kite with a broken string.
"No!"
Everyone cried out in alarm. No one expected this woman to actually commit suicide.
Most people thought she was using this method to pressure the project department to get more compensation, as there were instances every year of people threatening to jump off buildings or tower cranes to demand wages. But these were usually just for show, a threat to the boss, and often effective, with most getting their money.
But this time it was a real suicide. Yuan Tao fell precisely onto the tower crane's steel rails. The rescue personnel on the ground had not yet managed to deploy the safety airbags. A life, not yet old, vanished before their eyes.
The scene was too gruesome. Some faint-hearted individuals nearly fainted from shock.
San Pang directly vomited.
Yang Jian's feelings were indescribable. Hearing Yuan Tao say that Feng Taiping had gambled away his wages, he couldn't help but feel a sense of guilt. The death of the woman before him was, to some extent, related to him.
Just as the medical staff were preparing to provide aid, the crowd erupted into chaos.
"Find the boss! He stood by and watched someone die, make him pay with his life!"
"Seal off the construction site! Not a single member of the management team can leave!"
"Someone is dead! If we don't get an explanation today, we'll smash this construction site!"
A large group of farmers from Fengjia Village broke through the police cordon like madmen and began smashing the construction site's facilities. The plump project manager was surrounded and beaten.
"Brother Jian, let's go quickly. This place isn't safe."
Liang Liang pulled the still-stunned Yang Jian and ran towards the entrance.
It was utter chaos. Some villagers who were not from Fengjia also joined in the smashing, while others took advantage of the confusion to carry away valuable items like steel, pipes, and fasteners from the construction site.
"Bang, bang."
A police officer fired two shots into the air, but it still couldn't stop the mayhem. There were too many people. With only a dozen officers, they couldn't stop the smashing and looting by over a thousand people, so they had to call for reinforcements from higher authorities.
Feng Qiang looked helplessly at the scene of chaos, knowing that things had gotten out of hand and had far exceeded his plans. What worried him even more was how Feng Taiping's family would cope in the future. As a cousin and village head, he couldn't stand by and watch the elderly and children of that family suffer any further misfortune.