Confessions of a Mine Accident Survivor

In recent years, eco-tourism has become popular in cities, and Niudong Town, adjacent to Taihu Lake, has become a bustling tourist destination. The residents of the town have all started businesses revolving around tourism. Wu Delong is no exception, but he neither raises a flag to attract customers to open a hotel nor wears a loudspeaker to recite scripts as a tour guide, as he lacks the conditions for these, being blind. Wu Delong hired some workers to start renovating his own cattle shed: under his command, the workers cleaned the shed, laid straw, added iron fences, and locked them... The villagers were curious and asked him what he was doing, to which he replied in a muffled voice, "Building a hotel." The person who asked was shocked and thought he had gone mad, not daring to continue the conversation.

Wu Delong's son, Wu Bin, advised his father with a dismissive attitude, "Dad, you should take a break; this kind of hard work won't yield any results." Wu Delong understood the subtext of his son's words, rolled his white eyeballs, and replied, "What do you know? What role this cattle shed can play, you will understand in the future." Seeing his father's firm attitude, Wu Bin stopped talking: in his early years, his father went to Shanxi alone to mine coal to support the family. Later, there was an accident in the coal mine, and his father lost his sight, which is why he returned to his hometown. Perhaps his father's life was too boring, and he was renovating the cattle shed to pass the time; how could he bear to stop him?

As the "Eleven" Golden Week approached, one night Wu Delong called his son to his side and said solemnly, "The cattle shed hotel is now fully completed and will soon play its role. Over the years, with my compensation money, you have started your own business and become wealthy. This time, you have to let Dad have a turn." Then, he asked his son to type, and he dictated an advertisement, which read: "Treetop hotels, warship hotels, perhaps you have already experienced them all; cave dwellings, desert camping, maybe you have seen them many times as well; but there is another alternative travel accommodation experience that is thrilling and fresh, something you have never experienced before. If interested, please come to Niudong Town by Taihu Lake."

As Wu Bin typed, he wondered when his father had learned about such peculiar hotels. It seemed that his father was really committed to opening the hotel this time. After finishing the advertisement, Wu Delong asked his son to post it on several websites he specified. Wu Bin did not want to go against his father's wishes, after all, everything he had now was earned by his father's sweat, no, his blood and tears. To make his father happy, spending a little money was nothing.

Not long after the advertisement was published, several groups of adventurous tourists came to stay at Wu Bin's cattle shed hotel. They were amazed and wrote many reviews and promotions online after their stay. In this way, the unique eco-friendly hotel gained a small reputation on the internet. The whole town talked about it, and everyone thought that Wu Delong, a middle-aged man who had survived a mine escape, indeed had some tricks up his sleeve.

However, Wu Delong was not satisfied with this. He said to his son, "Nowadays, everything needs hype, and running a hotel is no exception. If we can invite a celebrity to stay here for a night, the hotel will be hard not to become popular." Wu Bin thought it made sense but couldn't think of where to find such a celebrity. Wu Delong smiled and said, "I know someone who is a businessman and loves fresh and thrilling experiences. He is also a VIP user of several travel websites." He then took out a business card and handed it to his son, "You call him according to the number on this card and tell him that our hotel invites him to stay for free. If he likes it, ask him to help us with some publicity."

Wu Bin took the card with skepticism, and the boss's surname was Zhao, with a long list of titles before his name, including director, manager, and a council member of the city's tourism association. Wu Bin made the call, and to his surprise, Boss Zhao already knew about the unique cattle shed hotel from the internet and readily agreed to stay for free.

On the appointed evening, Boss Zhao arrived in town as scheduled. Wu Delong called his son over and said, "This guest is handed over to you. Whatever he asks, you should answer as I have taught you." After that, he went into his room and closed the door.

After entertaining Boss Zhao with a meal, it was already pitch dark. Wu Bin led Boss Zhao towards the cattle shed. Wu Bin walked in front, and Boss Zhao followed. With the faint light, Boss Zhao saw that the shed was quite large, surrounded by high, dense iron fences, which made him curiously ask, "What are these fences for?"

Wu Bin smiled and said, "We need to ensure the safety of our guests. No matter how skilled a thief is, could he file through these in one night?" He then opened the iron gate and let Boss Zhao in. Inside the shed, it was so dark that one couldn't see their hand in front of their face. Wu Bin handed Boss Zhao a flashlight, wished him a good night's sleep, and left with his head down. As Boss Zhao turned on the flashlight, he heard the iron fence "clang" shut, followed by the clear sound of a lock.

Boss Zhao scanned the cattle shed with his flashlight, revealing that it was over 50 square meters in size, with thick layers of straw on the ground and walls that had been painted clean. Curious, he looked around and was about to lie down when he suddenly heard a noise. He shone his flashlight over and, indeed, there was someone staying in the room next door, separated only by a iron fence.

Boss Zhao turned up the flashlight, illuminating the person's face very clearly. Boss Zhao was stunned and blurted out, "It's you?"

The person staying next door was none other than Wu Delong, who had somehow arrived at the cattle shed hotel. He leaned against the iron fence and said, "Boss Zhao, you really came. This hotel was opened just for you, and tonight I will personally serve you." Wu Delong's voice was a bit excited, and Boss Zhao suddenly felt a great unease. He forced himself to stay calm and said, "So this hotel is yours! You think about it, if I hadn't paid you 100,000 yuan five years ago, you wouldn't have what you have today. One must have a conscience."

Wu Delong nodded and said, "Yes, that's why I must repay you. You, as a mine owner, were under a lot of pressure back then and liked thrills, the more thrilling, the better. It seems your temperament hasn't changed. I specially opened this hotel, posted the ad on websites you frequent, and sent someone to invite you, and today you really came!"

Wu Delong spoke politely, but Boss Zhao became more and more uneasy. He anxiously said, "I, I don't want to stay anymore, let me out..."

Wu Delong smiled and said, "Oh, I'm sorry, I just closed the outside door. There are three more courtyard doors outside this one, do you think this is an ordinary cattle shed? No, that wouldn't do justice to a distinguished guest like you." As Wu Delong spoke, he struck a match. Underneath him were piles of thick straw.

"You, what are you going to do?" Boss Zhao lunged forward, but he could only stretch his hands out from the fence, not reaching Wu Delong at all.

"Do not shout," Wu Delong's face showed a trace of a strange smile, "My place is very desolate, once the courtyard door is closed, no one will hear, it can be said to be another world." As he spoke, the match in his hand fell to the ground, and a wisp of smoke rose from the straw pile. A gust of wind blew Wu Delong's hair, and his gray hair seemed to stand up. Boss Zhao could no longer bear it and knelt down with a "plop": "Uncle Wu, I was wrong, let me out."

"No, Boss Zhao, the show has just begun. Under your feet is a whole iron plate, once the fire starts, the iron plate will heat up. Don't you think it's very thrilling?" Wu Delong said slowly. Boss Zhao suddenly remembered how similar the current situation was to the coal mine accident five years ago: six miners were underground, and he was on the other end of the mine, where he secretly observed the miners' work, blocked by an iron fence. At that time, there was a loud bang in the mine, followed by hot air spraying everywhere. He hurriedly avoided it and then cautiously walked back in. At that time, Wu Delong was the only one of the six miners who could speak. He desperately begged Boss Zhao to save the other five people lying on the ground, who were on the verge of death. Boss Zhao shook his head; he couldn't do that, as it would cost him a lot of medical expenses to send these five people to the hospital. Only by letting them die and paying their families a lump sum could he settle the matter once and for all. Wu Delong seemed to have also waved his hands on the iron fence, desperately begging and crying...

Boss Zhao was still immersed in his memories when he heard Wu Delong speak slowly again: "Don't be afraid, in fact, some things will be clear once you think about them. Now, the fire has started. On your left is Zhao Xiaoruo, he is from Hubei, yes,do you remember?He wanted to make money in your mine to marry a wife, but now he is almost done for, there is a lack of oxygen here, and his forehead is also injured. On your right is Liu Dazui, yes, his wife is very beautiful, you also said that it is a flower inserted in the slag, now he can't last long either, if he dies, can you take the opportunity to see his wife? There is also Li Mazi, Xiao Dongbei, and Hunan Lao, they are all lying under your feet, hot and struggling to breathe, very thrilling, right..."

Wu Delong was a bit manic, and he kept talking, and Boss Zhao wished he could plug his ears at this time. He seemed to have entered the mine again, but at that time he could turn around and leave, now he is trapped. He sat on the ground and then suddenly realized that the ground was getting hot, and he quickly sat up again, panting heavily.

Wu Delong continued: "They are not dead yet, just holding my leg tightly. I want to save them, but I can't. They call me dad, no, grandpa, ancestor... Among them, only Zhao Xiaoruo has no children. He wants to marry and have children to continue the family line. The others said that even if they can't get out, as long as they can see their wives and children, they would be willing to die. What should I do? My breathing is also very difficult, and I can't live anymore. My wife is already dead, and if I die again, my son will become an orphan. I can't die, I can't... But what about these people in front of me?" At this time, Wu Delong's narration had become his own story, which was the situation in the mine at the beginning.

At the same time, Boss Zhao felt that the soles of his feet were getting hotter and hotter. Out of instinct for survival, he began to climb the fence. The fence seemed to start heating up as well. He took a look at his feet, as if he could see the five people struggling and pleading, their hands raised high above. He seemed to faintly hear their cries for help, weak but clear. He wanted to cover his ears and close his eyes, but he had to climb up. Boss Zhao felt that the only thing he could do at this time was to dig out his own eyeballs, only in this way could he not see this tragedy of human suffering, otherwise, as long as he is a person, he will not be able to escape the nightmares in his life.

Thinking of this, Boss Zhao hesitated no more. He jumped off the fence, pressed his hands hard on his eyeballs, and a sharp pain came, and he fainted.

When Boss Zhao opened his eyes again, he found himself lying on a hospital bed, and a nurse sighed with relief: "You are finally awake, the cattle shed in the countryside must have triggered your nightmare?"

Boss Zhao shook his head, and at this time, he noticed Wu Delong and his son Wu Bin sitting at the door of the ward. He struggled to walk towards Wu Delong, knelt down, and repented: "I'm sorry, I can never redeem my sins. Thank you for leaving me a life." With that, Boss Zhao staggered out of the ward and left without looking back.

Tears flowed from Wu Delong's already blind eyes. At the beginning, he couldn't bear to watch his companions' miserable situation in the well, and the lack of oxygen and stuffiness made him gradually delirious. In a frenzy, he dug out his own eyeballs. With the will to survive, he persisted until he was rescued, but afterwards, Boss Zhao used his social connections to settle everything with money. Therefore, Wu Delong had been waiting, he wanted to transplant his painful memories to Boss Zhao, which was the best revenge for him. In fact, most of the straw he laid last night was damp and couldn't be ignited, and as for the hot iron plate, it came from the adjustable temperature electric stove placed under the cattle shed...