Silent Testimony - Chapter 71

Three hours earlier, Tao Ling watched Yan Chen disappear from sight by boat. She calmed down, pondered her current predicament, and tried to break free from her restraints. Her hands and feet were tied with hemp rope, leaving friction as her only way to loosen the bonds. However, the knots were tightly secured, and there was no gap whatsoever between the rope and the iron pillar. She exerted all her strength, but instead of freeing herself, she only chafed the skin on her wrists.

Time ticked by, minute by minute. The bone-chilling river water gradually rose over her legs, her waist, and her chest. Tao Ling felt as if she had been placed inside an ice bucket, submerged in cold water. Violent tearing sensations and a feeling of disorientation pulled at her, causing her to tremble uncontrollably.

A wave of emotion surged in her mind, and Li Hewei’s gentle smile appeared before her eyes.

“So cold, Sister Wei, cold……” Tao Ling murmured, her consciousness gradually fading.

……

“Tao Tao!” The moment Li Hewei saw Tao Ling’s pale face, her heart was cut as if by a knife, and she nearly stumbled into the turbulent river water.

The rescue police officer, wearing a simple oxygen tank, reminded her, “Captain Li, I’ll dive to cut the ropes. You protect her first.”

“Mmm.” Li Hewei’s throat tightened, and tears welled up in her eyes. She put on a life jacket and went into the water. With her left hand, she supported Tao Ling’s drooping head, and with her right, she felt for a pulse, sensing a faint beat.

Thank goodness, there’s still a pulse.

Li Hewei reached out and embraced Tao Ling’s icy body, speaking softly, “It’s alright. We’re going to the hospital right away. Everything will be fine.” In the novel, when Tao Ling was found, she was probably already……

As the imagined scene flashed through her mind, Li Hewei felt instantly and firmly gripped by a certain suction force. A never-before-felt heartache spread through her. She carefully pressed against Tao Ling’s bloodless cheek, gently stroking her hair. The tears finally poured out uncontrollably, and a suppressed, low-pitched sob, like an echo in a desolate valley, escaped her chest.

The officer cut the ropes, and together, they managed to lift Tao Ling back onto the inflatable boat.

“How is she? Does she need CPR?” the officer quickly asked.

“No, she still has a heartbeat.” Tao Ling’s heart rate was as low as 4 beats per minute, and she was breathing once every 30 seconds. However, because the heart is sensitive and fragile during hypothermia, external mechanical stimulation could cause arrhythmias and lead to death. Therefore, Li Hewei dared not act rashly and constantly monitored Tao Ling’s physical condition.

The officer acknowledged this and notified colleagues to prepare for the rescue.

The inflatable boat reached the shore. Every second counted. Two colleagues transferred Tao Ling to the rescue vehicle on the roadside, and Li Hewei proceeded with a further check.

“The wet clothes are no good. Take them off. We are all female colleagues.”

“Mmm, I know.” Li Hewei cut Tao Ling’s clothes, wrapped her in two or three thermal blankets, bent down to listen to her breathing, and checked her pulse. She then suddenly stood up. “Prepare the AED!”

“Alright.”

Li Hewei crossed her right and left hands, keeping her arms straight perpendicular to Tao Ling’s chest. She placed the heel of her palm on the middle-lower sternum and counted the compressions silently.

1,2,3……

Tears streamed past the corners of her eyes. Every strained nerve in Li Hewei’s body screamed, but she could only bite her lip, forcibly pull her rationality back, and focus. Calm, calm, I must be calm. She opened the airway, pinching Tao Ling’s nostrils with her thumb and index finger, took a deep breath, bent over to cover the other person’s slightly open mouth, and slowly blew air in.

The officer prompted, “Captain Li, the AED is ready.”

Li Hewei took the electrode pads, attached them to the designated positions, and the device checked the rhythm. Once it confirmed that defibrillation was necessary, it began charging.

After the defibrillation was complete, the officer suggested in a low voice, “You are physically exhausted. Should I take over?”

Li Hewei ignored her and continued CPR (Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation).

This was repeated twice, but there was still no effect.

“Again.” Her body was shivering, and her eyes were full of hot tears.

“Tao Tao, you haven’t finished revising your manuscript; you still need to publish your book. You are not allowed to sleep.”

“The sweetest rewards come after the hardest work. If you eat the bitterness but don’t taste the sweetness, how can you be reconciled to that?”

“Tao Tao…….”

Li Hewei was calling out like a madwoman, yet her voice was hoarse and silent.

“I think there’s a reaction!” The officer felt Tao Ling’s carotid artery, speaking excitedly.

Li Hewei stopped the chest compressions, observed Tao Ling’s slow-rising chest, and performed two more rescue breaths, then turned her head to look at the AED display.

The officer beside her was overjoyed. “No problem! Her heartbeat has recovered!” She then added, “We are rushing to Shujiang. The hospital facilities there are better.”

“How much longer?” Tao Ling was severely hypothermic, and her heart could stop again at any moment. Drug treatment was needed as quickly as possible.

“About 20 minutes.” The officer turned and said to the driver, “Yanzi, drive faster.”

“Will do.” The driver turned on the emergency lights.

The rescue vehicle sped forward, unimpeded for the entire route due to the emergency lights. Li Hewei sat on the seat next to the stretcher bed, holding Tao Ling’s dangling right hand. Body and mind tortured, her eyebrows were lowered, and her messy long hair concealed the streaks of tears. Her teeth chattered incessantly, and even her tightly clenched fists were shaking.

The officer noticed her unusual state and couldn’t help but show concern. “Captain Li, why don’t you change your clothes? Even with the air conditioning on, it must be cold.”

Li Hewei didn’t lift her head. “No need, thank you.”

The officer patiently advised, “Your clothes are wet, and you could easily catch a cold. You can wear the spare short-sleeved shirt from the rescue team.”

“Okay.” Li Hewei pinched her palm, reined in her scattered thoughts, and accepted the kind offer.

The rescue vehicle, with its emergency lights on, arrived at the hospital in under 20 minutes. Tao Ling was quickly wheeled into the emergency room of the Second Affiliated Hospital of Shujiang.

“Family members wait outside,” the nurse blocked Li Hewei at the door.

At bed number three, Lin Ye, the doctor in charge of the resuscitation, bent down and asked while examining Tao Ling, “What’s the situation?”

The intern doctor replied, “A police officer sent over from Pujiang. Apparently, she was kidnapped by a suspect and is suffering from severe hypothermia.”

“Stick to the main points,” Lin Ye frowned and looked back at the nurse who admitted the patient.

The nurse responded, “Female patient, 24 years old. Hypothermia caused hypotension, heart rate of 8, blood glucose of 1.3, close to the limit.”

Lin Ye instructed the resident doctor, “Heating blankets. Also, borrow a warming machine from the operating room.” She reminded the nurse, “Fluid replacement, dopamine, and metaraminol combined to raise blood pressure. Prepare for intubation.” She took the medical instrument kit handed to her, placed it nearby, and tried to pry open Tao Ling’s clenched jaw. However, due to muscle and joint stiffness, she was unsuccessful.

“Inject a sedative.”

After the sedative injection, the clenched jaw phenomenon slightly eased. Lin Ye successfully intubated her and connected her to the ventilator.

Another resident doctor reminded her, “The blood gas analysis shows acidosis.”

“Mmm, we’ll add a dose of sodium bicarbonate later.” After giving the medical orders, Lin Ye checked everything thoroughly and then asked, “Where is the patient’s family?”

“Outside the door.”

“Tao Ling’s family.”

When Lin Ye came out of the emergency room, Li Hewei’s drifting gaze finally focused, and she quickly walked over. “I am.”

“Officer Li?” Lin Ye was clearly a little surprised. Recalling the conversation from half a month ago, she finally remembered who Tao Ling was. No wonder she seemed familiar.

“Mmm.” Li Hewei unpursed her tightly pressed lips. “How is she?”

“Forensic Doctor Tao’s vital signs are temporarily stable, but we still need to wait for follow-up tests, such as whether there is any damage to her lungs or brain,” Lin Ye explained methodically. “After all, the hypothermia caused her to lose consciousness and fall into a coma, and her heart stopped midway.”

With all kinds of emotions churning in her heart, Li Hewei took a deep breath. “I understand.”

“I am her attending physician. Our department’s Director Cao will consult with doctors from Neurology and Critical Care Medicine later to formulate a treatment plan.”

“Neurology?”

“Mmm. The main concern is her coma; we don’t know when she will wake up.” Lin Ye saw the sorrow condensed in her eyes and gently comforted her, “However, Forensic Doctor Tao is young, so she will surely pull through.”

Li Hewei thanked her in a muffled voice.

Shortly after Lin Ye left, Qiu Wan and Cheng Yingqiu rushed over, followed by the anxious-looking, staggering Liu Yun.

“Xiao Wei, where is Xiao Ling? Where is she?” Liu Yun gripped her sleeve, asking urgently.

“She’s still under observation in the treatment room.” Li Hewei’s voice choked up. “I’m sorry, Auntie.”

“No, it’s unavoidable to get hurt while catching bad guys. Why are you saying sorry?” Liu Yun’s eyes pooled with tears, and she hastily asked, “Does she need payment? I brought twenty thousand yuan.”

“Don’t worry. I’ve covered all the costs. We’ll handle the medical insurance and work injury insurance later.”

“Mmm. Lu Hai was playing cards. I couldn’t wait, so Xiao Cheng and I rushed over.” After Tao Ling was found, Qiu Wan, as the team leader, contacted Liu Yun as a precaution. Cheng Yingqiu drove, and the three set off in a desperate hurry.

Li Hewei was stunned. “Playing cards?”

Cheng Yingqiu complained, “Yes. He told Auntie Liu to wait for two minutes and even asked me to drive to the teahouse entrance to pick him up. Don’t you think he has a problem?”

Liu Yun explained, “Lu Hai just does things calmly and slowly. A few years ago, when Xiao Ling’s grandmother was rushed to the hospital with heart discomfort, he said he had to finish his noodles first so as not to waste them.”

“What calmly and slowly? He’s simply heartless!” Cheng Yingqiu was furious. “Sister Tao Ling is inside, life or death unknown, and he’s acting as if…….”

“Forget it. Let’s not talk about him.” Li Hewei walked to the long chair next to the emergency room and sat down. She stared silently at the closed door, as if in a trance. Qiu Wan moved over and sat beside her, speaking in a low voice about the case progress. “Chao Hui died despite treatment. The cause of death was malignant arrhythmia caused by drunken drowning.”

“Currently, there are no witnesses or physical evidence pointing to Yan Chen. Sister Wang and Sister He are leading a team to Chao Hui’s room, hoping to find some clues.”

“During Tao Ling’s disappearance? Where did he go? When did he get home?” Li Hewei’s eyes were red and swollen. She shifted her gaze to Qiu Wan, her expression unfocused. “I actually drew the approximate outline last night, only missing a few details. If I had insisted on finishing it and summoned Yan Chen earlier, she wouldn’t have been harmed.”

“Those are all hypotheticals. Who knows? Besides, Yan Chen and Chao Hui have probably been following you for some time and could have acted at any moment.”

Li Hewei was caught in a vicious cycle of self-blame, murmuring, “And, pushing back further, I wasted two days—or more accurately, nearly 40 hours—if only…….”

“There are no hypotheticals, no ‘if only.’ Hewei, you are human, not a machine. There are always times when you are not at your best. You don’t need to blame yourself.” Qiu Wan was observant. Seeing Li Hewei’s cheeks flush red, her shoulders trembling, and her speech becoming incoherent, she reached out to feel her forehead. The touch was burning hot.