The eighteenth day of the twelfth lunar month, Guangzhou Railway Station.
The sky was gray and it was raining lightly, making it wet and cold.
The station square, which can accommodate up to 40,000 people, has long exceeded its limit. Like a burst cardboard box, it was forced to extend to both sides, crowding the streets, in front of shops, and even under residential buildings.
Although there were many people, it was still orderly. Tens of thousands of military police used railings and bodies to divide the stranded people into pieces. If faced with a strong enemy, they were afraid of riots and a stampede.
There were several radio trucks parked in the crowd, broadcasting the latest train operation status every once in a while, but unfortunately all they heard were:
"late!"
"late!"
"Undecided!"
"Undecided!"
Xu Chunhua squeezed into the left side of the square and stood there for about six hours. He had a bag on his back and a bag between his feet. He had no umbrella and wore a hat to protect him from the rain.
He is in his 30s, old and anxious. From time to time he looks at the large electronic screen in front of the station and scrolls the latest train information, but it is the same as what the radio car broadcasts.
"Affected by the heavy snow in Hunan, some trains cannot leave on time. Currently, the affected trains are known to be..."
The back is bright red.
If it returns to normal, the red will turn to green, and then two words will appear: Open to traffic!
Xu Chunhua works in Dongguan. Logically speaking, today is only the 18th day of the twelfth lunar month, so the factory should not take a holiday so early. But the boss said that the export business has been difficult recently and orders have decreased, so he simply took a break early.
It's okay to rest early and go home to celebrate the New Year, but unexpectedly, I was stuck at the train station.
Some people may ask: Why do you have to wait at the station? Isn’t it good to find a place to rest?
Please! Rest costs money. Migrant workers are reluctant to spend money. If they really want to rest, they have to go under a bridge. There is nowhere to go anyway, so it is better to stay at the train station.
Moreover, information was not developed at this time, and people did not know what was going on with the railway or when it would be reopened. They all had the mentality of "waiting where they are and getting home early in the morning."
So more and more people gathered at the station.
"..."
After an unknown amount of time, Xu Chunhua felt that his legs were stiff, numb and numb, and it was getting dark. He had been standing all day.
When a person stays in such an extreme situation for too long, it is easy to become angry, and if there are 200,000 people, the consequences will be disastrous!
Xu Chunhua moved his legs and was hesitating whether to spend two hours going to the toilet. Suddenly he heard a commotion diagonally in front of him. Heads that had been motionless suddenly surged forward, mixed with various shouts.
"Don't crowd! Don't crowd!"
"Everybody stay calm! Stay calm!"
The commotion quickly subsided.
But the people in that area suddenly became violent, and some guys took the lead in breaking down the railings. The military and police struggled to maintain order, but fortunately it didn't turn into a stampede.
Xu Chunhua stretched his neck and looked over there eagerly. It wasn't that he was dark inside, but he was really looking forward to something happening at this moment because it was too painful.
…………
Although no accident occurred, the relevant departments and persons in charge were confused.
By the time it happens it will be too late!
The situation escalated instantly, and control measures were deployed:
“The subway does not stop at the stations it passes by, and taxis do not stop at the stations!”
"Set up a temporary rest stop immediately and be open 24 hours a day!"
"Strengthen the manpower. I think it will take at least 40,000 soldiers and police to defend it!"
"Send over some hot water and food!"
"Calling the people around you to send over whatever food, drink, quilts, clothes, etc. you have!"
"Hurry! Right now!"
Powerful government machinery is running immediately, the subway passes directly through, taxis avoid it, and the train station is the center radiating to the surrounding streets, and the entire area is designated as a special area.
Teams of military police arrived at the scene and simply joined hands to form a human wall to prevent group emotions from breaking out.
Some police officers walked in with loudspeakers and kept preaching policies and calling for celebrating the New Year on the spot: "Stay, Guangzhou is your home too!"
"Everyone can celebrate the New Year here. We are all a family and will have a warm Spring Festival!"
"..."
Xu Chunhua picked his ears and thought it was farting. He knew it was a good intention, but he didn't want to appreciate it. Of course he had to go home during the New Year! If he doesn't go home, is it still called the New Year???
He bought delicious food for his son and new clothes for his parents. The innermost shirt was still sewn with a heavy amount of hard-earned money for a year. He also wanted to drink a few sips of the shochu brewed in the village.
This is not like the epidemic in later generations. The epidemic has no choice but to celebrate the New Year in place. Now it is just that the train is delayed. Such difficulties cannot stop the reunion complex imprinted in the bones of the Chinese people.
Sure enough, the police preached at the top of their lungs, but the crowd was unmoved, and only a few people chose to refund their tickets.
Xu Chunhua stood for another night.
He was exhausted, but was invigorated by the morning rain. The rain was getting heavier. Everywhere he looked, there were exhausted people. He could faintly hear crying and the voice of the police commanding:
"Lift it up, lift it up!"
"Yes, send it out like this, everyone can help me!"
"There's another one!"
A fainting little girl was passed out by everyone, followed immediately by a thin man who was immediately sent to the hospital for treatment.
Xu Chunhua couldn't see it, he just listened to something here and there, and made up the scene in his own mind. He was tired and hungry now, and just wanted to eat something and sleep.
After a while, someone outside shouted loudly: "Instant noodles! Is anyone eating instant noodles?"
Um?
Everyone, including Xu Chunhua, was excited for a moment, and then listened again: "50 yuan a barrel! 50 yuan a barrel, no bargaining!"
"50 yuan? Why don't you go and grab it?"
"Robbery is against the law. When I sell things, it's a matter of your own free will. You don't have to buy it!"
"How about it? Do you need it? The quantity is limited and it will be gone soon!"
Cursing voices kept coming, and it sounded like he was buying it, because Xu Chunhua seemed to smell the smell of instant noodles, the aroma of hot soup, spicy oil mixed with noodles...
He swallowed and touched the money on the lining, but he was reluctant to part with it after all.
"Forget it, I can't bring it in if I buy it, and I'll be stopped on the way... If I hold on tighter, I might be able to get on the bus soon..."
…………
Temporary headquarters.
Several responsible persons also stayed up all night and were listening to reports at the moment.
"We have contacted two temporary rest points, which can be transported at any time. They are both some distance from the train station and can divert about 50,000 people."
"The surrounding people have mobilized to set up street volunteer service teams and set up service points to give out free supplies."
"We also raised some food and water, but it was too little!"
"Yeah, too few..."
The person in charge was worried.
There are currently two core issues: one is to appease emotions and prevent mass incidents from breaking out; the other is to ensure the supply of water, cold protection, medicine and other supplies.
But you know, there are 200,000 people here, and the number continues to increase.
How many supplies are needed for 200,000 people?
The stranded people are suffering, as are the military, police and leaders who responded. Everyone is looking forward to the damn snow stopping immediately, looking forward to the power grid in Chenzhou being repaired immediately, and looking forward to the train starting immediately...
But no one thought that this was just the beginning of the most painful experience in the history of Spring Festival travel.
Starting from the 18th day of the twelfth lunar month, a maximum of 400,000 people were stranded at the Guangzhou Railway Station for more than ten days... When normalcy returned, a total of nearly 700,000 people were evacuated!
Later, a special movie was made, starring Liu Ye, Feng Yuanzheng, Huang Yi and others, called "11 Days of Ice and Snow".
Countermeasures were being studied here. Suddenly, a staff member came in and reported: "The manager of Maiwo Express wants to meet you and do his best for everyone!"