CHAPTER 1
Downburst
Ning City.
"Who can report on the warning situation for next week's severe convective weather?"
Chi Yang projected the PowerPoint onto the screen and said gracefully, "Director Qin, regarding next week's severe convective weather, we have issued 455 SMS warnings through the meteorological warning release system and the emergency event warning information platform, pushed 38 early warning alerts on the converged media platform, reaching over 5 million users. We have also given 5 interviews to mainstream media and effectively clarified 6 cases of false information. We will continue to provide rolling updates as the situation develops."
"Good. Keep in close coordination with them in real time, don't let your guard down."
"Them" referred to the meteorological observatory.
Chi Yang nodded in acknowledgment. "Understood."
"That concludes today's meeting." Director Qin closed his folder and was about to leave the conference room when he suddenly turned back, tapping his head. "My memory isn't what it used to be, I almost forgot something important. I'm picking someone up at the airport tomorrow morning. Who wants to come with me?"
The people around the conference table exchanged glances. Gu Weiwei was the first to ask, "Who's the important figure?"
Director Qin smiled warmly. "A researcher our bureau is bringing in from abroad. I believe she graduated from St. Winston University. The leadership places great importance on this."
As everyone exchanged puzzled looks, Director Qin had a sudden idea. "Xiao Chi, why don't you come with me? I've seen her resume, she went to the same university as you. It'll be easier to find conversation topics and avoid any awkward silences."
Thus assigned, Chi Yang nodded blankly, while the others cast sympathetic glances her way. The airport was forty kilometers from the office, and she'd have to smile and play hostess the whole way, exhausting just to think about.
Gu Weiwei said, "Yangyang, don't look so down. I'll treat everyone to milk tea."
At once, everyone began celebrating.
Back at her workstation, Chi Yang organized the content she had presented at the meeting. While waiting for the printout, she found herself pondering Director Qin's words.
University alumna...
On second thought, it wasn't much of a coincidence. Chi Yang's university was one of the best in Ning City and boasted the country's top meteorology program. Running into a fellow alum at the Ning City Meteorological Bureau was practically routine.
......
That evening, Chi Yang returned home.
Given the nature of her work, she lived in an apartment complex just one street away from the bureau, making it easier to respond to sudden weather events.
Now that April had arrived, her workload had surged along with the rainfall. Chi Yang's skin had grown haggard from working nonstop. Remembering she had to pick someone up the next day, she took a shower and lay on the sofa with a face mask on.
Before long, her best friend Tang Mo called.
With the mask stretching across her face, Chi Yang could barely open her mouth, and her voice came out muffled. "What's up, Momo?"
Tang Mo said, "Want to go shopping tomorrow? I bought a new projector, we can watch movies at my place in the evening."
Chi Yang ran a beauty device over her face and rejected the idea without a second thought. "Can't. My director asked me to go with him to pick someone up at the airport tomorrow."
Tang Mo was puzzled. "Pick someone up?"
Chi Yang explained, "From what our director said, it's a researcher the bureau is bringing in from abroad. Sounds pretty impressive."
Tang Mo sighed sympathetically. "Poor Yangyang, having to work overtime on the weekend."
Chi Yang remained calm, for people in her line of work, overtime and on-call duty were simply part of the routine.
As they chatted, another call came in on Chi Yang's phone. It was Wen Jie. Chi Yang's heart skipped a beat involuntarily, today Wen Jie was on duty at the Press Office.
Chi Yang quickly said, "Talk to you later, Momo," and hung up, then switched to Wen Jie's call.
Wen Jie's voice was urgent. "Sister Chi, a sudden downburst in the southeastern mountain area has triggered flash flooding. The situation is critical, you might need to come in."
[A downburst is a powerful rush of cold air that drops down from a thunderstorm and hits the ground. It spreads out fast in straight lines and can cause heavy damage like a tornado, with wind speeds reaching up to 240 kilometers per hour.]
"I'm on my way."
Without a second thought, Chi Yang tore off her face mask and tossed it into the trash, grabbed a jacket from the sofa, and sped off to the bureau.
Her car raced through the streets at the fastest speed the city allowed, pulling into the open lot in front of the bureau.
Chi Yang sprinted into the building. As the elevator ascended, she had already gotten a general picture from the meteorological observatory.
The mountain area had sparse weather stations, and the radar beam was narrow and easily blocked by terrain. Downbursts were often difficult to detect in advance, and the complex mountainous topography amplified errors, leaving them with only a ten-minute warning window.
Almost as soon as the observatory had detected it, the disaster had struck in the mountains.
Wen Jie stared anxiously at the rising floor numbers by the elevator. Having only been on the job for a few months, this was her first time encountering such an urgent emergency. She had thought the weather had been stable lately, never expecting such a sudden blow.
As soon as the elevator doors opened, Chi Yang strode swiftly toward her workstation, with Wen Jie following alongside, summarizing the current progress.
"Don't worry. During the fire inspection, I remember mentioning that the area hit by the downburst is in the unopened mountain region. Apart from some distant villages, there shouldn't be anyone around." Chi Yang reassured Wen Jie while sitting down at the computer, calmly instructing her on what to do.
"Wen Jie, call the meteorological station now and ask them to send over their preliminary forecast briefing."
Just as she finished speaking, the landline phone on the nearby desk rang. Chi Yang said with certainty, "That's the meteorological station. Wen Jie, go answer it."
Sure enough.
A moment later, Wen Jie set down the receiver and briefly summarized what she'd heard. "The meteorological station said they'll send the briefing over right away. They've already contacted the emergency management bureau and the township government. Initial assessment shows no civilians have been affected, but they're still monitoring whether it could trigger flooding. They've already started evacuating villagers to the town center."
Chi Yang let out a long sigh of relief and gave the shaken Wen Jie a reassuring smile.
Though the initial assessment was done, the real-time monitoring and news broadcasts were just beginning.
Based on the briefing from the meteorological station, Chi Yang rewrote it using proper news terminology, then published a short notice through their official new media accounts across various platforms, urging the public to stay away from dangerous areas and not to spread or believe rumors.
With Wen Jie assisting on the side, the task went smoothly and quickly.
"Wen Jie, head to the broadcast studio. I'll direct, and you'll read the script."
Wen Jie had gradually pulled herself out of her flustered state. She gave Chi Yang a confident, emphatic nod, as if pumping herself up.
With the press of a button, the studio lights flickered on all at once, flooding the room with brightness.
The bureau's broadcast studio was small, with only basic equipment, just enough for emergency statements.
Wen Jie, dressed in a white shirt and a black strapped pleated skirt, sat at the broadcast desk while Chi Yang deftly adjusted the equipment. Once Wen Jie confirmed there was no static, Chi Yang raised her arm and counted down with three gestures: "Three, two, one."
Then, recording began.
Wen Jie faced the camera with a serious yet warm expression, occasionally glancing at the script in her hands. "Hello everyone, I'm spokesperson Wen Jie. At 11:56:48 PM tonight, according to observations from the municipal meteorological station, the southeastern mountain area of our city was affected by a downburst, causing brief heavy rainfall with instantaneous wind speeds reaching... It has now been confirmed that this incident caused no casualties. Please stay away from dangerous areas and protect your own safety."
After the recording, Chi Yang sent Wen Jie to contact two mainstream media outlets for phone interviews, while also boosting the reach of their posts across various platforms to expand publicity.
Only after everything had settled did Wen Jie have a moment to check her phone. Two missed calls from Director Qin sat quietly on the screen. Nervously, she called back.
Director Qin picked up instantly, speaking quickly. "Wen Jie, how did everything go?"
Wen Jie honestly recounted how she'd called Chi Yang in from home.
Director Qin said, "Good. I saw the posts and videos you put out. Well done."
After hanging up, Wen Jie turned and met Chi Yang's gaze from her desk. She ambled over, grinning obsequiously. "Sister Chi, I'll treat you to dinner next week, not in the cafeteria, somewhere out."
Chi Yang looked at Wen Jie's timid demeanor and teased, "Wen Jie, how many meals do you owe me by now?"
During Wen Jie's first three months at the bureau, Director Qin had assigned her to Chi Yang to learn the ropes. Every time Chi Yang patched up one of Wen Jie's "holes," the younger woman would sheepishly offer to buy her dinner.
But if she counted them up, those "dinner invitations" never seemed to materialize. Chi Yang figured Wen Jie was still new and bound to make mistakes, old Qin had been just as forgiving when Chi Yang first started. Back then, Qin hadn't yet been promoted to director.
"Sister Chi, I'll definitely handle it myself next time."
Chi Yang let out a soft, exasperated laugh. "Wen Jie, if an even more severe weather event happens next time, are you ready to handle it on your own?"
Seeing Wen Jie fall silent, Chi Yang said gently, "There's no shame in admitting you're in over your head. Weather issues are nothing to take lightly. Sometimes what looks like a small problem can become a big one if even one detail is mishandled."
Wen Jie gave a quiet "mm" in response.
Downbursts are typically accompanied by brief heavy rainfall, they come fast and leave just as quickly. Another hour later, after confirming with the meteorological station that no further weather changes were likely, Chi Yang dragged her weary body back home.
She couldn't very well show up to pick someone up at dawn wearing casual loungewear, could she?
......
The next morning, dawn broke softly.
In April, the sky over Ning City looked as if it had been washed many times over, tinged with pale blue and the tenderness of lingering moisture. The clouds drifted slowly, and the air was cool but not cold.
While eating breakfast, Chi Yang received a call from Tang Mo. "Yangyang, I saw the news. Did you go back to the office for overtime again last night?"
Chi Yang smiled bitterly. "Yeah."
Tang Mo said, "I'm just saying, Yangyang, why don't you consider switching to a job as a TV station host? It's not guaranteed you'll get weekends off, but at least you won't be dragged out in the middle of the night."
Chi Yang fell into thought. It wasn't that she hadn't considered what Tang Mo said, but she herself felt lost, she couldn't find a career she truly loved.
In college, Chi Yang had pursued dual degrees in journalism and meteorology. In her senior year, standing at a fork in the road, she hesitated and wavered, then was half-pushed, half-persuaded by her roommates to take the graduate school entrance exam. She got into a master's program in journalism without much trouble. Upon graduation, she happened to come across a recruitment by the meteorological bureau for exactly this kind of interdisciplinary talent, and unsurprisingly, she was hired.
Looking back on this chain of events, Chi Yang's mother often remarked that Chi Yang had stumbled onto "dumb luck."
Now, seven or eight years had passed since her senior year. It was as if she had come full circle, returning to the same point of uncertainty she had been at back then.
......
The car sped along the city's expressway toward the airport.
Chi Yang sat in the passenger seat, the driver in the driver's seat, and Director Qin in the back.
The drive from the office to the airport would take nearly two hours. Apart from occasionally answering Director Qin's work-related questions, Chi Yang spent most of her time mulling over Tang Mo's suggestion from that morning.
After arriving at the airport, following the instructions on the departure board, Chi Yang and Director Qin made their way to the corresponding arrival gate based on the flight information they had received.
Chi Yang checked her appearance in a reflective surface. Today she wore a gray casual blazer over a light blue shirt, with the blazer sleeves rolled up slightly to reveal the striped lining inside. The suit pants hung naturally, and her dark hair was clipped back at the nape of her neck, formal yet relaxed, giving off an approachable air.
"Director Qin, we were in such a hurry getting out of the car that I forgot to grab water. I'll go buy a few bottles from the vending machine," Chi Yang said considerately.
Director Qin waved his hand, signaling her to go ahead.
Soon, a steady stream of passengers poured out of the arrival gate. Some carried only backpacks, while others pushed bulky luggage carts.
One person, two people...
The next moment, a woman's figure appeared behind a burly man pushing a fully loaded luggage cart, flickering in and out of view.
Chi Yang's gaze carried a hint of curiosity, involuntarily landing on the woman's shoulders, then her hands, until it settled on her profile as she drew closer and closer.
Director Qin had already stepped forward with polite pleasantries, but Chi Yang remained rooted in place, as if the downburst from last night had struck her precisely, pinning her to the spot.
Chi Yang's head was buzzing.
Just before Director Qin could speak, Chi Yang snapped back to her senses and hurriedly stepped forward, extending her right hand in time with Director Qin's introduction: "This is Chi Yang, our spokesperson from the news office."
The other woman turned to look at her, a faint smile at the corners of her lips, and said with perfect courtesy, "Hello, Miss Chi."
So she really was a college alum...
Chi Yang thought to herself.
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