Chapter 43: Preparations for Departure
As the moon swelled toward fullness, headquarters' steady rhythm shattered into something far more frantic. The entire organization shifted into overdrive.
The Finance Department liquidated every available asset into RMB, then transmuted that currency into an avalanche of supplies. Against the possibility of last-minute complications, they retained roughly 500,000 yuan in reserve. They'd also quietly cast their remaining ten-odd kilograms of unsold gold into ingots—ten-gram, twenty-five-gram, and fifty-gram bars ready for immediate use. Less convenient than cash, certainly, but everyone understood that gold's value endured across centuries.
Aside from the maritime personnel stationed at the freight-forwarding office on the Leizhou Peninsula, every transmigrator on external assignment returned to base for final preparations.
The Medical and Health Group launched comprehensive reviews, prioritizing immunizations above all else. Despite countless announcements, some individuals hadn't bothered getting vaccinated yet claimed otherwise—a few had even shown up with forged vaccination certificates.
For certain vaccines, catch-up doses were simply no longer feasible. The complete hepatitis B series required eighteen months. The Health Group scrambled to procure alternatives that might offer faster protocols.
"Don't these people understand they're gambling with their own lives?" He Ma stared at the Incomplete Immunization Status Report, genuinely mystified. He didn't know the precise disease situation in seventeenth-century Hainan, but it was easy enough to imagine—a paradise for microorganisms. Cholera outbreaks had plagued the island well into the twentieth century.
"Many also skipped the corneal surgery for vision correction," added Dr. Lan Fangfang, his voice pained. He'd been forced to append a complete set of old-fashioned optometry equipment to the medical supplies—equipment that had become genuinely difficult to locate now that computerized optical systems were ubiquitous.
Many things proved unexpectedly hard to find. The Health Group's persistent headache was their inability to rely on disposable supplies the way modern hospitals did. Glass syringes. Glass IV sets. These had largely vanished from the market, and the specialized equipment to sterilize them—small medical autoclaves—had similarly disappeared. They'd scoured pharmaceutical companies, medical-equipment factories, and hospital warehouses across the country to assemble a complete set. The specialized rubber tubing on older medical equipment had long since deteriorated, with no replacements available anywhere. They'd been forced to commission custom molds from manufacturers at considerable expense.
The Executive Committee's attitude toward medical care was unambiguous: "Spend without limit." Any budget that ensured the highest possible standard of care would be approved. The Health Group ultimately outspent every other civilian department.
Their final inventory could have equipped a small hospital:
1. Diagnostic Equipment - Gastroscope set Ă—1 - Ultrasound unit Ă—1 - X-ray machine Ă—1 - Colonoscope set Ă—1 - Laparoscope set Ă—1 - ECG machine Ă—1 - Patient monitors Ă—10 - Medical microscopes Ă—5
2. Treatment Equipment - Surgical lights Ă—2 (1.5m diameter) - Surgical tents Ă—2 - Operating tables Ă—2 - Oxygen cylinders Ă—10 - Ventilators Ă—10 - Gastric lavage machines Ă—2 - Dental treatment units Ă—2 - Defibrillators Ă—2 - Glass syringes Ă—100 (1ml, 5ml, 10ml, 20ml, 50ml) - Glass IV bottles Ă—50 sets - Surgical instrument sets Ă—20 - Dental instrument sets Ă—10 - Obstetric instrument sets Ă—5 - Orthopedic instruments and equipment Ă—2 sets
Each surgical set included: electrosurgical knife Ă—1, pointed and rounded scalpels Ă—1 each, hemostatic clamps (large/medium/small) Ă—4 each, curved clamps Ă—4, hook clamps Ă—4, retractors (large/medium/small) Ă—2 each, toothed forceps (large/small) Ă—2 each, smooth forceps (large/small) Ă—2 each, intestinal spatulas (large/medium/small) Ă—2.
Plus surgical gowns, masks, caps, gloves, and extensive quantities of sutures, dressings, gauze, and disinfectants.
3. Medications - Emergency drugs: mannitol, isoproterenol, epinephrine, norepinephrine, verapamil, cedilanid, amiodarone, propranolol, digitalis, atropine - Large quantities of lidocaine (anesthetic) - Large quantities of furosemide (diuretic) - Large quantities of antibiotics (penicillin, erythromycin, clindamycin, cephalosporins, sulfonamides, ornidazole, metronidazole, meropenem, vancomycin—spanning low to high potency) - Large quantities of antivirals (ribavirin) - Various common medications, vaccines, and antivenoms
4. Equipment Autoclaves, various stainless steel medical containers, UV disinfection carts, refrigerators, infant incubators, and more.
First-aid kits: five allocated per person, with one issued directly as standard equipment.
If they could have located one, the Committee would have purchased a complete field hospital outright. But exhaustive searches across the country turned up nothing available for civilian acquisition. The Committee's perfectionist obsession with medical supplies eventually prompted intervention from the Health Group doctors themselves, who had to rein in the ever-expanding demands. Someone had even added a CT machine to the procurement list; the doctors had patiently explained that while undeniably useful, it wasn't essential.
For individual equipment, the Committee's philosophy of "better excessive than lacking" found full expression—though they created tiered configurations based on job assignments.
Level A (Standard): Personal issue for all transmigrators.
This level addressed daily work and living needs, with limited protection for low-intensity conflicts and short-distance travel.
Each person received a knockoff USMC modular backpack that separated into six bags of varying sizes. Regular transmigrators didn't receive camouflage—just tropical military-green training uniforms and combat boots. One boonie hat and one helmet-style cap apiece, the latter featuring a mosquito-net face cover. Also: goggles, raincoat, and rubber wading boots.
Under normal circumstances, transmigrators would sleep aboard ship or in prefab housing at base, so accommodation items didn't emphasize camping capability. Given Hainan's subtropical climate: 15°C-rated sleeping bags with matching ground pads.
For protection and weapons, Level-A personnel weren't expected to engage in intense conflict—only limited protective gear was required. Issue: stab-resistant vest and gloves, plus one Type-80 steel helmet. Newer lightweight helmets had been rejected because synthetic materials deteriorated over time; the old Type-80s were abundant and cheap.
Communication: walkie-talkie with over one kilometer range and network capability, plus a survival whistle.
Personal items issued: - Waterproof outdoor watch (altimeter, thermometer, barometer, electronic compass, timer, alarm) - Knockoff Swiss Army knife and short machete (1 each) - Compass - Headlamp - Flashlight (friction-powered to conserve batteries) - Windproof lighter - Small steel cup (multipurpose, including morning wash) - Outdoor canteen (effective preservation, neutral color) - Military canteen (includes mess tin—highly practical) - Mess kit, enamel plate, travel utensils (1 set each)
Finally: two days' emergency rations consisting of energy bars and beef jerky, plus a sewing kit and first-aid kit.
Toiletries, underwear, socks, and general clothing remained each person's own responsibility.
Above Level A came Level B (regular soldiers, long-distance surveyors) and Level C (scouts, remote field researchers). These tiers added camouflage shells over training uniforms, along with increasingly specialized outdoor and military equipment—too numerous to list exhaustively. However, many Level B and C items weren't permanently issued; they would be distributed only as operational needs arose and returned afterward.
By Committee calculations, each transmigrator was permitted 200 kilograms of personal items, including issued equipment. No restrictions existed on item types as long as weight remained under the limit—though privately carrying firearms was prohibited. Any weapons brought had to be surrendered for centralized storage.
Ma Qianzhu led tireless inspections of every transmigrator's packed belongings and found himself shaking his head again and again. Almost everyone had brought various computers, yet few had thought to include a notebook and pen. Many had also packed MP3 players, PSPs, and other entertainment devices—as if their destination featured power outlets growing from every tree. Meanwhile underwear, socks, and toiletries—items crucial for hygiene—were conspicuously scarce.
Such "hiking trip rather than time-travel" mentality was everywhere. The Committee decided to systematically adjust everyone's gear, persuading them not to bring so much useless weight. Rejected items could be mailed home, but most refused absolutely to leave their computers behind. Even if the crossing succeeded and they all eventually attained comfortable retirements, computers wouldn't be producible again in their lifetimes.
"Forget it—let them bring them." Shi Kai, responsible for all IT systems, sighed in resignation. "At least we'll have more spare parts." His own burden was substantial—a full cabinet of IT equipment—and he wasn't entirely confident his undergraduate-level skills would prove adequate for what lay ahead.
Wang Luobin and the other procurement specialists made additional runs to nearby cities, buying all manner of items they hadn't previously considered but now realized were essential.
Packing continued through constant rechecking and supplementation. The commotion didn't subside until late into the night. The next morning, transmigrators gathered on the training ground, everyone dressed in their uniformly issued clothing.
"Not bad." Xi Yazhou surveyed the transmigrators seated on the ground, waiting to board. "Actually looks like an army now."
"Hmm. A rabble." Ma Qianzhu's tone was far from enthusiastic. More than an army, this scene resembled a college military-training exercise redux.
"Don't say that, Old Ma." Xi Yazhou clapped him on the shoulder with theatrical heroism. "Together, we'll sweep across all of China..."
(End of Chapter)