Chapter 34.1

Before her, lay a vast expanse of white snow; all there was, was snow—only snow. The tall trees at the foot of the mountain had been completely covered.

Wen Nuan dug desperately, tirelessly continuing to excavate the thick layer of snow that had buried the plane, with only a tiny bit of the silver-white tail visible. But she could not stop.

Her ears were filled with various sounds, but Wen Nuan could not think of anything. With her hands gripping the shovel, she continued to dig through the thick snow, unable to pause for even a moment, terrified that delaying for even a second might cost someone their life.

She had to hurry; she had to dig faster to find Qinghan who was inside the plane.

The biting wind dried the tears on her face, and Wen Nuan felt sharp stings against her skin.

Li Daxiang called out to her several times, urging her to come down, but Wen Nuan was unable to stop her frantic digging.

She could not accept that Gu Qinghan had left her just like that. Their life had only just begun; how could he abandon her and their child?

She had not even told Gu Qinghan that she loves him yet…

So…

She had to rescue Qinghan.

Wen Nuan and Li Daxiang, along with a group of others, dug with all their might.

Slowly, the silver-white aircraft began to reveal its original shape. They could see that the body of the plane showed no significant damage, which indicated that it likely had not suffered a severe impact, and there was a possibility that the people inside were still alive.

However, with the nose of the plane facing downward, no one could say for sure whether the people inside had survived, but the movement of their hands quickened even more.

Time passed second by second, but the hope within Wen Nuan gradually ignited.

Everyone used their shovels with all their might to clear away the snow. The body of the aircraft bore a prominent red inscription displaying its number, and the cockpit slowly became visible.

The windshield had a shattered, net-like appearance, stained with mottled blood that stung her eyes.

The cabin was empty.

Where is Qinghan?

Why is he not there?

The glimmer of hope that had risen in Wen Nuan’s heart instantly transformed into despair.

She suddenly burst into tears, crying out loud: “Gu Qinghan, you liar! You promised that the next holiday, we would take a family photo together with our child…”

“You’re a liar…”

Their family had not yet taken a family portrait. How could he go back on his word?

Gu Qinghan was nothing but a big liar!

She plunged the shovel heavily into the snow, but in the next moment, Wen Nuan felt a slight resistance within the snow.

The sudden surge of joy caused her heart to clench tightly.

Wen Nuan immediately shouted to Li Daxiang, who was digging nearby, “Daxiang, here! Right here!”

“Come help!”

Soldiers in standard military uniforms continually arrived, each armed with a shovel. Together, they worked tirelessly to clear the snow.

Finally, Wen Nuan saw a glimpse of brown in the snow—that was Gu Qinghan’s flight suit.

 Fearing that the shovel might injure him, she immediately began to clear the snow with her hands.

Slowly digging away bit by bit.

Using all her strength.

Her fingers began to go numb…

“Qinghan, Qinghan… It’s me, you can’t leave me…”

“Lele and I need you; you can’t die…”

Beneath the snow, Gu Qinghan tightly held onto the child in his arms, but the combined weight of the plane and the snow pressed down hard on his chest, making it feel like his blood had congealed.

He experienced a gradually intensifying sense of suffocation, and his nostrils were filled with snow. Every inch of his body seemed wrapped tightly in the thick snow, making him unable to move.

Suddenly, an avalanche occurred on the back mountain. The tower communications officer reported that someone had been buried while gathering wild ginseng.

Gu Qinghan, who had been circling in the air, immediately chose to make an emergency landing, hoping to rescue the people trapped beneath the snow.

The safety of the people’s lives and property was the top priority. As a soldier dedicated to defending his country, it was his duty to protect the lives of the civilians.

Thus, he did not hesitate at all and intended to land the plane at the foot of the mountain.

While descending, a sudden gust of wind shook the aircraft violently, and the cockpit glass collided with an unknown object, creating a crack. A powerful airflow surged inside, causing the radar to malfunction and cutting off communication with the tower.

The plane began to tilt precariously, sliding towards the ground.

Even with his years of flying experience, the moment the icy, fierce air rushed in was terrifying. Yet, the faces of Wen Nuan and Lele appeared in his mind.

In that critical moment, he pulled the control stick, and the plane landed in the location of the avalanche, on that thick blanket of snow.

However, there were still people buried in the snow. He could not afford to hesitate; he immediately began to dig into the snow with his bare hands, unearthing those trapped beneath. He never anticipated that a second avalanche would occur, burying both him and the plane once more.

As the plane came crashing down towards him, Gu Qinghan could only hold tightly onto the child beneath him.

Before long, he began to struggle to breathe, his mind growing increasingly dull. Just as he thought he would be buried in the snow forever, he suddenly heard a familiar and dearly missed voice.

Just when Gu Qinghan believed he was experiencing a hallucination in his final moments, he felt his body being enveloped in a warm embrace.

Wen Nuan used the last of her strength to hold Gu Qinghan’s cold body tightly. Tears streamed down her face as she whispered in his ear, “Gu Qinghan, I’m telling you the answer now: I will never leave you in this lifetime.”

“Did you hear that? Never!”

“So you can’t leave me first, can you hear me? Can you hear me?!”

At the moment Gu Qinghan slipped into complete unconsciousness, he seemed to see the familiar face of the woman who occupied his heart—crying and calling his name…

“It’s Vice Captain Gu! Hurry, get the medical personnel over here.”

“He’s still breathing; quickly bring a blanket. And there’s a child; check on him.”

“And sister-in-law, see how sister-in-law is doing…”

Wen Nuan took a blanket and wrapped it around Gu Qinghan’s body. She had never seen his face so pale before, and her hands trembled as she held the blanket. She pressed him tightly against her, trying to give him a bit of warmth.

Li Daxiang was momentarily stunned. He hadn’t expected the delicate-looking Wen Nuan to display such incredible strength at this critical moment, even rivaling that of the soldiers who had trained for years.

Seeing Wen Nuan holding Gu Qinghan tightly, Li Daxiang felt a twinge of sympathy but still spoke up to remind her, “Sister-in-law, let the doctor examine Vice Captain Gu first. He needs to be sent to the hospital immediately.”

Wen Nuan wiped the tears from her face and nodded. “I—I was too emotional. Doctor, please check on my husband…”

Li Daxiang and Liang Guoan watched the two of them nestled together in the snow, thinking to themselves—how could anyone not be emotional?

They had snatched a life back from the hands of death!

When everyone heard about Gu Qinghan’s crash, they all thought he would surely be lost. But Gu Qinghan was Gu Qinghan, the finest pilot in the entire 34th Division. Aside from the shattered cockpit glass, the entire body of the aircraft remained intact.

However, Gu Qinghan’s plane had already lost contact with the tower and could not be located. If Wen Nuan hadn’t directed them to the northeast corner, it would have been nearly impossible to rescue him within the critical golden hour.

The area affected by the avalanche was too large; almost half the mountain had collapsed, burying the trees at the foot of the mountain. One could only imagine how thick the snow was.

Although Liang Guoan was equally excited, he knew that someone needed to coordinate the situation on-site. He didn’t dwell on it any longer, focusing on ensuring the doctor examined Vice Captain Gu and the child. They would also have to deal with the downed aircraft.

Before long, a crying military wife rushed over, calling out, “Daniu, Daniu… My son, please don’t scare Mommy!”

Wen Nuan glanced at Huang Yueying, who was stumbling and climbing up toward the pile of snow, and only then realized that the child Gu Qinghan had been protecting was actually Huang Yueying’s son.

Just then, when she held Gu Qinghan, he did not release the child in his arms, as if rescuing the child was the only task he needed to complete.

Wen Nuan glanced at the child being urgently treated by the doctor. The child’s face was purplish-blue, showing no sign of blood, appearing as if he had suffocated for too long. In no time, he was carried into a military jeep.

Gu Qinghan was arranged in another vehicle, and Liang Guoan quickly instructed, “Li Daxiang, take Comrade Wen with you to the hospital. If there is any situation with Vice Captain Gu, report it to me immediately.”

“Understood.” Li Daxiang saluted and then got into the vehicle.

Once in the car, Li Daxiang noticed Wen Nuan had fainted beside Gu Qinghan, her face as pale as the snow. Wen Nuan had still been holding Gu Qinghan’s hand, and even upon reaching the hospital, neither of them let go.

Upon arriving at the hospital, the doctors arranged a series of examinations for Gu Qinghan and Wen Nuan.

Li Daxiang followed closely, not daring to leave their side, except during the check-ups.

Fortunately, the doctor said Wen Nuan had merely fainted due to excessive excitement and physical exhaustion and would likely wake up soon.

However, Gu Qinghan needed to undergo additional tests due to being buried for an extended period and having been crushed by the airplane, so they had to take some X-rays to check for any injuries to his internal organs and bones.

Li Daxiang instructed Erhu to wait at the hospital.

He recalled how Wen Nuan had handed Lele to Gu Qinglan before getting into the car, thinking she must be anxiously worried right now, so he decided to head to the family quarters to bring them over.

When Wen Nuan’s sister-in-law and Vice Captain Gu woke up, they would surely be happier upon seeing the child.

—o—o—o—

Upon reaching Wen Nuan’s courtyard, he found Gu Qinglan sitting beside the eight-immortal table, holding Lele silently. Her eyes were also red, indicating she had likely been crying.

Gu Qinglan had waited at home for a long time. Since many knew she was Gu Qinghan’s sister, quite a few military wives had come over to ask her various questions about Gu Qinghan’s plane crash. However, Gu Qinglan had no desire to talk with anyone, wishing she could sew their mouths shut.

Sister Guihua was also quite annoyed and sent those people away.

Thinking it was yet another group of meddlesome military wives coming to pry, Gu Qinglan snapped, “Can you all just go away?”

But when she caught sight of Li Daxiang, her mood instantly lifted. She stood up and asked, “Comrade Li, how is my brother? Is he okay? Is he hurt? What about my sister-in-law? How is she?”

Upon meeting Gu Qinglan’s worried, red-rimmed eyes, Li Daxiang tried to reassure her, “Vice Captain Gu and your sister-in-law are both at the hospital undergoing examinations. I’m taking you there now, so you don’t need to worry.”

“Hey, hey, don’t cry! Please, don’t cry. Vice Captain Gu has been rescued. Your sister-in-law just fainted from exhaustion…” Li Daxiang watched as the usually carefree girl had tears streaming down her cheeks, and for a moment, he felt at a loss for what to do.

Hearing that Wen Nuan had also fainted made Gu Qinglan’s tears flow even more.

But when she realized that she was still holding Lele, she suppressed her voice, not daring to cry out loud.

Li Daxiang wanted to reach out and wipe her tears away but felt it was inappropriate—making him fumble awkwardly.

He couldn’t help but turn red from his action.

On the other hand, Sister Guihua was calmer and asked Li Daxiang, “What’s the current situation with Vice Captain Gu?”

Li Daxiang briefly explained that Gu Qinghan had been rescued: “He is still undergoing examinations. I came to get Comrade Gu Qinglan because I was worried that she’d be too anxious. Let’s hurry and get in the car to go to the hospital together.”

He then looked at Gu Qinglan’s eyes, and said, “Hand Lele to me. You might scare her.”

Gu Qinglan tightly held onto Lele’s small body, shaking her head as she choked out, “No, I can’t. My Sister-in-law told me to take good care of Lele. I’ll carry her myself; I won’t cry anymore.”

Then she wiped her tears with her sleeve and saw a car at the courtyard entrance, directly getting in.

When Qinglan said she wouldn’t cry, she truly didn’t cry.

—o—o—o—

Wen Nuan woke up feeling hot.

She felt very uncomfortable under the weight of the blanket and wanted to push it away. However, just as she lifted her hand, it fell into a cool palm, which then tightened around her hand.

Wen Nuan jolted awake, the first thought in her mind was to find Gu Qinghan. But the moment she opened her eyes, she was met with a familiar deep, dark eye.

Wen Nuan completely woke up, grasping Gu Qinghan’s fingers in return. With a worried expression, she asked, “Qinghan, you’re awake? Are you okay? Do you feel uncomfortable anywhere? Did your head get crushed? Has the doctor come to see you?”

Instinctively, Wen Nuan wanted to call for a doctor, but Gu Qinghan gently pulled her hand and hoarsely said, “I’m fine. You lie down; I want to look at you.”

Only then did Wen Nuan realize they were lying in separate hospital beds, with the two beds pushed together. Her body was covered by two blankets, which explained why she felt so hot.

Seeing the focused gaze of the man, Wen Nuan’s heart softened again.

She slowly lay back down on her hospital bed and touched Gu Qinghan’s hand.

His palm was broad and warm, but now it felt a bit cold, and his complexion was still somewhat pale.

Gu Qinghan looked at her and suddenly said, “I heard you.”

Wen Nuan looked at him in confusion, unable to comprehend what he was saying. She asked, “What did you hear?”

A faint smile appeared on Gu Qinghan’s pale face as he raised his other hand—which did not have an IV, to help Wen Nuan tidy her messy hair. “You said you would never leave me in this lifetime.”

At the moment when the cockpit windshield was struck, he truly believed he would certainly die.

Later, when they landed safely but were buried under heavy snow, as the snow and parts of the plane fell onto him, he had no other thoughts at all.

He only thought of Wen Nuan and Lele.

In fact, this accident was not the most serious he had encountered in his military career—for all of that, he had always faced death calmly.

He felt his only duty was to defend his country, protect every citizen, and guard every inch of the land.

But this time, he had something to worry about.

Although he still did not fear death, he felt his heart throb in pain at the thought of leaving Wen Nuan and Lele behind.

What would happen to them?

When he heard Wen Nuan’s voice, Gu Qinghan suddenly experienced a fear he had never felt before—he didn’t want to surrender his life.

In the moment before he lost consciousness, he saw Wen Nuan’s blurry features and heard her familiar voice.

It was then he realized that he needed her, just as much as she needed him.

She was more important than his own life.

At the same time, the feeling of being valued by her was incredibly refreshing and touching.

After so many years of military service, he had never had someone hold him so dearly, thinking of him constantly.

He didn’t quite understand what that feeling was.

But today, he felt it.

This feeling was truly wonderful, so wonderful that it was beyond description.

Just now, when he opened his eyes and saw Wen Nuan sleeping beside him, Gu Qinghan wanted nothing more than to pull her into his embrace.

Upon hearing Gu Qinghan’s words, Wen Nuan’s face flushed, and she felt a bit awkward.

She averted her gaze, then responded with an “Mm,” no longer indulging in her little whims.

Gu Qinghan looked at Wen Nuan and lowered his voice to comfort her, “From now on, I will do everything I can to take care of myself.”

Wen Nuan turned her head and assessed Gu Qinghan.

Seeing that his complexion was no longer as pale as before, she breathed a sigh of relief. She then raised her hand to trace along his well-defined eyebrows, asking, “Do you feel uncomfortable anywhere right now?”

Gu Qinghan took her hand and noticed dried black blood under her fingernails, causing him to furrow his brow, his expression darkening.

Wen Nuan retracted her fingers and chuckled nonchalantly, “I was worried the shovel would be too heavy and hurt you, so I used my hands to dig. It’s nothing; it’ll be fine in a few days.

I’m asking about you now. Are you feeling uncomfortable anywhere? You can’t be stubborn this time. You were pinned down by the plane; I’m worried you might have injured your internal organs.”

Gu Qinghan held her fingers, kissing each one in turn before hoarsely saying, “I’m fine. So far, I haven’t found anything uncomfortable, just a bit tired.”

Wen Nuan felt a bit uneasy and immediately sat up. “No, I need to find a doctor and ask. You should have had some tests done; I’ll go see if the results are out.”

Seeing that Wen Nuan was really about to get up, he pulled her firmly back onto his hospital bed and held her tightly in his arms. “Let me hold you first; don’t move.”

Then he gently inhaled her scent and closed his eyes.

—o—o—o—