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Chapter 112
This was Shu Fu and Yao Ruoyun’s first time riding in an armored vehicle. The driver’s area and the cabin were separated. The driver’s area could only seat two people, and the rear door of the cabin was a downward-folding hatch. Inside, there were two rows of fixed seats, each with a safety harness. When not in use, the seats could be folded up to make room for transporting supplies.
This time, another team member and Han Lan entered the driver’s area.
Liu Shuang signaled for Shu Fu and Yao Ruoyun to board first. Afterward, Cheng Yu, along with three other team members, also boarded, and a total of seven seats were deployed.
One of the team members closed the door. Liu Shuang, who sat closest to the driver’s area, knocked on the wall separating the cabin and the driver’s area. After a moment, the armored vehicle and snowplow started at the same time, clearing the remaining snow and ice on the ground while heading toward the central square along the snow path that had been previously cleared.
Two hours was supposed to be a long wait, but for some reason, time seemed to pass unusually quickly today.
Starting from one o’clock, survivors with luggage appeared on the snow path one after another. They had come from the hotel building, and since there were no vehicles or they couldn’t wait for one, they decided to walk out with their luggage.
The weather wasn’t too cold, and the snow path was wide. They walked quickly, stopping occasionally to look at the armored vehicle as they passed. Some even approached to knock on the door of the driver’s area, perhaps hoping to catch a ride.
Han Lan rolled down the window: “Go wait at the county entrance. Once everyone’s gathered, we’ll come to you.”
This meant rejecting their request for a ride. The survivors, seeing his stern expression, seemed like they wanted to complain but were quickly pulled away by others nearby.
The survivors who had walked further away whispered among themselves, and their conversation carried over in the cold night breeze: “It’s ridiculous that we were made to leave in the middle of the night while they’re just sitting here doing nothing…”
“Alright, keep it down. They can hear you.”
“So what if they hear us? What’s the big deal?”
“Of course it’s a big deal. The supplies you got from the airdrop were thanks to them!”
“No way! Didn’t Fatty Zhong and the others say that the airdrop was part of the nationwide disaster relief, just like before? It happens everywhere, even in places where there are no people. They drop supplies there too!”
“You believe him? All of their team members were in the hotel when the warehouse was robbed, but they didn’t lift a finger to help! After they received the supplies, they left and moved into the next building. They don’t care about the rescue team or the military anymore. If it weren’t for the subsequent airdrops, they might have turned into thieves themselves and gone to rob others.”
The “others” he referred to actually included themselves. When the warehouse robbery incident occurred, they hadn’t been in the hotel. Later, when they were notified to collect the supplies, some of them noticed the rescue team’s disheartened state and immediately suggested they didn’t need to divide the supplies evenly in advance but instead distribute them based on needs, ensuring everyone would survive.
This group wasn’t particularly aggressive or quick-witted, so they hadn’t rushed to squeeze into the hotel. They had only moved in after agreeing to let the rescue team handle the supply distribution based on needs. There weren’t many of them—less than forty in total.
Because of this system, they had enough to eat, with some food available at every meal under the reasonable arrangement of the rescue team. Later, when the airdrop supplies arrived, they were even more plentiful.
The rescue team had also distributed airdrop supplies to another group, probably recognizing their intent to cause trouble and steal. By giving them supplies first, they nipped the potential for conflict in the bud. After all, the rescue team members were still thinking about the future and didn’t want their hands stained with bloodshed.
But if the other side caused trouble, they would definitely shoot.
Those who had received the airdrop supplies returned to their building, prioritizing the supplies and ignoring orders. The evacuation this time was no different. They would analyze the situation, saying the vehicles were insufficient, there wasn’t enough fuel, and the snow outside was as thick as five or six meters. Where could they go after leaving Wei County? With the evacuation time being moved up, they paid even less attention to it.
Therefore, the only group truly moving forward with the evacuation of Wei County was the forty of them.
The conversation continued with someone lecturing, “It’s not like before, when there were airdrops for the entire disaster zone, and by the way, that airdrop was from military drones! I didn’t want to argue with you before, but think about it—when we arrived, the satellite phone at the rescue station was already broken, and later the base station was destroyed, so the rescue team couldn’t contact anyone outside. The airdrop not only located the site but also had just enough supplies for all of us to share. There’s no such thing as coincidence! Who else could have called in that airdrop? If they hadn’t been in Wei County, we would’ve died from the blizzard and the drastic drop in temperature!”
“Exactly! And they still have the nerve to complain, how about using their brains for once!”
“If you can’t think, then keep quiet and read more books!”
“You guys, weren’t you the ones who cursed me before…”
“Changing sides is fine!”
…
The voices faded as the group walked further away.
After a moment, another jeep, making clicking noises, passed by the armored vehicle. Fortunately, the snow path cleared by the armored vehicle was wide enough, so there was no traffic jam.
This time, Han Lan proactively rolled down the window and asked about the situation at the rescue station in the hotel building.
The response came: “We’re not too sure. We just received notice that the departure was moved up. This car is ours, and it took a long time to repair. We’re not sure how far it can go… You’re waiting at the county entrance, right? Got it, thank you!”
After several groups of people had passed, the snow path grew quiet again.
The time quickly reached two o’clock.
Shu Fu had set multiple countdowns on her phone, starting from 3:30 AM until 4:00 AM, with reminders every five minutes.
At 3:30 AM, her phone would send the first reminder, marking thirty minutes as the time for her and Yao Ruoyun to leave Wei County on foot. In case something unexpected happened and there was no other option, thirty minutes would be enough for them to run.
However, the task hadn’t arrived until nearly 12:06 AM, so even by 4:00 AM, there were still a few minutes of buffer time.
At 2:15 AM, Cheng Yu glanced at his watch and signaled for Liu Shuang to contact Wen Rou to inquire about their progress.
However, this time, there was no response from the walkie-talkie.
After calling several times, Liu Shuang opened the window between the cabin and the driver’s area, signaling Han Lan to contact the rescue station.
Yet, the situation was the same on his end—rescue team members who had previously responded quickly were now silent.
Liu Shuang furrowed her brows. “It’s impossible for everyone to be too busy to respond at the same time.”
At 2:20 AM, the armored vehicle’s cabin door was opened again. Cheng Yu was the first to get out of the vehicle and looked toward the hotel building in the distance, but a five or six-meter high snowdrift blocked his view, and he couldn’t see anything.
After a moment, Liu Shuang followed, with Shu Fu, Yao Ruoyun, and other team members behind her.
Liu Shuang informed Cheng Yu that she and Han Lan had called the rescue station multiple times, but there had been no response. “This doesn’t seem like a case of no one answering; it’s more likely that something’s wrong with the walkie-talkies, but it’s impossible for all of them to malfunction at the same time.”
Cheng Yu’s expression turned serious. “There must be some trouble over there.”
Just as Han Lan, who had gotten out of the driver’s area, overheard this, he added, “Then why wait? Let’s go over together!”
“We can’t go together,” Cheng Yu replied, checking his watch. The time read 2:23 AM. He turned and approached Shu Fu again. “Are you sure you want to evacuate Wei County before 3:45 AM?”
Shu Fu looked at him, roughly guessing what he intended to do, and nodded seriously.
“Alright,” he nodded back, signaling. “You get back in the vehicle. Liu Shuang will make sure you safely leave Wei County.”
“You—” Shu Fu instinctively reached out and grabbed his arm as he turned.
Cheng Yu turned back to smile at her, gently pressing his hand on her snow hat. “Don’t worry, everything will be fine. Just wait for me outside the county.”
“Captain—” the small-sized team member, Gao Shan, spoke up. “Let’s drive the armored vehicle together!”
“You go first. The armored vehicle can’t get through that road, and we need to clear the snow and mountain paths to leave Wei. Otherwise, no one will be able to get out!” He signaled Liu Shuang and Han Lan. “The team’s in your hands. Wait for me at the county entrance marker.”
Having worked together for a while, Han Lan and Liu Shuang naturally understood Cheng Yu’s reasoning.
A team needed discipline; it wasn’t just about passion or acting on impulse. To risk going back to rescue a few people could jeopardize the entire team. That was a military taboo.
Earlier, Wen Rou and her team had disobeyed the captain’s orders and stayed behind under their own names. They understood the price they’d pay. Now, as the agreed time approached and they were still out of contact, the remaining members of the squad should follow the plan and leave immediately.
Cheng Yu’s return was also a private action outside of orders. He wanted to ensure the safety of the other team members while trying to save the three who had stayed behind. That was why he made this decision.
This wasn’t the first time something like this had happened. Han Lan, who had gone on the most missions with Cheng Yu, was well aware of his capability and his methods.
“Understood, Captain!”
Cheng Yu didn’t say anything further. He watched them get back in the vehicle and quickly checked his equipment. After the armored vehicle departed, he turned and headed along the snow path away from the county, going in the opposite direction.
2:44 AM, on the mountain road outside Wei County.
Only Gao Shan and another team member remained in the vehicle, driving the armored vehicle to clear the snow on the mountain road.
The bridge over the canyon had low guardrails on both sides, and now with the snow accumulated, it was impossible to see where the edges of the bridge were. If they weren’t careful, the vehicle could fall into the canyon, which could be fatal.
Therefore, before clearing the snow from the bridge, they needed to first clean the entire mountain road area from the county entrance to the three-way intersection. Then they would clear the snow from the bridge based on the width of the road that became visible, and finally, reach the red road marker across from the bridge.
Aside from the armored vehicle, the survivors and vehicles that had left Wei County earlier were also here.
Shu Fu stood on the cleared mountain road, looking down below, and roughly counted. There were only about thirty people here. She remembered someone saying earlier that there were about 200 people in total in Wei County, including rescue team members and military personnel.
The previous extreme cold and blizzard might have caused some casualties, but there were definitely still many survivors who had yet to leave.
Shu Fu frowned. What had happened at the hotel building and the clinic building?
After a moment, a sudden explosion was heard from the other end of Wei County. The explosion didn’t seem too strong, and from their position, they couldn’t see any flames, only hearing the sound.
But in the silent night, the sound made Liu Shuang, Han Lan, and the others instantly turn around.
They called Cheng Yu on the walkie-talkie, but there was no response from his side. No one knew what had happened. The armored vehicle beside them also stopped, and Gao Shan poked his head out from the driver’s seat to ask about the situation.
“Keep clearing the snow!” Liu Shuang ordered, turning back.
Gao Shan responded, “It’ll be done soon!” The armored vehicle soon began moving again.
Liu Shuang and Han Lan chatted briefly, both of their expressions strained but also helpless. In the end, they had no choice but to suppress all their emotions for the time being.
“Senior, Cheng team leader, Wen Rou, and Awen…” Yao Ruoyun approached Shu Fu.
This time, Shu Fu actively took her hand. “Don’t worry, it’ll be fine.” It would be fine. Based on past experiences, as long as she could complete the task within the deadline, the people involved wouldn’t be in danger.
Moreover, Cheng Yu had extensive combat experience. In usual circumstances, nothing should happen.
If it were truly an exceptionally tricky situation, she believed the task wouldn’t be progressing in the way it was now.
Time passed, and every minute seemed to stretch on endlessly.
As she sensed some movement, Shu Fu turned to look at the people beside her. This time, a flashing white light appeared above Liu Shuang and Han Lan’s heads at the same time. Their progress bar had advanced a little more, but it still hadn’t reached the awakening point.
Yao Ruoyun kept tightly holding her hand, and the light strip that appeared above her head due to her awakening stood out in the night sky. It, along with the others’ light strips, lined up together, making it look like a scene from an animated movie or a sci-fi film.
Three awakened individuals… wait!
A flash of realization struck Shu Fu’s mind, and thoughts she herself hadn’t fully understood rushed through her head.
Three people—whether awakened or not—were here, just a stone’s throw away from the road marker. If nothing unexpected happened, once the snow path was cleared, they would just need to get in the vehicle and leave. When the vehicle passed the bridge, the mission would be considered perfectly completed.
This suddenly reminded her of standing on the wooden ladder of the drifting island, watching the explosion in Youcheng.
Her task had been to clock in at Yuncheng, so she left Youcheng immediately. At that time, she hadn’t known that Cheng Yu had been on those fighter jets. That mission had been incredibly brutal, with half of the people dying, and the rest needing psychological treatment.
Cheng Yu had nearly died in that operation, leaving behind scars that disfigured him…
And all of this had seemed like it was just brushing past her mission…
A cold chill crept up Shu Fu’s spine, and within seconds, her mind raced through every mission related to Cheng Yu she had ever been a part of. Every time, he wasn’t alone—at the library, there had been Yao Ruoyun, Lu Zheng, and the others.
The first time the giant wave hit Lou Yuncheng, it was Liu Shuang she encountered first.
When the Jixing Community was attacked by rioters, Zheng Feifei and Fang Xiwen had clearly been the main focus.
And this time… if the people related to her mission this time were only Yao Ruoyun, Liu Shuang, and Han Lan…
If… he wasn’t…
At the last moment before leaving, he had come up to her and confirmed the time. He trusted her so much, believing that as long as they left Wei County before the deadline, they would be safe…
But could he really leave Wei County safely within the deadline?
At that moment, was he… walking toward death?
And then there was Wen Rou, Awen, and Qi Kai—those vibrant, alive faces flashed through her mind. She had less contact with them, and their chances of being awakened were even lower. So, was it destined that when they drove the off-road vehicle to the hotel building, they walked right into a dead end?
They were like cannon fodder, not main characters. Even if they weren’t there, it wouldn’t affect her mission.
They hadn’t stayed behind for themselves; they wanted to save others. But their lives… were so insignificant…
Shu Fu suddenly moved. She pulled Yao Ruoyun to the side, took out a brand-new satellite phone from her backpack, and pressed it into her hand, signaling for her to keep it safe.
“Senior? What are you doing?”
“Do you trust me?” Shu Fu lowered her voice.
“Yes!” Yao Ruoyun also lowered her voice in response.
“Good. Just in case, keep this phone safe. Press 1, and it will dial my satellite phone number. Listen, no matter what happens, stay close to Liu Shuang and Han Lan. I’ll leave for a while, but I’ll be back before 4:00 AM. If Liu Shuang looks for me, find a way to delay them.”
“You don’t mean…?”
“I won’t get into trouble. I can protect myself, maybe even protect others out of here. But beyond that, I can’t protect anyone else. Do you understand?” The reason why avalanches were so terrifying was because the trapped would face extreme cold and hypoxia. Most people would die from these two factors before they could save themselves or be rescued.
But with her shield activated, neither of those was an issue.
Her personal shield could block all physical damage, and she had enough oxygen bottles in her space—some bought, some retrieved. They were more than enough for her to breathe while digging out a way to escape the snow.
Yao Ruoyun didn’t fully understand, but she remembered her treasure-hunting shovel and nodded. “Got it!”
“Good.” Shu Fu didn’t say anything more. She glanced at the time on her phone—2:57 AM. On the other side, the snow on the bridge road had been cleared, and many people had started moving across the newly cleared path.
On both sides of the mountain road near the red road marker, because the mountain cliffs were very steep, there was no snow accumulated on the rocks. They only needed to clear the ice and snow layer on the road below.
The survivors’ jeep had broken down, and Han Lan and a team member were called over to help.
Liu Shuang and another team member had already gone to the other end of the bridge road, helping Gao Shan check the route. The starting section of the mountain road on the opposite side was a bit narrow, and the snowplow in front of the armored vehicle had almost crashed into the steep mountain wall earlier.
Taking advantage of this moment and using the cover of other moving survivors, Shu Fu quickly ran to the opposite side of the bridge road. She reached out and touched the huge red road marker, thus completing her task ahead of time.
No signal came from her wrist, indicating that the time hadn’t arrived yet, but she had already been at the location within the task’s time frame. Once the event ended, the task would be considered completed.
She turned around and, once again using the cover of other survivors, quickly ran back to the mountain road while Liu Shuang and Han Lan were still busy. She made her way toward the entrance of Wei County.
As she passed by, Yao Ruoyun moved at just the right time to block Shu Fu’s figure as she headed further back. The mountain road twisted, and Shu Fu made a turn. Before anyone could notice, she successfully left.
After running the mountain road, it would only take a little over ten minutes to reach the hotel building from the county entrance at full speed. There was no snow falling at the moment, and with her professional snow boots on, she wouldn’t easily slip, even though there was a thin layer of ice and snow on the ground.
When she reached the central square, she took out a mask from her backpack and put it on. There was an explosion sound coming from the hotel building again. This time, because she was closer, she could see the dazzling flames rising from behind the snow wall.
Moments later, as she ran past the central square and neared the street with a turn, she saw a jeep coming out from inside. The jeep’s window was half shattered, and the body of the car showed signs of being scorched by fire, as if it had just escaped from an explosion site.
Behind this jeep, there were many other survivors. Unlike the first group of survivors who walked to the county entrance, their winter clothes and backpacks were not neatly packed. They seemed to have fled in a hurry, most of them empty-handed. Some people had clothes with burn marks, and others were injured, supporting each other.
Each person was too busy to care about Shu Fu, who was running in the opposite direction.
Shu Fu didn’t slow down. When she reached the turning point, she activated her personal shield.
The armored vehicle couldn’t enter this street because the snow here had been manually cleared by the rescue teams and the military personnel. It had taken a long time, and the snow path was only slightly wider than the off-road vehicle’s width. She still couldn’t see any movement from the other side of the snow wall.
The clinic building was closer, and the hotel building was further behind. As she approached the clinic building, she heard a series of gunshots, mixed with the shocked cries of the survivors.
The clinic building was on fire, but the fire wasn’t very big. Outside the main door, there was an ambulance, and Wen Rou was leaning against the car’s rear, using it as cover as several rescue team members transferred their teammates onto the ambulance gurney.
The gunfire was coming from nearby residential buildings. Wen Rou’s shoulder had been pierced, but after the injured were loaded into the vehicle, she no longer needed to provide cover. She quickly targeted the source and fired two shots to eliminate the threat.
“Thank you! We have another teammate!” A few rescue team members heard the gunshots stop and ran out of the car, rushing into the clinic building.
Shu Fu was about to approach to ask, but before she could get close to Wen Rou, she heard a bigger explosion coming from the direction of the hotel building, followed by someone shouting in a hoarse voice, “Captain!”
She recognized it was Awen’s voice and immediately ran toward the hotel building.
Outside the hotel building, the familiar off-road vehicle was parked. As expected, Awen was calling out, and Qi Kai was also there. Awen had injured one leg and was limping. After calling out “Captain” a few times, he went over to shake Qi Kai, who was unconscious on the ground. Qi Kai was covered in soot and seemed to have been knocked out for a while.
Awen shook him vigorously, eventually waking him up.
“Cough, cough, cough… The captain found me on the third floor. He covered me as I came out… He told me to find you and leave immediately after! Cough… He was just behind me!” Qi Kai was obviously affected by the smoke and was coughing badly.
The situation at the hotel building was worse than at the clinic. The entire building was engulfed in flames, making it impossible to approach. It seemed that several explosions had occurred here.
There were many people around, some wounded, lying on the ground groaning in pain, some were terrified and crying together, and others had managed to get up, ignoring their injuries as they stumbled along the snow path, running out.
The two of them started searching for Cheng Yu.
More and more people in rescue team uniforms rushed out of the building, or rolled out.
Some people screamed as they came out, rolling on the ground to put out the fire on their bodies. Others were hit by falling debris, their faces covered in blood.
Third floor.
Shu Fu silently repeated the words to herself. She took a thermal blanket from her backpack, wrapped it around herself, and quickly ran into the hotel building.
Compared to the others who were screaming and rolling, running out from inside, she entered as though no one was there.
Under the protection of her extraordinary personal shield, she felt no burning heat, couldn’t smell the choking smoke, and her eyes weren’t stinging or blurry from the smoke. Any heavy objects that fell on her were quickly deflected by the invisible shield.
She quickly and accurately searched the crowd for his figure, and soon she heard gunshots coming from upstairs.
At the same time, on the third-floor corridor, Cheng Yu killed the last riot member who had been ambushing here.
There were eight of them in total. He didn’t know their identities; they might be from the survivor team mentioned earlier by the rescue team, the ones who had stolen supplies and left, or they might be survivors who had escaped with that team—those whom he had forced off the vehicle earlier.
He loosened his left hand, which had been pressing on his right arm, and used both his hands and mouth to quickly tie a tourniquet around the wound. His movements were precise and quick, as if he couldn’t feel any pain.
He had been injured during a previous hostage rescue. In fact, if it hadn’t been for the injury to his right arm, the arm that needed to hold a gun, he wouldn’t have spent any time tending to the wound at all.
There weren’t many hostages rescued; most were members of the rescue team. There were probably more survivors hiding in nearby buildings, and after hearing the commotion, they were even less likely to come out.
Beside the shattered, burning door, he saw the body of the last person he had killed, lying on the floor. The face looked somewhat familiar—seems like a personal vendetta.
If it was personal, then it wasn’t one of those planned attacks by the organization.
He pulled out his walkie-talkie and tried to call Han Lan and Liu Shuang, but it was unsuccessful. The signal jammer, hidden somewhere, was still active.
The fire had spread to all the rooms with windows on the fourth, third, and second floors, and the flames were intense. Since the windows were sealed, trying to escape through them would likely lead to burns before he even managed to pry one open.
The fire on the fifth and sixth floors was smaller, but the floors were higher up. Plus, the snow around the hotel had all been cleared, leaving no cushion, meaning jumping from those heights would result in injuries over seventy percent of the time.
In this situation, severe injuries were troublesome.
He didn’t care whether he was injured, but he couldn’t afford an injury that would drag down his teammates.
The only option now was to go straight through the fire. You could walk with burn injuries, but broken bones would make it hard to move.
Even though he was in a dangerous situation, his mind remained calm, swiftly analyzing his options. As he thought, he took a thermal blanket from his backpack and poured the water from his bottle over his head, also soaking his scarf around his neck.
He dropped the bottle, pulled the scarf up to cover his nose and mouth, wrapped the thermal blanket around himself, and quickly headed toward the second floor.
The staircase leading down to the second floor was on the opposite side of the corridor. The fire here was even bigger than he had imagined; this was likely the starting point of the fire. Right now, the rooms on both sides of the corridor were ablaze, with scorching flames and thick black smoke, making it impossible to see anything clearly.
Suddenly, with a loud explosion, a door nearby was blown open by a burst of fire and air, smashing the previously closed door.
He remembered that Liu Shuang and Han Lan had stayed here before. They had told him that the supply warehouse was on the second floor. There should still be flammable materials inside.
Wooden fragments from the exploded door flew at him. He quickly retreated and shielded himself, but still got a cut on his cheek.
He wiped the blood dripping from his face and instinctively touched the scar on his forehead, near his eye.
In that instant, he remembered what she had said to defend him that day.
After being injured, whenever strangers first saw him, they would instinctively glance at his scar. He had seen all kinds of reactions: fear, respect, disgust, and sympathy.
Those words from those two people weren’t the first he’d heard, and he had always brushed them off.
He had never cared about such things.
Every life-and-death moment that no one knew about, the scorching hot days, the freezing cold nights, the stormy mornings, the lightning-filled evenings, the sounds of gunfire and blood… He had survived through it all, time and time again, struggling at the edge of death.
He had never thought about whether it was worth it. He had never been guarding just one person, or a group of people.
He had his own path, his own inner convictions that he wanted to uphold, and even if no one cared, it wouldn’t change him. He had a strong core and a solid exterior, so how could he be swayed by others’ looks or words?
Even though he had formally retired, he had taken on this special mission, and his family still couldn’t understand.
His powerful father couldn’t understand why, after reaching his current rank, he still kept running to the front lines. To his father, medals and military achievements were the steps toward higher positions.
He told him to see a psychologist, thinking that after so many years on the battlefield, something must be wrong with him…
He even suggested he undergo plastic surgery, believing that the scar would hinder his promotion, and his promotion was crucial to securing his father’s position.
How ridiculous. The closest family members couldn’t compare to those strangers.
But she knew everything.
She understood it all.
At that moment, something soft yet resilient seemed to silently coil around his heart. Deep inside, an emotion seemed to have reached its peak.
It didn’t matter.
Nothing else mattered.
If she could understand him, if she cared for him, it seemed like he had no regrets left.
Cheng Yu’s gaze deepened. In front of him, another door was blown open by the explosion, revealing a long corridor.
This long corridor ahead seemed like a road to hell.
In the blinding firelight, he tightened the thermal blanket in his hands, preparing to charge through in one go.
Just as he was about to step forward, he suddenly heard hurried footsteps coming from the firelight. As he raised his hand to aim and fire at the target ahead, a familiar figure dashed out from the flames and reached him in just a few steps.
It was the figure that had just appeared in his mind a moment ago.
“It’s me! Don’t shoot!” Shu Fu pulled away the thermal blanket covering her head and face, and in the next moment, she was pulled into his arms, his hand still holding the gun.
He hugged her tightly, and this embrace was filled with conflicting emotions—shock, disbelief, frustration, surprise, fear… so much so that he unconsciously squeezed her too tightly.
Shu Fu’s hands clasped behind his back, and in the next moment, he was enveloped in her protective shield. She could smell the strong scent of gunpowder and blood on him. She sighed inwardly; as expected, he was injured.
“How did you get here?” He pulled down her mask, holding her face and looking at her carefully, as if trying to make sure that everything before him wasn’t just a hallucination caused by inhaling too much smoke. “Did something happen outside?”
“Let’s talk later! The building’s going to collapse if we don’t leave now!” Shu Fu quickly thought about how best to protect him while getting him out, and immediately said, “Carry me out!”
Cheng Yu shook his head. “The chances of you getting injured that way are too high. Wrap yourself up tightly first, and then I’ll carry you.”
Shu Fu grabbed his hand as he tried to wrap the thermal blanket around her and looked into his eyes, saying each word deliberately, “Cheng Yu, carry me.”
His hand paused, then he seemed to understand something. He quickly moved his backpack to his front, turned his back to her, and crouched down. “Get on.”
Shu Fu moved the backpack behind her, grabbed the two corners of the thermal blanket, quickly leaned forward, and as soon as she locked her hands around his neck, the protective shield acted again, and the thermal blanket wrapped around them both.
She felt the vibration of her phone in her pocket—it was the second time it had vibrated. She leaned close to his ear and whispered, “It’s 3:35 now. Hold me tight. Don’t dodge anything. Just keep moving forward. We have to leave Wei County before 4:00.”
Cheng Yu responded quickly, steadily standing up with her on his back. He swiftly charged down the corridor, flames blazing on both sides. The sound of explosions erupted again, and the fire seemed to be boiling around them.
Under the protection of the shield, the two of them pressed on relentlessly.
As they rushed down the stairs to the second floor, Cheng Yu’s deep voice came from the front: “It doesn’t seem as hot around here. Your thermal blanket is really useful.”
Shu Fu replied calmly, “Hmm, my thermal blanket is custom-made. It’s fireproof.”
At 3:36, Cheng Yu, carrying Shu Fu, charged out of the hotel building.
Outside, Qi Kai and Awen, who were supporting two injured team members, looked at them in surprise. They told Cheng Yu that the off-road vehicle couldn’t be used anymore, and they would have to leave on foot.
“Full-speed retreat!” Cheng Yu said, and then he began running ahead, carrying Shu Fu.
The night wind was cold, and the thermal blanket in Shu Fu’s hands was blown up, affecting her grip on his neck. She loosened her hold, allowing the blanket to fall to the ground, and then tightened her arms around his neck again.
At 3:37, they arrived outside the clinic building, but Wen Rou had already left in the ambulance.
A female rescue team member had not yet left. She had Wen Rou sit on a scorched tire and quickly began treating her shoulder.
“Why haven’t you left yet?” Awen asked anxiously. “The captain said full-speed retreat!”
The rescue team member calmly finished tying the final knot, packed up her medical kit, and helped Wen Rou to her feet, throwing her uninjured arm over her shoulder, and said in a low voice, “Let’s go!”
Shu Fu recognized her face. She had been at the clinic’s service desk during the explosion, and even though she had been injured, she had still managed to hit the criminal.
The group once again quickly ran through the snowy path in the night.