"Of course, no problem," Wan Yunting said without hesitation. Gu Luotang beside him also nodded, indicating her cooperation in the rescue.
"Good," Cai Guowu said happily. "Lives are at stake, so you should set off immediately."
"Yes." Nie Xiaoyu saluted. Wan Yunting added, "Then we'll go back and prepare. Officer Nie, we'll meet at the intersection ahead."
"Alright." Nie Xiaoyu nodded, bid farewell to Cai Guowu, and went out with Wan Yunting and Gu Luotang. He instructed, "Bring plenty of dry rations and water, and wear an extra layer or two of clothing. That underground river is very long, and the search and rescue might be difficult."
"Okay, I understand. We'll go back and prepare." Wan Yunting nodded, parted ways with Gu Luotang and Nie Xiaoyu, and hurried back to their medical rescue area. He saw Jiang Yichun, Ding Huixiang, Li Chengde, and Shen Yingrui tending to the injured disaster victims. Wan Yunting called out, "Everyone gather around. I have an urgent mission to brief you on."
"What is it?" Qi Miaomiao, Zhang Xiaoyu, Huang Jingshan, and others came over. Without further ado, Wan Yunting briefly explained the mission to search and rescue in the underground river and asked, "I need three people to go with me. Who's willing?"
"Me...!" Huang Jingshan and Shen Yingrui immediately raised their hands.
"Us too...!" Female comrades Qi Miaomiao and Zhang Xiaoyu also raised their hands.
Wan Yunting said, "This mission is very dangerous, and we don't know what we'll encounter. Ladies, please don't go."
"Tsk, Yunting Ge, you're looking down on us ladies again," Qi Miaomiao pouted.
"Let me and Miaomiao go with you," Gu Luotang said, looking at Wan Yunting. "It will be more convenient if we encounter special circumstances."
Wan Yunting knew she was referring to the people trapped in the underground river of Ling Mountain, including female technical engineers.
"In that case, Luotang and Miaomiao, Jingshan and Renxin, you will go with me. Is that alright?" Wan Yunting said after thinking.
"No problem," Huang Jingshan and Wei Renxin called out. Gu Luotang and Qi Miaomiao were also happy to go together.
"Then everyone quickly pack your things. Bring more supplies and medicine, and wear an extra layer of clothing. Also, bring more dry rations and water..." Wan Yunting instructed, telling them to hurry and prepare to depart.
Soon, everyone packed their belongings, put on their backpacks, each carrying a first-aid kit with supplies and medicine. Led by Wan Yunting, accompanied by Gu Luotang, Qi Miaomiao, Huang Jingshan, and Wei Renxin, they bid farewell to Jiang Yichun and his group and proceeded to the intersection in front of the relief point.
"They're here." Nie Xiaoyu, also in military uniform and carrying a backpack, along with soldiers Gu Xiaozhuang and Xiao Zhao, were similarly equipped with dry rations, supplies, entrenching tools, and rescue ropes. A squad of twelve soldiers was deployed.
"Did you bring everything?" Nie Xiaoyu asked, looking at Wan Yunting and his group with their loaded bags.
"Yes, all emergency items like medicine are ready," Wan Yunting nodded. They had also all put on an extra layer of clothing.
"Good, let's get in the vehicles." Three military vehicles arrived. Everyone nodded and boarded, heading towards the central area of Lingyun County, towards Ling Mountain.
"Fifth Brother, they're gone!" In the lychee forest to the northwest of the relief point, Liang Dazhuang, holding binoculars, watched Wan Yunting and his group depart in their vehicles. He immediately woke up the taciturn person resting on a tree. The two of them had been observing since last night.
"Let's go, follow them." The taciturn person immediately got up, and along with Liang Dazhuang, they left the lychee orchard and found a way to follow Wan Yunting's group.
Ling Mountain is the largest mountain range in the region, and the center of Lingyun County is located at its foot. Due to the earthquake the night before yesterday, Ling Mountain suffered a fracture, causing landslides that buried buildings and houses near the foothills. Fortunately, many residents had been evacuated from the county town, but a small number who couldn't evacuate in time were still buried. Rescue soldiers and other relief personnel were currently conducting search and rescue operations.
However, Wan Yunting and his team were not heading to the center of Lingyun County town. Instead, they drove around several mountain ranges to reach the rear of Ling Mountain, as the entrance to the natural cave was on the mountainside at the back.
The three military vehicles slowly stopped at the foot of a mountain. Nie Xiaoyu, Gu Xiaozhuang, and the others got out. They waved to Wan Yunting, Huang Jingshan, Wei Renxin, Gu Luotang, and Qi Miaomiao, who were in another vehicle, calling them to disembark. Nie Xiaoyu said, "The road ahead has collapsed. From now on, we can only proceed into the mountains on foot."
"Alright." Wan Yunting nodded. Everyone grabbed their gear and, following Nie Xiaoyu and Gu Xiaozhuang and their twelve military personnel, began to advance onto the rugged mountain path.
The path was difficult, involving wading through water and climbing. Nie Xiaoyu and his team led the way. They walked for several hours, reaching past one in the afternoon. Gu Luotang and Qi Miaomiao were seen sweating profusely, and they rested twice before finally reaching the rear slopes of Ling Mountain.
"The cave entrance is over there!" Gu Xiaozhuang pointed to a location on the rear side of Ling Mountain, holding a tablet computer. Due to the dense vegetation and their current position at the foot of the mountain, the cave entrance was not visible. However, the tunnel excavation engineers had surveyed the entire mountain's structure when they first began excavating tunnels in Ling Mountain, so they had a general idea of the cave's location at the back. But they would still need to search for it once they got there.
"How are you all doing? Are you alright?" Nie Xiaoyu turned to Wan Yunting and Gu Luotang, who were resting on a nearby rock, and asked, "Do you need to rest?" Wan Yunting glanced at Gu Luotang and Qi Miaomiao. The two women shook their heads, indicating they were fine. He then smiled at Nie Xiaoyu and said, "We're fine. Let's head up the mountain quickly."
"Okay, let's go." Seeing that they were alright, Nie Xiaoyu urged everyone to proceed towards the cave entrance on the rear side of Ling Mountain.
Climbing the mountain was strenuous, especially with the difficult terrain. The mountainside of Ling Mountain was also fractured. From a bird's-eye view, a crack more than ten meters long was clearly visible, splitting Ling Mountain in two. The cave entrance was halfway up the mountain. Seeing Gu Luotang struggling, Wan Yunting offered her his arm for support. Huang Jingshan also supported Qi Miaomiao. Following Nie Xiaoyu and Xiao Zhao and their team, they climbed for about an hour. Several times, people stumbled and nearly fell, but fortunately, everyone persevered.
"Officer Nie, look! That seems to be the cave entrance!" Gu Xiaozhuang, referring to the topographic map on his tablet, quickly spotted a vegetation-covered opening in the distance. Nie Xiaoyu and Wan Yunting's group moved closer. Gu Xiaozhuang, looking at the map, happily declared, "This is the cave entrance."
"Everyone rest here for ten minutes and prepare to enter the cave," Nie Xiaoyu said to Wan Yunting and his group.
"Okay..." Wan Yunting and the others found places to sit. Gu Luotang, Qi Miaomiao, Huang Jingshan, and Wei Renxin, who rarely exercised, were all exhausted and covered in sweat after climbing such a high mountain. They slumped onto the dry branches, opened their backpacks, and began to eat water and biscuits to replenish their energy.
In contrast, Nie Xiaoyu and his soldiers like Gu Xiaozhuang had no time to drink water or eat biscuits. They were already preparing the tools for entering the cave, such as entrenching tools, ropes, and high-intensity flashlights, as well as headlamps. "Doctor Wan, here are some headlamps for you all."
"Okay..." Wan Yunting took the headlamps given by Xiao Zhao and distributed them to Huang Jingshan and the others. Everyone was still carrying their first-aid kits, and using headlamps for illumination was more suitable.
"Take these gas masks too and put them in your backpacks," Gu Xiaozhuang handed them five gas masks. "We don't know what's in the underground river in this cave, so it's better to be prepared." Wan Yunting nodded and distributed them to Gu Luotang and Qi Miaomiao, who then placed them in their backpacks.