Chapter 276: Can’t Wait
"Yes, it is. That’s exactly where our Zone C mission will pass through."
"So, when are we leaving? How long will the round trip take?"
"We leave at noon today. The round trip will take about three to ten days. It’s not certain."
Seeing Xie Ning and Song You’ai’s thoughtful expressions, Zuo Li continued:
"The area from the ancient city wall to the Huai River Waters... even though this rescue operation is split into three zones, the area is still huge."
"The section we’re going to has hospitals, schools, and kindergartens. The layout of the residential areas is also a bit chaotic."
"Three days is the fastest we could possibly clear it, but it’s hard to estimate the actual time."
"For such an important mission, why the sudden rush?" Xie Ning was speechless and glanced at Zuo Li.
’Could it be to avoid those special investigators from the Capital?’ she wondered.
"It is a bit rushed, but it’s only nine o’clock now. We still have at least three hours to get ready. That should be enough, right?" Zuo Li looked at her, her eyes shining.
"What do you say, Xiao Ning? Come with us!"
Xie Ning nodded and looked at Song You’ai. "Mom, this mission will take quite a while. You and Eldest Uncle should stay at the base to protect Grandpa and Grandma."
"Youngest Aunt, Uncle Yong, and Youngest Uncle should also stay. I’ll take eight people with me."
Song You’ai was speechless. "This is so abrupt, leaving at a moment’s notice. Won’t Xiao Gu and the others miss you?"
Xie Ning also felt it was very rushed, but there was nothing she could do. The mission was just that urgent.
She wasn’t interested in saving people, but she was interested in the private hospitals along the way. Wasn’t Yu Tianfeng still waiting for some small medical equipment?
This was a chance to gather it all.
"I’ll be back in ten days at the latest, it’s fine." Xie Ning waved her hand dismissively. "When Xiao Gu gets here, give him the Tu Hou to take away."
Zuo Li didn’t care who this Xiao Gu was. She believed in striking while the iron was hot. She squeezed Xie Ning’s hand. "Then it’s settled! I’ll go back and get ready. You should put all this stuff away."
Before Song You’ai and her daughter could refuse, Zuo Li scurried away.
Xie Ning sighed helplessly, glancing at the two large bags of snacks, drinks, and high-calorie chocolate. She pulled out a piece of chocolate that had already melted into a liquid and shook it with an amused expression.
"Cres, want some chocolate juice?"
After a quick brunch, Xie Ning had her eight accompanying teammates do a final check of their backpacks, ready to depart.
「Meanwhile」
A woman in a pastoral-style, jade-green maxi dress sat in a black, air-conditioned stretch limousine, nonchalantly flipping through a foreign classic.
The driver, Zhong, wore a pair of oversized sunglasses, his chiseled face looking stern and unyielding.
In the passenger seat, however, Meng Lanfang appeared somewhat restless and uneasy.
Seeing Huang Shi Yao’s perpetually calm face in the rearview mirror, Meng Lanfang’s heart settled slightly.
’Yaoyao suddenly said she was bringing me along on the mission. It must not be dangerous, otherwise she wouldn’t have left the base.’
She knew Huang Shi Yao’s personality better than anyone.
Cautious and extremely protective of her own life!
If this trip involved any great danger, she definitely wouldn’t have come.
"When are we leaving?" Huang Shi Yao put down the foreign classic and picked up a cup of tea, taking a delicate sip.
"In about ten minutes." Zhong raised his hand to check his watch. "We’ll depart at twelve-thirty sharp, Miss."
Huang Shi Yao nodded and looked at the apprehensive Meng Lanfang with a smile. "Aunt Meng, don’t be nervous. I’ve seen the mission roster. Your daughter, Song Kexin, and her cousin, Xie Ning, will both be participating."
"You’ll have plenty of time to spend together during the mission." She glanced meaningfully at Meng Lanfang’s pocket. "Remember to get closer to them, okay?"
Meng Lanfang understood and nodded repeatedly with an obsequious smile. "I will, I will. Don’t worry, Yaoyao."
The eight people leaving with Xie Ning, aside from the siblings Song Kexin and Song Shijun, included Ji Taixian, Wang Zongxuan, Xiao Huang Mao, Cres, and Housekeeper Youen.
When Yu Tianfeng heard they were going to a private hospital, he also signed up to join the fun.
The group boarded the minibus Zuo Li had prepared. Including Zuo Li’s ten-person team, there were exactly nineteen of them.
The lineup was quite formidable.
Besides Xiao Huang Mao and two ordinary members from Zuo Li’s team, the remaining sixteen were all Superpower Users.
A team of Superpower Users like this would be considered one of the best, even in the Capital.
As soon as Xie Ning got on the bus, she pulled up her hood and leaned against the window to sleep.
Little did she know that just as the driver of Zuo Li’s team started the bus and joined the flow of traffic, several military jeeps led the way for three to five black sedans, which filed in through the base’s main gate.
Gu Chen and his group drove into the base, passing right by the minibus. Xie Ning was leaning against the window, most of her face buried in her hood.
The minibus and the military jeeps drove past each other, perfectly missing each other.
Song Kexin sat next to Xie Ning, opening a small bag of snacks to eat.
Hearing a car horn, she turned to look and saw several small black cars entering the base from the opposite lane.
Base Commander Zuo Dazhu stood at the intersection with a beaming smile, personally welcoming the special investigators from the Capital.
"Welcome, welcome."
Accompanying him were Huang Zhaosheng, the chairman of the base’s management committee, and several other senior executives.
Gu Chen didn’t get out of the car. He instructed Zhai Ruobai to pull over to the side, clearing a path for the black cars.
Several grim-faced special investigators got out of the black cars. From the last car, a pair of young women emerged together, looking around curiously.
One of them was taller, a little over 1.7 meters, wearing a standard-issue, dark green short-sleeved military uniform with matching pants. She had a valiant and heroic air about her.
The other had a very ladylike appearance, wearing delicate deerskin boots and carrying a designer bag.
"I’m going to ask Chen what the plan is." The girl in the dark green uniform strode casually toward the first military jeep.
Before she could get close, Gu Chen had Zhai Ruobai get out of the car to stop her.
"Jia Min, Chen is busy. Don’t go bother him."
"How am I bothering him?" Feng JiaMin rolled her eyes. "He’s been acting all mysterious the whole trip. Who’s he scowling at all the time?"
"I’m telling you, you guys are acting so suspiciously. You’re not hiding something from me, are you?"
Zhai Ruobai dragged her straight toward the Base Commander and greeted him with a smile. "Left Base Commander, we’d like to take a look at the base’s personnel roster first to get a grasp of the current situation."
"Of course, of course. Everyone, please follow me. We’ll go to the Survivor Center building to discuss the details." Zuo Dazhu nodded with a smile.
"Left Base Commander, there’s no need to go to such trouble. We can just look at a digital roster."
Zuo Dazhu was taken aback for a moment, then quickly turned and instructed his secretary to pull up the base’s electronic roster on a tablet and present it to them.
"We just got here, what’s the rush? Why are you in such a hurry to see a roster?" Feng JiaMin stood to the side, shouting boisterously. "We made this long trek, we should go for drinks tonight!"
She slung an arm over Zhai Ruobai’s shoulder and winked at him.