Chapter 53 Approaching Winter
In bridge construction, once one beam is connected, all beams will be connected.
Although Guang Qi'an witnessed many difficulties later on.
For example, if the cable breaks, a large section of the beam will fall directly into the water; or the beam has been carried onto the bridge, and a sudden downpour causes people and the beam to fall into the water together.
Another time, the warehouse where the beams were drying leaked, and the cement that hadn't dried completely crumbled and spilled all over the floor!
Despite numerous setbacks and new developments every day, including casualties, the Fenghe Bridge was completed by the end of August and officially opened to traffic in September!
The bridge railings have a minimalist design, but there was a time-consuming task involved in engraving the names of all those who participated in building the bridge onto the railings!
The base was like it was celebrating a festival when the guardrails were installed and the road opened to traffic.
Although Qi An did not carve her name on it, she was the first person to drive onto the bridge after the load test.
"Just like the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the opening of a new store before the apocalypse, this is like cutting the ribbon for the new base!" Yu Shuang said with a smile.
She felt incredibly fortunate to be part of the new base, able to benefit from Xiao Qi's good fortune!
After that, whether it was some kind of mystical phenomenon or something else, the construction work inside and outside the base progressed very smoothly.
As the number of people in the 3rd Regiment increased, in addition to the regular escort and patrol work, a large number of people were dispatched every day to clean and repair the two main roads leading from the southeast to the Central Plains Base No. 3 and from the south to the southwest Base No. 2.
There were still no reliable tools, not even a road roller, so it all depended on manpower and ingenuity!
However, the weather cooled down significantly after autumn, reducing insect activity and minimizing unexpected disruptions to the road construction project.
In autumn, the mountains and forests turn from emerald green to golden yellow, leaves flutter down, large areas of wild fruit trees ripen, and a large number of wild animals begin to prepare for winter.
Qi An did not participate in the heavy physical labor of road construction; he only patrolled and hunted outside.
They hunt fallen insects to collect energy, and also collect all edible plants and animals to store for winter.
With the reduction of human activity, nature has recovered at an astonishing rate. Not only has the once turbid Feng River become clear and navigable again, but the Qi'an group has also made new discoveries every two days.
If it weren't for a jujube grove that used to be a paid orchard, the jujubes would be a deep, rich red, bending the branches under their weight.
Or it might be a persimmon grove lit with small lanterns, with a brown bear scratching itself against an old tree, staring at Qi An and the others.
There are also grapes, black goji berries, blueberries that can't be picked all over a certain valley, and grass carp that can't be caught all over a stream.
In short, despite the hardships of going up mountains and down to the sea, and the unexpected difficulties of sleeping outdoors, for Qi An, it was a wonderful time of having fun and eating like crazy, just like a vacation!
As the weather turned cold at the end of October, the sections of the two roads under the responsibility of the new base were fully opened up. The two bases in the southwest and the No. 1 base in Central China delivered a batch of food, medicine, clothing, and production tools as scheduled.
The round trip between the two bases in the southwest only takes 4 days!
The outposts along the completed land and water routes beyond 10 kilometers are basically guarded by personnel from the 3rd Regiment, as are the several mines that are currently under construction.
This was originally a gray area of power that both close-range and long-range forces could contend for, but because the 3rd Regiment made outstanding contributions to the whole affair, Ye Xuanming used it to express his encouragement.
In November, heavy snow began to fall, and the temperature dropped to minus ten degrees Celsius at night. Everyone endured this for half a month, and by the end of the month, heating and electricity were provided to the entire production and living area!
A base, at night, with snow falling outside the windows and hot pots bubbling inside many windows, finally takes on the appearance of a home.
"Ah, let's just eat hotpot and sing songs and let the winter pass by like this!"
Yu Shuang stretched out her limbs on the wool mat and shouted.
"There's a mission," Chen Yuezhou said.
Yu Shuang was taken aback, and everyone sitting around in the living room was also stunned: "Huh?"
Bug hunting? Hunting? Are we going to raid the mother nest in the Kundu Mountains?
Thinking of this, Yu Shuang jumped up.
But Chen Yuezhou shook his head: "No, this is a mission summoned by the North 1 Base, mission classification S."
He said that and then fell silent.
The crowd exchanged bewildered glances, a mixture of awe and curiosity.
The next day, Yu Shuang went to Chen Yuezhou's office.
"The mission location is South China, and the frontline base is South China Base No. 1."
The mission's assembly date is December 1, 2055, with the official start date tentatively set for December 5. The mission's duration is indefinite.
Chen Yuezhou handed his top-secret military tablet to Yu Shuang:
"This was also an operation, but it was a special operation. Its scale could not be compared with the 'Fire Source' campaign, but its danger and importance were no less."
Yu Shuang quickly glanced through the task information.
Perhaps due to its classified status, the information was brief, only stating that it was a reconnaissance mission, but that it would go deep into the nuclear radiation zone.
I vaguely remember an interesting fact that Old Zhao once mentioned: nuclear radiation can stimulate mutations in parasites.
"This mission is still to recruit the most elite special forces teams from across the continent."
"All the original members of Team Chengfeng 2 were designated by the North 1 Command to participate, and the order was sent directly to me," Chen Yuezhou said, his voice grave.
Putting aside the inherent dangers of the radiation zone, the specifications of the combat equipment and logistical support equipment are all S-level.
The fact that the equipment is both expensive and plentiful only indicates that the battle will be fierce and intense!
"There are 10 days left. In these 10 days, arrange the affairs within the team and hand them over directly to me." Chen Yuezhou paused for a moment.
He can't go! He applied, but it wasn't approved.
It's normal that Chen Yuezhou, now in a high position, wouldn't easily go on campaigns, which reassured Yu Shuang somewhat.
This indicates that the mission is not particularly significant or excessively dangerous!
However, when she returned to her team for a small meeting, her expression was extremely serious, and her tone was urgent and forceful:
"Old Zhao immediately set about compiling a guide to safe walking in the radiation zone."
Zhuang Xiao and Xiao Su went to pick up Tang Long. His sister could be taken care of by Lao Zhao and his wife first, or they could bring her over together and leave her with You Zi and the others.
Xiao Qi has some personal matters to attend to; take care of them in the next few days.
Comrades, conserve your energy!
We are now one of the top elite special forces teams in the entire continent. This is a big job, and every job after this will definitely be a big job!
Military merits are secondary; our lives come first. Our goal is for everyone to return safely! Yu Shuang clenched her fist and said.
Everyone clenched their fists, but the event still came somewhat suddenly. After all, the base in the north was usually quite quiet in the winter, with few missions and almost no fighting.
As everyone dispersed, they were all somewhat dazed.
But two days later, when Tang Long, whom everyone hadn't seen for half a year, appeared in the office with his reliable and robust figure, the suppressed and boiling feeling of everyone's blood boiling as they were about to go into battle immediately returned!
Each person prepared and underwent rehabilitation training. Another heavy snow fell, and the team's two vehicles waved goodbye to a group of people who braved the cold morning wind to see them off, driving onto the vast, white land.
They weren't just traveling thousands of kilometers in these two vehicles; they were going to Southwest Base No. 1, and then they would catch a plane.
Except for Qi An, none of the team members had ever been to the south. Now they were going to enjoy the scenery of the south from the sky!
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