Chapter 157 Entering the Mountains
"Go and call Comrade Huang Huaiying in." Director Jiang's face was ashen as he grabbed the phone and made the call.
When Su Meng and Huang Huaiying returned to Director Jiang's office, Division Commander Tang and Nie Ronghua had already arrived.
Armed guards stood in the corridor.
Huang Huaiying's heart skipped a beat, and she leaned closer to Su Meng, "Su Meng, what's going on with the director?"
Su Meng raised her chin. "You'll find out when you go inside."
Huang Huaiying didn't believe her; she knew that.
Instead of wasting time talking, it's better to let her listen to what the leaders have to say.
Commander Tang looked at the two people who came in, and first looked at Huang Huaiying, "Comrade Huang, think carefully, who has been involved in your research?"
Huang Huaiying was stunned for a moment. Why was she being asked this again?
She glanced at Su Meng, her fingers twitching slightly as she gripped the hem of her dress. "Only Gu Yicheng, Su Meng, and I know this."
The room fell silent for a moment.
Division Commander Tang waved his hand, "Understood! This matter is still under investigation, please keep it confidential!"
Director Jiang then added, "Don't panic! Just do what you're supposed to do. Go back!"
Huang Huaiying left with trepidation.
Su Meng fiddled with her fingernails, frowned, and watched Huang Huaiying leave, wondering why she would suspect her.
Was she born with a calculating nature?
Hearing her confusion, Commander Tang and Director Jiang laughed in exasperation.
Director Jiang said, "You weren't born with a calculating look, you were born with an easy-to-bully look."
Upon hearing this, Commander Tang coughed lightly, fearing that Director Jiang would reveal Huo Zhenhua's affair, and immediately changed the subject, complaining, "Why are you so unreliable?"
Even after returning from Zhou City, you were kidnapped by your enemies. Luckily, Commander Nie arrived in time, otherwise...
He lightly tapped Su Meng's forehead with his finger, "Luckily, you're also lucky. Despite the danger, you still managed to retrieve something so important."
Su Meng chuckled dryly, looking both frightened and smug, and said with her neck stiff, "I couldn't win, so I had to grab something while I was running away."
I never expected it to be something so important.
Thank you, Commander Nie!
Without him, we wouldn't have been able to bring these few pieces of paper back.
Nie Ronghua said seriously, "It was completely by accident! Don't mention it!"
Then, he raised the corners of his mouth slightly, "You've said thank you so many times, and even said you'd treat me to dinner. Comrade Su Meng, you weren't just making excuses, were you?"
Su Meng's lips twitched, and she was about to speak when Commander Tang interrupted her.
He said, "You've said thank you so many times? You've had so many interactions?"
His sharp gaze swept over Su Meng and Nie Ronghua, his eyes growing increasingly dark.
Su Meng's heart skipped a beat, "Not many times..."
Before she could finish speaking, Nie Ronghua stood up straight, looking as serious as if she were giving a report.
"She said thank you after we won a battle against pirates a few months ago."
He shielded her from Old Lady Huo's palm strike and received a thank you in return;
And this time, they snatched her back from the jaws of death. That's the third time in total!
Su Meng was speechless and choked with emotion. She lowered her head in embarrassment and muttered softly, "Thank you for saving me so many times. It's only right that I treat you to a meal."
"Or, shall I send you a banner?"
Now it was Nie Ronghua's turn to be unsettled.
His eyes were warm as he smiled and waved his hand, "No need! I'm just reminding you on behalf of my Pingting, don't let her down about the barbecue on Sunday."
I know my place; you two are having a barbecue together, and I'm just there to help you out.
After listening to their explanations, Commander Tang understood what was going on.
Nie Ronghua reported this in advance; he absolutely had no intention of having any personal feelings involved.
He gave Nie Ronghua a meaningful look and said, "You young people can eat whenever you want, or have a barbecue whenever you want!"
Anyway, there's nothing for us. Alright, everyone go home!
Instead of saying how they would handle the leak, they rambled on about random things.
After watching Commander Tang and Nie Ronghua leave, Su Meng looked at Director Jiang in a daze, pointed to the door, and asked, "Director, am I... going back?"
Director Jiang leaned back in his chair, opened his eyes, and waved his hand. "Go! I'll give you a week's leave."
He didn't say anything, but Su Meng saw pity and exhaustion in his calm eyes.
She pinched her fingertips together and walked home.
Early winter on the island is particularly cold and damp.
Grandma's rheumatism flared up again, and she was in so much pain that she couldn't get out of bed.
Su Meng was busy in the kitchen all day long, mainly brewing medicine.
Based on the ancient medical books in the space and Grandma's physical condition, a treatment plan was devised.
Su Mianzhi's body was still weak. He could be heard coughing from time to time at night. His eye bags were even darker, and he looked exhausted.
Ah Da is always busy and rarely seen. His thin body is either working at the new factory or on his way to find his younger brother.
Su Meng saw this and generously used the few ginseng plants in her space, occasionally glancing towards the back mountain.
There are many kinds of medicinal herbs in the space, but not many are rare, especially astragalus, which is good for replenishing qi; there isn't a single one.
She put down the handwritten book with a cartoon version of Huo Zhenhua drawn on it, sighed, and knocked on her grandmother's door. "Grandma, I'm going out for a bit. I'll be back in about two hours."
Peach Blossom Island is about seventy hectares, so the hill behind it probably isn't very big either.
Two hours is enough to search the entire back mountain.
Go ahead! Come back soon!
Su Meng was carrying a basket on her back when a bicycle stopped in front of her as she stepped out of the courtyard gate.
"Su Meng, I thought you had forgotten our promise?" Nie Pingting got off her bicycle and excitedly showed Su Meng her backpack.
"Look, I've brought all the seasonings, all I'm missing is you. Shall we go?"
Su Meng suddenly realized that she had almost forgotten about this.
Nie Ronghua, on the bicycle, glanced at her, quickly looked away, and gave her a "I knew it" look.
Su Meng said awkwardly, "Let's go!"
She also pushed her bicycle out of the yard.
Two bicycles passed the guard post at the military region gate, one after the other.
As Su Meng walked through the courtyard of the family quarters, she paused in front of Su Xiaoman's courtyard gate. Hearing Su Xiaoman's clear reading voice, she smiled and followed Nie Ronghua and his nephew.
A curious military wife saw the three of them at the door, so she moved a stool over and they huddled together to eat sunflower seeds.
"Did you see that?" The woman who spoke pointed to the bicycle that had just passed by, her face full of gossip.
"I heard they broke off their engagement, how come they're still together?"
Another person said, "Doesn't Commander Huo have a fiancée?"
Comrade Su is really in a bad situation. First, she was jilted at her engagement, and now she's married the wrong person—he already has a boyfriend. Tsk tsk!
"It seems that Comrade Su and the Nie family might be together again."
However, the two were a perfect match—one powerful, the other wealthy.
While they were talking, Wang Qinglin was on his way from the barracks to the research institute, intending to find Su Meng to answer the phone.
His family's leader called from the Hunan region in a great hurry, clearly showing how much he missed him.
Suddenly hearing the military wives' words, I was startled and stopped in my tracks. Looking in their direction, I saw Nie Ronghua and Su Meng parking their bicycles at the same time, exchanging glances and seemingly chatting and laughing.
Wang Qinglin was stunned!
It seems his regimental commander is facing trouble at home.
Nie Ronghua was clearly still up to no good, and he took advantage of the fact that his commander wasn't home to sneak in.
They were carrying backpacks and holding bows and arrows; they were heading up the mountain!
But his team leader is still waiting for a call.
Just as Wang Qinglin was about to run over, he saw Su Meng turn the corner and head towards the path behind the mountain.
Nie Ronghua glanced back at him, took the things from Nie Pingting's hands, and walked away on her own.
Wang Qinglin: "......"
What is all this about?
How should he respond?
You can't exactly say, "Your wife ran off with someone else."
Before Commander Huo and Comrade Su could clarify their relationship, the commander ordered them to go back and deal with his fiancée.
*
Su Meng naturally didn't see Wang Qinglin.
She walked to the edge of the woods, glanced at the spot where the people had met that night, and then went into the forest.
There is a narrow path in the mountains, just wide enough for one person.
Nie Ronghua walked ahead, carefully using a stick to run through the grass on both sides of the road.
"Commander Nie, we don't need to be so careful. It's the middle of winter, and snakes are all hibernating."
"Better safe than sorry!"
Nie Pingting: "Su Meng, don't worry about him. My uncle is just worried that you'll be scared."
In the past, when we came to the mountains, he would always stride forward without caring whether we lived or died.
I remember one time..."
Nie Ronghua coughed lightly and pointed to the vegetation not far away, asking, "Su Meng, do you think that's medicinal herb? I see you brought a small hoe; you must be digging for herbs."
Su Meng's eyes lit up, and she looked at him in surprise, "Thank you!"
I never expected him to have such keen observation skills.
Nie Pingting also knew some medicinal herbs and wild vegetables.
As they walked, they dug up some medicinal herbs and some wild vegetables along the way.
Half an hour later, we finally entered the deep mountains.
Su Meng saw the hot spring that Nie Pingting had mentioned.
The warm steam enveloped my nose, and every pore on my body opened comfortably, bringing me joy like the lush green vegetation beside a hot spring.
"You still have an earthen stove here? Do you often come here for barbecues?"
No wonder Su Meng was so surprised.
Next to the earthen stove are a complete stone table and stone benches.
Nie Pingting smiled and stepped forward first, "Yes! This was my childhood playground."
Su Meng smiled and glanced around, looking at Nie Pingting with envy. "She really is beautiful! There shouldn't be any wild fruits left now, right? Shall we go hunting?"
Nie Pingting pointed to Nie Ronghua, who had disappeared into the woods, and whispered, "We don't need to worry about these things; my uncle will take care of them."
"Su Meng, shall we fish here?"
Su Meng didn't want to fish; she wanted to go into the mountains to forage for things.
But seeing that Nie Ronghua had gone into the mountains first, she had to suppress her impulse and accompany Nie Pingting fishing in order to avoid suspicion.
During the conversation, Nie Pingting mentioned the cliffs in the mountains, which reminded Huo Zhenhua of what he said: enemy agents disappeared after escaping to the cliffs in the mountains.
I couldn't help but be a little curious.
How far is the cliff? Are there many cliffs in the mountains?
Nie Pingting leaned over mysteriously, "There's only one cliff here, very high and steep, and no one has ever been to the bottom."
It is said that the area was once a cemetery where the island's residents were buried.
It's terrifying! Nobody dares to go.
As she spoke, she shuddered in fear.
Su Meng felt uneasy, but the thought of Huo Zhenhua's discovery made her restless.
Just then, Nie Ronghua returned carrying a pheasant and two rabbits.
Nie Pingting happily took the rabbit, "It's alive! Its fur is so pure!"
"Su Meng, do you like it? Why don't you take it home and raise it? I think your sister will definitely like it."
Su Meng originally liked fluffy little animals, especially little rabbits without any blemishes.
Hearing her say that, I was a little tempted, but I said, "Don't you like it too? Take it home."
Nie Pingting shook her head, "No way! I do things with three times the enthusiasm."
Besides, I'm going back to school tomorrow and won't have time to take care of her.
Nie Ronghua, who was squatting to the side cleaning the pheasants, said in a cool and aloof tone, "Take them back! If she likes them, I'll just go catch a few more."
Nie Pingting silently lowered her head and rolled her eyes.
Pshaw! He's either training or on his way to a mission, he doesn't have time to catch rabbits for her.
Fine! I'll give him one more chance, since he's my uncle.
"Su Meng, if you don't know how to feed it, just ask my uncle."
My uncle always helped take care of the rabbits I fed when I was a child.
Su Meng replied dryly, "Thank you then! My grandma should be able to take care of her."
Nie Pingting was speechless after hearing that sentence, and the atmosphere became a little awkward, but thankfully her fishing hook moved.
"Oh my! I caught a big fish! Is it a grass carp?"
Nie Pingting ran over, smiling as she helped stabilize the fishing rod. "It's a grass carp! It'll probably weigh three or four pounds. Are you going to grill it too?"
Su Meng: "Let's grill it! But I don't know how to kill a fish..."
Before she could finish speaking, a gunshot rang out, followed by a piercing scream.
Startled, the fish shuddered and fell back into the lake.
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