Chapter 177 Young man, who are you looking for?
The familiar engraving on the bottom of the wooden box was her grandfather's exclusive symbol.
Could it be that my grandfather was here before?
I remember Cheng Wangshu once said, "He's waiting for you down there."
Could she interpret this as her grandfather possibly falling off a cliff because of Cheng Wangshu's pursuit?
Later, he also fell onto this platform and lived in this cave.
Thinking about it this way, Su Meng was so excited she almost jumped up, carefully searching the cave for traces of her grandfather's life.
However, apart from the wooden box, there was nothing in the cave.
Despite the excruciating pain, she rushed to the platform, leaned over the stone, and cried out, "Grandpa, Grandpa, where are you?"
Below the empty cliff, in the valley, Su Meng's shouts echoed.
Huo Zhenhua, who was hanging halfway down the cliff, was frantically searching for a foothold on the cliff face because the rope had reached its end.
Upon hearing Su Meng's voice, he turned his head and looked down the cliff. A tear fell from his eye, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but turn up in a smile.
This is Su Meng's voice.
She's alright!
She must have discovered something.
The dense fog, with visibility possibly less than a meter, obstructed the view.
He sniffed and called out with all his might, "Xiao Meng~ Are you alright?"
He was a little closer to the top of the cliff.
Ah Da vaguely heard the name "Xiao Meng," and immediately led Wang Qinglin and others to lower the newly grafted vines further down.
Huo Zhenhua is now closer to Su Meng.
He clearly heard Su Meng's shout.
She was calling out "Grandpa".
Did Su Meng discover her grandfather's whereabouts?
All he knew was that Su Meng's maternal grandfather had disappeared more than ten years ago, and his fate was unknown.
If her grandfather were trapped at the bottom of the cliff, perhaps...
I hope the outcome will be good.
At this moment, the cliff was surrounded by people.
Su Mianzhi and Xie Mian arrived with Commander Tang, Director Jiang, and other familiar faces.
The soldiers brought more ropes.
Ah Da climbed down another rope.
They quickly caught up with Huo Zhenhua.
He also heard Su Meng's shout.
Ah Da mustered all his strength and shouted down the cliff, "Xiao Meng~"
Upon hearing his voice, Su Meng stopped jumping off the platform.
Having received no response from her grandfather, she decided to use the space to explore the bottom of the cliff.
"Uncle, I'm here. Slow down, there's a platform here."
Her voice was barely out of her mouth when it was shattered by the howling mountain wind.
Ah Da and Huo Zhenhua both heard it.
They smiled at each other.
"You can rest assured now! My little girl does have some luck on her side." Ah Da said proudly, his tense jawline relaxed a bit, and his whole demeanor became much gentler.
Huo Zhenhua pursed his lips and nodded.
A dozen minutes later, they saw the little girl standing on the stone platform, looking up and waiting.
The glaring bloodstains on her snow-white turtleneck sweater were like gentle knives, piercing the hearts of two men with each stroke.
Huo Zhenhua's breath hitched. He stared intently at the pale yet excited little face, trembling as he untied the first aid kit. His voice rose and fell like the waves of the deep sea, "I, I have medicine here. I, I'll bandage you up."
Don't worry! It'll be over in a minute!
"Where are you hurt? Quick! Let me put some medicine on you."
He was so flustered that he was incoherent and his mind was in chaos.
While I was overjoyed, I was also worried about her injury.
Su Meng had never seen him so flustered and helpless. Her heart ached, and she quickly waved her hand, "No! I've already applied the medicine myself."
It didn't injure any vital organs; it's not serious at all.
Ah Da had already noticed that she had been bandaged up.
He glanced at Huo Zhenhua's foolish expression and calmly walked into the cave.
Su Meng took out the wooden box left by her grandfather, which could perfectly conceal the fact that she had used the medicine and discovered her grandfather's whereabouts.
"Look, this is the only thing I found in the cave."
This is a unique seal carved by my maternal grandfather, indicating that he may have been here.
"Uncle, Commander Huo, do you think my grandfather might be at the bottom of the cliff?"
Huo Zhenhua's pupils contracted slightly when he saw the seal in the direction Su Meng pointed.
Meeting Ah Da's questioning gaze, he murmured, "There was also a similar engraving on the gourd pendant that the senior gave me back then."
He said it was a token of love from my wife.
At this point, he looked up at Su Meng and said, "Maybe that person is your maternal grandfather."
I was too young then to remember what he looked like, but I vividly remember the herbal scent he always smelled of.
Su Meng nodded, "My maternal grandfather has been dealing with herbs for many years, so he naturally has the smell of herbs on him."
Ah Da carefully circled the cave twice, then looked down at the bottom of the cliff. "You guys wait here, I'll go down and take a look first."
The situation at the bottom of the cliff is unclear, but this cave could serve as a retreat route.
Su Meng was about to argue when she was silenced by a cold glare from A Da.
Huo Zhenhua silently tied the rope around his waist, and before Ah Da could make a move, he jumped down first.
The people on the cliff were all speechless with astonishment as they watched the rope continue to slide down.
"I didn't expect this cliff to be so deep. It's too dangerous! We need to put up a warning sign ten meters outside the cliff later," Commander Tang solemnly instructed.
Some people agreed and went to carry out the order.
Wang Qinglin exclaimed in surprise, "Only one rope is moving. That means they found a foothold along the way, one person went down to explore, and the other provided support."
Our commander is definitely planning to go down the cliff to check things out!
For over a decade, no one from the Southeast Military Region had ever been to the bottom of the cliff on Peach Blossom Island.
Huo Zhenhua's idea was just as Wang Qinglin had said: to take the opportunity to find out the truth.
He wondered whether the enemy agent had jumped off the cliff in a panic that night, unwilling to fall into their hands, or whether there was another world below.
More importantly, he wanted to help Su Meng find her maternal grandfather.
The mountain wind howled, and the temperature and visibility were even lower at the bottom of the cliff.
Huo Zhenhua gritted his teeth, but they still couldn't stop them from chattering.
Finally, just as they were about to freeze into icicles, they saw the bottom of the cliff.
I also saw wisps of smoke rising from chimneys not far away.
The area at the bottom of the cliff is filled with pebbles of varying sizes, pools of varying depths, and marks left by receding water levels on the cliff face.
At the highest point at the bottom of the cliff, in front of a thatched hut, an old man with a full head of silver hair tied up with a wooden hairpin was loosening the soil with a large knife with countless nicks.
Hearing the noise, he turned around and looked at Huo Zhenhua, who had suddenly appeared, in surprise.
"Young man, who are you looking for?"
The old man was calm and composed, speaking in a gentle voice, just like a villager casually greeting someone in the countryside.
Huo Zhenhua cleared his throat, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "I am Huo Zhenhua, a soldier stationed on Peach Blossom Island."
My fiancée's name is Su Meng.
Do you know the Su family in Shanghai?
The old man leaned on his broadsword, his gaze drifting distantly to the horizon, yet a storm raged within his eyes.
The Su family in Shanghai?
How could he not recognize him?
The old man sighed softly, his gaze sweeping over the man's crisp military uniform, and said indifferently, "I'm trapped here all by myself, how could I possibly know anyone in Shanghai?"
Young man, you should go home now!
Huo Zhenhua looked suspiciously at the old man who had turned and entered the thatched hut, and tugged at the rope three times.
This was the secret code he and Ada Su Meng had agreed upon.
A moment later, Ah Da, carrying the injured Su Meng with one hand, arrived gracefully like a celestial being descending from the heavens.
As soon as Su Meng regained her footing, she covered her wound and was about to rush towards the thatched hut.
Huo Zhenhua frowned slightly and spoke in a low voice about what had just happened.
"Xiao Meng, the old man is wary of me."
Upon seeing the person who gave him the gourd pendant, even after many years, his long-buried memories were awakened.
That was... that god-like senior.
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