Chapter 350 Unable to Sleep
Late at night, the mountains and forests were dead silent, the moon was dark and the stars were sparse.
All team members participating in the operation stood in line before setting off.
Xia Lili's gaze swept across each determined face one by one.
She had a brief eye contact with each team member.
This time the result was beyond Xia Lili's expectations.
Maybe it was because I encountered too many accidents when gathering intelligence before, or maybe it was because God could not bear to see the innocence and suffering of the victims.
This time when they looked at each other, Xia Lili did not see any foreboding images of doom.
Xia Lili took a deep breath of cold air and said in a deep voice, "Action!"
Several elite teams moved silently towards their respective targets like sharp blades blending into the night.
Soon, a short and clear report came from the encrypted channel:
"Team one, get in position!"
"Team Two, get in position!"
"Team Three..."
"Team Four, take your positions!"
"assault!"
The moment the order was given, the sound of doors being broken down was heard almost simultaneously in all directions!
The brief exclamations and resistance were quickly brought under control.
The team quickly rushed in, and with the flickering beams of their flashlights, they soon discovered a total of four victims with their hands and feet bound: in the cellar entrance deep underground at Heiwazi's home, in the mezzanine of his brother's old warehouse, and in the two suspicious houses in Aotou Village...
"Target rescued! Repeat, target rescued! Evacuating according to the planned route!"
The rescue team members protected the frightened victims and quickly went deep into the mountains and forests, moving towards hope and safety along the secret path that had been surveyed during the day.
The last rescued victim was carefully lifted into the ambulance, and the heavy sound of the door closing brought a temporary end to this late-night raid.
The convoy with flashing blue lights did not stop for long and quickly drove away from this remote mountainous area shrouded in crime.
All equipment and personnel at the temporary command point were also evacuated as quickly as possible, as if they had never appeared.
Only the empty mountains and forests and the approaching dawn remain.
The rescued victims were safely transported to the city hospital and received comprehensive medical examination and emergency treatment.
The police's special aftermath team is trying to contact the victims' long-lost families one by one.
Judging from the pure action report, this multi-department rescue mission was very successful.
The positioning was precise, the assault went smoothly, and all personnel were rescued safely without any casualties.
However, Xia Lili, the front-line commander of the operation, did not feel much joy of success.
Li Qihan was transferred to the southwest border to carry out a highly confidential mission, and his return date is uncertain.
This operation was the first time that Xia Lili independently led the on-site command team.
But Xia Lili felt the crown of success was extremely heavy on her head.
What recurred in her mind were the victims' empty, terrified eyes as they were carried out of the cellar, as if their souls had been ripped out; the overlapping scars of old and new on their bodies; and the way they would cower in panic in their beds at the slightest noise...
The success of the action is simply to release the victim from the physical cage.
And the invisible prison built deep in their hearts may have just begun to reveal its hideous form.
The victims need long or even lifelong psychological intervention and rehabilitation. The unforgettable injuries are likely to become a never-fading shadow that shrouds their future.
This realization was like a cold boulder, pressing down on Xia Lili to the point where she couldn't breathe.
For several days in a row, she couldn't sleep peacefully. As soon as she closed her eyes, she saw those desperate eyes.
Xia Lili began to deeply understand the heavy core behind the glamour of this heroic profession.
It requires police officers to constantly and directly look into the deepest darkness in human nature and pull back those who have been swallowed by the darkness, but they often have to face a soul that has already been destroyed.
After this action, Xia Lili chose to devote herself to high-intensity training that was almost self-abuse.
She practically lived in the sniper training base. From the first light of dawn to the full starry sky, the crisp sound of her trigger pulling continued to echo in the shooting range.
Xia Lili repeated the actions of raising the gun, aiming, firing, and ejecting the shell over and over again, letting the extreme fatigue of her body occupy all the space for thinking.
She fills her daily life with a strict schedule and training plan that is precise to the minute.
It seems that only in this way can I stop myself from recalling those scenes and suppress the frustration of being unable to change the past.
The days passed by so quickly on the taut string, and in the blink of an eye, a month and a half had passed.
On the surface, life seems fulfilling and regular, as if everything is normal. Only Xia Lili herself knows that the heaviness in her heart has never really dissipated.
One and a half months later.
The commendation hall of the Yangcheng General Administration was brightly lit and the atmosphere was warm.
On the stage, Commander Gu was passionately summarizing the outstanding achievements of this cross-regional joint operation and praising the bravery and wisdom of all participating team members.
Applause broke out from the audience from time to time. The team members were wearing neat uniforms with medals hanging on their chests.
In such a solemn atmosphere, Xia Lili sat in the corner. Although her posture was upright, her eyes were a little distracted.
The leader's speech and colleagues' applause seemed to come from far away, vague and unreal.
She clapped along mechanically, but her mind had already drifted away.
Leng Xiaohe, who was sitting next to her, keenly noticed her abnormality.
As soon as the commendation meeting ended, Leng Xiaohe gently pulled Xia Lili, who was about to leave alone, and asked with concern, "Lili, are you okay? You seem absent-minded today, and you don't look well."
Xia Lili seemed to be pulled out of deep water. She came back to her senses in a trance, and with a forced smile on her lips, she shook her head.
"I'm fine, maybe just a little tired."
Leng Xiaohe wasn't fooled by her perfunctory response. She pulled Xia Lili to a quiet window in the corridor and lowered her voice, but more seriously: "Don't lie to me. We've worked together for so long, and I've never seen you like this."
A look of heartache flashed in Leng Xiaohe's eyes.
Although Xia Lili is a girl who doesn't talk much, she is always calm and focused, with light in her eyes. She is like a tree growing towards the sun, with a tenacity revealed in her calmness.
But recently, that layer of sunshine seems to be blocked by heavy dark clouds, leaving only fatigue and trance.
Leng Xiaohe became more serious: "Don't lie to me. We have worked together for so long, and I have never seen you like this. Are you... still thinking about the case?"
Xia Lili was silent for a moment, then finally stopped trying to hide her feelings. Her voice was filled with fatigue and frustration that was hard to shake off. "Sister Xiaohe, do you think... did we really succeed?"
She turned her head and looked out the window. "We rescued the victims, gave out awards, and held a commendation ceremony...but what about them?"
"The things they experienced, the hurt they suffered, can never be erased."
"We...we can't actually change anything. I don't even know how to face their future pain... This feeling is so powerless."
Leng Xiaohe listened quietly and did not immediately interrupt her with empty comfort.
After she finished speaking, he sighed softly and patted her shoulder: "I understand. This job is like this. Many times, even if we try our best, we may only pry open a corner of the darkness and cannot immediately exchange it for light."
"But we can't deny the significance of rescuing them just because we can't heal all their wounds immediately."
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