Chapter 1546 - 1536: Reminder

Chapter 1546: Chapter 1536: Reminder

"Didn’t I tell you to stand guard outside? Why did you come in too?" Jiang Cheng turned back.

"You guys weren’t coming out, of course I was worried something happened to you!" Mole said, "Who do you think our boss is? How could something happen to you so easily!" Jiang Cheng shot back. In his head he thought, "I’ve got a system backing me up, the person who can hurt me probably hasn’t even been born yet."

"Right, right, of course. Boss, you’re mighty and brave, smart as hell. The guy who can hurt you definitely hasn’t been born yet." Mole scratched the back of his head and said foolishly, "I was overthinking it."

"Alright, since you’re here, you’re here. Watch your feet, there are mines. Step in my footprints." Jiang Cheng said to Mole.

"Boss! Let me go in front. If something happens, I’ll tank it for you!" Mole had been saved countless times by Jiang Cheng. He worshipped Jiang Cheng as his boss, willing to risk his life, go through hell and high water without a single complaint. But he was always worried about Jiang Cheng. Even being cannon fodder for Jiang Cheng, he’d gladly do it.

"No. I know where the mines are. You can only walk behind me. Just follow my footprints, don’t worry about anything else." Jiang Cheng could see how loyal Mole was. But precisely because of that loyalty, having recognized this "mouse bro," he absolutely couldn’t let him be cannon fodder and die for nothing.

"Fine! Boss, just be careful." Mole was full of confidence in Boss Jiang. "Jiang Cheng, you really have to be careful," Mu Xue chimed in with concern.

"Move out!" Jiang Cheng switched on the system’s danger-alert mode. With the system’s prompts, he carefully avoided every single mine, step by step.

"Crap, I think I stepped on something." A voice came from behind—it was the young criminal investigator. Jiang Cheng stopped. The group all halted accordingly. "Don’t move! Let me handle it!" Jiang Cheng said.

"Zhang Ye, didn’t I tell you to follow the footprints? How did you step on a mine?" Mu Xue asked angrily.

"I—I wasn’t paying attention, okay! Don’t worry about me, you guys hurry up and go." Zhang Ye said.

"Enough, go where? If we leave, what happens to you?" Jiang Cheng could never abandon any teammate by his side. "Mu Xue, don’t blame him. Anyone can be careless, especially in a tense atmosphere—it’s the easiest time to make mistakes. Besides, it’s already come to this, what’s the point of blaming him?"

"Everyone else, fall back. And remember, step exactly in the footprints." Jiang Cheng said.

"Boss, I’ll help you!" Mole carefully inched closer. Jiang Cheng hadn’t expected Mole to move up again. "Alright! Go find a shovel and dig out the soil under his foot. And be careful."

"Zhang Ye, don’t move. Don’t panic. Trust me, I’ll definitely defuse this." Jiang Cheng also reassured Zhang Ye, the criminal investigator.

"System, can you scan the structure of this bomb?" Jiang Zai carefully observed the mine underfoot and asked in his head. "This is a commonly used military pressure-release mine. Once stepped on, it will explode when the pressure is released," the system replied. "What method can solve it?" Jiang Cheng asked back. "Apply the same weight on the mine and withdraw the foot in time, and you can stop it from detonating."

After hearing the system’s explanation, Jiang Cheng immediately had a plan. "Zhang Ye, untie your shoelaces. In a moment, listen to my command. When I tell you to lift, you lift your foot away." "Got it, Chief!" Zhang Ye, the criminal investigator, was deeply moved. The head of the Security Team personally defusing a mine for him—just thinking about it felt like the highest honor.

Once everything was ready, "Foot up, now!" Jiang Cheng gave the order. Zhang Ye carefully lifted his foot. The shoe stayed pinned on the mine. Nails around it fixed it in place, preventing the mine from detonating. "So much for a pressure-release mine," Jiang Cheng let out a long breath. This time he didn’t use any code or programming, but it still cost him quite a bit of time.

At this moment, Ande was running in a sorry state deeper into the mountains, and Mo Xiao wasn’t doing any better. Their bodies were covered in cuts from branches and thorns. But the two on the run didn’t feel their exhaustion at all. They just kept fleeing, losing all sense of direction.

"Where the hell is this? Seriously the middle of goddamn nowhere, mountains on mountains as far as I can see." Mo Xiao was breaking down. They had little water and food to begin with, and constant fleeing had used up the rest. Now he lay spread-eagle at the base of a tree, panting hard from exhaustion.

On the other side, Ande had just crossed a mountain. At this point he was also at the end of his rope. But Ande was an old fox. Unlike Mo Xiao, he hadn’t eaten all his food at once; he rationed it. Along the way, he also cleaned up any traces he left behind.

Jiang Cheng, Mu Xue, and the others finally came out through the hidden door. "No wonder they’re two old foxes, building their nest in a place like this." Jiang Cheng checked the time. "We’ve wasted enough that they’ve probably gotten a good head start."

Mu Xue said, "Then what do we do now? This is deep mountains, no network coverage." "Not everything needs network coverage. Otherwise what do you have your unit’s dogs for?" Jiang Cheng shot back.

"They’re called canines!" Mu Xue snapped. She really loved the unit’s dogs; each one had been painstakingly trained and, most importantly, they understood people.

"Still just dogs, aren’t they? What’s the difference between a canine and a dog?" Jiang Cheng joked with Mu Xue.

"Forget it, can’t be bothered to argue with you." Mu Xue simply ignored him, feeling like Jiang Cheng was bullying the dogs and still trying to take advantage of her.

Mu Xue then dialed the satellite phone. "Reporting, Boss. Mo Xiao and Ande ran toward Mijiang in the southeast tunnel of the government network. Request immediate deployment of canines and helicopter support to prevent them from escaping the country."

The boss, sitting in his office, replied gravely, "You must catch those two. I’ll send reinforcements right away. At the same time, you must ensure Elder Jiang’s safety. He hasn’t gone through team training like you have. If there’s any danger, you must protect him at all costs..." The boss repeatedly reminded Rongxue over the phone. "Roger! Mission guaranteed!" Mu Xue’s eyes gleamed as she answered crisply.

"Jiang Cheng, now you have to listen to me. The current situation isn’t like just now—you must follow my orders," Mu Xue gave Jiang Cheng a strict command.

"My dear Mu Xue, spare me. I listen to you every time, but when has what you said ever worked?" Jiang Cheng rolled his eyes back at her. "Doesn’t matter when it didn’t work before. This time you have to listen to me. If something happens to you, how am I supposed to explain it to the boss?" Mu Xue gave Jiang Cheng no way out.

"Fine, my lady. I’ll listen to you this time, alright? Anyway, Mo Xiao and Ande have probably run far by now, and they won’t be hurting you anytime soon." Jiang Cheng said.

"Hmph, that’s more like it." Mu Xue was finally satisfied.

"So, dear Mu Xue, what’s our next move? Keep up the chase, or stay put and wait for backup?" Jiang Cheng asked.

"Hmm... got it." A lightbulb went off in Mu Xue’s head. "Look, the weeds here have been trampled, and there are broken branches up ahead." Her words reminded everyone. Jiang Cheng had already noticed, of course; he thought to himself, "Not bad, she really is a proper team member, she’s got some skills." "Yeah, not bad. But look, don’t you think the grass over here has been disturbed too?" Jiang Cheng reminded Mu Xue.

"Yeah, this side’s been disturbed too. Looks like those two really proved the saying—’husband and wife are like birds of the same forest, but when disaster comes, they each fly their own way.’" Mu Xue said.