“It’s Xiao Dan!”
“Xiao Dan’s book is here, but where is she?”
Kang Wei clutched the book cover until it wrinkled.
Shao Guangrong gestured to the others, “Search this area carefully!”
They all carried guns, but including the pilot, there were only four people. As soon as the helicopter stopped, the scattered wolf pack slowly began to close in again. Shao Guangrong’s palms were sweating from tension.
If only Zhou Cheng were here – his marksmanship was excellent, hitting whatever he aimed at. These wolves wouldn’t be a concern then! But with just him, Kang Wei, the pilot, and another rescue team member, they had to remain vigilant against the wolf pack.
In the darkness, the wolves’ gleaming green eyes circled like ghostly flames, testing how close they could approach – it was eerily unsettling.
“Kang Wei, move faster!”
Shao Guangrong swallowed hard.
A man shouldn’t cower, but this wasn’t psychological fear – it was a natural physiological response.
Kang Wei tucked the book into his jacket. The four men stood back-to-back with their guns, slowly searching the area while the wolf pack continued howling in the distance… but there was nothing nearby.
Shao Guangrong felt lost.
Could the book not be Dan Yujun’s? Or had she dropped it here but gone somewhere else?
“Kang Wei-“
“Shh!”
Kang Wei returned to the crevice where they’d first found the book, gun in hand.
“There’s some sound here.”
On the Gobi Desert, there was only the howling wind – what other sound could there be?
Great, now Kang Wei was having auditory hallucinations.
Kang Wei lay down on the ground, and the rescue team member followed suit. After a while, they stood up, uncertain: “There does seem to be some sound.”
Kang Wei walked along the crevice, returned to the original spot, and pointed at a large rock: “Let’s move this!”
The rock was as high as Kang Wei’s chest, weighing several hundred pounds. The four men had to push the rock while staying alert for wolves – it was extremely challenging.
“Count to three, everyone pushes together!”
“One, two… three!”
Finally, they moved the large rock, revealing an opening.
Shao Guangrong leaned forward, nearly falling in, but the rescue team member quickly pulled him back.
A strong smell of sheep hit his nose, nearly making Shao Guangrong vomit on the spot.
Kang Wei seemed oblivious to the smell, lying at the edge of the opening, shining his flashlight down:
“Xiao Dan, Xiao Dan!”
“Xiao Dan, are you down there?”
There was no response from Dan Yujun, just the howling desert wind carrying the sound of bleating sheep.
Kang Wei’s face lit up with joy.
“She must be down there, I’m going in!”
Shao Guangrong grabbed him, “That bleating is from sheep. There are sheep down there?”
“Captain Xing said that when Xiao Dan disappeared, two students were herding sheep. If we find the sheep, we’ll find Xiao Dan!”
Wild sheep did live in the Gobi Desert.
Maybe some unfortunate sheep had fallen into the crevice and gotten trapped when the rock sealed the exit… well, what were the chances – not only were their sheep down there but also a book!
Shao Guangrong also believed Dan Yujun might be down there.
Why wasn’t she responding?
After six days without food in such severe cold weather, she was probably unconscious.
Hopefully just unconscious…
Kang Wei’s flashlight beam moved around until he finally found the right angle, and his spirit suddenly lifted: “There’s someone down there!”
Indeed there was someone below, but unfortunately, the opening wasn’t straight down – it twisted and turned, and they could only see a pair of feet.
“Fire the signal flare. We need someone small to go down for the rescue.”
Although they had rescue equipment, after measuring the opening, they worried about getting stuck. They couldn’t risk having a rescuer trapped down there too.
Kang Wei nodded, remaining prone on the ground, calling out “Xiao Dan,” hoping for a response.
But only the sheep’s bleating answered him.
Soon after the signal flared, two more helicopters arrived.
Finally, a small-framed rescuer was secured with ropes and slowly lowered down.
Kang Wei’s emotions were indescribable – hope, tension, and fear all mixed. He just wanted to hear good news.
“There are people down there!”
“All three people are down there!”
“Teacher Dan and both students are down there, along with two sheep…”
“They’re still alive, they’re alive but unconscious!”
Kang Wei’s tension was finally released.
He didn’t realize he was crying.
His tears flowed and were dried by the wind. The desert wind cut his face like small knives, but he was truly happy.
Xiao Dan was alive!
Kang Wei’s legs went weak, and he nearly fell backward.
Shao Guangrong supported him, “Kang Wei, this is good news!”
Yes, it was good news. He was just exhausted, the emotional rollercoaster making him unsteady.
He had to hold on a bit longer, at least until Xiao Dan was safely rescued.
Kang Wei found new strength from somewhere.
The rescue worker first secured the two Gao children to the ropes, slowly pulling them up, with Dan Yujun last.
She looked nothing like when Kang Wei first met her at Huaqing University – covered in dust and looking disheveled, with dried blood on her body. Kang Wei’s heart clenched – where was she injured?
“Xiao Dan, Xiao Dan…”
“Xiao Dan, I’m here.”
“Don’t be afraid.”
Kang Wei thought his eyes were playing tricks on him – Dan Yujun’s eyes seemed to open slightly to look at him from the stretcher.
As Dan Yujun was placed on the stretcher, Kang Wei held her hand tightly and boarded the helicopter with her.
The two helicopters that arrived later had medical personnel. All three survivors showed vital signs, but their condition was critical.
“We’ll do basic treatment, but they need to get to the hospital.”
Kang Wei nodded, “I’m going with them.”
As the helicopter thunderously took off, Shao Guangrong, who couldn’t squeeze onto the medical helicopter, stood on the ground and muttered “choosing love over friendship,” though he was smiling.
How wonderful that they were still alive!
Shao Guangrong turned to Captain Xing and said, “Now that we’ve rescued the people, shouldn’t we deal with these wolves?”
With so many people around, the wolf pack had scattered.
Captain Xing nodded, “You said the wolves wouldn’t leave the rock. Wolves have a keener sense of smell than humans – they are attracted by the scent of blood. These wolves are starving, and they’re attacking people. They must be eliminated!”
Were the starving wolves pitiful?
Yes, they were.
But Captain Xing and Shao Guangrong weren’t wildlife conservationists – they didn’t pity wolves, only the people attacked by wolves.
If they didn’t eliminate man-eating wolves when they had the chance, the next lone traveler could become another Dan Yujun.
After the three people were rescued, the two sheep were also pulled up.
“One has a broken leg, the other is mostly unharmed.”
How did three people and two sheep all fall into the same hole?
Impossible, given how small the opening was.
Captain Xing speculated, “Teacher Dan and the others must have gone down there voluntarily to escape the wolf pack. The Gobi Desert is completely exposed – this was the only place where Teacher Dan and the others could hide!”
How the rock ended up covering the opening remained unknown.
They would have to wait until Dan Yujun and the others regained consciousness to learn the details.
Captain Xing patted the two sheep, “Thanks to them, Teacher Dan and the others didn’t freeze to death.”
Indeed – when the rescue worker went down, the two sheep were huddled next to Dan Yujun and the others, the five of them pressed together to ward off the cold.