Chapter 950: Chapter 950: Entering the Mountains for the Rescue

5:30 AM, the sky was barely light.

Li Qiao opened her eyes and turned to look at the man sleeping beside her, feeling somewhat conflicted.

Last night after they returned, they didn’t explore the issue of who would enter the forest for the rescue mission.

Li Qiao seemed resolute but had to consider Shang Yu’s feelings.

The sky outside was still a deep greenish-blue.

Li Qiao quietly got out of bed and hurried down the stairs after leaving the bedroom.

Around the villa, everything was silent. Li Qiao held up her phone, switching off silent mode, and saw that Shen Qingye had sent an OK gesture to the “Lucky Six” group ten minutes ago.

Li Qiao opened the main building’s door, glanced back at the stairs, saw no sign of Shang Yu, and stepped out.

The sky was dark. Suddenly, someone spoke from the left side of the pavilion, “Girl.”

Li Qiao was a bit surprised, not expecting Shang Zonghai to be awake so early, “Dad.”

Shang Zonghai was dressed in a white casual outfit, and a Tai Chi sword was placed by the edge of the table. He blew on his teacup, “Go ahead, I’ll look after Shaoyan.”

Li Qiao felt touched and slightly nodded, “Thank you, Dad.”

“But you must promise me, take care and prioritize yourself,” Shang Zonghai put down his teacup, walked to Li Qiao, and gently patted her shoulder, “Go ahead, you spent half a year in Liao Mountain, I have confidence in your ability.”

Li Qiao gave a slight smile, “I will.”

Shang Zonghai waved kindly, “The other kids have arrived, go there and come back soon, I’ll handle the rest.”

“Okay.”

…

Outside the door, a black jeep was parked by the roadside. Shen Qingye saw Li Qiao and called her over, “Kid, get in.”

Li Qiao got into the passenger seat, and as she turned to look at the back seat, Song Liao, Su Moshi, and Yin Mo waved to greet her.

The Five Sons gathered to rescue Xia Lao Wu.

After twenty minutes, the off-road vehicle arrived at the Liao Mountain Control Zone.

Li Qiao got out of the vehicle, came to the trunk, where Su Moshi joined her, “Explosive ordnance disposal suit, heat-resistant gloves, rake, all ready. You lead, we’ll cover.”

“Not needed.” Li Qiao had just picked up the disposal suit when the other four gathered around, speaking in unison, “Then don’t go.”

Li Qiao’s face was expressionless, “…”

Su Moshi picked up the disposal suit, while gearing up said, “One of the Seven Sons is already missing, we can’t afford another loss.”

“Kiddo, young ones should listen to their elders.” Shen Qingye patted Li Qiao’s head, speaking earnestly in a senior manner.

Yin Mo remained silent, but efficiently donned her equipment.

The latest-developed disposal suits weren’t too cumbersome, but it took some time for everyone to gear up smoothly.

Li Qiao led the team along a soft ladder to descend the cliff, yet Zuo Xuan and the others, who were supposed to be on standby, were nowhere in sight.

The Five Sons didn’t linger, Li Qiao led them steadily towards the entrance to the forest.

After advancing five meters, Su Moshi’s voice came through the wireless earpiece, “Qiaoqiao, if you feel uncomfortable, say so timely.”

“Mm.” Li Qiao responded lightly, stepping forward into the forest.

She held a remote screen in her hand, carefully avoiding all booby-trap locations.

Suddenly, Shen Qingye, at the end, spoke up, “Why is there a pen on the ground?”

He was about to bend down when Li Qiao’s low warning quickly came, “Don’t move.”

Shen Qingye was half-bent, his gloved hand a mere three to five centimeters from the pen.

Everyone halted, looking through their explosive-proof visors at Li Qiao in the front.

She turned her head, eyes dark and deep, “It’s a booby trap.”

“Damn!” Shen Qingye was terrified almost to the point of falling over, “Boo, booby trap?”

Li Qiao looked at the ground, “Follow my footprints, don’t touch anything.”

Shen Qingye nodded vigorously, internally feeling lucky to have escaped disaster.

Booby traps had existed for a long time, but many had heard of them without seeing them.

No wonder they were called traps; they were truly unpredictable and unavoidable.

As the east gradually whitened, the visibility in the forest improved significantly.

Li Qiao quickened her pace slightly, about a hundred meters from where the mechanism halted.

Suddenly, interference noise came through the wireless earpiece.

Everyone stopped instantly, Li Qiao squinted ahead.

The persistent interference noise lasted over ten seconds before a familiar low voice came through, “Qiaoqiao, fall back.”

Li Qiao’s breath caught, her fingers slightly curled.

Shen Qingye then gaped for a moment before exclaiming, “M-Master Yan?”

Li Qiao didn’t move or respond.

Clearly, their wireless communication system had been hacked by Shang Yu.

Minutes later, He Chen’s cheeky tone resonated through the earpiece, “Yin Lao Er, getting gutsy, huh? Who taught you to do this stealthily? We’ll deal with this later.”

Yin Mo lowered her head, casually responding, “Stop talking nonsense.”

“Me, talking nonsense?” He Chen sneered, unreservedly stating, “Six jackets, seven slacks, three pairs of leather shoes, where’d you hide them?”

The wireless earpiece radiated a death-like silence.

Li Qiao and company naturally turned to Yin Mo, their expressions vivid.

Yin Mo pursed her lips, silent, her brows showing a trace of remorse for being caught.

Then, a steady familiar voice came through the earpiece, “Xiao Qi, Xiaxia and Luoyu have been found, wait above the cliff first.”

Li Qiao raised her eyes abruptly, “Brother Xiao?”

“It’s me, go up.”

The sudden incident left even the always calm Li Qiao a bit stunned.

Why were Bo Tingxiao with Shang Yu and He Chen?

In less than ten minutes, Li Qiao led the Five Sons back below the cliff, the team removed their disposal suits, faces covered in sweat.

Li Qiao exhaled deeply, noticed the overturned bulletproof vehicle nearby, and walked over.

Su Moshi followed closely, observing her demeanor, “Feeling any hypoxia or discomfort?”

Li Qiao shook her head, “I’m okay.”

Leaning on the bulletproof vehicle, she wiped her sweat, “Did you invite Brother Xiao for the wedding?”

“Probably Dad’s doing.” Su Moshi pondered, “Though he resigned from the Special Execution Team, they haven’t chosen a successor yet, he’s temporarily standing in.”

Meanwhile, rustling sounds came from the forest.

The Five Sons followed the sound, seeing Zuo Xuan carrying Xia Siyu, while Liuyun carried Luoyu.

Shang Yu and He Chen, matching in black shirts and slacks, strolled leisurely behind.

A few Secret Hall members covered the rear, though Bo Tingxiao was not seen.

Li Qiao had no time for questions and walked with Su Moshi to Zuo Xuan’s side, they simultaneously checked Xia Siyu’s carotid pulse, which was faint.

Xia Siyu had lapsed into unconsciousness, while Luoyu remained conscious, sliding off Liuyun’s back, weakly saying, “Madam, Miss Xia was shot…”