Within seconds, a dark figure scaled the wall and swiftly jumped down, landing unsteadily before tumbling to the ground.
The limping man searched around but found nothing. Worried about potential pursuers, he reluctantly fled toward the alley’s exit.
Right after the shadowy figure departed, another person leaped down, scouted the area briefly, and chased in the direction the first had gone.
Guo Youning waited a few more minutes inside the space. Seeing no further activity, she breathed a long sigh of relief, calmed her nerves, and prepared to exit the space, eager to hurry back to the hospital.
Just then, a flurry of footsteps approached. Soon, a group of soldiers poured into the alley, their multiple flashlights illuminating the narrow lane as if it were daytime.
They urgently discussed among themselves:
“Where is he? Regiment Leader Qi ordered us to encircle this area, but there’s nothing here. Did we arrive too late?”
“Damn it, who would’ve thought Company Commander Dou was a spy? We have to catch him—that research result is too crucial. The blood of dozens of comrades and two engineers must not be shed in vain. They endured such hardships abroad; it can’t all go to waste now that they’re back home, not on our watch.”
“Battalion Commander Zhao, there’s a trail of blood on the ground, leading that way.”
“Let’s hurry and pursue. I refuse to believe he can grow wings and fly away.”
“Yes, sir!”
The small alley returned to silence, but Guo Youning dared not emerge immediately.
Her gaze fell upon the leather bag on the ground. Recalling the soldiers’ conversation, her heart trembled. Could the research results they mentioned be inside this bag?
Oh, heavens! If that were true, it would be a hot potato for her.
Her hands felt as heavy as lead as she slowly unzipped the bag. The first thing that caught her eye was a large manila envelope.
Guo Youning wrestled with her conscience: to look or not to look? What if she stumbled upon some unspeakable secret and got silenced for it?
But if she didn’t look, she wouldn’t know if it was the research result. After all, as long as she kept quiet, no one would know she had seen it.
Carefully, she untwisted the cotton thread securing the envelope. Inside was a thick stack of engineering blueprints entirely in English. Though she was proficient in English, reading blueprints was beyond her expertise.
Skimming through them briefly, she realized they were research materials related to a new model of fighter jet.
This must be what they were searching for. From their discussion, she gathered it was extremely important—so much so that many soldiers and scientists had lost their lives for it!
She had to find a way to return it safely into their hands.
But as an ordinary civilian, how could she possibly find the means to do so?
Unable to resolve the issue immediately, she set it aside for the time being, carefully repackaging the documents and placing them to one side.
Continuing her inspection of the bag, she pulled out a parcel wrapped in newspaper.
Unwrapping it, her eyes widened—wow… haha… it contained ten large gold bars and five stacks of ten-yuan bills. Judging by the thickness, there must have been five thousand yuan in total.
Guo Youning jumped for joy. She’d struck it rich! Struck it rich! Who would have thought that on her second day in this era, she’d become a ten-thousand-yuan household!
Plus, there were valuable large gold bars and so many antiques. Coming to the 1970s was definitely the right move!
The immense payoff made all the fright she had endured worthwhile.
Containing her excitement, she checked what other treasures the bag might hold.
The last item was a black cloth bundle. Guo Youning cautiously opened it and gasped, her hands trembling so much she nearly dropped the precious contents.
It was a gleaming handgun, accompanied by a considerable amount of ammunition!
What incredible luck she had!
After a series of "click-clack" experimentation—dismantling and reassembling, repeating the process several times—she quickly grasped the mechanism. Loading the magazine, aiming, and test-firing flowed seamlessly.
In her previous life, she had been quite talented. The taekwondo studio she attended happened to be adjacent to a shooting range, both owned by the same proprietor. As an outstanding student, she was often invited to practice shooting.
Gradually, she grew addicted to shooting and naturally developed a fondness for those replica firearms. With her innate talent, she slowly became an expert at the range.
However, replica guns were still different from the real weapon now in her hands.
Yet mastery in one area often leads to understanding in others. After some exploration, she could handle it with ease. She gently stroked the genuine firearm, reluctant to let it go.
She never dared to dream that one day she would own a real gun!
After the excitement faded, inner turmoil set in. The documents had to be returned somehow, but what about the money and the pistol?
The thought of handing them over made her heart ache—so she decided against it.
These were undoubtedly ill-gotten gains from a spy. She would help herself to them as compensation for returning the research materials.
Staring at the stack of documents, she felt troubled again. But she set it aside for now; returning to the hospital was urgent. If her mother noticed her absence and started searching the entire hospital, it would spell trouble.
Fifteen minutes passed with no further activity in the alley. Guo Youning quickly slipped out of the space.
Ten minutes later, she arrived safely at the hospital, changed her clothes, and quietly returned to the ward.
She found her mother half-asleep, leaning against the bed, who mumbled upon seeing her, "Did you go to the bathroom? Is your stomach upset? Why were you gone so long?Guo Youning's anxious heart finally settled. Her mother was so understanding—she didn't even need to come up with an excuse; the matter was brushed aside.
She nodded slightly, "Yeah, probably ate too many meat buns tonight. A bit indigestion, but it's nothing serious. Let's get to sleep quickly. I have to go to the Meatpacking Plant at six in the morning to pick up the pork."
Tang Xin's drowsy mind sharpened at the mention of meat. "Pick up what meat?"
Guo Youning then remembered she hadn't mentioned it to her mother. Yawning, she said, "I ordered ten jin of pork belly from Master Li at the Meatpacking Plant. I'm going to get it tomorrow morning to make some meat sauce to bring to Heilongjiang."
Tang Xin tapped her forehead helplessly. "You're so careless, forgetting such an important thing! Good thing I took a day off, or who would help you simmer the meat sauce? But with that much meat, you don't have enough money or ration coupons, do you? This is a huge favor to owe!"
As she lay down on the bed, Guo Youning leaned close to Tang Xin's ear and whispered, "The meat is more expensive than market price—it's 1.2 kuai. It doesn't count as owing a favor. You won't scold me for wasting money, will you?"
It was forty cents more expensive than market meat! Tang Xin did feel a pang of heartache, but compared to money, she was more worried about her daughter suffering in Heilongjiang.
Now, it wasn't just about the cost of meat—if her daughter wanted stars from the sky, she'd try to pluck them if she could.
She patted her head, took out the fifty kuai compensation from the Wan Family Brothers from her inner pocket, and placed it in her hand. "Take this. It was meant to compensate you for your health anyway. Using it to buy meat is just right. Keep it safe and don't lose it."
After a night of ups and downs, Guo Youning, now back in a safe place, was overwhelmed by drowsiness. Pushing the money away, she mumbled and fell asleep.
Tang Xin gazed tenderly at her sleeping daughter, her heart aching. Ningning was still a child, one who hadn't fully recovered. Would she be able to adapt to life in the countryside?
Weighed down by worry, Tang Xin spent the latter half of the night in restless sleep, while Guo Youning slept soundly and sweetly.
She had no idea that around three o'clock in the early morning, the hospital had been thrown into complete chaos, with a group of soldiers carrying several severely injured people in for emergency treatment.