Spoiled by Love - Sweetheart, Don't Tempt Me - Chapter 129 - Hang in There, Honey!

The man’s powerful voice delivered an inspiring message, reigniting the dwindling confidence of everyone present, building a strong wall of hope once again.

Zhan Niantong’s heart was filled with joy, the immense happiness of knowing her husband might still be alive brought tears to her eyes again. Her lips trembled, and she clasped her hands over her chest, feeling her heart pounding fiercely for him, the sense that he was down there growing stronger.

As he spoke, the man approached Zhan Niantong, and to everyone’s surprise, he stood at attention and saluted her solemnly. Once his hand returned to his side, he spoke, “Hello, sister-in-law. I’m Wei Litao, a soldier formerly under Commander Xia. Please trust that we will successfully find Commander Xia.”

“Thank you,” Zhan Niantong replied, her voice choked with emotion. She bravely lifted her head to look at the handsome Wei Litao, her voice small but unusually firm, “I have a request. I want to go down there too.”

“This…” The request put him in a difficult position. The sinkhole was steep and dangerous, and without rigorous climbing training, no one dared to descend. If anything happened to her, how could he face Commander Xia?

Wei Litao glanced at Xing Chengyi, who had fought alongside him in the army and was Commander Xia’s cousin, making him the best person to persuade her.

Xing Chengyi noticed Wei Litao’s dilemma and stepped forward. Contrary to expectations, he said, “My sister-in-law has won the university women’s martial arts championship twice. Trust her, and trust me. I will ensure her safety.”

He had descended the sinkhole before and knew how treacherous and difficult it was to climb. But if she wasn’t allowed to go down, how could she endure the long wait filled with anxiety and fear? Moreover, he believed in the spiritual connection between husband and wife; perhaps she could really find him.

A flicker of surprise passed through Wei Litao’s steady eyes, quickly replaced by resolve. He punched Xing Chengyi’s shoulder in a simple yet sincere gesture of brotherly trust. “Be careful.”

With that, he turned to his comrades and returned with two sets of military-grade climbing gear and ropes, handing them to Xing Chengyi. He also gave him two small, transparent patches, “These are trackers. With them, we can always know your exact location.”

The air force team lived up to their reputation as an elite unit. Their equipment and personnel were top-notch. By the time Xing Chengyi and Zhan Niantong had changed into their climbing gear, the soldiers had already assigned tasks, and those designated for climbing had begun their descent.

The sky had turned completely dark, and from the edge of the cliff, one could see bright white lights moving steadily downward along the cliff face.

“Sister-in-law, I’m below you. Follow me,” Xing Chengyi called as he began his descent, moving down the rope step by step.

Looking at the bottomless sinkhole, Zhan Niantong took a deep breath, tightened her grip on the rope, and turned around to follow step by step downwards.

The sinkhole was vast and seemingly endless, making the search for two people akin to finding a needle in a haystack. As time ticked by, they had been climbing along the cliffside for three hours without a shred of news.

The confidence that had been rebuilt earlier was slowly being eroded away.

Not to mention the possibility of someone falling from such a height into the sinkhole and being shattered to pieces. Even if they were lucky enough to land on a tree branch and survive, nearly three days without food or water, possibly severely injured, raised a significant question of whether they could still hold on.

The longer the search dragged on, the more hope faded, weighing heavily on everyone’s hearts. Despite having searched for three hours, no one dared to relax for even a moment.

“Ah…” Suddenly, the stone beneath Niantong’s foot loosened and fell, causing her to lose her balance and start to tumble down.

“Sister-in-law…” Xing Chengyi, who was below her, was startled and quickly reached out, grabbing her arm and pulling her securely against the cliff face. “Hold steady.”

“Okay.” Niantong hung on the edge of the cliff, taking a couple of shaky breaths before calming down. Her other arm, which was strapped with a flashlight, swung in an arc, casting light across the cliff face below. She found a stone, slowly placing her foot on it, and firmly grasped the rope with both hands.

Xing Chengyi hurriedly climbed down a few steps, positioning himself behind Niantong once again. Watching his young sister-in-law endure such hardship without a moment’s rest for three hours, even a man would struggle to keep up, let alone a delicate woman like her. In this pitch-black night, climbing along the dark cliffside, inspecting shadowy objects, even a sudden appearance of an animal could make one’s heart skip a beat. Yet she showed no fear, an astonishing and admirable feat!

What he didn’t know was that for Niantong, nothing was more terrifying than not finding her husband.

Unable to resist, he suggested, “Sister-in-law, there’s a larger stone below. Why don’t we take a break?”

“No.” Niantong had already steadied herself against the cliff again, but her heart continued to race uncontrollably, even accelerating. She couldn’t help but place her hand over her chest, feeling the rapid beating. “Chengyi, my heart is racing so fast!”

An inexplicable emotion surged from within, causing her eyes to suddenly well up in the darkness. She abruptly lifted her head, forgetting to use the flashlight, letting her eyes search around in the dark.

“Sister-in-law, what’s wrong?” Xing Chengyi noticed her unusual behavior and asked urgently.

Niantong’s heart was about to leap out of her chest. “I don’t know, I feel like he’s nearby, he must be nearby.” Silent tears slipped down her face as she searched eagerly with her eyes. With each corner she scanned, the trembling in her heart grew more intense.

Xing Chengyi’s heart leapt with hope at her words. He quickly reminded, “Sister-in-law, use the flashlight.” He had always trusted her instincts, believing in the mysterious connection between husband and wife. He raised his flashlight, his eyes sharp and searching through the night.

“Yes, yes…” Niantong snapped back to reality, her wrist flicking as she aimed the beam in the direction her gaze had locked onto.

A sudden burst of dazzling white light pierced through the dense foliage, and Niantong’s pupils dilated dramatically, fixed on the discolored branch. “There, over there…”

She clearly saw a splash of blood red on the gray tree trunk.

Her heart clenched tightly, and she was so focused on reaching that spot that she barely noticed she was on a precarious cliff edge, ready to rush forward regardless of the danger.

Xing Chengyi was startled, but his quick reflexes from childhood kicked in, and he grabbed his impulsive sister-in-law. “Sister-in-law, be careful. Let’s make sure before we go over.”

Niantong calmed down, and two beams of light simultaneously shot towards the spot. They didn’t find the person they were hoping for there, but the light followed the trail of blood down to a dense pine tree below, where she found the person she had been desperately searching for.

It was a scene of complete shock.

Xia Zhennan lay motionless on the tree trunk, his shoulders drooping downwards, revealing his blood-stained arms tightly gripping another man-Stevens. Stevens stood on a slender branch, his hands held firmly by Xia Zhennan, the two maintaining a precarious balance, a single misstep threatening to send them plummeting.

“Husband…” The word caught in her throat, Niantong clutched the rope tightly, inching carefully towards the northwest.

“Sister-in-law, be cautious.” Xing Chengyi, too, saw Xia Zhennan sprawled on the tree. Amidst his shock and joy, he remained rational, immediately contacting the main team. “Report, report, we’ve found them. The situation is critical, helicopter rescue needed.”

“Report received.” Wei Litao on the aircraft received the message, mobilizing all helicopters and cliff-descending comrades towards the same location.

The twenty meters felt like a thousand miles, Niantong felt as if she had traversed an eternity. Finally, she reached the side of the pine tree, seeing her injured husband not far away, yet unable to approach him. She dared not act rashly or call out loudly, fearing her sudden shout might wake him and disrupt the fragile balance. She could only watch him intently, silently calling his name in her heart, urging him, “Husband, I’m here, hold on.”

Soon, helicopters circled overhead, witnessing the heart-stopping scene.

The rescue operation commenced without delay.

Due to the dense branches of the pine, the helicopter couldn’t descend to their location. Instead, ladders were lowered, and soldiers climbed down to the tree trunk. After nearly ten minutes of rescue efforts, several soldiers managed to bring both men down and swiftly transported them to the helicopter.

“I need to go too,” Niantong insisted, her heart racing with anxiety. Though her husband had been rescued from danger, his condition was still uncertain. Her heart continued to pound with worry, unable to rest until she was by his side.