Chapter 392

Su Xiaoxiao smiled sheepishly. “It’s nothing. I just saw a little Lingzhi mushroom growing under that tree and thought I could take it back to plant later.”
“Searching the mountain is quite exhausting. Comrade Su, you can wait for us at the brigade; it might be very late before we return tonight,” Xu Chengzhi suggested, feeling guilty for taking up her time.
But now that they were here, Su Xiaoxiao had no intention of giving up halfway.
“I’m not tired; I’ll stay and help you find her. Once we bring her back, I can dig up the herbs I saw.”
Xu Chengzhi looked a bit worried at Su Hongchen and Jiang Yexun, who were also watching Su Xiaoxiao.
Seeing that she showed no signs of fatigue, both were surprised by her stamina.
However, they quickly felt astonished at their own bodies—after climbing for nearly three hours, they felt nothing at all.
While they had good endurance, it was impossible not to feel even a little tired after such a long hike.
But now wasn’t the time to ponder how their bodies had changed.

“Let’s keep looking together. If my sister gets tired, Yexun and I will take her back down,” Su Hongchen said, looking at Xu Chengzhi.
Xu Chengzhi knew how much they valued Su Xiaoxiao, so with their agreement, he had no reason to oppose.
Moreover, because Su Xiaoxiao had given them several hints previously, he felt particularly confident just by bringing her along.
The group, along with the three military dogs, trudged up the mountain, but by the time they reached the top, they still hadn’t found Lin Hanshui.
They all stopped at the summit, frowning as they looked at the shaded area on the backside of the mountain.
“How could such a small girl run away so quickly?” Xu Chengzhi said, a bit frustrated.
They hadn’t encountered any wild animals while climbing, which indicated that the more ferocious beasts had likely hidden away on the other side.
The shade would also mean more snakes, insects, and rodents, naturally increasing the danger.
But Lin Hanshui was a spy; she might be hiding some big secret, and they couldn’t afford to let her escape.
“Hongchen, why don’t you take your sister back? It’s too dangerous further on,” Xu Chengzhi proposed.
“Okay!” Su Hongchen readily agreed.
Su Xiaoxiao immediately grew anxious.
Just as she was about to say something, the three military dogs suddenly ran off in the same direction.
Clearly, they had picked up on something.
“Brother, she must be hiding nearby! Let’s hurry and check it out!” Su Xiaoxiao urged, pulling Su Hongchen’s hand as if afraid he would refuse.
Jiang Yexun followed behind them, his expression growing dark and heavy.
Though he knew that Xiaoxiao was very close to her brother, it wasn’t appropriate for them to be too affectionate in public, especially since they were about to get married.

However, their intimacy had been lacking lately.
Moreover, Jiang Yexun could clearly sense that Xiaoxiao was deliberately maintaining some distance from him in front of others.
With only six days until their wedding, this left him feeling particularly uneasy.
But now wasn’t the time to dwell on that. Taking a deep breath, Jiang Yexun hurried to catch up with them.
The twenty-some people followed the military dogs through the thicket of thorns, finally discovering a well-hidden cave covered in weeds deep inside.
They turned on their flashlights, gripping their guns tightly as they cautiously ventured inside.