As soon as Shen Fei spoke, she hesitated.
After all, this wasn't near the school where locals repeatedly swept, nor was it near the Aircrew Base where even carrying a gun might not guarantee safety.
"Teacher Shen, let's wait until daylight," Chen Fei suggested, considering this as well.
Compared to daytime, the mountains and wilderness under the cover of night seemed like two completely different worlds, where most of the roaming carnivores were nocturnal. Walking alone at night was likely to attract these predators.
"Don't worry, a helicopter will take you there, it's on its way."
Hanna Gagar pointed in the direction of the airforce base, where a Z-9 armed helicopter had already taken off and would soon arrive at the cave's location.
Half an hour later, the "Genuine Fragrance" Combat Flight Squadron's "Miso" Yamada Yuhu arrived in a Z-9 armed helicopter, which, guided by flashlight beams on the ground, landed smoothly; two base security personnel came along with him.
Not only did Chen Fei and Shen Fei board the helicopter to leave together, but also some organized seized materials and an underling of the executive manager.
The nearly full Z-9 armed helicopter first flew to Teacher Shen Fei's Patan Elementary School, and nearly jumped when it approached the brightly lit school from above.
Dozens of bonfires had lit up the area brightly; people inside and outside the school were numerous, each heavily armed.
As the Z-9 helicopter approached, it was instantly "focus fired" by numerous beams of light, frightening Yamada Yuhu and the co-pilot from getting any closer.
Shen Fei vaguely recognized some familiar figures and hurriedly shouted, "They are students' parents and students, not enemies!"
The school was suddenly attacked during the day, affecting many students with disabling bombs. Parents and other locals came from all sides, armed, to defend the school and coordinate with the personnel from the airforce base in searching for the remaining armed forces.
Even local bandits joined in—no parent didn't want their child to succeed.
The local people were nearly bursting with anger at the kidnapping of the only local schoolteacher, almost as if they had stirred up a hornet's nest, the crowd furiously indignant.
If it weren't for the airforce base's immediate reaction, and the newly appointed executive manager Hanna Gagel personally leading the rescue for Chen Fei and Shen Fei, the locals might have already reached the armed group's hideout in the caves, desperately attempting a rescue, which would have resulted in an uncontrollable chaotic battle.
"Unable to land, I can't see anything!"
Yamada Yuhu shouted, forced to increase the helicopter's altitude. This was a mountainous area, not a flat plain, and a slight mishap could lead to a crash.
The flashlights made the helicopter cabin as bright as day, filling his field of vision with blinding white light. Due to the fire, even switching to infrared thermal imaging was ineffective, completely disrupted by the massive heat reaction.
This is really... awkward!
In places without streetlights, flashlights were essential for night walks, almost a standard household item, sometimes even used to deter wild animals.
But now, the number of flashlights on the ground was far too many, more than one per person, some with particularly high light power, creating a qualitative change that focused beams like searchlights locked onto the helicopter, inescapable.
Not even executive manager Hanna Gagar likely anticipated that bringing Teacher Shen Fei back to her school would encounter such an ordeal.
"Figure out a way, tell them not to shine anymore!"
Seated near the cabin door, Chen Fei could hardly keep his eyes open.
"They can't hear us. Our people have already retreated to the base. If it doesn't work, we might as well head back," the co-pilot raised his voice to say.
If it weren't for the noise-cancelling headphones in the cabin, even communicating with each other would be arduous.
The person fixing the school's windows from the airforce base left a bit late; unfortunately, they had to rush back to continue organizing materials. They left immediately after replacing the windows without staying long.
Otherwise, they might have notified these locals on the ground, preventing the current situation of collectively shining flashlights at the helicopter, making a safe landing impossible.
"Open the cargo door; I'll try something."
Chen Fei tried his best to avoid the light from the ground.
"Be careful, 'Rookie'!"
Though Yamada Yuhu was unsure of how Chen Fei planned to stop the people on the ground from shining their flashlights at the helicopter, he chose to trust him. After all, it was worth a try, and if it didn't work, they could head back to the base.
Teacher Shen Fei was taken aback, puzzled as she looked at Chen Fei, not seeing any indication of being unskilled.
Yamada Yuhu chuckled as he introduced Teacher Shen, "Teacher Shen, this guy's flight code is 'Rookie'!"
The security personnel at the base attached a movable safety belt to Chen Fei to prevent him from accidentally falling out of the cabin, and then they finally opened the cabin door.
As soon as the cabin door opened, a more intense, more blinding light shone in, causing everyone inside to involuntarily raise their hands to block the glaring light coming towards them.
A burst of shouting erupted from the ground, at times even drowning out the huge roaring sound of the helicopter blades stirring the air.
Chen Fei tightly closed his eyes, moved to the cabin door, waved his hands towards the ground below, and then pointed to his own eyes, hoping someone would understand.
The ground was noisy for a while, until finally, someone smart caught on.
The number of flashlights pointing at the helicopter decreased, and after extinguishing a few bonfires, the crowd began to disperse, making the normally crowded school front yard immediately become spacious.
Those remaining formed a large circle, pointing their flashlight beams towards the ground inside the yard, creating a bright circular landing area.
Yamada Yuhu, piloting the Z-9 armed helicopter, cast landing boundary light beams onto the ground, perfectly within the range of the landing area, and he finally relaxed.
"It's ready! Prepare for landing!"
This time, the helicopter, undisturbed, gradually lowered its altitude and soon landed smoothly.
Finally reaching her destination, Teacher Shen Fei jumped out of the helicopter and was quickly surrounded tightly by the visibly excited Patan people, yet she still did not forget to turn around, facing the wind whipped up by the blades, and vigorously waved goodbye to the helicopter as it took off again.
The locals also waved their arms at the helicopter, watching the Z-9 armed helicopter flashing its navigation lights as it turned away and rapidly disappeared. They then shifted their attention back to Teacher Shen Fei.
The scene was buzzing with people talking all at once, swarming not only students but also adults, all very concerned about her condition.
"Teacher, teacher, are you hurt?"
"Those bastards didn't mess with you, did they?"
"The people from 911 fixed the windows, the school is like new again."
"The students are unharmed, they're all fine, don't worry!"
"Make way, don't crowd Teacher Shen."
"Quiet! Everyone, please be quiet! Let me say a few words..."
Teacher Shen Fei took a deep breath, gestured downwards with her hands, and everyone gradually quieted down.
She inevitably had to talk again, finally reassuring the locals from nearby villages, who gradually dispersed.
It was foreseeable that for a long time to come, the locals would spontaneously strengthen patrols near the school to prevent such incidents from happening again.
The opportunity for the children to learn was truly hard to come by.
No one wanted to see anything happen to the only good teacher left, and they would spare no effort, even at the risk of their own lives, to prevent it.
The Z-9 armed helicopter passing over Patan Elementary School returned to the Aircrew Base at three in the morning, and it would be dawn in just a few hours.
Disembarking from the helicopter, Chen Fei felt a bit dizzy, too rushed to retrieve his Little Bird from Chef Abel, and decided to head back to his dormitory to catch up on some sleep first.
Leaving the tarmac, he had only walked a few steps when someone hurriedly intercepted him.
"Chen Fei, wait a moment."
"Is there something wrong?"
Chen Fei looked at the other person with confusion.
Don't recognize, never seen them before!