“Lin Mo, you’re good. You can even find them like this!” Chen Haiqing, who was in the same group as Lin Mo, felt sincere admiration for him. As expected, Lin Mo isn’t as simple as he appears, Chen Haiqing thought.
He knew clearly that with the fast speed of the jet fighter and the unpredictable low-altitude turbulence of the Gobi Desert, they could not go too close to the ground. It was no mean feat to find the target from the sky above the vast Gobi. The longer he knew Lin Mo, the more he felt that Lin Mo was born for the sky. If the cadets selected with them initially witnessed Lin Mo’s current flying skills, they would probably overturn their opinion that Lin Mo only had exceptional physical fitness.
Lin Mo pushed open the bulletproof glass cockpit canopy. When he took off his helmet, he heard the voice that was green with envy from Chen Haiqing, who had climbed out of the cockpit. After pulling the safety belt off and pushing open the canopy with both hands, he ejected like a spring. He did not even have to climb the ladders as he jumped out nimbly like a swallow and landed on the ground steadily. After taking a few steps, he punched Chen Haiqing and smiled. “Luck is also a part of strength. It was just a coincidence that I found them. Otherwise, it really wouldn’t have been easy.”
“Second Lieutenant Lin, Second Lieutenant Chen, thank you so much for your help this time!” The director of the communications department at the airport participating in the rescue command greeted Lin Mo and Chen Haiqing with a wide smile.
Not long after Lin Mo discovered the expedition team, two transport helicopters of an Army aviation brigade closest to the Junggar Gobi immediately set off. Following the beacon launched by Lin Mo, they successfully found the dying expedition team two hours later. Lin Mo and the others successfully completed the search mission.
Time and tide waited for no man, and the lives of the expedition team life had already entered the countdown. If not for the two Chengdu J-10s’ carpet search, it would have really not been easy to find this expedition team in the vast Gobi.
Taking advantage of the lively scene of welcoming the search and rescue heroes upon their return, an Air Force senior colonel quietly pulled Lin Mo by the shoulder and said extremely affectionately with a voice that only they could hear, “Second Lieutenant Lin! Are you interested in joining the 7th base of our Northwest Military Region? We have first-class equipment, and most of them are brand new machines. I will give you double the salary, oh no, ten times, ace treatment, and allocation of housing. If you have a girlfriend, I can help transfer her to a state-owned enterprise, and being a civil servant is also on the table. If you don’t have a girlfriend, you can take your pick from our ladies of the Northwest Military Region!” Alas, a confusing sugar-coated bomb was thrown over. He was obviously trying to poach!
As soon as the rescue helicopters found the expedition team, they confirmed the number of people and the physical conditions reported by Lin Mo was exactly the same as the real situation. In the eyes of this senior colonel, having this superhuman vision and judgment ability meant he was practically a seed of a future ace pilot.
What was the first medical examination for pilots? Vision!
At any rate, he was a senior colonel, while Lin Mo was a rookie who had just joined the Air Force for less than a year. The difference in rank was so high that no matter how blatant the poaching was, Lin Mo had to give him some face. He cleared this throat and said, “Uh! I personally have no opinion, and it requires our leaders to approve!” He kicked this ball back calmly. If he were really greedy for all this treatment, he would probably have to face all the harsh finger-pointing behind his back from his brothers.
The senior colonel grinned and patted Lin Mo’s shoulders vigorously while thinking that Lin Mo was attracted by the offer and continued to assure him, “As soon as you come to my place, I’ll promote you. How about that? As long as your performance is good, it won’t be difficult for you to be promoted to senior officer in three years!”
The carrot that this senior colonel comrade was dangling before him was not small. The average young man would probably be head over heels by the offer and agreeing to it excitedly. But Lin Mo only blinked a few times and calmly dealt with it with a few mild words. This caused the senior colonel to be confused over his poaching tactics, feeling that he had punched empty air and having a weird sense of helplessness.
It was not like Lin Mo had never encountered such poaching before. The spies of the enemy countries in the other world had also tried to bribe Dragon Knights and attempted to induce them into defecting. But they were all, without exception, turned into minced meat by the Giant Dragons. A luxurious life surrounded by money and beauties was indeed good, but no matter how strong a person was, they were insignificant in war.
The defectors would always be isolated and nailed to the pillar of shame. There would be hidden rifts, no matter how they blended into a new team. Moreover, how could a knight who regarded their honor as their life bear the name of a traitor being branded on them? Dealing with this kind of poaching was naturally child’s play for the Dragon Knight.
“Veteran, definitely a veteran!” the senior colonel mumbled a few words. Lin Mo’s performance made him feel that he had misjudged him.
Although the vehicle sent by the expedition team to search for rescue had found the government, it had lost its way back to the Gobi Desert. The local government and the relevant departments immediately became alarmed. After all, expeditions in the Gobi were dangerous. The local government had asked the military for help while also launching a limited amount of manpower and resources for the search and rescue. Thus, Lin Mo and Chen Haiqing were roped in, and the two young men piloted their Chengdu J-10s to help the search. The military had a specialized process for dealing with these kinds of life-threatening incidents, and the aftermath of the rescue tugged at the hearts of both the Chinese and Americans.
Lin Mo and Chen Haiqing had successfully completed their mission in less than a day. The rescue operation that clenched the hearts of the relevant personnel of both China and the United States were undoubtedly relieved at the same time. It was a happy ending for everyone, and the Air Force was duly recognized for its contribution.
The rescue center and the airport were not in the same place. The rescued expedition team members were transported by the Army transport helicopters to another place for treatment. The airport cafeteria where Lin Mo and Chen Haiqing landed prepared a sumptuous dinner. In this remote Gobi base where greenhouse vegetables could not be grown, all the fresh meat and vegetables on the table had been airlifted.
The senior colonel who had attempted to recruit Lin Mo intended to use the strong northwestern alcohol to get both Lin Mo and Chen Haiqing drunk. He told them to rest assured, eat and drink all they wanted, and take a good shower and sleep. After a good rest, they could leave the next day. No one knew what he was thinking in secret. However, Lin Mo insisted on returning to the base as soon as possible and could not drink since he was going to fly. At this moment, it just so happened that Chicken Nest sent a message requesting Lin Mo and Chen Haiqing to rush back to the base overnight, allowing Lin Mo and Chen Haiqing to escape promptly.
Night fell. Under the direction of the runway lights, Lin Mo and Chen Haiqing took off with the refueled Chengdu J-10s to return home.
It was pitch black outside the cockpit. Only the signal lights on the ends of both wings and the tail were flashing. At this time, at an altitude of nine thousand meters, the temperature outside the cabin had reached -37°C, but the atmospheric visibility was excellent. Occasionally, when flying over the village and town roads, they could see the light stripes on the ground that looked like pearl necklaces. For Lin Mo, who had flown several night flights, he did not have to worry about getting lost under the guidance of specific landmark lights on the ground and military satellite navigation. He had already acquired the experience of flying just by looking at the instrument panel data.
Lin Mo led as the number 11 aircraft, and Chen Haiqing, as the number 9 wingman, was parallel to Lin Mo one hundred meters away, cruising in a two-plane formation. As the J-10s had been officially equipped by the Air Force, these two formal pilots, who had been carefully selected, were able to operate these two metal war eagles that weighed twelve tons each with ease.
“Reporting to Chicken Nest! Reaching home in forty-seven minutes.” Chen Haiqing was responsible for communicating with the base.
“Copy! Please continue to maintain course!” replied the base’s tower, Chicken Nest. There had always been four shifts in the tower, with each shift lasting six hours, ensuring that the tower had staff twenty-four hours a day. Even if there were no flight missions, it still had staff 365 days a year without exception.
Sizz~! Electronic noise ran in Lin Mo’s aviation helmet’s headset, which was normally a sign that another party had initiated a call.
“Chicken Nest calling Gold Coin. Chicken Nest calling Gold Coin!”
“Gold Coin copy!” Lin Mo answered. He turned his head to look at his number 9 wingman not far away. Chen Haiqing did not notice anything and was still concentrating on flying. It seemed that it was a call to Lin Mo alone.
“Please note that this is a special order. Coordinates XX degree east longitude, XX degree north latitude. Land on the G315 highway section loaded with live ammunition. The mission details will be handed over to you upon arrival. The temporary contact verification code for the mission is K85AW5. The channel is XXXX. The encrypted segment is 7445. Please note that the take-off and landing time is only forty-five minutes. This mission is to be completed by you alone. Please pay attention to confidentiality and discipline. Once again, this is a special order. Does it need repeating?!”