Back in the 1980s, hiking in the mountains was also a way of life

Upon hearing this, Wu Dong's eyes lit up, and he immediately said:

"Let's go over there and see what's going on."

After saying that, Wu Dong, led by the soldier, walked towards the hillside, and his entourage followed immediately.

Soon, Wu Dong and the others appeared beside the very thick, fallen tree.

The middle of this fallen tree has been hollowed out, and the whole tree has become shaped like a trough. It was used as a cover to cover the pit before.

However, the fallen tree had already been moved aside by the soldiers, and all that could be seen was a pit covered by the fallen tree.

This pit is more than two meters long, more than one meter wide, and about one and a half meters deep. At one end of the pit, there is a circular opening, which is only about seventy or eighty centimeters in diameter and looks like a dog hole.

The dog hole looked bottomless, and nobody knew what was inside or what dangers lurked within.

The fact that the ground beneath the dog hole has been worn smooth indicates that people frequently use it, albeit by crawling rather than walking.

The main problem is that the dog hole is only this high; even an adult would bump their head if they crouched down to crawl in. There's no other way to get through except by crawling.

As Wu Dong was pondering over the dog hole, the team leader stepped forward and said:

"Chief Bu, let me take some men in to take a look. If there are any survivors, I think they're hiding in here."

Wu Dong turned to look at the team leader, pondered for a moment, and then said decisively:
"No, absolutely not. If someone is lying in ambush inside, that would be too dangerous."

The team leader raised his head, his face full of determination, and said:

"Chief Bu, if there really is someone hiding inside, I can just catch him. But if I die, then..."

However, before the team leader could finish speaking, Wu Dong frowned and interrupted him firmly, saying:

"Alright, alright, I said no, and that's final. You're just supporting some bandit and risking your life? That's utter nonsense. Besides, what's a bandit's worth anyway? Do you think it's easy for the organization to train you? You're just spouting rubbish."

It must be admitted that the unknown is the most dreaded thing. What if there are armed bandits lying in ambush in this cave, or there are landmines or traps, and the soldiers unknowingly walk in? The result would be very tragic.

As their highest leader, Wu Dong was naturally responsible for their safety.

After Wu Dong finished speaking, the team leader didn't say anything, but he still had a brave and fearless expression. It was clear that he didn't care about his own life or safety at all.

It has to be said that the soldiers of China are absolutely the most lovable people.

Wu Dong glared at the team leader again, still not satisfied, then pointed to the pit and said to the team leader:
"Go and take a few people to fetch some firewood, a lot of it, and light it in this pit."

Turning his head, Wu Dong instructed the others:

“You guys, go cut a few bundles of pine branches. Once the fire is lit, cover it with the pine branches and then smother the smoke in this cave. Damn it, I don’t believe the people inside can still hide.”

To be honest, Wu Dong is actually quite cunning; he came up with the idea of ​​using smoke so quickly.

If bandits were hiding inside, they absolutely couldn't stand the thick smoke emitted by burning fresh pine branches. Of course, it wasn't just bandits; no one could stand it, and neither could animals.

But as soon as Wu Dong finished speaking, Lao Bai hesitated and said:

"If we do it like that, the smoke inside the cave won't dissipate in time, and then no one will be able to go in anymore. It will be difficult for our people to get in then."

Upon hearing this, Wu Dong pursed his lips, hesitated for a moment, and then said firmly:
"We can't worry about that now. I didn't plan to let anyone in anyway. Besides, what if there are landmines or bombs inside? We can't let our brothers risk their lives."

After a pause, Wu Dong continued:
“I always felt that there should be a tunnel in this cave. Those bandits must have run away long ago after hearing the noise. It’s okay, let’s smoke it out and find out where the tunnels lead.”

After Wu Dong finished speaking, the group of soldiers took their orders and left.

Soldiers are incredibly efficient at their work, so in just over ten minutes, the pit was filled with firewood to more than half full.

At Wu Dong's command, the firewood in the pit was lit.

Perhaps because of the ventilation in the cave, the firewood in the pit was all burning in just a short while, and the flames were leaping quite high.

Just when about a third of all the branches had burned, and the fire was at its fiercest and the temperature in the pit was at its highest, Wu Dong finally had the soldiers throw fresh pine branches into the pit.

The moment the blazing flames were extinguished, thick smoke billowed out of the pit.

Those standing around the pit immediately felt they couldn't take it anymore.

But Wu Dong called out:
"Quickly, quickly move that fallen tree back and cover this big pit."

Several soldiers standing nearby stepped forward and together moved the fallen trees, covering the large, smoking pit.

However, there were holes in the fallen trees and gaps where they connected to the ground, from which thick smoke billowed out.

So everyone dug and covered the soil again, finally blocking all the places that could still be smoking.

As the smoky areas were blocked, a thick plume of smoke rose from a spot about seven or eight meters up the hillside extending from the cave entrance, where several rocks were located.

Clearly, Wu Dong's guess was correct; the hole was indeed a tunnel, and the smoke coming from was the tunnel's ventilation shaft.

A few moments later, about seven or eight meters up the slope from where the smoke was coming from, another spot started to smoke.

Upon seeing this, Wu Dong immediately gave the order:

"A line of men will stand guard here. If anyone comes out, capture them alive if you can. If you can't capture them alive, shoot them dead. The rest of you, come with me."

And so, Wu Dong led his men up the hill, following the smoke-filled ventilation shafts, blocking each one they encountered to make the smoke in the tunnels even thicker, so that if there were people inside, it would be even more unbearable.

Of course, these are all just minor details.

But as they walked, they discovered that the ventilation shafts had branched out, meaning the tunnel had also branched out! (End of Chapter)