The little star from the Gobi Desert, handed over to the state, is hailed as a national treasure.

"There's something?" Brigade Commander Bai's spirits lifted. It's good that there's something. Little Lucky Star is always right and has never failed. He just doesn't know what kind of treasure is under the crater created by the plane.

"Guards! Send the order to speed up the cleanup!"

"yes!"

The other soldiers received orders and rushed forward to help. Soon, the open flames were completely extinguished, and all hidden ignition points and potential hazards were eliminated one by one.

"Report: The fire has been extinguished, and the site is safe!"

"Get the entrenching tools and dig out the sand pits around the crash site!" Brigade Commander Bai ordered.

The helicopter wreckage was heavy and couldn't be moved immediately, but widening the pit, which was more than a meter deep, wasn't a difficult task.

The soldiers wielded their entrenching tools and dug furiously into the sand pit, soon digging several tens of centimeters deep.

Suddenly, a sharp "clang" rang out—

It was the sound of a shovel tip violently rubbing against some hard object.

"There's something! There really is something!"

The soldiers shouted excitedly, and amidst the cheers, they swung their shovels even faster.

A larger area was quickly cleared. However, when everyone saw what was revealed beneath their feet, they looked at each other in astonishment.

"this……"

One of the soldiers scratched his head, looking puzzled.

Some people were still not giving up. They squatted down and tapped the shovel with the edge of their shovel, their expressions becoming increasingly strange.

"What's going on?" Commander Bai approached with Tian Tian in his arms, his gaze falling on the bottom of the pit, and he couldn't help but be taken aback.

Beneath my feet was a hard, solid surface made of gravel and rammed earth, completely different from the soft sand around me.

Commander Bai stomped his foot hard, then measured the edge the soldiers had dug out. Gradually, his gaze became serious.

"Something's not right." He looked at Liang Zhe, Song Dazhuang, and the others who had gathered around him. "I'm old, my eyesight isn't what it used to be. Look at this, doesn't it look like a completed roadbed?"

Liang Zhe had already sensed something was amiss; his intuition told him that this was definitely not a naturally formed landform.

"Brigade Commander, let me expand to both sides a bit more."

He took an entrenching tool and started digging along the edge of the sand. After digging a few times, the tip of the tool hit a hard piece of iron with a "clang".

The crowd immediately gathered around with flashlights; it turned out to be a road sign covered in rust. Carefully brushing away the dust, a few blurry Chinese characters could be vaguely discerned:

"The post road outside the pass... was built in the 18th year of Showa".

"Showa 18..." Commander Bai repeated softly, and from these words, he could feel a long-lost sense of historical weight.

"The Japanese built this road?"

Most of the soldiers present were young, many of whom had not experienced that brutal war. One of them asked curiously, "Commander, what year is this?"

"1943," Brigade Commander Bai said in a somber voice, "almost twenty years ago."

He stroked the weathered road sign, his thoughts drifting away to a long-standing legend.

Back then, the Japanese devils ran rampant, not only burning, killing, looting and committing all sorts of atrocities on the land of Great Xia, but also venturing deep into the heart of the northwestern desert, frantically searching for the "holy land treasure" they imagined.

Legend has it that they actually found an ancient city buried under the yellow sand deep in the desert, filled with enormous wealth left over from the previous dynasty.

In order to transport these treasures out of the desert smoothly, the Japanese secretly allocated a large amount of manpower and resources to build a military transport route.

In order to avoid exposure and international condemnation, the matter was carried out secretly and never mentioned to the outside world.

Just as the road construction was nearing completion, the battle situation suddenly took a sharp turn for the worse. The Japanese troops suffered repeated defeats on the front lines, and the mission to transport the treasure was forced to stop.

This transportation route, which had required countless efforts, was buried by sandstorms and became a secret that had been sealed for decades.

No one expected that, in such an almost bizarre coincidence, the crash of the enemy's helicopter would bring this long-buried secret back to light!

Commander Bai suppressed the turmoil in his heart and beckoned over the communications soldier.

"Send the precise coordinates of this location back to base. Notify the technical department to bring their equipment first thing tomorrow morning and thoroughly investigate."

He paused, his voice trembling with excitement, "Comrades, I have great news to share! We may have discovered a well-preserved military roadbed!"

Just recently, the base leadership passed a resolution to include the construction of roads as a long-term plan in preparation for the future transportation of heavy missile components, off-site target practice, and rapid troop deployment.

However, road construction projects are extremely difficult, requiring not only specialized tools and personnel, but also a great deal of effort, and the budget is astronomical.

And now, this ready-made road has actually been delivered to them in such an unexpected way, thanks to the base's unique "good fortune"!

This is a godsend!

The soldiers were all overjoyed when they heard the news.

"Commander, that's great! Although the Japanese devils are bastards, they left us something good."

"In the future, when we transport large items, can we use this route? Looking at this direction, it's not a long detour to the base."

"Hey, look at this road! It's wide enough for four Dongfeng trucks to drive side by side!"

"Alright! Stop shouting!" Brigade Commander Bai clapped his hands, interrupting everyone's chatter.

"Don't get too excited yet. Whether this road is usable, how long it is, and how far it will extend are all unknowns. Experts need to survey it first."

Liang Zhe nodded. "Fortunately, Professor Zheng Hong is no longer in serious condition and can continue to preside over the work. With him here, we will definitely be able to find out the details of this road as soon as possible."

"That's right," Commander Bai waved his hand, "Let's head back to base immediately and report this fantastic news to the higher-ups before they rest!"

As he spoke, he couldn't help but lift Tian Tian up a little higher. The little girl was amused by this sudden action and giggled, her pigtails swaying in the air.

"Good boy, you've done a great job for our base again! Come back with Grandpa, and your Uncle Big Mouth will cook you lots of delicious food!"

At 9:30 p.m., the base was still brightly lit.

Commander Liu, Professor Qian, Chief Designer Wang, and many other leaders stood guard outside the base gate, constantly gazing into the distance.

"Achoo!"

A gust of wind blew by, and Professor Qian couldn't help but sneeze. The bodyguard next to him quickly handed him the thermos he had been holding to his chest. "Professor Qian, have some hot water to warm yourself up."

Professor Qian took the baby and sipped it. Commander Liu advised, "Don't wait in the wind. I promise I'll deliver the baby to you safely tomorrow morning. Nothing will happen."

Professor Qian smiled and said, "It's alright, I'm not sleepy. I feel at ease waiting with everyone."

"Professor Qian, please put on this scarf." Chief Designer Wang took off his own scarf and wrapped it around Professor Qian's neck without saying a word. "You stay up late every day, so you need to take better care of your health."

"Oh, Lao Wang, I'm not that delicate." Professor Qian couldn't refuse, so he had to tighten his scarf a little.

The crowd paced back and forth in front of the gate, chatting idly, but their hearts were all preoccupied with that small figure.

Sweetie's disappearance lasted only a day, but to them it felt like several days.

Just as everyone was still eagerly anticipating what was to come, in the distance, a dazzling sea of ​​headlights, accompanied by the roar of engines, sped toward the base.