Chapter 8 Chapter 7 The Sun Made of Corpses

In late March 1900, the expedition team led by the young Swedish explorer Sven Hedin had already marched hard on the Robe Wasteland for more than ten days.Compared with the severe heat, hunger and thirst, and boundless loneliness in the desert, Sven Hedin's more painful feeling comes from the heart.The girl he loves has already married someone else, and he can only congratulate the girl he has loved all his life on her new marriage in the letter.And told her: "The best thing about the desert is that there are no people. Real men are lonely." The local guide with Sven Hedin is Aldek the Robb.They started from Liushiquan, the source of water, and advanced from north to south, searching for the miracle that they didn't know the end of in this vast desert. On the afternoon of March 28, the expedition team made a short stop when they passed an abandoned ancient Buddhist monastery.Here, Aldeck lost the expedition's only shovel.It was this crucial shovel, like a key abandoned by God, that opened the Loulan ruins that had been dormant for thousands of years.

On the way back to find the shovel, Aldeck got lost due to wind and sand, but unexpectedly discovered a confusing ancient city.He brought a souvenir - a beautiful engraving, and gave it to Sven Hedin.Sven Hedin did not return to check immediately, but directed the expedition to continue to follow the established route.But he promised Aldeck that he will definitely come back to visit that bewildering ancient city in this season next year. "Despite my struggles the previous spring, I was again drawn irresistibly to the mysterious realm beneath the eternal sands." Sven Hedin did not break his promise.

In 1901, Sven Hedin returned to Robe Moor.This time he was favored by the goddess of fate and walked to the Loulan ruins.The discovery of Loulan added the most important stroke to Sven Heding's glorious history of exploration.This seems to be an ancient city frozen in time, guarded by a huge pagoda, magnificent.In the moving sleeping city, there is a strange silence in the air.Sven Heding stood there for a long time, the wind and sand passing by his side, passing those happy or sad times, staying in the ruins of the ancient city. In 1909, Sven Hedin returned with a full load, and the Swedes gave him heroic courtesy.After Sven Hedin was finally reunited with his family, received by the king, and became a famous explorer, his heart was filled with deep and uncontrollable sorrow.Everyone is talking about him and welcoming him, but she is missing.

Throughout his life, Sven Hedin remained faithful to his lover, and continued his deep and desperate love until the grave. At the same time, after breaking up with Sven Hedin, Aldek the Robb started another long wait and expectation. There is a saying among the Rob people on the Rob wasteland that in the depths of the vast desert, where the devil and the gods dance together, there is a tomb with a thousand coffins buried.And Aldeck firmly believed that he had found the mysterious location of the "thousand coffins". He waited for Sven Hedin for thirty-three years just to tell him the secret himself.

Oldeke didn't wait for Sven Hedin, but eventually Sven Hedin's student Bergman came. In 1934, Aldeck was already a 72-year-old octogenarian. He and his companions took Bergmann into the area south of the Peacock River, trying to find the thousand-coffin mound that had been discovered.However, the journey was not smooth, and the people in the expedition fell ill one by one. What's worse, they lost their way in the wasteland full of Yadan and sand dunes. This is a real dream trip. Aldeck first dreamed of a ghost, and even after waking up, he was still troubled by the ghost.He kept talking all day, telling that the tomb of the thousand coffins had disappeared, and that there was a devil guarding the tomb of the thousand coffins, and anyone who tried to get close would be tortured and punished most severely.Bergman was completely desperate, and no longer believed that Aldeck had ever found the Thousand Coffins Tomb.Bergmann wandered aimlessly with the expedition to a tributary of the Peacock River, which he named "The Little River."In the sweltering heat of June, the expedition team suffered from mosquitoes and disappointment, and everyone's mood was the lowest.

Aldeck, whose name cannot be found in the history books, has rewritten the history of exploration of the Western Regions time and time again.He seems to be a scale that suddenly appeared at this turning point in time. God used his hand to precisely point to one of the most important ruins in the Lop Nur area.On that panting and maddening evening, when Bergman's team decided to camp for a rest, Aldeck's finger slowly pointed to a small hill in the distance. "It's there, where a thousand coffins are buried, where devils and gods dance together." Bergman led his team members along Aldek's hand and slowly walked towards the hill where countless poplar stakes stood.Although the Populus euphratica stake painted blood red has faded, it still has a shocking power against the backdrop of the setting sun.

"Oh my god..." The awe of death and silence can make people get lost in the quicksand of time in the boundless desert.Standing red poplar trees pointing to the sky, like life reaching out to ask the sky, it is still stubborn after thousands of years of wind and sand. Bergman looked at the red forest in front of him, unable to speak. Rather than saying that this is a tomb, it is better to say that this is a huge puzzle left to the world.Several layers of tombs stacked up and down, a large-scale system, and a large number of remains make this 3,800-year-old ancient tomb a gloomy and unbelievable miracle.

"This is the temple of death..." Bergman wrote in his memoirs, "This is a place abandoned by God. He has even forgotten that there were human beings struggling to survive here." Bergmann named the thousand-coffin mound "Little River Cemetery".He excavated 12 tombs and looted about 200 cultural relics.Since then, he has never set foot on this sandy land again. In 1935, the 18-member Northwest China Expedition Group had to be terminated due to the turmoil in the current situation and the missing of two members.During the 45 years from 1934 to 1979, the Xiaohe cemetery seemed to have disappeared into the sea of ​​sand, erased from the flow of time by a mysterious force.So far, no one has seen this "Palace of Death" again.This terrifying and shocking sleeping place of thousands of coffins is completely lost in the boundless dreamland.

In 1979, an archaeological expedition led by Mr. W entered Lop Nur.The expedition team was escorted by officers and soldiers of the People's Liberation Army sent by the Malan base. The main purpose of this expedition was to find the Xiaohe cemetery that disappeared in the sand sea. When it comes to the Malan base, perhaps many people don't know it very well.Malan used to be a place that was not on the map, and it got this gentle name only because of the blooming Malan flowers.With the release of partially declassified archives in China in recent years, people have gradually learned that this place, which was not engraved on the map, was once the famous atomic bomb test base of the Chinese government. In October 1964, a loud noise over Lop Nur announced the success of China's first atomic bomb test, and China thus entered the ranks of nuclear powers.In that era of hardships and internal and external troubles, the success of the atomic bomb became a pillar for the Chinese people to be strong and self-reliant in a sense.

The archaeological team led by Mr. W has a total of eight professionals, not including the officers and soldiers of the Malan army.After entering the Lop Nur area, the archaeological team divided into two groups, and searched for traces of the Xiaohe cemetery separately along the branch of the Kongque River.Tan Yundan was in the prime of his life at that time, and he was the darling of the archaeological team.Her two young colleagues, Zhong Weihong and Zha Haiyang, followed Mr. W's group to the fork in the lower reaches of the Kongque River. Needless to say, Zhong Weihong and Zha Haiyang both deeply love this smart and studious girl.She shines like the sun—beautiful, passionate, with a cool head and a strong will.They love Tan Yundan with restraint and apprehension, and silently do everything they can for her.In this unbearable desert, every day with Tan Yundan is full of sweetness.

Regrettably, Tan Yundan seems to have put all his energy on finding the Xiaohe cemetery site, and there is no sign of love for his children. Like Bergman's initial encounter, they lost their way in the maze-like desert.For two consecutive days, they always found that they had returned to the original point after exhausting searching. Not to mention finding Xiaohe cemetery, even getting out of this desert became a problem. Careful Tan Yundan discovered the problem. The compass seemed to be affected in some way, and the instructions were not accurate. Walking in the direction of the compass would only lead to a huge circle in the end.Under Tan Yundan's suggestion, Mr. W decided to give up using the compass and use the oldest positioning method of the sun and stars to identify the direction. One day later, they finally got out of the vicious circle of "ghosts hitting the wall".Although Xiaohe Cemetery was still missing, everyone breathed a sigh of relief after getting out of that place where they couldn't tell the direction. After a brief rest, the archaeological team continued to walk along the north bank of the lower reaches of the Kongque River.At this moment, the sharp-eyed Zha Haiyang suddenly saw that there seemed to be ancient relics on a slightly higher slope not far away.There seemed to be innumerable ring-shaped pile marks on that flat sandy terrain.Zha Haiyang was very excited, thinking that he had found the Xiaohe cemetery, even Mr. W ran over there. Of course, this is not the Xiaohe cemetery. We did not find the towering red Populus euphratica stakes pointing to the sky in Bergmann's records. The stakes here are only slightly higher than the surface.Disappointed, W and the students carefully observed the surface conditions here, mainly the arrangement of wooden piles. For Tan Yundan, the experience of these days is like a roller coaster, from high to low, and then from low to high, almost without any transition, she was thrown to the truth—first she lost her way, then thought she finally found the Xiaohe cemetery, Before being happy for a few minutes, he quickly denied this conclusion. Tan Yundan observed the surface in frustration, while doing surveying and mapping as she thought helplessly of the Xiaohe cemetery.However, as the observation deepened, this frustration was gradually replaced by an indescribable surprise.Then surprise turned to shock and bewilderment. Mr. W, Zhong Weihong, and Zha Haiyang beside her all looked at the miracle in trembling and bewilderment just like her.As more wooden stakes were found from the sand by the accompanying officers and soldiers, the accumulated sand was swept away, and in front of them, there were tombs surrounded by layers of wooden stakes one after another, as if the sun was shining on this land. Projection again and again. Human beings 3,800 years ago built 6 sun-shaped tombs with their own hands, precise measurements, strength, stakes and corpses! Everyone stopped working at the same time, straightened their backs, and stood in awe and fear in front of this strange resting place.Here, the end of life seems to be no longer death, but another form of transcendence.Looking down from a high altitude, these six tombs seem to be six tears that accidentally fell on this platform on the north bank of the Kongque River. 88°55' east longitude 40°40' north latitude This coordinate that Tan Yundan has remembered all his life is like a scorching pain, hidden in the deepest part of his heart. On this day, at this coordinate, the ancient tomb ditch cemetery that shocked China and the world was discovered.The clues are gradually connected, and Lop Nur's long-awaited pearl illuminates the way to the answer with a faint light.At that time, Tan Yundan didn't know that this road was so long and tortuous, and her and their fate would be completely rewritten because of it. The discovery of the Gumugou cemetery has become a unique discovery in the history of Chinese archaeology.No other burial has appeared in the eyes of the world in such a strange and shocking way.Many years later, when Tan Yundan had passed away and was no longer a young girl, but an accomplished porcelain appraiser in the Song Dynasty, he happened to see remains similar to the Sun Tomb in Gumugou again. She was invited to participate in an international academic seminar held in Wyoming, USA. By chance, she and her friends went to a certain mountain in the state to visit.On the top of this mountain, there is a huge perfect circle of stones that can only be viewed from an aerial view. Along the side of the perfect circle, there are six small circles of stones.Starting from the sideline, there are 28 stones arranged in the center of a big circle where ray-like straight lines gather—the center is a small circle that is piled up repeatedly. A friend said that in 1979, American archaeologists confirmed the discovery of this puzzling accumulation of stones.The American Journal of Archeology filmed and reported in the same year with excitement.At that time, this labyrinth of stones was called the "Great Horn Witchcraft Wheel" by the Indians. Tan Yundan listened to his friend talking in a trance and in a daze: "This archaeological discovery made us realize that the Indians have mastered an extraordinary method of astronomical observation. My dear, when you pass through the central stone reel from a group of stones in the southwest, You can see the sunrise on the summer solstice. From another stone pile in the south towards the direction of the central stone pile mark, guess what?" Tan Yundan looked at him, time was like quicksand flowing slowly in an unknown fate, it patiently showed the footprints of those human beings who were hidden or visible in the process of traveling bit by bit. She replied in a low voice: "You can see the sunset on the summer solstice... I believe that in several other directions of the stone pile, you can observe the vertical rise of the Taurus double star, Rigel, and Sirius group. Their significance lies in—— The lunar cycle that marks the beginning and interval of the winter solstice or summer solstice. These 28 rays are the meaning of it." The warm wind in the afternoon of Wyoming blows over Tan Yundan's already aged face.She is no longer young, no longer beautiful, but in the depths of her quiet and tenacious character, there is always that young girl who is sweating and working on the bank of the Peacock River. The friend was surprised and said: "My God. I always thought that you were only interested in Song Dynasty porcelain, but I didn't expect you to have such attainments in ancient calendars. You know, in different periods from 3000 BC to 500 BC, ancient Babylon, China, Both India and Egypt have relevant records of astronomical observations. My God, this is truly a miracle of mankind." 1979 was a memorable year.While American archaeologists stood on a Wyoming hilltop, gaping at the remains of the Native American's stone deposits, Tan Yundan, her teammates and a few hired laborers were clearing the sand from the Gutougou cemetery. If we understand the view of parallel universes in a mediocre way, maybe we can see the overlapping figures of Tan Yundan in girlhood and Tan Yundan in Fanghua, standing on two different lands.In front of them is the same endless time and space and the footprints of human beings' difficult exploration.If anything, perhaps the Gumugou burial site has a more shocking and heartbreaking power. The Great Horn Witchcraft Wheel is an altar, a symbol of worship made of human and stone.The Gumugou cemetery is a contract between man and nature built on the desert Gobi by the lives, bodies, wisdom, and beliefs of many people. After many days of sand removal, excavation, and sorting, it was discovered that there are a total of six Sun Tombs in the Gumugou Cemetery, all of which are male.There are also 36 sand chambers in vertical caves, where the naked body is covered with woolen cloth and lying in the caves, which are relatively simple.Among the 36 tombs, 12 are tombs of young children. Looking at the miracle in front of him, Zha Haiyang sighed: "Why did they use such a strange way of burial? It seems heartbreaking, but it is incomprehensible." W looked solemn, and said word by word: "This is not an ordinary tomb. This is a specific funeral behavior, it is—a collective sacrifice." In 1979, the Structuralis Approach in archaeology had not risen in China, and Postprocessual Archaeology had not been widely used in Chinese archaeology, let alone symbolic archaeology and other social thought reforms. Introduced into China's modern archaeological research method theory.But no matter Mr. W who is knowledgeable, or Tan Yundan and Zha Haiyang who are fledglings, they all know the system of "human sacrifice" and "human sacrifice" in the ancient burial system. The system of "human sacrifice" is a prominent feature of the Shang and Zhou dynasties, in which living people were used as burials for dead aristocrats.The number of martyrs is related to the rank of the tomb owner. Most of the martyrs are wives, close servants and other cronies of the deceased.The "human sacrifice" is a more cruel system, which is to use living people as sacrifices-sacrifices, and kill them to worship ancestors or the souls of the dead.During the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties, human animals were mostly used in ancestral temples, cemeteries or burials to worship ancestors or the spirits of the dead. Generally speaking, as an archaeologist, he has been exposed to various remains, ruins, and cemeteries all year round, and he has already developed an indestructible body.When ordinary people are horrified when they see ordinary corpses, it is very common for archaeologists to hold a rice bowl and squat by the tomb watching the strange-looking ancient corpses pointing fingers, conducting "lunch seminars".But the last thing any archaeologist wants to see and excavate is the cemetery or ruins where someone died or sacrificed. Since ancient times, people's understanding of death has been based on the most basic observation of the disappearance of the body.But in addition to the body, people have constructed another world, and the souls, souls, and primordial spirits of the deceased all coexist in this other world.In the tacit "hidden rules" of archaeologists, tombs with "human sacrifice" and "human sacrifice" are the places with the most yin and evil spirits.Even the most experienced old archaeologists can't help but lament the cruelty and darkness of human nature when they see similar tombs. When W pointed out that the Gumugou cemetery was a mass burial, Zha Haiyang did not immediately agree, but instead asked the teacher, "How can you be so sure?" W pondered for a moment: "Observation and intuition." He pointed to this huge group of tombs: "Everything in this cemetery is not an ordinary burial custom, but a set of meaningful modeling language, which is carefully designed with life and collective behavior, and it strongly shows the tendency of collective sacrifice. " Tan Yundan felt a little dizzy.She found a slightly higher ground and sat down.Zhong Weihong walked over and said concernedly: "Xiao Tan, are you okay?" Tan Yundan shook his head, his eyes gradually changed from the excitement of discovering the tomb of the sun to the deep and unspeakable sorrow: "The 12 children... what role do they play in this tomb?" The camp tent of W and his party was built tens of meters away from the Gumugou cemetery.As if blessed by the heavens, there have been no major weather changes during these excavation operations.But after nightfall, the temperature still dropped sharply and the wind was howling. Tan Yundan was reading the archaeological records during the day by candlelight in the tent, when he suddenly heard Zha Haiyang's low voice outside: "Xiao Tan, have you rested?" Tan Yundan opened the curtain and walked out, Zha Haiyang was wearing a military overcoat, clapping his hands non-stop, standing very close to the tent. "What's the matter? Are you still asleep?" Tan Yundan asked hesitantly. It's not like Tan Yundan didn't feel the love for Zha Haiyang and Zhong Weihong.In fact, she had already had a secret love for Zha Haiyang in her heart.He is tall and handsome, with deep and firm eyes like Gromov, the winner of the Order of Lenin of the Soviet Union.But in the era of high-hanging dedication to the country and idealism, personal issues are always considered last.There is also a little reason that she likes the feeling of Zha Haiyang being jealous and competing for her and Zhong Weihong. Who didn't have youth when they were young?Who can fully understand the arrogance and heart of a young girl? Zha Haiyang grabbed Tan Yundan's hand, and flew up to the slightly higher platform, where he could overlook part of the tomb of the sun. Zha Haiyang pointed to the tomb of the sun and said excitedly, "I figured it out, I figured it out!" Tan Yundan didn't know why, and felt a little disappointed in his heart, but seeing Zha Haiyang's agitated expression, he still couldn't help asking: "What do you want to understand?" Zha Haiyang spoke very fast, as if he wanted to share his thoughts with Tan Yundan impatiently: "There is a record in "Book of the Later Han Dynasty Lv Li Zhi", 'The sun, the moon, and the five latitudes each have their final origin, and the seven elements produce Yan' What is this seven yuan?" Under the moonlight, Zha Haiyang's high and broad forehead and straight figure made Tan Yundan involuntarily think of some ancient Roman sculptures.She was taken aback by Cha Haiyang's question and came back to her senses.Before she could answer, Zha Haiyang couldn't wait to say: "What is seven yuan? There are 60 days, 28 days, and 420 days in a week. For 420, 60 and 28 can be spent together, so there is 'seven yuan' The theory. One-yuan Jiazi starts from the day, emptiness. The sub-element belongs to, and the emptiness is the sun, which belongs to. The two-yuan Jiazi starts from Kui. The three-yuan Jiazi starts from Bi. The four-yuan Jiazi starts from ghosts. The five-yuan Jiazi starts from wings. The six-yuan Jiazi starts from the wings. From the beginning of the seven yuan, the Jiazi starts the Ji. When the seven yuan is exhausted, the Jiazi rises again. It goes on and on again, but the year, month, and day when the one yuan starts is not available and can be tested. Yundan, you know, I firmly believe in the sun The seven layers of wooden piles on the periphery of the tomb, these seven confusing rings, they symbolize the seven elements in the ancient Chinese calendar!" Tan Yundan was fascinated by what he heard, and couldn't help interjecting: "Could it be that they symbolize the seven stars?" Zha Haiyang said excitedly: "Qizheng or Qiyuan - Mr. W's guess is correct. This is not a place of burials, but a calendar built by human beings with their own bodies and lives! I can't imagine what the power and reason are. , so that these people can use death to symbolize the calendar. The six central tombs must symbolize heaven, earth, spring, summer, autumn, and winter!" Tan Yundan's heart was pounding, and he couldn't help but blurt out: "I understand, the tombs of the 12 children, the 12 young lives, symbolize the 12 months! This, this is really what I have seen The strangest, most inconceivable, and saddest ruins..." Zha Haiyang stared at her, breathing unsteadily in his chest.Tan Yundan stared at the quiet ruins in the distance and the dead who had been buried here forever, his apple-like face shone brightly under the moonlight.Zha Haiyang couldn't restrain the impulse in his heart, he grabbed Tan Yundan and kissed him deeply. In the silent night, this uninhabited Gobi Desert seems to be the end of the world.Cha Haiyang hugged his lover tightly and kissed her again and again, as if knowing that this was the last farewell. Both Zha Haiyang and Zhong Weihong are newcomers in the archaeological field, and they have the same excellent professional skills and fighting spirit.The personalities of the two are completely opposite. Zha Haiyang is enthusiastic, straightforward, and has a natural romantic spirit in his bones.He was born in a musical family, and his grandfather studied in Europe and was a famous pianist.His parents were also famous violinists.Influenced by his grandfather since childhood, Zha Haiyang was able to play Mozart's "Sonata" in its entirety at the age of six.Fortunately, even in such difficult times as the Cultural Revolution, Zha Haiyang's family survived due to the special care of relevant departments and leaders.Although the piano, violin, etc. have been damaged or handed over under the attack of the Red Guards and the organization and arrangement, the books related to archeology at home are still preserved.Zha Haiyang spent his youth in endless reading.When he was tired of reading, he played music on the piano keyboard made of cardboard.His favorites are Beethoven's "Sonata of Passion" and Rachmanino's "Prelude in #C Minor".In front of the window of the pale and monotonous old building, he was accompanied by a number of archaeological books collected by his grandfather, memoirs of explorers, and the major chords of Rachmanino's agitated grief and indignation that he heard in his mind. Zhong Weihong's roots are Zhengmiaohong, and his ancestors were born in poor peasants with three generations of innocence.He has a calm personality and thinks twice before acting.During the investigation and operation of the archaeological team, he was always the one who silently did the dirtiest and most tiring work.He chose archeology not out of interest, but because of "the needs of the motherland".His appearance is as ordinary as his background, and he is not tall. Three years of natural disasters have more or less branded every Chinese.Even in college, Zhong Weihong still maintains a simple life style, usually two steamed buns for dinner, sometimes a little bit of pickles. Of course Zhong Weihong knew that she couldn't compare with Zha Haiyang in any aspect.This kind of love is even more desperate. He always knew in his heart that sooner or later, Tan Yundan would choose to check Haiyang. He loves her humblely and hopelessly, looking at her delicate and beautiful figure from afar.What he can do, perhaps, is to quietly put his share in her lunch box when helping her cook, or silently put his coat on the sand not far from her when she forgets about her work. There are two things that Tan Yundan loves most: one is archeology, and the other is Byron's poetry.In those days, foreign poetry was a taboo thing for ordinary people, it seemed to symbolize a certain corruption and potential disloyalty.Even high-ranking officials such as Tan Yundan can only secretly copy these poems in the secret depths of their notebooks. When he got up to do his homework the next morning, Tan Yundan found a piece of paper in his notebook, with clear and elegant pen writing on it. "The auspicious time is gone / The star of fate has fallen quietly / But your kind heart is unwilling to find / Everyone blames my mistakes / You deeply understand my sorrow / Share with me without fear /The love I can imagine/I can't find it anywhere—except in your heart." "A poem for Augusta." Tan Yundan whispered to himself. She smiled knowingly and looked at Zha Haiyang.The bright sunlight in the morning reflected Zha Haiyang's body, making his young and handsome figure extraordinarily upright, like the lush and vigorous Populus euphratica before it dried up.Cha Haiyang returned her with the same warm smile. Zhong Weihong pretended not to see the eye contact between them, and walked over and said, "Mr. W said that our excavation work is almost over. He asked us to tidy up the equipment and go back to Urumqi before conducting in-depth research." This time, the Gumugou cemetery has yielded a lot. In addition to the mummy, there are also a large number of relics in the tomb, especially the eight jade beads unearthed from the tomb of an old woman are the most precious and mysterious.Of course, the biggest achievement is the discovery of this unique group of tombs. The Gumugou cemetery has been a hotspot in the archaeological field for a long time since then. Military vehicles transported away most of the unearthed cultural relics. W and members of the archaeological team, as well as several remaining soldiers and local guides, made the second batch of retreat by camel. W seems to be reluctant to leave the Gumugou cemetery, and his expression is somewhat lonely.Tan Yundan knew that Mr. W still couldn't let go of not finding Xiaohe's cemetery.The "Palace of Death" described by Bergman has lost its trace in the sea of ​​sand, like a legendary banshee, stubbornly seduced, but not revealing her real body. Finally got to leave here. Teacher W sighed deeply. The camel team carried the archaeological team slowly to the northwest.If all goes well, they will arrive in Korla in a few days.Of course, the premise is that if it goes well. The last thing anyone who has ever experienced a desert to experience happened unexpectedly that afternoon. This small camel caravan on the Gobi is like a grain of sand in a sea of ​​sand, moving slowly. In the distance, the most terrifying sandstorm in the desert came quietly like a devil. The first person who noticed something was wrong was the local guide Tolonny. He reined in the restless camel and said to W: "No, there is a sandstorm." Before W had time to ask anything, the group of them saw that the southern sky seemed to be smeared with ink, and the wind-wrapped sand waves pushed forward layer by layer, like the evil waves at the end of the day, swallowing them forward without any hindrance every inch of land. W cried out, "Hurry up and find a hiding place!" At this moment, the wind has increased significantly, and the mixed fine sand hits the face, causing bursts of throbbing pain.There was nowhere to hide nearby, save for a shallow ditch.The threat of a sandstorm was imminent, and the camel's muzzle contracted nervously. W ordered everyone to surround the camels by the side of the ditch and hide in the ditch, hoping that the camels and this small ditch could escape the catastrophe. Zhong Weihong and Zha Haiyang got off the camel and were about to help Tan Yundan, but Tan Yundan's camel was frightened by the coming sandstorm, screamed and bumped out. The frightened camel ran fast, Tan Yundan screamed from above, but he couldn't control the camel.Zha Haiyang reacted quickly, he stepped on the camel without hesitation, kicked the camel desperately, forcing it to keep up with Tan Yundan. After being stunned for two seconds, Zhong Weihong was about to step on the camel to chase after Tan Yundan, but was held down by W and Tolenni.Torrenny yelled: "The sandstorm is coming! You can't go!" Zhong Weihong struggled a bit, but Tolenny's hand was as hard as a shovel, and there was no room for maneuver.At this time, the sandstorm had swept over with alarming speed.Zhong Weihong looked to the west, the place was already full of sand and dust, and he couldn't see anything. As if a century is so long, the sandstorm finally passed.When Zhong Weihong struggled to pull out from the sand and shook off the sand all over his head and body, he looked west expectantly.Hope to see Tan Yundan and Zha Haiyang who are also covered in sand not far away. But no, he didn't see anything. The entire west is still an endless desert, which has just been looted by sandstorms. W led the archaeological team to search and rescue within ten kilometers around the incident site, but found nothing.Considering the limited supply of water and food, when camping at night, W announced that they would leave for the nearest corps station tomorrow for help.This decision was extremely painful.The water and food carried by Tan Yundan and Zha Haiyang may not last until the military search and rescue team finds them. Even if they can last for a while, it is doubtful whether the search and rescue team can find them.But if the archaeological team is exhausted here, the risk taken may be the cost of the lives of the entire team members. No one has doubts about W's order, including Zhong Weihong.This is the best and most sensible course of action in the current situation.It was only at dawn that W discovered that Zhong Weihong and his camel had disappeared. Zhong Weihong left a note, succinctly saying that he was looking for Tan Yundan and Zha Haiyang's whereabouts, and told the archaeological team not to wait for him, but to rush to the corps station for help. Zhong Weihong took only his camel, his share of water and supplies.