In the desert, I experienced death and a tragic story

The Heroic Soul of the Desert

Text/Dugu Nine Swords

The most precious thing for a person is life, and life belongs to everyone only once. If you connect your limited life with the lofty responsibilities entrusted by the times, your life will be immortal.

Perhaps it was God's will, but an accidental opportunity brought me into the restricted area of ??life, which made me deeply understand the meaning of life. That time, I experienced death and a tragic story.

In March 1998, I suffered a huge setback in my life - my girlfriend of many years abandoned me. My first love suddenly broke like a beautiful kite. I wandered around like a lonely soul all day long, locked myself in the house, drank and smoked, and the pain was cutting into my heart like a knife. During those bleak days, I was passing by the editor's office in a daze when I heard someone talking: "That place is deserted, and water is a problem. Send a young reporter there."

"It's deserted. What's wrong? The Taoist workers in the desert have been doing hard work for many years. It is our duty to let the society know about them and protect them."

"But my body..."

Ah! Isn’t the desolate, uninhabited desert the place I want to go? A burst of sadness hit me, I opened the door and walked towards the editor-in-chief with firm steps.

So a few days later, I arrived at Umuladaoban in Minfeng County, Xinjiang. There are three Han workers in the class, six Uyghurs, four Kazakhs and two Mongolians. In the desolate desert, fifteen road maintenance workers from four ethnic groups form a warm family. They work hard, help each other and unite to maintain the 56 kilometers of National Highway 315 under their jurisdiction.

On the day when the leaders of the county highway bureau sent me to the Dao class, Kazakh squad leader Yasun, Han deputy squad leader Ameng and all the class members warmly welcomed me. I drank mellow brick tea and fine wine, and heard the most sincere blessings. We sang and danced, and the party was festive and joyful.

During the interview, I learned that Umuladaoban is located in the hinterland of the Taklimakan Desert. This desert highway starts from Luntai County, Xinjiang, on National Highway 314 in the north, and Minfeng County, Xinjiang, on National Highway 315 in the south. With a total length of 522 kilometers and a desert section of 466 kilometers, it is currently the longest desert grade highway in the world.

During those days, I was impressed by the vast desert landscape, the unique and strange customs, and the wonderful and magical scenery of the North. The sky is vast and the earth is vast. For the first time, I felt the insignificance of human beings.

The Taoist priests in the Desert got along very well with me. They talked about the cruelty and mystery of the desert, the hard work and the boring life. I told them about the strange people and strange things and the beautiful mountains and rivers I had interviewed all over the country. The co-workers gathered around my small house as soon as they got off work, and the laughter often lasted until late into the night. I describe their daily life with pen and camera. The days just passed by.

A month passed quickly, and I accumulated a large amount of work and life materials and photography photos of my coworkers. By this time, my interview mission had been successfully completed, but I didn't want to go back, because my wounded heart was still bleeding.

After breakfast one day, I was going to go on the road with my co-workers to take pictures of some unique desert scenery. The weather was very wet that day. If you are lucky, you may encounter a wonderful "mirage" after the rain clears up.

Under the arrangement of squad leader Yaxun, the fifteen Taoists were divided into two groups. Our group was led by A Meng, who brought enough water and naan (a kind of dry food in Xinjiang) to advance towards the road in the hinterland of the desert. When we finished the whole day's work, it was already three o'clock in the afternoon. The sky was still very damp, but there was no sign of rain. I was very disappointed.

When we were finishing work, the wind started to blow loudly, and the sky gradually became dim. My co-workers told me that this was a sign of the coming desert storm. Now that the seasons are changing from spring to winter, it is when desert storms are most frequent and fierce. If we can't get back to Daoban before dark, the consequences will be disastrous. But today we have reached the end of the road section under our control, more than thirty kilometers away from Daoban.

At this critical moment, our car broke down. Ah Meng and the driver Tuohan jumped out of the car to check. A few minutes later, the result made everyone panic - the car's gearbox failed, and nine road workers and I were trapped in the deserted desert.

"Be sure to keep your raincoat and water."

At this time, Ah Meng became obviously nervous. During my days in the Taoist class, the deputy squad leader Ameng gave me the impression of being decisive, resolute and full of confidence. At this moment, his words and expression made me realize the seriousness of the situation.

Desert Storm came quickly. At that moment, the wind was howling, sand and rocks were flying, and flakes of yellow sand were blown up all over the sky. Red-brown sand was everywhere. The rocks hit the car with a crackling sound, and it was extremely difficult to breathe. Tuohan and Amen covered me with raincoats and kept me motionless in the cab. We could only resign ourselves to fate in the face of the terrifying desert storm...

Praying for the desert storm to go away is an arduous waiting process. The suffering during that period became the most unforgettable thing in my life.

After an unknown amount of time, when we smashed the car window and climbed into the car with all our strength, all seven workers were buried in the car.

We worked hard to dig through the sand and carry out the workers one by one. Although we tried everything we could, including artificial respiration, watering, and moving the limbs, one worker still passed away.

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The bonfire burned and was torn apart by the wind. Reflecting the dark and sleepy faces.

We dug a sand pit and wrapped our dead workers tightly in raincoats. He was a Hui youth, only twenty-four years old. What a beautiful and short life. In the dark sky, we held a simple funeral for him with tears in our eyes.

It was completely dark. I looked around at the dark surroundings, but there was no light. The wind picked up again, whistling towards us.

Everyone takes turns to rest. As soon as my eyes closed, I fell into a deep sleep. I returned to the newspaper office in a daze, and the editor-in-chief praised me greatly. Another table of delicious food appeared in front of me, which made my mouth water. Later, I suddenly arrived at Wumuladaoban. The lonely Taoist house stands in the desert. In the distance is the endless empty and lonely desert, surrounded by patches of green desert cedars and desert fences.

The dim oil lamp and the bitter salty water. I saw Tuohan's hair like steel wires again, his furrowed face and the calloused palms of his co-workers. Suddenly, the desert storm rushed over like a ferocious god. The sky was dim and yellow, and the ground was covered with yellow sand. The wind roared like a wolf, and the flying sand blocked the clouds and the sun. I saw my girlfriend's familiar face in the wind and sand, and I felt two strands of coldness falling down my cheeks...

"Hey, everyone, wake up. Look, it's dawn."

A few bright lights appeared in front of us on the left, which was particularly eye-catching in the dark night. We stared intently at the ball of light that gradually expanded, like a white fish belly. The morning star hung in the sky, and vague shadows could be seen on the nearby sand dunes.

Everyone hugged each other.

"We must save water and naan. Things are unpredictable in the desert, so you have to take care of yourself." Ah Meng kept reminding us.

The wind returned to normal and the sky finally broke.

The yellow sand is long and the dunes are undulating. We bid farewell to our coworkers who were sleeping underground with tears and marched forward facing the rising sun.

Ah Meng, holding a burnt shovel handle, always walked at the front. His long hair was filled with yellow sand like a pile of weeds. His face was covered with a thick layer of sand, and two determined rays of light shot out from his bloodshot eyes. There is only the sound of "rustling" footsteps in the deathly silent desert. We seem to have entered a desolate and empty ancient era.

One day, two days. Day and night.

We have been walking in the desert for three days with the help of the sun, facing east. The undulating sand dunes are like the solidified Dead Sea, showing motionless and dangerous waves, and then steadily flowing into the endless sky. The naan and water were getting less and less, and a terrible thought grew in my heart.

On the fourth day, the sky was blue and clear, without a trace of cloud. The sun hung in the sky, scorching and dazzling, chasing us like a terrible plague. The heaven and earth were shrouded in a dim, dazzling silence. The yellow sand is hot under my feet, and my back is as hot as carrying a pot of fire. It was hot and stuffy, and I felt like I was suffocating. Thinking of my miserable life, I raised my head blankly to look at the fireball-like sun, but unexpectedly the scorching light shone down on my head. I felt dizzy, and my eyesight went dark and I didn't know anything anymore.

When I woke up, I was lying in Ah Meng’s arms. The water flows down the thirsty throat, a coolness penetrates into the bone marrow, and the dead cells expand rapidly with the moisture. I subconsciously held the kettle tightly.

The raincoats and jackets that accompanied us through death were left in the desert. From a distance, they looked like a few dying people lying in the sea of ??sand.

At this moment, we encountered the evil wolf. The wolf's ears were erect, its eyes were glowing yellow and green, its tongue was licking the prongs of its mouth, and its face was very ferocious. We immediately became alert, but the only weapon we had was the shovel handle in Ah Meng's hand. We faced off against the wolf, with more than a dozen eyes staring at the evil wolf. The wolf was probably starved and his belly was flat, but his fierce eyes were staring at us, but he still did not dare to act rashly in front of our unkempt eight-year-old man. The wolf followed us for nearly half an hour and finally disappeared behind us. At this time, someone in front slowly collapsed to the ground. Ah Meng rushed over and held the worker in his arms and shouted loudly: "Don't fall down. We still have hope. We will never wake up from this sleep."

Under the weight of the worker’s strong body, Ah Meng turned into a bow, and their figures swayed in our hazy sight.

No one speaks, and every unnecessary movement consumes our already depleted energy. The endless yellow sand road, the inescapable poisonous heat of the sun, and my legs were as heavy as lead.

After an unknown amount of time, Ah Meng suddenly fell down heavily.

"Squad leader!"

"Ah Meng!"

Everyone shouted hoarsely and rushed over to hug Ah Meng tightly in their arms. I just noticed that Ah Meng was severely dehydrated and his lips were already gray.

"I can't do it anymore...promise me that you will get out alive." Ah Meng leaned weakly in Tuohan's arms, breathless. With trembling hands, he pressed his jug of water into Tuohan's hand, and used his last strength to murmur: "You all depend on it. Don't move it until you have to...don't touch it...you must take the comrade reporters out." Desert..."

Ah Meng's hand gradually loosened up, and his head tilted and hung weakly in Tuohan's arms.

We surrounded Ah Meng and cried loudly.

The setting sun sets in the west, printing us blood red.

In the desert, everything is quiet.

Everyone shed tears and buried Ah Meng, supporting each other and moving forward with difficulty.

As hunger and thirst intensify, our faces turn yellow and our lips become chapped. Tuohan held the kettle strap tightly, as if he was afraid that we would snatch it away if he let go. I understand that these six people in front of me are all affectionate men. During my days in the Taoist class, everyone respected and loved each other and lived in harmony. I saw the purest and most kind friendship and true love in the world. The intrigues between people seemed to have disappeared several times, but now they are in danger, facing death. Anything can happen.

But what kind of pot of water is that! That was saved by Ah Meng with his life. Their hearts were bleeding, and no one would act rashly. But I can't imagine the scene of them snatching the pot of water after the dyke of will was washed away.

The boundless desert is like the palm of Tathagata Buddha, and there is no way to get out. Just when we climbed up a sand dune, we discovered that the sun had disappeared without knowing it. Large dark clouds were moving quickly toward us from the other side of the desert. Soon, strong winds whipped up dark clouds and rolled around. Immediately after "boom-boom", a series of earth-shattering thunder suddenly sounded, and the surrounding area darkened.

Our wooden piles stood still.

There was another strong burst of lightning, and the desert suddenly became bright as day, accompanied by lightning and thunder and heavy rain pouring down. The rain and fog were erratic, and everything was covered in the misty rain curtain.

We stretched out our arms and opened our mouths wide, letting the rain moisten every inch of our skin.

The rain was getting heavier and heavier. We huddled together like shrimps, trying hard to imagine the scorching sun and the scorching yellow sand to drive away the cold. However, human beings' resistance seemed so helpless in the ravages of ruthless nature. The torrent of rain showed no sign of abating and battered us, leaving us once again in a panic of coldness and disorientation.

When the heavy rain stopped, we realized that a cold dark night had enveloped us. The howling of evil wolves in the distance brings infinite terror to the deep desert night. There is a huge temperature difference between day and night in the desert. We cuddled tightly together in the darkness, using each other's body heat to warm each other. We imagined a warm campfire and fragrant naan, but there was nothing. We could only rest in a daze, and from time to time we stretched out our hands to push the workers around us. This is how we fight against the cold night in the desert...

When the sun rises again in the desert, most of us can no longer move. The hot sunshine helped us a lot this time. When we supported each other and prepared to move forward, we discovered that two workers had been swallowed up by the devilish desert.

The footsteps kept moving forward hard. Tears have long since dried up.

At noon that day, my co-workers helped me, who was dying, to climb up a high sand dune. When a line of blue smoke cut through the sky appeared in my sight, my eyes turned black and there was nothing. knew.

Half a month later, after I recovered, the first thing I did was to come to Ubra Taoist class again. There were not many familiar faces left, and I was given Tohan's address.

It was already the evening of the next day when we found Tuohan's house. Tuohan was very surprised to see me and immediately prepared several side dishes and Yili wine.

That night, Tuohan was drunk, and he finally revealed a big secret: "You know, the pot of water Ameng brought later didn't have any water at all. He filled the pot with sand and asked me to Never tell you the truth..."

I was so shocked that I hugged Tuohan and cried!