Vol 2 Chapter 22: Black desert

Professor Chen shook his hands again and again: "Can't open it! The coffin buried by the husband and wife of Gumo is a national treasure. We have no conditions and the environment is not suitable. Once opened, it will destroy the sealed coffin and the items inside. Our trip The purpose is to submit an assessment report to the superior, apply for excavation, or give due protection to these ancient civilization heritage. Go back and let the patriots take Chu Jian with them to make the record, and the report is written by me personally. "
It seems that I didn't have a chance to see what good things are in this coffin. I knew that the professor was right and still inevitably disappointed. I climbed back with them to the sacrificial room on the upper level.
A lot of animal skins were originally sealed on the stone door of the sacrificial room, which I shredded with a flat shovel. Professor Chen said that these are to keep the sacrificial room dry and to isolate the moisture from the holy well. The ancient Gumo people brought live animals into the sacrifice room and slaughtered them. Immediately afterwards, the freshly peeled and still-blooded animal skin was immediately attached to the gap of the stone gate, and the meat and internal organs of the cattle and sheep were cut clean, leaving only bones. The stone gate will not open again until the next festival. This peculiar ritual of slaughtering livestock and peeling bones, and binding wooden piles to dry corpses is to maintain the water source of the holy well, so that it will never dry up. People in the ancient desert believed that the soul of life came from sacred water, which is very close to Darwin's theory of the origin of life to some extent.
It is impossible for us to seal the stone door with those animal skins anymore, except there are no large animals around the camel, but for us, the nineteen peak camel is extremely precious to us. We ca n’t peel the camel skin to seal the door, so we stick it with several layers of tape.
The archaeological team spent three days in Xiye City before heading south, and finally entered the sand sea known by the local people as the "Black Desert". The Populus euphratica in the desert can no longer be seen, and there are no high and low sand hills around. The fall of the dunes is almost the same, like flat buns, endless, from any angle, it is the same scenery, there is no sign of life.
I asked if An Liman had entered this desert before.
An Liman smiled bitterly, "This is Huangsha's hell, and even Hu Da and his old people are not willing to come. Me, I have only been here a few times, this is not the time this time now. If not Your cadre lord, and Hu Da's favorite white camel, I will not come if I die a hundred times. "
Complaining to complain, An Liman is known as a living map in the desert. It is by no means a worthy name. His familiarity with the desert is like a woman playing with pots and pans. Although he also entered this taboo black desert for the first time in his life, but with his two sand fox-like eyes, he was able to find the plants such as sedge grass and wormwood in the sand nest. He followed these plants. , And many years of experience in the desert, can lead the archaeological team.
The desert has China's largest inland water system, but many water systems such as the Tarim River have penetrated into the sand. On the surface, a desert without grass, deep underground, may be a rushing dark river.
Some plants that grow specifically in the desert survive tenaciously with the water vapor rising from the groundwater veins to the surface of the desert. In fact, in addition to a small number of plants, there are also many animals, but most of them come out for food on a cold night.
In the Han Dynasty and even earlier, Taklamakan was called an "old home". At that time, the area was not severely desertified, and the river had not yet penetrated into the ground. There were oasis towns, castles, Buddhist temples, and post offices everywhere. Countless caravans carried silk, spices and tea here and there. Until the Yuan Dynasty, the famous Italian Marco Polo also went here with the caravan to the Central Plains.
By the Ming Dynasty, the Ottoman Empire across Europe and Asia had risen, and the war blocked commercial trade between Europe and the Asian continent. At that time, it was the era of the ocean. The navigators opened up new routes. The main route of trade between land and sea turned to the sea. This great era is also known as the era of geographical discovery.
Coupled with the increasing erosion of the desert and the harsh living environment, the large and small countries in the desert have completely decayed, and the former prosperity and glory have been taken away by the gods.
The Black Desert was the first place abandoned by the gods. The civilization here stopped until the Jin Dynasty. To this day, the Black Desert is still lifeless.
On the first day we set off, we encountered slight wind and sand, and the sky was slightly yellow, but the wind and sand were not large, and it just happened to cover the sun, so we could hurry up during the day.
Shirley Yang took the notebook left by the British explorer and walked with An Liman to discuss the route of travel. The notebook records that after leaving Xiye City, the explorers found a place nearby with a large number of stone graves. When they were ready to dig back, they drew detailed routes in the notes.
An Liman's experience plus Shirley Yang's notebook, although unable to accurately locate, but from the distance and orientation, has provided us with great help.
At night, An Liman found a convex ground. The crowd built a sand-proof wall on the sand dune to settle down the camel, and then lit a fire on the leeward side of the sand dune to keep warm.
This day I went very hard, although the wind was not strong, but the wind was disturbing. An Li was nagging and said that it was the windy season. There was an average of such weather in the Black Desert every two days, when there was no wind The vicious sun will up the last drop of water from the traveler.
The fat man said: "The hot spot is good, you can lose weight by sweating, you can lose weight in the sun, but you're happy. It's just that the wind keeps blowing so much that you can't even talk on the road, it's really stuffy."
An Liman said what you know, this is the edge of the Black Desert, and it takes five more days to count into the depths. Although I have n’t been there, I know some friends who have gone in. They are all survivors from the Black Desert. .
The scary part of the Black Desert is not the trapped sand, the golden bite ants that can chew the car down, nor the black storm. Legend has it that there is a dreamland in the depths. After people go in, they will see lakes, rivers, beauties, beasts, snow mountains, oasis. Those who are thirsty and tired are naturally walking desperately to those beautiful scenery, but Until the thirst and death, you can't go. In fact, it was all traps arranged by the devil, tempting people to die inside. But the General Assembly bless us, Alahu.
Shirley Yang said: "They may see a mirage in the desert. People who don't know exactly are indeed easily confused."
While talking, Ye Yixin came over and pulled Shirley Yang aside. The two murmured a few words. Shirley Yang turned to me and said, "We have something to do behind that dune."
I knew that Ye Yixin was going to be convenient. She was so timid that she didn't dare to go by herself. She wanted to drag Shirley Yang to accompany her. He nodded to both of them, and instructed, "Bring your flashlight and whistle, blow the whistle as hard as you can, and go back quickly."
Shirley Yang promised to walk hand in hand with Ye Yixin behind a sand dune not far away.
The fat man asked if I still had wine.
I said no, even if you bring a bucket of liquor, you ca n’t stop drinking like this. Drink a few sips of hot water and go to bed quickly. If you ca n’t find the water source after five or six days, even then everyone will have a daily water ration. It is going to be reduced.
This is just to scare fat people, even if I can't find the dark river in the desert, I have a way to ensure that everyone can have a minimum amount of drinking water.
But that was a last resort, it was troublesome, but it worked. I learned desert survival when I was a soldier.
An Liman refused to enter the Black Desert in the first place. The main reason is that there is no fresh water in the Black Desert. Although there are underground rivers in the underground, it ca n’t be dug so deeply. Below three or five meters, there is only wet sand and salt water, the more thirsty you drink.
This method is full of safety and understanding. I have repeatedly studied the feasibility of it with him. I have privately agreed that when I reach a place where the shuttle is not long, I will never go forward half a step. He only agreed. .
Anyone who has been trained to survive in the desert in the army knows that the shallower deserts in Xinjiang are mostly salty brines with more mineral content. Digging down at the root neck of desert plants can dig into wet sand and salt water. After simple sunlight evaporation and filtration treatment, you can get a small amount of fresh water, although it is small, it is enough to maintain human life.
At this time, the sand was slightly bigger, and a sharp whistle came from behind the dune. Everyone was shocked. They picked up the engineer shovel and rifle and ran to the location of the incident. Fortunately, they are very close, with a distance of less than two hundred steps. Three steps are made in two steps.
I saw that Ye Yixin was half trapped in the sand. She struggled constantly. Shirley Yang was grabbing her arm and dragging her out desperately.
I do n’t know who shouted in a hurry: "Quick sand!"
We rushed forward along the footprints of the ground, desperately pulling Ye Yixin, and several people had no time to find the rope, so they untied their belts and tried to wrap her arms.
Unexpectedly, without much effort, Ye Yixin was dragged out of the sand, which seemed to be not quicksand. Ye Yixin was frightened and wept in Shirley Yang Huai.
Everyone asked them what was going on, was it quicksand.
Shirley Yang comforted Ye Yixin and said to everyone: "As soon as we walked behind the sand dunes, Ye Yixin stepped on the empty foot, and the whole body fell halfway. I quickly pulled her and whistle for help. But it seems that it is not quicksand, quicksand. People are fast and have great suction power. If it is really quicksand, I can't hold her by my strength, and after she falls halfway, she stops, as if the bottom is solid. Otherwise, if you hear the news, the middle will delay this. Ten seconds, it's too late to save people from the quicksand. "
Ye Yixin also recovered, wiped tears and said, "I seem to have stepped on a stone slab under the sand. There is a section under the stone slab that is empty. I collapsed as soon as I stepped on it."
Shirley Yang Qi said: "Are these stone graves? Let's go and see."
We dug a few times with a shovel before it caught Ye Yixin's place. Under a thick layer of yellow sand, parallel to the of the sand dune, a sloping stone wall was exposed, and a large hole was blown out with explosives.
It seems that the explosion took place shortly, that is, in the last few days, the sand has covered the hole of the hole thinly, and Ye Yixin stepped on the gravel that stepped on the edge of the hole.
Everyone looked at the stone cave, you look at me, I look at you, looking at each other, this is clearly a stone tomb, has it been stolen?
I carefully looked at the gravel in the hole, and the location of the explosion impact-precise small directional blasting! I have been an engineer for so many years, and I think that my familiarity with explosives is unmatched. If I were to let this stone tomb be blasted, it would be this level.
It seems that the blasters fully understand the resistance of the rock mass. The explosion only exploded the stone walls and the broken stones spread out without damaging the inside of the stone tomb.
Looking at the power of explosives, it is by no means civilian explosives. It's been a few years since I left the army. Isn't even the active soldiers fighting now? Certainly not, maybe stolen explosives. And in this vast desert, how did the fighting people find these tombs? The terrain and landforms in this neighborhood are exactly the same. Is there really any other master in this world who can watch the starry wind technique besides my half-hanging level?
Gradually clear the sand dunes, this is a hammer-shaped stone wall, except for the blasted side, the rest are buried deep under the yellow sand.
It seems to be a typical stone tomb in the Wei and Jin Dynasties, with huge and thick mountain stones built into arches, and the gaps are glued with hemp glue. Such stone tombs are very common near the ruins of Xiye. In the early nineteenth century, an European explorer once described this as: "There are stone tombs everywhere in the desert. There are countless large and small tombs. More than half of them are buried under the yellow sand, exposing the black spires outside, like a reduced version of Egypt. The pyramid, walking through the desert lined with stone tombs, is a breathtaking scene. "
Now that these stone tombs have been completely covered by the desert, it is difficult to find their traces. Professor Chen estimated that it may be related to the big sandstorm a few days ago. The strong wind exposed a part of this stone tomb. I did not expect those tomb robbers to come well. Quickly, the archaeological team is still a step late.
We have seen a number of ancient tombs damaged by theft along the way. No wonder Professor Chen is so anxious and has to go to the desert with his old life. If he does not stop the tomb-robbing activities in this area, I am afraid that in the near future, nothing will be left. Down.
The hole in the tomb was dark, Professor Hao Aiguo and I, Chen and others, went in to check with a flashlight. The tomb is about the size of a small bungalow. There are four or five wooden coffins scattered in it. The coffin plates are broken and thrown aside, and they are turned upside down everywhere.
The coffins are large and small, and it seems to be a co-burial tomb. The ancient corpse in the coffin is only a dry body of a young woman with long hair and many braids. Only the head is well preserved, the body is broken, and the rest is expected to be The stolen tomb thief moved away.
The ancient tomb in the desert of Xinjiang is equal to the value of the treasure, the mummy in the tomb. I heard from Professor Chen that ancient corpses are divided into wet corpses with water, such as Mawangdui female corpses; and wax corpses, which are specially treated corpses; frozen corpses exist in the snow that will not change for years Glacier regions; tanned corpses are similar to zombies; the rest are like corpses like specimens and so on.
There are also several types of corpses, which are formed by placing desiccants such as lime or charcoal in the coffin, and there are also mummy artificially manufactured with special anti-corrosion treatment technology like ancient Egypt.
The cadavers in Xinjiang are completely formed in a special environment with high temperature, dryness, and sterility. This kind of cadaver, a little old, is quite valuable. Some overseas museums, exhibition halls, and collectors are competing for high prices. .
Professor Chen saw that the rest of the corpses in the stone tomb were stolen and destroyed so badly that he could not stop sighing, so he had to ask several students to sort out the broken items in the tomb and see if they could rescue them .
I was worried that the professor was too excited to bear his body, so he persuaded him to take a break early. Professor Chen also told Hao Aiguo to let him take a detailed record of the stone tomb, and the fat man took him back to the camp to rest.
The next day the wind didn't stop, so it was blowing so slowly. When the archaeological team left, Professor Chen found me. He said that the stone tomb I saw last night was stolen for no more than three or five days. Perhaps there is a team of grave robbers who have entered the depths of the Black Desert earlier than us, we ca n’t delay, it ’s better to catch up with them.
I just dealt with a few words casually, but I thought my do n’t run into it. The counterpart is an enemy, not to mention that the gang of guys who stole this stone tomb had military explosives, maybe there are some sharp instruments that they encountered Inevitably, you have to fight. I don't care. The problem is with the archaeological team. In case of death or injury, the responsibility is too great.
But this is again said, in the vast desert, if the two teams want to meet, it is easy to say, if we saw this dune yesterday is the highest place in this neighborhood, we will not camp here, and will not be mistakenly missed. When I bumped into the stolen stone tomb, there was such a coincidence for the second time, maybe those guys went back after stealing the corpse.
In the following dozen days, the archaeological team went deeper and deeper in the Black Desert, and finally lost the trace of Zidu Underground River, and circled on the spot for a few days. Zi Du means "shadow" in the ancient local language. This underground river is like a shadow and cannot be captured. An Liman's eyes were red, and finally he shook his hands. There was no way out. Hu Da only allowed us to come here.
Everyone was sleepy, and no one could walk. There is no wind in the desert these days, and the sun hangs in the sky for an extra long time. To save drinking water, the team dug a pit in the sand during the day, supporting rain-proof canvas and sucking the cool air on the ground to keep The body's moisture only travels at night and in the morning, half a way to ride a camel and half a way to open on the 11th.
Going forward, food and water are not enough. If you do not go back in a day or two, you have to kill the camel to eat when you go back.
I looked at these exhausted people with cracked lips. I knew it was almost at the limit. I saw the sun rising and the temperature was getting higher and higher, so I let everyone dig to rest.
After settling in, Shirley Yang found me and An Liman to discuss the route.
Shirley Yang said: "Captain Hu, Mr. An Liman, in my British explorer's notes, there is such a record that the British explorer also lost the trace of the Zidang River in the depths of the Black Desert. In this sea of ​​dead grass, two huge black magnetic mountains stand opposite each other against the afterglow of the setting sun, just like two ancient warriors in black armor, silently guarding the ancient secrets, passing through the valley like a gate, A legendary city appeared in front of us. "