Lawrence, who was about to board the ship, watched strangely as the Chinese carried a large number of construction machinery from the transport ship, which should be oil exploration equipment! Could it be that there is really oil in the desert, and the Chinese people should not be stupid enough to bring in so much equipment and personnel without preparation. This also explains why the Chinese want the British to ask for the barren land of Kuwait.

"No, I have to go back, I have to find the real reason why the Chinese seized Kuwait!" Lawrence muttered to himself, and the adjutant beside him was startled.

"Calm down, Major! Impulse is the devil, do you still have to endure the pain of wind and sand here? Think about it, England still has your family waiting for you, there are so many ladies and girls in London for you to choose from, it's not worth staying for your curiosity! ”

"No, not curiosity, but loyalty to the Empire. I believe that the conspiracy of the Huaguo people will be discovered, and if the Huaguo really extracts oil, it will also be great news for the empire, and maybe the officials in London can prepare early! ”

"This, I'm sorry, Major. I have decided to return to China, and this is what we have been ordered, please forgive me for not being able to stay with you! ”

After the adjutant finished speaking, Lawrence set his eyes on the other officers, but Lawrence knew what the ending was from the dodgy looks of everyone.

It's hard to act on your own, but it's not impossible. Lawrence made up his mind and left the port without even luggage after leaving a sum of cash on him.

Kuwait's Emirate Palace, said to be a palace, is actually very dilapidated, with some green plants planted in the middle of the low building, and a clear spring in the center of the palace into a small pool of more than ten square meters. The interior of the house is covered with valuable carpets. Some of the buildings and interior utensils are decorated with gold, but this can only be done, and there is not much to enjoy in the barren desert.

Mubarak al-Sabah sat cross-legged on the carpet, his fair face, gorgeous costumes, and slightly chubby figure showed that he was different. Tasting the grapes, camel meat, and dates in front of him, he was waiting for the report of his subordinates.

Fifteen minutes later. A subordinate prostrated in front of Sabah: "The Chinese have brought thousands of soldiers, as well as a large number of weapons and equipment, which our soldiers cannot stop. The strange thing is that the Chinese also brought a large amount of machinery and equipment, and the villains were clumsy and could not recognize their role. In addition, Major Lawrence, an Englishman, returned alone before boarding the ship, and did not return until the British ship left, and the villain sent someone to follow him, and found that Major Lawrence had rented two camels from the market. Bought some things and drank water and headed northwest. ”

Sabah nodded and motioned for his men to leave. As a tribal chieftain and the king of a small country, Kuwait's way of survival is to survive in the gaps between the big countries, whether it is British or Chinese, as long as it brings benefits to Kuwait, they are Sabah's friends. Al-Sabah fully complied with the demands of these foreigners in order to preserve the integrity of Kuwait and the rule of the royal family. As for the struggle between the great powers. He will definitely not interfere. It is unknown what the Chinese want to do, so let them go. And what you want, as much as possible to show your kindness. As for Major Lawrence, I'm afraid he has other plans, the northwest, that's not the territory of the sand scorpions?

The unloading operation from five transport ships lasted two days and two nights, and the huge temperature difference between day and night caused more than 300 soldiers to catch a cold. Fifteen others were attacked by scorpions while spending the night in their tents. Fortunately, the ship carried a lot of medicines, and the sick soldiers could also be treated by female medics, and the morale was not too bad.

On the third day, Xie Guang, the engineer of the exploration team, found Gaocheng and asked to select a part of the soldiers to follow the escort and go to the destination for the first exploration. Gao Cheng and Wang Qiang discussed and decided to set off on the fifth day. Expeditions require ample preparation, and although there are local guides, the unfamiliarity of the desert and respect for the brutal environment make Takashiro dare not set off easily, which also gives Lawrence plenty of time to prepare.

The more than fifty trucks carried with the ship were not of any use, and Gao Cheng let people test it, and in the desert area where there are no roads, the trucks can easily get stuck in the quicksand. As a last resort, Wang Qiang bought more than 300 camels and more than 200 local laborers through the exchange of small commodities such as grain, lighters, and even rifles and bullets. Finally, the preparations were completed before the sun appeared on the morning of the fifth day, and the impatient Xie Guang came to the door.

The heavy detection machinery was dismantled into parts and carried by more than 100 camels, and the rest was carried with supplies, ammunition, engineers, etc., and the soldiers and officers of the infantry regiment could only advance on foot. There is no way, the camels in the vicinity have been bought out, and if you want to get more camel animals, you have to look far away to find nomadic tribes. In addition, the locals also need to leave a batch of camels for their livelihood, and it is impossible to sell all of them to the Chinese.

Soon after his departure, Takashiro stripped off his military uniform to his vest and shorts, and his guns and ammunition had to be hung on his body, and like the soldiers, he put his uniform on a steel helmet to counteract the heat of the sun. Moreover, the military boots under the feet are very unsuitable for the desert terrain, and a large amount of sand flows down the soles of the feet, and it is impossible to finish at all.

"Engineer Xie, is there really oil in that place you are talking about? Have you been here before? Gao Cheng looked for words to divert his attention and asked Xie Guang on the camel beside him.

At first, he was dissatisfied with Gao Cheng's procrastination, but seeing that the soldiers and officers gave up their camels to their engineers and suffered their own crimes below, Xie Guang also felt a little uneasy, and his anger disappeared, and he politely replied to Gao Cheng: "The place called Da Burgan is in the southeast of Kuwait, and according to the information provided by the Office of the Presidential Office, there is an oil field with huge reserves. But we don't know where they got the news from and when they probed it. The order requires us to be confident in Dabulgan, I really don't know where the confidence from above comes from, do you believe that there is oil in this desert? ”

"You don't know, I don't know, my mission is to keep you safe, and the oil detection equipment. But if this continues, I am afraid that before we reach Dabulgan, my soldiers will be swallowed up by this terrible desert. ”

Gao Cheng is not alarmist, halfway through the journey, 30 soldiers fainted from heat stroke, and the female soldiers of the medical team were very prominent, they were also disturbed by the heat, but they still insisted on treating the soldiers conscientiously. The soldiers also tried to provide the best possible conditions for the medical team.

The guide said they were lucky not to encounter a sandstorm, otherwise half of the team of thousands would have disappeared! On 17 April, the expedition team finally arrived at its destination, a place called Veliko Bulgan.

Choosing the camp, unloading the goods, waiting for the camels, setting up the tent, preparing water and food, Gao Cheng also had to arrange the camp guards, night duty, when these were done, it was already more than eight o'clock in the evening, and the temperature slowly dropped to about five degrees above zero. After dinner, everyone stayed in front of the campfire to keep warm, the fuel for the campfire is the oil used by the truck, since the truck is not used, it is useless to take the oil, it is better to use it for heating.

Early the next morning, the workers were under the command of the engineer to install the mechanical parts, and the idle soldiers also went to help. However, Gao Cheng did not take the lead this time, he lay shivering in the tent, and last night he was on duty when he was attacked by the cold of the desert, and finally fell ill.

"Captain Gao, this is medicine, get up and drink it!" Yan Ni, the leader of the medical team, walked in with a cup, she was not so polite to anyone, the soldiers in the regiment ran to the medical team when they were fine, which had long made Yan Ni tired, but this morning when she saw Lieutenant Colonel Gao Cheng fall ill, Yan Ni's frozen heart was finally moved.

"What, what about Xiao Yao, why didn't she come over?"

"Xiao Nizi is clumsy, if she doesn't serve our head well, who will protect our safety?" Yanni's smile was like a flower, and Gao Cheng suddenly felt half better!

Just when the relationship between Gao Cheng and the leader of the medical team, Lord Yanni, was developing rapidly, the detection machinery was finally installed on the third day, and Xie Guang had already selected a well drilling site, foundation construction, installation of derricks, installation and commissioning of equipment. The engine drove the drill bit deep into the sandy layer, and a drilling began, and Gao Cheng, who was about the same, stayed by the drilling well accompanied by Yanni.

Everyone looked at the drilling equipment nervously, and Xie Guang gathered around the drilling well with two engineers and six oil workers, adjusting the posture of the machinery from time to time.

However, the well was disappointed, and by the evening it had been abandoned. Xie Guang selected three more well locations, and the three sites were started at the same time in an attempt to expand the drilling area.

On the fourth day, the drilling team still did not find oil, and Gao Cheng had to let a group of teams return to the base now, the wounded and sick needed more careful treatment, and the drilling site did not need hundreds of camels and thousands of people to stay here, which was too much pressure on logistics. Eventually, Takashiro left behind fifty camels, one hundred soldiers, and one hundred and twenty oil drilling engineers and workers, and all the rest returned to base. (To be continued.) )