At least so far, this question of mine has not been answered in this chronicle.

I couldn't help frowning and said, "It's so strange, the purpose of this expedition doesn't seem to be that northwest inquiry!" ”

"Not the same as what is recorded in this book?" Shen Tangzhi raised the book "Xu Xusheng's Journey to the West Diary" that she was opening and flipping through.

"It's completely different - I'm sure the contents of the diary in this notebook are not the same event as the contents of the book in your hand."

"Ji, I have a question." Hyde suddenly asked, "How long did that Northwest inquiry last?" ”

I just read the "Diary of Xu Xusheng's Journey to the West", and I still remember it vividly, so I replied without hesitation: "The beginning time was 1927, and in the end, the inquiry period was extended from 2 years to 6 years, that is, until 1933, the investigation scope of the expedition team was about 4.6 million square kilometers in the northwest of China. ”

Shen Tangzhi turned the book in his hand to the back cover: "But the book was written in 1931. ”

I see what they mean.

Indeed, that expedition to the northwest was not only the first Sino-foreign cooperative scientific expedition in China's history, but also a super-large scientific research project in terms of scale and duration, which went through several interruptions, sorting, and continuations.

In the preface of "Xu Xusheng's Journey to the West", it is mentioned that in 1929, Xu Xusheng returned to China with Wenya Heding, and when he gave inquiry speeches at universities in Peking and Nanjing, he received unprecedented enthusiasm and response from the domestic academic circles.

The book "Xu Xusheng's Journey to the West Diary", which is known as the pioneering work of China's archaeological field, was written in 1931, and the book makes a vivid account of the expedition's arduous inquiry process, local folk customs and some major discoveries.

This shows that at least this six-year-long northwest inquiry operation has at least two long-term rectifications in the middle.

It is possible that the contents of the diary recorded in the cowhide notebook in my possession are recorded after 1931.

"It's possible."

I admit to this speculation.

Historically, the greatest contribution to Wenya Heding is probably to find the legendary Lop Nur in the Taklamakan Desert and discover the ancient city of Loulan, and Xu Xusheng is an important pioneer and Dingding figure in China's archaeological field, but his greatest aura of achievement is not the northwest exploration operation that began in 1927, but in the following decades, he has been searching for and finally confirmed the existence of the "summer ruins".

Therefore, the contents of the diary in this notebook in my hand are looking for the ancient city of Loulan or the summer ruins?

Or is it something else?

With this question in mind, I continued to flip through the notebook in my hand, and I rubbed my fingertips with my fingertips the black pen handwriting on the yellowed pages, which seemed to take me back through a long time, back to the expedition that was trying to cross the desert and was in deep crisis......

[Diary 3]

19##年#月15日, Weather##

We got up at five o'clock, as usual, but we didn't go any further.

Yesterday, we ran out of water, all the kettles were dry, and there was not a drop of water.

The sparse forests and weeds that you would see from time to time along the road have disappeared since they began.

At this point, Dr. Hedin and his guide, Lao He, admit to us that they had actually lost their way a few days earlier, and that Lao He had the confidence to find the landmark in the desert again, but in vain.

Everyone was angry, and the Chinese team was even more angry, but this sentiment was suppressed by Mr. Xu – we should be in this together.

Indeed, this is a truth that everyone understands, especially since most of the expeditions are composed of scholars and adventurers...... But as we all know, the cause of our anger is not disorientation, but deception.

I almost got the urge to tell Mr. Xu about the encounter with the "strange snake" in the front team, but I immediately remembered Dr. Hedin's promise to me, and hesitated, and finally chose not to open my mouth in order to witness the legendary #### with my own eyes.

At one o'clock in the afternoon, the hottest hour of the day, we noticed a caravan behind us, and when the two sides approached, we realized that it was the rear team that had caught up with us.

Thankfully, the rear team brought us much-needed, life-saving water!

Half a month later, we finally reunited with the rear team led by Xi Che, and I also saw Xi Xin again, the wind and sand in the desert and the scorching sun did not damage her beauty, and seeing her smile made me sad.

Hee Che told me and Mr. Xu that after receiving my letter, he changed course. They made a detour to an oasis where they were replenished with as much water as they could, only three days later than originally planned.

The water brought by Heicher saved not only the entire expedition, but also Dr. Hedin's plans, both outwardly and covertly.

We set up camp at three o'clock in the afternoon, and within five kilometers of travel, the Mongols, who were exploring the road in front, suddenly rode back in a panic on their camels, chanting Mongolian in their mouths, and looked extremely panicked.

When Mr. Xu and I heard this, we were shocked and changed.

The people around me didn't know why, Xixin also asked me what was wrong, and I told her that the Mongolian shouted "Black Wind is coming!" ”

"Black Wind" is the Black Storm, the most terrible natural disaster in the desert area!

When we heard me say this, we looked ahead, but a towering barren hill not far ahead blocked our view, Mr. Xu and I hurriedly told everyone to run, and we only had time to turn the direction of the team, and the barren hill went straight to the sky, and suddenly became dim.

The roaring wind was like thunder on the ground, and suddenly it reached everyone's ears.

Everyone was terrified, and some camel pullers even pulled the camels directly and began to flee in all directions.

Dr. Hedin shouted loudly in English, telling everyone to rush to the bottom of the mounds in front of them for shelter.

In the face of the approaching black storm, not only do you not run back, but you also have to crash head-on, which requires great courage.

But Mr. Xu and I immediately understood that Dr. Hedin was right - it is impossible for a man or a camel to outrun the black storm, and the road we have walked on before has not had enough shelter along the way, and the nearest shelter in front of us is this barren hill in front of us!

We immediately reversed the direction of the camel, and although the camel was not frightened, it was extremely reluctant, and we could only drag it towards the barren hills, and most of the people who followed us were members of the scientific research group, and we hired porters, camel pullers (mostly Mongols), and only a few people followed us into the wind.

In the sky above us, suddenly a few brown clouds and mist steamed up, just like the steam coming out of the pot when steaming steamed buns, and soon turned completely black with the roar of the wind, and the air was filled with the choking smell of sand, Mr. Xu told us to tear off our headscarves and cover our mouths and noses, but many of us began to cough.

In a very short period of time, the sky and the earth quickly turned into darkness, and the barren hill not far away turned into a black shadow, and behind it, a thick black smoke-like object had risen to the sky, like a high wall, moving towards us at great speed.

"Run! Drop everything! Run! ”

Mr. Xu shouted hoarsely.

We naturally understand that this is the key to escape, but if we lose the camel and the water on the camel's back, it is also tantamount to suicide.

Soon, we collided head-on with the sand wall formed by the Black Storm!

In an instant, my eyes turned black, and the sand and dirt carried by the wind hit me all over my face, so that I could barely open my eyes and breathe!

The people around him also disappeared almost instantly, and the visibility around them may not even be two meters, and the real fingers cannot be seen.

I shouted Xi Xin's name, but even I couldn't hear my own voice, only the sound of the violent wind was left in my ears, and I dragged the camel towards her place, and luckily, I found her!

Fortunately, we soon arrived at the bottom of the barren hill, which was slightly smaller because of the winds and sand.

Mr. Xu, Dr. Heding, and the guide, Lao He, also arrived, followed by a dozen more people, and we turned our backs to the mountain, letting the rest of the camels lying on the ground form a circle, and we hid in the circle.

Xi Xin asked her brother Xi Che's whereabouts, and Mr. Xu didn't know, she wanted to turn around to look for her, and I desperately pulled her back.

While we were pulling, we bumped into Dr. Hedin and Lao He who were talking to each other, and I suddenly heard Lao He say a familiar word - "phoenix eyes"!

When Dr. Hedin saw me, he suddenly grabbed me and said in English, "I need you to convince Mr. Xu that we should continue to go inside." ”

I was almost incredulous: "Why?!" ”

Xi Xin, who also understands English, said loudly, "I'm going to find my brother!" ”

She used the word "must" and was very resolute,

Dr. Hedin said, "Yes, ma'am, just keep going, and we'll find your brother." ”

"Dr. Hedin, that's the other way around."

"Direction? That's the right direction, ma'am. This time the Black Storm is...... An omen, an omen...... A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and we can't afford to lose it! Be sensible, we can't find anyone right now! But I promise you, as soon as we get there – hey—hey! ”

Xi Xin ignored Dr. Hedin and walked away.

"He's crazy! You're all crazy! Xi Xin was angry at me, "Let go of me!" ”

I leaned into her ear and said, "They're looking for ###!" ”

"What?!" Xi Xin was stunned.

But in an instant, she understood what I really meant, and she began to shiver, as if she were chilled.

I pulled her to squat, pulled a coarse cloth from the camel on the side, and put it on her head: "Wait for me!" ”

Just as I was about to go to Mr. Xu, all of a sudden, I felt the light in front of me brighten, my whole body was light, the wind around me actually stopped, and the sand and dust became smaller.

The people around them stood up and looked around with blank, surprised, or delighted faces.

The black storm around us has stopped.

No, about a hundred meters away, the black sand wall still towered into the sky, but when I looked up, I saw a clear sky.

I woke up in an instant—

We are now in the middle of the phoenix's eyes!

It didn't take me to convince Dr. Hedin to begin his speech, saying that he had discovered the ancient city after a dark storm, and that now it was another opportunity that we might find again a discovery that would shock the world!

There is no one who does not aspire to fame, and all discoveries are accompanied by more or less adventure.

Most people chose to follow Dr. Hedin, who was also the initiator of the expedition, and Mr. Xu was far less influential.

I pulled Xixin and followed everyone.

Turning around the barren hills, there was a thick red fog in front of me.

Dr. Hedin and the others did not hesitate to plunge headlong into the fog, Xi Xin clenched my arm, her face covered in a turban, but I could see the fear in her eyes.

After walking for nearly half an hour, the fog gradually became stuffy, we were all sweating, and there was a red light flashing in the distance, like the rising sun, the red light was full of light, and the thick fog became blood red.

Xi Xin looked even more frightened, and everyone in the group felt that something was wrong, except for Dr. Hedin and a few others, but they seemed very excited—I recall that Dr. Hedin seemed to have mentioned that those people had discovered the ancient city with him, and that they had all participated in the great expedition thirty years earlier.

I quietly pulled out my compass, only to find to my horror that in the red mist, the compass was spinning wildly—we were completely disoriented.

What's even more terrifying is that we gradually feel that there seems to be something else in this blood-red mist.

First of all, there are some small grinding sounds, such as the sound of many people dragging on the sand, the soles of their shoes rubbing against the sand......

Then, there was an indescribable sound, like a wall, something was being bitten, and I could even feel the tearing. Detail of teeth sharpening.

Then, there was the dull sound of dragging, as if someone was dragging a heavy object in a long hallway, hollow and terrifying.

And in the process, I kept feeling that there seemed to be an extremely malicious, creepy gaze peeking at me from the red fog......

I glanced at Xi Xin beside me, her forehead was covered with fine drops of sweat, her eyes were looking around in horror, her whole body trembled from time to time, and she hugged my arms tighter - I know, this is not my illusion, at least Xi Xin also felt it.

I tried to pretend I hadn't noticed anything, I was afraid that my reaction would make Seesin even more flustered, but my pretense could make her feel a little safe, even if it was small and faint.

We are frightened and thirsty, and each step forward requires far more strength and willpower than usual......

Just when we felt like we couldn't hold on any longer to the next second, I suddenly realized that I was cold—

We've come out of that red mist, and not only that, but even the Black Storm is gone.

The air was dry and cold, not as hot as in the fog, but it was very dark at some point.

"It's sunset."

Xi Xin took out her pocket watch and handed it to me, her hand still trembling slightly, it was a remnant of fear.

The pocket watch shows eight o'clock.

Dr. Hedin and Mr. Xu began to count the losses of the team—terrible losses, and the numbers were staggering.

12 camels were lost.

Eleven hired porters and camel pullers are missing.

Seven members of the research group are missing.

About half of the supplies were lost, but food and water were not to be worried about for a short time because of the sudden decline in the number of people.

Everyone camped in silence, few people spoke, and the gloomy atmosphere infected everyone—Dr. Hedin and his "old fellows" were probably not among them, though they also feigned sadness.

Anyway, we're alive.

Me, and Xi Xin.

Alive.

……

This concludes the third diary.