Volume 3 Chapter 3: Stalking

We were having a great time chatting, but we couldn’t understand a word he said because of his heavy accent. Old Yao let out a “huh” and asked, “Where is ‘Ah Da’?”

The old man saw that we didn’t understand, so he asked us in a very heavy accent, “What I mean is, where do you want to go to do business? Are you here to dig for local products?”

I I didn’t know what local produce was, and in the south people are very cold, so apart from salespeople, very few people would strike up a conversation with people at street stalls. I didn’t know how to react, but fortunately Lao Yang was quick to react and imitated the old man’s accent, saying, “We’re here on holiday and aren’t interested in local produce. Are you selling local produce, old man?”

The old laughed and waved to us before going back to his seat. We were both puzzled, and then we heard the old man say to his tablemates, “It’s okay, they’re just two young kids who don’t know anything.

When I heard this, Lao Yang’s face changed slightly, and he quietly told me to leave. I was surprised, but seeing his nervous expression, I left ten yuan with him and left the roadside stall. Straight ahead At a turning point, I asked Lao Yang, “Why are you leaving? We’ve only just started drinking!”

Lao Yang He looked back at me suspiciously and said, “That old man just told the other table that we are the greenheads of the tomb robbers. I heard those people from the underworld say that the tomb robbers are the slang for tomb robbers here, and the greenheads refer to us as people who are not from the underworld. This group of people have a smell of earth and blood, and I’m afraid they are also here to run the earth fairy. They just heard us talking about the tomb and came to snoop around.”

I laughed I said, “That’s not a reason to leave. We can fight back if they come, and we can hide if they come with water. What can they do to us in public?”

Lao Yao patted me and said that I didn’t understand. It’s hard to explain things on the underworld. I think they’ve heard everything we’ve said, and I don’t know how much they understood. Now that a good tomb is hard to find, if they set their sights on us, there will be more trouble in the future.

I know I knew that he had probably heard a lot of things from his fellow inmates in prison, but I didn’t want to argue with him. I nodded and went back to the guesthouse.

The next day, we got up before seven o’clock, each carrying 15 kg of equipment and food, and set off for China’s largest dragon vein.

I had been to the Qinling Mountains several times before, but each time I had been led around by a tour guide and never knew how to get around. So I had to follow Lao Yang this time. He had also been in a tour group three years ago, and he had to follow the tour group this time, otherwise he wouldn’t know the way.

We took the Xibao Expressway for about three hours to Changyang Mountain in Baoji, Shaanxi. Then we turned to the source of the Jialing River.

I usually I usually take the straight road, but this winding mountain road makes me dizzy every five seconds. My head is on the front seat, and I feel like my insides are churning. Lao Yi is even worse. He hasn’t been in a car for three years, and he’s already dizzy on the way. enough, and this time it was even worse, he was about to vomit bile, and said, “I’m old, I’m old, I’m not as useful as I used to be. Three-three years ago when I took this road, I could still argue with the women on the side, but I didn’t expect that this time I couldn’t even open my eyes.”

I scolded I said, “Stop talking nonsense. You didn’t want to take the highway, you had to take the winding mountain road. Now you’re regretting it, but it’s no use.”

Lao Yi waved his hand at me, telling me not to talk to him, that he was in pain.

At this At this time, suddenly heard a distant explosion, shaking the car window glass buzzing, the whole car a commotion, I looked out the window, saw the opposite hill full of smoke, Lao Yang scared a big jump, asked me: “What’s going on? Earthquakes!”

A local-looking middle-aged man turned around and smiled: “Two foreigners, don’t you know? That’s someone blowing up a tomb. In this season, there are always two or three explosions a day.”

I was surprised I said, “In broad daylight, how dare these tomb robbers be so bold?” He smiled and showed his yellow teeth. “The mountain across the river is not the same as this one. Although there is only the Jialing River between them, there is a winding mountain road on our side, but there is no place to walk on the other side. Even if you call the police now, it will take at least a day and a night for them to arrive. Unless you can fly there, you can only stare blankly.”

I nodded and said, “Is there such a thing?”

The man looked at the place where the explosion occurred and laughed, “This is also a feature of our place, especially now in this season. We caught a group of them two days ago. Now there are fewer and fewer ancient tombs. There may still be some in the deep mountains, but the roads are too difficult to walk, so the government can only let them be. But judging from the movement just now, I’m afraid there were too many explosives.”

I ” Oh” I said, turning to look out the window. This should be one of the countless branches of the Qinling Mountains. I could only see a vast forest, and the scene that was happening under the dense canopy of trees was impossible to see.

Before coming out, I had checked the information. The Qinling Mountains in Shaanxi Province are distributed in a waist-like shape, with several branches of mountains on the east and west wings. The mountains and basins are arranged alternately, and there are many rivers that cut deeply into the mountains. Eight hundred Qin Chuan has been a famous place for cultural relics and historical sites since ancient times. In particular, the northern slope has many imperial tombs, and there are countless other tombs of dignitaries, wealthy people, and powerful gentry. So this place has always been a place where tomb robbers flock to, but I never imagined that there would be tomb robbers here blatantly blowing up tombs before we even got to the depths of the Qinling Mountains.

The local people were quite enthusiastic. The local people were very enthusiastic. Once the topic was opened, they didn’t want to stop. They handed me a cigarette and asked me, “Are you two kids here for tourism? Where do you want to go?”

I said, “I want to go to Taibai Mountain.” He nodded and said, “You won’t get far without following a tour group. The mountain is winding and you might get lost. Do you want me to take you part of the way? I live in a village next to the nature reserve, just over two mountain passes. You see, it’s necessary to find a guide when you come here to have fun.”

I heard that this guy was actually a black tour guide. The people in these mountains are fierce, so don’t take me to the mountains and stab me. I hurriedly shook my head and said, ‘No, no, we have our own arrangements.’

The man said, “Don’t shake your head. This is not like other places. There are many mountains and thick forests here. If you go into the mountains recklessly, you will easily get into danger. You have to think about it carefully. I am also a little famous as a guide in this area, and I will definitely not scare you.”

I saw He seemed sincere, so I didn’t want to turn him down right away. I told him that I mainly wanted to go to the minority villages in the mountains, and that I planned to stay at the foot of the mountain for a few days, so I didn’t need a guide right away. I would find him when I really needed to go into the mountains in a few days.

The man immediately said, “Then it’s better to hurry than to wait. I take this route the most. If you want to go to the nearest Yao village, you have to climb over this mountain.” He pointed to a long mountain range in the distance. He pointed to a continuous mountain range in the distance, “This is called Snakehead Mountain. The highest point is more than 1,000 meters above sea level. The entire mountain resembles the head of a python, so it is called Snakehead Mountain. All the wayfarers from the surrounding villages who want to go to the authentic minority village must climb over it step by step. There have been many deaths in this mountain. Last year, several art students went in to sketch, but they haven’t come out yet. Do you think it’s possible to go without a guide?”

I looked in the direction he was pointing. I looked in the direction of his finger and saw Snake Mountain stretching out at the end of the horizon. The mountain was green and the peak was high, towering into the clouds. Because of the climate, the entire mountain range was shrouded in clouds and mist, and its true appearance could not be seen. Only the side facing the Jialing River could be seen, but unfortunately, the side facing the river was a cliff, and the mountain was very steep. I don’t think even a monkey could climb it.

This is really “Where is the home of the family when the clouds cross the Qinling Mountains? Snow embraces the Blue Pass, and the horse does not advance.” I looked I couldn’t help but clench my teeth, thinking to myself, “How can we possibly climb over this mountain and survive?”

After driving for another hour, we finally arrived at the foot of Taibai Mountain. I and Lao Yang got out of the car and stumbled about. The black tour guide insisted on introducing us to a hotel. I looked at him and saw that he was really enthusiastic.

After settling us in, he left us and gave us a phone number to call him when we entered the mountain. , he left us and gave us a phone number to call when we entered the mountain. He said he would take us in.

The proprietress of the farmhouse was very welcoming and made us dinner. We were embarrassed to eat in the living room with the family, so we went back to our room with Lao Yang and leaned on the windowsill, eating and looking at the map of the area.

The black The guide was right. To get to the heart of the Qinling Mountains, we would have to climb a mountain over a thousand meters high. This was something we had never considered. With our current experience, going into the mountains on our own would be like committing suicide. But if we asked the guide to take us in, he would have to take us out. It would be fine for him to wait for a day or two, but we would probably be in the mountains for a week, and he would inevitably become suspicious.

Lao Yang Last time, his cousin hired a guide to show him the way, but now his cousin is in jail, so there is no way to find a guide. He didn’t think about coming again, and he didn’t have any memory of the mountain path, so there was no way he could rely on him this time. I asked the proprietress, and she said there was no other way. Generally, the people in the village only come out when there is a market, and they all come over the mountain. It seems that it will be a bit difficult to cross this mountain.

Zheng Zhuo I was wondering what to do when Lao Yi patted me on the shoulder and whispered, “Lao Wu, look, who is that guy down there?”

I glanced out the window and saw five people in the courtyard of a farmhouse below the window.

I thought to myself, “How come these people are here too? Could it be that Lao Yi was right and they are here to steal plates?”

Lao Yi pulled the curtains closed, leaving a small gap, and whispered to me, “These guys are also carrying big and small bags, and they look just like us. Could it be that they heard us talking in Xi’an and want to follow us and find an opportunity to intercept us?”

I shook my head and watched the proprietress come out, smiling and welcoming them in, saying, “No, judging from the degree of intimacy, I think these people often stay here, they are regular customers. There aren’t many inns here, so it’s probably just a coincidence that they stayed with them for a while.” If If Lao Yang is right and they are also here to dig up the tomb, then this should be their regular place to stay. I’m afraid they stay here every time they come to work.

Lao Yang was worried, “That’s not good. They have already heard us talking in Xi’an. If they see us here, they will definitely take notice of us. Should we leave tonight?”

I thought I thought about it and felt that this was not only not a problem, but also a good opportunity. I shook my head and said, “No, these people are like flies. They won’t leave a gap without a bite. They must have a goal for coming here. We two have no experience at all. Instead of rushing around, it’s better to follow them. First, we can see if there are any good things to pick up. Second, we can follow them over the mountain.”

Lao Yang said, “These people are desperate criminals. They don’t care if they kill someone. If we follow them and they find us, they might kill us. Wouldn’t that be too risky?”

I laughed and said, “When did you become such a nagging person? This is a deep mountain forest. How could they be so easily discovered? Besides, we’re not stupid. If they find us, won’t we run away? If you If you’re really worried, let’s just follow them for a while and see how alert they are. If we can’t follow them anymore, we won’t, and there’s no loss, right?”

Lao Yang heard what I said and didn’t know what to say in reply. We immediately got everything ready so that we wouldn’t panic tomorrow. I thought that the next few days might not be easy, so I set the alarm clock early and told Lao Yang not to do anything else.

We went to bed and rested. We were so tired from the journey that we fell asleep at noon and didn’t hear the alarm. I opened my eyes and saw the sun was high in the sky. I woke up suddenly and quickly jumped up to wake up Lao Yang. I went down and asked the proprietress, and she said that the people had already left and gone down the mountain.

We hurriedly bought some biscuits as food and hurried all the way to the mountain. We ran After running for about 15 minutes, we finally caught up with them at the entrance to the scenic spot at the foot of the mountain.