Chapter 1112 – Ancient Temple of a Thousand Years (I)

After resting for the night, the next morning, the group mounted their camels and continued traveling north, according to what Mangzi said, the ancient temple should not be very far away from here.

Leaving this small oasis, the eye is full of yellow sand, but may be close to the North Gobi reason, in the ground from time to time can see some small stones, presumably by the wind from the Gobi Beach swept.

May be located in the wind, the people riding on the camel, walking is very difficult, the clothes on the body is rendered by the yellow sand only one color.

If this was photographed, even if it was said that they were a merchant caravan on the Silk Road more than a thousand years ago, I’m afraid that onlookers wouldn’t be able to tell the difference, but of course, it took a camera in that era.

“The wind is going to be a lot stronger over here, Zhuang Rui, if we still can’t find that temple site by nightfall, let’s go back!”

Dr. Ren had just finished speaking when a gust of wind and sand rolled to and rushed into his mouth, instantly making Dr. Ren suffer, picking up his water bladder and hastily taking a drink of water and spitting it outwards.

“Alright, senior brother, if we can’t find it again today, we’ll go back.”

Although a bit reluctant, Zhuang Rui also knew that after staying in the desert for almost a week, except for him and Prof. Man and the 2 tour guides, the rest of the people were basically exhausted, and there was no guarantee that something wouldn’t happen if they stayed any longer.

Especially has been alive and kicking Xiao Jia, in the last night do not know how to get cold, the morning started a low fever, fortunately they carry medicines, otherwise really do not know how to do, compared to the safety of the archaeologists, the site is not so important.

For this day can find the ruins of the ancient temple, Zhuang Rui heart also has no bottom, anyway, he used the results of the aura survey, around more than ten kilometers away, there is no man-made monuments exist.

And with the speed they traveled in the desert, they could only walk a few dozen kilometers a day at most, and it was very likely that they would return without any success.

Dr. Ren knew that Zhuang Rui had high hopes for this desert archaeology, and after seeing his hopeless look, he said, “Zhuang Rui, it’s okay if we can’t find it this time, when I go back I will apply for a fund from the school to set up an archaeological team dedicated to the ruins of that ancient temple, and we can come back again.”

“It’s okay, Brother Ren, there will be opportunities in the future.”

Zhuang Rui waved his hand, it’s not a matter of money, even if the institute set up a specialized archaeological team, that funding won’t be much, at most it will be complete in terms of staffing.

After a few sentences of small talk, Zhuang Rui and Dr. Ren both closed their mouths, the wind and sand in this desert is just too big, as soon as they open their mouths they have to drink the wind, and incidentally send a mouthful of gravel.

By noon, a group of people with a camel around a round arch, simply eat something, continue to go north, this day back is certainly not possible, they hope to find a sheltered place to rest a bowl.

By three o’clock in the afternoon, the wind and sand became smaller, in order to save some energy for the camel, in addition to the sick Xiao Jia still sitting on the camel, the rest of the people got off the camel to walk forward.

“Brother Zhuang, it’s all my fault, I didn’t get sick earlier or later, but this time I got sick.”

Sitting on the camel, Xiao Jia knew that he was dragging the archaeological team down, and was in a bad mood, and was making a fuss about insisting on walking!

“Who can’t still be sick! Don’t fool around, there is no doctor in this desert, in case something happens, how can I explain to your family and the school?”

Zhuang Rui stopped Xiao Jia, he is the leader of this archaeological team, if something goes wrong with the team members, Zhuang Rui has to take the responsibility, this archaeology is no more important than anyone’s safety.

“I am not even as good as Xiao Rui, she is not …… there.”

Xiao Jia is very dissatisfied with himself, the words are not yet halfway, the voice suddenly stopped, staring blankly at the front.

“What’s wrong, not feeling well again?” Zhuang Rui saw Xiao Jia stopped his mouth, hastily asked with concern.

“No …… no, Zhuang …… Zhuang brother, the front …… front is a big piece of forest.”

Xiao Jia rode on the camel and looked farther away, followed by saying, “This forest is so strange, there is no leaf at all.”

“No leaves?”

Zhuang Rui suspiciously followed Xiao Jia’s gaze and looked forward, as far as the eye could see, he really saw a withered yellow forest, just as Xiao Jia said, the branches and trunks of the trees were all bare.

“A poplar forest? That’s the dead poplar forest.”

Zhuang Rui immediately reacted and said loudly, “Everyone get on the camels, you can camp in front.”

After hearing Zhuang Rui’s words, the crowd raised their heads and also discovered the poplar forest ahead, their faces couldn’t help but show a look of surprise.

Walking in the desert journey, people are often silent, in this endless vast desert, even a tree in the distance, let alone a piece of poplar forest which is known as one of China’s top ten marvelous seductive landscapes.

More than ten minutes later, the camel finally came to the edge of the poplar forest, everyone was shocked by the scene in front of them, into the eyes of the dead poplar trees everywhere, some lying down on the ground, some are still standing, a variety of strange shapes, the impact of the crowd’s vision.

A large area of dead poplar forest, standing naked in the desert, dry branches struggling to reach the sky, as if in desperation praying for something, under the tree grows some red, yellow, brown and green desert vegetation, as if the oil painting that heavy and intense colors, stretching towards the sky.

“I didn’t expect to see such a large piece of poplar forest outside of the desert ruins of Jingjie, Loulan, Black City, Juyan, and Tongwan.”

Although it is not the first time to see the dead poplar forest, Professor Man was still attracted by this sad landscape in front of him, in this poplar forest where the vitality has been extinct, permeated with a flavor of sadness and bleakness from the long years.

“These trees withered but a few decades, pity, pity.”

Professor Man down the camel, rubbing his hand over those dead poplar trees, and Xinjiang and other places of tall protective forests are different, these poplar trees in the desert is relatively small, but its role, not less than those up to more than ten meters of poplar trees.

Everyone is immersed in this spectacular scene, Zhuang Rui even released the aura in his eyes, to feel the breath of life in the death, just to his disappointment, rows and rows of dead poplar trees, and then there is no trace of aura.

“Eh? This is …… the ruins of an ancient temple?”

When the aura in Zhuang Rui’s eyes extended forward for more than a hundred meters, he suddenly froze, because Zhuang Rui found that behind this poplar forest, there was a piece of building of quite a large size, and just by touching some stone ladders and wooden doors, Zhuang Rui felt a strong aura.

Compared to the legendary ruins of the ancient temple, in front of the heart trembling poplar forest, obviously on Zhuang Rui’s attraction is bigger, hastily coughed, will all the people’s thoughts pulled back after, opened his mouth and said: “Prof. Man, here there is such a large piece of area of the poplar forest, when the old temple will not be built in the vicinity of this?”

Prof. Man has not yet answered, Mangzi jacked in and said, “Brother Zhuang, in the vicinity, must be in the vicinity, the old people in the town said, when the trees here, the temple is even more incense, it must be here.”

Buddhism was introduced to China from the western region, and on the ancient Silk Road, there were even more temples, only that most of them disappeared in the war and desert.

“Then what are you waiting for! Hurry up and go in to take a look ……”

The main purpose of Zhuang Rui’s group was to look for the ruins in the desert, after hearing Mangzi’s words, even the sick Xiao Jia yelled out.

As for Zhongchuan, who was silent all this way, after hearing Yan Xiaowei’s translation, he also lowered his eyelids, making it impossible for the crowd to see the color in his eyes.

In this dead poplar forest, some of the trees are still crooked on the ground, the camels are not very good to go in, after Zhuang Rui thought for a while, he said, “Okay, there shouldn’t be any danger here, everyone go in, just tie the camels to these poplar trees.”

“Xiao Zhuang, you guys go, I want to observe the death of the poplar forest here.”

Professor Man pulled Zhuang Rui, he himself is a desert management expert, extremely concerned about these phenomena about desertification, as for what ancient temples and other things, but is not very much on the mind.

“Mr. Man, then you be careful, we’ll go over first.”

Zhuang Rui couldn’t care less about Prof. Man at the moment, plus this place is deep in the desert, as long as it doesn’t come to some scorpion king or something like that in western mythology, there is no danger.

After tethering the camels, each of them carried some water and food, while Zhuang Rui took the engineer’s spade, and the group entered the poplar forest.

“Gosh, this …… is the small temple you guys are talking about?”

After walking out of the poplar forest, Zhuang Rui and his party were shocked by the sudden appearance of an ancient building in front of them, the shock was no less than the discovery of the poplar forest just now.

In the middle of the two rows of already dead poplar trees, laying a large green stone up to several meters long, forming a step up to seven or eight meters extending upwards, although suffered from wind and sand erosion, you can still see the smooth stone surface.

More than twenty meters long, the end of the steps, is a temple has collapsed half of the gate, the gate on both sides of the carved with fine patterns of the columns, has fallen across the ground, above the plaque is blurred can not recognize the words.

Although the temple door is in a state of disrepair, but through the door, you can still see inside the staggered, majestic temple pavilions, after a thousand years of sandy ancient temples, still looks magnificent.

“Brother Mangzi, this ‘small’ temple, is in Henan and Shaanxi is not rare, right?”

Although he hadn’t entered the temple yet, from the outside alone, he could tell that this temple was in its heyday back then, perhaps only in the Sui and Tang dynasties, when Buddhism was at its peak, was it possible to build a temple of such a large scale.

Can imagine, in a thousand years ago when the Silk Road flourished, all over the literati, Buddhist disciples, merchants and travelers, come to worship Buddha and tour the temple to enjoy the scenery of the endless scene.