After resting for a night, everyone got on their camels and continued heading north early the next morning. According to Mengzi, the ancient temple should not be very far away from here.
Leaving this small oasis, the place you see is full of yellow sand. However, this may be because it is close to the North Gobi. From time to time, you can see some small stones on the ground, which may have been swept away from the Gobi Desert by the strong wind.
Perhaps because of the location in the wind, everyone riding on camels had a very difficult time walking, and the clothes on their bodies were only one color due to the yellow sand.
If we take photos of them, even if they are caravans on the Silk Road more than a thousand years ago, others may not be able to tell. Of course, you would have to have a camera in that era.
"The wind is much stronger here, Zhuang Rui, if we still can't find the temple ruins at night, let's go back..."
Just as Dr. Ren finished speaking, a gust of wind and sand came and rushed into his mouth. Dr. Ren was immediately miserable. He picked up the water bag and quickly drank the water and spit it out.
"Okay, senior brother, if you can't find it again today, go back..."
Although he was a little reluctant, Zhuang Rui also knew that after staying in the desert for almost a week, except for him, Professor Man and the two tour guides, the others were basically exhausted. If they stayed any longer, there was no guarantee that they would not be able to survive.
What will happen?
Especially Xiao Jia, who has always been lively and lively, caught a cold for some reason last night and developed a low fever in the morning. Fortunately, they brought medicine with them, otherwise they really don’t know what to do. Compared with the safety of the archaeological team members, the ruins are
It's not that important anymore.
Zhuang Rui was not sure whether he could find the ruins of the ancient temple today. Anyway, the results he obtained using his spiritual energy survey showed that there were no man-made monuments within a radius of more than ten kilometers.
And at the speed they were traveling in the desert, they could only travel a few dozen kilometers a day at most, and they would most likely return without success.
Dr. Ren knew that Zhuang Rui had high hopes for this desert archaeology. After seeing his helpless look, he said: "Zhuang Rui, it doesn't matter if you can't find it this time. I will apply for a fund from the school when I return.
We can set up an archaeological team specifically to focus on the ruins of that ancient temple, and we can come again..."
"It's okay, Brother Ren, there will be a chance in the future..."
Zhuang Rui waved his hand, this is not a question of money. Even if the institute established a special archaeological team, the funds would not be much. At most, the staffing would be more complete.
After chatting for a few words, Zhuang Rui and Dr. Ren both closed their mouths. The wind and sand in the desert were so strong that when they opened their mouths, they drank the wind and a mouthful of gravel.
At noon, the group formed a round arch with camels, had a simple meal, and continued walking north. It was definitely impossible to return today. They hoped to find a sheltered place to rest and have a bowl.
…
At about three o'clock in the afternoon, the wind and sand became lighter. In order to save some energy for the camel, except for the sick Xiao Jia who still sat on the camel, the others got off the camel and walked forward.
"Brother Zhuang, it's all my fault. If I didn't get sick earlier, I'd get sick later. Now I'll get sick..."
Xiao Jia, who was sitting on the camel, knew that he was holding back the archaeological team and was in a very bad mood. He was currently clamoring to keep walking.
"Who can help but get sick? Don't mess around. There are no doctors in this desert. If 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 among the team members, Zhuang Rui will be held responsible. No matter how important the archeology is, no one's safety is important.
"I'm not even as good as Xiaolei, she's not even..."
Xiao Jia was very dissatisfied with himself. Before he was halfway through speaking, his voice suddenly stopped and he stared blankly ahead.
"What's the matter? Are you feeling unwell again?" Zhuang Rui asked with concern when he saw Xiao Jia stopped talking.
"No...no, Zhuang...Brother Zhuang, there is a huge forest in front..."
Xiao Jia was riding on a camel, looking far away, and then said: "This forest is so strange, there are no leaves at all..."
"No leaves?"
Zhuang Rui followed Xiao Jia's gaze and looked forward in confusion. As far as he could see, he saw a withered yellow forest. Just as Xiao Jia said, the branches and trees were all bare.
"Popular euphratica forest? That's the dead Populus euphratica forest..."
Zhuang Rui reacted immediately and said loudly: "Everyone get on the camels, you can camp in front..."
After hearing Zhuang Rui's words, everyone raised their heads one after another and discovered the Populus euphratica forest in front of them, with expressions of surprise on their faces.
When walking in the desert, people are often silent. In this endless desert, even a tree in the distance, let alone a Populus euphratica forest known as one of China's top ten wonderful and enchanting scenery?
More than ten minutes later, the trotting camel finally arrived at the edge of the Populus euphratica forest. Everyone was shocked by the scene in front of them. There were dead Populus euphratica trees everywhere, some lying on the ground, and some still standing tall.
, various strange shapes, impacting everyone's vision.
A large area of dead Populus euphratica forest stands naked in the desert, with its dry branches struggling to reach the sky, as if praying for something in despair. Under the trees, there are some red, yellow, brown and green desert vegetation, like the thick and intense colors in oil paintings.
The colors extend towards the sky.
"I didn't expect to see such a large Populus euphratica forest besides desert sites such as Jingjue, Loulan, Heicheng, Juyan, and Tongwan..."
Although this was not the first time he saw a dead Populus euphratica forest, Professor Man was still attracted by the tragic landscape in front of him. In this Populus euphratica forest, which has lost all life, there is a sense of sadness and desolation from the long past!
"These trees will only die in a few decades. It's a pity, it's a pity..."
Professor Man got off the camel and rubbed the dead poplar trees with his hands. Different from the tall protective forests in Xinjiang and other places, these poplar trees in the desert are smaller in size, but their effect is no less than those that are more than ten meters high.
Poplar tree.
Everyone was immersed in this spectacular scene, and Zhuang Rui released the aura in his eyes to feel the breath of life in death. But to his disappointment, there were no more dead trees among the rows of dead poplar trees.
There is a hint of spirituality.
"Huh? This is... the ruins of an ancient temple?"
When the aura in Zhuang Rui's eyes extended more than a hundred meters forward, he was suddenly stunned, because Zhuang Rui discovered that behind the Populus euphratica forest, there was a large building, only touching some stone stairs.
From the wooden door, Zhuang Rui felt the rich aura.
Compared with the legendary ancient temple ruins, the soul-shuddering Populus euphratica forest in front of him was obviously more attractive to Zhuang Rui. He coughed quickly, brought everyone's thoughts back, and said: "Professor Man, there is such a big place here.
An area of Populus euphratica forest, could the ancient temple be built near this area?"
Before Professor Man could answer, Mengzi interrupted and said: "Brother Zhuang, if it's nearby, it must be nearby. The old people in the town said that back then, the trees here were shady and the temples were full of incense. It must be here..."
Buddhism was introduced to China from the Western Regions. There were many temples along the ancient Silk Road, but most of them were lost in the war and desert.
"Then what are you waiting for? Come in and take a look..."
The main purpose of Zhuang Rui and his party was to search for ruins in the desert. After hearing Mengzi's words, even the sick Xiao Jia started shouting.
Zhongchuan, who had been silent all the way, also lowered his eyelids after hearing Yan Xiaowei's translation, so that no one could see the brilliance in his eyes.
In this dead Populus euphratica forest, some trees are still lying on the ground. It is not easy for camels to get in. After Zhuang Rui thought for a while, he said: "Okay, there should be no danger here. Everyone go in and tie the camels."
Just stick to these poplar trees..."
"Xiaozhuang, you go, I want to observe the death of Populus euphratica forest here..."
Professor Man grabbed Zhuang Rui. He was an expert in desert management and was extremely concerned about these phenomena related to desertification. As for things like ancient temples, he didn't pay much attention to them.
"Teacher Man, please be careful, we will go there first..."
Zhuang Rui couldn't care about Professor Man at this moment, and since it was deep in the desert here, there was no danger as long as there wasn't something like the Scorpion King from Western mythology.
After tying up the camels, everyone carried some water and food, Zhuang Rui took the engineering shovel, and the group entered the Populus euphratica forest.
"Oh my god, this...is this the small temple you are talking about?"
After walking out of the Populus euphratica 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 Populus euphratica forest just now.
Between the two rows of dead poplar trees, large bluestones several meters long were laid out, forming a step up to seven or eight meters high. Although it has been eroded by wind and sand, the smooth stone surface can still be seen.
.
At the end of the more than 20-meter-long steps, there is a temple gate that has collapsed in half. The pillars carved with fine patterns on both sides of the gate have fallen to the ground, and the door plaque above is blurry and cannot be read.
Although the temple gate is dilapidated, through the gate, you can still see the well-proportioned and majestic palaces and pavilions inside. The ancient temple, which has been battered by wind and sand for thousands of years, still looks magnificent.
"Brother Mengzi, this "small" temple is rare even in Henan and Shaanxi, right?"
Although we haven't entered the temple yet, we can see from the outside how prosperous the temple was. Perhaps only during the Sui and Tang Dynasties when Buddhism was at its peak, it was possible to build such a large-scale temple.
It can be imagined that when the Silk Road was prosperous thousands of years ago, there was an endless stream of literati, bachelors, Buddhist disciples, and merchants from all over the world who came to worship Buddha and visit temples to enjoy the scenery.
