Chen Xia was standing at a crossroads. Just as he was about to yell something, a mouthful of dust and sand entered his mouth and blinded his eyes. He was so angry that he slammed the hood twice.
Well, he was lost.
He got lost less than half a day after driving out of Uluru Airport. The map clearly showed the roads, but he was standing at a crossroads and had no idea which direction to go.
In this crappy era, there are not even any signposts on the road. The worst thing is that Xinjiang Province is known for its vast area and sparse population. Even if he wanted to stop a passerby on the road to ask for directions, he couldn't find anyone.
Poor Chen Xia missed Baidu Maps and Amap Navigation so much at this moment.
There was no choice but to park the car on the side of the road, eat snacks, and wait for passing cars to come and rescue this poor lost child.
The wait lasted for three hours, and Chen Xia was starting to doubt his life. Even if there were fewer people in Xinjiang Province, it wouldn't be possible to not see a passing car for several hours, right?
Not to mention cars, I didn’t even see a Mamtim riding a donkey. This is really weird.
In the evening, he finally saw a convoy coming in the distance. The yellow sand rolled up into the sky, and the only sentence that flashed through Chen Xia's mind was: "Mountains of gold and silver are not as good as green mountains and clear waters."
The convoy was slowly approaching. Chen Xia quickly jumped to the side of the road, waving his hands vigorously and shouting:
"Help me, help me, I'm lost."
Only when they were in front of him did Chen Xia see clearly that it was a team of military vehicles. Having just come back from the battlefield, he was very familiar with these big trucks.
The leading car braked suddenly, and the cars behind it stopped one after another. Then suddenly, a dozen soldiers came down from behind the truck, each holding a gun and pointing it at Chen Xia.
Chen Xia: ???
I just wanted to ask for directions, didn't you guys have to point a gun at me?
An officer got out of the car and asked suspiciously, "What do you do?"
"Hey, PLA comrade, I just want to ask for directions, nothing else."
"Ask for directions?"
The officer walked up and his eyes were first attracted by the dark red SUV. A gleam of light flashed in his eyes. Well, there is no man who doesn't like cars.
Then he looked at the young man in front of him. He didn't know what he was looking at and was shocked.
"Hey, hey, hey, comrade, has anyone ever told you that you look a lot like the combat hero Chen Xia?"
Chen Xia: ???
"Hey, hey, hey, look at this guy. Doesn't he look like that Vietnam War hero from the newspaper, First Class Meritorious Serviceman Chen Xia? Wow, they look a lot like him."
The officer didn't know whether he was too bored or was in awe of the hero, but he became excited instantly. His shouting attracted some officers and soldiers behind him.
Everyone looked at Chen Xia like a monkey, marveling at him and talking loudly about how brave Chen Xia was and how he could just shout and fire at me.
Those who didn’t know thought they had seen it with their own eyes and experienced it personally, but no one asked who this confused young man was.
Seeing that they were getting more and more excited, Chen Xia immediately felt a sense of pride and pretentiousness.
"Ahem, if my guess is correct, the Chen Xia you are talking about is me."
After saying that, Chen Xia took out his work ID. An officer picked it up and took a look: "Chen Xia, Vice President of Yuezhou People's Hospital."
"Hey, hey, hey, yes, it's Chen Xia from Yuezhou People's Hospital. Haha, hero, we see a living first-class hero."
Then another group of people gathered around, patting Chen Xia on the shoulders and shaking his hands vigorously. This enthusiasm was exactly the same as when he was lying in the field hospital and was watched by various troops.
After everyone calmed down, the more than 100 people present stepped back, stood at attention, and saluted Chen Xia. This was the best courtesy and respect for a hero.
Chen Xia is now nominally a "reserve Y officer". He also stood at attention, saluted, and returned the salute.
This salute was like a secret signal for a meeting. The two sides quickly closed the distance. Now that they were all family, they spoke more casually.
"By the way, Chen..."
"You're welcome, just call me Chen Xia."
"How can that be? Not only are you a hero, you're also the dean, a full colonel, higher in rank than anyone else here."
"Uh, whatever you want to call me."
"Chen... Dean Chen, please introduce yourself. We are from the XXX Army stationed in Hotan. We just received a batch of military supplies from Wulu City. I'm the battalion commander, Su Jianjiang. Dean Chen, where are you from and where are you going?"
"I am from the Tang Dynasty in the East, and I am going to the West to obtain Buddhist scriptures."
Chen Xia managed to hold back from saying this familiar line. These were all soldiers, and no one in the army would joke with you.
"Oh, it's like this. I was going to the AKS area. My uncle is seriously ill, and I wanted to see him for the last time. I got lost after leaving Ulu City, and finally you guys came to rescue me, haha."
Hahahaha~~~~Everyone laughed.
"President Chen, you're taking the wrong road. After passing Tianshan Mountain, you should have headed west. Instead, you went south. You've taken the wrong road. This road leads to Hotan, and not many people usually take it."
Chen Xia slapped his forehead and blushed. He couldn't tell the directions.
It was almost dark at this time, and Captain Su said politely:
"However, since it's so late and you can't find food or accommodation, there's a military station just up the road. Dean Chen, why don't you spend the night with us?"
Driving in Xinjiang Province in the middle of the night is really a dangerous thing. If you get lost in the desert and don’t even have a satellite phone, it would be terrible.
"Alright, I'll bother you tonight. I happen to have quite a bit of liquor in my car, so I'll share it with you comrades."
Everyone looked at the off-road vehicle on the side of the road that they had never seen before, and their mouths were almost watering. They ran up together, touched the body of the vehicle, carefully opened the door, and took a look at the interior from the outside.
Men still understand men best. Chen Xia smiled and said, "Don't be polite. Go up and try it."
The soldiers were unusually shy at this moment. "No, no, this car must be very expensive."
"When did soldiers like us become so hypocritical? Cars are made to be used hard. If they break down after just a little driving, I'm going to return this car."
Seeing Chen Xia's generosity, several leading officers got into the driver's seat one by one and drove around in the wilderness, shouting with excitement.
Anyone who has driven a large truck in the 1970s and 1980s knows that driving such a vehicle is simply a life-threatening task. Not only is it complicated to operate, but the design is also very anti-human. Driving is extremely tiring and a complete physical job.
Now driving this Toyota Land Cruiser, they feel like they have discovered a new world, and they simply can't put this top-notch off-road vehicle down.
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