10087 New Urban Farmers Chapter 134: Under the Dinosaur Mountains (Two-in-One)
They were almost there. The Red Beach Fortress was in sight. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. They all turned to look at their boss, Liu Neng, and Zhang Guodong.
Everywhere Zhang Guodong went, he wanted to collect some local medicinal herbs, which made things difficult for Liu Neng, who was trying to please him, and indirectly made things difficult for the team members carrying the loads. Along the way, Zhang Guodong dug up a total of two dinosaur grass plants and about twenty kinds of medicinal herbs that were not currently found in Taoyuan, a considerable harvest. But there was also a regret. He didn't see the Golden Dragon Ball at all.
However, Zhang Guodong was still quite satisfied.
Carrying over twenty kinds of medicinal herbs that were haphazardly placed on his back, Zhang Guodong was in a good mood and couldn't help but sigh to himself, "It seems that there are many medicinal herbs on this land of China, on this earth; it's just that many of them are either undiscovered or unappreciated!"
Of course, there's also the fact that aged medicinal herbs and extremely precious herbs that require harsh growing conditions are becoming increasingly rare! This is largely due to the destruction of the Earth's environment.
The warrior was about to descend into the valley; he had already reached the rocky cliffs on the riverbank.
The cliff is not high, only about ten meters high, and below it is the riverbed, which is all rock layers. This is a small river valley formed by long-term river erosion.
The rock and soil road, carved out by people, slopes downwards.
"Mr. Zhang, slow down, this road is difficult to walk on!" Liu Neng said as he walked ahead.
Zhang Guodong glanced at him and said irritably, "Go your way, I've walked this kind of road plenty of times when I was a kid!"
Liu Neng chuckled awkwardly; his attempt to curry favor had backfired, but his thick skin didn't bother him. He said, "Did you forget that Boss Zhang isn't some 'delicate city person'? Hehe!"
Zhang Guodong smiled slightly. Regardless of whether they were city dwellers or rural children, which one hadn't walked on rugged mountain paths or rocky trails? Walking on such rocky and dirt roads was a piece of cake.
It's like carving a narrow path into a 90-degree cliff. Or perhaps there are footholds, but he's walked there before. I remember the cliffs along the Yellow River in my hometown were hundreds of meters high; looking down from them would make people dizzy. During floods, people could go down from there to fish or salvage other things like timber.
Walking this kind of path is something you develop from a young age.
After descending the cliff, we arrived at the riverbank. However, this riverbank had no sand, only a small amount of mud and a large amount of weathered rock. Occasionally, we could also see sandstone layers and red mudstone.
The geological strata were indeed quite abundant, but Liu Neng and his companions were used to them and didn't share Zhang Guodong's curiosity. They looked around like country bumpkins visiting the Grand View Garden.
As they were walking, Zhang Guodong called Liu Neng back again.
He spotted a crowd.
"What are those people doing?" He pointed to a group of people not far away, wearing green vests and sun hats, who were busy setting up some equipment in an area, while others were busy doing something on the ground.
Upon seeing them, Liu Neng's eyes flashed with greed, and he quickly explained, "Judging from their clothes, these people must be archaeologists from the dinosaur museum excavating dinosaur fossils, right?"
Dinosaur fossils? They're a favorite of people like Liu Neng.
These kinds of people make their fortune by illegally digging up dinosaur fossils, so they can't help but become greedy when they see fossils. However, the fossils discovered by archaeologists are not theirs; they only manage to find fragmented fossils, while excavating complete fossils is a very difficult task.
Because if dinosaur fossils are found in sandstone or red mudstone layers, excavation is easier because the rock is soft and fossils are more likely to be preserved intact. However, if the fossils are deep underground in hard geology, it is very difficult to find complete fossils.
The density of deep underground rock layers is very high. Excavating a dinosaur fossil requires an enormous amount of manpower and resources, and it is normal for excavations to take several months in a row.
According to existing records of dinosaur genera and species, "22 genera of dinosaurs have been found in this area, while 36 genera of dinosaurs have been found throughout China, demonstrating the abundance of dinosaur species here. Most genera of dinosaurs generally only contain one species, with a few containing two or three species, but the total number is still considerable."
Zhang Guodong had never seen an archaeological site excavating fossils or historical relics, but he was very eager to see one. He used to think that although such work was tedious, it was very challenging—unveiling the mysteries of relics from hundreds of millions of years ago or uncovering the truth of history was a very mysterious thing.
Now the archaeological excavation site was right in front of him. Just like any ordinary person, Zhang Guodong's desire to explore and uncover the mysterious began to stir.
So when Liu Neng said that dinosaur fossil excavation was actually underway here, he immediately became very interested.
"Dinosaur fossil excavation? Let's go take a look. I've never seen dinosaur fossil excavation before, let's give everyone a break!" Zhang Guodong said. Then he walked over there.
Helpless, Liu Neng could only tell his subordinate, Ah Lang, "Let everyone rest for a while!"
Ah Lang nodded and relayed the order.
Fossil excavations are generally conducted in the wild. A few are carried out in greenhouses or sheds, indicating that the fossils found are extremely valuable and require long-term, meticulous excavation. However, this excavation involved only seven people and no greenhouse; everyone except Zhang Guodong knew that this excavation was only for "ordinary fossils."
However, sometimes the roads to the excavation site are too difficult to travel, and large components cannot be transported over, so they have to make do. But this situation is extremely rare.
The excavation site is a few miles from Dinosaur Village. Not too far, not too close. But to transport large equipment, unless a helicopter is used, the excavation will have to be done manually first.
Professor Yang Wenchang, the person in charge of the excavation at the site, had half-gray hair, wore black-rimmed glasses, and dressed in a simple, durable, and warm khaki work uniform. An assistant was listening to him and pointing at something.
Inside a huge rectangular frame, five excavators were carefully using shovels and brushes to peel away sandstone from something, bit by bit.
The excavation site is ten meters long and five meters wide. It seems to contain a huge object.
According to records, the second longest dragon in Asia, the Tianfu Emei Dragon, was unearthed in this area! This dragon stood approximately 100 meters off the ground, with a total length of about 100 meters. It had a thick body, a very long tail, and stood upright on all fours. It was truly a colossal creature!
The excavation pit was extremely large, reaching 50 square meters, so this dinosaur was not small.
Zhang Guodong walked over. He saw Yang Wenchang pointing at a bright object on the radar detector and saying, "This stratum should have formed in the Early Jurassic period or even earlier. The radar images show that this fossil is relatively complete and should belong to a freshwater lacustrine fossil. It's nine meters long and has a python-like body; it should be a new species!"
The underground radar detector showed that there was only one fossil in the excavation pit. It was a very large and long skeleton, and the bones were curved. It's unclear whether this curvature was caused by geological factors or if it was simply the natural structure of the ancient creature's skeleton. To determine this, it would need to be excavated.
"Professor Yang, are you saying this isn't a dinosaur fossil?" the young assistant asked.
"No, it's too early to make a definitive conclusion. Evidence from radar detection alone is insufficient to identify a species. You should know that the Chuandu area was an open lakeside region during the Jurassic period, rich in water and vegetation, with a hot climate and towering trees—an ideal habitat for dinosaurs. There were many different kinds of dinosaurs, but to conclude that other ancient animals couldn't survive there would be too absolute. Large animals also lived in freshwater lakes; it's just that dinosaurs dominated the entire Jurassic period, living in the air, on land, and in the water. Therefore, some ancient animals had to evolve to survive through extreme methods. For example, this creature, with its long, serpentine body, suggests it could swim high in the water to hunt prey or escape dinosaurs!"
"This ancient creature looks like a python, doesn't it?" a voice interjected.
Professor Yang Wenchang frowned and said, "Impossible!"
Then Professor Yang and his assistant turned around and saw that there was a young man named Zhang Guodong in front of them. He smiled awkwardly as the two men glared at him.
"Sorry, you two, I was just talking nonsense. I've been interested in mysterious species like dinosaurs since I was a child, and I couldn't help but express my opinion. But now I realize I've said too much."
What business is it of yours if they dig their own graves? He himself has a very shallow understanding of dinosaurs. He needs to be careful with his words, otherwise he'll offend people.
"What are you doing?" The young assistant quickly realized that Zhang Guodong wasn't alone; there were Liu Neng and others behind him. It seemed they knew each other. Liu Neng's angry glare turned into hostility and indignation. "You're here to steal dinosaur fossils, aren't you? Professor Yang, should we call the police?"
Professor Yang frowned upon seeing Liu Neng. Naturally, he didn't have a good impression of Zhang Guodong!
"Liu Neng, you guys should leave. If we catch you digging up fossils again, we'll call the police!" Professor Yang said.
"Isn't the professor letting them off too easily? They've dug up so many fossils that they're incomplete and damaged a lot!" the young assistant said indignantly.
Zhang Guodong then realized he had been implicated by Liu Neng. The guy, somewhat embarrassed, didn't come over. Clearly, both sides were quite familiar with each other.
"So that bastard is on the list!" Zhang Guodong thought helplessly.
"Professor Yang, we're not here for anything illegal. I'm just interested in some medicinal herbs, so I asked them to help. Look, I have quite a few herbs in my bag. These are all good stuff!" Zhang Guodong said, then showed the contents of his backpack.
I had no choice but to lie through my teeth, otherwise they would definitely kick me out!
Professor Yang and his young assistant were taken aback when they saw that Zhang Guodong's backpack indeed contained some flower and plant tools. Their initial dislike lessened slightly, but they certainly didn't feel any goodwill towards him. Besides, no one would feel comfortable seeing the site being illegally excavated. What was this?
"Young men, you can go now!" Professor Yang said expressionlessly.
No way! We've come all this way to experience the fun of mining, it would be a shame to leave like this! Besides, mining gold and jade isn't something that can be done in a day; it takes a long time.
Zhang Guodong pretended not to hear Professor Yang's urging, turned around, and winked at Liu Neng, saying, "Mr. Liu, you can go ahead. I'll stay here for a while to ask Professor Yang some questions."
Liu Neng, feeling as if he had been granted a pardon, quickly agreed and led his team away.
The young assistant rolled his eyes. He'd never seen such a shameless professor before. "But I told you to leave too! Humph! Asking questions? You're just a fossil hunter. Even if I had a question, I wouldn't answer it!"
"Hey, what about you? The professor told you to leave too!" the young assistant couldn't help but say.
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Zhang Guodong quickly realized that the young assistant was not a man, but a woman. Her hair was tucked into a hat, and she was dressed in drab gray clothes, showing no regard for her appearance.
I feel ashamed.
"I almost mistook him for a man!" Zhang Guodong thought to himself.
If the other person knew what I was thinking, they'd probably be furious. You think I'm a man? Can't you even recognize my voice?
Du Shanshan is a senior archaeology student at Sichuan University. She's beautiful, but her lifestyle is a bit "sloppy"... The reason is that she's used to field archaeology and rarely dresses up, only paying attention to sun protection and waterproofing. She has no time to enjoy other things like clothing or fashion. Now, she's following Professor Yang Wenchang's archaeological team to discover a new fossil, which is currently being excavated and has been underway for five days.
"Professor Yang, I'm just taking a look and won't disturb your digging!" Zhang Guodong said to Yang Wenchang, ignoring her.
You can't talk to young people, otherwise you'll end up arguing and even fighting. Of course, he usually doesn't hit women. In his haste, he even blurted out, "I've already said it."
Yang Wenchang hesitated for a moment, then nodded. He didn't know why he agreed.
Or perhaps negotiating with Zhang Guodong is simply a waste of time.
"Then you can watch from the side!" Professor Yang said.
Du Shanshan then added, "Don't fall into the pit!"
Zhang Guodong asked himself, did he look like a thief? Did he have a fierce, menacing appearance? But being allowed to stay and watch was an extraordinary favor, and he hurriedly assured everyone, "I promise I won't fall into the trap!"
The five men and women in the pit, seeing that the matter had subsided, continued with their own tasks.
Excavation is incredibly tedious; the initial excitement fades second by second, leaving only monotony. And in the wild, there's no hot shower, no delicious food, no soft, comfortable sand or bed to lean on—it's exhausting!
Observing is more tiring than digging!
That's what Zhang Guodong thought.
So Zhang Guodong found something to do: occasionally asking a question about fossils, and then someone would answer it. Zhang Guodong considered himself a complete novice, but he guessed that some people felt a great sense of accomplishment in playing the role of teacher, so they were generally quite enthusiastic in answering his questions, and the atmosphere was harmonious for a while.
"Why did Professor Liu Caiyang say there are no python fossils in this area?" Zhang Guodong asked, recalling the question from earlier.
Du Shanshan rolled her eyes at him and said helplessly, "Pythons live in tropical or subtropical forests. It's highly unlikely that this is a Lagoonian anaconda from the Jurassic period. Anacondas in the most primitive tropical rainforest rivers, like the giant anacondas of the Amazon River basin, are now the largest pythons in the world. It's also highly unlikely that this is an arboreal python. Moreover, judging from the radar, this fossil is clearly a large theropod ancient animal with legs. Whether it's a dinosaur fossil or some other ancient animal fossil can only be identified after it's completely excavated!"
"But it is certain that this fossilized ancient creature lived in a freshwater lakeside area, otherwise its slender body would have made it difficult to escape predators!"
Zhang Guodong wanted to ask why, but he held back. Many of the dinosaurs in the large dinosaur herd were carnivorous, three or four meters long. They were in groups. Although one could not kill other large animals, a group could.
Or perhaps this creature itself was eliminated by the process of species evolution?
However, it appears that this fossil was intact and was not killed by a predator.
Zhang Guodong thought to himself that there are currently 285 to 330 species of dinosaurs in the world, but it is predicted that at least 2,000 species of dinosaurs, or 900 to 1,200 genera, should have lived on Earth!
Do dragons in Chinese mythology or Western mythology really exist? Du Shanshan from the Fourth Middle School bluntly criticized, "Don't even think about it! Dragons in Eastern mythology ride the clouds. From a biological perspective, Eastern dragons don't have wings, so they can't fly; they can only crawl, like this fossil. Their bodies are too resistant to water. Unless it's a python, it would definitely be eliminated. Western dragons do have some merit, but those are just pterosaurs. Where did this Western dragon come from?"
Zhang Guodong looked at her helplessly, not saying anything to let her imagine.
However, he felt that Du Shanshan's words made a lot of sense, but he didn't agree with them. Extinction was highly possible, but existence was also possible; strange things were happening to him. Could there be anything more bizarre than this?
"So, does a pterosaur really look like a big bird? How big is the largest one? If we could preserve the eggs and raise one, you could even ride it on our backs and fly," Zhang Guodong said.
This time, Professor Yang and the others laughed, finding Zhang Guodong quite amusing. In their view, this highlights the difference between professionals and ordinary people. Ordinary people lack knowledge of paleontological evolution and the principles governing the existence of ancient organisms, which easily leads to many embarrassing situations.
"Pterosaurs did exist, and some were enormous, such as the Feathered Gyrfalcon, whose wingspan could reach twelve meters and whose body length was six or seven meters. They were the rulers of the skies at that time, and they lived in flocks. As for the species, there are currently dozens of species of varying sizes, the smallest being a bird the size of a palm. The largest is about the size I just mentioned," said archaeologist Mr. Liu with a smile.
"As for whether it's possible for a person to carry it on their back as a means of transportation, theoretically it is possible, because some pterosaurs weighed five or six hundred kilograms and their claws had the strength to carry a calf into the sky, however..."
"But you can forget about it in this lifetime!" Du Shanshan said with a smile.
Zhang Guodong felt dizzy.
"Furthermore, while the theoretical conditions for dinosaur eggs are present, they are extremely demanding. For example, suitable temperatures and freezing conditions could potentially preserve dinosaur eggs intact, but currently, tens of thousands of dinosaur eggs of various kinds are fossils. Even though some non-fossilized dinosaur eggs have been found, the ultimate result is that the dinosaur egg and the elements of the environment at that time permeated each other, creating the hypothesis of a living embryo. Although it was not petrified, no living embryo was preserved! Therefore, this is impossible."
Master Liu's words were extremely cruel to someone like Zhang Guodong who had such unrealistic fantasies.
Zhang Guodong stayed there for more than three hours, but the excavation progress was surprisingly slow. At this rate, it would take at least four or five days to dig this thing out.
I thought to myself, "I'd rather go to the Red Beach Mine. I've already seen the dinosaur fossils there, and all I got was disappointment." If there were dinosaurs in some remote corner, I might be interested and go see them, but these dinosaurs are all fossils. It shattered all my sense of mystery!
During this time, Liu Neng called several times to "ask for instructions".
They had reached the Red Beach and set up camp at the foot of the mountain, with only about an hour left until dark. They would have to pitch tents for the night. Tomorrow morning, some of them would go back to continue transporting tools and parts here so they could assemble them in the mountains.
Zhang Guodong stood up, intending to leave.
"Shanshan, are you all staying here tonight? Or are you going back? I have to go!" Zhang Guodong said.
Du Shanshan immediately became alert and said, "You're not planning anything, are you? We've already pitched our tents here!"
"How do you make me sound like a bad guy?" Zhang Guodong said, annoyed. "Even if Lie Neng is a big bad guy, I'm not necessarily a bad guy, am I?"
"Maybe! This is our first time, but that big bad Liu Neng has dug up a lot of dinosaur fossils. Every time he does, he destroys some intact fossils. He's so hateful!" Du Shanshan said through gritted teeth.
Zhang Guodong gave an awkward laugh and said that he "didn't care about his partner's stains." This topic couldn't be continued.
"Okay, I'll teach him this later. Thank you all for letting me observe the excavation and gain so much knowledge about fossils. I'll treat you all to dinner sometime!"
Finally, Du Shanshan got Zhang Guodong's phone number. Everyone's impression of Zhang Guodong improved considerably.
However, Zhang Guodong doesn't care about the fossils of the dead creatures, but many people do care and are still wary of them.
Dinosaur fossils sell for very high prices!
Of course, if you're unlucky, it's also easy to end up in jail.
After all, dinosaurs were once the "humans" of the Mesozoic Era, the dominant species on Earth during the Jurassic period. Their survival information is of immeasurable value.
How did such a powerful family of dinosaurs become extinct? This question has significant indirect and research value for humanity and is closely related to the future fate of humankind.
Of course, Zhang Guodong never cared about topics like the fate of humanity or the end of the world. As he often thought, "What does this have to do with me?"
I'm just a nobody selling vegetables!
Zhang Guodong quickly arrived at the rocky mountain in Hongtan from the archaeological excavation site. Liu Neng immediately greeted him upon his arrival.
The team members cleared away all the nearby bushes and grass to create a clearing.
"Mr. Zhang, you've finally arrived. We plan to build a few bamboo houses on this land first, as we're worried you won't be used to tents. However, the bamboo houses can only be built tomorrow; it's already late today, and there's a risk of danger in the mountains at night, and the bamboo is difficult to cut."
Zhang Guodong didn't let him take his backpack and asked in surprise, "Bamboo house? Do people here build bamboo houses? Hmm, bamboo towers and stuff?"
He really liked that two-story bamboo house in Qingyang, but building one was still a long way off for him. He couldn't very well build a bamboo house in the city, could he? Wouldn't it be incredibly noisy all night?
Liu Neng immediately nodded and smiled obsequiously, "There are two skilled workers in the team. As long as there's bamboo, they can build four or five houses a day. Actually, if the requirements for the bamboo houses aren't too high, it's quite easy. They can even build bamboo houses, though it might take a little longer."
"So easy?" Zhang Guodong was greatly surprised. Four or five rooms a day? "Won't something built so quickly protrude far in the wind? Like, leaking air? Leaking water? Not sturdy enough?"
Liu Neng hurriedly assured him, "Boss Zhang, don't worry. These are just basic requirements. How can it be called a 'house' if these problems can't be solved? Hehe. However, I'll have to trouble you to stay in the tent for one night."
"Haha, one night is nothing. I'll wait and see tomorrow. Just call me when you're cutting bamboo!" Zhang Guodong patted Liu Neng's shoulder. The guy instinctively wanted to dodge and his face turned pale, but then he realized that Zhang Guodong had only patted him lightly and he didn't feel any pain, so he breathed a sigh of relief.
This flattery really worked! Liu Neng was overjoyed.
Bi: I overslept today, so I'm late. Sorry for keeping everyone waiting! Here's the 6,500-word chapter; let's consider it two chapters. More tomorrow!
Don't be upset about writing six or seven thousand words a day. Hehe. I'm a lazy person and don't usually save up drafts. So I'm writing this now and then online. If I write too fast, I'm afraid something bad might happen.
The main point is that Tiandao has been able to consistently update so many times every day for months, even a year. That's truly remarkable, and that's Tiandao's goal—to achieve it. I also hope everyone will continue to support me. Thank you!
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