Chapter 160
The special nature of Mali has created an environment where people cannot survive without being ruthless. They asked Chen Zigao for something and did not think of returning empty-handed. The five people who were laughing and looked kind put a lot of pressure on people. In the end, Chen Zigao handed over a piece of bread. He was afraid that if he didn't, he would not be able to leave even the last one.
By four in the afternoon, the temperature hadn't dropped at all, so everyone finally set off. Chu Huaiqin was completely exhausted. Xia Entang handed his backpack to the young monk and carried him slowly. Chu Huaiqin's biggest problem was exhaustion. The scorching heat had caused him to lose a lot of water. His entire body, from bones to muscles, felt weak, unable to support his weight.
The Rolling Team's speed had also been severely slowed down by Chu Huaiqin. From morning till 7:00 PM, they had only covered four kilometers, falling short of their predicted eight kilometers or more. This distance was achieved even before sunrise. All that was secondary. The most important thing was water. Chu Huaiqin had finished his water, and the other three only had one-third left, with two full water bladders.
After calculation, they found that their water supply could only last for one day at most. Even at their fastest speed, it would take them four to five days to get out of the Flaming Mountain.
Chu Huaiqin's situation made the Chinese audience in the live broadcast room anxious. They were shouldering the heavy responsibility of washing away the previous shame of the Chinese division. Would they return empty-handed again this time?
Suddenly, a flood of posts erupted both domestically and internationally, with the majority being analytical, proving from various angles what the probability was of the Rolling Team successfully crossing the Flaming Mountains. And what was the likelihood of finding a water source along the way? Some even frantically searched through information on the Moyeer Desert, hoping to find a water source along this stretch of the desert route.
Many students majoring in geology and ecology also went to see their instructors. The most popular was the professor at the Desert Research Institute. He was surrounded by students, asking them all sorts of questions, and his smile was wide open. It's a good thing that students are eager to learn! But when they heard the students asking about the Moyer Desert, they realized something was wrong. After asking, they found out that they were there for a variety show.
While the motivation wasn't great, the effect was positive. However, the professor had trouble remembering the Mayer Desert, a place rarely documented in any sources, and needed to find information. The students, upon hearing this, said, "Let's go look it up together!" So, a group of them headed noisily for the library.
Moyer Desert
The person resting on the backpack didn't know that he had triggered a nationwide learning craze in the country. It was eight o'clock in the evening and the temperature was still 35 degrees. Chu Huaiqin was already in a semi-comatose state.
Xia En squatted aside, frowning and wiping Chu Huaiqin's sweat with a gloomy face, and occasionally poured a sip of water into his mouth.
"Brother, brother, wake up," Lin Zhinan squatted beside him and cried, "Brother Xia En, call a doctor!"
"Yes, call a doctor." The little monk's eyes were also red, and he stood up quickly.
"No, no need." After stopping, Chu Huaiqin, who had been lying on the backpack, finally moved. He half-raised his eyelids, panted, raised his hand, and moved a few fingers. "I, I'm fine."
After he finished speaking, Chu Huaiqin's head fell down again and he leaned on his backpack without moving.
For a moment, the three of them couldn't figure out whether he had fainted again or was just closing his eyes to rest.
Xia En reached out and wiped the sweat off his forehead, then leaned closer to Chu Huaiqin. "I don't want to talk, but if it's okay, just say 'hmm'."
"Hmm!" Chu Huaiqin's low voice sounded.
The three of them felt relieved.
"Little monk, you and Zhinan stay here and take care of him. I'll look around for water." Xia Entang was a little anxious. Chu Huaiqin's water needs were enormous. If they couldn't make it out of the Flaming Mountain in the Moyier Desert and were forced to withdraw from the competition, one could imagine the storm Chu Huaiqin would face upon returning home. Similar incidents were not unheard of.
Whenever Xia Entang thought about the possibilities Chu Huaiqin would face after withdrawing from the competition and returning to China, his heart ached.
"Brother, go ahead!" Lin Zhinan understood Xia En's concerns. As a celebrity, she could empathize with Chu Huaiqin's situation. After all, to outsiders, Chu Huaiqin was clearly holding the team back. But to them, he was their most important person. It was Chu Huaiqin who had led them to the World Championship and had taken care of them since. Now it was their turn to hold the team up.
The little monk looked at Xia En and then at Lin Zhinan, not understanding why their expressions had become so serious.
After Xia Entang left, Lin Zhinan wiped Chu Huaiqin's sweat and said to the little monk, "Little monk, you go set up camp. I'll take care of my brother."
Lin Zhinan couldn't leave and had to keep an eye on Chu Huaiqin at all times. If he found anything wrong with him, he would call a doctor.
"Hey, I'll go right away." The little monk jumped up and quickly looked for a place to pitch the tent.
After setting up the tent, he found a cactus and moved it next to Chu Huaiqin to cut its thorns. He looked at him from time to time to see if he had woken up.
Xia En was not in the camp, and the two children were waiting anxiously.
The night gradually darkened, the temperature finally dropped, and the night wind became cooler. The little monk and Lin Zhinan looked at each other and forced a smile.
"Why is your smile so ugly?"
A lazy voice sounded, and the two of them turned their heads suddenly. Seeing Chu Huaiqin still looked sleepy, they smiled, and their eyes turned red again as they smiled.
"Brother." Lin Zhinan rushed towards Chu Huaiqin, hugged him and sniffed. The little monk didn't rush over, but his eyes sparkled, and he looked very touched.
"You're all sweaty, and you don't mind." Chu Huaiqin patted her back helplessly.
"I don't mind." Lin Zhinan shook his head, let go of Chu Huaiqin, and smiled foolishly.
Chu Huaiqin smiled helplessly. Seeing the little monk looking like he was asking for a touch, he patted him on the shoulder and asked, "Where's Xia En?"
"Brother Xia En has gone to find water." Lin Zhinan replied.
Chu Huaiqin nodded, stood up, and looked around. The gray desert night made visibility extremely low, and Xia Entang's figure was even more invisible. He didn't know if he was blocked by a sand dune. Chu Huaiqin activated his watch communication and called out twice. The other side responded quickly, but due to the signal problem, Xia Entang's words were unclear. They were intermittent, and all that could be heard was the wind.
"Eat something first, and then rest." Chu Huaiqin turned around and saw two children standing nearby looking around, and reminded them.
"Let's wait for Brother Xia En." Lin Zhinan shook his head.
"No, go eat quickly and rest after eating," Chu Huaiqin dismissed Lin Zhinan's idea and said, "I have other plans. You must rest well."
Lin Zhinan and the little monk exchanged a glance, not understanding the plan, but not refusing. They returned to the tent to look for bread and cactus. They had packed a backpack with the stuff, and each of them had half a loaf of bread and a few pieces of cactus, which was enough to fill them up.
After eating, they wanted to sleep. As the temperature was just right, the two of them crawled into the tent and fell asleep quickly without Chu Huaiqin urging them to do so.
Chu Huaiqin returned to the tent, took a piece of cactus and gnawed on it, continuing to look around waiting for Xia En to come back.
The livestreamers were the first to see what Xia Entang was doing. He scaled dune after dune, stumbling and falling several times. His exhaustion yet his determination to persevere moved many in the room to tears. Students and viewers who had researched the situation were especially moved, with comments constantly telling Xia Entang to stop searching, saying it was useless. There wasn't even a blade of grass in this area, so how could there be water?
"Ah, this young man is so tenacious. I wish he was my student."
The old professor was disturbed by his students all day, and finally came to the live broadcast room with the help of his grandson. After watching for a few hours, he felt that the program was quite to his liking, but it was too miserable.
"I'll go back and look for information to see if I can find the water source."
After saying that, the person went offline.
Live broadcast room: ...
"Ah, I looked it up. He's a professor at a certain university who specializes in desert research. He's quite impressive. But does the old professor know that even if we find a water source, we can't let them know?"
"It's good that the old professor is thoughtful."
"Yes, right now, there are posts on various domestic forums and major video websites. There are so many people offering rewards for finding the water source. They also know that they can't notify their brothers. They just want peace of mind and want to know if Chu Huaiqin and others have a chance to break through the siege."
"I've been searching all day, and all the information shows there's no water source in this area!"
Xia En may have known that there was no water source, but he still held on to hope. He fell again and again, and got up again and again to continue looking. His veil fell off, and many viewers in the live broadcast room found that his face and neck were all peeling, and he was severely sunburned.
Finally, when Xia En fell down and never got up again, the people in the live broadcast room cried. Many of them cried and shouted for their brother to come quickly. When they returned to his personal live broadcast room, they saw their brother lying on a backpack and sweating profusely. Many viewers cried even harder, thinking that their brother was lucky to be alive.
The fact that Xia En fell down and didn't get up also scared the production team. The doctor rushed over and pulled him up, but found that he had lost consciousness due to exhaustion. The director team didn't know what to do for a while.
The live broadcast room was also tense. I hope Xia Entropy will not be disqualified because of this!
“Beep, beep, beep!”
The watch rang, and the doctor tried to save the man but failed to wake him up. As soon as the watch rang, Xia Entang immediately opened his eyes, and suddenly sat up straight as if a corpse had exploded, scaring many people.
"Where are you?"
Chu Huaiqin's voice came from his watch. Xia En opened his mouth, but found it was too dry, making his voice hoarse and unpleasant. The signal was poor, and his words came through intermittently. After a while, the signal was completely cut off.
Xia Entang regained consciousness thanks to this communication. He stood up, thanked the doctor, and staggered back. The camp lights were bright, and Xia Entang saw them as he climbed the first sand dune. He walked back step by step, and when he saw the figure waiting there, his fatigue swept away and his pace quickened.
The live broadcast room also felt Xia En's happiness, with waves of "together" barrages.
"I've already moved here to the Civil Affairs Bureau. Let's get married."
"Can Xia Entang hold on until he can hug his brother?"
"hope."
The atmosphere was joyful yet sad.
Xia Entropy lived up to the expectations of the livestreamers. He walked straight up to Chu Huaiqin, only to have Chu Huaiqin's eyes turn red. The man before him had a flawless face and neck. He looked so miserable, yet he smiled at him with such tenderness.
He asked, "Are you awake?"
The author has something to say:
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
