In the remote villages of China, families often lived very close to each other so that they could take care of each other if something happened. However, the Bedouin people's shacks were more spread out — this was understandable. After all, no matter how poor a China village was, it was still a mud house, and here, it was a thatched hut with ventilation on all sides. If they lived too close to each other, even a fart at night could be smelled by the neighbors, not to mention those shameful things …
There was no electricity, no generators, no WiFi, no running water, and no books or newspapers. Even if there were, not many people could read. All the conveniences of modern society were absent here. What else could they do when the sun set? Of course, it was to do what everyone loved to do.
The consequence of not having a small umbrella was that there were many children in the tribe, from those who had just learned to walk to those who were slightly older. They ran around dirty, looking carefree.
The quiet little girls gathered in groups of two or three to weave handicrafts, and the younger ones were playing with colorful glass beads.
Every man here often had three or four wives and ten or twenty children. Raising children was like herding sheep, in a free-range state.
There were not many teenagers like Salem in the tribe. Perhaps they had taken advantage of the fact that the tribe happened to be nomadic near the Siwa Oasis and had run to the town or the more distant Port of Mersa Matruh to work to earn money.
Other than the children running around, the rest were mostly middle-aged and elderly people over thirty years old. Although in other places, thirty years old was not considered middle-aged, here, the harsh environment and long-term hard work made people age very quickly. People in their twenties looked similar to people in their forties in China.
Salem led Zhang Zian to one of the shacks and said in a low voice, "I just asked my cousin. It seems that just before we came, there was another group of guests who had just arrived. They looked rich and arrogant. As soon as they came in, they went straight to the chief's place. I don't know what they want."
Zhang Zian nodded. The few off-road vehicles parked at the entrance of the village must be the vehicles of the other group of guests.
He did not know what these uninvited guests were here for, but he hoped that they would not cause unnecessary trouble and affect the expedition team's operation.
However, he vaguely felt that things wouldn't be so coincidental. What he was afraid of might just happen.
When they came to a hut, Salem did not knock on the door because there was no door to knock on. The hut was made of date palm branches and reed stems, and only three sides were built. The roof was covered with palm leaves, and the remaining side had only a rag hanging down to serve as a door.
Salem pointed at the largest hut in the tribe, indicating that the chief's home was over there. Even the chief's hut was only slightly larger than the huts of ordinary tribesmen, and there were also pillars made of tree trunks or mud bricks to make the hut sturdier.
The door of the chief's hut was wider, and there were no curtains hanging over it, so that one could vaguely see a crowd of people moving about inside, but as it was dark inside and bright outside, one could not see clearly who they were.
Salem shouted into the house in the tribal dialect. Zhang Zian could not hear what he was shouting, but he seemed to hear the pronunciation of "Nabari."
Zhang Zian guessed that Salem was probably saying that he was about to bring a guest in. If there was anything that he shouldn't do in broad daylight, he should stop first and put on his pants.
Of course, he was joking.
After saying that, Salem lifted the curtain and went in, motioning for Zhang Zian to come in as well.
Because Egypt was dry and hot, no matter how hot it was outside, it was still quite cool once inside. Ventilation on all sides was an advantage at this time.
There was a middle-aged man in his 40s or 50s, his real age unknown. He was smoking with a hookah in his mouth.
In addition, there was a middle-aged woman covered in a blue and black robe. Only her eyes and hands could be seen, and she was kneading dough. She sat cross-legged on the blanket and deftly flattened the dough with a rolling pin. A pit was dug in the ground next to her, surrounded by stones, and red flames were coming out of it.
There were two children of three or four years old crawling on the blanket, staring at Zhang Zian with bright eyes.
Several large plastic buckets for water dispensers were lined up by the side of the hut, filled with liquids of different colors. There was water, camel milk, and there seemed to be milk wine.
Zhang Zian guessed that this middle-aged man was probably the legendary tribal guide that Salem had mentioned — Nabari, his wife, and children.
Salem mumbled a few words and introduced Zhang Zian to Nabari.
Nabari put down the hookah and stood up, looking at Zhang Zian a few times. He reached out to Zhang Zian and said in English, "Welcome! A friend from China! "
Zhang Zian noticed that Nabari was also wearing a good-looking photokinetic watch on his wrist. This might be the most technologically advanced thing in the tribe. In addition, his English was more standard than most Egyptians'. It was obvious that he was someone who had seen the world. Salem said that he had more than once brought scientific research teams or tour groups into the desert and returned safely. It should be true.
The Bedouin people were very hospitable. When men met, they not only shook hands but also hugged.
After hugging, Nabari smiled and asked, "Friend from afar, what can I help you with?"
Zhang Zian went straight to the point and told him about the expedition team's request to hire him to lead the team into the desert. At the same time, he did not forget Salem's request, saying that it was Salem's repeated recommendation.
Salem also chimed in from the side, making it sound like Zhang Zian was a good friend who had gone through thick and thin with him for many years. He also said that Zhang Zian had helped him a lot and begged Nabari to help him return the favor no matter what.
Nabari was silent for a moment and did not immediately agree. Instead, he first asked where the expedition team planned to go. Because the Western Desert was part of the Sahara Desert, it was definitely not good to go in like a headless fly. No matter how many lives they had, it would not be enough.
Zhang Zian nodded secretly. Nabari did not immediately agree when he heard the generous reward. This more or less proved that he was a calm and cautious person.
In fact, Nabari had also asked about the difficulties of the expedition team. Because the expedition team did not have a clear goal, Wei Kang had asked the Bedouin to be a guide. He wanted to find out from the Bedouin people who were familiar with the desert if they had seen a species similar to the primitive Egyptian cat in the depths of the desert. Otherwise, it would really be like looking for a needle in a haystack.
"Cat?" Nabari frowned and thought for a while. "You went to the desert to find a cat?"
"Yes, but not an ordinary cat," Zhang Zian said.
It was very troublesome to explain what a primitive Egyptian cat was. He simply turned around and pointed to Fina, who had come with him. "A cat like this."
Fina did not walk into the shabby shack. It squatted lazily outside and looked around.
Nabari stared at Fina a few times and said uncertainly, "It seems like … I have seen it before."
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