Following Peter Lee's command over the walkie-talkie, Nabari and Salem drove Car No.1 and rushed out like a wild horse.
"10, 9, 8, 7 … 3, 2, 1! Car 4, set off! "
After waiting for 10 seconds, Zhang Zian, who had received the command to set off, stepped on the accelerator and drove Car 4 out, chasing the smoke and dust raised by Car 1.
"10, 9, 8, 7 … 3, 2, 1! Car 5, set off! "
Another car waited for 10 seconds before following Zhang Zian's Car 4 out of the tribe.
Zhang Zian rolled down the window and waved goodbye to the children who had yet to disperse. Only when the tribe was out of sight did he close the window.
The 13 cars set off one after another. The cars behind and the cars in front were separated by 10 seconds. This was also Peter Lee's arrangement.
Driving in the deserted Gobi Desert, there was no need to worry about losing the car in front. On the contrary, they could not drive too close. Otherwise, the car behind could only see the dust raised by the car in front and nothing else.
In particular, the road conditions near the Siwa Oasis were not bad. Every car was driving at high speed to save time. It was necessary to leave enough braking distance in case of emergencies. When they really entered the desert, they would slow down and close the distance between the cars.
Although Zhang Zian's car was number 4, it was in the second position, right behind Nabari's car.
The team was very long. Peter Lee and Wei Kang, as the captains of the two teams, took Car 2 and Car 3 respectively. They drove in the middle of the team, in case the walkie-talkie signal could not cover the entire team.
The 13 high-powered off-road vehicles were like a wild and untamed dragon, roaring angrily as they plunged into the boundless desert.
Each car was loaded with enough supplies to sustain a person's survival in the desert for 15 days. If food and water were allocated, it would be enough to sustain a person for 30 days.
The whole team was filled with optimism. From time to time, someone sang in different languages on the public channel, from American country songs to European folk songs, to China's square dance divine songs, which drew cheers and laughter from everyone.
Although the public channel was used for regular status reports, team leaders to give instructions, and emergency special situations, they had just set off after all, so they would not encounter any danger. It was not the time for regular reports, so no one dared to disturb everyone's mood.
Whether it was Peter Lee or Wei Kang, they were both full of confidence in this trip. Even if they did not achieve their goals, at least it would not be a problem for them to retreat safely.
To be honest, even Zhang Zian, who didn't have much confidence before they set off, couldn't help but think that he might be worrying too much when he saw such a spectacular motorcade. Not to mention the other people in the team, whose confidence was inflated to the extreme.
Even Famous didn't want to be left out. It barked into the walkie-talkie and sang a little song, making everyone laugh.
The only person who could remain calm was probably Nabari, the guide.
As the guide and the first car, Nabari's task was very heavy, and so was his responsibility. He used his weather-beaten eyes to scan the front, informing the back of the road conditions, reminding the cars behind to slow down or pay attention to avoid pits. Other than that, he rarely spoke.
Salem sat in the passenger seat of Car Number One, full of excitement. He asked Nabari all kinds of questions, but Nabari only answered a few of them. He answered about one out of every ten questions. He felt that there was no need to answer the rest of the questions. Salem should use his own eyes to observe, his own ears to listen, and his own heart to feel. A truly good guide was not taught.
Salem sang a traditional Bedouin folk song on the public channel, which attracted everyone's cheers. It made him so happy that he swayed in the passenger seat, like he was riding a surfboard on the waves of the sea.
"Uncle Nabari, do you need to rest for a while? I can drive for you, "he volunteered. First, he wanted to please Nabari. He felt that Nabari's attitude was a little cold, and he was worried that Nabari wouldn't teach him everything he knew about the desert. Second, he also wanted to drive. After all, he had never driven such a great off-road vehicle.
Nabari shook his head, stared ahead, and said, "I'm not tired."
Salem didn't get the chance. Listening to the crisp and sweet voice of the China girl coming from the walkie-talkie, he thought of Sihwa, whom he had never met. He heard from Zhang Zian that Sihwa had calmed down the previous storm and gained a lot of fans. She even asked Zhang Zian to thank him for her.
Salem didn't want her gratitude. He just wanted to see her with his own eyes before entering the depths of the desert and tell her about the admiration in his heart. As long as she could smile at him and look at him with her limpid eyes, he would die without regrets.
However, Zhang Zian told him that Sihwa had gone to Upper Egypt to travel. He heard that she went sightseeing near the Aswan Dam, which made him feel very regretful.
Ancient Egypt was divided into Upper Egypt and Lower Egypt, but this was not divided according to the top and bottom of the map. Instead, it was divided according to the upstream and downstream of the Nile River. Upper Egypt was in the south, and Lower Egypt was in the north.
"Maybe it's time to learn Chinese," he murmured. "When we set up camp, I must ask Jeff to teach me Chinese so that I can communicate with her alone. Strange, she obviously has a European face. Why does she speak Chinese? It's a pity. If only she could speak English … "
To him, Sihwa was like an endless mystery. Every part of her fascinated him.
Not far away, a camel caravan was slowly moving toward the convoy. The camel bells jingled, and the tanned Bedouin compatriots watched the convoy expressionlessly. Although they were riding camels in the sun, while Nabari and Salem were driving with air conditioning, there was not the slightest bit of envy in their eyes.
Nabari sighed and said, "The Chinese are too anxious."
Salem was confused, thinking that he was talking about Sihwa. He didn't think about how Nabari could know Sihwa. He immediately said, "Uncle Nabari, Sihwa is a good girl. She's not anxious at all!"
Nabari was equally dumbfounded by what he heard.
The uncle and nephew stared at each other.
After a while, Nabari said, "I mean Mr. Li and Mr. Wei. Who is Sihwa?"
"Ah? Oh! Nothing! " Salem laughed and quickly changed the topic. "Uncle Nabari, why did you say that they were anxious?"
Nabari sighed. "I suggested to them that I don't object to driving into the desert, but it's best to bring a few camels. They all refused, saying that bringing camels would slow down the journey. That way, they would need to carry more supplies, and they would be delayed longer in the desert. It would increase the chances of encountering danger."
As he spoke, he gripped the steering wheel tightly. "But in the desert, I still trust camels more."
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
