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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter Eighty: Daliugou Coal Mine Shelter (2)
Luci was alert as the minibus parked behind a small dirt mound. The mound was not high, and there were many scattered across the wilderness, some forming a continuous line like ancient city walls. The terrain here was relatively flat, and faint tire tracks could be seen among the surrounding weeds. The grass grew vigorously, with some areas so dense that they could conceal half a person. The soil in the tire tracks had been compressed, causing the wild grass to lean at odd angles, making it particularly noticeable among the tall grass that reached for the sky.
Ming Junwei crouched in the grass, pinching a stalk of grass between his fingers, deep in thought as he surveyed the surroundings.
"Is something wrong?" Jiang He asked, with a machete tucked into his waist and another hidden in his sleeve. Seeing Ming Junwei's contemplative expression, he wondered if he had discovered something important.
"Nothing," Ming Junwei replied, brushing off the grass dust from his hands with a smile. "Seeing this grass reminded me of some things."
"Oh?" Jiang He glanced at the vast patches of yellow-green weeds and couldn't help but chuckle. "Someone with stories is different; even wild grass can evoke memories?"
"Who said anything about memories?" Ming Junwei shot him a look. "This is sand sagebrush; it’s great for stabilizing sand, can be used as fodder for cattle and sheep, and can even be made into noodles."
"So you were thinking about pulling up grass to make noodles?" Jiang He teased, striking a playful pose as he sang, "Oh dear~ are you starving? If you're starving~ tell me, and I'll make you some noodle soup~"
As they chatted idly, Song Yao and the others from the minibus approached after getting ready.
"What are you two talking about? You seem so happy," Song Yao remarked, noticing Jiang He's mischievous grin and wondering what they were up to.
"Nothing much, just discussing who to feed next," Jiang He replied with a laugh, seeing that the three were all set to go and deciding not to linger on trivial matters.
Luci had parked in an excellent spot; the low walls and dirt mounds concealed the vehicle well, while the surrounding sagebrush provided ample cover. From their slightly elevated position on the mound, they could see a large expanse of exposed coal black in the distance. Between them and that area lay a depression filled with Artemisia bushes.
The group had spent considerable time studying their surroundings. Aside from the promotional poster torn down by Jiang He, Ming Junwei had found the "Coal Mine Safety Management Regulations," which provided them with several clues. Daliugou Coal Mine was a county-level safety coal mine engaged in underground mining. The large black area they saw from afar was likely coal gangue being dumped; the mine should be located just behind it.
Without binoculars, they couldn’t discern any issues from such a distance. Although there were numerous dirt mounds and endless fields of sagebrush around them, visibility was still relatively clear. However, this place was two hundred kilometers away from the nearest town, leaving them puzzled about how a refugee camp could sustain itself here. While there were mining areas where vegetables could be grown, the land here suffered from severe desertification. The landscape was dominated by sand-stabilizing sagebrush; ordinary vegetables would struggle to grow under such conditions, especially in these times when agricultural prospects were bleak.
Jiang He and his companions were novices when it came to coal mines; their knowledge primarily stemmed from reports of mining disasters around the country. Like power stations, this was their first time stepping into such an environment, so they couldn’t offer any constructive opinions. Fortunately, Ming Junwei lived up to his reputation as an all-rounder; after a brief contemplation, he provided a plausible answer.
“Coal Mine has emergency water storage devices, especially for underground mining, where there are water wells,” Ming Junwei explained to the group of semi-literate individuals. “Haven't you seen it in the news before? Many miners trapped underground survive by drinking water.”
“Well, this is a good place then; having water is like having a mother!” Jiang He couldn't help but praise. He didn’t understand how the water supply system worked. He and Chao Yifan had been hiding in a bar, relying on the tap water, feeling fearless until they discovered that the tap had run dry not long after.
“Whether it's good or not, we’ll find out when we get there. Let’s go.” Ming Junwei looked up at the dim sky; the sun was already tilting, it was past three o'clock.
“Be careful, everyone. If anything happens, shoot immediately,” An Zheng said anxiously, repeatedly reminding them.
“Don’t worry! I used to be the fastest shooter in my squad!” Zhuzi said confidently, patting his shiny black Rifle. “You can count on me.”
“And me too!” Pan Luo chimed in, unwilling to be outdone. The young Girl had changed into a new outfit today; for some reason, she hadn’t thrown away her stained school uniform and wore it over a clean set of clothes.
“Come back quickly,” Chao Yifan leaned against the car with his Great Cleaver and gave them a standard Patton-style salute.
The five of them equipped their weapons and rolled up their pant legs as a gust of wind swept through, stirring up clouds of yellow sand.
“It feels like a heroic farewell,” Jiang He glanced back; the minibus was already out of sight. All he could see were patches of weeds and dirt mounds, everything looking the same.
“Can you say something nice?” Ming Junwei ran his fingers through his hair as if combing it, but without egg whites, the slicked-back look he imagined didn’t materialize; instead, his hair was blown about like snowflakes.
Song Yao and the others remained silent, focusing on their journey while staying alert to their surroundings. The five of them tried to conserve energy, moving at a steady pace as they gradually approached the exposed black area.
As the saying goes, “A horse dies running toward a mountain.” They initially thought the straight distance wouldn’t be far, but it took them a full half hour to reach their destination.
By the time they arrived at the pile of Coal Gangue, their shoes were nearly filled with yellow sand.
The two Girls, delicate and tender-skinned, leaned against one side of a dirt mound to empty the sand from their shoes. The three others carefully climbed up the Coal Gangue Pile to peek at what lay behind.
The scene before them was much like what a few had imagined earlier. Behind the Coal Gangue Pile lay an open area, with a row of red-brick houses to the west, alongside many structures that did not appear suitable for habitation. On one side, several tubular buildings had collapsed on the sand dunes, their purpose unknown.
"That Chimney must have been deliberately brought down," Ming Junwei speculated quietly.
"It should be; otherwise, such a tall Chimney would have been spotted immediately," the Pillar agreed, but then felt something was off. "But Zombies wouldn't recognize a Chimney; is there really a need for this?"
"Didn't Principal Huang mention there had been a mining accident?" Jiang He reminded him.
"Mining accidents happen underground; they aren't earthquakes. How could they bring down a Chimney?" Ming Junwei waved his hand to stop their argument and pointed to a tunnel in the east-west direction. "That should be the entrance to the mine."
The tunnel looked somewhat different from what Jiang He had imagined. He had expected a passage paved with blue bricks, but from this angle, it appeared to be merely a dirt pit leading downward, with whatever lay deep inside completely out of sight.
"There are no signs; we won't get lost, will we?" Jiang He observed from another angle. The nearby houses and vast open space were devoid of any signs of life, as if no one had ever been there.
"We'll find out by going down. Call the Girls up; we need to check it out," Ming Junwei said as he pulled out his machete and crouched low to climb over the Coal Gangue Pile.
" Jiang He called out, "Yao Yao, Girls, come—up?" He turned around and was taken aback; the Coal Gangue Pile was empty, with only the wind-swayed weeds and shrubs around... where were the two girls?
Jiang He froze for a moment before grabbing Pillar, who was about to climb over. "Where are they?!"
"Huh?" Pillar was equally stunned; he turned his head and found himself speechless. "This... this..."
Seeing that the two were still hesitating at the top, Ming Junwei sensed something was wrong and quickly climbed back up. The two Girls had been shoveling sand beneath the Coal Gangue Pile, but now the ground was completely empty—there was no sign of them!
Jiang He's mind buzzed as he scrambled down in panic, helplessly circling around where the two had just stood. The footprints in the sand were still clear, but where had they gone?
"Those two Girls have been kidnapped," Pillar said sharply, noticing details others missed as he grabbed Jiang He's arm and pointed at the sand. "These small prints belong to the girls, right? There are more footprints here— Jiang He, step back."
Jiang He and Ming Junwei stepped back a few paces, and sure enough, they saw several footprints leading away in another direction.
“How long were we up there? They managed to abduct two girls without a sound?” Zhuzi said, unable to hide his astonishment. He spoke in a low voice, “There are people here, but they are definitely not from the Garrison!”
“ Jiang He, you hurry back and call Yi Fan and Xiaomi. Tell Luci to get the car ready to go at any moment! Zhuzi and I will head down the tunnel!” Ming Junwei felt a cold sweat trickle down his back, shivering inexplicably.
“Okay, I’ll go!” Jiang He gritted his teeth. Although he was anxious about Song Yao and the others, there were only the three of them right now, which was far from enough. He suppressed his impulse and hurried back along the path they came from.
“Quick on your feet; this isn’t your first time doing this,” Zhuzi pointed at the broken footprints and lamented, “I’m supposed to be a soldier, yet I didn’t even notice someone was scheming behind us!”
“It’s not your fault,” Ming Junwei’s expression turned serious as he wondered aloud, “You’re right; they were right behind us. So why didn’t they take us down too?”
The two exchanged strange glances, each seeing a hint of foreboding in the other’s eyes.
“Do you think… they believe we can’t find them, so they only took the women…” They spoke in unison, and their faces changed dramatically as they grabbed their weapons and rushed toward the tunnel beneath the Coal Gangue Pile.
Although Jiang He hadn’t yet considered this possibility, he was already burning with anxiety. He abandoned the less overgrown original path and cut straight through a thicket that was half his height. After running just a few steps, he tripped over some tangled roots. Cursing under his breath, Jiang He swung his knife to cut through the roots but realized something was off when he drew it.
In his haste, he had swung the knife with great force, but when he tried to pull it out, it felt as if it had gotten stuck on something. That sensation was familiar to him; back when he worked in a kitchen and was inexperienced, he would chop meat carelessly. Often, when he struck down hard enough, the tip of the knife would embed itself into the cutting board, causing it to get stuck when he tried to pull it out.
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