Xu Lei - Search for the Buried Bomber

Wang Sichuan agreed. With all the fuel tanks lying around, starting a fire would be a piece of cake. I wrapped my clothes around me and told him to be careful. “There might be explosives here,” I said. “Don’t let me return to find the place already blown to smithereens.”

Wang Sichuan laughed. “I was lighting campfires out on the grasslands while you were still sleeping on a kang,” he said. “Don’t talk such nonsense.”

I jogged a short distance, passed through the iron passage, and after making my way back through the huge gate at the other end, headed for the second chamber. The sweat from our pursuit of Su Zhenhua froze to my skin. The only thing on my mind was getting to Ma Zaihai and the deputy squad leader as quickly as possible, bringing them back with me, and drinking hot water until I felt better. Not once did I think that something might go wrong over such a short distance. I ran back through the mist, relying on memory and never pausing, until I suddenly noticed that everything looked exactly the same no matter which way I turned. At first I wasn’t aware of what had happened, but after running for another ten-plus minutes, the powdery mist continued to spread all about me and a limitless ice field stretched into the distance. We hadn’t left a single goddamn marker on the way out. I was lost.

Losing my way turned out to be an important link in that whole chain of events. The area was vast and open, my field of vision drastically limited. Without some kind of sign, it was almost a certainty that I would soon find myself lost and directionless amid the mist. This was hardly the worst thing in the world, and I didn’t let it bother me. Only for the first few minutes did I feel any annoyance. Still, given my exhaustion at the time, it was obvious that the longer I stayed here, the more precarious the situation would become. I chose a direction and continued on. At the time I assumed that, so long as I kept going forward, even if I didn’t find the iron-grate walkway at the room’s center, I would at least run into one of its walls. As expected, after walking for two or three minutes, the frost-bedecked face of a high cement wall appeared from out of the mist. I roughly oriented myself, then turned around, climbed a cement ridge running perpendicular to my previous direction, and began to follow the wall. The second chamber should be up ahead, I thought. With the cold already unbearable, I began to speed up.

The giant machines placed along the base of the wall, as well as their great masses of pipes and power cables plunging into the nearby ice, were caked beneath a layer of frost. The whole scene had become one huge, uneven, frost-covered heap. These disparately sized pipes all snaked across the walkway, making it much higher and more difficult to traverse than the one Wang Sichuan and I had crossed earlier. Frost thick and soft covered the pool that stretched beside me and made the ice much less slippery. It was easier to walk on the ice than to pick my way among the refrigeration pipes. On the ice I went faster and faster, not paying any attention to what was beneath my feet, certain that the ice was solid. I was wrong. I had walked about ten minutes when, all of a sudden, the ice beneath my feet gave way. The ground sloped down before me and I began to fall. I swung my body back around and squatted down heavily. I wasn’t sliding too fast and was able to hold myself steady. A giant black void with steep sides had appeared out of the cold mist in the space just in front of me. Someone had dug a deep pit in the ice.

Actually, the hole was not that big, about the size of a PLA truck. It was hardly necessary to use the word g iant , but the pit really was deep, likely reaching all the way to the cement bottom. Inside was a vague cloud of mist. I couldn’t tell what was down below. We’d all cut holes in ice before. It was necessary if you wanted to go fishing in the Greater Khingans during wintertime. Once the ice was a certain thickness, cutting a hole was no easy task. I could imagine the time and effort that must have gone into making this one. I doubt it was a one-person job. I rubbed the edge of the pit. Cracks spiderwebbed outward. It had been smashed open with no more than shovels and brute strength. Who had done this? Su Zhenhua and the others?

It seemed likely. I didn’t know what accident befell them after making it here, but before it occurred they were certain to have explored the place. Having seen these strange ice pools and the shadows frozen underneath, someone would have suggested they dig one up and take a look. If our team hadn’t encountered all we did and had arrived here intact, I’m sure I would have had the same idea. Just what exactly is down there, I thought to myself, and had they managed to dig it up?

I squatted back down and shined my flashlight into the pit. By disposition I’m fairly cautious. I was not even thinking of jumping down and taking a look. If Wang Sichuan were here, he’d probably already have been on the bottom. The bottom was jagged and uneven. After reaching a certain point, the excavation seemed to have stopped. I could see the indistinct shape of one of the shadows frozen in the ice, half of it already exposed. They must have stopped digging right after the thing appeared.

I became more and more curious. Why hadn’t they continued? I wondered. Now I considered jumping down, but a six-foot drop into an ice pit would be quite dangerous. I’d have a rough time climbing back out and would risk freezing to death inside. There’s a kind of pitfall in the Northeast constructed just like this. It’s intentionally dug only a few feet deeper than the height of a bear, so when one falls in, it’s unable to escape.

Just as I was hesitating about whether I should first go and find Ma Zaihai or just descend directly into the pit, I felt a slight breeze behind me. I was so cold I’d become sensitive to even the lightest wind. Shivering, I made to turn around and see where it was coming from, but before I could move, I was given a ferocious push from behind. I tried to squat back down, but couldn’t keep my balance. I tumbled headlong into the pit.

Iwas falling headfirst. I quickly brought my hands up to protect my head. I’m a fairly resilient individual. Even after being knocked six feet down, with my head spinning, I could still tell which way was up and which was down. I looked up at once. Who’s the bastard plotting against me? I said to myself.

Just as I lifted my head, a chunk of ice came hurtling toward me. It smashed into my face. I ducked back down to protect myself. Another chunk smacked against the back of my skull. Tiny pieces of ice dripped down my neck and into my clothing. Furious, I shook my head back and forth. Just as I’d flung most of it off, several more chunks came at me, much heavier and in far greater numbers than before. One piece smashed savagely into the nape of my neck, nearly knocking me out. My adversary was trying to bury me alive.

I was stunned. As a prospector I’d faced my share of dangerous situations, but never had anyone tried to kill me. Had the spy been lying low nearby, seen that I was exhausted and alone, then decided to take me out? I became enraged. You made a very serious mistake not using your gun, I said to myself. I may only be technical personnel now, but I served my time as a soldier. Would you have messed with me then? I too had to run five kilometers with a sandbag strapped to my back. With this thought spurring me on, I grabbed a chunk of ice from beside me and hurled it upward. Heedless of whether my aim was true, I immediately threw the next piece, then the next. The rate of ice coming back at me greatly lessened. Whoever was up there was clearly trying to dodge my throws.