The heart pumps and beats, pumping warm blood to the bones of the trunk. The heartbeat slowly turned into palpitations, trembling and shaking, almost making Shen Rusong breathless.
Shen Rusong stretched out his hand and wiped his goggles stiffly and haphazardly. The whole world was frosty and misty, covered with fluffy snowflakes, which seemed to be floating out from his Tianling Cap. Sometimes a hexagonal snowflake would stick to the goggles, and the perfect geometric configuration loomed in front of Shen Rushong's eyes. .
Stepping forward, the snow dust rolled out by the horse's hoofs slowly rose. The horse was panting deeply, its nostrils were filled with frost, and Shen Rushong on the horse hugged the horse's neck stiffly. The rifle slipped from his back and kept bumping into his waist and ribs. Only then did he feel a trace of movement between heaven and earth. He didn't notice that his teeth were chattering violently, he couldn't hear the chatter of his teeth, and he couldn't hear his own heartbeat.
Time flies by, the coldness and never-ending howling of the wind wipe out people's senses, and time loses its meaning little by little.
"Boom! Boom! Boom boom boom!!!" The whistle sounded sharply.
Shen Rusong woke up suddenly, and the long silent queue came alive with the sound of whistles, and roars pierced the snow and fog one after another.
"Set up camp!"
The tent was erected with great difficulty, and the palm stove heated up the cans. The moment the food was hot, Shen Rusong felt that his soul had returned. He only had one day's rations in his backpack, and the rest was in the packhorse box, but the solid There were only three portions of fuel, so he had to collect all the fuel assigned to the class, pour the cans into the kettle, and then boil them to save fuel.
There was no conversation, and too much energy wasted during the day's march. After a hard-earned hot meal, the soldiers had to go outside to dig snow trenches. They had to dig out shelter for the horses.
The engineer shovels and a few dozen pickaxes hit the hard ground. By midnight, they had to dig a trench that was deep, wide and long enough.
The exoskeleton heat engine was activated, and the elite armored infantry in the battle now became lumberjacks. They cut down logs and dragged them around the camp to build simple shacks. As long as they could avoid the wind and cold, everything was worth it!
The sentries on duty at night were so cold that they hugged each other tightly. Instead, they hoped that a few wild beasts would emerge from the forest so that they could roar and fire, using the flames of the bullets to feel the warmth that they could not hold on to.
The wind and snow never weakened, and there was no gap between dawn and dusk. The long night was followed by an even longer white night, and Shen Rusong's mind went blank. He had once looked forward to the snow on the surface. In the congested and depressing underground city, he looked up at the holographic simulation board that was always the same and changed every time. I was caught in the surging flow of people and thousands of rejuvenation buildings. He looked forward to the surface, to real snow, air, and sunlight.
The compacted velvet in the military coat was "rustling", and Shen Rusong seemed to smell the smell of his own sweat. The world outside the goggles was filled with heavy snow and became dull, and there were always countless tiny strands of cold wind passing through. Through, pierced into his bones.
There is no escape from the cold.
The spiked boots stepped on the snow and sank into it. His eyebrows, hat velvet, and collar were covered with white frost. His gradually frozen mind was pierced by whistles, and he fell into silence again and again.
Whenever the scouts sent to explore the road return, the team will blow the whistle three times. Only then will someone look up blankly and ask, "Are we here?"
"No."
This meal is hot food, the next meal can be hot food, but what about today? There is no solid fuel left, and the stove can no longer be lit.
The thickened oil from the flamethrower was poured into the stove and ignited. The soldiers huddled around the fire in the shack, reveling in the only few quarters of hours of warmth in the day.
"The communication was severely interrupted, and the signal could only be received a few times a day." Gao Keming told the company commander.
"The wooden pole antenna we brought cannot withstand such wind and snow. I tried my best to modulate the signal and send the report on the available channel, but the weather is still like this and I cannot send an accurate position."
Xia Xiaoyuan put the cigarette he lit at his mouth to Gao Keming and comforted: "Everything is ready at the Ganjingzi Military Station, and we have contacted them. Now the military station should send a search team out, and they will meet them soon. ,rest assured."
rest assured? Xia Xiaoyuan was alone outside the shack. The astringent smell of cigarettes was spreading. It took longer and longer for the scouts to return. It was easy to get lost just by relying on the map without seeing the reference objects clearly. He did not tell anyone else that a group of scouts had been missing for more than a day. He compared the map over and over again and barely calculated that there were almost fifty kilometers of straight-line distance left to the military station.
Fifty kilometers, a day's march was enough, but in three days and two nights, the blizzard never really abated, more than half of the rations were consumed, both men and horses were exhausted, there were no reinforcements outside, and no supplies inside.
In the snow-covered mountains, not a single rabbit could be seen. Xia Xiaoyuan really hoped that a few mutant beasts without eyes would jump out. Killing them would be better than slaughtering horses!
Only forward, only forward...
The soldiers were numb, and when they crossed a steep slope between the foothills, a cross wind blew up, blowing down those who couldn't bear it, and also overturned everyone in the way. It was like running down a slide, and they couldn't stop their movements. , no matter how hard the comrades next to him grabbed it, all they got was a handful of fluffy gray snow.
They fell down the steep slope and rolled down the cliff. Within seconds, the blizzard wiped away their traces.
There are only whistles, no shouts, silence and low sobs, snot and tears that will freeze on the scarf.
The energy-gathering battery of the exoskeleton is gradually running out. The wood cut down is only enough for camping and cooking at night. There is only cold food at noon. No one wants to open cans in such conditions, but we still have to eat. The dagger pierces the tinplate and the spoon cannot reach the mouth. It was frozen and stuck to the skin of my lips and couldn't be removed even if I pulled it out. The rice grains as hard as stones take a long time to warm up in the mouth, and the ice-like canned meats need to be pried open with a saber and chewed mixed with greasy and disgusting grease.
Eating became a more difficult task than fighting.
The long, endless wind and snow, cold food, exhaustion, and distress, gradually reached the limit of human endurance.
In the vast snow forest, people and trees gradually merge together.
"Monitor! I've seen this tree before!"
"I've seen it too!"
Suddenly, someone pointed at a fir tree and shouted. The slowly moving team stopped. The tortured people raised their heads and glanced at the tree. It took a long time for the picture to emerge in their paralyzed minds.
They had just passed the tree used as a road sign half a day ago.
Whether you want to admit it or not, the facts are coldly in front of you.
get lost.
"Ah!!!" Someone howled and rushed out of the queue, stabbing the damn tree crazily with a rifle. Those who still had the strength to hold him back, but after all this fuss, the frantic person finally He actually reached the point where he lost all his strength and refused to leave no matter what.
The squad leader tied up the crazed man's hands, put him on the horse's butt and led him away. He took a burden and continued on his way. When the whistle sounded, he wanted to take a short breath, only to find that at some point, there was no one behind the horse.
Staring silently behind them, people lowered their eyelids. Who would go back to look for the straggler? Maybe there's a little more sad relief?
It was not yet night, and the camp had not yet been set up. At the sheltered place where we stopped, people hurriedly squeezed past, stealing a few inches of breath. But those who didn't take their turn could still endure the biting cold wind in place. They didn't understand why they were wearing so thick and warm clothes, but they were still freezing to the bone.
The extreme cold began to cause hallucinations in people. Someone laughed strangely, stripped off his clothes one by one, even tearing off his underwear. He threw himself into the snow pit and cried for relief from the heat. In less than a minute, this person Frozen into popsicles.
Shen Rusong put his hand on the pine tree in front of him. He slowly raised his head and stared at the snow-white crown. He thought in confusion, and began to dream and pray in confusion.
The only thing that responded to him was cold dust.
