"I sell carpets," Ahmed said immediately. John, who happened to be in the back of the truck, was wrapped in something similar to a carpet.
I don't know if it will be discovered.
"Do you want to buy it?" Ahmed pretended to ask him. He definitely won't buy it.
"Drive your car." The other party was very fierce.
There were three people sitting in the back of the truck, one facing each other, so John's head could see them. The body is wrapped.
If you don't pay attention, you won't be found, but if you look carefully, you can spot someone.
Suddenly he said "Stop".
Ahmed didn't want to stop immediately.
He said "Stop" again.
Ahmed just stopped, and now both Long Zhan and Ahmed's hearts were in their throats. Afraid they would find out.
"Thank you!" Unexpectedly, he said such words.
"I wish you peace!" Ahmed said pretending to be calm.
Then the three men behind also jumped out of the trunk of the truck.
Finally, they went away.
Ahmed and Long Zhan both breathed a sigh of relief and pulled off their masks.
Their anxious hearts finally calmed down, and they continued to drive. They saw a place to build a shed in front of them.
From a distance, I saw a group of people surrounding the oven, probably preparing to have a meal.
There is also an old man carding wool.
Ahmed felt that this was an ordinary person selling sheep, so he stopped.
Prepare to explore the bottom first.
"I wish you peace!" Ahmed said to everyone as soon as he got out of the car.
"Hello, brother, how are you?" One of the old men watched Ahmed get out of the car, walked slowly towards him, and greeted him warmly.
"Very well, thank you!" Ahmed replied.
"I'm sorry to disturb your meal." Ahmed said politely to a group of Afghans gathered around them.
"Please sit down." One of the older Afghans with beards said very friendly.
"Thank you." Ahmed saluted them and then sat down with everyone.
"Did you hunt these?" Ahmed asked as he looked at so many sheep nearby.
Some had been shaved and were lying on the ground, while others were tied up.
In the middle of the group where they were gathered, there was a stove with a sheep roasting on it.
Ahmed, who had not eaten for so long, was drooling when he looked at these delicacies.
But he had important things to do now.
The older man nodded and replied, "Yes."
"You can enjoy your meal tonight." Ahmed flattered him.
The other party kept looking at Ahmed, knowing that he probably had something else to say.
He stared at Ahmed as if waiting for him to continue.
Finally, Ahmed spoke up.
"Brother, I have two friends in the car. He is injured." Ahmed saw that the other party was friendly and enthusiastic, so he boldly spoke out.
"How can I help?" the elderly Afghan asked enthusiastically after hearing what Ahmed said.
"We need some food and painkillers. If you can give me the wooden cart, I will exchange it for my truck." Ahmed communicated in Afghan, which indeed added a lot of intimacy to the other party.
The older man thought for a moment and replied, "Can I see your friend?"
"Okay." After saying that, Ahmed got up and took the older man to the truck.
Long Zhan was sitting in the car and saw that the Afghan was really friendly and gave him a smile.
He also nodded towards Long Zhan.
Then walking to the back of the truck, Ahmed lifted the blanket that covered Sergeant John's face.
"So you are the ones they are looking for. I don't like the Taliban and I will help you. He needs opium and this will help him with the pain."
The older man looked at it and replied. And handed Ahmed a small lump of opium and cigarette sticks in his hand.
"Thank you!" Ahmed replied gratefully.
I really didn't expect to meet such a good person.
Then the elder called several of their friends over and lifted Sergeant Major John onto the wooden cart.
He also said: "There is a huge bounty on your head now, and hundreds of Taliban members are looking for you. They are searching house to house. They are also setting fire to the houses of those who do not provide information."
They will not stop hunting you. You are already far away from his base, but you should not take the road. Patrols are everywhere. You must take the mountain road. "
The elder gave Long Zhan and Ahmed a warm reminder, and then tore a leg of mutton for them to eat.
Long Zhan and Ahmed devoured the meal, which was really satisfying.
The elder saw that Long Zhan's leg was also stained with blood, and asked, "Are your legs injured too?"
"Yes." Long Zhan replied.
"I'll give you this medicine, which can sterilize and heal wounds quickly." Then he handed Long Zhan a small bottle.
"Thank you!" Long Zhan's wound was indeed inflamed due to constant walking and sweat.
But he endured it and didn't say anything.
Just after taking this medicine, it should heal soon.
Long Zhan and Ahmed thanked the elders and continued on their way.
Ahmed is indeed a very hard-working person, because Long Zhan's leg was injured and he couldn't exert much strength. Most of the time, Ahmed pushed Sergeant Major John.
They kept pushing during the day and late at night, and then they curled up together and slept anywhere.
Fortunately, this wooden cart is much better than the previous simple cart.
Long Zhan's legs gradually improved a lot, and he and Ahmed could take turns pushing him away.
But on such a long road, there were sometimes steep slopes and waterways, so the two men pushed Sergeant Major John step by step.
On the way, we also passed houses burned down by the Taliban.
Sergeant John also opened his eyes because he took the opium painkiller given to him by the elder.
But he was still confused and unable to speak.
Sometimes at night, the weather was so cold that John couldn't stand the cold. Sometimes the wounds would get worse and he would just scream in pain.
Long Zhan could only sleep next to him, using his body temperature to transfer a little to him. The three of them hugged each other for warmth and slept next to each other.
These roads were so far away that they didn't know how long they had walked. They only knew that the grass turned from yellow to green.
Because we were walking on a small road, we never saw any villages. We could only drink some water when we came across streams and pick some wild fruits to satisfy our hunger.
Sometimes when Sergeant John felt uncomfortable, he would give him opium.
There are also wider roads on some small roads. Long Zhan thought these places should be safer.
But I didn't expect that the Taliban were constantly patrolling their presence on the top of the mountain with binoculars.
Long Zhan and Ahmed were pushing Sergeant Major John towards a long and steep slope.
Ahmed couldn't push up alone, so the two of them pushed hard.
(End of chapter)
