War Photographer's Notebook

Chapter 708 The Forgotten Land
Over the Ural Mountains that divide the Eurasian continent, a gorgeously painted An-2 aircraft flew against the turbulence to the east side of the mountains, circling while lowering its altitude.

"Victor, the mining gas station is directly below us."

In the communication channel, Alili asked, "Now the altitude is 1200 meters, do you want to go down from here?"

"Just start here"

While Wei Ran was speaking, he also put on a leather hood and a pair of thick windproof glasses for Beria, who was about to usher in his first jump.

"Remember to contact me every six hours after landing. Besides, you really don't need to bring a weapon?"

While Ji Ma was speaking, he personally stuffed the satellite phone and two charging treasures into the canvas accessory bag on Wei Ran's chest.

"Need not"

Wei Ran touched fists with the opponent, put on a mask, windproof glasses and gloves, and then connected Beria's seat belt with his own.

"After you open the parachute, I will throw the supplies down for you." Jima finally ordered, and shook open the hatch.

At the same time as the gust of wind poured into the cabin, Wei Ran also jumped down with Belial who was obviously a little excited.

"This dog can do it"

Wei Ran, who was in a state of free fall, almost took a break from his busy schedule to say admiration, not only is this dog not afraid, but his tail is wagging so fast that it can be used as a propeller. This psychological quality is much braver than himself and Ji Ma at that time.

After he opened the parafoil, the quarter horse in the plane above also pushed a one-man sleigh full of food and drink down.

When the fixed parachute on the sleigh car finished opening, Wei Ran also manipulated his own parachute to keep a close distance from the opponent, and drifted to a forest glade with the sleigh car.

Thanks to teacher Dalia and others for their revenge-like training, Wei Ran opened the connection with Belia the moment he landed, and then skillfully closed the parachute and took off the parachute bag.

At the same time, Beria also rushed to the sleigh not far away, and threw himself on the parachute spiritually, relying on his own weight to press the huge canopy under his stomach.

Fortunately, I don't know if it's because of the shelter of the Ural Mountains tens of kilometers away, but there is no wind at all here.Otherwise, with Beria's small physique of tens of kilograms, trying to hold down the parachute is purely a dog's dream.

After collecting the parachute on the sleigh, Wei Ran didn't rush to leave, and sat directly on the sleigh, took out the satellite phone and dialed Ji Ma.

"Safe landing" Wei Ran informed the other party of his situation the moment the phone was connected.

"That's good"

Jima on the other end of the phone responded, "Before we go back, we will look for a natural place nearby that is suitable for landing. Victor, please call me immediately if you are in danger."

"Understood." After Wei Ran finished speaking, he simply hung up the phone and took out the GPS in his pocket to confirm his location.

The situation is good and bad. The straight-line distance from the field gas station is less than 5 kilometers, but there is a virgin coniferous forest and a frozen river in the middle.

Not in a hurry to set off, Wei Ran first inspected the sleigh that was dropped from the air.This sleigh cart is not big, but there are quite a lot of things on it.In addition to a tent and a skinned reindeer, there is a motorcycle saw and a bucket of fuel, of course, there are all-important sleeping bags, blankets, small stoves and kettles, spices and other sundries .

Except for the reindeer that didn't help pull the cart, all of this is the same as when he asked Alili to find a wild environment for himself in the name of exercising his "wild survivability", but in fact it was just to try out the anti-tank gun that the other party prepared. The things were exactly the same, and he even doubted that this sled car whose main structure was welded with angle iron might be the one used at that time.

"I don't know if the reindeer named Sasha is still there"

Wei Ran looked at the plane flying farther and farther above his head and muttered until he couldn't hear the roar of the plane's engine at all. Then, under the curious gaze of his dog Beria, he took out the half-track motorcycle from the metal book, and then, The buckle on the parachute and the seat belt are used to connect the tow hook of the sled car and the half-track motorcycle together.

After finally confirming the direction of the field gas station, Wei Ran greeted Beria and lay down on the engine radiator grille of the half-track motorcycle as a backrest, then started the motorcycle and drove slowly into the dense coniferous forest.

Thanks to the help of this powerful old antique, the forest did not bring any hindrance to Wei Ran. In less than half an hour, he came to the other side of the forest.

After stopping the car, Wei Ran stood up and held up his binoculars to scan the gas station on the other side of the river.

As far as the eye can see, the area of ​​this gas station is not small, and although it is marked as a gas station on the map, there are various construction machinery and more than a dozen vehicles parked in the parking lot. It is a truck used to transport timber, and even, on the open space by the pier, there is a patrol boat that looks very old on tires.

However, the main buildings of the gas station were extremely quiet, and even the chimneys on the roof of the main building did not emit smoke.

After thinking for a moment, Wei Ran sat down again and steered the half-track motorcycle to drag the sled across the frozen river.

It can only be seen from the overly flat snow on the river that this place is so remote that even freight drivers will not pass through it.

Driving onto the pier amidst the roar of the engine, Wei Ran saw various signs erected by the pier at a glance.

From these signs, we can also know that this place is not only a gas station, but also a storage yard in the summer mining area, a wood transfer center in the forest area, and even a docking station for ships and helicopters. Of course, it also serves as a field rescue function of the station.

It's just that there is no one on duty here, and even when Wei Ran followed the arrow to look for it, what he saw was only a single-built building similar to a prefabricated house.

Let’s not talk about the inside of this building, at least the outer wall has a very conspicuous notice stating the possible punishment for destroying or stealing the mine’s finances.

Pulling away the steel pin hanging on the deadbolt, Wei Ran carefully pushed open the thick door, and then found at a glance that the conditions in the rescue station were not bad, not only had a bed and a stove, but also faced the door Next to the wall, there is actually a human generator modified from a bicycle. At the same time, there is a radio station nailed to the wall, and the channel for help and a set of numbers are written on the wall.

Look at the three high and low bunks connected end to end. On the upper bunk, there are more than a dozen boxes of canned food. On the lower bunk, there are sleeping bags and beasts that don't look too dirty but are definitely not clean leather blanket.There are boxes of firewood and coal under the bed.

For people like Wei Ran, this condition can only be regarded as mediocre at best, but for those who were unfortunate enough to be in distress near here and were extremely lucky to find this place, everything in this room is almost like heaven.

After locking the door again, Wei Ran walked around the remaining buildings one by one.Compared with those permanently abandoned buildings and even cities in the Siberian wilderness, these buildings here are exceptionally well protected. Not only are the doors and windows equipped with barbed anti-theft nets, but almost every door and window has a prohibition on entry. prompts and block time.

In contrast to this strict defense, it is the oil storage tank located next to the parking lot.When Wei Ran picked up the oil gun and poked it into the fuel tank of the half-track motorcycle to add some fuel, aviation kerosene gushed out immediately.

But on the three oil storage tanks that were set up one meter high, the only reminders were similar to warnings about the prohibition of fireworks.

"It's true that you don't need money for oil, so you can add it casually?"

Wei Ran hung the oil gun back to its original position, and without further delay, called Beria who was peeing on the tire of a forklift, changed direction and followed the guidance of GPS, along a snow-covered forest. On the inter-highway, he drove slowly to the direction of No. 52 mine.

Contrary to his expectations, although the road is not wide and there are no ruts along the way, it is extremely flat when walking.

However, the further you go along this road, the coniferous forests on both sides become more and more dense, and more than once, Beria, who was lying behind Wei Ran, stood up vigilantly and let out a low growl full of threats .

Cautiously and continuously drove forward for a distance of about [-] kilometers, there was an extra barbed wire fence on a bridge across the river directly in front of the road.

There is also a conspicuous big sign fixed on the rusty barbed wire fence, on which there is a very blunt warning that "Going is a military restricted area, please turn around immediately."

Is there a military restricted area here?

Wei Ran stopped his half-track motorcycle. As a foreigner, he would definitely be in trouble if he trespassed on the military restricted area.

But soon, he calmed down again, not to mention that the fence and warning signs looked rusty, and even the road behind the fence, even if it was covered with snow, we could still see wild grass intermingled with it, and more importantly Yes, even that bridge is in a state of collapse, obviously not being used for a long time.

If this is really a military restricted area, why not put such a rag at the gate?

Wei Ran thought for a moment, checked the surroundings carefully, reached out and took out a small pair of pliers from his pocket, removed the warning sign on the fence, threw it directly into the frozen river, and then carefully cleaned it up. Footprints left by oneself.

"What kind of broken place is this? Why isn't there even a warning sign?"

Wei Ran muttered something serious, and beckoned the dog to jump on the half-track motorcycle, drive directly down the river and up the opposite side, and continue along the forest road.

It's just that compared to just now, he was a lot more cautious. Not only did he put the speed at the slowest, but he would stop from time to time, holding up the binoculars to carefully observe the surrounding environment.

After continuing to drive for less than five kilometers, this deserted forest road was gradually wrapped by the mountains of the Ural Mountains, and a clearing suddenly appeared beside the road.

Several military vehicles were neatly parked on the open space, and the most numerous of them were various types of heavy-duty towing trucks.

From the MAZ537 with a square head and square brain to the 543 with a hole in the forehead, and even the innermost side of the parking lot, there are two T-64 tanks covered with snow!

The appearance of these things also clearly delineated the "useful life" here in the [-]s and beyond.

After thinking for a moment, Wei Ran climbed into the cab of a MAZ537, looked in through the dirty glass, and was relieved to see that the inside was already covered with dust and dilapidated.

After picking up the half-track motorcycle, Wei Ran stepped on the skis, let Beria lead him, and continued along a fork that connected to the parking lot.

After walking about two 300 meters away, there was an open space and a large number of abandoned or collapsed buildings right in front of them.

Holding up the binoculars, I saw that there was no fireworks in this open space. Even Beria, who was squatting next to Wei Ran, leisurely marked the site on a pile of discarded tires.

After observing for a while, Wei Ran lightly tugged on the traction rope, and led Belia cautiously forward, taking a general observation of the remaining buildings in this open space.

It is almost certain that this place has been completely abandoned a long time ago. Even if those buildings are intact, their roofs have already been collapsed by the snow.

After thinking for a moment, Wei Ran turned around and walked back, returned to the parking lot, took out the half-track motorcycle and connected it to the sled, and drove back along the mark he had just left with the skis.

Driving a half-track motorcycle here for a while, Wei Ran is almost sure that this place was abandoned before the disintegration of the Soviet Union, otherwise, there should be more military equipment left here.

But now, there is only one Khrushchev statue less than three meters high still looking solemnly in the direction of Moscow.

Wei Ran, who didn't expect to gain anything here, didn't waste any more time here. Following the guidance of the GPS, he walked along a forest road that was almost occupied by the secondary forest, and continued heading northwest in the valley.

Driving forward for less than a kilometer, the forest road disappeared completely after joining a frozen river.

Glancing at the dense coniferous forest on the other side, Wei Ran glanced at the markers on the satellite map, then turned the car around and drove straight west along the river.

According to the distance shown on the map, he was less than two kilometers away from Mine No. 52 at this time.Even, maybe back then, this place was already within the scope of the No. 52 mine.

Because, on the pine trees by the river, he saw the rusty barbed wire that had grown into the trunk!
Continuing along the river, a stone sentry tower suddenly appeared on the high ground on the left bank.Although it was some distance away, the sunlight reflected by the glass on the sentry tower made it extremely conspicuous.

Raising the binoculars towards the sentry tower, Wei Ran not only saw the searchlight on the top of the sentry tower and a few old-fashioned loudspeakers, but even vaguely saw the machine gun mounted in the watchtower!
Fortunately, he didn't see any human beings in the sentry tower, and the dog lying behind him also looked very leisurely and comfortable because of the heat emitted by the engine.

To be cautious, Wei Ran parked his car on the river next to the sentry tower, and then carefully walked over with his dog.

After passing through two rusty barbed wire fences in a row, and climbing up more than ten meters on the snow-covered steps, Wei Ran finally stood at the gate of the sentry tower.

It was only when he got closer that he realized that the sentry tower was built extremely firmly. Although he didn't know the exact year of construction, after walking around, he didn't find a single crack in the wall.

After cutting the wire that tied the gate, Wei Ran pushed open the iron gate with a concrete interlayer, and took a cautious look inside.

As far as the eye can see, there is nothing special at all. Both the tables and chairs and the wooden boxes against the wall are all rusty, and the ground is also covered with a thick layer of solid ice mixed with various garbage.

There are even a few sharp icicles hanging on the top of the head, but the mirror facing the gate, although it is already full of cracks, can still barely reflect Wei Ran's shadow.

Looking up, Wei Ran decisively took out the medical kit from the metal book, and put the American steel helmet he got from the Pacific battlefield on his head.

After collecting the medical kit, Wei Ran looked at the mottled self in the mirror and couldn't help but smile. He is from China, and this place used to be the land of the Soviet Union, but it also used to house Japanese prisoners of war.Unfortunately, he was wearing a steel helmet that also beat devils on his head.

"I hope the ghost is okay"

Wei Ran chattered nervously, but at the same time, he took out the rarely used anti-Japanese broadsword from the metal notebook and held it in his hand, as if he had assembled all the elements he could think of.

Stepping on the concrete stairs, I climbed up carefully. When I came to the second floor, I could barely see the outline of the two single beds by the window. The only one that was still well preserved was the Central cast iron stove.

Without taking a closer look at this floor, Wei Ran continued to go up to the top floor of the sentry tower, and saw a DP light machine gun by the window at a glance. The bipod of this machine gun was still stuck in the metal frame surrounding the window. seat.

But compared to this rusty outdated weapon, what attracted Wei Ran's attention more was the bullet casings covered with green rust on the ground!

"So this gun has been used?" Wei Ran stood behind the machine gun while speaking, and held the slightly rusty butt against his shoulder.

When his hand was holding the grip of the machine gun, the muzzle of the machine gun was aimed at the river below the sentry tower.

Looking at the surrounding glass windows, although there are dense cracks, there are no bullet holes at all, which proves that the people who were shot by the machine guns here at that time did not have the ability to fight back.

"I'm afraid it's because the boats and cars are too tiring to transport them, so I bought a direct ticket for them?"

While muttering, Wei Ran brushed off the stains on his shoulders, put away the Anti-Japanese Broadsword used to adjust the atmosphere, put on the binoculars and looked in other directions.

Thanks to the terrain here, he can easily see the snow-buried building ruins in the distance, and at the same time, he can vaguely see several dark caves at the foot of the mountain.

After carefully observing the surroundings, Wei Ran left the sentry tower contentedly, took the dog tied to the doorknob on the first floor, and drove the half-track motorcycle forward.

The rest of the distance is naturally not difficult, but the guard towers that appear from time to time around, the rusty barbed wire that can be seen almost everywhere, and the 50 meters long and still intact concrete pier, all hint at how lively it was back then.

Driving the half-track motorcycle to leave the river, Wei Ran raised his eyebrows involuntarily while standing at the pier.Not to mention far away, there are railway tracks on the pier alone.

Looking up into the distance, as far as the eyes can see, there are more than a dozen buildings that are not tall but extremely beautiful in the open space facing the pier.

Perhaps because of the rocky geology here, the buildings here are not like the first-floor suspension style he saw in the polar region before, but are no different from the warm south.

The symmetrical beauty, majestic and majestic style revealed by this building, as well as the stable construction quality that still stands after such a long time, all brought Wei Ran back to the Stalin era in an instant.

Regardless of other factors, these Stalinist buildings, both in terms of aesthetics and quality, have to throw the already collapsed Khrushchev Building a few kilometers away by a distance as far as the Trans-Siberian Railway.

On the other hand, in the core area of ​​these dozens of buildings, the two red-brown statues that are at least four or five meters high hide some small thoughts that make Wei Ran laugh.

These two statues depict Lenin and Stalin respectively, and no matter the sculptor, height or material, compared with the statue of Khrushchev in the abandoned military base, they are as far away as the Siberian Railway.

Most importantly, Khrushchev has been in power for more than ten years, and the statue of Stalin here has not been removed, which is enough to explain many things.

Driving a half-track motorcycle to a stop at the feet of these two statues, Wei Ran continued to move forward and stopped at the edge of the building complex.

Going forward from here, there remains a ditch on the ground that looks to be four to five meters deep and five to six meters wide. On top of this ditch, there are bridges erected every few tens of meters. There is also a two-story sentry tower.

And on the edge of this invisible sentry tower, there are still some concrete pillars with barbed wire remaining. On these pillars, a triangular sign or a skull is hung every now and then.

The content of this triangular logo is rather simple, a cross section of a trench, plus a silhouette of a bomb, and a silhouette of a little man whose leg was broken.

I looked at the skulls hanging on the pillars. Without exception, they all had a bullet hole the size of a peanut at the back of their heads.

Standing at the head of the concrete bridge that spans the ditches, in the open space as far as the eye can see, there are also ditches that are more than ten meters apart and have no obvious use at all.Their width is slightly smaller, and the depth seems to be only about two meters.

What is rather strange is that each of these trenches is only ten meters long at most, and then there is a second trench at a distance of three or four meters.Moreover, there seems to be an opening in the middle of each trench.
"Fuck!"

Wei Ran's heart jumped, and he realized belatedly that these trenches seemed to be large shacks one after another!Because, he had just discovered the remains of a chimney on the edge of a ditch!

Looking back at the beautiful buildings and the two two-story statues behind him, and looking at the collapsed shack on the other side of the ditch, Wei Ran couldn't help swallowing. Mouth spit.

As far as the trenches you see in front of you, it is estimated that 2000 people can easily live there.According to the Soviets. No, no, no, according to Stalin and Beria's urine, it seems that it is not a big problem to stuff three to five thousand!

I just don't know how many people came back alive
Wei Ran glanced at the skeleton tied to the concrete pillar by the thick wire, and drove the half-track motorcycle, turned around and drove to a three-story building that looked the most beautiful.

(End of this chapter)