Changdong's plan was to head directly west, cutting across the Yadan Three-Row Sand Devil City, brushing the edge of the Kumingtage Desert, and entering the heart of Lake Lobnor. He got up early every morning to check the sky, though he knew deep down that good weather and a smooth journey weren't necessarily linked—just a habit. After breakfast, he handled loading the vehicles and completed pre-trip inspections. Supplies and equipment were divided between his own truck and Fei Tang's. Fei Tang's truck carried a heavy load of over one ton, while Changdong's was even heavier. As for Ye Liuxi's truck, he had little hope for it—its low chassis was likely to bottom out and fail within a day, at which point it would simply be left behind, to be towed back later. After loading everything, Changdong gave each vehicle a final inspection. At this point, the busy ones were doing the work, while the less active ones relaxed and chatted. Fei Tang settled beside Ye Liuxi, constantly addressing her as "Xijie," their conversation lively and animated. As Changdong approached, Fei Tang was spitting out words with great enthusiasm. "When it comes to It actually doesn't have a distinctly Chinese style—it's more Central Asian and Persian in design. Experts speculate it came through the Silk Road as a tribute gift from Western regions to the Tang Dynasty. But that's hard to confirm—why doesn't the historical record mention it if it truly was a state gift? So its origin remains a mystery. The price tag, however, is astronomical. The state itself is reluctant to send it abroad for exhibitions, reportedly valuing it at half of Hong Kong's worth. Chang Dong asked, "What are we talking about?" Fang Tang only just noticed him. "Dong, sister Li knows I work in antiques," she said, "so she asked me about it. That's why I explained to her." Chang Dong interrupted, "Help me shine a flashlight—I need to check the undercarriage." Fang Tang nodded and took the powerful flashlight, eagerly following up. Today, he truly seemed to be on top of his game. He had deliberately revealed to Ye Liuxi that he specialized in antiques, and she immediately asked about the beaked jade fountain—proof enough that she must possess it herself, otherwise why would she inquire? Chang Dong pushed the mat under the vehicle, gripped the edge frame with his hands, pressed his back against the ground, and smoothly slid inside. Fei Tang struggled, hunching his back to peer in, his flashlight flickering around the undercarriage: "Which way? Shine there!" Chang Dong kept his eyes fixed on the protective panel, tapping the wrench against it with a series of sharp clinks: "Fei Tang, considering we've known each other for a while, I'd like to remind you—Ye Liuxi has already begun to suspect you. Don't worry about her belongings anymore." Fei Tang replied: "How could that be possible!" "Dong, you haven't been fully informed. It was she who asked me to mention it..." Chang Dong said: "Coincidences happen only once. After that, they become intentional. You've had this happen several times now." "She went to Xi'an, appraised the jade cup there. Not even two days later, you arrived from Xi'an. You're a connoisseur of antiques—how could you not know how valuable this piece is? You checked her car, and now you're traveling with her through the Gobi Desert. How can she It's often said that smart people don't have much hair on their heads—Chang Dong's hairline has truly retreated quite high. —— Everything was ready, and just as they were about to set off, Ye Liuxi came over to confirm with Chang Dong. "Once we're on the road, will meals and drinks be covered?" "They will be." "What about fuel? Will we have to pay extra?" "Not at the moment. The auxiliary fuel tank is already installed, so we can make small top-ups along the way. However, we'll need to refuel again when we reach Luobu Town." Ye Liuxi felt her money was slipping away—her car had a smaller engine, and even a full tank would cost an extra 500; off-road vehicles consumed fuel at a much higher rate, often requiring thousands of yuan. "The equipment I've purchased," she emphasized, "I don't need to keep. I just use it. Is the amount I've paid sufficient for operational expenses?" "Yes." Ye Liuxi sensed a hint of impatience in his tone and felt it necessary to speak up: "I've just been experiencing a bit of financial pressure lately. When things are going well Is she misunderstanding the phrase "spending lavishly"? Chen Dong couldn't help asking, "Do you know how much it costs to truly spend lavishly?" Ye Liuxi replied, "I don't need to know—I'm always ready to spend lavishly. Give me money, and I'll spend it." …… —— This journey is no ordinary trip from Liyuan to Dunhuang; this is serious business. Fei Tang couldn't afford to take the lead, so he humbly let Chen Dong take the helm. The vehicle headed northwest, traveling steadily. Fei Tang had glanced at some route guides, now, what people call adventure has long since ceased to be a matter of life or death. Thanks to the nation and technological advances, even the highly mobile Taklamakan Desert now has a highway running through it—after all, the name Taklamakan literally means "once you enter, you never leave." As long as they don't push themselves too hard, he feels confident he can leave at any time. After about two hours of travel, the vehicle began to slow down and stop ahead. Fei Tang peered out and noticed that there were still quite a few vehicles parked along the way. He looked puzzled at the passengers walking toward them from the eastbound cars, "Are we stuck in traffic?" That didn't make sense—everyone had parked along the roadside. "We've arrived at the scenic spot—Yumen Pass. Tickets are required." Fei Tang was puzzled again. "East Brother, you're supposed to earn commissions by leading the group, right? I'm not here to sightsee." He was here for adventure! Adventure! Now they were dragging him into sightseeing—wouldn't the next stop be shopping? Chang Dong replied, "You don't have to actually visit to buy tickets—it's bundled in. If you want to take the route through the Yadan Devil's City, you must go through Yumen Pass. The cost has already been covered and included in the expenses. Do you want to take a quick glance, or just keep moving? You haven't been here before—just take a look if you'd like, otherwise, keep going." Fei Tang quickly got off the vehicle. —— Chang Dong had visited Yumen Pass several times before, and every time it had been just a large earthen platform—he One conversion: a medium-sized bundle of green hemp skin sells for two, and half a basin of minced meat requires half a basin of work; a public bath session allows three or four visits. Holding two tickets, she felt it a pity, thinking to herself, "This seems a bit wasteful... Maybe I should go through the entrance twice—enter once, exit once, then go in again." Chang Dong found it utterly unbelievable: "What do you gain from this?" Ye Liuxi replied, "Just a sense of comfort." Ye Liuxi sighed: Some people in this society are so narrow-minded that they're afraid others will feel comfortable. Nearby, Fei Tang suddenly exclaimed, "Wait a minute—really? Just a plain platform, and now they're charging us money?" Upon closer inspection, it did indeed feel rather underwhelming. To put it kindly, it had preserved its original character with minimal human intervention. It was just a modest square-shaped city, built of yellow clay and compacted tightly. Coming and going took only a few moments; walking all the way around the city took no more than five minutes. The tour guides with their groups were constantly fiddling with their megaphones, speaking in a flurry of words—some genuine, others merely perfunctory. "Ladies and gentlemen, there's not much to see here. We've arranged fifteen minutes for photos. Please make the most of it, as our main attraction today remains the Yadan Devil's City..." Others simply recited their scripts verbatim. "Please look here—this is the famous Yangguan Pass. Its majestic ancient appearance evokes a deep sense of emotion, and instantly brings to mind well-known poetic lines such as 'a lone city gazing at Yangguan' and 'spring winds fail to reach Yangguan'..." Ye Liuxi approached a couple sitting together. Both were elderly, wearing glasses, scholars in appearance, who had specially hired a guide. Through their questions and answers, he hoped to pick up some insightful insights. The guide was speaking with confidence: "I've just mentioned that Dunhuang has two renowned passes—Yangguan and Yangguan. The reason is that, historically, the ancient Silk Road split into two branches in Dunhuang: to the north, travelers headed west through Yangguan, passing through today's Lop Nur and Loulan; to the south, they proceeded westward through Yangguan, crossing the vast Taklamakan Desert. Both routes were quite arduous..." The elder gentleman then said: "I have a question—Dunhuang isn't even a major city today, let alone in ancient times. Even if the Silk Road split into two routes, wouldn't it have been unnecessary to build two separate city fort The guide cleared her throat and said, "Well, perhaps this is because the Han Dynasty was particularly strong in its national strength... With ample resources, they were willing to spend lavishly and build as many as they wished." The elderly lady added, "I'd also like to ask—historical records mention that the Yu Men Pass was a constant hub for envoys and caravans, but isn't this small town of Xiao Fang Pan a bit modest in scale? When we visited Yangguan yesterday, it seemed much larger, with even a museum built there." The guide replied, "Indeed, history has left many mysteries. Now, let's take a look at the back side of this pass." Yefei Li wanted to hear more and hoped the elderly lady would stay engaged, but to her surprise, both the couple were so easygoing that they merely smiled and moved on. Feeling a bit frustrated, she suddenly heard Chang Dong speaking. "Actually, many people have pointed out that Yu Men Pass might be rather small." Yefei Li turned around and saw him standing not far behind, clearly having been listening all along. "So?" “Chang Dong said: ‘According to historical records, the Yu Men Pass should be located somewhere in this area, yet no one has ever found it. In 1907, a daring explorer and archaeologist, Stein, uncovered numerous Han bamboo slips nearby, which led him to conclude that this small square city must be the Yu Men Pass.’ ‘But this site is indeed quite small,’ said Ye Liuxi. ‘So some people still insist that the true Yu Men Pass has not yet been discovered.’ ‘Isn’t that rather unlikely?’ Ye Liuxi asked. After all, the Yu Men Pass isn’t situated in a remote wilderness, and its city scale wouldn’t be small either. With today’s technological advancements and archaeological efforts, even the deeply buried Loulan and Jingjue ancient cities have already come to light. How could the Yu Men Pass still remain hidden near Dunhuang? Chang Dong replied: ‘There’s nothing impossible about it. Either it’s still buried deep—more romantically, it’s weathered away.’ ‘Weathered away?’” "Yes, the conditions here are harsh—unlike in the interior, where you can burn green bricks and quarry stone for city walls. Back then, construction relied entirely on local materials: reeds, yellow earth, red willow branches, and gravel, compacted layer by layer. With the strong northwest winds, stones would be blown around, rolling across the ground, and eventually smoothed out—quite common." Ye Liuxi looked up at the ruins of the fortress before him: "The entire fortress has been completely eroded away—truly, it's gone beyond recovery." Chang Dong added: "It might not be gone entirely. The fortress may vanish, but the sand remains. The closest desert to Dunhuang is the Kumingtag Desert. Perhaps the Yu Men Pass has now been worn down into a gentle sand dune within the desert. Or maybe, during a sudden, massive sandstorm, the entire fortress was lifted and carried away by the wind." He fell silent. Not far away, Fei Tang grew impatient, shouting at them, "Dong, can we go now? No matter how long we wait, we won't get anything back..." Ye Liuxi turned and walked back, pausing by Chang Dong's side, then glanced toward Yumen Pass and said, "If all the sand in the entire city were lifted into the sky, what do you think—wouldn't it reassemble itself into a city during the sandstorm? In that case, it would be quite... " She couldn't find the right word—terrifying, romantic, or magnificent? Chang Dong's fingers, resting at his side, trembled slightly, almost imperceptibly.