Courtyard Houses: Starting with Li Yunlong's Comrades-in-Arms

The noise during the flight was incredibly loud; it felt like my ears were stuffed with cotton, or like countless bees buzzing around them.

Liu Yuheng leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes for a while. Then he opened them again and looked out the window. The clouds spread out below him, a vast expanse of white. Occasionally, through a few gaps, he could see the yellowish-brown land and the winding river below.

This aircraft is all about being rugged and durable; as for comfort, forget about it. The nearly three-hour flight was spent entirely in violent vibration and roaring noise, making me feel like I was inside a giant blower, buzzing and vibrating from head to toe.

As the plane finally began its descent, Liu Yuheng looked out the window and saw a vast expanse of land. The ground gradually changed from green to yellowish-brown, and cities and villages became increasingly sparse, replaced by endless Gobi Desert and wasteland.

The plane landed smoothly on the runway and came to a stop after taxiing for a short distance. As the cabin door opened, a gust of dry wind rushed in, carrying the rugged feel unique to the Northwest region.

Liu Yuheng carried his canvas bag down the gangway, and the moment he stepped onto the ground, he felt completely at ease.

Someone was already waiting on the tarmac. A middle-aged man in military uniform strode forward, his rank of lieutenant general on his shoulders. His face had the rough, wind-blown skin typical of the Northwest region, but his smile was hearty. Liu Yuheng recognized him at a glance—Old Sun, an old comrade-in-arms who had later been transferred to the Northwest Military Region.

"Old Liu!" Old Sun strode over, extended his hands to shake hands with Liu Yuheng, looked him up and down, and said in a tone with the warmth that comes with old comrades reuniting, "That flight must have been tough, right? It took almost three hours to fly from Beijing. Your ears must be sore."

Liu Yuheng nodded with a wry smile and punched his shoulder: "Old Sun, you're right. This plane is no human being. The noise is so loud, it's like being inside a blower. The ride was so bumpy, my bones felt like they were going to fall apart."

Upon hearing this, Old Sun laughed heartily twice and patted Liu Yuheng on the shoulder: "Old Liu, then it's up to you, the deputy minister of the Second Ministry of Machine Building in charge of military industry, to take charge from here on out. When you get back, you'd better give those aircraft research institutes a good push to build better aircraft as soon as possible."

Liu Yuheng was taken aback at first, then realized what was going on, and smiled as he pointed at Old Sun twice: "Hey Old Sun, you were waiting for me here! No wonder you were so enthusiastic when we met, you were here to give me a mission indirectly."

Old Sun laughed again at his words, opened the car door and gestured for him to leave: "Let's go, let's go, get in the car first, we can talk slowly after we've settled in."

The two men laughed and got into the jeep one after the other. The engine started, and the car drove out of the airport, heading towards the military district guesthouse.

In the back seat of the car, Liu Yuheng leaned back, his gaze fixed on the receding Gobi Desert outside the window. Loess and gravel stretched to the horizon, with only a few clumps of camel thorn occasionally swaying in the wind, like the only living things on this wasteland.

He turned his gaze to Old Sun sitting beside him and asked casually, "Has the site selection process begun?"

Old Sun was drinking water from a military water bottle when he heard this. He tightened the cap and wiped his mouth. "We've selected a few backup sites, and everyone's here. The experts from the Science and Technology Commission arrived the day before yesterday, and the people from our elder brother's side are here too. But the formal inspection hasn't started yet. We'll set off early tomorrow morning, visit each site in turn, and then make a decision."

Liu Yuheng nodded, then asked, "Which locations have been chosen?"

Old Sun didn't hide anything, counting on his fingers: "There's one near Yumen Pass, another near Guazhou, and two more backup sites, all deep in the Gobi Desert, uninhabited for dozens of miles around. Secrecy isn't an issue, but transportation is difficult; you'd have to drive in by off-road vehicle." He glanced at Liu Yuheng, "What? You know what's going on?"

Liu Yuheng frowned slightly, his gaze fixed on the road stretching ahead. He remained silent for a few seconds before speaking, "It's nothing, let's take a look first."

He said this aloud, but his mind was already racing. Yumen Pass and Guazhou, while indeed uninhabited areas, were too close to Dunhuang. The murals and sculptures of Mogao Grottoes, thousands of years old, hadn't been worn away by wind and sand for millennia; they couldn't withstand any further damage. However, he didn't say much at this moment. Firstly, he hadn't seen them in person, and secondly, it was too early to say anything now. He planned to make a judgment after seeing them with his own eyes.

Seeing that he didn't ask any more questions or press further, Old Sun continued, "The guesthouse is just ahead. Settle down and catch your breath. There's a meeting tonight with people from the Science and Technology Commission and experts from our elder brother's side. We'll go over the situation and clarify tomorrow's arrangements."

The car stopped in front of the military district guesthouse. Liu Yuheng got out of the car, and a dry wind rushed towards him, carrying an unfamiliar and rough smell. He told the people who came with him to get out of the car, and Lao Sun helped arrange the rooms, explained the time and place of the meeting that evening, before taking his leave.

Liu Yuheng carried his canvas bag upstairs to the second floor, found his room, and pushed open the door.

He put down his luggage, went to the bathroom, turned on the tap, and washed his face. The cold water splashed on his face, washing away much of the weariness he had accumulated along the way.

On the Gobi Desert at dusk, the sky was not yet completely dark.

Liu Yuheng stood by the window for a while, watching the twilight unfold before turning around, picking up his coat from the back of the chair, and leaving. He went next door and knocked twice; a response came quickly from inside, and the people accompanying him came out one after another.

"Let's go, it's about time." Liu Yuheng said, leading the group downstairs, across the open space in front of the guesthouse, and towards the gray brick building not far away.

The conference room lights were already on. When the door was opened, there were already seven or eight people sitting inside. Old Sun was sitting against the wall, holding an enamel mug, and was talking quietly to a middle-aged man in military uniform next to him.

Seeing Liu Yuheng enter, he put down the jar, stood up, and waved to him with a smile: "Old Liu, come, come, sit here."

Liu Yuheng walked over and sat down next to Lao Sun. He glanced around at the people present. There were three people from the military, two of whom he recognized as old acquaintances; and three from the Science and Technology Commission: Elder Zhang, Elder Cheng, and Elder Guo.

Liu Yuheng greeted each of them one by one.

After waiting a while in the conference room, the door was pushed open. Several senior scientists filed in, led by an expert in his fifties, followed by several technicians, and finally a young translator with a folder in his hand, who quickly walked to the conference table and stood there.