Chapter 38: Chapter 38 – The People’s Goddess (1)

Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation

Located just southwest of Xuan Nation, Grace City lies within the south-western region of the Tibetan plateau. It is adjacent to Nagqu to the North, Lhasa City and Lhoka City to the East, and Ngari Prefecture to the West. It is also connected to other cities like Ni’er and Maurya. Sitting at 4,000 meters above mean sea level, Grace City is situated in the middle of the Tedamia mountain region, with a city border 1,753 kilometers in length and occupying a total land area of 182 thousand square kilometers. It is also the city located closest to the peak of the Hyjal mountain.

Most if not all mountaineering teams would choose to fly, by plane, into Grace City in Xuan Nation or into Zetu City in Ni’er Nation, before continuing their journey into the Tedamia mountain region in an off-road vehicle.

Infrastructure and facilities like railways and the airport in Grace City were only constructed after the founding of Xuan Nation. It was originally intended to be developed into a key farming and agricultural area, but with the rise of global interest to explore and conquer the Hyjal mountain peak, Grace City soon developed from serving merely as a tertiary sector of the economy into one of Xuan Nation’s renowned tourist cities. Compared to other polluted cities located within Xuan Nation, the clean and fresh air in the Tibetian plateau proved to be a refreshing and relaxing getaway for city dwellers.

Nonetheless, it was largely a place for the less well-off to relax; the rich would still be ‘busy’ enjoying their lives, going on holidays to more common and well-known countries and staying in five-star hotels.

The night sky was clear in Grace City, and the stars could still be seen shining dimly in the dark. Although the sky was not as clean and clear as that in the South Pole, at the peak of summer, the people of Grace City would still be able to observe the constellations in the night sky clearly without any equipment, which was an experience unparalleled to that of other city dwellers.

Zhang Helai, however, was in no mood to admire the stars glimmering in the night sky. He sat on a bed beside a full ash-tray in a single-bedroom on the third level of the Grace People’s Hospital as he stared intensely at the screen of his mobile phone.

Zhang Helai took out his box of cigarettes and realized that there was only one stick left in the box. Just as he was about to light the remaining cigarette up, he heard a knocking at the door. A voice said, “Mr. Zhang.”

Zhang Helai sighed as he put the cigarette back into the box and turned off his mobile phone. He replied, “Please come in.”

A group of people entered the already cramped room. Zhang Helai noticed that apart from the senior official from Grace City whom he already met in the afternoon, there were a few other foreign officials who came in.

“Sorry to interrupt your rest, Mr. Zhang,” the middle-aged official said. He looked at his watch and continued, “It is already past midnight, but for some special reasons, I seek your understanding, Mr. Zhang.”

“It’s fine,” Zhang Helai said as he sat back on his bed. He continued, “I have not slept yet, anyway. Although it had been a tiring day…it’s even more unforgettable.”

The official looked apologetically at Zhang Helai as the other foreign officials took their seats around the hospital room. The Grace City official’s secretary had been the one interviewing Zhang Helai in the afternoon about the details of what had happened, but now, it was a Xuan Nation official clad in a black vest doing the talking.

“Mr. Zhang Helai,” started the man in the black vest. He said, “On the 8th of April, which was today, at 12.30 p.m., you returned to the fifth campsite situated 9,600 meters above sea level, along the northern slope of the Hyjal peak, is that right? And at 3.15 p.m., you went up a Xuan Nation transport helicopter at the fifth campsite, and returned back to Grace City at 6.30 p.m., is that correct?”

Zhang Helai nodded his head and said, “That is correct.”

At the same time, Zhang Helai noticed that the other foreign officials nodded their heads and could not help but feel slightly surprised—could they understand the Xuan language too?

“I want you to recall, all the events that happened starting from the moment you set off from the fifth campsite in the wee hours of the morning on the 8th of April,” the man in the black vest said as he glanced at his watch. He asked, “You have not slept for over 24 hours, would you be alright?”

“I’m fine,” Zhang Helai said with a smile. He continued, “I have not been able to calm myself down since the afternoon, but I have already taken a short nap just now, don’t worry.”

Everyone was very understanding of him. It was perfectly normal for anyone who faced the same miraculous circumstances as him to be unable to fall asleep immediately with so many thoughts and questions running through the mind.

“Do I have to start recounting from the time I left the fifth campsite? I think that talking about what happened from 9.30 a.m. onwards would be better,” reminded Zhang Helai.

“I’m fine with that, we just want to have a better understanding of some of the details this time,” the man in the black vest said. He continued, “Also, don’t worry about missing out any details along the way, just tell us anything whenever you recall it.”

“Alright then,” said Zhang Helai as he took out his cigarette box subconsciously but quickly put it back again. The man in the black vest laughed and said, “Mr. Zhang, don’t worry, it is perfectly normal to take a puff to freshen up.”

“Eh? Right…” Zhang Helai said as he observed that the local official had remained silent, indicating that the man in the black vest had a commanding position in the room. Although Zhang Helai still felt uneasy, he continued to light up his cigarette. As the hot whiff of smoke rejuvenated his lungs, he felt as if he was teleported back to 24 hours ago…

————

The mountaineering team that Zhang Helai had been part of comprised mainly of people from Xuan Nation. There was a total of six people in the team, including the team leader.

Although it was the height of spring and not the best time for climbing the mountain, it was just slightly less dangerous than climbing in the summer. In fact, with the industrialization of high altitude tourism to the Hyjal mountains, it was no more unsafe to climb the mountain in spring than in the summer, as long as the team leader was reliable.

Zhang Helai had first arrived in Grace City at the start of March. He met up with the rest of the team and reached the northern entrance to the Hyjal mountain peak on the 5th of March, which was the base camp that was situated 5,896 meters above sea level. As they waited for the tents and other equipment to be delivered to the base camp, they took part in preparatory training for more than 20 days in order to adapt to the high altitude conditions and familiarize themselves with the route to the summit.

One of the members had suffered from acute high altitude sickness and was vomiting non-stop, and thus had no choice but to return to Grace City for treatment, leaving the team with only five people.

The training process was an extremely unforgettable mountaineering experience for Zhang Helai, although it was actually nothing out of the ordinary: over the past 50 years, many people have ascended to the Hyjal peak, and countless teams have risked their lives to find the safest route up and the best locations to set up camps. Apart from the base camp on Hyjal mountain, there were also the advance base camp, the first campsite, the second campsite, the third campsite, the fourth campsite, as well as the fifth campsite. As long as the teams made sufficient preparations and took the necessary safety precautions to follow the given route, the risks involved when ascending the mountain could be lowered to the lowest possible.

On the 3rd of April, the three expedition teams decided to set off towards the Hyjal peak as the weather was optimal. They reached the second campsite by the end of the first day, then the third campsite by the second day and the fourth campsite by the end of the third day. By the fourth day, they had arrived at the fifth campsite. However, the fifth campsite, which was located at a height of 9,600 meters above sea level, was too high for the Kamiyan people to continue carrying spare oxygen tanks for them. As such, each and every one of the mountaineers had to equip themselves with a filled oxygen tank and continue the daunting climb after passing the fourth campsite.

Zhang Helai was a middle-aged man who was over thirty years of age and had a successful career. Although he had no kids as yet, his wife was pregnant. Climbing the Hyjal mountain was solely to fulfill his dream: after he entered the mountaineering club in university where he met his first love, both of them aspired to conquer the Hyjal peak together.

Together, they had first conquered the 5000-meter-tall Haba Snow Mountain which was most suited for beginners. They then climbed the intermediate level Amne Machin Mountain at a height of 6,000 meters above sea level, the advanced level Muztagata Mountain with a height of 7,000 meters above sea level, and the master level Cho Oyu Mountain which stood 8,000 meters above sea level. Having attained certificates verifying their expeditions up to the 6000-meter, 7000-meter, and 8000-meter-tall mountains, Zhang Helai and his first love finally met the criteria set by the Xuan Nation Mountaineering Association to then be able to take on the challenge of climbing the 10000-meter-tall Hyjal mountain. People who otherwise did not have mountaineering certificates would not be able to proceed higher than the Hyjal mountain basecamp located 5,896 meters above sea level.

Unfortunately, during one of their expeditions, Zhang Helai’s first love met with an accident and died. After many muddle-headed years of working, he finally met his current wife and got married, and pressed on courageously until the present day.

Zhang Helai knew that this year was his final opportunity to fulfill his dreams. Once his wife had given birth to their newborn child, his responsibilities as a father would greatly surpass his comparatively insignificant aspirations.

It was the last time Zhang Helai could make impulsive and risky decisions—to relive his days as a kid—before responsibilities as a father took over.

However, while Zhang Helai had managed to reach the fifth campsite safely with his team, he now had a small problem.

The remaining oxygen in his oxygen tank had depleted to the minimum volume.

It was not that the oxygen tank had not been refilled before leaving the fourth campsite, but rather that Zhang Helai was consuming more oxygen than average during the climb from the fourth to the fifth campsite, and the ‘backup oxygen’ was gradually being used up. If he were to continue his quest towards the summit, he could not make any mistakes or meet any other unforeseen circumstances, or else he would risk not being able to make it back down from the summit.

Zhang Helai had the option of waiting for the rest of his team at the fifth campsite while they hiked to the summit, and then make their way down together when they descended. With less physical activity, his oxygen consumption would greatly decrease.

“This means that you risked your life to climb all the way to the summit?” a foreign official who had golden-colored hair asked in Xuan language.

“Yes,” Zhang Helai replied.

“Why must you take such a risk?” the foreign official questioned.

“Why? Because it’s my dream, there are memories, there are hope and miracles…I was very conflicted too when I made that decision at that point in time. But if you ask me for the most fundamental reason why I made such a risky decision, I suppose…it’s because I did not want to admit defeat,” Zhang Helai said. He continued with a slight smile, “I know that if I had given up then, I would regret my decision for the rest of my life.”

“But it is also because of this decision…that I, along with my teammates, met the girl.”