1188: Primitive Life

Primitive Life

The Bedouin people, known as the Sadi, were a branch of the Bedouin people in the Qattara Depression in Northwest Egypt and near the Siwa Oasis.1

If tourists wanted to visit Bedouin tribes out of curiosity, they usually went to the Red Sea or the Black and White Desert to explore the Bedouin people living there rather than travel all the way here. Anyway, there was no difference between Bedouin people and Bedouin people for tourists.

Salem also felt a little puzzled when he saw these SUVs. He had not returned to the tribe for a long time. Was it the block-headed chieftain who'd finally gotten the hang of it and was ready to develop tribal tourism?

From not far away came a string of crisp laughter. Several Bedouin children chased after each other, enjoying a carefree childhood. Children of this age should be in school, watching cartoons on TV, or playing puzzle games downloaded by their parents with tablets. These Bedouin children's toys were plastic empty bottles with string. It was hard for others to understand the fun of running with plastic bottles, but that was their only entertainment.

The elfins couldn't really bear looking at it. The gap in lifestyles was too big, and it would only get bigger and bigger. No wonder Salem hadn't wanted to go back here before.

What was the meaning of insisting on this kind of lifestyle?

Adults might've been able to choose, but the future of these children was basically doomed. Even if they grew up to learn from Salem and moved out of the tribe, the educational gap made them the bottom of the big city.

Seeing Zhang Zian's strange Asian appearance, the children stopped fighting and looked at him curiously as he looked at them. The clothes they wore were dirty, and they dared not get too close. They stood a little far away to watch.

Zhang Zian touched his trousers pocket and wanted to give them some small gifts, but he only found the cooling ointment from Pinduoduo, which was obviously not suitable as a gift.

However, in order to cope with the food inconvenience of Ramadan, he'd prepared some chocolate, sausage, orange bread, milk, and other food in his car. He opened the trunk, took it out, and waved to the children.

The children were still slightly scared and did not dare to come over.

Their eyes were big, like those of puppies, staring at Zhang Zian's brightly packed food and licking their lips constantly until Salem said something. They cheered and immediately surrounded Zhang Zian, raising their hands high.

"Don't snatch. Everyone has a share."

Even though he knew that they did not understand him, Zhang Zian kept muttering and putting snacks into each child's hands in turn. The children were not greedy, so they didn't ask for more after they got one.

The food might not have been a brand name for children in big cities in China, but the children here acted like they were seeing precious treasures, holding it in their hands and reluctant to tear it apart. Or they did not know how to tear it apart, or... This was their Ramadan. The sun had not set, and even if it were good food, they could not eat it.

They had lost their suspicious attitude towards Zhang Zian, and they were all smiling brightly.

Zhang Zian had not prepared a lot of food. This was only emergency food, and it was given out very quickly, but each child had a bit.

When they came over the next time, he needed to prepare more snacks.

Out of the tribe came a woman in a dark blue robe. He could not see her face, but her voice was very young. She shouted, and when the children heard it, they waved to Zhang Zian and hurried away.

She carried a cloth bag on her back—though it was not very accurate to say that it was on her back, because the strap was not on her shoulder but on her head. A young hand was stretched out in the cloth bag, where a baby was still asleep.

Although only her eyes could be seen, Zhang Zian felt that her eyes are full of kindness. He wondered if it was because she'd seen him distributing food to the children.

She also carried a woven bag in her hand. After a few steps, she squatted down, picked up some yellow things, and put them in the woven bag.

Salem introduced her and said that that was his younger female cousin. She picked up the sun-dried camel dung, which was used as fuel.

Zhang Zian was not clear how Salem could recognize that this was his younger female cousin. Could it be that he had X-ray eyes? Being able to see what she looked like under the long cloth gown?

Or was it that every young female here was his younger female cousin, just like how most adult men were his uncles?

The primitive culture here had refreshed Zhang Zian's bottom line time and again.

These Bedouins couldn't leave here. They just chose to live this kind of life, or they were chosen.

There was a well at the entrance of the village, and a circle of stones had been built around it to keep out the wind.

More than a dozen camels were queued up in front of the well for drinking water, a uniform single-humped camel.

Unlike the secular Bedouins who'd evolved for tourism in the east, the Saudi Bedouins here still retained their aboriginal life to a considerable extent. It was hard to say whether that was a good thing or a bad thing. Maybe it was a good thing for tourists.

Salem said that the camels may have just returned from the outside or were about to leave for the outside. The camel troupe traveled between tribes and towns, sold their livestock products or gathered spices in the desert, and bought necessities such as dates, flour, vegetables, and simple tools.

Fina stared at the camels that seemed quite thin and weak, and her eyes were full of curiosity.

While Salem went to ask for information, Zhang Zian asked in a low voice, "What's wrong? Have you never seen a camel?"

When he'd bought the tickets next to the Great Pyramid, there was a local small seller who had been trying to sell Zhang Zian a camel ride, but Zhang Zian had rejected it. However, the elfins had not been not around him at that time. They had been waiting for him at a distance.

Fina stared at him unhappily. "Why would you think that I have seen one before?"

That was strange. Wasn't the desert often associated with camels? Camels also had a nickname, "Desert Boat." He'd taken it for granted that Fina had seen camels.

Fina saw that he was really not understanding and asked, "Have you ever seen a camel in the murals of ancient Egypt?"

When it put it that way…

Zhang Zian carefully considered this. He had not seen many ancient Egyptian murals. Ancient Egyptians liked to depict all kinds of animals and animal gods on murals, but it seemed that there were really no camels or camel gods among them…

It suddenly occurred to him that there were no camels in ancient Egypt. In about a few hundred years AD, nomadic Bedouins had brought camels from the Arabian Peninsula to Egypt.

Camels were also considered imported goods here.

If he'd known earlier, he would have spent a few dollars on the Great Pyramid for Fina to ride a camel, but there should be a chance here too.

After inquiring about the matter, Salem ran over and waved to Zhang Zian, signaling for him to follow him into the village.

pqdm.com