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            what he brought. I do not know why. Well, we still have a long way
            to go. Our supplies of water and food are far from empty. I will write
            later.
            15 MAY 1037

            Dear Diary,
                  We are near the mountains. It did not take us long to travel
            through the desert, but it will through the mountains of Central Asia.
            We might try to flank the area, but the route will be tiring and
            dangerous nonetheless. We need to go slowly, and wait every
            night. The conditions are unforgiving. The wolves, the bandits, and
            the damn wind. The mountains are looming in the distance. We can
            see some snow on the summits. The wind is fierce. FIERCE. It is
            stabbing my face like a thousand needles, and screaming through
            my ears right now. The sky is dark and cloudy. It will soon be night
            time, which does not help at all. On the bright side, the weather
            here is still better than the desert, though, since it is rather hot, this
            time of year. Our camels are exhausted. It is getting cold. The air is
            still dry, and is irritating my nose. Khao Hui says we have to set up
            camp soon, or el---FOR GOD’S SAKE, XING, HOW ON EARTH DID
            YOU TRIP?!
            17 JULY 1037

            Dear Diary,
                  Sorry for not writing for a long time, but the conditions really
            were not ideal for doing so. We have finally left the mountains,
            GOD. A quarter of my silk got blown away by the bloody wind. Xing
            scratched his leg early on in the journey, and is shuffling quite a bit
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