When everyone safely reached the depths of Daqing Mountain, they saw smoke curling up from a distance, and a broad line of tents had been set up, creating an impressive sight.
What lay before them was an orderly and large-scale excavation site.
In the three-meter-wide trench, during this cold winter, the workers wore short-sleeved clothing, sweating profusely, as they wielded hoes, shovels, and various peculiar tools.
Dustpans, baskets, and hampers were filled with brown-yellow soil, tied with lifting ropes to a tall upright pole on the ground, which served as a simple hoist. By manually turning the handle on the gear disc, two people could cooperate to exert force, lifting the soil-laden baskets up as the ropes shorten, before these were carted away to a distant spot.
The excavated brown-yellow soil was not discarded but transported to a brick kiln workshop.
