After arriving in Yunnan, director Gong Sheng took over the ultra-high-definition camera equipment that had been transported there and the two helicopters arranged by Xu Siyi.
The various formalities were very complicated. The helicopter needed approval from the local aviation control department. After Xu Qiao discussed with the director, they felt that parachuting from a helicopter into the rainforest would be a better method. However, because he did not have a qualification certificate, the approval process was delayed for several days.
It was a week after arriving in Yunnan when the filming officially started.
The helicopter's huge propeller turned and headed towards the rainforest.
Everyone watched the rainforest gradually appear in their sight. The helicopter went deeper into it. When it was beyond the scope of the protected area, the whole view was filled with the green rainforest. They couldn't help but exclaim in amazement.
In the cabin, Daniel had already turned on the photographic equipment.
Because none of the three photographers in the equipment team sent by Xu Siyi had ever used it, director Gong Sheng planned to let Daniel and Matt take turns to teach the three of them. After landing in the rainforest, Daniel and Xiaowen were the first to follow Xu Qiao to shoot.
"Qiao, can you really do it?" Daniel asked Xu Qiao in English. He couldn't imagine that Xu Qiao, who looked thin, could survive alone in the jungle for half a month.
Xu Qiao checked his parachute bag, nodded at him, and told him in English: "When you get to the jungle, you must pay attention to your own safety. Don't worry about me."
Daniel was a little disapproving.
The helicopter door has been opened, and the pilot controls the drone to fly out of the cabin. Under the camera lens taken from high altitude, the whole rain forest looks like a piece of emerald green. It is boundless and full of vitality, making people unable to help but immerse themselves in this green.
Xiao Wen moved closer and looked down. He immediately felt dizzy and leaned over to help the person next to him: "It's too high..."
The strong wind filled his mouth and he couldn't even close it. Xiao Wen looked at Xu Qiao with tears in his eyes: "Do you really want to jump? I think it's the same if we lower the height and climb down with a ladder."
When Xiaowen learned that Xu Qiao was going to parachute into the rainforest, his heart tightened.
Xu Qiao looked at him with amusement: "It's just me dancing, you don't need to."
Xiaowen nodded with a sad face.
Director Gong Sheng was a little worried and reminded again: "We won't give you any help during the survival process, but the helicopter will always be close to you. If you feel exhausted, just say the word 'give up' and we will come to pick you up within half an hour. Don't feel psychologically stressed, failure is also the norm in survival."
"Also, there are rescue experts in the team. If they assess that your physical condition is not suitable for continuing, we will forcibly interrupt the recording if you don't speak up."
Xu Qiao nodded seriously, not arrogantly saying that it was not necessary. He was confident that he could survive in the rainforest, but things were unpredictable and no one was sure if an accident would happen. From the beginning, he was fully prepared to deal with the next recording.
Daniel pointed the camera at Xu Qiao, indicating that the recording had begun.
Xu Qiao took a deep breath and said to the camera: "We have arrived above the Xishuangbanna tropical rainforest. This rainforest is the only rainforest in the desert belt of the Tropic of Cancer. Because it is located in the tropical monsoon climate zone, the high mountains in the north and west block the cold air from the northwest. In the dry season, there is a lot of thick fog in the low hills, which to a certain extent makes up for the lack of precipitation in the dry season. Therefore, the hot and humid climate environment necessary for the formation of tropical rainforests is available."
In the camera, Xu Qiao's hair was cut much shorter, exposing her forehead and face completely, making the side lines of her face appear even cleaner and neater.
"Now, I am going to parachute into this rainforest far away from the protected area and survive here for half a month. During this half month, I need to do my best to survive until rescue arrives and I am successfully rescued."
When Xu Qiao arrived at the door of the plane, the director's heart was pounding. He wanted to pull him aside to say a few more words, but just as he opened his mouth, Xu Qiao jumped down from a height of 7,000 feet above the ground.
Director: “…” Just let me think about it for a while!
The pilot controlled the drone and recorded the skydiving scene from above.
"handsome… "
“So cool!”
Everyone in the cabin stared at the images coming from the drone and sighed sincerely.
After jumping out of the cabin, he was hit by a strong centrifugal force. After about 15 seconds of free fall, Xu Qiao opened the parachute pack and a huge parachute popped out, instantly slowing down the descent speed.
The glide landing took about four minutes. Xu Qiao looked down. The view was excellent at this altitude, and the rainforest scene below was even more breathtakingly beautiful.
Looking for a relatively suitable place to land, Xu Qiao controlled the parachute to land. The forest below was dense, and the canopy was blocked by the canopies of several large trees for several times, but Xu Qiao finally landed on the ground.
At this time, the drones also caught up and surrounded Xu Qiao.
"I'm lucky I didn't get hung on a tree branch." Xu Qiao took off his safety shoulder strap. "During World War II, an Australian pilot got hung on a tree when he landed on a desert island. He was seriously injured and couldn't save himself. It was 70 years later that he was found."
He opened the huge canopy of the parachute and pointed to the hand-held part of the wing: "Here is a knife for cutting ropes. If you encounter this situation, use the knife to cut the ropes. Don't jump directly. Slide down slowly with the cut ropes, and jump when you reach a safe height."
Director Gong Sheng watched Xu Qiao's introduction through the screen and said with a sigh: "If nothing else, Xu Qiao really has all the knowledge he should have."
"I don't know what's wrong with his brain, he's actually a top student." Xiao Wen sighed.
The director glanced at Xiao Wen and waved his hand: "Check the equipment, you will follow Daniel down later."
After hearing this, Xiaowen's smile disappeared instantly and he looked a little sad.
I was very excited before coming here, thinking how cool it would be to see and photograph the rainforest scenery with my own eyes. But when I actually came here, I realized that this place is still dangerous and full of challenges.
Xu Qiao looked up and saw the helicopter slowly descending in altitude. The huge airflow from the propeller caused the treetops below to sway back and forth.
The hatch was opened and a rope ladder was dropped down. Daniel and Xiaowen put on tight yet breathable protective clothing, tied their safety ropes, and went down the rope ladder. Shortly afterwards, the filming equipment was also brought down.
After watching the helicopter leave, Daniel carried the camera and took charge of the main recording work for the next half day. Xiaowen took another camera and was responsible for adding some additional shots, and followed him to help and learn.
Xu Qiao continued what he had just unfinished.
"Two-thirds of the material in the parachute is the textile material nylon yarn. Look at the parachute surface." The last sentence was said to Daniel in English. Daniel set up the camera and gave a close-up.
"You can see that on the basis of the plain weave, there are coarse yarns woven into a grid pattern, which can improve the strength and tear resistance of the umbrella surface." Xu Qiao took a knife and split the umbrella surface.
"I didn't bring any other tools or supplies except clothes, shoes and this parachute. The knife, canopy and rope provided by the parachute were extremely valuable in this situation."
Xu Qiao folded a large piece of umbrella and tied it with the rope. He carried it and said as he walked: "The rope is useful. As for the umbrella, it can be used as a bandage, a simple backpack, or even a hammock as a shelter. I don't think many people want to sleep on the ground full of insects and snakes."
Walking in the rainforest is a completely different feeling than looking down from the sky.
The trees are towering into the sky, competing to grow upwards for the sunlight.
In order to gain a broader ecological niche, strangler plants such as banyan trees entwine themselves around the trunks of palm trees and hemlock trees, as densely packed as spider webs that make one's scalp tingle.
The silhouette of a snake can be vaguely seen among the branches.
"This is a paradise for all kinds of insects. I'll stand here for a while and watch."
The camera moved forward.
Several leeches can be seen crawling on Xu Qiao's shoes and pants, trying to find exposed skin.
Xu Qiao calmly used the handle of the knife to pry it open.
Xiaowen's expression was a little stiff, but he still dutifully recorded the scene with his camera.
"This leech does not transmit disease nor kill people immediately, but it sucks a lot of blood and its secretions have anticoagulant effects. If you are bitten, you will bleed continuously, so you still have to be careful."
Xiaowen trembled, "Don't speak so lightly!"
Xu Qiao walked forward. Because of the dense vegetation and the need to be alert to the creatures that popped up from time to time, he did not walk very fast: "In surviving in the wild, water, fire, food, shelter and rescue signals are always the most important five things."
"The biggest advantage of being in the rainforest is that you don't have to worry too much about water. It's not difficult to find water here, but unfortunately, if you find it, it still needs to be treated. Drinking it directly can easily cause infection."
As he spoke, Xu Qiao stopped and a smile appeared on his face.
In the dense jungle, dappled sunlight fell on his face. Under the high-definition camera, the fine hairs on the boy's face were clearly visible under the light.
Xu Qiao saw a clump of bamboo not far away and walked over. "There are many kinds of bamboo in the tropical rain forest of Xishuangbanna. I was just wondering what to use to store water after I find a water source. Look, now I have a container."
It was not realistic to break the bamboo with a knife, so Xu Qiao picked up a flat stone and smashed it on one side of the bamboo. After some effort, he finally broke the bamboo.
The rainforest was already humid and hot, and Xu Qiao was so good at kung fu that sweat flowed down his cheeks.
The program crew who were watching the scene were a little worried when they saw this.
"Teacher Xu isn't very strong. Can he really last fifteen days?"
"We'll survive as long as we can." The director frowned. "We're here to seek the truth. Even if we fail in the end, it can serve as a reminder to the audience how dangerous it is to survive in the wild."
Finally, a piece of bamboo was taken out. Xu Qiao took a breath and wiped the sweat off his face.
"Now we continue our search for water."
There are many streams, ponds and swamps in the rainforest, so surface water is not difficult to find. Xu Qiao walked a little further and heard the sound of running water.
“Yes.”
Looking at the relatively clear stream in front of him, Xu Qiao squatted down and used a bamboo stick to scoop up a tube of water.
“It is best to build a shelter near a water source so that it is easy to get water.”
Xiao Wen heaved a sigh of relief after hearing his words, thinking that he could rest here. After walking in the rain forest for so long and being so nervous, he really wanted to rest.
Xu Qiao pushed aside the weeds beside the stream, walked around the area, and finally sighed: "It's a pity that this place is not suitable for building a shelter."