It is said that going to Myanmar to transport a load of rosewood is equivalent to going to war.

Ten years ago, many Chinese people went to Wa State and Shan State in Myanmar to cut down rosewood, which boosted the rosewood logistics and transportation industry between China and Myanmar. Many of my friends heard that transporting wood from Myanmar was very profitable, so they sold all their possessions to buy trucks and go to Myanmar to transport wood. 

Most of them purchase second-hand dump trucks of particularly durable brands such as Hongyan, HOWO and Shaanxi Automobile, and then convert them into flatbed trucks. Due to the high density of rosewood, the total weight of a fully loaded truck of rosewood is not much less than that of a truckload of sand and gravel. Moreover, the origin of rosewood is all in the primeval forest, which requires the transportation vehicles to have excellent load-bearing capacity and off-road performance. 

High risk means high returns. It is said that the freight cost for transporting one ton of rosewood in the mountainous area can reach 4,000 yuan. Doing a job like this secretly outside is equivalent to the income of working for two months in the domestic area. Therefore, despite the extreme danger, many people are still willing to take the risk. 

It's very dangerous to enter the primeval forest. They all go into the mountains in groups of fellow villagers so that they can take care of each other in case of danger such as getting stuck in the mud. 

There were no roads in the primeval forest originally. With the increasing number of log carts, a deep rut was forced out. The mountain roads were extremely poor, and accidents such as getting stuck, landslides and collapses occurred frequently. If a vehicle broke down, there were no villages or stores nearby, so the only option was to rely on mutual assistance among the teams. 

When encountering muddy sections, the only options are to be towed by other vehicles or wait for a loader to come to the rescue. The trucks carrying logs are generally seriously overloaded, and rollovers occur frequently. Once this happens, one can only wait for a friend's vehicle or a crane to come and deal with it. 

Sometimes, a truck is fully loaded with timber and has to cross a river. This requires a high level of water-wading capability for the vehicle and great courage for the driver. If you are unlucky and the vehicle catches fire, all the timber and the vehicle will be burned to ashes. The driver will lose everything and be back to square one overnight. All the risks and hard work will be in vain. In the primeval forests of Myanmar, life is extremely tough. Everything, including food, clothing, accommodation and transportation, has to be self-sufficient. Sometimes, you may be stuck in the mountains for a month. Even getting a haircut has to be done by yourself. 

Guess what they are doing? I couldn't believe it when I saw it for the first time. The mineral water bottle is filled with mountain spring water. They use this method to boil water and make instant noodles. Can it be boiled this way? Isn't the plastic afraid of fire? Is there no bacteria in the mountain spring water? 

This is their staple food in daily life, rice cooked in bamboo tubes, which is just like the way of cooking in primitive society. It looks so pitiful. The happiest moment for them is when Burmese mountain soldiers slaughter cattle. They can get some beef by paying a little money. They skewer the beef with branches and enjoy themselves by having a barbecue. 

Raw materials are hard to come by. Treasure them while you can! 

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