After the commotion subsided, Musabai offered no explanation, merely having the interpreter give a few symbolic words of reassurance before urging everyone to head to the hotel.


    A moment ago, people had been frantically seeking cover all over the lobby, but they quickly gathered together again. They picked up their luggage from the floor with blank expressions, deliberately avoiding looking at the terrified White passengers, as if the incident had never happened.


    Deng Shiyang cast a look of disgust at them, took a deep breath through his nose, and followed the crowd out of the airport.


    In the parking lot, there was a white bus with dark green stripes painted on the body. The pickup truck that had carried the luggage was parked next to it, with several ground crew members stuffing the luggage into the bus’s luggage compartment.


    The Hino Blue Ribbon tour bus, marked "Swazi Sun Hotel," had an old-fashioned appearance, looking like a model from the mid-1980s. The words "自動扉" ("automatic door" in Japanese) were stuck to the glass of the bus door, indicating that it was a used import from Japan. Despite its age, the bus was well-maintained; the body was spotless, and even the chrome-plated silver wheels were gleaming without a speck of dust.


    As he boarded with the others, Deng Shiyang noticed that the interior was as clean as the exterior. The floor was well-swept, and the seatbacks were covered with crisp white slipcovers, a stark contrast to the regional aircraft of Swaziland Airlines, making one feel like they were not in Africa.


    He walked toward the back of the bus, choosing a window seat, and placed his shoulder bag on the seat beside him.


    After everyone had settled in, the interpreter handed out an English travel guide and a Manila folder to each person before announcing loudly, "Mobile phones are considered contraband in our country, and we will keep them safe for you. Please place your phones in the folder, write your name on it, seal it, and hand it over. Your phones will be returned when you leave."


    Due to a lack of maintenance, Swaziland’s mobile communication network had collapsed after the coup. Now, there was no mobile signal in the country except near the borders with South Africa and Mozambique. Deng Shiyang could not see the necessity of confiscating phones, but he still cooperated, turning off his phone, sealing it in the folder with the adhesive tape, writing his name on the seal, and handing it over.


    Musabai placed the collected folders in a cardboard box, taped it shut, and affixed a seal.


    Next, the interpreter opened the travel guide and began to explain the regulations for visiting Swaziland:


    1. Photography is only allowed in designated areas, and photos must be taken with permission from the interpreter or guide. Military personnel and facilities are strictly prohibited from being photographed.


    If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.2. Leaving the hotel without permission is not allowed, and outings must be accompanied by the interpreter or guide.


    3. Under no circumstances should anyone act independently. Always consult the interpreter or guide.


    4. Never, in any form, joke about the "Honorable President."


    5. Do not deface or damage posters of the president or any other propaganda materials.


    Looking at the travel guide, which seemed more like a parole sheet, Deng Shiyang pursed his lips in dissatisfaction and glanced around the bus. The other members of the group looked calm, as if this was nothing unusual.


    Once preparations were complete, the tour bus, carrying the inspection group, left the airport and headed for the Swazi Sun Hotel near Ezulwini.


    At that moment, the interpreter suddenly announced loudly, "Attention everyone: from the airport to the hotel, photography is strictly prohibited."


    Deng Shiyang frowned, stuffed his Leica M8 digital camera into his shoulder bag, and clipped his iPod Shuffle to his lapel. He switched the MP3 player to recording mode, put on the earphones, and leaned slightly against the window, pretending to admire the scenery along the way.


    The tour bus did not enter Matsapha but instead followed a small road next to the airport heading east, bypassing the town and turning onto Highway 103 towards Ezulwini.


    There were no other vehicles on the road, and the bus crawled along at less than 40 mph. The roadside was lined with large fields of crops he could not name. Occasionally, he saw dirt paths made from compacted soil, piled at the entrance with giant concrete blocks typically used for seawalls, with the paths winding away into the fields. Many houses made of mud bricks and asbestos tiles that used to stand along the dirt roads had been reduced to rubble by bulldozers.


    In the fields away from the highway, clusters of communal farms made up of simple houses could be seen. The houses, uniformly blue-roofed with white walls, were neatly arranged but appeared dull and lifeless. Surrounded by fields, there was no visible access to the outside, like isolated islands in a sea of green.


    The monotonous scenery quickly drained one''s curiosity and patience. The road to the hotel seemed endless, and as some people began to nod off, the tour bus stopped at a checkpoint near Lobamba.


    Deng Shiyang examined the checkpoint closely through the window.


    The checkpoint was essentially a simple wooden hut built beside the road. It was about ten feet wide and twenty-five feet long, with freshly painted cream-colored exterior walls and a corrugated iron roof glinting in the sunlight, clearly indicating it was newly constructed.


    In the open area in front of the hut were an army-green Iveco light truck and a white Nissan pickup. The pickup did not have military plates, and its doors were marked with a black-painted emblem of a five-pointed star and two crossed spears, the insignia of the "Swaziland People''s Liberation Army."


    Next to the road was a sandbag bunker about half a person''s height, with an SS-77 general-purpose machine gun mounted inside. A firing slit had been cut into the sandbag wall facing southwest, with the gun barrel sticking out, aimed diagonally towards the other end of the road. Nearby on the ground lay a tangled coil of spike strips.


    There were only four soldiers manning the checkpoint, dressed in wrinkled, dirty British DPM camouflage uniforms, armed with R1 or SG540 rifles, and standing lazily near the sandbag bunker.


    Deng Shiyang pressed the shutter, capturing the scene of the checkpoint.


    Annotations:


    SS-77: A 7.62mm general-purpose machine gun manufactured by South African company Vektor.


    R1: The South African version of the FAL rifle.