On the wasteland, two insulated tents stood rather forlornly beside an irrigation canal.
Beside the tents was a cooking setup built from stones, with half a pot of unfinished noodles that had already clumped together.
There were vegetable leaves and chunks of meat in the noodles, with a layer of oil on top. They looked pretty good.
Nearby lay a pile of gathered dead branches for firewood. There were also tools beside the tents, some intact and others broken from use.
The ground a short distance away had been leveled, and quite a few cement slabs had been cast there using molds. Many dry ones had already been stood upright together; those still on the ground had yet to dry completely.
Dozens of bags of cement were stacked farther away, covered with rainproof plastic sheeting. Beside them were large piles of sand, fine gravel, and other materials.
Meng Hai was leading a crew laying cement slabs in the nearby irrigation canal.
The men he had brought from the village were all covered in dust and grime, but full of energy.
"Let's put in another push and try to finish laying and mortaring the remaining slabs within three days. Then we just wait for the inspection and get paid," Meng Hai called out to encourage everyone.
"We're ahead of schedule, and the quality should be beyond reproach. This money will be well earned. Once we get paid and split it up, I'll give you a day off. Buy some meat for your wives and children, buy them some clothes, and make this trip worthwhile!"
"Lao Meng, will we have more jobs like this afterward?" a young man asked, looking up and wiping the sweat from his forehead.
His face was already covered in dirt and cement dust, and that wipe left