Are you one of the patrol?
Yes.
Good.
-One of Ritai's men? -Yeah.
Fine, then cut him loose.
What are you looking at? Don't stop.
Hold the leg up.
Turn the head a bit.
Give me the knife.
Kekexili...
the last virgin wilderness of China.
This plain, nearly 4, 700 meters high...
is the only remaining habitat of the Tibetan antelope.
In 1985, poachers began hunting antelopes for their fine wool...
which was prized in foreign markets.
Within a few years...
the number of antelopes plunged from one million to under 10,000.
A volunteer civilian patrol was formed in 1993 to combat the poachers.
It was led by Ritai, a retired Tibetan army officer.
The patrol fought fierce battles with the poachers...
arousing the attention of the outside world.
In the winter of 1996...
poachers murdered one of the patrolmen.
My newspaper immediately sent me to cover the story.
QlNGHAl
Hey, mister.
Take our picture. Good morning.
Where's Ritai?
Ritai!
-He's over there. -Thanks.
Good morning.
l'm Ritai.
l'd like to interview you.
Who are you?
What?
Do you have some lD?
l'm a reporter from Beijing.
-l don't have the time. -Wait a second!
You want this place to be declared as a nature reserve.
Maybe l can help.
-Dawa. -Dawa.
Yes.
Take him upstairs.
Your bag. Follow me.
Prepare dinner.
Okay.
-You are? -Yangjin.
-Are you Ritai's daughter? -Yes.
What are you reading?
-Just some documents. -Oh.
Get some rest.
Where's Liu Dong?
Sit.
Here, have some meat.
You're cutting in the wrong direction.
-You understand Tibetan? -My father's a Tibetan.
Tibetans always point knives towards themselves.
Samba cha cha cha Samba cha cha cha
Dragon dragon cha cha cha Dragon dragon cha cha cha
You cheat, you lost it.
Liu Dong, drink up.
Let me drink it for him.
Liu Dong, let's go.
Songji.
-What's wrong? Where are you going? -None of your business.
Honey, where are you going?
Liu Dong.
-Liu Dong. -Yes.
Give me a hand.
Take your guns.
-Give me a hand. -Okay.
We're going to the mountains. Hop in.
Come back alive!
Take care of yourself.
MlDNlGHT OF NOVEMBER 1st, 1996
Here comes a truck.
We have a checkpoint here.
-Are there any poachers here? -Maybe.
We're close to the antelope breeding grounds.
They always pass by here.
-Where are you coming from? -Wudaoliang construction site.
-Where are you going? -Ge'ermu.
We're the mountain patrol.
We need to check your cargo. Get out.
-Do you have pelts with you? -No.
-What are those? -lt's cotton.
Once more, what is this?
lt's antelope wool. Move over!
Get off.
What will you do with him?
Let him go.
He's just a carrier.
We don't have the power to arrest anybody...
just to confiscate the pelts.
DAY 2: BUDONG SPRlNGS CONSERVATlON STATlON
-A-Wang, he's a reporter from Beijing. -Hi.
He'll make you a big star!
All right!
Have a seat.
-Here are the supplies for this month. -Great. Put them in the corner.
-A-Wang, hurry up with dinner. -Okay.
My radio is broken. What's the latest news?
Qiangba's not with us anymore.
Chasing after another girl?
He was killed.
You be careful.
I give this song to the White Temple.
I sing this song for the White Temple.
I give this song to the White Temple.
I sing this song for the White Temple.
I give this song to the White Temple.
I sing this song for the White Temple.
Bless you. Be careful! See you!
Bless you!
He's been stationed there all by himself?
Yes, he's been there for three years. He keeps the poachers away.
Three years.
We're short of hands. We haven't enough men to do it.
DAY 3: ZHUONAl LAKE
403, 404, 405....
Are they all Tibetan antelopes?
Bastards.
You! Come here!
-Where are you from? -Suihua.
-What are you doing here? -Collecting worms.
Seen any poachers?
Yes.
How many?
l don't know.
-What about you? -l saw some.
How many?
-Don't know. -Don't lie to us!
We closed our eyes when they started shooting.
lt was too dark, we saw nothing.
Do you have a fishing permit?
No.
Fine them.
We bury more than 10,000 antelopes each year.
DAY 5: YAK VALLEY
No gas.
lt's them.
They were here not long ago.
Let's go.
DAY 7: CUMAR RlVER
That's them. Over there!
Stop. All of you!
Don't move, all of you!
Hold it there!
Get down on the ground!
Take off your pants. Cross the river.
Don't move!
Down on the ground.
All of you.
Captain, they don't have pelts or guns.
Down on the ground.
Where's he injured?
His leg.
There's no hope.
lt's the artery.
l don't want to die.
What's your name?
Ma Rui.
Where are you from?
Hualong.
How old are you?
Twenty.
Have you ever killed any antelopes?
Please help me.
(Tibetan prayer)
Take them across the river.
Hurry. Kneel down!
Ma Zhanlin, do you have anything to say this time?
Let me have another coat. l'm freezing cold.
Where's your boss?
-We just skin them. -Don't lie.
That's all l do.
-Tell us the truth. -l don't know anything.
-Are you the gunman? -No.
-You're the gunman? -No, l'm not.
-Then what do you do? -l'm the driver.
-Who's the gunman? -l don't know.
-Who knows? -My son is not the gunman.
-Who is the gunman? -l really don't know.
Who knows?
-He knew. He hired us. -Ma Zhanlin, cut the crap!
l'm just a driver.
-Are you the gunman? -No, l'm the driver.
-Then tell us who the gunman is. -l don't know. They're lying.
-l really don't know. -They say you're in charge.
They're lying to save themselves.
Why are you still here if you're the driver?
The truck broke down. l couldn't fix it.
They can't see you now. Talk.
l really don't know anything.
-This is your last chance. -l really can't help.
-Talk! -l don't know anything.
-Talk! -l know nothing. l just drive the truck.
-l don't know. l really don't. -Talk to us!
l don't know anything.
Talk.
-l know nothing. -Talk to us.
-Let me go. -Talk to us.
Talk now or l'll shoot you!
l don't know anything.
Talk now or l'll shoot you!
All right, l'll tell you. Don't kill me.
The pelts are here.
Dig.
They're all here. There are more underneath.
How many do we have?
-547, mostly female. -lt's the breeding season.
What a shame.
The gunman got away.
What about the men you captured?
They were from small caliber rifles.
The real gunmen use machine guns.
l've been chasing them for years.
Can l have one?
l haven't smoked for several days, too.
Thanks.
What do you do?
l skin the animals.
How much do they pay you?
Five Yuan for each pelt.
l'm the fastest skinner in Ge'ermu.
All my children are here, too.
He's my eldest, here's the middle one, and the youngest.
They're all skinners.
ln the past, l was a shepherd.
l herded sheep, cattle, and camels.
Now the grasslands have turned into desert.
The sheep and cattle all gone dead or sold off.
lt's tough to survive here.
-l need to pee. -Me, too.
All right, stop yelling.
Gayu, hand me the bucket.
-l want to pee. -Wait your turn.
The gunmen had to cross this river, if they're heading north.
lt's crossable!
One, two, three!