Chapter 133: Fourteen Million (Please Subscribe!)
"It really is cold here!"
As the wind picked up, Tao Mingzhi shrank his neck and ducked behind the tent. "Sometimes it gets so cold at night I can't even sleep. You just got here, so you need to be extra careful. Come stay at our camp tonight—I've got a really good sleeping bag."
"Thanks for the offer, Minister Tao."
Li Tang wasn't one to be pampered. If everyone else could work here for extended periods, he had no excuse. He wasn't soft and didn't need special treatment.
After a bit of small talk, Li Zaiqiang took the initiative to brief Li Tang on the project's progress: "Things are going smoothly at the four main ore bodies. Within the porphyry range delineated by geophysical surveys, most drill holes are hitting ore. But we've recently sent our geophysics team to explore the major fault crossing the deposit, to see if we can map the deeper extension of the porphyry."
"That's not urgent," Li Tang said, sipping hot tea to warm up. "It's freezing now, and there's not much time left for this year's field season. If you go after deeper zones now, you won't get meaningful results. It's better to concentrate resources on shallow zones, like you've been doing."
"We'll have to tackle it eventually."
"Come back in spring and continue then. There's no time to do everything now."
After a moment's thought, Li Zaiqiang nodded. "Alright, we'll go with your suggestion."
He wasn't sure why, but he didn't hesitate at all in trusting his son's judgment.
"By the way."
Li Tang pointed to a location on the map in his father's hand. "This spot…"
"That's Ore Body 4," Li Zaiqiang explained.
"That's in the eastern part of the project, right?"
"Yes."
"This deposit is a bit different from the other three. It's a shallow, low-temperature hydrothermal deposit formed by the interaction of rainwater, surface water, and magma—not quite the same genesis as the others."
Li Tang was worried his father hadn't noticed this key difference, so he reminded him: "When you're working on it, be careful not to confuse the models."
"We noticed the difference in lithology and surface characteristics," Li Zaiqiang nodded. "And the drilling results haven't been as good compared to the other three zones. Those average 0.6% copper, while this one is below 0.5%, which doesn't meet the industrial threshold."
After getting a basic update, Li Tang quickly assumed his role. Every day, he traveled between the four ore bodies, participating in the work and occasionally offering advice.
Despite his young age, he held a great deal of authority and respect among both Zise Mining's technical staff and Team 101 from the Geological Bureau.
When he spoke, people instinctively listened. They followed his suggestions.
Because he had helped Zise Mining find a major deposit.
Because he had secured a 50-million-yuan detailed survey contract for Team 101.
In addition to those two groups, the Qianzhou Geological Bureau's geophysics and drilling teams were also on-site, along with dozens of local laborers.
Two to three hundred people were working tirelessly in this remote region, braving snow and wind, pressing on without fear.
After a long day, Li Tang returned to camp. The weather looked decent, so he climbed a nearby hill to take in the view.
When he had visited during the summer, the land had been green and vibrant.
Now, approaching winter, it was a snowy landscape—bleak yet majestic.
Clip-clop, clip-clop...
A light rhythm of hooves behind him caught his attention. He turned, expecting a person—but saw a wild donkey instead.
It had a large head, big eyes, and wasn't afraid of humans.
Li Tang stayed completely still, watching it approach out of the corner of his eye.
Huff... huff...
The donkey's hot breath blew on the back of his neck.
Crunch, crunch...
The donkey's thick lips started chewing on his hair, as if mistaking it for grass.
After realizing it was tasteless and tough, the donkey gave up and wandered off.
Li Tang reached back to touch his scalp—soaked in donkey saliva.
As the cold wind blew, the wet hair quickly froze into icy chunks.
"Even the production team's donkeys didn't have your appetite. You're chewing hair now?" he chuckled.
In such a remote and silent place, time felt slower—but it never stopped.
During this period, Han Dexun brought an expert team from the Qianzhou Geological Bureau all the way here to check on progress. Half of them had to return early due to altitude sickness.
Before the mountain passes were sealed by snow, the fieldwork for the year was concluded. Everyone and all equipment were evacuated during a rare break in the weather.
Drilling machines and other gear were stored in a rented warehouse in Tibet's provincial capital, with hired guards posted for safekeeping.
After returning to Qianzhou, the field workers received their stipends—30 yuan daily for fieldwork, plus leftover food allowances.
Over two months, each person received over 2,000 yuan.
Suddenly, everyone felt financially comfortable.
Those with families bought meat, new clothes for their wives and kids.
Single folks splurged on fun.
The mood at Team 101 became lively and energetic.
After a day's rest, they returned to the office to compile data and write interim reports.
Even working late into the night, nobody complained.
Tao Mingzhi and other Zise Mining staff didn't rush back to Jian'an. Instead, they followed Li Zaiqiang to Qianzhou and stayed at the Geological Bureau's guest house, joining the team in report writing.
Li Zaiqiang personally led the calculations based on drill hole data to estimate the most crucial number: total reserves—especially copper reserves.
"How's it looking?" Tao Mingzhi dropped by daily to ask.
"The numbers are out. We've double-checked them multiple times—it's solid," Li Zaiqiang said as he stretched after a long day. "Yuexing, compile the documents and give them to Minister Tao. Also, we need to send a report to the Department of Natural Resources in Tibet. Director Norbu specifically asked us to keep them updated."
"Got it. I'll organize everything today."
Pan Yuexing, recently promoted to director of the geological institute after Li Zaiqiang's rise, had been with Team 101 since the start.
In the tradition of the geology sector, he might as well call Li his mentor, though in practice he used formal titles.
As a rural-born outsider with no connections, becoming director in his 30s was a major accomplishment. He was grateful for Li Zaiqiang's mentorship and determined to maintain that bond.
Even though he'd mentally prepared, Tao was still stunned when he saw the data.
For a moment, he was speechless.
"Are you sure there's no mistake? Fourteen million tons? That's... massive!"
"No mistake," Pan Yuexing said calmly, handing over another document. "Minister Tao, here's the list of work we completed and the budget breakdown."
Tao flipped through the report.
Pan explained, "For Phase 1, the budget was five million. You paid a 1.5 million advance. Based on what we accomplished, total costs slightly exceeded the budget—reaching 5.3 million. You paid another two million during the midterm. Aside from the 20% that's settled post-audit, you still owe 740,000 yuan for Phase 1."
He pointed to a file. "If everything looks good, please sign off on the work summary."
"No problem."
Tao was familiar with the numbers; they matched Zise Mining's records.
The 740,000 yuan covered early-stage surveys that hadn't yet been paid.
Pan then pointed to another sheet. "This is Phase 2—detailed exploration. Based on our output, total fees come to 11.8 million yuan."
He paused, a bit sheepishly. "The initial budget was ten million. But we went above and beyond."
To meet the Bureau's targets, they mobilized every available resource and worked relentlessly.
The more they did, the more they'd be paid.
That's why everyone had pushed so hard.
"This much?" Tao was surprised.
"Well, you know working in Tibet has a top-level difficulty rating—Grade 5. It's more expensive than other regions."
"I understand. The work's been done—we'll pay accordingly."
It was all based on work completed. Tao had no objections.
"If that's the case, we'll send someone over to Zise Mining to handle the final payment."
Pan was about to inform Zhou Zhenxing that it was time to collect.
"Director Pan."
Tao called him back. "I'm flying back to Jian'an tomorrow."
"So soon? Captain Zhou said we should show you around."
"This is huge news. I need to report it to HQ immediately."
Tao was eager to personally inform Chairman Chen Jinhe—he couldn't wait.
"Oh, and let Chief Engineer Li and Li Tang know—I hope they'll join me on the flight."
"What about Captain Zhou?"
Pan realized the answer as soon as he asked.
Everyone at Team 101 knew Zise Mining only really dealt with the father-son duo.
"It'll be easier to settle the accounts if they come too."
"I'll let them know right away!"
The next morning, the group boarded a plane straight to Zise Mining's headquarters in Jian'an.
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