Chapter 150 – Blasting! (1/2)
It was before 5 pm.
Dong Xuebing walked to the nearest bank to deposit his 700,000 RMB cheque. After leaving ICBC bank, he went to a random restaurant along the streets to have his dinner. After dinner, he called Qu Yunxuan. “Aunt Xuan, I have a piece of good news to tell you. I made 700,000 RMB from Chicken-Blood Stone gambling. We should have enough money to set up our auction company.”
“……”
“Aunt Xuan?”
“……”
“Xuan Xuan, can you say something?”
“What do you want me to say? I don’t want to talk to you!”
“Haha, I am still waiting for you to praise me.” Dong Xuebing was feeling good with the result. He had used 2 BACKs and still have 10 BACKs left. “We have enough money now. After the money is credited into my account tomorrow, I will transfer it to you. You can start thinking about where you want to register the company and who you want to hire. I will just provide you with the funds.”
“Xiao Bing, tell me honestly. Who did you learn antiques and stone gambling from?”
“Errr…… I worked part-time at the Antique Market in the past. I am a fast learner.”
“But all those experts are not as good as you. Which expert can make so much money like you? Did you rob the bank?! No, even robbing the bank might not even get you so much money! Stone gambling is very risky, and you can make 700,000 RMB easily? You can find real antiques in the past too. It’s been only a few hours since I talk to you about my plans. I feel you are much better than those experts. You seem to have changed. I…… I don’t even know what to say!”
Dong Xuebing laughed. “What’s wrong with me making more money? Are you happy?”
“Of course, I feel happy for you.”
“Aunt Xuan, how about praising me a bit? Can you call me ‘that’ as praise?” Dong Xuebing was asking Qu Yunxuan to call him ‘hubby’ or ‘brother.’
“Go to hell! You want me to hit you?”
“Huh? I had contributed so much to our family. Shouldn’t I get some rewards?”
“Idiot. Who is your family? Haha.” Qu Yunxuan was in a good mood and kept laughing. “Idiot, since you are so capable, why do we still need to set up a company? You can just go stone gambling or go find real antiques in the antique markets. Money just seems to be flowing into your pocket.”
Dong Xuebing was speechless. He can’t be using all his powers to make money. “Errr…… we still need to set up a company. Furthermore, I can’t be so accurate every time. Finding antiques depends on luck.” What he said was true. If his luck was not good today, that top-grade Chick-Blood Stone might not be his. “After our auction company is set up, I will go and look for more antiques to let our company sell.”
“Hmm.” Dong Xuebing could tell Qu Yunxuan was looking forward to the opening of their auction company. “We have enough funds now. I will start researching the location of our company and look for antique experts. It should take at least 2 months. We do not need the money now. You can use the money to look for more antiques or rare stones first. It’s much better than leaving the money in the bank.”
Dong Xuebing thought for a while. “Ok. Let me think about what other ways I can increase our funds.” After chatting for a while, Dong Xuebing said. “Aunt Xuan, I got to go. My branch’s leader will be giving us a briefing for tomorrow’s exchange program.”
“How long will you be in Lin’an?”
“3 days. Why?”
“I will fly there to look for you tomorrow?”
“Oh…… you miss me?”
“I want to hit you! Who misses you?!”
“You don’t miss me? Then why do you want to come here to look for me?” Dong Xuebing knew Qu Yunxuan was shy to admit it, and he laughed. “Haha, I don’t care if you miss me or not. I just know that I miss you badly. Call me when you reach. I will be waiting for you.”
“Ok.”
After keeping his phone, Dong Xuebing took a taxi back to the hotel. Along the way, he was thinking of what he should do with his 2.7 million. Buy a random share? No. what if the stock market collapse? The stock market had not been stable recently. Aunt Xuan had her savings trapped in the stock market. What about buying some financial products from the bank? But the interest for the short term is meager and it’s not worth it. Forget it. It’s only for 1 to 2 months. Just leave it in the bank.
Xiao Gao had returned with lots of shopping bags. He seems to have enjoyed himself.
“Chief Dong, how is your day?”
“It’s fine. Where did you all go today?”
“We went to Tianmu Mountain today.” Xiao Gao suddenly remembered something. “Oh, Chief Dong. The higher-ups said we will be visiting Lin’an State Security tomorrow at 8 am. The leader told us to wake up early, and we are not allowed to be late or take leave. After the visit, we can go wherever we want.”
“Ok. Thanks for telling me.”
Ring, ring, ring. Dong Xuebing’s phone rang. It was Xu Yan.
“Hello, Xiao Dong. Come to my room now.”
Dong Xuebing acknowledged and quickly go out of his room. State Security had booked all the rooms on the same level. Dong Xuebing walked to the end of the corridor and knocked on the door. Xu Yan opened the door to let him in. She did not close the door and left it wide open. This was to prevent others from gossiping even when their age difference was more than 20 years. They were both in the same government agency and got to take note of this.
“Chief Xu, I am here.”
“Have a seat first.”
Dong Xuebing sat down on a chair.
Xu Yan sat on the bed and smiled. “It’s not about work. My son knows that I am in Zhejiang and want me to get him a present. But he did not say what he wants. Haha, I don’t know what to get him. Xiao Dong, you are only a few years older than my son. Can you give me some suggestions?” Xu Yan is a divorcee, and her son is staying with her ex-husband. Her son will only stay with her once or twice a month.
Dong Xuebing nodded. “Your son should be still in school? Do you know what his hobby is or what he likes?”
Xu Yan thought for a while and smiled. “He likes to play PC games and online chatting. Kids nowadays are like this.”
Dong Xuebing suggested: “How about getting him a laptop? The new Apple 11inch laptop is very popular. It is light and thin. The specs might not be the best in the market, but it should be sufficient for him to play normal games on it. If your son plays the latest games, this mac-book air should suit him. The 64g version cost about 10,000 RMB.”
Xu Yan nodded. “He does not have a laptop. Ok. I will get this. But what’s the model again? What mac? 64g?” Xu Yan does not know English or the latest technology products. “Xiao Dong, can you accompany me to buy this laptop after the exchange program tomorrow? You know much more about computers than me.”
Dong Xuebing nodded.
The next morning.
Xu Yan led the team to the Lin’an State Security bureau. Everyone knows this was only a formality and it ended after an hour. After leaving the bureau, Xu Yan announced to the team that they are free to go wherever they want. Then she went to a nearby shopping mall with Dong Xuebing to buy the Apple laptop. There were still available stocks, and Xu Yan paid for it.
It was only 10.30 am.
Xu Yan asked. “Xiao Dong, where are you visiting today? Tianmu Mountain or Daming Mountain?”
“I still have not decided yet.”
Xu Yan laughed. “Want to go to Changhua mines with me? I heard the scenery there is beautiful. I had come here once, but I did not have the time to visit Changhua.”
Dong Xuebing did not want to go. Aunt Xuan should be arriving in the afternoon. If he goes to Changhua, he might not be able to fetch Aunt Xuan. But he also does not want to reject Xu Yan. After all, she had helped him a lot. Dong Xuebing thought for a while and said: “Ok. I will be your bodyguard today. Haha, I also want to see how they mine Chicken-Blood Stones.”
Changhua county.
Guoshi village at the foot of Yuyan mountain was a wealthy village because of Chicken-Blood stones. All the villagers there lived in 4 story houses.
There were a lot of shops along the streets and alleys selling Chicken-Blood stones.
After they reached, Xu Yan and Dong Xuebing visited a few Chicken-Blood stone shops. There were a lot of high-quality stones there, and they were expensive. A Big Red Coat seal cost 1.5 million RMB. There was also a 2 meters wide Chicken-Blood stone artifact. The price of this artifact was 10 million RMB.
“Xiao Dong, let’s go up the mountains.”
“Ok. Please be careful.”
They walked on a trail towards Yuyan mountain. But after walking for a while, they were stopped by two villagers. “Outsiders cannot enter.”
Xu Yan smiled: “We are only going in to look at the mines.”
The older villager shook his head and pointed to a sign. “This place is dangerous.”
Dong Xuebing took out his work pass. “We are working for the government and will not give you all any trouble. We are here for sightseeing.”
The villagers exchanged looks and said. “Fine. I will show you all around.” Civil servants can still be trusted.
Dong Xuebing and Xu Yan walked up towards the mountain on the dirt trail.
After climbing up the stone steps, they reached the mines. It was shocking. The right side of the mountain had been dug away. On the other side, part of the mountain peak was gone. The miners must have used explosives to blast it away. The two villagers said that the empty plot of land in front of the mine used to be a mountain peak. But because they had mined that area and it was on the verge of collapsing. So, they used explosives to blast it away.
Around the mine, there was a metal fence with a blue color signboard. Danger! No entry!
But the villager still brought Dong Xuebing and Xu Yan in. “Our mine is in front.”
Xu Yan asks curiously: “Your mine?”
“Yes. Many of the mines in the mountain were leased by us and the few villages nearby. We pooled our money to lease it. Outsiders are not allowed to own the mines here. Only the locals can rent it from the government. But the locals can sub-let to other people.” No wonder all the villagers in this village are so wealthy.
Suddenly, Boom!!!! Boom!!! Boom!!! There were a few loud noises.
Dong Xuebing opened his eyes wide. “They are blasting the mine?”
“No. This is not the sound of blasting.” The villager looked towards the direction of the sound. “It’s just some kids playing with firecrackers.” He turned to the other villager and said: “Go and chase those kids away. How can they come here to play with firecrackers? It is too dangerous!” It was still considered Lunar New Year, and unlike Beijing, there were no restrictions on firecrackers here.
After a while, the older villager brought Dong Xuebing and Xu Yan to their mine. The entrance was a cave, about the height of a grown man. Standing at the entrance, they could hear lots of knocking sounds. There seems to have lots of people working inside. The air is filled with gasoline smell, and tools were left all over the floor.
The Villager said. “It is dangerous inside. There will be a blasting later. If you want to see how the inside of a mine looks like, you can go there.” He pointed to another entrance, not far away. “Come, I will show you the way.” That entrance was about the same. But the only difference is that mine is only 10 meters deep. They could see the end of the mining tunnel from the entrance.
Xu Yan asked. “This mine is abandoned?”
The villager explained: “Yes. This is the mine rented by Old Ye and some villagers from my village last year. But they had mined for a few months, but not a single Chicken-Blood Stone has been found. They lost a lot of money. This mine is some distance away from the main vein. Even if they dig deeper, they will not find any Chicken-Blood Stones. That’s why they decided to stop digging.”
Dong Xuebing asked. “There are no Chicken-Blood Stones in there?”
The villager replied: “Chicken-Blood Stone is not found everywhere. It still depends on luck. There are a lot of abandoned mines around the mountain. Errr…… These cannot be considered abandon mines. There is still a possibility of finding Chicken-Blood Stones inside. Those villagers who had rented these mines are still looking for people to take over them. If the price is right, they will transfer ownership immediately.”
They entered the mine with a torchlight. Dong Xuebing looked around, and he saw a pile of explosives in a corner. “Why are there explosives here?” The explosives were stacked in the innermost corner. The number of explosives is enough to blast a small hill away. Dong Xuebing immediately step in front of Xu Yan to protect her.
The villager calmly replied. “Don’t worry. These explosives have been modified and cannot be lit with fire. You must use a detonator to set them off. Our explosive storage is quite far from here. That’s why we will store all the explosives needed for the day here. Without the detonator, you will be safe even if you throw a cigarette butt there.”
“Oh, ok.” Dong Xuebing felt better.
Xu Yan was not worried at all. She seems to know about this.
The walls of the abandoned mine were ‘clean,’ and there was not a single strain of red color on it. Dong Xuebing touched the walls and thought to himself. Those villagers should have rented the mines for 1 year, and it cost at least a few million. It’s such a waste. The risk of renting mines is far higher than Chicken-Blood Stone gambling.
After staying in the mine for a while, the villager brought Xu Yan and Dong Xuebing out.
“Haha, I have learned a lot today.” Xu Yan said to the villager. “Thank you for bringing us around.”
The villager smiled. “You are welcome.”
Xu Yan’s curiosity was satisfied: “Xiao Dong, let’s go back.”
“Ok.”
Xu Yan and Dong Xuebing walked towards the footpath leading down from the mountains. That villager also went to his mine.
Suddenly, Dong Xuebing saw those kids lighting a firecracker nearby. Bam! It was a double-explosion firecracker. Those kids had placed the firecracker at an angle, and the firecracker did not fly towards the sky. Instead, it flew into the abandoned mine filled with explosives!
The next moment!
BOOM!!!!