Chapter 165: But You're Not Capable!
Normally, Li Tang would visit the site every few days. Day-to-day supervision of the project was mainly handled by He Runqi, who organized their team members to rotate shifts and follow Geological Team Six across the rugged mountains to oversee the contractor's work.
But Duide County had a population of just twenty or thirty thousand, and with no entertainment options, Li Tang often felt bored. He even drove to the provincial capital to buy two badminton rackets and funded the leveling of a court inside Geological Team Six for games.
That morning, the weather was calm and warm. Li Tang dragged He Runqi out to play badminton to get a good sweat.
Just then, Damba came running over again, looking flustered as usual, and shouted, "Li Tang! Come on, come with me to the site—we've got a new discovery!"
Li Tang had long grown used to Damba's excitable nature. He didn't rush. He wiped his face with a towel, called over a few colleagues, and followed Damba up the mountain.
At the drill rig, everything looked orderly.
Damba picked up a rock core and exclaimed to Li Tang, "Take a look at this lower section!"
"What is it? What's the new discovery?" Li Tang asked, now genuinely curious.
"Check out the cores below 300 meters—they feel different from the ones above!"
"They all look like rhyolitic porphyry to me," Li Tang said, failing to see the difference at a glance.
"The upper section is chalcocite. The lower cores look more like bornite—and especially at the very bottom, it looks like chalcopyrite!" Damba said, clearly excited. "I noticed this a few days ago and have been thinking about it ever since. I believe the upper part is oxidized ore, and the lower part should be primary sulfide minerals."
"That makes sense." After working with Damba these past weeks, Li Tang had developed genuine respect for his technical skills. Damba was an old-school geologist who had spent years in this area. He knew the local rocks better than anyone.
If Damba hadn't pointed it out, Li Tang might not have noticed these subtle differences so quickly.
"And another thing!"
Damba grabbed a handheld analyzer from one of the technicians and tested several points on a core. He then handed the screen to Li Tang. "Take a look!"
"Hm?" Li Tang squinted at the display, which showed multi-element analysis results.
Damba couldn't wait any longer and shouted, "Copper—1.4%!"
He scrolled down and shouted again, "Gold—three parts per million! That's three grams per ton!"
"We've found the primary ore zone," Li Tang said, smiling faintly. Still calm.
It didn't surprise him—but it was still exciting to confirm.
"This hole has already drilled through the porphyry layer. We can terminate it today," Damba added, unable to hide his joy. "We measured the apparent thickness of this mineralized core—it's about 210 meters. With a dip angle of roughly 45 degrees, the true thickness is over 140 meters."
"Not bad at all," Li Tang nodded.
"You're too calm," Damba said, clearly surprised by Li Tang's composure. Could this young man really be so unaffected by a discovery this big?
"It's just one drill hole," Li Tang chuckled.
"True," Damba agreed. "Of course, these are just preliminary instrument readings. There may be some deviation. We'll still need to send samples to a certified lab for confirmation."
"The sooner, the better," Li Tang said.
He was quite satisfied—they had finally hit the core of the deposit. "Now that we've found the main mineralized section, we should densify the drill pattern. I suggest a 50-by-50-meter grid. That's the only way we'll clearly outline the lenticular ore body—its shape, depth, thickness, and grade—and define its reserves."
"50-by-50? That's tight. Most prospecting lines are spaced 100, 200, even 300 meters apart. If we go down to 50, the cost will skyrocket," Damba said, concerned for Li Tang's wallet.
"No worries about money," Li Tang replied without blinking.
"Well, you're right. With lenticular bodies, tighter grids are the only way to define the deposit accurately."
Damba thought for a moment and agreed. "With ore zones this thick, we really do need to step up our game."
"Let's do it," Li Tang said encouragingly.
Thanks to the steady flow of funds, Geological Team Six had been calling in more rigs from elsewhere. Work continued day and night.
And results were coming fast. Every day, new holes were completed. Every day, new mineralized zones were found.
As data accumulated, a three-dimensional lenticular ore body began to form in their minds.
The largest body resembled a fat clam shell lying diagonally underground, with a small tip exposed at the surface.
The mineralized zone was thickest in the middle and thinner at the edges.
At its thickest, it exceeded 200 meters—a rare and massive lenticular deposit.
And this was just the beginning.
This was a "pulling up one radish and bringing up all the mud" kind of deposit. Around the main body, or beneath it, were more ore bodies connected like a string of clam shells lying scattered underground, each distinct but traceable.
So far, they had only located one major ore body.
There were surely more to find—through continued drilling.
Damba, after organizing the data, concluded that this copper-gold deposit was lenticular in some areas but stratiform in overall structure.
To achieve this level of success finally validated Geological Team Six's years of continuous work in the area.
Yet even they hadn't expected such thick mineralization.
Before this intensive drilling campaign, there had been many theories about the underground formations—but none of them dared to predict this.
It exceeded all expectations.
Director Dawa of the Geological Bureau and Director Nobu of the Land Bureau heard the news and made several inspection trips to the site. Each time, they were amazed.
Li Tang had just wrapped up another round of visits with Dawa and Nobu and had drunk heavily during the dinner that followed. He woke the next morning with a pounding head.
"Li Tang, someone's here to see you!" Damba said, looking oddly nervous.
"Another government inspection?" Li Tang sighed.
Any project that struck ore attracted attention from all corners. Every department that had even the slightest connection would send someone over for a photo-op.
Li Tang had already been through countless rounds of this and was used to it. But each time meant more toasts and more liquor—something his young body couldn't always handle.
"Not a government official. Come to my office. He's been waiting a while."
"Not an official?"
Damba didn't clarify who it was. Li Tang didn't think much of it. He straightened his clothes and followed Damba to the office.
Inside, he saw a few familiar foreign faces.
A scruffy Lucas stood up abruptly when he saw Li Tang enter, visibly emotional. "Li Tang…"
He said the name in a heavily accented voice—perhaps one that haunted him in nightmares.
"Hello!" Li Tang greeted warmly and offered a handshake. As he sat down, he asked, "So, you've heard about our project's progress?"
"What progress?" Lucas looked confused.
Damba quickly chimed in, switching to Chinese to reassure Li Tang. "I haven't shared any details with anyone outside our authorized circle."
"Lucas isn't an outsider," Li Tang said casually. "He's the third-largest shareholder of Gongcun Gold Company."
He glanced around and noticed Lucas had brought along a journalist and cameraman from the Garan Financial Post.
Given the cameras, Li Tang had no choice but to keep up a gentlemanly demeanor.
Lucas wasn't in the mood for small talk. He cut straight to the chase. "Since returning to Garan, I've had multiple meetings with the board. We've decided to make a larger investment in you and Gongcun Gold Company!"
"Investment?" Li Tang raised an eyebrow.
"If you're willing, we'd like to buy all of your shares in Gongcun Gold Company!" Lucas laid his cards on the table.
"So you haven't given up on the Gongcun project," Li Tang smiled. "I must say, you have a sharp eye for geology."
"We had a disagreement before, but that shouldn't stop us from doing business, right?" Lucas said. "Business is about profit, not emotion."
"You seem quite confident." Li Tang crossed his legs and gently blew on a cup of tea Damba had just served him. "So… how much are you offering for my shares?"
This wasn't the first time Lucas had tried to buy his way back into the Gongcun project.
Last time, he had offered one million yuan, eventually upping it to two million. Li Tang had refused, saying the project was worth 100 million—which at the time sounded absurd.
Lucas had thought it was just a scare tactic, a bluff.
But now, he came with a serious offer.
"Five million yuan," Lucas said.
"In USD?" Li Tang asked.
"In renminbi," Lucas replied.
Li Tang laughed and glanced at Damba, who offered a sheepish smile.
Gongcun Gold Company had already invested nearly twenty million yuan into the project. Selling it now for five million?
Impossible.
Seeing Li Tang silently sipping his tea, Lucas grew anxious. "Do you agree or not?"
"The price is too low," Li Tang said flatly, still sipping.
"Six million! That's my final offer!" Lucas insisted. "This is the best I can do."
Li Tang didn't respond.
Lucas waited and waited. No reply. Frustrated, he snapped, "You're insatiable! Too greedy!"
"Lucas," Damba finally interjected, "Li Tang has invested a lot in this project. I doubt he'd agree to sell…"
"Wait," Li Tang raised his hand, cutting him off. "Captain Damba is only half right. Yes, I've invested heavily—but I also expect a big return."
He switched to English so Lucas could understand clearly.
Lucas brightened. "So… you're willing to negotiate? Great. Here's my final, final offer. I'll go beyond my authorization. I'll explain it to the board later."
He raised one finger.
"Ten million. Cash!"
Ten million yuan—ten times his last offer.
Surely even the greediest person would accept that.
"In USD?" Li Tang asked again.
"No. RMB."
Li Tang sighed and shook his head. "Lucas, I gave you your chance. But… you just don't have what it takes."
"What do you mean?" Lucas asked, bewildered.
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