Chapter 39 Coal Mine

There is a vast parking lot at the entrance of the scenic area.

This parking lot is very large, and Zhou Cheng can vaguely see the prosperity of the past.

At that time, there must have been a lot of vehicles going back and forth on this road. In their spare time, people would drive their cars, bring their families and friends here, then park their cars in the parking lot, enter the scenic area, enjoy the scenery, and have fun.

But at this moment, the parking lot has already been occupied by weeds.

The tallest weeds were more than a person's height. Moreover, there were trees among the weeds, some of which had grown so tall that a person could not hug them.

The parking lot's tiles were lifted by tree roots, resembling grave mounds. A variety of furry little animals and birds hopped around among the weeds and trees, stopping just a short distance from Zhou Cheng and his group before observing them with curiosity, showing no fear at all.

Having not seen humans for decades, they have probably forgotten the horror of humans.

Sun Lin raised his gun, took aim, and pulled the trigger. After a slight sound, a bird with brightly colored feathers, like a pheasant, fell to the ground.

Sun Lin ran over happily, picked up the pheasant, and said with a chuckle, "I've eaten this a few times before. It's very fresh, the meat is not fishy or dry, and it's chewy. We're in for a treat at noon."

Another security guard called out, "Old Sun, how can one of them be enough? Get a few more. Besides, this thing is too thin. Get some fattier ones and mix them with the stew to make it more delicious."

"Okay, I'll fight you when I see you."

Several middle-aged and elderly people looked excited.

Zhou Cheng smiled and said nothing, but instead cast his gaze on the gate of the scenic area, which had stood firm after decades of wind and rain.

On it, the big words "Xishan Coal Culture Park" are still clearly visible.

"Walk."

The chain locking the door was cut and the car roared in.

Most of the area inside the scenic area has been covered by weeds, with only the shadow of the road visible. Apart from that, there are some dilapidated buildings standing among the weeds and trees.

Following the information they had previously found, the group arrived at Mine No. 1.

With powerful flashlights on and protective suits on, as soon as the group entered, a group of bats flapped their wings and flew out.

Sun Lin took a few steps ahead, observing the structure of the mine. After confirming that the reinforced concrete structure from decades ago still had sufficient support, he turned around and waved, "Let's go."

After taking a few steps forward, Zhou Cheng saw a mural.

The mural was made of tiles glued to the wall, several of which have fallen off.

After wiping off the stains and putting back the tiles that had fallen off, Zhou Cheng saw the mural's description of the mine.

"Mine No. 1 is one of the largest mines in Xishan Coal Mine. From the entrance to the end of the tunnel, it is over a thousand meters long and has hundreds of branches in the middle.

Hundreds of years ago, miners in such an environment used simple tools such as backpacks and pickaxes to dig out the coal buried underground and supply it to the residents of the capital.

Their only lighting tools are usually an oil lamp, and their mine support tools are usually just some simple wooden structures.

The simplicity of tools and the serious lack of protective facilities led to extremely harsh working conditions, extremely high mortality rates and extremely low efficiency for the miners.

Water seepage accidents, gas explosion accidents, and suffocation accidents occur frequently in mines.

According to statistics, the average death cycle of a miner is less than ten years.

..."

After walking more than a hundred meters along the damp, dark mine filled with unknown creatures, Sun Lin firmly refused to move forward.

It's too dangerous inside.

Zhou Cheng did not insist, and several people left Mine No. 1.

Afterwards, they went to the No. 2 and No. 3 mines, and ventured into the exhibition hall building to see with their own eyes the coal mining tools used by the ancients on display there, and familiarized themselves with the mining process before the end.

Along the way, Sun Lin finally shot a few pheasants.

It was time for dinner, so they set up an iron pot and plucked the pheasant, added various seasonings, and stewed a delicious pot.

After returning to Dajing City to rest for a night, the group set out again the next day, heading to a modern coal mine hundreds of kilometers away.

This coal mine is still being mined today, producing thousands of tons of high-quality coal every day.

At its peak, the mine employed more than 10,000 workers and produced tens of thousands of tons of coal every day.

Of course, in its later years, like all other mines, it declined and its production decreased greatly.

It’s not that the resources are exhausted, but that people can’t use as much as they need.

The person in charge of receiving Zhou Cheng and his group was full of regret.

"This is all high-quality anthracite. If it were operating at full capacity, the output could be multiplied several times. What a pity, alas..."

He sighed, "I'm afraid in a few years, we'll have to close down here too."

Zhou Cheng asked, "How many more years can the coal mines here be mined at full capacity?"

"At least a few decades."

“Will our planet run out of coal?”

"Run out? Are you kidding me?"

The person in charge shook his head and said, "This stuff is inexhaustible. The more you use it, the more it will be. I remember during the peak period, some people made alarmist claims that the earth's coal would be exhausted in 50 years at most. That was pure nonsense."

"We could use up this stuff in 500 years. We have plenty of it on Earth. Why? Because our mining technology is getting more and more advanced. We can now mine coal that was previously unavailable, so we're using more and more of it."

"I see."

Zhou Cheng nodded gently: "Can I take a look at the mining site?"

"Okay, let's go."

After driving a bit further, they came across a huge pit. Inside the pit, a huge, unknown machine was roaring. Along with the roar, a steady stream of coal flowed out from the transport channel like a river.

"Nowadays, mining is all automated. First, a roadheader is used to dig the tunnel, then support it, and then a shearer is used to directly dig it. It doesn't require many people at all."

Zhou Cheng nodded slightly: "How deep have we dug the coal seam here in our coal mine?"

Zhou Cheng was asking about the depth up and down.

The person in charge said: "A few hundred meters, no big deal, we can dig thousands of meters deep."

"A few hundred meters..."

Comparing this place with the Xishan Coal Mine, which has become a scenic spot, Zhou Cheng asked, "If, and I mean if, we don't use machinery, but only use manpower... can we dig coal from here?"

The person in charge looked at Zhou Cheng in surprise. "Manpower? You're kidding! We'll work ourselves to death and still not be able to dig anything up. Forget about digging a mine, just how are we going to get it up from a depth of several hundred meters?"

"Is there no possibility at all?"

The person in charge shook his head like a rattle: "Impossible, absolutely impossible."