"By the way, sir, I saw some gold prospectors using excavators to pan for gold. How do they do it?" Chen Feng asked curiously.

"The excavator, well, it just digs the ground once, and then people go down to clean it up." After the old man finished speaking, he felt that he hadn't explained it clearly, so he tried his best to explain to Chen Feng.

“Our detectors can only probe one or two meters deep, but there are actually goods at depths of five or six meters in the mines, let alone two or three meters. And since we are only searching on the surface, we miss all the goods at the bottom.”

"So the goods underneath are the kind that have never been mined, so the yield is naturally high."

"So some people got the idea to dig away the topsoil and then look for the goods underneath."

“There are excavator rentals in Qiuling City. Small ones are 600 yuan, and large ones are 1200 yuan. Fuel costs are not included.”

"However, it's best to avoid using this method unless you're absolutely certain of its effectiveness."

"The cost is too high. Excavators are oil-guzzling machines. If you really dig all day, the fuel cost will be at least a thousand or eight hundred."

"Even if you cut back, it'll still cost five or six hundred. Think about how much the cost is. How much do you have to sell to break even?"

The old man was calculating the costs for Chen Feng, worried that he might act impulsively and not understand the calculations, and that he might actually rent an excavator in a moment of rashness.

"Oh, I see."

Chen Feng nodded, having a better understanding of the situation. It was pretty much as he had guessed before; the excavator was used to turn over the soil and dig out the gold underneath.

Actually, what he really wanted to say was, "It's supposed to be one or two meters, but my detector can only detect half a meter. Who can I complain to? In my hometown, you can't even buy a good detector."

"Grandpa, which mine has the best quality goods? There are bound to be differences in yield, and the most expensive isn't necessarily the best, right?" Chen Feng continued to ask.

I finally ran into the old gold prospector today, so I have to figure everything out before I talk to anyone else.

Upon hearing this, the old man glanced at Chen Feng and a smile appeared on his lips.

Over the years, he has met many young gold prospectors.

After hearing about paid mining farms, everyone immediately chose the best one without giving it any further thought.

Which brand offers the best value for money and which has the most affordable price?

Only after suffering a few losses will they realize the problem.

The fact that Chen Feng was able to immediately realize this problem after listening to him talk about these mines shows that this young man is indeed different from others.

"Yes, there are definitely some. If you ask me, every mine has the risk of losing money. It's better to find some wild mines in the wild. You can make a lot of money with no investment. If you find something, you make a profit. If you don't find anything, you don't lose anything."

The old man spoke.

"What do you mean by 'wild mine'?" Chen Feng asked curiously.

Aren't these all abandoned? How come there are still wild mines here?

"These are mines that have closed due to unforeseen circumstances. These mines are actually quite small, much smaller than the large state-owned mines in Qiuling City."

"But if you think about it carefully, although the place is small, hardly anyone goes there, yet there's still a lot of goods, isn't there?"

“The abandoned mines in Qiuling City are indeed large, but after so many people have been mining for so many years, the remaining stock may not be as much as that of small mines. Don’t you think that makes sense?” the old man said with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Chen Feng couldn't help but look at the old man with new respect. He could only say that the old man was shrewd and had even come up with a reverse way of thinking.

"The old man is right. Are there any good small mines to visit?" Chen Feng asked while the iron was hot.

Upon hearing this, the old man ate a edamame, looked down, and finally looked up and said, "If you really want to go, then come with me. There's a small abandoned mine 170 kilometers away from Qiuling City."

"The harvest there was decent."

Very few people knew about this small, abandoned mine; even the old man only found out about it by chance.

The reason I was willing to tell Chen Feng about this place was firstly because although it was small, it was still smaller than Qiuling City.

He couldn't possibly search all of them by himself.

Secondly, it's because I find Chen Feng pleasing to the eye; he's a likable kid, and this is kind of a reward for eating a few edamame beans from him.

After all, although the old man was kind-hearted and amiable, he wasn't the type to share his fortune with everyone he met.

"Alright, alright, then I'll thank you in advance, sir. Let's exchange phone numbers, and I'll contact you when I want to go in a few days?"

"Because I just came back from gold panning, I have to go back to my hometown, so it might be a while before I can come out again," Chen Feng said, taking out his phone.

"Okay, then write down my phone number."

The old man pulled out a smartphone with a cracked screen; it was an old model from many years ago.

"Okay, this is my phone number. I'll call it. Please enjoy your drink, sir. I have some friends to visit, so I won't stay any longer. I'll leave as soon as I finish selling my goods," Chen Feng said.

"Alright, alright, you go ahead with your work. Just contact me if you want to come in a few days," the old man nodded repeatedly.

When Chen Feng picked up his bag and stood up, he didn't forget to tell the old man to eat more edamame before going to the counter to sell his goods.

In fact, the old man gave Chen Feng a very good impression.

It's not just because he's very helpful and always answers questions, but also because his words and actions suggest he's a very good person.

Chen Feng let him have his way so many times, but in reality, the old man only ate three edamame beans from the entire plate.

When Chen Feng first offered him the chance, the old man just nodded and showed no intention of making a move.

Unlike those elderly people who are always trying to take advantage of others and grab every bargain they can, even doing things themselves when told not to, I didn't do it myself.

Although the old man was dressed simply, even in old clothes, he was a man of great stature and a respectable elder.

Upon reaching the bar, Chen Feng saw today's prices on the electronic display board.

The price of silver is still eight yuan, no different from back home.

But the price of gold here is 407 yuan, which is 7 yuan more than back home.

Logically, these things should all be the same size, so why is it a little higher here?

After thinking about it for a moment, Chen Feng roughly guessed why this was the case.

That must be because there are too many people recycling gold here, so they're using high prices to attract customers.

"Hello, would you like to buy back gold or silver?" a teller asked Chen Feng as he approached.

Looking at Chen Feng's unfamiliar face and youthful appearance, the teller guessed that he was a newcomer to the gold rush.

I estimate I only have a few thousand yuan worth of goods on hand.

New gold prospectors are all like this; once they find some goods, they can't wait to exchange them for money.

Experienced gold prospectors are often very patient and will save up their gold for several months before coming back to sell it.

"We have both gold and silver."

Chen Feng opened his backpack, sat down in a chair, and began taking out his goods.

He took out two bottles of silver and placed them on the counter. The clerk raised an eyebrow when she saw the goods.

Two bottles of silver, not a bad haul. Very few new gold prospectors can pull out two bottles of silver at once.

Chen Feng rummaged in his bag again and pulled out two bottles of silver.

When the clerk saw Chen Feng take out two more bottles, she looked surprised and somewhat taken aback.