There are many boats parked at the dock in the moat outside the imperial capital. Some people are carrying sandbags, some are moving things, some are driving boats, some are selling goods... everyone is busy with their own affairs.

"The Gu family's ship has arrived!"

A large black ship docked at the shore and dropped anchor. After it stopped, a group of businessmen rushed forward.

"I want two boxes!"

"This is my order. I placed it more than a month ago. I want three boxes!"

"Don't push, don't push..."

The Gu family's men carried large and heavy boxes, one by one, down and piled them on the dock. They were filled with various iron weapons and unprocessed pig iron.

Merchants scrambled to buy, and blacksmiths also crowded in.

You squeeze, I squeeze, a man who looks like a manager is annoyed:

"What are you squeezing!"

Irritably pushed away the person who bumped into me, "Can't you see I'm flipping through the book, looking for records? Are you in such a hurry to reincarnate? I won't sell it to you!"

Bang——

The fallen businessman accidentally hit a box and broke his head.

But the first thing he did was not to bandage the wound, but to nod and bow hastily to apologize to the accountant:

"I'm sorry, I bumped into you by accident, sorry..."

"Go away!"

The accountant pushed him again impatiently, and because of the crowded crowd, the injured businessman was soon squeezed out of the crowd.

Not far away.

Qin Ye, who was sitting in a carriage and preparing to enter the city, saw this scene and said, "Stop for a moment."

The carriage stopped.

She walked over, took out a clean handkerchief and handed it to the merchant.

The businessman was stunned for a moment, then took it with both hands gratefully, "Thank you, ma'am. Thank you."

He took the handkerchief and covered the wound on his forehead, which stopped the bleeding a little.

"What are they doing?" Qin Ye looked at the group of people looting.

The merchant laughed bitterly, "The Gu family's iron-mining ship has returned, and everyone is scrambling to buy it. Only the Gu family can get the cheapest iron. The others are all second-hand and third-hand dealers, and they all sell it at a very high price."

Seventy percent of the iron in the Gu family's hands was sold to the national treasury, and the remaining thirty percent was sold privately.

Qin Ye frowned. She had never paid attention to this industry before, but after hearing what the businessman said, did it mean that only the Gu family had iron and no one else had it?

The businessman said:

"Madam, you don't know that mining requires manpower, material resources, and technology."

"Which mountain has iron ore? How much is there? How deep do we have to dig? How long will it take to dig? If we want to dig, we need strong financial support. Hiring people, transportation, buying gunpowder, packaging... all of this costs money."

“It’s more about surveying.”

The surveyors were so inaccurate that they dug the mountain but found no iron ore. The loss of manpower, material resources and financial resources was at least tens of thousands of taels.

The cost is very high and the technology is very demanding, so people who work in this field are very special.

"The Gu family has a very, very powerful surveying team. I heard that they have a technology that has been passed down for hundreds of years. Every time they survey, they can definitely find a mountain with iron ore. They can always find the right one every time they dig."

This is also the reason why the Gu family is the only dominant family.

"I heard that even the royal family can't learn this surveying technology." said the businessman.

Qin Ye heard this and seemed to be thinking about something.

Iron mining is indeed a very large undertaking that requires technical and financial support.

It turns out that the Gu family has relied on its powerful surveying technology to develop to this day.

No wonder the Gu family is so arrogant.

"Madam, thank you for your handkerchief. You are such a kind person. I won't say any more to you. I'm going to go and grab the goods." After the merchant said this, he joined the team that was scrambling to grab the goods despite his injuries.

Qin Ye stood there, looking at the group of people, thinking for a moment.

The Gu family has superb surveying technology. If this technology is no longer an advantage, wouldn’t it be tantamount to holding the Gu family’s lifeline in their hands?

In modern times, detectors are used...