Upon hearing this, Zhang Ce looked at Chen Feng, nodded, and said, "He doesn't seem nervous at all; he's very relaxed."
“He’s always been like this.” Qi Minglin smiled helplessly.
Zhang Ce led the way towards Chen Feng. When everyone reached Chen Feng's side, Chen Feng felt as if the sky had suddenly darkened.
When he opened his eyes, he saw a group of people surrounding him, one of whom was a stranger smiling at him.
"This is a high-ranking leader. He specifically asked to see you. Would you like to say something?" Qi Minglin reminded him, worried that Chen Feng might act arrogantly and not greet him properly.
Chen Feng glanced at Zhang Ce and suddenly blurted out something as if by magic.
You're blocking my sunlight.
Everyone was stunned by these words.
Dude, what are you doing?
Are you copying elementary school textbooks here?
Upon hearing this, Zhang Ce looked slightly embarrassed. He took a step to the side, making way for Chen Feng to enjoy the sunlight.
"I'm sorry to disturb your rest."
Zhang Ce didn't know if he was being sarcastic or if he really thought that way.
"No, just kidding, just trying to lighten the mood. Hello, boss." Chen Feng stood up and extended his hand to Zhang Ce.
Now is not the time to show off. They've already given Chen Feng a lot of face, so he can't refuse.
Upon hearing this, Zhang Ce's smile returned, and he shook hands with him.
"Hey you, Chunlai, go get a few chairs. Don't let the leaders stand." Chen Feng turned to Li Chunlai and said.
"Okay, sure." Upon hearing this, Li Chunlai fetched a few chairs and moved them next to Chen Feng.
"Thank you." Zhang Ce took the chair and said to Li Chunlai.
"You're too kind," Li Chunlai said with a smile, scratching his head.
Judging from his imposing manner, with Qi Minglin and the others following him around, he must be a high-ranking leader. Li Chunlai was somewhat flattered that such a high-ranking leader would thank him.
"Chen Feng, thank you for your hard work during this time. You've worked very hard." Zhang Ce sat down and first expressed his condolences.
Everyone then sat down and gathered together.
"You're too kind. We're all serving the people," Chen Feng said modestly.
Zhang Ce: "..."
If we're not friends, why are you speaking even more bureaucratically than I am? When you made so many demands before, it didn't seem like you were serving the people.
"Hmm, you said there are rare earth elements here, how did you determine that?" Zhang Ce asked.
"Just go by feeling," Chen Feng could only say.
“Okay, whatever method we use, as long as we can find rare earth elements, it’s a good method.”
"As the great man said, it doesn't matter if a cat is black or white, as long as it catches mice, it's a good cat." Zhang Ce looked at everyone, and they all laughed.
Chen Feng was a beat slow to react. Everyone else was already halfway through their laughter when Zhang Ce saw him, and he only belatedly chuckled a few times.
"Haha, hahaha."
So it turns out this was all a joke, right? He didn't even know it, and nobody notified him.
Seeing that everyone was smiling, Zhang Ce was satisfied and began to say the next sentence.
"I've prepared a celebration banquet for you. Whether you get to eat at this banquet depends on your abilities."
"It mainly depends on Chen Feng's abilities. We're just supporting actors. If we can really find rare earth elements, it will all be thanks to him," Qi Minglin said with a smile.
"That's true... well, it's all thanks to everyone."
I don't know what's wrong with Chen Feng today. He's been telling the truth all the time. I guess he got up too early and his brain hasn't kicked in yet.
To be honest, this is the first time in all these years that Zhang Ce has suspected there was something wrong with what was written in the national documents.
The information says that Chen Feng is clever, quick-witted, good at dealing with all kinds of unexpected problems, and can speak to people in a way that suits them.
Today, upon meeting him, Zhang Ce couldn't see any of the traits listed in the information. Instead, he thought Chen Feng was a bit dull.
Just as Zhang Ce was about to say something, someone brought over another soil sample, and everyone's eyes instinctively turned to look at it.
"Ask if there's any good news," Zhang Ce said to Qi Minglin.
Upon hearing this, Qi Minglin walked over, and returned a few minutes later.
"No, the analyzer showed no signs of rare earth elements," Qi Minglin said, shaking her head.
"How many meters have we reached now?" Zhang Ce asked.
“One thousand and twenty meters,” Qi Minglin replied.
"Alright, just wait and see. Good things come to those who wait." Zhang Ce said, leaning back in his chair.
And so they waited until noon, during which time the technical team sent more than a dozen messages.
The fact that no rare earth elements were found in all of them made them lose interest.
"It's time, boss, please eat first," Qi Minglin said, looking at the meal that had already been prepared.
"I'm not hungry," Zhang Ce said, taking a light breath.
"Eat something, or you won't get any rare earth elements," Qi Minglin advised.
"Okay, let's eat something then," Zhang Ce said, standing up with his hands on his thighs.
When he got to the table, the food had already been served to him.
As for Chen Feng, he had already finished a bowl of rice.
He didn't care about those things; he just started eating when the food was good.
"The leaders have arrived," Chen Feng greeted them while holding his rice bowl.
"Hmm, young man, you have quite an appetite at such a young age," Zhang Ce said with a smile, looking at the plate in front of Chen Feng.
"It's alright, passable," Chen Feng said, shoveling food into his mouth.
Zhang Ce didn't eat much, perhaps because he had something on his mind.
After finishing their meal, everyone sat down together to chat, since what else could they do but wait?
A short while later, the technicians sent another message.
"Based on the test results, we still did not find any traces of rare earth elements."
"Yes, thank you for your hard work," Qi Minglin nodded and said.
This is what they require; they have to come and report every time a batch of soil is tested.
Upon hearing this result, everyone took a deep breath.
Zhang Ce leaned back in his chair without saying a word, and Qi Minglin pursed her lips, unsure of what to say.
Li Guanghao lit a cigarette and slowly took a drag.
Chen Feng, confident in his abilities, maintained his nonchalant expression.
Perhaps only Zhang Richeng secretly rejoiced.
"How many meters have we reached?" someone asked.
"1200," Qi Minglin replied.
As they got closer to two kilometers away, everyone's hearts grew heavier.
If the probe reaches 2,000 meters and still finds nothing, then the operation will be declared a failure, and all the effort over such a long period of time will have been wasted.
"Let's wait, let's wait," Zhang Ce said, slowly closing his eyes, his heart filled with unease.
He was genuinely starting to feel uncertain. Logically speaking, if they were really this deep, there should be some trace of rare earth minerals by now.
Qi Minglin glanced at the composed Chen Feng and began to worry.
Today, this matter has even alarmed the top leaders. If we don't discover rare earth elements this time, coupled with the previous pledge, it will be a disaster.
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