Song Yaoyao and the other speculators were taken back together.
Zhou Jiuzhen led the villagers to continue towards the location of the treasure map.
As the sun climbed over the mountain, he stopped in front of the rocky slope, clutching the crumpled treasure map.
The eagle's eye, drawn on the paper, was right in front of him. It was here last time that a wild boar chased him up a tree.
And at this moment, that century-old banyan tree is none other than the pupil of "Eagle Eye".
"This is it!"
He shouted behind him.
The soldiers immediately led the villagers, who were carrying hoes and baskets, to gather around.
Several young men rushed to wield hoes and start digging.
Zhou Jiuzhen glanced at Ling Huanwu, who was also trying to get a hoe to work in the crowd, and took a few steps forward to snatch the hoe from her hand. "You sit down. You're pregnant, and you still have to come along and suffer!"
"Other pregnant women are very careful about their health, but you, you've done all sorts of dangerous things..."
He had a stern face and muttered to himself; anyone who didn't know better would think he was talking to himself.
Ling Huanwu knew he was still angry with her, so she pouted and snatched the hoe. "I know my own body. What's wrong with doing this little thing? It's better than my husband using the excuse of taking care of the child to harm the child!"
"I didn't!"
Zhou Jiuzhen blushed crimson, his cheeks puffed out as he looked at his comrades who were secretly watching them and covering their mouths to chuckle, utterly speechless.
"You old woman... you're clearly..."
She was the one who seduced him, yet she turned around and accused him!
He just wanted to know the secrets between them, what's wrong with that?
"What are you looking at? Get ready to dig!"
The villagers and soldiers who had been watching the spectacle acted like birds and beasts, all preparing to get to work.
Ling Huanwu and the geological expert who came with her explained that there was a cave at the bottom of the cliff not far away.
So the geological experts drew up a plan, intending to excavate from the hillside 50 meters below the "Eagle Eye" banyan tree, with the vertical direction connecting the interrupted section of the cliff cave.
After deciding on the location, the strong men swung their hoes and dug the ground, while the women carried soil in bamboo baskets behind them.
With each swing of the hoe, more and more white pebbles were mixed into the soil.
A large pit has been dug out of what was originally a flat mountain.
Ling Huanwu squatted down and picked up a stone from the bamboo basket. Her fingertips brushed against the fine, sand-like powder. "Why is this stone so shiny? It's different from the ones we've seen before."
After digging for about half an hour, a rock layer about half a person's height was finally revealed on the slope.
The bluish-gray stone surface is inlaid with specks of metallic luster, and the white quartz stone dazzles the eyes in the sunlight.
Just as Ling Huanwu was about to reach out and touch it, the leader who had followed her quickly stopped her, "Wait! Let Engineer Zhang take a look!"
Engineer Zhang, who was accompanying us, was from the county's geological team. He was already squatting in front of the rock strata, taking out his own magnifying glass and small hammer, and knocking off a small piece of rock to examine it carefully.
He first scratched the quartz with his fingernail, then brought the fragments with metallic specks close to his eyes. His brows gradually relaxed, and he suddenly looked up at everyone and smiled: "Good stuff! This quartz is of high purity and can be used to make optical lenses!"
As soon as he finished speaking, he pointed to the metallic specks and raised his voice, "Look at this—look at the luster. It doesn't produce any smoke when burned, and it leaves a mark when scratching glass. It's gold! Although the grains are fine, the vein is connected; it's a by-product gold deposit!"
"Gold? And it can be used to make lenses?"
The villagers erupted in excitement. Aunt Liu even forgot to put down her basket, grabbing Ling Huanwu's hand and laughing, "This is great! By handing it over to the country, we can also contribute to scientific research!"
Zhou Jiuzhen looked at the mine in front of him, then at the villagers around him who were beaming with joy, and turned to the leader and said, "I will organize people to clean up the surface layer right away. We must not let this treasure suffer even the slightest damage!"
The wind blew down the slope, carrying the scent of soil and ore. Engineer Zhang had already taken out paper and pen and started sketching the mineral vein.
The leader excitedly wrote a few lines to the telegraph operator beside him, telling him to report to the county immediately.
The laughter of the villagers and the clattering of hoes striking stones echoed loudly in the valley.
*
With a "bang".
Song Yaoyao and her group were forced into a small dark room.
The stench inside made the group feel nauseous and they were about to vomit when Qin Jinshen, who had been sleeping in, suddenly sat up from the ground.
His sinister eyes swept over several new restroom attendants who were covering their mouths and about to vomit. His cold, murderous eyes, like those of a wolf hunting in the dark, gleamed with a ghostly blue light.
His eyes were filled with displeasure at being disturbed.
The group was so frightened that they immediately swallowed the vomit that was about to spray out of their mouths.
With just one glance, those speculators could tell that this man was far more ruthless than they were.
The group huddled together in a corner for warmth, afraid of provoking this killing god.
Song Yaoyao squeezed herself between several aunties, her whole body trembling uncontrollably.
But what you fear most is exactly what happens.
Just one glance.
Qin Jinshen then saw Song Yaoyao, who was trembling among the group.
The moment their eyes met, Song Yaoyao was so frightened that she almost collapsed to the ground.
Qin Jinshen slowly stood up with his back hunched over, looking like a werewolf beginning to transform.
The handcuffs on his hands dragged the empty chamber pot along, making a clanging sound as it was pulled in the dimly lit room.
Amidst the horrified gazes of the others, Qin Jinshen grabbed Song Yaoyao by the neck, slammed her against the wall, and grabbed a chamber pot from the side, smashing it down on her head with all his might.
"You bitch, I should have killed you long ago! You dared to push my sister into the sea, what kind of person are you..."
Qin Jin roared furiously, smashing the chamber pot down on her head repeatedly, causing the people around to scream in terror.
The commotion inside quickly attracted the attention of the soldiers outside.
They rushed in and pulled the already crazed Qin Jinshen away.
Song Yaoyao, who was already bruised and swollen on the ground, was beaten again before she could react or scream, leaving her bleeding profusely and unable to crawl out.
Qin Jinshen's cursing continued unabated, and no amount of pulling could stop him.
They had no idea how Qin Jinshen found out that his sister had been pushed into the sea by Song Yaoyao.
Left with no other option, they had to drag Song Yaoyao out and lock her up in a separate place.
After all, once the city police arrive in a few days, these people will be transferred to the city for trial and detention.
After treating her wounds briefly, Song Yaoyao remained motionless, locked in a small wooden shed, her mind still racing with thoughts of how to escape.
Suddenly, a crackling sound rang out outside the shed.
Song Yaoyao peeked out through the crack in the door.
Zhou Jiuzhen and Ling Huanwu were surrounded by people as they returned to the village.
Ling Huanwu, in particular, was all smiles, holding something sparkly in her hand, her eyes crinkling into crescent moons as she laughed, looking like the happiest woman in the world.
Hearing the conversation outside and seeing the gold in her hand, Song Yaoyao was so angry that she gritted her teeth and almost spat out blood.
She initially thought they hadn't found any coal, and since Ling Huanwu couldn't find any coal mines anyway, she felt a little better.
Unexpectedly, Ling Huanwu found something even more valuable than coal: gold!
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