Chapter 255: Iron Mine
Editor: Atlas Studios
When Qi Xiuyuan saw his brother carrying such a big box in, he raised his eyebrows and looked at them calmly.
Rong Xuan glanced at the smiling Qi Xiuyuan and asked with a beam, “Haoran, what good stuff did Zijin bring to the General this time?”
Qi Haoran placed the box on Qi Xiuyuan’s desk. Fan Zijin quickly moved Qi Xiuyuan’s documents and other things aside.
Fei Bai and Yanmo couldn’t help but shrink their necks and hide outside. Young Master and the others were too bold. They didn’t even know what was going on, yet they dared to move the Eldest Young Master’s documents to make room for the few large rocks on the desk.
Sure enough, no matter how steady and capable the two young masters were outside, they were still like children who had seen their father in front of Eldest Young Master.
Fei Bai and Yanmo looked at each other and felt that this analogy was very appropriate. The two of them exchanged glances and stood guard outside the study.
The interest in Qi Xiuyuan’s eyes intensified. Rong Xuan also looked on curiously. They all thought that the two children had brought something good for Qi Xiuyuan, but who knew that when the box was opened, there were more than ten rocks inside?
Qi Xiuyuan looked at Qi Haoran and sized him up seriously to make sure that he was not playing with him.
Rong Xuan coughed lightly and tried his best to suppress his smile as he turned his head to the side. After a moment, when he felt that his face was serious enough, he turned around and looked at Qi Haoran and Fan Zijin. He asked, “What is this?”
Qi Xiuyuan glared at him. Even if he wanted to pretend, he should put in more effort. What was the use of keeping a straight face when the smile in his eyes was about to overflow?
Qi Xiuyuan glanced at his document and asked, “I also want to know what this is.”
“These are rocks.” Qi Haoran looked at Qi Xiuyuan expectantly. “Big Brother, can’t you tell what they are?”
Seeing that Qi Xiuyuan was about to explode, Fan Zijin quickly added, “Eldest Cousin, Haoran means that these rocks might not be ordinary. He asked if you can tell what they are.”
Qi Xiuyuan said angrily, “You guys brought it over. If you don’t know, how would I know what it is?”
“Haha…” Rong Xuan couldn’t help but laugh out loud. He held onto the table and asked, “What do you think these rocks are?”
When Qi Haoran and Fan Zijin saw Rong Xuan laughing like this, they were a little depressed. “We thought it was an ore. Mu Yangling gave me this rock and asked me what the descendants of these rocks were. Zijin also said that the rocks might be an iron mine…” The more Qi Haoran spoke, the more depressed he became. “So these are just ordinary rocks.”
As he spoke, he sat down on the chair beside him. “To think I rushed to the prefectural capital in a hurry, thinking that I had discovered a mountain of treasures.”
Qi Xiuyuan and Rong Xuan looked at each other and stopped smiling. They lowered their heads to look at the stones in the box. Rong Xuan even picked up a piece and looked at it carefully.
Fan Zijin was originally dejected, but when he saw them like this, his eyes lit up again. He and Qi Haoran looked at them expectantly.
Not an expert in such things, Qi Xiuyuan did not see anything different even after staring for a long while. He turned to look at Rong Xuan. Rong Xuan was knowledgeable. Although he had never seen iron ore, he knew what they were like based on the description written in the books. He turned the rock in his hand and its appearance really looked like what was written in the books.
He pondered for a moment and said, “I’m not sure if it’s an ore. I have to test it. Haoran, what did Miss Mu say?”
Compared to Qi Haoran and Fan Zijin, he and Qi Xiuyuan were obviously more inclined to believe Mu Yangling. Qi Haoran was a little unconvinced, but he still recalled carefully. “At that time, she said that this rock looked a little familiar. However, she was lying on it previously and accidentally shattered that rock with a slap. It was no wonder she found it familiar, so I didn’t take it to heart. However, she looked at those rocks for a long time and asked me to bring these rocks along before we parted ways. She asked me to look for their descendants.” Qi Haoran glared and said, “How can rocks have descendants? Even if there are, aren’t they still rocks? Unless it’s ores that can give birth to gold, silver, and the like.”
Qi Xiuyuan and Rong Xuan looked at each other. Qi Xiuyuan said in a low voice, “Ah Xuan, carry out the test immediately. Don’t spread this matter yet. Haoran, how many people know about this?”
“There’s only the few of us, Fei Bai, Yanmo, and Mu Yangling.”
“Mu Yangling knows the severity of the matter and is also tight-lipped. She won’t tell anyone. There’s no need to give her special instructions. Go and call Fei Bai and Yanmo in.”
After instructing Fei Bai and Yanmo, Qi Xiuyuan left with the box of rocks and Rong Xuan. Qi Haoran watched as they disappeared. “Zijin, do you think it’s an ore?”
“I don’t know, but since Mu Yangling said that, it’s very likely.” Although he didn’t like Mu Yangling, Fan Zijin had to admit that she was reliable.
“If it’s iron ore,” Qi Haoran drooled and said, “then we won’t have to beg the Ministry of War and Ministry of Revenue for our weapons in the future.”
“Nah.” Fan Zijin said, “The iron ore should belong to the Imperial Court. Even if it’s confirmed to be iron ore, Eldest Cousin might not be able to keep it. Unless,” Fan Zijin looked at Qi Haoran and said, “it’s private mining.”
Qi Haoran frowned. “Then wouldn’t my 5th Division have to move?”
This silly boy’s focus was always on the wrong thing. Fan Zijin was so angry that he did not want to talk to him anymore. He turned around and left.
“Hey, where are you going?”
“Eat. Aren’t you hungry?”
Only then did Qi Haoran realize that it was already dark outside. His stomach growled and he hurriedly chased after Fan Zijin. “I’ll come along too.”
Qi Xiuyuan and Rong Xuan disappeared for a day and a half. When they reappeared, their eyes were bloodshot, but they were in high spirits. Qi Xiuyuan brought Qi Haoran and Fan Zijin to the study and whispered excitedly, “It’s an iron mine. Furthermore, it’s an iron mine with a high iron content. Oh right, Haoran, where did you find it?”
Rong Xuan looked at him excitedly.
“It’s on Luocong Mountain.”
“Luocong Mountain?” Rong Xuan’s eyes lit up as he clenched his fists and said, “That’s right. Luocong Mountain is filled with rocks, with only some weeds and low bushes growing upon it. This is one of the signs of iron ore.”
“Is the entire mountain filled with iron ore?” Qi Xiuyuan asked.
Rong Xuan said, “We’ll only know after a field investigation. Haoran, what did Miss Mu say?”
“She didn’t say anything, but there are plenty of rocks like that up on the mountain.”
“That’s great. Xiuyuan, if the iron ore on Luocheng Mountain is abundant, it will be a great merit should we report it to the Imperial Court.”
Also beaming, Qi Xiuyuan nodded. “Let’s investigate first, then I’ll write the memorial.”
Qi Haoran said unhappily, “Why must we report this to the Imperial Court? Big Brother, my 5th Division is at the foot of Luocheng Mountain. It took me a lot of effort to build it to this scale. Once the Imperial Court comes, I definitely have to move. Where can I find such a good place?”
However, Fan Zijin said, “Eldest Cousin, the court is a little chaotic now. I heard that many aristocratic families have colluded with officials to mine privately. If we report this mine, it’s not certain if it will fall into the hands of the Imperial Court. Why don’t we put this matter aside and investigate the situation on the mountain first?”