lovenovelstory Chapter 118 A Reprimand and Depleted Resources
Chapter 118 A Reprimand and Depleted Resources
Chapter 118 A Reprimand and Depleted Resources
"What is that? A drainage tunnel?"
Jingde stared wide-eyed, incredulous, "Master Lu Ban, are you kidding me? The water is gushing out from the bottom of the mine; where did you dig it from and where is it draining?"
Lu Ban replied matter-of-factly, "What's wrong with the bottom of the mine? Don't forget, you're on the eastern slopes of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, at an altitude of over a thousand meters. How deep has the mine you've been digging these past few days been? At most, a few hundred meters."
"Dig a horizontal tunnel from the lower-lying area on the east side, heading towards the bottom of the mine. As long as the slope is maintained, gravity will allow for rapid drainage."
Jingde retorted, "But there's only one mine that can be used for this, right? New mines will definitely need to be dug later, what will we do then?"
"Why not just connect the mine shafts?"
Lu Ban sighed, sounding quite weary: "Even if the mine shafts are deeper, we can pump the water directly to the tunnel and then discharge it there."
"Never mind, I won't talk to you. I'll go talk to the lord directly."
Before Jingde could reply, Luban cut off the communication, tidied up a bit, and left the construction site, heading straight for Chinatown.
At this moment, Zeng Tai was meeting with many presidents and directors of the six major associations on the first floor of Yuanfanglou. Several round tables were set with many exquisite dishes, but none of the dozen or so people in the chairs touched their chopsticks.
Ever since learning that the Xinghan Church had taken control of San Francisco and sent troops to capture nearby San Jose and Benicia across the Bay Area, Chinatown has been in an uproar, like hot oil that has been boiled over.
From day to night, from teahouses to theaters, everyone was talking about it.
Some were afraid, some were excited, and some started to make their own plans.
The presidents and directors of the six major associations have talked about it countless times in private.
When we suddenly received Zeng Tai's invitation last night, several of us tossed and turned all night and couldn't sleep. When we came over this afternoon, we all had faint dark circles under our eyes.
Zeng Tai and Su Song walked slowly down from the second floor, smiling as they asked, "Gentlemen, why aren't you eating?"
"Master Su."
Chen Long stood up first, clasped his hands in a respectful gesture, and said, "You are the host. How can we guests be so impolite as to start eating before the host has even arrived?"
The other hall masters and directors also stood up, clasped their hands in greeting, and said, "Yes, yes, we guests should follow the rules."
.
"Without rules, nothing can be accomplished. We wouldn't dare to move if you didn't come."
"Oh, I see."
Walking half a step behind Zeng Tai, Su Song looked like he had just realized something: "I thought it was because everyone's recent actions at Yuanxing Hantang had disrupted our business, which is why they weren't eating and were giving us attitude in this way."
The atmosphere in the hall froze for a moment upon hearing this. Everyone's expression changed instantly, and some of the more timid ones even broke out in a cold sweat.
"Boss Su, we absolutely did not mean that."
"Yes, Xinghantang is expanding our territory for us Han people. We have only gratitude and praise for them, and we would never have a single complaint!"
"A mere financial loss is nothing compared to the great cause of Xinghantang!"
Zeng Tai sat down in the main seat, his gaze slowly sweeping over the faces of the group of people.
He knew exactly what these merchants were thinking; the assassins lurking around them would send back messages every now and then.
Who has cursed in their study, who has complained while drinking with others, who wants to sell their assets and return home, and who is worried about their life and fortune.
Although Hing Han Tong did not commit any offenses against Chinatown, the closure of many shops caused widespread anxiety.
Therefore, it was at Su Song's suggestion that this reprimand took place today.
He laughed and said, "Su Song, I told you you were judging others by your own petty standards. The presidents and directors of the six major associations are still very supportive of us."
Su Song lowered his head, his attitude respectful: "I was just overthinking things, everyone. I'll punish myself with a drink."
He picked up a wine glass from the table, filled it to the brim, and drank it all in one gulp.
"In that case, please keep your shops open and continue business as usual. Also, starting tomorrow, you will all need to pay your business taxes."
Upon hearing this, everyone almost simultaneously breathed a sigh of relief.
They originally thought that coming here today would be a trap, but it turned out to be just about the business tax and opening for business.
If something can be solved with money, then it's not a problem.
Several board members immediately declared, "We will open our doors to guests first thing tomorrow morning and will absolutely not close!"
"Why wait until tomorrow? I'll have someone remove the door panels as soon as I get back, and we'll open it tonight!"
Zeng Tai nodded in satisfaction: "Su Song will inform everyone about the regulations for commercial taxes later."
"As for now, let's sit down and eat."
Everyone then took their seats, some picking up their chopsticks, others raising their wine glasses, and the atmosphere became much more relaxed than before.
After several rounds of drinks and dishes, Zeng Tai put down his chopsticks and slowly said, "You are all veterans of Chinatown, having spent anywhere from three or four years to seven or eight years in San Francisco."
Upon hearing Zeng Tai speak, everyone quickly put down their chopsticks and wine glasses, adopting an attitude of attentive listening.
"There are those who deal in raw silk, those who deal in cloth, those who deal in tea—people from all walks of life. Today, I'd like to ask you all, would you be interested in adding another business to your portfolio?"
There was a moment of silence at the table. Chen Long tentatively asked, "May I ask, Master, what kind of business is it?"
"food."
Zeng Tai picked up a piece of char siu and put it in his mouth, chewing slowly. After the beating was over, some carrots were thrown down and hung in front of the group of people.
"When we took San Francisco, my men also took San Jose. The Santa Clara Valley there has 150,000 acres of land, and the wheat harvest is just around the corner."
"After the harvest, if you're interested, you can rent some land, hire people to plant it, and harvest it yourself. You can plant whatever you want, as long as it's grain."
Su Song, who was standing nearby, added at the opportune moment: "The rent for the first three years will be 30% lower than the market price. This is a discount that our lord is giving to everyone."
The hall fell silent as everyone began to make their own plans.
Who doesn't know about the wheat fields of the Santa Clara Valley? It's one of the most fertile fields in California, yielding over 300 kilograms of wheat per acre a year—it's enough to make anyone envious.
It can be said that renting an acre of land for three years will allow you to recoup your investment in the first year, and the remaining two years will be pure profit.
Previously, all that land was in the hands of white farmers, and Han Chinese could neither buy nor rent it.
Now that Xinghan Church has acquired the Santa Clara Valley, the land is vacant. Even if it can only be leased now, it's still an extremely profitable deal.
Chen Long was the first to speak: "Master, I'll lease 1,000 mu for five years."
As soon as he spoke, the others weren't to be outdone: "I'll lease 500 mu!"
"I'll lease 800 acres!"
"I'll lease two thousand acres!"
Everyone rushed to report their numbers, as if afraid that if they were a step too slow, the prize they were about to get would slip away.
Zeng Tai waved his hand, signaling everyone to quiet down, and said with a smile, "There's no need for you all to rush. The Santa Clara Valley has 150,000 mu of land, enough for everyone to share."
Su Song will discuss the specifics of the lease, including the lease term and price per acre, with you all later.
He paused, his tone turning cold: "But let me make this clear from the start. These lands were won by the brothers of Xinghantang, who risked their lives for them."
I'm renting this out to you all because we're all Han Chinese. If anyone tries to do anything dishonest with this, like subletting for a profit or bullying Han Chinese farmers, then don't blame me for being ruthless.
Everyone's expression tightened, and they repeatedly said they dared not.
Chen Long patted his chest and said, "Don't worry, Master, we are all legitimate businessmen and would never do anything like betraying our own people."
Zeng Tai nodded and picked up his chopsticks again: "That's good. Come on, eat."
The atmosphere became lively again, and amidst the clinking of glasses, the smiles on everyone's faces were much more genuine than before.
With the fields of the Santa Clara Valley as leverage, most of their previous anxiety dissipated. Ultimately, merchants are profit-driven; as long as there's profit to be made, people will rush in even if the sky falls.
The dinner lasted another half hour. Zeng Tai finished eating and went upstairs to rest, leaving Su Song in the lobby to explain the commercial tax and land leasing matters to the people from the six major associations.
He was lying on the recliner, resting with his eyes closed, when suddenly he heard hurried footsteps coming up the stairs outside the door. Immediately afterwards, a burly figure, covered in dust, strode in.
It was Lu Ban.
"My lord!"
As soon as Lu Ban entered, he exclaimed, "That bastard Jingde doesn't know his stuff. I couldn't reason with him, so I had no choice but to come to you."
Zeng Tai opened his eyes and asked, "What is it? Tell me slowly."
Lu Ban recounted the entire story of the water inrush at the Nevada silver mine. He poured out everything, from the water gushing from the bottom of the mine to the idea of a drainage tunnel, and then to Jingde's rebuttal.
"I thought it was something serious."
Zeng Tai scoffed: "How long do you estimate this drainage tunnel to be?"
"According to the topographic map that kid sent back, it's about six kilometers from the foot of the mountain on the east side of the mine to the bottom of the tunnel."
Lu Ban had clearly done the calculations beforehand, and spoke fluently. "However, this is just my estimate; we still need to conduct another on-site survey. Also, we can't just dig to the current depth; we need to dig deeper to leave room for future deep wells."
He paused for a moment, then finally gave a number: "It comes to about seven kilometers."
"A seven-kilometer tunnel?"
Su Song came up at this moment, his brows slightly furrowed: "Master Lu Ban, do you know how much it costs to carve a seven-kilometer-long rock tunnel?"
Lu Ban paused for a moment, then shook his head and said, "I haven't calculated that in detail."
Su Songdao said, "For a seven-kilometer tunnel, the cross-section must be at least three meters by two meters; otherwise, it would be pointless if the drainage capacity were too small. Considering the hardness of granite, each step of excavation would require drilling, filling with explosives, blasting, clearing debris, and support."
"We use all our own people. Not counting labor costs, just the cost of explosives, detonators, fuses, and the timber, bricks, and cement used for tunnel support alone is over $300,000."
"Isn't it worth it to exchange three hundred thousand US dollars for a mine worth thirty-five hundred million US dollars?" Lu Ban's eyes widened.
"I didn't say it wasn't worth it."
Su Song looked at Zeng Tai and said, "The key is those explosives and detonators. My lord, Xinghan Hall is consuming a lot of ammunition every day, and our stockpile is about to run out."
He took out a document from his pocket and said, "For example, our reserves of iron and copper can only last for three months at most."
Reserves of lead, tin, sulfur, and nitrates are only enough for one to two months.
"These strategic minerals are either not yet being mined in California, or they don't exist at all."
"The inventory was already low, and now we have to start a new project. I'm like a skilled cook without rice to cook."
"Alright, alright."
Zeng Tai blinked and said, "Su Song A Dream, since you brought it up, there must be a solution, right?"
Su Song sighed, then casually pulled out a map and pointed to a red circle on it.
"Let's start with the easier ones: iron and copper."
"This is Shasta County in Northern California. Last year, a prospecting team discovered a large iron ore deposit there, with reserves of at least one million tons and a very high ore grade. Because of its remote location and inconvenient transportation, it has not yet been mined."
He then pointed to another red circle: "The copper mine is in Calaveras County, which has also been discovered but not yet mined. We can send people there to build furnaces and smelt iron and copper on-site, and then transport them back to San Francisco."
"I've done the math, and if we organize a large-scale excavation operation, two months should be enough."
Zeng Tai nodded: "You can arrange this. We don't need any more people right now."
"Yes."
Su Song nodded, then switched to another world map, pointing to Mexico below California.
"The next four items are lead, tin, sulfur, and saltpeter. We'll have to buy these from outside."
He explained in detail: "The closest and most convenient source of lead ore is Mexico."
The Mexican state of Zacatecas has large lead and silver mines, producing a lot of lead at low prices. It's about a two-week trip by boat south from San Francisco, following the coastline.
The best sulfur comes from Sicily, Italy, but that's too far. Fortunately, there are sulfur mines on the Popocatepette volcano near Mexico City, so you can buy it there.
"Tin, you have to go to Bolivia. Although the Potosí silver mine in Bolivia is a silver mine, it contains a lot of tin as a byproduct. The locals don't value tin much, so the price is extremely low."
As for saltpeter, Chile's Atacama Desert has the world's largest natural saltpeter mine. Locals extract the saltpeter and export it directly at a very low price.
"Wait a moment."
Zeng Tai raised the question: "Mexico is manageable; a round trip there would take at most two months. But Chile and Bolivia are in South America, and a round trip would take at least four months. Can the inventory hold up?"
Su Songdao said, "If we plunder the stockpiles of supplies in California and use them sparingly, it should be possible."
"Then it's decided."
Zeng Tai pondered for a moment and then made a decision.
"Su Song, you should arrange for people to set off later regarding the iron ore and copper mines."
"For the ore-carrying fleet, there are so many white people's ships detained at the port, just pick a few. If you don't like them, Guilliman bought a few steamships the other day."
He then turned to Lu Ban and said, "Lu Ban, don't rush about the drainage tunnel. After all, it's a huge project."
I've already sent several high-powered water pumps to Jingdezhen as an emergency measure. You should take some people to conduct an on-site inspection first. I reckon the ore will arrive by the time you've finished your inspection.
Then, you can break ground on your seven-kilometer drainage tunnel.