Chapter 86: Cause and Effect
Li Tang didn't immediately agree or decline. He remained silent, thinking deeply.
Chen Jinhe, on the other end, also waited patiently.
"President Chen, I'm currently with Wu Mining Group. If I'm to work with another company, I need permission from my superiors."
"Zise Mining is also a state-owned enterprise. It's common for SOEs to learn from one another and share technical expertise. You coming on board as a consultant to guide exploration is not a problem at all."
"I'll report to my superiors first. Once I have a clear answer, I'll get back to you right away—sound good?"
"I'll wait for your good news! I'll still be conducting field visits in Tibet for the next few days. If you come over, we can meet face-to-face, which would be even better."
After hanging up, Li Tang sat in silence for a long time.
Due to his actions, many future events had already begun to deviate from their original trajectory.
The butterfly effect was clearly in motion, influencing more and more of the present.
Take the Qu Long Copper Mine, for instance—Xiao Yongyue and Chen Jinhe had both approached him, creating a tangled web of twisted cause and effect.
In another timeline, most of the shares in the company that owned Qu Long were eventually acquired by Xiao Yongyue. A mining tycoon with grand ambitions, Xiao poured over 15 billion yuan into the project—yet not a single ton of copper was ever extracted.
Desperate, he ended up transferring the majority of the company's shares to Zise Mining, recouping just over 3 billion—an enormous loss compared to his original investment.
Zise Mining then took over the Qu Long project and continued investing in mine construction. While the mine wouldn't begin production immediately, Zise was a top state-owned company in China's copper sector. Compared to a private entrepreneur like Xiao Yongyue, Zise had both the patience and capability to eventually succeed.
But now, Li Tang had forcibly handed Qu Long to Wu Mining Group.
This distorted the chain of events.
Maybe it was fate. Xiao Yongyue and Chen Jinhe had both come to him—like collectors of karmic debt.
Just as he was mulling things over, his phone rang again—it was his father.
Li Tang quickly answered.
Li Zaiqiang didn't waste time. "Some guy named Chen Jinhe's been snooping around the site the past couple of days. He came with several people, looking around and asking a lot of questions. Said he was a friend of yours, but I didn't believe him. I didn't want to disturb you, but he just came to me again and said he called you."
"Chen Jinhe, huh?"
"Yeah. He's not a scammer or some random drifter, is he?"
"I wouldn't call him a friend, but I do know him. Don't worry—he's the head of a big company, not a con artist."
"Alright then. What's he doing here? He asked to see project files multiple times. I refused. Then he kept prying, trying to get me to talk."
"Just brush him off. He's harmless. As a major company executive, he's just curious about the Qu Long Copper Mine."
"Okay. How's everything going in Huazhou? Will you be returning to the Tibet project?"
"Things are going smoothly here. How about your side?"
A long sigh came from the other end. "Captain Zhou called me the other day. He said the detailed exploration phase at Qu Long has been temporarily halted. The last drill hole is almost done. We'll be packing up soon and returning to Guizhou."
"Got it. I'll be heading back to Tibet in the coming days."
After hanging up, Li Tang looked up and saw He Runqi still playing with the large yellow dog wagging its tail happily.
After much consideration, Li Tang decided he needed to make the trip to Tibet and meet Chen Jinhe in person.
He had a big plan in mind.
He picked up the phone and called Luo Qinzhong's office. It rang for a long time before someone picked up.
"Hello, Luo Qinzhong speaking."
"Director Luo, I need to tell you something. There's an urgent matter in Tibet—I'd like to request a few days off."
"Go ahead. No need to file a formal leave. If anything comes up with the Yunyue Bauxite Project, I'll contact you right away."
"Alright. Thanks for understanding."
The Yunyue Bauxite Project was a joint effort between Huazhou Aluminum Plant and Wu Mining Exploration Company, with a technical consulting contract in place. The aluminum plant would pay Wu Mining a few thousand yuan for the services.
Wu Mining Exploration was an independently operating technical firm. Although affiliated with Wu Mining Group, it could take on outside projects, though it rarely did due to its low profile.
This kind of consulting arrangement fell within their operating scope. In reality, it was a workaround Qin Jianshe had created to allow Li Tang to earn some extra money.
Separately, Li Tang had signed a performance-based contract with the aluminum plant—unrelated to Wu Mining.
If he were to work with Zise Mining or other companies, he could follow a similar arrangement.
"You're heading to Tibet?" He Runqi had overheard the conversation.
"Yeah, I'm leaving right away. You stay here and keep an eye on this project. When I'm back, fill me in on anything I missed."
"Alright…" He Runqi looked disappointed.
Li Tang called for the driver that Luo Qinzhong had assigned to him and headed straight to Huazhou's provincial capital. He stayed the night there and caught a flight to Tibet the next morning.
Shortly after they left Tiemu Town, Ding Shaoying rushed down from the mountain, circled the building, and found no trace of Li Tang.
Coming outside, he saw He Runqi returning from town and quickly asked, "Where's Li Tang?"
"He just left—for Tibet."
Normally, He Runqi found Ding Shaoying intimidating. But now, seeing the man sweaty and out of breath, he couldn't help feeling nervous. "Is something wrong, Chief Engineer Ding?"
"Damn it!" Ding Shaoying slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "Why'd he leave at such a critical moment!"
"If it's urgent, you can call him—he hasn't been gone long."
"What's he going to Tibet for?"
"I'm not sure. Probably something urgent with the Qu Long Copper Mine. He's a leader—he's got a lot on his plate."
"Never mind, let him go."
The drilling would take a few more days to reach target depth. Then they'd need to send the core samples for chemical analysis to confirm if it was indeed bauxite.
It would take time. There was no point dragging Li Tang back just yet.
Ding Shaoying had actually brought down a small piece of core from the mountain, hoping to confirm with Li Tang whether it was bauxite.
Usually, bauxite that had undergone weathering and leaching was soft. But the suspected oolitic bauxite core he held was dense and hard.
While he hoped they had discovered bauxite, he also had doubts.
As someone obsessed with technical accuracy, he didn't want to wait. He wanted answers immediately.
Since Li Tang was gone, he looked up at He Runqi. He figured that if Li Tang had seen bauxite below 200 meters, then He Runqi probably had too.
"Expert He."
That title, once a sarcastic nickname from the Geological Institute's staff, now came with a surprising air of seriousness from Ding Shaoying.
He handed over the core sample. "Take a look—what kind of rock is this?"
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