Chapter 94: Something Fishy
"Li Tang?"
"Isn't he the same Li Tang who worked with our Zise Metallurgical Research Institute and proposed the bioleaching solution?"
"Our mine was able to build a 10,000-ton bioleaching plant so quickly—Li Tang deserves a lot of credit!"
"He's a great researcher, no doubt. But is he really that amazing when it comes to mineral exploration?"
Everyone around the meeting table reacted as soon as they heard the name "Li Tang."
They might not have met him in person, but they had definitely heard of him.
They had all followed the national television reports on the Qu Long Copper Mine—being mining professionals, how could they not?
And they'd heard the name "Li Tang" in those reports.
But now, they were being asked to make a major investment decision based solely on a prospecting concept proposed by this one person. Naturally, they were cautious.
"It hasn't been easy for us to get Li Tang involved,"
Chen Jinhe said with emotion. "This could be a turning point for Zise Mining—a chance to expand beyond Jian'an Province, to significantly boost our copper reserves, and to get ahead in the resource game! If we don't invest in exploration now, in a few years we'll have to pay ten or a hundred times more just to acquire the same mineral rights!"
After his passionate speech, everyone at the table could sense how determined he was.
Yao Zhenyu, who came from a technical background at the Geological Bureau, had already studied the report in detail.
"President Chen, this report says the target is 15 million tons of copper metal—more than Qu Long. Is that even realistic?"
Chen Jinhe didn't know for sure, but since he had already decided to trust Li Tang, he felt there was no point in doubting now.
"I believe in the value of this report!"
"The project area is clearly defined. But instead of following the same mineral belt as Qu Long in Gongka County, this location is over 1,000 kilometers away. For porphyry-type copper deposits, identifying ore-bearing rock bodies is extremely difficult. And that area is a complete no-man's land. With such a large area to cover, the challenges are enormous."
Yao Zhenyu took a deep breath. "Honestly, I feel uneasy."
"We're not here to debate the technical details today," Chen Jinhe reminded them.
Hu Shenwu, representing the county's stake in the company, spoke with a big grin,
"Since President Chen is so confident, let's just vote. I support launching the project!"
Everyone raised their hands.
At Zise Mining, internal discussions could be lively—even confrontational. But when it came time for key decisions, they always aligned and supported one another.
That was part of their company culture.
The project was approved without issue. After the meeting, people began gathering their notes and leaving the room.
"President Chen!"
Yao Zhenyu called out, signaling for Chen Jinhe to stay behind.
"Come to my office," Chen said. He already had a feeling what this was about, and led the way into the adjacent room.
Yao entered what was now marked "Chairman's Office" instead of "General Manager," and closed the door behind him.
"President Chen—sorry, Chairman—about the Tibet prospecting project, I was thinking our own Geological Bureau could take it on. Your old unit, after all, has a Class A qualification for solid mineral exploration and is authorized to work outside the province."
"Sit down."
Chen Jinhe smiled kindly and sat down, then said slowly:
"Zise Copper-Gold Mine was discovered by our Geological Bureau—it was a huge achievement. The exploration and mining rights originally belonged to the Bureau. Later, when Zise Mining was founded to operate the mine more effectively, those rights were transferred from the Bureau. Over the years, we've had major support from the county government. That's what made Zise Mining what it is today."
He patted his chest earnestly.
"I come from the Geological Bureau. I'll always be grateful. Many of our employees are also former Bureau staff. I know they feel the same way. Every time we needed exploration work done, we always invited the Bureau."
The more Yao listened, the more uneasy he became.
It sounded like Chen wasn't planning to give the project to the Bureau this time.
"This is a big project," Yao reminded him. "The preliminary exploration budget is 5 million, and the second phase—detailed exploration—is 30 million. That's massive!"
Chen Jinhe was practically copying Wu Mining's playbook for Qu Long.
"With a project this size, my first thought was, of course, the Geological Bureau. But…"
Seeing Chen's frown deepen, Yao sensed danger and quickly asked,
"Is there a problem on the company's end?"
"No, it's not about the company."
Chen removed his notebook and picked up the feasibility report from the desk. He flipped to a certain page and stared at a specific paragraph, his expression puzzled.
"Open the overview section. I'm not sure if Li Tang did this on purpose or not—but in this report, he refers to the project site as the 'Western District.'"
He flipped to another section—Project Objectives.
"Here again, it states the estimated copper resource for the Western District is 15 million tons!"
"Why would he label it as the Western District?"
Yao had noticed that too, but hadn't thought much of it—until now.
But now that Chen brought it up, it felt suspicious.
Because the report only mentioned the "Western District."
So where was the "Eastern District"?
Nowhere in the report was it mentioned.
The two men, both with technical backgrounds, sat and pored over the document. The more they read, the more puzzled they became.
Could it be a typo?
But the report was professionally written—structured, precise, and not a single punctuation mark out of place.
It was impossible that Li Tang had made the same "mistake" over and over, inserting "Western District" by accident.
"Li Tang isn't someone who makes careless mistakes,"
Chen said, relying on his instincts.
"Then it must have been deliberate!"
Yao said firmly. "Is this report some kind of trap?"
"I don't know," Chen admitted, completely at a loss.
"Is Li Tang playing games with us? Is he hiding something?"
Yao was getting agitated. "Is this how he treats a supposedly honest partnership?"
"Don't jump to conclusions just yet."
Chen Jinhe spread the report out on the desk again, leaning in for a closer look. After a long moment, he muttered,
"I know Li Tang values this collaboration. Not long ago, I called him while I was in Tibet doing a field visit. He flew out to meet me face-to-face. That shows he takes us seriously. If we're being honest with each other, why would he plant this little trick in the report? What is he trying to say? What's his motive?"
Yao had no answer.
He'd never even met Li Tang. There was no way to judge his character.
SLAP!
Chen suddenly smacked the table.
"I remember now!"
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