Chapter 54: The Breakthrough
Not long after Xu Tiande left, technicians from the client's oil production team also arrived at the site.
They had also received instructions from above to pressure the construction team from Huahai Company. If this continued, with the pressure refusing to increase, there would be consequences.
Although the top leader, Pan Qingfeng, had signaled for them to stand down and leave it alone, what if the well construction was completed and the results were unsatisfactory? Wouldn't the people at the oil production plant be the ones taking the blame?
Perhaps because of the client-contractor dynamic, the young technician from the team spoke to Liu Shang in a very aggressive tone, immediately expressing doubts about his technical approach.
He even gave him a veiled threat, saying that if they continued to work like this, his company's follow-up contracts might disappear.
Although his words were mostly a bluff, they were enough to frighten Wang Wanlin and the others. But for Liu Shang, whose mind was clear, it meant nothing at all.
When it came to future contracts, Pan Qingfeng and the other directors at the plant might have some say, but a mere technician from a field team was far too insignificant.
So, Liu Shang politely shut him down with a smile. "If you at Party A truly have an objection, then fine. As long as the factory's technical department gives the word, we will immediately rectify and make adjustments."
"But if they haven't? Then I'm sorry, but we will maintain our current technical approach."
Frustrated, the technician from Party A had no choice but to leave in a huff.
***
In the middle of the night, Liu Shang did not go to bed at his usual time. Instead, he sat there, fully dressed, waiting.
Seeing him like this, squad leader Wang Wanlin asked kindly:
"Liu Shang, why aren't you going to sleep?"
"Don't worry, I'll personally supervise the construction overnight. There will be absolutely no problems!"
Liu Shang just shook his head and smiled, not offering much of an explanation.
According to the distance between the injection and production wells he had calculated, and the breakthrough speed of his chemical system, the effects should appear sometime tonight.
Moreover, judging from the on-site pressure response, the reading, after being completely stable, had started showing sawtooth-like, irregular, rapid fluctuations.
This further confirmed his theory.
Sure enough, at around 11:30 PM, the construction pressure suddenly surged by 3 to 4 megapascals. Then, less than ten minutes later, it abruptly dropped by 4 to 5 megapascals.
This time, Wang Wanlin started to panic, but under Liu Shang's firm signal, he kept the equipment running and continued the construction without stopping.
At that moment, from their construction site, Liu Shang and the others saw the lights in the not-so-distant fifth oil production team's quarters, which had been dark, suddenly blaze to life.
Then, a number of vehicles started one after another, speeding away from the base in all directions like scattered fireflies.
About ten minutes later, several vehicles, led by Han Ping, the captain of the oil production team, sped toward Liu Shang's location.
Liu Shang naturally went out to greet them.
"Are you the lead technician here?" Han Ping demanded.
"The oil well to the south, associated with your profile control well, is having a blowout!"
"It must be that the chemicals you injected from this well have broken through. You must stop construction immediately and take emergency measures!"
Perhaps due to nervousness, Han Ping, with sweat beading on his forehead, barked out the order.
However, to everyone's surprise, Liu Shang, who remained as confident and steady as Mount Tai, refused his command.
"I'm terribly sorry."
"Our construction can't stop, and it won't stop."
"You!"
Stunned by Liu Shang's resolute rejection, Han Ping immediately lost his temper. The men behind him began to criticize Liu Shang anxiously.
"What's the matter with you? Do you have any idea what you're doing?"
"You'd better recognize your position!"
"Our captain isn't discussing this with you, he's giving you an order! Do you understand what an order is?"
"The well in the south is still gushing oil, and it likely contains your poisonous agent! If there are safety and environmental issues, will you take responsibility?"
Facing their accusations, Liu Shang stared back at them with an unwavering gaze. "We are the construction unit, and all our procedures are in order. If something goes wrong, we will naturally be held accountable."
"And if you want to talk about orders, I'm sorry, but our work this time is under the direct jurisdiction of the factory's geological and engineering departments. Your team does not have the authority to order us to stop."
After saying this, Liu Shang turned his head to look at Captain Han Ping, whose face had become extremely ugly.
Then, his entire demeanor changed, and he smiled in a very friendly manner.
"Captain Han, you're always talking about how much pressure you're under every day and how you need to increase your oil production."
"You pray for the God of Wealth to visit every day, but now that he has come knocking on your door, why are you suddenly so intimidated?"
Hearing this, Han Ping couldn't help but frown. For some reason, the anger that had been simmering in his heart began to cool.
At this time, Liu Shang continued, "If you insist on me stopping work, I can stop right now."
"However, I bet that before tomorrow morning, you will have received more than one 'friendly' scolding from Director Pan because of it."
"If I'm not mistaken, many of the factory leaders have already gotten the news and are rushing here as we speak."
"If you trust me, Captain Han, just stay calm and wait here with me."
"This well is definitely a great blessing for you and your oil production team!"
Liu Shang's seemingly plain words, in Han Ping's ears at that moment, seemed to hold a magical power, leaving him completely unable to make a decision.
After about a minute of silence, Han Ping sighed. "But the southern well is gushing oil right now. The entire well site is covered in it. We can't just let it keep spraying like this, can we?"
Liu Shang smiled. Though he hadn't been to the well site, he spoke as if he had seen everything clearly, and immediately gave his recommendation.
"It's very simple. Shut down the pumping unit, then open the oil pipeline directly. Let all the oil in the wellbore flow into the pipeline."
"As for the oil spill at the well site, there shouldn't be much. You can handle it with your normal procedures."
"Don't worry, all that's coming out of that well is crude oil, and the kind with a very low water content at that. It doesn't contain our chemicals."
"And taking a step back, even if our agent was present, it wouldn't have any impact on the crude oil dehydration process after entering the pipeline and the joint station."
"That's because of its chemical mechanism on one hand, and its minuscule quantity on the other. I'm sure you're aware of this, Captain Han."
"If I'm right, this well will continue to gush oil for a few days. And maybe after those few days, you'll be smiling and inviting me for a drink."
---
⭐ $5 Tier – Early Access!
Stay 50 chapters ahead of public releases on RoyalRoad and Scribble Hub.
Latest available chapter: 105.
Chapters are uploaded as soon as they're completed, so you'll always be ahead of the curve.
By joining, you'll be directly supporting the story while enjoying exclusive early access.
🔗 Patreon link is in My Profile/About.
⚠️ Please select your membership carefully, as I have multiple novels ongoing.
🍎 If you're on Apple, consider subscribing through your browser instead — it's cheaper for you, and I'll receive payments faster.