Black Gold 1983

Chapter 12 Making Money Through Policy

"I've already said it, I'm here to make a fortune too."

Renye pointed in the direction of the cave entrance: "I've been watching that place you dug for a long time. I came today to check on the situation, but I didn't expect you to knock me out with one blow."

Ma Maocai said in a low voice, "You're lurking around the cave entrance like a ghost, who knows what you're up to?"

"Aren't you the ones acting suspiciously?"

Ma Maocai immediately bristled, gripping his pickaxe and taking half a step forward: "Isn't it because you mines forced us into this? We need to feed our families, we can't grow anything on the land, and we have no way to find work outside. How are we supposed to survive if we don't secretly dig up some coal to exchange for money!"

Renye remained calm, simply nodding slightly, his tone turning serious: "I understand. The land collapsed, crops can't be planted, and compensation can't be obtained. Anyone would be anxious."

He looked up at Ma Maocai and said seriously, "But what you're doing is courting death. Illegally mining state-owned mines means you could spend the rest of your life in jail if you get caught. You won't make any money, and you'll ruin your family first."

"If you want to make money, I'll show you the right way, so you don't have to hide and can make big money openly and honestly."

Ma Tiejun stubbed out his cigarette, rubbed it on the sole of his shoe, and looked up at Ren Ye: "You're from the mine, why should we trust you? We brothers may be doing shady business, but we all have families to support."

"Mao Cai has three kids, the youngest's still breastfeeding. Xiao Jun just got engaged, but the dowry hasn't been raised yet. Uncle De Hou has a bad back and has to work hard to get down the mine. I don't care if I go to jail myself, I can't let them go down with me. If you're sent by the mine, and you trick me into revealing information today, you can take us all down tomorrow. How am I supposed to explain that to their families?"

There was a moment of silence in the dugout.

Renye looked into Ma Tiejun's eyes and changed his address: "Brother Tiejun. You don't need to believe me, you only need to believe in money."

Renye pointed to the cave entrance: "I'm asking you, how deep is this hole you dug?"

Ma Tiejun hesitated for a moment, then said, "About twenty meters."

"Have we reached the coal seam yet?"

"arrive."

"How thick?"

"Less than a meter."

"Why didn't you keep digging deeper?"

"We've reached hard rock; there's no point in digging any deeper. Besides, the wind won't be able to get through, the roof won't be stable, and it's easy for it to collapse. It's not worth risking your life."

Renye nodded: "What you're digging out now is a thin coal seam on the hanging wall of the fault."

Renye picked up a piece of broken stone from the ground and drew a simple cross-section diagram on the ground: "The location you are currently at is right on the hanging wall of a fault. The coal in the hanging wall is lean coal. But below the lean coal, there is a layer of sandstone less than twenty meters thick, and below that, there is coking coal in the footwall. That layer of coal is at least two and a half meters thick, with a caking index of over eighty, and it is a high-quality raw material used for steelmaking."

After drawing on the ground, he looked up at the group and said, "In other words, what you're digging now is the least valuable layer underground. The real treasure is forty or fifty meters below your feet."

The group looked at each other, their eyes filled with doubt.

Ma Maocai spoke first: "How do you know so much about this?"

"Because I have the exploration report from the Provincial Coalfield Geological Bureau." Renye said this without batting an eye.

He didn't have the report in his possession, as it was produced in the late 1990s, but he knew the conclusion was enough.

"Do you think you're the mine manager's son and can get exploration reports?" Ma Maocai didn't believe it.

Renye glanced at him and smiled, "Although I'm not the mine manager's son, my father, Ren Shouyi, was the former captain of the No. 2 coal mining team at Hongxing Mine. You should know about the roof collapse accident in the West No. 2 mining area three years ago, right? My father was injured in that accident. He knows more about things at the mine than anyone else."

"Is your father benevolent and righteous?" Ma Tiejun's expression shifted.

Renye nodded slightly: "Do you know him?"

The name Ren Shouyi carries some weight in the Hongxing Mine area.

Three years ago, during the roof collapse, Ren Shouyi broke his leg while trying to save his fellow workers. People for miles around had heard about it.

Because of this incident, the mine awarded him a certificate of "Model of Selflessness in Saving Others," and the big red notice was posted on the mine's bulletin board for a long time.

Ma Tiejun nodded, his voice softening considerably: "My brother used to work for your father. During that roof collapse, it was your father who pulled him out, which saved his life."

Upon hearing this, Ma Xiaojun perked up, hoisted Hu Xianfeng onto his shoulder, and chuckled, "So you're Uncle Shouyi's kid! Um... I knocked you out with a stick earlier, sorry, sorry, I didn't know my own strength!"

Renye smirked and rubbed the back of his head: "So it was you who did it. I'll have to knock it back another day."

Ma Xiaojun immediately waved his hand and smiled apologetically: "No, no, no! My head isn't as strong as yours. If I really got hit, I'd be bedridden for three days!"

Ma Maocai waved his hand impatiently: "What's the use of saying all this? In the end, you're still a miner's son, not one of us. If we let you go today, you'll go to the mine and report us, and we'll all be finished."

That hits the nail on the head.

All four of them looked at Renye, waiting for his answer.

Renye slowly took a Daqianmen cigarette from Ma Tiejun's hand, lit it, took a puff, and exhaled the smoke from his nose, which slowly dispersed in front of the group.

"What good would it do me to report this? Would the mine give me a banner of appreciation or a bonus?"

Renye looked at the silent group and continued, "But if I don't go and report this, and instead partner with you to dig out that layer of coking coal, how much will I get? Have you thought about that?"

After hearing this, the four of them looked at each other and fell silent.

Ma Maocai narrowed his eyes, asking suspiciously, "Are you so certain there's a layer of coking coal underneath?"

Renye flicked his cigarette ash, ignoring his question, and instead asked, "Do you know why I dared to tell you there was coking coal down there?"

The group exchanged glances, waiting for what would happen next.

"Because even if I told you, the few of you wouldn't be able to dig it out. To get the coking coal layer below, you have to drill holes and blast open the siderite sandstone layer above. Otherwise, don't even think about it."

"Drilling holes and setting off explosives?" Ma Maocai kicked a pebble at his feet in frustration, slamming his pickaxe into the ground. "What the hell are you talking about! You think you're just messing with us? Forget about how we got the explosives, even if we did, the moment we hear a bang, the mine patrol will be here, and we'll all be thrown in jail!"

Ma Tiejun didn't speak, his brows furrowed. He looked at Ren Ye and said, "Since you dare to say that, you must have a way. Don't keep it to yourself."

Renye looked at the anxious and unwilling expressions of the group and slowly exhaled a puff of smoke: "We definitely have to blow it up. Not only do we have to blow it up, but we also have to do it legally and compliantly."

Ma Maocai's eyes widened, and he took a step forward, his tone still sharp, but less hostile, more filled with doubt: "Legal blasting? What are you talking about! This mine is state-owned; we ordinary people don't even have a foothold there. Legal mining? Unless the sun rises in the west!"

Ma Xiaojun nodded in agreement, his tone full of helplessness: "Exactly! We're afraid of getting caught even if we're secretly mining coal, let alone blasting openly! That's practically suicide!"

Renye smiled and said, "What you're thinking about now is swinging pickaxes and illegally mining coal, trying to earn a living through physical labor. But the real money isn't in the coal, it's in the connections. What I'm going to show you is how to make money through government policies."