Chapter 241: The Secret of the Old Gold Mine

No matter how complicated things were, Qin Hengzhi could no longer remove her from his heart.

To put it a bit cheesily, shouldn't one say that unless his heart was also removed along with her?

Qin Hengzhi curled the corners of his mouth, his expression calm; naturally, he couldn't say such things out loud. While waiting for the food to be served, he took a kraft paper file bag out of his briefcase.

He said in a low voice, "I pulled this from the Archives Bureau. Part of it was organized by you, and it was pulled out along with the materials related to the old gold mine."

He paused, then lowered his voice further to explain to Lu Qiao: "The old gold mine is recorded, but the records are incomplete. The exploration team from last month came for this reason too. They started exploring in the spring and have been wandering in the mountains for three months, but they didn't find it and had to continue heading north."

Lu Qiao really didn't know about this.

But the exploration team's overall strength and level were also very high, so how could they not have found it?

Lu Qiao carefully recalled the strange aspects of that terrain.

Her senses were sharp, and now that she thought about it, it was indeed quite different from other places.

That spot was not on flat ground.

It was under a hillside covered in bushes.

Behind it was a rocky mountain; thinking about it, the geographical location must be special.

But since it had been discovered, they should continue to explore the surrounding area later.

So the Archives Bureau also had secret materials.

Since everything that should and shouldn't be said had been said, there was no need to be too secretive.

It stood to reason that Qin Hengzhi also knew.

Moreover, it was already late August; no matter what was inside the boxes in the reed marsh, they should be salvaged sooner rather than later.

Lu Qiao told him directly in a low voice: "If you trust me, apply for a few sets of diving equipment and conduct a thorough survey in that reed marsh area, especially in the area level with the big poplar tree on the steps."

Qin Hengzhi was stunned for a moment.

There was indeed information about the Red Star Lake having a wharf at that time, from which one could reach Songhe City.

It was exactly what Qiao had organized.

After water transport back then, one could change routes from there and reach Donghai City directly.

This was a transport line that worked by both water and land.

Qin Hengzhi was silent for a moment, then handed the materials to Lu Qiao.

Seeing the word "Confidential" printed on the top right corner, Lu Qiao knew that, by rights, she was not qualified to see it.

Since it had been given to her, she might as well take a look.

Lu Qiao opened the file bag and flipped through the materials quickly.

Part of it was what she had specifically organized regarding the wharf at Red Star Lake in the early years, but there was nothing about the old gold mine, yet it was here.

Although it wasn't very detailed, it did contain the origins of the gold mine and the whereabouts of the gold; sure enough, it had all been stolen by the Japanese.

But for some reason, it hadn't been done openly in the later stages; it remained sneaky.

However, there was a piece of information: the person in charge of the old gold mine was a nobleman from Japan at the time, and it seemed his family's influence was quite large.

Lu Qiao felt that this must have been them secretly transporting it to their own family; in other words, they had appropriated it for themselves.

That was why there were no records in many of the materials.

Then, all the insiders here were silenced.

But now these were all things of the past. Recalling their stronghold in the city, Lu Qiao asked: "They must have a foothold in the city; has this been found?"

Qin Hengzhi nodded: "It has been found, but the house has been converted into family quarters and has already been divided among many families."

At this moment, the dishes Qin Hengzhi ordered were served.

The two of them also stopped their conversation.

There was braised silver carp, made from fish caught that very day; it was very fresh.

Refreshing northern-style big sheet jelly, stewed chicken with mushrooms, sweet and sour pork ribs, and a seaweed egg drop soup.

Qin Hengzhi ordered small portions for everything.

The two of them didn't pack anything this time and ate everything clean.

If you're on a date, it has to look like a date.

On the evening of early summer, the heat had not yet completely dissipated, but the window facing the river was open, and a breeze carrying moisture blew in, dispersing the lingering aroma of food in the private room.

The two of them didn't mention the old gold mine or Red Star Lake.

The small square table in front of them was cleared, leaving only two exquisite teacups containing warm jasmine tea.

Outside the window, the wide river surface shimmered with fine golden light under the sunset, and a few barges dragging long black smoke moved slowly upstream, emitting a dull "chug-chug" sound.

In the distance, the city's silhouette appeared somewhat hazy in the twilight.

Lu Qiao looked at the river, her voice carrying a hint of post-meal lazy satisfaction: "This fish was braised really well today, even fresher and more tender than what my sister-in-law makes."

Then she turned her face, the corners of her eyes curving into a playful arc: "Especially the fish head, do you really not like eating it?"

This was cold-water silver carp, and the fish head tasted extremely delicious.

Nowadays, the chefs at state-run restaurants were all very skilled and had their own unique specialties.

Although it was the 1970s, Lu Qiao, who came from the apocalypse, felt that everything she ate was fragrant.

Not to mention that the places Qin Hengzhi took her to were all good.

Qin Hengzhi smiled and also looked at the river. He didn't pick up on her teasing, but instead said with a leisurely expression: "Just now at the wharf, I saw two children using a canned food jar to catch small fish and shrimp in the shallow water by the river. Their pant legs were rolled up high, and they were splattered with mud, which reminded me of my childhood—specifically, when I was six years old, the first time I followed my grandfather into the wild. The place where the troops were stationed at the time was a village.

The children in the village took me to catch loaches. It was my first time catching loaches. I had read books and knew the loach's morphological characteristics and its living habits. I was clear about all the information regarding it, and I had seen live ones at home.

But I really didn't know that the feeling of a loach caught from the mud in one's hand would be like that. When the loach struggled desperately in my palm, I was actually so scared that I sat down in the muddy water..."

Lu Qiao raised an eyebrow.

That was normal; before that thing mutated, it was slippery and slimy, just like a small snake.

Not to mention that Qin Hengzhi was only six years old.

But because he was recounting childhood memories in such a gentle voice, Lu Qiao couldn't help but soften as well.

What should she say?

Her childhood?

It didn't seem very appropriate.

Lu Qiao said slowly: "Catching loaches... that's quite interesting. I once had a dream. In the dream, I saw a loach that was originally very small turn into the thickness of a water bucket, about thirty meters long, stirring up trouble in a big river just like this. Its mouth was very large and could swallow a person in one gulp. Later, someone killed the big loach, then dragged it onto the shore, lit a fire, and roasted the meat to eat. It was edible, just a bit fishy, but the quantity was large and filling..."

Qin Hengzhi:...

Is this how you chat?

He raised an eyebrow and said slowly: "It sounds more like a myth, if you replace the loach with a dragon."

Lu Qiao hurriedly nodded in agreement, and she giggled.

Qin Hengzhi took Lu Qiao's hand, his gaze gentle: "Let's go for a walk by the river."

Lu Qiao didn't expect that Red Star Lake would be under martial law the next day.

But before the martial law, Qin Hengzhi had sent over two buckets of fish.

There were both big and small fish.