Chapter 253: It turns out it was all a joy in vain

It was dark, and Zhao Dequan still hadn't brought the drilling rig. Guo Wei said he wanted to go back to the government construction site; he had been busy at the water plant construction site all day and didn't know what progress had been made at the government construction site.

Huang Weiwei was already exhausted. She only ate a mouthful of rice the size of an egg when eating at Sun Demao's construction site at noon. She had been resting in the car all afternoon and hadn't come down. Even when County Magistrate Liu came, she didn't show her face.

I felt guilty. She was a young lady of a wealthy family, staying in the dusty, cold, and desolate countryside with me for a whole day. How much patience did that require? Although she had been to the countryside and worked as a social education cadre, she had only been sitting in the office of Chengguan Town, feeling the scenery of the countryside.

Professor Xu sat on his box, the evening wind blowing his gray hair, looking desolate in the chilly late autumn twilight.

Zhou Zhouzhou and his group sat around Professor Xu, smoking listlessly, chatting about family matters.

I squatted down in front of Professor Xu and said with concern: "Professor Xu, why don't we go back to the county first? It looks like the drilling rig won't come tonight."

"Wait a little longer. Anyway, going back is just resting, so it's better to rest here," Professor Xu looked at me and said worriedly: "As long as the drilling rig arrives, we'll start drilling tonight. I have no bottom in my heart."

The construction site lit up. Qian Youyu had made all preparations long ago. Before the work started, he had already set up the wires to the construction site.

"No rush, no rush," I comforted him: "Actually, whether there is a gold mine or not is not important. People, you know, don't give up until they reach the Yellow River. I just want to see if there is a big gold mine underground."

"I'm the same as you, Little Chen. In our profession, as long as we hear there is a mine somewhere, the blood in our whole body seems to flow backward. Besides, in Central Province, there has never been a record of a gold mine. If a gold mine is surveyed here, wouldn't it break the strange circle of no gold in the Central Province?" Professor Xu looked at me seriously, full of sincerity and hope.

I estimated it would be difficult to let this old man go back to the county town, but staying in this place, there wasn't even a place to shelter from the wind. If he got sick, I would be in big trouble! He was the provincial treasure of Central Province, and I couldn't afford to offend him!

Just when I was irritable and at a loss, I heard Zhao Dequan's joyful shout: "Leader, I'm back!"

Zhao Dequan stood on a dilapidated tractor like a general, waving his hands. The tractor, emitting black smoke, roared with effort and stopped in front of me.

He had found a drilling rig for digging wells in the countryside, an old drilling rig driven by the tractor's power.

"Zhao Dequan, look what you've found?" I walked around the tractor, seriously doubting that the dilapidated machine in front of me could drill out a gold mine.

Zhao Dequan spread his hands and defended aggrievedly: "I ran to three villages before I found them. Leader, don't look at how broken it is; drilling tens of meters or a hundred meters is no problem."

"Can it?" I still didn't believe it. I turned to ask Professor Xu for his opinion.

Professor Xu said helplessly: "Just make do with it."

He directed Zhou Zhouzhou and the others to work together, set the drilling rig on a flat place, and started drilling with a roar.

I watched for a while, reached into my pocket to take out a cigarette, but took out a flattened cigarette box. Remembering that there was another box of cigarettes in my bag in the car, I walked toward the car parked on the side of the road.

Huang Weiwei was listening to music in the car with her eyes closed. The light on the roof of the car was on, shining on her tired face, making her look incomparably haggard.

I knocked on the car window. She opened her eyes, saw it was me, smiled sweetly, and opened the car door from the inside.

"Hungry, right?" I asked, taking a cigarette out of my bag.

"It's fine," she said lightly, looking at me: "Do you usually work like this? Day and night?"

She asked me, her face showing worry.

"Working in the countryside is like this, there are no rules in the city. When it's done, it's done; when it's not done, keep doing it. There is no set time," I said, pulling out a cigarette and signaling her to roll down the car window.

"Working in the township is still hard," she sighed, handing me a bottle of water: "I saw you didn't even drink a sip of water all afternoon."

"They didn't drink either," I pointed to the group of people by the drilling rig in the distance: "Professor Xu is seventy years old, and he's the same as us. What complaints can I have?"

She sighed and reached out to smooth my messy hair.

I immediately felt a warmth coming over, and my heart felt as soft as water.

"You don't even ask about Xue Bing," she tilted her head, letting her black hair fall like water across her chest.

"Ask what?"

"Ask why I called her here."

"You called her here, naturally you have your reasons," I said: "Where is she?"

"She went back. You still want her to stay here and accompany you?" she pouted, unhappy: "Do you hope she stays here and accompanies you?"

"How could that be!" I said firmly: "With you here, I feel the world is here. Who else can replace you?"

Huang Weiwei's eyes turned red. During this time, she always liked to be sentimental. Women, as long as they are trapped by love, cannot see black and white clearly.

She leaned her head over, leaned on my shoulder, and held one of my hands, saying: "Feng, I want to sleep."

"Sleep," I patted her back: "Close the car door, I'll go for a moment."

"You haven't asked me yet."

"I won't ask. Tell me when you've rested well." I opened the car door, got out, closed the car door tightly, and returned to the drilling rig where the machine was roaring.

A few flashlight beams shone over. In the hazy light and shadow, Yue Bai walked gracefully. Behind her, several women followed, carrying a few baskets of food.

Qian Youyu jumped up like a frightened rabbit, jumped to Yue Bai in a few steps, and said in surprise: "Who told you to come?"

Yue Bai rolled her eyes at him, walked to the drilling rig, and shouted: "Stop, eat something, everyone is hungry, right?"

Zhao Dequan came over with a grin and said: "Sister-in-law is still the best, she cares about me. Even brought food. Unlike some people."

Yue Bai chuckled and said: "Dequan, you have the most to say. Why don't you come and eat quickly."

The machine stopped. The women took out the food from the baskets: a bowl of old pumpkin, a bowl of cured meat, a bowl of dried mushrooms fried with dried chili, and several small dishes, emitting a mouth-watering fragrance.

The food was sent by the women of Laoyingzui Village. After Yue Bai saw the construction site in the afternoon, she quietly returned to the village to organize these women to prepare this sumptuous dinner for us.

I suddenly remembered that Huang Weiwei was still in the car, so I got up and said: "You eat first, I'll go call someone."

Zhao Dequan said with a grin: "Leader, you go quickly. I know there is a beauty in your car. If the beauty doesn't come, we won't eat."

Yue Bai's face seemed to twist, she snatched the chopsticks from Zhao Dequan's hand and said: "If you don't go home to eat, what are you doing here begging for food? There's no share for you."

Zhao Dequan scratched the back of his head and said aggrievedly: "I ran all afternoon looking for a drilling rig, and I didn't even get a bite to eat. It's inhumane."

"If you say one more word, you won't get any food," Yue Bai smiled, stuffed the chopsticks into his hand: "Why don't you go shine the flashlight for Town Mayor Chen?"

Zhao Dequan immediately took the flashlight and followed behind me, saying cleverly: "Leader, I'll shine the light for you."

I ignored him and walked forward. He followed closely behind me and whispered: "Town Mayor Chen, if there is really a gold mine here, you have to let me be a miner leader."

"No problem," I answered him very readily.

"Not joking, right?"

"Who is joking with you? I am an official, can an official joke casually?"

"Also. The officials I know, the bigger the official, the less they joke. Town Mayor Chen, you are a big official now. You shouldn't joke with me."

"Rest assured!"

Zhao Dequan was overjoyed, following behind me step by step, shining the flashlight to illuminate the way for me.

After I led Huang Weiwei to the drilling rig, by the light, everyone prepared to eat.

Professor Xu drank a mouthful of soup with a sad face and put down the bowl.

I knew the old man must have something on his mind, so I leaned over and said: "Professor Xu, please eat a little more."

"I won't eat, you guys eat." He walked to one side alone, looked up at the sky, and said nothing.

I walked to his side with a rice bowl and took a bite of rice: "Professor Xu, let's go back to the county after eating, and drill tomorrow."

"No need," Professor Xu said slowly: "Just now the drilling rig drilled ten meters deep, and the geological structure that came out doesn't look like there are signs of a gold mine."

My heart suddenly cooled, just like a basin of burning fire suddenly being poured with a basin of cold water.

"Drill more, drill to fifty meters deep before making a conclusion." Professor Xu saw my disappointment and comforted me instead.

"Drill overnight?"

"Drill overnight," Professor Xu sighed and said: "Leave Zhouzhou here to help, and everyone else go back."

"Good!" I expressed my position: "I'll leave Zhao Dequan here too, let him watch, if there is anything, just order him to do it."

I looked back at them. The men and women under the light were eating quietly, not noticing Professor Xu's disappointment at all. ===== CHAPTER 254 =====