Chapter 278: Discovery of Copper Ore

Zhu Yong stopped his steps and looked at those mountain rocks.

The rocks' colors were a bit reddish, a bit greenish, unlike ordinary stones.

He walked over, picked up a green stone, hefted it, and found it heavier than an ordinary stone.

"Prince, what is this?" Royal Guard Captain Zhang Wu came over and asked.

Zhu Yong examined the stone in his hand, then glanced at the distant outcrop, and said naively, "Copper ore, this must be copper ore."

Zhang Wu was startled, then exclaimed happily, "Really? Prince, how did you know?"

"The map given by White-bearded Old Man shows that stones near copper ore have this color and this weight. Take it and show Zhao Mian back home," Zhu Yong handed the ore to Zhang Wu and said.

Zhang Wu carefully wrapped the ore and slipped it into his chest.

Zhu Yong took a few more steps forward, picked up several different stones, and inspected them one by one.

Some were green, some blue, some red.

The green ones were malachite, the blue ones were blue copper ore, the red ones were red copper ore.

They were all copper ore.

Moreover, judging by the exposure, the whole mountain was copper ore; no digging needed, just pick them up.

"Heaven above..." the soldiers behind also stared dumbfounded.

Zhu Yong turned back, looked at their astonished faces, and laughed naively, "Send someone back to report that we've found copper ore, and there's so much we can just pick it off the ground."

A few soldiers bolted away.

At dusk, the news reached the camp, and the whole camp boiled with excitement.

Zhao Mian arrived with the craftsmen through the night, and upon seeing the exposed ore, he trembled with excitement.

"Prince! This is real, this is genuine copper ore! And its purity is extremely high! Heaven above! If we mine it, it'll last us for hundreds of years!" Zhao Mian knelt on the ground, cradling the ore, tears streaming.

Zhu Yong helped him up and said, "Enough, stop kneeling. Starting tomorrow, begin surveying, map the vein's direction, see where it's suitable for extraction and where to build smelting furnaces."

"Yes! I obey!"

In the days that followed, the craftsmen were bustling with activity.

Surveying, mapping, sampling, recording.

Good news arrived every day.

"Prince! Another vein was discovered in the north, larger than this one!"

"Prince! The ore in the west has higher purity, up to thirty percent!"

"Prince! The mountain's ore is countless; a casual dig yields millions of jin!"

Zhu Yong listened to these reports daily, his face always bearing a naive smile.

Yet his mind was thinking of something else.

The copper ore was found; next comes extraction, smelting, and transport back.

And then?

With copper, we can make conductors and coils.

With conductors and coils, we can build generators and motors.

With generators and motors, we can...

electric lights, telephones, trams, electric welding, electrolysis...

He stood on the hillside, watching the endless mountain range of ore, the busy craftsmen, and the camp gradually taking shape.

The evening glow on the horizon burned like fire, dyeing the whole mountain golden‑red.

Footsteps came from behind.

Zhang Wu walked over, speaking softly, "Prince, night is falling, let's return."

Zhu Yong nodded, turned and walked back.

After a few steps, he suddenly asked, "Zhang Wu, tell me, is Australia big or not?"

Zhang Wu was momentarily stunned, then said, "Big, definitely big, bigger than any of the islands we've crossed."

"Hmm, big," Zhu Yong said, "the bigger, the better; big places have more good things."

Zhang Wu scratched his head, not quite understanding the Prince's meaning.

Zhu Yong gave no explanation, folded his arms, and walked slowly toward the camp.

In the camp, cooking smoke curled, and the aroma of food drifted outward.

The craftsmen and soldiers sat together, sipping broth, gnawing kangaroo meat, chatting and laughing.

Zhu Yong stood before the great tent, watching them.

They were living people, who had followed him from Great Ming across the seas to this untouched land.

They didn't know what a generator was, nor what a power line was.

But they knew that Prince Wu had sent them to find copper ore, and they had succeeded; returning would bring promotion, wealth, and honor to their families.

That's enough.

Zhu Yong smiled, lifted the tent flap, and went inside.

Inside, Xiao Zhu had already set out the food.

"Prince, today we have kangaroo soup, grilled fish, and wild vegetables," Xiao Zhu said.

Zhu Yong sat down, picked up his chopsticks, and ate heartily.

While eating, he suddenly asked, "Xiao Zhu, when can we go back?"

Xiao Zhu was startled, "Prince, missing home?"

"Hmm, I miss Huanhuan, I miss Jiong Jiong, I miss Guanyin Nu," Zhu Yong said naively.

Xiao Zhu's eyes reddened slightly as he said, "Prince, we've found copper ore; we can return soon."

Zhu Rong nodded and continued eating.

After finishing his meal, he stepped out of the big tent and stood outside, looking at the night sky.

The night sky over Australia was especially clear, the stars packed densely, and the Milky Way was clearly visible.

He located the Big Dipper, then the North Star, and also the Southern Cross.

The southern sky differed from that of the northern hemisphere.

A different sky, a different continent, a different world.

Yet as he stood there, it felt incredibly familiar.

Because in a past life he had read about it countless times in books.

He suddenly recalled the bewildered days right after his crossing, the days in Fengyang mountain village when he couldn't get enough to eat, the days fighting alongside Chang Yuchun, the trembling hand of Zhu Yuanzhang when he acknowledged his ancestors, and Empress Ma holding him, crying with tears streaming down her face.

Those days, those events, those people—all were vivid before his eyes.

He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.

The night wind blew by, carrying a faint scent of fresh grass.

Behind him, the camp echoed with soldiers' patrolling footsteps, the crackle of the campfire, and occasional voices and laughter.

Everything was peaceful.

He suddenly smiled.

Simple, foolish, yet with a satisfaction that cannot be put into words.

"Father, mother, elder brother, Guanyin Nu, Huanhuan…"

He silently recited those names in his heart.

"I've found copper ore; we'll be able to return soon."

"When I get back, Great Ming will have electric lights."

"Then we won't need to light candles at night."

He stood for a long while, until the night wind grew cooler, then turned and returned to the big tent.

……

The 14th year of Hongwu, the fifth day of the tenth month.

The first batch of copper ore had been loaded onto the ships.

A total of ten ships carried five hundred thousand jin of high‑purity copper ore.

Zhu Rong stood on the dock, watching the soldiers move the last crate of ore onto the ships.

Zhao Mian walked over, his face flushed, and said, "Prince, the first batch of ore is loaded; can we set out to return?"

Zhu Rong nodded, "Hmm, we'll set out early tomorrow morning."

Zhao Mian's expression brightened, though he was a bit worried, and asked, "Prince, aren't you coming back with us?"

Zhu Rong shook his head, "I'll leave two thousand people behind to continue the survey; you take the ore back first, tell His Majesty that Australia's copper deposits are abundant, have the Ministry of Works ready more manpower and vessels, and return in early spring next year."

Zhao Mian was momentarily stunned, then knelt and said, "Prince, your magnanimity!"

Zhu Rong helped him up, smiling plainly, "Alright, hurry and prepare; we depart early tomorrow."

At dawn the next day, ten steamships slowly left the coast, disappearing into the boundless sea.

Zhu Rong stood on the beach, watching the fleet sail away.

Behind him, two thousand soldiers and fifty craftsmen stood quietly, waiting.

"Let's go, keep heading north." Zhu Rong turned, striding forward.

A deep trail of footprints was left on the sand.

In the distance, the mountains of the Australian continent were hazy in the morning light.

That was a place on this continent no one had ever set foot on.

And Zhu Rong was about to become the first person to set foot there.