170: Chapter 170 Hot Spring Rest and Mine Blasting

The train arrived at Krasnoyarsk Station just as the sky was breaking.

Li Xin got off the train with his backpack. There weren't many people here, and the air was so cold that taking a breath made his nose ache. The white mist he exhaled dispersed before his eyes, vanishing quickly.

He followed the crowd toward the exit. The station floor was concrete, cracked in places with withered grass growing through. An Old Lady carrying a large bag walked in front of him, moving very slowly. He didn't overtake her, just followed along at a leisurely pace.

Outside the exit was a small square where several vans were parked. The drivers were huddled in their cotton-padded coats, leaning against the doors and smoking. When they saw people coming out, they didn't shout; they just watched.

Li Xin didn't take a car; he walked north along the street in front of the station.

The street wasn't wide. Most of the buildings on both sides were made of stone, gray-white in color, with some outer walls painted pale yellow or light green. The windows were high with wooden frames, the paint peeling off. The sidewalk was paved with small square bricks, uneven and puddled with water.

After walking for ten minutes or so, he reached the old town pedestrian street.

A stone tablet stood at the entrance of the street, carved with the year the city was founded, though the inscription was blurred. On both sides of the street were two- or three-story old buildings, the ground floors entirely occupied by shops selling souvenirs, paintings, and bread.

He wandered slowly, not wanting to buy anything in particular, just walking and looking around.

Walking to the street corner, he heard the sound of an accordion. An old man was sitting on the steps, wearing an old military overcoat and a fur hat, holding an accordion in his hands. The tune was slow and low, sounding a bit melancholic.

Li Xin stood there for a while, then took some coins out of his pocket and placed them into the hat in front of the old man. The old man didn't look at him, just kept playing.

He turned and walked away.

Crossing the pedestrian street, he arrived at the banks of the Yenisei River.

The river was wide, the water gray-blue and flowing slowly. Some wood was piled on the bank, likely for winter fuel. Across the river were mountains covered in trees, mostly pine trees, so green they looked almost black.

He sat down on a bench by the river.

The bench had an iron frame and wooden slats, the paint mostly worn away. The wood creaked when he sat down. The river breeze hit his face, cool but not bone-chilling. He pulled the zipper of his jacket up.

He took out the bread he'd bought yesterday from his backpack, tore off a piece, and chewed slowly. The bread was hard and difficult to chew. He took out his water and drank a sip. The water was cold but not frozen.

He sat for a long time. He wasn't thinking about anything, just zoning out.

The sun emerged from behind the clouds, shining on the river, making it sparkle. A few seagulls flew over the water, calling out in sharp cries.

He stood up and walked along the riverbank.

Not long after, he saw a row of low houses with a wooden sign at the entrance that read "City Market." He pushed open the heavy wooden door and entered, greeted by a rush of warm air.

The market wasn't big, with two rows of stalls and a narrow aisle in the middle. The air was filled with a mix of scents.

The smoky smell of smoked fish, the pungent aroma of spices, and the wheaty scent of freshly baked black bread.

Li Xin strolled around slowly.

In front of a sausage stall, a fat woman was using a knife to slice a piece of red sausage, cutting it very thin and arranging the slices on a plate. He bought a few, wrapped them in oil paper, and stuffed them into his backpack.

Next to it was a honey seller. Glass jars contained honey of different colors, from light yellow to dark brown. He bought a jar, didn't ask the price, and paid directly.

At the very back was the bread seller. There were large loaves of rye bread, round and bigger than a human face, with a golden-brown crust. He took one, patted it with his hand, and it made a dull sound. He paid and carried it away.

Leaving the market, he found a hotel.

The hotel was in the old town, a two-story wooden building with blue outer walls. A tin sign hung at the entrance with Russian writing on it, which he couldn't quite understand.

He pushed the door open and went in. At the front desk was a young girl playing on her phone.

"Hello, do you have any rooms available?"

"Yes, we have a room on the second floor facing the street. Do you need one?"

"That works. Get me one." He paid and took the key upstairs.

The room wasn't big, with a window facing the street and white sheets that looked reasonably clean. He put down his backpack, took out the map, and spread it on the table.

The map was one Chen Hu had bought earlier, a Russian version, with the locations of several mining areas marked on it. He used a pen to circle the names Olimpiada Gold Mine and Blagodatnoye Gold Mine.

Li Xin checked the distance between the two mines. Both were in the northern part of Krasnoyarsk Krai, less than two hundred kilometers north of where he was staying in a straight line. However, the road didn't seem easy to travel, and it would take four or five hours to drive.

He noted down the route, distance, and estimated time in his notebook.

Then he lay on the bed and closed his eyes for a nap.

It was past two in the afternoon when he went out.

He drove towards the outskirts of the city. He wasn't familiar with the road, so he drove slowly. He was using an offline map for navigation, but the signal was poor, and sometimes it would freeze, so he drove by feel.

After driving for nearly an hour, he reached the outskirts.

This area was full of birch forests. The trees were thin, packed together, their trunks blindingly white. The road was a dirt path, full of potholes, and the car bumped violently.

He parked the car in an open space and got out.

The air smelled of pine resin, mixed with the earthy scent of soil. The ground was covered with a thick layer of pine needles that felt soft underfoot.

He followed a forest path inward. After about ten minutes, he saw a few wooden cabins. The cabins were very old; some roofs had collapsed, and some windows were gone. Chopped firewood was stacked neatly in the corners.

The hot spring was behind the wooden cabins.

The pool wasn't large, built of stone, with milky white water steaming. Large rocks surrounded the pool, their surfaces covered in moss.

There was no one around.

He took off his clothes and entered the pool.

The water was hot. His skin turned red instantly. He leaned against the edge of the pool, placing a towel over his face.

The heat made him drowsy. He closed his eyes, not thinking about anything.

After soaking for ten minutes or so, he heard footsteps.

He opened his eyes to see a man in his fifties walking over, wearing work clothes and carrying a plastic bucket. He had a round face, a red nose, and was unshaven.

"Hello," the man said in Russian.

"Hello," Li Xin replied.

The man placed the bucket by the edge of the pool, squatted down, and took a glass bottle out of the bucket. The bottle was filled with a transparent liquid. He unscrewed the cap and took a sip.

"Friend, you're Chinese, right?"

"Brother, you've got a sharp eye."

"Haha, welcome to our place. You're here on a business trip, right?"

"Sort of, but mostly I'm here for travel." Li Xin replied faintly with a smile.

The man wiped the corner of his mouth and set the bottle on the stone ledge. "The scenery in this mountain area is nice, but it's remote and we rarely see outside tourists. What places are you planning to visit?"

Li Xin: "Just wandering around. I haven't set a route. If I come across an interesting village or town, I'll stop and look around."

The man nodded, took another sip, and handed the bottle to Li Xin.

"Try it!"

Li Xin reached out and took the bottle.

He brought it to his nose and sniffed.

The smell of alcohol went straight to his head; it was quite strong.

He took a small sip.

The spiciness burned down his esophagus, and his throat tightened with the heat.

He didn't drink any more and handed the bottle back.

"It feels really good these past few days."

"Hahaha~ This is homemade," the man laughed happily. "People over at the mining area all drink this."

"You work at the mining area?"

"Yeah, Olimpiada Gold Mine. I've been driving for over a decade." He placed the bottle on the ground, took off his shoes, soaked his feet in the pool, and complained.

"Sigh, damn it, there's another blasting tomorrow at three in the afternoon. This damn thing is so dangerous; people get injured by the explosions every year."

Li Xin nodded without saying anything, leaning against the edge of the pool and watching the clouds in the sky.

The man took another sip and was silent for a moment.

"Brother, did you come here all by yourself?"

"Yeah."

"You've really got courage. It's freezing cold here in winter, and you can actually stand it."

"It's alright. You get used to it."

The man glanced at him, didn't ask further, soaked for a while, then stood up, put on his shoes, picked up his bucket, and left.

Li Xin soaked in the pool for another ten minutes or so before getting out.

He changed into dry clothes and felt comfortable all over.

He drove in the direction of the mining area.

The road became narrower and narrower, and the trees on both sides grew denser. Sunlight leaked through the gaps in the canopy, casting patches of fragmented gold on the ground.

After driving for nearly two hours, he arrived at the outskirts of the mining area.

He parked the car on a high ground and got out. He took the binoculars from his backpack and looked north.

The outline of the Olimpiada Gold Mine was visible in the valley.

The factory buildings were grayish-white, and white smoke billowed from the chimneys.

The mine pit was behind the factory, blocked by the mountain, so only a corner of the pit entrance could be seen.

The open-pit mining roads descended in layers, like terraced fields.

He turned on his GPS and marked two points.

He then jotted down the coordinates in his notebook.

Then, he crouched down and pressed his hand against the ground.

"AI System, Scan the Olimpiada Gold Mine and the Blagodatnoye Gold Mine."

[Scanning, this will take a few minutes.]

He squatted there, waiting.

A few minutes later, the AI System reported the results.

[Olimpiada Gold Mine, the underground ore vein runs east-west, the main ore body is 200 to 500 meters deep, with a total reserve of approximately 320 tons. Blagodatnoye Gold Mine, the underground ore vein runs north-south, the main ore body is 150 to 450 meters deep, with a total reserve of approximately 480 tons. Total 800 tons. 60% can be extracted, which is 480 tons.]

Li Xin stood up and brushed the dust off his hands.

He did a quick mental calculation; at current gold prices, those 480 tons were worth over 20 billion USD.

Converted to RMB, that's over 130 billion.

Just as he was about to leave, a muffled boom came from the distance.

It wasn't thunder; it was an explosion.

It came from the valley, and the ground even shook along with it.

He was stunned for a moment.

It wasn't even three o'clock yet. It was ahead of schedule.

Immediately after, a larger explosion followed.

Several explosive sounds detonated one after another, like firecrackers.

The mountain rumbled and cracked, his ears rang incessantly, the ground shook, and pine needles fell to the ground in a rustle.

A giant rock flew over from the direction of the valley.

It wasn't rolling; it was flying. It was the size of a truck, covered in debris, and flew just a few meters over his head.

The wind it whipped up made his face sting.

The rock smashed into the hillside behind him with a boom.

The ground shook, his feet slipped, and he fell to the ground.

Debris rained down, varying in size—some the size of fists, others the size of fingernails.

They pelted the ground with soft thuds.

One hit him on the back, making him gasp in pain.

He scrambled up, hunched over, and ran deep into the woods.

The debris struck the tree trunks with soft sounds.

Branches were sheared off and fell.

Ahead was an abandoned tool shed.

It was made of sheet metal, the door crooked and half-open.

He rushed in and crouched in the corner.

The sheet metal roof was pelted with a clanging sound, dented with several holes.

Dust fell from the roof, making him cough uncontrollably.

The explosions lasted for over ten seconds before stopping.

It was terrifyingly quiet.

He crouched in the shed, not moving.

His heart was racing; he could hear his own breathing.

The sound of an engine came from the distance.

It wasn't one; it was several.

They were driving over from the direction of the mining area, getting closer and closer.

He peeked out through the crack in the door.

An armed pickup truck, followed by two off-road vehicles.

The bodies were gray-green, with no markings.

Several people were standing in the back of the pickup truck, wearing camouflage uniforms and carrying guns.

The vehicles stopped at the bottom of the hillside.

The doors opened, and seven or eight people got out.

Some ran up the hillside, others ducked into the woods.

Flashlight beams swung wildly among the trees.

Someone shouted in Russian: "Over here! There are footprints!"

Li Xin's heart beat even faster.

He crouched in the shed, not daring to move a muscle.

The sound of footsteps grew closer and closer.

The flashlight beam shone in through the crack in the shed door, sweeping across the floor.

"There's a shed here."

"Go in and check."

The footsteps reached the door.

Li Xin took a deep breath and stood up.

He raised his hands and shouted in Russian: "Don't shoot! I'm a tourist! I'm just here for sightseeing!"

The door was pulled open.

The flashlight beam was so bright it blinded him.

"Come out."

He walked out.

Several people stood at the entrance, all wearing camouflage uniforms and steel helmets.

Their muzzles were pointed at him.

Standing at the very front was an officer in his thirties, his face frozen red.

"Who are you?"

"Chinese, a tourist, sightseeing around here."

"Sightseeing?"

The officer looked him up and down, "You ran to a mining area to sightsee?"

"I saw this mountainous area on the map and wanted to come have a look; I didn't know there was a mining area here."

The officer stared at him for a few seconds.

A soldier nearby walked over and rummaged through his backpack.

Tent, sleeping bag, water, bread, camera.

"Where is your car?"

"Parked at the foot of the mountain."

"Identification."

Li Xin took his passport out of his pocket and handed it over.

The officer flipped through two pages and looked for a moment.

"What are you doing in Russia?"

"Traveling, came from Yekaterinburg."

"Is anyone with you?"

"No, just me."

The officer handed the passport back to him.

"This is private property, and there are blasting operations. You trespassing is very dangerous."

"I didn't know, it wasn't marked on the map."

"Now you know, leave immediately."

"Okay."

Li Xin put on his backpack and headed down the mountain.

After walking a few steps, he caught a glimpse of a reflective spot on a distant hilltop out of the corner of his eye.

It was very bright, flashing.

He didn't stop walking, but his heart accelerated again.

That reflective spot was on the ridge, hundreds of meters away.

It wasn't glass, it wasn't water.

It was a scope.

Sunlight reflecting off optical glass.

He didn't look up; he crouched down, pretending to tie his shoelaces.

Using the crouching motion, he glanced in that direction.

There was a figure on the hilltop, lying on the ground, with a long pole mounted in front of them.

He couldn't see the face, but he could see the silhouette.

He stood up and continued walking down the mountain.

His pace was steady, neither fast nor slow.

When he reached a bend in the hillside, he turned left and ducked into the bushes.

The bushes were dense, the branches scraping against his clothes with a rustling sound.

He hunched over, staying close to the ground, and moved quickly toward the gully.

There was a dry gully ahead.

The gully wasn't deep, but it had banks on both sides that could block the view.

He slid into the gully, crouched down, and looked back.

The reflective spot on the hilltop was gone.

He didn't know if they had left or were just waiting.

He walked forward along the bottom of the gully.

The bottom of the gully was filled with gravel and dry leaves that crunched when stepped on.

He didn't walk fast, but he didn't stop.

After walking for over ten minutes, the gully came to an end.

Ahead was a steep slope covered in bushes.

He grabbed the branches of the bushes and climbed up.

The slope was steep, the gravel slippery; for every step he climbed, he slid back half a step.

He climbed to the top, lay on the ground, and caught his breath.

He looked around.

This was a different patch of woods.

The trees were dense, and sunlight couldn't shine in.

There was snow on the ground, but it was very thin.

He stood up and walked north.

After walking a distance, the system popped up a prompt.

[Northwest direction, about 300 meters away, traces of artificial excavation detected. Suspected abandoned mine entrance.]

He stopped.

He turned on the GPS to confirm his location.

The mine entrance was on the other side of the ridge, blocked by rocks and bushes.

It couldn't be seen from the outside, but the system marked it very clearly.

He went around.

The entrance wasn't big, over a meter wide and half a person's height.

The cave entrance was covered by vines and wouldn't be noticed without careful inspection.

There were tire tracks on the snow at the entrance, fresh, with clear tire patterns.

Someone had been here.

More than once.

He crouched down and looked inside.

It was very dark inside; he couldn't see anything.

He didn't go in.

He pulled up the mine structure map from the system.

The mine tunnel wasn't deep; it ended after about twenty meters.

At the end was a small chamber, about a dozen square meters.

There were traces of human activity inside: cigarette butts, empty cans, sleeping bags.

A temporary base for a gold-stealing gang.

He backed out of the entrance and restored the vines to their original state.

Then he circled the area.

He found a small path leading deep into the valley, very narrow, covered by snow, with only a few traces visible.

He followed the path for a few hundred meters to confirm the route.

By the time he returned to a safe area, it was already night.

It was completely dark, with no moon.

He sat under a tree, took water from his backpack, and took a few sips.

"AI System, the two mines scanned during the day, have the Extraction points been confirmed?"

[Confirmed. About 9 kilometers from the current location, within a ten-kilometer range. Suggest acting in the early morning. 9.6 hours of continuous Extraction, finishing before noon tomorrow.]

"Okay."

He stood up and walked to where he parked his car.

When he returned to the hotel, it was nearly eleven o'clock.

The girl at the front desk was dozing off; hearing the door, she opened her eyes, glanced at him, and closed them again.

He went upstairs and took a shower.

Lying on the bed, he stared at the ceiling.

He was wondering, was the sniper on the hilltop mine security, or another faction?

The worker during the day said there would be blasting in the mine tomorrow; they must know someone is active outside.

Regardless, the 480 tons of gold must be secured.

He turned over and pulled the quilt over his head.

Outside the window, the wind was howling.