22: Chapter 22 So this is the abandoned mine

Even though he had a system and Gold Panning was practically a sure thing—one might even say it was in the bag!

But he still spent every day clutching his phone, cramming basic knowledge on outdoor Gold Panning, survival in the mountains, and ore identification.

More skills never hurt, right?

While learning these useful tips, Zheng Jing would also wander around in his spare time, hoping to try his luck.

Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned; he didn't encounter anything valuable.

Over these past few days, he had only managed to pick up three broken scissors, a piece of rebar weighing over three jin, 85 iron nails, an umbrella frame, and a Kangxi Tongbao coin worth forty or fifty yuan.

Keeping in mind that "every little bit helps," he kept the copper coin for himself and packed up all the other junk to take home, planning to give it to his mom to sell as scrap metal.

It would at least get some pocket money; if nothing else, it would be more than enough to buy a bag of salt.

While at home, he took the opportunity to tell his parents that he would be going into the mountains for Gold Panning with Guo Kui and his group in a few days.

His parents didn't try to stop him much after hearing this, nor did they ask about the details.

They just kept repeating their instructions, saying the mountains were remote and dangerous, that he must behave himself, be careful everywhere, put safety first, and just go and return safely.

Zheng Jing naturally nodded and agreed to everything.

In the blink of an eye, it was May 5th.

In the Gold Panning squad group chat, Guo Jianjun, having rested enough at home, sent a message: "I checked the weather forecast, the weather for the next half month looks good. Shall we head out tomorrow?"

Zhao the Second replied first with a string of: "OKOKOK!"

Immediately after, Boss Zhao also replied: "Let's go! When you're on the mountain, you want to go home; when you're at home, you want to go to the mountain."

Zheng Jing and Guo Kui naturally had no objections and both replied that it was fine.

Guo Jianjun tagged Boss Zhao: "Haha, that's how it is. After playing for a few days, I feel a bit lazy."

Boss Zhao responded: "Exactly, didn't someone say, 'Time is money!' We might not necessarily have a harvest in the mountains, but if we're just idling at home, we definitely won't have one."

Guo Kui also tagged Boss Zhao and said cheekily: "You can't say there's no harvest. Didn't you clear the sewer for your sister-in-law?"

Boss Zhao replied with a grinning emoji, followed by a cool emoji wearing sunglasses.

The group chatted a bit more before telling each other to get some rest early.

Considering that everyone had a lot of supplies to restock this time, Guo Jianjun said he would drive around to pick everyone up early tomorrow morning.

Everyone naturally had no objections, and the group chat was flooded with: "Long live Brother Jun!"

Looking at the chat history in the WeChat group, Zheng Jing couldn't help but wave his hand in excitement.

Finally, it was time to officially head into the mountains for Gold Panning!

The next morning, as the sky just began to show a hint of white and the morning star appeared, Guo Jianjun drove the nine-seater large iveco and followed the route to pick everyone up one by one.

Zheng Jing had packed his luggage, metal detector, and personal items well the night before.

Upon receiving the message from Guo Kui, he immediately went out and saw the iveco parked at the intersection at a glance.

It had to be said that Guo Jianjun's driving skills were superb; for this small alley at Zheng Jing's house, an average person really couldn't drive up here!

Guo Jianjun was sitting in the driver's seat, and when he turned his head and saw him, he nodded gently as a greeting.

Zheng Jing hurried forward and greeted him politely: "Brother Jun, thank you for your hard work. It's been so long, you're still as handsome as ever!"

Guo Jianjun chuckled: "You're the only one who knows how to talk. But being handsome is the least noticeable of all my merits... not worth mentioning, not worth mentioning!"

At this time, Guo Kui, Boss Zhao, and Zhao the Second also got out of the car and helped Zheng Jing load his supplies into the vehicle.

Zheng Jing didn't act like a stranger and greeted each of them in turn: "Boss Zhao, Brother Zhao the Second, thank you, thank you for your hard work!"

Boss Zhao was the most burly of them all, and his personality was very straightforward: "We're all brothers working together from now on; it's just a helping hand, why thank me?"

Zhao the Second was tall and thin, not talkative, but he smiled and acknowledged Zheng Jing.

Looking at Guo Jianjun and Guo Kui, Zheng Jing felt reassured.

Being able to partner with them for so many years, their characters and personalities were indeed reliable.

Once everything was loaded, everyone sat down and fastened their seat belts.

Guo Jianjun started the car steadily and headed straight for that abandoned gold mine deep in the mountains.

The road just outside the county town was still relatively flat, with asphalt roads, and the car drove very steadily.

The further they went into the mountains, the worse the road conditions became.

Proper roads slowly disappeared, replaced by bumpy dirt roads.

The mountain road was narrow and steep, full of gravel and standing water.

The car bumped continuously along the way, with many sharp turns.

The forests on both sides were dense and overgrown with weeds, endless to the eye, and the further in they went, the more remote and desolate it became.

If it were an ordinary driver, they wouldn't dare to drive in at all.

Fortunately, Guo Jianjun drove steadily and had plenty of experience, slowly maneuvering the car inside.

After nearly three hours of bumping along the road, they finally arrived at their destination—that old gold mining slope that had been abandoned for many years!

When the car stopped, everyone grabbed their equipment and got out to stretch their bodies, which were sore from the bumps.

The entire mining area was deserted, covered with rocks and weeds everywhere, and filled with waste soil piles left over from previous mining, looking dilapidated and desolate.

But it was precisely in such a place that treasures left behind by predecessors, undiscovered by anyone, were hidden.

After getting out of the car, Guo Jianjun called everyone together and solemnly repeated the old rules.

"Let's stick to the old rules: spread out and find your own areas. Don't cluster together, don't fight over spots, and don't disturb each other. Whatever you dig up is based on your own ability. Safety first; if anything happens, shout for help."

Everyone was used to it and nodded in agreement.

Each person picked up their metal detector and tools, headed in different directions, and began searching for treasure and Gold Panning.

Guo Kui had already explained the ropes to Zheng Jing.

After giving him a few simple instructions, Guo Kui also took his tools and hurried off in one direction.