Chapter 176: The Mine

Chapter 176: The Mine

Lu Hanchuan had no choice but to give up on having his girlfriend stay outside.

He took his girlfriend back to attend her classes.

Ye Xiaoxiao had been attending classes normally at school these past few days, but she requested permission to stay outside at night.

This semester's management was clearly more lenient than the last, and some students stayed out overnight without permission.

Ye Xiaoxiao wasn't one to take risks, so after asking for leave from the counselor, she didn’t have to worry about being discovered.

Her roommates were curious about where Ye Xiaoxiao stayed at night.

Ye Xiaoxiao had to tell them beforehand, "I found a place nearby, and I might move out next semester."

Wang Jiao glanced at Ye Xiaoxiao and said, "If we can move out next semester, Fang Kaixuan and I are moving out too."

He Jing asked, "You're not even married yet, and you're already planning to live together?"

Wang Jiao shot He Jing a look. "Why are you so old-fashioned? Living together doesn’t mean we’re doing anything. It’s just sharing a place. Didn’t Liu Shaoming bring up moving out with you?"

Wang Jiao thought people in relationships would understand. Who wouldn’t want to be together every day?

He Jing replied, embarrassed, "We haven’t thought about that yet."

Ye Xiaoxiao had already packed up and was ready to go.

Wang Jiao chimed in, "You should let us visit your place sometime."

Ye Xiaoxiao replied, "Sure, I’ll invite you over when I get the chance."

Wang Jiao grinned. "It’s a deal then."

Tang Xiuxiu teased, "You should be careful when spending time with your boyfriend."

Her words carried a hint of teasing.

Ye Xiaoxiao blushed. Tang Xiuxiu didn’t even have a boyfriend, but she sure acted like she knew a lot.

"You’re reading too much into it. We’re not planning anything."

With that, she shut the dorm door and hurried off, embarrassed.

Tang Xiuxiu wasn’t buying it. Even if they didn’t plan anything, things could still happen.

Ye Xiaoxiao moving out would undoubtedly make Lu Hanchuan the happiest.

Their relationship was still at the kissing stage, and they hadn’t gone further. They even slept separately at night.

None of what Ye Xiaoxiao’s roommates imagined had actually happened.

Ye Xiaoxiao was perfectly content with how things were.

Take it slow—slower, even.

...

As rain poured in the capital, Baichuan County, home to Baishi Village, also saw several heavy rains, though the rainfall wasn’t as heavy.

In the mountainous regions, landslides were also triggered.

Liu Jinya had leased a mine at Guaiziwan in Baichuan County, but had not extracted anything significant. Facing potential losses, the recent landslide uncovered something in the mountains.

He took some ore samples to the local mining bureau for analysis.

Previously, Ye Changqing had been given a non-official job at the mining bureau because he could drive. Through connections, he got a driving job, earning fifty yuan a month.

Compared to hauling stones at the gravel yard, this job was a breeze.

When Liu Jinya came to the mining bureau, he encountered Ye Changqing.

Seeing what Liu Jinya was carrying, Ye Changqing asked a few questions.

Liu Jinya explained why he was there.

Ye Changqing looked at the ore samples. "They look like iron ore, but the content is low. Not sure if it's worth mining."

Liu Jinya: "Brother Changqing, you know your stuff."

Ye Changqing modestly said, "I did surveying work in the military."

Liu Jinya looked surprised. "That's skilled work. Why'd you leave the military?"

Ye Changqing: "There were a lot of family issues, so I had to come back."

Liu Jinya: "If I'd known you had this skill, I wouldn't have gotten you a driver's job. Working with me would be much better."

Ye Changqing thanked Liu Jinya. "I'm really happy with the job you got me, thanks, Brother Liu."

Liu Jinya: "If you change your mind, you're welcome to join me anytime. Mining's tough, but I'll pay more. If we strike it rich, I won't let you down."

Liu Jinya needed someone who knew mining inside out. After all, he had other mines, and Baichuan County was just a small hill; he couldn't spend all his time there.

He'd watched Ye Changqing and thought he was solid.

Ye Changqing thought it over but still said no. He'd rented a house in town and moved his family there.

Ye Baocheng had started school too.

He wanted to stay close to home to look after his family.

Liu Jinya didn't push it but said Ye Changqing was welcome to join him anytime.

The test results came back fast, and just as Ye Changqing said, it was iron ore, but low-grade. There might be iron ore nearby, but chances were slim.

Liu Jinya was a bit disappointed.

He'd invested hundreds of thousands here, and if he couldn't recoup the money, he'd go broke overnight.

Plus, the place was small, and if the ore yield was low, mining wasn't worth it.

Liu Jinya was torn and unsure what to do.

Though Ye Changqing had turned Liu Jinya down, a family incident soon changed his mind.

Ye Jianguo was injured. During a downpour, he slipped and fell on his way back from the militia training ground in the back hills.

Although he was already getting on in years, this fall, though not serious, broke his leg.

Fortunately, the young militiamen quickly took Ye Jianguo to the hospital. Thanks to the quick treatment, the doctor said there wouldn't be any serious aftereffects, but he needed to take it easy and recover properly.

This recovery would take at least three months.

Originally, Ye Jianguo worked as an instructor for the militia, earning twenty yuan a month.

Now bedridden, he not only lost his income but also needed the children to care for him. This was tough for the proud Ye Jianguo to swallow.

As soon as he heard the news, Ye Changqing rushed to the hospital.

That evening, Zhang Xue brought the two children over.

"Grandpa, does it hurt?"

Ye Baocheng gently touched his grandfather's leg, his big eyes full of worry.

Ye Jianguo patted his grandson's head and said, "Grandpa's not in pain."

Ye Baocheng: "Grandpa's lying, mom said your leg's hurt, it must really hurt."

Ye Jianguo looked up at Zhang Xue: "I can handle things here by myself, you don't all need to stay at the hospital with me, it's too noisy here, take the children back home."

Zhang Xue: "Baocheng insisted on coming to see you, I couldn't talk him out of it."

Ye Changqing entered the ward, "The doctor said it takes a hundred days to heal a bone injury, dad, so don't move around or you might end up with aftereffects."

Ye Jianguo: "That's just to scare the kids, I'm a grown man, I'm not scared, you go back too, aren't you supposed to be at work if you stay here all day?"

Ye Changqing didn't listen to Ye Jianguo; no job was more important than his father.

Besides, it would be tough for his mom to handle the injured old man.

Ye Changqing stayed at the hospital taking care of Ye Jianguo for a week, and on the eighth day when the village road was cleared.

Ye Jianye and Miao Cuifang both came over.