Sail across the sea

Chapter 394 My biggest regret right now is...

Xiechong Village, Yuzipu Township, Gunan County, is a small village surrounded by mountains. The entire village has only about 40 households, all surnamed Zhong, belonging to the same large clan. However, after the various political movements following liberation, the clan's influence in the village has disappeared. Although people still address each other as uncles, nephews, brothers, etc., the concept of kinship has become very weak.

Zhong Nairong, a villager, is a very quick-witted person. In his early years, he went to work in Gaolu Province with others and earned some money.

Two years ago, the government of Gunan County established a policy to vigorously develop rare earth resources and put forward the slogan "Large mines should be developed on a large scale, small mines on a small scale, and water should be used quickly" to encourage townships, villages and individual villagers to actively participate in rare earth development.

Upon hearing the news, Zhong Nairong first inquired about the situation and learned that some people in certain areas had already made a fortune by mining rare earth minerals. Therefore, he made a request to the township to contract a mine.

According to regulations, farmers who contract mines are required to pay a contract fee to the township government based on the mine's resources. Zhong Nairong's contract for this mine costs 3 yuan annually.

Zhong Nairong naturally couldn't come up with that money, so he signed an agreement with the township, promising to repay the contract fee with the money from selling the rare earth after it was mined. This method is common in many townships in Gunan County, because farmers who can come up with tens of thousands of yuan in contract fees at once are extremely rare.

Zhong Nairong used the money he had earned from working to build a soaking pool on the hillside. He also bought electrolyte for leaching minerals and oxalic acid for extraction. Then he took his family up the mountain to dig soil and extracted rare earth oxides according to the technical guidelines provided by the county.

After a year of hard work, Zhong Nairong's mine produced more than 3 tons of rare earth oxides, selling each ton for 2.6 yuan, for a total income of nearly 9 yuan. After deducting costs and paying an additional 3 yuan in contract fees to the township, his net profit was close to 3 yuan.

The following year, Zhong Nairong expanded his production scale. He built two new ponds and hired 10 strong laborers from the village at a monthly wage of 100 yuan. As a result, the output reached 9 tons that year, and Zhong Nairong earned a profit of 10 yuan.

Zhong Nairong, who had become rich overnight, was full of ambition and planned to continue to expand production. However, he was still somewhat worried when planning next year's production.

When he first started mining, Zhong Nairong wanted to make money as quickly as possible, so he built the leaching pools on the hillside of the mine. This way, the ore excavated from the mountain did not need to be transported over long distances, saving a lot of time.

After two years of mining, he realized that his previous approach was flawed. After the ore was soaked, the rare earth elements were extracted, and the ore became slag. Zhong Nairong naturally didn't bother to transport the slag away, but instead piled it up next to him. Over two years, it created another mountain.

If it were just a matter of it looking a little unsightly, Zhong Nairong wouldn't care. The key issue is that those areas where slag is piled up are also mineral veins. If the slag is piled up on top, the underlying mineral soil can't be mined, unless you're willing to put in a lot of effort to peel off the surface slag and transport it down to the foot of the mountain.

The neighboring mine is half mined out, and the other half is buried by slag and cannot be mined. Moving it to a new location would require rebuilding the leaching ponds, which would also be an expense.

When Zhong Nairong signed the contract with the township, it was agreed that the mining would last for eight years. This was calculated based on the amount of resources on the mountain, and Zhong Nairong agreed to it.

Now, part of the mine has been buried by the slag he abandoned, and the remaining resources certainly cannot be mined for another six years; they might be exhausted in two years. However, the township charges a contract fee for eight years, which means he will have to pay the township four more years' worth of contract fees, amounting to a whopping 12 yuan.

Another worrying issue is the skyrocketing price of oxalic acid, a crucial raw material for producing rare earth oxides. Two years ago, it cost 3400 yuan per ton; now it's 5700 yuan, and even then, there's little demand. Buying oxalic acid from those with connections costs several hundred yuan more. Producing one ton of rare earth oxides requires one and a half tons of oxalic acid. At 5700 yuan per ton, the cost of oxalic acid alone is 8500 yuan per ton of oxides—roughly one-third the price of the oxides themselves. This price increase is being squeezed out of profits.

If the price of oxalic acid rises further, I'll really only be able to earn a meager living by operating this mine.

Standing on the hillside, watching the workers he had hired carrying ore back and forth, Zhong Nairong's brows furrowed into a knot.

"Uncle Rong, what are you looking at?"

A voice sounded behind me.

Zhong Nairong turned around and saw a boy standing behind him, who was none other than his distant nephew, Zhong Shubao. Although they were called nephews, their blood ties actually traced back to the Xianfeng era.

"Shubao, you're back from your holiday?"

Zhong Nairong greeted the other person, reached into his pocket, and intended to take out a cigarette to offer it to him, but then remembered that the other person was still a student at the county high school, and it seemed inappropriate to offer him a cigarette.

Zhong Shubao chuckled and said, "Uncle Rong, my dad told me you've made a fortune from mining. The central government says that those who get rich first should help those who get rich later. When will you help me get rich too, Uncle Rong?"

Zhong Nairong naturally didn't take this seriously. He laughed and said, "I haven't made any money. After a year of hard work, I still don't earn as much as I did working in Gaolu. You're the first person in our village to be admitted to the county high school. Your dad is telling everyone that you'll definitely get into university. Once you graduate, you'll be a cadre. Don't look down on your Uncle Rong then."

"Uncle Rong is joking. Even the village has recognized you as a model of getting rich," Zhong Shubao said. Before Zhong Nairong could say anything more, he changed his tone and put on a serious expression, saying, "Uncle Rong, actually, I came back from the county to ask you to help me make a little money. I don't know if you'll agree."

Hearing Zhong Shubao say this, Zhong Nairong also became serious. He looked at Zhong Shubao and asked, "You asked me to help you get rich, does that mean your father is also planning to lease a mine?"

“No chance.” Zhong Shubao looked dejected. “I’ve told him many times to go and find a mine in the village to lease, but he’s always afraid of losing money and doesn’t dare to go.”

Zhong Nairong nodded and said, "Your father's idea is also correct. Mining is really risky. My biggest regret now is that I signed this contract with the township back then. Although I have made a little money in the past two years, I am exhausted every day and live in fear."

"Putting everything else aside, the price increase of oxalic acid in the past two years has been a real headache for me. Look at me, I even have gray hair now, and I'm three years younger than your father."

(End of this chapter)