The train driver in the courtyard

late at night.

The capital city was shrouded in darkness.

Inside a residence, a middle-aged man lay on his bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep.

The woman changed into a silk nightgown, put on a designer diamond pendant from abroad, and stood in front of the middle-aged man, waving it around: "How is it? Pretty, isn't it?"

"Did the third brother bring this back from abroad again?" The middle-aged man's gaze fell on the pendant, and he frowned. "How many times have I told you not to let the third brother buy these things? They're too conspicuous."

"Oh dear, look at you, getting angry without even asking what happened." The woman sat on the bed, arms crossed, fuming. "This is a gift from the third son. I heard it was designed by a famous foreign designer and is worth tens of thousands of dollars. Besides, I only wear it at home, who will see it?"

"It's better to be careful, there are too many eyes and gossips. Once we get abroad, you can wear whatever you want."

The woman looked down on the middle-aged man's cowardly manner and said with a sneer, "I don't know when we'll be able to sleep. Forget about this nonsense. Why aren't you asleep yet? You have to chair a meeting tomorrow."

"can not fall asleep."

The middle-aged man put his hands behind his head, looked up at the ceiling, and said, "Rare earth exports have been suspended. Something's not right. The third brother hasn't contacted the family for two days."

"You know how fun the third son is. He's probably found some beauty in Hong Kong again. He's just like you, his father."

Seeing that the woman didn't take it seriously and even turned her anger on him, the middle-aged man lost interest in chatting and turned off the lamp.

Just then, there was a knock on the door.

The middle-aged man was startled and shouted outside, "Who is it?"

"There's an urgent matter at work, please go to the meeting as soon as possible."

Upon hearing the familiar voice, the middle-aged man asked the other person to wait a moment, put on his clothes, and then opened the door.

"What happened?!"

As soon as he finished speaking, several men in gray Zhongshan suits rushed over from the side, and the one in the lead held up a document in front of him.

"Now, please come with us."

The middle-aged man tried to resist, but the man in the gray Zhongshan suit kicked him to the ground, his hands were tied behind his back, and he could no longer move.

The other party handed over another photo, and when the middle-aged man saw the person in the photo, he immediately collapsed to the ground.

"Based on the clues from the port city, we've followed the trail and arrested that guy." Old Cat handed Li Aiguo a cigarette. The flame flickered several times between his trembling fingers before finally lighting the cigarette.

His face showed no joy at solving the case, and the embers of his cigarette flickered with his rapid breathing.

"I never expected this person to be so audacious!"

Doesn't he realize how much loss he will cause us because of his own selfishness?
He was once a comrade-in-arms!

This case had a great impact on Lao Mao.

“Building a career is like a long expedition; the road is rugged, and it’s normal for some people with weak willpower to fall behind.” Li Aiguo stood up, patted Lao Mao on the shoulder to comfort him, and then asked, “How will the higher-ups deal with this person?”

"Get shot." Old Cat nodded.

Li Aiguo was not surprised by the result.

Dinner was a big fish stewed in an iron pot.

Li Aiguo was also puzzled. Where did this big fish come from in the Gobi Desert?

Just then, the fish deliveryman hadn't left yet, so Li Aiguo chatted with him for a bit and learned that the people here didn't eat fish, except for a group of people from northern Shaanxi in the third production team of the commune who occasionally ate some.

Just then, the commune's pond overflowed, and a lot of fish were caught. Some were sent to the county, and some were given to the 915th Party Congress.

This was a gesture of goodwill from the local comrades. After accepting the fish, Captain Tang Guangwu reciprocated by giving them some cloth and a shovel.

It was very windy outside in the evening.

Inside the tent, an iron pot was set up, and the exploration team gathered firewood and camel dung and piled it underneath. Soon, a delicious pot of stewed fish was ready.

Although it lacked seasoning, the taste was delicious, and the comrades ate it with great relish.

Li Aiguo took a bite of the delicious fish and squinted his eyes contentedly.

No matter how big the fish is, it's destined to be stewed in an iron pot.

The following day, Professor Li returned to 915 and brought good news.

In order to expedite the mining of uranium in the Gobi Desert, the authorities decided to establish the Tarim Uranium Mine, internally codenamed Mine 716.

Mine 716 was built and mined simultaneously, with professional mining and construction teams from all over the country gathering on this barren Gobi Desert.

Mine 716 was directly managed by the Ministry of Mining, and Professor Li personally planned its development.

The number of people venturing into the Gobi Desert has been increasing, reaching tens of thousands at its peak.

At each team's camp, a flag fluttered in the wind, like a burning torch, inspiring everyone.

Drilling, geophysical exploration, oil extraction, road construction, transportation... the entire Gobi Desert has been transformed into a massive construction site.

A command center was also established at Mine 716, headed by Professor Li. Several mine leaders were activists transferred from major mining areas across the country.

Li Aiguo had two tasks: one was to continue leading the exploration team to determine mining sites, and the other was to lead the technicians to design the equipment needed for in-situ leaching uranium mining.

Time passed by day by day amidst our busy lives.

Two weeks later, Yang Jizong arrived at the Gobi Desert.

Seeing the magnificent scene on the Gobi Desert, Yang Jizong's eyes almost popped out of their sockets in astonishment.

"Is there really a two-million-ton uranium mine here? Didn't the newspapers say it was fake?"

"It was the patriotic comrades who made them believe it was fake." The comrade from the meteorological station who was in charge of driving knew Yang Jizong's identity and did not hide anything from him, so he gave a brief introduction to the situation of Mine 716.

Yang Jizong clicked his tongue twice: "I really didn't expect it. Comrade Aiguo has quietly accomplished another great feat."

Li Aiguo met Yang Jizong on his way back from leading an exploration team.

The jeep stopped, and Yang Jizong couldn't wait to get out and hug Li Aiguo tightly.

"Patriotic brother, uranium mine, giant mushrooms, it's incredible."

"This is all thanks to everyone, put it down quickly." Li Aiguo felt that Yang Jizong's personality was becoming more and more open.

Upon seeing Yang Jizong arrive, Li Aiguo, preoccupied with the matter of cross-border mining, handed over the afternoon's work to the captain of Team 309. Team 309 had previously participated in the exploration of the Jinyinzhai uranium deposit and had also been transferred here this time.

Once inside the tent, Yang Jizong was curious about everything, looking left and right before finally finding a rock to sit on.

As soon as he sat down, he sensed something was wrong, jumped up immediately, and saw a small animal with four legs darting out from under the rock. He immediately started yelling.

"Big gecko, big gecko"

“This thing is called Sha Wujing, it’s a lizard.” Li Aiguo reacted quickly, grabbing the lizard’s head with one hand, examining it, and then tossing it outside the tent.

This thing has too little meat and doesn't taste very good.

"This place is really a great place."

Yang Jizong was also startled by the lizard earlier and dared not sit down now.

Who knows what little animal might jump out from below?

“It’s really a nice place. Maybe you’ll have to buy a ticket if you want to visit again in the future.” Li Aiguo offered Yang Jizong a cigarette.

"There's nothing here, and I still have to pay money?" Yang Jizong asked, bewildered.

This is even more ruthless than those capitalists in the port city; at least they can make money by building amusement facilities.

If Li Aiguo hadn't spent fifty yuan and traveled ten miles only to find a large industrially manufactured rock, he wouldn't have believed it was this absurd.

Yang Jizong thought Li Aiguo was joking to ease his tension, so he didn't press the matter.

After lighting a cigarette, he got straight to the point: "Brother Patriot, what's this mining company you're talking about?"

Li Aiguo stood up and pointed to the map hanging on the pillar: "We need to dig out the minerals beneath this area and bring them back."

The map is filled with circles, some on land and some in the ocean.

Regardless of the type of circle, they are all located outside the territory.

"You...you want to rob the mine?" Yang Jizong gasped after understanding Li Aiguo's intention.

"Rob? No, no, no, we are civilized people, not bandits. We are paying for mining rights, cooperating and seeking common development."

Li Aiguo felt that Yang Jizong was too barbaric.

"Why rob when money can solve the problem?"

"What if they take the money and then try to steal the mine?" Yang Jizong frowned. He knew all too well the dangers of doing business in turbulent areas.

"To drive the wolves away, we have to use guns and cannons. That's when we need a professional mine protection team." Li Aiguo sat back on the rock, drew the pistol from his waist, and loaded it.

"I think we should call this team the Mine Protection Army."

Although Li Aiguo didn't explain much, Yang Jizong already understood the nature of the mine protection army.

When Hextech established branches in Europe and America, it faced numerous difficulties and even threats from the Mafia.

So they sent a group of trained staff to join the security team to maintain order.

The mine protection force has more personnel, more advanced equipment, and a wider operating area than the security force.

Yang Jizong wholeheartedly supports the establishment of a mining company to acquire mineral resources overseas.

Minerals are the engine of industry and the driving force of economic development. To truly rise to prominence, a massive amount of mineral resources are needed as support.

Before World War II, everyone openly robbed. They built mines in the colonies, used the colonists' manpower to mine the minerals, transported the minerals back to make guns and cannons, expanded into more colonies, and then continued to rob minerals, forming a perfect closed loop.

Sometimes, the two families would fight to the death over mining rights, such as the Boer War and the Spanish-American War, which were essentially wars fought over mining rights.

Later, people settled into a civilized life of drinking coffee and wearing suits, and no longer wanted to fight with sticks. So they formed mining groups and used covert methods to seize mines.

The world's three major iron ore giants and oil companies are all backed by military force.

The mine protection army's main task is not only to protect the mines, but also to occupy territory.

Having a place to do business will make things much easier.

The black water from Xiao Mei's house and the Wagner from Da Mao's house are actually of this nature.

We suffered a loss in Africa recently because we didn't have a civilian armed force that could be flexibly mobilized.

Having come to this era, Li Aiguo naturally wouldn't allow something like this to happen again.

Realizing the role of the mine protection team, Yang Jizong became excited and rubbed his hands together:

"Our Hextech company can provide financial support, but how do we prepare the exploration team and the mining protection force?"

“The exploration team can be drawn from the mining sector first. The mine protection team must be disciplined, and I think retired veterans are quite suitable.”

Seeing that Li Aiguo had already made plans, Yang Jizong stood up and said, "After I return to Hong Kong, I will immediately set up a mining company!"

That afternoon, Yang Jizong, no longer bothered to appreciate the beautiful scenery worth fifty yuan, left the Gobi Desert in a jeep.

Soon, a news item appeared in the port city's newspapers.

A mining company called Hongxing Kaituo was officially established, with business scope covering mine development, mineral screening, and other aspects.

These days, there are many shell companies in the port city, and the bigger they boast, the emptier their shells are.

When everyone saw that Red Star Pioneers almost boasted about mining on the moon, everyone thought the company was just a shell company.

Unbeknownst to them, various exploration machines were being continuously transported from the mainland to a Hextech factory in the port city.

Li Aiguo was also busy, submitting his plan to establish a mining company to Professor Li and requesting support of a group of exploration personnel.

Professor Li, a mining tycoon, immediately recognized the feasibility: "Instead of looking for minerals in our own backyard, we should go out and look for them overseas. We can send several exploration teams to work overseas."

Hextech is a wealthy and powerful company. In addition to a fixed monthly salary of seventy dollars, all exploration teams working overseas receive a subsidy of twenty dollars, as well as subsidies for refined white flour and meat.

Once the news spread, it attracted many explorers to join, and even Liu Tianquan was tempted.

If he weren't already a drilling rig operator and responsible for training, he would definitely have signed up.

In just a few days, the exploration team had almost all assembled.

Afterwards, they would need to undergo specialized foreign language training and learn local customs before they could change their identities and head to the port city. The establishment of the mine protection army was more complicated; Li Aiguo personally called Li Yunlong to explain his ideas.

"You need manpower?" Li Yunlong was a little surprised.

Li Aiguo thought of the Blackwater Company's approach in later generations: "No need for a formal team, just those old brothers will suffice."

"You know what, this is actually a good idea. Some of our old brothers have lost their families a long time ago and have always wanted to return to the ranks," Li Yunlong said after a moment's thought.

Of course, Li Yunlong couldn't make this decision alone, so he quickly reported it to his superiors.

Li Yunlong was unaware of the details of the discussion above.

However, when the document was returned, a few more words were added: "Protecting the mines benefits the country and its people."

This assessment says it all.

At this point, Li Yunlong also realized the cleverness of his nephew. Those old brothers were not formally organized and had nothing to do with the team. Even if they caused trouble, no one could find fault with them.

They are all seasoned veterans, and protecting mineral resources is something they are very good at.

With the help of Li Yunlong and some other interested individuals, a large number of his old comrades received the notification.

Of course, the main task of these veterans is to be in charge of training.

The first mine protection force consisted of only five hundred men, which seemed small, but each one was a veteran of countless battles. Equipped with heavy machine guns and Red Star RPGs, they were enough to deter those jackals.

When several tanks were driven to the port city garrison base, even Yang Jizong was stunned.

"This thing." Looking at the imposing cannon barrel, Yang Jizong couldn't help but swallow.

The comrade in charge of the handover explained, "These tanks were decommissioned from South Asia."

Although it was an old tank that had been phased out, only the bulletproof armor was damaged; the rest of the tank was fine.

If we take this out and then mount a heavy machine gun on it, wouldn't that be bullying people?

"Good, good, these are treasures." Yang Jizong quickly ordered his men to drive the tanks into the warehouse.

Red Star Pioneer Mining Company's first target is horsepower.

This area is rich in mineral resources, with thousands of tons of gold alone, countless iron ore and bauxite, and also a large amount of uranium ore.

However, the people here are dirt poor.

For no other reason than that most of the mineral resources have been taken by France.

During World War II, France was severely defeated by Germany, and its control over France gradually weakened.

Taking advantage of the situation, various forces, including the Russians and the Americans, entered Mali, ostensibly for security purposes, but in reality to seize the mines.

Yang Jizong met Songdiata, a down-on-his-luck prince from Mali.

This guy nominally owns three gold mines, five iron ore mines, and a large number of plantations, but he can't even afford a large off-road vehicle.

One was short of money, and the other was short of minerals; the two hit it off immediately.

Furthermore, Red Star Pioneer agreed to take only half of the mineral resources, far less than the 80% that Mao Zedong, France, and the United States received.

Sondiata patted his chest and called him his good friend.

The exploration team and the mine protection force were then dispatched to Mali.

Li Aiguo had no time to pay attention to any of that, because the gate of the 716 Mine command post was blocked by a group of locals.

One of the mine leaders was puzzled: "Since the construction of Mine 716 began, Tazihong Commune has been very supportive of us, so how could this happen?"

"Regardless of the reason, these people's behavior has gone too far. This is Mine 716, a key classified mineral!"

One of the leaders in charge of security slammed his fist on the table and stood up: "I'll take some men and drive them away right away."

Professor Li stood up: "I think it's inappropriate. Taking rash action without understanding the cause of the incident could easily escalate the conflict."

Li Aiguo nodded in agreement: "I suggest we figure out what's going on before making a decision."

Professor Li was worried that some of the mine's leaders had bad tempers and might cause big trouble, so he looked at Li Aiguo and said, "Aiguo, take a few people and go see what's going on."

"is teacher."

Li Aiguo has been busy designing mining equipment lately and hasn't been active for a long time, so he brought Lao Mao and several colleagues from the weather station to the main gate.

What puzzled Li Aiguo was that these people were not speaking the local dialect, but rather a dialect similar to that of northern Shaanxi.

"Get your leader out here!"

"Isn't this bullying? This is outrageous! They stole my wife away! It's outrageous!"

"I'm not leaving until you hand over the person today."

Upon exiting, they saw a group of commune members dressed in black cotton-padded coats standing not far away, holding hunting rifles and pointing at the gate.

The soldiers responsible for security were on high alert, all raising their rifles, creating a tense atmosphere.

When the captain saw Li Aiguo coming over, he quickly ran over and saluted: "Comrade Aiguo, these people are causing trouble at the gate."

"Have everyone put down their guns," Li Aiguo ordered.

The soldiers put down their guns, and the villagers on the other side also put down their guns when they saw this.

Li Aiguo walked up to the older commune member who was leading the group, offered him a cigarette, and asked with a smile, "Uncle, where are you from?"

The old commune member took the cigarette, and his expression relaxed.

"The third production team of Tazihong Commune."

Are you locals?

"Of course it is! My grandfather fled here before liberation and has been living here for decades."

"Then why are you all gathered around here, Uncle?"

An old commune member pointed to a middle-aged commune member behind him and said, "His wife was kidnapped by people from your mine."

Upon hearing this, Li Aiguo understood what was going on.

Since the establishment of Mine 716, many team members have been drawn from all over the country to participate in the support work.

The forest is big and there are all kinds of birds.

With a large number of people, it's inevitable that there will be both good and bad.

These young employees are alone and far from home, making them prone to making mistakes.

There are confidentiality regulations in the mining area, so how did this worker leave and even steal someone's wife away?

Li Aiguo looked at the head of the security section of Unit 716.

The section chief explained in a low voice, "Although the situation is unclear, I estimate that this person is probably a temporary worker in the logistics department. There are too many people in the Gobi Desert now, and we can't control all logistics personnel like this who don't have access to classified information."

Li Aiguo nodded. Even among the formal employees, only a small number of core technical personnel knew that this was a uranium mine. Most employees only participated in the construction and were unaware of the nature of the mining area.

Old Cat raised a new question: "What if this guy who ran off with someone else's wife has something to do with it? Also, there are patrol teams in the mining area, and local militias set up checkpoints on every road. How did he get away?"

These words immediately escalated the situation.

A pink eucalyptus leaf was covered with a blood-red color.

Old Cat immediately relayed the order to raise the alert level of Mine 716.

Li Aiguo looked at the commune members:
“It’s not good for everyone to be gathered here. Let’s go inside and talk.”

Some members worried: "You won't protect that bastard, will you?"

"Brother, rest assured, we will handle this matter impartially," Li Aiguo said.

"Whether it's dealt with or not doesn't matter, we need to find my wife as soon as possible," the middle-aged commune member said anxiously.

Li Aiguo had a headache. Where could he find someone in such a vast area as the Gobi Desert?
"To find someone, we need to figure out what happened first."

"Listen to this junior leader, everyone put your guns at the door and come inside to talk." Finally, urged by the older members, the members all went into the command post.

Li Aiguo had tea poured for him, and after some questioning, he finally understood what had happened.

The number of employees at Mine 716 is increasing, and there are not enough tents available.

The mine could only contact the commune and rent houses from local commune members.

The commune member who lost his wife was named Chen Wang, and his family happened to have three rooms.

The couple lived in one room on the west side, the middle room was used for cooking, and the remaining room was rented to Wang Dexing, the cook of the 316 Engineering Team.

Chen Wang's wife, Zhao Meilan, was very beautiful. She was a peasant woman, and although she was nearly thirty, she looked very young and had quite a bit of beauty. However, she was promiscuous and fickle.

This woman came from a poor family background; she was from a wealthy peasant family (belonging to the fourth category of families), and her class status was high. In those days, she couldn't get married, and no one dared to marry her.

With no other option, Zhao Meilan went to the Gobi Desert and married Chen Wang.

Not long after the cook moved in, he became very familiar with Zhao Meilan. The two often exchanged glances and flirted.

He would often offer Zhao Meilan small favors, such as providing her with work safety supplies or bringing her steamed buns from the canteen.

To make it easier for the two to meet secretly, Zhao Meilan often sneaked home to meet the cook Wang Dexing while Chen Wang was working in the production team.

No secret can stay hidden forever. They thought that what they were doing was unknown to anyone, but in fact, everyone was watching.

This matter caused a great deal of controversy and had a very bad impact on the 316 Engineering Team.

In order to mitigate the damage, the 316 Engineering Team decided to investigate Wang Dexing and directly interview him.

Wang Dexing got scared and fled overnight, taking Zhao Meilan with him.

Chen Wang spat: "She comes from a rich peasant family, and she married me to escape her class background... Wang Dexing promised to take her to the south to eat government-subsidized grain!"

Li Aiguo had someone summon the leaders of Project 316, who confirmed that Chen Wang's account was true.

“Wang Dexing took the day off today. I only found out he had run away after I received the news.”

Team leader Liu added, "Wang Dexing was responsible for transporting grain on weekdays, and he had a pass in his hand. He probably used this to leave the mining area."

"The key now is to find them."

Li Aiguo stood up and looked at Captain Liu: "Do you have any leads?"

The leader was also frustrated. Wang Dexing was originally a temporary worker, but he had unexpectedly caused such a big problem.

After thinking for a moment, he shook his head: "Wang Dexing is from the south and has no relatives or friends here. This Gobi Desert is desolate. Even if they leave the mining area, they have nowhere to go."

These words reminded Li Aiguo.

"Reclamation Area Development Station!"

"That's right, how come I didn't think of the reclamation station? They must be at the reclamation station, let's go!" The leaders of the 316 Engineering Team also got excited.

The so-called reclamation station was a shed prepared by Shengli No. 8 Farm for reclaiming land on the edge of the Gobi Desert.

The shed had a well and stored food to prevent people from getting lost.

After identifying their target, Li Aiguo, along with Lao Mao and the commune members, rode camels, braving the wind and sand, to search each shack one by one.

When they heard sticky, flirtatious laughter coming from shed number 2166 on the west side of the Gobi Desert, Li Aiguo gave Old Cat a wink.

"Baby, Auntie is feeling the strain. Can you lift Auntie up and carry me on your back?"

The woman's Shaanxi dialect, punctuated by gasps for breath, was torn apart by the howling wind.

Li Aiguo kicked the rusty iron door.

"Bang!"

Amidst the shrill whistle of the door hinge tearing, the scene of the shed suddenly burst into everyone's view: Zhao Meilan's half-undone shirt was still hanging on her elbow, her hair was disheveled, and she was hurriedly pulling up her waistband.

Chen Wang roared like a wild beast: "Damn Zhao Meilan!"

Like a mad bull, it smashed through the old cat that was blocking its way, grabbed its hunting rifle, and was about to pull the trigger.

(End of this chapter)