Nanyang 1931: From piglets to giants

Chapter 17 Absolute Trust
The scene suddenly became cold.

The two American experts looked very unhappy, and Li Jiqian and Li Xiaoshi's faces also became gloomy involuntarily.

"Tell me in detail what the safety hazard is."

Zheng Yi: "Mercury, also known as mercury and cinnabar, are both poisonous substances. They have a very low boiling point and can evaporate at over 200 degrees.

Therefore, the simplest method of smelting mercury is to heat it for distillation and cool it for reduction. Of course, depending on the associated minerals, the specific process is much more complicated.

"But the key point remains that this process, combined with the smelting of associated minerals, will generate a huge amount of wastewater.

This wastewater has been exposed to mercury, and no matter how sophisticated the process, it cannot be completely avoided. In other words, this is actually poisonous water."

"Although this technical solution appears to involve water treatment, in reality, it uses chemical methods to treat impurities such as copper sulfate and iron sulfide that may be present in the wastewater. It does nothing to treat mercury residues, which are the most toxic."

Li Jiqian: "Will the miners' lives be in danger if they come into contact with wastewater?"

"No, it's not just the miners. This wastewater is discharged directly into the river, which means it's used as drinking water for nearby residents. If mining continues as planned, within two months, the health of those living downstream will be affected. Within six months, there will likely be a large-scale death toll."

"Chairman, judging from this technical solution, the factors that determine whether you can start construction quickly are not the so-called safety factors, but the factors of efficiency and profit.

On the contrary, even if you follow their requirements completely, the whole plan will still have a lot of safety hazards."

"I would venture to guess that you are under immense pressure from General Bai or other government officials to start the work quickly.

You're anxious, but they're using safety concerns as an excuse to delay progress. Their goal is to make you even more anxious and force the project forward. But you should probably sign a waiver of liability or something like that, or a guarantee that you'll be responsible if anything goes wrong."

"If I'm not mistaken, these two distinguished guests are trying to force you to temporarily abandon the flotation process and the smelting of the associated minerals. If that happens, within six months of the mine opening, it will undoubtedly cause a massive environmental disaster, affecting the health and even the lives of tens of thousands of people."

"When the time comes, they'll try to shift the blame by saying, 'We told you there were safety hazards, but you didn't listen.' The blame will fall entirely on you, and at that point, it seems your only option will be to sell the mine at a low price."

"After you're kicked out, this mature mining area will fall into the hands of its true owner, who will naturally install new water treatment equipment. Then, this mining area, which you invested in and led in its development, will naturally continue to operate and make money."

"Chairman, who are the shareholders of this mining area? You said it was led by General Bai. Did he personally invest money in the project?"

Li Jiqian's face turned green at this point, and he shook his head, saying, "The government has no money. The main shareholders of the project are all overseas Chinese, similar to me."

Zheng Yi: "Oh, of course. I think General Bai himself might not know about this, but as for the rest of his staff... who knows? After all, if something goes wrong at the mine, no one knows who will take over."

In fact, what Zheng Yi didn’t know was that Li Jiqian died in this project in history.

Historically, Li Jiqian went to Guangxi for inspection many times for this mercury mine project. Unfortunately, he had a car accident. His driver died on the spot. Li Jiqian himself was seriously injured and transferred to Hong Kong Island for rescue, but died due to ineffective rescue.

A revolutionary who followed Mr. Sun all his life eventually died on the road to saving the country through industry. It can be said that he got what he wanted.

I just don’t know how many cars there are on the streets of Guangxi these days. How could such a patriotic overseas Chinese be hit and killed by such a coincidence?

Li Jiqian and Li Xiaoshi are not fools. The father and son have earned such a huge fortune overseas. They have seen all kinds of storms. In fact, there is no need for Zheng Yi to point it out so clearly.

Li Xiaoshi was fine, he just looked unhappy.

Li Jiqian slumped down on the stool, holding his chest and unable to breathe. Li Xiaoshi quickly found a quick-acting heart pill and fed him another one. After a long time, he finally breathed better.

Zheng Yi spoke in English all the time, so he didn't tell the two Americans behind their backs and just spoke to them.

Li Xiaoshi's gaze towards them was filled with naked murderous intent. "Shouldn't you two give us an explanation?"

The two looked at each other and burst into laughter again.

"Oh my god, Mr. Zheng, is that right? This is so ridiculous. I have to admit, this is the funniest joke I have ever heard."

"Yeah, that's the funniest joke I've ever heard. Boy, technology is something you can't just talk nonsense about with just a superficial understanding of it."

"Hey, he's just a yellow monkey, Mr. Li. Just because he's your compatriot, do you trust him so much and doubt the technical dignity of our great American engineers?"

After saying that, the man named Charlie slammed the table and stood up. "Today, this man must apologize to us for his arrogance and ignorance, otherwise, we will never let it go!"

"A mere yellow-skinned monkey dares to question us, Mr. Li, is this the sincerity of your Jinluntai cooperation?"

Seeing how strong the two men were, Li Jiqian was stunned for a moment. After all, he didn't know Zheng Yi, and as a Chinese in Southeast Asia, he had long been accustomed to following the so-called "advanced plans" of Western companies.

A Chinese person is certainly more trustworthy in terms of character and loyalty, and Li Jiqian does not doubt his son's vision.

But technically...

As a Chinese, am I qualified to question American engineers?
Mercury mining is a very complex process, involving not only a certain aspect of knowledge, but also including mechanical, thermal, chemical, etc.
In fact, among Chinese people across the country, there are probably not many people who can understand this design.

Not to mention raising questions.

What if he had seen it wrong and misunderstood others?

I couldn't help but look at Zheng Yi, wanting to hear his explanation.

Unexpectedly, Zheng Yi didn't explain at all.

He said what he needed to say, and ignored the shouting of the two Americans, not even looking at them. Instead, he picked up the snacks from the table and started eating as usual.

It's as if to say, believe it or not.

"Boss, you said..."

Charlie: "Haha, you are just a Chinese. You don't understand technology at all. Don't think that you can just dig a few tin mines..."

Before he could finish his words, he saw Li Xiaoshi had already taken out his gun.

Without saying a word, he loaded his rifle and fired two shots, hitting the two Americans' legs accurately.

"I've said before, I have absolute trust in Brother Zheng. If you two don't explain everything clearly today, then you can't leave."

　Li Jiqian began to invest in Guangxi in 1931, but he initially engaged in the tin mining industry. The mercury mine was not discovered and prepared until 1935, and he himself had an accident after that.

　　In order to make the story flow smoothly, the mercury mine incident is moved forward in this book. The mercury poisoning incident is also fabricated by the author and is not a historical fact. This is hereby stated.

　　However, it is a fact that he died in a car accident and was treated in a Hong Kong Island hospital.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)