Divine Tang Era

Xu Dan ran wildly and finally arrived at the foot of Jinshan Mountain.

He stood there like a majestic and imposing deity, displaying his immense power to the world.

Jinshan is not particularly beautiful, but rather characterized by its towering peaks. When sunlight shines on it, it glitters with gold, exuding a noble and mysterious aura that always makes people want to explore it.

Xu Dan was the same; after all, he had dug up three nuggets of gold nearby and was always thinking about whether he could dig up some more.

Who would complain about having too much gold?

Jinshan is called a mountain, but it is actually a mountain range.

The highest peak in the mountain range, Fengjin Mountain, is 1,325.45 zhang (approximately 636.6 meters), while the others are around 900 to 300 zhang (approximately 150 to 1100 meters). Due to the high altitude and location on a plateau, the high-altitude areas of the mountain range experience very thick snow accumulation and are extremely cold in winter. Generally, the snow cover on medium and high peaks lasts for six to eight months, while on lower peaks it lasts for about five to six months.

The towering, long mountain ranges have nurtured countless lives, and the lush vegetation has brought abundant rainfall.

Heavy rains washed away the mountain soil and dead leaves, creating a fertile plain at the foot of the mountain.

In the past, Jinshan was occupied by nomadic peoples who only knew how to herd livestock and did not know how to farm, thus wasting a good place.

When the government of the Divine Tang Dynasty arrived in Jingning, they discovered the area and began constructing irrigation systems and reclaiming wasteland for farming, thus developing the land. In just one season, Jingning City had more grain than it could consume, and even more to sell elsewhere, resulting in unbelievably low grain prices within the city.

Xu Dan has never climbed a high mountain, but he has been to places at an altitude of 2,000 meters.

Once there, daily life was fine, but even a little running or exercise would leave me breathless.

I'm strong and healthy now, and I wonder what will happen. I'm a little excited.

After taking a look, Xu Dan started walking upwards. There were paths worn into the mountains, and he followed one of them. Jinshan was different from other places; people frequently came to pan for gold. Although the larger gold mines were controlled by the imperial court, the smaller veins and scattered ore were left unattended.

If you're lucky enough to find ore or dig up a tiny vein, you can take it back, refine it a little, and make a fortune.

It is said that the rivers at the foot of Jinshan Mountain used to be full of gold sand, which could be used directly without washing.

Unfortunately, too many people came after hearing the news, and the gold sand in the river was gradually exhausted. The gold mines in the mountains and forests became increasingly difficult to find. Some people simply changed careers, while others were still unwilling to give up. Some people came to try their luck when they had nothing else to do, hoping that they might find gold.

Xu Dan just unearthed a nugget of gold.

So, there is gold on the mountain, it's just a matter of whether you can find it.

As Xu Dan climbed the mountain, he looked for medicinal herbs to collect, hoping to earn some extra money. However, the path was worn smooth by footsteps, and any herbs found there would have been picked clean long ago; there was no way he'd find them. Continuing upwards, after climbing a little further, he encountered two men ahead who were tapping the ground with long sticks with iron ends. They called out, "Gentlemen, have you found any gold?"

The two had noticed Xu Dan early on, after all, there were many wild beasts in the mountains and forests, so they had to be careful.

Hearing his question, one of them smiled wryly and said, "It's not that easy to find. We two are just taking advantage of our free time these past few days to come out and try our luck. Where are you headed, young master?"

"I want to go hiking and see the top," Xu Dan said.

"That's not an easy climb, young man, you must be careful."

"Thank you for reminding me, sir. You're busy, I'll be going now."

The two women watched his retreating figure, exchanged a glance, and wondered what was so interesting about climbing this mountain; it was clearly a waste of time. People like them, who toiled day and night to earn money for their families, could hardly imagine the romantic escapades of the wealthy.

Just as the two were about to continue their search, they saw Xu Dan run back again, which didn't seem strange to them.

Before he could even speak, Xu Dan asked, "Hey gentlemen, do you know where the imperial gold mine is? I'd like to go take a look, but I don't know if it's even possible?"

"You can look, but you can't get too close, or you'll be chased away. If you don't listen, you'll be arrested, or even killed on the spot," said the man who had spoken to him earlier.

"It's good that I can see it. Could you give me some directions, sir?"

"You'll see it if you walk a little further; it's right in the direction you're going."

"Thank you, uncle. I'll treat you to a drink when we get back."

"Young master, you're too kind." The two watched Xu Dan leave, and after a while, seeing that he was really gone, they continued searching for gold.

Xu Dan climbed a little further and indeed saw a mine. Not daring to get too close, he jumped onto a large tree and stood on a thick branch to look into the distance. The mine was vast, with mining shafts, crushing and smelting areas. Miners were coming and going, busy at work. The mine was surrounded by a cordon, with barricades and fully armed soldiers standing there, watching intently.

"This damn mine is actually pretty big," Xu Dan muttered to himself.

"How could there be imperial troops stationed here in such a small place?"

A voice suddenly appeared behind Xu Dan's head, startling him so much that he turned around quickly. He saw a man who thought himself dashing leaning against a thick tree trunk, holding a sword.

"When did you arrive? You appeared out of nowhere, I didn't even notice."

"If I cultivate for so long and a child like you finds out, wouldn't all my cultivation have been for nothing?" Pei Ziye said arrogantly.

"That's not necessarily true."

Xu Dan said casually, "I was just looking at something and didn't pay attention. If I were focused, I could tell how long even an ant the thickness of a hair would be if it walked under me, let alone you."

"Hahahaha..." Pei Ziye was amused by him.

"If you don't believe me, let's try it."

"Since I'm just killing time anyway, I might as well give it a try. I'll make sure I see things clearly this time." Pei Ziye darted away and disappeared.

"This idiot doesn't even understand the implications." Xu Dan scoffed at the newcomer's intelligence, activated his double pupils, and scanned his surroundings. Under the sweep of his pupils, nothing could hide. But strangely, why couldn't he see that guy?

"So, did you see it clearly?"

Xu Dan was startled and looked up to see Pei Ziye floating in the air with a mocking expression.

"My friend, you've gone off-topic. I said you'd definitely spot me when you came, where you were leaning against the tree, not that you were flying above me. Don't you know that's a blind spot? If you'd disappeared underground, I'd never find you in my entire life!"

Xu Dan was displeased. "So what if you have high cultivation? Believe me or not, I'll punch you until you fart."

"Hehe, so it's my fault then?" Pei Ziye teased.

"Of course not. I'm a gentleman, would I lie to you?" Xu Dan said with an upright expression.

"Ha ha ha ha"

Pei Ziye, for some unknown reason, burst into laughter. Xu Dan, too lazy to pay attention to this jerk, having already inspected the gold mine, simply jumped down from the tree and continued climbing.

"Is this the kid who told Li Niang the legend?" A man appeared next to Pei Ziye and asked.

"This little guy is quite interesting."

"I don't know if he's interesting or not, but I'm curious how his brain works, how he comes up with so many novel and legendary stories?"

"Children always have many fantastical ideas. Once when I came home, my nephew ran over to me and said, 'Second Uncle, I saw two dragons fighting, plowing a deep trench in the earth, and countless ferocious birds and beasts fled in fright. Luckily I stopped them, otherwise the world would have been destroyed by them.' When I went over, I found that it was actually two earthworms crawling on the ground, with a flock of chickens and ducks pecking at them from behind."

The next day, my nephew came running to me again and said, "Two giant beasts were fighting fiercely in the forest, causing the sky to darken, the sun and moon to lose their light, and the Milky Way to overflow. Luckily, I intervened, otherwise the world would have been flooded."

When I went outside, I saw two stray dogs that had run out of nowhere and smashed the water tank, spilling the water out and almost flooding the backyard.

Gan Luo became prime minister at the age of twelve, Cai Wenji could distinguish strings by listening to music at the age of six, Li Bai recited "Liu Jia" at the age of six, and Luo Binwang sang about geese at the age of seven.

Moreover, even Confucius couldn't answer the question of two children discussing the sun. Some people are born with intelligence that you and I simply can't match. So, even if someone came to me saying their son could speak from birth, I wouldn't be surprised. Besides, aren't all those on the Young Scale Ranking geniuses?

Upon hearing Pei Ziye's words, the man seemed to recall something and suddenly fell silent.

Pei Ziye didn't say anything either, and the two of them stood there silently, letting the mountain wind make their clothes flutter.