Forced to marry a disabled man in the countryside? I'll repay you tenfold!

The group quickly pulled the drill bit up.

Li Guodong stamped his feet in distress—the drill bit was probably ruined! But before he could even curse, Old Zhang had already rushed over, staring wide-eyed at the shavings clinging to the drill bit tip:

"This...this is fluorite! Purple! High-grade!"

Li Guodong froze, then rushed over in three strides, snatched the drill bit, and examined it closely, his fingers trembling: "It's fluorite! It really is fluorite! How is this possible? There really is a mine down there!"

He suddenly looked up, his gaze towards Su Wanqing a complex mix of emotions—shock, disbelief, and a hint of…admiration?

"Hurry, change the drill bit, keep digging!" Li Guodong's voice trembled with excitement. "Judging by the quality of these fragments, the vein is huge! We've really found it!"

Old Zhang was also flushed with excitement, slapping his thigh: "Great! Great! Although we haven't found beryllium ore yet, fluorite is also a strategic material! And it often occurs alongside beryllium ore, so there must be more around! Little Su, do you know how much time and money you've saved the country? All the initial investment has been recouped, and we don't even need to reapply for subsequent exploration!"

Su Wanqing, however, wasn't happy. She had already scanned the surrounding dozens of miles with her Eye of Insight—there was no trace of beryllium ore. To upgrade her space, she had to continue searching. If she still couldn't find it, she would have to expand her search area.

She said calmly, "Now that we've found it, let's start exploring the reserves. I won't interfere with the rest."

Old Zhang's eyes narrowed into slits with a smile: "Finding the mine is the biggest achievement! Leave the rest of the smaller tasks to us, you go and rest, don't overwork yourself." He suddenly remembered something, "Look at you, why didn't you tell us you were pregnant sooner! If we had known you were pregnant, we wouldn't have let you run all over the mountains with us!"

Su Wanqing glanced at Zhou Yanshen—no one here knew about her pregnancy.

Zhou Yanshen coughed lightly, his ears turning slightly red: "Wanqing, let's go over there and rest for a while."

Old Zhang laughed heartily, "That kid went around telling us all this morning that you're pregnant, and asking everyone to be considerate of his wife. Didn't you see how much Old Li was holding back today? He would have jumped up and down by now yesterday!"

No wonder! I was wondering why Li Guodong was so agreeable today. It turns out it was Zhou Yanshen.

Su Wanqing glanced at Li Guodong, who was directing the excavation not far away—his face was flushed red, but he stubbornly remained silent, occasionally stealing glances at her with a complex expression. She suddenly found this old man rather interesting.

Commander Zhao also chimed in, "Xiao Su, go and rest. We've got you covered here. Just wait for the victory celebration!"

……

Su Wanqing and Zhou Yanshen walked a little further away and found a flat rock to sit on.

The exploration site was bustling with activity, the clanging and hammering sounds mingling with the roar of machinery. The sun shone warmly, and a mountain breeze carried the fresh scent of grass and trees.

After sitting for half an hour, Su Wanqing couldn't stay still any longer: "Shall we take a walk around here?"

"Okay." Zhou Yanshen stood up and habitually shielded her on the inside.

The two walked slowly along the ridge. There were no snake nests or mushrooms here, completely different from the direction they had taken yesterday. Su Wanqing activated her Eye of Insight, marking the locations on the mini-map as they walked. She didn't bother to remember the less valuable mineral deposits, but when she encountered plants with high medicinal value, she simply dug them up by the roots and secretly stored them in her spatial storage, preparing to propagate them back home.

I didn't find any ginseng, but I did collect some commonly used medicinal herbs such as astragalus, bupleurum, and licorice.

Just as she was about to turn back, Su Wanqing suddenly stopped.

Zhou Yanshen immediately became alert, his hand resting on his holster: "What's wrong?"

Su Wanqing pointed to the hillside not far away, her eyes shining: "Chestnut trees! There's a huge patch of wild chestnuts over there!"

Late September is the season for chestnuts to ripen. The branches are covered with spiky, round chestnut buds, some of which have already split open to reveal shiny, brown chestnuts. A thick layer of chestnuts has fallen on the ground, and several squirrels, with their bushy tails trailing behind them, dart about, happily munching on the chestnuts.

The two walked quickly over. The chestnut grove was much larger than they had imagined; the thickest trees were as thick as two people could hug, while the thinnest were as big as a bowl, densely covering the entire hillside.

Su Wanqing immediately gave the order: "Quick, spread the sheets on the ground, then you climb the tree and shake it!"

Zhou Yan had brought a blue and white checkered sheet with him when he left home, worried that she might have trouble in the wild. Now it came in handy—he quickly spread it out, climbed the tree in a few strides, grabbed a branch, and gave it a good shake.

"Splash—" Chestnuts fell like raindrops, bouncing and rolling all over the bed sheet.

One tree can't be completely stripped bare; some food for the small animals to survive the winter must be left. Zhou Yanshen worked quickly, changing trees every two or three minutes, and soon a small mountain of food was piled up on the bed sheet.

This forest is huge. Looking at the chestnuts scattered all over the ground, Su Wanqing thought of the days when the mountains were blocked by heavy snow in winter: "Take these back first, and then have someone who has free time come and pick more. We can put a few in the rice when cooking in winter, and a few in the stew, and they can also be eaten as snacks."

Zhou Yanshen nodded, wrapped the bed sheet into a large bundle, and stuffed the basket to the brim.

On the way back, Su Wanqing quietly released five fat rabbits from her spatial storage and threw them into the bushes under the chestnut tree. These rabbits were raised in her spatial storage and had no souls; they would just stand there foolishly munching on grass. Zhou Yanshen would definitely "discover" them when he passed by.

Braised rabbit with chestnuts—just thinking about it makes my mouth water.

Actually, braised chicken with chestnuts is more fragrant, but the chickens in her online space are all domesticated, plump speckled hens, you can tell at a glance they're not wild. Rabbits are different; there are plenty of wild rabbits in the mountains, who can tell if they're domesticated or wild?

When we returned to the exploration site, they were still digging away in full swing. The roar of the drilling rigs and the clanging of the rocks mingled together, and about a dozen people were busy working around the ever-deepening pit.

As soon as Li Guodong saw Su Wanqing return, his eyes immediately darted away, pretending to be focused on the notebook in his hands, but his ears were slightly red. He was too ashamed to speak to Su Wanqing now—he had scolded her so fiercely yesterday, and today he had been slapped in the face, losing all face.

Commander Zhao, however, immediately noticed the bulging bundle on Zhou Yanshen's back and leaned over curiously to ask, "What good stuff did you get this time?"

"Wild chestnuts." Su Wanqing patted the bundle with a smile. "An extra treat for dinner tonight."

Upon hearing this, Old Zhang immediately dropped the stones he was holding and came over. He opened the bundle and his eyes lit up: "Wow! So many! These things keep well; they're especially delicious when stewing meat in winter, and adding a few to porridge makes it sweet!"

Commander Zhao swallowed hard, exclaiming, "Little Su, can you find food anywhere? Your nose is even sharper than a dog's!"