Although Vail was so enthusiastic,
both Fang Tie and Guan Songlin still dared not relax.
One suspected hidden blades behind smiles, while the other had just joined the Company and was unaware of certain things. As they hesitated, He Liang spoke up, "Then we thank Chief Vail."
Dealing with African Tribes.
In the face of friendly invitations.
And with several hundred people coming from the other side.
It’s best not to refuse.
Otherwise, the snub would be harsh.
"Good, good, please co in, please co in."
Seeing their agreent, Vail breathed a sigh of relief, glad there was no awkward end to the eting.
Noticing the hesitation of Fang Tie and Guan Songlin, He Liang said with a smile, "Manager Guan, Old Tie, don’t worry, it’ll be fine. We’re all going to be neighbors from now on. It’s not nice to refuse during our first eting."
"That’s true." After exchanging a glance, Guan Songlin and Fang Tie imperceptibly nodded. Regardless, it seed best not to hurt Vail’s face in front of hundreds of people, as the consequences could be unpredictable.
Very soon,
amidst Fang Tie’s concerns,
the Convoy entered the Tribe, and He Liang discovered this was the necessary route to the mining field. They passed through the village, but it was morning and they had just had breakfast, with lunchti still a ways off.
Thereupon,
they reached the coordinates on the Map.
Parked the vehicles.
And they began to set up tents.
With the help of Fang Tie and the other experienced hands, a series of tents of various sizes were quickly erected. These were standardized tents, simple yet durable. Fang Tie thought the design was simply brilliant.
Below was a high-strength plastic board, half a ter on each side, with four ingenious connectors at the edges. In the middle of each connector was a hole for the supporting steel pipe.
The steel pipe was hamred into the ground.
It could be raised, lowered, and disassembled into sections by turning knobs on it.
Once the steel pipe was confird to be very sturdy, the final leveling device could be installed on top, then plastic boards laid down. Since the ground was all mud, it wouldn’t do to lay nothing at all.
The plastic board was about thirty centiters off the ground.
Preventing damp, waterproofing, and guarding against snakes and rodents.
Afterward, they spread the tent out, and its fixed points on all sides were secured with bolts. In an instant, a tent asuring eight ters long, three point six ters wide, and two point five ters high was erected, tough to even shake.
"Where did you buy these tents? They’re so handy," Fang Tie remarked admiringly. They often went camping and knew the cleverness of such design, aware it was the power of standardization, sothing he hadn’t seen before.
He Liang spread his hands, "I don’t know either, they’re provided by the Company, no brand label on them."
Approaching noon,
inside the Camp, tents, electrical lines, toilets, and assembled tables and chairs were all set up, and the Employees moved into the tents, allocated their beds, and arranged their personal belongings.
The only tasks left for the afternoon were clearing weeds and encircling this temporary camp.
The two African police cars had already left.
They needed to get back before dark.
"Distinguished guests, lunch is ready, please this way," Vail, who had been by the camp helping with carrying things and lending a hand, said. The Tribe didn’t know how to set up, but they could carry stuff.
"Sorry to trouble you," Guan Songlin replied politely.
Afterward,
ten Security Guards stayed behind to watch over things,
while the rest followed Vail to his Tribe. Seeing that not all the Chinese had gone, of course, Vail didn’t take offense. It’s natural not to let one’s guard down when eting soone new.
There’ll be plenty of ti in the future.
Vail believed that the others would surely feel his sincerity.
Upon arriving at the Tribe,
an abundance of Food was already prepared.
All sorts of Ga, various Fruits, the at was roasted, albeit a bit raw but definitely edible.
Vail had started preparing a few days earlier to welco his new neighbors, sparing no effort to show his utmost sincerity. It’s just that the Tribe’s enthusiasm gave Fang Tie the unsettling feeling "of a Pig about to be butchered."
"Do you think, after this al, they’ll ask you for a Potassium Transport Vehicle?" Fang Tie asked, looking at He Liang eating a Mango and expressing his suspicion. It wasn’t inconceivable. If that happened, it would be absurd.
"Pfft..."
He Liang directly spat out the mango in his mouth.
"Bro, I can’t believe you ca up with that," He Liang said with a wry smile.
"You never know, unwarranted kindness," Fang Tie said, rolling his eyes.
He Liang had to explain in a low voice, "Bro, when we mine, we definitely give the tribe certain interests. To put it bluntly, we’re their cash cow, bringing them money—how could they possibly extort us over this?"
"That might be true, but their ambitions are not so easily controlled. If they turn against us or expand, it could be troubleso," Fang Tie remarked, not swayed by He Liang’s words. Having seen much, he was more inclined to be skeptical.
Watching Vail chatting animatedly with Guan Songlin.
He Liang shook his head and smiled, "No ’buts,’ he wouldn’t dare."
"Wouldn’t dare? Dare what?" Fang Tie asked, puzzled.
"Nothing, co on, let’s eat. Do you have any other tasks today?" He Liang deftly changed the subject. There were so suspicions he himself didn’t know who was responsible for, and even if he did know, it was company secrets; he couldn’t possibly tell Fang Tie.
The bond between comrades is one thing.
Company secrets are another and cannot be disclosed at will.
Fang Tie bit into a piece of at—he heard it was wild zebra, sothing he had never eaten before. However, he had to admit that the tribe’s barbecuing skills were terrible. After swallowing a piece of charred at, he said, "No duty today, why do you ask?"
"Then you’ll continue helping us this afternoon," He Liang said cheerfully.
"Wow, you’re treating like a packhorse, grabbing hold and not letting go. That’s not fair—I treat you like a brother, and you treat like labor," Fang Tie complained, glaring at He Liang.
"What else?"
He Liang asked with a mischievous laugh.
It wasn’t that they lacked a few hands, but he wanted to spend more ti chatting with Fang Tie.
Facing He Liang’s unabashed admission, Fang Tie laughed and nodded, "Alright, but you guys better prepare sothing tasty for dinner. Tell , did you bring any good stuff? I’ll need to inspect your backpack. The old rule applies—we split it half and half when we et, got it?"
"No problem, but I’m just on a business trip for a few days and will be returning soon. I’m afraid you’ll want to cry when you see my bag. Tonight we’ll invite Chief Vail and his people over for dinner. Let’s have a good drink," He Liang said nonchalantly.
At that mont,
Vail ca over.
He toasted each of them in turn.
He spoke warmly about friendly cooperation and mutual benefits.
After a full two hours, the lunch gathering finally dispersed.
Back at the camp,
they began constructing a simple fence and clearing the grounds.
The chefs were already busy preparing the evening’s dinner early. Making dinner for over a hundred people was no easy task, and with the addition of guests from Vail’s group, preparing a lavish al for a hundred and fifty took all afternoon.
It was a good thing the supplies were due tomorrow.
Otherwise, they wouldn’t dare be so extravagant.
.....
The next day.
Early in the morning,
led by Fang Tie,
they arrived at the border between Congo Gold and Rwanda.
Looking at the seemingly endless line of large trucks on the other side, Fang Tie was amazed. Over a hundred trucks—it felt like he couldn’t see the end. Were all these materials for the mining field? Was it necessary to bring so much at once?
Besides that, there were several pump trucks and tanker trucks.
As well as other items covered with waterproof tarps, their contents unclear.
He Liang explained from the side, "Most of what’s inside are construction materials, used to build high-standard roads and permanent structures. The mining vehicles and equipnt are very heavy, placing high demands on the roads.
The roads must be finished first. This is just the first shipnt of materials. There are more than twenty planned transportation tasks ahead of us. It will take at least three months to complete the base infrastructure of the mining field and be ready for formal operations."
Hearing this,
Fang Tie was taken aback.
Building a mining field apparently required that much material.
"I really want to see what the finished mining field will look like."
"It’s so close, you’ll see it," He Liang said proudly. As the boss of Wan Qing Mining and of his own company, his state of mind was completely different from when he used to manage mining fields for others.
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