Rebirth: Super Banking System Chapter 2476 - 2314: Why Does It Feel So Acidic Inside?

At this moment, the live stream room saw an influx of even more spectators. Such is the immense power of word-of-mouth.

Silver. In the annals of Huaxia and throughout the globe, it has historically served as a universal currency. Much like gold, it maintains a unique prestige in the hearts of the masses.

While it may not command the same stature as gold, it nonetheless remains a potent symbol of prosperity.

...

"How vast do you imagine these reserves truly are?"

"Who could say?"

"It might just be a superficial layer of silver ore, or perhaps it’s a subterranean treasure. We must simply wait for the official exploration data to be certain."

"I hope we hit the jackpot."

"Me too!"

"If the reserves exceed ten thousand tons... that would be the motherlode!"

"Keep dreaming, friend!"

"The current market rate for silver is seven RMB per gram, which equals seven million per ton. Ten thousand tons would be worth more than seventy billion RMB—what a massive windfall that would be!"

"You cannot focus solely on reserves; you must also subtract the operational costs."

"That is fair."

"I cannot wait for the final results to surface."

"..."

The audience engaged in lively speculation regarding the scale of the silver mine. Though the outcome held no direct bearing on their own lives, they watched for the sheer spectacle. Involvement was not the goal; entertainment was.

At this exact moment, the camera angle shifted. They observed that the other five drilling rigs on the Fuyun had also commenced operations. Following its design specifications, the Fuyun possessed the capability to drill six holes simultaneously. The entire vessel had officially entered a state of frantic productivity.

...

In the refining sector, at the finished product outlet, bars of silver were being smelted and arranged in meticulous stacks. Although the Fuyun performed the extraction, the ultimate ownership rightfully belonged to the state. Thus, these silver bars were destined for state coffers. Watching this progress, Chai Ren felt a pang of distress; at this current velocity, he was essentially watching hundreds of millions vanish into thin air before his eyes. Hundreds of millions—not mere pocket change.

...

Regarding this, Tang Qing remained utterly indifferent. It was, after all, only silver; even had it been gold, he would not have felt a flicker of regret. Conversely, Qi Yi and his associates watched the production with unbridled joy, unable to pull their gazes away. They were thrilled, happy, and thoroughly delighted. After all, this was pure wealth manifesting before them.

Witnessing this, Tang Qing did not linger. He departed alongside Chai Ren and his group. As they put some distance between them and the site, Chai Ren could not suppress his curiosity: "What you mentioned earlier—is it truly accurate?"

"To what are you referring?"

"The Myanmar Gold Group," Chai Ren prompted. The entire affair struck him as peculiar.

Tang Qing let out a soft laugh. "Of course. The contract was drafted ages ago, signed by Wan Qing Mining and the Myanmar Gold Group, complete with a ten percent dividend and a guaranteed minimum."

Truthfully, this had been a whim of the moment. He had little genuine desire to manage a silver mine. As for the contract, it was trivial to produce, as a forgery could be whipped up in an instant. As for being audited? They would have to actually find some discrepancy to investigate. It is worth noting that Wan Qing Mining is not registered domestically, and both the contracting entity and the service provider operate outside of Huaxia, making the entire procedure remarkably straightforward.

Upon hearing this, Chai Ren’s suspicions dissipated. Furthermore, such a significant commitment could hardly be a spur-of-the-moment whim.

"A guaranteed minimum? What is the figure?" Chai Ren asked.

"Six billion Asia Dollars," Tang Qing replied nonchalantly.

"Not shabby at all," Chai Ren noted with a nod. With the current exchange rate, six billion Asia Dollars translated to roughly eight billion RMB, which was slightly above his expectations. Now, at the very least, they would not be operating at a deficit. Eight billion would easily cover the Fuyun’s wages, perks, bonuses, and operational overhead for a full year. Whether they netted a massive profit beyond that would depend entirely on luck. He saw no point in asking where the mine was located; it sat in a foreign Exclusive Economic Zone, so what could he possibly do even if he knew?

In Myanmar, all state-run gold mining operations had been shuttered. Consequently, the Myanmar Gold Group stood as the sole enterprise in the region qualified for exploration and mining, leaving foreign firms with no foothold. If a major gold deposit truly existed, only they would reap the rewards. Market competition? In the current climate of Myanmar, such concepts were ineffective. Since Ling’s ascent to power, the economy had begun to pivot toward state planning, proving that neither a pure market economy nor a total planned economy is inherently flawless. Ultimately, the quality of a system depends entirely on the people who wield it. The most effective strategy is often a careful synthesis of both.

...

As the news disseminated, their neighbor, India, was once again left in a state of collective shock. Having only just mocked Tang Qing, fully expecting him to hemorrhage capital, they were struck by the speed of the reality check. He had started drilling, and suddenly, a massive silver deposit lay exposed. The longer they watched the feed, the deeper their frustration grew. Their misery turned to incandescent fury. Their faces flushed either in embarrassed shame or from searing envy. At the discharge terminal, silver ingots emerged in a relentless, rhythmic stream. There was no indication of the output slowing down.

How infuriating! Why did Tang Qing seem to invite such effortless fortune? "It is surely just a thin layer of silver skin," someone shouted into the digital void.

"Indeed!" others concurred. "Just wait, soon the drills will hit nothing but rock; all his luck must surely be exhausted by now."

"Absolutely."

"..."

Even as they hurled these protests, they prayed in the depths of their souls that the mine was a hoax, that this was merely a stroke of blind luck. They desperately hoped the drill had simply grazed a single silver pocket and that all else was useless debris. For a fleeting moment, they managed to find comfort in this self-deception. Then, not long after the other five machines fired up, the sound of a collective gasp echoed throughout the Indian audience. They stared in disbelief as the discharge ports of the other five rigs, initially churning out silt and rubble, began to glimmer with the unmistakable sheen of silver. Bit by bit, like the first, they were soon outputting countless sparkling fragments. The automated detection notifications echoed incessantly: "Silver mine: high grade. Silver mine: high grade. ..."

They were left speechless. Oh, heavens! Why would you not favor India? We are your most devout followers, praying daily—why ignore our pleas?

The viewers took deep, shaky breaths, struggling for composure. They reasoned to themselves that the heavens were simply testing their resolve, demanding they endure hardship to achieve true greatness. All worldly possessions—the gold mines, the silver, the luxuries—were mere fleeting shadows. A life of hardship, they told themselves, makes one's devotion shine brighter. But beneath that logic, a pervasive, crushing bitterness remained.

...

As evening fell, the sun dipped beneath the horizon. The Fuyun shimmered with light, its exterior illumination project giving it the appearance of a luminous isle, shedding the typical gloom of an island at night. Was such lighting a waste of electricity? Perhaps, but Tang Qing had never intended to penny-pinch; skimping on costs would only give the island a dismal, uninviting atmosphere. He prioritized bright, daylight-mimicking illumination. As for the power supply, the Fuyun did not rely solely on fuel; it utilized a three-pronged sustainability approach. First, there was solar energy, with specialized materials coating every building and hull surface to convert ambient light into electricity. Second, wave energy, provided by power-generating rods that deployed underwater to harness the motion of the tides. Third, wind energy. While these three sources alone might not be sufficient to power the entire ship, they acted as a vital supplement, meeting two-thirds of the island’s daily consumption. The remainder was fueled by traditional power, though the primary design intention for these renewable systems was to provide an emergency backbone to ensure mission-critical life support continued even if fuel supplies were entirely exhausted.