Rebirth of the Mining Tycoon

Chapter 42: The Method of Verification

Dinner was held at a restaurant in the county seat. On the table, seafood took up more than half the dishes.

Although Jian'an Province was a coastal region, this small county town was still over 200 kilometers from the shore. At present, long-distance seafood transport was still quite inconvenient, so being able to eat fresh seafood in such a place meant it was very expensive.

There was alcohol and meat, and the atmosphere at the table was lively and warm.

Out of a sense of respect for talent, Hao Zhengzhi and Lü Fengnian toasted several rounds with Li Tang, occasionally probing into his background through casual conversation.

To their surprise, Li Tang had a poor tolerance for alcohol. Very soon, his head was bobbing, and his speech had become slurred.

As the leader of the delegation, Zhao Hepu naturally had to hold up appearances.

Moreover, after listening to Li Tang's insights along the way, he had also gained many realizations.

Whether or not the Demen Copper Mine could be revived now hinged on one thing: cooperating with the Purple Metallurgy Research Institute and sharing technical results.

So for this drinking occasion, he cast aside all distractions and was wholeheartedly enthusiastic.

Technically, Li Tang was unmatched. But when it came to the drinking table, Zhao Hepu showed no signs of fatigue.

Hao Zhengzhi and Lü Fengnian were researchers, but as members of the management team, they were no strangers to business dinners. Their alcohol tolerance wasn't bad.

However, up against Zhao Hepu—a battle-hardened drinker with a reputation for holding his liquor—they eventually conceded defeat.

After the feast, just before leaving, Li Tang handed the materials in his hand over to Hao Zhengzhi.

At dawn the next day, with the alcohol still lingering in his system, Hao Zhengzhi was slightly dizzy. But he immediately called the driver, grabbed the documents Li Tang had given him, skipped breakfast, and hurried to the experimental plant.

Right now, he had only one thing on his mind: to run a few data sets based on the methods in the document and verify their accuracy.

If it turned out that the technology Li Tang provided was indeed correct...

Then all the experiments currently being conducted at the plant could be halted.

Even the many planned experiments for the future could be set aside.

It would save an enormous amount of time and funding!

They could even push this project into its next phase on an industrial scale.

Possibly even go straight into the construction of a large-scale experimental plant!

He didn't want to waste another second. He didn't want to see everyone fumbling around in the dark anymore—constantly failing, constantly hitting walls.

"Immediately make a copy of this document for every staff member. Start reading it right away and get familiar with the data it contains as fast as possible!"

"Everyone, gather for a meeting now!"

"Any experiment that hasn't started yet, or has just begun—effective today, pause all of them!"

"Contact the mine at once and send over a batch of ore that has undergone a strict washing process! As for particle size—strictly control the crushing step and aim for uniformity. Especially the 50-millimeter particle size mentioned by Li Tang—make sure to send extra!"

"Immediately conduct a test using a combination of moderate thermophilic bacteria and extreme thermophiles. Follow the operational sequence in the document to the letter—start with moderate thermophiles, then add extreme thermophiles. Be very precise with the timing!"

"Also, for the spraying duration, focus on testing whether the 'three days spraying, one day pause' technique is the optimal choice!"

"Organize all previous experiment data and conduct a detailed comparison with the figures in this document!"

…

Upon arriving at the experimental plant, Hao Zhengzhi issued a flurry of orders.

Whereas they had previously been progressing step by step using elimination methods, today they shifted strategy—they were now using the method of verification.

The procedures were the same, but now their objectives were crystal clear.

Before, it was one trial after another, followed by constant failures and narrowing the range of possibilities bit by bit.

Now, they had a potential answer in hand. All that was left was to run multiple sets of comparative analyses to confirm whether it was correct or not.

Everyone received a copy of the material and saw many novel concepts and ideas.

There were even numerous technical points they were still groping around trying to solve, but the document had already provided clear answers.

If this document ultimately proved valid, their future research would have a precise point of reference—it could even become an official operational standard!

Just the thought of it fired up everyone's research enthusiasm.

They all wanted to find out the answer to one burning question as quickly as possible: Was Li Tang a massive academic fraud—or a genuine technological genius?

Days passed. Every task eventually turned into dense data sets.

Hao Zhengzhi and Lü Fengnian teamed up to compile and analyze all the experimental results from the past few weeks.

Finally, they reached a conclusion.

With the test results in hand, the two of them walked side by side into the general manager's office at Purple Mining's headquarters.

When the company later restructured and became a joint-stock enterprise, this office would be converted into the chairman's office.

The office door was wide open, but no one was inside.

"Where's President Chen? Why isn't he back yet?" Hao Zhengzhi kept looking at his watch, lifting his sleeve anxiously.

They had already asked people in the neighboring office and knew that Chen Jinhe was still in a meeting.

"Calm down," Lü Fengnian said steadily, sitting cross-legged on the sofa with an air of poise.

With his silver-white hair, he looked like a sage, serene and dignified.

"It's almost dark—I can't wait any longer!" Hao Zhengzhi stood up.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going to the meeting room to find President Chen myself!"

After waiting over an hour, Hao Zhengzhi had run out of patience.

He had never felt this anxious in his entire life.

"We've waited through nearly half a month already. What's another few minutes?" Lü Fengnian knew what his old colleague was worried about—he felt the same.

"If Li Tang were to give this crucial document to someone else, it would be a massive loss to our research project—and to Purple Mining."

"If Li Tang had intended to do that, he'd have handed it over already. A few more minutes won't change anything."

"I have to see President Chen right now!"

As Hao Zhengzhi rushed toward the door, he almost collided head-on with someone coming in.

He focused his eyes and gasped in relief. "President Chen, you're finally back!"

Behind Chen Jinhe were several senior company executives, all holding documents, looking just as anxious. "President Chen, this file's been delayed for days—we need your signature."

Chen Jinhe waved them off without looking back. "Leave it. Come back tomorrow."

Tomorrow?

They had barely been able to see him for days. This matter had already been postponed multiple times!

The executives sighed in resignation and turned away.

President Chen had always been like this—technical issues always took top priority.

"What's so urgent?" Chen Jinhe dropped the paperwork in his hand and immediately sat down across from Hao Zhengzhi and Lü Fengnian.

"President Chen, take a look at this document!" Hao Zhengzhi didn't give too much explanation. He simply handed over the document Li Tang had provided.

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