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墨書 Inktalez
Zhao Fei came to see Jiu Ye today for another matter, but he didn't expect to stumble upon such a good show. He immediately lifted his foot, wanting to step forward and teach Situ Nan a lesson.
"Let's wait and see."
Jiu Ye grabbed Zhao Fei and shook his head.
"Old Class Leader, if Situ Nan keeps making a scene, he'll lose all face."
"Xiao Zhao, you're already the mayor; why are you still so impatient? There's a reason I'm not letting you go up. That guy from Japan must have some reason for being interested in our Luo Family Village and this mountainous area, right?"
Zhao Fei was taken aback, calmed down, and nodded, saying, "Yes, that's correct!"
He had just been anxious because he felt embarrassed in front of Old Class Leader. Now that he was calm, Zhao Fei also sensed something strange about the situation. This person named Ono Ken Saburo didn't seem like someone who would come to Luo Family Village to invest in building a factory; he must have other motives.
"But that Japanese guy can't possibly reveal it himself, right?"
"Well... the Ancient Sorcerer said he has a way."
Jiu Ye also didn't know what tricks were being played here.
"Ancient Sorcerer? The kid sitting across from Situ Nan? Alright then, Old Class Leader, I'll listen to you. Let's just wait and see."
Zhao Fei had already noticed the Ancient Sorcerer, and hearing Old Class Leader say this made him agree to hold off for now and observe.
The Ancient Sorcerer naturally had no idea about all this. Situ Nan's furious outburst scared Luo Ning but didn't intimidate him.
"Well, County Head, I think we should take a break, smoke a cigarette, have some water, and continue our discussion later."
The Ancient Sorcerer said as he pulled out the cigarettes he had prepared last night from his pocket, waving them at Situ Nan and Ono Ken Saburo.
Situ Nan initially wanted to refuse, but upon seeing the cigarettes, his gaze was fixed. He had been a heavy smoker for years and hadn't smoked all morning; how could he withstand it? He had forgotten to bring any when he left early today, otherwise, he would have already lit one up.
Ono Ken Saburo noticed the movement of Situ Nan's Adam's apple and realized that he was craving a smoke. If it weren't for the pride at stake, he probably would have already lit one up.
"Why didn't I think of this sooner?"
After cursing himself internally, he remembered that since he didn't smoke, he wouldn't have brought any cigarettes. At this moment, he could only borrow flowers to offer Buddha. Ono Ken Saburo picked up a cigarette from the table that the Ancient Sorcerer had placed there, took one out, and immediately lit it with a "snap."
"Hey, Da Ye, why don't you have one too? This is good tobacco from our country."
After taking a deep drag and exhaling thick smoke, Situ Nan relieved his craving and called out to Ono Ken Saburo.
"Alright... then I'll have one too."
Watching the two men "ride the clouds and mist," the Ancient Sorcerer felt delighted. He had been worried about how to get Da Ye and the others to smoke the cigarettes he had mixed with additives. He even prepared for the possibility that they might refuse him by lighting one up himself for them to smell—though that would be less effective, it would still achieve his goal. However, he did not expect that under these circumstances, Situ Nan and Ono Ken Saburo would take the initiative to smoke.
Go ahead, smoke more.
The Ancient Sorcerer quietly watched Situ Nan and Ono Ken Saburo without saying a word.
"Hey, this taste is off."
Situ Nan was an experienced smoker; as soon as the cigarette entered his mouth, he sensed something was wrong. However, the first drag was too strong, and by the time he realized it was off, he had already "swallowed" it. It quickly took effect:
He felt as if all his nerves were being tickled by countless little hands, excitedly awakening him. He then felt every alveolus in his lungs dancing and couldn't help but take several more deep drags.
Floating like a fairy!
Situ Nan felt his body relax all at once, feeling light as if he could fly.
"What a great smoke... I've never smoked such good stuff before... Give me another one."
Situ Nan smoked vigorously, and in the blink of an eye, one cigarette disappeared. Feeling unsatisfied, he simply grabbed the cigarette box and started rolling his own.
Cloud Fruit, also known as Yun Ying or Tian Dou, is a type of traditional Chinese medicine, but it is also a shamanic drug. Its flowers are particularly known for their ability to "see spirits and ghosts; consuming it can cause madness and prolonged use lightens the body, allowing communication with the divine." The term "lighten the body" refers to "dreaming of" spirits or becoming frenzied. Shamans often use Cloud Fruit flowers to induce intense agitation and then enter a trance state to communicate with spirits through incantations.
The Ancient Sorcerer did not intend to communicate with spirits; the stems and flowers of Cloud Fruit can induce hallucinations, and if controlled well, can act as a "drug," prompting answers to any questions asked.
Seeing Situ Nan and Ono Ken Saburo's expressions, the Ancient Sorcerer knew they had already "fallen under its spell," and the effects of Cloud Fruit were taking hold! Since he was sitting upwind—having chosen that position first—the two of them were completely unsuspecting and sat downwind, so they didn't catch any scent and were unaffected.
"Mr. Ohno, what do you plan to do with the land you've contracted in our village?"
Luo Ning, who was also sitting upwind like the Ancient Sorcerer, couldn't help but smirk internally. He thought that this question had been asked before without receiving an answer; would asking it again yield any different results?
Not only Luo Ning, but even Luo Tieniu, who was sitting nearby, felt that the Ancient Sorcerer's question was utterly futile.
However, to everyone's astonishment, Ono Ken Saburo actually nodded and said, "Because there are Rare Earth minerals here. I plan to contract it for mining."
"What?!"
Although it had long been suspected that Ono Ken Saburo's contracting of land in the village was part of a scheme, the Ancient Sorcerer had not anticipated such a reason!
In extreme shock, the Ancient Sorcerer could no longer remain seated; he stood up abruptly. During his time in the military, he had participated in an operation to capture major Rare Earth smugglers, so he was quite familiar with this matter.
Rare Earth refers to seventeen rare elements such as Lanthanum, Cerium, and Neodymium, which are generally separated in their oxide state. Although they are abundant on Earth, the difficulty of smelting and refining makes them appear quite rare, hence the name “Rare Earth.” Rare Earth elements have a wide range of applications in fields such as petroleum, chemicals, metallurgy, and textiles. They are considered the "vitamins" and "gold" of industry, and their importance is self-evident.
In recent years, Rare Earth did not attract much attention, but as people increasingly recognize its significance, prices have risen sharply. The government has implemented relevant policies for management; however, driven by profit, many individuals still take risks by smuggling extracted Rare Earth out of the country. Countries lacking Rare Earth, such as island nations, invest domestically under various pretenses to acquire Rare Earth mines and then secretly transport them back to their own countries through various hidden channels.
Ono Ken Saburo is clearly one of those individuals!
Ono Ken Saburo spoke loudly enough for everyone gathered at the Drying Ground to hear, causing an immediate uproar.
“What? Rare Earth? What is that?”
“I don’t know either, but look at Ancient Sorcerer’s shocked expression; it must be something good.”
“Fortunately, we didn’t rent it to that guy; otherwise, it would have been a big mess.”
……
“Why are you all making noise!”
Jiu Ye walked to the center of the Drying Ground. His high prestige silenced everyone with a single shout.
“Hmph! Luo Ning, do you know about this matter?!”
Under Jiu Ye’s piercing gaze, Luo Ning’s legs trembled as he stammered, “I… I… I don’t know… Six Ghosts said that after the matter is settled, he would give me… twenty thousand as a reward, so I…”
“You sold out everyone in the village for twenty thousand? We’ll settle this later!”
Jiu Ye interrupted Luo Ning, no longer looking at him but turning to Ancient Sorcerer: “Ancient Sorcerer, if this goes wrong because of you, I’ll die without facing my ancestors underground!”
"Jiu Ye, it's not that serious. Since there are such good things on that mountain, we need to plan carefully. The villagers' livelihoods depend on this."
Ancient Sorcerer had also recovered from the shock. The discovery of such good things in the village meant that wealth was definitely within reach; this was undoubtedly great news.
"You're right, we need to think this through. Let me introduce you to someone. This is my former rookie from back in the day, Zhao Fei, who is now the Mayor."
Ancient Sorcerer was surprised; he had never heard Jiu Ye mention this connection before. He quickly extended his hand and said, "Mayor Zhao, nice to meet you."
"Ah, Ancient Sorcerer, right? If it weren't for you this time, I, Zhao Fei, might have become a criminal!"
Zhao Fei was not joking. Rare Earth is now a strategic resource, and if there were large-scale smuggling of Rare Earth in his jurisdiction, he would truly be a traitor to his nation and people.
"Well, it didn't happen, did it? Let's go; this isn't our concern anymore. Come on, let's go drink with my old man."
As Jiu Ye spoke, he turned and walked out of Drying Ground. Before leaving, he shouted, "Tie Niu, kick that bastard and whatever useless county magistrate out of Luo Family Village! I'm in a good mood today, so I won't hold it against them!"
"Sure thing! Jiu Ye, take care! I'll handle it properly!"
Hearing the strong voices of the old and young, Ancient Sorcerer and Zhao Fei exchanged smiles and followed Jiu Ye out of Drying Ground.
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