pjbooks Chapter 109: Destination
Chapter 109: Destination
The next morning, after the slightly tipsy group cleaned up the mess from the previous night, had a simple breakfast, and set off again.
The rollercoaster-like sensation returned, my body swaying back and forth with the bumpy ride.
After a bumpy morning, everyone's appetite was greatly reduced at lunchtime.
After a brief rest, everyone quickly set off.
The initial high spirits of the group gradually faded as the vehicle jolted and bumped along.
If it were a trip, one could stop and enjoy the scenery along the way while savoring the food. But clearly, this group was heading straight for their destination and didn't have much time for leisure.
The first day went well; after all, they had just come out of the mine and had been cooped up for so long, so they had to let loose and have some fun.
But the next day, once the high spirits subsided and the road became increasingly bumpy, everyone lost interest in looking out at the scenery.
Corinna sat in the back seat, holding the overhead handle, her body swaying back and forth with the car, her eyes already quite vacant.
"Ada, how far are we from our destination? My butt is about to be shaken raw!" Corinna sighed, looking utterly dejected, and she had no interest in the snacks next to her.
Upon hearing this, Little Hart, sitting in the passenger seat, suddenly brightened his empty eyes and stared intently at Ada.
Seeing the look in their eyes, Ada shook her head helplessly, holding the steering wheel with one hand and the walkie-talkie with the other, and asked a question.
"Jason, this is Ada. How much further are we to our destination?" he said, looking at the two who were completely exhausted from being jostled around in the car. He added with a smile, "Little Hart and Corinna's butts are practically raw from all the bumping."
Hearing the voice on the walkie-talkie, Jason suppressed a laugh and replied, "Let their asses hold out a little longer; it'll probably take another two or three hours before they arrive."
"OK, got it." He glanced at the two of them, then suddenly raised an eyebrow and chuckled, "Then let their butts suffer a little more."
"Yes, you all heard that too."
His response was Little Hart's wailing and Corinna's vicious glare.
"No, it'll be another two or three hours! My butt!"
"Ada, we're friends! Why are you telling Jason about my butt?!" she said, and then viciously pounced on him.
"Hey, hey, hey, we're driving, we're driving!"
The atmosphere inside the car instantly improved significantly.
Time passed by, and when it was nearly five o'clock in the afternoon, the group arrived at the location chosen by Angel.
"Everyone, please get off the bus and rest for a bit. We've arrived."
As the car came to a stop, Jason's voice came through the walkie-talkie, and everyone who had been jostled around in the car all day breathed a long sigh of relief.
"My God, my legs went weak!"
"My God, I never imagined that my feet would feel so good on the ground."
"Phew, we've finally arrived at our destination. If this continued, I was afraid my butt would be bruised and battered."
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We were jostled around in the car for a whole day, and on such terrible roads, everyone was sore and their legs were weak when we got off.
After getting out of the car, Jason stretched his body and looked around at his surroundings.
This area is basically inland Australia, covered with low shrubs and weeds, but they are all sparse and scattered across this wilderness.
The terrain is the same as on the map, with a hill in the distance, not very high, only forty or fifty meters high.
The mountains on both sides rise and fall, forming a scalloped structure. At the foot of the mountains, there are many reddish rocks scattered, which are obviously natural weathering and erosion.
Judging from the terrain alone, if this is an ancient riverbed, it would definitely be a place of great feng shui!
The sand and gravel crunched underfoot, accompanied by a slow rise of dust.
Dry and barren, though the shrubs and weeds added some life, it still looked so barren.
A gentle breeze stirred up dust that made people squint, and even though it was around five in the afternoon, the air still felt incredibly hot.
Jason squinted and peered into the distance, his face full of doubt. "Angol," he said, "I don't see the water source you mentioned around here."
"The water source isn't large; it's located in the mountains, but it shouldn't be a problem to use it for panning gold," Angell said, pointing towards the mountains after determining the direction.
Jason nodded in agreement. As long as there was a water source, the rest depended on how much gold was in the soil.
Detection range: 15 meters (upgradeable: 1 meter for every 100 ounces)
[Detection depth: 23 meters (upgradeable to 100 ounces, or 1 meter higher)]
[Estimated weight: 0.5 ounces]
[Upgradeable gold ounces: 443.35 ounces]
[Note: Gold does not absorb energy; it is only used for upgrading purposes, and its value remains unaffected.]
[Note: Only gold discovered through exploration using one's own methods is of useful value.]
Jason "..."
Even Jason himself was so shocked by the barrenness of this land that his lips twitched slightly.
To put it bluntly, the gold content of this land is so high that you could dig anywhere in Australia and still get more than this.
Jason knew that finding high-value land was not easy, but to be given such a rude awakening as soon as he arrived at the place made even him feel a little uneasy.
But since we're already here, we should still check it out, otherwise it would be a waste of our two-day bumpy ride.
Seeing the expression on Jason's face, Dolino glanced around and asked with concern, "Boss, what's wrong?"
"It's nothing," Jason shook his head, calming himself down.
"Please wait a moment, I'll go and take a look."
Jason got into the car and floored the gas pedal, speeding through the valley.
"Wait for me, wait for me~"
Angell cried out in anguish. He wanted to witness Jason's method of finding the gold firsthand, but seeing the car's rear end disappear into the distance, he couldn't help but stop chasing after it.
"Hahaha, Angel, you really need to run faster next time!"
"Yeah, next time we definitely need to tell Jason beforehand, otherwise..."
·······
Seeing the distressed expression on Angel's face, everyone couldn't help but offer suggestions.
But one of them had a look of relief on his face, mixed with a hint of sympathy.
This person was none other than Cass, who had been tricked by Jason twice!
Looking at Angel, who was staring longingly at the departing car with a troubled expression, Cass stepped forward and said meaningfully, "I suggest you don't ride in Jason's car."
Angell: "???"
Cass didn't explain, he just patted him on the shoulder heavily.
A fall into a pit, a gain in your wit; experience teaches a person, and you'll learn it in no time. Once you've suffered a loss, you'll understand.
In the car, Jason activated his detection capabilities, but the data displayed in his glasses made him increasingly want to turn around and leave.
The word "barren" is not even enough to describe this place.
The terrain here is impressive, and there are no signs of mining on the surface. Although some exploration marks can be seen, it is clear that this place has not been mined yet.
Based on experience alone, there is a high probability that gold exists here, as evidenced by the traces left by previous explorations. Many people also hold hope for this place.
After driving around the area for a moment, Jason turned around and drove away.
"How is it? Does it feel like there's gold in it?"
"Jason, how's it going?"
"Boss, you're not going to make a fortune again, are you?"
······
As soon as the car stopped, everyone swarmed around it, bombarding it with questions.
Seeing everyone asking, Jason shook his head: "No, I don't think there's much gold here."
Everyone except Angell sighed, agreeing with Jason's point of view. This was the prestige Jason gained from finding gold time and time again through his own methods.
"That's impossible. There should be gold here!" Angel frowned, muttering to himself, clearly not yet accepting Jason's point of view.
Although he knew Jason had his own way of finding gold, he still found it hard to accept that the conclusion had been drawn so quickly.
Jason patted Angel on the shoulder: "I saw quite a few traces of exploration just now. If there were gold, this place would have been occupied long ago, and we wouldn't have had the chance to investigate here."
"Sigh~"
"I know, I'm just a little unwilling to accept it."
After a long while, Angell let out a heavy sigh.
As a geological consultant, he knows this area very well and is aware that it has been explored by many people.
But the conditions here are just too good. All the geological conditions are telling us that there is gold here. Even though many people have explored it, he still has a lot of hope.
This is why he chose this place for the first exploration.
"Let's go, to the next place."
As he was leaving, Angell turned back to look at this place, his eyes still holding a glimmer of hope and determination.
In other words, he doesn't have the money yet. But once he does, he'll definitely spend the money to explore this place!
Jason noticed his situation but didn't say anything; sometimes hope is a form of support.
"Jason, Jason"
Looking in the direction of the voice, they saw Little Hart with a distressed expression saying, "How about we take a break today? My butt is really going to break from all this bouncing, and besides, it's almost dark now."
Jason was instantly amused by Hart's expression. "Alright, alright, let's not go yet, let's rest for a bit."
Then, changing the subject, he said, "Give my butt a rest too."
This remark immediately caused everyone to burst into laughter.
Although they didn't find any gold, the atmosphere wasn't gloomy. They had expected this situation. If finding gold were that easy, there wouldn't be so many gold hunters going bankrupt.
Angell laid the map on the hood, marking the locations and routes.
The others packed their things, preparing to get a good night's sleep.
As for Jason, he lay on a folding chair, quietly watching the sunset slowly descend in the distance.
"Jason, stop pretending to be so serious and come help me out," Ada, who had been busy at the barbecue grill, couldn't help but urge Jason, who was enjoying the peaceful moment.
"Coming, coming," Jason said with a helpless expression.
In other words, Ada is Jason's brother. No one else, not even Hart who grew up with Jason, would dare to do this.
It's not just because of personal relationships, but also because of Jason's status as the boss.