Arriving at the secondary bedroom expansion area, he took out the Level 1 Iron Mine Card.
Fusion upgrade.
After the light faded, the new iron mine had undergone significant changes compared to before.
First, the entrance originally supported by wood and stone had transformed into a triangular roof frame supported by four thick logs.
The horizontal support beams were carved with simple grooves to secure the vertical poles and prevent collapse.
The interior mining pit became more spacious, with iron ore that appeared brighter in color and displayed distinct metallic luster. The purity of the iron ore was one grade higher than before the upgrade.
A wooden shelf had been assembled inside.
Two large bamboo baskets sat on top of the shelf, each containing two mining picks, totaling four picks altogether.
The lower level of the shelf held a large earthenware jar filled with clean water. The jar had a large lid, and several coarse pottery bowls were stacked beside it.
Several wooden brackets were nailed to the walls, holding torches that allowed miners to work comfortably in dark conditions.
"The mine shaft seems to have deepened too." Qin Ziwen stood on his tiptoes and reached out his arm, barely touching the top of the mining pit.
Li Tieshan, who had followed him inside, picked up a piece of iron ore that had fallen on the ground and examined it by torchlight. "Sir, this iron ore has very high purity and can be used with only minimal refining."
"How long until you can make the animal traps?"
Li Tieshan pondered, "If I work without rest, it will require eight hours of labor."
"Alright, go ahead and start making them."
Going to the window, Qin Ziwen prepared for his mountain ascent.
The mountain cave was located on the mountainside. Without familiarity with the route, it would be difficult to complete a round trip within a single day.
Moreover, considering the special terrain of mountainous areas, some places might be impassable. Unless he could plan the route in advance, he might need to climb the mountain several times to finally determine the most energy and time-efficient path.
He went upstairs to look for Deng Guang, and only after asking Xiao Meixue did he learn that Deng Guang was at the garage entrance.
Following the trail, he soon spotted Deng Guang among the crowd. Zhao Pu was also standing beside Deng Guang at this moment, the two conversing quietly.
Seeing Qin Ziwen approach, Deng Guang waved enthusiastically.
Standing beside Deng Guang and following his line of sight, Qin Ziwen saw that most of the accumulated water in the garage had already been pumped out.
Qin Ziwen was somewhat surprised. "That was fast."
Deng Guang said, "We've been pumping for over ten hours. The water should be mostly drained by today."
Qin Ziwen asked, "Are there many fish in there?"
Deng Guang replied, "Not sure, but there should be quite a few!"
He pointed to the water surface on the left side of the entrance. "There was a school of fish over there just now, a dense black mass."
Qin Ziwen nodded. "Then your harvest should be quite substantial."
The smile never left Deng Guang's face. "Not bad, I'll probably get about one-tenth share. I can't eat all these fish myself, and they'll spoil if kept too long. My home doesn't have salt for preservation, and with the heavy rain just ended, the air is too humid for smoking or air-drying. You'll have to help me deal with some later."
Qin Ziwen didn't stand on ceremony—the weather indeed made processing difficult. "Fine, if you have extra, just store them at my place first."
"Cough, cough, cough." From the crowd behind them, someone covered their mouth and coughed lightly.
Someone nearby glanced at them, and the person quickly explained, "The temperature dropped these past couple days, caught a bit of a cold."
Hearing this, Qin Ziwen felt somewhat uncomfortable and took a few steps forward, rubbing his nose.
Zhao Pu, who had been wearing a mask all along, pulled three new masks from his pocket and handed them to Qin Ziwen, Qin Ziwu, and Deng Guang.
"Better safe than sorry. Viral colds can be contagious too."
The humming engine of the water pump suddenly stopped. Someone went over to check it, and after more than ten minutes, the pump resumed operation.
As the water level continuously dropped, fish could even be seen leaping out of the water in some areas.
Many cars that had been submerged in water now revealed most of their bodies, with the water level only slightly higher than the tires.
Some people couldn't wait and quickly waded into the water wearing rubber boots.
Seeing people entering the water, many elderly onlookers eagerly carried buckets of various sizes—some directly holding basins—and stepped into the water to catch fish.
"Hey, what are you all doing!"
Huang Tao tried to stop them, but nobody listened.
On the shore, Zheng Yuan couldn't stand it and shouted angrily, "The fish in this water belong to the neighbors who donated gasoline! How can you do this!"
But the elderly people in the water turned a deaf ear. As long as no specific individuals were named, they pretended not to hear.
Watching this scene, Deng Guang's blood pressure rose.
His face flushed red. "These people, how can they be like this."
Zhao Pu's expression was also grim, but deep down he had actually anticipated this scene.
As a doctor, he had encountered all kinds of people, plus various gossip stories from colleagues.
It could be said that hospitals were places where you could truly witness human nature—not just from patients, but also from former doctor colleagues.
"Let's go, we should go catch fish too." Zhao Pu rolled up his pant legs, preparing to enter the water.
Suddenly, one of the elderly people in the water let out a painful cry. "Ouch! I've been bitten by a snake!"
The person hurriedly ran back.
Hearing someone had been bitten, the others who were still catching fish quickly retreated.
Someone asked the old man if he had seen what the snake looked like.
The old man clutched his hand. "Didn't get a clear look. It seemed black and white, bit me once and then fled."
Black and white?
Hearing this, the others ran even faster.
Zhao Pu frowned. "Living in water, and black and white... either a white-ringed snake or a silver-ringed snake."
Deng Guang asked, "I know about the silver-ringed one—it's highly venomous. Is the white-ringed one poisonous?"
"The white-ringed one isn't poisonous." Despite saying this, Zhao Pu quietly retracted his foot.
After emerging from the garage, the snake-bitten elderly man urgently borrowed a knife from someone nearby. Without even taking time to disinfect it, he just hastily wiped it with paper, then quickly made a cross-shaped cut at the wound on his wrist.
He squeezed out blood, sucked out venom, and tied a belt around his arm.
After completing all this, the old man sat down against the garage wall, closed his eyes, and leaned back against it.
"What kind of mess is this! How can there be snakes in the garage!" The old man's wife pointed at Huang Tao and scolded him.
Huang Tao's face darkened.
He had tried to stop these people from entering the water, and now they were blaming him? Did they really think he was easy to bully?
Huang Tao and several people behind him walked over with dark expressions.
The old woman's voice gradually faded as she looked around, found no one speaking up for her, and automatically closed her mouth.
Huang Tao gave her a cold look. "Getting bitten by a snake is his own fault. Just pray it was a white-ringed snake that bit him, not a silver-ringed one."
The old woman had heard of the silver-ringed snake's notorious reputation and turned deathly pale with fear. "How could there be silver-ringed snakes here? You, you..."
Huang Tao irritably tossed out a remark, "It's not like I put them there. How the hell should I know?"
Since opening the carpenter's workshop and building his reputation, he had gained considerable benefits.
But these customers were truly difficult to deal with! Especially certain people who practically wanted to buy his entire carpenter's cottage at the lowest possible price!
Even the most patient person would become irritable after dealing with this day after day.