Diamonds

It was not dawn the next day, and Xie Qiuqi was woken up by the sound of iron ropes sliding.

He pushed Zheng Ke next to him: "Someone is coming."

Zheng Ke hadn't slept enough, it was cold in the air-raid shelter, and the bedding was not enough. He instinctively squeezed against Xie Qiuqi.This young master may still habitually think that he is lying in a wealthy apartment, and he doesn't know what kind of big dream he is, so he is holding Xie Qiuqi in his arms and calling him a baby.Xie Qiuqi's face darkened, and he slapped him on the back of the head, slapping Young Master Zheng out of his dream without any politeness.

Before Zheng Ke got angry, the soldiers outside had already walked in, waking up people from the quilt with their guns, and drove them outside.There were already miners waiting in line in the clearing, and they joined the team and walked towards the hill behind the bomb shelter.

In the dim sky in the morning, the moon is running in the clouds, and the wind is chasing behind.Even the moon cannot get out of the sky in Africa.

There is a river behind the hill.The dark river water has been boiled by countless illegal miners into a bowl of thick and suffocating medicine.It doesn't even have a name, and is probably just a tiny branch of the Congo River passing through the Lunda plateau.After the shoal was pumped, part of the riverbed was exposed to the moonlight, and it was muddy and muddy in color, and the ore wrapped in it shone coldly.

Part of the blasted debris still remains on the river, which should have been produced when the river was diverted.Two wheelbarrows were overturned, shovels, dustpans, rattan baskets, and filter screens were scattered, and a thick plastic water pipe, like the blood-red intestines of animals, peeled off on the ground and connected to a small water pump.There was also a strange set of millstone-like tools, so stained that they could no longer tell what they were.

Even Xie Qiuqi couldn't hide his shock when he saw such a crude "working environment".The most primitive manual work is maintained here, as if it is not affected by industrialization.

The miners started working in two groups.One group is panning in the river, which is the simplest and most direct method. The miners only need to take a dustpan and a filter to dig up the sediment on the surface of the river bed, and then simply clean and pan the sediment.

Another team of miners mixed river sediment with river water to form a slurry-like mixture that was poured into pans that resembled millstones.Two miners push the nail-toothed rake in the shaft rotating disc to keep the mud mixture in a suspended state. At this time, the ore containing diamonds will sink to the bottom because of its relatively large mass, and the nails will automatically push them to the outer edge of the pan. The lighter sediment will be carried away by the current.

These precipitated ores are not diamonds anymore. They need to be further screened. First, they are thoroughly cleaned. The coarse gravel is crushed with tools, and then filtered and separated twice with a filter screen and manually screened.

Due to its ease of manufacture and low cost, the washing pan stood out in the early mining tide in Africa and became one of the most popular panning mining tools.Many home-based miners still use this tool for beneficiation.

However, with the scale development and specialization of the diamond mining industry, formal mines have basically eliminated these two methods of mining diamonds.In the face of river drilling, large excavators and dredgers have replaced labor, and shakers, magnetic separators, and crushers are widely used in ore dressing. The machines are not only more precise and accurate, but also greatly improve work efficiency.

In Angola, illegal mining areas like Xie Qiuqi's are blooming everywhere in the northern plateau, and they are basically still in the production mode of small workshops.Even so, the ore production rate in the Lunda area is still astonishing, and close to 100 grams of economically valuable rough stones can be excavated here every day.That translates to 500 carats per day.

From 15 o'clock in the morning to [-] o'clock in the evening, the miners have to bend over, soak their hands and feet in the water, and use simple tools in their hands to wash, pick, and crush stones non-stop.Shaking the dustpan with both hands, not to mention hours, even [-] minutes would make my waist sore and my legs numb.

In the mountains and forests of Africa, there is everything. Bugs and microorganisms multiply happily, hiding in the soil, without gloves, without disinfection and cleaning measures, and it is impossible to know when working or even being penetrated by parasites into the skin.

The reason for not working at night is also very simple. It is not to give miners a rest time, but lighting up lights may attract forest patrols, which leads to illegal miners having to interrupt operations at night.

Zheng Ke's face became more and more ugly.Not long after he got into the water, he was already dying, standing up and beating his back frequently.A soldier cursed at him, pointed his gun at his head, and made him bend over.He gritted his teeth and persisted for a while, his wrists were sore from shaking, the east was only slightly bright, and there was no shadow of the sun yet.

Xie Qiuqi ignored him, bowed his head and did his work silently.He is also tired, but these are nothing. When walking, he did not forget to pay attention to the terrain in this area. He can basically confirm that they are in a remote mountain and a virgin forest with few people. This means that running with both feet is running. Those who can’t go out—there is no direction or instructions, and it’s not possible to get to this mountain after three days of walking.

Yesterday he vowed to Zheng Ke that he must go out, but in a place where there is no means of transportation or even a bicycle, people will only be buried in the cruel nature.

He silently looked at the altitude angle of the sun and the tree shadows to calculate the time, and went to the toilet every half hour to two hours to find a break for himself to rest.There was an hour's break for lunch, and he took his own white bread and climbed to the river to eat.

Someone sat down behind him and said in Chinese: "Don't look, you can't go out alone. It takes at least an hour to drive from here to the nearest grocery store, and it takes an hour and a half to get to town. It's not like no one tried to run, He was bitten to death by a python within a kilometer."

Xie Qiuqi's expression changed: "Have you ever gone out?"

The middle-aged man smiled and lowered his voice: "They always have to transport the unearthed rocks* out for finishing and cutting. Soldiers will be sent to drive out twice a week, and some obedient and well-behaved miners may also be assigned to This mission."

Xie Qiuqi reached out to him: "Xie Qiuqi. What's your name?"

"Xing Zhifei," the middle-aged man shook hands with him, and handed him a cigarette, "Just call him Lao Xing. Are you also tricked?"

Xie Qiuqi shook his head: "Sold by the enemy. How long have you been here?"

"One year."

"Have you found a chance to go out yet?"

"I tried it once." Xing Zhifei smiled slightly, and brushed the hair on his sideburns, revealing a hideous scar two fingers wide: "It's a small price."

Xie Qiuqi also laughed: "But you survived, which means you are useful."

Xing Zhifei nodded: "I used to be an engineer, and they needed me for blasting, water diversion, and mineral processing."

Xie Qiuqi was secretly surprised, and looked at this man who looked at least 50 years old.The sun on the African plateau had tanned him charcoal black, his arms were as thick as Xie Qiuqi's legs, his feet were big, his skin was wrinkled, and was covered with festering red spots after being stared at by mosquitoes.His small eyes narrowed when he smoked, like the kind of vagrant who goes to the worst foot-washing shop to find a lady and still bargain.

If he didn't say it, Xie Qiuqi would never have guessed that this was an engineer.

"What? It doesn't look like it?" Xing Zhifei seemed to see through his mind: "Don't think that an engineer is a senior migrant worker."

Xie Qiuqi remembered what he said just now: "What does 'deceived' mean?"

"I'm also greedy myself," Xing Zhifei smiled wryly: "A friend has a relationship with the Zheng family in Macau. He said that he took over a big project in Africa. He asked me if I would like to pay three times the average salary in the industry. I I agreed, and I was fainted at the Macau airport, and I woke up in a container. Alas, there are wives and children at home, so I just thought it would be good to go out and meet again."

"Is this how people here are deceived?"

"Some are said to have been sold because they owed usury loans."

Xie Qiuqi asked, "Has none of them gone out?"

Xing Zhifei just shook his head.

The two were silent for a while, waiting for Xing Zhifei to finish smoking the cigarette.

The old man said: "Once in a while, a new batch will come, ranging from ten to twenty, dead or sick, and they will disappear soon. The new ones are all the same, so frightened that they seem to die Yes, it is easy to do stupid things. In fact, those who can persist are also scared to death by themselves."

Xie Qiuqi is not in the mood to care about others now, he has not only his own life, but also Zheng Ke.That was Duan Li's last wish.

Xing Zhifei smiled at his frowning expression: "You are quite interesting, you are not afraid."

Xie Qiuqi couldn't help laughing: "I'm so fucking scared to death."

He's scared, he's been scared since he was in the shipping container, he's been scared since the moment the goons broke into the apartment with guns.Even a normal person would be afraid, how could he not be afraid?But he can't show it, and can't let people know that he is afraid.

Zheng Ke can be afraid, he is the young master, he is afraid, people think it should be.When he cries, people will feel distressed. Isn't it pitiful that the golden branches and jade leaves are suddenly reduced to this point?

But Xie Qiuqi can't do it, he has no right to be afraid, and he has no right to cry. He has nothing and is a fugitive. Who forced him to escape from prison and go to Macau?Doesn't he know that Zheng's house is not clean?He knew that the Zheng family was not clean but he stayed. Didn't he choose that?Why are you so scared now?

How can there be such a good thing if you want freedom and peace of mind?

"Do you regret it?" Xing Zhifei asked.

Xie Qiuqi shook his head: "I don't regret it."

In the first 27 years of his life, he seemed to have been making wrong decisions—falling in love with someone he shouldn't love, choosing a life he shouldn't choose, taking risks to survive, and being forced into desperation again and again.It seems that everything he does is wrong, and whichever way he goes is a dead end.

But he has come to the present after all.He is alive, not dead.

Xing Zhifei patted him on the shoulder: "You are different, I like you."

Xie Qiuqi thanked him meaningfully.He still had to figure out how to get out first.When Zheng Ke came back after using the toilet, he saw someone next to Xie Qiuqi and greeted him politely. Xing Zhifei smiled at him and went down the river first.

"Who is this person? Why did he leave without introducing himself? What did he tell you?" Zheng Ke asked.

Xie Qiuqi asked back: "Can you persist this afternoon?"

Zheng Ke's face was sallow, not to mention working, he would not be willing to stand for a second longer, wishing to lie down and fall asleep directly.

Xie Qiuqi said earnestly: "I'm afraid we will stay here for a while, you have to persevere. Zheng Ke, if you are willing to believe in me, I will definitely find a way out. But before that, you have to promise me and persevere .can't lose."

Zheng Ke gritted his teeth: "I believe in you."

Xie Qiuqi responded with a weary smile: "Let's rest for a while."

He patted the mud off his trousers, stood up, and went to the river to help the old miner wash the dishes.They worked all morning and still haven't seen any decent and beautiful stones. Xie Qiuqi himself wondered if there were any diamonds in this place.

In the afternoon, some miners were assigned to clean the bedrock beside the river bed. Diamonds are dense and may get stuck in small crevices and holes in the bedrock of the river bed.After removing the sand and gravel covered on the river bed, the cleaning work can begin.

Skilled miners are very experienced in finding ore, even better than mechanical brushes, vacuum cleaners and many cleaning and screening tools. They hold a shovel in one hand and a brush in the other to carefully clean and check the bedrock.

Watching soldiers followed closely behind them, watching every step nervously.If a miner finds a diamond, there is a possibility of hiding it. In this place, running away is not a first-class crime. Once a miner finds a diamond, he will be shot dead on the spot.

When the temperature began to drop slowly in the afternoon, there were exclamations and commotions from the bedrock.

I saw an old miner picking up a shiny silver stone from his shovel, stretching his hand into the air and raising it high——

It was a nice rough diamond with no blemishes on the surface, good size and at least 3 carats.Under the sunlight, it showed a colorful fire*, grotesque and whimsical, as if there was another world hidden in its belly, a world where everyone could drink, sing and go home in beautiful clothes.

The new miners were stunned. Some people wanted to get closer to see the real diamonds, but were shot by the soldiers, and they were so frightened that they fell silent.The old miner walked excitedly to the river and handed the diamond to the sheepdog.

The shepherd dog first dipped the oiled paper, then checked it with a ray pen, and threw the stones that passed the test into the jar.

Zheng Ke stood closer to the old miner. Although he only glanced at it, he became more motivated.

"I also want to find a big one, and then we can send it." He blinked at Xie Qiuqi with great interest.

The kid is probably crazy.But Xie Qiuqi didn't want to hit him.Anyway, spirit is not a bad thing.

(Rough stone: the stone in the mining state, due to the initial mining blasting or artificial crushing, the shape is irregular.

Fire: Refers to the phenomenon of colored light reflected from the inside of a gemstone, which is the result of dispersion. )

The author says:

System: The player Xie Qiuqi was prompted by the NPC, please find a way to get the important task - to transport the rubble.