NOVPUBThe miners of this era were exceptionally toil-worn and endured great hardship, constantly living in danger. They were well-organized, able to evade surveillance in the underground mines, secretly collude, and with bronze mining picks in hand, it was easy for them to riot. They were the most dangerous class of civilians, requiring equally robust managers to oversee them.
Necali, a veteran scout and martial artist, had survived the brutal duels at the forefront of battle and was also fluent in Prepetcha. His methods were flexible and decisive, able to command respect from the samurai he led and suppress riots quickly.
Xiulote had taken note of his past performances and appointed him as the head of the mine. Now it seemed, the choice was most appropriate!
With this thought, the King’s smile grew warmer.
"Necali, my samurai, have you grown accustomed to living at the mine? If there is anything you need for your life, you can tell me directly, or ask the logistics official who transports the supplies!"
"Ah, Your Highness... A samurai must restrain his desires and hone his body. I don’t really have any needs for life, but there is one thought in my heart..."
The Warrior Captain’s expression shifted. He hesitated for a moment, then, seeing the encouraging smile of His Highness, carefully switched to a more intimate address.
"Marshal, I am an old soldier who has followed you in battle for many years, a senior samurai who has risen through the ranks with each enemy head taken, never having handled a copper pickaxe... I wish to return to the legion, to be part of the campaigns of our fief, continuing to fight for you on the battlefield!... This dreary work of guarding the mine is truly numbing, to the point of developing sores on my behind..."
"Haha!"
Hearing Necali’s request, Xiulote could not help but chuckle. He thought for a while, then straightened his expression and instructed.
"Necali, the western campaign has just ceased not long ago, and our fief needs time to recuperate and replenish. There are no significant battles forthcoming. Even if we were to send troops to the border, it would mostly be for capturing prisoners to replenish our fief’s population. Time would be spent marching and escorting prisoners, hardly an interesting affair."
"My samurai, copper mining is the foundation on which our fief stands, and this mining area is crucial! My visit this time is to inspect on-site and expand the scale of mining operations. Soon, the number of people in the mining area and the output will far exceed the peak of the Tarasco Kingdom’s prime!... Necali, you bear a heavy burden!"
The King eased his tone, smiling as he spoke.
"Of course, I have not overlooked your contributions and have plans to make great use of you. As long as you do well, I will entrust you with the entire mining area, over a dozen mines, to be the chief in charge!"
"As you command, Marshal!"
Upon hearing the words "great use," Necali’s spirits lifted, and he replied loudly. Then, somewhat dejectedly, he muttered under his breath.
"Chief in charge of the mining area? Isn’t that just overseeing mining..."
"Hmm?"
"I will not disappoint your expectations, Marshal!"
Necali immediately shouted out loudly, striving to be enthusiastic.
The Head Warrior shook his head slightly. He knew the high regard in which the copper mining area was held in the heart of His Highness, and the scale to which the mining area was planned to reach. As the chief in charge, Necali was, in fact, being promised a future equivalent to that of a Legion Commander.
"What a lucky fellow..."
Bertade thought and smiled, but he did not speak for His Highness.
The King simply reached out, solemnly ruffled Necali’s hair, and spoke again with seriousness.
"Necali, explain the specific situation of the mine, so I can see how well you grasp the affairs here!" n𝚘𝚟pub.𝚌o𝚖
"As you command, Marshal!"
Necali bowed his head in salute, stood straight, and replied loudly.
"The Qinganbate copper mining district is located 100 leagues southwest of the Capital City, slightly south of 60 leagues west of Patzcuaro City, and 40 leagues southwest of Ihuatzio City. This main mining field is by a mountain river. The entire mining district is surrounded by mountainous terrain within a fifty-league radius, making military advancement slow and supply routes challenging. Bulk transportation relies only on a narrow river..."
Drawing on his scout’s experience, Necali continued his description.
"The main ores in the mining district are copper ores with jaguar spots, found both on the surface and underground. The surface ores at the main field have been largely mined by the Prepetcha, and there is still some left at several smaller mines nearby. Based on the mining reports these days, the underground ore has higher quality, and the resulting copper smelted is also greater in quantity!..."
Hearing this, Xiulote nodded, his thoughts wandering afar.
The Qinganbate mining district was a large porphyry copper mine that continued to be mined into later generations. The surface copper belts alone had reserves in the order of tens of millions of tons, while the deeper layers were difficult to estimate. Further down, there were enormous extending ore layers with substantial associated gold and silver. However, in Central America, where gold and silver mines were not scarce, these gold and silver values associated with copper had yet to be seen as worth mining. This was because within the Alliance’s territory, there were plenty of easily mined gold and silver rich mines.
The King listened to the report, but his gaze moved to the bustling miners not far away. He saw over a hundred people lighting fires, scorching the copper-containing rock face. Several hundred others were about to enter the mine shafts, each looking grey and fearful, as if headed into a terrifying Abyss.
"What are they doing?"
Xiulote pointed to the miners burning fires and asked.
"Marshal, they are using a traditional method to shatter the rock wall. First, they burn the rock wall red-hot with fire, then douse it with cold water from a small pond of mountain spring. This evokes a conflict between the Fire God and Water Serpent, shattering the tough rock layers in their divine clash, and then extracting the copper-containing stones!"
"Heating with fire and dousing with water, hmm, this is using thermal expansion and contraction to fracture the rock layers."
Xiulote thought briefly, then pointed toward a nearby mine shaft.
"How deep is the underground excavation? And how long?"
