章節 33: Lease the entire back mountain
struck it rich! Jack smile on his face had turned into unbridled joy. In his eyes, the "wall" in front of him had transformed into a glimmering gold mine. Without a doubt, these high-quality ores were worth a fortune. The mine near the village entrance was only a poor mine, producing a limited variety and quantity of low-quality ores. But even so, it was still a significant wealth for a small mountain village.
On the other hand, the "wall" before his eyes contained a wide range of ore types, a large quantity, and superior quality. No matter how you looked at it, it far surpassed the mine near the village entrance.
While it was possible to create weapons and tools from lower-grade ores through smelting, removing impurities and wasting time and manpower, the resulting weapons and tools would still have defects in terms of quality compared to those made from high-quality ores. High-quality ores were highly sought after and carried a hefty price tag. This information was automatically learned by Jack after acquiring the crafting skill. That's why he reacted so ecstatically upon seeing so many high-quality ores.
And this was just what he could see in front of him. Who knew how far this metallic "wall" extended? It was undoubtedly a colossal wealth!
"No, I must gain ownership of this 'wall'!" The immense wealth was right before his eyes, and Jack was unwilling to give up. Just as Glen had mentioned before, although wild mines appeared ownerless, in reality, their ownership belonged to the government. Unauthorized mining was not allowed. If the government knew about this "wall," they would certainly claim ownership, and Jack would have nothing to do with it. Even if the village chief found out, Jack felt that he would lose any chance with the "wall."
Therefore, it was imperative that no one else found out about it. With that in mind, Jack quickly returned to the entrance of the cave and used Tiger Leap to jump back up. Then he covered the entrance of the cave and headed back to the village without looking back.
"Village... Village Chief, I want to lease the entire back mountain, not just the usable land, but everything!" Jack rushed to the village chief's house and breathlessly said to the village chief.
Only by leasing the entire back mountain could Jack hide the existence of the "wall" and secretly mine it. Only then would the ownership of the "wall" be in his hands. Even if the village chief found out about the "wall," it wouldn't matter.
"What were you doing just now? Gasping for breath and covered in dirt. Did you go dig holes like a mouse?" The village chief looked at Jack's disheveled appearance with a smile.
The village chief had hit the nail on the head. Jack had indeed been digging a hole.
"Village Chief, please tell me how much it will cost to lease the entire back mountain for a year?" Jack said.
"Do you really want to lease the entire back mountain? The area is quite large, but many places, like the surroundings of those small mountains, are not suitable for farming or planting. Leasing them would be a waste," the village chief said.
"I only want the area surrounding the small mountains!" Jack thought to himself. Of course, he couldn't tell the village chief that. He also didn't want the village chief to know about the "wall" and refuse to lease the back mountain to him.
"I've made up my mind," Jack said.
"I see." The old village chief glanced at Jake and said, "The back mountain is much larger than our village. Although there are some areas that are of no use, the resources are abundant. Therefore, the price cannot be too low. But since we are familiar with each other, I'll give you a friendly price of 5,000 gold coins per year. How about that?"
"5,000? Are you trying to rob me?!" Jake exclaimed, "Such a large piece of land, only 500 gold coins per year? And if we include the barren hills, forests, it should be ten times more. Village chief, you are being unfair."
"You can't say it like that." The old village chief looked at Jake, seemingly relaxed and calm despite his hurry, and replied, "The previous 500 gold coins were already very low. And those barren hills, forests, and rivers, they contain quite a lot of resources. If you take over everything, they will all be yours. In fact, you will be the one benefiting the most."
The forests have animals and herbs, the rivers have fish and shrimp, and the mountains have wild fruits. Both Jake and the old village chief knew about this. However, Jake understood that with fewer than ten villagers in the village, they wouldn't be able to fully utilize those resources. In other words, if Jake doesn't take over, those resources on the back mountain might go to waste.
Now, with the old village chief, those resources become the village's wealth. Renting them to Jake would be a significant loss for the village, so Jake must offer a high price.
Jake realized that he had been too eager when it came to leasing the back mountain, and the shrewd old village chief saw through it. That's why he quoted such a high price. Even without the "wall" inside the mountain, the resources on the mountain, in the water, and in the forest were worth 5,000 gold coins. If he rented it for that amount, Jake wouldn't be at a loss, and the village would profit.
The old village chief was determined not to lower the price, and Jake reluctantly accepted it in the end. "However, with that 'wall' inside, I definitely won't be at a loss." Jake felt much better when he thought about it. He couldn't wait to start mining the "wall."
"This kid definitely has something going on." The old village chief watched Jake's departing figure and muttered to himself, "He must have discovered something in the back mountain. Otherwise, he wouldn't be so eager to lease the entire area."
Originally, the old village chief wanted 5,000 gold coins, but he could have accepted a minimum of 2,000 gold coins. After all, just like Jake thought, the village didn't have the ability to utilize the various resources on the back mountain.
However, Jake unexpectedly agreed to the price of 5,000 gold coins, which made the old village chief even more suspicious of what Jake had discovered.
"Anyway, whatever he found, let it be." The old village chief sighed, "We're getting old, and those worldly possessions are of no use to us. Let's leave them to the young ones."
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