Winter Lord: Starting with Daily Intelligence

Chapter 263 Mine Safety
The rules in the mining area not only have many benefits, but also severe punishments.

On one occasion, a support team submitted drawings that omitted data for several pile locations.

That day, Valentine stood solemnly in front of the drawing board in the mining area, carrying the forgotten scaffolding drawing, and waited quietly for a full hour.

The miners didn't know what was happening, but no one dared to say a word.

Only after all the workers had come up from the mine and left did Valentine speak in a deep voice: "Did you all look carefully at this section? There were actually a few data points that weren't drawn. Did no one notice? Did no one check?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the surroundings fell silent.

His face was ashen. He slammed the picture onto the wall above the well, his words sharp and unforgiving as he reprimanded the man:
"The technical diagram is not non-standard; it's not a typo, it's like writing a gravestone name!"

For a moment, the entire mining area seemed to be shrouded in a chill, and remained silent for a long time.

Kyle later learned in private that the problematic stent drawing was picked out by Louis himself from more than thirty pages of dense records.

He flipped through it again and again, without saying a word of nonsense. He just frowned and then wrote two words with his pen: "lecture".

This made it clear to everyone that Louis was extremely strict in managing the mining area, and no negligence could escape his notice.

Therefore, no one dared to be careless, and everyone cherished this hard-won work and order.

The mining area operates smoothly under this scientific and reasonable welfare guarantee system that combines strict rewards and punishments.

Of course, this does not mean that everything went smoothly.

…………

In the central fault zone, inside the ninth shaft, the No. 3 shift is carrying out operations.

It was a seemingly calm and structurally intact rock stratum.

After confirming that there were no obvious cracks on the rock surface, the team of technicians implanted a shock-breaking magic explosive bomb according to the drawings, and after setting up the wire, they quickly withdrew to a safe bend.

"ignition--"

A line of fire flashed, the bomb was detonated, and after a muffled thud, debris flew everywhere.

However, the next second, a dark hole suddenly appeared deep within the rock strata that should have collapsed.

It seemed as if some kind of empty "cavity" was hidden inside.

"...Something's not right!" Just as the foreman was about to raise his hand to warn others, a metallic, icy light suddenly appeared on the ground.

Click.

A spider-like creature silently slid out from the crevice in the mine.

Its entire body is crystal clear, and its carapace reflects light, just like polished crystal. Its six limbs are long and sharp, with barbs, and make a dry and harsh metallic friction sound when it crawls.

"It's a monster!!!" someone exclaimed in shock, but as soon as the voice fell, several more mercury-like figures rushed out of the cave and quickly occupied various parts of the passage.

Eight mirror-gall spiders.

Their crystalline shells constantly refracted and disrupted the light beams under the firelight, and the entire alleyway was instantly enveloped in a "blurred light field".

The torches seemed to be covered with layers of ripples, the light became chaotic, and the craftsmen instantly lost their sense of direction.

"Don't run around, back up towards the support structure!" the foreman yelled.

But it was too late.

As one of the young craftsmen turned around, a mirror spider's sharp limb pierced his chest, and blood gushed onto the mine wall, splashing out a bright red streak.

Another person tried to ignite a spare bomb to defend himself, but he misfired the fuse in the chaos of the light field. Just as he raised the ignition stick, a spider limb pierced his skull from the back.

Screams and crashing sounds echoed through the alleyway. In less than a minute, the entire group of craftsmen were torn apart and dragged away one by one amidst the light and chaos.

In the end, only a broken miner's lamp remained, flickering faintly at the blood-stained entrance to the mine.

A few hours later, the inspectors who came to patrol stood in front of the passageway, their faces ashen.

The monsters are long gone; only the mottled bloodstains, twisted tools, and tattered miners' coats, prove that Team Three once existed here.

This is the first incident in the history of the Star Forging Mine where a monster attack resulted in the complete annihilation of a work team.

When the news reached the government office, night had not yet completely fallen.

Louis listened to the report expressionlessly, then gave a brief order: "Seal off the main passage of the Ninth Well Lane. Assemble the Knight Squad and send them down the well within three minutes."

Less than five minutes after the order was issued, the rescue team was quickly prepared.

Twelve Crimson Tide Knights appeared at the main well opening, clad in red plate armor and wielding long spears.

"Form two four-person combat units, with four people on the perimeter for reconnaissance and cover, and searchlights crisscrossing—prepare to go down the well."

Valentine stood by the well, watching the knights nimbly prepare themselves and enter the well, before finally letting out a sigh of relief: "If they had been in the well earlier, things might not have turned out that way."

Down in the well, as soon as the lighting probed into the fault passage where the accident occurred, a cold light suddenly shone ahead.

The torchlight refracted on the four walls, revealing that the entire alleyway was sealed off by a dense network of gleaming silver threads—they intertwined like steel wires, layer upon layer, wrapped around the rock walls, supports, and cavities, gleaming with a faint, cold light, like a spider-woven tomb curtain.

“…It’s the Demon Spider Web.” The vice-captain squinted, his voice extremely low.

"Cut off, advance." The captain's order was given without hesitation.

"Ready! Deploy the parachute formation!"

The knight in the front row gripped his battle axe tightly, and a crimson battle aura burst forth from his shoulder, instantly wrapping around the weapon.

The flames ignited the axe blade, creating a wave of intense heat.

"break!"

With the first axe strike, the scorching blade of light swirled into a fiery vortex, burning the spider silk inch by inch until it bore charred marks, and simultaneously forcing out several bright cuts in the surrounding light.

The instant the spider silk snapped, several cold, gliding shadows suddenly appeared deep within the passage at the far end.
It flew off the rock face like mercury at an extremely high speed.

The mirror spider appeared.

They have slender bodies, sharp, hook-like legs, and move silently.

The crystalline back shell reflected the surrounding firelight, instantly scattering several blurry phantoms that made it impossible to discern their true location.

"Light field disturbance, be careful!"

As soon as a scout knight uttered the cry, a spider-like phantom blade suddenly appeared beside him, and he almost instinctively raised his shield.

But they discovered that it was just an illusion, while the real Mirror Spider crawled out from under the ground, attempting to pierce their chest.

boom!
A knight wielding a shield took a step forward, his massive shield slamming into the mine wall, shattering the spider's crystal shell.
It emitted a dry, hissing sound.

"Second formation, push forward!"

The knights quickly changed formation, tightening their triangular ranks to create a crossfire zone in the narrow mine tunnel.

Another knight strode forward, swung his halberd, and crimson battle aura wrapped around the tip of the halberd like blood threads. As he swept across, he brought out arcs of flame, severing half of the bodies of two Mirror Spiders that were clinging to the wall.

Thud—Thud—!
Each conflict was accompanied by the shrill sound of metal scraping against metal and the muffled sound of spider limbs snapping.

Although the Mirror Spider is agile and swift, it is difficult for it to exert its advantages when facing organized armed combat units.

They tried to scatter and escape, but crashed into the knights' pre-set "blind spot" at the corner and fell one by one.

The battle ended in less than five minutes.

Silence returned to the alleyway, with only the faint embers of battle qi burning softly, flickering between the rock walls.

A dozen or so spider corpses lay scattered on the ground, their crystalline shells cracked in many places. Icy blue fluid seeped from the cracks, slowly flowing down the rock surface before finally crystallizing into tiny points that solidified like frost on the ground. "Confirmed. All are medium-sized sub-adults, without venom glands. Presumably hatched in a nearby cavity. There should be some that escaped," the investigator concluded.

"These things... could actually be handled by a single full-fledged knight." A young knight sheathed his lance, his voice laced with contempt.

The vice-captain didn't turn around, only coldly uttering, "But craftsmen aren't knights; a mere spider can take their lives."

Indeed, this small-scale battle posed no challenge for the Knights.

But for the defenseless and disorganized miners, it was a massacre they could not fight back against.

…………

On the third day after the accident, the cold wind had not yet dissipated in the early morning, but the walls of the major mining areas of Xingduanling were already covered with new notices.

The sentences are few, yet each word is measured and steady:

"Starting today, a 'vibration detection column' will be added every thirty meters in all working shafts of Xingduanling to detect signs of abnormal biological activity."

"No one is allowed to enter the well alone. Anyone who violates this rule will be immediately stopped from work and removed from the well team."

"Before starting work each day, a knight must lead a patrol to ensure there are no hidden dangers before mining can begin."

Of course, the vast majority of miners were illiterate, so there were evangelists to give them announcements.

"What does this mean?" A young miner stood in front of the notice, stunned. "I've never even heard of that 'pillar' thing."

“It’s normal that you don’t understand.” A middle-aged foreman next to him shook his head. “I don’t understand either, but there are so many rules.”

Louis expected the miners to be indifferent, but to make them truly understand that these rules were not just written to frighten them, Louis personally ordered the establishment of "Mining Education Day".

Several literate technicians and officials would go into the workers' sheds, dormitories, and canteens outside the wellhead during their off-duty hours to explain the new regulations in turn.

These presentations not only explain "how to do it," but also "why."

They used straightforward and crude analogies to explain "how vibrations indicate the activity of monsters," "how the air changes after the tunnel is sealed," and even what "sound wave anomalies" are.

“Your mining is like banging on the floor under a doghouse,” Valentine said, standing on the podium of the Seventh Mining Ring, pointing to the wellhead. “If there’s some kind of beast lurking down there, and you bang on its head, it will naturally jump out and bite you.”

Some people below were amused, but they soon fell silent because Valentine's expression was too serious.

“Laugh as you please, your lives are yours.” Valentine looked at the crowd. “If you don’t believe these methods can save your lives, then forget the names of those dead brothers.”

At that moment, the atmosphere was so heavy that it was almost suffocating.

Most of these workers came from humble backgrounds, could barely read, and had no concept of "safety awareness," but they understood reality.

When they heard time and again that "someone is specifically responsible for checking for hidden dangers," "going into the well alone will result in the entire team being suspended from work," and "once the vibration column alarms, everyone has to evacuate," they finally understood:
This isn't meant to cause them trouble; the lord wants them to live longer.

They began to learn to cooperate, and even though they complained, they dared not do anything reckless anymore.

Before starting work each day, the miners stand together and listen to the technicians read out the day's report and risk zones; this has become a daily routine.

One knight would even walk in front to make sure everything was in order before letting the person into the well.

Unbeknownst to them, the miners' mindset was changing.

They learned the rules, understood the system, and, more importantly, grasped this point:
This place is a place for people to live, not a mine where they wait to die.

Most people started to try to cooperate, even if they complained, they dared not do anything reckless anymore.

For the first time, the habit of "patrolling in formation" appeared in the underground tunnels.

Before starting work each day, the miners stand together and listen to the technicians read aloud the day's report and the risk zones.

However, not everyone initially agreed with these new regulations.

Some people muttered, "With all these rules and inspections, it's better to just go down the mine and get one more truckload of stones."

Of course, some people, in order to be lazy and save time, bypassed the restricted area and went down into the well to mine ahead of time.

The first time he committed a foul, he was publicly called out and transferred from the main working well group to the outermost abandoned mining area, where he cleaned up the mud and water in the waste tunnels while watching his colleagues come up to the well to collect their wages and eat hot meals.

"Want to gamble with your life? Then stay away from others and don't drag them down with you."

This is what Valentine said when he addressed the well. His voice wasn't loud, but everyone could hear it clearly.

After several rounds of punishment, no one dared to act recklessly anymore.

Even the miners who were once most resistant to the rules bowed their heads.

They began to accept the rules, understand the system, and realize that it was not meant to bind them, but to save their lives.

Meanwhile, a group of knights personally visited the family of the fallen craftsman, delivering a sum of money, three official documents, and a letter of condolence.

One miner's wife broke down in tears and knelt on the ground, refusing to accept the money.

The knight commander helped her up and handed her a transfer order:
"With the approval of the mining area management committee, you will be assigned to the main mine to do material inventory work, and you will be paid monthly."

What's most touching are the children.

The children of several miners who died were taken to a church-and-nursing home attached to the mining area.

They were taken to that warm, large house, changed into clean clothes, and served steaming hot broth.

They were taken care of by someone, and the territory provided them with living supplies every month, so they didn't have to do any work.

“They are now Starforges,” Louis said clearly at the time. “The miners give their lives for the territory, and their families are supported by the territory until they die.”

Some of these children don't yet understand what "sacrifice" means; they only know that they have lost their father, brother, or mother.

“My brother was killed by a spider,” a ten-year-old boy wrote in his diary, wiping his eyes. “But Lord Louis said he was clearing a path for us to take.”

"I want to stay. I want to learn skills. When I grow up, I want to work in the mines and kill all those harmful monsters so that the mines can become a real treasure trove."

The youngest child clutched the bowl tightly to his chest and whispered to the maid who was looking after them, "Do I have to mine to get food?"

Upon hearing this, the maid's eyes immediately reddened, and she knelt down to hug him: "No need. You have a name, and you have people protecting you."

This system is not targeted at just one or two companies.

Most of the immediate family members of the deceased craftsmen were properly resettled in the Star Forging Territory's ground affairs. Some worked as record keepers, some assisted in canteen management, and some were trained to become junior technicians.

“We are not slaves.” On that day, a taciturn old miner finally murmured with red eyes, “We are… workers whose names are remembered.”

This news spread very quickly.

That night, in the workers' shed, under the smoke from the cooking fires, and in the ground-level dormitory lit by magic crystal lamps, almost everyone was talking in hushed tones about the sacrifice.

They talked about how knights in iron armor went from house to house into the miners' huts, leaving behind compensation, resettlement notices, and handwritten letters.

Some people say they never imagined that one day they would begin to have a new understanding of their own life because of someone else's death.

"Have you ever seen a place where someone arranges jobs for the family of a miner who has died?" a young miner, who was originally the most cynical, said while rubbing his hands, which were red from the cold.

“I’ve worked in mining areas in other territories before. There, if you die, you just die. They fill in your name with a number, drag the body out, burn it, and replace it with a new one.”

“But it’s different here,” someone whispered beside him. “This is a place where people remember who you are.”

These workers never expected their lives to be valuable; they never imagined that one day their lives would actually be valued.

People are beginning to truly understand the meaning of "order"—it is not just about rules and efficiency, but also about protection and commitment.

They began to trust Louis, this young lord who never spoke unnecessary words but quietly sent people to provide assistance and fill in any gaps in his plans.

It is precisely because of this trust that they are willing to stay, willing to make sacrifices, and willing to risk their lives to protect this mine route that belongs to them.

(End of this chapter)