Qi Tongwei at the start: Not relying on Liang Lu, but winning by a single move against Heaven.

Qi Tongwei ushered Li Guangran into the room and invited him to sit down in the living room.

Since his rank was promoted, Qi Tongwei's treatment has naturally changed as well.

Although we were still staying at the county's guesthouse, we had changed from a single room to a suite.

Zharta, though rough around the edges, was actually quite meticulous. He even assigned him a dedicated waitress named Chunli.

When Chunli saw that Qi Tongwei had brought guests back, she immediately served two cups of tea and asked in a low voice.

"Secretary Qi, would you like some late-night snacks prepared?"

Qi Tongwei glanced at Li Guangran and asked softly.

"Have you really eaten?"

Li Guangran nodded and replied with a smile.

"I've really eaten, big plate chicken with noodles, I'm full."

Seeing Li Guangran's response, Qi Tongwei waved to Chunli and said softly.

"No need, just cut some fruit... Oh, and if anyone comes looking for me, just say I'm not here."

The door closed, and Chunli left.

Qi Tongwei handed Li Guangran a cigarette and joked with him.

"He walked in carrying a handbag, what gift is he bringing me? Let me see..."

Li Guangran didn't respond, but placed the cushion on the coffee table and said in a deep voice.

"This gift is quite generous... please take a look..."

As he spoke, he took a cylindrical stone slab from his satchel and handed it over.

The stone slab was entirely black, about forty centimeters long, and felt heavy in the hand.

Qi Tongwei's eyes lit up when he saw the stone strip, and his voice even rose a few decibels.

"So many results already? Is this...is this coal?"

Li Guangran continued to pluck stone slabs out, answering casually.

"This is a 10-meter core sample, and the coal content isn't even at its highest... This is a 20-meter sample, and this is a 30-meter sample..."

As he spoke, he took out four probes of the same thickness and laid them out on the coffee table.

Qi Tongwei grinned, his hands trembling slightly.

He picked up the probes one by one and examined them carefully, not noticing at all that his palms had turned completely black.

"I don't understand, tell me quickly, what's the quality of this coal like...?"

Li Guangran didn't keep anyone in suspense. He picked up his teacup to moisten his throat and spoke in a deep voice.

"Due to time constraints, the exploration method used this time was the diffuse mining method..."

I drilled 24 sets of these probes, taking 5 samples from each set. This is one of those sets.

Seeing Qi Tongwei staring at him blankly, he immediately changed his tune.

"Let's put it this way: below 10 meters, it's all coal... below 30 meters, the coal content is as high as 95%."

Before he could finish speaking, Qi Tongwei immediately asked another question.

"Reserves, what is the estimated reserve size?"

Li Guangran frowned slightly, sighed, and said in a deep voice.

"Since the systematic exploration hasn't been completed, my statement isn't entirely accurate... A conservative estimate is 80 billion tons..."

After he finished speaking, Qi Tongwei was completely dumbfounded.

He could only see Li Guangran's mouth moving, but he couldn't hear a sound.

Eight hundred billion tons... Only these four words kept echoing in his ears.

In his previous life, he learned from the news that a coalfield had been discovered in Huoshaoliang, but he did not know the specific reserves.

He was stunned by the figure of 80 billion tons, and was somewhat lost in thought.

Eight hundred billion tons—what does that mean? The total reserves of a major coal-producing province are only 2600 billion tons...

One fire-damaged beam holds a third of the reserves of an entire province...

After a long while, Qi Tongwei was finally awakened from his daze by Li Guangran.

"Secretary, can you hear me? Secretary?"

Qi Tongwei was taken aback, swallowed hard, and asked tentatively in a deep voice.

"You're the only one who knows about this, right?"

Li Guangran frowned, nodded, and said in a deep voice.

"When we got the first core sample back, I felt something was wrong... so we didn't involve the Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources."

Later core sampling was conducted by different drilling workers in batches.

After saying that, he unfolded a topographical map of Huoshaoliang on the coffee table and marked a few points.

"This is the core sampling site... I drew it myself, nobody knows this. This is the reserve analysis report..."

Qi Tongwei examined the map carefully and patted Li Guangran heavily on the shoulder.

His hands were covered in coal ash, leaving a black handprint on Li Guangran's shoulder.

"Guangran, I'll say it again, this matter must be kept strictly confidential... No one else must know about it."

He paused slightly, looked deeply at Li Guangran, and his gaze was meaningful.

"I'll find an opportunity to report to my superiors privately... Planning with the masses, decision-making alone... You understand?"

Li Guangran was taken aback, but didn't respond. He nodded emphatically.

After seeing Li Guangran off, Qi Tongwei sat in the living room, staring blankly at the probe on the coffee table.

He had already locked the sampling maps and reserve reports in a safe.

Even now, he still couldn't believe Li Guangran's reserve estimate.

Eighty billion tons...that reserve would easily rank among the top three in the country...

After pondering for a long time, he was interrupted by a rhythmic knocking on the door. It was Chunli bringing fruit.

"Secretary Qi, it's almost ten o'clock... Is there anything else you need?"

Qi Tongwei didn't answer, but waved his hand gently, "You should get some rest..."

The door closed again. Qi Tongwei took a deep drag of his cigarette, slowly picked up the phone, and dialed Baimaiti's number.

"Municipal Party Committee Office, Baimaiti..."

On the other end of the phone, Baimaiti's familiar voice rang out, making Qi Tongwei feel somewhat dazed.

He composed himself and spoke with a smile.

"I knew it, you workaholic, you wouldn't leave...you're still in the office!"

Baimaiti recognized his voice and replied with a smile.

"Tongwei... what's up, calling so late? Are you in the city?"

After a few brief pleasantries, Qi Tongwei straightened his voice and got to the point.

"Brother Bai, I need your help with something... I'd like to report to Secretary Wang, could you please put me in line?"

On the other end of the phone, Baimaiti hesitated for a moment, then whispered a reminder.

"Tongwei, Secretary Wang's appointment just came down... and you're already reporting it? That's a bit sensitive..."

Qi Tongwei knew that what Baimaiti said made sense.

Wang Quanyou's appointment had barely been made when he rushed forward, which easily drew criticism and gave others ammunition to criticize him.

After the appointment was made, he didn't even make a phone call, which was also to avoid suspicion.

But things are different now; the news of the fire at Liang must be conveyed to Wang Quanyou immediately.

Even if the fire at Liang was a misunderstanding, he still had to let Wang Quanyou know.

This matter is too big, too crucial, big enough to reach the Heavenly Court.

Qi Tongwei pondered for a moment, then said in a deep voice.

"Brother Bai, you know me well. I have something important to report to Secretary Wang."

Otherwise, I wouldn't have gone to be near the Party Secretary at this time..."

Baimaiti hesitated for a moment, then said in a deep voice.

"Don't worry about this. I'll find some time to report to Secretary Wang and sound him out first."

If Secretary Wang agrees, I'll definitely make time for you at least half an hour...

Wait for my news...

On the phone, Qi Tongwei expressed his gratitude profusely.

They chatted for a while longer, then wished each other well and hung up the phone.

After hanging up the phone, Qi Tongwei breathed a sigh of relief.

He began to wonder if this was the reason Wang Quanyou was in power in the western border region...