Steel steam and flame

"Over there, I haven't been there yet. There are three shifts here, which seems easier, but the same work is repeated every day. The dust is so heavy that even the air filtration system cannot be cleaned, and the noise is too loud. The radio is playing every day. I can’t stop. I can hum the music I’m listening to, and I don’t have time to care about it. I just want to go back and take a shower, drink a few sips of wine and go to sleep.” The middle-aged man wearing a safety helmet used a Wiping his face with a towel, he complained slightly tiredly. He was on the previous shift, and it was now shift time. Cassia came over to do the next shift and took the opportunity to ask something.

The man is used to speaking loudly. In an excavation site surrounded by other construction machinery twenty or thirty meters away, just the sound of the hydraulic pump operating is enough to be harsh, not to mention the collisions caused during excavation. and friction, as well as the sound changes after the hydraulic system encounters a load. He spoke softly, and even if he was face to face, he could only see the other person's mouth opening and closing.

"Young man, I see that you have been here for two days and you are serious about your work. I would like to advise you. Don't be so serious about your work. It is useless. You will only drive construction machinery for the rest of your life. After that, at best, you will drive more and more construction machinery. That’s it. There is no future here, and the salary is just that. You are so young, there is no way out. If you are short of money, you can work for a while. The hard-earned money does come quickly, but it is not a long-term job. If you have some money, buy more books Come and study more." The middle-aged man was not preaching, Cassia could tell from his expression.

"By the way, I have never been there, but I heard it from people. It was dug out more than ten years ago, and it is now used to pile up waste. Just like the soil we dug out without minerals, Most of them are carried there by trucks every one or two weeks, and the previously excavated pits are filled in. As for the farther places, there are mines. I have been to the mines before, and it was quite depressing to stay there all day. The air feels moldy. It's very depressing, but it's really big inside. The mountain is about to be hollowed out. I really don't know when it will collapse. It's very easy to get confused inside, there are mines everywhere, and I'm running around as soon as I enter. If you do that, it is easy to get lost with your team, and you will have to follow others out. It was blocked a long time ago. If I remember correctly, I heard that there was a collapse, and the superiors sent people to check it out, so they just left there It’s sealed and no one is allowed in to avoid safety incidents.”

"I use a map, which is an area map. When you enter, you will be divided into areas. Everyone must remember it to avoid wasting time when finding the way at work. But I think the biggest effect is the convenience when eating. I don’t know where to eat. , I’m late, so we only have food.” The middle-aged man wrung out the towel and put it on his shoulders, “By the way, the mechanical cantilever is a little inflexible. Remember to report it and let the maintenance people come and take a look. I think It’s not a big problem, it can be done in an hour or two.”

Watching the middle-aged man leave, Cassia put on a safety helmet, climbed into the cab, and started today's work.

On the day they went to collect information, both he and Hessler found jobs in the mines. With his own coordination and learning ability, he completed the test in one go and successfully became a member of the excavation workers. Opportunities for information collection are mostly concentrated during rest and meal times. It is not difficult to create a topic for the workers here to discuss and provide themselves with useful information.

Contacting the location where Hessler originally explored, Cassia was able to confirm that the rebel forces had not removed the armor and had strengthened the alert level there.

According to the workers here, there was another safety accident in the mine recently. Someone ignored the warning and caused a small-scale collapse, crushing several people to death. Their bodies have not been dug out yet. So a lot of supervisors from above came here, and the management here would drive there if they had nothing to do.

We also conducted several training courses for people in surrounding mining areas. But it's more like a warning - you can't enter there, and if you are caught, you will lose your job and face several months of salary deductions. When it comes to money, the rules are often the most useful. It became too quiet for a while, listening to the words of these workers.

Cassia also captured another piece of information from it. I heard that since the rebel forces took over this area, about half a year ago, there was a sudden rise in local management plans to fill mine pits for tree planting and greening. In the past, the rubble and sand from the mining area were transported to the construction area to make foundations at certain locations. Now, almost all of it is transported back to the mining area and used for landfill.

Another point that aroused Cassia's suspicion was that the people driving these trucks were not workers in the mining area. They are all newly recruited and came because of their talents. Cassia has not seen these drivers yet. Whether they are professional soldiers or people in the army remains to be judged.

But the result should be similar. After the rebel forces' materials are gathered here, they want to transport them secretly to the mine cave. This method is simple and clear. As long as you show up from time to time, you won't arouse suspicion.

After get off work, Cassia and Hessler met at the restaurant to sort out the information they had obtained. Hessler met the patrolling supervisors. He was sure that there were surgeons inside, and he was constantly vigilant in this outermost area. As for the current status of the defense force in the core area, it remains to be seen. It will definitely be stronger than the last time Hessler came here. Not long ago, the leading surgeons here were known to be several people who had undergone mechanical transformation. Hessler met one and broke off one of his hands.

"Find a way to get a map of the area inside the mine. The workers said they had done it before. Based on the size of the internal space, they can get the specific location of the armor and determine the specific quantity. They will definitely transport the corresponding weapons. In addition, there is a coal mine here. , the equipment used to manufacture and assemble other parts of the armor requires power, and it is not practical to use high-energy fuel to drive it in the mine. In the early stage of the plan, there should be a matching large steam furnace here, the kind that burns coal, to provide equipment , and provide the basic power source for the garrisoned troops. I just don’t know if it is still in use now. If they change it to a neutron drive, it will be difficult to find. But if you know the location of the steam furnace, you can give it back to Waters and let him reveal it. Give it to the king’s forces and provide them with important information for their attack here.”

"Correspondingly, it would be better if we could get the storage locations of logistics supplies, the locations of various military units, the types, ranges and orientations of defensive weapons, basic terrain maps, etc.," Hessler added. , "Remember the combat aircraft I mentioned? The King's forces have many formations. As long as the information is accurate, one wave can paralyze all the defenses here. When the ground troops advance, we will find an opportunity to carry a super vapor compression aircraft on our backs. It may not be impossible for the device to move.”

"Then you have to plan the route in advance and make a plan to temporarily store the core. It is impossible to transport it out of the Qil Kingdom at once, and you have to wait for a while."

The discussion made the plan complete. That night, Cassia looked at the time and set off from the gathering town to the landfilled mining area. The weather has been good these days, there is moonlight, and the eyes' capture of the dim light makes the scenery in Cassia's eyes not much different from that in the daytime, but it affects the vision in the distance.

There are traces of landfilling in the old mining area, but they are not consistent with the progress calculated over time. The ground was pressed very solidly, and the indentations showed traces of treatment, which can still be found if you look closely. Following the tire indentations and the softness of the ground, Cassia drew several transportation routes to the mine in his head in a few hours.

"It should be supplies for different areas." Cassia thought while squatting on a piece of earth that had not yet been bulldozed, looking ahead. In the sound, in a few hours, he caught the shadows of several patrols at the extreme position of exploration.