Empire of the Ring

Chapter 627: Resource Exploration (2)

The midsummer in Kazakhstan was as harsh as winter, and it was hard to stay active.

But no matter how hot the sun was, people could stand it if there was a shade, thanks to dry weather.

Although the entire Kazakhstan was scorching hot, the Altai Mountains were cool enough that it was necessary to wear long-sleeved clothes even during the day.

It was because of the high latitudes and elevation above sea level, and the effects of ice caps.

It also made people forget that it was summer because the water that flowed through the deep woods and valleys cooled its surroundings.

It was no different from the coolness Youngho felt when he traveled to mountainous countries such as Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.

While Youngho was in the Altai Mountains, the royal family was also enjoying the summer at the royal villa at the lake of Issyk-Kul in Kyrgyzstan.

He had promised to join his family after a short visit to the Altai Mountains, but it had already passed two days since the day he was supposed to leave.

Kim Il-kwon, who was walking through the valley with his bodyguards, raised his head and looked puzzled.

"Your Highness, we didn't find anything for two days now. Why don't you pull out now?"

"Let's just look further today and leave for Kyrgyzstan if we don't get any results."

"So you mean you'll stay here longer if we find something? Yesterday, I made a rough excuse to Suh Min-seok, and now I have no more excuse."

The royal family that arrived at the royal villa was looking forward to Youngho's arrival.

It was because they planned to take a tour of the lake when Youngho came.

"If the chief of the security office is stumped by the chief secretary, who's going to believe it? Aren't you just making excuses because you want to see your kids?"

Kim Il-kwon's family had moved to the royal territory leaving his parents behind Baku's farm. That was why his family accompanied the royal family on the trip to Kyrgyzstan.

"Oh, I've been away only for a few days. It's not an excuse. Suh Min-seok is driving me crazy acting like he's my senior."

"Is he giving you a hard time because he's been in the royal palace longer than you?"

"He's even trying to teach me these days."

Min-seok often nagged Kim Il-kwon, who often made mistakes because he was not familiar with the royal rules.

"All right. Let's leave after searching for a couple more hours."

Youngho and the security team were looking for gold apart from Park Young-sun's exploration team. If a huge lump of gold was found, it would be proof that a large-scale gold mine was in the upper reaches of the area.

He light-heartedly thought that it would be found easily, but as there were no findings, the team kept on looking for days. As many as ten guards searched the valley and found quite a few gold beads the size of a child's fingernail. This was already proof that there was a vein of gold somewhere upper stream, but Youngho had been too greedy.

"Your Highness, this is indeed the golden mountain range. It's unusual to find this many gold grains."

"Right? If a gold grain of this size is everywhere, there may be a vein of gold beyond our imagination."

"If it was as great a vein of gold as Almaty's gold mine, it would have scared the former president."

If President Nazarbayev kept this place in a protected area, it meant that he had found a great vein of gold. He kept it hidden because he did not have the power to protect it, but he was withdrawn from power in a revolution.

"Maybe it's an enormous amount of reserves to shake the very existence of Kazakhstan. Maybe he tried to develop it after growing national strength."

"How much gold can shake the nation's existence? I can't calculate it through my head."

"Maybe if there are tens of thousands of tons buried. If you hold this place in your grasp, you can command the world with your money. Anyone would have wanted that even by force."

"Can gold do such a great thing?"

"There's nothing like gold. If the key currency system, such as the dollar and the euro, collapses and returns to the gold standard, it will be a huge national power."

Even now, advanced countries were trying to increase their gold holdings, but they were not able to secure as much gold as they wanted due to the lack of supply.

There were not a few countries that offered to give more than 30 percent of the market price to buy gold. This was because the key currency was faltering.

That was why Germany imported gold from Kazakhstan in exchange for a technical tie-up in the defense industry.

***

The royal villa at the lake of Issyk-Kul was not as grand as it sounded that even tourists who visited the lake were often surprised.

It was only a simple two-story stone building and a log bungalow combined with a banquet room. Rather, the nearby security guards' quarters looked more luxurious.

The lawn of the villa was crowded with children playing ball.

Youngho, who sat under a patio umbrella and chased the children with his eyes, yawned loudly. It seemed the aftermath of the long trip had yet to go.

The back door of the villa was opened, and Fatima was seen bringing coffee, so he changed his posture because she might complain that he looked tired.

"You look tired, at least take a nap."

To Youngho's surprise, Fatima seemed to have caught Youngho's condition.

"You're treating me like a patient."

"You're a patient right now. You're the guy who's lost his soul to gold."

"Ah! You know someone might hear you and think that's true."

He felt a prick at his heart. It seemed that Kim Il-kwon had confessed everything to Fatima to her grilling.

Youngho usually did not break his promise to his children, but he had to suffer a lot for coming a few days later this time.

"Is it true that the Altai Mountains are covered with gold?"

"There was a lot of gold in the valley. So I'm sure the former president has designated it as a protected area and kept it out of course."

"Is the reservation off now?"

"I asked the prime minister to designate it as a royal property."

"Oh! Then we can go and collect gold, too?"

"We?"

"It's me, Zeynep, and Park Seo-young, who else? No, we shouldn't be alone. Szechenyi and Isabella and their children are also coming to the villa tomorrow, so I'd better take Isabelle, too."

Although she did not say it, it seemed Fatima was also as crazy as Youngho when it came to gold.

"It's dangerous because it's deserted and the terrain is rugged."

"We're going there to help Seo-young's dad."

Park Seo-young was the daughter of Doctor Park Young-sun, who was in charge of the exploration of the Altai Mountains. She was Zeynep's best friend who was the same age as Zeynep and went to Goethe University together.

Youngho was dumbfounded by Fatima's sudden request that he was quickly searching for an excuse not to bring them.

"Well… I wish there is a nice place for you to stay, but we can't take the kids there and sleep in tents."

"I heard the scenery of the Altai Mountains is as beautiful as here."

"What does it matter?"

"Our children are going to lead the country in the future, and it's going to be a great learning opportunity if we show them the mountains. Camping in the wilderness would be a great experience."

Youngho felt that he was being dragged by Fatima's intentions.

After spending enough time at the lake, the family was getting tired of it, and Fatima just found a custom playground.

"Do you have such pure intention only?"

"Hey, do you think we're like you?"

"As far as I know, Princess Isabella has a weakness for gold. Do you really want to take their babies to camping?"

"Well, that's even better. You and Szechenyi can babysit the children. We're going to help Seo-young's dad."

***

"Oppa, can I keep what I find?"

"What are you going to do with some gold beads? I'll give you a gold bar in the royal palace if necessary."

"That's for the Kazakh people. How can I use that?"

"It belongs to the royal family. Why the people?"

"You're going to use it for Kazakhs, it'll be a disgrace to use it for personal purpose."

Although she was making a great remark, she was already fidgeting to collect gold. As Isabella and Szechenyi were ahead of her, she was anxious as if she would run at any minute.

In the end, the royal family, including Youngho, all came to the Altai Mountains together.

Youngho thought that the kids would only stay at the lake for a vacation, but when he told them he was going to the Altai Mountains, they were excited to go to a new travel destination.

When Youngho said that they could even collect gold, even Jelyan and Rena's eyes sparkled.

When the royal family said that it would come to the Altai Mountains, many people were mobilized to make temporary lodgings at the entrance to the mountain range.

Youngho hoped that his family would not get in the way of exploration work, but it seemed like his family was only postponing their process.

As soon as they arrived yesterday, kids wandered around the campground, and this morning they were making a fuss to go to the valley for gold.

"Oppa, if the Altai Mountains are really gold-covered, that means our royal family is blessed."

"We've been already blessed from the moment we came to Kazakhstan. You know Almaty's gold mine boasts global reserves, right?"

"You said thousands of tons are buried there. Does that mean there are more in the Altai Mountains?"

"I'm not sure yet, but I'm sure there's enough buried to surprise the whole world. Because Dr. Park Young-sun said it was highly possible."

Zeynep seemed to be excited and her expression changed as if she was dreaming.

"So, Kazakhstan will be the richest country in the world? Perhaps we can live better than America or Europe."

"I'm sure we can. That's why the former president kept this place a secret. He probably thought that it could be taken away by a powerful country without the power to protect it."

"That grandfather president was very careful. He must have loved Kazakhstan very much given the fact that he hid it so tightly."

Not only Zeynep but also the Kazakh people still had nostalgia for President Nazarbayev.

He was a terrible dictator, but he loved Kazakhstan more than anyone else.

"I was a great nationalist. It was a problem because he was so drunk with power."

"He must be upset having to leave this place without knowing how much gold is buried."

"So that's why I'm trying to check how much gold is buried, and you guys are interrupting it."

"Why are we interrupting? We are helping to find the vein of gold more quickly."

"Oh, I'd rather not say anything."

"Don't worry. But there's an empty military base around here. Is this a dangerous area?"

"Troops must have been deployed here since it's near the Russian border. When the new government was established, they were all pulled back to the Chinese border."

Even though Russia could not move south because it was blocked by the Altai Mountains, there was a large military presence in the area. If it was meant to protect the gold mine, it could have been controlled by just putting up a sign and setting up some policemen. While answering Zeynep's question, Youngho had no choice but to tilt his head.

'Why on earth did the army stay here?'