There were more people, and the four of them got busy.
Since there was a big river here, the most popular products were naturally river fish and river shrimps.
There were a few big white fish stewing in the pot, and there was grilled river fish on the grill. The fish was the length of a palm and not big, but the meat was very fat, and soon the skin was roasted to a brown color.
Li Du sat by the river and looked around. The entire river was in his eyes.
The clear river was rolling and rolling, and some large and small flat-bottomed boats rose and fell on the river. It was lunchtime, and some boats were docked.
There were many simple sheds on both sides of the river, and a few pieces of wood propped up a black net to block out the sun. Underneath, the dark-skinned locals were chatting and laughing with tea jars.
It was Li Du's first time in Myanmar, and he was curious about everything, so he couldn't help looking around.
Seeing this, the locals in a shed next to him became unfriendly, and several young men pointed at him and shouted.
Godanwei quickly stood up, smiled kindly at the young men, and said something.
Big Markelov said, "The guys asked you what you were looking at, and the guide told them we were foreigners, and it was our first time here. We just wanted to see the scenery."
Li Du did not want to cause trouble, so he looked away and smiled disdainfully. "The locals are quite bossy."
Young Markelov spat. "I think they're not afraid of death!"
Big Markelov immediately glared at him. "Don't mess around here, idiot. We're on the front line now, no logistics, no supplies, no support, nothing. Behave."
Godanwei sat down after placating the people opposite him and said, "They're local gold diggers, and they all carry gold with them, so they don't like people looking at them. They'll misunderstand."
Li Du suddenly realized that there was gold sand in the river.
The grilled fish was ready first, and the fish were skewered with bamboo sticks. They were eaten like bones, with each hand holding one end of the stick and nibbling the meat from the middle.
The fish was tender and delicious, without the earthy smell of freshwater fish, but with a sweet taste. With seasonings such as cumin and chili powder, the group ate with relish.
The cost of living in these places was very low, and the group spent less than 200,000 Kyrgyzstan. According to the currency exchange rate, one RMB could be exchanged for 200 Kyrgyzstan, which meant that each person only spent 50 RMB on average.
They were all burly men with huge appetites. If they were in the United States, Li Du estimated that each of them would have spent more than 50 US dollars.
Before leaving, Li Du gave the lady boss a little tip — a hundred dollars.
The lady boss beamed with joy when she saw the money. There were people who mined gold here and occasionally traded in US dollars, so they knew the value of US dollars.
The bill was worth more than a hundred thousand Kyat. The lady boss kept it close to her body and went to get some grilled fish, wrapped it in oiled paper, and gave it to Li Du, indicating that they should eat it on the way.
After a bumpy ride, the road finally cleared up. The green hills and clear waters were gone, replaced by mining pits and excavated hills.
They had arrived at the Hpakant area!
Li Du looked out and could not help but marvel at the destructive power of humans. There was a stone mountain that had been excavated in half. It was as if some giant god had gotten angry and stretched out his hand to tear the mountain in half.
Seeing his amazed expression, Godanwei pointed to the potholed ground in the distance and said, "There used to be a mountain there, no, there used to be many mountains there, but look, sir, they are all gone now, they have all been dug up!"
The car continued to move forward, and Li Du saw some cars on the ground.
The road conditions here were better because there were many heavy trucks driving on it, and some heavy machinery such as excavators. If the road conditions were not good enough, the ore could not be dug out or transported.
The trucks that came out of the mine were heavy trucks with a load of dozens of tons. These trucks were full of ore, and it was obvious that they were seriously overloaded.
The driver estimated and looked back. "There must be hundreds of tons of stuff."
The further they went, the more lively it became, and there were villages and pedestrians on the side of the road.
The villages here were small and shabby, with some thatched and mud houses that only existed in China in the fifties and sixties. Myanmar had a lot of rain, and Li Du felt that a heavy rain could destroy these houses.
The people in the village were also very poor, and the weather was still hot. Many people had no tops, only a pair of shorts. The children ran around barefoot and naked, and a broken football was enough for more than a dozen children to fight for.
Some people were in the shade of the trees. In addition to the elderly and children, the people under the trees were disabled, missing legs and arms, which was unbearable to look at.
Li Du was surprised. "What's going on? Isn't Hpakant a very rich place? "
Godanwei smiled sarcastically and said, "Yes, very rich. In our car, boss, I'm afraid you have ten million dollars? Then we both have five million dollars on average. We are all very rich! "
Li Du frowned and said, "I know what you mean. I know there are many rich businessmen and mine owners here, but do the miners not have money? The miners' salary is not low, is it? "
Godanwei still smiled sarcastically. He said, "Not low? It's true that it's not low, but in fact, it's not much money. Besides, these bosses always have a way to earn your money back. There is too much spending here! "
Hearing this, Li Du shook his head. Godanwei was clever and guessed what Li Du was thinking from his expression.
He said, "Boss, you must think that the people here are not up to standard, right?"
Without waiting for Li Du to answer, he sneered and said, "The people here have not received your education, and their self-control is not as good as yours. The local environment is like this, there are many temptations. When you leave the mine exhausted every day, when you don't know if you will be destroyed by the mine tomorrow, will you not want to spend money?
"In short, hell is empty, and the devil walks on earth!"
Li Du said, "You are right. It seems that the resource curse theory is also applicable in Hpakant."
This time it was Godanwei's turn to be confused. He blinked in confusion and said, "What curse? Who cursed here? "
Li Du smiled and said, "It's not who cursed here, but the 'resource curse theory,' which means that countries and regions with more scarce resources are likely to be poorer."
The situation in Hpakant was the same as in the diamond-rich areas of Africa. The indigenous people in these areas did not become rich because of resources. On the contrary, they suffered because of these resources and became poorer.
As the car drove between the villages, Li Du saw more and more things and was more and more shocked.
Like the Los Angeles metropolitan area, around the small place of Hpakant, a large living area was built, and the closer to the center, the more traffic there was.
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