Humans Shrunk 100 Times

Chapter 210: Gold

Management is a vast subject, intangible yet indispensable for both enterprises and countries. Qiming, in order to continue its existence, had no choice but to invest effort in this aspect.

Chen Mu used to focus solely on living his own life and didn't have much experience with these matters. He naturally didn't oppose what Dong Junwei explained.

During the days when he was away, due to the reduced workforce, there would inevitably be interruptions in construction. In that case, it was also a solution to focus on building aspects related to spiritual civilization and regulations.

After two days.

The thermal storage time for the three metals was finally completed.

The final data is as follows:

Aluminum: 7 hours;

Stainless Steel: 26 hours;

Copper: 46 hours.

Clearly, using copper as the heat source is more effective than stainless steel.

There were quite a few wires found inside the second carton, and using copper as a construction material didn't have many advantages, but it suited this purpose perfectly.

"What patterns can be observed from this data?" Chen Mu knew only the specific values of density for those attributes, so it was impossible for him to summarize any patterns.

"I have an idea," Tang Jing said.

"What is it?"

"According to the current ratio, the most relevant attribute should be 'reactivity.'"

"Reactivity of metals?" Chen Mu was puzzled.

"Yes," Tang Jing nodded.

"But why would reactivity be related to the material's heat storage capacity?" Chen Mu inquired again.

"That's hard to say. Reactivity of metals refers to their tendency to lose electrons and form metal cations in an aqueous solution. It's a thermodynamic concept," Tang Jing explained. "To put it simply, there might be some connection, but even if there isn't, superpowers are inherently unreasonable. All we can do is summarize and infer."

"I remember the specific manifestation of reactivity should be..." Chen Mu hesitated for a moment, unable to recall the term.

"Standard electrode potential," Tang Jing answered.

"Aluminum has the highest reactivity?"

"Among these three, yes, but among all metals, lithium is probably the most reactive, the kind used in batteries. I did a rough calculation, and lithium has a thermal storage time of only 4.5 hours. However, what we need is the least reactive one."

"What's the least reactive?" He Ying asked.

"Gold," Tang Jing said.

"Gold?"

"Yes," Tang Jing continued, "I calculated its thermal storage time to be 124 hours. If my estimation is correct, its upper temperature limit would be even higher. If used in the engine, it could probably supply energy for over 80 hours, based on the current capabilities of the team leader."

"But... isn't gold hard to find?"

"Yes."

"What about something slightly worse?"

"Silver, around 60 hours."

"That's not easy to find either."

Suddenly, Dong Junwei said, "I know where there's gold."

"I know too, in the school vault?" Chen Mu chuckled.

"I'm talking about inside the school," Dong Junwei clarified.

"There's gold in the school?"

"Do you remember our high school geography teacher, Qiluo?" Dong Junwei asked.

"The beautiful Qiluo?" Zhu Hao immediately responded.

"Yeah, every time she came to school, she wore her jewelry on the way, but once the class started, she would lock them in her desk," Dong Junwei recalled.

"Team leader, how did you find out?" Chen Mu curiously asked.

"She told me herself," Dong Junwei shrugged.

"Why would Qiluo tell you this?" He Ying asked with suspicion.

"I went to her office last time to help with something, and I complimented her bracelet. That's when we started talking about these things," Dong Junwei remembered the past at school, couldn't help but smile, and said, "As you know, students are not allowed to wear jewelry, but in principle, teachers aren't encouraged to wear them either. However, Qiluo has a natural love for beauty, so she used this compromise method."

"But leaving her jewelry in the desk, isn't she afraid it's not secure?" Chen Mu couldn't understand.

"The school is the safest place; there are surveillance cameras everywhere in the office corridors, and many people come and go. Who would steal things here?" Dong Junwei said, "Besides, those are just ordinary gold accessories. Qiluo's husband is very rich, so these things are probably like toys to them."

Chen Mu couldn't believe that the usually aloof team leader would be so excited about gossiping about the teachers. He couldn't help but chuckle.

"When disaster strikes, it will be during the second period break. I estimate that the gold accessories are likely to still be in her desk," Dong Junwei said.

"Then, should we go look for them next time we go out?" Chen Mu suggested.

"We can consider that," Dong Junwei agreed.

Tang Jing said, "Speaking of which, where is Qiluo's office?"

"Vice department teachers' offices are in the administrative annex building. Qiluo's office is Room 309 on the third floor," Dong Junwei replied.

"In that case, our target for next time will be there. Drive the car up and get a shipment of boxed gold back," Chen Mu said with determination.

"I suggest the team leader goes with us," Tang Jing suddenly added.

"Me?" Dong Junwei was surprised.

"Yes," Tang Jing continued, "Even if we use copper as the heat source, the vehicle's usage time will not exceed 20 hours at most. If we can't replenish the heat midway, the engine will stop. So, having the team leader accompany us can increase efficiency. Once we have the gold, we won't need that anymore."

Although copper has a thermal storage time of 46 hours, the time the metal can actually be utilized by the engine is only 20 hours because the temperature of the metal heat source gradually decreases with time. After being heated by Dong Junwei, the metal had a characteristic: it was not affected by the surrounding environment. Its cooling rate remained linear, unaffected by being placed in water or exposed to the sun. It was as if this piece of metal was perpetually emitting heat at the same efficiency. This characteristic made it not highly efficient but a stable heat source. As long as the time was calculated correctly, there would be no accidents. In a way, it was more reliable than electricity and fuel.

"That sounds good."

Dong Junwei nodded. "Since I came into this room, I haven't gone outside yet, so it's a good opportunity to go out and explore."

Tang Jing reassured, "Don't worry, this time we have a car to ride, so it won't be tiring. Moreover, with Chen Mu leading us, safety won't be a problem."

Chen Mu chuckled, "The team leader is like a humanoid refueling machine, so I will get tired."

It was indeed not an easy task that required consuming half of his mental power every day to maintain the vehicle's operation for 20 hours.

Chen Mu added, "Besides, since we're going out in a car this time, I plan to stay out for a few more days. If possible, it would be best to search for the other eight gathering points marked by the Greenstone Monument. An Ruosu only knows one of the points, and we're not sure if there are people there right now, but I think we should at least go and check it out."

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