Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 1808

The Southern Railway Company is really worried now. There is no other reason. The construction of the Jiaoyan Line Railway has officially started in full swing. "Yao Mozi" came out again, asking them to build a railway for them on the Golden Horn Peninsula, leading directly to Shuangchengzi, and if possible, it is best to "invest" in the wharf of Vladivostok. For this reason, the Blackwater Development Team can give them a certain amount. Term of Marina Franchise.

To be honest, the inexplicable request of Chen Ke, the leader of the Blackwater Pioneering Team, shocked the entire Southern Railway Company.Xu Xiangdong, vice president of the company who was still in Shandong to coordinate relations, discuss loans, and guide the construction of railways and affiliated areas, had to arrive at the Golden Horn Bay in October on a ship of the Third Fleet before the port was frozen. Lu Xiaofeng, commissioner of the Wusuli River District Administrative Office and garrison commander, negotiated.

The Southern Railway Company has studied it on the map before, consulted a lot of information, and interviewed some personnel, and has a preliminary concept of the prospect of the railway that the Blackwater Pioneering Team unilaterally requested to build, that is, to really do it. If it is done, 100% will lose blood!

Think about it, yes, the people on the east coast of the so-called Golden Horn Peninsula (Mulaviyov-Amur Peninsula in later generations) have only occupied it in the past one or two years. It is sparsely populated, and there is no valuable output—that is, some furs, and there is no shadow of gold, a good thing that can attract investment—the utilization rate of building a railway will be very low.And a low utilization rate naturally means that the company operating the railway will fall into a state of loss. How can this make people agree to invest?

Let’s talk about the port of Vladivostok, where Blackwater can have a “50-year franchise”, the South Railway Company also believes that the risk is too high and it is not suitable for investment.The reason is also very simple. Although this port is defined as the political center, military center, logistics center, and commercial center of the Blackwater Pioneering Team in the future, the terminal throughput will be very large, and it will definitely make money if it operates the port.But the question is, is this all about the Year of the Monkey?The Southern Railway Company only believes in what it can see in front of it, that is, there are only three or four thousand civilians living in this port city, and most of them are Jurchens with little spending power, who can't play anything!If the Southern Railway Company really wants to invest in the port affairs of Vladivostok, it is believed that the supplies needed for the daily production and daily life of thousands of local soldiers and civilians can be solved by a few passing ships a year. After all, the local area and nearby areas can find a way Collect a part.In this way, it is foreseeable that the port affairs of the city of Vladivostok will not have much investment value in a short period of time, unless the population of the city is large enough, the hinterland is wide enough, and the commercial prosperity reaches a high level. It is possible, and it all takes time!

If it was normal, the Southern Railway Company would have rejected such an inconspicuous proposal long ago, so it would have to point out the problems and "educate" the proposer.However, the identity of the proposer this time is unusual, but Chen Ke, the captain of the Blackwater Pioneering Team, so the problem is more difficult. The future development of the Southern Railway, such as the commercial operation of the subsidiary, depends a lot on the Blackwater side, and the relationship cannot be It got stuck, so after thinking twice, Xu Xiangdong, the vice president of the South Railway, brought a few confidantes, and hurried to the port of Vladivostok before the port was frozen, intending to negotiate with Lu Xiaofeng to dispel their "stupid" idea".

Today is October 1679, 10. Because the garrison commander Lu Xiaofeng and an infantry company went north to "hunt" (threatening the natives) and have not yet returned, Xu Xiangdong waited patiently in the city.

At this time in Vladivostok, the temperature drops rapidly, and the warm wind on the sea has been pushed back by the strong land wind from the Mongolian Plateau. The thin ones seemed to be unable to resist the chill, and felt a little shivering.

Xu Xiangdong asked the officials in the city and learned that there are more than 500 people in total—[-] people were just sent this year to make up for the loss—the North Korean migrant workers don’t care about them, they have their own management officials , supervisors, and these migrant workers are not always fixed, and people from different provinces, counties, and counties have rotations.I don’t know if it’s North Korean officials who are corrupt or what. In short, the group of North Koreans in front of them lacks enough winter clothes. If no ships from North Korea arrive to distribute winter clothes before the port is completely frozen at the end of next month, these North Koreans may not want to buy winter clothes. More than half of them died of freezing and illness. You must know that they also have to go out to work in winter (not in rainy and snowy weather).

At that time, no matter how reluctant the people on the east coast are, they will have to open the warehouse and distribute the few warm clothes to the North Korean workers on the construction sites. Although the number is definitely far from enough, it depends on How did the North Koreans adjust themselves internally?Of course, these cotton-padded clothes of good quality will definitely not be distributed for free. The wool comes from sheep. After the construction of Vladivostok is basically completed, use this as an excuse to let North Korean migrant workers stay for a while and build other things. Also came back.

"There is no doubt that the North Koreans are a very good labor force. They are hard-working, hungry, very resilient, and can be competent for heavy physical labor in harsh environments. If these jobs are performed by workers in Denglai or Ningbo, It may not take too long for people to flee one after another, it is not an exaggeration at all." The official accompanying the Southern Railway Company temporarily pointed to the construction site outside the city and said: "With these people here, we can free up more Energy, to engage in more important work, such as training and preparing for war, expanding influence, etc. In fact, we even hope that these North Korean migrant workers can stay after finishing their work, and we can grant them land for free, because they are so docile, It’s so capable. If there are tens of thousands of North Korean farmers farming for us under the rule of Vladivostok, then we can almost unify the entire Ussuri River Basin. Of course, this is just a thought. There are too many factors hindering this. thing."

"North Koreans can't do it, don't they have Japanese? I heard in Yantai that your Commander Chen Kechen recruited a large number of Japanese samurai and ronin from Kyushu and Shikoku through the channel of the Japanese company on the east coast. Is it just rumors and not the truth to go to Heishui to increase the local population and the number of security forces?" Xu Xiangdong smiled after hearing this, and he was strolling in the streets of the city in a high-end leather jacket, watching the newly laid foundation. asked at the construction site of the city wall.

"Half-true, half-false." The accompanying official said helplessly: "There are indeed Japanese recruits, but many of them have been sent to Beishun, Hiraoka and other strongholds behind, and the number of people is also very limited. Up to 200 people. These people, to say that they are samurai is really flattering them, they can only be said to be the descendants of samurai. On weekdays, they hang out in several major commercial cities or ports in Japan, and they are full and hungry. Many people have even sold their ancestral samurai swords. They are as destitute as dogs, and their wives and children are also disheveled. The effect of sending these people to battle may not be very good, but if it is the kind of Kenting that is half-soldier and half-farmer However, the effect is still good. Speaking of which, Beishun, Pinggang and other five townships really need such people, so they sent over a thousand people. At present, the number of samurai or ronin who can become qualified soldiers does not exceed 100 , and some of them have not been killed for some years. They are forced to make a living as businessman nurses or other occupations. Their martial arts are quite abandoned, and they need to be trained for a period of time before they can be appointed. These people are all from Vladivostok, Vladivostok, They are the main body of the soldiers of the local garrison in Shuangchengzi. No, there are about [-] people stationed in the newly completed fortress in the north, and they can do these jobs for a company of the [-]rd Infantry Regiment and wave their flags."

"Japanese ronin is indeed a path that can be explored. I don't know how many such people are crowded in Osaka, Kyoto, and Nagasaki. They are simply a good source of cannon fodder. When we go to the Jurchen area in the future, we can use these people as pioneers. They have consumed each other with the Jurchens who do not obey discipline. In addition, I heard that the Northeastern feudal clans headed by the Sendai clan have a good relationship with the Japanese company on the east coast, so you can also contact them to see if there is any surplus population." Xu Xiangdong said .

"It is indeed possible, but to be honest, the population there is relatively sparse, and I am afraid that it is unlikely. Compared with that side, we might as well focus more on the Kingdom of Korea, and maybe there will be big gains." The accompanying official replied.

"North Korea, hehe. So the biggest bargaining chip for you to ask us to build the railway is the large number of North Korean workers? But I want to say, this is not enough, far from enough! The railway line from Shuangchengzi to Vladivostok will be at least 100 kilometers long. Moreover, the places passing by are sparsely populated, and it is difficult to mobilize materials and personnel. Such a railway cannot be repaired with 300 million yuan! Even if you can squeeze North Korean workers infinitely and enslave them to repair the railway for free, the money will not save much, because People always have to eat, and transportation costs and wear and tear are also factors that have to be considered. Coupled with the unpredictable security environment there, why should we believe that you can persist until the completion of this railway?" Xu Xiangdong said. The Japanese brought the topic to this railway again.And his answer, no accident, embarrassed the accompanying officials. They didn't know how to answer, so they could only explain everything submissively, and everything would be discussed after Commissioner Lu returned.

Xu Xiangdong didn't say anything after hearing this, and walked around Vladivostok with peace of mind.Although I have rejected the possibility of building a railway and operating a port here in my heart, I am still idle. I took the opportunity to learn about the specific situation of Vladivostok, so that the company may develop in the future (maybe 20 years, 30 years...) It is also possible to lay a solid foundation and do a good job in some business activities.

Xu Xiangdong noticed that after about a year of construction, the lighthouse on the East Coast Island (Russian Island) has been built and the lamps have been installed, which can guide ships at night, but the lighting has not yet been officially ignited. Because there is no need.

The other main building on the island is the seaside fort, which is used to block the narrow waterway about one kilometer long between the island and the land.The scale of the fort is huge. In the design, there will be 32 gun positions, and various types of coastal defense cannons, including 32-pound long-barreled heavy guns, will be installed.At present, the fort (the fort on the peninsula on the other side has not yet been seen) has been built about half of the progress, but the artillery has not been purchased and shipped from the local due to the lack of funds, and it may have to wait until the fort is fully completed.But no matter what, I believe that after a little busy time in winter and a busy day in spring tomorrow, the fort on Dongan Island will be completed before the end of the year, and the [-] North Korean migrant workers on the island will finally be able to set off to return home—of course This is according to the original plan. I don't know if it will change in the future.

The construction progress on the Golden Horn Peninsula is also not slow. The fortress more than ten kilometers west of the north of the main city (that is, the Soviet area of ​​​​the later Vladivostok City) is currently largely completed with the joint efforts of more than 4000 Korean migrant workers. The third infantry regiment A company and some Japanese ronin have already used this as a base to patrol the surrounding area to ensure the safety of the main city in the south.It is reported that North Korean officials are currently negotiating to bring these more than [-] people back to Gangwon Province, where they started, but it seems that they have encountered some difficulties, because the people on the east coast want them to help build an additional road leading to the main city. It's still in limbo. If no agreement is reached before the freeze, then it may not be until next year.

Half of the [-] migrant workers were concentrated in the main urban area (that is, the later Vladivostok Lenin District).However, due to heavy tasks, the current progress is the slowest. Only the government offices, warehouses, and military camps have been completely completed. There is only a temporary simple pier at the port, forts, city walls, lighthouses, markets, hospitals, and public bathrooms. Facilities such as the permanent wharf are either limited by the lack of construction materials or the shortage of labor force. In short, they have just started and it is too early to be completely completed.I believe that if the Blackwater development team cannot raise another sum of funds before the winter port freezes, and send them to North Korea to pay the arrears for many construction materials, the construction progress next year will still be far from ideal. This is beyond doubt.

After learning about these situations, Xu Xiangdong was also slightly dissatisfied. Your Heishui Pioneering Team still relies on subsidies from Denglai and Ningbo every year, and now you can’t get enough funds to build a city of Vladivostok, whether it’s in Heishui County or the North Koreans. They are all bad debts, and you still want us to build railways and invest in ports for you, is this crazy?The co-author thought we were local tyrants, why did you score a lot of land?

(End of this chapter)