Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 2360 Float Parade ([-])

On January 1699, 1, Dingjun Town Railway Station.

Dingjun Station is an important stronghold of the Central Railway Company. The dispatched organization here is large in scale, has a large number of personnel, and also has strong technical force, with complete maintenance and manufacturing capabilities of important parts.And within a few kilometers around Dingjun Railway Station, there are a large number of spare parts manufacturers of various sizes, and the trend of transportation industry agglomeration is very obvious.

Shao Yaoguang, Chairman of the Executive Committee of the East Coast Republic of China, arrived at Dingju Town Railway Station on a float today.He started from the capital Dongfang County, followed the railway line all the way north, passed through Meilin, Xiayihe, Meiluo, Hengtang, Zhongshan, Luohan, Taiping, Dingxi and other counties, went straight to the Brazilian Plateau, and finally arrived at Dingjun County .

The reason why they kept rushing here all the way was mainly to attend the inauguration ceremony of the largest small commodity market on the east coast.This project was originally promoted by Shao Yaoguang in the early years of his tenure. After so many years of development, it is now quite large.Currently, there are nearly [-] kinds of goods listed in the market, and there are countless strange and weird things that have not been counted.In short, as long as you come to this small commodity market, it is like being in a sea of ​​commodities. You can find everything you can imagine or imagine here, which is really big for traders big and small. Gospel.

In fact, the small handicraft industries around Dingjun Mountain are already famous.It was originally inherited from several important handicraft production and trade centers established by the Portuguese to do business with the East Coast.Later, Marshal Mo led his army to occupy the southern part of the Brazilian plateau, and all these handicraft towns fell into the hands of the people on the east coast.The construction ability of the people on the east coast is of course much stronger than that of the Portuguese. After a large amount of capital investment, the introduction of advanced technology, and the access to high-standard infrastructure, these handicraft towns have made great progress.Then, the handicraft industry in the Jiaohe area also developed rapidly under the birth of the war, and the subsequent regional administrative commissioners also attached great importance to this development. Gradually, the handicraft products in the Jiaohe area occupied the surrounding market.In particular, the densely populated Yazihu ​​Basin and the southern section of the Brazilian plateau are almost completely occupied by commodities from these two places.So, the development and growth of the small commodity market in Dingjun Town has its historical origins, and it has now become the most professional and complete market in the country.

In the current Dingjun Commodity Market, businessmen from all over the country come here to buy commodities every day.Merchants from Hexi, Hejian, Pampa, Nanzhuo, etc., who speak various accents—the accents of different parts of the East Bank, the difference is not too big at present—come here to gather, looking for the products they like, Negotiating with the seller, the transaction amount is amazing.

Moreover, the benefits of the small commodity market are not limited to this.The one-stop service of eating, drinking and playing around the market can also bring huge benefits to the local area every year. The government collects taxes from it, which is really soft.Correspondingly, the income of the local people has risen because of the provision of food and various industries, and they are so rich that the conscripts of the navy and army do not like to come to this kind of place.For them, citizens are probably the worst source of soldiers!

Shao Yaoguang also visited this newly expanded market for a whole day, and was invited to write an inscription for the new plaque of the market, "We sincerely invite customers from all over the world, and reputation comes from letters."Fortunately, Chairman Shao's calligraphy is not bad. After many years of hard work, and having been an official for so many years, the momentum is not ordinary. Officials in the small commodity market happily used it as a plaque.

"Although the commodities are small, they are of great importance to the national economy and the people's livelihood." Shao Yaoguang said with a flushed face after returning to the carriage, "I have been wandering around here for a day, and what I have seen and heard is quite gratifying. I used to work in the capital, and all I saw were report figures, which were not very intuitive. Today I came to see this small commodity market, which is really good. The local officials are smart and capable, and they can solidify their historical advantages. It is actually not easy to turn it into a long-term advantage. I vaguely remember that there used to be a marine industry in Luocha County, with many supporting manufacturers and a complete range of products. It seems that it is not so good now, and Yancheng has gradually caught up. This is the ability of local officials, Dingjun County, yes, Luoqia County, no!"

Today, when Shao Yaoguang had lunch at the small commodity market, he also saw businessmen from New Courland, Spain and Portugal, and there were even quite a few Dutch businessmen who came from thousands of miles away.He was delighted by the fact that these people, with their big wallets, were shopping sprawlingly and placing a lot of orders.At that time, he said to the people around him, what is national strength?This is national power!National strength is the ability of a country to control resources. This resource can be people, but in many cases it is more linked to the material wealth produced.Although the tens of thousands of commodities provided by the small commodity market are inconspicuous, they are also an important part of national strength.

In order to serve the increasingly prosperous small commodity market, the state-run Central Railway Company has also upgraded the railway hub of Dingjun Town (where the Great Northern Railway and the Forest Railway meet).They have successively invested more than 90 yuan in funds over the years. First, they negotiated with the local government to expand the railway station.They added a new vehicle repair shop, added a lot of machinery and equipment, recruited a large number of personnel, and comprehensively transformed the gas, electrical, lighting, communication and processing capabilities of the original small repair shop, making it possible to repair all types of steam locomotives, even It is also possible to assemble a temporary emergency locomotive from spare parts.

In addition, stations and garages have also been expanded.They purchased 15 "Star of La Plata" series steam locomotives, 95 flat rail cars for short-distance transfers, and 500 horse-drawn rail cars from the South Vehicle Factory, creating a rather large-scale transportation company. The company is used to carry out transportation business in the city and suburbs of Dingjun Town.The entire railway station covers an area of ​​[-] square meters, ranking first in the country, and is already one of the most important assets under the name of the Central Railway Company.

It is said that recently the Central Railway Company intends to pack up the industry in Dingjun Town and establish an independent subsidiary, the Central Railway Company Dingjun Branch, to better carry out operations.The company's registered capital will reach an astonishing 20 yuan, and it can be regarded as a large-scale enterprise in the country on the east coast. The number of passengers at Dingjun Town Railway Station has increased by 3.5 times and the cargo transportation volume has increased by 4.2 times in ten years. , is really worth it.

It is worth mentioning that, in order to better develop, the Dingjun Branch of the Central Railway Company recently plans to expand its share capital and raise funds from the society.Their prospectus is very well written, saying that except for deducting the special provident fund in 1699 and 1700, dividends will be distributed to shareholders every year thereafter, and the expected dividend rate will not be lower than 7% per year.This is very attractive. A lot of funds in the East Coast will surely flock in, and the [-] yuan for the IPO will be raised soon.

Shao Yaoguang was noncommittal about the so-called joint-stock reform of the railway department.However, it can be seen from his words that he approves of the introduction of social funds, because this can transform the company's board of directors and allow social funds to participate in supervision.But he also emphasized that the Central Railway Company must hold 51% of the shares, that is, the management power must not be transferred, and the railway is related to the national economy and the people's livelihood, which is not negotiable.

"Dingjun Railway Station carried 1698 passengers in 15. It is expected to exceed 1200 this year and 18 next year, with an average operating income of 21 cents per kilometer. This is very good, and the freight contributed to the railway department is quite large. Well. I am very supportive of the development of the railway industry. People used to say that building railways loses money, but now there are many sections of roads that make money.” Holding a cup of tea, Shao Yaoguang said with a smile: “Moreover, the benefits of railways It’s more than just freight. Its existence has greatly accelerated the flow of people and materials, accelerated economic development, and improved the efficiency of the entire country. The situation of economic imbalance. What the country values ​​more is actually these things. A little shipping fee, haha, it’s really a trivial matter.”

"Of course, the railway line managed by Dingjun Company is also making money. Well, there is also freight income here. Let me see. In 1698, about 2.43 goods including grain, coal, building materials, and small commodities were transported. It is expected to reach 3.5 tons this year and 1700 tons in 5. Huh? Such a fast growth rate? Is it because of war preparations and accelerated development in the north? The average income per ton/km has reached 2.27 points, very Not bad. Well, as expected, passenger revenue is far greater than cargo revenue now, which is a sign of economic development." Shao Yaoguang put down his teacup and said with a look of relief: "The development is so good, I feel more relieved. People It is always said that the wool transportation special line railway in the south is a good tool to make money, but in my opinion, you are not bad at all. Keep up the good work, keep working hard!"

At this time, Shao Yaoguang also sighed a little.The East Coast Republic of China has developed for so many years, and now it seems that it is really outstanding, and all businesses are on the right track.Moreover, judging from the current scale, the future development will only get faster and faster, and it will be a snowball-like development, which makes people even more exciting.

It's a pity that I am too old to watch it for a few more days.Moreover, now that I have to step down—the new government will officially take office at the end of February 1699 and complete the handover—it is a pity that I can no longer dictate the development of various undertakings in the country.

But the development of the country is more important than anything else.The future Spanish succession war is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. If it is done well, the country's fortunes on the east coast will be settled for the next hundred years, and the country's outlook will surely rise to a new level.

(End of this chapter)