Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 241 Cousin ([-])

The early summer in Dongfang Port is cool, the outside temperature is only [-] to [-] degrees, coupled with the fresh evening breeze, it makes people feel very relaxed and happy.

In the cannon casting workshop of the arsenal by the Dayu River, the fire in the smelting furnace is still raging, and there are nearly 20 graphite crucibles lined up inside, which are for the molten steel being smelted for casting cannons.As the arsenal with the longest "history" in China - the Dayuhe Arsenal, although it is far inferior to the northern arsenal located in Ping'an Town and developed on the basis of the Ping'an Iron and Steel Factory, both in terms of the number of workers and the advanced level of equipment, However, its monthly production capacity of [-] artillery pieces cannot be underestimated.

Especially after crossing the public to spend a lot of energy and test the data of smelting various special steels by changing the ratio of the components in the graphite crucible, here is the only steelmaking method that uses graphite crucible as the main steelmaking method. The factory area has become more and more important in smelting special steel.

This time, the Spaniards made a large-scale military purchase of several 10 yuan, and the whole country was involved, and a vigorous mass production movement was launched.Building a warship is a systematic project that not only requires the participation of the shipyard, but also many other supporting manufacturers.

For example, naval guns used on ships require casting in the gun workshop; casting guns requires steel, which involves the steelmaking department; it is not enough to have guns, and gunpowder and shells must be equipped with gunpowder, which in turn requires gunpowder. The factory provides gunpowder and a comprehensive workshop to manufacture shells; and gunpowder needs gunpowder barrels, which in turn requires the participation of cooperage workshops.

Canvas and cables are needed on warships, which in turn involves textile factories and rope workshops, and there are a large number of cotton and flax farmers who provide raw materials for these two factories; anchor chains are also needed on warships, so anchor chain factories also run It cannot be dropped, and the anchor chain factory needs molten iron to cast iron anchors.

In addition, the boiler workshop of the First Machinery Factory (which produced steam engines) which provided power for all the above factories and the Ping'an Coal Mine which provided fuel also had to be counted.If you add the manufacturers who provide miscellaneous items on warships such as glass, skin, tar, dyes, etc., there are conservatively more than [-] manufacturers and design and development departments participating in the shipbuilding plan.

It can be seen that building a warship actually has certain requirements for a country's industrial base. It is not just a cat or a dog that can build a warship. It tests the comprehensiveness of a country's industry and system integration capabilities.Of course, if you can build a qualified warship, then congratulations, its role in promoting the entire national industrial system is also quite obvious.

Some people may say that it took a lot of effort to build a warship, and only made so much money, it is better to vigorously research and develop how to burn porcelain.Regardless of how the time-traveling people know how to make porcelain, so what if they really figured it out?What is the use other than making more money?One cannot pull the upstream and downstream industrial chains like shipbuilding, including many brother manufacturers, drive a large number of job opportunities and improve the industrial technology level of the entire country; two cannot cultivate the industrial atmosphere of the entire country, which is to some extent against the It's more important than making money.

Recently, in order to share the big cake of orders for the next ten warships, various domestic factories have begun to vigorously expand their manpower and production scale.At this time, even if you only know a few hundred commonly used characters, know simple arithmetic, and use some tools proficiently, then you can easily find a job in some factories with less strict requirements.If you still know some mathematics and physics knowledge on this basis, then congratulations, you can apply for employment in first-tier factories such as arsenals, shipyards, machinery factories, and textile factories, and become a middle class in the East Coast Republic. of.

Henry entered the cannon casting workshop of Dayuhe Armory during the recent wave of recruitment.Except for his relatively poor Chinese (basically he can only speak simple conversations), he is very good in other aspects.He not only knows some mathematics, but also knows some knowledge of cannon casting. According to him, he learned this knowledge for a while in France.Although it is reasonable for Henry to work in the arsenal after living on the east coast for three years, who made the arsenal experience a serious shortage of people these days, so with the acquiescence of the superior department, Henry was recruited to the cannon foundry and directly promoted to For the third-level craftsman.

Now Henry's job is to cast cannons with other craftsmen and apprentices.The cannons cast include both army cannons and naval cannons. He is very serious in his work and studies carefully. He has firmly kept in mind what kind of steel materials are used to cast various types of artillery.Moreover, he is very willing to help others at work, and sometimes he will volunteer to help when the steelmaking manpower is insufficient.It only took him a few days, and then he quickly mastered how to use crucibles with different ratios to refine steels of different specifications.Seeing that he is so smart and eager to learn, Wu Jun, the factory leader, has been thinking about raising his rank and salary for a while.

Henry is on the night shift today, and he won't be able to go home until eight o'clock tomorrow morning.At this time, in the family area of ​​the arsenal, several secret police officers from the Ministry of the Interior wearing black woolen overcoats and wide-brimmed hats had quietly opened the door of Henry's residence, and then sneaked in.At the entrance of the small road leading to this family area, several secret police posing as construction workers set up roadblocks at the intersection, digging road sewer facilities in a pretend manner.They are here first to prevent people from approaching, and secondly to keep watch.

In the room, five or six secret police officers holding candles had already searched the small single dormitory, but found nothing of value.The furnishings in the room are also very simple. There is a bed, a desk, a chair, and an item box. The ground is poured with cement. There doesn't seem to be any place to hide things.

Xin Zuoweimen, an agent of the intelligence agency, walked back and forth in the room expressionlessly, then turned around and said to a group of secret police officers who were waiting for his order: "Maybe he didn't hide all the important things in the room, now close the team and eliminate Get rid of all traces. When I go back, I will apply for someone to secretly follow this guy, and I don't believe I can't find its tail."

The General Intelligence Agency has always attached great importance to strictly guarding domestic technical secrets. Not only has it dispatched a large number of professional investigators to take charge of this matter, but it has also established a strict secrecy system and surveillance system, effectively preventing the leakage of technology.In addition, they have also communicated and coordinated with the Ministry of the Interior. At special times, ordinary patrol officers, secret police, special agents, and local militias from the Ministry of the Interior can be called to better carry out their work.

Perhaps these systems cannot completely prevent the leakage of technology, but as long as the leakage of technology can be delayed by one day, East Coast can earn an extra day, which is very clear.

Shinzaemon's report also attracted the attention of the higher authorities.In line with the principle of preferring to believe what he has, Liu Yun, his immediate boss, allocated several professional investigators from the Intelligence Bureau to his command, and at the same time gave him greater authority to mobilize the police of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

In the next few days, the new Zuowei goalkeeper arranged to follow Henry in batches. He always felt that there was something wrong with this guy, so he decided not to stop until he found out.Anyway, the superior didn't put any pressure on him, so keep watching until the guy shows his flaws.If he is really a spy sent by other countries to steal technical secrets, he will definitely find ways to pass on the valuable technical information he comes into contact with. Maybe he has some local accomplices, so he just took this opportunity to catch them all.

The stalking operation lasted until the first ten days of January, during which Henry lived in seclusion and rarely even went out.Anyway, as a middle-level craftsman in the arsenal, the board and lodging factory is fully covered, and there are no entertainment facilities on the east bank, so he stays in the dormitory all day to sort out materials.In the eyes of ordinary people, this person will definitely feel that this person is hardworking and studious, but in the eyes of Shinzaemon, who has suspected him for a long time, it is very suspicious. This is to record and sort out the confidential information he has come into contact with during this period. Ready to pass it on?

The secret pursuit has been going on for more than half a month. Although there is still no gain, everyone dare not relax in the slightest.Intelligence work is like this, boring, tasteless, and stereotyped. As for those so-called secret agents who are thrilling, murderous, and powerful, they basically only exist in novels.

Things finally turned around on January 1.This day was Henry's first rest day in a month. Instead of staying in the dormitory as usual, he spent a lot of money to buy some fruits shipped from Brazil and went to Laura's house to visit relatives. Two hours later, he left Laura's house again, and boarded a small steamer (steam paddle steamer) heading to the Big Fish Lake area with a letter of introduction issued by his unit (people without a letter of introduction cannot move freely).

This small steamer is a regular passenger and cargo flight between the county seat and Miannongbao, the whole journey takes three and a half hours.The starting point is the Nancheng Wharf of Dongfang Port, and the Dingyuan Township Exploitation Brigade, Harvest Brigade, Hope Brigade, and Dayu Lake Fishery Wharf temporarily stop for ten to 15 minutes, and the end point is the Miannongbao Wharf on the north bank of Dayu Lake.

The investigators who followed him reported the situation immediately, Shinzaemon made a decisive decision, and sent two investigators in disguise to board the same small steamer as Henry, and at the same time quickly sent a messenger to request the agents of the Dingyuan Branch of the National Intelligence Agency Send people to cooperate.

At the same time, the investigator who was sent to the arsenal to inquire about the stub of the letter of introduction also came back. He found out that the destination of Henry's letter of introduction was the Harvest Brigade of Dingyuan Township.After getting the exact information, Shinzaemon personally led four investigators and ten secret police officers and galloped along the north side of Highway 1 towards the Harvest Brigade, making sure to get there before the arrival of the small steamer. And be prepared for everything.

(End of this chapter)