Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 980 Southwest ([-])

The eastern sky turned pale.

Tian Xing wiped the dew from under the brim of his hat, then took off the wine jug on his waist, and took a few sips of Hezhong Daqu, which faintly dispelled the chill from his body.The east coast at the end of June is already very cold, especially when walking at night, when the cold wind blows, the feeling is not something ordinary people can bear. Coupled with the sudden mist in the early morning, the biting coldness is almost It can penetrate into the human bone marrow, making you unavoidable.

"This weather is really evil." Tian Xing looked at the gradually thinning fog and complained resentfully.Although he was born in the second generation, he can be described as a "princeling" with a golden spoon in his mouth, but he rarely has the air of arrogance like Bai Siwen's son.He is only 22 years old this year and has been working in the State Intelligence Agency for almost five years, and he has also been promoted to a section chief with great achievements. He is considered quite satisfactory among the "trends" of the princelings.

Although Tian Xing himself is relatively low-key, he is able to endure hardships and stand hard work, and his work is relatively solid, but he is deeply loved by the "central veteran cadres" glutinous rice balls. It laid a good foundation for his future development.And because of this, under his low profile, he still intentionally or unintentionally attracted some people to the whole Wujiang area - everyone is smart, especially these little characters who have nothing but ambitions to climb up, Know the importance of betting in advance.

"Chief, we've arrived at Fenggezhuang." A tall young man turned around and reported to Tian Xing who was drinking to drive away the cold: "The gang of birds in the village didn't even have a sentinel. If the enemy comes here, take care of them."

Tian Xing heard the words and walked to a small mound, and saw a small village hidden in the mist by the morning light in the east.It was an ordinary small village with red bricks and blue tiles, and a walled vegetable garden, typical of the east coast.The early-rising peasant woman in the closest yard is already feeding the pigs, and the sleepy child is sitting in the corner, chopping hay from time to time. It seems that the family still has livestock such as cattle and sheep, most of which are tied to the vegetable garden behind. house.

A big rooster somehow flew to the top of the chicken coop, paced mightily, stopped from time to time and sang to the sky, urging the sleepy farmers to get up quickly, a new day had arrived.Under the chicken coop, a few hens and a group of immature chicks were looking for food on the grass in the yard, and a big khaki dog was lying on the ground, wagging its tail boredly.

"It's such a quiet and peaceful village." Tian Xing sighed secretly, "These Ming people are really easy-going. The nearby Charuyas have just been wiped out for a few months, and they have become so relaxed and lazy. The family at the head of the village seems to be old and young. They should be old citizens who moved from the east. Their vigilance is like this, not to mention most of the new Ming immigrants in the village. This is the comfort zone."

It is said that at the beginning of this year, the Wujiang area mobilized a large number of militiamen, together with a few hired gaucho cavalry, launched a large-scale cleanup operation in the nearby area, destroying what may be the last large-scale Charuya in the east bank area tribe of people.For this matter, Meng Hu also published a commemorative article on "The Last Charuya" in a magazine. The smell of the Virgin in the article is so strong that Tian Xing, a new generation of East Coast people, would like to vomit.

As an intelligence officer who has traveled around the Wujiang area all year round, Tian Xing clearly knows that this settlement named Fenggezhuang (located near the small village of Polo Solo in later generations Uruguay) was established not long ago—only in the past few months—when immigrants The Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent here seven or eight hundred immigrants from Laiyang County, Shandong, and then relocated twenty or thirty families of old citizens from the eastern coastal area, and then scattered them and mixed them together, and finally formed this new settlement.

But don't be fooled by the word "zhuang" in the name of this settlement. Although it does look like a big village, on the map of the Wujiang District Administrative Office, this is a serious township-level settlement. It is called "Fenggezhuang Township".The State Development Bureau had already built some residences here in advance. After the new immigrants arrived, the Northwest Reclamation Bank immediately signed a mortgage loan contract for the purchase of houses with them, and then these Ming immigrants lived in happily. .

The arrival of these immigrants is actually related to the construction of the Southwest Railway.As we all know, the Genoese will invest tens of millions of lire to build this artery-level railway with a total length of more than 400 kilometers on the east bank, and its terminal will be located on the bank of the Wujiang River, which is also very close to the Rio de la Plata. Jingjiang port.As the terms when the agreement was first signed, the Dongan people gave Genoa a 30-year exclusive right to the Jingjiang Port Wharf. The premise is that the Genoese continue to invest funds and manpower to continue the construction of the Jingjiang Port Wharf, and at the same time clean up the nearby waterways. In order to avoid the unfortunate grounding of large sea-going ships while sailing.

Therefore, the Genoese sent five or six hundred Sicilians to Jingjiang Port one after another, and built a wharf. As for the huge amount of materials needed for the construction, it happened that the East Coast Building Materials Company opened a branch in Jingjiang Port. , Bricks, cement, lime, sand and gravel can supply a considerable part, and the construction cost of this wharf has been greatly reduced.

And this month (June), Genoa sent people to Jingjiang Port in advance to inform the State Administration of Railways that a ship full of Naples laborers will arrive at Jingjiang Port next month, and then start to build the Southwest Railway Jingjiang. Town - Xindi Township This section is less than 6 kilometers.And after the completion of this section (it is expected not to be very slow), the railway line will continue to extend to the inland area, and the next stop is this Fenggezhuang Township, so this time the National Development Bureau will set up a new settlement here , and moved nearly a thousand immigrants here, in order to make full use of this main railway line in the future.

"The government regards the towns along the railway line as very important, and asked us to go to the Hejian area on the other side of the Wujiang River to buy a lot of Hejian slaves for the purpose of building supporting urban construction facilities here. But the residents here All of them are so peaceful, how can we have the spirit of striving that our Dadong’an patriots should have?” A follower also looked at this quiet town in the mist, and said with a twisted mouth: “I think back when the country was first established, , adults and children in our village should be vigilant! Adults hold muskets, and our children also hold slingshots and kitchen knives. Those Guarani people are like chickens and dogs, which is not enough to see! Hehe, it’s not like here, it’s a sense of comfort It's time to rectify the decadent appearance!"

This young attendant followed Tian Xing to the Hejian area and bought back about 300 Hejian slaves.It is said that the Kelandi slaves in the river region are becoming more and more difficult to buy, because the tribal annexation war there is coming to an end, and it is no longer possible to produce a large number of prisoners of war; With the gradual recovery of regional power, these Kelandi tribes also felt tremendous pressure-as their living space was gradually compressed, the wars between tribes began to decrease day by day. After all, no one is a fool. If the situation is forced to continue to fight endlessly, it may really be the end of the game.

And just like this, this time Tian Xing and others only bought back more than 300 Hejian slaves, which was far less than expected. heavy pressure.Tian Xing was even thinking about whether he would write a report to his immediate superior and the Chief of the Field Service Section after this matter was over, suggesting that he should provide armed assistance to the Kelandi tribe close to the east coast by means of half-selling and half-gifting (Generally they migrated from the south, and they fought against the Spaniards in the Second East-West War). The types of aid should not be limited. Weapons, military supplies, and even horses can be provided, as long as they can make enough for the Spaniards. the hassle on it.

But then again, these Kelandi people are neither familiar with modern warfare, nor have they received comprehensive training in firearms. It seems that it is necessary to send them some military instructors. The transport captain.In addition, you have to find a way to tell these tribes who have always been friendly with the east coast to pay attention to methods and methods, try to avoid confrontation with the Spaniards, but make full use of forests, swamps, and thistle bushes that grow taller than people on the grasslands as cover , Start a guerrilla war with the Spaniards, so as to save yourself to the greatest extent, and at the same time inflict heavy damage on the enemy.

The Spaniards have now vigorously expanded the three fortresses of Buenos Aires, Rosario, and Santa Fe, and formally formed three infantry regiments (1 white gentleman regiment, 2 mestizo regiments, each Regiment of 1200-1300 people), a gaucho cavalry battalion, the troops are already quite strong, if the Kelandi people do not pay attention to the way of fighting, they are likely to suffer a disastrous defeat.In addition, the National Intelligence Agency also learned through various channels that the Spaniards continued to build two Klandi infantry regiments in the Cordoba area, and practiced them day and night. The rioting Kelandi tribe, while deterring the people on the east coast.

In addition to the increase in troops, the Spaniards also migrated many immigrants from the Old World along the Paraná River, most of whom were Spaniards and Italians, and occasionally some Catalans who were exiled here.The increasing number of white settlers was crucial to the existence of these military forts, because it meant that they had a firm foothold in this barren land.

"When we go back, we will not only write a report to ask for assistance to the Kelandi people, but also ask the Wujiang District Police Command to rectify the local militia. In case of war in the future, the militia is also an extremely important armed force, which must not be ignored." When his subordinates walked towards the settlement together, Tian Xing secretly made up his mind.

(End of this chapter)