Chapter 404 Meeting an old friend by chance
Since the Hai Han militia entered Hue City first and took away the bulk, by the time the North Vietnamese Army took over the defense of Hue City, there was really not much oil and water left in the city. Zheng Bai and his men scraped three feet of the ground in Hue City and collected approximately two hundred thousand taels of silver. However, this money was not enough to pay for the military expenses of the Hai Han Militia for this war. So much so that the Hai Han Militia chose to directly withdraw from the subsequent clearing operations, leaving the mess to Zheng Bai and then evacuated the large forces from Hue.
The Annan court was unable to repay military expenses. This situation had of course long been expected by the Executive Committee. Fortunately, both sides already had successful precedents to learn from on this issue and would not cause debt disputes. The method of using population to pay off debts has been implemented many times in the past two years, and the two sides have already reached a certain degree of consensus on the price calculation method of immigrants. Of course, dangerous persons such as prisoners of war, among other things, The price is definitely not as good as that of ordinary people, so these prisoners of war were wholesaled to Haihan at a very low price, and then they were stuffed into the bilge and shipped over like goods - it is said that only three to four intact South Vietnamese prisoners of war can be worth the price. The price of an Annan buffalo was comparable to that of an Annan buffalo, and the treatment of these prisoners of war during transportation was not even as good as the cattle imported from Annan by the Ministry of Agriculture.
However, in this era, the defeated have no human rights to speak of. Even nobles like Ruan Jinggui, who were once in the upper class of society, have nothing to say. Being able to find a way for prisoners of war to survive is already a sign of the conqueror's kindness.
The prisoners of war used by North Vietnam to pay off the debt were not just the South Vietnamese soldiers captured by the Hai Han Militia in Hue City. In addition to some South Vietnamese soldiers who were recruited and demobilized on the spot, a considerable number of prisoners of war would be packed and sent to sea after the war. The areas under Han rule were subject to labor service. According to a more conservative estimate, the number of prisoners of war that Hai Han's side will receive is at least five to eight thousand. If the North Vietnamese army's process of wiping out the remaining South Vietnamese forces goes smoothly enough, it is not surprising that this number will exceed 10,000 or even higher.
After all, these prisoners of war are also a big trouble for the North Vietnamese court. If they are all recruited under their own names, they will definitely not be able to support them. Moreover, it is also very troublesome to disperse and resettle too many surrendered troops. If they are demobilized on the spot, so many unemployed young people will definitely become a factor of social instability. At that time, the court will also use a lot of manpower and material resources to maintain local security. On the other hand, throwing it to Hai Han can serve multiple purposes. It not only avoids possible troubles, but also saves the cost and consumption of handling prisoners of war. It can also offset part of the war debt. There was almost no objection from the North Vietnamese court and they decided. Dispose of large numbers of prisoners of war cheaply to Haihan.
In addition to being transported back to Hainan Island, some prisoners of war will also go to the coal mines in Heitu Port and the four southern ports to be developed. Of course, Hainan Island, as the base camp, will get the largest share, and the executive committee has already made preliminary plans for their whereabouts.
At present, the development and construction project of the Lianghe River Basin in Sanya New City is proceeding in an orderly manner. However, due to safety considerations, most of the people working on this large construction site are ordinary people. The vast majority of prisoners in the hard labor camps are still arranged in Heavy physical labor is performed in the Tiandu Iron Mine. Thousands of prisoners of war will be transported to Hainan Island in the future, and these people will certainly not be able to be assigned to the Tiandu Iron Mine with a limited working area. Therefore, the Shilu Iron Mine Development Plan that has been planned by the Executive Committee for a long time has finally been completed. It was taken out again from the dusty database and put on the agenda of the executive committee members.
Long before the crossing, when the preparatory committee selected the crossing location, the iron ore resources possessed by Hainan Island were one of the important conditions it considered. This large-scale iron mine, located inland on the west coast of Hainan Island, about 40 kilometers from the coastline, has proven reserves of more than 300 million tons in another time and space, and the average grade of the ore exceeds 50%. In addition, it can be used in open pits. The superior conditions for mining were a rare source of minerals for the level of mining and smelting in the 18th century. Shilu Iron Mine not only produces abundant iron and copper ores, but also has various mining resources such as cobalt, nickel, sulfur, aluminum, and gold. For the modern industrial system that the Executive Committee is determined to realize on Hainan Island, the Shilu Iron Mine is really a treasure that cannot be missed.
In the original time and space, the Shilu Iron Mine was not discovered until the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty. However, the arrival of time travelers will advance this time by about a century and a half, and the intensity of development will far exceed the original historical situation. However, the Executive Committee has not had the idea of developing Shilu Iron Mine in the first two years since it settled in Sanya. It is not that it does not have such ideas, but it is limited by objective conditions and cannot implement the development of Shilu Iron Mine for the time being. plan.
First of all, the Shilu Iron Mine is located a bit far away from Victory Port where the traversers settled. The sea voyage from Victory Port to Changhua on the west coast is more than 100 nautical miles. This distance is already as long as Victory Port to Hue. Two-thirds of the voyage. Of course, it wouldn’t be a big problem if the sea voyage is just a little longer. After all, the voyage of the overseas mine in Heitu Port is even longer. However, the mining point of the Heitu Port coal mine is less than two kilometers away from the nearest port, and the main mine of Shilu Iron Mine is It is a full 40 kilometers away from the seaside Changhua Harbor, and the entire area is in an undeveloped primitive environment. Even if it was placed in the time and space before the time travel, it would be difficult to build in this environment. A road leading from the sea to the interior is no easy task either.
The second reason for delaying the planning of the Executive Committee is political considerations. According to the Ming Dynasty's administrative division of Qiongzhou Island, the location of Changhua is under the jurisdiction of Danzhou in the north. If Haihan wants to develop Changhua on a large scale, it will inevitably arouse the fear of the Danzhou officials, and maybe some people will be born as a result. This is an undesirable risk for the executive committee, which was not firmly established in the early stage. Even the military, which has been advocating military expansion, could not find the troops to station in Changhua to ensure the safety of this development project.
The third reason is because of the existence of Tiandu Iron Mine. Although the reserves and mineral varieties of this mine are not as good as Shilu, it is better in location. Half of the reasons why the Executive Committee chose Shengli Port to land are because of Tiandu. From iron ore. The industrial zones that were established later were almost all equipped with factories and production units around the Tiandu Iron Mine, which shows its importance. Even if the Shilu Iron Mine is not developed for the time being, the iron ore produced by Tiandu alone can basically support Haihan's production and development needs in the early stage.
However, today is different from the past. As Haihan grows and develops, the demand for steel and other metals is also increasing. Whether it is shipping capacity, political influence or smelting level, they are no longer obstacles to the development of Shilu Iron Mine. After the conditions became increasingly mature, the Executive Committee finally unveiled the plan to develop Shilu Iron Mine again and prepared to start implementation in the near future. Thousands of South Vietnamese prisoners of war will be transported to the local area, a transportation line will be opened from the seaside Changhua Port to Shilu, and a large-scale coal-iron composite industrial base will be built locally. After this area is formed, the clean coal produced in Black Earth Port can be transported to the nearby area for use in the smelting and processing of steel and other metals.
Of course, during this construction process, many lives will probably be lost. In the first half year of the development of the Heitugang Coal Mine in the Beibu Gulf, hundreds of workers died from various accidents, diseases and other causes. The location of the Shilu Iron Mine determines that its development will be much more difficult than Black Earth Port Coal Mine and other overseas ports. The Executive Committee will certainly not ignore this foreseeable loss of personnel. The best way is to pass it on to cheap labor such as prisoners of war.
Ruan Chinggui, who was watching these prisoners of war disembarking with cold eyes, naturally had no idea what the fate awaiting his compatriots would be. However, seeing that the Haihan people did not remove the shackles and handcuffs of these people during the transportation, he knew that the fate of these people might not be the same as his.
From Ruan Jinggui's point of view, he has no sympathy for these prisoners who once belonged to the same camp, and he still has some empathy for them. But he also remembered to control his emotions and remind himself that his current status was not suitable for making actions that could easily be misunderstood.
But Ruan Jinggui can remain calm and rational, and others can achieve the same level without ghostwriting. Ruan Wenwen, who was standing next to him, rushed out without warning, jumped directly into the group of prisoners of war, and hugged one of them.
Ruan Jinggui was shocked, but before he could rush up and pull his brother out, four or five black policemen with wooden sticks had already rushed over and beat Ruan Wenwen without asking.
This small chaos immediately attracted the attention of the on-site management staff. Soon personnel from the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the military rushed over to stop the police beating. They pulled Ruan Wenwen and the man he was hugging out of the queue, and then let The other prisoners of war continued on the march.
Although Ruan Wenwen was severely beaten with a bunch of sticks, he did not look depressed at all. He even pulled the prisoner and shouted: "Brother Wu, it turns out you are still alive! I am Ruan Wenwen, it's me!"
Ruan Jinggui took a look and found that this man he knew was a military officer of the South Vietnamese Navy named Wu Sen. The Wu family and the Ruan family are also considered family friends. Wu Sen and Ruan Wenwen have known each other since childhood, and they can be considered brothers and sisters. But when the Hai Han people attacked Hue, Wu Sen did not choose to avoid the battle in the city, but went to the front line to fight with the Hai Han people. As a result, it is said that he led his troops to patrol the river and were all sunk by Hai Han people's artillery—— This section was also edited into the war documentary of the Haihan Propaganda Department, but the people involved had no chance to see it.
The news of Wu Sen's death in the battle came back to Hue. As a good friend, Nguyen Chinh Quy was naturally heartbroken. However, he had no intention of fighting since then. In the end, he did not choose to fight with the Hai Han militia to avenge his friend, but obeyed Nguyen Chinh Kui. With his persuasion, he completely gave up resistance and led his troops to surrender directly.
However, Ruan Wenwen did not expect that after many days of wandering around, he would actually see his friends who had died in the battle at the Haihan people's base camp. When he saw it, he couldn't control his mood, so he rushed out and grabbed Wu Sen. The onlookers thought he was going to cause trouble, so they rushed over and knocked him over regardless. Ruan Jinggui quickly bowed down and explained the situation to the people from the military and Ministry of Civil Affairs next to him, letting them know that this was just a small misunderstanding. However, Wu Sen, who was pulled by Ruan Wenwen, calmed down immediately after the initial shock passed. He stood up and broke away from Ruan Wenwen's hand, and angrily yelled at him: "Looking at your unharmed appearance, you must have surrendered to the Haihan people. ? Hundreds of our naval officers died in Xiangjiang just to protect shameless people like you!"
Ruan Wenwen probably didn't expect that Wu Sen's emotions were so intense, and he was scolded by him until he was speechless. Ruan Jinggui advised from the side: "Xiao Wu, a defeated general, how can you speak bravely? You can leave for now. I will go find the leader of Haihan another day and find a way out for you!"
Wu Sen spat on the ground and said: "I go my own way, how can I ask you, a traitor, to ask for some bullshit way out for me! The friendship between your two families has been cut off from now on. Please don't have any friendship with Lord Wu again!" ”
After Wu Sen finished speaking, he shook the shackles on his body and walked away with the prisoners of war without looking back at the Ruan brothers. The two brothers looked at each other and found that each other's expressions were quite ugly.
It took a long time for Ruan Wenwen to speak: "If Wu Sen hadn't saved my life when I was fourteen, I would have drowned in the Xiangjiang River. I will return this love to him no matter what."
Ruan Jinggui took a deep breath before admonishing: "How can Wu Sen be kind to you alone? My family's property in Hoi An was also taken care of by him. Now that he is in trouble due to the war, how can my brother stand by and watch? Even if he He has nothing to do with my family, and I don’t want to see such a loyal person buried.”
Ruan Jinggui was afraid that his brother would see other acquaintances, so he kept standing next to him and keeping an eye on him. Fortunately, there were not many senior officers like Wu Sen in the prisoner of war team. After the entire prisoner of war team, Ruan Wenwen did not Meet an acquaintance again. After they were done, they were led by several security guards and returned to the immigration isolation camp.
Ruan Jinggui did not forget what he said. The next day, he took the initiative to find the squadron leader Zheng Yi, hoping to get him to send a message to senior cadres.
Zheng Yi looked Ruan Jinggui up and down and said: "You mean you want to save the life of that prisoner of war?"
"Not only do we want to save his life, I also hope that the chiefs can give him a chance. This man was a naval officer when he was in Hue and is proficient in the hydrological conditions of the Annam coast. In the future, if the chiefs want to build ports in the south, this man will definitely It can work!" Ruan Jinggui quickly told Zheng Yihe the reason. When he returned to the camp yesterday, he asked several security guards and heard that these prisoners of war would be taken into hard labor camps, and their destinations were often mines in the mountains. Ruan Jinggui did not want Wu Sen to be regarded as a cheap miner. He spent the rest of his life in the dark mine.
Zheng Yi shook his head and said: "I heard that your friend is also a general. If an officer of this level is willing to surrender, the leaders will definitely not arrest him in a hard labor camp. If he is unwilling to surrender, you can protect him What's the use? If he doesn't want to be loyal to the executive committee, who dares to let him out?"
Ruan Jinggui said anxiously: "I am willing to be a guarantee. If he is still unwilling to surrender, please let me persuade him personally! Captain Zheng, although this person is somewhat foolishly loyal to his old master, he is a capable person after all. At this time, he is just When the committee is looking for talents, don’t miss out on the talents!”
Zheng Yi looked at Ruan Jinggui carefully for a while, as if to confirm whether he was playing tricks. After a long time, he nodded and said: "I can convey this to the superiors for you. As for the effect, I will not guarantee you."< br>
"Thank you so much, Captain Zheng!" Ruan Jinggui quickly made a deep bow.
The Ruan brothers waited for another three days in uneasiness, and finally Zheng Yi came. However, he was not here to inform Wu Sen. Instead, he asked them to pack their things and prepare to leave: "Ruan Wenwen, Ruan Jinggui, your quarantine period has expired. , pack your personal belongings and report to the camp gate, someone will take you to the next stop.”
Ruan Jinggui asked anxiously: "Captain Zheng, what about my friend?"
"There is no reply from the higher ups on this matter, and I don't dare to push it!" Zheng Yi shook his head helplessly and said: "The chiefs are so busy every day, maybe they forget it! After you go out, you can think of a way to find the chief on your own. Tongtongzi, don’t you know the head of the executive committee? If they are willing to speak out, then your friend’s future will definitely be fine.”
Ruan Jinggui had no choice but to thank Zheng Yi, and then packed his things with Ruan Wenwen. In fact, there was nothing to pack. When I first entered the camp, I handed in all my luggage, and all I brought in was a few changes of clothes. After entering, even rice bowls, water cups, and bedding are distributed uniformly. However, these items must be handed over to the camp management agency when leaving. After cleaning and disinfection, they will be left for the next batch of immigrants.
After being held in this isolation camp for more than ten days, the two of them could no longer stay any longer. After packing their clothes, they left the residence. As for why the other Ruan clan members living together did not get permission to leave at the same time, Ruan Jinggui had some idea - both of their brothers had been assigned employment units by the Haihan people before they came here, and their way out was already determined. The tribesmen who have no ability are naturally different from each other. For those tribesmen who have no professional skills, if they can read and count, at least they can get an easy job like paperwork in the future. If they can't do anything else, they will probably be assigned to work as farmers in the Ministry of Agriculture or in construction. It’s time to repair the earth.
The two of them arrived at the gate of the camp, where about twenty people had already gathered. It seemed that they were all immigrants who had decided on the same destination as them. Soon several naturalized citizen cadres came over with a list and called their names. After counting, they led them to the train station. These new immigrants entered the train station for the first time, and they inevitably pointed and talked everywhere, looking like Grandma Liu entering the Grand View Garden.
(End of chapter)