Chapter 2417
Among the many overseas colonies under Haihan's rule, Miaoli can be said to be a very inconspicuous place. Although Haihan has been stationed in this place for five years, the development progress here lags far behind other colonies that Haihan subsequently opened. Even some Haihan citizens on the island of Taiwan don't know that Miaoli is also under the control and control of Haihan.
If it weren't for the fact that Haihan had invested a lot of resources here, it would be hard for Liu Shanxia to believe that this simple dock in front of him was the final stop of his trip. The wooden trestle and a few sparse warehouses on the shore do not look like the supporting infrastructure facilities of a major industrial town.
Due to official control, news about Miaoli was rarely seen in newspapers in Haihan. Therefore, most of the people Liu Shanxia brought here had no idea what this place was like. Based on the dock facilities here alone, it is difficult for them to imagine that there is an industrial area hidden in the inland area dozens of miles away.
"Sir, there seems to be a group of Haihan troops on the pier. Is this place not peaceful?" A sharp-eyed subordinate had already seen the situation on the pier in the distance and reminded Liu Shanxia to be careful.
Liu Shanxia responded: "It was a bit uneven in the past few years, but it's okay now. This should be just a necessary security measure, don't be nervous."
When Haihan entered this area in 1634, he encountered armed confrontation from local indigenous tribes. For a time, Haihan was unable to build an oil extraction area at the planned location. Later, Haihan's army was dispatched to eliminate unfriendly people within a few dozen miles. All the indigenous tribes were wiped out, and all the captives were sent to work as coolies in the Jinguashi mining area near Jilong Port. Only then did the security situation in the Miaoli area gradually improve.
However, in order to ensure the safety of inland oil production areas, troops have been deployed in the Miaoli area for a long time. When Liu Shanxia and his party stayed in Hong Kong, they had already contacted Miaoli through the radio and informed them of their itinerary. It was normal for the local garrison to arrange for the garrison to wait at the dock in advance. After all, with Liu Shanxia's status, he was fully worthy of this special offer. treatment.
After the official ship docked and set up the springboard, an officer took the initiative to board the ship to see Liu Shanxia. The second lieutenant of the army named Gao Cong had brought a platoon here yesterday to wait for Liu Shanxia and his party, and his task was to escort these people to the inland. Liu Shanxia and others need to disembark first, then transfer to a local traffic boat at the dock before going to the oil production area in the upper reaches of Houlong River.
Gao Cong explained to Liu Shanxia that this was also a helpless arrangement. The official ship Liu Shanxia and his party were traveling on had a large draft, and now Houlong River is in the dry season. Sea-going ships cannot go up the river at all, so they can only Transfer to a shallower boat to go upriver.
Liu Shanxia expressed his understanding of this and ordered his men to move the luggage and various engineering measuring instruments they brought to several transportation boats prepared by Gao Cong.
While carrying the items, Liu Shanxia went to take a look at the three traffic boats docked at the pier. What surprised him slightly was that although these three boats were not large in size, they were all equipped with small marine steam engines as propulsion power. The coal-fired boilers were placed on the deck at the rear of the hull without any cover, next to the boilers. There was a large pile of coal, which seemed to weigh several hundred kilograms.
"Is coal produced locally? Or is it transported from other places?" Liu Shanxia asked casually.
Gao Cong, who was following him, immediately responded: "Sir, we have discovered coal veins here, but because we are in deep mountains and old forests, transportation is very inconvenient, so we have not organized mining so far. The coal we are currently using, They are all mined from the Jinguashi mining area near Jilong Port and then shipped to the local area.”
Liu Shanxia nodded and said: "I didn't expect that Jinguashi, in addition to gold mines, also produces coal. Jilong Port is not far from here, so the cost should not be too high."
Gao Cong responded: "Yes, Jilong Port is about three hundred miles away from here. When the sea conditions are ideal, it can arrive in one day. Under normal circumstances, a batch of coal will be shipped every ten days or so, which is enough to meet local needs. .”
Liu Shanxia pointed to the traffic boat channel: "When were these boats put into use locally?"
Gao Cong said: "Beizhong was transferred here just last year, and this type of steam transportation boat was already used at that time. I heard that this type of transportation boat was used to replace the previous model six months before Beizhong was transferred. The speed of going upstream is more than twice as fast as before.”
Liu Shanxia asked curiously: "So are you doing the maintenance of these steam engines yourself?"
Gao Cong shook his head and said: "We only learned daily operations and simple maintenance. The engineers in the oil production area were responsible for the repair work. It's embarrassing to say that I only had a humble job after being transferred to Miaoli. When it comes to steam engines, they can only do basic operations now.”
Liu Shanxia suddenly realized that there were many kinds of machinery and equipment in the oil production area. Naturally, there would be a group of specially trained technicians stationed there. They would definitely be more reliable than the soldiers who were transferred here like Gao Cong and had just started to come into contact with steam machinery. Besides, these marine steam engines are expensive to make, and they probably wouldn’t dare to be handed over to soldiers for training, so if there is a problem, they will still have to be repaired by dedicated personnel.
Among the overseas colonies Liu Shanxia has visited, there are not many places equipped with such steam-powered transportation boats, but this also forms a strong contrast with the low-level local infrastructure. Liu Shanxia turned around and looked at the nearby area. There were not many houses in the visible range, and there were no decent loading and unloading facilities on the dock. It was hard to tell whether this was a deliberate disguise or whether there was not enough money invested in improving the infrastructure.
The official ship has complete facilities and a spreader specially used for loading and unloading cargo, so it did not take too long to transfer the luggage of Liu Shanxia and his party ashore, but the process of transporting it to the traffic boat took more time. Even with the help of Gao Cong's soldiers throughout the process, it still took more than an hour to complete the transportation of all items.
After completing this mission, this official ship will leave here to continue its next mission. Liu Shanxia and others need to complete their mission in Miaoli first, and then the Ministry of Shipping will coordinate and arrange a ship to take them back.
The steam engine on the transport boat has been preheated for a long time, and once everything is loaded, it can set off immediately. Accompanied by Gao Cong, Liu Shanxia boarded one of the traffic boats and found that a wicker chair was specially prepared for him on the deck. Although the conditions were simple, it was considered a special treatment for him.
After counting the number of people, Gao Cong gave the order to set off. The sailor operating the steam engine blew the whistle, pulled down the valve to drive the propeller, and waves of water immediately rose from the stern of the ship. Amidst the roar of the steam engines, three traffic boats filed away from the dock and slowly traveled eastward up the river. The operating principle of the steam engine installed on the traffic boat is actually roughly the same as that of the steam locomotive of the train, except that the propeller is used as the propeller at the end of the drive. Of course, the ship's sailing speed is far from comparable to that of a train running on the rails. Liu Shanxia estimates that the speed is only about five or six knots. Considering that it is going upstream and carrying people and cargo, This speed is acceptable.
Liu Shanxia raised his wrist, looked at his watch, and asked Gao Cong, "Can we arrive at noon?"
Gao Cong nodded and said: "It will take about a little more than two hours on the road. We will definitely arrive before noon."
"That's okay." Liu Shanxia nodded slightly in approval. Along the way from Sanya to Miaoli, he had been wandering on the sea for many days. When he stepped onto the dock just now, his feet felt like he was stepping on cotton. He really didn't want to stay on the ship any longer. In fact, if he had been given the option of taking a land route at the dock just now, such as taking a carriage to the oil production area, then he would definitely not have boarded the ship.
But obviously the local land transportation situation is not ideal, and this is his main mission here. With nothing to do on the way, Liu Shanxia asked Gao Cong about the current local traffic and freight conditions.
Ninety percent of Haihan's population in Miaoli is concentrated in the inland oil production areas, so existing infrastructure projects are also centered on the oil production areas. The current production capacity of the oil production area is actually very limited, so the relevant departments have not invested too much resources in transportation. It was not until this time that the Executive Committee decided to increase the development of this area that transportation-related infrastructure projects were truly listed. Get involved in the plan.
There is actually a land passage from the oil production area to the coast. However, due to the high concentration of the local population and the semi-closed control, people cannot enter and exit the oil production area at will. Therefore, the transportation function of the land passage is very limited. In addition, there are free waterways. Naturally, the local management committee is not willing to spend too much money to maintain the road. Over time, this land road will become difficult for even carriages to travel, and transportation in and out of the oil production area will increasingly rely on waterways.
As for the freight situation, Gao Cong said that the oil production area only delivers goods to the dock at the mouth of Houlongxi twice a month. Generally, two to three traffic boats can complete a single transportation task. In fact, the local external demand for materials is not large. The grain and other food needed by the people daily can be basically self-sufficient locally. In good years, there is even a surplus. Most of the food shipped from the outside is produced in Hainan Island. For daily necessities, the transportation volume is not certain, but the current local transportation capacity is enough to cope with it.
When Liu Shanxia heard this, he roughly understood why local transportation-related infrastructure projects had been stagnant. This is because the Executive Committee intentionally controls the immigration and development process here and does not move a large number of people here; secondly, the local transportation needs are indeed limited and can be met by just one waterway, so there is no motivation to carry out large-scale construction and build roads. and ports for better shipping conditions.
However, now that the Executive Committee has decided to move a large number of immigrants here, Liu Shanxia knows that as the population increases, the demand for transportation will naturally increase, and the construction of land transportation lines is definitely imperative. As for whether to build the railway in one step, Liu Shanxia feels that it is open to debate. If the local demand for external freight does not reach a certain scale, then building a railway system will only cause a waste of transportation capacity.
And as far as he knows, there is no iron ore for mining in Taiwan, so the rails needed to lay the railway need to be made in Hainan Island and then transported by sea. The running length of this railway will be at least more than 40 years. , which is nearly twice the length of the railway currently in operation in Sanya. The construction cost is quite scary.
Of course, whether the actual situation is what he imagined will be determined only after contacting the local management committee. However, in Liu Shanxia's mind, the possibility of building a railway has been lowered by one level.
The men who followed Liu Shanxia on this mission were basically the first time they came to Taiwan Island. They were quite curious about the environment here. Some people even compared the scenery on both sides of Houlong River with the Tiandu River Basin. .
The difference between the two places is obvious. There are almost no human traces along the Houlong River. If it weren't for the constant rumbling sounds of the steam engines on these traffic boats, it would be a picture of nature that has not been immersed in the human world.
"There shouldn't be any indigenous people around here, right?" Although he was protected by the garrison and his own escort, Liu Shanxia still wanted to confirm whether his situation was safe.
Gao Cong responded respectfully: "Don't worry, sir. The tribes that were against us have been wiped out long ago. Now there are only a few tribes that have surrendered to our country and are still living nearby. The remaining indigenous people are docile and have not won the power of our country." There are few benefits, so they will no longer oppose us, let alone have the idea of attacking us.”
Liu Shanxia said: "In the future, a large number of Han immigrants will immigrate to the local area. Once the population increases, they will probably have conflicts with these indigenous people. By then, the security situation may not be as ideal as it is now."
Gao Cong didn't know the senior management's plan for Miaoli, so he had no choice but to agree first, but he was wondering why the superiors suddenly thought of developing this place.
Of course, it is a good thing to develop Miaoli. Gao Cong knows that there are at least tens of thousands of acres of land that can be cultivated on the alluvial plain beside Houlong River. The soil is fertile and it is ownerless land. It is perfect for building immigrant villages and towns. . If the higher-ups want to move immigrants here, they can easily accommodate 10,000 or 20,000 people. By then, the garrison will definitely expand its establishment, and Gao Cong will naturally get a chance to be promoted.
Liu Shanxia and Gao Cong chatted without saying a word, but they did not stop working. A three-foot-square local map was spread out on the deck in front of him. Liu Shanxia was observing the surrounding terrain and adding details on the map. Comment and correct any discrepancies.
This map he brought from Sanya was a military map drawn by the Haihan Army after they entered here. However, as a construction worker who came to survey the terrain, this map was not completely suitable, so Liu Shanxia still had to come here in person to confirm the construction conditions here before organizing the next project operations.
(End of chapter)