Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 359 Naturalization
After more than ten years of development, Shixing City has increased its population and built-up area by more than ten times.

According to population statistics at the end of last year, the population of Shixing City has exceeded 9,000, reaching over 9,600, and is just one step away from breaking the 10,000 mark.

This city also houses nearly 60% of Xinhua's industrial scale. Waterwheels line both banks of the Qingsha River, and mechanical gears turn ceaselessly day after day, continuously producing a massive amount of materials for this nascent nation.

According to statistics, Shixing City generated more than half of the country's industrial and commercial output, and its prosperity even far exceeded that of many centuries-old cities in Spanish America.

There was a railcart passenger station at Shixing Port, providing passenger (and freight) services to arriving passengers directly to Shixing city and Guangfeng City (now Sanich City), a few miles away.

After changing the horses, Chen Shitou carefully inspected the carriage hinges and brakes on the platform to ensure that there would be no accidents on the next trip.

The railcart is a new invention that has become popular in Xinhua in recent years. The steel wheels roll over the neatly laid tracks and are pulled by two strong horses. It travels between the port area, Shixing City and Guangfeng City every day to transport goods and passengers.

"Stone, how many trips have you made today?" Old Zhang, the dispatcher at the platform, walked over while munching on a corncob and asked casually.

“Three times now.” Chen Shitou nodded, his voice calm, and his Mandarin was almost completely free of accent.

Old Zhang patted him on the shoulder without saying much.

But Stone knew that this gesture carried a subtle sense of estrangement.

Old Zhang was an "old Xinhua" who came from the Ming Dynasty in his early years, while Shi Tou was ultimately a "naturalized native".

Although he has obtained formal registration and recognition as a Xinhua citizen, there has always been an invisible distance between him and the Xinhua people.

There weren't many passengers on the bus in the afternoon; most were sailors and small vendors heading to Shixing City.

Chen Shitou sat in the driver's seat, skillfully cracked the whip, and the horse started to move, the wheels turning slowly.

"Hey, driver!" A well-dressed businessman leaned out of the car. "Could this carriage go a little faster? I'm in a hurry to Guangfeng to discuss a business deal! At this rate, it'll be dark by the time I get there!"

Chen Shitou didn't turn around, but calmly replied, "The tracked carriage has a regulated speed. Going too fast will not only cause it to derail, but it may also collide with the vehicles running in front. Let's be careful and avoid any accidents!"

The merchant muttered under his breath, "Those bumpkins are so inflexible..."

The sound wasn't loud, but it was just enough for Chen Shitou to hear.

He instinctively tightened his grip on the reins, his knuckles turning slightly white, but his face remained expressionless.

Over the years, he had grown accustomed to this subtle, almost imperceptible, disdain.

Xinhua's laws state "everyone is equal," but how many people truly believe in them?
"...If the company's senior management can persuade the government to give us their unwavering support, then by next spring or summer, we will definitely wipe out those arrogant natives. Only in this way can we deter the native tribes throughout the entire northern region!"

"Firm support? Could it be that Captain Ma is hoping to get support from our Xinhua military, using a sledgehammer to crack a nut?"

“No need for that! The natives are ignorant and backward, why send an army to deal with them? Our trading company is thinking that we can recruit one or two hundred armed militiamen on Qiming Island, which will be enough to deal with them.”

"Besides using force, has your Northern Trading Company ever considered using some appeasement to force them to submit to you? The killings are too heavy, and it goes against human nature!"

"As our ancestors said, barbarians fear power but do not cherish virtue; the strong will become thieves and bandits, and the weak will become subservient. Those natives are fickle; if we don't show some ruthlessness, how will they know what appeasement is?"

"Hehe...that's true."

"..."

Hearing the conversation of the passengers behind him, Chen Shitou's face turned pale, and his heart was in turmoil, filled with mixed feelings.

He stroked the brass bicycle bell; the cool touch reminded him of the morning ten years ago when he first stepped into Xinhua School.

At that time, he huddled in the corner of the classroom, staring at the unfamiliar square characters written on the wooden board in front of him, his eyes filled with confusion and helplessness.

“We are all family!”

"Equality, friendship, cooperation, and symbiosis!"

"We share the same country, the same people, and the same language!"

"..."

Under the teacher's guidance, he and more than ten children from the tribe recited the words, which were not very clear, loudly, word by word.

At that time, he was still an ignorant and naive boy.

Now, he wears the uniform of the Department of Transportation and operates a railcar, yet he is still seen as a "native" by some.

The carriage sped along the railway tracks, its four iron wheels making a regular clicking sound as they came into contact with the rails.

Chen Shitou carefully maneuvered the horse's reins, trying to keep it moving at a steady pace. His gaze swept over the scenery rushing by on one side—the port docks were still busy, with booms and pulleys constantly loading and unloading cargo from merchant ships arriving from afar.

In the distance, several rotary kilns emitted plumes of black smoke that mingled with the fine mist of rain.

Further north, newly laid railway tracks were extending all the way to Long An (now Sydney).

"Things are changing so fast..." he thought to himself.

A little over a decade ago, this place was a desolate wasteland, but now it is dotted with farmland and villages, and straight roads leading to the area. As they passed through Shixing City, Chen Shitou gently pulled on the reins, slowing the vehicle down.

Long ago, this place was just a simple wooden village with a dozen or so wooden houses scattered around. Now, however, it is filled with all kinds of buildings, and the sounds of factory machines, street vendors' cries, and school children's reading voices intertwine to create a unique urban symphony.

As the train slowly pulled into the station, passengers stood up and rushed to the carriage entrance.

"Whoa!" Chen Shitou tightened the reins, and the carriage came to a steady stop. The ticket seller quickly opened the door and then stared intently at the passengers waiting to board on the platform.

"Don't push, let people get off first, then get on!"

"Get your coins ready, come buy your tickets from me first!"

"..."

Chen Shitou jumped out of the driver's seat, grabbed his metal cup, and prepared to fill it with hot water.

On a rainy day like this, my hands and feet get cold quickly while traveling, so I drink some hot water to warm myself up.

"Stone!"

Suddenly, a familiar shout came from the roadside.

He turned his head and saw Gouwa, his childhood friend from the tribe, carrying a bundle of animal hides and standing in front of a leather shop run by a new Chinese man.

Gouwa's attire still retained some tribal style, with several braids tied in his hair and a deerskin coat, while Shitou looked exactly like a new Chinese, and had even almost forgotten his mother tongue.

"I just saw you on the roadside!" Gouwa grabbed his arms, his eyes shining. "Hey, you looked really cool in the car!"

Chen Shitou calmly pushed away Gouwa's enthusiastic hands, dusted off his uniform, looked at the surrounding crowd, and asked softly, "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to sell leather." Gouwa gestured toward the leather shop. "Sigh, the price of leather has dropped again! You know, there are several good hides, shiny and smooth, but the leather shop is only willing to pay two yuan and forty cents to buy them."

"You don't know, it's very difficult to hunt a deer or catch a few beavers now. You have to go deep into the forest and search for several days in a row and you may not even have any results."

"Also, I heard from those officials that the government is planning to implement a hunting ban in Shixing and Guangfeng, prohibiting our people from hunting the animals in the forests anymore. To be honest, a hunting ban might be a good thing, allowing those animals to recover and be raised more."

"But the problem is, we'll have no means of livelihood. Without leather, we won't have money to buy anything..."

"Don't government officials organize the tribespeople to cultivate the land and catch salmon?" Chen Shitou interrupted his friend's rambling complaints.

“Sigh, speaking of farming…” Gouwa scratched his head somewhat awkwardly, “No matter how hard the tribesmen manage, the harvest from the fields can never compare to that of the new Chinese. If we want to sell it for money, we probably won’t make much. Besides, it’s really uncomfortable to be stuck in the fields all the time…”

"Oh..." Chen Shitou sighed softly.

For the ethnic group to completely transform and work and live like the new Chinese immigrants, it will likely take time for them to mature.

"Ding-a-ling..." The carriage bell rang, and Chen Shitou could only wave goodbye to his friends, jump onto the carriage, and continue on his way.

When the bus arrived at Guangfeng City, the passengers hurriedly dispersed.

Chen Shitou handed over his driving record at the registration desk. Zhao Xingjia, the supervisor, glanced at it and said indifferently, "You'll be on the early shift again tomorrow."

"Oh, I see," Chen Shitou replied, then hesitated for a moment before asking, "I heard... they're selecting a new dispatcher next month?"

Zhao Xingjia raised his eyelids slightly: "What, you have an idea?"

"I...I've been with the company for three years and have never made a mistake. My performance reviews have mostly been Grade B or above, and I've even had a few Grade A grades..."

"Okay, I understand." Zhao Xingjia waved his hand. "This matter needs to be decided by those above; it's not up to me."

Chen Shitou said no more.

He knew that the positions in the dispatch room had always been held by Han Chinese, especially those who had just graduated from middle school.

He only attended primary school for four years.

More importantly, he was also a naturalized native.

Some things cannot be changed by effort alone.

In the evening, he returned to the workers' dormitory on the outskirts of Shixing City—a small brick house, where he shared a room with two other naturalized natives.

A yellowed newspaper hangs on the wall; it's last year's *Xinhua Weekly*, with a striking headline: "On the Education and Appointment of Native People Who Have Been Naturalized."

He stared at the newspaper for a while, then suddenly laughed self-deprecatingly.

He blew out the oil lamp by his bedside and lay there with his eyes open in the darkness.

Whenever the night is deep and quiet, he always seems to be enveloped by a strange sense of emptiness.

He tried hard to integrate into the world of the new Chinese, but it seemed as if he had lost something important.

This feeling inevitably makes one feel somewhat uneasy.
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(End of this chapter)