Wind Rises in North America 1625

Chapter 366 Exploration of the Eastern Frontier
"Have you heard? The Xinhua Bay (now Puget Sound) settlement is preparing to apply for the establishment of two more counties, which, together with Xuanhan County (Seattle) established last year, will make it three counties. Does this mean the higher-ups are planning a large-scale development there?"

"Xinhua Bay has only been developed for less than four years. Does it have that many people? You know, our entire Jinsha River (now Fraser River) region was developed so early, and so far, we have only barely established four counties."

"Why don't they have a population? Last year alone, the Immigration and Colonization Department sent more than 2,700 immigrants to Xinhua Bay. This spring, it is estimated that another 3,000 to 4,000 people will be sent there. Add to that the local natives who have been naturalized, and the population will be around 10,000 to 18,000."

"Sigh, with the higher-ups paying so much attention to Xinhua Bay, aren't they neglecting our Jinchuan River area a bit too much?"

"There's nothing we can do. The government's focus of colonization is in the south, not in our eastern region. If it weren't for the gold mining area here, the central headquarters probably wouldn't even give us a second glance."

"That's a bit of an exaggeration. We can still get more than 1,500 immigration quotas every year, so it's considered a key development area for the central government."

"However, compared to the other newly established colonies in the south, we have been neglected. Look, even the newly established Ziwu River (now Columbia River) Special District has received more than 1,200 immigrants."

"Indeed, I heard that the higher-ups are planning to develop an island far from Xinhua's mainland and are preparing to send a couple hundred people there. Look at the mess this is making..."

"..."

On April 9, 1638, in the evening, the town of Jinchuan (now Westminster, Vancouver, Canada) gradually quieted down, appearing exceptionally peaceful and serene under the setting sun.

After seven or eight years of development and construction, this newly established settlement has gradually transformed from a barren riverside woodland into a prosperous border town.

On the wide main street, the newly paved cement surface gleamed with a cold, hard sheen. Several four-wheeled carriages loaded with timber clattered past, startling gray pigeons pecking at food by the roadside.

The dock in the distance began to bustle with activity, as more than a dozen fishing boats docked one after another. The fishermen, shirtless and with their bronze backs gleaming in the setting sun, were unloading baskets of fresh salmon and sending them to nearby fish processing plants.

The white mist rising from the pickling pools, carrying a salty and fishy smell, mingled with the fresh scent of pine wood wafting from the sawmill, creating a unique aroma that belongs exclusively to Jinchuan.

Located on the east side of the small town, the vegetable market is bustling with artisans coming and going after work, their shouts and bargaining voices rising and falling.

In the fishmonger's bamboo basket, lively salmon splashed glistening water droplets.

In a corner, several naturalized natives squatted in front of a fur stall, gesturing to the Han Chinese vendors about prices in broken Mandarin. The tassels on their deerskin coats swayed gently with their movements.

Since the first group of immigrants arrived eight years ago (1630), the population of Jinchuan City has grown to more than 1,400, making it an important political and economic center in the Jinchuan River region.

Most of the immigrants came from the coastal areas of Guangdong and Liaodong. Known for their hard work and perseverance, they have now become the backbone of this city.

Near the Jinsha River, more than a dozen primary factories stand side by side.

Driven by waterwheels, the sawmill machines roared as they cut huge logs into planks, with flying sawdust swirling in the sunlight and landing on the workers' sweat-soaked shoulders.

Carpenters at the furniture factory are rushing to make tables, chairs, chests, cabinets, and wooden beds to meet the growing demand for housing. Next to a small mountain of wood shavings, an apprentice is standing on tiptoe to hand tools to his master craftsman.

The millstones in the grain and oil processing plant grind corn into corn flour day and night, and the fine powder that rises up looks like golden smoke in the twilight.

Meanwhile, at the gold refinery on the outskirts of the city, workers are carefully smelting the placer gold panned from the Jinsha River mining area, casting it into standard gold bars, and then transporting them to the headquarters on Qiming Island.

Compared to the original simple wooden houses, Jinchuan City has now been completely transformed.

Some streets have been paved with cement, and a large number of brick and wood shops and residences have been built in the area.

The weekly market day is especially lively.

The local natives brought furs and herbs, itinerant merchants sold ironware and cloth from the main town, and small town vendors displayed homemade pickled fish, cured meat, and handicrafts.

The children chased after the rolling hoops, their laughter ringing out.

The cameo storyteller slammed his gavel, drawing the attention of passersby.

As evening fell, the pubs and restaurants were bustling with activity, as workers of different ethnicities drank and shared gossip they had heard and seen.

Inside "Zhang Da Tavern," several immigrants from Guangdong were singing folk songs from their hometown in Cantonese, accompanied by the mournful and lingering sound of the erhu.

The man from Liaodong at the next table slammed his fist on the table and started jeering. He then stuffed a freshly grilled salmon tail into his mouth, splattering oil onto his coarse apron.

At the dock, an immigrant ship from Qiming Island headquarters had just docked, and the deck was crowded with people transferred from the Ming Dynasty and Korea.

They were dressed in thin linen clothes, their eyes filled with both fear and anticipation.

On the shore, officials from the Jinchuan Civil Affairs Bureau were distributing hot ginger soup and cornbread, shouting loudly from time to time: "All newly arrived immigrants must obey the arrangements and must not run around or move about! Anyone who violates this rule will be severely punished!"

A North Korean woman holding a baby took the ginger soup, her lips trembling as she uttered a stiff "thank you," the steam blurring her delicate features.

Inside the Jinchuan County government office, several clerks were busy collecting today's documents and ledgers and filing them into their files.

While their superiors had left the government office, the clerks, who were doing trivial tasks, stopped to rest, have a sip of tea, chat about domestic and foreign affairs, and wait for dinner time.

Before long, the conversation turned to the matter of Xinhua Bay applying to establish two counties, which immediately sparked a lot of complaints from everyone.

It should be noted that as early as eight years ago, in order to obtain much-needed immigration funds, the decision-making committee began to develop the Jinchuan River basin.

First, a gold mining area was established at Jinshatan (now Qiliwak City) in the middle of the lower reaches of the Jinchuan River. Then, Jinchuan Fort was built downstream as a logistical support base for the gold mining area.

Faced with the imminent threat of a Spanish invasion, the decision-making committee worried that the headquarters on Qiming Island would be blockaded by the Spanish fleet during wartime, thereby endangering the supply of materials to the Jinsha River mining area. Therefore, it successively built two agricultural settlements in the lower reaches of the Jinsha River: Zhenjiang Fort (now Richmond) and Raozhou Fort (now Surrey).

By 1637, nine towns with populations of over 300 had been established in the entire Jinchuan River region, including two cities with populations exceeding 1,000—Jinchuan and Shunde (Vancouver). There were also more than 70 settlements and settlements, with a total population of over 15,700 (including over 4,200 naturalized natives under direct jurisdiction).

Logically speaking, the Jinchuan River area has developed to this extent in just eight years, which can be considered quite an achievement.

Although it was far inferior to the southern core area of ​​Qiming Island in terms of population size and industrial and agricultural development, it was much stronger than the sparsely populated northern part of Qiming Island, and even the vast Linzhou (now Alaska) region.

The problem is that Xinhua Bay, which was developed several years later than the Jinchuan River Basin, rose to prominence shortly after its establishment. With the central government's high attention, it received a large number of immigration quotas every year, which made its population seem to surpass that of the Jinchuan River Basin in less than four years.

This situation inevitably caused resentment among officials in the Jinchuan region, who felt neglected by the central government.

We at least contribute 400,000 to 500,000 yuan worth of gold to the central government every year! What's there in Xinhua Bay?
Apart from a coal mine near Fort Fuan (now Tacoma), there doesn't seem to be anything of value.

To say that there are abundant fish and timber resources there would be a joke.

Our Jinchuan River area also experiences a large number of salmon migrations, with thousands of tons of fish caught each year, enough to ensure that the local residents can eat meat every day.

As for timber, we have dense primeval forests all around us, so how could we lack wood?

To put it bluntly, Xinhua Bay benefited from the southward expansion policy and received special attention from the central government, which is why it has developed so rapidly in a short period of time, with its population size approaching that of our Jinchuanhe area.

There was no other way; in order to acquire more of the "sunny lands" in the south, Xinhua had to sacrifice other "peripheral lands" and try to cram as many of the limited immigrants it received each year as possible into those areas.

What's even more infuriating is that at this year's Founders' Congress, the Decision Committee established the Ziwu River (now Columbia River) Colonization Zone, further clarifying the southward strategy.

It is foreseeable that in the coming years, our Jinchuanhe area will still be unable to obtain more immigration quotas and can only gradually accumulate population through naturalization of local people and natural growth.

During this period, population is a resource, a productive force, and a powerful driving force for development.

“By the way, ten days ago, the Commissioner issued a recruitment notice for an expedition to the East, saying that someone has already responded,” a young clerk in his early twenties suddenly said, breaking the brief silence.

He pulled a crumpled notice from his sleeve, the words "Five Hundred Silver Dollars" prominently circled in red.

"Really?" Upon hearing this, the people seated in the official hall were immediately surprised. "May I ask, which hero answered the call for the Eastern exploration mission?"

"Lei Zhensheng".

"Lei Zhensheng? Is he the Lei Zhensheng, who was only assigned to the Colonization Division as a second-level clerk two years ago from Xinhua Management College?"

"Exactly this person."

"What courage!" a clerk in his thirties exclaimed sincerely.

“That’s certainly bold!” A burly-looking official nodded and said, “You know, starting from the Jinchuan River and exploring that unknown territory to the east is no easy task.”

"Such a brave warrior deserves our respect!"

"A warrior?" A thin clerk stroked his chin and said softly, "Do you think he risked going east to explore because of the high reward of five hundred silver dollars?"

His voice carried a hint of sourness, and his fingers unconsciously rubbed the gleaming brass key at his waist—the key to his family's small grocery store.

"Old Kong, you're judging a gentleman by your own petty standards," the young clerk said, shaking his head. "If you're after that high reward, why don't you just sign up and go?"

"Hehe..." The clerk surnamed Kong laughed awkwardly, "I do want the five hundred silver dollars reward, but unfortunately I have too many family ties, and I really dare not risk my life."

“That’s right.” The young clerk said seriously, “We all know that when we go to explore the east, there are high mountains and great rivers blocking the way, as well as dense and dangerous jungles, and even more barbaric and warlike barbarians. Not to mention the poisonous insects and wild beasts everywhere. If we are not careful, we may be buried in the wilderness and die without a complete corpse.”

"Moreover, this exploration cannot be undertaken by one person alone. It is necessary to recruit corresponding personnel, such as guides, guards, doctors, and boatmen. In addition, it is also necessary to purchase the necessary supplies, boats, horses, and self-defense weapons such as firearms and swords."

"Even with some financial support and subsidies from the Jinchuan River Special District, after all these factors, the 500 yuan reward might not be much left in the end. Moreover, the exploration operation will involve various threats of death, so it's not an easy task."

As night fell, the watchman outside the government office struck the first watch, the sound of his clapper echoing through the quiet streets.

The clerks extinguished their oil lamps and returned home under the cover of night. But the topic of exploring the East, like a stone thrown into a deep pool, stirred up ripples in everyone's hearts that lingered for a long time.
-
With a loud bang, the dormitory door was kicked open, startling Lei Zhensheng so much that he jumped out of bed.

"Shen Qingshan, are you fucking crazy?!...It's not even dawn yet!" Seeing the person come in, he angrily threw a pillow at him.

"Officer Lei, watch your words and actions." Shen Qingshan looked at him with a grin. "You're an official, after all; you can't be so rude and uncouth!"

"Disturbing my peaceful sleep, you're inhuman!" Lei Zhensheng glared at him and lay back down on the bed.

"Hey, I have a question for you." Shen Qingshan picked up a pillow from the floor, threw it onto the bed, and then plopped down on it. "Has your eastward expedition team been assembled yet?"

"We've initially selected a few candidates, and we plan to persuade and recruit them one by one after meeting with the Commissioner." Lei Zhensheng turned over, leaving the other party with his back.

"So, do you need someone to do surveying and drafting?"

"What, you want to go?" Lei Zhensheng turned his head and looked at him. "I remember you weren't very good at geography and surveying in school."

“I…” Shen Qingshan’s expression froze for a moment, then he smiled and said, “You don’t know, I’m not good at learning from books, but I’m extremely good at taking action. Last year, Raozhou County (now Suli City) was established, and I was in charge of drawing the map of the entire county. It was highly recognized and praised by the Commissioner.”

“Your body is too weak.” Lei Zhensheng felt he could no longer sleep, so he simply sat up in bed. “Exploring eastward will take more than half a year, requiring traversing high mountains and forests, crossing countless streams and valleys, and experiencing countless harsh weather conditions. With your frail physique, you probably won’t even make it a few hundred kilometers before dying on the road!”

“Brother Lei, you’re underestimating me.” Shen Qingshan stood up and punched his chest a few times. “Although I’m small and thin, I’m still well-trained.”

"Not to mention, when we do geographical surveying and geological exploration, we also have to cross mountains and valleys, and endure wind and rain, unlike the officials of the Ming Dynasty who traveled in sedan chairs and carried in palanquins."

“People might die on the expedition.” Lei Zhensheng stared at him intently.

"Are you afraid of dying?" Shen Qingshan asked, staring back at him.

"Since I have accepted the mission to explore the east, how could I be afraid of death?"

"Do you think I'm afraid of death?" Shen Qingshan said with a smile. "Ten years ago, if I hadn't been taken to Xinhua, I probably would have died on the streets of Guangzhou long ago. Every day I've lived these past years has been a bonus!"

"Why are you doing this?" Lei Zhensheng sighed. "I can also do geographical surveying and exploration in the east."

"You can't be the only one to enjoy the glory of being remembered in history, can you?" Shen Qingshan blinked.

"It's settled then. When we go on our eastward expedition, you'll be the captain and I'll be the vice-captain. Together, we'll reclaim that vast land in the east!"

(End of this chapter)