Nanyang Storm 1864

Chapter 157 Jinsha County Industrial Zone
This hilly area in the northwest suburbs of Jinsha County has been planned as a heavy industrial plant area. In addition to the leading enterprise Jinsha Iron and Steel Plant, there are also rolling mills, foundries, anchor chain factories, steel wire and cable factories, agricultural tool factories, sprocket factories, plate factories, wire rod factories, wire mesh factories, etc. scattered around it. It is a huge factory area.

Standing high and looking out
Tall factory buildings are rising from the ground, and many are under construction. There are endless trucks coming and going, and the scene of construction is bustling everywhere.

More than ten thousand convicts and thousands of Chinese workers were employed on this construction site. The two infantry regiments under the command of Zheng Shouzhong, the governor of Davao and commander of the Third Division, were stationed here in two camps, one in the east and one in the west.

Even during the current busy farming season, no manpower was allocated to help farmers, but instead the focus was on current construction.

The factory sites are connected by the wide Jinsha Avenue, which extends along the coast to Jinsha County. This is also one of the four proposed highway arteries.

A small section of the Gulf Highway trunk line has been completed and opened ahead of schedule due to high attention.

Jinsha County under Davos is rich in resources and focuses on developing heavy industry. This is Zheng Guohui's decision. This industrial zone alone can create thousands of jobs.

With so many factories, Jinsha County will surely become a leader in Davao Province and even Mindanao in the future, and its development prospects are bright.

Putting Fan Zhicheng, who is steady and organized, in this position was the result of Zheng Guohui's careful consideration, and it now seems to have a good effect.

"Reporting to the commander, I plan to set aside a portion of the steel plant's output to produce rails after it goes into operation. This will connect the coal and iron mines in the mountains with the industrial zone. This will save a lot of transportation capacity."

"Isn't that the boat we're using now?"

"In reply to the Marshal, transporting coal and iron ore by ship is not a long distance, but it is labor-intensive and time-consuming, and it also requires hundreds of mule-drawn carts for transfer, which is quite expensive."

"Well, that's definitely a problem."

Zheng Guohui agreed. The coal and iron ore mined from the mine had to be transported to the riverside wharf, loaded onto ships, and then transported to the Jinsha wharf. Here, they had to be unloaded from the ships and loaded onto trucks. It was really too cumbersome to unload them at the steel plant's material pile.

It would be fine if the quantity was small, but to smelt 24000 tons of copper and iron each year, the total amount of raw materials that need to be transported is more than 10 tons, which is not a small number.

Just for the loading and unloading and transportation, it is estimated that several thousand people would have to be employed all year round.

It would be better to use horse-drawn rail cars to transport coal and iron ore directly from the coal mines and iron ore to the stockpiling yard of the Jinsha Steel Plant, which would save a lot of trouble.

Consider it

Zheng Guohui said;
"We can squeeze out a portion of our production capacity to produce rails. But this can only be done without affecting overall agricultural production and industrial development.

The iron materials produced each month must first ensure the production of downstream factories.

With careful planning, we can squeeze out a little from our monthly output, but not more than 10%, so as not to affect the overall situation."

"I understand. I will definitely follow the Marshal's orders." Fan Zhicheng replied respectfully.

As the number of immigrants to Mindanao increased, agricultural tools became increasingly scarce.

In some cases, two or three families only use one shovel, and four or five families share one hoe. Many conflicts may arise over who can use it. These are all problems encountered in development.

It was impossible for the fleet heading south to invest all its money in purchasing a large number of agricultural tools. More than 20 families needed at least 20 shovels and hoes, and at least tens of thousands of iron plows, rakes, hammers, iron pots and other agricultural tools.

How can we cope with such a huge demand?
Purchasing agricultural tools from mainland China is very expensive, and once they are used and sold in Mindanao, there is basically no return on investment, and they are simply deposited into society.

Mindanao itself has no silver mines, and only minted some copper coins for market circulation. The banknotes issued by Nanyang Money House were not accepted by the mainland and were not recognized.

Many farmers use wooden pegs to farm, which is laborious and difficult to use.

At present, there are some homemade smelting furnaces in various prefectures and counties, but the output is very limited and cannot meet the rapidly growing social demand.

Therefore, producing enough iron farm tools is an urgent need for expanding reclamation.

Chatted for a while
Fan Zhicheng clasped his fists and asked for instructions.
"General, Jinsha County was one of the first counties to be colonized. The population of its villages and towns is now basically saturated, and the industrial zone has enough manpower.

The arrival of new immigrants and their subsequent resettlement in the villages and towns below often arouses dissatisfaction and complaints from the earlier villagers.

Since I took office, I have traveled to all 73 villages and towns in the county. Indeed, most of the arable land has been distributed to households. The rest are wastelands on hillsides, riverbanks and uncultivated forests.

Due to the shortage of agricultural tools, the new immigrants who were allocated wasteland were quite afraid of difficulties and often had conflicts with the early immigrants in the village, resulting in mutual exclusion between the two sides.

I have already ordered the villages and towns to try their best to mediate and have sent a number of capable officials to the villages, but I'm afraid this is not a long-term solution.

This is just my opinion, please understand it, Marshal."

"Well, this is indeed a problem." Zheng Guohui nodded seriously.

He could understand the mentality of these late immigrants. They were not worried about scarcity but about inequality, which was human nature.

In newly established counties like Yipil County and Iligan County, similar problems rarely occur.

why?
We are all new immigrants. We have to cultivate wasteland every day and are exhausted. Although we can eat our fill, that's all we can get.

Fortunately, everyone is the same. Although there is nothing to complain about, just roll up your sleeves and get to work. The happy days are not far away.

In early county governments like Jinsha County, early immigrants were given priority to obtain good land, good houses, and good locations. They could also take indigenous women home on credit. If they were lucky, they could also buy farm tools, seeds, oxen, poultry, etc. on credit. They had more than enough food at home and lived a happy life.

Why do new immigrants have nothing?
Zheng Guohui did not give Fan Zhicheng any answer, but just nodded to indicate that he understood.

He looked into the distance with a deep gaze, planning in his mind to take over Port Angeles and Cagayan.

It is now mid-to-late July. After sufficient preparation, we can send a team to Port Angeles on Palawan Island in early August to take the place in one fell swoop.

Port Angeles was just a gathering place for the local indigenous people. Due to its remote location, there were no traces of French colonists. Taking over this narrow island was originally planned.

A little earlier now is not a problem.

The immigration and colonization in southern Mindanao is almost complete, and the population will be close to 45 by the end of this month. Continuing to develop inland will not be a matter of one or two days, and it is entirely possible to make long-term plans.

From August onwards

Chinese immigrants migrating south can mainly land on Palawan Island and open up new Chinese settlements there.

It’s just farming, it’s the same wherever you are.

As for Cagayan, Zheng Guohui has not yet decided when to take action?
The original plan was for some time period in November, but this was just Zheng Guohui's rough estimate.

There is no problem with the reorganization of the army and it is progressing smoothly. The specific progress will depend on the training progress of the naval fleet.

A lion must fight a rabbit with all his strength.

The Northern Expedition is the top priority at the moment. Zheng Guohui doesn't want to end up with a pot of half-cooked rice due to negligence in the preparation work, which would be troublesome to clean up.

Overnight at Jinsha County Camp

After dinner, Zheng Guohui changed into ordinary clothes, took Zheng Shun and Dong Jiasheng with him, and went out for a leisurely stroll on the street.

However, Zheng Shun was worried about something going wrong, so he arranged for more than 20 personal soldiers to change into plain clothes, disperse and blend into the crowd, and provide protection from a distance.

Zheng Guohui didn't care. He strolled leisurely in Jinsha County, looking around, chatting with the guys doing small business on the roadside when he had nothing to do, looking relaxed and contented.

It was just getting dark at this time, and the shops on the roadside all lit up their oil lamps. The dim light shone onto the street, giving the illusion of an oil painting.

Most of the houses on both sides of the road are two to three-story Ming and Qing style buildings with white walls and green tiles. Shops are opened on the lower floors and people live on the upper floors.

There were still some pedestrians walking on the street, some were workers returning from a day's work, some were clerks hurrying home, and occasionally there were some pregnant indigenous women.

No matter which village or town you go to, indigenous women with big bellies holding babies are a common sight.

From their faces
Zheng Guohui could see obedience and satisfaction, and believed that marrying Chinese immigrants would allow these indigenous women to live a more peaceful life and no longer have to worry about going hungry.

This is also reflected in the fact that in the hundreds of villages and towns in the six counties of Davao and Zamboanga provinces, there are few cases of violent resistance by indigenous women.

most of the time

Zheng Guohui would be complacent in private, thinking that his resolute measures had completely resolved the hidden dangers of ethnic disputes, and the "dragon-replacement" policy had achieved unprecedented success.

It can be said that the benefits are felt in the present and will last for generations to come.

As for the tragic fate of the indigenous men who were sent to labor camps, Zheng Guohui did not take it into consideration.

The changes of the times always involve some pain, and some people always have to bear the cost of change.

"Hey, don't run, catch him! This guy stole my buns and didn't pay."

Shouts were heard from the front of the street, which made all the guards nervous and they quickly took a alert stance.

I saw a black shadow running towards me quickly, followed by a shop assistant holding a rolling pin and chasing me, shouting all the way.

On this dark street
This attracted many passers-by to stop and watch, and then they saw several strong men rushing forward, knocking down the black shadow in front of them and handcuffing its hands behind its back.

from beginning to end
Zheng Guohui stood aside and watched the show leisurely, with no intention of intervening.

A few snow-white buns were scattered on the ground. The shop assistant rushed over and saw several strong men catching the thief. He kept saying "thank you" and did not dare to do anything wrong.

The little thief who was picked up looked about sixteen or seventeen years old. His face was so thin that his bones were visible. He must have been very hungry.

According to this person's behavior, if he is sent to see the officials, he will definitely be thrown into a hard labor camp and serve hard labor for at least one or two years.

With such a small body, I may not be able to survive.

Under the rule of Great Chu
A system of strict laws and harsh punishments was implemented. Even though it was just stealing a few buns, the punishment was very severe and it could be said that the person's life was ruined.

Zheng Guohui took a look and saw a policeman running towards him with a whistle in the distance, so he turned and left.

There is no order without rules. No matter what the reason, anyone who dares to take action will inevitably bear the corresponding serious consequences. There is nothing to say about this.

If you start stealing needles when you are young, you will steal gold when you grow up.

If you want to manage hundreds of thousands of immigrants from all provinces in an obedient manner, you cannot do it without intimidating means.

There were no prisons under the rule of the Great Chu, only labor camps.

All criminals were thrown into labor camps; the only difference was the length of time they were there.

The most serious death row prisoners must be reported to the commander-in-chief by each prefecture and county, and be executed in public on a chosen day to serve as a warning to others.

(End of this chapter)