Transmigrating to the Three Kingdoms as Lu Bu: I Have a Pseudo-Apocalypse System

The railway tracks are made of cast steel, with sleepers underneath, and gravel underneath the sleepers.

The locomotive was a steam locomotive, collectively developed by engineers from the Imperial Academy of Engineering. Han Ji was in charge of the overall design, while the specific parts were completed by different craftsmen: the boiler was handled by the steel mill, the cylinders by the Ordnance Bureau, the wheels by the shipyard, the transmission system by the Mechanical Department of the Imperial Academy, and many other parts.

Through the combined efforts of many people and countless experiments, a steam locomotive that could operate stably was finally built as a locomotive.

Each train consists of two locomotives that pull from the front and push from the rear, and can pull twenty carriages. Each carriage can be fully loaded with fifty tons of coal and can reach a speed of twenty-five kilometers per hour.

The primary purpose of the Luoyan Railway was to transport coal from Yanmen and Mayi in Bingzhou to the capital, Luoyang.

The area surrounding Mayi County was home to large, high-quality open-pit coal mines, which later became known as the Pingshuo Mining Area. The coal reserves there were enormous, of excellent quality, with high calorific value, and easy to mine, making it an ideal fuel for industrial production.

Before the railway, coal from Mayi had to be transported to Luoyang by horse-drawn carts. A single cartload of coal would take one or two months to travel from Mayi to Luoyang. Occasionally, when there was a large stockpile, Lü Bu would make a trip to load it using storage space, but the emperor couldn't very well be the transport worker, could he?

There were too many places across the country that needed Emperor Lü Bu's help in building infrastructure, especially when it came to opening up mountains, constructing bridges, and repairing roads.

Now, with the Luoyan Railway, everything is different. Two locomotives pull twenty coal carriages, running day and night from Mayi to Luoyang, covering a distance of 700 kilometers in just two days. It's low-cost, highly efficient, and there's no longer any worry about fuel.

At 9:30 a.m., a whistle sounded in the distance.

"Waaah—"

The voice was loud and clear, echoing through the sky.

The crowd on the platform immediately erupted in excitement.

"Here it comes!"

"The train is here!"

The crowd stood on tiptoe to look into the distance.

A train slowly approached from the north, its front and rear belching black smoke. Two steam locomotives pulled and pushed, their wheels clanging as they rolled over the rails.

Twenty carriages, filled with black coal, were pulled between the front and rear locomotives.

The train drew closer, the roar of the steam engine grew louder, and the ground trembled slightly.

Jia Xu, the chief minister beside Lü Bu, looked at the enormous creature and exclaimed, "Your Majesty, in my more than sixty years of life, I have never seen anything like it. It doesn't need oxen or horses; it runs on its own, and so fast, and it can pull so much cargo! It's truly a miracle!"

Lü Bu laughed, "Wenhe, this isn't a miracle, it's science. There's a boiler in the locomotive; it burns coal to boil water, producing steam. The steam pushes a piston, which in turn drives the wheels, making them turn. I've explained the principle of a steam engine to you before, have you forgotten?"

Jia Xu smiled sheepishly: "Your Majesty mentioned it, and I remember it, but seeing a steam engine pulling so much coal still seems incredible."

The train slowly pulled into the station and stopped at the platform.

The locomotive driver jumped down, ran to Lü Bu, knelt down and kowtowed: "Your Majesty, the first coal train on the Luoyan Railway has been fully loaded for trial operation. It departed from Mayi County, Yanmen Commandery, Bingzhou, and arrived safely in Luoyang after two days. Each car carried fifty tons of coal, and the twenty cars carried a total of one thousand tons of coal. Please inspect it, Your Majesty."

Lu Bu boarded the train, inspected the locomotive, carriages, coal, and other operational conditions, and finally nodded, saying, "Good, you've worked hard. Issue an imperial decree that everyone involved in the construction of the Luoyan Railway from its initial construction to its successful trial operation will receive an additional month's salary as a bonus."

The accompanying eunuch noted it down, and Lü Bu then said, "Issue the decree that from this day forward, the Luoyang-Yanmen Railway will be officially opened to traffic and will operate in both directions. However, it is imperative to ensure orderly traffic and prevent collisions between the two sides. Goods heading north will mainly consist of industrial products such as cloth, glass, ceramics, and hardware agricultural tools produced in the Luoyang Industrial Zone, which will be transported to Hedong, Taiyuan, Yanmen, and other places for sale."

Chen Gong, the Second Grand Secretary and Minister of Revenue, bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I have made the arrangements. The Ministry of Works will be responsible for loading the goods from Luoyang. The Mayi Coal Mine will be responsible for loading the coal from Mayi. The counties along the route will be responsible for maintaining the safety of the railway and preventing sabotage."

Lü Bu nodded: "Good. We must widely publicize this to the people along the railway line, so they know the dangers of trains. Trains travel at high speeds and are difficult to stop. If a person or animal gets on the tracks, they won't have time to brake and will be hit and killed. It's very difficult for them to survive. Where possible, railings should be installed on both sides of the railway, and guards should be stationed at important intersections. When people cross the railway, they must use the level crossings and are not allowed to climb over the railings."

Chen Gong said, "Yes."

As he spoke, Lü Bu walked up to the locomotive.

The locomotive is black, made of steel, about five meters high and six meters long. It has a large chimney in front and a water car in the back. The locomotive has four large characters written on it: "Luoyang".

Lu Bu reached out and touched the front of the carriage; the metal was scorching hot, and the steam engine was still whirring.

He said to the engineers from Taiyuan Institute of Technology around him, "The locomotive has been built, but there are still many areas for improvement. For example, the speed is too slow; we should strive to increase the speed from 25 kilometers per hour to 30 kilometers per hour or even higher. For example, the load capacity is too small; a train can only carry 1,000 tons. We should strive to have two steam locomotives pulling and pushing a train so that it can carry more carriages and more than 1,500 tons of coal. Also, the steam engine's energy efficiency ratio is too low, and it consumes too much coal. I just heard a report that this one-way trip from Mayi to Luoyang burned tens of tons of coal, which is too much. You must continue your research to improve the steam locomotive's power and energy efficiency ratio, and strive to build a faster, heavier, and more coal-efficient locomotive."

The engineers bowed in unison, saying, "Your Majesty, we will certainly live up to your trust."

Lü Bu added, "Furthermore, I intend to build more than just this one railway. The Luoyang-Liaocheng, Luoyang-Xiangyang, Luoyang-Chang'an, and Chang'an-Western Regions railways will all be constructed. Your railway department must conduct preliminary surveys and design plans. Once the Luoyang-Yancheng railway is operating stably and sufficient experience data has been accumulated, construction will begin on the next line."

The railway officials bowed and said, "Your Majesty, we obey your command."

After the opening ceremony, Lü Bu returned to the palace and hosted a banquet in the Taiji Hall to entertain the meritorious officials who had participated in the railway's construction. Over a thousand people attended, including civil and military officials, representatives of craftsmen, representatives from various prefectures and counties, and representatives of citizens and merchants. The banquet was lavish, with toasts flowing freely and a lively atmosphere.

During the banquet, Jia Xu asked, "Your Majesty, while this railway is excellent, its construction cost is too high. The Luoyan Railway is 700 kilometers long, and the money spent is excessive. Although the national treasury is full, it cannot withstand such spending."

Lü Bu said, "Wenhe, you only calculated how much money was spent, not how much was earned. Transporting coal from Mayi to Luoyang used to take horse-drawn carts one or two months, and even then, they couldn't carry this much. The food and supplies for the people and horses were enormous. The savings in transportation costs are the profit. Furthermore, with the railway completed, the towns along the route have prospered, naturally increasing commercial tax revenue. In the long run, building railways is a profitable business. More importantly, this is the first railway, which is why it's so time-consuming, labor-intensive, and expensive. With more experience later, the costs won't be so high."

At this point, Lü Bu paused, then said earnestly, "Once railways connect all the provinces across the country, the central government can mobilize troops and transport grain more quickly, and control the border regions more effectively, preventing the fragmentation and division of border factions. In particular, the Protectorate General of the Western Regions and the Protectorate General of Anxi can only be truly stabilized once the railways are in place."

Jia Xu thought for a moment and said, "Your Majesty is right. I was shortsighted."

Lü Bu laughed and said, "You're not short-sighted, you're trying to save me money, I understand. But some money should be spent, if it can bring in more money, and some political expenses are even more justifiable."

Jia Xu cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty is wise."