Chapter 212 Pacific Railway (3rd update, please subscribe)

On the tenth day after the fleet left the Strait of Magellan, it finally entered the Linhai Bay, which also has a Spanish name called Saavedra Bay. It is a bay 12 kilometers long and 3 kilometers wide. It is not a very large bay, but it is also a rare natural harbor.

When the fleet entered Linhai Bay, there were several immigrant ships that arrived one after another anchored in the bay. These immigrant ships brought tens of thousands of Chinese immigrants from the other side of the Pacific Ocean, providing sufficient labor for the railway construction site. Immigrants from Shandong, Jiangsu, Anhui and even Henan, Zhili and other places crowded on the deck, looking at the city curiously.

Linhai is a city very similar to Nanhua. Both of them prospered because of immigrants. After the construction of the Pacific Railway began, tens of thousands of immigrants landed here and entered Shanxi, which is Araucania. With the efforts of tens of thousands of workers, the railway line was built from Linhai over the mountains and across the Central Valley, and then advanced into the Andes.

Every day, trains departing from the port carry large quantities of road construction materials and laborers to the hinterland.

"See? This is the only port in Shanxi. All people go ashore here and enter the inland."

Like most Chinese workers, official Zhao Pingli also likes to call Araucanía "Shanxi". In fact, whether it is Shanxi or Patagonia, which is called Shandong, to a certain extent, they both hold certain hopes of the Chinese workers.

As strangers here, they hope to be able to integrate into this land one day. In fact, having come to such a far place, everyone understands that although Tangshan is good, they can never go back.

Not to mention that a boat ticket costs dozens of dollars. Without a passport issued by the Immigration Bureau, no boat will take them back. In a word, they will have to spend the rest of their lives here.

"In the future, when the Pacific Railway is completed, Linhai will be the first stop for immigrants from Tangshan. In the future, even the Great Eastern will definitely dock here. You see, the shipyard over there has a large dock that is 360 meters long, which is specially used for the Great Eastern."

Zhao Pingli pointed at the shipyard in the distance, looking a little proud. After all, such a large shipyard is extremely rare in the world.

“They actually built such a big shipyard!”

For Li Xuelin and others who had just arrived in Linhai, looking at the shipyard in the distance, they were inevitably a little surprised to think that it could accommodate the "Great Eastern".

But besides being surprised, they breathed a sigh of relief. After all, on the way here, they were still worried about the maintenance of the warship. Now that they have a shipyard, they don't have to worry about this problem anymore.

"I said, Linhai in the future will be the western gate of Nanhua. Officers, you are coming here this time."

Zhao Pingli said with a smile.

"It's to guard the west gate. In the past, we only had a small wooden gunboat, which was called a garrison warship, but in fact, it could only rescue fishermen. By the way, although we are not as good as Nanhua and don't have many factories, our fishing industry is very developed. Our canned food is not only sold to the United States, but also to Europe."

Although Linhai Bay is still some distance away from the "Peruvian Fisheries", one of the four famous fishing grounds in later generations, the fishery resources here are also extremely rich. As early as the beginning of Linhai's port, a fishing industry was established by introducing the latest European trawlers and other facilities. The tens of thousands of tons of fish caught each year not only provided the Chinese workers with sufficient meat, but also were exported in large quantities to various countries, whether it was San Francisco in the United States or New San Francisco in Australia. The cheap "canned fish" were very popular among the Chinese workers.

"Your arrival is just in time, because our relationship with the Chileans is very tense, so when fishing companies go out to sea, they are always worried about being attacked by the Chileans..."

As he spoke, Zhao Pingli patted the thick gun barrel of the turret - the barrel was nearly as thick as a person and looked truly spectacular.

"With a big guy like this, we don't have to worry about them anymore!"

"Don't worry!"

Zhao Ming smiled proudly.

"We are here. If the Chileans dare to attack our fishing boats, we will make sure they never come back!"

He was not bragging. The Chilean Navy did not have even one ironclad ship at the moment. Two "Tianlong-class" ships, even if they were small ironclad ships, were enough to overshadow all the South American countries. At most, only the small ironclad ships ordered by Peru at Laird Brothers Shipyard to deal with the Spanish invasion could be compared with them. However, Peru's order had just been issued. At the moment, the "Tianlong-class" ships were like the flagpole of the City God Temple - unique.

"That's great. With you guys here, we can rest assured, right?"

Zhao Pingli said with a smile.

"By the way, in order to welcome the fleet, the mayor has specially ordered a reception to be held at the City Hall. Please be sure to attend. If he hadn't gone to the construction site, he would definitely welcome you in person."

…

The mayor went to the construction site!

Since last year, when Wang Yingjiu moved from Nanhua to Linhai, he has spent half of his time traveling back and forth between various railway construction sites. For him, who was once the governor of Zhejiang, being the "mayor" of a city with a population of only 20,000 is definitely a waste of talent, but he knows very well that he is not just a mayor. Linhai is called a city, but in fact it covers the entire Shanxi Province. The reason why he came to Linhai is for the Pacific Railway. This is also the reason why he travels back and forth between railway construction sites for a long time. After all, this is the most important thing for the lord. Of course, doing this well is not just a simple achievement for him. It is also the capital for him to gain a foothold in the officialdom in the future.

"At present, the railways in Araucanía have basically been completed. The fundamental reason why the railways have not been opened to traffic is the Andes Mountains. Although our construction speed has increased a lot according to the map, Mr. Mayor, the speed of building tunnels is extremely slow. When constructing on flat land or in the mountains, we can increase manpower investment... Just like now, we can invest more than 60,000 workers, but Mr. Mayor, the tunnel is so wide. Even if we divide the workers into several shifts and work day and night, the result is still a bit unsatisfactory..."

On the train to the construction site, Wang Yingjiu listened to the introduction of the railway chief engineer Gega, who had presided over the construction of the Semmering Railway in the Alps and had extensive experience in building alpine railways. Of course, this was also the reason why the company hired him as chief engineer.

"And with the arrival of winter, the temperature in the mountains is getting lower and lower. Now, it has started snowing in many places in the mountains. For safety reasons, my suggestion is to withdraw the workers and wait until the winter is over before continuing the construction. In this way, the construction period will be extended by at least three months. So, no matter what, the railway will not be completed this year."

Winter is coming!

There will still be heavy snow in the Andes Mountains in winter, and people may even be frozen to death. Stopping work is the most normal option. When Geiga was in charge of the construction of the Semmering Railway, stopping work in winter was the most normal thing.

But Wang Yingjiu just shook his head and said.

"We can't stop working. We need to deliver food and supplies to the construction site before the snow blocks the mountain. We can try to buy back three months of time this winter. You know, Nanhua has been waiting for this railway!"

(End of this chapter)