Chapter 411: Thousands and Thousands of Castel
"I don't know. I asked and the answer I got was 'smaller than Castel'."
Smaller than Castel?
Isn't this nonsense? Can you build a bigger ship than Castel?
It's obvious that this is just an excuse to keep it secret and deal with the situation.
In fact, Castel hardly kept his technology secret. But it was also true that even if these technologies were given to him for free, he might not be able to manufacture them. The bolt-action rifle was an example. He asked many craftsmen to study it, and the result was that it was not difficult to manufacture a gun, but it was basically impossible to mass-produce parts and put together a qualified product.
This is despite the fact that we have the Crusader's holy code as a guide. If we disassemble and copy it carelessly, two cognitive interferences would be the least of our problems.
Thinking of this, the prince felt relieved. If he had such industrial strength, he would not hide it. He would even hope that others would come to study it - if you don’t come to study it, how can you know how strong I am?
As for the enemy, ha, why bother hiding when you can crush them head-on?
"Did you find out any more news?"
"They developed a brand new weapon, but it's said to be so large that it can only be mounted on buildings."
"A purely defensive weapon?"
"almost."
The prince nodded. That was meaningless. The battlefield between him and the empire would definitely not be in Tis. This kind of weapon would be of no help to him.
"what else?"
“They are thinking of building a railway.”
"Railway?" The prince was stunned for a moment, then gradually recalled what he had seen and heard on the island. "You mean the kind of track with two iron bars that can support a steam locomotive?"
"Yes, it is said that they are planning to make some improvements to the locomotive so that it can be used in war zones and transport goods."
The prince frowned. Can something like this, which can only run on tracks, be of much use?
The steam engine's output is indeed good, but the track's restrictions on the route are a bit too strict. If we build railways like Castel, we have to consider the high investment and maintenance costs. The help it provides to Blood Harbor may not cover the costs.
“They’re going to build it outside.”
"Oh, where?"
"Well, it is said that they are still considering building a railway from Blood Harbor to the North, but after all, it is on our territory, so I am worried."
The prince jumped up from his chair and rushed to Galahad at a speed that surprised him. He put his hands on Galahad's shoulders and said quickly: "Galahad, the most important thing for you now is to rush back to Castel and let them dispel this unnecessary worry. You must let Count Hughes know that Blood Harbor supports this railway, no matter where it is built. If he builds it from the upper city, I will immediately demolish the Duke's Palace!"
Are you kidding me? How much does it cost to build a duke's palace? This is a whole railway connecting the North! The steel used for construction alone is not enough even if the harbor guards are sold off. Now Castel wants to pay for it himself?
Pie might fall from the sky, but who would have thought that a railway would fall from the sky!
"Tell Hughes that he only needs to be responsible for the construction. I will take care of all other problems. Don't worry about occupying land or buildings. I will have the port guards follow them and demolish wherever they are needed. Hughes's trouble is my trouble. Blood Harbor never hesitates when it comes to friends!"
The prince almost went crazy with joy.
"Well, Count Hughes said that if it is to be built, he must have the right to use it."
"No problem. The railway, including the right to use the land along the line, belongs to him. If he wants, Blood Harbor is fine for him. As long as he can bring industry here, what does land matter?"
"There are unowned lands everywhere on the continent. We can just drive away the barbarians on them. But the only factory is in the Rhine, and Castel is a long way away." The prince patted Galahad on the shoulder and smiled from ear to ear.
This is how the empire expanded.
"Uh, Your Highness, is it really necessary?" Galahad scratched his head in confusion. "It's just a railway. It can only transport some goods along the line. In the early stage, it has to be used to transport soldiers."
The purpose of Hughes building the railway is self-evident, which is naturally to deploy troops to the north.
The northern border is a very large area, and going by sea can only send soldiers to the coast. It would be better to build a railway to go directly there.
Without this railway, the soldiers could only carry light equipment, and logistics supply was also a big problem. Food could be collected locally, but what about the ammunition? Therefore, after weighing the pros and cons, Hughes decided to build a railway, but it did not necessarily have to pass through Blood Harbor. This time, he wanted Galahad to come over to see the prince's attitude.
The prince paced quickly in the room, wishing he could go to Castel in person to express his opinion, but he was the lord of this place after all, and he had just signed a bunch of reform executive orders, so how could he leave now?
"Galahad, you have to know that they came here to build a railway, but they must have left behind more than one railway."
"You see, they need workers, and it's impossible to move all the parts from the island. Some of them must be produced in the local factory."
"They won't take this part of the factory away, will they?"
"They don't have enough manpower, and it's a waste to have them all pave the road. But Blood Harbor has no shortage of manpower. We just need them to provide technology and some training. After they leave, won't they be a group of skilled workers?"
"With factories and skilled workers, Blood Harbor will have an industrial foundation. All that's left is to develop it step by step. The hardest part is the beginning. With the first group of people, everything else will come naturally."
"But we can't keep these workers, can we?" Galahad muttered. "Castel can offer a higher price, and they will just go to the island."
The prince laughed and said, "So what? There will always be some who stay. These are skilled workers that we got for free. Besides, we have a good cooperation this time. In the future, we may not have only one railway. If Blood Harbor builds a factory - hey, how many cities in the world can build a factory?"
"If Blood Harbor is the only industrial city besides Castel, then Castel will naturally have to cooperate with us. You should know how difficult industrialization is. I remember that I gave you a lot of factories to manage before."
Galahad nodded. The Queen had entrusted him with a lot of industries. When he was in the Rhine, he had several factories under his control. He had personally been to the production lines and naturally knew how high the threshold of industry was. That was only possible with the support of the Mechanical Temple.
"But over the years, only the Rhine has developed industry."
The prince looked at him deeply.
"There is only one Mechanical Temple in the world, and there is only one Rhine."
"But for every one Castel, there are thousands of Castel."
(End of this chapter)
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