Water is the source of life, and all life and reproduction cannot exist without it. Water is also the foundation of industry, and many factories cannot operate without water. Therefore, large factories are built in places with abundant water resources, either on the banks of rivers and lakes or in areas with abundant groundwater.
The copper mines on Luzon Island have accumulated a lot of reserves after this period of mining, and new copper smelting bases are rapidly taking shape regardless of cost or the lives of the laborers.
Following a river eastward from Luzon Port, you soon come across a tributary, and in the middle of that tributary lies Qin Mo's copper smelting base.
The large hydraulic crusher was finally installed successfully, and the blast furnace was also erected, just waiting for Qin Mo to personally light the fire.
On the eighth day of the tenth month of the sixth year of Zhaowu, it was an auspicious day, suitable for breaking ground and opening a business.
Dressed in a full set of princely robes, Qin Mo paid homage to Lin and then lit the first flame in the blast furnace.
The blast furnace smelting method is a type of pyrometallurgical copper smelting that has a history of several hundred years in China. After Qin Mo's precise improvements, it is considered the most suitable copper smelting furnace for the world.
"Shi Jing! Remember the comparison method I taught you. Find the optimal ingredients to maximize the copper extraction rate. Do you understand?"
"I understand, thank you for your guidance, teacher."
Shi Jing's faith in Qin Mo's abilities went beyond mere belief; it was blind obedience. He had no idea how many days and nights Qin Mo's casual words would keep him busy. Right now, he was simply excitedly appreciating the beauty of industry.
Heading south from Luzon Island, there are many valuable ports, such as Brunei and Kuching, but Qin Mo doesn't have the energy to conquer Borneo yet. Singapore, located to the west of Borneo, is the place he most wants to occupy.
“Your Highness, your place is not called ‘Lion City’ but ‘Temasek.’ As for the name ‘Lion City,’ it seems to have been given by a prince from a southern country and is not recognized by everyone.”
Taman successfully helped Liu Renguang's men establish a coastal city in the northwest corner of Mindanao Island and temporarily reached a non-aggression pact with the local wizard leader. This paved the way for Qin Mo's subsequent conquest and finally earned Taman's trust, allowing him to explore southward with Qin Mo.
"Oh! Whose territory is Lion City now?"
"Your Highness, it should belong to the Malacca Sultanate. However, Your Highness is the Prince of Daxia, so whoever you consider to be the territory, that is their territory."
Taman was indeed quite familiar with Southeast Asia, but he clearly looked down on the weaker Southeast Asian countries and longed for the powerful Great Xia Dynasty.
"You're right, but I'm not an unreasonable person. Go to Temasek, go to that Sultanate, and buy Temasek for me, but you must not reveal my name, understand?"
"Your Highness understands, and I will certainly not disappoint you."
Lion City is still quite far from Luzon. Qin Mo does not intend to dominate here in the short term. He will just quietly develop it as a transit point to the west. How it develops in the future will depend on how strong his fleet becomes.
Singapore is an island of less than 700 square kilometers, but its unique geographical location and superior port conditions make it very suitable as an overseas base. As for the Malacca Sultanate, Qin Mo didn't care at all. What he cared about was whether there were other forces of Great Xia near Singapore.
Lion City is different from Luzon. It is connected to the mainland via West Malaysia, Vietnam and Korea in Qin Mo's previous life. The forces of Great Xia once went to Champa, so they can naturally go to Lion City as well. It just depends on whether they have the intention and vision.
"Your Highness, Kai believes that your Lion City is just ahead, but... is this truly the Garden Country?"
Kaihime had already learned to use a sextant. Based on the latitude given by Qin Mo, she carefully measured it many times and finally confirmed that the lush but sparsely populated island in front of her was Lion City.
Singapore is located at 1°18′N, 103°51′E. To its east lies Borneo, also known as East Malaysia, and to its north lies West Malaysia. Directly to its south is the Strait of Malacca, an important sea route connecting the east and west.
Before embarking on the voyage, Qin Mo had looked at the world map and questioned why they had to go through the Strait of Malacca. Couldn't they have gone through the Sunda Strait west of Jakarta?
After Qin Mo began to learn about navigation, she realized that on a flat world map, it seemed that going through the Strait of Malacca and the Strait of Sunda were not much different. However, the earth is round, and the higher the latitude, the shorter the radius of the earth, and the lower the circumference. Therefore, going through the Strait of Malacca in the north is much shorter than going through the Strait of Sunda in the south.
The Sunda Strait is also very important because some sections of the Strait of Malacca are very narrow, which would impose many restrictions on the passage of giant oil tankers. Therefore, oil tankers of more than 300,000 tons choose to pass through the Sunda Strait, and if they are going to Oceania, the Sunda Strait is the best choice.
"Aiya! Take a few people ashore and check if there's any danger. Kai, send a boat to determine the water depth. We're preparing to land."
The two boatmen obeyed, and several boats were launched and rowed towards the shore.
To the north of Singapore lies the Johor Strait, and to the southwest are many islands. Therefore, Qin Mo chose the port of Singapore from her previous life. It is the largest and most convenient port in Singapore, with deep waters and a wide harbor, making it an excellent place to make a fortune.
"What a great place to make a fortune!" Qin Mo couldn't help but exclaim.
"Your Highness, are there any mines here?"
"...Oh!...There shouldn't be any cherry blossoms."
"So... do you have sugarcane here? Do you have gems?"
Under Qin Mo's influence, Kaihime has developed a deep understanding of colonial aggression. She believes that any place with minerals should be colonized, and any place with gems and wealth should also be colonized.
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