Chapter 213 The Devil's Nose (First update, please subscribe)
Nanhua is waiting for this railway!
This is an indisputable fact. What is the significance of this Pacific Railway to Nanhua? It is not just to connect Shandong and Shanxi.
The most important thing is that it can speed up the immigration process - after all, the distance from the South China Sea to the Indian Ocean and then across the Atlantic Ocean to reach South China is too long, and the Pacific route is shortened by more than one third, which is equivalent to saving one third of the time and increasing the efficiency of the immigration ship by one third. The number of immigrants will naturally increase accordingly.
Once the railway is built, immigrants will be able to disembark at Linhai and then take the train to Nanhua.
The only problem is the railway, and what is the biggest problem that stands in the way of the railway?
It's the Andes Mountains!
In order to build the railway through the Andes Mountains, a total of 42 tunnels and covered corridors and 144 viaducts and bridges were planned on the railway route map. These were not the most difficult parts of the route. The most difficult part was that one section of the railway was almost entirely built on vertical cliffs when crossing the Andes Mountains. In the mouths of engineers such as Gega, this section of the railway was called the "Devil's Nose".
"This winter, I plan to live on the Devil's nose. I want to see if the King of Hell's nose can stand up."
To reach the construction site of the "Devil's Nose", one has to cross mountains and ridges. Although he is the mayor, when Wang Yingjiu follows the mule team carrying supplies into the mountains, his attire is no different from that of an ordinary road worker.
After two hours of hard work, we climbed up the mountain road. We kept climbing, climbing, until we reached the highest peak. The higher we climbed, the thinner the air became, and everyone had difficulty breathing. This climb took too long, and everyone was exhausted and could not hold on any longer. It was snowing, and there was a vast sea of snow everywhere. The cold air that froze the skin, the shadows of the night that gradually devoured the mountain, and the fact that there was no place to stay overnight made Wang Yingjiu a little scared. In such a desolate mountain, it was even a problem to find where to stay.
At this moment, the accompanying captain suddenly shouted excitedly:
"Look, there's a construction site ahead!"
The snow had been falling for half a day, and the sky and earth were covered with fog. Along the hillside, only the faint sound of explosions could be heard. Here, the snow-blowing wind surrounded people, making it difficult to move! However, the roars and explosions coming from the wind and snow reminded Wang Yingjiu that there were people working in the wind and snow everywhere.
The deafening explosion echoed in the valley. Through the flying snow, dim lights could be vaguely seen on the mountainside. Those were the lanterns hanging on the construction site, where workers were quarrying and clearing rocks along the mountainside.
In the past year, tens of thousands of workers have come here. They want to carve a 60-kilometer-long railway out of the cliff, and also build a narrow transport footpath next to the railway. Horse-drawn carriages, pack mules, carts and pedestrians come and go on the footpath.
Finally, we arrived at a meeting and giving way platform along the footpath, and the accompanying supervisor Sun Lin pointed to the opposite side of the mountain and said.
"My Lord, look over there, that's the 'Devil's Nose'!"
Looking in the direction he pointed, through the flying snow, you could vaguely see hundreds of workers as if they were sticking to a cliff, drilling blast holes there, as if they were digging a ladder to heaven.
"Sir, a full 60 kilometers of this railway was carved out on almost vertical cliffs. The foreigners call it the 'Devil's Nose' because the railway is built almost on the tip of the devil's nose. If you are not careful, people will fall from there. Even if the railway workers are tied with ropes, if the ropes are worn out, people may fall. Since the construction started, 276 railway workers have died on this construction site..."
Sun Lin’s words made Wang Yingjiu sigh.
"More than 276. From Linhai to here, 1,324 railway workers have died on the entire eastern section of the railway. This railway was built with the blood and flesh of the Chinese people. However, as long as this railway is opened, the east and west sides will be connected as a whole. Shanxi and Shandong will belong to us Chinese people from now on!"
In the past, Wang Yingjiu did not know the importance of railways, but in the past year, after taking the railway many times, he has deeply realized the importance of railways. With such railways, not only have the mountains and ridges become thoroughfares, but they have also reshaped time and space. A journey that once lasted a month can now be shortened to two or three days by train.
With the railway, "traveling a thousand miles a day" is no longer a fantasy in novels.
Railways and telegraphs were things Wang Yingjiu had never heard of or seen before. In addition to being amazed, he also studied them curiously and even learned foreign languages and engineering.
Sometimes, officials in the late Qing Dynasty were conservative not because they wanted to be conservative, but because conservatism could bring political benefits. However, deep down in their hearts, they were also curious. Especially when this curiosity did not bring personal political disasters such as "literary inquisition", that suppressed enthusiasm would be quickly ignited.
"It looks like this is not much different from building a plank road on a mountain. I wonder if we can use the method of building a plank road. We can first build a suspended plank with wood between each section. The workers will eat and live there. Then we can drill holes along the plank at both ends every day and blast a way out. What do you think?"
Although Wang Yingjiu had no construction experience, as a provincial governor, he had certainly traveled through mountains and rivers. How were the suspended plank roads in famous mountains and rivers built for scholars and poets to play with? Isn't it built in this way? It's just that there are some slight changes here.
Sun Lin thought about Wang Yingjiu's suggestion and felt it made some sense, so he nodded in agreement.
"Well, your Excellency has a good idea. Otherwise, let's give it a try."
"Let's try it first. If it doesn't work, we'll do it according to the foreign teacher's teachings. We are amateurs in building railways. Since we are amateurs, it's definitely a good idea to learn more."
After giving the reminder, Wang Yingjiu wrapped his coat tightly, pulled down the brim of his hat, and then continued walking forward along the transport path carved out on the cliff.
This winter, he had decided to live and eat in this "Devil's Nose". The reason was that since they had asked everyone to continue working in the winter, he, as the mayor, would of course eat and sleep with them.
The wind in the valley became stronger. The snow became heavier...
I have set up a book club: 335260551. Everyone is welcome to join and discuss and deduce the plot together.
(End of this chapter)
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