Chapter 404 Meeting an old friend by chance

Since the Hai Han militia entered Hue City first and took away the bulk, by the time the North Vietnamese Army took over the defense of Hue City, there was really not much oil and water left in the city. Zheng Bai led his men to scrape the ground in Hue City.

, only about 200,000 taels of silver were collected, and this money was not enough to pay for the military expenses of the Haihan Militia for this war, so the Haihan Militia chose to directly withdraw from the subsequent clearing operation.

After leaving the mess to Zheng Bai, he evacuated the large forces from Hue.

The Annan court was unable to pay military expenses. This situation had of course long been expected by the Executive Committee. Fortunately, both sides already had successful precedents to learn from on this issue and would not cause debt disputes. Debts were paid off with population.

This method has been implemented many times in the past two years, and the two sides have already reached a certain degree of consensus on the price calculation method for immigrants. Of course, the price of dangerous persons such as prisoners of war is definitely not as high as that of other countries.

to ordinary people, so these prisoners of war were wholesaled to Hai Han at a very low price, and then stuffed into the bilge like cargo for shipment - it is said that only three to four intact South Vietnamese prisoners of war are worth the price of an Annam

The price of buffaloes, and the treatment of these prisoners of war during transportation was not even comparable to that of the cattle imported from Annan by the Ministry of Agriculture.

However, in this era, the defeated had no human rights to speak of, and even nobles like Ruan Ching Kui, who were once in the upper echelons of society, had nothing to say. Being able to find a way for prisoners of war to survive was already a sign of the conqueror's kindness.

The prisoners of war used by North Vietnam to pay off the debt were not just the South Vietnamese soldiers captured by the Hai Han Militia in Hue City. In addition to some South Vietnamese soldiers who were recruited and demobilized on the spot, a considerable number of prisoners of war would be packed and sent to sea after the war.

According to a more conservative estimate, the number of prisoners of war that the Hai Han side will receive is at least five to eight thousand. If the process of the North Vietnamese army clearing out the remaining South Vietnamese forces goes smoothly enough, then this number will exceed 10,000.

It's no surprise that it's even higher.

After all, these prisoners of war are also a big trouble for the North Vietnamese court. If they are all recruited under their own names, they will definitely not be able to support them. Moreover, it will be very troublesome to disperse and resettle too many surrendered troops. If they are demobilized on the spot,

, so many unemployed young people will definitely become a factor of social instability. At that time, the court will have to spend a lot of manpower and material resources to maintain local security. However, leaving it to Haihan can kill multiple birds with one stone, and avoid possible troubles.

, it also saved the cost and consumption of processing prisoners of war, and could offset part of the war debt. There was almost no objection from the North Vietnamese court, and it decided to deal with Hai Han in large numbers and cheaply.

In addition to being transported back to Hainan Island, some prisoners of war will also go to the coal mines of Heitu Port and the four southern ports areas to be developed. Of course, Hainan Island, as the base camp, will get the largest share, and where they go

Arrangement, the executive committee has also made preliminary plans.

At present, the development and construction project of the Lianghe River Basin in Sanya New City is proceeding in an orderly manner. However, due to safety considerations, most of the people working on this large construction site are ordinary people. The vast majority of prisoners in the hard labor camps are still arranged in

Tiandu Iron Mine is engaged in heavy physical labor in the mines. Thousands of prisoners of war will be transported to Hainan Island in the future, and these people will certainly not be able to be assigned to the Tiandu Iron Mine with a limited working area, so the Executive Committee

The Shilu Iron Mine development plan that had been planned for a long time was finally taken out from the dusty database and put on the agenda of the executive committee.

Long before the crossing, when the preparatory committee selected the crossing location, the iron ore resources possessed by Hainan Island were one of the important conditions it considered. This large iron ore mine is located inland on the west coast of Hainan Island, about 40 kilometers away from the coastline.

The proven reserves in another time and space exceed 300 million tons, and the average grade of the ore exceeds 50%. Coupled with its superior conditions for open-pit mining, it is rare for the mining and smelting level in the 18th century.

Mineral source. Shilu Iron Mine not only produces rich iron and copper ores, but also has cobalt, nickel, sulfur, aluminum, gold and other mining resources. For the modern industry that the Executive Committee wants to realize on Hainan Island

Systemically speaking, Shilu Iron Mine is really a treasure that cannot be missed.

In the original time and space, the Shilu Iron Mine was not discovered until the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty. However, the arrival of time travelers will advance this time by about a century and a half, and the intensity of development will far exceed the original historical situation.

.However, the Executive Committee has not had the idea of ​​​​exploiting the Shilu Iron Mine in the first two years since it settled in Sanya. It is not that it does not have such ideas, but it is limited by objective conditions and cannot implement the plan for the Shilu Iron Mine for the time being.

development plan.

First of all, the Shilu Iron Mine is located a bit far away from Victory Port where the travelers settled. The sea voyage from Victory Port to Changhua on the west coast is more than 100 nautical miles. This distance is already the distance from Victory Port to Hue.

Two-thirds of the voyage. Of course, if the sea voyage is just a little longer, it is not a big problem. After all, the voyage of the overseas mine of Black Earth Port is even longer, but the mining point of the Black Earth Port coal mine is less than two kilometers from the nearest port, and

The main mineral point of Shilu Iron Mine is a full 40 kilometers away from the small seaside Changhua Harbor, and the entire area is in an undeveloped primitive environment. Even if it was placed in the time and space before time travel, it would be impossible to imagine

In this environment, it is not easy to build a road from the sea to the interior.

The second reason for delaying the executive committee's planning is political considerations. According to the Ming Dynasty's administrative division of Qiongzhou Island, the location of Changhua is under the jurisdiction of Danzhou in the north. If Haihan is to be developed on a large scale

Changhua, that will inevitably arouse the fear of the Danzhou officials, and it may cause some troubles. This is an undesirable risk for the executive committee that has an unstable foothold in the early days. Even if it has been advocating military expansion

The military, at that time, could not find the troops to station in Changhua to ensure the safety of this development project.

The third reason is because of the existence of Tiandu Iron Mine. Although the reserves and mineral varieties of this mine are not as good as Shilu, it is better in location. Half of the reasons why the Executive Committee chose Shengli Port to land is because of Tiandu.

From the iron ore. And the industrial zones established later are almost all equipped with factories and production units around the Tiandu Iron Mine, and its importance is evident. Even if the Shilu Iron Mine is not developed for the time being, the production of Tiandu alone will

The iron ore can basically support Haihan's production and development needs in the early stage.

However, today is different from the past. As Haihan develops and grows, the demand for steel and other metals is also increasing. Whether it is shipping capacity, political influence or smelting level, it is no longer a constraint on development.

Obstacles in the Shilu Iron Mine. After conditions matured, the Executive Committee finally unveiled the plan to develop the Shilu Iron Mine again and prepared to start implementation in the near future. Thousands of South Vietnamese prisoners of war will be transported to

Locally, the transportation line from Changhua Port on the seaside to Shilu has been opened, and a large-scale coal-iron composite industrial base has been started to be built locally. After this area is formed, the clean coal produced at Heitu Port can be transported to the local area nearby for use in steel.

and smelting and processing of other metals.

Of course, many lives will probably be lost during this construction process. In the first half year of the development of the Black Earth Port Coal Mine in Beibu Gulf, hundreds of workers died from various accidents, diseases and other causes.

The location of Shilu Iron Mine determines that its development difficulty will be much greater than that of Heitugang Coal Mine and other overseas ports. The Executive Committee will certainly not ignore this foreseeable loss of personnel, and the best way is to

This was passed on to the cheap labor force of prisoners of war.

Ruan Jinggui, who was watching these prisoners of war disembarking from the ship, naturally did not think about the fate that awaited his compatriots. However, seeing that the Haihan people did not remove the shackles and handcuffs of these people during the transportation, he knew that the fate of these people might be

It won't be the same path as myself.

From Ruan Jinggui's point of view, he did not have any sympathy for these prisoners who once belonged to the same camp. He still had some sympathy for the prisoners. But he also remembered to restrain his emotions and reminded himself that his current status was not suitable for making decisions.

Some actions that are easily misunderstood.

But Ruan Jinggui could remain calm and rational, and others could reach the same level without ghostwriting. Ruan Jinggui, who was standing next to him, rushed out without warning, jumped directly into the group of prisoners of war, and hugged one of them.

Ruan Jinggui was shocked, but before he could rush up to pull his brother out, four or five black policemen with wooden sticks had already rushed over and beat Ruan Jinggui without asking.

This small chaos immediately attracted the attention of the on-site management personnel. Soon personnel from the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the military rushed over to stop the police beating. They pulled Ruan Wenwen and the man he was hugging out of the queue, and then let

Other prisoners of war continued to march.

Although Ruan Wenwen was severely beaten with a bunch of sticks, he did not look depressed at all. He even pulled the prisoner and shouted: "Brother Wu, it turns out you are still alive! I am Ruan Wenwen, it's me!"

Ruan Jinggui took a look and realized that this man he knew was a general of the South Vietnamese Navy named Wu Sen. The Wu family and the Ruan family were also considered family friends. Wu Sen and Ruan Wen Wen had known each other since childhood, and they could be considered brothers and sisters. But Hai

When the Han people attacked Hue, Wu Sen did not choose to avoid the battle in the city, but went to the front line to fight against the Hai Han people. As a result, it is said that when he led his troops to patrol the river, they were all sunk by the Hai Han people's artillery - this paragraph

It was even edited into the war documentary produced by the Haihan Propaganda Department, but the people involved never got to see it.

The news of Wu Sen's death in the battle came back to Hue. As a good friend, Nguyen Chinh Quy was naturally heartbroken. However, he had no intention of fighting since then. In the end, he did not choose to fight with the Hai Han militia to avenge his friend, but obeyed Nguyen Chinh Kui.

With persuasion, he completely gave up resistance and led his troops to surrender directly.

However, Ruan Wenwen did not expect that after wandering around for many days, he would actually see his friend who had died in the battle at the Haihan people's base camp. When he saw it, he couldn't control his mood, so he rushed out and grabbed Wu Sen. The onlookers thought that

If he wanted to cause trouble, he would naturally rush up to him and knock him over without hesitation.

Ruan Jinggui quickly bowed down and explained the situation to the people from the military and the Ministry of Civil Affairs next to him, letting them know that this was just a small misunderstanding. Wu Sen, who was pulled by Ruan Wenwen, calmed down immediately after the initial shock passed.

, stood up and broke away from Ruan Wenwen's hand, and angrily yelled at him: "Looking at how unharmed you are, you must have surrendered to the Haihan people, right? Hundreds of our navy's soldiers died in Xiangjiang just to protect people like you.

Shameless person!"

Ruan Jinggui probably didn't expect that Wu Sen's emotions were so intense, and he was scolded by him until he was speechless. Ruan Jinggui advised him from the side: "Xiao Wu, a defeated general, how can you be brave? You go away for now, I will do it another day.

I will go find Chief Haihan and find a way out for you!"

Wu Sen spat on the ground and said: "I go my own way, how can I ask you, a traitor, to ask for some bullshit way out for me! The friendship between our two families has been cut off from now on. Please don't have any friendship with Lord Wu again!"

"

After Wu Sen finished speaking, he shook the shackles on his body and followed the team of prisoners of war away without looking back at the Ruan brothers. When the two brothers looked at each other, they found that each other's faces were quite ugly.

It took a long time for Ruan Wenwen to speak: "If Wu Sen hadn't saved my life when I was fourteen, I would have drowned in the Xiangjiang River. I will return this love to him no matter what."

Ruan Jinggui took a deep breath before admonishing: "How can Wu Sen be kind to you alone? My family's property in Hoi An was also taken care of by him. Now that he is in trouble due to the war, how can my brother stand by and watch? Even if he is

He has nothing to do with my family, and I don’t want to see such a loyal person buried like this."

Ruan Jinggui was afraid that his brother would see other acquaintances, so he kept standing next to him and keeping an eye on him. Fortunately, there were not many senior officers like Wu Sen in the prisoner of war team. After the entire prisoner of war team, Ruan Wenwen did not appear.

They met acquaintances again. After the incident, they were led by several security guards and returned to the immigration isolation camp.

Ruan Jinggui did not forget what he had said. The next day, he took the initiative to find the squadron leader Zheng Yi, hoping to get him to send a message to senior cadres.

Zheng Yi looked Ruan Jinggui up and down and said, "Do you mean to save the life of that prisoner of war?"

"Not only do we want to save his life, I also hope that the chiefs can give him a chance. This man was a naval officer when he was in Hue and is proficient in the hydrological conditions of the Annam coast. In the future, if the chiefs want to build ports in the south, this man will definitely

It can work!" Ruan Jinggui quickly told Zheng Yihe the reason. When he returned to the camp yesterday, he asked several security guards and heard that these prisoners of war would be taken into hard labor camps, and their destinations were often deep in the mountains.

Ruan Jinggui did not want Wu Sen to be regarded as a cheap miner and spend the rest of his life in the dark mine.

Zheng Yi shook his head and said: "I heard that your friend is also a staff general. If an officer of this level is willing to surrender, the leaders will definitely not arrest him in a hard labor camp. If he is unwilling to surrender, you can protect him

What's the use? If he doesn't want to be loyal to the executive committee, who dares to let him out?"

Ruan Jinggui said anxiously: "I am willing to be a guarantee. If he is still unwilling to surrender, please let me convince him personally! Captain Zheng, although this person is somewhat foolishly loyal to his old master, he is a capable person after all. At this time, he is justified in carrying out his duties."

When the committee is looking for talented people, it’s important not to miss out on the talent!”

Zheng Yi looked at Ruan Jinggui carefully for a while, as if to confirm whether he was playing tricks. After a long time, he nodded and said: "I can convey this to the superiors for you. As for the effect, I will not guarantee you."

"Thank you so much, Captain Zheng!" Ruan Jinggui quickly made a deep bow.

The Ruan brothers waited for another three days in anxiety, and finally Zheng Yi came. However, he was not here to inform Wu Sen, but to ask them to pack their things and prepare to leave: "Ruan Jingwen, Ruan Jinggui, your quarantine period has expired.

, pack your personal belongings and report to the camp gate, someone will take you to the next stop."

Ruan Jinggui asked anxiously: "Captain Zheng, what about my friend?"

"There is no reply from the higher ups on this matter, and I don't dare to press it!" Zheng Yi shook his head helplessly and said: "The chiefs are so busy every day, maybe they forget it! After you go out, you can think of a way to find the chief yourself.

Tongtongzi, don’t you know the head of the executive committee? If they are willing to speak out, then your friend’s future will definitely be fine.”

Ruan Jinggui had no choice but to thank Zheng Yi, and then packed up his things with Ruan Wenwen. In fact, there was nothing to pack. When he entered the camp, he handed in all his luggage and only brought in a few sets of clothes. After entering, he even had his rice bowl.

Water bottles and bedding are all distributed uniformly, but these must be handed over to the camp management agency when leaving. After cleaning and disinfection, they will be left for the next batch of immigrants.

After being held in this isolation camp for more than ten days, the two of them could no longer stay any longer. After packing their clothes, they left the residence. As for why the other Ruan clan members who lived together were not allowed to leave at the same time.

Ruan Jinggui was somewhat aware of the permission given by the Haihan people - both of them had been assigned employment units by the Haihan people before they came here, and their futures were set. Naturally, they were different from other incompetent tribesmen. Like those

If the tribesmen without professional skills can read and count, at least they can get an easy job like paperwork in the future. If they don’t know anything, they will probably be assigned to work as farmers in the Ministry of Agriculture or as workers in the Ministry of Construction.

Work hard to repair the earth.

The two came to the gate of the camp, where about twenty people had gathered. It seemed that they were all immigrants who had decided to go to the same destination as them. Soon several naturalized cadres came over with a list to roll their names, and after counting, they led them

Walking to the train station. It was the first time for these new immigrants to enter the train station. They could not help but point and talk everywhere, as if Grandma Liu had entered the Grand View Garden.
Chapter completed!