Chapter 1094 Inspecting the Steel Plant and Determined to Send Troops
December 10, 4362 (1665 AD).
With the help of the cover of mobilizing troops, Shu State completed the transfer of large-scale workers.
The empire purchased second-hand equipment from the Gufeng Iron and Steel Plant adjacent to the Shu Kingdom and transported it to the Hongshanling Iron and Steel Plant in a timely manner via railway.
After several months of preparation, Shu Kingdom has completed the construction of the entire industrial chain from iron ore mining to steel smelting.
King Qian Mingyi of Shu was sitting on the train, preparing to rush to Hongshan for inspection.
Ke Huaizhen, cabinet minister and Minister of Industry, accompanied Shu King Qian Mingyi with a rosy face.
He was a little transparent in the cabinet before.
The industry before the Shu Kingdom had no status at all.
The discovery of the Hongshanling iron ore gave Shu an opportunity to develop its industry.
Ke Huaizhen, the minister of the Ministry of Industry, began to become very important.
He was responsible for handling the relevant situation of the steel industry chain, and reported the relevant situation to King Qian Mingyi of Shu amidst the rumble of the train.
"Your Majesty, we borrow money from the empire and can only purchase products from the empire.
We have no domestic experience in mining iron ore and building steel plants.
We have specially invited experts from Digital Empire to guide us in building a complete steel industry.
These experts help us contact steel companies in Imperial Valley to purchase second-hand equipment from them.
In order to train workers, some technical workers were also recruited as teachers.
This is equivalent to us transferring the steel industry from the empire.
The construction speed of iron mines and steel plants is very fast and has reached the stage of trial production.
The Hongshanling Iron Mine and Steel Plant are now blocked by the military to prevent leaks of information.
Many spies from all parties have been caught, and there is a steady stream of spies who want to learn the secrets there.
There is not much communication with the outside world during the construction process and it can be kept confidential.
Once the steel plant is started, the thick smoke it emits to the outside world is obvious.
Once a steel-making furnace starts making steel, the cost of shutting down is very high, requiring a steady stream of iron ore to enter the plant.
This scale cannot be concealed, and the existence of the steel plant will definitely be exposed.
If the steel plant is exposed, all you have to do is follow the clues, and the secret of the iron mine cannot be kept."
When Ke Huaizhen said this, he suggested: "Your Majesty, the iron ore cannot be moved, so we can only build a mine in Hongshanling.
But building a steel plant in Hongshanling is too risky a decision."
Qian Mingyi, the King of Shu, waved his hand and said firmly: "We in Shu must be determined to burn the boat now.
The conventional choice for various countries is to build steel plants near iron mines. Only in this way can the cost of steelmaking be lowered.
There is absolutely no problem for us in Shu to make this choice.
Ke Aiqing doesn't need to worry about non-industrial matters.
You must be determined so that the Shu army can resist the enemy's attack.
If it really can't be stopped, as long as the Hongshanling Iron Mine is lost, the iron ore will no longer exist.
Wherever the steel plant is placed, it is just a pile of scrap metal."
When Ke Huaizhen heard what Qian Mingyi, the king of Shu, said, he stopped discussing the topic.
King Qian Mingyi of Shu had a very firm attitude and could not be persuaded to go back with just a few words.
The king of Shu usually considered the location of the steel plant.
Ke Huaizhen only considered the location of the steel plant from an industrial perspective.
His structure is not as big as Shu King Qian Mingyi's, and if he continues to talk about it, it will appear that he is too stingy.
Ke Huaizhen changed the subject and said: "Your Majesty, wait until the high-speed rail plant can operate normally.
If our country has enough steel, related industries can develop.
The railway we are riding now, except for the sleepers, is all imported from the empire.
We can only guarantee that in ten years, we will be able to build a standardized railway based only on the industrial level of our Shu country."
King Qian Mingyi of Shu heard this from Ke Huaizhen, Minister of Industry.
He said happily: "It's a good thing that your Ministry of Industry is so confident.
Why do we work so hard to develop industry?
Isn’t it just to make life better for future generations?”
King Shu Qian Mingyi stared at the vast farmland outside the car through the car window.
"The Kingdom of Shu must develop industry. Even if it faces the threat of war, the Kingdom of Shu cannot give up developing industry.
If you give up industry, you give up the future.
Agriculture can only ensure food and clothing, but will not make people rich.
You people who follow me to develop the country must consider the prosperity of your family, and you don't want to continue to live a miserable life."
When Ke Huaizhen heard what Qian Mingyi, the king of Shu, said, he turned pale with fright and wanted to kneel down to apologize immediately.
King Shu Qian Mingyi waved his hand and said helplessly: "I'm not talking about you, there is no need to be like this.
It’s human nature to pursue a better life.”
Ke Huaizhen stood up, his face a little pale.
King Qian Mingyi of Shu did not say it too directly, but the underlying meaning was already very clear.
Agriculture cannot create more value. Farmers don’t have much money, and neither do the powerful.
Even if the rich and powerful try their best to plunder the land, they will not become rich and will force the people to rebel.
The Sui Dynasty in history was too indulgent in allowing the powerful to plunder the people.
When Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty was in power, the government of the Sui Dynasty was very wealthy, and a large amount of grain was stored in the granaries.
The rebels at that time needed to attack the location of the official warehouse in order to have enough food and grass to survive.
The official warehouses are full but wars are raging. This is because the powerful have taken away too much, which has led to civil unrest everywhere.
Even with this scraping method, the powerful people in the Sui Dynasty were not too wealthy.
There is no upper limit to the value that industry can create.
Developing industry can satisfy the appetites of the powerful without causing serious opposition between the powerful and the common people.
For the common people, if they have food to eat and a job that can support their families, they will not rebel.
Warsaw is not too far from Hongshanling, and the area of Shu is only one province of the empire.
The train rushed at high speed and soon arrived at Hongshanling Railway Station.
Ke Huaizhen got off the train and saw this somewhat crude train station.
He immediately explained: "Your Majesty, the Hongshanling Railway Station is so simple. Its main task was to mobilize troops.
This is already a border area, and not many people and goods will go here.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! Hongshanling Railway Station is slightly smaller and is now being expanded, which makes it very crude."
When Qian Mingyi, the king of Shu, saw the simple train station, he smiled and said: "I am even happier when I see the busy train station."
King Shu Qian Mingyi and his party took a car and soon arrived at the Hongshanling Iron and Steel Plant.
On the road, they saw heavily armed troops patrolling the streets from time to time.
The Hongshanling Iron and Steel Plant was surrounded by the army, and no one was allowed to enter within five kilometers of it.
They entered the empty area surrounding the Hongshanling Steel Plant.
Ke Huaizhen introduced: "Your Majesty, the Hongshanling Iron and Steel Plant is only the first phase of the project.
As the amount of iron ore mining gradually increases, the steel plant will be expanded.
We have left enough space for expansion on the land surrounding the steel plant."
King Qian Mingyi of Shu came to the gate of the steel plant. Not only the director of the steel plant, but also the chief of general staff Zhao Zhifang was also here.
Zhao Zhifang saw the vehicle of Shu King Qian Mingyi arriving.
He immediately stepped forward, opened the car door, and greeted the arrival of Shu King Qian Mingyi.
King Qian Mingyi of Shu got out of the car and looked at the vast steel plant, which was the cornerstone of the future development of Shu.
He has been looking forward to the moment when the blast furnace of the steel plant is ignited.
Accompanied by everyone, he went to the steelmaking workshop of the steel plant.
King Qian Mingyi of Shu was on the road. He asked Chief of General Staff Zhao Zhifang: "How is the military prepared?
Once the steel plant is operational, the news will definitely be hidden."
Chief of General Staff Zhao Zhifang said confidently: "Our strategy of fully armed militias directly scared European countries.
Especially the Shu Kingdom, almost 90% of the country's 100,000 troops were mobilized to border areas.
But we can't let the militia go to the battlefield, because the casualties would be too high.
Even if the war is won, the country will collapse.
The role of the militia is only the last line of insurance.
When the time comes to activate the militia, we may not be able to make a comeback.
The core strength of the Shu army is the recall of veterans and assault training of new recruits, with a total of 100,000 combat-ready soldiers.
These 100,000 people are now all deployed in the Hongshanling area.
Our army's strategy is not to take the initiative to attack, but to defend Hongshanling.
Our army is equipped with a large number of the empire's main battle weapons. Although the training time is still short, it has already formed combat effectiveness.
We are conducting defensive operations. If Switzerland can really endure it, the longer it takes, the better it will be for our army.
Rui attacked immediately. If the forces were equal, it would be extremely advantageous for the defensive side.
I promise that Hongshan Ridge will be defended without the participation of third-party forces."
King Qian Mingyi of Shu knew that one of the shortcomings of Shu was that its army was not strong.
But when he heard the assurance from Chief of General Staff Zhao Zhifang, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly.
If this war cannot be avoided, Shu will win if it does not lose.
King Qian Mingyi of Shu came to the steelmaking workshop. He saw the huge blast furnace and his heart was beating fast.
This blast furnace is also the heart of industry.
Qian Mingyi, King of Shu, said: "I know nothing about steel-making technology, but I just came to witness the ignition of the steel-making blast furnace.
Don't delay the production work of the steel plant. If the conditions for ignition are met, then ignite it."
Engineers at the steelmaking plant have already conducted trial production and found no problems, and the blast furnaces have been preheated in advance.
King Qian Mingyi of Shu ordered the fire to be lit, and they immediately sounded the alarm for production.
Workers at the steel plant began to add iron ore, coke and other necessary raw materials for steelmaking into the blast furnace.
The temperature in the blast furnace continues to rise, and the iron ore is quickly melted to form molten iron.
Ke Huaizhen said with envy: "This kind of mechanized blast furnace has been eliminated by the empire.
The blast furnaces currently used by the empire are all electrically controlled, and the blast furnaces are more efficient."
King Qian Mingyi of Shu understood the current industry of the empire and was setting off a wave of transformation in the electrical industry.
He smiled and said: "The best one is the one that suits you.
The quality of our domestic workers is not high and their technical level is weak.
This traditional steel-making furnace is the steel-making furnace that we can control.
The electrified production line is too high-end, and there are simply not enough engineers in China to use this high-end production line."
Ke Huaizhen immediately echoed: "The king's words are really insightful. The most suitable one is the best.
This kind of blast furnace technology has been eliminated in the empire, but it is still considered high-tech here."
They are here at the steel factory. How advanced is the industrial industry of the two empires? How can Shu country catch up?
It was evening, but no one left.
They are all waiting to see whether the first batch of official molten steel from the steel plant can pass the inspection.
King Qian Mingyi of Shu looked at the watch on his wrist from time to time.
It was already one o'clock in the morning, and he was already a little sleepy, but he couldn't leave.
The commissioning of the steel plant is of great significance. As the monarch of Shu, he will never miss this important moment.
At 1:20 in the morning, the workers shouted loudly: "The furnace is on."
King Shu Qian Mingyi became energetic for a while and looked towards the blast furnace in front of him.
Workers use cranes and skills to slowly pour the molten steel in the blast furnace.
The red molten steel flows down the groove and quickly cools into shape.
The engineer immediately stepped forward with iron clamps and began to check whether the newly-baked steel met the requirements.
After detailed inspection, they said excitedly: "It's done, it's done, the quality of the steel we produced meets the requirements."
When King Qian Mingyi of Shu heard the news, he laughed heartily regardless of his image.
His previous worries, depression, grievances and other emotions all disappeared with this laughter.
King Qian Mingyi of Shu laughed so hard that he burst into tears. He laughed for a long time before he stopped.
He loudly ordered: "All employees in the steel plant will receive a generous bonus.
If we in Shu have our own steel factory, we can develop industry. Industry is the future.
The motherland must become an industrial power before it can gain a foothold in Europe."
The steel plant obtained stable iron ore and began production.
King Qian Mingyi of Shu did not stay too long at the steel factory and went to the front line to inspect the army.
With the departure of King Shu, the secrecy of the steel plant began to be gradually lifted.
A large-scale steel plant cannot withstand the detection of spies.
…
King Sulei of Rui saw the information sent by Rui's intelligence personnel after all the hard work.
After reading this information, he couldn't maintain the gentle and elegant expression on his face.
He said with a ferocious look: "Didn't gold mines be discovered in Shu?
They discovered a very large iron mine in the disputed territory between the two countries."
When King Rui Su Lei said this, he was still trembling all over. This is a very large iron mine.
He then said hysterically: "Hongshan Ridge has always been the territory of our country of Rui. It has always been.
Our territory in Switzerland must not be lost in my hands.
Every piece of territory in our country of Switzerland is not redundant territory."
King Rui Sulei was a little worried before that whether he was the first to start the war sweeping Europe would affect his impression in the heart of his father.
Now he discovered that there was a super-large iron mine in the barren land of Hongshan Ridge.
More importantly, the Hongshanling area legally belongs to the territory of Switzerland.
The Kingdom of Shu invaded and occupied the territory of the Kingdom of Rui.
It is normal for Switzerland to send troops to regain its territory.
This reason is very good and I am not afraid of any criticism.
King Sule of Rui needed to discuss with his ministers before sending troops, and his attitude was also very cautious.
When the minister of Switzerland discovered that there was a very large iron mine in the disputed territory between the two countries.
They all know how much wealth a rich iron mine can bring?
These people were breathing heavily, and they all supported King Sule of Rui and sent troops to expel the people who invaded Rui's territory.
