1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 679 Visiting Shilu
About an hour and a half later, the train finally arrived at the terminal Shilu Iron Mine.Although it is usually not open to the public and the flow of people is relatively limited, the platform of this railway station is really not small. Similar to the railway station at Changhua Port, there is also a special platform for loading and unloading dry bulk cargo.After the initial crushing and beneficiation process, the iron ore excavated from nearby mines is transported here by a smaller rail car, and then loaded into freight wagons by a belt conveyor.

The people on the side of the passenger compartment have not finished loading, but the back has already begun to hurry up and load.Although the merchants in the visiting group saw a similar scene when they disembarked at Changhua Port, they still had a strong interest in this efficient loading method.Most of these businessmen who can come to Qiongzhou Island to buy real estate and invest are people with more active brains and a higher acceptance of new things. They can naturally see how much a device like this will improve the efficiency of material transfer.Those who acted quickly have already found Gu Kai, and began to inquire whether these belt conveyors are for sale and what the price is.

However, some discerning people have noticed that the security measures of this train station are much stricter than those of Changhua Port and Changhua County. On the platform alone, there are dozens of militia soldiers armed with live ammunition and dressed in gray standing guard.People who don't know may think that this is a temporary security measure for the arrival of the visiting group, but in fact this scene is actually the norm in the Shilu mining area, because most of the front-line labor in the mining area are from the sea. Prisoners of the Han labor camp.

Since the implementation of the Shilu project, the location of the labor camp has been changed from Sanya to here.According to incomplete statistics, during the construction of the Changhua-Shilu railway alone, more than a thousand prisoners died on the road construction site one after another. His reputation could not be preserved.After the Shilu Iron Mine was put into operation, these prisoners were transferred to the mine one after another, where they continued to be forced to do heavy physical labor.

At present, there are still more than 4000 prisoners working in the Shilu mining area, which is the most concentrated area of ​​prisoners in the area under the Haihan rule.As a supporting security measure, it is naturally stricter than other places.Although the army has only two companies stationed here, the organization is based on the reinforcement of the company, with a total strength of nearly 500 people.In addition, there are two squadrons of nearly 300 police officers in charge of the prison area, which does not include the armed forces stationed in Changhua.

Lingao, Chengmai, and Ding'an, which are also county-level units, are currently stationed for a long time with only one or two companies of armed forces. The scale of the garrison here in Changhua Shilu is already comparable to that of a state city like Danzhou. , and most of them are concentrated in Shilu, so the defense strength here is indeed significantly higher than other places.

And this is one of the few points in the local area that can be boasted about. Qiao Zhiya lost no time in introducing to the visiting group: "...Compared to the past where all the prisoners were concentrated in the Yacheng Prison and the imperial court was used to support these prisoners, We can now make better use of these labor forces, let them work in the mining area, and create wealth while transforming their minds. The living and production facilities here, including the nearby camps, are basically built by us commanding prisoners.”

There are three main purposes for bringing the visiting group to Shilu. One is to let the visiting group see the railway line from Changhua to Shilu. The development can have more confidence, and the third is to show them how Haihan manages the prisoners and uses them as a labor force.

"Look, everybody, the No. [-] pit of the Shilu Iron Mine is ahead!" Qiao Zhiya stopped the topic and turned to introduce the production site.

The veins of the Shilu Iron Mine are buried shallow and are convenient for open-pit mining. Therefore, the mining method here is the same as that of the Tiandu Iron Mine and the Heitugang Coal Mine. The huge mine pit is like a funnel, extending underground in steps.The bottom of the pit is densely packed with miners, who use various mining tools to crush ore and load it into trucks, and then the steam-driven hoist pulls the truck body containing the ore up along the track laid on the wall of the pit, and then transfers it to the railway station. on another track.

Qiao Zhiya continued to introduce: "There are more than [-] miners working here every day. After completing the specified mining tasks, they can get corresponding personal points, and the use of this points is to help them obtain basic living conditions, and commutation of sentence."

A visitor asked: "It seems that these prisoners are not all Han Chinese. Can Director Qiao tell us where they came from?"

Qiao Zhiya nodded and replied: "Of course. Some of these prisoners are from prisons from various places in Qiongzhou. At present, the prisoners sentenced to prison by the government from all over the island are basically sent here to serve their sentences. In addition, there are a considerable number of prisoners from us. The prisoners of war captured by the Haihan militia in various places are more complicated. In addition to the Han people, there are Annan people, Li and Miao mountain people, Japanese pirates, Nanyang natives, black people, red-haired people, etc. "

"I heard that Haihan and Li and Miao tribes get along very well, so why are there still prisoners of war?" Someone in the crowd asked again.

Qiao Zhiya said: "We will not take the initiative to launch a war against the Li Miao village. More often, we will provide job opportunities and various materials they need, and teach them how to grow some high-value crops in the mountains to join us. Most of the cottages of Li and Miao are still willing to get along with us friendly. However, this does not completely rule out that some areas are still hostile to us, unwilling to accept our help, or even take hostile actions against us. To eliminate these It may take some time for the estrangement to work.”

"Will the situation mentioned by Director Qiao affect the sericulture breeding area of ​​the Ministry of Commerce in Qiongzhong?" someone asked worriedly.

As we all know, silk is one of the high-profit products exported overseas, but due to climate and geographical conditions, there are not many areas on Hainan Island suitable for sericulture farming. According to the experience gained before crossing, only Qiongzhong Only a part of the mountainous area can have the conditions to engage in the sericulture industry.Haihan currently has several cooperative villages in the Qiongzhong area, and has made some progress. The next step is to invest more resources to gradually promote it in the Qiongzhong area and form a large-scale industry. .

However, the Qiongzhong area is no longer a Han-ruled area in the traditional sense. It is basically the area of ​​strength of the Li and Miao tribes. Even if they are as strong as Haihan, it is difficult to directly intervene there.Of course, this is not because Haihan's military strength is insufficient, but that the Qiongzhong area is a mountainous area, and the transportation with the outside world is very inconvenient. The difficulty of taking military operations in the area is actually not small.Considering practical issues such as supplies, communications, and medical treatment, the military has not spared any energy to clean up the undisciplined cottages in the vast mountainous area of ​​Qiongzhong.

From a geographical point of view, if the mountainous terrain is used as the difference between the coastal area and the Qiongzhong mountainous area, then Shilu is actually quite close to the uncivilized area.Although the Shilu iron ore project has been in progress for more than two years, until now, Baishadong, a major settlement of the Li people about [-] miles away from Shilu, still has not established a relationship with Haihan. relatively normal relationship.

After Shizidong, who used to settle here, has completely moved out of Shilu, there is no Limiao cottage within ten miles around the Shilu mining area.And Qiao Zhiya's energy is mainly focused on production and construction. Since there are no ethnic disputes in this area, he will not find trouble for himself. touch.

Qiao Zhiya replied: "Everyone, please rest assured that the world is big and the business is the biggest. If any force affects our business, then I'm sorry. Such behavior will be regarded as Haihan's enemy. I think everyone knows that we Haihan's attitude towards the enemy is uncompromising. Whoever makes us unhappy, then we have to prepare for our own unhappiness first!"

As soon as Qiao Zhiya said this, someone actually applauded at the scene.In fact, it is no wonder that Haihan is such a protective armed force, it is indeed difficult to see it elsewhere.Not to mention the government, when the refugees in Guangdong rioted a few years ago, the government and the army often ignored local calls for help, and it was at that time that the Haihan militia became famous in the Lijiazhuang battle.And other private armed forces are unlikely to have the strength of Haihan. If something goes wrong, they will mobilize the fleet to fight across the sea, and even dare to send troops to fight in a place as far away as Fujian. This is no longer a private armed force that guards the house. It's the real army.

However, the merchants also know that the Haihan militia will not do things that blackmail the local area and bully others. They are dispatched almost to protect their own interests. Han himself fought.As long as they stand on the same front as Haihan, these businessmen's properties can often be protected by the Haihan militia. Therefore, these people not only do not feel disgusted with Qiao Zhiya's statement, but are very supportive, because no one knows when they will be in trouble Assistance is needed, and Haihan's commitment to this is the most reliable.

Because it took a lot of time on the way to Shilu, after visiting the No. [-] pit, it was already lunch time.And Qiao Zhiya also arranged a luncheon in advance. Yesterday, he sent more than a dozen people to go up the mountain to buy a lot of mountain delicacies and wild game. Today, he made them for these guests to enjoy.Although the conditions here are not as good as in places like Sanya, Qiao Zhiya has already ordered that the seasonings be put in vigorously, and these people will only have a taste. As long as the taste is important, they will naturally feel that they have received enough preferential treatment.Of course, Haihan’s specialty Sanya rum is indispensable for such an occasion. After a few glasses of wine, the guests will not care so much about the dining environment.

After lunch, rest for an hour or two, and then take the guests to the No. [-] mine pit for a quick look. This trip is basically declared complete.Before dark, the visiting group can take the train back to Changhua. After all, the station here is either a military camp or a prison area, so it is not suitable for these merchants to stay overnight.

There is indeed nothing wrong with Qiao Zhiya's plan, but changes often occur when everything seems to be going well.During the meal at the construction site headquarters at noon, Qiao Zhiya had just finished his speech when someone came to report a piece of news to him: Pit No. 30 counted the number of people during the lunch break and found that more than [-] people were missing.

In order to ensure work efficiency, the mine will not stop working completely during the feeding period, but eat in batches.The miners don't have to go out of the mine pit. The logistics department will use the coal truck to deliver the lunch to each working face, and then the foremen will distribute it to the miners according to their hair. By the way, they will count the number of people in the process.Generally speaking, it is normal if there is a single-digit error in the number of people counted, because it is inevitable that someone will not be there when the number of people is counted, such as going to the toilet or the like.But if the error is double digits, the guard in charge of mine safety affairs must report the situation immediately so that corresponding measures can be taken.And Qiao Zhiya happened to be working here today, so the situation was naturally reported to him soon.

After hearing this, Qiao Zhiya only calmly ordered: "I understand, let's go according to the prescribed procedures, if there is any new news, please come and report to me in time!"

Since most of the miners are prisoners, the safety regulations in the mine are relatively strict. As long as the team is found to be short of people, the team will stop working immediately and gather at a designated place outside the mine pit to accept inquiries from the guards. .Generally speaking, as long as the missing person is not escaping, the missing person can be found quickly, at most it is a warning, and if it is serious, the individual's labor points will be deducted.However, if the guards cannot determine the whereabouts of the missing person through inquiries and searches, they will be listed as fugitives and the handling methods adopted will also change.

Even if the fugitive escaped from the mine, it was impossible for the prisoner to leave Shilu by train, and the tens of miles from Shilu to Changhua were almost in a primitive environment. Without any food or tools, the prisoner It takes considerable physical strength and a long time to escape to a populated place.And even if they fled to Changhua, given the local conditions, it would be difficult for the fugitives to conceal their identities. After all, apart from the standard prison uniforms, they had no other clothes.

Of course, there is another way out, and that is to escape into the mountains.However, the possibility of surviving in this way is less than that of fleeing to the sea, because the inland mountainous areas are the territories of the Li and Miao tribes. As a foreigner, fleeing to those places may die faster.Therefore, for fugitives, in fact, mining areas rarely take measures to hunt them down, unless their escape route or direction is clearly known.

(End of this chapter)