Wild North America 1846

Chapter 152 Demographic Dividend
Nov. 1848, 3

Richard led more than a thousand cuirassiers of the royal family's personal guards all the way south, returning to Phoenix Castle (Denver) on the Colorado Plateau, and began comprehensive military preparations.

Denver Castle was built at the junction of the South Peret River and Cherry Creek. From the castle, you can see the snow-capped Rocky Mountains on the horizon in the distance. The streams are crisscross and picturesque.

A remnant of the Rocky Mountains bypasses the south of Phoenix from west to east, and goes deep into the desert about 17 miles (about 27 kilometers) east of Phoenix (Denver), where it is called "Red Rock Valley".

As the name suggests, "Red Rock Valley" is composed of dark red bare mountains. It is the transition zone from the Gobi desert to the desert. The terrain is open and the scenery is magnificent.

The first interception line of the Tang Kingdom was established here, mainly composed of parapets, trenches and barbed wire, and a musketeer brigade of about 350 people was usually stationed there.

When it comes to wartime, there are heavy troops gathered.

The 1.4-meter-high breast wall made of stone and concrete is about 1370 meters long. The opening in the middle can be used for carriages. On the side facing the eastern desert, a three-meter-wide and one-meter-deep trench was dug, 50 meters in front of the trench. There are three barbed wire fences in the range of 100 meters, which is the entire defense system of "Red Rock Valley".

Li Cha led a group of officers to inspect here. The entire defense system does not cost much. The most eye-catching thing is the barbed wire fence. This is also a new gadget first invented by the Tang Dynasty. It is used to isolate pastures and manors and prevent wild animals. Invasion is very useful.

It is the first time it has been used on the battlefield.

The defense system of the "Red Rock Valley" is not strict. The US military can bypass the desert on one side, but only by soldiers on foot or cavalry.Don't even think about going in the desert with horse-drawn carriages and cannon carts, that's impossible unless a road is built in the desert.

Therefore, in order to guard against American cavalry and infantry, a wooden village with a capacity of more than 2 troops was built every 3 to [-] kilometers behind the "Red Rock Valley", and a total of six wooden villages were built.

The function of these wooden villages is to warn and defend, temporarily delaying the detour of American troops from the desert, and buying time for large troops to gather reinforcements.

Considering that it is impossible for the Americans to drag heavy artillery from the desert, the defense of these wooden villages is low, and a barbed wire fence about 20 kilometers long has been pulled up, as long as it can meet the impact of infantry and cavalry.

looked around

Li Cha didn't express any opinions, in fact, he had nothing to say.

The war in today's era is head-to-head, queuing up and shooting. The rock-concrete defensive parapet can bring great advantages to the defender and greatly reduce casualties. This is very important to the Datang Kingdom.

This kind of war can't play any tricks, it's nothing more than piles of artillery fire and human lives.

Due to geographical constraints, it is difficult for cavalry to play a big role in the Gobi desert area, and they must rely on musketeers to fight hard.

"Brigadier General Kahn, how is the group of white hard labor training?" Li Cha came down from the defensive position and asked casually.

He asked about the white American soldiers captured in the Second Western Expedition in 1846. There were originally a total of more than 2 people, but now there are more than 5000 left.

Kahn brought these white convicts together, and after two weeks of recuperation, they recovered and were undergoing intensive training. They were cannon fodder to be used in the "Red Rock Valley".

"Your Majesty Qizuo, the water chestnuts of these convicts have already been worn away, and their obedience is very good during training. At that time, as long as they promise to return to freedom after the war, I am not afraid that they will not work hard."

"The number is a bit small, can you make up a little more."

"There are still about 4.3 white convicts in Phoenix Castle. We can pick some of them for military training and then add them to the Red Rock Valley."

"Then let's pick 5000 people for training, let them sign up voluntarily, and save a lot of hands and feet in the future. Soldiers who are qualified in battle can also be used in the defense of Phoenix Castle and Taoyuan Fortress in the future."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Brigadier General Kahn clasped his fists in response.

Brigadier General Kahn is the chief infantry officer of Phoenix Castle. He has more than 7600 Musketeers in his hands. If more than 3760 white Confederates are added, the total strength is almost 1.13.

Plus 5000 white convicts, that's 1.63 troops.

Besides
The Tang Kingdom also has 1600 active soldiers, more than 700 artillery and nearly [-] Chinese reserve troops, mainly concentrated in the Taoyuan Valley, led by Brigadier General Dai Changfu and concurrently the commander of the Taoyuan Fortress.

Li Cha personally commanded the 1.2-strong cavalry corps and was responsible for peripheral operations.

In response to the upcoming war, more than 10 white women and a large amount of supplies looted from the Great Lakes region of the United States were transported to the rear through the railway line day and night, and entered factories and schools across California to implement centralized management.

The total populations of Fenghuang City and Taoyuan City are controlled at about 16.5 and 12.3 people respectively. In the near future, excess women and children will be transferred to Taoyuan City, where there is more space, more room for maneuver, and more sufficient supplies.

Staying away from the front line of war is good for women and children.

From the second half of last year to the end of the first quarter of this year, the Colorado plateau ushered in the first baby boom, with a total of 1 newborn children, and nearly 4.63% of white or Indian women conceived and gave birth. gratifying.

Li Cha sincerely praised these great Chinese guys under his command, and really worked hard for the sake of the family.

The second cement plant in Taoyuan City has been completed and put into operation, and the third cement plant is in the stage of plant construction. Imported equipment will be delivered in the near future, and it is expected to be completed and put into operation in the second half of the year.

The housing construction in Taoyuan City is booming now, and a large area of ​​new residential areas has sprung up. In the future, it is very likely to surpass Phoenix City and become the most populous city in the Tang Dynasty. The future prospects are gratifying.

Stand still
Richard looked at the endless Gobi Desert in the east with his deep eyes. The winding road at the foot of the continuous mountains was the only way to Kansas City.

From the "Red Rock Valley" to the east for more than 300 kilometers, there are all such rough and bumpy paths. If you continue to the east, it becomes a wide and flat road built by American laborers, and the long-distance telegraph line is also unimpeded all the way to Kansas City.

from the beginning of the year

The construction of the railway west of Kansas City has started, and now it extends about 5 to 400 kilometers. Tens of thousands of white workers are rushing to work day and night. It is expected that the railway from Kansas City to Quinte or Oakley will be completed before the end of May Line, about 460~[-] kilometers.

Thus

The logistics supply line of the U.S. military's Western Expeditionary Army was shortened by half, which is very conducive to protracted operations.

If the war continues until August or September, the United States has the ability to build this railway to the Red Rock Valley, which is almost under the nose of the Tang Kingdom.

The U.S. military built more than a dozen garrison points along the way, with varying numbers of U.S. soldiers stationed there, ranging from four to 500 to as many as three to 4000, and hoarded a lot of supplies.

Regarding the actions of the United States, Li Cha really has no good way to stop them.

Cavalry is not suitable for attacking solidly defended targets. This kind of prudent strategy of step by step can only be pushed horizontally by strength, and tricky tactics will not work.

Richard was unwilling to compromise his limited and precious troops in this regard, either on the Colorado Plateau or in the heart of the Great Lakes, where the cavalry galloped across the battlefield.

It's a pity that the crops and seedlings that have just been planted in the spring of this year will be severely damaged by the war, and they will definitely not be able to usher in a bumper harvest.

Fortunately, for a year and a half of peace, enough food has been stored on the Colorado Plateau, and it is capable of dealing with the siege of the US army and fighting a long-term war of attrition.

That's right, Richard's definition of this upcoming war of unprecedented scale is "a long-term war of attrition".

early days of the war
The Datang Kingdom will rely on the Red Rock Valley, Phoenix Castle, Taoyuan Fortress and other defensive facilities to resist successively and layer by layer, killing and injuring American soldiers in large numbers, weakening their attacking forces, and achieving the goal of exchanging time and space for victory.

The task of the cavalry is to harass the main force and annihilate the U.S. cavalry, like a sharp sword lurking in the dark, waiting to strike.

Li Cha fully considered the difficulties of the battle, he did not seek a quick victory, he only wanted to fight steadily, accumulating small victories into big victories, he had enough patience to wait until the moment of qualitative change.

The time advantage is on the side of the Datang Kingdom. At the beginning of the new year, with the influx of a large number of immigrants, the industrial development, ocean transportation and trade of the Datang Kingdom have shown vitality in all aspects, with a total population of more than 67.

Backed by the endless population resources of the land of China, this is the true foundation of his confidence.

Thinking back more than two years ago, the total population of the Tang Kingdom was less than 8 people, but now it has increased by 8 times and there is still a turning point. This is the infinite charm of the leapfrog development of the immigrant country.

No matter how courageous you are, you can hope that the population of the Tang Kingdom will reach one million by the end of 1848.

How is this impossible?

With the northward extension of the Pacific Railway, Sacramento, Salem, Portland, Seattle, Vancouver, Salt Lake City, these emerging cities developed one after another and became the bright pearls of the Tang Dynasty scattered on the east coast of the Pacific Ocean.

on the original historical track

The history of the Chinese population being plundered overseas is closely related to the development history of the colonial powers in the world.

After Britain occupied the Straits Settlements in 1819, it used various means to plunder Chinese laborers. From 1881 to the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, in just over 30 years, as many as 830 million Chinese were plundered and abducted to the Straits Settlements.

In 1848, a gold mine was discovered in California, North America. In the 1848 years from 1882 to 30, about 30 Chinese laborers voluntarily went to the western United States.

On the east coast of the Indian island of Sumatra in the Netherlands, more than 60 Chinese laborers worked in plantations and mines as slaves for their colonists for more than a hundred years since the seventeenth century.

In 1852, the British colonists discovered gold mines in Victoria, Australia, and plundered Chinese workers from the southeastern coastal provinces to mine gold in Australia. In just one year from 1858 to 1859, the number of Chinese workers reached 2000.

this age
It was the cusp of Chinese emigrating overseas. In order to make up for the extreme shortage of labor, colonial powers such as Britain, France, and the Netherlands tried their best to recruit Chinese workers to go overseas, which contributed to the wave of Chinese immigration that lasted for half a century.

The Great Tang Kingdom was born, with money, resources, and ability in his hands. Richard has enough confidence to increase the number of Chinese immigrants to North America by 10 times or even more, and spare no effort to develop this fertile continent.

In the long run, the advantage of time is on the side of Datang Kingdom.

In terms of crowd tactics, backed by the land of China, even if all the white immigrants from Europe are added together, they are not opponents.

(End of this chapter)