My father Zhu Gaoxu

Chapter 892 Building the Railway

"Your Highness, if we want a steamship or a train, is the big man really willing to sell it?"

In Zhan Shi's mansion, Hu Hui asked Zhu Zhanhe excitedly.

Originally, he had little hope for this matter, but he did not expect that in a twist of events, Zhu Zhanhe actually agreed. So when he learned the news from Li Qi, he went to the palace again excitedly to ask to see Zhu Zhanhe, because he I want to get confirmation from Zhu Zhanhe personally.

"Yes, the Ming Dynasty and the Han Dynasty are brothers. The steam engine is kept secret from other countries, but we can make an exception for the Ming Dynasty!"

Zhu Zhanhe said with a smile. If the Ming Dynasty was not about to imitate it successfully, he would not sell the steam engine!

In addition, selling the finished steam engine directly to Ming Dynasty would also dampen Ming Dynasty's enthusiasm for imitating steam engines. After all, there are ready-made steam engines available, and who is willing to spend a lot of time and money to imitate them? And even if the imitation is successful, the efficiency of the steam engine will probably be much worse than that of Dahan. You must know that Dahan's steam engine has been improved for countless generations.

"Great! Thank you, Your Highness!"

After receiving Zhu Zhanhe's affirmative answer, Hu Hui also shouted excitedly, not even caring about etiquette.

"Don't be too excited. Anything with a steam engine is not cheap. For example, steamships have been around for many years, but now whether it is official or private, sailboats are still the mainstream, just because steamships are too expensive. , even our Han Dynasty court can’t make too many.”

Zhu Zhanhe first inoculated Hu Xi and said, of course what he said was true. Whether it was a steamship or a train, the price was extremely expensive. For example, the Han Dynasty's navy only had more than 20 steam warships, and the remaining The auxiliary warships are still mainly sailboats.

"Your Highness, are trains expensive? If we want to buy a train, how much can you sell it to us?"

Hu Xi also calmed down at this time and asked Zhu Zhanhe immediately.

Compared with steamships, Hu Hui valued trains more. They took the train from Beizheng Port and arrived in Xijing in just a few hours. This also made Xijing not facing the sea, but it was not much different from the sea.

The situation in Beijing and Tianjin in the Ming Dynasty is similar to that in Xijing and Beizheng Port. If a train is used between Beijing and Tianjin, the distance between Beijing and the port will be greatly shortened. This is very important to Beijing, so Only then did Hu Xi ask about the train.

"Compared to steamships, the price of trains is cheap, but the most expensive thing about trains is not the cars, but the railways!"

Zhu Zhanhe explained with a smile.

"railway?"

Hu Hui was stunned for a moment when he heard this, and then suddenly remembered that the train ran on two long rails. A section of rails may not be expensive, but if it is laid for dozens or even hundreds of miles, it will cost a lot. But it’s an astronomical number.

"Your Highness, how much do you think it would cost to build a railway between Beijing and Tianjin and add running trains?"

Hu Xi hesitated for a moment, and finally asked again.

"It's hard to say. Although the distance between Tianjin and Beijing is not that far, the construction of the railway requires surveying the terrain and planning the route before the project volume can be planned. However, with the national power of the Ming Dynasty, building such a relatively short railway, It shouldn’t be a problem.”

Zhu Zhanhe replied with a smile.

Helping the Ming Dynasty build railways can not only make a lot of money, but also control the railway transportation of the Ming Dynasty. This is one of the reasons why later powers competed to build railways for the Qing Dynasty.

"So the big man is really willing to help us build the railway?" Hu Hui asked excitedly again after hearing this. It would be so convenient to think that trains can also travel between Beijing and Tianjin.

"Of course, but Hu Shangshu, can you alone make the decision on such a big matter?"

Zhu Zhanhe glanced at Hu Xi with some suspicion.

Although Hu Xi is in charge of the Ministry of Revenue and is a cabinet minister, don't forget that there are Yang Rong and Yang Pu in the cabinet, and Empress Dowager Zhang is now in charge. For something as big as building a railway, Empress Dowager Zhang must give her nod. Just fine.

"As long as the big man is willing to help us, I have the confidence to convince the Queen Mother and the cabinet!"

Hu Xi said very confidently.

With the development of maritime trade, Tianjin, as the largest port in the north, has become more and more important. The road between Beijing and Tianjin is full all year round, and even congestion often occurs. This has also seriously affected the connection between Beijing and Tianjin. communication between.

But if there is a railway, it will greatly ease the traffic tension between Beijing and Tianjin. Therefore, Hu Hui dared to say that he was sure to convince the Queen Mother Zhang and the cabinet. After all, the railway matter was of great significance whether it was public or private.

"Okay, I can promise you that as long as Ming Dynasty agrees, we big men can build your railway!"

Zhu Zhanhe immediately made up his mind and said that he had no reason to refuse a business such as railway construction, which was a sure profit.

After receiving Zhu Zhanhe's promise, Hu Hui once again thanked him excitedly. He couldn't help but feel excited when he thought of the trains traveling between Tianjin and Beijing in the future.

But Hu Hui was not an ordinary person after all. He quickly calmed down and said again: "Your Highness, in addition to railways and trains, there are also Dahan's steamships. We also urgently need such ships, but we just don't know how many Dahan can sell to us?"

"This one……"

Zhu Zhanhe also secretly calculated after hearing this. In the past, the construction of steamships was only done by the shipyard in Beizheng Port. The output of steam engines was limited, and the output of steamships was not large.

However, Zhu Zhanhe later had people build shipyards in several ports on the west coast, and began to produce steamships one after another. But even so, the construction of steamships could only barely meet the domestic needs of the Han Dynasty, and he wanted to squeeze out The quantity sold to Daming will definitely not be too much.

Thinking of this, Zhu Zhanhe finally replied: "Steam ships are also very popular in our Han Dynasty. Not only the court needs them, but also the people. As for how much they can be sold to the Ming Dynasty, I need to find someone to ask, but don't worry, I will try my best to give them." You squeeze some out!"

"Then Prince Lao will be the one to worry about. I will go back and discuss the specific purchase matters with the mission!"

Hearing this, Hu Xi said happily again that he came to see Zhu Zhanhe today and gained a lot. He also needed to talk to the people in the mission so that they could prepare for the next negotiation.

A few days later, the Han Dynasty and the Ming Dynasty formally reached an agreement on building railways and purchasing steamships. These two things are what the Ming Dynasty needs most now. As for other machinery using steam engines, they can be discussed later.

Of course, Dahan also used this agreement to obtain some concessions from Da Ming in terms of interests. It can be said that both parties got what they wanted.

(End of this chapter)