African Nationhood

Chapter 257 Car Meeting (Part )

On June 1888, 6, Rudolf Diesel stood at the port of Walvis Bay and waited patiently.

Today is the day when technicians from the German Mercedes-Benz Automobile Factory and his family arrive. He arrived at Walvis Bay Port early to wait.

Last year, Boss Shi left a job for the Mercedes-Benz Automobile Factory, and they needed to form a team to tackle the problem.

Therefore, they did not come to Southwest Africa for a meeting last year, and this year is the first time.

……

At eight o'clock, with the sound of an extra-long whistle, the passenger ship of the German Hamburg Steam Shipping Company slowly docked at the port.

Then we saw a large number of German immigrants disembarking from the ship. After registering at the port, they will be assigned to different German gathering areas.

The Nanhua Company's policy towards European immigrants was divided into British and Europeans, who were treated differently.

Europeans are mainly self-governing in scattered small gatherings. The settlements are usually 40 or 50 people in size. The settlements are usually placed in the middle of Chinese settlements.

In this way, the Germans will inevitably have to deal with the Chinese in the future, and as time goes by, they will be slowly assimilated.

For the British, Jinshan Town remained their main settlement point.

Due to the harsh natural conditions in the two major administrative regions of Matabeleland and Lunda Kingdom, not many Europeans went to open up wasteland there.

Gold exploration in the Rand Basin is in full swing, and immigrants from Europe are more inclined to go there to pan for gold.

……

Many white people from the South China Company, Cape Colony and Natal Colony rushed to the Rand Basin, and the three British colonies did not stop this phenomenon.

The South China Company deliberately allowed these white British people to leave, while the British colonies hoped that the more British people would be in the Rand Basin, the better. Then they would have an excuse to compete with the Boers for control of the Rand Basin.

The Boers were well aware of the British's thoughts, so the Boer authorities in the Rand Basin were very cautious and tried not to provoke the British or give the British a chance to get angry.

As more and more European gold prospectors gathered, the three parties negotiated and relaxed the exploration restrictions in the area around Rand Central Mining Company.

Although you can explore at will, you have to pay a fee for exploration, and you have to use indentured labor provided by Nanhua Company to mine gold mines, otherwise you can't even think about mining.

As more and more gold deposits were discovered through exploration, the Boers and the British gradually came to realize that the Nanhua Company was the most treacherous one.

Although the wages of indentured laborers are low, they cannot stop the large number of workers.

Today, the number of black indentured laborers dispatched by Nanhua Company has exceeded 5. The settlement fee per person is 15 pounds, plus the salary of 6 pounds per person per year, which is not a small amount.

In addition, Nanhua Company's New Rand Farm does not allow outsiders to enter at will. The excuse is that Rand Farm is a base for housing indentured laborers to prevent indentured laborers from running around.

……

After Rudolf Diesel received his family, Karl Benz and Muller Sebastian were waiting for him.

Following them were several engineers from the Benz Engine Research Institute, who were assigned to help Rudolf Diesel develop a new internal combustion engine.

After everyone exchanged greetings, they checked into the Anhai Town Guesthouse together.

Tesla had not returned from England, so a group of Germans were very curious when they saw Guo Songtao, who had long braids, and his concubine Liang, who was still wearing traditional Qing women's clothes. They couldn't help but come over and want to talk to them. The two took a group photo.

At first Guo Songtao could accept it. After all, it is understandable for foreigners to be curious about the Qing Dynasty. But when these foreigners wanted to take a photo with his concubine alone, he couldn't accept it.

The Germans were a little disappointed after being rejected, but after learning that the old gentleman and his middle-aged concubine were guests of Nanhua Company, they lost their temper.

The next day, a group of them, led by Rudolf Diesel, went to the laboratory of the Anhai Town Arsenal.

These people discussed a lot with Rudolf Diesel in the laboratory. Karl Benz was inspired by the paper published by Rudolf Diesel and realized his own shallowness.

Now he is very enthusiastic to help Rudolf Diesel solve technical problems, such as what grade of steel to use for casting the cylinder, and they can even discuss the sealing problem of the cylinder.

Rudolf Diesel, who has broadened his horizons and received suggestions, is full of confidence. With the help of engineers from Benz Engine Research Institute, the day when they develop a new engine will come soon.

……

On June 6, the first automobile conference was held at the Anhai Town Convention Center.

Karl Benz made an opening report on behalf of the Mercedes-Benz Automobile Factory.

"The Mercedes-Benz Automobile Factory, in accordance with Mr. Shi's instructions, has completed the research and development of the car's four-wheel braking system and seat belts.

Corresponding parts are being intensively produced. Since the launch of the Model T car, Mercedes-Benz has had abundant cash flow and orders have been saturated.

At present, the factory has received orders for more than 3 new cars, most of which were ordered by customers in Germany and surrounding countries.

We want to continue to expand the factory to increase production capacity and the number of workers. I will submit the specific cost list to Mr. Shi for review after the meeting. "

When Shi Jintang heard this, he said "hmm" to express that he understood.

"In addition, we are still working on the research and development of new safety glass. We are not professional in glass..."

Hearing this, Shi Jintang interjected, "My glass factory has successfully researched safety glass. After the meeting, you can go to the glass factory to discuss the specific licensing fee."

After listening to Boss Shi's words, Karl Benz showed an excited expression on his face, "That's great, then our Model T will be the world's first safe car."

There is nothing wrong with this. After all, it would be unreasonable for a car that integrates a clutch, gearbox, seat belt, safety glass and four-wheel braking system to be unsafe.

"Well, how is the development of high-horsepower engines going?"

Karl Benz restrained his smile and answered sternly: "Daimler and Maybach have strong R&D capabilities. The engine natural air cooling device they proposed can significantly reduce the thermal efficiency reduction problem caused by engine overheating.

In addition, we have successfully increased the number of engine cylinders, and both three-cylinder and four-cylinder engines have been implemented.

Now the maximum power of our engine can reach 35 horsepower, and the speed of the car has exceeded 50 kilometers per hour. "

Hearing these results, Shi Jintang nodded, "We are going to develop a new car next. The new car must integrate all our new technologies and focus on safety and comfort.

The T-type car will be a special price car, specifically to develop the low-end market. New technologies must be reserved. Only seat belts and safety glass components will be upgraded, and four-wheel brakes, clutches and gearboxes will be available as optional components. "

After listening to Shi Jintang's words, Carl Benz nodded and asked: "What about the name of the new series of cars?"

Shi Jintang considered it for a moment and said, "Let's call it Crown. In the future, the latest technologies will be integrated into this high-end brand, and other series of models can be developed in the future, such as the people-friendly Volkswagen, the wild and unrestrained Maybach, etc."

　Please subscribe, collect, monthly tickets, recommendation votes.

　　
  　
  (End of this chapter)