Begging in late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 752 Black Gold
In Dengzhou Bay, the cold wind was blowing, and black smoke was billowing, but this time it was the gunboats built by the Qing army that were finally burning. On the other side, 32 main battleships of the Ming army, Yingtian, were still spraying their anger.

The city wall of Dengzhou has almost been turned into sand on the beach, and it has been dismantled piece by piece. The once prosperous port city was devastated and destroyed by artillery fire and turned into ruins. With the double effect of the national regular army, the offensive is sharper and more ruthless than the Eight Banners Army with family and Niulu as the unit. Moreover, although the drawings supported by the French are still arquebus guns, this latest European front-line rifle is better than the old ones. The blunderbuss' lethality is much stronger, but Daming's Xuanlong fire-breathing flag is still hanging steadily above the Governor's Mansion of Dengzhou.

There is no way, Dengzhou and Laizhou gather rebels from the whole of Shandong and even most of the north. They would rather die than become slaves for Jiannu.

"Prince Regent, General Yunli can't hold on anymore, please help quickly!"

His face was covered with traces of sweat and gunfire smoke, and the braids flying behind him were all wet. When he came back from the sea in a small boat, Yunli's teeth-shattering guards knocked their heads heavily on the ground, smashing the stone steps It was all bang bang, but Dorgon didn't even pay attention to it while reading the battle report in his hand with a gloomy face.

Compared with the battle in the Huaihe River, Song Qingshu was more concerned about the battle in Dengzhou, not only because of Dengzhou, a stronghold in the north, but also because of the newly established Beiyang Navy of the Qing Army.

Although the Qing Dynasty now occupies Liaodong Mongolia and the entire north, and its territory is one or two times larger than that of the Ming Dynasty, Song Qingshu's coastal sea control in Northeast Asia is firmly in the hands of Song Qingshu, allowing him to travel from North Korea, Jinzhou, and Shandong. Threatening the Qing Empire, Dorgon could only respond passively.

But once the Qing Empire established its own navy, the situation was completely different. Even if Dorgon only had [-] gunboats, he could still encircle the coastal strongholds of the Ming army on both sides of the water like the Battle of Dengzhou, cut off the supply at sea, If the Qing army had fought more flexibly, it would have been able to attack any of its own routes on the sea surface. Merchant ships with few armed forces were no match for such heavy gunboats. The entire situation in Northeast Asia would be in flames.

So Song Qingshu attaches great importance to the Beiyang Navy, even when he was arranging the Huaihuai War, he mobilized [-] warships from the Jinzhou base in Liaodong to cruise the Japanese seas, and eight escort fleets to fight Japanese pirates, and from Songjiang Hong Kong dispatched four battleships and one Haidayu-class transport ship to form this powerful sailing battleship battle group. This force is even enough to directly destroy the power of many small European countries.

The navy teacher of the Qing court was French, part of the French naval warfare technology came from the Netherlands, and part of Daming’s naval warfare ideas came from his own exploration, and another part came from Song Qingshu’s imitation of the classic battle cases of the British Royal Navy in later generations. However, in history, regardless of the Anglo-Dutch War, the Seven Years War, or a series of battles in the Caribbean Sea, the navies of these two countries have lost to the Royal Navy.

This naval battle in Dengzhou Bay is similar. According to the tactics of the French instructors, the Beiyang Navy of the Qing Army directly sent the battleships into a long and narrow defensive line, and used them as sea turrets to guard an arc-shaped area. The firepower of the double-decker battleship imitating the Swedish Vasa is enough to make opponents desperate, but for the Ming Fleet with excellent firepower and maneuverability, it is a big wooden target.

The battle started at ten o'clock in the morning. The warships of the Ming army attacked forward in two lines, just like the tactics used by Nelson during the French expedition to Egypt. The main force attacked the front of the Qing army, and the flanks harassed the Qing army behind. In the attack, at about twelve o'clock at noon, eleven battleships of the Beiyang Navy managed by Dorgon were either sunk or captured, and the rest were also surrounded by the Ming Fleet.

This is not what bothered Dorgon the most. What bothered him even more was that the battle report had just arrived today. In Lianghuai, [-] Mongols and Eight Banners troops were wiped out. When the news spread to Mongolia, it is estimated that those Horqin and Tumed Mongolian princes who were already quite critical would start to make trouble again.

It has long been known that once the Ming army fights with all its strength, the two Huaihe Rivers will not be able to defend, but Dorgon really did not expect that the Ming army's attack was so sharp that 7 people did not even run out.

For the remnants of the huge dynasty in the south that once hung over the heads of the Jurchens in Jianzhou like the sky, the awe that had disappeared for many years resurfaced in Dorgon's heart. For the first time, Dorgon began to doubt that Xianhan chose to challenge Ming Dynasty. Did this behemoth pave a bright road for the Jianzhou Jurchens, or did it bury the danger of genocide?

"Prince Regent! My master won't last long!"

Seeing that Dorgon looked at the battle report from Lianghuai and hesitated for a long time without responding, beads of sweat were dripping down his forehead, and the soldiers who had teeth were not caring about their dignity, and finally couldn't help it again. He knocked his head heavily on the ground begging.

The sound of a cannon hit Dorgon's heart. It was a gunboat built by him with the wealth of two white flags to compete with Nanchao!Hearing this advice, Dorgon finally couldn't help but put down the battle report at hand, looked at the waggling soldier with scarlet eyes and waved his hands.

"Pass down the king's order, let Hadahai's artillery move closer to the sea, let people play semaphore, let Yunli's fleet set sail, and move to the shore..."

"Regent, Liaodong urgent report!"

Before he could finish speaking, the Hongling messenger outside the door suddenly rushed in, holding a piece of military information in front of Dorgon with both hands. He threw away the Lianghuai battle report viciously and resolutely, stretched out his hand to snatch the military information, tore it open, and watched it with a glance. After a while, Dorgon's face turned ashen.

Ning Guta is reversed!More than a dozen of Azig's subordinates have rebelled and defected to the Ming army on the opposite side!There is only one explanation for this phenomenon.

Haug!

He Dorgon lost Lianghuai, spent several 10 taels of military funds, paid more than 8 horses for being killed and captured, and even paid for the Beiyang Navy, in order to kill Haoge to stop Da The self-separation of the Qing Dynasty, up to now, has become nothing. Hauge fled back to Liaodong under his nose, and the civil war in the Qing Dynasty has become inevitable.

But this Dorgon was really ruthless, he only staggered for a few seconds, and suddenly he reached out and grabbed a large number of command arrows on the table, and threw them all over the ground like a goddess.

"Pass down this king's order, withdraw the troops, and return to the capital!"

"Regent, then my master!!!"

With a cry of grief, Yun Li's soldiers knocked their heads heavily on the ground, but unfortunately, Dorgon didn't even have the intention to look at him, and directly angrily threw open the tent door, and went out on his own.

Yunli's navy is doomed to be an abandoned child. Now Dorgon is most concerned about the defense of Shandong after the loss of Lianghuai and how to deal with Hauge, a tiger that can tear the Qing Dynasty apart. Now, he has no The mind is no longer concerned with a dying person.

…………

In April, the Ming army galloping westward successfully drove the Qing army back to Sichuan. At the same time, the great victory in Dengzhou Bay sank seven Jiannu warships and captured thirteen warships. Everyone cheered and jumped up, an unprecedented sense of pride surged in every Ming's heart.

However, the vigorous Northern Expedition came to an end.

With Lianghuai blocking the north, instead of facing Jiannu's horseshoe blade at any time like before, the people in Jiangnan are obviously much more at ease. Besides, the commander-in-chief has not announced a truce, and the empire is still "actively preparing for war". urgent?
In particular, what attracts public attention is the large-scale investment in Xuzhou Coal Mine!
At present, the steam engine that Song Qingshu is tossing about is also available, and the railway is also undergoing large-scale repairs. Moreover, Songjiang Yingtian, an international metropolis, has begun to replace horse-drawn carriages with public railcars powered by steam engines. However, Song Qingshu is so busy. It was discovered that there is no coal in the south of the Yangtze River!
The coal mines in Shanxi are well-known in later generations. In the hands of Jiannu, the coal mines in Guizhou are also extremely rich in minerals. Not to mention that they are still in the hands of Zhang Xianzhong. Only in the current traffic environment, they cannot be transported. There are also Jixin Qian'an Coal Mine, Heilongjiang Coal Mine, and Fushun Coal Mine , Liaoning, Jiaozuo Coal Mine, Henan, Pingxiang Coal Mine, the largest site occupied by Song Qingshu, is still far away in Jiangxi, too far away from the most scarce coastal areas in the south of the Yangtze River, and the traffic has not yet been repaired there.

This time Song Qingshu is so active in the two Huaihe Rivers because of the coal, the black gold of the industrial age. There are three large coal mines in Xuzhou, Huaibei, and Huainan. They are also close to the canal and Huaihe River. The terrain is flat and easy to transport. It is a godsend. Jiangnan's booster!
A while ago, 1000 million taels of silver were issued for military expenditures, but in fact less than 300 million was used. The rest was put into coal mines and became development funds. The changes brought about by the industrial age were really immediate. Huai was completely pacified. At the end of February, the Xuzhou Coal Mine Group was established and workers were recruited. In early May, a huge platform was set up.

Crowds climb up and down the huge mine like ants, but unlike the Daming Coal Mine in the past, railroad tracks like centipedes cover the entire main road of the mine, and the steam engine spews choking black smoke, transporting hundreds of thousands of tons of coal. Coal is pulled out of the mine, and the rails extend westward, directly connecting to the Huaihe River. From here, the coal is loaded on the canal line, and transported to the emerging factories in the south of the Yangtze River. It is also filled into the huge steam engine, supporting the emerging industry of the Ming Dynasty. development of.

The completion of the Xuzhou Coal Mine is a big day. Although it is in a private capacity, Song Qingshu and the major shareholders of the West India Company have all arrived, and they have almost moved to half the Congress, along the handrail of the mine stairs, these curious babies who are the top millionaires in Yingtian City After visiting every part of the coal mine like that, after a while, no matter the beauties like Gu Hengbo, or the dignitaries like Song Qingshu, their faces were all blackened by the evaporating dust.

No way, today's industrial conditions are far from meeting the standards of later generations, and pollution is unavoidable. Not to mention Ming Dynasty, most developed countries in the later generations of the world will take the path of pollution first and then treatment when they industrialize , For example, London, known as the city of fog, once set a record of thousands of deaths due to pollution in one winter.

The smog is terrible, but what is even more terrible is the backwardness. The century-old history of humiliation and the War of Resistance Against Japan have left many victims. So Song Qingshu would rather have a little more smog than develop industries first.

In addition to being dirty, this factory was very new in the eyes of the people at the time. The steam engine pumped up the underground gas, and the workers on the side lit it with fire. A dozen spectacular pillars of fire burned half the sky red. Inside the mine, Workers are constantly driving the steam locomotive, pulling out the mine carts that are common in American western films. Each cart is full of coal of equal thickness, and the other end is also driven by a steam engine, and the iron cylinders are constantly rotating. , separate the coal from the coal surface, and bag them separately according to the needs, and the small train next to them will go directly to the edge of the Huaihe River.

A deep black imprint was imprinted on this land.

The mine manager of the Xuzhou Coal Mine is quite unusual. Li Yongtai, the former general of Gao Jie in the Xuzhou Uprising, although he is considered a meritorious minister, has a dark history after all, and now there are too many generals that Ming can fight, with more than 200 division commanders. It's really not easy to arrange in the army, and this guy is unwilling to learn from a surrendered general like Li Guogao. He took his subordinates to Southeast Asia and India to make contributions. Fortunately, this guy knows how to give up all his subordinates, and directly transfers his troops to other places. I became the factory manager.

It can also be regarded as a state-owned enterprise employee.

However, this guy's business is obviously not too proficient. While introducing it in the front, he had to take out the manuscript written by the secretary before in embarrassment, and take a look.

"My lord, the major shareholders, our Xuzhou mining factory has a total of 11 employees, including [-] Japanese laborers, [-] Korean laborers, Southeast Asian and Mughal laborers, a total of about [-], and the rest are our Xuhuai children. , used in transportation and management."

"Well, it can produce about 500 million tons of coal a year, worth about 1000 million taels, and can supply..., yes, Songjiang, Changshu, Hangzhou and a series of coastal cities and ports! What else is coming..."

Seeing this 40-year-old bearded man scratching his head and racking his brains, Song Qingshu really scratched his head helplessly. Fortunately, there is a group board of directors for the specific operation. He, the mine manager, only signed and stamped on behalf of the Ministry of Industry. At this time, there will never be a period of weakness in the national flag company, and it is fine to let him stay on top.

Taking advantage of this guy scratching his head, Song Qingshu leaned on the railing and looked down.

Although the transportation method has been greatly developed, the excavation method has not changed. Song Qingshu really has no way to reduce the huge steam engine to the size of a palm, and then stuff it into the rotary pile driver, and has to rely on workers to use sledgehammers and chisels. Go head down and dig coal.

In the century-old history of humiliation in the late Qing Dynasty, Japan and Western powers once plundered a large number of Chinese laborers who went to sea to do hard labor. Less than one of the ten returned, known as piglets, is now a newspaper of the present world. Under the shaft mine, they are sweating profusely digging coal, but the salary they earn is less than half of that of Ming people.

Seeing these scumbags working, and thinking that there might be descendants of these guys among the bastards proposed by the boss of China's Diaoyu Islands in future generations, Song Qingshu couldn't help but feel secretly refreshed. Daming developed earlier than you, what can you do?
Just as he was watching these Japanese friends sweating profusely for the industrialization of the Ming Dynasty and stuffing truckloads of unearthed coal into the upper and lower cranes, suddenly the mine manager next to him, Li Yongtai, interjected rather emotionally.

"This thing is amazing! It is more powerful than a war horse. If our Daming installed this thing on a chariot back then, wouldn't we be invincible on the battlefield? How can we be afraid of the dog's cavalry!"

The speaker had no intention, but the listener had the intention, Song Qingshu's eyes suddenly lit up...

(End of this chapter)