Chen Ke strolled on a small road between hills, following him was a group of staff from the Ministry of Transportation.∽↗∽↗,

These young people from the Corps Fort are now surveying and mapping the weeds trail that was artificially stepped on. The newly established Jiaohe Branch of the General Administration of Development of the State is planning a new sandy and soil highway, that is, the road from Jiaohe Fort to the south Wild Boar Pond is a newly set settlement. As the name suggests, it is located not far from a pool, and is named after a group of wild boars appeared beside the pool.

This settlement is located several kilometers west of the small village of Capane in later generations. Due to its superior environmental conditions, it was chosen as a settlement by the Jiaohe area. First of all, the place was stolen from a Guarani tribe, and agriculture has laid a certain foundation. Secondly, the nearby water source is rich and the terrain is empty, unlike those areas covered by dense forests. It is very suitable to develop into a town. Finally, it is a superior geographical location, located near the railway line roughly parallel to the Jiaohe-Yazi River system built by later generations, which is very beneficial to future transportation planning. A variety of factors have put together, making this place the third settlement in the entire Jiaohe area. The second settlement is Mupai Township, more than 30 kilometers north of Jiaohe Fort. At present, there are no immigrants in the area. Only some people who are doing the preliminary work have built a few houses and then hung a wooden sign to indicate that they have officially settled here, so it is named.

In other words, the newly established Jiaohe area has only three settlements, namely Jiaohe, Mupai and Wild Boar Tan. The official settlement population is only more than 3,000, with no industry, almost no commerce, and pitifully weak agriculture. Overall, it is really the weakest regional administrative unit in the entire East Coast Republic of China. This is obviously the reason why the Executive Committee sent a retired member of Xu Xin here: the land here is not barren, the resources are rich, and the climate is even more unspeakable. It would be a pity not to develop well. Besides, in the future, if the Portuguese fights with the Portuguese, the East Coast Army will go north to expand the territory of the Geral Mountains. Then, the already developed Jiaohe area, many counties and townships in the Beiyazihu ​​area are the main bases for supporting such military operations. With them, war will become extremely simple, and on the contrary, it will be more difficult.

"How is the construction cost of this road?" Chen Ke asked the technicians of the Ministry of Transportation who were working: "Does 1,000 yuan per kilometer?"

"Even if the construction materials are supplied nearby, even if the Guarani tribes that are about to be moved out will come to help with their work temporarily, even if we greatly optimize the route so that they do not overturn mountains or cross forests, the construction cost of this road is still more than 1,000 yuan per kilometer, and the entire road is repaired. We estimate that it will cost more than 30,000 yuan." A Corps Fort student soldier who led the team said that he has graduated for several years and is now a small cadre. This time, he brought such a team of more than 20 people.

"If unexpected expenses and other expenses are included, it is likely to cost between 30,000 and 35,000 yuan. To be honest, the construction cost of this road is still not low, and the maintenance cost will be not small in the future." Another younger cadre added, "But this road is also very valuable because it easily connects the two settlements of Wild Boar Tan and Jiaohe Fort. As the population of the two places increases, the economy will gradually develop. In the future, its value will be more prominent. We are very confident. Moreover, if possible in the future, it is best to let the people from the Jiaohe Branch of the Kaituo General Administration squeeze out some funds and manpower, and build the 36-kilometer simple sand and soil highway from Jiaohe Fort to Mupaixiang. In this way, the three settlements will be connected into a front line, which is very beneficial to the future development of the region."

"My ancestors often say that to get rich, I should build roads first. I agree. If you want to develop in every region, the improvement of transportation conditions is definitely the first priority. Just look at the Wujiang area. Because of the advantages of convenient water transportation, it can directly navigate sea ships. The conditions are not comparable to that of ours, so the development speed is extremely amazing. In addition, it is close to important industrial areas and agricultural areas, and there is arterial-level railway connection. The railway-road-water transport is very good, so it is not surprising that the rapid development of the local area is not surprising. Jiaohe area, we need to make more fun!" Chen Ke sighed when he heard this. As a new official of the Ministry of Agriculture, he has been traveling all over the world and has a very good understanding of the situation of various areas on the east coast, so he has the above words.

There is a small section of mud canal excavated by the roadside. Because of the abundant local precipitation and high groundwater level, no brick-proof drainage canal was built like on the eastern prairie. The canals were newly dug for a few months, and were covered with dead grass at this time, but there was obviously no silt and could be used. Because there was heavy rain in late autumn and early winter (the annual precipitation in the Yazi Lake basin is relatively average, and the rain and heat are not in different periods), the canal was filled with rain. Some free-range ducks and geese flapping between them, stirring the accumulated water into a turbidity.

On both sides of the canal, more than a dozen sheep were slowly chewing and eating the withered and yellow weeds. One of them was looking at everyone with innocent watery eyes. It seemed strange why these people were lying on the side of the road and writing and painting. Are they also "eating grass"? A shepherd wearing a fur hat on his head leaned against the feet of a giant tree that had grown for fear that it was not a thousand years old. He looked at the group of passing "cadres" lazyly. It was only when he saw Chen Ke himself that the lazy slackly stood up and bowed.

Chen Ke knew this man. He was originally a small officer from the Shun Army. He was a farmer from Gansu. He killed many people since the end of the Ming Dynasty. After immigrating to the East Coast, he divided the land, but did not take good care of him. After all, his ten-year career as a bandit has already ruined his heart. This time he took a break and started his old job in farming. He felt that he was not very happy and no longer as comfortable as before. But what could he do? In a high-pressure society like the East Coast, could he rebel again? Don't joke, he himself knew that if he did this, he would be taught to be a human being in every minute. The vicious things of the army and military police were even more terrifying than the most vicious official army back then.

"I heard something happened in the north a while ago. I mean Yiling County, Dingxi County is close to the Relar Mountains. Some villages often lose cattle and sheep, and even news of farmers being murdered or missing. You are doing exploration and mapping all day outside. You have to pay attention to your own safety and don't be taken advantage of by some people with ulterior motives. After all, the country costs a lot of money to train you, and you have a lot of wonderful lives ahead." Chen Ke suddenly thought of something, so he said.

He reminded these scholars: "The people from the General Administration of Intelligence have talked to me. They believe that these things are inseparable from the Portuguese on the other side of the mountain. Although they may not have taken action by those people themselves, they must have inseparable from their support for some Guarani tribes. So you need to be careful. Those savages are very cruel, and sometimes there may be some Indian bandits who have come from Brazil. If they accidentally get their way, it is really worth it."

"So, why didn't the Military Affairs Department ask the Executive Committee to agree to send troops to wipe out these people?" Someone asked.

"Maybe it's because they are too scattered, and the locations they appear are elusive and cannot be predicted at all, which has caused great trouble to the clearing operation." Someone gave a reasonable explanation.

"Actually, the real reason is," Chen Ke reached out to stop the discussion of the students, and then said: "Our country is negotiating with the Spaniards about mortgage loans in the Patagonia region, which means that we may obtain a large area of ​​new territory at any time, and this is consistent with the national policy of "first south and then north" that the Executive Committee has always formulated. Therefore, in the short term, the Executive Committee will focus most of its energy on the south, and it may be difficult for the north to take into account both. Besides, the transfer of the First Battalion of the Army to the Jiaohe area is already a strong support from the military headquarters to the north. What else can it do? What else do you want?"

"If we want to truly gain a foothold in this wilderness, preserve our useful body, and try to eliminate more enemies, we still have to rely on the strength of the masses." Chen Ke said, "Many immigrants sent to the Jiaohe area have received long-term military training in the southern region and have certain experience in fighting traitors. In addition, some new immigrants were not fuel-efficient in the old continent. Many of them were military personnel who had been fighting for many years, such as the Shepherd you just saw. Yes, it was him, he looked like a trash farmer.

The people are, right? They are dirty and smelly! But what I want to say is that he fought with the Qing army in the old continent for many years and obtained the outstanding results of beheading level seven; and before joining our army, he served in the Shun army. It was difficult to verify how many people he killed during those years. In short, there must be more than seven people. Therefore, many times, uniting these people and leveraging their potential as much as possible to eliminate more enemies is what we need to consider the most. Some of you may be transferred to local governments to serve as grassroots officials in the future. We must remember this."
Chapter completed!