Iron Dynasty

In the early morning, with a loud whistle, the entire Qingzhou city boiled.

After two years of construction, the railway line from Dayu Country to Laiwu in the south, Kaiping in the north, and Dengzhou in the east was officially opened.

The people who heard the news were all delighted and went to the station to buy tickets one after another, and the whole station was surrounded by water.

Xiao Ming and a group of officials also arrived at the scene, along with Brandon.

After staying in Qingzhou for a month, Brandon has basically completed the procurement of materials. There are a total of 75 Dutch merchant ships going to Da Yu, all of which are full of goods.

This time, the Dutch mission purchased a total of 100 reciprocating steam engines, 16,000 muskets, 70 pieces of sugar, 3,000 pieces of porcelain, 9,000 pieces of silk, and 20,000 pieces of cotton cloth... Li on the platform Kaiyuan read the Dutch purchase list to Xiao Ming.

The point is, how much money is in total. Xiao Ming's eyes stayed on the bustling station.

A total of 6 million gold dragons were purchased. Li Kaiyuan smiled and saw that this amount was not small.

Xiao Ming nodded with satisfaction, and with the loan obtained from the Netherlands, the finances of the Great Yu Kingdom are now finally rich, especially the sales of conscripted muskets have basically reached the level of the same cost as breech rifles.

In this way, his army can successfully install 16,000 breech rifles from this transaction, and this does not include the transaction with Li Chuyuan.

Arms and industrial products really make money! Xiao Ming said with emotion, he finally understood why the contemporary United States is keen to make money from wars, which is indeed addictive.

Brandon on the side smiled, and he could see that this visit made the Emperor of Yu Kingdom very satisfied.

Envoy Brandon, I hope the friendship between the Great Yu Kingdom and the Netherlands will last forever, Xiao Ming said.

Brandon was a little flattered, Of course, of course, that's what we're looking forward to.

When the three were talking, the steam locomotive made a loud whistle sound again. At this time, holding the tickets, the long queue of people began to get on the train in an orderly manner.

Your Majesty, it's time to get in the car. Princess Pingyang reminded.

Xiao Ming nodded and made a gesture to Brandon, Bu** looked excited, he tidied up his dress and walked towards the motorcycle.

Father, let's go, let's go!

Xiao Yi was jumping in front of him, looking like he couldn't wait. In order to witness this great event, Xiao Ming brought a lot of people here, Luluo and Aster, Cui Xueer and Feiyue, of course, the young ones were also indispensable. Xiao Yi.

In addition, the important officials of the court also arrived, such as Fiji, Pang Yukun, Zhan Xingchang, even the father and son of the Kong family, Ge Yiren and others.

Not only that, King Yong, King Huainan and his son, King Runan and others also came to watch.

For Xiao Ming, this is not only the opening of the railway, but also an opportunity to show off his muscles.

Slow down, slow down. Xiao Ming took Xiao Yi's hand and said to Princess Pingyang as he walked: The key work under the Railway Division is to connect the railway lines north of Youzhou, Jinzhou, Raozhou, and Liaozhou. , although the barbarians have withdrawn from Kanto, they are still a great threat.

For Xiao Ming, even if Kanto was lost, the barbarians were the largest nomadic people in the north, and the threat was only relatively reduced, not absolute.

And a more dangerous enemy after the barbarians had already taken root in the vast land north of Jianzhou, and this was Tsarist Russia.

In the past, because of the barbarians, he could not understand the situation north of Jianzhou. After occupying Jianzhou this time, he immediately ordered an advance team to search north.

The news that came back shocked him. Compared with the contemporary era, the Tsarist Russia in this era penetrated the Kanto region even more than the contemporary era. They found the Tsarist Russian city three hundred miles north of Jianzhou.

This matter aroused great attention from Xiao Ming. He ordered the secret guard to investigate the influence of Tsarist Russia in Siberia, and at the same time began to plan to retake Siberian land, and the railway was undoubtedly the key to this plan.

Yes, Your Majesty. Princess Pingyang saw from Xiao Ming's serious expression that things seemed to be serious.

After reminding Princess Pingyang, Xiao Ming got into the steam locomotive. For today's experience, they reserved the first five carriages.

Entering the steam locomotive, Xiao Ming seemed to return to the contemporary era. Although the steam locomotive was somewhat backward, many of the layout of the carriages were no different from the modern ones.

After all, it would be much simpler to operate a steam locomotive with modern experience.

Your Majesty, this is the seat. Princess Pingyang personally introduced Xiao Ming.

Xiao Ming saw that the seat of the locomotive is now a metal frame, and a brand-new cotton cushion is installed on the frame, which looks similar to the seat of a modern train.

In the middle of the seats is a small table, so that some items can be placed, and above it is a luggage rack that protrudes, which is also in accordance with the contemporary design.

What satisfies Xiao Ming most is the thickened glass window of the locomotive. Sitting on the table, he can see the outside scenery.

Very good. Xiao Ming was very satisfied.

Princess Pingyang let out a sigh of relief and arranged for Fei Yue'er and others to sit down. She said, Your Majesty, this steam locomotive is equipped with an improved high-temperature and high-pressure steam engine, which can reach a speed of 90 kilometers per hour, and it can also reach about 60 kilometers with a load. , so it only takes six hours to travel from Qingzhou to Dengzhou. After all, the railway has many detours, and coal and water need to be added along the way.”

Six hours to get to Dengzhou! Brandon's mouth could not be closed in surprise. It took him three days to disembark in Dengzhou and then to Qingzhou.

Princess Pingyang said proudly: This princess has never been a big talker, and you will understand when you reach Dengzhou.

Hahaha... Xiao Ming was in a good mood. He hugged Xiao Yi and said, Yi'er, when you arrive in Dengzhou, the royal father will take you to eat the most beautiful seafood.

The officials in the carriage all laughed when they heard the words. At this time, they were all excited, because it was so incredible.

While everyone was chatting, it was time for the locomotive to set off, and with a loud whistle, the locomotive began to move forward slowly.

Power, it's moving. Xiao Yi clapped his little hands happily.

Outside the window, the station was retreating, and there was a huge cheer on the platform of Renshan Haishan.

Xiao Ming, who was sitting by the window, was recognized by the people, and they began to shout: Long live my emperor, long live, long live!

Xiao Ming waved his hand through the car window. Undoubtedly, today is also an exciting day for the people of Qingzhou. The sleeping lion in the Great Yu Kingdom has finally begun to wake up.

In the cheers, the speed of the locomotive was getting faster and faster. At this time, the inside of the carriage became quiet, and everyone began to appreciate the scenery along the way and indulge in it.

Three hours later, the locomotive stopped slowly at the Laizhou platform and set off again to Dengzhou after adding water and coal.