Rise of the Argentine Empire

As the New Year began, La Pampa Province officially welcomed the height of summer. This year's summer seemed particularly hot, with temperatures consistently high, like a sauna. There was not a single breeze, and going outside for less than 10 minutes would leave you completely soaked, with clothes sticking to your skin. The muggy feeling was extremely uncomfortable. In such dreadful weather, people tried to avoid going out as much as possible, but staying at home wasn't much better.

Small electric fans became necessities and hot commodities for the citizens of Blanca. ENCO Electric Argentina expanded the construction of its fan factory production lines. ENCO fans were selling like crazy in Argentina and were also exported in large quantities to Brazil and Europe, creating a miracle of profits.

ENCO Electric produced old-fashioned iron fans, with all the components adding up to only a few dozen, yet they provided coolness and were much more comfortable than hand fans.

Imagine having a fan by your bed on a summer night; it would be pure bliss.

The problem was that even with few components, it was still a major challenge for Blanca in its current state.

San Jose never fought unprepared battles; outside help was always welcome.

The current heatwave was trending towards sweeping the globe, and it might become even more severe in the coming years, forming a serious natural disaster that would severely impact Argentina's fragile economy.

The La Pampa Provincial Government, as early as San Jose's inauguration, had prepared to meet the challenges of drought. It signed a large-scale cooperation agreement with Rio Negro Province, and agricultural water conservancy projects had begun intensive construction. During the brief rainy season, reservoirs would store more rainwater in advance to ensure basic water security for grain production.

More grain needed to be produced and stockpiled, as it would be a very important bargaining chip. Larger and more advanced giant grain storage warehouses were being built in the suburbs to prepare for the new harvest season.

At the end of last year, the Blanca Grain Reserve Company was upgraded to an enterprise under the La Pampa Provincial Government's State-Owned Assets Committee. The Blanca Municipal Government had shed this burden. No one knew the importance of grain better than San Jose, so he expanded the grain reserve company's storage scale.

San Jose now had to wear a mask when going out, as if he had returned to his previous life. However, this was mainly because there were too many construction sites, the greenery hadn't fully covered the area, and the air was polluted with dust, so he had no choice but to wear a mask when going out. Fortunately, the area where the Provincial Government was located wasn't as severely affected due to fewer factories.

Back to electric fans.

Relying on the small electric fan project, ENCO Electric Argentina quickly became one of the largest foreign-funded companies in Argentina. The factory scale directly resulted in a large industrial park. The La Pampa Provincial Government arranged for civil servants to be stationed and the military to be garrisoned to ensure fan production.

ENCO Electric had massively customized and acquired fan production lines three months ago, even directly buying factories and shipping them to Blanca after dismantling them, just to barely meet the demand. At that time, the United States was already in autumn, preparing for winter, and electric fan sales were entering a low season.

Not only Argentina but also Brazil had a huge demand for fans.

The electric fan market in the northern hemisphere, Europe and even the United States, had also been booming since June of last year. Even for wealthy Americans, electric fans were considered relatively good household appliances for cooling off. Currently, household air conditioners were still very large and consumed a lot of electricity, so they were still not affordable for ordinary American families.

San Jose played a time difference. The United States and Europe were currently in winter, and fan sales were low.

Inexpensive and high-quality Argentine-made fans slowly became bestsellers in South America. ENCO Electric registered a bunch of international trademarks and also engaged in OEM operations.

Brazil's power plant installed capacity was sufficient to meet the power supply needs, and the urbanization speed was very fast, creating a market much larger than Argentina's.

San Jose helped ENCO Electric complete the construction of the Blanca electrical appliance factory building at the fastest speed, and even issued a document directly ordering the Blanca Municipal Government to cooperate with ENCO Electric's factory construction work.

Although selling fans couldn't compare to buying and selling arms, it was indeed legal. San Jose had Kohn Heavy Industries, a distant relative's company of ENCO Electric, provide workers and various production equipment.

The new Kohn Heavy Industries' large arsenal was already filled with sold arms, but San Jose was still constantly producing and modifying his cheap assault rifles and submachine guns.

Producing more affordable and easy-to-use arms, he believed that it was a very interesting thing to allow war zones around the world to purchase cheap Argentine-made weapons.

Kohn Heavy Industries also established some trading companies for developing import and export trade. In Argentina, Kohn Heavy Industries couldn't legally export arms; they could only sell them to the Ministry of Defense and the police department, as well as illegally export them, which wasn't a long-term solution.

Blanca's third-largest import and export trading company, Valentin Import and Export Trading Company, exported more than 16 million US dollars worth of equipment and goods to Brazil every year, more than half of which were various arms and equipment.

Valentin Trading was the white glove of the new Kohn Heavy Industries, and then more than half of it was transshipped to more countries through Brazil, such as Colombia and Mexico. Argentine-made arms were not only cheap but also of good quality. The Blanca Steel Plant even opened a steel production line specifically for Kohn Heavy Industries.

Brazil was more simple and honest than Argentina and needed these guys more so they could better protect themselves.

As one of Argentina's newest defense contractors, New Kohn Heavy Industries was completely versatile, producing tanks, armored vehicles, rockets, and also building military shipyards. There were also the Arrow-3 fighter jets, and the San Martin Aircraft Factory was also merged into the New Kohn Heavy Industries Group.

The nationalized Rheinmetall Military Industries quickly recovered its vitality after changing to a new head, and it also developed some new weapons with good quality, finally not wasting this brand.

This time, mass production of fans, in addition to taking the opportunity to make a fortune, could also develop Blanca's electrical appliance industry. Buno Electronics received a large sum of money after its IPO, but progress was slow and it needed some external pressure.

Fortunately, although ENCO Electric produced electric fans with messy models, the quality was still good. Although many of the production lines in the United States were second-hand, they still worked well, and with the cooperation of the Blanca Municipal Government, the integration was quite rapid. ENCO Electric was making a lot of money, and tax revenue could also increase significantly.

As for why ENCO Electric was able to predict this market in advance, it was also due to the improvement of the Falcon Bureau's international intelligence system, coupled with San Jose's decision, as well as the capital and various relationships of Sequoia Capital in the United States.

When necessary, San Jose could directly spin off ENCO Electric Argentina. The United States made money, and Argentina spent it, which was pretty good to think about.

Buno Electronics, which was listed on the Argentine National Securities Exchange, also introduced and increased electric fan production lines, diversifying its expansion.

Department stores and cinemas purchased imported central air conditioning, making them good places to cool off on summer nights. ENCO Electric had not yet been involved in products such as air conditioners, as the investment was large and the market was still relatively small, requiring more advanced household air conditioners.

Due to the high temperatures, construction sites in various places had to reduce daily daytime working hours to prevent heatstroke. Moreover, due to the high temperatures, some hydroelectric power stations faced a situation where they had no electricity to generate, and electricity also became somewhat strained. San Jose could only increase the power generation of thermal power plants. Water resources were also somewhat strained, so he had to prioritize ensuring water for urban residents and agricultural water use.

This year, the southern provinces of Argentina have increased the scale of agricultural planting, which has expanded by 4.8 times compared to 1954. Wheat and rice have been planted in the Colorado River and Negro River basins. With fertilizer, it is not a problem to increase production by another two times this year, and agricultural mechanization is developing steadily.

Last year, La Pampa Province's industry and agriculture developed rapidly, with an economic growth rate of 60%, and the economic scale has reached 800 million US dollars, which is nearly half the size of Buenos Aires Province and 1/3 of the capital city of Buenos Aires. Among them, 80% is still contributed by Blanca.

Blanca now has six famous avenues, which are the essence of its economic development.

Blanca is now in a period of economic prosperity. Young Argentines tend to stay in big cities to work because Blanca can provide them with job opportunities, and they are happy to spend money in retail stores and bars. White Light Avenue is therefore even more prosperous.

The Republic of Argentina in the 1950s was originally supposed to be a country in economic recession, not only burdened with heavy national debt but also suffering from the impact of large-scale emigration. This was the beginning of a major national decline, especially the emigration of young immigrants, which was throwing away the future of the country.

They tended to immigrate to the United States or return to their European mother countries, Spain or Italy.

Since last year, Blanca has replaced Buenos Aires as the most dynamic economy in Argentina, so a large number of immigrants have gone to Blanca to look for opportunities.

Under the leadership of San Jose, who took office last year, the new La Pampa Provincial Government of the Radical Party implemented an economic recovery and expansion strategy with the support of the former opposition parties, the La Pampa Justicialist Party, the Republican Party, the Socialist Party, and the La Pampa Civic Union. The overall economy of La Pampa Province began to take off. Not only was Blanca developing madly, but other cities also began economic expansion.

With Blanca as the core, the three coastal cities as the flanks, and the surrounding areas of Santa Rosa as the backing, the development was quite impressive.

Foreign investment, especially from American capital (influenced by the post-World War II American economic boom), along with structural financing from Argentina's national financial securities capital and the provincial government in improving La Pampa Province's infrastructure, laid the foundation for La Pampa Province's prosperous economy.

Of course, most of the so-called American capital actually originated from Sequoia Capital and Blackstone Capital, controlled by Saint-Jose, along with a large number of shell companies, almost amounting to free aid.

The sharp increase in consumer spending and alcohol consumption among young people are two obvious signs of La Pampa Province's growing wealth. Prarli Food's Vidma Brewery saw a 15-fold increase in sales in Blanca City, with significant increases in other cities as well.

Blanca City is now a hub for sea and land transportation, as well as a financial and commercial center, playing an important role in Argentina's foreign trade. Saint-Jose plans to build a large airport in the suburbs.

The industry in the provincial capital, Blanca City, is second only to Buenos Aires, with textiles, automobile tires, oil processing, machinery, chemicals, food, wood processing, aquatic product processing, shipbuilding, and automobiles. The machinery industry is particularly developed, while shipbuilding and petrochemical industries already lead Argentina in production. The export of aquatic products holds an important position in export trade.

La Pampa Province's year-end census population is 3.141 million, a historical high, estimated to account for about 10.7% of Argentina's total population. However, Argentina's last census was several years ago, making this percentage data relatively vague.

Blanca City has grown to 2.048 million people, with a slightly slower growth rate. The total population of the three coastal cities has exceeded 544,000, with rapid growth continuing. Santa Rosa City has also reached 177,000. The population of other broad administrative cities has increased. After the adjustment of administrative divisions, the net population outflow has greatly improved, especially the growth of the central urban population.

The number of newborns in the entire province reached an astonishing 136,000, which is almost the growth data of a ten-million-population administrative region. The number of deaths is less than 10,000, and the gender ratio is balanced.

Most importantly, La Pampa Province's population structure is very young, with people under 30 accounting for 52% of the total population. This is a very good phenomenon, and the unemployment rate has also reached a historical low of 2.9%, the lowest in Argentina.

This year's surge in newborns is mainly the result of the fertility policies encouraged in the previous two years. Many pregnant women from other provinces are directly transported to hospitals in Blanca City for registration, and even many women of childbearing age from Buenos Aires Province come to Blanca City.

Although building hospitals is not an overnight task, with money in Argentina, many experienced doctors can be found, and people can also be recruited from neighboring countries. For example, there are 47 registered doctors who were formerly Chilean citizens.

With the support of bank loans, a total of 9 medium and large hospitals in Blanca City were completed last year, increasing the overall number of hospitals to 34. Moreover, there are 11 hospitals under construction in Blanca City, and old hospitals have also begun large-scale expansion and renovation. Blanca City has no shortage of land resources.

The abundance of medical resources and tolerant settlement policies make it no surprise that the number of newborns in Blanca City has increased so much.

The housing situation continues to be oversupplied. Blanca City is under construction almost all year round, either building roads or houses, and constructing supporting facilities. Most importantly, it is building factories, a large number of various factories.

For the people of Blanca City, owning a decent house is a dream, in the suburbs or in places relatively far from the factory area, but basic housing is guaranteed without any problems. Dormitories or tube buildings are sufficient, and because they are newly built, the living environment is actually quite good, with no problems with electricity and tap water.

Large-scale polluting factories are now basically built in the distant suburbs. For example, Arta District is the most populous district and also the most polluted district, mainly due to the presence of thermal power plants and steel plants. The chimneys of steel blast furnaces stand tall, and every time smoke is emitted, the smell of money can be smelled.

Blanca City's electricity needs the support of other cities, while Blanca City's electricity is the only profitable power company in the entire La Pampa Province. The investment in electricity infrastructure is huge, requiring the establishment of a provincial-level financing platform to meet the needs.

Therefore, Saint-Jose certainly will not let Blanca City Electric Power Company monopolize the profits. He directly reorganized Blanca Electric Power in the name of the provincial government, establishing a province-wide power grid with Blanca Electric Power as the core to coordinate the development of the power industry.

After Blanca Electric Power Company was reorganized as a subsidiary of La Pampa Province Electric Power Corporation, the entire power development plan of Blanca City was given to La Pampa Province.

Saint-Jose spends a lot of effort every year to conduct a census, previously in Blanca City, now in the entire La Pampa Province.

First, there are not many people in La Pampa Province now, and the workload and cost will not be unbearably high.

Second, it can incidentally improve the cohesion of the Radical Party, cultivate new talents with leadership skills, and enhance the professional skills of the Radical Party's Southern faction.

Third, it can conduct a comprehensive survey of the overall situation of La Pampa Province, and at the same time, it can understand the development demands of citizens.

A census is actually not a simple matter, requiring a capable and prestigious ruling force to complete, especially a large-scale census.

But for the Saint-Jose Provincial Government, it is a very important task, and for the entire La Pampa Province region, scientifically formulating national economic and social development plans, and promoting economic industrialization, also requires a large population to support it, and also requires high-quality talents to support it. For example, the currently focused medical industry is very difficult because Blanca City's scientific research strength is weak, so building universities and scientific research institutes is very important.

This kind of excessive population growth in a short period of time is abnormal and very rare. For example, Blanca City has grown in almost 1 year the population that other cities absorb in 10 or even 20 years. Although the situation is somewhat special, 60% of the new population comes from people who want to leave Argentina and immigrate abroad due to economic deterioration, and even many come from the more prosperous Buenos Aires.

Rapid population growth is bound to be accompanied by various social problems, which is a difficult test for Saint-Jose's ruling team.

Through such a survey, Saint-Jose can have a comprehensive understanding of the entire La Pampa Province, and it can also prevent many foreign friends who want to infiltrate La Pampa Province from messing around.

The technological progress of the Second Industrial Revolution and the process of trade globalization have promoted the diversified development of La Pampa Province's economy and trade. Moreover, with the establishment of the Argentina National Securities Exchange, Blanca City has been shaped into a market with very relaxed financial service supervision.

Although this has already led to many financial crimes, it has indeed greatly enabled Blanca City to achieve rapid economic leaps, and a large amount of hot money has begun to pour into Blanca City, being guided to investments in various emerging industries.

Colon Avenue in Arta District is the Steel Avenue of Blanca City. This avenue, along with Baiguang Avenue in the East District, Wutong Avenue in Posca District, Yasen Avenue in the West District, Sunset Avenue in the East District, and Haiwan Avenue, are equally famous and are also affectionately known as "Sixth Avenue."

Colon Avenue is a vast area from Helen Street to Colon Street in Arta District. It is the new urban area of Arta District and also the location of the current Arta District Government. Arta District is now called the city on steel, which is not without reason.

The headquarters of Blanca City's three largest steel companies are all located on Colon Avenue: Medanos United Steel Plant, Blanca Steel Company, Hans Steel, and a number of small steel companies, so it is also known as Steel Avenue.

Wutong Avenue is the new financial street and also the location of the Argentina National Securities Exchange, more related to stock companies and investment companies. Banks also have branches, but not many. This is the birthplace of Blanca City's new rich and also the place with the highest average salary. The surrounding supporting environment still needs to be improved.

Yasen Avenue in the West District is the most concentrated area of banking in Blanca City. Yasen Avenue was developed during Saint-Jose's tenure in the Blanca City Municipal Government. It now has 17 bank headquarters and regional headquarters. In addition to Blanca City Commercial Bank and La Pampa Industrial and Commercial Bank, most banks are small banks, and it is the location of the Balen Bank Regional Headquarters.

This is one of the most prosperous places in Blanca City. Half of the construction funds in the entire La Pampa Province flow out from here. Last year, it helped Saint-Jose raise hundreds of millions of US dollars in construction loans and is the largest creditor of the La Pampa Province Government and the Blanca City Municipal Government.

Blanca City's major industries are developing rapidly. Now, the six avenues are the most important. The regularized Baiguang Avenue has become a place of extravagance, with the highest density of bars, hotels, cinemas, and restaurants in Blanca City.

Blanca City also has a Sunset Avenue, which is the traditional old city area, the location of the old Blanca City Municipal Government, and now the location of the West District District Government. This was originally the place with the best environmental conditions in the city and the starting point for the establishment of the city in Blanca Bay. After renovation, it has become a symbol of Blanca City.

Haiwan Avenue is the most prosperous commodity market in the port industrial area and the core area of the port industrial area. It has the most trading companies in Blanca City and is very close to the Blanca Free Port.

In addition to the six avenues, Blanca City also has a large number of commercial streets, industrial streets, and specialized trade markets, providing a huge number of jobs.