Atacama Desert, South America.

The Atacama Desert is not inland, but in the middle of the west coast of South America, stretching about 1,000 kilometers from north to south between the Andes Mountains and the Pacific Ocean, with a total area of about 180,000 square kilometers.

Located on the border between Bolivar, Chile and Peru, the Atacama Desert was never clearly defined during Spanish colonial rule.

After the independence of the three countries, Bolívar occupied the Antofagasta region in the central Atacama Desert, Peru occupied the Tarapacá region in the northern part of the desert, and Chile acquired the southern part of the desert.

Although the three countries have declared sovereignty over the desert area, because the Atacama Desert is desolate and barren and has little value, the three countries have not paid attention to it, so they have always been peaceful.

In 1866, silver and copper deposits were discovered in the Atacama Desert, followed by guano and saltpeter, which were abundant. Needless to say, silver ore itself is currency, guano is also a hot commodity, before the invention of chemical fertilizer, guano is the best fertilizer, Yuanqi's guano business in the South China Sea is very prosperous, European countries and the United States for guano demand is very huge.

As for copper ore and saltpeter, it is an extremely important strategic resource, and it is more sought-after, especially saltpeter, which is an important raw material for the manufacture of gunpowder, and the saltpeter reserves of the Atacama Desert are large and of high quality, which is favored by the world's major military powers.

With its enormous value, the ownership of the Atacama Desert suddenly became important, and the dispute between Chile, Bolivarian and Peru over the ownership of the desert became acute.

After much negotiation and negotiation, in 1874 the three countries reached an agreement that Peru would control Tacna, Arica, and Tarapaca in the saltpeter mining area of Atacama, Bolivia would occupy Antofagasta, and Chile would control the remaining small saltpeter mining area south of the 24th parallel.

This result was based on the military alliance between Bolívar and Peru, so Chile, which had the strongest military strength among the three countries, was not reconciled to this agreement, and it can be said that the outbreak of the South American Pacific War was expected long ago.

Atacama Desert, Bolivar, Puerto Antofagasta.

Located on the shores of the Gulf of Moreno, the port of Antofagasta is a port city that arose from the mining of saltpeter, copper and silver, and although it was founded only a decade ago, it became the only and largest port in Bolivar due to the rapid development of the mining industry.

The short streets of the port of Antofagasta are lined with signboards of all kinds, including banks, mining companies, shipping companies, railway companies, pubs, brothels and shops of all sizes.

Of course, the most are still mining companies, and there are dozens of large and small mining companies in England, Qingguo, Chile, Bolivarian, the United States, Spain, France and other countries.

Of all the mining companies, Yuanqi South American Mining Company is the largest and most powerful, with its headquarters in a three-storey red brick building, which stands out from the crowd of low-rise buildings.

Because of the war, Antofagasta became quite depressed, most of the companies closed their doors to escape the war, the streets were sparsely populated, many shops were closed, and there were not many ships in the originally very crowded harbor, only a dozen or so cargo ships flying the Yuanqi Sea Soul Flag remained.

In the spacious manager's room on the second floor, Zhao Shengqiang, who is in his early forties, stood on the balcony with a lost face holding a cigar and looked at the deserted harbor.

The Chilean navy sent a fleet to raid the port of Antofagasta without declaring war, and because it did not meet any resistance, the damage caused was not great, although there were also looting and sabotage, but it was against the companies and shops opened by Bolivar, and it was quite polite to companies from other countries.

This is also the reason why Yuanqi South American Mining Company did not close its doors, Zhao Shengqiang firmly believes that the Chilean army does not dare to offend Yuanqi easily, and now who in the world does not know the strength of the Qing Empire Navy, with the strength of the Chilean Navy, it is simply not able to withstand the retaliation of the Qing Navy.

The reason why Zhao Shengqiang was a little disappointed was because he received a telegram from Shanghai asking him to organize an evacuation as soon as possible, which made him realize that his previous judgment was wrong, and that the war was very likely to expand, and it could last much longer than expected.

He was a little reluctant in his heart, there are many mines controlled by South American mining companies, and the loss of this evacuation is too great!

"Mr. Zhao——。" Deputy manager Zhuang Mingfan walked behind him slowly, "Otherwise, call back to explain the situation in detail to ...... China." ”

"Nope." Zhao Shengqiang said in a sullen voice, the amount of copper ore and saltpeter imported from South America every year is very huge, how can the country not know the situation?

"How do you know if you don't try?" Zhuang Mingfan still did not give up, and the loss of evacuation was unimaginable.

Zhao Shengqiang glanced back at the door of the office and saw that it was closed, so he said softly: "The Chilean army occupied the port of Antofagasta, and they didn't dare to do anything to us, why does the country want us to evacuate now?" ”

Zhuang Mingfan's heart jumped, "Is it possible to send troops to South America?" ”

"What do you think?" Zhao Shengqiang shook his head slowly and said, "The large number of warships and munitions purchased by Bolivar and Peru from our country is about to arrive. In addition, I heard that England is also selling a large number of warships to Chile, and this war has a tendency to expand...... so we evacuate because we are worried that Chile will be angry and detain us. ”

"If Chile dares to detain us, isn't it just an excuse to send troops to our country?" Zhuang Mingfan said softly: "The three countries of South America are rich in mineral deposits, and copper ore and saltpeter ore are strategic resources, which is a rare opportunity to expand power in South America. ”

"Are these things on our minds?" Zhao Shengqiang said: "Don't think about it, you hurry up and prepare, and lead the team to set sail back tomorrow." ”

"Leading the way?" Zhuang Mingfan said in surprise: "Mr. Zhao won't return?" ”

Zhao Shengqiang said: "I am going to Lima, the capital of Peru, Bolivar and Peru need huge war loans, and we need more mines. ”

Gongning City, Xinjiang.

Gongning City, founded in the 37th year of Qianlong, is the choke point of Xinjiang's roads, its strategic position is very important, it is also the political, economic, military and industrial center of Xinjiang, and it is also one of the main resettlement areas for migrants from Northwest China.

Since Yuanqi vigorously operated the northwest, began to send a steady stream of immigrants to the northwest, Gongning City, as the main resettlement area, the population has swelled rapidly, and the development is very rapid, but in more than 20 years, it has increased rapidly from tens of thousands of people to more than 300,000 now.

When the Qing Dynasty unified Xinjiang, the total population of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang was only more than 300,000, and in 1850, the population was only a little more than one million, and in the short period of more than 20 years when Yuanqi vigorously developed Xinjiang, the total population of Xinjiang has reached an astonishing more than 5 million.

With the rapid growth of the population, the opening of the railway, and the successive introduction of various preferential policies in the border areas, not only greatly promoted the agricultural development of Xinjiang, but also stimulated the industrial development of Xinjiang, iron and steel plants, power plants, textile factories, woolen mills, tanneries, shoe factories, machinery factories, milk factories, meat processing factories, canning factories and other large and small factories have sprung up like mushrooms after a rain.

Gongning City, which was originally the center of trade in Northwest China, has now become the center of trade in the whole of Central Asia, and the volume of trade with Persia, Russia, and Ottomans has steadily increased year by year.

Xinjiang Governor's Palace.

In the signing room, Zuo Zongtang, the governor of Xinjiang, who is in his sixties, put down the statistical report in his hand and asked slowly: "Where is the special train?" ”

Li Yunlin, a staff member who was sorting out the copywriting, glanced up at him and said slowly: "Yesterday's telegram shows that the special train of the Empress Dowager and the emperor has arrived at Jiayuguan, and the special train of the King of Zhennan has only arrived in Wuwei. ”

After pondering for a while, Zuo Zongtang said: "If there is a chance, is Yucang willing to return to Beijing, or continue to stay in Xinjiang?" ”

Hearing this, Li Yunlin was stunned for a moment, and secretly wondered if the king of the northwest was going to move his nest? It's not impossible to think about it, after all, Zuo Zongtang has been in charge of Xinjiang for twenty or thirty years, and this situation is categorically impossible in other provinces of the Qing Dynasty, that is, in the northwest, whether it is Xinjiang or Anxi, the length of time that these two feudal officials have been in power is rare.

If this is the case, then now is not the time to be humble, after a little pondering, he replied: "The Eurasian Railway is about to open, and Xinjiang has more opportunities than Beijing. ”

Zuo Zongtang glanced at him, and the conversation changed, "Southern Xinjiang is also a key resettlement area, and the king of Zhennan may also pay a private visit, and they will comb it carefully." ”

"Woo——。" With the sound of the whistle, a special train rushed quickly on the land of the Hexi Corridor.

"The Hexi Corridor is a major transportation route between China and the West in history, and it is the only way from the ancient capital of Chang'an to the Western Regions, which was developed by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. It is a must place on the Silk Road. Huang Dianyuan looked at the scenery of the rapid retreat outside the car window, "Even if you look at the flowers, it is enough to comfort your life." ”

Hearing a hint of regret in his tone, Yi Zhizhi smiled contentmently: "The Hexi Corridor is not a resettlement area, but in Zhangye and Jiayuguan, we can stay for two more days." ”

"The Hexi Corridor is a crossroads in the northwest and has attracted many nomads to flock to the corridor and fight for blood. The owners here are also changing like marquees, and the nomadic tribes here who are prancing horses have either migrated westward or merged with other ethnic groups, and they are scattered. ”

Zhao Liewen said with emotion: "Now with the opening of the Northwest Railway, this intersection has become unremarkable. ”

Yi Zhizhi smiled contentedly, "Since the unification of Xinjiang by this dynasty, this crossroads has lost its due value. After a pause, he continued: "In today's northwest, the ethnic structure has also undergone tremendous changes, and the Han people have become the main ethnic group in the northwest. ”

Hearing this, Huang Dianyuan said in surprise: "Really? ”

Yi Zhizhi nodded, "Over the years, there has been a steady stream of large-scale immigration, not only to develop the northwest, but also to consolidate the northwest, even in Anxi Province, the proportion of Han people has reached sixty percent, and Chinese has become the main language." ”

Huang Dianyuan naturally knows what this means, he has lived in Nanyang for a long time, it can be said that he has watched Nanyang step by step Sinicization, today's Nanyang, the Han people have already formed an overwhelming population advantage, if there is still a sense of novelty in a foreign land when he first arrived in Nanyang thirty years ago, then there is no difference between Nanyang and the Qing provinces now.

What he didn't expect was that the northwest of Nuoda would also become like this, how much it would cost, the northwest is not comparable to the South Seas, after all, the conditions of the South Seas in all aspects are far from being comparable to the northwest!

Credit! He secretly sighed in his heart, if this continues, in another twenty or thirty years, the northwest can be said to be impregnable, and it will be difficult to split out!

Zhao Liewen said slowly: "Anxi Province has always been the focus of competition among the great powers of Europe and Asia, and the big shopkeeper has mentioned many times that the rise of Russia is unstoppable. ”

Yi Zhixiang smiled and said: "National integration cannot be rushed, nor can it be rushed, it will take at least a few generations, and if it is done in a hurry, it is easy to arouse rebellion." ”

Zhangye, take the meaning of "breaking the arm of the Huns, Zhang Zhonghua's fold (armpit)".

Zhangye is located in the middle of the Hexi Corridor, which is the seat of Ganzhou Prefecture, and was originally the garrison of the Gansu Admiralty, controlling the general army of the four towns of Liangzhou, Suzhou, Xining and Ningxia. In all the military operations of the Qing Dynasty in the west, Ganzhou was used as a military dispatch center and logistics supply base, and it had an important strategic position, but now its strategic position has been greatly reduced.

Railway station, Ganzhou prefect Wang Ganwang led a group of civil and military officials standing on the platform to greet them, compared with the queen mother and the emperor's special train, all officials pay more attention to the special train of Yi Zhicontent, as the king of Zhennan, Yi Zhishu can not only decide their honor and disgrace with a word, but also the God of Wealth, can decide the rise and fall of a place with a word.

However, all the officials have no bottom in their hearts, I don't know if Yi Zhishu will stay in Zhangye for a long time, this prince came all the way, it seems that he is a little freewheeling, not every place will do a long stay, some prefectures and counties, he didn't even get off the car, and some prefectures and counties will stay for a few days in a row, which is really confusing.

"Your Excellency." Hu Deyong, the magistrate of the county, said softly: "The focus of the prince's inspection this time seems to be the key immigration area, and our Ganzhou can not be counted, but we have a big Buddha temple here, and the reclining Buddha in the temple is the largest ....... in the world." ”

"The prince's mind is also something you can figure out? Don't speculate. The prefect Wang Ganwang reprimanded softly, Yi Zhizu allocated 100,000 yuan in Fufeng to repair the Famen Temple, the news had already spread, but he never entered the temple all the way after that, even if he stayed in Lanzhou for three days, he had never entered any temple, and he didn't want to pat the horse's legs.

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