1890 King of Southeast Asia

On February 3, Nanhua announced that it would send the Imperial Crown Prince Liu Haoran and the Grand Princess Liu Xinran to visit the world in the near future.

On the same day, Liu Ming sent a telegram to the Kingdom of Portugal, saying that Liu Haoran would replace him to attend the funeral of His Majesty King Carlos I.

In order to convince Liu Wanhua, Chen Jiangtao, Zhang Wentao and other old men, this visit will be escorted by the main battleship Xuchang, the large armored cruiser Taishan, and the armored cruiser Jiangling, claiming to protect the heirs of the Nanhua Empire.

Portugal readily accepted this statement, which was also a face-saving thing. After all, the journey was long and the safety of the crown prince was important... (This is how the Portuguese convinced themselves.)

On February 7, Liu Haoran and Liu Xinran, who were only ten years old, left the port of Machen in a luxury cruise ship with a confused look on their faces. Dozens of outstanding students and Lin Anmin, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, also left with them.

Oh, and the grandfather and grandparents of the Liu brothers and sisters.

"They are gone, I am so sad, ah~" Zhang You sat beside Liu Ming, sighing and looking at Liu Ming.

"Children always have to go through storms to grow up, I just let them go to see, don't worry, my dad and my parents-in-law are also there." Liu Ming put down the book in his hand and said helplessly.

"These two little guys are only ten years old, and they will be gone for half a year, especially Xinran, that is your little cotton-padded jacket, just let Haoran go, why drag Xinran..." Zhang You complained.

Liu Ming comforted with a bitter face, cursing Xu Hui for being ignorant in his heart.

"Aqiu!" Xu Hui, who was dealing with the immigration plan, sneezed, rubbed his nose and didn't care, "This plan is not good, fairness must be guaranteed from the system..."

After sending the crown prince away to develop the European market, Xu Hui received crazy greetings from the elders of the Xu family, and people visiting Liu Ming were endless, so he deliberately gave Liu Ming a few days off.

He also specially passed the news of the holiday to the queen... and some old men.

…………

"Tsk tsk tsk... You can't do this! We have to change it, all of it has to be changed!"

"And here, such a thin wooden stick is used as a support, and it is crooked. What if there is a landslide?"

"This equipment is also aging. If I take over, I have to change everything. At least 35 million yuan will be invested to meet the standards."

"There are almost no safety measures underground, and there is a shortage of lighting facilities. The exhaust is done by bamboo poles, and the coal is mined by people bit by bit. There are no protective measures for workers, not even a mask..."

On March 1, Lin Pingzhi brought professionals transferred from Nanhua to Pingxiang Coal Mine to inspect the operation of Pingxiang Coal Mine.

1 When he arrived here, Lin Pingzhi encountered a mine, where he could see electric wires and wooden simple transportation tracks, so they went in to take a look.

Then, the people he brought unanimously believed that this was a mine under the Nanhua coolies. It is even harder than the mine where the coolies went down. At least Nanhua will take sufficient safety measures for the mine. After all, there are fewer and fewer coolies now, and they cannot be wasted at will.

"How long will it take to rectify such a well? How much will it cost?" Lin Pingzhi said in two parts.

"Install ventilation ducts, lighting systems, replace various supporting beams... a well costs about a few thousand yuan, and replacing production machinery is expensive." said a Nanhua engineer in his 40s.

This expert is one of the most experienced experts that Nanhua can bring out. He was there when Nanhua's first coal mine was developed, but he was a miner at that time. Later, he went to night school, passed the qualification for studying abroad, and came back to work as an engineer, still engaged in coal.

"Be more specific and narrow the scope." Lin Pingzhi looked at the mines all over the mountains and took a breath.

"Depending on the size of the mine, this one is between 3,000 and 4,000, which is more than 7,000 taels of silver." The engineer thought for a while.

The mine is very long and deep. The materials used for reinforcement alone are not cheap. The ventilation system is built from scratch. Lighting is the cheapest. It is nothing more than light bulbs and household wires. There is a power plant in the factory, which can be used directly.

"Master Lin, I am Zhang Xiang, the general manager of Pingxiang Coal Mine. I have heard of your name for a long time. I meet you today..." A Qing Empire official with a rat-like face and wearing flying clothes came from the factory area and greeted Lin Pingzhi.

"Master Zhang is polite. I am just taking a look." Lin Pingzhi said indifferently.

"You can take a look at it at will. We have foreign engineers there. How about asking them to tell you about it?" Zhang Xiang dared not neglect it. After all, Tieliang was behind this person.

Tieliang is now in the favor of the emperor and is valued by a young noble. It seems that he is the next evergreen tree in the political arena. He is not a small coal mine general manager who can afford to offend.

"No need, Master Zhang can introduce me." Lin Pingzhi wanted to hear what this Qing Empire official would say.

"Yes, yes, yes..." Zhang Xiang nodded and thought for a while.

"Pingxiang Coal Mine was mined in 1898 and is managed by Mr. Zhang Nanpi. It is now the tenth year."

"At the beginning, the Governor-General's Office of Huguang and the central government invested one million taels, and then borrowed more than 3 million taels from the German Lihe Foreign Company to purchase machinery and equipment, add tools, etc."

"To date, Pingxiang Coal Mine has foreign coking ovens, local coking ovens, power plants, machine repair plants, manufacturing plants, boiler rooms and other buildings..."

"The entire mine is divided into 46 sections, with more than 140 mines and workers. Pingxiang Coal Mine has 70% of the shares in Hunan, 20% in Hubei, and 10% in Pingxiang. The annual mining volume is about one million tons, which is one of the largest mines in China!" Zhang Xiang said proudly.

"7,000 taels, 140 wells..." Lin Pingzhi scratched his head. If he started the renovation right away, he would have to invest millions of taels just in ventilation facilities and mine reinforcement.

More than 140 wells, with an investment of more than 4 million taels of silver. Lin Pingzhi did not expect that every well would have a machine. His luck was good, as he encountered a machine right away.

"Master Zhang must know why I came, why are you so happy?" Lin Pingzhi asked in confusion.

"Hey... I am dissatisfied with Master Lin saying that when the Hanyeping incident is settled, I will be transferred to the China Merchants Steam Navigation Company, which has a much better future than here." Zhang Xiang could not help but raise the corners of his mouth.

Originally, these were not his turn. At most, after completing the business office, he would continue to beg for food under Sheng Xuanhuai, and the authority of the local emperor would definitely be gone.

He was ready to spend money to smooth the relationship, but Tieliang's baoyi came to him.

"Then take us to see the workers' area, as well as the various factories, coke ovens, etc." The engineer looked at Lin Pingzhi and said.

Lin Pingzhi nodded, and Zhang Xiang bent down to lead them.

"Please come in, please come in. Be careful of the slippery road. It rained a few days ago, so it's a bit dirty. Please bear with me." Zhang Xiang said as he walked.

Soon Lin Pingzhi led people into the "town". First, there was a fairly wide straight street with shops on both sides. The chimneys in the distance were smoking, and with the coal dust scattered on the ground, it felt like an industrial town.

"These are our workers. Don't look at them as thin, they are strong, and they are especially hardworking and obedient! Skinny monkey? Where did you die?" Zhang Xiang shouted angrily.

"Hey! General Manager, I'm teaching a disobedient boy a lesson. I didn't know you were here. Skinny Monkey pays respects to you." A dry, high-cheekboned, triangular-shaped man who looked very sinister and vicious rushed out and stood at Zhang Xiang's feet, ignoring the mud mixed with coal ash on the ground.

Lin Pingzhi was not interested in watching their double act, but looked at the "house" where the miners lived. To put it nicely, it was a house, but to put it bluntly, it was a doghouse.

A few broken wooden boards were put together to form a house. The gap was very large, and a creaking sound could be heard when there was a little wind, as if it would collapse at any time.

Through the gap, you can see the situation in the house. In order to prevent water, some people put all kinds of grass or leaves on the "house".

The ground was full of sewage mixed with coal ash, and some children were playing on the ground. There were only a few pieces of cloth on their bodies, and they were all black.

"Master Lin, Master Lin?"

"Hmm?" Lin Pingzhi came back to his senses, looking at Zhang Xiang's flattering eyes, he felt a burst of anger.

"Do all the workers here live in such a place?" Lin Pingzhi really couldn't describe these things as houses.

"Most of them are. Some workers live in the village not far away. If you have something in the future, just look for Shou Hou. He is the leader of the workers in this area..." Zhang Xiang blabbered.

Lin Pingzhi looked at Shou Hou, and Shou Hou saw him looking at him and quickly showed a flattering smile.

"I know, how much money can they get a day? How much work do they do?" Lin Pingzhi didn't want to ask, but he couldn't help it.

"A strong laborer is 15 copper coins, and a half-grown boy is 10." Shou Hou said quickly.

"As for work, they work 6 hours a day, if you want to increase it, you can."

"Fifteen copper coins, how much?" Lin Pingzhi didn't know the exchange rate of copper coins to the ocean.

"Probably, 1.5 cents, this price can't be reduced any further... at most two more." said the skinny monkey.

Lin Pingzhi was silent, looking at the gray sky stained by coal dust, the weather was full of depression.

"Those children... forget it." Lin Pingzhi looked at the children who were fighting on the soil. The children's clothes were all gray and black, and some of the children's clothes couldn't even cover their buttocks.

"I have a general understanding of the situation of Pingxiang Coal Mine, Zhang Xiang, Mr. Zhang." Lin Pingzhi's voice was very loud and resonant.

"Alas!" Zhang Xiang looked at Lin Pingzhi in confusion.

"Pack your things and go to Shanghai!" Lin Pingzhi turned around and took people away, even forgetting his purpose - to understand the technical level of Pingxiang Coal Mine and formulate a transformation or development plan.

The engineer asked this question, but left before the purpose was achieved?

"Look at their workers, you will know what level this factory is. I am afraid that only the first batch of slave workers are treated worse than them." Lin Pingzhi sighed and looked at the gray factory area behind him.

"Record it and report everything to the country."