Rise of the 1630s South America

Chapter 1636 Terrace (24)

470 Mesa (24)

"Clay and kaolin are really the greatest gift from Tianzun to the residents of Patagonia." In a certain kiln house in Houtu Township (that is, the port of Carlomanes in Patagonia), several craftsmen are Nervously busy, a middle-aged man with a goatee next to him sighed with a smile.

This is a small branch of the integrated state-owned Nancone Ceramics Factory (a large-scale trust enterprise after the merger of the original First Ceramics Factory and the Second Ceramics Factory)—or the workshop is more accurate—with about twenty There are famous craftsmen and less than a hundred apprentices. They mainly produce various types of rough pottery pipes (industrial use) and civilian pottery. Occasionally, they also open furnaces to produce some low-grade porcelain, mainly for the domestic market.As for the international porcelain market, there is nothing wrong with them for the time being. Even the original No. [-] Ceramics Factory in Haian County sells a limited number of products, because their technology is very general, and they have to compete with ceramics from China, Persia and even Europe. Indigenous porcelain competes, so the market is not very large and the income is limited.

But despite this, the determination of Dong'an people to improve technology and craftsmanship and seize the domestic and foreign ceramics market has not changed.The integrated Nancone Ceramics Factory has recently begun to expand its production capacity. They have invested heavily in the Patagonia region, which is rich in various clay and kaolin resources. They have sent people to almost all mines with some development value. Even the newly established settlement of Houtu Township was not spared, and many people were sent here.

Perhaps it is because there are a few talents in this group of people. While completing their own work (production of low-grade ceramics), these people also used limited funds to carry out some research projects, and even got a certain person to come here. The inspector's vice-manager's praise, and then allocated a few old craftsmen and some funds, let them start the project prosperously.

To put it simply, this project they engaged in is a new technique of glazing ceramics.To be more precise, it is to improve the ancient Chinese traditional lead glaze technology to form a brand new glaze to cover up the gray tone of many clay bodies and achieve a more beautiful effect.

Their method is to add tin ash (that is, tin oxide) to the traditional Chinese lead glaze, and then the glaze presents a special opaque white color. Pleasant cover, yields some decent decorative effects.

This brand-new glaze was tentatively named "tin oxide glaze" by the superiors, and it was very similar to a Dutch glaze called "tin enamel" by the people on the east coast at this time, and it could even be said that there was almost no difference.Nancone Ceramics Factory once imported some ceramic products from Italy and Holland in small batches, and conducted in-depth research on the bright and exquisite glazes on them. Now after years of hard work, it seems that it has finally seen the dawn of success. It is almost possible to break the technical monopoly of the Dutch and Italians and start self-production.

Moreover, unlike the Dutch and Italians, in addition to using this kind of glaze on ceramics, the people on the east coast also plan to try to glaze the surface of metal utensils. One is to add a protective layer to metal utensils. , to prevent it from rusting; Erma looks more beautiful, at least it is easier to get people's favor than tinplate cans soaked in tin. At present, some cast iron enamel vessels are on sale in China. The momentum is still very average. I believe that after future technology breakthroughs and market promotion, more people will be able to come to buy.

"This enamel vessel is quite rare for the old man. I plan to buy more this time and ship it to Chile to check the market." Sun Chengli, one of the shopkeepers of Sun Chunyang's South Store, pointed to a piece of pottery placed at the entrance of the kiln. There are a lot of wooden boxes, and he said with satisfaction: "The color is pure white, and they are all rare top grades. They are not much worse than Dutch and Italian products. Well, they are really good. It's just that you can't make cast iron enamel, that kind of There is still a huge market demand for things, and I hope they can be manufactured in the future.”

After saying this, Sun Chengli left the somewhat stuffy kiln room, and sat under a thatched shed at the door to rest.He is more than 50 years old this year. Although he still looks good, it is very tiring to travel outside for many years.Sun Chengli thought, after finishing this trip, he will go back to the head office in Chile and leave all the outside work to the young people, so he can spend his life in that beautiful place——Central Gudi, hehe, is indeed a good place to raise people. It is no worse than my hometown Ningbo, and it is even more livable because there are no annoying typhoons and wet rainy seasons.

After drinking a whole pot of tea, Sun Chengli called two young men over. After giving them careful instructions, he put on his seal fur cap and walked to a place hundreds of meters away with four capable followers. In front of the red brick house.

There is a wooden sign hanging on the door of the red brick house, with the words "Hotu Township Station" written on it, clearly explaining its identity.The brick house should have been built in recent years, but because of the wind, sun, and dust, the house looks like an old building from the outside, just like the people struggling to survive on this land. Residents - there is no doubt that because of the relatively difficult living environment, the people here are generally older than the locals.

Entering the brick house is a small hall with a wooden counter.The counter was separated by curtains made of three straw mats, and in each separate compartment sat a listless man, who should all be employees of the station.The floor of the hall is covered with some broken bricks, perhaps due to being trampled on all the year round. These broken bricks have been deeply embedded in the ground, silently telling people about the long journeys to unknown destinations one by one.

Sun Chengli was also a little moved when he saw it. Having lived on the east coast for many years, he knew that Patagonia has been increasingly favored by capital over the years. Enter the Gobi to build an immortal project called "East Coast Dream".

After the entourage bought everyone a carriage ticket to Baitao Township in the Mainland, Sun Chengli sat quietly on the wooden bench placed outside the door, waiting for departure—the carriage had already parked there, and this It is the second and last shift of the day. It will depart in two hours and head for the inland area of ​​Hai'an County along a dry and bumpy second-class national road.

A horse-drawn carriage route map was plastered on the outer wall of the station, and the approximate time of arrival at each station was given—these stations are small villages with sparse population, and the only value is that they can supply drinking water. It is more than 200 kilometers from Houtu Township to Baitao Township, which is not a short journey.

It is worth mentioning that this second-class national road from Houtu Township to Baitao Township was also built under the auspices of Yang Mingyang and Cai Huaze.These two men were ambitious. Although their plan to build a large railway in Patagonia suffered serious setbacks, the construction of a road network composed of second-class and third-class national roads began after years of hard work. See results.No, even the more than 200-kilometer non-arterial road from Houtu Township to Baitao Township was built with a large number of Indian slaves, black slaves, and non-national laborers. It is relatively easy to transport here, and the daily necessities and seafood in the Linhai area can also be transported to the inland through this national highway, supporting the people on the east coast in their continuous conquest of the entire Taiwan area.

"Forget it, the cold wind is blowing, and there is a chill in the bones. Let's go, let's go to the restaurant next door." Sun Chengli sat on the bench outside the door for a while, then stood up abruptly and stomped his feet , said helplessly: "By the way, warm two pots of rice wine and order two small dishes. You may not have these things to eat when you get on the carriage."

The restaurant is made of wood and has a small facade, but it is full of people inside, most of them are rough fishermen or sailors, of course there are also merchants and guys like Sun Chengli.After all, the economy in northern Patagonia has become increasingly active in recent years. Ceramics, salt, fruits, seafood, sea animal skins, tallow, and wool have been exported in large quantities, attracting a lot of commercial and industrial capital to invest in the area.Especially in recent years, the wool industry that has sprung up suddenly has become more and more prosperous with the continuous growth of market demand, and Patagonia, as the wool producing area with the largest area, the best conditions and the largest output in the east coast, has attracted countless people. Local merchants come here to purchase, so it is not surprising to see merchants in the taverns and restaurants of these small seaside ports.

The wine was served quickly, and with it came a plate of beef, a plate of ostrich meat, and some expensive vegetables.A man with disheveled hair who looked like a Mediterranean race came over, his clothes were shabby and his face was a little pale, he asked in very broken Chinese: "Do you need to hire someone, sir? I'm strong, I've served the King of Spain, I've fought in the Southern Netherlands, Franz Comté and Lorraine. Do you know Inigo, I've fought him and I won, really, that time I Really almost killed him..."

The waiter brought up another plate of roasted golden mutton. Sun Chengli didn't seem to see that the man swallowed a mouthful of saliva, and took a sip of rice wine slowly. Then he sighed comfortably and said, "Why? The inland is not peaceful. Is it? Could it be that the government and army are not good enough to suppress the bandits, so that the Indian bandits are rampant? Not so, aren’t the Thuelche people already out of control?”

"It's not Tehuelche, it's the Araucans, the Araucans who crossed the Andes into Patagonia!" The pale man replied, "I don't know if you have been to the Chilean region. The population over there is growing rapidly, so they have to ask the natives for land. Isn’t this a big fight? Many Araucan-speaking Indians cannot stand in the local area and are forced to cross the mountains and come to Patagonia The security situation in the inland area has deteriorated in the past few years. I have built roads in the inland area and know the situation there. As for the officers and soldiers, their number is limited, and they care more about the north! I heard The famous head Guo Handong Guo has now shifted his focus to the Pampa Plain, so this is a place that has been forgotten. If you want to go inland, it is best to hire some experts, which will not cost a lot of money .”

Outside the house, the strong wind blew more violently, making the wooden doors of the restaurant rattle, and there was a rustling sound from the papered windows, which was the fine sand that was swept by the strong wind.Sun Chengli handed a cigarette - cigarettes are currently a national monopoly, and the price is expensive - to the man in front of him, and then ordered him a roast mutton, and then said leisurely: "We are going there by car, so It is inconvenient to hire another manpower. But if you are willing to tell me about the situation in the Mainland, I don’t mind treating you to a meal of roast lamb. You haven’t eaten for a whole day, right? Xiaoer, let’s have another bottle of wine. Xiangshan Dry Red..."

"Which aspect do you want to know? I have worked in the inland area of ​​Hai'an County for three years, and I am quite familiar with the situation in many places in the inland area." The man's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he put the heavy subway sword on his hand. on the table leg, then sat down impatiently, and asked.

"Let's talk about porcelain and wool, you should understand." Sun Chengli asked casually while chewing on a piece of ostrich meat.

"I really don't know much about porcelain, but I still know a lot about the wool business, because many people from Naples like me are now working as herdsmen in the interior." The Naples man looked at the kitchen from the corner of his eye At the door, he said quickly: "If it was five or six years ago, being a herdsman in the interior of the Patagonian plateau was really a hard job, because wool can't be sold at a high price. But The market has completely changed in the past few years. I heard that the Dutch are buying wool from the east coast like crazy. In addition, more and more people in China like to wear woolen cloth. This has ignited the wool market all of a sudden. Herding sheep is no longer an unprofitable business, so the number of herders in the interior has exploded in recent years. After all, there are large tracts of land in Patagonia that can be grazed, and foot rot is not included here. It is indeed the most ideal place for sheep to graze..."

"The point is, Italian." Sun Chengli took a sip of wine and said, "From Baitao Township in Hai'an County to Jincheng Valley, which villages can buy wool in large quantities? Is it too peaceful along the way?"

It is said that although the Sun family does not have many shares in Sun Chunyang Nanhuopu, a large syndicated enterprise, it can still bring huge dividends to the family every year.The total amount of these incomes has been accumulated so far, and the total amount is quite large. Sun Zhengli, the head of the Sun family's generation, is thinking about entering the relatively prosperous woolen industry, and Sun Chengli is also carrying a lot of inquiries when he comes to Patagonia this time. The task of news, so this will be particularly interested in what the Neapolitan said.

"Many villages can buy wool. But if you need a large amount of land, you still have to go to the Jincheng and Shangluo counties in the Jincheng Valley, which are currently the two counties with the largest wool production in the country. Binan Patagoni The counties such as Yahuangyang, Xuefeng, Xingnan, and Araucan have even larger production, almost accounting for more than half of the country." The Italian hurriedly took the roast mutton and wine from the second hand, and said while swallowing: "The road is still safe. At least it was three years ago. At that time, Captain Guo's troops hadn't been transferred to the north. It's not clear how it is now."

"Jincheng Valley, it seems that I have to go and have a look. Alas, my old bones have to be tossed again." Sun Chengli took a big sip of wine and said helplessly.

(End of this chapter)