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Volume 4 Leviathan 124 Miner

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    "Are these all the miners?" Ji Jianzhang frowned. He had just made a rough estimate and found that the number was much less than he expected.  "No, this is only part of it. This open-air mine is almost open, and most of the workers are underground on the other side of the mountain!" "I see!" Ji Jianzhang's face looked better, and he asked casually.  "How many shifts are there that day, and how long is one shift?" "Tell the general manager, the sun is strong outdoors, there are five shifts in two days, one shift lasts about ten hours; there are two shifts underground, one shift lasts exactly twelve hours!"  "Yeah!" After hearing the answer from the supervisor, Ji Jianzhang nodded with satisfaction. A smile appeared on his face for the first time since he came to the mine: "Well, it's done well! Mine production must be stepped up, don't worry.  It's easy to say, but this must not be loosened. Let's do this. Miners sweat a lot in summer. I will add 100 kilograms of salt to you every month. The miners working in the open water will drink some salt water to replenish the body's salt.  This is good for their health!" The supervisor quickly said with a smile: "The general manager is really kind! I will tell those Burmese barbarians about this later and let them appreciate your kindness!" "That's it!  That¡¯s it!¡± Ji Jianzhang waved his hand: ¡°Those barbarians know what¡¯s good, it¡¯s better to kill less people and produce more iron!¡± ¡°General manager, be careful and let the villain lead the way!¡±  Eyes swung the pickaxe vigorously, chiseling out pieces of ore from the veins of the rock wall in front of him. The sparks generated by the impact of the hard iron tool and the rock wall splashed on his naked skin, but he seemed not to feel it at all.  In appearance, he was no different from a savage on the African savannah - except for a dirty, colorless rag used to cover his lower body and a straw hat on his head for sun protection.  , there were no more strands, and the rest of the skin was covered with red iron ore powder. This powder was everywhere in the entire mining area, and his whole body seemed to have turned into a piece of ore.  At this time, the sound of iron chains dragging on the ground came from behind Gray Eyes. He put down the pickaxe and began to help the shackled companion behind him who was carrying a basket to put the ore on the ground into the basket. At this time, he deliberately put  The loading and unloading speed is slowed down so that you can take a few breaths. Apart from eating and drinking, this is the few rest time for workers in the mine.  "Be careful, the supervisor is looking over!" Gray eyes carefully turned to the side and looked at the supervisor under the pergola not far away from the corner of his eye. Sure enough, the other person was looking over here, but it may be because the weather was too hot and the supervisor was  Because they were too lazy to come over and scold him for being whipped, the man who was usually very vicious ignored him and just looked at him for a few times before lazily turning around.  "Okay, it's installed!" Gray Eyes stood up, brushed off some gravel on the baskets, replaced it with loose soil, and stood up slowly, preparing to continue digging for ore with a pickaxe. Such work requires a lot of work.  It lasted until the sun went down. He has not been overwhelmed by the heavy labor yet. Of course, he must thank his parents for leaving him with a very strong body. More importantly, as one of the famous leaders of the original rebel army, his companions consciously or unconsciously  Support and help allowed him to persevere in this living hell.  "Everyone stand at attention!" Following several sharp whistles, surrounded by a dozen supervisors, a Han man in a robe walked down the hillside. He covered his mouth and nose with a handkerchief to avoid inhalation.  Too much dust, while looking at the half-naked miners around him with a look of contempt and disgust.  "Is the big shot here?" Gray Eyes slowly stood up straight, put the pickaxe aside, and coldly observed this unique man. During the more than two years in the mine, he spent all day.  What he saw were hard rock walls, bare hillsides, miners covered in dust, and construction whips. They were completely cut off from the outside world. Suddenly seeing such well-dressed people from the outside world, he couldn't help but feel  Feeling a fresh sense of excitement.  Ji Jianzhang covered his mouth and nose with a handkerchief. The dust coming from all around and the various smells coming from the miners made him nauseous. The expressions of these poor people were dull, and their hands and feet were shackled.  The half-naked body covered in ore dust showed a disgusting light red color, and the heavy labor had wiped out the unique aura of intelligent creatures in their eyes.  Looking at these people, Ji Jianzhang felt instinctive pity deep in his heart. He turned around and asked: "Why are they not wearing clothes? Also, what's with the shackles on them? Why don't they use a cart and better tools?"  ?¡± ¡°Mr. General Manager! Please listen to my explanation!¡± The supervisor explained quickly: ¡°Many of these workers were vicious gangsters in Myanmar. They often escaped and rioted after arriving at the mine, so we did not give them anything.  clothes andWear shackles so they can hardly disguise themselves as locals if they escape.  Moreover, the weather here is very hot, so there is no need to wear clothes. Besides, clothes go quickly when working, and you can also save a lot of money on fabrics.  As for not using wheelbarrows and better tools, it's because these guys often destroy their tools on purpose, so we can only use the most bulky and least easily damaged tools for them, such as livestock, rail carts, etc., and we still have to  Pay special attention, otherwise it will be easily damaged!  "Ji Jianzhang waved his arm roughly and motioned for his men to shut up. He always thought that he was at the factory and did not invest much energy in the production of the mine. The miners in front of him were just numbers to him.  As long as he can produce enough ore every month, it is enough. He has no interest or willingness to understand all this. Now he finally understands why Chen Zaixing deliberately let a group of retired wounded soldiers manage this mine. But the situation is different now.  According to the plan, after the rainy season ends next year, that is, after September 1882, the construction of the Burma Railway will begin. Before that, the rail output of the Kunming Iron and Steel Works must increase to more than 30,000 tons a year. In order to achieve this output,  The existing iron ore production must at least quadruple. Ji Jianzhang is very clear that his future is completely dependent on this railway. No matter what, he must solve the iron ore problem.  Bring me a pickaxe!  "Ji Jianzhang pointed to the pickaxes next to the miners with some annoyance. A supervisor immediately carried out his order. He looked carefully. Sure enough, as the supervisor leader said just now, these pickaxes  They are all of the clumsiest style, and the steel mouth is also very poor. Some of them have even been completely annealed, revealing the white pig iron section underneath. ¡°You just use these guys to work for the miners?  "Ji Jianzhang finally couldn't control his anger anymore and shouted in a low voice: "Isn't this nonsense?  " "General manager, there is nothing we can do!  "The supervisor leader hurriedly explained: "Let me tell you the truth!  Even if we only give them these things, escapes and riots are still common. There were more than ten such incidents last year alone. If we give them steel-mouthed ones, these guys will definitely use them.  Break the shackles and use them as weapons of riot!  " "Then you can't think of a way?  Well, is that thing on your neck just for eating?  Ji Jianzhang was furious at this time: "You must know that I worked so hard to get these Burmese animals to get the ore, do you understand?"  Lots and lots of ore!  " "Yes, Mr. General Manager!  "The supervisor leader was almost drowned in Ji Jianzhang's spit. This former soldier, who was completely accustomed to orders and whips to solve problems, encountered a very embarrassing problem for the first time. Indeed, he had the right to feel that the mine  The life and death of thousands of Burmese miners inside, but this does not mean that he can increase the production of ore. After all, the working hours and intensity of the slaves have reached a certain limit, and dead people cannot work. ¡°General manager, actually.  We can recruit some locals to work as miners!  "A staff member suggested in a low voice. "Don't come up with bad ideas!  "The distraught Ji Jianzhang immediately rejected his subordinates' suggestions. Due to the control of large fertile lands in Myanmar and Annan, a large number of Chinese immigrated to the Indochina Peninsula to make a living. As a result, the population and land of the southwestern provinces of Guangdong, Guangxi, Yunnan and Guizhou were reduced.  The conflict is much less severe than in the original plane, and the number of landless farmers is naturally much smaller. It is difficult to find enough local labor force for hard work such as mining, which is almost equal to slow death, and even if some can be found,  As a local, dying is also very troublesome. Otherwise, Chen Zaixin wouldn't have bothered to import such semi-slave miners from Myanmar. At this time, along with the sound of shackles mopping the floor, a somewhat awkward voice came.  Come over: "Mr. General Manager, I have a way to solve your problem!  "Everyone's eyes turned to the source of the sound, and they saw a miner covered in mineral powder walking towards this side. Unlike other numb people, this man's eyes revealed a light of wisdom. "Asshole  , who asked you to come here!  "But the miner's approach immediately aroused the vigilance of the supervisors. The leader of the supervisors yelled: "Stop, raise your hands, sentry, if you dare to move again, I will kill this guy!"  "He shouted an order to the sentry on the side. Several crisp sounds of pulling the gun bolt were heard, which showed that what the supervisor leader just said was by no means a threat. The miner stopped and raised his hands in accordance with the order of the supervisor leader. The supervisor  The leader observed vigilantly, and after confirming that the opponent who was shackled and only wearing a rag on his lower body could not be a threat, he relaxed, bowed slightly to Ji Jianzhang, and said respectfully: "General Manager  Your Excellency, please forgive my rudeness just now. These damn Burmese dogs are extremely insidious and cruel guys. As long as you turn your back to them for a second, they will pounce on you.??Wring your neck with chains and tear your throat with teeth, even if they will be beaten into sieves by bullets in the next second.  One of my two companions was strangled to death with iron chains, and the other was torn into pieces with his teeth and nails - Mr. General Manager, I can swear by my parents and my son that I just  There was no falsehood in what he said. When we took back the body of our companion from these bastards, we could no longer recognize that it was still him.  So the only way to deal with these guys is to keep your eyes open and hold on to the handle of the gun!  ¡± Thank you to the trainee police officer for the reward. There will be another update in the afternoon!
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