Visitors from Two Rivers Territory
(A new volume is about to begin, so the outline needs to be readjusted and some content needs to be sorted out. I'm taking a day off today and will only be able to update one chapter. I'll make up for it this weekend.)
On July 28, Victor led the last batch of troops retreating from Green Lake Plain back to Number Four Supply Station. Before leaving, Number Five Supply Station in Green Lake Plain was also demolished. For at least several years, the Two Rivers Territory would not be able to develop this area, so abandoning it was the wisest choice.
As for the Number Four Supply Station, it is backed by the Lime River. It takes a little over a day to reach it by fast boat from the Wood Fort Town dock. Victor plans to set up an outpost here, but he will need the help of the Horseshoe Tribe. He will make arrangements when he returns to his territory.
The supplies for Territory Four had been cleared, and Victor and his men did not rest there for long. A day later, the territory's fleet picked up their troops and spoils of war.
Previously, the territory had always lacked a sufficient number of ships, and even with the shipyard operating at full capacity, it was difficult to meet the demand. Just recently, the territory's shipyard launched a batch of eight flat-bottomed sand barges suitable for river navigation and transportation, similar to the four ships in the territory's previous inland waterway fleet, but with significant design improvements.
With the addition of these eight ships, the territory's inland waterway fleet capacity doubled. Victor attached great importance to the inland waterway fleet, as most of the territory was located on the Great Fish River, and the focus of future development would be on this area.
The Great Fish River has abundant water and no flood control pressure, making it a perfect location. There are also many tributaries and main streams around it, which greatly helps in the construction and defense of the territory by building settlements and defense nodes along the river.
Therefore, a large-scale inland waterway fleet is what Victor needs. In the future, Victor plans to build at least four or five more simple wharves in the territory, and the daily transport volume of the territory's shipping should not be less than 500 tons. The construction of the inland waterway fleet needs to be strengthened.
After a day and a night at sea, Victor finally returned to the Wood Fort Town on July 31. Considering that the political work still needed to be reviewed during this period, he left the postwar work to the General Staff and returned to his residence alone.
Victor spent more than a day reviewing all the documents from the past month. Number One used the Calculation Module to summarize the information and found a few minor issues, which fortunately did not cause any serious consequences. Victor immediately ordered the relevant departments to conduct self-inspections.
During this period, the fleet made two more round trips, each bringing a number of slaves, who were then distributed to various settlements, still following the 2:1 ratio of new to old slaves.
All production and construction in the territory are proceeding in an orderly manner. The mines continue to use Mala carts to transport ore to the Steelworks. With raw materials available, the Steelworks are also shipping out steel steadily. Currently, one batch of steel has been produced, totaling 50 tons, which has been directly distributed to the Arms Factory and Machine Factory for the production of weapons, equipment, agricultural implements, and other products.
The Steelworks's water-powered rolling mill is finally ready for production and has begun processing pig iron into sheet metal for wrapping railway sleepers.
This hydraulic rolling mill was a real headache for Victor. The design and modification of the blueprints alone took up three days of the entire Calculation Module's calculations. However, it took Victor five days just to draw up the blueprints.
Victor was also deeply involved in the manufacturing process, acting as an eighth-level fitter with the help of the Combat Assistance System, hand-making low-speed gears. Fortunately, the world's clocks were already mature, and the territory also had craftsmen who could make gears. With their help, the transmission and auxiliary devices of the rolling mill were completed.
As for the power source for the rolling mill, Victor specially arranged for an engineering team to build a canal and design a small dam with a high flow rate, which was completed in conjunction with a specially designed waterwheel.
Because the construction of the dams and canals took too long, the rolling mills were not put into production until Victor launched his expedition.
After learning that the hydraulic rolling mill had been put into operation, Victor personally went to the Steelworks to watch the production process. You should know that in his previous life, the only hydraulic steel processing equipment was the hydraulic forging hammer, and this kind of rolling mill had never appeared before.
When the technology and capability to manufacture such a rolling mill existed, Steam Engine and Internal Combustion Engine were already available as power sources, and no one would consider using water power to drive the rolling mill.
It is only special individuals like Victor, who happen to be there by chance, who would need such a thing.
However, this machine is one of the last pieces of equipment designed and built by Victor and Number One. The Calculation Module is currently designing an Otto cycle four-stroke engine. The design is being continuously adjusted based on the technical level of the Two Rivers Territory. The target parameters are: displacement: over 500cc; compression ratio: 4:1; power: 5 horsepower.
If these parameters are met, it can serve as a basic power source for some production work, including as an engine for small boats.
At first, Victor wanted to make the kind of wood-burning car engine that he had seen in his previous life. However, after being reminded by Number One, he realized that such a machine was simply impossible to produce with the industrial level of the Two Rivers Territory. As for why such Power Machine existed in his previous life, it was because of the lack of fuel.
Victor has high-quality fuel oil, namely Sunflower Oil, the core product of the Golden Sunflower Territory. It has a high calorific value, low viscosity, and low ash content. The only problem is that it is not resistant to low temperatures. However, even though the Two Rivers Territory is located in the Northlands, the lowest temperature is no more than -20 degrees Celsius.
When the time comes, we can learn from our predecessors and simply ignite the fire to melt the oil. After all, no matter how bad Internal Combustion Engine is, it is still better than human or animal power and is of great help to industrial production.
At the Steelworks, Victor watched as the forge heated the iron block to a red-hot state, and then used a chain conveyor belt to send the red-hot iron block into the hydraulically driven rolling mill, where it was gradually thinned into sheet metal through multiple rolling processes.
After each rolling process, the sheet metal needs to be reheated in the furnace. The rolled sheet metal is trimmed with shearing tools and then naturally cooled before being wrapped on wooden rails. Watching this production process gave him a feeling of being transported back to his past life.
However, this was just a feeling. Even the worst steel processing plant in my previous life would not use water power to roll iron sheets, and the output would be so small. According to Rafam's report, only two tons of iron sheets were rolled every day.
Based on a sheet metal thickness of 5 millimeters, which only covers the top of the wooden track, approximately 1,000 meters of sheet metal-clad wooden track can be produced. Currently, the supply of raw materials is sufficient, and the Steelworks will be able to complete the production of all the track from the mine to the Steelworks by the end of September.
Victor nodded. In that case, he planned to arrange for the engineering team to start laying the tracks in August, beginning construction at the Steelworks and laying them while production was underway. This way, the entire track construction could be completed and put into use before October.
After leaving the Steelworks and returning to Wood Fort Town, Victor received a report that a fleet of ships from the Iron Birch Territory had docked at the Wood Fort Town dock. Upon hearing this news, Victor realized that an important guest had arrived, since someone had previously arranged to visit the Two Rivers Territory in the summer. Victor straightened his clothes and set off to the dock to greet him.