After Zhu Jingyuan arrived in Yinzhou, his work was obviously busier than when he was in Dashi and Mozhou.
After roughly determining the project direction of the Mahu Channel, Zhu Jingyuan had bigger things to decide the next day.
There were many relevant people involved and they were all relatively important, so they went directly to the Wuying Hall for the meeting.
The Ming Dynasty Zuojun Dudufu, the governor of the Northern Yinzhou Naval Fleet, Admiral Zheng Haiping.
Nominally it belongs to Zuojun Dudufu, but in fact it is the naval governor of Nanyinzhou in Xintianfu, Admiral Qin Ruian.
The newly appointed manager of Panama Royal Village is Zhu Dijin, a member of the ancestral clan.
In addition, Wang Jinpeng, a great engineer responsible for surveying the geological environment of Panama and mastering the canal project.
They all came specially from the Zhongyinzhou area to meet Zhu Jingyuan and discuss the specific excavation of the Yinzhou Canal.
The Yinzhou Canal is probably the historical Panama Canal.
Since the end of the World War, related projects have been surveyed and planned for more than two years, and now it is time to make a decision.
The Panama region is also determined to be managed as an imperial estate, and will be directly merged into the Xintianfu Imperial Estate system.
A chief envoy has been established for the West Sea Canal, and now the royal family has taken over the Zhongyinzhou Canal, which is a relatively compromise plan.
Wang Jinpeng, a forty-year-old middle-aged craftsman with flushed skin, first came to Zhu Jingyuan.
Come up with a summary of the exploration situation and a simple explanation document of the project planning plan that you prepared.
He handed it to Zhu Jingyuan to look through the details, and at the same time he explained the general situation beside him:
“The Panama region is the narrowest place in the Central Yinzhou Isthmus, with a straight line width of 60 kilometers at its narrowest point.
“The altitude of most areas is about 12 meters, and the soil thickness in most areas is estimated to be more than 30 meters, and in some areas it is likely to reach 50 meters.
"Except for the canyon area where the remaining veins of the Yinzhou Mountains are located, most other areas have this thickness of soil.
“This can provide convenient conditions for canal excavation, and also puts forward higher requirements for river bank solidification during the construction process.
“The local climate is a tropical rainforest, with an annual rainfall of more than 1,500 millimeters.
“Under the massive amounts of rain during the rainy season, the soil on the hillside slides down relatively easily, resulting in landslides.
“During canal excavation, the original relatively stable soil layer will be destroyed, which will make landslides more frequent.
"So during the construction of the canal, special attention must be paid to the stability of the river bank soil."
Zhu Jingyuan nodded slightly when he heard this.
I had seen news about Panama in my previous life, and that place was indeed prone to landslides.
I remember that when France and the United States were building canals in history, they were troubled by landslides.
A large-scale landslide may destroy several months of construction work.
The craftsmen of the Ming Dynasty predicted this possibility before starting work, and it can be said that they considered it very carefully.
Wang Jinpeng saw Zhu Jingyuan nodding with satisfaction, but he had no doubts, so he continued to explain the situation:
“The currently proposed canal excavation route is located in a canyon in the mountains.
“The total length of the line is eighty-one kilometers, with accurate maps and more detailed descriptions included in the report document.
“We currently have two plans for excavation.
“The first one is a direct solution.
“That is, just like the West Sea Canal, the soil of the isthmus is directly excavated to allow the sea water of the two oceans to connect directly and allow ships to pass directly.
“Since the local altitude is mostly about 12 meters, if the direct canal needs to have a water depth of 12 meters, at least 24 meters of soil must be excavated.
“If the canal is required to be 16 meters deep, then 28 meters of soil will need to be excavated.
“The amount of work between these different depths is not an order of magnitude difference.
“So the design team recommended construction to higher standards to leave enough margin for larger ships in the future.
“Based on the canal’s width of 200 meters and the water depth of 16 meters, the estimated project volume is about 500 million earthworks.
"If we prepare based on a ten-year construction period, it is estimated that it will require 150,000 workers and sufficient construction machinery."
When Zhu Jingyuan heard this, he subconsciously asked:
"I remember that there are some differences in sea level between the two sides of the Isthmus of Panama, the Great Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean. Doesn't this prevent the construction of a direct canal?"
When Wang Jinpeng heard this question, he was obviously a little surprised:
“During our exploration process, we have just calculated that this situation may exist, but it has not yet been completely determined.
“According to our estimation, if there is a height difference between the ocean water surfaces on both sides of the isthmus, the number should be between 20 centimeters and 60 centimeters.
"A drop of several dozen centimeters will not have any impact on the project on an 80-kilometer-long river."
Zhu Jingyuan immediately realized that he had been deceived by many unreasonable rumors.
The two oceans are not two basins next to each other. There is no situation where all the water will instantly run to the other side after being connected.
Just like many things that I have to do, many things that have happened in history are not recorded in history textbooks. When a time node arrives, the world line changes immediately.
It is impossible to say that when the Americans declared independence in 1775, they immediately became an independent country.
It is impossible to say that the moment the Qing court issued an order to shave their hair, all the men in the country became yin and yang, and the next day no one with their hair in a bun was seen anymore.
Everything has a process. Even when building a house in a strategy game, there are still workers who will be there knocking on it for a while.
Almost all rivers have errors, so they flow from high to low. This flow also has a process.
A river with a length of 80 kilometers has a drop of 20 to 60 centimeters from front to back, and the average drop per kilometer may be only five millimeters.
The water surface one kilometer ahead is five millimeters higher than one kilometer behind. People without equipment would definitely not be able to see this degree of inclination.
The smallest wave makes more than that.
This is an approximately negligible difference at this scale.
Even if the drop is concentrated at one point, it is just a "waterfall" with a maximum height of 60 centimeters.
The four oceans are originally connected, and this waterfall will never end.
When building a direct canal, if this gap is not considered, it will not affect the construction of the canal.
It's not even a fatal problem.
There is no logic that a direct canal cannot be built because of this gap.
The direct factor affecting the construction of a direct canal is the amount of work.
According to Wang Jinpeng's calculations, this is a project volume of 500 million earthworks.
When the Su Yinshi Canal was opened in history, only 70 million earthworks were dug.
A seven-fold gap emerged between the two.
And for countries outside the United States, the Panama Canal is an order of magnitude less important than Su Yinshi.
Before Panama became independent, when it was still part of Colombia, Colombia wanted to build a canal.
It took the initiative to invite the United States and important countries in Thailand and Spain to participate, but other countries except the United States simply ignored it.
It wasn't until the French built the Suisse Canal and it expanded that they took over the problem.
Then the Americans went crazy and made trouble there, turning the canal into an unfinished project.
In the end, the United States encouraged Panama to become independent, and then obtained the construction and use rights from Panama.
Since the beginning of Spanish colonization of the New World, many people have thought about this canal for four hundred years.
It wasn't until the United States completed the second industrial revolution that it was finally built as cheaply as possible.
In the 1980s, there were plans to build another direct canal next to the Panama Canal.
With a water depth of thirty meters, a width of two hundred meters, and a length of one hundred kilometers, it is estimated that one billion earthworks will be dug.
Maybe the project itself was a gimmick, or maybe it fell through because of cost issues.
Wang Jinpeng was sure that Zhu Jingyuan had no doubts, so he continued to explain the following plan:
“The second is the ship lock solution.
“Use the existing valley terrain as much as possible to build dams and reservoirs, and use the water surface of the reservoirs for traffic.
“Through multi-level ship locks, water surfaces at different heights are connected, and ships can be sent into the reservoir to sail.
“In the ship lock plan, the construction requirements for different water depths will obviously affect the difficulty of the project.
“The current proposed plan is that the lock is 36 meters wide, the channel is 200 meters wide, and the depth is 14 meters.
“The project volume is estimated to be 200 million earthworks. Based on the ten-year construction period, it will require 50,000 people to complete the project.
“If 150,000 workers participate, it should only take four to five years to complete.
“Several other plans with different specifications have slight differences in the amount of work and manpower required.
"Currently, the main controversy in various aspects is the choice between the two options."
This ship lock plan is the plan adopted by the United States in history.
The solution that saves the most money, saves the most time, and has the lowest engineering cost.
However, although Wang Jinpeng's direction is consistent with that of Americans in his previous life, there are still obvious differences in the details of the plan.
Even the minimum standards Wang Jinpeng included in the document are still higher than the specifications of the U.S. implementation plan.
Until World War II, the width of the Panama Canal locks was 33 meters.
The width of American battleships was therefore limited to 33 meters.
When Wang Jinpeng came up, he suggested building a 36-meter ship lock directly.
In fact, in history, Americans often did things very carefully.
For example, the Yinley Canal connecting the Great Lakes and New York was only one meter and two meters deep when it was first built!
One meter and two meters, this must have been a ditch in the eyes of Ming people, and it was indeed ridiculed as "Yinli ditch" at that time.
Officials who want to "do practical things" will first reduce the wrangling as much as possible and get the canal "opened" at the minimum cost.
After the economic and public opinion effects are allowed to ferment, then pressure the legislators to spend money to expand and deepen.
This was the logic of early American engineering.
The Panama Canal has similar characteristics, but it is relatively larger, so much so that it can be called a miracle.
After Wang Jinpeng introduced the basic situation, he continued to stand beside Zhu Jingyuan.
Zhu Jingyuan carefully read the details in the document, and after confirming that he had no questions, asked Wang Jinpeng to go back and sit down.
Then he raised his head and looked at the two naval governors and a shopkeeper of the Imperial Mansion:
"The three of you should have seen these plans. What are your thoughts on these plans?"
Zhu Dijin, the manager of Panama Royal Village, spoke first:
"Uncle Wang, Huangzhuang's idea is to make the canal open to navigation as soon as possible, so we support 150,000 people in the ship lock project."
Zhu Jingyuan nodded slightly, indicating that he understood.
Zhu Jingyuan guessed that Zhu Zhujin, a distant nephew who was the shopkeeper of Huangzhuang, probably wanted to make a profit as soon as possible.
Even, to make a profit during his term of office.
If the ten-year plan was chosen, he might have been transferred as soon as the canal was completed, or even before it was completed.
That would be completely used as wedding clothes for the next shopkeeper.
So be quick at all costs.
Zhu Jingyuan looked at the other two naval governors.
Zheng Anping, the naval governor of Beiyinzhou, immediately said:
“My subordinates also hope that the canal can be opened as soon as possible to facilitate the movement of the Beiyinzhou Fleet between the east and west coasts.
“So my subordinates also support 150,000 people in building the ship lock project.
"But for the subsequent passage of larger capital ships, the ship lock should choose the highest possible standards."
This is also easy to understand. The navy of Beiyinzhou is a two-ocean fleet, and its status is similar to that of the U.S. Navy in history.
They have the greatest demand for the Panama Canal in the world.
Before the opening of the canal, the naval fleet had to bypass the southernmost tip of Nanyinzhou from San Francisco to New York.
The total distance of this route exceeds 25,000 kilometers.
From San Francisco to Tiannan Continent (Australia) and then to the Western Cape (Cape of Good Hope), it's probably only this far.
With the Panama Canal, the mobilization distance can be directly reduced by half.
Moreover, Beiyinzhou is currently at war, and they urgently hope to have a canal connecting the two oceans.
But at the same time, it is necessary to ensure that the canal's traffic capacity is sufficient.
The last one was Qin Ruian, the naval governor of Xintianfu, who said:
“My subordinates believe that we can’t just focus on immediate efficiency, we must also focus on the future.
“Now our passenger ships have reached the 80,000-ton level, and there may be larger ones in the future.
"So my subordinates support the direct canal plan and adopt the highest level plan."
The center of Xintianfu, Xintianfu City is located in the south of Nanyinzhou, and the need for the Panama Canal is not urgent.
However, Xintianfu will control the entire Nanyinzhou and the eastern part of Beiyinzhou in the future, and there will be a relatively high demand for the canal in the future.
Therefore, Xintianfu does not particularly care about the completion time, so it supports a more efficient direct connection to the canal plan.
】
Zhu Jingyuan considered these situations, then looked at the expressions of the three persons in charge, and tentatively said:
"Is there a possibility that we can take 300,000 people, or even 500,000 people, and use as much machinery as possible at the same time?
“Including large steam machinery and steam trains, as well as various medium-sized diesel machines of the latest design.
“Build a direct canal with a water depth of 16 meters or even 20 meters.
“Can it be completed in five to six years?”
There was a brief silence.
We're all arguing over here whether it's a fast solution on a small scale or a slow solution on a large scale.
Your Highness, you'd better go for the large-scale fast-track plan!
In the end, it was Wang Jinpeng who spoke first:
"Your Highness...if there are really 300,000 or even 500,000 workers coming to work, it may be completed within five or six years.
“But the question is, where can we find 30 to 50 workers, and who will bear the wages?”
Zhu Jingyuan said quite casually:
"It's hard to find workers in the Ming Dynasty now, but it's quite easy to find hundreds of thousands of capable humans in Yinzhou.
“There were originally Mexican slaves in the Spanish colonies, but now there must be hundreds of thousands of them, right?
“The number of mixed descendants of the Taixi and Yin people and the Yin people who believe in God may be even greater.
“There are also Thais who are unwilling to leave. These people can be dragged to the Panama Canal.
"To hire Ming people to do this kind of work, you have to pay at least fifteen to twenty silver coins every month, but these people don't need it.
"Since the Mo people are slaves, it's enough to have food, and they don't need to pay wages.
"Those Yin people who have been brainwashed by Xiyi should be able to work if they are given five or six silver coins every month.
"Those Western barbarians also only give five or six silver notes. If they don't want to do it, they can go back to Taixi or Mozhou.
"We only need to find a group of people from the Ming Dynasty people in Yinzhou in the north and south to control the engineering machines and direct the construction of the project.
"We will then select some smart and sensible people from the mixed-race Yin people and naturalized Yin people to help the Ming people manage the foreign workers.
“In this way, we should be able to easily collect three to five million workers, and the actual total wages we need to pay should be similar to the hundreds of thousands of Ming workers.
“At the same time, take this opportunity to clean up the ethnic groups in the northern part of Nanyinzhou and the Zhongyinzhou Islands.
“After building the canal, package up the surviving foreign workers and send them to Mexico, and the Spanish will be happy to accept them.
“Our Ming people, mixed Ming and Yin people, and naturalized Yin people who were sent there can stay here.
“With reference to the treatment of river workers in the West Sea Canal, we will continue to maintain and manage the canal in the future.
“The cost of opening a river, of course, will be paid by whoever wants to share the money in the future. If you don’t pay now, you won’t be able to share the money later.
“If this cost is still too high and all the palaces in Xintian Mansion cannot bear it, then let’s get the imperial court to pay for it.
"The demand for naval dispatch should be realized by the imperial court, right?
“If possible, myself and Dashiguo can also contribute part of it.
"This is a project for Huangzhuang. Let the local Huangzhuang take charge and the craftsman team cooperate. Dijin, can you do it?"
Zhu Zhujin was obviously a little panicked and felt a huge pressure in her heart.
Although his uncle gave him advice and direction, he had never managed a big project worth 300,000 or even 500,000 yuan.
But now that the matter has come to this, it is no longer possible for him to back down, so he can only stand up and solemnly bow and agree:
"My nephew will definitely try his best to get things done."
Zhu Jingyuan nodded lightly:
"If you need anything, just ask me directly and let the navy and army of Xintianfu Imperial Village cooperate with you.
"Go ahead and do it without any worries.
“But you must be aware that places like tropical rainforests can be regarded as miasma places.
“You must pay attention to hygiene, disinfect at all times, and kill mosquitoes at all times.
"Then there is Wang Gong, you have already thought of issues like mudslides and so on, you don't need me to remind you.
“All I can think of is to pay attention to the water levels of the surrounding rivers and remember to adjust the construction plan according to the seasons.
"You don't have to be too tight on time. I can accept it if it can be completed within ten years."
Zhu Zhujin and Wang Jinpeng immediately bowed and agreed.
The construction plan for the Panama Canal was thus finalized.
Everyone continued to discuss the details that they could think of in the main hall.
Zhu Jingyuan recalled what he had learned in his previous life and tried his best to put forward all possible problems that might be encountered during the construction of the canal.
Let them not fall into the same trap as the French and Americans.
The meeting lasted all morning. After lunch, they left and went to work.
Zhu Zhujin, the shopkeeper, was not polite. He immediately went to find Xintianfu's troops and went with him to the northern part of Nanyinzhou to arrest people.
Well, it should be said that it is recruitment, semi-mandatory recruitment of river workers.
According to Zhu Zhujin's understanding, Zhu Jingyuan probably didn't say something directly.
But Zhudi Jin felt that he understood what his uncle meant.
Those Yin people who have been brainwashed by Xiyi had better not stay in the New Tianfu realm.
