Sun Xu, Miss Meng and their entourage Uncle Li took the train very smoothly. There was no need to change trains along the way. Moreover, the train they took was a fast passenger train, which was faster than ordinary passenger trains and only stopped at major stations. The magnitude reduces travel time.
The Da Chu Empire has been engaged in railway construction for more than ten years. Both railways and trains have actually been upgraded several times.
After all, technology is developing very fast these days. In the 21st year of Chengshun, the first-generation Type 21 train built by the Dachu Empire could pull passenger trains at an average speed of only thirty kilometers per hour.
Because the thermal efficiency of the locomotive at that time was very low, it consumed a lot of coal and fresh water during operation. Therefore, it had to stop to add coal and water after running dozens of kilometers.
This is also one of the reasons why during the railway construction of the Dachu Empire, train stations were set up relatively densely, with a train station every dozens of kilometers apart... not only for the convenience of passengers, but also to add coal and water to the trains.
Subsequently, train technology continued to advance, and various new technologies continued to emerge and be applied. For example, trains initially used mechanical brakes. In order to ensure that the entire train stopped quickly, separate mechanical brakes were installed in each carriage. , and is equipped with a brakeman. When braking is required, under the unified command of the driver, the brakeman in each compartment manually pulls the brake brake to achieve braking.
This method naturally has many problems such as inconvenience, untimeliness, and high cost... If nothing else, the labor cost is not low just because each carriage is equipped with a brakeman.
Subsequent researchers developed air braking technology, which is a braking system that uses an air compressor and then uses pipes to send compressed air to each compartment.
When braking, as long as the train driver pulls the brakes, the compressed air will push the cylinder pistons in each carriage and compress the brake shoes, so that the train can stop quickly.
It is a very simple and convenient braking system. The technical difficulty lies in the air compressor... But this thing is not a high-tech thing. The Dachu Empire has been producing low-pressure steam engines for more than ten years in Chengshun. air compressors for industrial production.
Later, technology continued to advance, and air compressors were also used to drive rock drills for large-scale engineering construction. During the railway construction process of the Dachu Empire, air compressed rock drills were widely used for tunnel construction.
In the 27th year of Chengshun, the technical experts of the Dachu Empire perfected the compressed air braking technology, and after several years of small-scale testing, it began to be used on trains on a large scale.
Compressed air braking technology is just one part of the history of train development. Well, it is a relatively important part.
There are many other technological developments.
Of course, the more important one is the continued development of locomotive construction technology.
The technical difficulty of the locomotive lies in its core component: the steam engine.
The steam engine used in the Type 21 train at the beginning was just an ordinary single-cylinder high-pressure steam engine. It just used two steam engines working in parallel... and the so-called high pressure at that time is no longer worth mentioning today!
With mechanical processing, the level of raw materials continues to increase, and the steam pressure and temperature of the steam engine continue to increase. As a result, the steam engine still has a large amount of residual energy after doing work. In order to utilize this residual capacity, the multi-expansion steam engine was naturally born.
This is also a very obvious logical change in technological progress, that is, there will be progress in raw materials and processing technology first, and then technological progress in one aspect will be promoted, and then technological progress in other aspects will be driven...
You can't say that a triple-expansion reciprocating steam engine was developed twenty years ago... It doesn't mean that three cylinders cannot be developed... This thing is a design problem, and there is no technical problem in terms of manufacturing.
But there was no need for it at the time, and there was no driving force for research and development of drive technology.
Because with the raw materials and processing technology at that time, the pressure and temperature of the steam generated by the boiler were just like that. One cylinder could fully utilize the kinetic energy contained in the steam. More cylinders would be of no use...
A multi-expansion steam engine must be equipped with a boiler capable of generating ultra-high pressure and corresponding steam transportation pipelines to play its corresponding role.
If you want to make multi-expansion steam move, you must first have ultra-high temperature and high pressure steam...
Today, in the 26th year of Chengshun, the steam pressure generated by the boiler is already eight times the steam pressure of the Morale Boiler in the 21st year... The change in this data is the real reason for the emergence of the triple-expansion steam engine.
The reason why the double-expansion steam engine appeared further back and why it lags behind now is also based on the same reason.
There is a relationship here...first there are raw materials and precision processing technology, then there is high-temperature and high-pressure steam, and only with high-temperature and high-pressure steam engines, there are steam engines with more cylinders...
When these were satisfied, the Chu Empire began to use triple-expansion steam engines on a large scale. It was first used on naval battleships, and then gradually applied to civilian ships, mainly passenger ships that pursued speed.
By the time these technologies were applied to trains, they were already relatively mature and relatively cheap.
There is no way. A naval battleship can easily cost hundreds of thousands, and its price tolerance for power systems is very high. It has always wanted the best. As for the price issue, it is not a problem as long as it is not too outrageous.
But trains are different. This is a basic transportation facility for large-scale civilian use and has an inclusive nature. The technical cost is still relatively strict.
After all, it’s not that the old steam engine cannot be used, it’s just slower. What the common people are more concerned about is not how much your speed has increased, but how much your ticket price has increased...
This is why there are still many antique 21 locomotives in service in the Dachu Empire Railway Company... Anyway, this thing is not broken. You don't have to buy a new one if you leave it alone, then you will have a new one. The expenditure, as for the smaller power... Anyway, many branch railway trains do not require any speed, thirty or forty kilometers is enough.
However, some new locomotives will still use new steam engines. The Type 33 locomotive produced by Guangzhou Machinery Company is a typical example. This locomotive uses almost all contemporary new technologies. During the test, it pulled nine large passenger carriages to simulate When carrying a heavy load, it ran at a top speed of 90 kilometers per hour...
Even if the test was actually carried out with a light load, the railway was also a downhill section, and it was a newly built new type of railway, this so-called test speed actually has no practical value.
But this speed is still very exaggerated for the contemporary Chu Empire...
Based on the Type 33 locomotive, the Dachu Imperial Railway Corporation developed the A series of fast passenger trains. This series of fast passenger trains all start with the character A, followed by Arabic numerals.
That is to say, the current express passenger train that Sun Xu and Miss Meng are riding has an average speed of about 50 kilometers per hour when it is actually in operation.
This is not the point. Fifty kilometers seems to be faster than an old train traveling at thirty or forty kilometers per hour, but that’s it.
The key point is that the A-series express trains only stop at major stations and carry more coal and fresh water. They do not need to stop to refill coal and water every dozens of kilometers.
These have greatly improved the operating speed of Series A express passenger trains, further improving the travel speed and comfort of passengers... Well, it is common for contemporary passengers to travel long distances and stay on the train for several days, except For sleeper class passengers, ticket passengers cannot talk about travel comfort.
When Sun Xu came to Songjiang last year, he sat on a third-class ticket all the way. That feeling... he would never forget it.
But now when he returns to his hometown, he can take Miss Meng directly to the first-class sleeper compartment. Although it costs a lot of money, the experience of the journey can be greatly improved. They even read a book on the train in a good mood. , look at the scenery.
During meal time, we went to the dining car dedicated to first-class passengers to dine... When we stopped for a rest in the evening, the conductor organized a dinner in the dining car. It was said that he was entertaining the passengers in the first-class carriage... but in fact the dinner was chargeable. , and it’s extremely expensive.
And it’s not bad if you don’t go. The train conductor personally went to each box to invite you one by one... When he invited you, the train conductor was a decent person. Naturally, he wouldn’t say that there was a charge for the dinner. He just simply invited you to the dinner... But the train conductor... As soon as we left, the staff from the dining car came over to perform the so-called registration service, and collected the tickets for the dinner... and they treated each guest with respect, and their attitude was extremely polite.
Under such circumstances, you are really embarrassed to refuse if you are not thick-skinned enough. At least Sun Xu is not that shameless. In the end, he obediently paid for the so-called high-end dinner... and the food was still from the dining car. Convenience food.
The Dachu Empire Railway Company has the same problem as many government-run enterprises or institutions. They make money from the rich to subsidize the poor... and often develop many consumer projects specifically for the rich. , such as this first-class carriage and first-class dining car.
How can I put it this way, if we don’t get all the money back from the rich, how can we subsidize a large number of civilians to take trains cheaply? ...Why continue to build various railways on a large scale that do not make money or even lose money?
You can't always rely on issuing bonds, right? Railway bonds also have to be paid back. Now the Dachu Empire Railway Corporation owes too many bonds...so much that ordinary companies look up to it.
How many? These days, some financial investment institutions or wealthy people in Chu State often use part of their funds to purchase treasury bonds and railway bonds when making sound investments.
This is on par with the national debt. You can imagine how big the railroad bonds are.
The interest that needs to be repaid every year makes the management of the Railway Corporation very headache.
Therefore, railway companies are always looking for ways to generate revenue!
This is how the first-class carriages and first-class dining cars came to be, as well as the conductor's dinner that left many upper-class people speechless...that's how it came about.
Only with the high income from the first-class carriages at the rear of the train can we keep the ticket prices of the carriages at the front of the train relatively cheap, allowing people with little money in their pockets to board the train and go to work in other cities...
If such measures are not adopted and the train operating costs are simply shared equally, and everyone's ticket price is the same, then most poor people cannot even afford train tickets... let alone take the train to work in the city and make money.
Transportation in the Da Chu Empire was the same as education. It took the path of robbing the rich and giving to the poor...a small group of rich people paid for the education and travel of a large number of poor people.
Of course, in this process, the wealthy class will inevitably enjoy more social resources.
For example, Sun Xu now... is comfortable, eats well and sleeps well. If you want to brag, you can even say that the train conductor has to accompany him to eat and drink. He arrived in Xi'an smoothly all the way.
In the first half of the train, there are many ticket carriages. Many of the people in these ticket carriages are going home for the New Year like Sun Xu.
But they can only squeeze into crowded carriages and sit in small seats for several days if they are lucky enough... Some people even don't have seats and buy cheaper standing tickets...
The third-class carriage was almost packed with people, the smell of sweat was mixed with various smells, the sounds of children crying, women yelling, men shouting, etc. were intertwined together, composing the story of most contemporary Chu people traveling far away. A true portrayal.
The express passenger train arrived in Xi'an smoothly. Because the journey was comfortable, Sun Xu and Ms. Meng did not need to rest locally. They changed trains on the spot and boarded the train to their hometown of Longzhou.
The journey this time was relatively short, only eighty or ninety kilometers in total, with only one stop at Mianyang. Therefore, although the trains taking this branch line were all old trains and the speed was relatively slow, in the end it was It only took three hours to arrive in Longzhou.
After walking out of Longzhou Railway Station and looking at the familiar small square and streets in front of the train station, Sun Xu was filled with emotion.
After more than a year, he came back again, and he came back with great success.
When I left, I had only a few clothes, I had only a few yuan in my pocket, and I still had a third-class ticket when I sat.
But now...he is wearing a fine fine cashmere woolen coat, with a silk shirt underneath, plus shoes and hat, which cost more than twenty yuan.
Not to mention that he had already bought a nice single-family house in Songjiang, and there was a beautiful woman standing next to her that he had not even had the right to look at in the past.
Now he is back!
Perhaps sensing the change in Sun Xu's mood, or perhaps because she was nervous about coming to her boyfriend's hometown, Miss Meng habitually held Sun Xu's arm.
At this time, Uncle Li on the side had already reached an agreement with the driver of a four-wheeled taxi and loaded the luggage up and tied it up. Sun Xu and Miss Meng got into the carriage of the four-wheeled carriage, while Uncle Li stepped directly on the carriage. Behind, hands grasping the top railing.
The two-horse carriage drove quickly on the road, and when Sun Xu left, there was a young man next to him with a confused look on his face.
The young man who looked like a rich man just now looked very similar to the Sun Xu he knew... But after a while, he didn't dare to confirm it, and he didn't have the guts to run up to the rich young man and ask him if he was Sun Xu. …
So I can only just wonder.
Sun Xu didn't know this. As the carriage gradually moved forward and was approaching home, Sun Xu became a little excited.
He didn't come back for more than a year and he missed home.
Miss Meng on the side was obviously more nervous. She kept holding Sun Xu's hand with her little hand, and she held it harder and harder... Sun Xu, who felt her nervousness, immediately comforted her: "Don't be nervous, my parents are both good people. Before I have already sent a letter back to them to mention the marriage, and they have agreed to the marriage and have been looking forward to you."
Miss Meng said: "I know, I have read the letter...but, I am still nervous!"
But even if she was nervous, it had to come. It didn't take long for the carriage to pass through the small county town to Dongcheng District, and finally arrived outside a house.
The people living in this place are ordinary people, and there won't be any two-horse taxi carriages coming here under normal circumstances.
So as soon as the car arrived at the door of the house, it immediately attracted the attention of the surrounding neighbors. Many people poked their heads out to take a look, and a few acquaintances chatted together.
"Who is this?"
"Come to Lao Sun's house?"
"I haven't heard of any rich relatives in their family!"
"Their youngest son is quite promising. He was admitted to Shaanxi-Gansu University this year! But he hasn't graduated yet. When he came back two days ago, he wasn't so promising!"
While the neighbors were talking, Uncle Li had already gotten out of the car and opened the door before the coachman. Then Sun Xu got out of the car... When Sun Xu got out of the car and appeared in front of everyone, the scene was a little stagnant for a while.
Sun Xu was naturally recognized by the neighbors. Even if the situation was far beyond their expectations, Sun Xu's clothes were obviously expensive at first glance, but it was not impossible for them to recognize him.
"Is this the eldest child of the Sun family?"
"The sun rises in the west?"
"Didn't Sun Dawa say he was going to Songjiang to work? It doesn't look like he was going to work. He was going to steal money, right?"
"Tsk tsk, look at this outfit, it's more elegant than what the owner of our store wears!"
"And this carriage. This kind of rental carriage is so valuable that our boss can't bear to ride it a few times a year!"
While everyone was talking, the courtyard door of Sun Xu's house was also opened... In fact, the courtyard wall of Sun's house was very low, and the upper part was a wooden fence. Sun Shoemaker, who was sitting at the door of the courtyard, sunbathing and smoking cigarettes, also looked through the wooden fence. Fences took a look at this four-wheeled carriage, which was obviously very expensive.
Before, he thought it was some rich man passing by. After he stopped at the door of the yard, Shoemaker Sun thought that he might be looking for his next door neighbor...his son?
To be honest, he really didn't expect it for a while, even though Sun Xu had written many times to tell him that he had been promoted and had a salary increase, and his income was good. He even bought a house in Songjiang City and found a woman to marry.
He knew that his son had made a lot of money, but it was difficult to understand from the text what the concept of Sun Xu, who earned more than a thousand dollars a year, was and what practical changes it would bring to his life.
Just like ordinary people in later generations of the original time and space, they actually don’t understand what the daily lives of high-income groups are like.
It can only be done through hearsay, coupled with some wild imagination... And these hearsay and imagined high-income life scenes are basically far away from the facts, either the imagination is too low, or the imagination is too high. .
This was the case with Shoemaker Sun. He knew that his son was making a lot of money in Songjiang, but he never thought that when his eldest son came home, he would sit in a two-horse taxi carriage that was designed to deceive wealthy people from out of town... And he also brought an entourage with him.
You can't blame him for not having a rich imagination, but he really has never been exposed to people at this level, and he hasn't even seen much of them.
And when he squinted and saw Sun Xu getting out of the car, he opened his eyes and took a closer look. He immediately stood up from the chair and shouted through the wooden fence: "Xu Zi?"
Sun Xu had just gotten out of the car and looked towards the yard of his home. He happened to see his father calling him and immediately responded loudly: "Dad, it's me, I'm back!"
After hearing this, Sun's father walked out with a quick step, and at the same time he didn't forget to shout: "My dear, come out quickly, Xuzi is back!"
Soon a middle-aged woman wearing an apron came out quickly. When she saw Sun Xu, she shouted: "Son!"
Soon, the two of them arrived at the door. At this time, Miss Meng also got out of the car. Sun Xu introduced to his parents: "Dad, mother, this is the Miss Meng I told you!"
At this time, Miss Meng also leaned forward slightly, clasped her hands in front of her chest, and at the same time slightly bent her knees to perform a blessing salute: "Uncle and aunt, blessings!"
When Sun's father saw it, he smiled from ear to ear and kept saying, "Okay...okay!"
Grandma saw Miss Meng, who was fair and beautiful, well-dressed and dignified, with a smile on her wrinkled face: "Girl, you're welcome, we're all family members... Come in and talk!"
(End of chapter)
