pdf-ebookys Chapter 956 Even a lowly official has a hard time.
Chapter 956 Even a lowly official has a hard time.
Seeing Chen Mo's indifferent expression, Wang Guangyang was so angry he wanted to curse, but Chen Mo said with a bitter face, "Provincial Governor Wang only sees the benefits of the railway, but does he see the troubles it brings?"
Wang Guangyang was slightly taken aback and asked, "Trouble?"
Chen Mo nodded, had someone bring him a map of Ningyang County, and after unfolding it, he slowly said, "This kind of steam locomotive is good, but it needs a place to park."
"Moreover, the role of a station is not just to stop and unload goods."
"The key is to ensure that the steam locomotive can be replenished with coal and water, and to have people inspect the entire steam engine."
“Provincial Governor Wang, look, there is enough open space in Ningyang County to build a station, but if we want to build the station inside the city, we must open another hole in the city wall.”
Should we plug the hole in the city wall at night?
If it gets blocked, will the steam locomotives be unable to run at night?
If there are no traffic jams, how can the city guarantee safety?
Chen Mo shook his head slightly, then pointed to the map and said, "If the station is built outside the city, a large number of oxcarts and horse-drawn carriages will be needed to connect the section of road from outside the city to inside the city."
"In addition, the entire railway needs to be constantly patrolled to prevent anyone from taking the risk of stealing the rails."
"In that case, we will need even more manpower."
"Without making these preparations, the so-called railway will only be empty talk."
Wang Guangyang couldn't help but glance at Chen Mo and said sarcastically, "You, Minister Xu, didn't say that before."
Before, you didn't mention the issue of goods transfer between the city and the outside, nor the issue of railway inspection. You just kept urging me to come to Ningyang County and then discuss how to build a railway line from Ningyang to Jinan Prefecture.
Now that you've become the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Railways, you're starting to bring up all this messy, trivial stuff.
Faced with Wang Guangyang's sarcasm, Chen Mo said without batting an eye, "The railway from Ningyang County to Jinan Prefecture is naturally not that complicated."
"But now I must consider railway lines in other prefectures and counties."
"We can't just let each prefecture and county build whatever they want."
"Doesn't this also contradict the standardization the county magistrate mentioned?"
After a slight pause, Chen Mo continued, "The most crucial thing is how to check whether the steam locomotive is working properly or not, and whether any parts need to be replaced. Nobody knows anything about this, so I'll have to have someone train a group of people specifically for this purpose."
"Furthermore, we need to train a special team of people to teach how to start a steam locomotive, how to add coal, and how to operate the switches to change tracks."
"Ningyang County and Jinan Prefecture are relatively better, but looking at the whole of Shandong and even the whole of the Ming Dynasty, we would need at least 20,000 to 30,000 people just for this."
Chen Mo put away the map and sighed softly, "So, this humble official is also in a difficult position."
Wang Guangyang glanced at Chen Mo again, then left the Ningyang County government office grumbling all the way.
Because Ningyang County was separated and directly governed by the cabinet, the magistrate of Ningyang County was a sixth-rank official, two ranks higher than the ordinary magistrate. Even Chen Mo, the executive deputy magistrate, was a sixth-rank official.
The problem is that he went from being the executive deputy magistrate of Ningyang to the left vice minister of the newly established Ministry of Railways, jumping directly from the sixth rank to the third rank. That's a ridiculous leap!
Jumping seven levels in a row!
What are the people in power really thinking?
How did those officials in the Ministry of Personnel manage to issue official titles and decrees with such reluctance?
Why didn't those trolls from the Censorate stand up and speak out?
What chilled Wang Guangyang even more was that Chen Mo, that scoundrel, turned his back on him after his act, even overturning his own decisions. Now, he was openly using the Ministry of Railways' name, considering the Ministry's interests in every way, and raising all sorts of troublesome issues!
Wang Guangyang grew angrier the more he thought about it, and couldn't help but turn around and glance at the Ningyang County government office. He spat and said, "Look how happy you are now. Wait until Yang the Madman comes back, and I'll see how you're still jumping around!"
……
Compared to Chen Mo, who was scheming everywhere, and Wang Guangyang, who was so angry he was jumping up and down, Xu Liang, the Assistant Magistrate of Dengzhou Prefecture, almost laughed himself to death.
From a junior official magistrate to a sixth-rank executive deputy county magistrate, it appears to be a demotion of three ranks, which in officialdom is almost a signal that one's career advancement is completely cut off.
However, can the executive deputy magistrate of Ningyang County be the same as the executive deputy magistrates of other places?
There's no such official position as Executive Deputy County Magistrate anywhere else.
Furthermore, although the executive deputy magistrate of Ningyang County was a sixth-rank official, Ningyang County was only nominally under the jurisdiction of the Grand Secretariat; in reality, it was directly under the jurisdiction of the emperor and the crown prince.
Jane is in the Emperor's heart, isn't she?
Just like the previous executive deputy magistrate Chen Mo, who quietly served as a sixth-rank assistant official in Ningyang County for several years, suddenly jumped seven ranks and became the newly established Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Railways. This is beyond what Jian Zai Di Xin can fully describe!
As for Zhou Jingxin, who has just taken over?
The student transferred by the Prefect is said to be quite skilled at writing infuriating memorials, and he is also very successful in the Grand Secretariat and the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. He must be quite a character.
Without hesitation, Xu Liang handed over the Dengzhou government's treasury, official business, and the affairs of the Dengzhou market to Zhou Jingxin.
"From now on, I'll entrust the affairs of Dengzhou Prefecture to Magistrate Zhou."
After showing Zhou Jingxin around Dengzhou City, Xu Liang took her to a place outside the city where steam engines were temporarily parked and said, "I have been demoted to Ningyang County as the executive deputy magistrate. I will have to trouble you a lot in the future, Magistrate Zhou."
Zhou Jingxin understood Xu Liang's unspoken meaning—you, Zhou Jingxin, are a student trained by the Prefect, and I, Xu, have also followed the Prefect for several years; we're on the same side.
Moreover, your hometown, Zhou Jingxin, is Ningyang County. Now that you've become the Assistant Prefect of Dengzhou Prefecture, you must remember to take good care of Ningyang County whenever there are any good things to do.
Zhou Jingxin walked to the front of the train with a smile, looking it over as he said, "In the future, we'll have to trouble Vice County Magistrate Xu to put in a lot of effort for the railway from Dengzhou Prefecture to Ningyang County."
Xu Liang nodded in agreement, and then, like Zhou Jingxin, stared at the steel behemoth before him with a look of fascination.
A massive iron lump weighing tens of thousands of kilograms, pulling several carriages of goods, sped along the tracks, billowing black smoke.
Even just imagining this scene, let alone witnessing it in person, is enough to make one's heart surge with excitement.
The key point is that this thing doesn't eat grain or grass, and it doesn't even need much rest. As long as there is enough coal and water, it can pull goods on the rails.
Once the railway line connecting Ningyang County and Dengzhou Prefecture is completed, goods produced in Ningyang County can be transported to Dengzhou Prefecture by rail, and good products from Dengzhou can also be transported to Ningyang by rail.