"The train is open! The train is open!" The children ran around the crowd, clapping their hands happily, and shouting loudly. The adults gathered together in groups of three or three, talking a lot. People in Xiongzhou had heard of the train for a long time, and they finally got here today.

Everyone in the city ran out to see the newly built station. When building the city, they did not expect that there would be something like trains in the world. The layout of the city could not accommodate the station in the city, so they could only be built outside the west gate.

Ma Huaide and Zhang Ke sat next to the station together, with tea and fruits placed on the middle table, chatting and waiting for the arrival of the train.

Looking at the crowd around, Zhang Ke said: "In recent years, people have also known the benefits of trains. They are open to traffic today and they are all here to see them."

Ma Huaide said: "It is the time when spring is warm and flowers are blooming. By watching the train, the whole family will go out for a walk. After a winter, the people will also come out to walk around. Not to mention, many people will come to see it."

Mr. Xing, who opened a quality shop, said: "What the magistrate said is that we ordinary people have seen few things, so of course we have to take a look. I have heard of such a magical object as a train, but unfortunately I have never traveled far away and haven't sat there."

Ma Huaide said: "The station in this state has been repaired for a lot of days, so it should be no wonder."

Mr. Sun, a pharmacy shop, said: "I only saw the road construction and the iron was laid on the ground, but I didn't know what kind of car could run on it. The people who live on these side roads are not as knowledgeable as the people in the Central Plains. Many people have not been a hundred miles away from home in their lifetime."

Mr. Xu, who sells silk, said: "I have taken the train. When I arrived at Daming Mansion, there was a train there. I have never seen it before. I took it to Xiangzhou and saw it once. However, I have only seen it that time."

Mr. Xing on the side said, "Yes, there are less than ten people in our city who have taken the train, which shows that this thing is rare. In the future, the train will lead here, I wonder what the benefits will be?"

Mr. Xu shook his head and said, "This is like lightning. He just uses coal. He doesn't need to prepare drinking water, food and grass on the road. It's very convenient. In the future, when the train comes here, goods from other places can be transported in. Even if it's as far away as Jiangling, it will arrive in just a few days. At that time, there will be everything from the south to the south in winter. No matter how different the days before, there will be no green leaves in winter."

Everyone was amazed when they heard this. They only heard that in Kaifeng Mansion, they could still see all kinds of fruits, but they didn't think they could do it here.

Ma Huaide looked at everyone and whispered to Zhang Ji: "These ordinary people only know that when the train is connected, it will be much more convenient to transport things from other places, but they don't know that local things are also convenient to transport them out. Once the train is connected, a place will be earth-shaking from now on."

Zhang Ke said: "For me, these are not important. What's important is that when the train is opened, Xiongzhou will become a military center on Hebei Road. Zhending Prefecture, Dingzhou, Baozhou and Xiongzhou are connected by railways and directly connected to Kaifeng. Later, it was impossible for the Khitan cavalry to advance south again."

Ma Huaide nodded: "The Taiwei said it well, and the most important thing is this matter. Otherwise, the Secretary of the Central Committee would not be so anxious to build this railway. Once the railway is connected, soldiers can be quickly mobilized along the line. It will be useless for the Khitan cavalry to surround the back. As long as the railway is there, it will be useless for many people to go south. They will be sealed in the south, leaving no return."

Zhang Ji said: "Yes, the railway was opened. From then on, the imperial court had more rules against the Khitan on Hebei Road. The imperial court's troops were arranged along the railway on Hebei Road, and only the Hejian Prefecture behind guarded the rear road. Hebei was flat, and Khitan could choose any road in the past. There was only one road in the future, which was to go south along the railway. Otherwise, the rear road would be trampled."

Ma Huaide nodded. He was the sacrificial envoy along the border, and of course he knew what Zhang Ji meant. The railway was a major transportation line, and the troops and food in the rear could be transported quickly. To the east of Xiongzhou, there were large pools of squash, which was not conducive to military operations. When the train reached Xiongzhou, the Song Dynasty used railways to connect the Hebei Road, which was equivalent to building a circle of fences. If the Khitans wanted to go south, they had to follow the railway line, and other places were useless. If it was not good, the Song Dynasty would transport troops from the railway and block their retreat.

The current railway only leads to Kaifeng Prefecture, connecting Hebei Road to the Central Plains. If difficulties are overcome later, the railway will be built from Hebei Road to Jingdong, the national strength of the Khitan will be difficult to pose a threat to the Song Dynasty.

In this era, the Yellow River flowed into the sea from north to north. The rivers in the lower reaches were volatile and often broke, and there were many ponds. It was not easy to build a railway from Hebei Road to Jingdong Road, and it was easily destroyed by flooded rivers. The most reliable north-south passage was along the foothills of Taihang Mountain, which was also the artery of north-south transportation at this time. This was the railway line from Kaifeng Prefecture, and it only went east after reaching Zhending Prefecture. It was very different from the traffic pattern in later generations.

In this era, Hebei Road and Hedong Road were more closely connected. Once there was a military operation, it was often along the Taihang Mountains, interacting in front and behind the mountains. It was very different from the later generations of Hebei and Qilu, where wars often took place on the west side of Hebei Road.

The deployment of troops in the Song Dynasty was based on the geographical situation, from Zhending Prefecture to Dingzhou, and then to Xiongzhou, basically along the Taihang Mountains. Once a war broke out with the Khitan, the troops were quickly concentrated along the railway. The center of the battle between the two sides was the area between Baozhou and Xiongzhou. The railway was built to Xiongzhou, which made the completion of the military deployment of the Song Dynasty, and it had already gained the upper hand.

At noon, I heard a whistle sound, and the crowd suddenly became excited. Although most people didn't know what the whistle sounded, they would be excited when they saw the people next to me.

Ma Huaide stood up and said, "The whistle sounds, and it won't take long before the train arrives. Let's prepare to welcome the train."

Zhang Ji and the gentry members next to him stood up, tidied up their sleeves, and stood beside Ma Huaide. Today, the first train was not only the railway officials, but mainly the subordinates of Zhang Ji. Zhang Ji's troops defended the Baozhou to Xiongzhou area, and the railway was connected and the transportation was convenient.

With the sound of the whistle, a sound of being even more and more came slowly. A huge monster was lying on the railway, emitting white smoke, and heading towards the station. The commanding soldiers shook the small flag and ordered the onlookers to retreat, barking for a moment.

Where have the people seen such things? For a moment, some people screamed, some people shouted, and they did everything.

Mr. Xing opened his mouth wide and after a long time, he said, "This is the train? It's so scary! He was angry in front of him. Is there a nose? How much food and grass should such a big monster eat to feed it in a day?"

Mr. Xu said: "What are you saying? The train does not use food and grass, it burns coal! As long as there is coal, you can run non-stop."

Only then did Mr. Xing remember that the train had said before that it was not eaten by food and grass, and he was a little embarrassed. Fortunately, no one around him paid attention to him, and they all looked at the train and felt very strange. There was such a monster in this world, square, but he was almost over the galloping horse.

In the meantime, the train entered the station and stopped slowly. Seeing the train stop, the crowd cheered while watching the fun.

Ma Huaide and Zhang Ji walked forward with the officials of this state. The soldiers led them to a carriage.

The carriage door opened, and the railway official who was escorting the car inside salute everyone.
Chapter completed!