February 3, 1697, Chile's Central Valley, Former Half of Jigou Prison.

Because the grain harvest this year exceeded expectations, the warden "Long Yan was very happy" decided to spend money on the outside world to purchase a lot of fruits, spirits and canned food and distribute them to prisoners serving their sentences, which received warm cheers from everyone.

The first half of the Jaegou Prison is located in the town of Kulareve in the mountains of Chile in later generations. It is like Shihezi, slat houses and other places to the south. It is built by exile prisoners. At present, there are 1,500 and 600 people (including family members). They make a living by planting rye and grazing goats. At the same time, they provide supplies to the caravans, and their lives are still acceptable.

The East Coast people have been practicing cross-border cultivation for decades through the model of exile in prisons, and the results are still very significant. These prisoners can be allowed to take their families (if their families want) to the prison location to receive a piece of land to farm, or receive another type of job, and remain until the sentence is over.

In fact, prisoners are not good people, so when facing the harsh natural environment and hostile foreigners, they can always better protect themselves and survive. Taking these reclamation prisons in the Central Valley of Chile as an example, prisoners regularly go to the prison site to receive basic training. If foreign enemies appear, the prison will decisively distribute weapons to them to fight. The Spaniards have never had any good ideas about this.

Of course, the prison also has its own armed forces, but the number is not large. Fortunately, the southern counties will also take turns to send some militias to guard, and the security forces are still sufficient. With these forces, the prisoners have to consider the consequences of continuing to commit crimes (once they are caught, they will basically be beaten and half-dead, and many serious criminals will even be executed directly). The government has given them a chance, so don't be shameless.

By the way, the Shihezi and other prisons in the south were finally officially established at the end of last year. Because the sentences of most local prisoners had expired and the number of immigrants reached a certain level, with the approval of the Government Council, Yingtian County (the 185th county-level administrative unit in the country) under the jurisdiction of Yingtian Town, Lutong Township, Luyuan Township, Shihezi Township, and Banzouwu Township was also established. It is the seventh county under the Southern Chile Regional Administration. The East Coast Government has further developed the Central Valley.

In addition to the establishment of Yingtian County, the people on the east bank did not relax their encroachment on the area north of the Va River (Valdivia River). In this way, the front half of the Jigou Prison, the second half of the Jigou Prison (located near the small town of Pukon in later generations, the east side of Biarica Lake, across the lake from Biarica City), the Nanwan Prison (located near the town of New Tolten in later generations), Xiamahe Prison (located near the city of Pitruffken in later generations), the Nanlu Prison (located near the town of Kunko in later generations), and the Goubangzi Prison (located near the town of Meripeuco in later generations), are quite powerful, and can almost wipe out the prisoners in mainland prisons.

The distribution of these six new breeding prisons almost completely surrounded the Spaniards in the nearby important town of Biarica. Because of the extremely rich resources, the city has a very large population, with more than 5,000 people from the Peninsula alone, and the other Mestiso and Indians are even ten times more than that, which can be regarded as a major city in central and southern Chile.

The mercury mined by Biarica was transported to the Potosi Silver Mine in Charkas through a mule and horse team for locals to refine silver. It is the largest source of mercury in the Chalkas Prosecution Court District. In addition, there is a small lead ore (accompanied by a small amount of gold), a small and medium-sized copper ore, two small silver ore and several sulfur ore. It has a very good resource endowment and a very important position. Therefore, when the East Coast people set up these prisons and reclamation areas, although they were mentally prepared, the West [.] Spaniards were still panicked and immediately protested through the ambassador to the East Coast.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the East Coast comforted the Spaniards well. They promised that it would not affect the normal production, transportation, and sales of these minerals, and recognized the ownership of these minerals by Spain. If the Spaniards were willing to sell minerals and food, the East Coast people would purchase more and more, and their attitude was relatively good overall.

Although the Spanish ambassador heard this, he was as disgusting as eating flies, he was quite satisfied with the mines that remained on the east coast. Without mercury, the production of the Potosi silver mine would be greatly affected, and Madrid's already tense finances would go bankrupt in an instant, and the money owed to the Dutch is likely to be repaid again. This is simply a disaster. Although the East Coast colonists have occupied a lot of land, the production of the most important mercury mine has not been affected. So let it go! There seems to be no good method, just turn a blind eye!

In this way, six reclaimed areas including Goubangzi Prison were soon opened. In the early stage, they even bought a large amount of food from the Spaniards in Biarica City, which played a huge role in surviving the initial difficult period. Is it ironic that the local Spaniards could not stand the unreasonable act of the East Coast people occupying land, but they would not let it go if there was business to do it, and it was extremely utilitarian.

From the Wa River to the northernmost Xiamahe Prison Prison, the branch distance is 100 kilometers. Speaking of which, this is another 100,000 square kilometers, and most of them are good land. There are forests, mines, rivers, lakes, and a large amount of flat land for planting food. The climate is pretty good, and it is definitely a fertile land. Not to mention, there are several rich fishery resources near the coast, and this wealth cannot be underestimated. If the Spaniards do not cherish it, they can only develop it by the people on the east coast.

In addition to resources, the geographical location of the above six prisons is also very wonderful. The Andes Mountains to the east are relatively "thin" and there are also large sections of canyons and valleys in the mountains, which are more convenient to access. On the other side of the mountain, there is the Ludang River Basin, which is quite good. In the early years, a large number of merchants set out from Dingnan County and arrived at Chilean side to do business. Now the north line of the wool transport line is open to traffic. After the goods are landed in Yancheng Port, they can be transported quickly and cheaply to Jiuyuanxiang Railway Station in the western suburbs of Dingnan County, which is already very close to Shanxi.

After the establishment of six reclaimed areas such as Goubangzi, it will make this trade road more convenient, safer, and higher profit margins. Therefore, the State Administration for Development is now considering sending a group of serious immigrants to these six prison reclaimed areas to accelerate the development of these areas.

After all, if there is a dispute with the Spanish government in the future or even an armed conflict breaks out, whether the six prison reclamation areas can provide sufficient material supply (at least food) is very important. Going north from the central valley controlled by the east coast is also one of the combat contents, not just landing along the coastline.

The Chilean region is actually very important in the planning of people in the east coast, even more important than the large population Paraguay and the silver-covered Charcas. It is close to the sea and facing the Pacific Ocean, with a vast space for progress, and has abundant mineral resources and good agricultural conditions. At present, a large number of seafood and agricultural products are exported to the local area. Typically, salmon and cherries can accommodate a relatively dense population.

With a larger population, industry can naturally be developed. At present, the industrial investment of East Coast people in Chile is relatively weak, and most of them focus on rough processing using local resources such as food and wood. The most advanced industrial facilities are the Pacific Shipyard founded by the South Railway Company when it operated Chile. However, the factory is still a little different from the other three shipyards located on the Atlantic coast. Both the process level and production scale are far from each other, and there are too few technical patents on hand. After cross-authorization with brother units, it will cost a lot of money. It is a considerable expense every year.

As for other companies, they really can't get the market. There may be a lot of numbers, but most of them are junior enterprises with low technical content and commercial enterprises, which are not large in scale, and there is really no one to fight for.

Fortunately, the Executive Committee also plans to increase investment in this place. This time, it is not a slogan to fool people, but a real plan to invest. The fiat currency cannot be eliminated every year. After all, there is a third naval fleet here, and it will also receive a large amount of Spanish land and assets in the future. It is definitely not possible not to prepare in advance.

By the way, there is a widely circulated gossip here, that is, the original relocation plan of the Montenegro Industrial Company located in Nansong was rejected because they wanted to go to the Pampa area. According to the latest plan of the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, this large industrial enterprise with business ranks third in the country, covering coal mining, steel and machinery manufacturing, is likely to move to Chile. The specific location has not been decided yet. It may be Liuchenggang, the home port of the current Navy's Third Fleet, and there is also a Pacific shipyard in the local area. If you accompany them together, you can indeed produce the effect of one plus one greater than two. Of course, there are also rumors that this company will move to Concepcion, which is currently in the hands of the Spanish. In short, there are many news, but none of them dare to guarantee it.

In addition, the once mysterious Xuefeng Lake Shipyard may also be relocated to Chile to support local development. Xuefeng Lake is still too small. In the few days when ships are becoming more and more complex and larger, this company, which is a pioneer in the shipbuilding industry, has been subject to considerable restrictions and can only move out to seek development. Considering the current lack of technical strength of the Pacific Shipyard, these two shipyards may be merged.
Chapter completed!