Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 194: New Changes in Anyang
Li Xian focused his attention on studying internal combustion engines and computers, while his older brother, Li Liang, had already been in Anyang for more than ten days, under the pretext of an inspection.
At first, Li Liang came to see how Li Xian was doing, to show some concern. But after arriving, Li Liang couldn’t leave. Although Li Xian had only officially taken over Anyang for about half a year, the city had already changed.
One of Anyang’s most famous landmarks was the school. In Anyang, the most prestigious place was, of course, the City Lord’s mansion, but the grandest, most elegant, and most expansive place was the school.
In most places, having a private school would already be considered impressive, but in Anyang, everyone went to school.
In Anyang, education was free. The right to education was an inviolable right for every child, and it was the local officials’ duty to educate the common people. This principle was written on the walls of the school.
In fact, there were many things written on the walls of the school, almost forming half of a “code of law,” mostly related to education and schools.
After seeing the school, Li Liang didn’t think much of it at first, because in the world of cultivation, there was a saying — “fate!” Cultivation is about fate; without this fortune, even education would be futile.
However, in the following days, Li Liang’s perspective on Anyang gradually changed.
At night, Anyang was exceptionally lively, with dazzling lights flickering throughout the night. There were merchants calling out in every street and alley, though loud calls were prohibited at night.
In addition, the city’s guards patrolling the streets seemed to be very friendly and always willing to help.
Furthermore, Anyang had gradually introduced so-called buses. There were very few buses at the moment, and they only served specific groups of people, such as the elderly, pregnant women, disabled veterans, and children.
Naturally, some people, out of curiosity or mischief, wanted to experience riding the bus, especially the newcomers from outside. But the results were usually the same: whenever this happened, many of the locals would rush out and drag these troublemakers away for a good beating.
Originally, Li Liang had wanted to try it out himself, but after seeing this, he could only shake his head.
As if that weren’t enough, Anyang had a shocking, extravagant practice — they actually used railroad tracks for paving roads!
About three miles outside Anyang, several railroad tracks passed through. The tracks had just been laid, and the trains were still being produced. But there were already many people gathered around, watching, unsure of what was going on.
Today, after Li Liang had toured the entire city and inquired about everything, he finally decided to go to the railroad tracks, which had become a hot topic.
The railway was magnificent, with a width of two meters for each track. This width had been decided by Li Xian with future considerations in mind. Two tracks ran parallel to each other, extending out of sight.
Where the tracks passed, the roads were all elevated on bridges, crossing over the railway.
Looking around, there were actually five or six elevated bridges crossing over the railway.
Li Liang went up to inspect and found that the steel used was excellent, producing a clear ringing sound when struck. The steel used for the railway was only slightly inferior to that used in armor.
“So much steel just lying on the ground, this is extravagance!” Not only did Li Liang think this, but many of the onlookers also expressed similar sentiments.
Zou Hui, Li Liang’s strategist, roughly calculated, “Young master, the cost of laying this section of railway and its foundation is estimated to be about three taels of silver per ten feet. I’ve heard that the railway has already been laid from Qingyun Valley to Ding Mountain City, covering over two hundred miles. Including the elevated bridges built along the way, the cost for these two hundred miles is expected to be around 150,000 taels of gold.”
“Truly… extravagant!” Zou Hui exclaimed.
“If we also factor in maintenance costs, worker wages, and other expenses, it would probably come to around 170,000 taels of gold.”
Li Liang looked around and noticed soldiers from Anyang patrolling in the distance. He immediately identified himself and inquired about the situation. The soldiers were open and did not hide anything — there was no need to, as the railroad tracks were already laid down.
“To answer the young master’s question, the current cost is about 220,000 taels of gold. During construction, we considered a 50-year lifespan, so we used solid materials,” one soldier replied.
“These are all high-quality steel. Aren’t you worried about theft?” Li Liang asked.
The soldier smiled proudly, “Guarding the railway and protecting public property is the responsibility of every Anyang citizen. Lord Du (Li Xian) has done so much for us, and we can’t be parasites. Anyang belongs to everyone, not just one person.”
Li Liang was momentarily stunned by the soldier’s words.
At that moment, a small cultivator from the Foundation Establishment stage flew through the air and announced, “Attention everyone, please stay at least ten feet away from the railroad. The first train of Anyang is about to be tested.”
Several other Foundation Establishment cultivators flew above the railway, shouting loudly.
The crowd was curious, not understanding what a train was. Li Liang asked the nearby soldier, who grinned widely, revealing a set of large black teeth. “A train, a train, as the name suggests, is a long line of vehicles all arranged together. Though I haven’t seen it, I’ve heard that the train is several dozen meters long and can carry hundreds of tons of goods at once. It can make ten round trips between Ding Mountain City and Anyang in a single day.”
Although the new train’s carrying capacity was limited, the fact that it could transport hundreds of tons of goods at once still drew gasps of astonishment. With ten round trips per day, that meant one train could transport several thousand tons of goods daily. Some of the transport business owners nearby started calculating — this competitor was formidable. Of course, some merchants also began to consider the implications.
After waiting for about half an hour, there seemed to be a muffled sound coming from the railroad tracks.
The people in the front suddenly shouted, “Something’s coming.”
Li Liang immediately flew up with his sword, soaring into the air. From a distance, he saw a “locomotive” slowly approaching, resembling a dragon.
Seeing the train, Li Liang took a sharp breath. “What an enormous vehicle. This train has seven carriages, and each one is about three to four zhang long. Seven carriages would be around twenty-three or twenty-four zhang. By my brother’s standard, this train must be over seventy meters long.”
With such a train, it was no wonder they needed to lay down railroad tracks. The ground couldn’t possibly bear the immense pressure.
The train rumbled past Li Liang and continued on, eventually disappearing from view. The surrounding crowd erupted in heated discussion, some in awe, others laughing, some indifferent, and others deep in thought. Unfortunately, the windows of the train were curtained, so they couldn’t see inside.
However, some people with sharp noses remarked, “This locomotive seems to be burning something. Look at the black smoke coming from underneath, and there’s this strange, indescribable smell.”
The first generation of internal combustion engines had many issues, and incomplete combustion was unavoidable. As for the strange smell, it was clearly from the partially burned fuel and leftover residues — commonly known as pollution.
But that didn’t stop some clever individuals from marveling at it. Many quickly recognized the potential benefits of this train for warfare, though they also saw its vulnerabilities — it could only operate on the railroad tracks.