The Hot Spring Palace was the first stop between Chang 'an City and Luoyang City. The train could turn around here and drive back directly. However, Ang Lee had to test the technology of reversing the train. Therefore, he stopped the train and drove it back directly.
When the train started, it was necessary to press the hooks on each carriage to make use of the inertia of the carriage in front to drive the carriage behind. However, when the train was reversing, it was the opposite. It was necessary to tighten the hooks on each carriage to make use of the inertia to make the train start more easily.
Therefore, after the carriage stopped, it was necessary to move forward a short distance to tighten the hooks. Then, it would be easier to reverse the train.
The train glided for a long distance before slowly coming to a stop. After it stopped, it slowly moved forward again, allowing all the carriages to be tightened. Finally, coal was added to the fire, and the train started in reverse, heading towards the capital.
Of course, there was a certain risk in reversing the train. The biggest risk was not being able to see the situation behind. If there were obstacles on the tracks behind, it was very likely that the train would hit them directly, causing the carriage to overturn.
However, the train was going straight all the way, so it was certain that there would be no obstacles on the road. Moreover, people in this era would definitely hide far away when they saw a big guy like the train. They would never stand on the tracks and wait to be hit.
The feeling of reversing the train was no different from that of going forward. At least for the people sitting in the carriage, there was not much difference. They only knew that the train was reversing, and nothing else changed.
Seeing the train run 70 to 80 miles in one breath and smoothly reverse the train, everyone on the train congratulated each other excitedly.
There were even some young people who jumped up and down on the train to vent their excitement.
"Assistant Minister Li, from what I can see, with our current speed, we can travel a hundred miles in two hours. We only need sixteen hours to reach Luoyang. If we go even faster, I estimate that we can reach Luoyang in twelve hours. In one day and one night, we can make a round trip. This is too fast."
"The invention of the train was all thanks to Assistant Minister Li. We were only able to bask in Assistant Minister Li's blessings."
"With the trains and tracks, it will be much more convenient for the people of the Tang dynasty to travel in the future. The journey that used to take more than a month will only take one day in the future."
In addition to being happy, everyone did not forget to compliment and discuss in front of Ang Lee.
Of course, Ang Lee was even happier. He looked at the crowd and said seriously, "You have all contributed a lot to the successful development of the train. Next, there are still many things you need to do, such as laying further railways and developing more advanced locomotives and carriages. In short, you should work harder in the future to lay the railway to all the borders of the Tang dynasty so that all the people of the Tang dynasty can travel faster."
"Yes, yes, yes. We will follow Assistant Minister Li's instructions and work even harder in the future."
Everyone smiled in agreement. Obviously, they were full of confidence for the upcoming work.
In just over an hour, the train returned to Chang 'an City and slowly stopped at the place where it had set off. A large group of related personnel and people lined the streets to welcome them.
"Assistant Minister Li, the invention of the train has really solved a big problem for me!"
As soon as Ang Lee got out of the carriage, an official of the Ministry of Works came up to him with a happy face.
"What's the matter? What problem have you been facing? "
Ang Lee asked curiously.
"Assistant Minister Li, you don't know. There is still a small section of the railway from Chang 'an City to Luoyang City that has not been completed. It will take another three days to complete it. But the autumn harvest is coming. It will be difficult for the tens of thousands of laborers in Guanzhong to return home in time. I'm afraid that it will delay the autumn harvest. Now that we have the train, we can quickly transport them back to Guanzhong so that their families will not miss the autumn harvest."
The official of the Ministry of Works said with relief.
"Haha, what a coincidence. Don't worry! In addition to this locomotive that has already been developed, there are two other locomotives that have been developed in the early stages. We only need to change some core parts and they can also be on the road. In this way, the three trains will take turns and we will definitely be able to quickly transport the laborers in Luoyang City back to Guanzhong. Your urgent problem has been solved, haha! "
To be able to solve the problem of tens of thousands of laborers returning to Guanzhong in time was a great help to the Ministry of Works and the Ministry of Revenue. It also ensured that the families of tens of thousands of laborers would not miss the autumn harvest. This made Ang Lee very happy and felt that his hard work over the past few months had not been in vain. It was really worth it.
The development of the steam locomotive was a great success. This major event was quickly reported to Li Longji. After learning of this, Li Longji was of course very happy and had the impulse to experience it and tour Luoyang City. However, considering that the autumn harvest was coming soon and the railway had not been completely laid, he decided to postpone the experience and solve the autumn harvest first. Then he would consider taking the train to tour Luoyang City.
After returning to the research and development center, Ang Lee immediately began to modify the last two steam locomotives so that these two defective locomotives could be put into use immediately. They would use the fastest speed to transport the large number of laborers in Luoyang City back to Guanzhong and ensure that the autumn harvest could be carried out normally.
The modification work went very smoothly. Very soon, the three locomotives could pull carriages. In order to balance safety and transport capacity, each locomotive only pulled twenty carriages. Among them, ten were hard seats and ten were empty carriages. The transport capacity was as high as four to five thousand people at a time. They could make a round trip in a day and a night. It could be said to be very fast.
After the railway from Chang 'an City to Luoyang City was completely connected, there were still five days until the autumn harvest. Ang Lee sent three trains to the vicinity of Luoyang City as soon as the railway opened. He loaded more than ten thousand laborers into the trains and transported them in the direction of Chang' an City.
These laborers had made a great contribution to the construction of the railway. Letting them take the train back to their hometown was also a form of respect and repayment for them. However, because there were too many people, it was impossible to let them enjoy the high treatment of soft sleeper and soft seats. They could only enjoy the lowest class of hard seats and no seats. Otherwise, with the current transport capacity, it would be impossible to achieve this. There was no other way. These laborers were ordinary people and did not care about this. As long as they could return home quickly and not delay the autumn harvest, they were very happy.
In order to check the physical condition of these laborers after a long journey, Ang Lee purposely waited at the station at the north gate of Daming Palace. He wanted to take a look at these laborers.
Beside Ang Lee, in addition to the guards and other people, there were also a few doctors with good medical skills. In case someone was unwell, they would immediately treat them.
"Assistant Minister Li, the train is here. The first train is back."
Ang Lee had already seen the high black smoke column. He smiled slightly and waited for the train to stop.
"Assistant Minister Li, this train left early yesterday morning and only came back in the afternoon. It seems that it is later than expected."
Ang Lee smiled and explained: "This is normal. Traveling at night and pulling a carriage full of people, they would not dare to drive too fast, right?"
"Yes, yes, yes. Assistant Minister Li said that it is not appropriate to travel too fast at night to avoid danger."
While Ang Lee was talking with his subordinates, the train slowly came to a stop. The moment the carriage door opened, a large number of people carrying all kinds of tools ran off the train and gradually gathered into a huge stream of people.
Looking at these lively people, Ang Lee was relieved. It seemed that the long journey did not cause any physical discomfort to these people. This was the most uncomfortable hard seats and no seats.
Of course, it might be because these laborers were strong and strong. If they were old, weak, sick, or disabled, it would probably cause harm to their bodies. Especially in a carriage without seats, it would definitely be very tiring to stand for a whole night. Only the strong could bear it.
When he thought of standing in the carriage with both hands holding the handrails of the roof, Ang Lee always unconsciously thought of the buses in his previous life. As the most common means of transportation, he had taken many buses in his previous life.
In the Tang dynasty, there was a lack of rubber materials. Otherwise, Ang Lee would really have the impulse to build a car. After all, the steam engine was already built. It was not difficult to develop a car. As long as he spent manpower, material resources, and financial resources, he would definitely succeed.
"Assistant Minister Li, there are more than 4,000 people in this carriage. Except for a few dozen who are vomiting, most of them are fine. They will be completely recovered after a little rest."
One of the doctors reported to Li An after looking at all the laborers.
"Yes. Are the dozens of people who are vomiting all in the carriage without seats?"
Ang Lee asked with concern.
"Replying to Assistant Minister Li, most of them are in the carriage without seats."
The doctor said truthfully.
When Li An heard this, he pondered for a moment and said softly, "It seems that the seatless carriage is really not very good. Even these strong laborers can be tired to the point of vomiting. If weak people take the seatless carriage to save money, it is very likely that they will be jolted to death. Instead, we should change the seatless carriage into a carriage dedicated for horses. This way, the guests can leave their horses here and take them when they get off the carriage. This seems more reasonable."
"Assistant Minister Li is right. These empty carriages should be used to store horses. Otherwise, the guests with horses will not be able to take the carriage."
The subordinate quickly agreed. Ang Lee had neglected this problem. After all, even if Chang 'an and Luoyang were connected by train, they still needed horses to travel. Moreover, those who could ride horses were all rich people. If they did not consider the storage of horses, in the future, it would be very inconvenient for these rich people to take the train. This would cause the railway system to make a lot less money.
After all the laborers had alighted, the train circled around the station and returned to the right track. After cleaning and replenishing, it immediately set off in the direction of Luoyang, preparing to bring all the remaining laborers back to Guanzhong.
In two days, all the laborers from Guanzhong who had stayed in Luoyang had returned to Chang 'an. They followed the official road and returned to their hometowns. They began to throw themselves into the intense autumn harvest work.
The autumn harvest work was in progress, and Ang Lee also had the craftsmen of the R&D center speed up the construction of steam locomotives. According to the standard batch, the first batch was twenty. According to the current situation of one track, twenty steam locomotives should be enough.
The construction rate of the carriages was already more than one hundred. However, this was clearly not enough. They still needed to continue building in large batches. The standard batch was fifty passenger carriages and one hundred freight carriages to ensure the mass transportation requirements in the future.
The specific work of the autumn harvest was naturally handled by officials at all levels and minor officials. High officials like Ang Lee naturally did not need to concern themselves with it, and Li Longji did not need to personally concern himself with it.
In order to further the railway, Ang Lee made some preparations before heading to the Daming Palace to meet the Emperor of the Tang dynasty, Li Longji. He wanted to put forward his ideas and at the same time, resolve Li Longji's various doubts.
"Everyone, Assistant Minister Li requests an audience outside the palace."
Li Longji was overjoyed and ordered, "Quickly announce him."
After Ang Lee entered the Zichen Palace, Li Longji waved his hand and had all the eunuchs and palace maids withdraw. There were some things that he did not want too many people to know.
"Assistant Minister Li, your train is really powerful! In just two days, tens of thousands of laborers who were stranded near Luoyang City were transported back to Chang 'an City and ensured the autumn harvest for their families. Otherwise, these laborers would take at least half a month to return home, which would definitely delay the farming season. "
Li Longji said excitedly.
"Your Majesty, this is the great transportation capacity of the train. It will completely change the transportation situation of the Tang dynasty. In the future, whether it is pedestrians or caravans, it will only take half a day to reach Luoyang from Chang 'an City. It will greatly save time and improve efficiency."
Ang Lee answered truthfully.
"The transportation capacity of the train is indeed incomparable to that of the carriage. It will greatly help the connection between Chang 'an City and Luoyang City in the future. All of this is Assistant Minister Li's credit. I am a person who rewards meritorious deeds. Assistant Minister Li, what reward do you need? Just say it. "
Li Longji asked with a smile.
"Your Majesty, I don't need any reward. I only hope that the Tang dynasty can lay more and more railways. In this way, my wish will be fulfilled."
Ang Lee was now so rich that he did not need any reward. He could invent whatever good things he needed. He had more than Li Longji. Of course, he lacked a chubby girl like Yang Yuhuan, but Li Longji would certainly be reluctant to give her away. So, it was better to give up everything.
"Haha! I will remember Assistant Minister Li's credit. In Assistant Minister Li's opinion, where should the next railway be laid? "
Li Longji asked softly. He wanted to hear Ang Lee's opinion.
"Your Majesty, Luoyang has a Grand Canal that leads to the northeast and southeast, and there is no urgent need for railways in these two directions. However, Anxi and the Shuo are extremely important to our Great Tang, and transportation is extremely disadvantageous. Thus, Anxi and the Shuo are extremely important. We can first build railways to Anxi and the Shuo. Anxi is simply too far from the capital, with the furthest point being ten thousand li. Those with slow feet might need more than a year to get there, and even a caravan would need more than half a year to make a trip. This is simply too long. Once the railway is laid down, it will only take five to ten days to reach Anxi, and military supplies will arrive in just a few days. The Imperial Court's budget will be greatly reduced, and this will make it easier for the Great Tang to control Anxi."
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