Even if the refinery designed by Vézé wasn't as advanced as the one in the 21st century, it was still much more expensive than a small workshop. The fractionating tower was erected, and a lot of equipment was built. In recent years, they had also imported oil from the United States. Thousands of tons of oil were processed every year, and the refinery was barely able to support itself. When the refinery learned that a large amount of oil was about to arrive, it could be said that it was really anxious. When the tanker appeared at the Nanjing dock, the workers who came to welcome it cheered.
After seeing the oil with his own eyes, Vézé finally understood a lot of things. Oil was divided into light crude oil and heavy crude oil. The difference was the length of the olefin chain. Gasoline and diesel in Europe and the United States were much better than those in China. This was because Europe and the United States controlled the best oil fields in the world and controlled most of the light crude oil.
Currently, the oil shipped from Sumatra was light crude oil, and its color was quite transparent. Most of the components were gasoline and diesel, and the proportion of kerosene was very small. As for the asphalt, it was even smaller. Even the viscous part was liquid at room temperature. This kind of heavy oil was very useful. It could soak the canvas and increase its waterproof performance. It could also be used to treat the sleepers. In order to extend their lifespan, the sleepers needed to be soaked in an insect-repellent liquid. After the insect-repellent liquid was treated, the sticky oil could be applied to the sleepers to dry them in the shade, greatly increasing the lifespan of the sleepers.
With gasoline and diesel, the fuel problem of the internal combustion engine was finally solved. In October 1869, the huge gas bags on the roof of the Nanjing buses were all removed. The power of the internal combustion engine using gas was naturally not as high as that using gasoline and diesel. The capacity of the buses was greatly increased.
In December 1869, the tractor entered the military farm near Nanjing. The central leaders looked at the tractor with four big wheels pulling the steel pear. In half a day, it finished the work that would take dozens of people several days to finish. With different agricultural equipment, the tractor could plow, transplant, harvest, and threshing. With the agricultural machinery replaced with trailers, the tractor became a transport vehicle. The trailers could transport a large amount of materials, whether it was the stinky fertilizer or other items. Manpower couldn't compare to tractors, and animal power was also far from being comparable to tractors.
Large tractors, medium-sized tractors, and small hand-guided tractors appeared one after another, causing everyone to be amazed. Or there was a mechanical failure, causing mockery, laughter, and bitter laughter. Generally speaking, this kind of machine that did not require a track, did not need to burn coal, was small, and could walk on all kinds of roads had gained the approval of the upper echelons.
When Vézé finished talking about the relationship between the internal combustion engine and oil, the Hawks all looked very serious. They knew that the time for war had come. The doves were split into two groups. One group strongly supported a war for crude oil, while the other asked if there was really no way to resolve this peacefully.
The different expressions made Vézé regret that he didn't know how to draw. Otherwise, this would be a classic portrait of all living beings. In the face of benefits, everyone made the same choice. He had to maximize his own benefits!
"I want to tell everyone a piece of news. We have re-signed an agreement with the Dutch East Indies. The content of the previous agreement was that we paid a lump sum of one million pounds to obtain the rights to explore and mine in the Dutch East Indies. The new agreement stipulated that the agreement had to be renewed after five years. If we were to ship oil back from the Dutch East Indies, we would have to pay the Dutch, "Vézé said.
"Five more years, right?" Hu Chenghe sneered.
"I think five years is enough to prepare," Pang Congcong replied seriously.
"Only five years?" The Minister of Finance said while rubbing his temples.
"Do we still have to wait five years?" Wang Mingshan, the secretary of the Central Bank, said.
"Five years should be enough," Lin Jiajun, the commander of the Navy, expressed his opinion.
These guys and the departments they represented had all talked to Vézé. Everyone felt that it was better to have a father and a mother than to have a father and a mother. The recent behavior of the Dutch East Indies had touched everyone's bottom line. The attitude and position of the British had also made the upper echelons of China feel a deep hostility. A war, or at least a war, was imperative.
It must be noted that as long as the Dutch did not seek refuge with China and serve China like they served their own father, the upper echelons of China would not think that the Dutch East Indies was reliable. The Dutch East Indies was guilty. Possessing abundant oil fields that were not completely under China's control was the original sin of the Dutch East Indies. This sin must be washed with blood and fire, and the authorities of the Dutch East Indies needed to pay for it with their lives.
Unlike in the past, Vézé did not encourage soldiers to go south. He said loudly, "Comrades, let's not think about the army for the time being. Now we have to build more oil ships. No matter how much oil is extracted, it will be useless if it can't be transported back to China. Expanding the production of oil ships and barrels is the key in the near future. "
Oil-related industries were all state-owned enterprises, so there was no need to involve local problems. Moreover, the development of the oil industry and the internal combustion engine industry could strengthen the influence of the state on the local areas. Currently, the transportation of rural areas basically relied on livestock. Every time the local government used labor on a large scale, it had to carry out large-scale mobilization. It was easy to mobilize manpower. As long as there was money, the old men and women were willing to work on the construction site during the slack season. However, the people were not very reluctant to use the livestock of the people. In the local reports, there were many problems caused by livestock conflicts with the people.
Prime Minister Bi Qingshan immediately said, "I think we need to invest a lot in these industries. This industry is really too important."
The attitude of the members of the Politburo was exactly the same. Everyone looked at Vézé with shining eyes, waiting to see which department Vézé would hand over this hot industry to. Vézé said, "Since it's a state-owned asset investment, let's hand it over to the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission."
The members of the Politburo of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission couldn't help smiling. Although facing all kinds of envious and jealous eyes, Pang Congcong did not care and showed a happy smile. This kind of appointment was not a pie falling from the sky, but Pang Congcong had fought for it with his own efforts.
Pang Congcong did not shirk responsibility when he led the comrades of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission to write the consensus. After working for Vézé for so many years, Pang Congcong firmly believed that Vézé did not need obedient servants, he needed enterprising and capable comrades. For such comrades, Vézé was never stingy with giving opportunities. The consensus was to express to Vézé the views of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission on economic development, and to prove the level of understanding of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission. When Vézé agreed with the theoretical level of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, he would naturally give the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission a chance. It turned out that this approach was indeed correct. As the chairman of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, Pang Congcong finally established her position in the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission with the internal combustion engine industry, which seemed to need many years to develop.
The internal combustion engine was a new thing for the members of the Politburo. They did not know how to make it, nor did they understand the principle. After Vézé spoke, everyone felt that they did not have the ability, so they naturally did not dare to jump out to stop the internal combustion engine, which was a porcelain work, to be done.
Although the internal combustion engine was a major breakthrough, the Standing Committee did not care about the specific content. They needed to discuss the matter from a political perspective. Bi Qingshan asked at the Standing Committee meeting, "Commander-in-chief, why do you have to hand over the internal combustion engine to the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission?"
"A few years ago, everyone should know that I once pushed for a war against the Dutch East Indies, and even against the British, right?" Vézé was talking about another problem.
Although there were some changes in the Standing Committee, everyone had either personally participated in that matter or knew about it. Everyone nodded.
"In the current situation, I am afraid that I do not need to push for it. If the Dutch East Indies or the British dare to try to block our access to oil, many people will take the initiative to ask for a war against the Dutch East Indies and the British. I believe that with the development and application of the internal combustion engine, more people will hold this position in the future. "Vézé continued.
Up until now, China did not produce oil. At the thought that the oil, which was very important to China, was actually in the hands of others, these cadres who came from the military were of course very unwilling. They were like this now. In the future, as Vézé said, more people who benefited from oil would not allow any country to threaten the interests of China.
But what did this problem have to do with everyone's problem? The Standing Committee was very puzzled.
"Our goal has not changed, but everyone's attitude has. A few years ago, who would have thought that the reason for our comrades to be willing to go to war with the British was because of oil? "Vézé continued to explain.
Several Standing Committee members who had attended the meeting at that time nodded heavily. A few years had passed in the blink of an eye. Their goal was to fight against the British, but at that time, no one had thought that the future would develop like this.
Bi Qingshan was also an instigator of going south, but at that time, he actually only considered palm oil and rubber. He had never heard of oil at that time, let alone planned to incorporate it into his own system. This kind of experience did make Bi Qingshan feel enlightened. This kind of enlightenment was very helpful to his understanding of the world and life. But Vézé's explanation had nothing to do with "why must the internal combustion engine be handed over to the SASAC?"
Bi Qingshan asked again, "Commander in Chief, then why must the internal combustion engine be handed over to the SASAC?"
"The SASAC manages state-owned assets, and the SASAC manages state-owned enterprises. I can give you many reasons now, and I have said these reasons many times. But the reason why I handed it over to the SASAC is that I expect the SASAC to gradually improve the system through work. However, this matter was not so easy to discuss. So let's let the SASAC do it first, and we will discuss it after they have some results. What do you think? "Vézé gave his own reason.
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