My Apprenticeship to Uncle Jiu: I Was a Warlord in the Republic of China

The thought that he couldn't have both made him feel upset. If he was asked to leave the Japanese invaders alone, he would definitely not be able to do it.

But to resist the invaders, it is not enough to just buy some guns and cannons. He must develop industry in all aspects, so that in a dozen years, he will be able to fight against the Japanese, an industrial country.

He thought about it for a long time, but he still couldn't make up his mind. At this time, a little girl suddenly ran up to him and asked timidly, "Excuse me, are you County Magistrate Jiang?"

Jiang Li saw that his eyes were pure and without any distractions, and he didn't seem to have any ulterior motives, so he smiled kindly, "Yes, little girl, what do you want to talk to me about?"

When the little girl heard what Jiang Li said, she immediately smiled sweetly, then stretched out her hand and handed a pumpkin candy to Jiang Li, "I'm treating you to candy. Grandma said that if you hadn't divided the land among us, we would have starved to death."

Jiang Li took the pumpkin candy and remained silent. When the little girl saw Jiang Li accept her candy, she cheered, "Okay, okay, County Magistrate, please eat it quickly. This candy is made from the pumpkins we grow at home. It's so sweet!"

Hearing her words, Jiang Li put the candy into his mouth in a daze. As the surface melted, his tongue felt a faint sweetness, but it was not as pure and sweet as the purified white sugar.

It had the unique flavor of pumpkin, as well as some impurities from pumpkin pulp, but the little girl's mouth was watering as she watched Jiang Li eat this not-so-sweet candy. It was obvious that this candy was one she had treasured for a long time and was reluctant to eat.

At this moment, he suddenly realized that the Japanese invaders must be fought.

Not for anything else, just for the continuation of civilization, just for the Chinese people not to be enslaved by the Japanese invaders, and just so that the sweet smile just now will not disappear.

Given the girl's age, she will inevitably encounter the Japanese invasion at her most beautiful age. He cannot bear to see this happen and must stop it.

It’s better not to practice this.

...

Seeing her drooling, Jiang Li smiled and took her to a nearby store to buy her a big bag of various candies, and then strode towards the inn where William was staying.

When they arrived at the inn, Jiang Li saw William rubbing his stomach. He sat down and chatted with him for a while. When William had almost digested his food, he took someone to send him to the dock outside Renjia Town.

"Thank you for your hospitality, Mr. Jiang. I will try my best to help you contact the goods you requested, but the warships that can sail on inland routes may not be so easy to get!"

William said a little embarrassedly.

Jiang Li said indifferently, "William, just ask for me. If there is one, that would be the best. But if there is none, that's fine too. The warship is not too urgent for me!"

William felt relieved when he heard this. He took off his hat to Jiang Li, turned around and took his four followers on board, carrying the box of deposit given by Jiang Li.

Han Yong also came to say goodbye to Jiang Li when he saw this, "County Magistrate Jiang, you are busy with official duties, so please go back first. I will definitely bring you more trucks and gasoline next time!"

Jiang Li took his hand and said with a smile, "Wait a minute, Manager Han. This time you brought two trucks, three motorcycles, and 800 liters of gasoline for me. I understand that this amount is necessary."

"But you also know that my territory is getting bigger and bigger. Just a few vehicles a month is indeed a little too little. Can you buy a few more ships and transport more goods in one trip?"

Han Yong was embarrassed after hearing this. "You know, County Magistrate Jiang, that the money I used to buy this boat and the money I used to pay for the car have already drained my family's savings. I really can't afford to buy more boats."

"Why don't you wait another three to five months, wait for me to make a few more trips, and then buy a ship. By then, the transportation capacity will naturally double!"

Jiang Li frowned when he heard this. Every day delayed would delay development. How could he possibly wait for three or five months?

So he simply asked someone to bring out a box of dollars that had been prepared long ago, "Manager Han, please take a look. Here are 100,000 dollars. Consider it as a loan from me. Go buy two or three more boats, and help me transport a few more vehicles next time you come. I need them urgently."

Han Yong almost dropped his jaw when he saw the huge box of silver. "Jiang... County Magistrate Jiang, you are so confident in handing over so much money to me. Aren't you afraid that I will run away?"

“Manager Han is a smart man. He should be able to make the right choice between having a full meal and a full meal!”

"And if Manager Han is short of manpower, I can lend you a dozen soldiers so that you can transport the goods safely."

After hearing what Jiang Li said, Han Yong finally understood that this was not borrowing troops to ensure safety, but clearly sending people to monitor.

"Then I don't know, how do you calculate the interest on this hundred thousand dollars?"

Seeing that Han Yong was still making the final attempt, Jiang Li waved his hand and said to him directly, "Why do you want interest? You helped me, how can I ask you for interest? Just go buy a boat and a car, and you can pay the money back anytime!"

Han Yong didn't hesitate to hear this and clasped his hands together. "Then I will obey your orders. I will buy more gasoline for you, the county magistrate!"

Having said that, he turned around and got on the boat.

Watching them go away, Jiang Li immediately led his people back to his home in Tengteng County, took out paper and pen, and started to develop projects needed for industrial development.

The first industrial revolution required the development of the textile industry, coal mining industry, steel manufacturing industry, machinery manufacturing industry, transportation industry, and metallurgy.

The second industrial revolution requires the development of the electric power industry, internal combustion engine manufacturing industry, petroleum industry, steel industry, chemical industry, electrical manufacturing industry, automobile industry, and aviation industry.

Now he only needed to lay a solid foundation and then work with William a few more times to see if he could skip the first industrial revolution with his help and directly develop the military industry.

So all he can do now is vigorously develop steel manufacturing, transportation, and mining.

As for textile and machinery manufacturing, we just need to wait for the William generator set to arrive before we can start investing manpower and material resources.

He carefully listed the things that needed to be done next. First, he would build a dam to generate electricity. Then he would let Jiang Youchi search for various minerals in the four counties. Next, he would build roads and recruit troops.

After listing the next tasks, he went to Jiang Youchi and said, "Take a look at this list. This is your next task. Send a message to each town and ask them to recruit soldiers as much as possible. Don't wait a few months to find that you don't have enough manpower when I need it."

"Then send people everywhere to search for minerals on our territory. I want to vigorously develop mining and metallurgy. Also, find out the main roads between the four counties. We will do a great job and build some roads."

"As for the dam construction, you will personally lead the team to survey the area. Once you find a suitable location, mark it and I will tell you. Do you understand?"