Since the crossing, the biggest bottleneck that restricts the development speed of the crossing group is the population. In order to facilitate the foothold in the early stage, the original preparatory committee chose Sanya, a sparsely populated place, as a base, away from the bustling area does save a lot of trouble for the group, but at the same time, the development speed is also limited by the population situation here. Infrastructure projects that require a large amount of labor are often slow to progress due to population constraints, and the most common complaint the Executive Committee hears from the grassroots is the lack of labor. Every time the executive committee has a new plan, the most important thing to coordinate is not the financial department, but the human resources department in charge of Ning Qi, if he can't deploy manpower, no matter how good the plan is, it will only be on paper.

At present, many projects of the crossing group have been planned on paper, but the progress has been slow due to the labor shortage, such as the freight rail construction project from Tiandu to Shengli Port, the reconstruction and expansion project of Yanchang Commune, and the upcoming development project of Iron Furnace Port, all of which require a large amount of labor. According to the calculations of the human resources department, in order to start these infrastructure projects at the same time, the labor gap is about 3,000 people. The resettlement agreement reached between Tao Donglai and the North Vietnamese can be said to have fundamentally alleviated the situation of local labor shortage, and those projects that have been scheduled for next year are expected to be implemented in the remaining two months of this year.

After this inspection, Tao Donglai also proposed to the Executive Committee to adjust the goals and tasks of the two places of Heitu Port and the Cliff Office. In the future, the Yazhou Office will gradually simplify its various functions such as commerce, trade, military intelligence, and immigration, and gradually turn it into a channel window for external propaganda and contact with the local government in Yazhou. The Black Earth Port needs to let go of the hands and feet of the management committee and let them gradually start to operate independently, including carrying out their own commercial and trade activities with North Vietnam and Guangxi.

Of course, the Military Police Department will not miss this opportunity, Yan Chujie has long been in contact with Tao Donglai, so he also seized this opportunity to propose a new round of military expansion plan. Since most of the militia who traveled with Tao Dong this time stayed on the Tu Son Peninsula to undertake the preliminary construction of the North Vietnamese training camp, the base camp needed to be expanded by at least one company to fill the gap. The population of Heitu Port has exceeded 3,000, and now it is necessary to increase the establishment of a company to undertake the increasingly heavy security tasks in the local area.

The two demands for army expansion put forward by the Military Police Department did not suffer much resistance, and the vote was relatively smooth, and the reason was more on the gains of Tao Dong's trip. The total amount of arms orders reached with North Vietnam this time exceeded 70,000 taels of silver, and the gross profit margin was as high as 600% after deducting manufacturing costs and transportation costs. It made sense for the Military Police to allocate a fraction of this money to the expansion of the militia for two companies, and even the most demanding executive committee members could not veto the request. What's more, Tao Donglai also made a special statement that the cost of the newly added company at Heitu Port will be borne by the North Vietnamese side in the form of military advisers. Since you don't have to spend money on your own home, there's nothing to object to.

Of course, as for the actual nature of the new company in Heitu Port, Tao Donglai and Yan Chujie did not take the initiative to mention it at the executive committee, and they still only used the "militia" to lead it. They took into account that the establishment of this new company was actually of a certain experimental nature, and it was not appropriate for other executive committee members to have too many expectations for this, and in case Qian Tiandun made a mistake and failed to achieve the expected training results, it would at least train a company of militia for the military and police department, and they would be able to report to the executive committee at that time.

In addition, the expansion of militia training will also be gradually implemented from this month, and all adult males between the ages of 16 and 40 will receive no less than three days and no more than seven days of militia training per month. This kind of militia training does not allow ordinary people to learn to operate guns, and the military police department does not intend to make any gimmicks such as "all the people are soldiers"; the training content is mainly military discipline training, supplemented by a small amount of combat skills, and to put it bluntly, it is to let these people learn to abide by the military system, and they can be directly pulled out in wartime and used as logistics baggage troops. As for the affairs of warfare, it is better to leave them to the full-time soldiers who are becoming more and more professional.

After the affairs of the Military Police Department were completed, the Executive Committee began to focus on the next two major projects.

The first project was the preparation for the admission of North Vietnamese immigrants. According to Tao Donglai's agreement with the Trung family, the North Vietnamese side will provide 2,000 people per month to the crossing group in exchange for long-term commodity discounts, while the current capacity of Shengli Port is only 500 to 800 people per month, and if preparations are not made in advance, the arrival of a large number of North Vietnamese immigrants in Hong Kong will inevitably cause all kinds of chaos. However, this is not the first time that everyone has done this kind of immigration acceptance work, and everyone has their own ideas about what each department should be responsible for.

Tao Donglai said: "The existing quarantine area needs to be expanded to accommodate more new immigrants and live under quarantine and observation. In addition, each unit will be assigned to new immigrants, so new housing will also need to be built. Tomorrow I will coordinate with my colleagues in the Ministry of Construction to try to start construction as much as possible. ”

"As for the sea vessels, the ship bought by the Guangzhou Office in Guangzhou is already on its way back and will arrive in Hong Kong about this week, when our shipping department will carry out a simple modification of the ship, and then start to transport migrants back to Vietnam. In addition, two more ships will be delivered to us in November, which can be tentatively used as migrant ships. There are three dedicated Daifuku ships as a guarantee, and 2,000 people only need to make two trips a month to complete the loading. Yue Zhiyun spoke on behalf of the Ministry of Shipping.

"The pressure should be on my side the most. Ning Qi said: "Every month, we will increase the burden of clothing, food, housing and transportation for thousands of people, and your two departments will be responsible for housing and transportation, and you will have to count on the civil affairs department for clothing and food." Grain is okay, our current grain reserves are very sufficient, but clothes are a troublesome thing, Yazhou local cloth is now seventy percent of our package, so it is not enough, we have to import cloth from Qiongzhou and even Guangzhou. In addition, there are not enough tailors, and it may be a bit too late to issue ready-to-wear clothes to new immigrants. ”

Tao Donglai nodded in understanding: "This can only do your best, if it really doesn't work, contact the Guangzhou Office and ask them to order a batch of ready-to-wear in Guangzhou." Anyway, it's just labor protection clothes, and you don't need to pay attention to any style and fabric, as long as it is strong and durable. Let's talk about the second thing, how are the preparations for the Iron Furnace Harbor project going?"

Ning Qi said: "The project of the Iron Furnace Port is in charge of the project team led by Anxi, but he will go back to the Yanchang Commune at night, and he will not see anyone until tomorrow morning at the earliest." ”

Tao Donglai said: "The project of the Iron Furnace Port must be accelerated, after the North Vietnamese immigrants come, try to concentrate on resettlement, the original plan of the Iron Furnace Port is to settle 500 people, but now that our source of immigrants is guaranteed, I think this number can be appropriately expanded." ”

Yan Chujie continued: "How good people are, when the time comes, when the time comes, you will train a militia over there, and you won't have to worry about the Ming Dynasty garrison in the direction of Lingshui." ”

"Lao Yan, you just want to try to expand the establishment, right?" Ning Qi smiled: "How many people are there in Lingshui's garrison, don't you know when we don't know?" Last time Luo Shengdong came over, I also asked him specifically, he said that although there is a thousand-household establishment over there, the shortage accounts for more than half, but in fact there are only more than 300 people, and more than half of them are old and weak, to say that the combat effectiveness is probably not comparable to the garrison in Yazhou. ”

"Military defense is to prevent trouble before it happens!" Although the real purpose was exposed by Ning Qi, Yan Chujie still fought back unappreciatively: "After the development of the Iron Furnace Port, that place will become the east gate of our control area, even if we don't repair the fort and bunker, then we have to station some military personnel." ”

"The militia establishment of Tielu Port can be slowed down a little, and it is not too late to talk about it when the immigrants are settled. Tao Donglai opened his mouth to terminate their discussion: "Our strategy is still based on defense, and gradually seek development, the existing main body of defense is Shengli Port, and there is no need to establish a defense force in advance in Tielu Port for the time being." ”

The next morning, Tao Donglai met with the preparatory team of the Iron Furnace Port project in the base. The team was headed by Anxi, the only person with experience in the construction of salt works, and also included personnel from the construction, military and police, shipping, agriculture, civil affairs, health, culture and education departments. There have been similar bodies before this, and the preparatory team for the Black Earth Port project is much larger than that, with almost half of the Executive Committee being members.

Anxi gave Tao Donglai a detailed explanation of the current progress of project preparation. At present, after three on-site investigations, the Ministry of Construction has planned the living and production areas in the local area, and formulated the corresponding construction plan, and various required building materials are also being prepared.

The Ministry of Shipping has also worked out the corresponding materials and personnel transportation plan, because the two places are very close to each other, so the sea transportation does not necessarily need to be as many large ships as the development of the black soil port to take on the transportation task, the existing several slightly smaller sailing ships can also be completed, nothing more than a few more round-trips. And Anxi also has an idea, because of the emptiness of sea power during the development of Heitu Port last time, the executive committee once spent money to hire a warship from Yazhou Shuizhai to Shengli Port as a temporary bodyguard, and this time if it is faced with insufficient maritime capacity, it is completely possible to draw a gourd in the same way, and ask Yazhou mercenaries to help again, I believe Luo Shengdong will be very happy.

The Military Police Department will station one or two platoons of militia in the early stages of the construction of the Iron Furnace Harbor to be responsible for the security and defense of the area. However, if Tielu Port is really a key resettlement area for North Vietnamese immigrants, then the population will definitely increase greatly, and the number of garrisons in the Military Police Department will also increase, and the expansion will follow, which is why Tao Donglai said "slow down" at the previous meeting, but did not deny the reason why Yan Chujie was not denied.

The plan of the Executive Committee is to do so as soon as possible, and it is best to bring the immigrants from North Vietnam directly to Tielu Port to settle down. For the crossing group, the development of the iron furnace port has been urgent, because Guangzhou has sent back the news, "Fu Ruifeng" in the Fuguang area of the private salt promotion activities have obviously been effective, they hope to be able to start from the beginning of the year, the salt trading volume between the two places to increase to more than 120,000 catties per month. In view of the fact that a monthly supply plan of 100,000 catties had been reached with the North Vietnamese side before this, the current salt production could no longer supply the needs of the two places at the same time, not to mention that the salt consumed by the industrial production of the crossing group was not a small amount, and it had to be supplied to Luo Shengdong, a smuggler of salt, to sell in various parts of Hainan Island.

October 16, 1627, the first day of the ninth month of the seventh year of the Great Tomorrow Apocalypse. As soon as it was daylight, a fleet sailed out of Victory Harbor and turned east. This strange fleet not only included the common Fu ships and Guangzhou ships on the southeast coast, but also several large and small warships of the Ming Dynasty navy, and this was the first colonization fleet sent to Tielu Port by the crossing group.

This time, the colonization fleet really hired the warships of Yazhou Shuizhai again according to the one built by Anxi. Luo Shengdong heard that this side is preparing to build a new salt field to expand production capacity, and the day before, he brought a few ships to Shengli Port Recently, the supply of Haihan refined salt is tight, even if he comes in person, he can't pick up the goods casually like before, but returns to the original amount of one thousand or two thousand catties. Such a little salt can barely supply what Yazhou needs, and there are still many ways to supply Luo Shengdong in the north, but he has long been looking forward to the Haihan people to build a new salt farm day and night.

Luo Shengdong is now getting deeper and deeper with the relationship here, and he himself has a bit of a "broken jar and broken fall", he didn't stay on his own warship at all, but was cheeky and mixed with the "Feisu" before setting off. And these people on the "Speedy" have long been familiar with Luo Shengdong, knowing that this guy has become most of the leading party, and there is nothing to guard against him.

As soon as the boat came out of Yulinjiao, Luo Shengdong had already come to Tao Donglai's side: "Mr. Tao, can I delay you for a while?"

Tao Donglai glanced sideways at him, nodded, and walked to the front of the deck. Luo Shengdong hurriedly followed, and asked in a low voice: "Mr. Tao, this time you are going to build a new salt factory in the east with great fanfare, dare to ask, but there is a solution to the source of labor?"

This Luo Shengdong often travels back and forth between Shengli Port and Yazhou, and the manpower gap here in Shengli Port naturally can't hide from his eyes. Tao Donglai glanced at him vigilantly and did not answer. Luo Shengdong hurriedly explained: "There is no malice in Xiaxia, and I don't want to find out your truth, I just want to say that if you have a sufficient number of laborers, why not directly occupy Phoenix Town, there is a large area of ownerless wasteland over there, if you can turn it into fertile land, I am afraid that it will be enough to feed seventy or eighty thousand people." ”

Tao Donglai said in his heart that it is not enough for your kid to be the leading party, and he is going to sell the master to seek glory, and said with a smile: "If we occupy Phoenix Town, then the Yazhou government will not feel dissatisfied?"

Luo Shengdong said disapprerovingly: "What's the dissatisfaction? As long as the grain allowance is paid every year, how can the government care about whoever farms the land in that place and who is the owner of the land? Not to mention that the acres of land originally registered in that place are extremely small, and there is not much grain paid in a year. ”

"Oh?" a certain string in Tao Donglai's heart was plucked by these words. The crossing group has always considered whether the outward expansion of the territory will attract the dissatisfaction or even hostility of the local government, but it seems to ignore the possibility that Luo Shengdong said that as long as there is income and the Ming Dynasty's ruling power is recognized, how can the local government care who is in charge of this place, and Haihan is just a landlord in the vast territory of the Ming Dynasty, or more precisely, a group of landlords.

According to this line of thinking, even if the crossing group occupies all the land outside Phoenix, Tianya, Nanshan, and even Yazhou City, it is not a crime, as long as it pays taxes as usual and recognizes the authority of the government.

Of course, the crossing group does not have a plan to develop Phoenix Town at present, even if it wants to expand its territory to the west, it will definitely give priority to the development of Sanya urban area in the future, and connect the Sanya Port Shengli Port in the two river basins. Otherwise, skip Yazhou directly and go to the west coast to develop Yinggehai and Shilu. In any case, the few towns under Yazhou's rule are unlikely to be the priority development targets of the Crossing Group.

Luo Shengdong saw that Tao Donglai was in deep thought, thinking that he had already moved the other party, and hurriedly continued to persuade: "If you are interested, you can handle the title deed in Yazhou on your behalf." ”

Tao Dong came back and forth and asked with a smile: "We occupy that place, what benefits can you get?"

Luo Shengdong has dealt with the Haihan people a lot, and he knows that these guys are very smart, and they will definitely not be able to hide it, so he didn't plan to hide anything, and directly gave Tao Donglai the bottom: "In the jurisdiction of Phoenix Town, you only need to leave 2,000 acres of land for the adults in Yazhou." As for in the next ...... As long as this is done, the adults will jointly guarantee me a title of thousand. ”

Tao Dong was really taken aback when he came here, the Yazhou government planned to sell the land in Fenghuang Town to the Crossing Group? Isn't this just the local government colluding with real estate developers to resell the land, and I didn't think that the officials hundreds of years ago had learned to play this trick!

Luo Shengdong continued to explain in a low voice: "...... Lord Zhizhou of Yazhou, Lord Tongzhi, Lord Qianzong of the Wei Institute, and Lord He of My Water Village, next year will all be in the period of recuperation, and most of the places in Phoenix Town are borderless......"

What Luo Shengdong said later, although Tao Donglai also listened to it, he didn't take it to heart, in fact, with only this limited information at the beginning, Tao Donglai had already guessed the general situation of this matter.