In fact, for many things, as long as you break out of the shackles of thinking, you will find a new world.
In Anton's concept, you must take a train from Cape Town to Johannesburg. Along the way, you not only have to pass through a vast no-man's land, but also pass through the Orange Free State before you can reach Johannesburg.
In fact, it’s not a no-man’s land, at least it’s different from a no-man’s land in the general sense.
Under normal circumstances, when people mention uninhabited land, they may think of the endless Gobi Desert or the vast desert that can easily reach tens of thousands of square kilometers. In any case, they would not associate uninhabited areas with grasslands, forests, and rivers. In fact, the situation in Cape is so unique. The no-man’s land in Cape is not unsuitable for human habitation. It’s just because Cape has a sparse population that there are no people there.
Looking at the entire Cape, covering more than three million square kilometers, there are actually fertile pastures, lush forests, and various mineral deposits under the surface that are currently unknown.
The guerrillas can only move on land. Since there are no ships, they cannot harass the waterway between Cape Town and Durban. Anton cannot see this, and Rock will definitely not miss it. Although it is a bit troublesome, it is the victory.
Safe and equally convenient.
"Okay, I'll start sending people off here when I get back -" Anton made up his mind. Although Anton was reluctant to part with Oak Town, as long as Rock insisted, Anton would stick to it.
"Well, I have prepared a farm here. It is more than 200 square kilometers, enough to house tens of thousands of people -" Rock couldn't help but feel proud. Who would have thought that the price of farms in this era would be so low?
.
Thanks to the Anglo-Boer War, if it weren't for the war, Rock would have had to go through a lot of trouble to get so many farms.
It's very simple now. The Boers have fled, the British don't like the farm, the Zulus have no money to buy it, and Rock has no competitors at all. If Rock is willing, Rock can really buy everything around Johannesburg. p>
Don’t forget that there are still undiscovered gold mines around Johannesburg——
This won't work. In the short term, the Rock gold mine will be enough. Rock has not planned to develop any gold mines in recent years. It would be troublesome if the British were targeted. If he wanted to develop a gold mine, Rock would wait for the Chinese.
Once he has enough ability to protect his wealth, then Rock will be able to have no scruples.
"When will you go back?" Rock doesn't want Anton to leave either. Anton is not here, Henry is not here either, and Rock doesn't even have anyone with whom he can communicate.
"Leave tomorrow." Anton can't stay in Johannesburg for too long, and Cape Town is full of things.
"I'll see you off tonight." Roque wants to give you a farewell banquet.
"No need -" Anton is still digesting this fact. After staying in Cape Town for a long time, Anton feels that he has become a frog in the well.
This world is really too big, and there are too many wonderful things waiting for people to discover.
"Then let's drink less in the office." Rock also thought openly, there is still a long way to go.
They said they should drink less, but both Luo Ke and Anton got very drunk.
After sending Anton away, Rock's life returned to normal.
The guerrillas are still active, and news of guerrilla attacks on railways and patrols comes out every now and then.
The expeditionary force headquarters was in dire straits and could not find the Boer guerrillas or the Boer provisional government. It is said that after Paul Kruger went to Europe to win the support of European countries, Acting President General Schalk Biegel came to
Working on an oxcart.
The gold mine is operating normally, the "pure gold" ore belt has been dug out, and nearly ten tons of gold are finally piled in the basement of the gold mine. Buck is ecstatic, but Rock knows that this has just begun.
It’s only ten tons, and there are still 9,980 tons waiting for Rock to dig slowly.
News continued to come from Pretoria that negotiations had been going on, but without progress. The conditions of the expeditionary force headquarters were giving in. Kitchener promised not to pursue those Cape rebels who fought for the Boer Republic, as long as they did not
Returning to the colony, Kitchener also provided certain guarantees for the rights of the Boers. For this reason, Kitchener did not hesitate to sacrifice the interests of the Zulu people.
The Boers continued to live and die. General DeWitt of Orange re-mobilized those Boers who had sworn neutrality and were sent back to their hometowns by the British. They soon gathered 3,000 people. General DeWitt probably believed that with these 3,000 new troops
, they will be able to defeat the British soon.
This move angered the expeditionary force headquarters, and Kitchener ordered the troops to capture all adult Boer males in Orange, regardless of whether they participated in the war, and throw them into concentration camps or exile them overseas.
In December, another group of Chinese workers arrived in Johannesburg smoothly, and the number of Chinese in Johannesburg exceeded 10,000.
To Rock's surprise, more than 200 family members of Chinese policemen also arrived in Johannesburg with the miners. They belonged to more than 30 families, with an average of at least three children per family. This cheered Rock up. In this era,
The fertility is indeed strong.
Since Holly and Connie successfully registered, more than a dozen Chinese policemen and Boer women have registered for marriage, and the officials of the Internal Affairs Department did not notice this matter——
How amazing!
Christmas came quietly. Because of the war, there were no official celebrations in Johannesburg. The police station only had an extra meal. Rock arranged for vacations in batches and asked Owen to send Phyllis a music box made of gold and gems. The music box must have a built-in mechanism, but Owen did not check it carefully, or even at all, as usual.
The days passed by so quietly. Kevin, Arnold, and Henry of the Alsop family seemed to have disappeared without causing trouble for Rock. Rock sometimes forgot that he was in a battlefield.
One day at the end of January 1901, on a sunny afternoon, bad news came from London. The great Queen Victoria passed away due to illness.
On the day he received the news, Roque and Philip went to Pretoria.
When the Queen dies, the UK will hold a state funeral, and Governor Alfred Milner may also return to London.
Of course, he may not return. The Transvaal is still in a state of war. If Alfred Milner wants to return to London, it will take at least more than a month to come back. In a sense, this is also dereliction of duty.
The crowds in the Palace of Justice are buzzing. There are many people who come to inquire about the news. Everyone's expressions are very serious, but if you look carefully, you will find that everyone's eyes are a little joyful.
Yes, you read that right, just beaming with joy.
The Queen's funeral means the coronation of the new king, and after the new king is crowned, in order to win over people's hearts, he will definitely offer "amnesty to the whole world".
In fact, it has been more than half a year since Roberts announced the end of the war. Under normal circumstances, rewards based on merit should have been long ago. The reason for delaying until now is to wait for this moment and leave the opportunity to show mercy to the new king Edward VII.
Look at what this Queen is like. She has been working for the welfare of the British Empire her entire life. Even if she is buried on earth, she must have a worthy funeral.
Henry was also in the Governor's Mansion. Baron Philip had a high status and there was no need to line up to see the Governor. Rock had to wait. Henry, who was also waiting, winked: "Locke, get ready, you may have to go to London with me."
Going to London?!!!
Rock's heartbeat suddenly accelerated. Going to London meant that Rock would definitely get a knighthood.
To be honest, Rock really doesn't like nobles, but in order to survive better in this troubled world, a title is the best talisman. If Rock becomes a noble, it means that Rock is beyond the constraints of the law. From now on, no matter where he is, he will become a noble.
Britain is still in the Cape, and Rock doesn't need to be afraid of anyone. He can straighten his back and behave at any time.
"Are you so happy?" Henry didn't get the response he wanted, and was still winking.
Such an action is really inappropriate for Henry, a senior police officer.
"No, it's unlikely." Roark quickly calmed down. Even if Roark could obtain the title, it was unlikely that Roark would go to London with Henry.
In terms of administrative level, the Pretoria Police Department is almost a provincial department, while the Johannesburg Police Department is a municipal department.
Roque is the head of the municipal bureau and a nominal deputy in the provincial department. In other words, there are only two senior officials in the Transvaal police system, Henry and Roque. If they go to London at the same time, what will happen to the Transvaal police?
The police system must be in chaos.
After all, the Transvaal is still at war. Although the guerrillas were driven out of the Transvaal by Rock, God knows whether the guerrillas will make a comeback after the news of the queen's death spreads.
It would be better not to come, but if the guerrillas resurgence in the Transvaal, and the two senior officials Henry and Roque are both in London, then no one can bear this responsibility.
"You may only have this opportunity to watch the new king's enthronement ceremony in your life." Henry felt sad.
It is estimated that there are many people who are concerned about this, and the Prince of Wales who is about to be crowned should be the most touched.
Queen Victoria's reign lasted for 64 years. The Prince of Wales, who is about to be crowned, was born in 1841 and will be in his sixties this year——
If you look at it this way——
"Don't be stupid, you can't catch up. Also, do you think the Prince of Wales can reign for sixty-four years like the Queen?" Rock's voice was condensed, and there was a hint of disrespect for the new king in his voice.
Henry thought about it carefully and suddenly realized it.
It takes about ten days to return to London from Cape, and the Queen cannot wait that long——
The Prince of Wales, also known as Edward VII, is 60 years old this year. Unless Edward VII can live to be 124 years old, Roque will definitely have the opportunity to watch the king's enthronement in his lifetime.
It’s really a bit embarrassing to say that Will is a prince.
Edward VII was a crown prince with a bad reputation. When he was serving in the Army in Ireland in his early years, the Prince of Wales had an affair with an actress. After marriage, the horse farm, dance parties, dining tables and women's beds were the places the Prince of Wales often visited.
.
Because of these affairs, the Prince of Wales was once taken to court by a knight.
Fortunately, the court ruled that the woman who identified the Prince of Wales was insane, and the Prince of Wales escaped death.
By the way, legend - just legend - Winston's mother, the "most beautiful woman in the world", also had an affair with the Prince of Wales.