At Putnam Castle, Rose and Elizabeth finally saw the legendary train.
The locomotive of the train is parked on the platform like a huge black monster, full of iron-like power, and the carriages behind it are painted in bright and beautiful blue and white colors.
This is the crystallization of the latest smelting and casting technology. It has stronger and more efficient power, a stronger and safer body, and almost every new front end is improved compared to the last one.
With the sound of a whistle, this behemoth began to move slowly. Soon after it left the platform, it began to accelerate, and then galloped through the hilly areas of Northern Genoa.
This route has been in operation for nearly a year. Railways and trains are new things after all. People along the railway line are unfortunately hit and killed by trains every month, and more livestock are killed and injured along the line. The railway company pays for this
A lot of compensation, but it still can't stop people's love for trains.
For business travelers going to Poitou by land from the north, or travelers going north from Poitou, their first choice is the train. Even some northerners who want to go to the province of Javia are willing to take a train to Poitou first.
Wattu, and then follow the coastline to your destination from there, which is faster.
This convenient and more comfortable way of traveling has been accepted by people, and they save not only time but also money.
This also shortened the distance in time and space, strengthened the connection between north and south Genoa and even the northern provinces, and greatly promoted economic and trade exchanges between the north and the south.
The success of this route has contributed to the trend of Putnam Castle, which was originally located in the mining area, to become an economic center in the north of Genoa. Many people settled here and bought houses.
It is the first stop for northerners going south and the last stop for southerners leaving the south and heading north. At the same time, this also led to the Genoese's ambitious plan to connect all cities in Genoa through railways.
Railway construction itself is an investment that stimulates the economy and employment, including promoting tax growth and other internal driving needs.
Capital is always looking for profit. Genoa’s Third Estate Conference in 1832 determined that the internal checkpoints and investment and trade barriers between various regions should be gradually eliminated to form a unified market and a unified tax system. This will set off the emerging industries of capital investment.
The upsurge of investment also played an important role, and the rise of investment in turn accelerated the demand for the removal of all laws that did not meet the needs of capitalism.
Railway-related mining, smelting, metal processing, high-performance steam engines and related industries have been greatly developed, which has also driven the development of related service industries and absorbed a large number of people's employment.
The mining industry that the Koval family previously invested in suddenly became worth hundreds of times from being burdened with heavy bank interest payments.
This family transferred all the unimportant mining areas in their hands at high prices, repaid bank loans, raised a large amount of funds, and retained only a few rich mines. They also imitated Sean's industrial layout and joined this investment feast.
Although this will inevitably create competition with Sean's industry, the market demand is too great for the Koval family to win a place before Northern People's Capital Capital can react.
This was a matter that Sean and Count Koval personally finalized when he was in the Holy City, and banker Sieyes also played an important role in this.
The two families have actually formed a duopoly competition situation. Of course, now it is mainly dominated by Sean and supplemented by the Koval family. Both parties jointly exclude third-party competitors.
In fact, for a long time to come, not only locomotive casting technology, but also railway road construction technology, Kangshi Railway and Kangshi Power will be at the leading level.
The train was emitting black smoke as it raced across the wilderness, with the neat farmland and cattle and sheep on the grassland on both sides retreating rapidly.
Many passengers who took the train for the first time exclaimed the greatness and novelty of this new mode of transportation, while the locals looked at these rare and strange foreigners with disdain, especially those from the north.
Elizabeth also yelled and even stuck her head out of the window, accidentally blowing her hat away in the wind.
The tiring and long journey of more than a thousand kilometers could not make her settle down.
This was also Rose's first time taking a train. She booked a box in the VIP carriage, where she could close the door and lie down to sleep without being disturbed by outsiders.
After all, it takes nearly two days to take a train from Fort Patnam to Poitou, including stops along the way. And due to the backwardness of lighting technology and railway signaling technology, for the sake of safety, trains at this time cannot operate at night.
For long-distance travel, long-distance passengers have to spend the night in the car.
When the train arrived in Bern, a man wearing a railway police uniform came to the VIP carriage to check tickets.
The policeman, armed with a dagger and a pistol, carefully checked everyone's tickets and identification, sometimes simply asking suspicious provincial passengers what they were doing in Genoa.
Although he has a pleasant smile, anyone can tell that this man is actually very serious, and even those passengers who come from upper-class society are obediently cooperative.
"Miss, please show your ID card!"
The policeman said to Elizabeth, who was standing in the corridor outside the box.
"ID card? What is that?" Elizabeth's question stunned the policeman for three minutes.
"It is a document that proves your identity. It is usually issued by the police station where you live!" the policeman said patiently, "Sorry, my duty is to arrest fugitives, prevent bad elements from committing crimes on the train, and check the ID cards of passengers.
It's my basic responsibility."
"Oh, I lost my identity document and it was stolen by a thief." Elizabeth suddenly said, "Sir, you won't arrest me for this, right?"
Her innocent look made the policeman a little soft-hearted. The policeman said: "Miss, you are traveling alone on the train."
"No, I have a companion." Elizabeth pointed to the closed box.
After the police knocked three times, he pushed open the box door. Standing behind him, Elizabeth seemed to see something terrible.
The handsome gentleman with a sense of justice that she knew disappeared, and standing in the box was a young girl.
Rose had taken off her men's top hat, revealing her long, soft, slightly curly chestnut hair, which was simply tied behind her head with a hairpin.
After washing away the powder, her delicate face and white swan-like neck were revealed.
She put on a light blue dress with light flowers that she had loved so much, with a yellow ribbon tied around her waist and a circle of lace as decoration at the neckline.
She is tall but not lacking in grace, her temperament is agile and beautiful, and she possesses a heroic spirit that is rarely possessed by ordinary young women.
Under Elizabeth's dumbfounded gaze, Rose handed her identity document to the police. When she was "living" to Vichy, she had obtained her identity document there, and her name was on the Vichy town's population register.
"Rose Cody, are you from the town of Poitouise? Live in the Rose Garden?" the policeman asked doubtfully.
"As you can see, Mr. Officer!" Rose said.
"Please don't get me wrong, miss. In Genoa, no one dares to pretend to be from Vichy, especially someone who lives in the Rose Garden." The policeman said in awe, "In fact, your name appears on a list."
"What list?" Rose asked curiously.
"I'm afraid you don't know that although our railway police are under the jurisdiction of the Provincial Police Department, we have a close relationship with the Earl of Rocky Mountain. In fact, I was a former corporal in the Civil Defense Force, and the Earl will always be our commander.
"
The police officer did not tell him directly, but his hints made Rose quickly understand that most of these railway policemen were probably transferred from the former Civil Defense Force retired soldiers, and these people were naturally Sean's supporters.
Of course one knows what the rose garden in Poitouvich means.
This also shows that Sean has never given up looking for her in the past few years.
The police officer returned the ID card to Rose, saluted and left. Rose knew that the news of her appearance in Genoa would soon be sent to Sean.
Elizabeth was very disappointed. She felt that her emotions had been seriously deceived. She lay on the berth and cried loudly, crying very sadly.
Along the way south, she had relied on Rose, who was disguised as a man, and even developed a strange feeling. However, the truth shattered her illusory dream.
This world is so scary, with deceit everywhere.
Rose didn't persuade her at all, she picked up a book and read it with gusto.
"Why don't you comfort me?" Elizabeth cried for a while, feeling very bored, and sat up.
"Why?" Rose raised her eyes from the book.
Elizabeth really wanted to say that she was a noble princess, but after she really left the palace, she realized that she was worthless except for her status.
Even the little girls and boys on the train carrying bamboo baskets selling food and cheap gadgets are much stronger and more independent than her.
"You are not a good person!" Elizabeth said angrily, "Only bad people will change their appearance and deceive others."
"Oh..." Rose put down the book, "In Gesar City, I also saw a poor guy who also changed his appearance. My princess!"
Elizabeth shouted in horror: "You...how...you...know my identity?"
"You are arrogant, willful, ignorant, and confused when facing difficulties. The two words of superiority and ignorance of the world are written everywhere on your body." Luo said without mercy, "This is a specialty of a wealthy family.
Especially the ones produced in the palace are the best."
"You...you...are...jealous!" Elizabeth finally found a word to defend herself.
"No, it's you who is jealous of me." Rose smiled.
"What do you have to be jealous of, you liar?" Elizabeth asked.
"Independence, self-reliance, and freedom. I don't need protection from others, and I won't cry like a little quail when facing difficulties!" Rose's outspokenness made Elizabeth very hurt.
Elizabeth stared at Rose for a long time and said dejectedly: "You are just a liar."
"You are right, deception is my profession! But your father will not admit it so readily."