The next day, Neverwinter ushered in the fourth holiday after the fall, and it was also the first weekend of mid-autumn.
Since there is no such thing as a creation legend in this world, most people have to keep busy at all times to fill their stomachs. Since Roland promulgated the stipulation that every seven days off, the territorial people attributed this gratitude to him. He was able to take a full day off without deductions from his salary. What else could there be to fault a lord who is so kind and caring for the people
Especially the refugees who moved from other places, after experiencing the living environment of Neverwinter City firsthand, they are all determined to settle here, even if the city hall's hype about the devil failed to curb this momentum. Hunger and poverty, even the threat of the devil becomes less important.
However, Barov's report shows that the production situation in Neverwinter City has not been affected too much after the official promotion of the rest day system. The main reason is that rest is not mandatory, and many people choose to continue working and earn extra pay. On the other hand, the city's trade activities have grown significantly. On weekends, the square area is always full of people. Not only local businessmen, but even those from other places follow the news. Westbound specialty products, and resell to other places.
This weekly flow of goods was unimaginable a year ago, but now with the increasing number of cement ships, the pace of trade has become faster and faster. In an inland city like Chishui City, you can even eat fresh sea fish dipped in ice cubes from the shoal port. In the past, the nobles and merchants there could only eat salted dried fish at most.
In view of this, Roland simply put major publicity, achievement demonstrations, and various awards ceremonies and other activities on rest days, and used the habits of the masses to further promote the activity of commercial trade. The so-called wool comes from sheep, and overpaid wages It can be completely recovered from the sales tax and consumption, which is a multi-pronged strategy.
This weekend is no exception. The warmth of summer has not yet dissipated. The cloudless blue sky is blowing with a gentle breeze. Obviously, it is a good weather for traveling. The streets were crowded with people, from the river wharf area to the north wall of the city, people could be seen waiting eagerly.
The difference is that they are not going to the convenience market to buy a few catties of good meat this time, but are waiting to witness the new invention of His Majesty the King.
The first test run of an unprecedented vehicle "train".
Jeweler Victor is one of them.
After learning of the city hall's publicity, he even threw a big deal he was talking about to his subordinates, and took the cement boat from the old capital to Neverwinter overnight.
If there is anyone who has been extremely touched by the changes in the Western Region over the years, Victor is undoubtedly one of them. When it was still a remote town, he visited the lord here. He didn't leave much impression on the person in charge, he only remembered that he was a bloated middle-aged nobleman who complained very much about his turn to manage this barren land. If he hadn't been able to find one or two rough gems of good quality from the other party occasionally, he would probably only stop at Longsong Fortress.
Even so, Victor visited the Western Border at most once a year, and no matter when he came, this border town was almost the same as the previous year, dilapidated and rotten. But in the past three years, he has come here more and more frequently, especially after Roland Wimbledon announced the establishment of the city, which basically reached the level of once a month.
The western part of Graycastle seemed to be another world.
Here, a day is no longer a day, but a month; the same month is no longer a month, but a year, otherwise it would be difficult for him to explain why the changes in Neverwinter City can be so fast.
Victor walked into a pub facing the street, and the owner immediately greeted him with a smile, "I knew you would come, and I specially reserved a window seat for you on the third floor."
He took out a silver wolf and threw it to the other party, "Take me up."
"Yes, please come with me."
As a frequent visitor to this tavern, Victor naturally didn't have to choose to crowd the street with commoners. Although there were quite a few people gathered on the third floor, at least the view was much wider.
The people around were already buzzing about today's presentation.
"That narrow street is where the train will go later? It's too far from the central plaza and residential areas."
"Street? I don't know, it's called a rail system, something used in mining areas." Someone laughed and laughed, "Since it's not for human use, of course, keep it away from crowded places. Do you think the train is a carriage!"
"You're talking about the stuff in the mines of Silver Light City?"
"Yes, it was originally produced here and needs to be used with a steam engine."
Victor couldn't help but join in the fun and said, "I've seen trailers pulled by steam engines. The advantage is that they don't care about the terrain. If they are placed on flat ground, mules and horses can completely replace them. That's all, City Hall shouldn't advertise it. Become a "trans-generational means of transportation", right? "
"Maybe it's just a gimmick," another man muttered.
"Go and go," there was a roar from all around, "This is your first time in Neverwinter? His Majesty Roland never praises Haikou in this regard."
The man was unconvinced and wanted to say something else, when a high-pitched whistle suddenly sounded in the distance.
"woo"
"It's here, it's here!" The room suddenly boiled, and everyone leaned out of the window and stared at the small street on the side of the castle district without blinking. Lookout mirror.
Victor also looked towards the source of the sound
I saw a long black dragon slowly driving out from behind the sheltered house, and it caught everyone's eyes little by little. Its body is huge, and its head is like an iron barrel on wheels. The top of the barrel is spewing out billowing smoke, which is no different from the appearance of a steam engine when it is running.
Next to the front of the train, there is also a four-wheeled carriage carriage pulled by two groups of horses. Its speed is comparable to that of a train, and it looks like they are competing with each other. However, because the carriage is full of ore, it is not easy for the horses to take every step. This can be seen from the behavior of the coachman who keeps waving the whip. If the cast iron wheels were not used, the carriage would have already been crushed. .
Victor can't help feeling goosebumps behind his back as the train unfolds.
Behind the front of the car were pulling carriages one after another. Almost each of them could hold up to four or five carriages. They were also filled with ore. In terms of weight, they were probably comparable to a river sailing boat specially used for transportation. .
The problem is that it carries several cars at the same time!
People's exclamations are endless for a while!
"Four... the fourth one!"
"Five!"
"There can't be more after that, right?"
"God is above, six!"
"Come out, seventh!"
The monster-like front of the car dragged a full seven trains of carriages and passed through the open space in front of the castle at an extremely steady speed.
The question in Victor's mind was also answered.
A steam engine that is fixed at the entrance of the mine and specially pulls mine carts in and out, and a steam engine that can act autonomously, are two completely different concepts.
The latter means that wherever the rails are built, it can transport large quantities of goods. Weight is no longer the bottleneck restricting land transportation, on the contrary, its transportation capacity is more powerful than shipping. If His Majesty wishes, he can even evacuate a city in a short period of time.
Victor, who came from a family of merchants, naturally knew the importance of transportation. It is not without reason that most cities are built near rivers. The emergence of this kind of delivery vehicle will bring infinite possibilities to the flow of resources. It is not an exaggeration to say that it is trans-era.
He felt an indescribable throbbing in his heart, there was both satisfaction and loss... He felt that he was witnessing history, but at the same time he was abandoned by history in other kingdoms. The way was still horses and mule carts, and their roads were still brick and muddy.
But they don't know it at all and take it for granted.
An idea popped into Victor's mind.
The future is here, but it's not evenly distributed.