Chapter 169 Go and see the hydraulic press
After bidding farewell to the capital, Fang Xiang took a train southward, and after passing Zheng County, turned west.
He wanted to visit the Sanmenxia Dam years ago, but he never made the trip.
People say that the road is difficult to travel on. Fang Xiang, who has never been to the mountainous area, has no idea how difficult it is.
But since no one recommends him to take the bus, then it should be okay for him to take the train this time, right?
Of course, he wouldn't be stupid enough to go there alone without saying a word.
Before leaving Beijing, I called the Luoyi Prefectural Committee.
Now, Sanmenxia is still under the jurisdiction of Luoyi District and is not listed separately.
Therefore, under the arrangement of the Luoyi Prefectural Committee, someone was already waiting for him.
"Hello, Mr. Fang. I'm the office director of the municipal government. My last name is Du."
As soon as I got off the train, Director Du was standing at the station entrance holding a sign.
"Sanmenxia is a small place, but it was built because of the dam..."
After getting on the jeep, Director Du enthusiastically explained the history and style of the city.
“Here’s the dam.”
Soon, with Director Du's explanation, the car had arrived at the dam on the Yellow River.
“Because of the weather, the upper reaches were frozen and the water flow became very small.
According to the guidance given by the Yellow River Conservancy Commission, it is now the water storage period and water cannot be released.
Look over here, that stone pillar is the indicator of the water level of the Yellow River.
Now, there is still more than half a meter away from the water release mark. . . ”
Director Du walked while pointing at the graduated stone scale beside the dam.
"Even our side is frozen, let alone the upstream."
After looking at the stone carvings, Director Du pointed to the ice in the water.
“This winter is the coldest I can remember.
It’s hard to say now what the weather will be like after spring.
If you add drought to the mix...”
Director Du took out a cigarette and spoke in a heavy tone.
We are only entering the 66th year now, and only a few years have passed since those three years.
"Where is the hydraulic bed? Take me to see it."
At this moment, Fang Xiang had a lot of things on his mind and didn't know where to start.
I can only change the subject for now.
"There..."
Director Du pointed to a building below the dam that was obviously newly built.
Soon, the two of them arrived in front of the concrete house.
“During the National Day, a regiment of engineering troops came.
We worked on it for more than two months, failed twice, and finally finished it before it snowed.
Otherwise, if you dry it when it’s too cold, the water in the cement will freeze, and when the weather gets warmer, you don’t know what it will be like.”
Director Du smoked a cigarette and pointed at the lock on the gate.
"Can't we go in and take a look?"
Fang Xiang asked curiously.
"The army is in charge now. We have no control over them at the local level."
Director Du pointed to two teams of soldiers patrolling with guns not far away.
“If we want to start the machine, we have to wait until the dam releases water, and then the hydraulic press can work.
When the dam releases water, once the valve is opened, water will flow in through the preset pipe.
When negative pressure is formed, the pressure will gradually increase and the hydraulic press will start working.
I heard that we are the only one that has it in China right now.
It seems that we will use this first as an experiment. If the effect is good, it may be rolled out.
They will be installed in various parts of the country.”
Director Du touched the iron lock on the door, threw the cigarette butt on the ground and stomped it out with his foot.
"March... In March of previous years, can water be released?"
Fang Xiang looked at the patrol team that was getting closer and closer. The soldiers were looking at them with curiosity.
After thinking for a while, he asked.
"It's tough, it'll be April or May...
The water of the Yellow River comes from the upper reaches, where it heats up slowly.
After thawing, the water will slowly gather together.
Sanmenxia is the first dam on the Yellow River and also serves as a power generator.
Now there is no water, and even the generators are idle.”
Director Du took out another cigarette and pointed to the power plant not far away.
There were densely packed electric poles standing there, and the wires on them were swaying constantly in the cold wind.
"Well, there's nothing to see here."
Fang Xiang sighed. He had been unwilling to accept it before, but after seeing it with his own eyes today.
It doesn’t matter whether you are willing or not.
The current foundation is like this, and we still have to rely on God for our livelihood.
Unlike in later generations, whether God is favorable or not, there are still other channels to replace it.
"Let's go, we have a famous hot spring here.
Since Mr. Fang is here, we can’t miss him.
In the cold winter, it is so comfortable to soak in a hot spring."
Seeing that Fang Xiang had no interest in continuing to watch, Director Du suggested going to the hot springs.
"Hot spring? There's a hot spring here?"
Fang Xiang asked curiously.
“Not only are there hot springs, there are also swans.
Over there is the largest swan wintering habitat and protection area in our country.
If Mr. Fang is interested, you can go and have a look, it is very beautiful.”
Director Du pointed into the distance, a proud look on his face.
"No, just take me to the train station..."
Fang Xiang followed Director Du's hand and looked, and sure enough, there were some birds flying in the sky.
But the distance was too far and I couldn't tell clearly whether it was a swan.
It’s not like we haven’t seen swans in zoos and parks in later generations.
At this time, I was feeling a little annoyed and had no mood to watch, so I suggested leaving.
"Ah? Mr. Fang, you finally came here, and you're leaving now?"
Director Du was striking a match to light his cigarette. When he heard Fang Xiang say he wanted to leave, he was stunned.
“Well, I came here this time to see when the hydraulic press can start working.
Since we can't rely on it in a short period of time, we naturally can't waste time.
I have other work to arrange.
Please take me to the station, please."
Fang Xiang nodded, then walked back towards where he came from.
Director Du threw away the match that was blown out by the cold wind, put the cigarette back into the cigarette box, and quickly followed.
"If you go to the train station now, there is no car.
Our station is a small one and many trains don't stop there.
Even if you want to leave, you have to wait until night."
Director Du followed and explained the situation.
“Few cars?”
Fang Xiang was stunned, stopped, and turned to look at Director Du.
“Yes, this place was originally a small place, but it became a city because of the dam.
Only some cars will stop to refill water when passing by.
The next bus back to Luoyi will be after dinner."
Director Du stood in front of Fang Xiang and explained.
“It won’t be long before dark, why don’t we eat first before leaving?
There’s still time.”
Director Du looked at his watch. It was just past five o'clock and the sky was already getting a little dark.
"alright."
Fang Xiang felt a little helpless. It seemed that he could only eat first.
Soon, we followed Director Du’s car and arrived at the city government’s guesthouse.
The urban area we passed along the way was actually just a long and narrow strip.
The city is not big, but the buildings along the road are all new, just a little small in scale.
It is connected only by a few main roads and looks similar to the more prosperous towns in later generations.
Just when the car stopped at the door of the guesthouse.
"Mr. Fang, I just received a call from you. It was directly from the ministry."
A young-looking man dressed like a secretary came to greet us at the door of the guesthouse.
"A call from the ministry? Did you say who it was?"
Fang Xiang, who had just got off the car, looked at the secretary who was obviously nervous with some curiosity.
I've only been here a few hours, why are you calling me now?
"No... I didn't dare to ask..."
It was still February, just after the Lantern Festival, and it was the coldest time of the year, especially outdoors.
The secretary actually had sweat on his forehead.
"Where's the phone? I'll go call back."
Led by his secretary, Fang Xiang walked to the city government next door.
"Xiao Fang, I'm Lao Hu.
Old Meng from the Seventh Machine Department, let me ask you, do you know anything about rocket engines? Are you interested?"
Mr. Hu's voice was so loud in the receiver that Fang Xiang almost got ear pain.
