HCB Chapter 268: Majiagang Oilfield in Fog City
Chapter 268: Majiagang Oilfield in Fog City
The Rockefeller family's endorsement soon demonstrated its power - three exploration teams from Standard Oil Company quickly arrived in John's Foggy City and began an oil exploration operation that was not understood by the locals.
You know, the fierce bombing of the Third Reich in the previous few years not only devastated the capital, but also caused a large number of people to seek refuge in the countryside, as well as the famous fantasy novel "The Chronicles of Narnia".
The bombing was accompanied by a continued decline in land prices around the Fog City.
But for Zhang Chi, this is his opportunity.
As one of the synths Zhang Chi initially sent to White Eagle to make arrangements, as early as the end of 43, Yegorov waved a check from Citibank and bought all the land near Majiagang, 50km away from the Fog City.
The bureaucrats in the Fog City City Hall didn't know what a former Romanov noble who immigrated to White Eagle was doing by buying such a large tract of wasteland and manor.
But that is Daole, the strongest currency in the world right now.
The financially tight city hall didn't care that Yegorov, who was buying the land, was a foreigner. All procedures were kept as simple as possible and the transaction was completed quickly.
So when the Standard Oil Company's exploration team arrived, the local bureaucrats had no way to stop them and could only watch as the workers set up drilling wells and began to "repair the earth."
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Under the gloomy sky, continuous drizzle fell on the earth.
Gloomy and depressing, just like this great colonial empire on its deathbed.
The construction site seemed particularly busy under the rain.
The roar of the drilling machine mixed with the workers' shouts one after another was like some kind of vibrant symphony.
In the distance, a group of John bureaucrats were gathered together, looking at the devastated earth and the towering drilling wells in the distance, pointing and commenting on the scene before them.
"What are they doing?" asked a middle-aged gentleman with a frown, wearing an old coat and an old hat, but still trying his best to maintain his decency.
"Dig wells and dig for oil." The people around me answered concisely and clearly.
"I know. Do you think that's possible?" The middle-aged man sneered. "Oil? On John Island?"
As we all know, the reason why the John people began to colonize the world was because they lacked sufficient resources in their homeland. Except for high-quality white coal and wool, the John people needed to obtain food, drink and various resources from colonies around the world.
This is also why the unrestricted ship-raiding warfare of Hans' submarine force during the two world wars was so effective for John.
Without the oil shipped from Iran and Iraq in the Middle East, all the machines of the John people would be unable to operate.
But now some people say that there are oil fields on John Island?
He sighed in an exaggerated tone, "Then I would rather believe that the evil behavior of those Welsh barbarians towards the ewes was caused by the devil..."
As soon as these words were spoken, several Johns burst into laughter.
Another person continued to scoff, "Without the resources of the colony, John Island is just a pile of broken bricks and tiles. Do they really believe there's oil here? Should I go looking for gold in the North Sea next time?"
The laughter continued for a long time until a black car drove up from the distance at the foot of the hill.
The car door opened and Yegorov got out.
He was wearing a neat suit, and his blue eyes looked particularly cold on the rainy day.
The bodyguard beside him quickly opened an umbrella, and he walked towards the construction site slowly and leisurely.
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Yegorov looked at the large construction site in front of him, then looked up at the rainy weather and walked straight to the manager in charge of the site.
"Hey, boss, you're here." Robert, the site manager, came up to greet him with a smile on his face.
He was short, but his voice was resonant. "Your idea of hiring the Qianguo workers was brilliant. Their hard work has brought the construction schedule five days ahead of schedule."
Yegorov nodded silently and looked around. Countless yellow-skinned workers were busy everywhere.
They are all skilled workers who came from Pegu across the ocean, with the purpose of learning from others and accumulating experience in the process of oil extraction in Majiagang.
For Zhang Chi, who has a resource atlas in hand, countless oil fields in Southeast Asia after the war are still waiting for his "patronage", so of course he has to prepare a capable and experienced drilling force in advance.
"We can drill the first well almost today. Do you think we can succeed?" The smile on the young manager's face turned into worry. It was obvious that he was not sure.
Yegorov was stunned when he heard this.
In fact, Majiagang oil was only discovered in 2016. Zhang Chi, who was still in school at the time, only noted down the approximate location after hearing the news.
This was because the oil field was discovered in John's hometown and was rare enough, so Zhang Chi made a special note of it.
As for the specific location of the oil field, the news did not mention it and Zhang Chi did not remember it.
The newly acquired resource atlas was the 66 edition, so it naturally did not record the Majiagang Oilfield.
That book didn't even record the North Sea oil fields of the John people (the Alder oil field in the North Sea was not discovered until 69). The John Kingdom was still a completely oil-poor country, even worse than the Qian Kingdom, which at least had large oil fields in the northeast and northwest.
Therefore, the several drilling locations currently being selected by Yegorov were all based on the advice of experts, and he was not sure whether oil would be produced.
But he naturally didn't show it. Instead, he patted the manager on the shoulder and said casually, "There are seven wells in total. We will eventually produce oil. As long as we produce oil, everyone will receive an additional subsidy of 12 months' salary!"
Quan Xiaojiang relied on giving out red envelopes to lead the Isshin Society to become a big club. Even Takagi Keiko, the orphan of Park Kaka, received a large check. Even a real man like Captain Wen remembered the kindness of the young generals.
This shows the power of red envelopes.
Sure enough, after hearing that there was a "red envelope" of an extra 12 months' salary, everyone felt like they had endless energy and worked hard despite the drizzle that was common in the foggy city.
If Zhang Chi was there and saw the lively scene, he would probably hold up a banner saying "Work hard for 100 days" for everyone.
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Looking at the rain-soaked land in front of him, Yegorov thought to himself: Everything depends on a gamble.
The sky gradually darkened, and the night enveloped the entire Majiagang like a thick blanket.
There was still no good news from the first well. There was only endless mud pouring out of the pipes and the tired humming of equipment.
Although the workers and technicians were tired, they did not show any sign of dejection.
"There are still six chances left! Everyone has a chance to get a red envelope!"
Yegorov's words hit everyone's heart like a hammer and became their firm belief.
As the sun rises and sets, people on the construction site work in three shifts.
In order to get a "red envelope" that is enough to change their current lives, everyone, whether workers, technicians or experts, is trying their best.
The oil lamp was on all night long, and raindrops mixed with sweat fell on the loess.
At dawn, when the first rays of morning light broke through the horizon, suddenly, a shrill scream broke the silence of the construction site.
It was a black fountain, shooting straight into the sky, as if the earth was roaring.
"Oil is leaking!" The workers' exclamations came one after another, and the scene suddenly became boiling.