247: Chapter 247 The Cost of the Railway from Xianyang to Qinglan Grassland

After Li Si gathered them together, the Nobles of the Six Lands were all trembling, not knowing what this smiling tiger, Li Si, was up to.

Especially when they saw Li Si's beaming expression, looking at them as if they were gold ingots, their hearts couldn't help but tighten.

They thought to themselves that they had been law-abiding and hadn't done anything excessive lately, so they didn't know why Li Si had summoned them all.

Li Si still didn't speak, but instead scanned these hundred or so Nobles of the Six Lands with his gaze.

This kind of baptism by gaze was incredibly oppressive for anyone.

The Nobles of the Six Lands already felt guilty in their hearts, and under Li Si's gaze, they trembled even more.

To say who performed the worst, it was the Young Lord of Han Land; his face was devoid of color, his throat was so dry he kept swallowing, and his forehead was covered in cold sweat.

He used to be quite stubborn, but the three thousand six hundred explosive packs had blown all his ambition away.

He was also a smart man and understood that Zhao Fusu's bombardment demonstration was a warning to them.

If they were still ungrateful and tried to resist Great Qin, then next time those three thousand six hundred explosive packs wouldn't be dropped in front of them, but directly onto their heads.

Unless they could also possess explosive packs.

Otherwise, how could they deal with hot weapons using cold weapons!

Li Si still didn't speak, still looking at these Nobles of the Six Lands with a sharp gaze.

"Everyone, please don't be nervous,"

Li Si suddenly said with a smile.

But instead of relaxing, everyone became even more nervous.

The Young Lord of Han Land was so scared that his face grew even paler, his legs went weak, and he almost collapsed to the ground.

The other Nobles of the Six Lands were not much better; fear was written on their faces, and fine beads of sweat broke out on their foreheads.

The pressure from Li Si's eyes was simply too great for them.

They didn't know what Li Si was trying to do with this performance.

Li Si said, "I have summoned you here today to discuss an important matter. His Majesty the Head of State wishes to build a railway. This is a great undertaking for the benefit of the country and the people, and it requires a large amount of money."

The Nobles of the Six Lands didn't know what a railway was, but they were all shrewd people and immediately knew that Li Si had gathered them and warned them with his eyes to get money from them.

Although they were reluctant to part with their years of savings, they knew how to choose between their money and their lives.

The Young Lord of Han Land, Han Huan, was the first to speak: "I'll give it, I'll give it!"

"I am willing to give all my wealth to build the road for His Majesty the Head of State!"

Li Si gave him an appreciative look.

The other Nobles of the Six Lands didn't dare refuse and expressed one after another that they could give all their possessions to support His Majesty the Head of State in building this railway they had never even heard of.

"Don't be nervous!"

Li Si spoke up: "His Majesty the Head of State will not let you invest for nothing. Although you will not have management rights over the railway, you will enjoy dividends."

"You will receive dividends from the profits earned on the railway from Xianyang to the Xiongnu's Qinglan Grassland according to your share of the investment."

"Yes, yes, yes!"

The group of Nobles of the Six Lands weren't even thinking about the dividends; they were satisfied just to save their lives with money.

Li Si still patiently explained to the Nobles of the Six Lands.

"Currently, the raw material for Wool Sweaters, wool, is obtained from the Xiongnu. This railway is being built to transport wool."

"Besides transporting wool, we can also transport other items, which will generate freight fees."

"In addition, we can also transport passengers."

"When they buy tickets to board the train, we can make a profit."

"Coal and iron ore can also be transported via the railway to collect transit freight fees."

This was specifically instructed by Zhao Fusu, to let the Nobles of the Six Lands know how profitable the railway could be.

Intimidating the Nobles of the Six Lands was only Zhao Fusu's first step; binding them through mutual interest so they couldn't leave Great Qin was what Zhao Fusu really wanted to see.

To win over the hearts of the Nobles of the Six Lands, they had to be able to get benefits.

If they took Great Qin's benefits and still committed acts of betrayal, then his National Security Bureau wasn't just for show, and they couldn't blame him for killing these ungrateful wolves.

Wei Changcheng had long since stopped thinking about resisting the Qin State; he had recently been doing business with Wool Sweaters and had made a fortune by profiting from the price difference.

Now, after hearing Li Si mention the railway, he keenly sensed that this was a major opportunity!

He knew that investing in a railway would yield slow returns.

But from a long-term perspective, as soon as the railway was completed, there would be a steady stream of income!

The longer the railway operated, the more money he would earn!

Over time, he would surely be able to recoup his investment and earn a massive income!

He had money in hand; by investing more, he could also hold more shares and get more dividends.

Zhao Fusu had done the math.

The rails weigh 43 kilograms per meter.

One thousand meters is 43 tons.

Steel prices are calculated at four thousand yuan per ton.

The material cost for the rails alone is about forty-three thousand.

The amount of concrete needed for one thousand meters is 900 tons; at 500 yuan per ton, one thousand meters of railway requires forty-five thousand yuan worth of concrete.

The railway also requires track materials such as sleepers, ballast, and switches.

First, a layer of ballast is laid on the leveled ground to form a track bed.

Ballast generally uses crushed stone or pebbles, and its function is to distribute the train's load, provide drainage, and act as a buffer for shock absorption.

The thickness and slope of the track bed are constructed according to the railway grade and design requirements, usually laid using pavers or manual methods and compacted using equipment such as rollers.

Sleeper laying involves placing sleepers on the track bed according to the design spacing.

There are various types of sleepers, such as wooden sleepers and concrete sleepers; currently, prestressed concrete sleepers are commonly used.

Sleeper laying can be done manually or mechanically; mechanical laying is more efficient and can ensure uniform sleeper spacing.

During laying, attention must be paid to the direction and position of the sleepers to ensure they are perpendicular to the track centerline.

Switches must be installed in places like railway stations and marshalling yards where the train's running direction needs to be changed.

The installation of switches is quite complex and requires precise adjustment of the switch's position, angle, and the gaps between various components to ensure the switch can be shifted flexibly and reliably, allowing trains to pass safely and accurately.

If the railway line crosses rivers, valleys, or needs to pass through obstacles like mountains, bridges or tunnels must be built.

Bridge construction includes foundation construction for piers and abutments, as well as the erection of the beam body; tunnel construction includes portal excavation, tunnel boring, and lining construction.

The construction of bridges and tunnels requires corresponding construction techniques and methods based on different geological conditions and engineering requirements.

In modern times, a steam train railway costs 13 million per kilometer when the bridge-to-tunnel ratio is low!

The cost of the 1,000-kilometer railway from Xianyang to the Xiongnu's Qinglan Grassland would be 13 billion!