AWDC Chapter 23

Chapter 23: Desert Greening Project

It was late autumn when we returned from the desert.

The harvest from the fields was over, and the gathering of the “Kozo,” the raw material for paper, had begun.

Of course, we also joined in this work.

Ladapole and Krim took the lead in directing the papermaking process, and I decided to concentrate on designing the waterway.

I didn’t finish working out the plan until after the new year.

The outline of the plan is as follows:

1. Build a road along the surveyed course from the village to the Lean Ridge. Fortunately, there were three springs along this road, which was convenient for construction. Eventually, it will be a full-fledged road that even horse-drawn carriages can use, and construction workers and materials will be transported using this road.

2. Start trial digging of a tunnel near the spring found at the Lean Ridge. At the same time, conduct a thorough survey and start trial digging of a tunnel on the opposite side. Confirm the geology with this trial digging. If it becomes clear at this stage that the geology is completely unsuitable for tunnel excavation, consider abandoning the execution of the plan.

3. If the tunnel plan is deemed feasible in stage 2, begin full-scale construction. After completing the simple road construction, create construction workers’ mess halls, rest areas, lodging facilities, materials, and construction tool storage areas. The main mess halls will be located at two locations at the foot of the hills used for road construction, on the north and south sides of the Lean Ridge, and at a total of five locations on the flat ground found at the water source. I wanted to increase it more, but the number of places with water was limited.

4. Start tunnel construction. This is the key to the plan, and without its success, water cannot be drawn to the desert. However, the tunnel is a waterway and will not be used by horse-drawn carriages, so it is only 1.5 meters in diameter. Only about two people can dig the tunnel at the same time, and the construction cannot be accelerated even if a large number of laborers are gathered. Securing safety is the top priority. In civil engineering projects, if there are deaths or serious injuries due to accidents, the morale of the site will be greatly reduced. Prevent accidents as much as possible.

5. Build a weir at the water source. The weir will use a lot of stone and be solidified with Cement. Cement was only used on the coast of the southern part of the continent in this world and was not common, but it was available. It was an indispensable material for this construction.

6. Create a reservoir near the tunnel exit of the Lean Ridge. The reservoir will be used for sediment settling and water volume adjustment. The dried river跡 from the Lean Ridge was carved into the desert as a large depression. I plan to use this to create a huge reservoir. Even during the dry and rainy seasons, if water is stored here, a constant amount of water can always flow into the desert. The water at the water source also contains sediment, and if this is released into the desert waterway, sediment will eventually accumulate at the bottom of the waterway, causing flooding. If the sediment is settled here, the fields created in the desert can be protected.

7. Draw the main waterway into the desert. Next, draw branch waterways and distribute water throughout the desert.

“1.” Road construction: 500 people for 1 year.

“2.” Tunnel trial excavation survey: 50 people for 1 year.

“3.” Mess hall construction will begin in accordance with the progress of other construction.

“4.” Tunnel excavation: 100 people for 1 year.

“5.” Water source weir construction: 100 people for half a year.

“6.” Reservoir construction: 1000 people for 1 year.

“7.” Waterway construction: 2000 people for 1 year.

In this world, labor costs are surprisingly low. Even if the number of laborers is increased, the construction cost will not skyrocket, but food and water are absolutely necessary, and other things such as rest areas must be prepared, so the number of people cannot be increased indiscriminately. Also, construction sites such as tunnels and weirs are narrow, and many people cannot be put in. Many of the building materials such as stone and earth can be secured locally, but Cement can only be purchased, and it was surprisingly expensive. I inquired with Labos, a merchant in the village, but it was not cheap because it was transported from far away. I thought about making Cement here, but Toriholi Village was short of manpower even for making paper, and there was no one to develop Cement production. Another major material was Brick. This is used for the tunnel walls and waterways, but it cannot be procured in the village and will be purchased from Milona Town.

Total construction workers X period: 3500 people X year

Construction period: 4 years

Construction cost: 12 billion Zeni

The above was the estimated construction cost.

“As expected, it will be a considerable amount of money.”

The lord said with a sigh while looking at the plan I had submitted.

“Paper revenue does not reach 1 billion Zeni, so even if combined with other revenue, it will be the cost of 11 years of tax revenue.”

Roy also had a serious look on his face.

“However, if it is possible to draw water into the desert, I want to accomplish it at all costs.”

“How much more paper can be produced?”

Roy asked me about increasing the production of paper, which had become the village’s largest source of income.

“At most, 1.5 times. There are not many places left on the Mulan River’s riverbed where Kozo can be planted.”

“You can convert the cattle pasture.”

“Last year, the growth of Kozo was good and we were able to obtain a lot of raw materials for paper, but plants are not always like that. If we only plant Kozo and there is a bad harvest, the village’s management will be very difficult if milk and wheat are also reduced. I am against reducing farmland to increase the planting area of Kozo.”

“Hmm, that’s true. We’ll stop reducing farmland. But if that’s the case, we’ll have to borrow money for the construction cost.”

“We’ll have to ask Lord Midland for a loan, but it would be bad if we didn’t ask Earl Milona as well.”

“Well, that’s right. I’ll have to go to the duke and the earl to apply for a loan.”

The lord’s decision was quick. In this world, nobles usually had their subordinates do troublesome things. Moreover, the baron had Roy, a capable subordinate, who conducted many negotiations on behalf of the lord. However, this lord was trying to carry out the painful negotiation of applying for a loan himself. This is unthinkable for an average noble.

“Yes, thank you.”

Saying that, Roy and I bowed deeply.

The current head of the Robertson family is neither a hero nor a wise man. Compared to his predecessor, who was superior in military prowess and had accumulated numerous war exploits, some even evaluated him as mediocre. However, the lord had achieved results by steadily accomplishing what he could do. He had ordinary talent, but he was by no means a foolish person. The duke and the earl trusted him for that.

The lord had concluded the story with conditions that were unheard of in this world, a long-term loan of 20 years.