Chapter 2357: Status of Sanya (Part 1)

The Senate's initial planning for Sanya had revolved around the Tiandu Mine, with development and construction conducted roughly along Yulin Bay's coastline.

But as the project progressed, they soon discovered that the original plan didn't suit the development needs of the so-called "Southern Central Metropolis of Hainan Island"—there was simply too little buildable land. Ji Runzhi had stated that if Sanya was positioned only as a naval port and resource export port for the future, choosing the area around Yulin Bay would be fine. Not only were the port conditions superior, but the terrain was also easy to defend and hard to attack. However, as an industrial and commercial city, it was far from adequate. Therefore, the site selection for Sanya Special City ultimately placed the urban area along Sanya Bay's coast.

The small boat set sail from Yulin Fortress Pier and sailed along the west bank of Yulin Bay. The sea breeze was strong—though it was winter, the wind on Yulin Bay still carried the scent of summer.

Sunshine, sandy beaches, the sea... in any spacetime, this made for a beautiful picture. However, Xu Yanliang was in no mood to appreciate it. Following Tang Menglong's pointing hand beside him, he identified the main mountains and rivers along the coast.

"This is 'Rabbit Tail Ridge,'" Tang Menglong pointed. "Between 'Rabbit Tail Ridge' and 'Deer Turning Head' is Dadonghai."

Though Xu Yanliang had visited in another spacetime, Dadonghai—now completely stripped of artificial buildings and dense tourists—felt unfamiliar. He carefully studied the scenery, trying to match it against his memories.

The rough terrain remained the same: Dadonghai was a naturally formed crescent-shaped shallow bay. The waterline curved along a crescent-shaped sandy beach, and to the south stretched the boundless sea. The sand was flat, the water clear, the wind light, and the waves gentle. Casuarina equisetifolia trees along the shore provided verdant shade. From a tourism perspective, it was indeed a rare subtropical seaside scenic spot in China.

However, at this moment, Dadonghai was still a desolate bay, sparsely populated. Apart from traces of a few fishermen's activities on the beach, there were only some slightly dilapidated stilt houses deep in the bay—these were the "seaside vacation cottages" built for the Senators years ago, once a "must-visit holy land" for those coming to Sanya. Bringing maids here for vacation had once been popular among the Senate. In recent years, as the novelty wore off and fewer people came, neither the General Office nor Sanya Municipal Government bothered with frequent repairs. After several typhoons, the cottages had become dilapidated and crumbling.

Sanya in this spacetime still wasn't attractive enough—resources like blue sky and sea required sufficient infrastructure to draw people. The Senate's construction here remained inadequate. "Pure natural" wooden cabins ultimately couldn't meet the Senators' demands for comfort.

Crossing Dadonghai and rounding a cape, they arrived at Xiaodonghai. The iconic Luhuitou Ridge came into view, where the Navy had installed batteries and observation towers on the commanding heights. The Morning Star Flag fluttered in the wind.

Below the ridge was a large star fort guarding the anchorage. Multiple light sailing warships were docked there. On shore, Navy soldiers in white uniforms were drilling.

"Are there no civilian ships here?"

"This is a military port. By regulation, only Senate ships can enter and dock in Yulin Bay and Big and Small Donghai. Civilian ships are generally prohibited." Tang Menglong said. "Civilian ships all dock over in Sanya Bay."

Having been informed in advance, the battery didn't fire a salute. Spewing smoke and steam, the traffic boat rounded Luhuitou and entered the vast Sanya Bay.

From the boat, patches of buildings appeared on the seashore in the northeast direction of Sanya Bay, along with visible masts.

"Here is Sanya Special City." Tang Menglong pointed.

Sanya had originated from a small village of that local name. In the Tang Dynasty, it had received the formal name Linchuan County, named for being "close to the river and plain." The river was thus called Linchuan Water.

According to the "Gazetteer of Yazhou," the county seat was located "in the mountains southwest of the Salt Field, one hundred and ten li southeast" of the prefecture city. It relied on Dacheng Ridge to the south, connected to Haoba Ridge to the north, relied on Dagou Ridge to the east, and faced the river to the west.

Linchuan County was abolished during the Five Dynasties period. Linchuan Town wasn't established again until the reign of Emperor Shenzong of Song. However, by the end of the Southern Song Dynasty, the area had become entrenched with bandits. Since then, Linchuan had fallen silent. According to the "Gazetteer of Qiongzhou" compiled during the Ming Dynasty's Zhengde reign, only a "stone street still existing" remained. Clearly, the place had been completely abandoned.

But Linchuan Port—the estuary of Linchuan Water—rose during this time. The reason was that since the Song Dynasty, salt fields had existed along the local seashore. To export edible salt, the estuary of Linchuan Water had become a natural river port for the salt trade.

During the Ming Dynasty, Linchuan Li was established near Linchuan Port. The specific location was "Longpo," exactly between the Sanya River and Linchuan River—the two main rivers in the Sanya area. Among the fourteen "Li" under the jurisdiction of Yazhou in the Ming Dynasty, Linchuan Li was included. This indicated a population of at least a hundred households at that time.

However, when the Senate's Sanya Development Detachment arrived years ago, the population of Linchuan Li had plummeted to fewer than fifty households—all of "salt household status," meaning salt workers specializing in drying salt. Obviously, the only reason a Li had been established here was the salt field. Though Sanya Salt Field was listed as one of Qiongzhou's six major salt fields under Ministry of Revenue jurisdiction, annual sea salt production was only a few thousand shi. When Wang Luobin and others had landed in Yulin and sent people here for a social survey, the salt field was nearly abandoned, with only a small number of salt workers still engaged in small-scale production.

"...After Wang Luobin became mayor, he also reformed the salt field technically—introducing windmill water-lifting and concentration technology. Production has gone up now. But I feel demand from the Planning Committee isn't very strong..." Tang Menglong complained.

"The scale of salt chemicals hasn't picked up, so what's the use of producing so much salt? How much can people eat?" Xu Yanliang said. "The least scarce thing in Hainan and Guangdong is salt! The salt you dry in southern Hainan costs more to transport to Lingao than Ma'ao salt. If not for maintaining the salt field's operations, shipping salt from Sanya wouldn't be economical for the Planning Committee at all!"

"Once the chemical zone in Danzhou gets set up, I don't know if the situation can improve." Tang Menglong looked depressed. "The current salt field workers are still too poor. Working themselves to death just to fill their stomachs."

Though the salt field was under the Planning Committee's jurisdiction, the salt workers all lived in Sanya. Their consumption of food, clothing, housing, and transportation could largely stimulate commerce in Sanya.

The miners of Tiandu and the salt workers of the salt field were currently Sanya's two largest consumer groups. If they lived too poorly, the commerce in Sanya naturally couldn't flourish.

"How can it be that fast?" Xu Yanliang said. "For this project, the blueprint is drawn big enough—practically turning Danzhou directly into an industrial park. But if you expect it to cause a sea salt supply crisis, you'll have to wait at least two or three years."

"Two or three years doesn't matter. As long as it gets established, I'd be happy to be mayor here my whole life." Tang Menglong said. "The environment here is good."

"If the environment's so good, why don't you bring your wife and children over?" Xu Yanliang couldn't help laughing.

"Where would the children go to school if I brought them? There's only one National Primary School here. It was said the calculus model would be replicated in Sanya to set up a ten-year National School, but after Wang Luobin left, there was no follow-up. The land was claimed easily enough—the least valuable thing in Sanya right now is land!"

The two stood on deck pointing out the landscape. Though the voyage was lengthy, it didn't feel boring. The traffic boat entered Sanya Bay. Sanya Port had excellent conditions—deep water and a wide bay. The inner harbor had good shelter, which was why it had replaced Linchuan Port at the river estuary in the Qing Dynasty. The Senate had also established the main commercial port here.

"There are quite a few ships docked here!" Xu Yanliang saw that the port somewhat resembled a forest of masts. At a rough glance, about a hundred ships of various sizes were docked—mostly small and medium-sized vessels common along the South China Sea coast, but with a few large merchant ships mixed in.

Tang Menglong frowned. "Honestly, quite a few ships come, but most aren't here for business."

This was the best shelter port in southern Hainan. With regular Coast Guard patrols, protection from coastal defense troops, and a dedicated shipyard providing repair services, many surrounding fishing boats and passing merchant ships chose to dock and resupply in Sanya. If southbound merchant ships missed the returning monsoon and were delayed in their return voyage, they would also choose to winter in Sanya.

"...Honestly, our merchants here can't be accused of laziness, but there's no way around it—the variety of goods available for purchase here is too limited, and some stocks are insufficient. People would rather go to Lingao or Guangzhou to buy. We just earn a service fee. In comparison, the fishing industry is more prosperous. Xun Suji set up a food processing factory here back then to acquire and process catch locally. The benefits aren't bad—it can be considered a local pillar industry. It also helped the salt field move a lot of salt."

"Earning service fees isn't bad. Singapore is a small country that doesn't produce much itself, and consumption is limited, but that doesn't stop it from becoming an important port and cargo distribution center." Xu Yanliang thought that Sanya's congenital deficiencies would be hard to overcome. Turning it into a commercial center was probably beyond its capacity, but transforming it into a "highway service area" might still be possible.

"I hope so." Tang Menglong said. "I just hope you can bring new business here. Among national policy enterprises, you're the first to set up headquarters here."

"Not at all, not at all. We still need plenty of support from the municipal government."

The traffic boat slowly docked at the pier amid the two men's mutual flattery and politeness. Sanya's weather was much hotter than Lingao's, making it even less suitable for raising horses, so naturally there were no official carriages. Tang Menglong's usual means of transport was the rickshaw.

The two boarded rickshaws and headed for City Hall.

Sanya City Hall was located in Longpo. On the new map drawn by the Senate, this place was called "Hedong Island"—a long, narrow strip of land between the Sanya River and the Linchuan River. Not directly facing the sea, it was equivalent to the inner city area of Sanya. Ji Runzhi's original plan had designated this as the administrative and cultural-educational center of Sanya.

(End of Chapter)