Chapter 1491: Chapter 1408: The Tang People’s Wastefulness

Within the ruins of Qingluan Port, local workers are cleaning up the wreckage on the docks alongside Qin prisoners and Tang garrison troops.

A mast still protrudes from the distant sea; it was from a self-sunken Qin cruiser that had its cannons dismantled and deployed onshore as artillery before sinking.

Unfortunately, its artillery had already been destroyed by the Tang Army, and this port is now under the control of the Great Tang Empire.

On the other side of the port, there are at least thirty various Qin submarines densely parked, some slightly larger, some smaller, yet all appear rusted and weathered.

There’s nothing to be done. They haven’t had proper maintenance for over ten days, being left exposed to the elements, rendering them unusable.

Originally, Qingluan Port had a dedicated submarine dock constructed on the concealed side of the port—a newly developed area.

That side was a military zone, with extensive barracks, a field airport, and various other facilities. Unfortunately, during the Great Tang Empire’s attack, the resisting Qin Army destroyed it all.

It must be said that the Qin Army defending Qingluan Port exhibited rare valor, fighting until the last moment. Only after generals like Sun Guang fled did the steadfast Qin soldiers surrender.

Before surrendering, Qin engineers planted explosives and destroyed all the concealed submarine docks beneath the cliffs.

Clearing that area of rubble is even more time-consuming, so these returning submarines can only berth at ordinary docks, left to be corroded by seawater.

During the few days these submarines have docked here, they’ve become unusable. The Tang Army has no interest in these outdated wrecks, and Qin’s submariners are now in POW camps, unable to man these war machines.

Moreover, their main components have partly been removed: the Tang Army didn’t have the resources to manage this scrap, so they directly damaged the critical parts, stacking them in a dock’s corner for scrapping.

Many diesel engines of the submarines were directly damaged, some even had their hatches removed: if they dared to dive, seawater would flood into the hulls…

All torpedo fuses have been dismantled, and periscopes were simply damaged with hand grenades; in short, these submarines have long been inoperable.

“So many new submarines, used less than a year… now to be scrapped as iron, what a pity,” a Qin prisoner sighed, shaking his head at the submarines.

He wouldn’t forget, over a year ago, when these brand-new submarines were constructed and the navy celebrated in jubilation. The military band played continuously, officials applauded and cheered, and the freshly built submarines were launched, splashing huge waves.

In nearly two to three days, a new submarine was launched. These small toys with a displacement of a few thousand tons were indeed easier to produce than complex aircraft carrier battleships.

However, they didn’t play the expected role in the war; of over a hundred submarines constructed pre-war by Qin, at least half were sunk by the Tang Army.

“Waste…” Another Qin soldier shook his head and sighed, feeling it a serious waste for so many submarines to be scrapped in vain.

In his view, Qin losing the war seemed unbelievable: how could the ostentatious Tang Country win this war? It’s completely irrational, isn’t it?

What they didn’t know was that several businessmen had arrived on the dock, surveyed the submarines with a Tang Army officer.

These businessmen purchased the submarines, intending to dismantle and recycle the steel, as the steel used in these submarines was still very good.

On the city roads, civilians, workers, and troops were filling in craters blasted by shells, trying to restore transportation as best as possible with nearby waste material.

Children also picked up broken stone fragments around buildings; working a day like this would earn them a canned dinner.

Due to a lack of heavy machinery, the repair progress of the city was very slow. No matter how powerful the Great Tang Empire, there are limits. After swallowing the territories of Chu Country, Shu Country, and Dahua, the rebuilding too has indeed become slower.

Areas close to the Great Tang Empire appear better off; their construction progress is also the best. However, farther from the Great Tang Empire and closer to the front line, construction seems to be outpaced.

There is a shortage of manpower everywhere, a lack of tools, insufficient heavy machinery, and to ensure troop operations, precious transport capacity is first allocated to the military.

The farther from the Great Tang Empire’s homeland, the worse the roads and traffic, the more stressed the logistics troops, and the less military support available for civilians. This is an objective rule that cannot be changed.

Qingluan Port is located too far from the Great Tang Empire’s mainland. Qin’s resistance destroyed the railways, bombed the airport, and wrecked the docks, further complicating reconstruction efforts.

Compared to cities that surrendered easily, Qingluan Port was evidently one of the most severely damaged. Moreover, what irked the locals most was that, most of the destruction was caused by Qin’s own garrison using explosives.

The exhilaration from explosive demolition now translates into difficulty in repair. Countless Qin prisoners are forced into post-war cleanup work, receiving far worse treatment than local workers.

“Work faster! What’s the mumbling about? Wasn’t it you who blew this place to pieces? What’s the point of complaining? You have to pay back your debts with labor, understand? Pay off what you owe!” A Tang soldier overseeing the Qin prisoners scolded, interrupting the two prisoners’ lamentations.

The two didn’t dare to continue watching the scrapped submarines by the docks, lowering their heads and starting to manually move rubble from the ground.

The sound of gunfire ceased, the cries of seagulls echoed over the docks. A cargo-laden transport ship of the Great Tang Empire halted in the distant sea and had to wait to dock at the hastily repaired and only currently usable dock.

At this moment, both sides of the repaired dock were tethered with ships, with dock workers continuously offloading materials from these vessels, stacking goods from Dongwan Port in the temporary storage area.

A giant red royal flag was raised over the nearly flattened city center, while cheers from the Tang Army echoed. Locals joined in clapping and cheering, as it seemed the chaos of war was finally coming to an end.