Volume 1: The Battleship Yitian Changes into the Sino-Japanese War of 1894 Chapter 81: The Battle between the Telephone Bureau and the Railway "Holy Training"
"I didn't realize you were quite organized." Ma Yue couldn't help but sigh after looking at the spectacular scene on the construction site: "I can't imagine that you did this."
"It's mainly thanks to Mr. Pei." Sun Gang said, "The old man is working like a clockwork, and he seems to be risking his life. I'm afraid he will collapse one day."
"You just realized that the old man was not in good health to begin with, and he really tried his best." Ma Yue sighed and said, "I know he wants to see the Chinese-made battleship launched as soon as possible. I tried to persuade him, but he just wouldn't listen." She rolled her eyes at him, "I have no choice but to arrange for Xiangyun to take care of him. I'm officially revoking your position as secretary. I'm telling you this now."
"Miss Jin is not coming back?" Sun Gang was stunned and asked.
"Sure enough, the wolf's tail is exposed, haha." Ma Yue laughed and said, "She is now stationed in North Korea. As the contact person between the Beiyang Military Intelligence Department and North Korea, it will not be easy for you to see her in the future."
"It might be a good thing for her to return to her motherland." Sun Gang said. Although he felt a little sad that she didn't come back, he was still very happy for her. The late-adolescent "Yuan Datou" can be said to be the "emperor" of Korea. He is helping Korea train the Chinese-style new army "Beijing Army Zhuangwei Camp", using the compensation paid by the Japanese to Korea to carry out "reforms" in Korea, and even considering helping Korea build a small-scale navy to counter possible threats from Japan in the future! (It seems that Korea has not had a real navy since Yi Sun-sin.) The political situation in Korea should not be a big problem. Maybe Kim Sun-hee will be like Ma Yue in the future, find someone who loves her and marry her, and live a peaceful and happy life?
Trying to shake off the beautiful figure, his thoughts returned to the current situation.
The things and people that France promised had not arrived yet, which made him feel very uncertain.
The French were very smart. They heard from the old fox that six French warships were already stationed in Guangzhou Bay and were getting along "harmoniously" with the officers and men of the Guangdong Navy. However, Sun Gang still felt uneasy.
The Battle of Majiang will always be a pain in the hearts of the Chinese Navy.
He didn't want the Guangdong Navy to repeat the same mistake.
It is said that the French sent him a very powerful shipbuilding expert. According to his understanding, people who are called "experts" are usually arrogant. The French have always been very arrogant. Will they listen to him, a newbie in shipbuilding?
"The people I brought from the United States are about to arrive. In addition to shipbuilding engineers and technicians, guess what else they are?" His beloved wife interrupted his thoughts mischievously and said to him.
"It won't be an atomic bomb anyway." Sun Gang said with a smile. If there really was an atomic bomb, it would save a lot of trouble. What he is making now is actually an atomic bomb that is not an atomic bomb. "Can you give me a hint?"
"You're so stupid." Ma Yue rolled her eyes at him and said, "It's about your phone."
Sun Gang was so surprised that he couldn't speak clearly. "You...you mean, radio?" he asked carefully.
"You are indeed a 'pervert'. You are so obsessed with 'wolf pack', right?" Ma Yue couldn't help laughing. Her current 'naval business' has caught up with him. "It's not a radio, it's a telephone, my lord."
"What? Phone call?" Sun Gang almost thought he had heard it wrong. In this era, is a phone call possible?
"What's the big deal? Shanghai already had one in 1882." Ma Yue didn't care about his surprised look and said, "It's too much trouble to run back and forth to pass news within the Navy Office. Let's install a phone, it will be convenient for everyone, and it will also be convenient for me to call home."
Sun Gang couldn't suppress his surprise. His beloved wife just wanted convenience and didn't think about the military value . If a temporary telephone network could be established on the battlefield, it would be possible to command and mobilize troops in time according to different battlefield situations. Its role would be immeasurable!
Subsequent joint sea and land operations demonstrated how correct his idea was.
A few days later, the group of foreign employees recruited by Ma Yue arrived in Lushun by ship. Sun Gang made proper arrangements for them. Ma Yue could not wait to implement her "long-distance communication" plan. It was not long before a wired telephone network was established in Lushunkou and Dalian Bay, the bases of the Beiyang Navy. The "Beiyang Telephone Bureau" was established. The users were mainly navy generals, local officials and their families. After trying it for a period of time, the users all praised it. However, Sun Gang, who was used to using mobile phones, still felt extremely awkward with this hand-cranked phone that did not even have a dial and required a special operator to connect.
"It's good to have some use, my lord." Tian Mayue said to him, "This is the best in this era."
"It would be better if it could be farther away." Sun Gang said, "If the Lord Zhongtang and Lord Zhitai also have it, there would be no need to send telegrams all the time."
"Why don't you tell the palace?" His beloved wife rolled her eyes at him. "You can talk to the emperor directly, so you don't have to submit a memorial."
"Yes!" Sun Gang slapped his thigh, "Let me think about this."
"Don't dream, be careful of the wind." Ma Yue said, "When Zhongtang built the railway and opened the mine, he was criticized by everyone. He laid a railway in the Forbidden City before convincing the empress dowager to support him. If you want to follow his example and install a telephone in the palace, you have to be prepared to be criticized."
"Okay, let's discuss it later." Sun Gang said, "You are right. It seems that Lord Zhongtang has been reported again because of the mining issue."
"People from the Military Intelligence Department have reported it, and it seems there are more than one report." Ma Yue said, "It was Master Weng who started it again."
"What's bothering him again?" Sun Gang asked curiously, "I really don't know."
"It seems to mention some 'hadith'?" Ma Yue said, "I didn't pay much attention to it. I'll have someone sort it out later."
"It won't work without a secretary." Sun Gang sighed, but when he met his beloved wife's sharp gaze, he immediately swallowed his words.
After reviewing the latest news and intelligence, Sun Gang learned that after Master Weng had been quiet for a few days, he broke up with Li Hongzhang again.
This time, the target is directly the railways and mining industries.
By 1895, China had only 400 kilometers of railways, and the first large-scale railway was built in Taiwan (built by Liu Mingchuan). Li Hongzhang had taken great pains to build China's railways, but the stubborn Taoists in the court still opposed it for various reasons, such as destroying feng shui, occupying arable land, destroying tombs, and being punished by heaven. They just couldn't see the huge role of railway transportation in the national economy and people's livelihood. The Siberian Railway built by Tsarist Russia once made Li Hongzhang sleepless, because the construction of this railway meant that the Russian army could gather to the east faster. If the Russian army took military action against Northeast China, the Qing army would not be able to respond in the first time! He once asked Liu Mingchuan, a veteran of the Huai Army, to write a letter to request the construction of a railway across Northwest China to Northeast China, but it not only failed, but also forced Liu Mingchuan to retire! This time, taking advantage of the victory in the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895, Li Hongzhang requested to build railways all over the country to complete China's own railway network. This would not only facilitate people's transportation, but also have important military significance. "Once there is an alarm on the border, all troops can arrive in an instant." He also cited many examples, not to mention the distant ones. This time when the Russians attacked the Japanese mainland, the Japanese army responded quickly to the Russians' actions with the convenient and developed railway network, and drove the Russians away with the cooperation of the remaining naval ships!
But now, the railway from Beijing to Tianjin that was being built immediately became the target of attack by Master Weng and his gang.
This time, Master Weng learned his lesson and did not use those "traditional" reasons such as digging up people's ancestral graves, destroying farmland, or ruining people's feng shui. Maybe someone gave him a hint, and the reasons he raised for opposition this time were also military!
He said, "Tianjin is surrounded by a wide area, which is good for attack but not for defense. Since the incident at sea, the enemy has always come from Dagu to attack the capital. Now that the railway between Beijing and Tianjin is being built, it will be occupied by the enemy one day and it will only take a few minutes to reach the capital. I wonder what Li Hongzhang is up to?" Then he changed the subject and said, "Once the whole country has railways and is connected as one, other countries can occupy one place and use the speed of their vehicles to invade other places. It will take only a few days to cover the whole country. This is a way to bring disaster to the country and I cannot bear to see it."
These words were so "horrifying" that Sun Gang had to admire Master Weng's imagination and ability to express himself. It would have been strange if the emperor and his mother were not scared by what he said.
Master Weng also said, "Building railways requires mining, iron smelting, and coal mining. Our Qing Dynasty was founded on agriculture. After the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895, the people's strength needs to be recovered. We must not waste the limited manpower on things that bring harm to the country and the people." As if he still felt that the effort was not enough, this time he even brought out the "holy teachings" of Emperor Yongzheng, "Although mining can bring benefits from ores, it is too cold to wear clothes and too hungry to eat. Gathering hundreds of thousands of people in barren mountains and valleys will do more harm than just harm agriculture. Even if it is to provide a living for the poor, it is not the best way to support the people." When this big hat was put down, Sun Gang was really shocked. Even the emperor's grandfather's grandfather's father was invited out. Isn't this too mean?
"Can't we just get rid of this old guy?" his beloved wife asked him gently, and he almost burst into tears.
Master Weng thus escaped the disaster.
Li Hongzhang and some pragmatic officials also launched a counterattack against Mr. Weng's attack. Li Hongzhang pointed out, "Looking at England, France, Germany, and the United States, all of them regard railway transportation as the foundation of national prosperity. The territory of the United States is comparable to that of our country, but the land is vast and rich, and it faces the sea on both sides. The sea line is longer than that of our country, which is difficult to defend. However, I have never heard of them abandoning the construction of railways. Instead, they have mobilized the whole country to build railways. By the 13th year of Guangxu (1887), they had built more than 20,000 kilometers of railways, which is 500 times that of our country. Don't they know that the harm of railways being occupied by other countries during wartime? It is only because the benefits to the country are far greater than the harm during wartime. Even Japan, a small country, also understands the benefits of railways. Whenever the country has something to plan, the common people are all enthusiastic. Whenever our Qing Dynasty has a move to build railways, there will be a lot of discussion, which is really strange."
Regarding the "sacred teachings" of Emperor Yongzheng brought out by Master Weng, the old fox also brought out the "sacred teachings" of Emperor Qianlong to refute it (there are quite a few "sacred teachings" of the Qing Dynasty), "Gold, silver, copper, iron, lead, and coal are all natural benefits of heaven and earth, which can benefit the people, so why should they be banned? If they are widely used for aid, the local poor can also use them to work as hired laborers to earn a living, which is of great benefit to people's livelihood. If they are called local troubles, I am afraid that opening a mine may cause trouble. I don't know that these bandits are more likely to become bandits if we don't open a factory and let them wander around and lose their jobs. The only way is to manage them well and suppress them so that they don't cause trouble."
This time, the "holy teachings" PK between Yongzheng and Qianlong, father and son, really opened Sun Gang's eyes. He realized that the debates in the Qing Dynasty could be so interesting, even more exciting than the QQ battles and the Qidian book review discussion forum!
