A Man of Science and Engineering in Troubled Times Wandering in the Late Qing Dynasty

Chapter 120
Li Yu originally wanted to go to Germany or Europe, but Markov sent a telegram asking him to go back and take the train back as soon as possible, otherwise there would be no more passenger trains to the Northeast in a short time.

Of course, Li Yu guessed that it was already 1903, and the situation in the Northeast was becoming more and more tense.In the past few months, the tsar seems to want to concentrate his limited capacity to mobilize military supplies to the Northeast.

Li Yu had no choice but to go back and take the train. It took too much time to take the ship.

Before that, he hadn't forgotten the promise he had made with Emperor Guangxu, so he went to buy a pocket watch.

Like later generations, pocket watches at this time were also social tools. The upper class opened high-level salons and always showed off to each other. Even if there was a big clock in the room, they had to pretend not to know the time in front of people, and took out their pocket watches to check the time from time to time.

As the saying goes, the poor play with cars, and the rich play with watches.There is nothing wrong with this sentence in the early twentieth century, and even the price far exceeds that of the newly born car.

The pocket watches on display in the store cost thousands or even tens of thousands of crowns.

As for those that use the top-of-the-line self-sounding function and the three-question series, Li Yu dare not look at the numbers at all. Let alone buying a car or a house, you can buy an island!
Now Europe has really begun to play with luxury goods, and centuries-old brands such as Patek Philippe and Vacheron Constantin have already had stable sales.

It is definitely impossible for Li Yu to buy a luxury pocket watch. He chose a few pocket watches made in Sweden. I don't know if the movement is Swiss.It is estimated that if it is well maintained, it will last for seven or eight years. If it is a Swiss movement, the time may be even longer.

It's not the lowest-end product, otherwise it won't be able to sell to the emperor. Each pocket watch costs five or six hundred crowns, which is seven to eighty taels of silver.

This thing is small and convenient. Li Yu thought it would be a good gift in the future, and he bought eight yuan in one go to make up an auspicious number.

When going out, Li Yu happened to see a grocery store selling canned herring. On a whim, he bought 10 cans.

Naturally, I didn't buy it to go back to eat, it was all because of its reputation as "the most stinky food in the world" and I couldn't suppress my curiosity.

Although the current advertising law does not allow the use of the word "best" in publicity, it is said that canned herring is really smelly, and perhaps only pickled puffins can compete.

Li Yu once saw it on a certain treasure, and the promotional picture was actually an emoticon package, pointing to the outside of the screen, and then a few big words "Do you dare to eat shit?".

Some commented that after eating it, hiccups at night have a smell of feces, like eating twice-cooked feces again.

Anyway, he still has to go back to the Imperial University. If he doesn't play tricks, how can his classmates have a complete university memory?

It is necessary to set up some excellent models, so that the first Beijing Normal University can be famous and form an excellent tradition among the students.

Li Yu felt that his idea was so cool!

At the port of Stockholm, Levler came to deliver the luggage in person, and said reluctantly: "Time is really short, we have to say goodbye so soon, I hope you can still see the gorgeous aurora in the east."

"Professor stay here, I will see you later." Li Yu took out a piece of paper, "It has my address on it, and we will keep in touch with each other by telegram."

"Okay," Leffler said, "I will send you the new book as soon as it is published, and I will report to you more about the construction schedule of the island project."

Li Yu said gratefully, "Thank you so much, Professor!"

Levle wished that Li Yu would live in Sweden in the future, but Li Yu didn't want to live abroad.

The reason for purchasing the small island is that Europe is now the center of scientific research, so it will be more convenient in the future, and there will be more backup just in case, which is equivalent to buying insurance.

After all, a big tree invites the wind, and the wind will destroy it if the wood wants to be more beautiful than the forest.Li Yu didn't want to fight with the villain, but if he didn't keep it together, accidents might happen in the future.

The right is to guard against the passing of time.

The return journey was also smooth, but there were no people from the northeast to Yekaterinburg, but this time the train to the northeast was almost full.

Li Yu had the order from the embassy in his hand, so he still sat in the private compartment of the upper-class car, and there were some senior Russian military officials and diplomats in the same car.

Although Li Yu had learned a little Russian during this time, he basically still couldn't understand what they said, and could only hear a few short sentences occasionally.

They were all military and political officials, and Li Yu didn't want to get involved with them.

But when he closed his eyes and meditated, someone took the initiative to say hello to Li Yu.

"Hello, are you Mr. Li Yu?"

Li Yu opened his eyes. He was a Russian over half a century old, wearing a military uniform. Li Yu thought to himself, he didn't know Russian soldiers, and the other party still spoke English.

Li Yu said: "Hello, I'm Li Yu, may I ask who you are?"

The other party said: "I am Makarov, Admiral of the St. Petersburg Kronstadt Port Navy."

Seeing that Li Yu was a little puzzled, Makarov continued: "I am also a member of the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences."

Li Yu was a bit impressed. There were too many people in Russia named Makarov. This Makarov was a senior Russian officer who was later killed in the Russo-Japanese naval battle.

Li Yu asked, "Are you also at the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences?"

"Exactly." Makarov sat down opposite Li Yu, and then said to the flight attendant, "Two glasses of vodka with ice."

"Although I am a navy, I have led teams on many round-the-world travels and polar expeditions. I joined the Academy of Sciences a long time ago. I heard Markov mention you some time ago."

Makarov belongs to the technical stream in the navy. Not only can he command the navy, but he has also personally improved ships, fish, and artillery shells, and even wrote many marine works.

It's a pity that there are not many people like him in the Russian Navy. Later, the Russo-Japanese naval battle was unfavorable in the early days. Makarov went to the command line and wanted to make up for it. Unfortunately, he died in battle only 36 days later.

Li Yudao: "It turned out to be like this. It's a pleasure to meet you. I didn't expect the commander to be both civil and military. Where are you going?"

Makarov said: "At present, the naval training in Lushun Port is insufficient, the awareness of vigilance is not high, and the officers are corrupt. I am ordered by the Ministry of the Navy to investigate and rectify it."

"Oh." Li Yu responded casually, with displeasure between his brows.

In any case, Lushun is its own territory, but it has watched Japan and Russia compete.

The Qing government couldn't play "drive the tiger and devour the wolf" at all, and the two families were fighting over who had the right to continue beating the Qing Dynasty.

Makarov said: "Actually, I was in the North Pole. I was preparing to break the ice and explore again to investigate the magnetic declination and other related issues, but I got news from the Winter Palace temporarily."

Li Yu had lost all interest, and after a few perfunctory words with him, he stopped talking.

Modern history is always very sad to watch, but now it is even more heart-wrenching to be on the scene.

Even if it wasn't for the Second Opium War and the direct invasion of China by the Eight-Power Allied Forces, more than 2 people would have died in the war, and property losses would have reached nearly 7000 million taels.

But there seems to be no good way to avoid it. Li Yu can only use the time period of disputes between the great powers as much as possible to do something as soon as possible. At least until the end of the First World War, the great powers will not focus on the east. It is a rare window. Expect.

Moreover, the Russo-Japanese War will not break out in a year, and we can find a way to keep the local people as far away from the flames of war as possible and save their lives.

Li Yu's thoughts were wandering for several days, and he didn't continue to do scientific research with the sound of the train clanging.

During the next ten days of the train journey, Li Yu spent most of the time in his private room, and did not have too much contact with the Russian high-level officials.

He was going to write another powerful thesis and send it out in the name of Jingshi University Hall.

Looking at it now, this is where he can do it.

Ten days later, the train arrived in Dalian. After Li Yu got off the train, he called a carriage and rushed to the pier.

On the ferry, he heard two people talking.

"Mr. Zhan, the negotiation went so smoothly this time, and I will definitely get a reward from the court when I return to Beijing."

"What kind of reward do you want? We were supposed to take back our own things this time. The railway outside the customs is ours. Why should Russia intervene? Could it be that they still want to use this railway to reach Beijing again?"

The Guanwai Railway is from Shenyang to Beijing, which is the later Jingfeng Railway.

The Manchuria branch line built by Russia leads from Shenyang to Dalian.

"We should build the railway ourselves. The property rights are in the hands of foreigners. It is not an option to continue to build it."

"Having said that, the railway seems simple to you, but it is not easy for us to repair it ourselves. This time the imperial court ordered the construction of the Xinyi Railway, and appointed me as the general manager. The pressure is really not small."

Li Yu was listening, railway?Mr. Zhan?
He stepped forward and asked, "Excuse me, but are you Mr. Zhan Tianyou?"

The other party was stunned, "How do you know me?"

Having recognized the right person, Li Yu put down his suitcase and said, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Li Yu."

Zhan Tianyou asked in surprise, "Are you Li Yu, the famous master of western learning mentioned in the newspapers these days?"

"It's all a false name of the newspaper." Li Yu said.

Zhan Tianyou is now in his 40s, and he doesn't look rich as shown in the photos, but rather thin.

Zhan Tianyou said: "Mr. Li's ability is too great. I have read all the reports about you. When I was at Yale University, I studied western learning for many years, and I know how difficult it is to reach your level. If it weren't for this paragraph I have been busy with Guanwai Railway and Xinyi Railway for a long time, I should have asked you to visit me in person."

Li Yu said with a smile: "I'm still studying, sir is already a top student who graduated from Yale, so I can't say whether to visit or not."

Zhan Tianyou also smiled and said: "I can't talk about being a top student. I only studied at Yale University for three years. I originally planned to study for another three years. Unfortunately, the imperial court ordered me to return to China temporarily. But I know in my heart that even for my civil engineering major , is far from it."

"Civil engineering is such a profession, industry makes the country prosperous." Li Yu said.

Zhan Tianyou sighed: "I think so too, but I have been engaged in the railway business for more than ten years. Looking back at the end, I seem to be working for foreigners. We worked hard to build the railway outside the customs, and the Russians almost took it away. This time I went to Shenyang to completely take back the railway.”

Li Yu nodded: "We can't let them push their feet."

Zhan Tianyou asked: "Where are you, Mr. Li Yu, why did you board the ship in Dalian?"

"I just went to Sweden." Li Yu told Zhan Tianyou about the trip.

Zhan Tianyou praised: "It's amazing! When I was studying, mathematics was the most difficult subject, but my husband can handle it with ease, and even won a big prize. It's amazing."

Li Yu asked again: "I just heard you talking about the Xinyi Railway, and Mr. Zhan became the general manager. What's going on?"

Zhan Tianyou explained: "The Xinyi Railway is a small branch from the Jinghan Railway, which just leads to Xiling."

"I see."

No wonder Li Yu didn't hear the so-called Xinyi Railway just now, but he knew it when he mentioned the Xiling Railway. Speaking of which, the first railway that the Chinese really built by themselves was actually it, not the Beijing-Zhangjiakou Railway that is better known to the world. railway.

Zhan Tianyou said: "The Empress Dowager was going to pray to her ancestors. She visited Dongling before, but the journey to Xiling was really far away, so she ordered the railway to be built."

Isn’t it far away? Xiling is in Baoding, more than 140 kilometers away from the Forbidden City.

But Cixi's approach is really funny. In order to change her xenophobic image in the Boxer Movement and win the favor of the great powers, she decided to take the train to visit Xiling.

Of course, Cixi really tasted the sweetness of the train. When she fled back to Beijing from Xi'an, she took the train from Shijiazhuang to Beijing. The fast and stable journey left a deep impression on her, so she decided to visit Xiling and also take the train. .

Cixi then ordered the construction of such a railway with no economic significance at all, just for the convenience of her going to Xiling.

And the funny thing is, what's the use of praying to her ancestors?

If Yongzheng, Jiaqing, and Daoguang in the Western Mausoleum of the Qing Dynasty saw that Cixi violated the ancestral precepts and started to prohibit women from intervening in politics, they might not be able to cover the coffin.

Li Yu said: "If it is separated from the Beijing-Hanzhou Railway instead of being built directly from Beijing, it seems to be [-] to [-] kilometers long."

"Basically," Zhan Tianyou said, "but it's my first time as chief engineer, so I don't know what to do."

The Xiling Railway is located in Hebei and is under the jurisdiction of Zhili Governor Yuan Shikai. Originally, Yuan Shikai planned to let the British Jinda, the chief engineer of the Guanwai Railway, continue to serve as the chief engineer of this railway.

However, the French believe that the Beijing-Han Railway (now called the Luhan Railway) is their sphere of influence, and they firmly disagree.

Empress Dowager Cixi felt that it was not difficult to build the railway, so she only gave a six-month construction period and 60 taels of silver. The stalemate between Britain and France wasted two months.

The discord between Britain and France has been a problem for hundreds of years. Yuan Shikai had no choice but to choose a Chinese as the chief engineer. The best candidate was naturally Zhan Tianyou, who had been an assistant engineer and section engineer for 14 years.

Speaking of which, Zhan Tianyou was a subordinate of the British Jinda before.

It can be said that he has become a project manager from the former chief engineer.

Li Yu said: "It's a good time to take this opportunity to practice. Where are the more railways we need to build?"

Anyway, even if the Qing Dynasty perished, the railway would not disappear for nothing.Even if the Japanese quickly occupied most of the territory in the east through the rapid advance of the railway, they cannot give up eating because of choking.

After all, China's natural three-level geographical ladder, at the current level, the second level is an insurmountable gap, which can only be repaired in the eastern plains.

To solve these problems, it can only be done by the infrastructure madman many years later.

Zhan Tianyou smiled wryly: "The difficulty is indeed great. There is only four months, and it is almost impossible to complete the task. But the imperial court issued a death order, and we must not delay the Queen Mother's visit to Xiling. I really have nothing to do. This time When I came to take back the railway outside the customs, I just thought that I could pull some old steel rails back, which would be quick and cost-effective.”

Li Yu shook his head: "Of course it can be faster, but it can't save money."

Zhan Tianyou said: "If you don't pay attention to flowers, the 60 taels may only be more than half of the repair."

Li Yu said with a smile: "That's right, of course it can only be repaired more than half."

Zhan Tianyou didn't understand: "If you repair more than half of it, you won't be able to complete the task."

Zhan Tianyou was too honest, saying that 60 taels would be spent according to this budget.Not to mention the late Qing Dynasty, even in the 21st century, there is no project that does not exceed the budget.

Li Yu said mysteriously: "Of course the task must be completed, but the road is difficult and dangerous, and there are also permafrost ravines. I don't think 100 million taels is much."

"Ah?" Zhan Tianyou said in surprise, "This is too high!"

"Not high, not high," Li Yu waved his hand. "To ensure the quality, of course not many. Moreover, it is the first time to build a railway, so there will be many problems. I think the court can understand."

Zhan Tianyou finally understood, thought for a while and said: "However, even if there is more money, the construction period is very tight, and there is no time to erect the bridge. We can only use wooden bridges for the time being, and then we can change to steel bridges later."

"That's it. It's more normal to pay more rush fees." Li Yu said.

Zhan Tianyou laughed loudly and said, "Mr. is indeed a master of mathematics!"

Although the Xiling Railway had no practical or economic significance, it gave the Qing government the determination to build the railway itself. It was inspired by this that it built the famous Beijing-Zhangjiakou Railway two years later.

Zhan Tianyou also gained the experience of being the chief engineer through this small railway, and completed a series of feats since then.

(End of this chapter)