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

New York is also a small fixed point.

The remuneration for Star Wars from Europe was remitted, and the sales in Europe and the United States were about the same, and the remuneration was 4 US dollars.

When the sales of the prequel that just went on the market go up, it is estimated that the main story will continue to sing triumphant songs all the way.

It's a real hit!
It was not easy to remit the money. Hachette Press first transferred it to HSBC through BNP Paribas, and then transferred it to Li Yu's account through HSBC.

Although all are wire transfers in form, the operation process is still much slower than that of later generations.

After all, there is no convenient international settlement system at this time.

And only HSBC can have such a wide range of businesses, and can take care of Europe, America, and Asia at the same time.

BNP Paribas is quite powerful, but now France's influence in the Americas is very weak, and Britain is still a sun never sets, and it is still high in the eyes of Americans today.

So it seems that the only bank with world influence at this time is HSBC.

As for the United States, although the financial industry is already quite strong, and there are super financial tycoons like Morgan, the banking industry in the United States is in disarray.

Without the Fed, the management chaos can be imagined.

Morgan can have such a high status and accumulate so much wealth because he has been like the Federal Reserve for a long time.

As for Citibank, its tentacles are far and wide, and it also has a branch in Shanghai, but in terms of coverage, it is still far behind HSBC.

In short, international remittances seem simple to future generations, but it is not easy to push forward just a few decades.

The main reason is the lack of a perfect price anchor.

Later generations use US dollars.

But those who know a little bit about finance will know how huge the benefits of being an anchor will be. The foundation of the beautiful country’s ability to dominate the world after World War II is the petrodollar system, which gave him a tool that can loot the world’s wealth. ——With money, there will be financial resources to support its military hegemony and technological hegemony.

So when some countries start not to use US dollars for settlement, the beautiful country is as angry as others who have killed him for a thousand years.

Of course, this has something to do with the beautiful country's own work. He even kicked Russia out of the international settlement system SWIFT.

This trick seems to be very well done, and the effect is immediate.

But it made everyone see that something was wrong: Oh, so this thing can also be used as a sanctions weapon?
All countries, including the allies of the beautiful country, are actually on guard.

International relations, who believes in true friendship?

The foot pot chicken has survived two mushroom eggs, the Gallic chicken has been plucked for 400 years of wool, the Hans cat and the beautiful country were beaten to death in World War II, and as for the local tyrants in the Middle East, let alone, their teeth are broken. Swallow into the stomach.

Everyone murmured in their hearts: If anyone accidentally offends the beautiful country in the future, will they follow in the footsteps of Mao Zedong?

Musk said that once the US dollar is "weaponized" enough times, countries will abandon it.

Brother Trump also said that once the de-dollarization is completed, the beautiful country will become a second-tier country.

It's a pity that Li Yu couldn't travel to the future, otherwise I really want to know what will happen in the future, but it seems impossible to live to that time...

As for the early twentieth century, no one would accept anyone else. The pound could only be said to have a slight advantage, but the East still preferred the natural currency-gold and silver.

(In the future, for the convenience of expression, we will try our best to use the more familiar silver, silver dollar and US dollar to unify)

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After winning the US Navy's bid, we still need to continue to study the contract issue.According to conventional requirements, a formal contract must be signed within a certain period of time after winning the bid.

Li Yu didn't understand the law, so he could only seek professional advice, and of course it had to be Roosevelt Jr.

Li Yu first came to Chinatown and found Situ Meitang.

"Brother Situ!" Li Yu cupped his hands.

Situ Meitang said with a smile: "I like this big brother! What do you want me to do?"

Suddenly there is a feeling of Water Margin or Romance of the Three Kingdoms.

Li Yu said: "I won a small bid from the Navy, and I hope to find Mr. Roosevelt Jr. to continue to study the contract issue."

"Navy? U.S. Navy?" Situ Meitang was taken aback.

Li Yu nodded: "That's right."

"Could this be Xiaobiao?!" Situ Meitang said in astonishment. In his opinion, supplying goods to the government is a very respectable thing.

Li Yu took his time and said, "There are only 20 sets of equipment, but this order can be done well, and there will be more orders in the future."

Situ Meitang grabbed Li Yu's shoulders and said excitedly, "My dear brother! You make me, an older brother, feel like I've picked up a treasure. It's really lucky to be able to worship you!"

Li Yu said: "I hope that my brother will do a good job in the assessment in the future, and we will build another factory in the future. The location is not far from Lower Manhattan, just across the river."

Situ Meitang patted his chest and said: "Brother, don't worry, you don't need to say, the Chinese in Chinatown and even the whole of America hope to rely on you to gain face, and the big guys will never miss your business."

Li Yu smiled and said, "It's the best."

Situ Meitang picked up a newspaper: "It's just that some people still can't understand it. You see, Liang Qichao just published such an article in the newspaper."

It was a Chinese newspaper. Li Yu took it over and looked at it, and it was indeed written by Liang Qichao.

In the article, he stated the tradition of China for thousands of years, saying that the way of revolution is too violent. Without the emperor, [-] million people will lose their spiritual totem, which will inevitably lead to earth-shaking and mountains and rivers being broken.

At this moment, it seems that there is actually no big problem for Liang Qichao to say so.

Then Liang Qichao mentioned that improvement is the right way, and the current situation is caused by Guangxu's failure to come out of the mountain.And they have met Guangxu, and they bluntly said that he is definitely a wise king. As long as Guangxu is in power, he will definitely lead the country like the rise of Japan.

Finally, everyone is called on to donate to the royal cause.

This set of rhetoric really had a market in the early twentieth century.

Moreover, Liang Qichao's writing skills are indeed amazing, and it is difficult to refute it with various quotations.

After reading it, Li Yu didn't comment too much on the content, but instead asked, "Where is he now?"

Situ Meitang said: "As expected, he should be with Kang Youwei in San Francisco."

"San Francisco," Li Yu pondered, "Could it be that he is going to board a ship for Japan?"

Situ Meitang said: "Then I don't know. The actions of the Baohuang Society are different from our Hongmen, so they are unpredictable."

Li Yu asked again: "Is there any way to contact him as soon as possible?"

Situ Meitang thought for a while and said, "We don't have telegrams in San Francisco, but there is an official San Francisco telegraph office nearby, and the Hongmen headquarters will regularly send people to check whether there are any telegrams from our own."

Li Yu felt that Liang Qichao should have a look at his own property, and he could probably guess that he was influenced by Kang Youwei to write this kind of article.

Now Liang Qichao is very contradictory.On the one hand, he felt that many of Kang Youwei's views were indeed problematic, and even persuaded him to "take a break from the shadows and enjoy the evening scene", but Kang Nanhai was very angry, and the two began to have a estrangement from then on.

But on the other hand, the title of "Kang Liang" resounded throughout the country, and the whole world knew that Liang Qichao was Kang Nanhai's disciple, and betraying his master would be poked in the back according to tradition.

Therefore, even though Liang Qichao knew that many of Kang Youwei's arguments were problematic, he did not dare to oppose them too openly, and many places still obeyed him.

"Brother Situ, please draft a telegram to San Francisco as soon as possible." Li Yu said.

"No problem," Situ Meitang called the reporter Huang Boyao, "Xiao Huang, send a telegram to the headquarters immediately in my name, saying that Li Yu is asking to see Liang Qichao in New York."

While waiting to send and receive the telegram, Situ Meitang accompanied Li Yu to Columbia University to find Franklin Roosevelt.

Compared with the legal procedures related to the listing, the supply contract was like a small job for him. Roosevelt Jr. immediately said, "It's very simple. I can finish it in an hour. You are waiting for me in the library."

Li Yu didn't expect Roosevelt Jr. to finish it so quickly. If it's only an hour, just wait in the library of Columbia University for a while.

As soon as Li Yu arrived at the library, he was recognized by several students: "You are Li Yu, a master of oriental science?"

Li Yu nodded: "It's me."

"It's an honor! I really have unparalleled admiration for you!" the student said.

Li Yu asked, "Are you a student at Columbia University?"

The student said: "That's right, my name is Langmuir Owen. I will graduate from the Department of Metallurgy soon, and I will go to the University of Göttingen next year to study. I know that you also have a very high academic prestige in Germany."

Langmuir Owen is not an ordinary student, 29 years later, he will get the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

Li Yu said: "It's a good thing to go to Germany for further studies. I wish you success in your studies."

Owen said: "Will I be able to see you in Germany in the future?"

He became Li Yu's little fan in an instant.

Li Yu said, "Yes."

"Great!" Owen said excitedly, "I have read all your papers, so talented, like a god of wisdom!"

The student on the side said: "You are wrong, the god of wisdom is Athena, a goddess."

Owen laughed: "I forgot that."

The student said: "Moreover, Mr. Li Yu is not only the best scientist, in my opinion, he is also the best writer in the East."

Li Yu said: "I can't afford the latter title. When it comes to literature, I'm the best in China."

Although it is a bit like what Chen Zhen said when he kicked the hall: I am the best apprentice of Jingwumen.

But Li Yu really didn't dare to be presumptuous in literature. He was more powerful than him in terms of car volume, and even the Star Wars series had to rely on Lu Bicheng's polishing to complete.

The students didn't quite believe it: "I've read your Star Wars series. How many people can construct such a grand background and tell such a wonderful story! You must be the best writer in China."

Li Yu said: "It seems that you still know too little about China."

Although science is very weak in the late Qing Dynasty and early Republic of China, even if there is a saying that "literature is not the first", no one needs to be convinced by the Chinese literary attainments for thousands of years.

All are brothers.

Owen said: "I want to correct what I just said. You should be the god of science, Gavin Quxing."

"Wenquxing?" Li Yu suddenly asked in surprise, "How could you say such a Chinese-style vocabulary?"

Owen said: "Because a Chinese donated a lecture on Sinology at Columbia University."

"Chinese? Sinology?" Li Yu was even more surprised.

Owen said: "Yeah, I happened to see him today, and that face is so recognizable."

"Can you bring me to see him?" Li Yu said immediately.

"Of course!" Owen was happy to oblige, "They should be in the office building."

Columbia University is not very big, after all, it is in Manhattan where every inch of land is expensive.

A few people soon came to the office building of Columbia University, where the principal's office was located.

Just outside the building, they saw an American and a Chinese coming out of the building.

The Chinese stood behind him humbly and said, "Sir, President Seth Lowe has accepted the donation again. Can the lecture be expanded into the Department of Sinology?"

The person called Master said: "There is still some distance, we must expand the reputation of Ding Long's lecture."

The Chinese called Ding Long, a Chinese laborer living in America.Two years ago, he donated all his life savings of 1.2 U.S. dollars, intending to establish a Sinology Department at Columbia University to promote the civilization and culture of the humiliated motherland at this time.

Some people donate money, and American universities are generally happy to accept it.Many American universities are donated by wealthy capitalists. For example, the University of Chicago is donated by Rockefeller; Carnegie Mellon University is donated by Carnegie and Mellon; Stanford University is donated by the railway symbol Stanford; Duke University is donated by tobacco tycoon Duke ; Johns Hopkins University is the Banker Hopkins Endowment...the list goes on and on.

$1.2 is still a lot of money for a middle-class American family, but it is not enough to start a college from scratch at a top university like Columbia University.

Because people's requirements are very high, prestigious universities don't accept everyone's donations.

And Ding Long made it clear that he wanted to build a Sinology department as formal as the physics department, literature department, and law department.But he was actually a Chinese laborer, and this humble Chinese laborer had no idea how much the Department of Sinology would cost.

Fortunately, his "master" Cabertier respects his servant Ding Long very much, and doesn't even treat him as a servant.

In order to realize the dream of his servant, Cabertier also devoted everything.

Cabentier was able to talk to the president of Columbia University because he was not only an alumnus of Columbia University, but also a big patron of Columbia University—he was a trustee of Columbia University's medical school and women's school.

Carpentier personally came forward to discuss with Columbia University President Seth Lowe, and added an additional $10, which continued to increase to $50.

He even donated his house in New York. He was dragged to the brink of bankruptcy and had to move back to his hometown in rural upstate New York to spend the rest of his life.

The principal was moved by their approach and agreed to set up a Sinology lecture.

This donation, which has lasted for many years, is unprecedented and tragic.

Things are perfect here, and the more amazing thing is yet to come:

With the support of rich men, outstanding alumni, and school directors who made up for all the expenses of establishing the department, Columbia University is still unwilling to name and establish a department after such an unknown person as Ding Long.

They wanted to use the name of Li Hongzhang, the Prime Minister of the Qing Dynasty at that time (Li had just visited New York at the time and was a household name in New York); they also thought about naming the department after Wu Tingfang, the Qing ambassador to the United States at that time; He has published more than 5000 volumes of rare books such as "The Collection of Imperial Books of Ancient and Modern Times", and the school wants to name it in the name of the Qing Dynasty royal family.

What is admirable is that Cabertier has always insisted on naming the department with his servant Ding Long, otherwise he will withdraw the capital.

Columbia University President Seth Lowe eventually relented.

So, to this day, we can still remember the name of this Chinese worker, because the name of the Department of Sinology at Columbia University (that is, the Department of East Asian Studies today) has been called "Ding Long Lecture" in the early years.

Usually, the so-called "lectures" set up in American universities are mostly commemorative, and generally a huge sum of money is donated by private individuals, and then the interest income generated every year is used as the remuneration for the "lectures".Such "lectures" will not be set up lightly.