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

During the war, it was relatively dry to publish scientific papers, and it was difficult to get a response. After all, most of the scientists went to the army to help.

The key is that communication with Europe is very troublesome, especially Germany. Sending a letter there takes a long time and may be censored.

Li Yu could only temporarily obtain some engineering patents.

During this time he came up with car wipers. Still following the usual thinking, he just proposed mechanical wipers a little earlier than historically. Even if there is no Li Yu, he will appear in less than a year. But even if it were done at the same time, Li Yu's patent would be more reasonable. The idea of ​​being so far ahead is no joke.

Cars had been invented for many years, but as of 1915 there were still no wipers.

In the past, there was no full-coverage car body, and driving on rainy days was more painful. Wiper blades would only be meaningful at least after the full-coverage car was born.

Mechanical wipers cannot be compared with later generations of wipers in terms of technological advancement. They can only swing at a fixed frequency without pause, which still affects the line of sight (modern wipers have a pause to adapt to the human eye).

However, it can make cars safer to drive in rainy weather. It is definitely a patent that can be sold well.

The design is very simple, it is just a four-link and a small DC motor. The drive shaft of the motor drives the turbine assembly to rotate, which in turn drives the four-link.

It's just so unpretentious.

For an early car, it was nice to be unpretentious. At this time, the quality of auto parts was far from as good as that of later generations. Repairing cars was commonplace. If the structure was simple, it would not only be less likely to break, but also easier to repair.

Nowadays, the production of major European automobile factories has slowed down, and some factories have switched to the production of weapons. The number of cars imported from the United States has surged.

Everyone has heard about the terrible weather in the UK. It rains all the time. They need the practical patent of wipers more than others.

After the drawings were sent to the United States, the patent was easily approved.

Ford and other automakers immediately retrofitted the cars on their assembly lines.

For Li Yu, it was a considerable amount of income.

Ford was a very smart businessman. He vigorously promoted Li Yu's new patent in newspapers, and then a large number of cars that had been produced and sold were brought back to install wipers.

The cost of retrofitting will definitely increase, and Ford will make a lot of money.

In less than ten years, Ford will become a plutocrat.

The country is not very peaceful now. After more than 5 rounds of negotiations, on May 7, the Japanese government issued an ultimatum to the Beiyang government, giving a deadline of 48 hours to respond to the st Article, otherwise "it will resort to necessary measures." . Then, in a war stance, the army was dispatched to Fengtian and Shandong, and warships sailed into many ports.

Forced by desperation, China finally signed terms with Japan.

However, after diplomatic efforts, only twelve of them were finally signed: seven of the items directly related to the sovereignty issue were not signed, and all of the fourth items were deleted; one of the two items of the third item was deleted, and one of the two items of the first and second items was deleted. When the 11th Article was signed, it might have been stated that it would be “left for future consultations,” or restrictions would have been added to minimize China’s losses.

However, in addition to this, Japan has added some additional terms that are beneficial to it.

In short, it is an undisputed unequal treaty.

Since most of No. 5 was abolished and it was signed in the fourth year of the Republic of China, it is generally called the Fourth Civil Treaty.

Li Yu was invited to Zhang Jian's residence. Although Zhang Jian has resigned as Minister of Agriculture and Commerce, he still serves as the president of the National Water Conservancy Bureau and returns to Beijing from time to time.

When entering the door, Li Yu saw Xu Shuzheng.

Promoted by Duan Qirui, Xu Shuzheng has reached the position of deputy chief of the army and is Duan Qirui's absolute confidant.

Xu Shuzheng cupped his hands and said, "Mr. Academician."

Li Yu replied: "Secretary Commander Xu."

Zhang Jian said: "He is no longer the deputy chief."

Li Yu asked: "The order from the president?"

Xu Shuzheng said: "Yes."

Li Yu said: "If we attack you, wouldn't we attack Mr. Duan?"

Xu Shuzheng touched his bald head: "Mr. Academician is right, this matter is like lice on a bald head, it can be seen at a glance."

Duan Qirui did not agree with the Twenty-One Articles, let alone the imperial system.

Yuan Shikai wanted to knock him out and vacate Duan Qirui's position as Army Chief. The best entry point was Xu Shuzheng.

Duan Qirui didn't usually work in the Ministry of War, and most of the affairs were left to Xu Shuzheng. In other words, if you want to sideline Duan Qirui, you must remove Xu Shuzheng.

Yuan Keding, the eldest son of the Yuan family, had a long-standing feud with Xu Shuzheng. Previously, Yuan Keding wanted to place one of his own people in the Army Ministry. He thought it was just a simple matter, but Xu Shuzheng did not expect to give him any face and directly rejected it.

Yuan Keding felt that Xu Shuzheng was clearly arrogant, so he made a small report to Yuan Shikai.

Taking this opportunity, the Presidential Office dismissed Xu Shuzheng from his post.

There is not much difference between engaging Xu Shuzheng and directly engaging Duan Qirui. From then on, the rift between Duan Qirui and Yuan Shikai became more and more obvious.

Zhang Jian brought the two of them to the living room. Xu Shuzheng took out a few pamphlets and put them on the table. Zhang Jian picked them up and read them: ""History of the Failure of Sino-Japanese Negotiations"?"

Xu Shuzheng said: "The president authorized the compilation after signing the Fourth Civil Treaty."

Zhang Jian turned over it and said, "He still wants to leave a way out."

Xu Shuzheng said: "Such a confidential meeting was known to the whole country just when the Japanese side proposed the 21. It must be the news deliberately released by the presidential office. It is said that when the president authorized the writing of this book, he gritted his teeth and said, ' We suffered a big loss this time, and one day we turn around and this book can be released to the public."

Zhang Jian asked: "How many copies have been printed now?"

Xu Shuzheng said: "At least fifty thousand volumes."

"That's enough." Zhang Jian nodded, igniting a little hope for Yuan Shikai.

But that hope would soon be extinguished.

Zhang Jian then said to Xu Shuzheng: "The Japanese are very arrogant now, and Zheng (characterized by Xu Shuzheng) has just done something detrimental to the Japanese, so be careful."

Xu Shuzheng smiled and said, "The Japanese won't know."

Last year, the Japanese army and the German army fought in Qingdao. Xu Shuzheng, as deputy army chief, secretly assisted the German army with a batch of arms.

Shandong general Jin Yunpeng sent him a worried telegram: "We adhere to neutrality, why do we secretly aid Germany? We did this without the knowledge of the president and the commander-in-chief. What if it is leaked? And you have always been pro-Japanese, why are you anti-Japanese today?"

Xu Shuzheng explained: "Japan is China's nearest powerful country, and China is a weak country. In the past ten or twenty years, if China wants to do anything, as long as it does not get Japan's understanding, there is nothing it can do. That's why I am friendly to Japan on the surface. But Japan is by no means a friend of China, and it does not want China to be rich and powerful. In comparison, I think it is possible for the United States and Germany to become friends."

He still saw it clearly.

Li Yu said: "It makes sense to attack from afar."

Zhang Jian asked again: "Youzheng, does the president really want to change back to a constitutional system and become emperor?"

Xu Shuzheng pointed to his bald head again: "What do you think?" Zhang Jian sighed: "Yang Du roped in a few people to set up a preparatory committee, which is obviously preparing for the planning of an imperial system. I really don't know why the president has such weird ideas. .”

There are many people who can't figure it out. This move of becoming emperor is really a failure.

Li Yu said: "Tiger has also fallen into a dead end."

Yang Du is the core figure of the Preparatory Committee, and the other five including Yan Fu are basically just in name.

"What do Beiyang senior officials think?" Zhang Jian asked another more critical question.

Xu Shuzheng did not dare to speak too clearly and said vaguely: "The most core members don't agree with it."

Several core figures in Yuan Shikai's Beiyang faction, Xu Shichang, Tang Shaoyi, Duan Qirui, and Feng Guozhang, all opposed the imperial system.

Ordinarily, given their influence on Yuan Shikai, they should not let Yuan Shikai stick to one path and end up in trouble.

But he somehow believed that most people supported his establishment of an imperial system. Maybe we need to explain it from a psychological level.

Xu Shichang did not make a clear stance or support. After being lobbied, he resigned directly.

In the military, what Yuan Shikai valued most was Duan Qirui and Feng Guozhang.

Duan Qirui, Feng Guozhang, and Wang Shizhen are commonly known as the "Three Heroes of Beiyang", of which Duan and Feng are particularly outstanding.

Duan Qirui was the chief of the army, and Feng Guozhang was the general of Jiangsu at this time. They all showed negative attitudes towards Yuan Shikai's proclaiming emperor. Even if they didn't openly quarrel with each other, as a powerful faction, they just held back for the time being.

It stands to reason that Yuan Shikai should know them very well, but unfortunately it is of no use.

Fortunately, Xu Shuzheng didn't make it too clear. Not long after they chatted, the presidential palace sent someone to Zhang Jian to persuade him to join.

This time it was Yang Shiqi and Yuan Kewen.

Yang Shiqi briefly stated his intention and then said to Zhang Jian: "Commander, you are the number one scholar in the previous dynasty. You are a smart man. I don't think I need to say too much, right?"

Zhang Jian said with an expressionless face: "Xingcheng (Yang Shiqi) is also a smart man. Let me just say one thing: if you set a net and approach the abyss, claiming that you are not catching fish, it is better to release the net and make yourself aware."

That is to say, President Yuan Da, stop covering your ears and stealing the bell. Everyone knows that you want to be emperor. If you don't want to be emperor, just set an example.

Yang Shiqi didn't waste any time: "I understand, I'll take my leave."

"Wait a minute," Zhang Jian stopped him and took out a letter, "please forward it to the president himself. It contains his own opinions on Sino-Japanese negotiations. If the Fourth Civil Treaty is agreed to, Manchuria will become a permanent concession like Hong Kong; if the land is transferred to As an open market, it has more advantages than disadvantages; if it becomes a permanent concession, it will have more disadvantages than advantages. Now there is still room for Manchuria to win. I hope that the president will use Zeng Wenzhenggong’s strategy back then and use all his resources to build a stronghold and fight a dull war. Social forces compete with it."

"It's too late now, Commander-in-Chief," Yang Shiqi took the letter anyway, "but I will forward it to you."

Zhang Jian said: "Thank you."

Yang Shiqi turned around and left Zhang Jian's residence, but Yuan Kewen stayed where he was.

Zhang Jian asked: "Second Young Master, aren't you going back together?"

Yuan Kewen said: "Have you finished talking about political matters? This is none of my business."

Zhang Jian was stunned: "Why is it none of your business?"

Yuan Kewen frowned and said: "Yang Du and the others are trying to persuade us to come in every day. It's so annoying! I want to be the founding father of the country, but they push my father into a pit of fire."

Zhang Jian asked tentatively: "Don't you want to persuade me?"

"Me? I'm afraid of being scolded!" Yuan Kewen shook his head. "Since two years ago, I have not been involved in political affairs, let alone an official, so no one listens to my words. But I didn't expect that I just thought about it. The life of a literati who spends poetry and wine parties and chants and sings is not peaceful. Not long ago, I wrote a poem and was actually sent to my father."

Yuan Kewen's poem is very well written, and the last sentence is quite artistic: "It's a pity for the wind and rain in high places, so don't go to the highest floor of Qiong Tower."

Who would have thought that his brother Yuan Keding had long been involved in his poetry circle. Yuan Keding showed this poem to Yuan Shikai, and Yuan Shikai was so angry that he almost put him in solitary confinement.

Zhang Jian said: "The authorities are confused, and it is rare for the second son to wake up."

"What I want is to be rare and confused," Yuan Kewen sighed, "and...hey, forget it, let's not mention that! This time I came to see Master Li Yu to learn how to tinker with the gramophone and that interesting radio broadcast. "

Li Yu asked doubtfully: "Gramophone? Do you want to record a record?"

Yuan Kewen said: "That's right."

"Where's the radio?" Li Yu asked.

Yuan Kewen said: "Now I can't go to the Bada Hutong at will. I can't even attend the oiran election in the flower world. It's really a pity. There are several people I like in there, and they all like to listen to me singing. Previously, with the Fu Zengxiang went to Peking University and saw that the students there could assemble simple radio transceiver devices themselves, and I wondered if I could use this to talk to them and sing songs to each other."

Li Yu was stunned, but it was normal for such a request to come from Yuan Kewen.

"Okay, but you'd better go to Peking University to sit in on a few classes and understand the general principles first." Li Yu said.

Yuan Kewen said: "But I don't know how to assemble it."

Li Yu said: "As the second son, it doesn't hurt to set up a regular small radio station. They will agree to help."

Yuan Kewen said happily: "Great! It's not troublesome to get a telegram. There is no telephone line in Bada Hutong. If they can directly use the radio to broadcast, they will be happy."

Zhang Jian said: "The message is transmitted thousands of miles away?"

Li Yu smiled and said, "You can say that."

"It turns out that science is really like a myth." Xu Shuzheng marveled.

Li Yu said: "Not even myths, they all have concrete scientific basis."

Yuan Kewen suddenly felt very good: "Also, I want to order another car. It is best if you can teach me how to fly a plane."

"Cars are simple. Soon a ship will be loaded with Ford cars and shipped to Shanghai. They are all using the latest technology. You must be satisfied," Li Yu said. "As for the airplane, I think you should be more cautious, and you have seen it before It’s an airplane show, don’t you want to fly?”

Yuan Kewen said: "Now I heard that European pilots are all nobles, and I suddenly wanted to try it."

Zhang Jian knew that the young masters like them had one idea every day and were not sure of the right one, so he said: "Second Young Master, please don't be so embarrassed. How could I take you on a plane without the President's permission? Even if the President agrees, the eldest Young Master... is no?"

"I want to leave the capital, but I can't leave." Yuan Kewen suddenly became a little depressed, but after a minute or two, the clouds turned sunny again, and he asked enthusiastically, "Master Li Yu, let me go to your capital observatory first. The rings of Saturn."

Li Yu said: "Okay."

Yuan Kewen then asked, "Can I bring a girl with me?"

Li Yu didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "Second Young Master, please excuse me."

This brother is not afraid of his father now, but of his eldest brother. So I want to imitate Cai E and deliberately put on a posture of playing games.

But whether he was pretending or not is hard to say.