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

Chapter 632 Route
A few days after returning home, Duan Qirui sent another confidant, Jin Yunpeng, to find Li Yu.

Jin Yunpeng is one of Duan Qirui's "Four King Kongs" and has a bit of a squint. After seeing Li Yu, he cupped his hands and said: "Mr. Academician, I have admired you for a long time!"

Li Yu replied casually: "Hello, General Jin."

Jin Yunpeng got straight to the point and said: "The Prime Minister asked me to come here specifically to discuss the flight routes with Mr. Academician."

"Prime Minister Duan is very well-informed," Li Yu said.

Jin Yunpeng said: "A few days ago, Premier Duan met with American Minister Rui Enshi and mentioned that you wanted to join forces with American businessmen to establish an airline. You said that by coincidence, we also happened to have established an aviation affairs office, thinking about how to promote aviation. affairs.”

Li Yu really wants to join forces with Laos and the United States to establish this private airline, but he still has no choice. The officialdom of the Republic of China was too unstable. Few prime ministers and presidents could last for more than a year. Local warlords were too complex and had huge appetites to get things done. After the victory of the Northern Expedition, private capital was like a lamb waiting to be slaughtered in front of the four major bureaucratic capitals. .

The officialdom is as deep as the sea. It is best not to have too much contact with them. What happened to Liu Hongsheng later is a typical example. A huge industry was almost swallowed up by Song Ziwen's design.

Since I don’t want to deal with official circles, I can only choose foreigners to avoid the same mistakes in the future.

Li Yu said: "That's it. Minister Rui may have learned from Citibank that we are in the preparation stage."

"Since everyone is preparing, communicating with each other in advance will save a lot of trouble in the future, don't you think?" Jin Yunpeng said.

"That's fine," Li Yu thought for a while. In the future, the Beiyang government will definitely manage the air routes, so he asked, "Will the aviation affairs office that General Jin just mentioned fall under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Military Affairs or the Ministry of Transportation?"

Jin Yunpeng was stunned for a moment and then said: "Of course it is under the Ministry of Military Affairs. It is obvious to everyone that aircraft have become a military force that cannot be ignored on the European battlefield."

Li Yu said: "What about civil aviation? I mean civil aviation that specializes in transporting ordinary people, just like trains."

Jin Yunpeng said: "Premier Duan believes that civil aviation business belongs to the Aviation Affairs Office, and the Aviation Affairs Office is under the Ministry of Military Affairs. The same is naturally true for civil aviation business."

It was difficult for Li Yu to influence their decision, and there might be some factional disputes involved behind the scenes. At present, the largest political circles in the Republic of China include the Research Department, the Transportation Department, and the Anfu Clique, which will soon become the largest force in the National Assembly.

The so-called Anfu Clique is the "Anfu Club" organized by Duan Qirui and Xu Shuzheng to compete for the election in a few months. The office is located in Anfu Hutong, hence the name.

The Anfu Department naturally does not want too much power to fall into the hands of the Transportation Department.

Li Yu could only make the most basic request: "As long as it does not affect the development of civil aviation business."

"Of course not," Jin Yunpeng said with a smile, "We also heard that your aircraft factory in Tianjin has built special aircraft for civil aviation."

"Do you even know this?" Li Yu said.

"It was so loud during the test flight that half of Tianjin probably saw it," Jin Yunpeng said.

"The effect is so good. It seems that the next step is to let the aircraft take the lead in publicity," Li Yu said. "The range of this aircraft is quite impressive, reaching 900 kilometers. It can go from the capital to Tianjin, Shenyang, Qingdao, and Jinan. Everything is easy. After setting up reserve stations in some cities every few hundred kilometers, the plane can make two transfers as far as Shanghai or even Guangzhou.”

"In total, can we travel directly from north to south in one day?" Jin Yunpeng asked.

"Absolutely," Li Yu said, "The cruising speed can reach at least 140 to 50 kilometers per hour."

Jin Yunpeng marveled: "I really can't believe it."

Li Yu said: "As for the reserve station and transfer airport, it needs to be operated by the Aviation Affairs Office."

"It's just a small terminal. The people below are probably asking for it to be built." Jin Yunpeng was not worried.

Anyway, the terminal at this time is extremely simple, as long as the ground is flat and solid enough, there are no signal lights, radio contacts, or air command.

-

Two months later, Feng Ru personally flew the plane on its first route: Beijing to Tianjin.

Li Yuchong is another crew member, and the four passengers are extraordinary: Jin Yunpeng, Xu Shuzheng, Li Yuanhong, and reporter Shao Piaoping.

Tianjin's airport was packed with spectators.

It was the first time for all four of them to fly. Li Yuanhong was very panicked on the plane. The huge pressure on his ears made him think he was deaf.

After getting off the plane, Li Yu taught him how to hold his femoral and eardrums, and then he slowly recovered.

"Why didn't you tell me earlier!" Li Yuanhong was still frightened.

Li Yu said speechlessly: "I emphasized it at least three times, but your attention was on the plane at that time and you didn't listen at all."

Li Yuanhong coughed awkwardly: "I thought it was just a casual talk to scare people."

Shao Piaoping was very excited after taking a flight, and she really wanted to take the opportunity of a test flight to try the long-distance journey from Beijing to Shanghai.

Beiyang has set up intermediate terminals in Jinan, Xuzhou and Nanjing specifically for this route.

He took the photos and chased Li Yu with a small notebook to ask about the parameters of the aircraft in order to write today's press release.

"According to what Captain Feng Ru said, the aircraft belongs to the newly established Far Asia Airlines, and you also control it?" Shao Piaoping asked.

"I am one of the shareholders, and the major shareholders include Citibank, Salt Bank, and Tianjin General Chamber of Commerce." Li Yu said.

Shao Piaoping wrote in her notebook, "As long as it is no longer a wholly foreign-owned company like Mobil, it will be great. Salt Bank and Tianjin General Chamber of Commerce will also take shares, which is already very gratifying."

Li Yu said: "I named this kind of company a joint venture, and most of my businesses are in this model."

"I understand," Shao Piaoping said while writing, "A person's power is limited after all, and it is normal to attract foreigners' capital."

Shao Piaoping's report made the opening of aircraft routes an instant hit across the country, but this alone was far from enough. It didn't take long for Li Yu and Feng Ru to fly a passenger plane from the capital to Shanghai.

With the previous foreshadowing, the effect is even more outstanding.

In this era when Chinese people generally lack self-confidence, it is definitely big news, and the names of Li Yu and Feng Ru are getting louder and louder.

The ministers and counselors from various countries were dumbfounded. They were shocked that China, which was backward, was the first to open such a long route.

Airline fares are set very high, close to NT$200 per ticket - there is really no way around it. All domestic oil is imported, and the cost of fuel is not low, not to mention the scarcity of pilots and various ground handling expenses. But there are still so many people booking tickets that you have to queue for a month or two.

The most excited foreigners were the little devils. Mitsubishi Vice President Koyata Iwasaki and the first-generation spy chief Nobujun Aoki immediately approached Li Yu and asked if it was possible to open a transnational route from Beijing to Fengtian (Shenyang) to Seoul to Kyoto to Tokyo.

Li Yu smiled and said: "Mr. Iwasaki's airship project is in full swing, why are you studying aircraft again?"

Iwasaki Koyata said: "Airships are quite popular in Japan, but it's a pity that it has been a little slow."

"Mr. Iwasaki, haven't you been to France? What rich people want is a high-quality, slow life." Li Yu boasted hypocritically.

"That's what I say, but if it's an emergency, rich people can become ants on a hot pot." Iwasaki Koyata said.

Of course, Li Yu understood that this kind of cross-border route was indispensable, so he said: "I don't object to your proposal, but it needs to be discussed with the board of directors, and it also needs to be reported to the Beiyang Government Aviation Administration (the official name of the Aviation Affairs Office)."

Nobuzumi Aoki said confidently: "The Aviation Administration will not refuse."

Duan Qirui was, at least on the surface, a pro-Japanese faction, and the minister in Japan could pass the document just by submitting the document.

Li Yu shrugged: "You have to build the terminals in Seoul and Kyoto yourself."

Among the other welcomers, the one that Li Yu paid most attention to was Mr. Sun.

"Congratulations, congratulations!" Mr. Sun shook Li Yu's hand vigorously and praised him from the bottom of his heart.

"Mr. Sun will definitely sit down if you have the opportunity." Li Yu said.

Mr. Sun sighed: "I don't know when I can go to the capital."

He appeared in Shanghai at this time, and he was actually in a rather unhappy mood.

After winning the battle for the Xinfuyuan, Duan Qirui once again ordered Feng Guozhang's direct troops to launch a fierce attack on the Southwest National Guard Army. Wu Peifu, the leading force, successively captured the two important towns of Yueyang and Changsha.

The rapid advance of the Beiyang Army directly prompted Mr. Sun to be forced to resign. The southwestern warlords changed the previous generalissimo system to a seven-president system. Mr. Sun was only ranked fourth and could not influence any situation at all. So he denounced that "the south and the north are like raccoons on the same hill" and angrily left Guangzhou and came to Shanghai.

Mrs. Sun next to him asked: "I heard that Ziwen went to an automobile factory that my husband just established. My younger brother has a bit of a stubborn temper. He left Hanyeping Company in anger just because of a little matter of affection. I hope Please bear with me, sir.”

"Don't worry, madam, my company will not be as arrogant as other family businesses," Li Yu replied, then took out a bunch of keys, "Although I haven't been too involved in the real estate industry, I have some real estate in various places. The location of this house It’s not on Nanjing Road, but it’s big enough for two people to live in.”

Mr. Sun was stunned: "Brother Shucai, what do you mean?"

"Anyway, I don't need it. Mr. Sun can destroy the family and relieve the people in trouble. A small property is of no importance," Li Yu said.

Mr. Sun has been engaged in revolution all his life. He doesn’t have much money at all, but he is a generous person and not rigid. He took the key and said: "Thank you so much, I will definitely return it someday."

Li Yu didn't care and said with a smile: "I live very well in Yuyuan. This house is located on Molière Road. It is very quiet and not far from several universities. If you want to learn something, sir, this is the best place."

"Doing learning... I almost forgot about it," Mr. Sun lamented. "When the troubled times are over, people should be able to realize the power of knowledge."

Mr. Sun would live in Shanghai for many years, almost in seclusion. During this period, he completed the "Strategy for the Founding of the People's Republic of China" and finally established his ideas, such as proposing a three-step idea, that is, through "military politics" , "political training" and "constitutional government" to gradually establish a democratic constitutional system. The first step is military administration, which involves seizing power from warlords through violent revolution; the second step is political training, enforcing laws and building local autonomy to promote the development of civil rights; and finally the third step, constitutional government, is begun to promote China's final change.

The most critical of the three steps is political training, because the key to reaching the third step is whether political training can be successful.

But this left a loophole for Chiang Kai-shek to take advantage of. He talked about "political training" every day and practiced dictatorship.

Although he was preparing to write a book, Mr. Sun still could not forget politics. He told Li Yu: "Shu Cai has a close relationship with General Wu Peifu. It would be a great achievement if he could be persuaded to give up the offensive and switch to the peaceful camp. After I arrived in Shanghai "

Fortunately, Li Yu knew the direction of history, so he said: "General Wu is different from others, and the song "Man Jiang Hong" can reflect his mood."

Wu Peifu's "Man Jiang Hong" is far less high-level than Yue Wumu's, but just by hearing the title of the poem, you can tell what it is about. "Nowadays, the Japanese pirates are doing whatever they want, and the situation is evil." It can be seen that he has a bad impression of the little devil.

Mr. Sun added: "Beiyang relations are complicated, and Duan Qirui's appointment a few days ago must have made him angry."

"Mr. Sun's grasp of the current situation is really good," Li Yu said.

Mr. Sun smiled bitterly: "It's useless to be in position again."

Duan Qirui was a master of Go throughout the Republic of China, but he recently made a bad move. Wu Peifu was clearly fighting the most effective battles on the front line, but Duan Qirui suddenly appointed Zhang Jingyao from his Anhui clan as the Hunan military governor and a senior official.

This is Duan Qirui's old problem. Compared with Yuan Shikai, who was at the top, Duan Qirui has always been criticized for his employment. He seems to have always liked nepotism. Prior to this, Duan Qirui's appointment of Duan Zhigui, Xu Shuzheng, and Wu Bingxiang caused great controversy. After that, Jia Deyao, the interim Prime Minister of the Cabinet, also served.

These people were either his cronies or his fellow villagers. His wife-in-law Wu Guangxin even became the chief of the army.

Wu Peifu obviously would not give up: Why should I give it to you, the Anhui Clan, after I conquered the territory?

Let Zhang Jingyao be the governor of Hunan, and then only give me a "Second Class Big Ribbon Baoguang Jiahe Medal" as encouragement?

What a great “encouragement”! It’s just a second-class medal!

No matter how petty you are, you can't play with people like this!

Later, Duan Qirui seemed to realize the major flaws of this appointment, so he gave Wu Peifu the title "General Fuwei". This move is even more stinky because Cao Kun, whose official rank exceeds that of Wu Peifu, clearly wants to divide the relationship between Wu Peifu and Cao Kun.

It's just a matter of getting something substantive to differentiate. At least give some money. It's just a false name. What do you think?

Wu Peifu and Cao Kun immediately gave up their jobs. If you have the ability, you Anhui Department can fight it yourself.

A driver came to Mr. Sun at this time and said: "Sir, let's go, Mr. Wang Zhaoming is still waiting for you."

"I understand," Mr. Sun said, and then asked Li Yu, "Would you like to sit down together?"

Li Yu pointed to the crowd of reporters behind him, "Sorry, I really can't get away."

"Okay," Mr. Sun got into the car and said goodbye to Li Yu, "see you later."

(End of this chapter)