Jagged Warlord

By 1916 it was clear that God was on the side of big factories and big armies.A new word in the military lexicon - "industrial mobilization" led the factories of the belligerent countries into the bottomless pit of war, supervised the farms, levied income taxes, and implemented food rationing.Countless ammunition and military equipment are poured from various machines, yet more is always needed.Britain, the maritime overlord, who has "lived by the sea for thousands of years", is now also living on the mainland. In January 1916, it introduced conscription for the first time and devoted itself to forming a large-scale army.It was a decision that would have far-reaching consequences for the war and for Britain's future.In fact, it means that Britain's long-standing advantages as a world power are beginning to decline.The war entered a phase of massacre attrition on the Western Front.On the Eastern Front, a major Russian offensive heralded the beginning of the downfall of two obsolete monarchies.Greedy Romania entered the fray, strutting briefly in the sun before capitulating.The biggest naval engagement of the war, the Battle of Jutland, ended in a draw, as the pressure of the blockade tightened the ring around the Allies.

In this year, the Germans were very busy. On the Western Front, the Germans bombed Paris with airships in January, launched the Battle of Verdun aimed at bleeding the French in February, and supported the Irish Romania in April. Sir Jay Kesment launched the Easter Uprising against Britain and fought the Battle of the Somme in July, during which both sides invested in various tanks imported from China or produced according to Chinese drawings.On the Eastern Front, the Germans had to help the Austro-Hungarian army defend against Tsarist Russia and Romania.

According to later history textbooks, the period of World War I was the golden age of China's development.The five years from 1914 to 1918 may have been dark for Europeans, but it was a bright golden five years for Chinese people.Crisis crisis, Europe's crisis is China's opportunity, especially for Li Mohan.

With the help of a large number of foreign trade orders, the enterprises in the industrial parks in Shangqiu, Xuzhou and other places are all operating at full capacity, with truckloads of materials shipped out and handfuls of US dollars shipped in.The dividends of industrial stocks are rising like sesame seeds, and even Lao Cai, the most conservative landlord, hates himself for not buying more land to buy stocks.In addition to the enterprises in the industrial park, private enterprises have also sprung up.The difference from history is that the machines used by these national capital industries are no longer Japanese products, but a large number of domestic machines produced by Shangqiu Industrial Park are used.

The workload increased, and the recruited workers quickly changed from novice to experienced through practical operations, and many Chinese gradually grew into technical backbones.The master Dong Wenhai used to work for the Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau. Looking at the roaring machines, he also rubbed his hands and smiled silly. At this moment, he felt a sense of accomplishment in his heart.I should be doing work for my boss when I’m eating. Thinking of this month’s production of this yarn machine, I’ve reported a lot of waste materials. Just the cut steel pipes and scraps of iron plates can be loaded into two large carts. In the past, in the Machinery Bureau, those masters and foremen who were in charge would have scolded them like mother-in-law.

But right now, it's because Manager Mu is not like this. The materials for making the machine are not enough this month, so someone will send it over immediately. When the big guy works overtime every day, he specially asks the kitchen to open a small stove.Not to mention the meat in Dun Dun, if you can drink two taels, you will drink two taels.In addition to good wine and good meat, each person is also subsidized overtime pay every night.

Finally, with everyone's efforts, we succeeded in imitating the German Heidelberg loom, and then the opening and cleaning machine, carding machine, drawing frame, roving frame, spinning frame, winding machine, and twisting machine that are matched with the textile host. , spinning machine, small charter machine, medium charter machine, etc. were born smoothly.

Mu Ouchu also advertised in well-known newspapers across the country:

The purpose of our company is to promote domestic products and improve the skills of domestic products, so as to boost the morale and confidence of people in the business circles.Let everyone know in large numbers that the variety and quality of all domestic products have been improved, and foreign products are replaced by domestic products.If China wants to be prosperous and strong, it will not be successful unless it develops industry and commerce, and the first step in developing industry and commerce is not to promote domestic products, which will not be enough to save the decline and cheat.Mu Mou is not talented, and hopes that the people of the country will carry forward the patriotic spirit, buy and use domestic products, and the agricultural, industrial and commercial industries will rise up to increase production capacity, and resume their footsteps as a guide for competition and improvement. I hope that everyone can cheer up the country and bring glory to the domestic products.

The war in Europe also provided Li Mohan with a large number of European expert technicians, among which Germany and the Austro-Hungarian Empire had the most.Most of them were stranded in China or originally worked in Japan. After the outbreak of the European War, the German and Austro-Hungarian experts and technicians who stayed in China were recruited by Li Mohan.The German and Austro-Hungarian specialists working in Japan had a hard time because they were imperial expatriates.Although Japan promised that they would give them preferential treatment, no one wanted to live the life of a prisoner.

Ever since, Li Mohan published a recruitment advertisement through Zhou Mingshun's Jushan Petroleum Company in the United States, and then shipped these expert technicians to China with a whole ship.In addition, Zhou Mingshun went a step further and recruited a large number of European technicians who fled to the United States to avoid the European war.For a time, foreigners with blond hair and blue eyes, high noses and deep eye sockets could be seen everywhere on the streets of Shangqiu and Xuzhou.

In the northeast corner of Shangqiu, there is a large open space that has just been leveled. On this open space, the Union Hospital donated by the Baptist Church has also started construction.The main building of the hospital was designed by an architectural designer from the United States. Because of the church background, the main building of the hospital is the main building with a Gothic church style.On both sides of the main building are staff dormitories, canteens, special generator rooms and other auxiliary facilities.Although large-scale X-ray inspection equipment is not yet in place, some essential medicines have arrived in Shangqiu with the medical team that arrived earlier.

Shangqiu is not comparable to big cities like Shanghai, Beijing, Tianjin, and Wuhan. As a small inland city, the people's customs are generally conservative, so there is some resistance to this western-style hospital.Especially the examination methods of Western medicine, such as checking the tonsils with a tongue depressor, and pressing back and forth on the chest with a stethoscope.It's okay for men, but women, especially the wives of rich families, find it difficult to accept such physical contact all at once.

Therefore, Li Mohan took the lead in setting an example and led his family members to Xiehe Hospital for physical examination.Then there are officers at all levels of the SS, government officials.Later, Li Mohan ordered the military doctors and medical soldiers in the SS to come to this hospital to study.

After Li Mohan took the lead, and Chinese medicine practitioners were not very up-to-date during this period, the people gradually began to accept Western-style hospitals.

……Dividing line……

On the other hand, after the start of the War to Protect the Nation, Yuan Shikai hated Cai E to the bone, and the Zhengshitang issued an order to deploy all the people related to Cai E, and all the people related to Cai E in the provinces were also dismissed. Employees from Yunnan in various provincial agencies and Cai E's former subordinates were persecuted.Yuan Shikai also ordered Shen Jinjian, the patrol envoy of Hunan, to search the property of Cai E's Hunan origin.However, although Cai E is famous all over the world, he has no real estate. Cai E's wife and wife have gone into hiding after hearing the news. Only one brother runs a wood factory and has already separated from Cai E.Cai E himself only had some shares in Huachang Company run by Yang Du, so he confiscated the shares.

On the one hand, Yuan Shikai was so fanatical, and on the other hand, he wanted to use softening means to take a roundabout way to ease Cai. He found Cai's old boss Li Jingxi, because Cai E was Li Jingxi's hand-picked and first appreciated person, and Yuan Shikai specially rewarded Li Jingxi with Diao Qiu. When the situation permits, Li Jingxi intends to send Li Jingxi to Yunnan to express his condolences. This is simply a plan to fish for moons in water.

After Li Jingxi accepted Yuan's mink fur coat, he once thanked him and said: "The mink fur coat is given by the Lord. It is very glamorous and just tailored. The whole family is amazed and favored, and I feel panic when I look at the tower!" and so on.

At the same time, Yuan Shikai brought Xiong Xiling, who had been neglected for a long time, to Beijing. Xiong Xiling arrived in Beijing on January 5, 1, to visit Yuan, and Yuan invited him to have lunch with him.Xiong Xiling is a good friend of Cai E. When Xiong Xiling was the prime minister, he recommended Cai E as the governor of Hunan.Yuan Shikai wanted to invite Xiong Xiling to go south to Yunnan to persuade Cai E to "repent and surrender", so he should "don't look into the past".

When Xiong Xiling arrived in Beijing, he was very numb. When he arrived in Beijing, a reporter greeted him outside the station and asked him his opinion on the issue of the national system. I didn’t know about it until I read the declaration of the Anhui Council. I have been isolated from the political situation for a long time, and everything is not very clear, so I have no opinion on the issue of the state system.”

The reporter asked him what his attitude towards the new constitution was.He said: "I'm not a lawyer, and I haven't studied law, so I have no opinion on it." These denials are outrageous, because Xiong Xiling forgot to go abroad with five ministers to investigate constitutionalism in the late Qing Dynasty.At that time he was still a constitutional expert.

Xiong Xiling is from Fenghuang, Hunan. When he formed the cabinet, he was called the Phoenix cabinet. Therefore, when he entered Beijing this time, he was called "Feng Lai Yi", which was auspicious for the Hongxian Dynasty.However, Fenghuang had his own plan. On February 5, 2, he went south to dredge under false pretences, but he never returned.