Chapter 35 2. Small scientific experiments in the governor's yamen

The documents in this large envelope are unusual. It is a circular on the Vietnam War sent by the Military Aircraft Department to the governors of the provinces, and it is accompanied by various materials on the progress of the Vietnam War in recent months. The affairs of the four barbarians have always been regarded as an unshirkable part of the Qingliu Party members who regard the world as their own responsibility.Even though the members of the Qingliu Party are far away from the capital, they can clearly understand the turmoil in the southeast and northwest borders through various channels. They are especially concerned about China's vassal countries such as North Korea, Ryukyu, and Vietnam.It was in such an environment that Zhang Zhidong accumulated his knowledge of the barbarians.Although he has come to Shanxi to serve as governor, his ambition is still to manage Babiao, and he is concerned about major events outside of Shanxi Province.How could Zhang Zhidong ignore such important military affairs?He immediately stopped everything he was doing and plunged into the envelope.

Vietnam has a long history. As early as the first year of Tongzhi, France signed an unequal treaty with the Nguyen Dynasty of Vietnam in Saigon.This treaty stipulated that Vietnam ceded the three provinces of Bien Hoa, Jiading, Dinhsiang and Condor Island to France; it also paid 4 million yuan in compensation to France and allowed Catholicism to preach freely in Vietnam; opened ports such as Shilun and Guang'an, and French ships could freely sail on the Mekong River Sailing and doing business. With this treaty, France will ignore the Vietnamese government and do whatever it wants in Vietnam.The French governor of Saigon dispatched an army led by An Ye to capture the northern metropolis of Hanoi in an attempt to control the entire northern part of Vietnam so that it could directly enter China via the Red River and expand its overseas trade.

There is a unique army at the junction of China and Vietnam.The flag of this army is a black flag with seven stars, and people call it the Black Banner Army.The leader of the Black Banner Army is named Liu Yongfu.Liu Yongfu is a Chinese, originally from Guangxi, and was originally a subordinate of Wu Yuanqing, the leader of Guangxi Tiandihui.Wu Yuanqing rebelled against the Qing Dynasty and called himself Lord Yanling.After Wu failed, Liu Yongfu led more than 2,000 troops into Vietnam and stationed in the Baosheng area.Liu Yongfu is shrewd and capable, and the Black Banner Army is quite effective.At this time, Liu Yongfu accepted the request of the Vietnamese government and led his troops to attack Hanoi, which was occupied by the French, and beheaded hundreds of people. The leader of the French army, An Ye, was also among the killed.Seeing the defeat in the Vietnam War, the French government arrested three Vietnamese envoys in Paris and lured the King of Vietnam to sign the second Treaty of Saigon with them.The treaty stipulates that France agrees to Vietnam as an independent country, but diplomacy must be subject to French supervision; Vietnam recognizes France's sovereignty in southern Vietnam, and opens Haiphong, Hanoi and other ports and the Red River waterway to France.This is the thirteenth year of Tongzhi.

In the next few years, Zeng Jize, minister to Britain and France, Liu Kunyi, governor of Liangjiang, Zhang Shusheng, governor of Guangdong and Guangxi, Liu Changyou, governor of Yunnan and Guizhou, and others repeatedly reminded the court to strengthen the border defenses of Guangxi and Yunnan and guard against the invasion of legal persons. And Prince Gong's enough attention. In the eighth year of Guangxu, France sent troops to capture Tokyo.In the second year, the French navy commander Li Wei led his troops to Hanoi, threatening to attack the capital Hue.The king of Vietnam was afraid and asked Liu Yongfu to send troops again.Liu led the Black Banner Army to defeat the French soldiers outside Hanoi, beheading Li Weili and more than 200 soldiers.The King of Vietnam therefore conferred on Liu Yongfu the title of "Admiral of Three Proclamations".

Not reconciled to defeat, the French government dispatched Major General Bo Ou to lead the army to attack Hue.At this time, the king of Vietnam died of illness and the political situation was chaotic. The new king begged for peace with France and concluded a treaty of protection.This treaty stipulates that Vietnam is a protectorate of France, and China shall not interfere in Vietnamese affairs.Therefore, Vietnam is no longer a vassal state of China. Then, the French government sent an expeditionary force of 15,000 people to capture Shanxi, Beining and other places in the Red River Delta, and expel the Black Banner and Qing troops stationed there, in order to completely control northern Vietnam.

France and China finally broke out in military conflict. In the face of France's aggressive military offensive, the debate on war and peace in the Chinese political arena was fierce, and the court was hesitant. In foreign exchanges, Zhang Zhidong has always advocated toughness and is unwilling to show others weakness.Vietnam was originally a vassal state of China. France took advantage of its power to bring it under its own jurisdiction. It has deceived me too much. Now it has sent heavy troops to drive my army stationed in Vietnam, which is openly provoking a war.France is wrong first, we should defend our dignity and rise up to fight!

As early as last year when the navy captured Tokyo, Zhang Zhidong sent a letter to the imperial court in Taiyuan, "Vietnam's Japan should raise troops and send envoys to prevent it first", reiterating the ancient Chinese border defense strategy of "defending the four borders is not as good as defending the four barbarians". .After reading this pile of documents, he realized that non-war cannot curb the greed of legal persons, and non-war cannot protect the tranquility of the borders of Yunnan and Guangxi.He decided to declare his attitude to the court immediately, and contribute his strategy of Vietnam affairs to the queen mother and emperor.

He summoned Sang Zhiping, Yang Rui, Yang Shenxiu and others, and asked them to read all the materials sent by the imperial court overnight in the Fushu Office, and discuss the Vietnam War strategy with them tomorrow morning. That night, the lights in Zhang Zhidong's bedroom were on in the middle of the night, and he was thinking hard about how to deal with the French invaders. In the morning of the next day, the large flower hall of the governor's yamen turned into a lively meeting hall.Yang Rui is full of youthful vigor, and he fully supports the teacher's attitude of leading the battle.Yang Shenxiu, who is just in his early thirties, has a warm heart and is deeply dissatisfied with the court's malaise.He desperately hoped that through the use of troops against Vietnam this time, the court could wash away its laziness and revive its prestige.The mature and steady Sang Zhiping provided many far-reaching ideas for him.In the end, Zhang Zhidong decided to submit two documents to the court on the same day.

One excerpt is titled "The Protest of the Law Has Been Completed, Respecting Chen Zhanshou Matters".From the four aspects of sending troops to Vietnam, awarding Liu Yongfu, preparing for war in Guangdong and Guangxi, and defending Tianjin, he put forward 17 specific measures, including planning the enemy's situation, choosing a battlefield, using Vietnamese people, lasting service, raising wages, and preparing arms.He asked Yang Rui to draft this note first. Another excerpt is titled "Don't stop the war when the legal trouble is over".This excerpt details that although the front is temporarily unfavorable, I will win in the end.It is advisable to increase troops in Vietnam, guard the sea and border, and boost morale.Zhang Zhidong handed this document to Yang Shenxiu for drafting, and specifically pointed out that this document was aimed at the Lord and the School.

When everyone was having lunch together, another idea popped up in Zhang Zhidong's mind.He said to Sang Zhiping: "Go and tell that foreign priest, just say that I have something to do this afternoon, and I can't continue talking with him, let's talk about it another day!" Sang Chaping remained silent.After a while, he said: "Foreigners are very trustworthy in dealing with affairs, and the agreed things will not be changed unless it is absolutely necessary. This is your first date with a foreigner, so it is best not to change the appointment. I wonder if you have anything to do, can I let you know?" To do it for you?"

Zhang Zhidong said: "I have been thinking about the Vietnam War. The Queen Mother listened to Li Shaoquan very much, and King Gong followed his wishes. Whenever there was a conflict with foreigners, Li Shaoquan either gave in or made peace. This time He has this attitude again. The queen mother is bloody and unwilling to show weakness in front of foreigners, but she can't stand Li Shaoquan's ingenious arguments and King Gong's persuasion. In the end, she will listen to them and end the matter with peace. I want to add another video , I advise the Empress Dowager Sacred Heart to be arbitrary, not to listen to the ignorant opinions of others." Sang Zhiping said: "Your worries are justified. I would like to say something disrespectful. After all, the Queen Mother is a woman of the generation and lacks courage. Thinking of the past that she lost every time she fought with foreigners, she probably lost confidence. It is very necessary for you to submit this attachment. How about this, you still go to see Timothy Li as originally planned this afternoon, and I will draft the attachment first. What do you think?" "Alright." Zhang Zhidong thought for a while and said, "I've thought up a few words, and you can use them in the attached video." "Okay, tell me!" Zhang Zhidong raised his head, half-closed his eyes, and said slowly and word by word: "The Empress Dowager judged above, and summoned King Gong and King Chun to sponsor her below, and the divine will dictates it, and all the ministers at home and abroad will do it. The imperial court As for the ministers, they should be blamed for not being wholehearted in their plans, and they should not consider the strength or weakness of the enemy; for the governors and generals, they should be blamed for their strength or ineffectiveness in battle, but not for their victory or defeat. In terms of overall gains and losses, then the civil, military, military and civilians at home and abroad are of one mind." "If the heart is fixed, the spirit will be strong, and if the spirit is strong, the fruit will be strong." Sang Zhiping couldn't help but took it. "Yes, well done!" Zhang Zhidong cheered up, and added, "A calm mind leads to a free mind, and a free mind leads to wisdom." Sang Zhiping said with a smile: "These two sentences will become epigrams, broadcasting to the population." Zhang Zhidong became more energetic, and thought of another sentence: "The master pays the master, and the master fights. He does his best and contributes to his strength. The eighteen provinces are one, and the North and South Oceans are one. And, God bless you, the teacher of justice will win in the end!" "Just end with this sentence." Sang Qiaping got up and said, "Don't worry, I will use all the words just now, and the Queen Mother will be moved by your confidence." Timothy Li was very punctual, and he arrived at the governor's office exactly before the second day of the appointment.Different from last time, he brought a small tin box this time. Zhang Zhidong pointed to the metal box and asked, "What are you packing here?" "Installed a few gadgets." Timothy Lee smiled and said, "Yesterday the adults asked me how the United Kingdom is rich and strong, and I said it was mainly due to science and technology. Today I want to talk about the two greatest achievements in science and technology. , use a small experiment to explain its principle in detail, presumably adults will have a deeper impression of British science and technology." It's really interesting that this foreign priest wants to practice in the field. As the saying goes, hearing is believing, seeing is believing. Regarding the advanced science and technology of Western countries, the officials of the major yamen in Taiyuan City are just like me. At least, as for the principles, they are absolutely ignorant.This is a rare opportunity, why not call a few more people to come and take a look! "Sir, what are you going to practice?" "I'm going to do two experiments for adults, one is a steam engine and the other is electricity. We in Britain rely on these two things to create endless wealth." "Okay." Zhang Zhidong said, "You go to the small living room to rest and drink tea for the time being. I will send someone to immediately invite all the officials from several big yamen in Taiyuan City to come and see your experiment together?" This was what Timothy Li could not have wished for. He just took this opportunity to get acquainted with the major officials in Shanxi Province and improve his status in their eyes. This will be extremely beneficial for the missionary business in Shanxi in the future.He hurriedly said: "Thank you for the wonderful arrangement, my lord. I can make some preparations in the small living room first, so that you can see it better. My lord, please send me a helper." Zhang Zhidong called a yamen servant to assist Timothy Li, and then ordered the police to immediately send people to notify the vassal yamen, the cisi yamen, the Liangtai yamen, and the Taiyuan magistrate's yamen, telling them to come here quickly to discuss important matters. After the patrol went out as ordered, he was worried about the major issues discussed in the morning, so he left the lobby and went to the flower hall to see Yang Rui and Yang Shenxiu who were drafting drafts there. It is said that it was because a foreign priest entered the Fushou that Master Futai was urgently summoned. The main halls of the various yamen thought to themselves that there must be a big religious case somewhere.Over the years, officials have been most afraid of teaching cases and dealing with foreigners. Once they get involved with these two things, they will always feel unbearably useless.Foreigners are arrogant and arrogant in front of you, and you have to humble yourself in front of them; ordinary people see you unconscionably protecting foreigners, calling you a traitor and a bastard, and you have to bear it; bosses are even more afraid of foreigners, seeing that you have caused him trouble It's useless to call you an asshole, you can only dare to be angry but not speak out.Is there anything more useless in the world than this? These officials who lived on black hats hurriedly got into sedan chairs and rushed to the Futai yamen.After a while, Yi Peikun, the governor of the feudal clan, Fang Rongyi, the governor of the court, Bo Dewen of Liang Dao, and Ma Piyao, who had just been promoted to the prefect of Taiyuan, all arrived. After everyone sat down, Zhang Zhidong called out Timothy Li.When all the officials saw this tall foreigner with blue eyes and long Zhun wearing a long robe and mandarin jacket with a long black braid hanging behind his head, they were all surprised. Zhang Zhidong introduced to everyone with a smile: "This is Mr. Timothy Lee from England. He has lived in China for fifteen or sixteen years, and he has also lived in Shanxi for several years. He speaks Chinese well and can Speak Shanxi dialect." All the officials looked at me and I looked at you. They were very surprised that foreign missionaries could speak Shanxi dialect. "I invite you all to come with me to watch Mr. Li perform his experiment for us. Mr. Li, please!" Timothy Lee bowed politely to all the officials and said: "Yesterday, Mr. Zhang asked me the reasons for the prosperity and strength of Britain. I said that Britain's prosperity and strength mainly depend on science and technology. Among them, there are two most outstanding projects." , one is a steam engine, and the other is electricity. In order to explain these two scientific and technological achievements in detail, I will demonstrate two small experiments to all adults in public today." Including Zhang Zhidong, these parents and officials who control the fate of 10 million people in Shanxi have never seen an experiment demonstrating science and technology.They just watched the magician's tricks as ordinary people in the streets and alleys before entering the officialdom.At this moment, they all stared wide-eyed, treating Timothy Li as a foreign magician who juggles, and let's see what "science and technology" he can conjure up! Two yamen servants carried out a long strip table from the small guest room, and a machine was placed on the long table. When they looked closely, they found that the machine was placed on two small iron rods. Timothy Li pointed to the machine and said: "This is a model of a locomotive. We in the UK mainly rely on trains to transport goods. The train depends on the locomotive. Ten or eight carriages are attached to the back of a locomotive. One carriage can hold five to sixty thousand catties." For goods, five to six hundred thousand catties can be loaded in ten compartments." There was a whooping sound from the seats of the officials.Some people think in their hearts: a strong man can only carry a hundred catties of burden, and this train is worth five or six thousand men.It's incredible how a locomotive can be so powerful! "How can a locomotive have such great power?" Timothy Richard pointed to the model of the machine as if he could see what the officials were thinking. "The key is that there is a steam engine in the locomotive." Timothy Lee disassembled half of the shell of the locomotive model, exposing the steam engine inside.Zhang Zhidong and others watched intently. "The steam engine consists of many parts. These parts can be roughly divided into three parts: one is the water tank, the other is the cylinder, and the third is the transmission system. Coal is used as raw material, ignited and heated, and the water in the water tank becomes steam, which is sent into the The cylinder, after expanding in the cylinder, forms a force, and then this force is transmitted to the transmission system. When the transmission system moves, the carriage is driven. In order to reduce friction and strengthen the bearing capacity, two wheels are installed under the wheels. A railway track." Timothy Lee tapped the small iron rod with his fingers and said, "This is the railway track." Zhang Zhidong listened attentively, carefully appreciating those small iron rods with twists and turns, just like the curved patterns on clay pots thousands of years ago, these small iron rods with twists and turns aroused his rich associations.But those priests did not have the interest to play tricks. What they were eagerly looking forward to was that the tricks would come on stage soon. As for the festivals that changed, they didn't want to know, because they didn't want to be magicians at all, no matter whether it was China In their eyes, fishing in dry land, or foreign "science and technology", are all low-level activities, not the official occupation of the imperial court. "I'm going to demonstrate it to you now." Timothy Lee took out a small bottle, poured the liquid in the bottle into the copper skin pot, and said: "This was originally a place to store coal, but the coal is not easy to burn at once. I use this alcohol as a substitute. Same function as coal, just to raise the temperature, to bring the water to a boil." After finishing speaking, Timothy Li took out another pack of matches, rubbed a match stick, and ignited the alcohol. The trick started, and the officials watched nervously. The firepower of the alcohol was very strong, and after a while, the water in the iron pot on the copper pot boiled away, making a sound of "poof".After a while, the zigzag iron rod miraculously twisted.With the twisting of the curved iron rod, the two small wheels began to rotate, and the whole locomotive also slid on the small iron rod.At the same time, snow-white steam came out from the small cylinder next to the cylinder, and it kept making "puchi, puchi" sounds.The locomotive kept walking on the iron rod, and soon came to an end.Timothy Lee lifted the locomotive and put it on the beginning of the iron rod.So, it continued to rotate on the two iron rods again. "Did you see it clearly, my lords? This is a locomotive made of a steam engine. If this steam engine is installed on a boat, the boat will not need to be rowed by humans. It can be loaded with tens of thousands of catties of goods and can travel freely on the river. If the It is installed on a coal excavator, and the coal does not need to be dug by humans, and coal blocks weighing dozens or hundreds of catties will be dug out automatically." Zhang Zhidong suddenly remembered Yan Jingming's long talk at the Yuci Posthouse.Wasn't it because of such a steam engine that the British ship that made my teacher mad at me that year?The words of his teacher's dying entrustment to Peng Yulin came to his mind again.Things like steam engines are good, and you shouldn't keep your eyes open.Since it is good, why not learn it?If you can't learn for a while, it is right to buy what others have ready-made.Isn't Li Hongzhang fulfilling his teacher's last wish when he bought ships to do foreign affairs?It seems that it is not wise for the friends of Jingshi Qingliu to blindly criticize Westernization. When Zhang Zhidong was meditating, the yamen servant had already removed the locomotive model, and saw other items on the table. "My lords, the Queen of the British Empire issues imperial decrees to officials at all levels. It is not delivered by horses like in your country, which takes ten and a half months to arrive. Instead, it is delivered by another thing. No matter how remote the official is, The queen's imperial decree is issued at the right time, and he can receive it at the right time. If the queen wants to talk to any official, she does not need to call him to Beijing like your country, but to talk to him through something. Speaking in the London palace, the official is there I heard it at the time, clearly and without distortion, as if talking face to face." Timothy Li said this with high spirits, and raised his voice, "What is this thing, it is electricity. What is electricity, I will demonstrate it to you on the spot today.” Timothy Lee tore a piece of white paper on the table into pieces, then picked up a thumb-thick glass rod and rolled it on the piece of paper, then picked up the glass rod, and said to everyone: "Everyone can see clearly just now." Well, it's an ordinary glass rod, which has no attraction for the paper." After speaking, he picked up a piece of fur from the table with his other hand.After vigorously rubbing the fur back and forth on the glass rod a few times, he pointed the glass rod at the pieces of paper.At this time, a strange thing happened: when the glass rod was an inch away from the pieces of paper, those pieces of paper flew towards the end of the rod one by one, just like ghosts and ghosts suddenly encountering the clean bottle of Guanyin Bodhisattva. Yes, I ran involuntarily.The officials of the Qing Dynasty were baffled by this strange incident. "Everyone, why is the piece of paper being sucked up by the glass rod now? This is because the glass rod is charged after being rubbed by the fur. After two objects are rubbed, each will be charged with electricity. This phenomenon is called frictional electrification." Then, Timothy Richard took out another item from the iron box he had brought.It was a wooden frame, and a half-foot-long thin iron needle was inserted into the frame. The upper end of the iron needle was a round iron ball the size of a jujube, and the lower end were two thin shiny metal pieces. Timothy Li pointed to the thin slice and said: "Everyone, please see that these two thin leaves are closely attached to each other. Wait a minute and see if there is any change in it." After speaking, he picked up the fur with one hand and the glass rod with the other, rubbed each other vigorously a few times, and then touched the end of the glass rod to the ball on the top of the iron needle.In an instant, the two sheets at the lower end of the iron needle were separated, as if a gust of wind had blown them apart from the bottom. When everyone was wondering, Timothy Lee said: "As I said just now, electricity was generated on the glass rod rubbed with fur, and when the electrified rod hit the ball, the electricity on the rod was transmitted to the ball. , and then passed to the iron needle through the ball, and passed to the two sheets through the iron needle. Because the same kind of electricity is carried on the two sheets, they will repel each other, so they will open. If there are two different Electricity will attract each other and get closer. There are two types of electricity, positive and negative. If you are interested, I will explain in detail next time. This experiment has allowed you to see the existence of electricity with your own eyes. We have a great His name is Faraday. Fifty years ago, he created a large amount of electricity with the help of machinery, and then sent it out through wires. This is how telegraphs and telephones came into being.” The impression of electricity is still an untouchable mysterious monster in the minds of all the priests, and most of them have no interest in it. Compared with the steam engine, electricity is still empty in Zhang Zhidong's mind. This experiment by the foreign priest did not make electricity like the steam engine, and made him feel the obvious existence.But he believed that the foreign priests were not lying to him, because he knew that the telegram was indeed real, and it must be transmitted by some means, otherwise, how could it be possible to get from one place to another? Seeing that his colleagues were tired, he realized that the experiment should be over, so he said to the guests: "Mr. Li, your two experiments have opened our eyes, but I think that whether it is a steam engine or an electric It is very difficult to manufacture, and it is probably not an easy task to use. China may still have many difficulties in using steam engines and electricity." "Yes, your Excellency is quite right." Timothy Li said, "Steam engines and generators can be bought from us in England, but those who use them must have high skills. Don't talk about Shanxi Province now, just Metropolises like Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou don’t have the talent to use steam engines and generators. But it doesn’t matter, it can be cultivated. If Mr. Zhang believes in me, I can do my best for it.” Although Zhang Zhidong hoped that many steam engines could be used in Shanxi, so as to dig out more coal and iron ore, although he also hoped that Shanxi could send out electricity, many of his documents could be sent to Taiyuan with the help of wires. The counties made officials at all levels in the Sanjin Dynasty act like his fingers and act according to his command, but he still didn't quite trust this British missionary who was dressed in Chinese and spoke Chinese, and wondered if there were other intentions behind his hospitality.What's more, it is not the time for Shanxi to use these foreign machines. How can there be so much spare money to buy them from the UK?How can there be so many technicians to manage?Even if Timothy Lee is willing to be a teacher, there are not many talents who can learn foreign skills in Shanxi at present! However, Timothy Lee's actions also gave Zhang Zhidong a major enlightenment: foreigners are not monolithic.Some foreigners bully China with strong ships and guns, and some foreigners are willing to do business with China, buy machines and impart skills for China; no matter what his purpose is, I can at least take it from him for my own use things.Let's keep this foreign priest in custody until the time is right. Zhang Zhidong got up, smiled and said to Timothy Li: "Thank you for your kindness, the future will be long, let's discuss it calmly."