Chapter 74 6. Instigated by patriotism, the Iron Works Gun Factory faked with high enthusiasm

Golden autumn and October is the harvest season in China, and it is also the most beautiful time of the year.From south to north, ripe fruits are everywhere, the sky is clear and the water is clear, especially the three towns of Wuhan, which are located in the fortress of Jingchu, bid farewell to the unbearable heat and turbulent heat for three or four months. People are like breaking free from a steamer. As if coming out, there is a feeling of being reborn.It seems that only at this time can I have a little mood to enjoy the generosity bestowed by nature and history on this famous city. In fact, the three towns of Wuhan have their own unique charm, and only the surging Yangtze River has given them infinite vitality.Under the clear and clean sky in autumn, the surface of the river is extraordinarily wide and magnificent.That is the broad and generous mind of the mother of China.As the river flows eastward, waves and light overlap, and what flows is her sweet milk.Look at the two mountains of the turtle and the snake facing each other across the river, like two gods protecting the river, conscientious and dedicated, and they will not grow old through the ages.Look at Yu Wangji and Huang Hefan, two of the treasures of Zhenjiang, which suppress the river monsters and water monsters under the quicksand, preventing them from making waves, and blessing this section of the river to benefit from the fertile land, and the boat and travel will be safe.

Today, the Sanzhen River will welcome distinguished guests from afar from Europe.Early in the morning, the special envoy Sang Zhiping and Liang Dunyan, the representative of the Governor's Yamen, led a group of people, boarded the newly decorated ship Goddess purchased from the United Kingdom, and drove out of Baisha Bay, 30 miles downstream of Jianghan Pass, to wait. At ten o'clock, Zhang Zhidong led a group of high-ranking civilians and military officers, including Fufan of Hubei Province who adhered to the Three Constitutions, officials of various provinces, and lieutenants stationed in the two towns of Hubei Province, to the Hanyangmen Wharf in distinctive python robes and brilliant crests.The civil and military officials all described the cleanliness as if they were visiting a sacrifice. It changed from the chaos of loud and boastful talks in the past, and the occasional conversations were just whispers in the ears.On the contrary, Zhang Zhidong had a calm demeanor, with the demeanor of a general who lifted weights lightly.He has prepared everything, and the gaps that need to be filled have been filled. Just as a highly skilled actor is eager to perform on high-level occasions, what Zhang Zhidong is looking forward to is to show his achievements in Westernization in front of high-level people.Today's China is not as good as the ocean.A dignified Taoist government in a local area is not as good as a missionary; the majestic minister of military affairs in the capital can tremble when he hears a threatening speech from a Western minister.There is no doubt that the Russian crown prince who will be crowned soon is the highest-ranking foreigner in China right now.The iron factory and the gun factory let this person visit, and its influence is even higher than that of the queen mother and the emperor.Zhang Zhidong, who thinks that Huguang is not narrow enough for him to maneuver, hopes to take this opportunity of attention from the government and the public to show his ambitions.He smiled and chatted with Gu Hongming who was sitting on the side: "Tang Sheng, you have never lived in Russia, how did you learn Russian?"

"When I was studying at the University of Edinburgh, the school required me to take three foreign languages ​​in addition to English. I took Latin, Ancient Greek and Russian as electives. Some people said that if you are Chinese, Chinese itself is a foreign language. Why bother? I also need to take three more European languages. I said that I like languages, and there are a few Russian classmates in the class who talk in Russian, which sounds interesting to me." In the past few months, in order to do a good job in the translation for this reception, Gu Hongming, in addition to reading a large number of documents about Russia and the Russian royal family, also paid special attention to strengthening the review of oral English, trying to be as fluent and accurate as possible, perfect without regret.

"We have many dialects in China, but they are not easy to understand. I have been the governor of Guangdong for five years, but I still can't understand Cantonese. Do foreign countries have dialects? If the crown prince speaks a dialect, can you understand it?" Gu Hongming laughed and said: "Foreign countries are similar to China in this regard. The same country and the same nationality may have different pronunciations due to different regions. For example, the language in the southern part of the United States is obviously different from that in the northern part of the United States, but Unlike our country, there is a big gap between dialects. In addition, they also have official language and upper-class communication language just like our China. Take Russia as an example. In the upper-class society of the capital St. Petersburg, they have a habit If you want to enter the upper class circle, you must first learn that set of speech tones, otherwise you will be exposed when you speak. Others will ridicule you as a bumpkin and look down on you. As for the Russian court, speaking French is the key. Fashionable. Members of the Russian royal family, French is very good, the Russian crown prince has studied in Paris for five years and can speak authentic French fluently."

Zhang Zhidong wondered: "Why do they elevate French like this?" "French is recognized as the most rigorous language in the world. Its words and characters can only have one interpretation, and there is no ambiguity. Therefore, two countries in the world have signed a contract. In addition to their respective characters, there is also a legal The text serves as a common basis, and in case of disagreement in the future, the French text shall prevail." "Oh." Zhang Zhidong nodded and said, "It's very good to use this kind of language to sign a contract, but if you write poems in this language, it will become monotonous. Poetry has no comprehension. Every word and line of poetry contains more content. The more the better, if one hundred people who read the poem can get one hundred different feelings, then this poem is the best poem.” Talking about the poems and prose that he is good at in foreign languages, Zhang Zhidong's interest was very high, and he started talking to a group of senior officials who were listening attentively: "Tang Sheng, have you read Li Shangyin's untitled poems? Those poems are really well written, rich and beautiful, complicated and confusing. Cang Haiyue The pearl has tears, and the sun in Lantian is warm and the jade produces smoke. Tang Sheng, do you know what these two lines of Yuxi Sheng are trying to say?"

"I'm not sure." On such an occasion, Zhang Zhidong still had such a leisurely heart to recite Li Shangyin's love poems. Gu Hongming was admired by the governor's leisurely demeanor, and deeply felt the importance of poems in his heart. Heavy.He thought to himself: Perhaps, playing with words and ink is the true character of this handsome man. "So, later generations sighed, 'All poets say that Xikun is good, but it's a pity that no one makes Zheng Jian'. In a few years, I will return to my hometown and do nothing else. I will do Yuxi Sheng's commentary."

"Your Excellency's interpretation of Yishan's poems will be a matter of great merit in the poetry world. I also like to read Yishan's poems the most. Then I will come to be your assistant." Wang Zhichun interrupted enthusiastically, half telling the truth and half It is to please. Zhang Zhidong was very happy when he heard this. He pointed to Wang Zhichun and said to Gu Hongming: "Wang Fantai's poems are very good. You can learn from him to write poems in the future." When praising his poetic talent in front of everyone, Wang Zhichun was very grateful for the face given to him by the governor, and quickly said: "When it comes to poetry, it is natural that Xiang Shuai is the only one in the world, and no one can match it. If Tang Sheng wants to learn poetry, he should worship incense." It is better to be handsome as a teacher."

Gu Hongming said: "I wanted to learn poetry a long time ago, but I didn't meet a good teacher. Fantai said that Xiangshuai is the only one in the world, and Xiangshuai said that Fantai wrote good poems. It seems that the two adults are both poetic archers. I Today, in front of everyone, I ask you two adults to learn poetry as my teacher, so don't refuse." After finishing speaking, he stood up, first bowed to Zhang Zhidong, and then bowed to Wang Zhichun.Both Zhang Zhidong and Wang Zhichun laughed happily.Because of Gu Hongming's move, the originally restrained atmosphere suddenly became active, so he talked about poetry, literature and foreigners in twos and threes.A well-informed friend of the governor's yamen talked about the secrets of the Russian royal family and quietly told everyone: A hundred years ago in Russia, there was an empress named Ekaterina, who ruled Russia for more than 30 years. The biggest is that she has hundreds of thousands of faces, and the number is innumerable. Compared with her, Wu Zetian is insignificant.Most of these officials are ignorant of foreign affairs and have always been ignorant of foreign affairs.They listened to the romantic story of the Russian royal family with great interest, as if eating a Western feast, they all urged this acquaintance to tell more about the history of the Western court.At this moment, someone pointed to the river in the distance and said, "The Russian crown prince is here!" The reception hall at Hanyangmen Wharf suddenly became quiet.

The three warships traveled upstream from the lower reaches of the river, slowly getting closer and closer.People can see clearly that the pilot in the front is the Goddess from Hubei, and the bows of the two ships behind are written with Baomin and Cehai respectively. They are Nanyang Navy ships.On the masts of the two ships at the front and rear, the apricot-yellow Qing Dynasty triangle dragon flag was flying high, and on the mast of the Baomin in the middle were two flags flying side by side. national flag.It was then known that the Russian crown prince was on this ship. Amidst the long sirens, the Goddess guided the Baomin and the Cehai to approach the Hanyangmen Wharf slowly. Zhang Zhidong stood up, and Tan Jixun, Wang Zhichun, and Chen Baozhen followed suit.Zhang Zhidong was in front, and the other three people were behind. They all walked across the springboard temporarily covered with a red carpet at a staggering pace, and stepped onto the Baomin Hao. Gu Hongming followed Zhang Zhidong.Liang Dunyan hurriedly said a few words to the guests in English, and the guests immediately got up and walked out of the luxurious stateroom.

Zhang Zhidong's move was on his whim.The original arrangement was: the Russian crown prince, accompanied by Sang Zhiping and Liang Dunyan, got off the ship, while Zhang Zhidong and others waited on the pier;Unexpectedly, Zhang Zhidong was so happy that he forgot the prior agreement and came on board the boat himself. As soon as he boarded the Baomin ship, Zhang Zhidong found eight tall foreigners in military uniform standing on either side.He thought that they might be the guards of the Russian crown prince. For a while, he didn't know how to greet these guards. When he looked at these guards again, they all looked at each other with tense expressions, standing like wooden stakes one by one.Obviously, they didn't know who came up and how to treat them.

Seeing this, Gu Hongming hurriedly walked towards the leader who wore two rows of medals on his chest.He estimated that this was the chief of the guard, and said to him in proficient French: "This is our supreme commander, you should treat him as a marshal of your country." The head of the guard nodded, and said something loudly to the guards on both sides.As soon as the head of the guard finished speaking, all the guards immediately leaned their feet together, making a crisp, neat and loud sound of leather boots clinking together, and then simultaneously raised sixteen right hands to the temples of their right cheeks.The head guard turned to Zhang Zhidong, and chattered a few more words.Gu Hongming whispered to Zhang Zhidong: "The Russian crown prince's guards salute to your lordship. It was the chief of the guards who spoke just now. He said that the chief of the guards of His Royal Highness, the fourth-rank military officer Ivanov, reported to the supreme commander that everything is ready. The Supreme Commander is invited to review. You can wave your right hand to greet them with a smile!" Zhang Zhidong was troubled by the embarrassment of the situation, but Gu Hongming solved it immediately with a foreign sentence.He gently raised his right hand and waved it with a smile on his face. The Russian guard pens on both sides stood motionless, his right hand seemed to be nailed to the temple, and watched Zhang Zhidong and his party walk slowly.Although Zhang Zhidong had served in the army for seven or eight years and had inspected the soldiers of the Green Battalion many times, it was the first time in his life that foreign soldiers raised their hands respectfully in front of him.A great sense of pride and satisfaction welled up spontaneously, and I couldn't help feeling grateful to Gu Hongming: If it wasn't for his improvisation, how could such glory come about! At this time, Liang Dunyan accompanied the guests, and the two parties stopped at a distance of one step.Liang Dunyan said something in English to a foreigner beside him, and the foreigner took half a step; Zhang Zhidong guessed that this person was the prince, so he also took a half step.Liang Dunyan introduced: "Master Zhang, this person is His Royal Highness the Crown Prince Nicholas of Russia." Zhang Zhidong smiled and said, "Welcome His Royal Highness, the three towns of Wuhan are full of splendor." While speaking, he took a closer look at the guest.The Russian crown prince was about twenty-five or six years old, his figure was a head taller than Zhang Zhidong, his pale golden curly hair shone in the sun, and his fair skin was even more beautiful than a powdered Chinese woman. On the high bridge of the nose is a pair of bright gray eyes. The most conspicuous thing in the well-fitting black suit is the red tie with black stripes under the collar, exuding a compelling noble air from top to bottom.The Chinese army applauded secretly.Zhang Zhidong has seen the adult Tongzhi Emperor with his own eyes. If he compares Tongzhi Emperor with the Russian Crown Prince in front of him, except that the dragon robe worth tens of thousands of taels of silver is more expensive than his suit, in terms of appearance and spirit, I don't know where to lose.For a moment, Zhang Zhidong felt a sense of inferiority and sorrow, but it passed quickly. The crown prince pointed to the man who was half a head shorter than him and said something foreign, Liang Dunyan was taken aback, he couldn't understand.Liang Dunyan only knew English, and they were talking in English on the ship just now, and there was no obstacle. Now that he saw Zhang Zhidong, the crown prince thought that this was the beginning of a formal diplomatic activity, so he switched to what the Russian court regarded as elegant and formal. French.Seeing Liang Dunyan in a daze aside, Gu Hongming said softly to Zhang Zhidong: "The crown prince is introducing his cousin. His cousin is the son of the Duke of Widsen in Greece, named Fanna. The Duke of Greece is equivalent to the son of the Duke of my country. Prince, you can call him Prince Vanna." Zhang Zhidong greeted with a smile: "You have worked hard all the way, Prince Fanna, welcome!" While speaking, he also carefully looked at the Greek prince: he was about sixteen or seventeen years old, with fiery red hair, a pair of blue eyes, a childish face that had not yet been taken off, and a slightly shy smile. When Gu Hongming translated in fluent French, Prince Nicholas and Prince Vanna looked at him with surprised eyes.They were not surprised by Gu Hongming's proficiency in French, but by the strange man in front of them: at first glance, he looked like a Chinese, with a melon-skin cap and a long robe and mandarin jacket; but at a closer look, he didn't look like it, with gray-blue eyes, deep-set eye sockets, a high nose bridge, and snow-white skin. .The two foreign brothers didn't say anything, but murmured in their hearts: Is this a Chinese or a Westerner? How could there be such a strange person beside Governor Zhang? "Zhang Zhitai, are you always alright?" At this moment, a man suddenly came out from behind Prince Nicholas, and greeted Zhang Zhidong with a big smile. When Zhang Zhidong looked at him, he was in his twenties, with a short stature, and was wearing a stone-blue dress of the Prince of Hague, Danlong River Water.He was startled: this is probably the Prince Su who was written on the roll sheet, why did he forget him just now, he really shouldn't have greeted him first! Sang Zhiping hurriedly introduced: "This is Prince Su who is accompanying the Russian crown prince on behalf of the imperial court." Zhang Zhidong hurriedly bowed to Prince Su: "Your Majesty is rude, please forgive me." Prince Su laughed and said: "The honored guests come from afar, so naturally they should meet the guests first. I have always been careless about etiquette, so don't mind." The young Prince Su was named Shanqi.When Zhang Zhidong left the capital in the seventh year of Guangxu, he was only twelve or thirteen years old, and he was a scholar who never went out of the palace.Zhang Zhidong didn't know him, so it was reasonable.King Su was one of the eight iron hat kings granted by the Manchus when they entered the customs. The first King Su was Hauge, the eldest son of Emperor Taizong Huang Taiji.It has been passed down to Shanqi's generation, which is already the eighth generation.Shanqi did not do much as an official, but he was still a well-known Manchu in modern Chinese history. Two things made him famous.One is that twenty years later, when he was the secretary of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, he treated Wang Jingwei who murdered the regent with leniency, which was quite favored by the revolutionary party.The second is that he gave birth to a traitor girl, Yoshiko Kawashima.This person is willing to admit that the thief is his father, acting as a Japanese spy, and doing all the bad things that harm the Chinese nation.It is said that after the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, Yoshiko Kawashima was sentenced to death. The executioner was so dazzled by her beauty that he forgot to shoot. Although Shanqi was a prince at this time, he had no status in the royal family.He also seems to have no political ambitions. He is interested in eating, drinking and having fun, especially in Pi Huang Opera.Not only do I like to listen to it, but I can also sing it myself.He often invites a group of famous actors to the palace to sing operas, and he himself also appears on the stage, performing on the same stage with the actors, calling them brothers and brothers, and not putting on airs of a prince.The prince from Russia is supposed to be accompanied by the elder brother, but there is no elder brother in the palace so far, so he has to be selected from the palace. Shanqi, who is 26 years old, is a prince who loves to play and has no real duties, so he is the best Candidates. After meeting Shanqi, Zhang Zhidong introduced Tan Jixun, Wang Zhichun, and Chen Baozhen to the guests. The three greeted the guests respectively and then all met Shanqi.After resting and having a meal in the well-packed post house, we visited the iron factory and the gun factory as scheduled. In the afternoon, the Goddess carried the Russian crown prince, Greek heir, King Su, and others, accompanied by high-ranking civil and military officials from Hubei led by Zhang Zhidong, across the Yangtze River, heading for the foot of Guishan Mountain in Hanyang in the north of the river.Just approaching the pier, bursts of deafening firecrackers sounded continuously from the foot of Guishan Mountain.Immediately, puffs of blue-gray gunpowder smoke spread in all directions, straight to the top of the mountain, and soon, mist-like smoke filled the bushes and trees.It was the first time for the Russian prince and the Greek prince to see such a spectacular scene of setting off firecrackers. They felt a strong sense of freshness and excitement as if they were on the battlefield where the cannons were rumbling.Just after the sound of firecrackers, the sound of gongs, drums, and cymbals sounded again, and the sound of thud, thud, and clang interlaced rhythmically, one after another, lively and cheerful.The Russian crown prince was very interested in these Chinese musical instruments that could create such a strong festive atmosphere in an instant.In the midst of this turmoil, Zhang Zhidong accompanied the distinguished guests off the Goddess and came to the welcoming crowd.Cai Xiyong, supervisor of the Railway Political Bureau, stepped forward and gave a welcome speech in fluent English. Then, according to Western etiquette, two lovely little girls presented flowers to the Russian Crown Prince and the Greek Crown Prince.The two foreign princes were very happy and waved flowers to everyone.Beside the temporarily paved avenue leading to the factory headquarters, there stood 200 Qing soldiers holding foreign guns. They were the supervisory barracks led by Zhang Biao.Seeing the two hundred new-style rifles shining faintly blue in the sun, the Russian crown prince lost his smile just now. He straightened his tie involuntarily, and walked cautiously step by step until he walked out of the army. My heart calmed down, and my previous smiling face was restored. "Your Highness Nicholas, we have arrived at the headquarters of the iron factory." Zhang Zhidong pointed forward with some satisfaction. After listening to Gu Hongming's French translation, the Russian Crown Prince began to shoot at the world-famous Hanyang Iron Works that he had learned about while still in the St. Petersburg Palace.Ah, how famous is worse than seeing it, the ancient China, which has been left in his mind as a poor, backward, weak and bullied image since he was a child, unexpectedly has such a majestic steel factory! At this time, the tops of more than a dozen huge chimneys were billowing black smoke into the sky, beside the hills of ore, various bucket trucks were busy loading and running, and from time to time there were machines buzzing from the large and small high and low factory buildings. Voice.In the factory area, there are smooth roads criss-crossing each other. The employees who come and go are all dressed in uniform uniforms. They don't care about foreign crown princes walking by, and they are doing their own things quietly.Prince Nicholas shot around. It is estimated that the area of ​​the iron factory will not be less than 200 hectares.He has also seen many factories in his own country and other European countries. Judging from the size of the iron factory, it can be regarded as a large factory in Russia, and it can also be ranked as a medium-to-large factory in Britain, France and Germany.While walking, Cai Xiyong, the supervisor, introduced to the Russian prince: This is the hook nail factory, this is the rolling mill, this is the laboratory, this is the pumping room, this is the rail factory, this is the repair room, this is the drawing room, this is the machine room.The Russian prince kept nodding, and at first he could remember a few, but later on, all kinds of factories and buildings were mixed up in his mind, and he didn't even remember a single term in the end.As for the son of Greece, he came to China with his cousin, just wanting to see the scenery and eat Chinese food. He has no interest in the factory machinery at all. He looked around all the way and didn't listen to what Cai Xiyong was saying.Cai Xiyong led a large group of guests and hosts to enter from one factory building and exit from another factory building, but he saw that all the factories were working nervously, the machines rumbled, the motors sounded, and the production looked busy.Cai Xiyong introduced them one by one with great interest. Zhang Zhidong was full of enthusiasm to show his political achievements to the guests. They didn't feel too tired. First of all, Tan Jixun was exhausted.Halfway through the walk, I realized that it was very wrong to come to the iron factory today. I thought about leaving a few times and found a place to rest, but he was a man of etiquette. He had no choice but to grit his teeth, dragged his two old legs that seemed to be filled with lead, and reluctantly followed the team.Another one who felt tired was Prince Su Shanqi.Shanqi, who grew up in a pampered environment, has never traveled so many roads since he was born, not to mention that his interests are only in acting and listening to music, and he has no energy to do daily serious things.In his eyes, this machine and that factory building were extremely boring. If he had followed his temperament, he would have been lying down long ago, but as a representative of the imperial court, he was too embarrassed to be so rude, so he had to bite the bullet and stand up. After passing through more than a dozen workshops, we came to the most important factory - the pig iron refinery.As soon as they entered the factory building, two ten-meter-high iron-making furnaces stood in front of everyone, like two black iron towers, and like two big-bellied black king kong, which immediately attracted guests and hosts alike.A young man came over and asked Chen Niantou who was beside Cai Xiyong, "Can we come out?" "Out." Chen Niantou nodded. The young man walked over and waved to the workers around the two iron stoves, only to hear a "clang", and the stomachs of the two iron stoves suddenly opened, revealing two round holes the size of washbasins.At the same time, two streams of boiling molten iron rushed out of the belly of the iron furnace and poured straight into the two large iron buckets next to the base of the furnace.Countless sparks splashed, as if igniting a soaring fireworks, and like stars falling into the world on a summer night.These two streams of molten iron are fiery red, just like the two red dragons escaping from the Flame Mountain, and like the two liquid pills flowing out of Laojun's gossip furnace, carrying huge heat and scorching flames, straight to the surrounding crowd As they rushed forward, visitors who were seven or eight feet away couldn't stand their strong force, and couldn't help but backed away. The Russian crown prince applauded the two streams of molten iron.After seeing the rushing molten iron, Tan Jixun and Shanqi, who were already exhausted, cheered up because of their joy.Zhang Zhidong was very proud of seeing the two iron furnaces displayed in front of outsiders for the first time, and they were able to perform such a magnificent and extraordinary performance.He proudly told the guests: "The blast furnace can produce molten iron eight times a day and one night, and can produce 50 tons of iron per day. It is still in the trial production stage. After a period of time, the daily output can reach 100 tons." "Okay, okay!" The Russian crown prince nodded frequently. "Great, great! How many such ironworks are there?" Cai Xiyong said: "Currently there is only one pig iron smelting plant, and there are three designed. Each one has two blast furnaces. The second one will start construction next year. The third one will start construction the following year. After it is fully completed, it will produce 500 tons of iron per day. The iron factory is designed to install 20 stirring furnaces, divided into five groups, and one group that has been installed is also making iron today, let's go and have a look." "Where's the steel mill?" Prince Hellenic interrupted suddenly.In the field of metallurgy, this seventeen-year-old son is more knowledgeable than his cousin.He knew that pig iron, wrought iron and steel were different, and that the key to an iron factory was the steelmaking factory. It's really a pot that doesn't open.For this visit, the ironworks' confidant's worries lie in the steelworks.The three iron factories that really saw results and made people happy were the three factories of pig iron, wrought iron and steel, because they were all booming and could create a dazzling momentum.Originally, there was a crack in another furnace in the ironworks, and only one furnace could produce molten iron. Fortunately, craftsmen from England arrived five days ago and repaired the crack, so there are two furnaces today.There is a group of stirring furnaces in the wrought iron factory that can work, and it can barely handle it, but the steel factory cannot be put into operation anyway. What should we do?In case the guest asks to see it, how to answer it?If it is said that the steelmaking furnace has not been installed yet, as an ironworks whose main goal is steelmaking, does this mean that the ironworks have not yet been completed?If you don't tell the truth, how can you fool the past? In the Iron Works, a huge factory with 3,000 employees, if it is said that there are not many people who are capable of making steel, then there are many people who play tricks, tricks, and cheat. it came out. Cai Xiyong pointed to a factory building more than 30 feet away and said, "The steel factory is there, let's go and have a look!" Wang Zhichun didn't know the inside story, and thought to himself: Didn't it mean that the steelmaking furnace bought from England hadn't been installed yet? Why would you take the guests to see it? Cai Xiyong led the way, Shanqi, Zhang Zhidong and others surrounded Prince Nicholas and Prince Fanna to the steel factory.As soon as they entered the factory, everyone felt extremely hot.It turned out that there were more than a dozen brick furnaces built around a tall gray steel-making furnace, and each furnace was burning with raging coke fire, and the coke around the furnace mouth was already burning bright red. .At that scene, it was as if all the red sun shot down by Hou Yi had fallen into these furnaces.In an instant, all the people were sweating profusely, dry and unbearable.Shanqi was a puffy man, his underwear was soaked with sweat at this time, and he was cursing in his heart: what the hell is this place, it looks like it has been oiled in a frying pan!Tan Jixun was so hot that his mouth was burnt, his lips were dry and his eyes were dim. He really wished he could get out of this purgatory right away.Nicholas and Faner were also a little puzzled: why are there so many stoves here, and what are they for?While thinking about it, the two of them were already dripping with sweat.They all wore tight shirts and tight ties, and their black woolen suits were all buttoned up.Although the heat made them feel extremely uncomfortable, their status and upbringing did not allow them to take off their clothes, but they were eager to end this suffering as soon as possible. Cai Xiyong smiled and said to everyone: "Sorry, it will take half an hour for this batch of steel to come out. Please wait a little bit." When Shanqi, Tan Jixun and others heard this, they complained incessantly. Several people in the visiting crowd couldn't bear the scorching heat and walked out of the factory door.Gu Hongming translated this sentence to the Russian Crown Prince. The Crown Prince frowned and looked at his cousin with an even more disturbed expression.He looked up at the fire door, and said softly to Gu Hongming: "It's too hot here, don't wait for it to come out of the oven!" Gu Hongming was also unbearably hot, so he took this opportunity to say: "Then let's go out!" The prince of Greece was eager for this sentence, and hurriedly said: "Don't read it, go outside to get some fresh air." Gu Hongming walked to Zhang Zhidong's side and conveyed the opinions of the two guests.Zhang Zhidong immediately smiled and said loudly: "At the request of the guest, let's go out to get some fresh air now, and watch the molten steel come out of the furnace in half an hour." Everyone walked out of the steel factory one after another, as if they had received an amnesty order and were reborn from the death line.An autumn wind blew across the Han River, passed through the flowers, trees and grass in Guishan, and came to the iron factory, gently caressing the group of Chinese and foreign visitors.Everyone seemed to be enjoying such happiness for the first time in their lives, and felt the cool breeze was lovely for the first time. Cai Xiyong hit the iron while it was hot, and said to the two distinguished guests: "The gun factory is next to the iron factory, let's go and have a look!" From the bottom of their hearts, Nicholas and Vanner didn't want to go to the gun factory anymore. Their greatest hope at the moment was to take a shower, change their wet clothes, and lie down to rest.But this content was put forward by themselves a long time ago, and they were embarrassed to refuse, so they had to follow the arrangement and walked to the gun factory through the right door of the iron factory. Although the gun factory occupies only half the area of ​​the iron factory, it is still a large factory.There are also five or six tall chimneys and a dozen factory buildings here. Cai Xiyong is still full of energy and introduces them one by one to the guests: parts factory, bullet factory, transportation department, repair department... But including the two guests, all visitors I no longer have the interest I had just now. When Cai Xiyong proposed to take a look, Prince Nicholas said: "Just look at the factory where the guns are assembled!" Cai Xiyong said: "Okay, then let's go to the assembly plant." Then everyone went straight to the largest factory building in the gun factory.As soon as I entered the factory building, I saw rows of brand new rifles placed on the workbench.Superintendent Cai pointed to the guns and introduced them. These guns are all made in our factory: this is a counterfeit British Mauser gun, this is a counterfeit German Krupp gun, and this is a counterfeit British Polly gun.The prince and the son are neither generals leading troops nor arms dealers dealing in guns and guns. They don't understand this gun or that gun at all, so they can only nod indiscriminately.Chen Nianchu added in English from the side: "The guns in the hands of the guards on both sides of the iron factory gate are all made by our gun factory." Prince Nicholas' eyes were wide open, and he was deeply impressed by the chilling atmosphere when he first entered the door. Intuitively, he felt that the lethality of those guns was not small.He raised his head and glanced around the workshop. There were dozens of workbenches in the workshop, and each workbench was filled with various gun parts.Workers in uniforms are busy, skillfully assembling guns. The crisp sound of "click, click" comes from every corner, making an assembly workshop look like a military training ground. There will be knives at any time. The fighting situation of unsheathing and ejecting from the chamber appeared. Prince Nicholas thought to himself: No need to look any further. The latest guns imitating European and American countries are being produced here. It is estimated that assembling a thousand guns a day in this workshop alone will not be a problem. If calculated according to this, the annual output will be more than 300,000 guns. After three years, it is enough to equip the army of a country.Thinking of this, the young Russian prince couldn't help feeling a little in awe. In fact, this foreign prince was completely fooled by the Chinese. Although the gun factory has built a factory building, a chimney, installed a lot of machines, and has nearly a thousand employees and a dozen foreign craftsmen, the machines that are serious about making guns and bullets have not yet been shipped from Britain and the United States. How can these guns and bullets be produced if they bought them from the Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau and failed to buy them?Although the Hanyang gun factory became very popular a few years later, it was once China's No. 1 arsenal for quite a long time. Forty years later, the excellent weapon in the hands of the patriots made great contributions to the War of Resistance Against Japan. However, at that time, it was really only in name. All that was shown in front of Prince Yang today was a performance by the green camp in Hubei. This scene was directed by Zhang Biao, the leader of the military camp who has been promoted to the rank of general.He sent all 350 soldiers from the personal battalion to the gun factory.Among them, 200 soldiers armed with guns lined up to welcome the guests, and then scattered around the factory to patrol and stand guard. On the one hand, they guarded against accidents and ensured safety. pressure.The other 150 people were all sent to the assembly vehicle.At the green battalion stationed in the three towns of Wuhan, Zhang Biao collected 2,000 new-style rifles, most of which were placed at the entrance of the factory for display, and a small half were disassembled by soldiers in overalls and scattered on the workbench. , and then installed one by one.These soldiers trained for this for half a month, knowing that it was a deceit, but under the propaganda of "destroying the enemy's prestige and growing one's own ambition", each and every one of them was filled with patriotic passion, as if what they were doing was exactly what they were doing. A solemn and sacred event of defending the dignity of the country and combating the arrogance of foreigners is fundamentally different from the usual falsehood and deceit. After coming out of the gun factory, Prince Nicholas said to Zhang Zhidong solemnly with great respect: "Mr. I can’t find a second factory like this, even in Russia, even in continental Europe, there are very few steel factories comparable in scale to this one. Such a large scale can be produced in more than a year. Iron and steel factory, you have undoubtedly created the miracle of the East. You are a well-deserved Chinese hero, I admire you, and I want to publicize your achievements to the world. Your gun factory is also amazing, and the weapons produced in a year can be equipped A group army, in three to five years all the soldiers in your country will hold guns made by you, your contribution to China is too great!" Gu Hongming translated these words verbatim.Zhang Zhidong was very excited when he heard this, and a kind of elated, ambitious feeling suddenly rose up, but he said in a restrained manner: "His Royal Highness praised you. Both the iron factory and the gun factory are still in their infancy. stage. When His Highness the Crown Prince returns next time, our cause will be even bigger and more prosperous." In the morning of the next day, accompanied by Su Wang Shanqi, feudal secretary Wang Zhichun, and associate chief copywriter Liang Dunyan, the guests visited the scenic spots and scenic spots in the three towns of Wuhan.At four o'clock in the afternoon, a grand banquet held in the name of Huguang Governor's Yamen was held in Qingchuan Pavilion. At the east end of Guishan Mountain, about five miles away from the iron factory, there are huge rocks that cut straight into the waves of the Yangtze River. This is Yugongji.The Temple of Yuwang, Yubai, and the stele of Yuyu on it are all famous relics of the predecessors in the three towns of Wuhan. What is particularly lingering is that this place occupies the best of mountains and rivers.风和日丽之时，登禹功矶，眺望对岸高耸的黄鹤楼、雄踞的黄鹤矶，眼中长江之水滔滔东去，一泻千里，随风起伏的波涛上白帆片片，江鸥点点，真令人心旷神怡，豪情满怀。远在明代，范仲淹的十一代孙范子箴出任汉阳太守时，便在禹功矶上建了一座二层楼房，四面皆空，设茶坊酒店于上层，刻唐贤宋人诗词于楹柱，以利客人坐在桌上便可感受猎猎江风，极目楚天形胜。范太守极喜崔灏《登黄鹤楼》中的“晴川历历汉阳树，芳草萋萋鹦鹉洲”句中的“晴川”二字，将此楼命名为晴川阁。得知俄皇太子要来武汉后，晴川阁便定为设宴之地，予以重新修缮。 此时，武汉三镇罕见的盛宴已经摆开。首席上一张大圆桌，第一号客位坐的便是两年后登上沙皇宝座的尼古拉太子，左手边坐的是肃亲王善耆。肃王既是接待尼古拉的主人，又是光临武汉的贵宾。挨着善耆坐的是谭继洵，以下王之春、陈宝箴、桑治平。第二号客位坐的是希腊世子凡纳，凡纳之下依次坐的是梁敦彦、蔡锡勇。与尼古拉对面相坐的是今日宴席的主人湖广总督张之洞。为便于翻译，辜鸿铭坐在太子和世子之间。团团圆圆的席上，可谓客人尊贵，主人高雅，满桌陪伴者尽皆三楚精英，华夏俊才。，今天上席的全是地道的鄂菜。这鄂菜虽不列中国的八大菜系，算不上名菜，却也自有它的味道。突出的特色是味重色香，讲究的是火候工夫，尤以煨汤名闻海内。湖北的煨汤用的是不上釉彩的黑土瓦罐，将要煨的新鲜食物洗净，连冷水一道装进瓦罐，水平罐口。先用猛火煮三滚，这时瓦罐的水溢出三成。再上各种调料平罐口，将罐口盖好用石头压紧，然后再用温火慢慢熬，一直熬到汤只有三成为止。此时，打开罐口，浓香扑鼻，倒出的汤鲜美可口，喝下肚去，浑身舒泰，留在嘴里的余香，三日不散。而且这种汤什么都可以煨，贵到山珍海味，贱到萝卜红薯，一样地都可以煨出超过原味三分的汤来。 今天，主人为客人精心选择了四个煨汤：长江喜头鱼（即鲫鱼。鲫与吉谐音，吉字乃喜字之头，故称喜头鱼），汉水甲鱼，洪湖莲藕，郧阳木耳猴头菌。尼古拉贵为俄皇太子，自小吃的是西餐大菜，奶酪面包。莫斯科冻牛肉，巴黎烧蜗牛，伦敦烤乳猪，罗马大羊排，一直被他认为是世界上最好吃的名菜。今日喝了武汉的这四道煨汤，一口口香鲜美味直沁心脾，把他心中的四道名菜统统压了下去，嘴里不断吐出他今天上午刚学会的中国话：“好，好！”惹得众人一齐开怀大笑。 凡纳世子也将这些中国菜吃得津津有味。 辜鸿铭拿起桌上的酒壶，给两位贵客斟上，然后对尼古拉说：“酒怎么样？好喝吗？” “好喝，好喝极了！”与所有的俄国男人一样，尼古拉太子也十分爱喝酒，今天的酒和煨汤都令他觉得异常新鲜有味。 “比贵国的伏特加如何？” “比伏特加要香醇，进口时的感觉也比伏特加要好。”尼古拉以行家的口吻答。 “俄国的伏特加不好喝。”希腊世子直爽地插话。“伏特加除酒性烈外，没有别的味道。” 他朝着太子说：“我怀疑你们的伏特加就是白水兑酒精。” 尼古拉并不以凡纳贬低伏特加为意，笑着说：“比起中国的酒来，伏特加是要差些，我这一路上喝的中国酒都比伏特加好。不过，我们俄国人喜欢喝伏特加，就是看中它的酒性烈，一瓶伏特加喝下肚，勇气一下子就来了，什么事都敢做，死都不怕。” 辜鸿铭笑着说：“这就是酒的作用，我们中国自古就有烈酒壮起英雄胆的说法。” 尼古拉指着酒壶问：“这酒叫什么名字？” “东坡万寿春。”辜鸿铭答。“东坡就是中国古代的大诗人苏东坡，他曾被贬在湖北黄州。他喜欢喝酒，也精通酿酒的技术，他把他的酿酒术传给黄州百姓，世世代代黄州百姓都酿这种酒，为纪念他，取名为东坡万寿春。” 尼古拉点点头。他不懂中国文学史，也不知道苏东坡是谁。 这时，一个妆扮俏丽的年轻女艺人，抱着一把琵琶走了上来。这是宴席上安排的一个内容，既请俄皇太子欣赏中国的艺术，也为酒宴助兴。女艺人是湖北汉剧的名伶。湖北汉剧虽不是一个很大的剧种，却是与眼下走红京师的皮黄戏有着血缘联系。它是皮黄戏的源头之一，腔调优美，很受江汉一带百姓的喜欢。 女艺人向客人优雅地行了一个礼，然后坐下，轻轻地拨弄丝弦。清脆的过门调奏响后，晴川阁里的所有杂言细语都停了下来。两位欧洲贵宾还是第一次听这种乐声，觉得十分美妙动听。女艺人开口唱了起来。歌喉甜润柔美，歌曲婉转多变，两位客人都为之深深吸引，只可惜，他们听不懂唱的是什么。女艺人退场后，尼古拉请辜鸿铭翻译出来。 辜鸿铭说：“她唱的是用汉剧腔调谱的一首很有名的诗。诗的作者是一位神童，他在十三岁的时候写出一篇很受人喜欢的文章。这首诗写在这篇文章结尾处，这位神童在中国家喻户晓，他的名字叫王勃。” “王勃。”尼古拉用生硬的腔调模仿辜鸿铭的话。 从这两个字里，张之洞听出刚才辜鸿铭是在给客人讲叙王勃的事，他笑着说：“王勃的《滕王阁序》是靠一位神仙的帮助才得以问世的。滕王阁开宴席的前一天，王勃还在距南昌府七百里的江面上，根本无法赶到。夜里马当神吹来一股风，将他的船一夜之间送到南昌府。第二天上午，他如期到滕王阁，于是有了这篇美文和这首好诗。” 辜鸿铭忙把总督的这段话翻译给尼古拉听。尼古拉睁大着眼睛问：“真有这样的事吗？总督先生说的神仙真的有吗？” 听了辜鸿铭的翻译，大家都哈哈笑起来。 善耆插话：“这个人太聪明，可惜，寿命不长。二十七岁那年坐船不小心，落水死了。” 辜鸿铭又把善耆的话翻译给俄皇太子。 皇太子感慨地说：“我们俄国也有这样一个诗歌写得好的神童，他活得也不长，只有三十多岁。他不是落水而死的，他是因为夫人爱上了别人，他跟那人决斗，被那人用子弹射死的。他的名字叫普希金。” 这回轮到在座的中国官员睁大了眼睛，一个个在心里嘀咕：这是怎么回事？自己的老婆偷了野汉子，反而还要跟野汉子决斗，被他打死？这俄国怎么就是这样的怪风俗！这位神童普希金真是冤里冤枉丢掉了一条命。把野汉子扭送官府法办呀！或干脆，休了她再娶一个呀！在咱们中国，这是再简单不过的事了，决不会要把自己的命搭上。夷狄真是夷狄，一点礼仪都没有！善耆、张之洞、谭继洵等人都在心里冷笑着。 “他在十四岁的时候写出一首轰动俄国上层社会的名诗。” 尼古拉太子怀着对俄罗斯诗歌的太阳无限崇敬的心情，情不自禁地用俄语背诵起《皇村怀古》中名句来：瀑布好似明珠串成的小河，从乱石堆成的山包上泻落，水中的仙女在平静的湖面溅起缓缓荡漾开来的水波。一座座宏伟的宫殿安静肃穆，一个个圆形的拱顶直耸云霄。地上神仙在此把逍遥岁月度过，这里是俄国雅典娜的神庙。 座上的中国人，包括精通英文的梁敦彦也听不懂俄皇太子嘴里念的是什么，但从他专注虔诚的神态中可看出普希金及其诗歌在他心目中的地位。待辜鸿铭将它用中文翻译出来之后，张之洞、王之春这两位中国官场中的大诗人都很失望：这哪是诗，只不过一段有韵脚的话而已！ “太子殿下。”辜鸿铭用法语对尼古拉说，“这首诗是普希金的少年之作，此时的他尚不太懂世事，故而对叶卡捷林娜女皇倍加崇敬，赞扬她为俄国的雅典娜。据我所知，成年以后的普希金，对叶卡捷林娜的丰功伟绩却不以为然，十年后，他再写皇村的时候就只写风景，不谈历史了。” 俄皇太子没有想到，这位翻译竟然对普希金有如此多的了解。他以三分惊奇七分挑战的神态对辜鸿铭说：“看来，辜先生对普希金很有研究，不知你刚才说的十年后的皇村诗能记得一两句吗？” “我可以全部背诵给你听。”辜鸿铭得意地笑了笑，然后用纯正的俄语背道： “辜先生，请不要背下去了。你的俄语和你的记忆力都令我惊讶不已，佩服不已。你对普希金诗歌的热爱，更让我感激。普希金是我们俄罗斯的骄傲，我没有料到在中国，能遇到一个普希金的热爱者。你爱普希金，就是爱我们俄罗斯，我太谢谢您了。” 俄皇太子激动起来，话说得恳切而真挚，他的态度也让辜鸿铭激动：一个懂得珍惜自己文化的民族，才是真正强大的民族！ 太子用俄语说完这番话后，又伸出大拇指，用中国话说：“好，辜，好！” 张之洞等人从俄太子的神情和这三个中国字里已听出辜鸿铭和客人谈得十分融洽，并且赢得了客人的赞扬，这正是宴会所需要的气氛。于是，他乘机举起酒杯来，对客人说：“为了中国和贵国的友好，请太子殿下干了这一杯。” “好！”听了辜鸿铭的翻译，尼古拉一口把杯中的酒喝干。 “吃菜，吃菜！”善耆拿起匙子给太子和世子各舀了一勺汤。 凡纳悄悄地用希腊语对尼古拉说：“辜先生的法语和俄语都说得很好，不知他会不会说希腊话。” 谁知，这两表兄弟的悄悄话让正在斟酒的辜鸿铭听到了，他立即改用希腊语笑着对凡纳说：“我当年在爱丁堡大学读书时，主修的是希腊文，法文和俄文还在其次。” 凡纳大吃一惊，对辜鸿铭准确的希腊语很感意外。他不好意思地说：“辜先生，你真是语言奇才，一个中国人，能说这么多欧洲语言，举世少见。” 辜鸿铭继续用希腊语说：“古希腊是欧洲文化的发源地，我研究欧洲文化，不能不懂希腊语，古希腊神话和荷马史诗一直令我景仰。我虽说离开欧洲十年了，但荷马史诗，我还能背诵一些。” “真的？”希腊世子兴奋地说，“那你背两句给我听听。” “行。”是荷马史诗中的最重要的一部，辜鸿铭略微想了想，背道：赫克托耳回答说：保卫特洛亚是我的职责，有关战争的一切，都是我分内的事，如果我赫克托耳像懦夫一样逃离战场，岂不要被特洛亚的英勇的儿子们和穿着长袍的妇女所耻笑。 “背得好，背得好！”凡纳到底年纪小，快乐得竟然鼓起掌来。 众人虽听不懂希腊话，见辜鸿铭的一通洋话博得世子的掌声，猜想他一定用卓越的表现获得了客人的欢喜。希腊虽是小国，但他既是俄国的亲戚，也就不能轻视，也不能排斥眼前的这个十多岁的贵族子弟，有执掌希腊王权的可能性。想到这里，善耆带头，大家也轻轻地鼓了两下掌。 尼古拉来中国一个月了，从北京到天津到上海，沿途与不少翻译打过交道，像辜鸿铭这样的语言天才和记忆大师，他还是第一次遇到。这个怪模怪样的中西混血儿赢得了他发自内心的敬重，他从西服上衣日袋里掏出一只怀表来，对辜鸿铭说：“很高兴在中国遇到你这样了不起的人才，我愿与你交个朋友。这块怀表，是父皇所赐，送给你聊表我的诚意。” 说完双手递了过来。 这是一块小酥饼大的镶着名贵钻石的瑞士怀表，是瑞士国王送给尼古拉的父亲亚历山大三世的国礼。尼古拉二十岁生日时，亚历山大三世将它送给了儿子。在夕阳的照耀下，这块瑞士名表闪烁着五彩宝石光，将在座所有人的目光都吸引过去了。 面对着这份价值昂贵的礼物，辜鸿铭犹豫了一下。回国近十年来，他深深感觉到中国的等级观念远过于西方，尤其是官场上。“官大一级压死人”，这话是一点都不错的。今天的这个官方宴席，论地位则肃王善耆最高，论实权则总督张之洞最大，这块怀表，送给他们两人中任何一个都可以，却不能送给他这个没有品级的幕友翻译。如果接下，便立即有失礼之过。但是，人家皇太子的一番诚意，又怎能不接受呢？辜鸿铭毕竟聪明，稍一犹豫，便接过来用法语说了声“谢谢”，然后捧着怀表来到张之洞的身边，利用双方都听不懂的有利条件，对他说：“香帅，俄皇太子在上海时就听说您是很有名的诗人，他又仰慕中国书法，现在他特为送这块他父皇送给他的怀表给您，希望您送给他一首亲笔写的诗。” 张之洞听了辜鸿铭的这番话后，心里为俄皇太子看重他的诗和书法而高兴，便说：“我可以送他一首诗，但不必拿这么高的代价来换。” 辜鸿铭正想再说两句，善耆一把从他的手里拿过怀表说：“张大人，你不必客气了，这块怀表是真正的皇家珍宝，多少银子都换不来。他既然愿意，你何不乐得收下。”说着，仔仔细细地把玩起来。 和当时京中所有的王公贵族一样，善耆也是个西洋钟表迷，家中英国的、法国的、德国的、瑞士的钟表堆了两屋子，坐的、立的、挂的、大的、小的、圆的、方的，各种形式的都有，但这种正经八百的外国宫廷珍品却没有。他对这块怀表喜爱至极，只是碍于身分和客人的面子，不好意思问张之洞要。 张之洞已看出了善耆的心思。善耆既然喜欢，不如收下转送给他，这种人跟他贴近亲乎总是有用的，说不定哪天他就成了御前当差王大臣，也说不定哪天就成了军机处领班，于是笑着说：“好，你跟跑堂的说一下，叫他们摆出一张桌子来，弄好笔墨纸砚，我今天就在晴川阁赋诗一首。” 辜鸿铭马上把这个话翻译给俄皇太子，又说总督先生的诗如何如何好，书法如何如何精妙，说得俄皇太子满心欢喜。 一会儿，一切都准备停当。 听说张大人要赋诗了，主席、陪席上的吃喝全部停下来，大家满怀兴致地要一睹这难得的盛况。 张之洞的确是个出色的诗人。他喜爱吟咏，也勤于吟咏，十二三岁时便能写出很好的诗来，直到外放晋抚前三十年间，他写过上千首诗。他景仰苏东坡，诗文写作也走的苏氏路子。豪放洒脱，不过于斟字酌句，而注重整篇的气势雄健。他推重唐风宋骨的诗风，自己素日的创作则偏重于宋人风格，用字质实，造语浑重，用典精切，立意独创。京师诗坛，从翁方纲开始，一直流行学人之诗，重肌理格调。张之洞的诗以厚重宽博的特色甚合学人胃口，故最为官场士林看重，所作诗歌广为传诵。自出任山西巡抚后，政务繁忙，诗兴索然，十多年间他一首诗都未写过。有时，清夜扪心自问：一首诗文不作，哪里是翰林出身者所为，岂不与军功捐班同流了！一早醒来，盈尺簿书、烦杂钱谷又等着他去处理，中宵萌生的一点诗意立刻荡然无存了。 此时，面对着雄阔壮美的三楚风光，想起洋务事业的初具规模，多年消失的诗情突然在张之洞胸中涌冒出来。吟一首吧，让这位俄国的皇太子将它带回俄国，带到沙皇的宫廷中去，让他们知道中国有一个张之洞，有一个正在做富国强兵实事的湖广总督，从今以后，不能对中国有非分之想。是的，这诗非写不可，这还不只是我张之洞个人的诗，这关系到中俄两国之间的大事。想到此，他认为也应该为那位希腊世子写一首，其意义也一样的重大。他对王之春说：“爵堂，我多年未做诗了，诗路枯窘，我会勉强凑出一首来，还有一位希腊贵客，不能冷落他，你就代我做一首送给他。我们一道来应付这个差事。” 王之春正要借这个大场合展现一下他的诗才，遂满口答应。 在大家殷殷期待的目光中，张之洞终于走到桌子边，提起笔来。尼古拉太子、凡纳世子忙过来观看，善耆、谭继洵、辜鸿铭等也围了过来，只有王之春正在遥望长江西头的那一轮血色落日，搜肠刮肚地构思着。 善耆很高兴，不顾王爷之尊，一边抚摸着手中的怀表，一边大声念着出现在宣纸上的诗句。海西飞轪历重瀛，储贰祥钟比德城。日丽晴川开绮席，花明汉水迓霓旌。壮游雄览三洲胜，嘉会欢联两国情，从此敦槃传盛事，江天万里喜澄清。 张之洞刚收笔，王之春便得意地走过来说：“香帅，我的诗也出来了，也是一首七律，与香帅不谋而合。” “好极了，你念我写。” 张之洞拿过另一张宣纸，随着王之春抑扬顿挫的吟诵声，纸上又现出张之洞一行行遒劲的书法来。乘兴来搴楚畹芳，海天旌旆远飞扬。偶吟鹦鹉临春水，同泛蒲桃对夜光。玉树两邦连肺腑，瑶华十部富缣缃。 停了一下，王之春接着念：“汉南司马展雄图，多感停车问七襄。” 张之洞手中的笔停住，说：“八句诗句句都好，就是这'展雄图'三字改一改，我都快花甲之年了，还展什么雄图，雄图让你们后生辈来展吧。” 王之春说：“大人不老，正是大展雄图的时候。” 张之洞摇了摇左手，右手下又现出两行诗来。将王之春所吟的诗句作了小小的改动：汉南司马惭衰老，多感停车问七襄。 写完后，又分别在两首七律的左侧写上“赠俄国皇太子尼古拉殿下。”“赠希腊公爵世子凡纳帐下。” 张之洞对两位贵客说：“诗虽写好了，但要裱糊才能悬挂。” 善耆忙说：“这事就交给我吧，我叫人裱好送给他们。” 张之洞借机笑道：“那就有劳王爷大驾了，俄皇太子所赠的这块怀表，就请王爷笑纳，算是我的借花献佛。” “好，这是你张制台的盛情，却之不恭，我收了。” 善耆边说边将手中的表放进衣袋里。晴川阁内外，响起一片笑声，中外贵客皆大欢喜。