Bringing the Railway to Daming

Chapter 163: Ning and the Allies, Recognize the Meritorious Service and Confer the Title! [Please Subscribe]

Liu Kuan said, "On the surface, the Guangzhou general was afraid of fighting during the British invasion of China. He attempted to conceal the fact of defeat from the Qing emperor after suing for peace, and even said that the defeat was a victory in order to escape responsibility."

"After the British signed the draft Treaty of Guangzhou, the Guangzhou general did exactly the same thing and paid the British six million silver dollars, equivalent to about five million taels of silver."

"But the essence of this matter is that the Qing rulers never regarded the British as real enemies."

"In the eyes of the Qing court, the British, whose homeland was thousands of miles away in the West, came to the East to seek wealth. They could not possibly occupy much Chinese territory, let alone overthrow the Qing court's rule."

"The Qing court was always most wary of the Han Chinese. If they fought the British for money, face, or a few territories, and suffered a crushing defeat, it would very likely give the Han Chinese an opportunity to rise and overthrow their rule."

"So they would rather pay compensation, lose some face and territory, and even sign various unequal treaties with Western powers than to fight them in a grueling battle."

"Looking at the First Opium War, the reactions of the Qing emperor and the imperial court before and after also illustrates this point very well."

"Although the British made two northern coastal expeditions before and after the signing of the Treaty of Guangzhou, attacking Xiamen, Dinghai, Zhenjiang, and other places, and even sailed their ships to the outskirts of Nanjing and Haijin to threaten the Qing court, they never actually occupied any city."

"Initially, they deployed only over 7,000 troops, and later on, they gradually increased their forces. At their peak, their force was no more than 20,000."

"Although the Qing government mobilized 100,000 troops to fight the British in various places, its real main force was never deployed. It relied entirely on local defense officers and soldiers and volunteers to resist the British."

"How could this be considered a desire to engage in a full-scale war with the British? Perhaps the Qing court had other concerns and difficulties at the time, but being wary of the Han Chinese was the core reason."

"This thinking of the Qing rulers even evolved into a statement that became infamous in later generations."

Liu Kuan paused deliberately at this point. Zhu Biao, who was listening intently, asked hurriedly, "What did you say?"

"It is better to be friends with foreign nations than with domestic slaves."

Would you rather be friendly with foreign nations than with your domestic slaves?
Zhu Biao thought for a moment and understood the reason behind the Qing rulers' thinking. He slammed his hand on the table and said angrily, "The Manchus are just like the Mongols. They treat the Han people like slaves. How despicable!"

Liu Kuan shook his head and commented, "In the eyes of later generations, the Qing Dynasty was even inferior to the Yuan Dynasty. Although the Yuan Dynasty lasted less than a hundred years and governed the country poorly, when it occupied orthodox China, it at least maintained a strong military deterrent against neighboring countries, which was very impressive."

"In the end, the Qing Dynasty was ravaged and beaten by Western countries one by one, and signed various unequal treaties, which humiliated the country and completely destroyed the reputation of China, which had been a leading global power for thousands of years."

"It's like having a big family, with the Mongols and Manchus being younger brothers rather than the eldest brothers. The eldest brother is weak, so the Mongols become the head of the family. Although they are quite cruel and oppressive to their brothers and sisters, they can ensure the safety of the family, not only keeping out bandits, but even allowing them to grab some benefits from outside."

"When it was Manchuria's turn to be the head of the family, he couldn't even guard the door to his home, allowing robbers to break in, rob the family's treasures, and bully his brothers and sisters."

"Because they were afraid of death and worried that their status as patriarchs would be threatened, the Manchus not only did not dare to fight to the death, but even offered their treasures and sold out their brothers and sisters to please the bandits."

"If Your Highness were a member of this big family, would you think the Qing Dynasty was more hateful than the Mongols?"

Zhu Biao nodded. "It's indeed hateful. Based on the example of my brother-in-law, it's best for the eldest brother to be the head of the family. He can protect the home and not be too cruel to his younger brothers and sisters. He can even treat them kindly. Only in this way can the family thrive."

Liu Kuan smiled, "Your Highness's political savvy is indeed very good."

Zhu Biao said modestly, "My brother-in-law has explained it so clearly and easily. If I still don't understand, wouldn't I look stupid?"

After saying this, Zhu Biao remembered that he originally wanted to ask how big the technological gap between China and the Western barbarians was in later generations.

How did they catch up with the Westerners in technology over a hundred years later, and what difficulties did they encounter when building the first railway in later generations, and how was it finally completed?

However, before he could figure out how to ask, he heard the sound of hurried horse hooves outside.

At the same time, there was a loud shout -

"Report! The train is back!"

Hearing the shout, Liu Kuan and Zhu Biao stood up with surprise on their faces, and rushed downstairs almost in no particular order.

Su Quan, who was sleeping in the lounge on the second floor, was also woken up. He didn't even bother to put on his official hat and ran out. He happened to see Zhu Biao's back as he walked down the stairs.

"The Crown Prince is coming? Oh, why didn't Liu Kuan tell me to get up and greet him?"

Su Quan was stunned for a moment, complained in his heart, but he did not stop and chased down the stairs.

Liu Kuan and Zhu Biao arrived at the first-floor hall. The cavalryman who brought the news happened to come in. When he saw the two of them, he saluted from a distance with his fists clasped.

"Your Highness, Deputy Liu, the train is back. It's crossed the bridge and will be arriving at the station soon!"

At this time, a whistle sounded in the distance, and soon there was a clanging sound, getting closer and closer.

Liu Kuan hurriedly ran to the second floor - from where he could see the train passing by.

When I turned around, I saw Su Quan coming down the stairs.

The three of them didn't bother to say anything more and went back to the second-floor window to look.

After a while, the Zouwu, whose speed had been greatly reduced, relied on inertia and slowly drove into the Beijing Railway Station amid the harsh sound of brakes.

Liu Kuan, Zhu Biao and Su Quan could all see clearly that the locomotives and ten carriages of the passing Zouwu were intact. Zhang Jinrao, Guo Tianwen and others even waved excitedly through the windows of the passenger compartment to the various staff members who had been waiting outside for three days and nights.

For a moment, the entire Beijing Railway Station was filled with excited cheers.

The Zouwu has returned safely!
The first run of Daming Train was successful!

···
Forbidden City.

Although it was already midnight, the Fengxian Hall was still brightly lit—Zhu Yuanzhang was still reviewing memorials and handling state affairs. After putting down another memorial, Zhu Yuanzhang drank a sip of the health-promoting tea prescribed by the imperial physician, then frowned slightly in deep thought.

He was able to stand out from being a commoner who was almost a beggar among the many potential talents at the end of the Yuan Dynasty, become the true dragon emperor, and unify the world. He had experienced countless storms in the past few decades.

Logically, he shouldn't have been too worried about the train's inaugural run. After all, he had already figured it out: at worst, he could just give Liu Kuan and the Science and Technology Department a few more years and try again a few more times.

But when he stopped thinking about other state affairs, he couldn't help but want to know the result of the first train trip as soon as possible.

"I wonder if the Zouwu will be able to return tonight."

While thinking this in his mind, Zhu Yuanzhang frowned and prepared to go to Kunning Palace to talk with Empress Ma for a while and then take a rest. As for finding other concubines to sleep with him, he was not in the mood for that.

As Zhu Yuanzhang stepped down from the imperial throne, he heard someone outside the hall loudly reporting.

"Your Majesty, the Crown Prince sent someone to report that the train has returned to the capital!"

"it is good!"

Zhu Yuanzhang was so delighted when he heard this that his beard stood up with joy.

He immediately called the person who brought the news into the hall and asked him some detailed questions. He was even happier to learn that the Zouwu had safely entered the train station without any accidents along the way.

"Come here! Draft an edict... Let's forget about it for now."

Zhu Yuanzhang subconsciously wanted to draft an edict immediately to reward Liu Kuan and others.

But thinking that this train's first launch was a success and he had to celebrate the achievement, he couldn't just say it casually, so he suppressed his thoughts and prepared to go to Kunning Palace to inform Empress Ma of the good news that the train was returning to Beijing...

Two days later.

At the regular court session, the eunuch Silijian announced the rewards for Liu Kuan and others who had made contributions in "building trains" and "opening the Xudan section of the railway."

"Now, Liu Kuan, the consort of Princess Chongning and a deputy minister of the Ministry of Industry and Technology, has presented a telescope, a silver mirror, a secret recipe for honeycomb briquettes, a blast furnace steelmaking method, a salt pan salt drying method, a sugar production method, and methods for making the Shenwei cannon, the Hudentuo cannon, and the bird gun."

"It took another year and three months, working together with the officials of the Science and Technology Department, to develop the first train of the Ming Dynasty, the Zouwu. We also established the Railway Bureau and opened the Xudan section of the railway, allowing the Ming Dynasty to enjoy the benefits of railway transportation. This is an invaluable contribution!"

"Therefore, I enfeoff you as Earl of Science and Technology, a title which shall remain hereditary for generations to come! I also promote you to the position of Doctor of the Ministry of Works, to oversee all matters of the Science and Technology Department!"

"The Empress grants you the special honor of marrying the court lady Su as your concubine. She also grants you 800 hectares of land, 10,000 taels of gold, 30,000 taels of silver, 80,000 strings of banknotes, and a separate residence outside the capital. This is my decree!"

Liu Kuan stood in the center of Wuying Hall, clasping his hands, and felt a little confused when he heard the last part.

He had expected to be rewarded with land, gold and silver, and even to be granted a title - the Ming Dynasty's rule of not granting titles without military merit was an unspoken rule that came into being later. In the early Ming Dynasty, all the titles depended on what Zhu Yuanzhang thought.

But he was greatly surprised when the imperial edict came to the point that "the queen granted him special honors" and gave him a concubine.

Then, he remembered that the imperial physician Lou Ying had come to examine him for no apparent reason a few days ago, and he also remembered that Zhu Huilan had twice urged him to behave well this time in the past few days, and then he vaguely understood something.

"Could it be that Huilan thought she couldn't have children, so she asked Old Zhu and Empress Ma to take advantage of this great opportunity to commend me for my achievements and find me a concubine to carry on the family line?"

Thinking about Zhu Huilan's personality and recent events, Liu Kuan felt that this was most likely the case.

Then I didn’t know whether to be happy or what.

As a man, going back to the feudal era, it would be a lie to say that he didn't want to have three wives and four concubines.

But if the princess is married, it would be good enough if he could get along with his wife on an equal footing, but it is unlikely that he would take a concubine.

He never expected that due to his concern for Zhu Huilan's age, he controlled his sexual intercourse and wanted to wait two years before letting her get pregnant and have a child. However, this caused a misunderstanding and he was allowed to take a concubine.

"If Huilan finds out that she hasn't gotten pregnant for over a year, she won't suspect I did it on purpose, will she?"

Thinking this in his mind, Liu Kuan decided to find an opportunity to explain everything to Zhu Huilan.

"Uncle of Science and Technology, why don't you accept the imperial edict and express your gratitude?" Seeing that Liu Kuan was still in a daze, the eunuch reminded him.

Liu Kuan came back to his senses and bowed deeply, saying, "I accept your command and thank you for your grace!"

After receiving the imperial edict and returning to the train, Liu Kuan couldn't help muttering the title of "Er of Science and Technology".

"Uncle of Technology, the title given by Lao Zhu is quite appropriate - fortunately, it is considered that I have been awarded a title for my meritorious service. If it is just for the merit of building trains, I might be given the title of Uncle of Trains or Uncle of Locomotives..."

Liu Kuan's speculation is based on facts.

It would have been fine if Zhu Yuanzhang had chosen the names recommended by officials from the Ministry of Rites. Most of them were names like Earl of Sincerity and Earl of Courage that expressed the qualities, expectations or achievements of the person being granted the title.

But if Zhu Yuanzhang was in a good mood and wanted to come up with a title for himself, it would usually be very simple.

When Liu Kuan was concerned about naval construction before, he heard about this kind of thing from Zhu Biao - the naval generals Zhang He and Li Xincai were awarded titles for their many contributions to suppressing pirates and maritime transportation. Then Zhu Biao waved his pen and named one the Marquis of Dinghai and the other the Earl of Hanghai.

Marquis Dinghai can still be connected with the place Dinghai, but the title of Earl Hanghai is a bit too simple and straightforward at this time.

While Liu Kuan was secretly complaining about the title that Zhu Yuanzhang had personally chosen, the commendations and rewards at the court meeting were still continuing.

　Second update.

　　Good night~
　　
　　
　
(End of this chapter)