After translating the Star Wars prequels, Yu Deling gave the translation manuscript to Li Yu.
Because I had to leave in a hurry, I only had an English translation this time, but it was enough.
Yu Deling actually wanted to go to the United States to visit, but as Cixi's female official, although she was not too busy, she couldn't leave for too long.
In addition, Li Yu also wanted to make a copy and send it to the "Oriental Magazine" owned by Zhang Yuanji of Shanghai Commercial Press, which he had already agreed to before.
Li Yu didn't have time to transcribe, so Konoe Akihiko came to deliver the mechanics books he borrowed some time ago.
So Li Yu gave the job to her and warned: "It is currently a confidential stage, do not spread it out."
"Keep it secret?" Konoe Akiyuki immediately became interested upon hearing this word, "I will definitely complete the mission well!"
Li Yu said: "Also, tell Hu Jiayan and the others that we will leave for the United States in a while and be prepared."
Li Yu selected a total of five students, including Konoe Akiyuki, to accompany him.
One of them is called Hu Jiayan. This guy is quite interesting. He is the grandson of Hu Xueyan, the legendary red-top businessman in the late Qing Dynasty.
Hu Xueyan has been in a very miserable state since his home was confiscated, but he is still better off than ordinary people.
At that time, Hu Qingyutang had 120 "signature shares", each worth about 10,000 taels of silver. Wen Yu, the Minister of Internal Affairs who took over Hu Qingyutang, still handed over 18 of the shares to the Hu family to maintain their livelihood.
Hu Xueyan has two grown-up sons, the main one in China is Hu Pinsan.
The other older son, Hu Jinsan, sent all his children to study abroad.
When he was dying, Hu Xueyan once made a family motto: "Don't go near the white tiger." White tiger means silver. This means that his descendants will not be allowed to do business.
Naturally, it was not possible to enter politics, because Hu Xueyan was originally a red-top businessman, that is, an official and a businessman. In the feudal era, there was almost no separation between the official and businessmen.
In the feudal era, there were not many ways out. All of a sudden, official and business paths were blocked.
Hu Jiayan was Hu Jiansan's son. Seeing that there was no hope for academic achievement and fame, he turned his interest to Western learning.
He inherited some of Hu Xueyan's brains and could roughly see that Li Yu had great potential and following him would be a good way, so he decided to join him.
He did not violate the Hu family's training. There is still a difference between industry and commerce.
Li Yu also feels that he has a flexible mind and that a family that has experienced downturn will pay special attention to some life experiences and principles when raising children, so as not to have too much mood swings. It is worth cultivating.
——
Konoe Akiyuki returned to her separate bedroom and immediately read the "secret document" carefully, only to discover in the end that it was just a novel manuscript.
I suddenly felt a little discouraged, and after Lu Bicheng polished it, there was not even Li Yu's handwriting.
It's just...it's really interesting to read.
After finishing the transcription work, Konoe Akiyuki went to Aoki Mansion to report, and finally met Aoki Nozumi himself for the rare occasion.
It was almost the end of the year, and the situation between Japan and Russia was extremely tense. Nobuzumi Aoki spent most of his time conducting secret surveys in the Northeast region.
To be precise, Japan is the one who is really nervous.
Because Russia still does not believe that Japan will take action.
The Japanese side had almost made up their mind to kill Lao Maozi, but they didn't have much confidence in their hearts. Of course, they were always nervous.
After learning that she was going to the United States with Li Yu, Aoki Xuanzhun said: "This is a good opportunity to explore the situation in the United States."
Konoe Akiyuki asked: "Is there anyone I can contact in the United States?"
Aoki Xuanzhun shook his head: "No."
Although there are Japanese spies everywhere in China, even most of the Japanese who come to China are almost spies.
But even if we push it back a few decades, Japan's intelligence agencies in the United States are basically blank.
It seemed that he was going to fight alone, so Konoe Aki had no choice but to accept it calmly: "Akiyuki understands."
Tou Shanman on the side said: "If you can get close to Li Yu, you should be able to get a lot of information."
So the breakthrough point still lies with Li Yu.
Nobuzumi Aoki asked: "What progress has been made recently?"
Konoe Akiyuki said: "Not yet, but I think only a long-term approach can catch big fish, so I am not in a hurry to act."
Nobuzumi Aoki strongly agrees with Konoe Akiyuki's strategy: "It's very good. To deal with smart people, we must be patient and use smart methods. Once the fish takes the bait, we will be more proactive."
——
A few days later, it was time to set off. Since Zhang Baixi and other second-grade officials were accompanying us, we had almost booked three train cars.
One carriage is reserved for university administrators, such as Zhang Baixi and Japanese academic Hattori Unoyoshi; the other compartment is for international students from the university; and one compartment is reserved for women, including their family members accompanying them to see them off.
Because some university students have already started families and started careers, they must bring some family members with them after going abroad for such a long time. Anyway, the benefits of government-sponsored study abroad are very generous, so it won’t be a big problem if the whole family can go there.
It was the first time for many people to take a train, let alone a ship. They had never even seen the sea, so they were very excited along the way.
Gu Hongming and Yan Fu were also on the train. Due to Li Yu's special status, they were in the same compartment as them.
Gu Hongming said: "I heard that a counselor from Germany came to see you a few days ago."
Li Yu said: "Yes, he wants to come and discuss Zhuangzi, which is really ridiculous."
Gu Hongming snorted: "No matter what, foreigners will not understand our classics."
Yan Fu said: "Mr. Gu also wants to translate The Analects of Confucius abroad."
Gu Hongming said: "General Manager Yan, you know how to translate. If you look at the Four Books translated by foreigners themselves, you will probably be angry to death. If I don't do this, their misunderstandings may be even greater."
But in fact, no matter how good the translation is, it is of little use. Until later generations, most foreigners still regard "The Analects" as just a collection of aphorisms and do not think it has such a profound influence.
Yan Fu stroked his beard: "It is easier for us to understand foreigners. It is much easier to translate foreign texts into Chinese. It's just that there are too few translated books now, so we can't really get a glimpse of the whole picture of the West."
After all, Chinese is too special and complex, and its charm is difficult to convey.
Ku Hongming said: "To say that what has been translated into foreign languages and really spread, it has to be your Star Wars novels."
Li Yu smiled and said: "It's just a recreational reading. This time I happened to have a translated sequel to publish."
"Is there already a sequel?" Gu Hongming asked.
"It should be said to be a prequel," Li Yu said.
"Interesting! I will definitely read it as soon as possible." Gu Hongming had never read such a novel before, and he was very interested.
And for them, reading novels is a great leisure and pleasure.
After arriving in Tanggu, everyone needs to wait for the ship to arrive.
Zhang Baixi took this time to give a good mobilization speech to the students.
Li Yu had no interest. He just wanted them to study hard and come back to serve the country in the future.
But he knew that these students would indeed serve the country in the future, but soon they would no longer be the Qing Dynasty.
Just as he was about to walk around, he saw Lu Bicheng walking over with two old men in the distance.
"Is he Li Yu?" The speaker was an old man.
Lu Bicheng replied: "Yes, uncle, you...don't speak too harshly to him."
He is Lu Bicheng’s maternal uncle, Yan Fengsheng.
After the Lu family's property was usurped, Lu Bicheng's mother, Yan, took her several daughters to live with her uncle who was a salt transport envoy in Tanggu.
Now Yan Fengsheng has resigned from the position of Salt Transport Envoy, but he has saved a lot of savings over the years.
The salt transport envoy is a third-grade official, which may not sound big, but in ancient times, salt and iron were the exclusive business, and the profits from salt were extremely considerable.
The Salt Transport Envoy was not under the jurisdiction of the local government and had a large amount of silver in the treasury, so he even had his own private armed forces, the Salt Soldiers.
Generally, over the course of a few years, a salt transporter would be able to acquire hundreds of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of taels of silver.
It feels a bit similar to the Tianjin Road that Tang Shaoyi served as.
Yan Fengsheng said: "You still have the nerve to protect me? I have heard that you two, a man and a woman, went to Europe to stay for so long! How unbecoming! It's just that my uncle was too busy back then and didn't discipline him well. You don't have any characteristics of a girl from a good family.
Look."
Yan quickly protected Lu Bicheng: "Brother, you speak too harshly."
"Why did I say it so harshly? Why, I still can't teach her a lesson?" Yan Fengsheng said, "I'll go meet him right now."
But when he came to Li Yu, he still softened his expression and said in a deep voice: "Are you the current emperor's master, Li Yu?"
Li Yu glanced at Lu Bicheng standing in the distance and replied: "That's right."
Yan Fengsheng said: "I, Yan Fengsheng, am a former salt transport envoy and Bicheng's uncle."
Li Yu said: "It turns out to be the Salt Transport Envoy. I'm glad to meet you!"
Yan Fengsheng said: "We already know the situation and have made inquiries in many ways."
Li Yu was a little puzzled: "Inquiry?"
Yan Fengsheng continued: "It is really amazing that the Imperial Master can receive such high courtesy in Western countries."
Li Yu clasped his fists and said, "If you give me a prize, please give me a prize."
"But even though you are an elite of Western learning," Yan Fengsheng looked at Li Yu a lot, "you have also cut your hair. You may be advocating foreign customs, but major events like weddings and funerals will eventually return to their roots. It is not a piece of cake."
"What?" Li Yu was stunned.
——
Lu Bicheng, her mother Yan Shi, and her little sister Lu Kunxiu stood far aside.
Lu Kunxiu is only fourteen years old now. She took Lu Bicheng's hand and said, "Sister, that brother is so tall and handsome. You really have a vision."
Lu Bicheng smiled and said: "You little girl, what do you know?"
Lu Xiukun straightened his back: "I know everything!"
Mrs. Yan said to Lu Bicheng: "Xianxi (Lu Bicheng's real name), my mother has been here before. Don't lose your virginity casually. Children from rich families often lie to kind-hearted silly girls like you."
Lu Bicheng held her hand: "Mom, no."
"It's not what?" Yan said, "You have been independent since you were a child. You are different from ordinary girls, but you can't learn from the bad things like foreigners."
"Where did I learn bad things?" Lu Bicheng asked.
Yan said: "You two men and two women have gone thousands of miles away. What is the role of a eldest daughter?"
Lu Bicheng said: "I..."
Yan continued: "What if he is irresponsible? Your uncle came to him for your own good. You can't let him let you down!"
Lu Bicheng quickly shook her head: "Mom, why haven't you even written your horoscope?"
"What do you mean? Is it true?" Yan asked.
Lu Bicheng immediately said: "Mom, don't ask, it's really nothing."
Yan Fengsheng on the other side really wanted to call an army to hold him accountable, but Li Yu was a respectable person anyway, so his words were still polite.
Yan Fengsheng said: "My Bicheng cannot let you tarnish her reputation in vain. Now the whole world knows that she and you went to foreign countries alone. How will she meet people in the future? What if..."
Before Yan Fengsheng finished speaking, someone suddenly greeted Li Yu: "Mr. Li Yu, I finally found you!"
Yan Fengsheng turned his head. I was obedient and ignored Li Yu. I immediately came over and said, "Master Tai Tai! Why are you here?"
Yuan Shikai glanced at Yan Fengsheng: "Are you Yan Fengsheng, the former salt transport envoy?"
Yan Fengsheng nodded vigorously and said: "It's the official."
"I see."
Yuan Shikai didn't want to pay attention to him and walked towards Li Yu, "The wireless telegraph machines you gave me are so useful! I heard from Tang Daotai that you also gave me a friendship price. Doesn't this make Beiyang owe you another favor?"
Li Yu smiled and said: "It's good as long as it's useful. After all, we are all Chinese."
Yuan Shikai was very happy: "You are really an incredible talent! This is the first time I have seen something made by our own people that is more advanced than foreigners. It's so shameless. We must supply more of this thing in the future and don't ask for any friendly price. It should be
How much is what, we can't let you spend money before you hand over the money. Beiyang is not a place short of money."
Tang Shaoyi said from the side: "Little brother Li Yu, the commander is right."
Li Yu cupped his hands and said: "In the future, I will give priority to supplying Beiyang."
"I like to hear this!" Yuan Shikai was very happy and continued, "Listen to Tang Daotai, you are going to take Miss Bicheng and a few students to the United States again? Will she be there today?"
"That's right, you want to visit my factory in the United States," Li Yu greeted Lu Bicheng, "The Governor is calling for you."
"Me?" Lu Bicheng was a little panicked.
The Yan family next to her was even more dumbfounded. Yuan Shikai was now the governor-general of Zhili and the minister of Beiyang, with a high and powerful position.
Lu Bicheng approached and bowed, "Sir."
Yuan Shikai said: "Don't be rigid. After all, you have a close relationship with Emperor Shi Li Yu."
Li Yu suddenly thought: "Master Taiwan, since we are going to implement the New Deal, why not build a girls' school in Jinmen now?"
Yuan Shikai was determined to build his base in Tianjin into a demonstration site for the New Deal. After thinking for a while, he nodded and said: "It's a good idea. Foreigners all have female schools, and we should indeed have them."
Li Yu knew that Lu Bicheng was interested in promoting women's rights and promoting women's education, so he suggested: "I thought that Miss Shi Bicheng could be of great help."
"It must be a big deal!" Yuan Shikai said, "Since you have suggested it, the future head teacher of the Women's School must be the girl from Bicheng."
Lu Bicheng was a little confused, why did she suddenly become the head teacher of the women's school: "Sir, I am afraid that a common girl is not worthy of the position."
"You are the most talented woman in Beijing and Tianjin. Who else is more suitable than you to be the head teacher of the Women's School?" Yuan Shikai made the decision directly.
Yan Fengsheng and Mrs. Yan on the side were completely dumbfounded.
It turns out that Li Yu was not only the emperor's teacher, but also famous in Europe and America, and he even had such a good relationship with the Governor of Zhili?
Yan Fengsheng originally wanted to teach Lu Bicheng not to abide by women's ways and virtues, but now she has directly become the head teacher of the women's school appointed by Yuan Shikai. How can she teach her a lesson?
Yuan Shikai was a busy man, so when he saw that Zhang Baixi was talking about the same thing, he went to see him again.
After Yuan Shikai left, Yan Fengsheng's face was already full of smiles: "Master Imperial Master, Bicheng is a bit wild and likes to travel around. You will have to take care of her in the future."
Li Yu said: "This is a good habit."
"Yes, yes! Good habits, of course they are good habits!" Yan Fengsheng said, "As long as the emperor likes it. But you must give Bicheng a status no matter what. Bicheng still knows the three obediences and four virtues, the three cardinal principles and the five constant principles."
Li Yu cupped his hands and said, "When I return to China, I will definitely visit you in the future."
Yan Fengsheng was even more happy. In his opinion, coming to propose marriage was a matchmaker marrying someone. She was definitely not a concubine, but a wife. "The emperor is really a good man in this world!"