1900: A physics genius wandering around Europe

Chapter 171 The Two Paths of the Predecessors and the Travelers

Time flies, and 1903 passed quietly in the midst of everyone's busyness.

The Qing Dynasty suffered major defeats in several wars, was severely damaged, and was on the decline, seemingly on the verge of extinction.

But the emergence of the New Deal seemed to bring new hope to this corrupt empire.

Many officials reported to Cixi, flattered her and shouted that a prosperous era was coming.

The Empress Dowager Lao Fu turned the tide and with her foresight, she made the Qing Dynasty strong and prosperous again.

Cixi was in a good mood and she set aside some money to build a garden for herself.

Because the new policy encourages industry and commerce, various private enterprises in the Qing Dynasty are now developing rapidly.

The prosperity of business created more wealth, and when people had money, the court naturally collected more taxes.

In real history, the fiscal revenue of the Qing Dynasty in 1900 was 8800 million taels of silver.

But by 1908, this figure had suddenly increased to 2 million taels of silver.

By 1911, it had reached a staggering 3 million taels of silver.

This is the power of industry and commerce.

The imperial court had previously banned commerce, but now it encourages it, so there has been a huge backlash.

In the Middle Ages, the taxes collected by the imperial court were basically agricultural taxes.

The natural attributes of agriculture determine that its upper limit is too low.

Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, industry and commerce have experienced explosive growth.

Massive quantities of goods were produced, and wealth increased exponentially.

Therefore, even a feudal country like the Qing Dynasty, after tasting a little bit of the benefits of the Industrial Revolution, dared to call itself a prosperous era.

However, beneath the appearance of prosperity, internal contradictions in the Qing Dynasty continued to intensify, with no sign of being resolved.

At the same time, the voices of revolutionaries frequently appeared in the country, and various revolutionary organizations were established in an attempt to overthrow the Qing Dynasty.

Li Qiwei discovered that Zhou Ziyu was very active during this period and often went to Shanghai, saying that he was inviting his friends to become professors at Huangpu University of Technology.

However, Li Qiwei knew the truth and did not expose the other party.

Anyway, he will not join any organization. Judging from the time, several revolutionary organizations should be established this year, and they will be very famous in later generations.

But Li Qiwei had already decided to go his own way, and no ideas could convince him.

"Brother Zhou, you and I hit it off right away, and I don't want our relationship to be hurt because of something."

"To be honest with you, I can't stay in China for long. In the future, I will return to Europe to continue my scientific research career."

"I can provide you with shelter for the time being, but you must be careful."

"I personally believe that the Qing Dynasty will fall, perhaps within ten years."

There was no shock on Zhou Ziyu's face. He had been getting along with Li Qiwei for some time and had already figured out his temper.

"Hey, Qiwei, the most regrettable thing in my life is that you can't join the revolution."

"To be honest, I felt very uncomfortable when you became Guangxu's imperial tutor."

"How can a Han elite like you work for the Tartars and help them commit atrocities?"

"With your identity and your connections in Western countries, if you were to participate in the anti-Qing cause, it would surely inspire the passion of our Chinese warriors."

"Perhaps it can accelerate the demise of the Qing Dynasty."

"But why do you insist on education?"

"I admit that education is important, including myself. The means of revolution is to popularize education and promote new ideas."

"But you are different. You seem to be stuck in science and engineering education and can't extricate yourself."

"Of course, knowledge of the study of things is important, otherwise the West would not have been able to take the lead in launching the Industrial Revolution."

"But do you think that what China needs most right now is physics or chemistry?"

Li Qiwei remained silent. He really didn't have enough reasons to prove his idea.

Zhou Ziyu continued, "Qiwei, do you remember the first time we met?"

"I was indeed convinced by you at that time."

"You arm China's body with natural science knowledge, and I arm China's brain with revolutionary ideas."

“This is a really wonderful plan, impeccable.”

"However, this year, when I saw the new policy in full swing, I discovered a fatal problem."

"That is, your plan takes too long!"

"Growing up to the point where the brave warriors in the country who are interested in revolution can't wait."

"What we should do now is to overthrow the Qing Dynasty first, and then slowly develop science and technology."

"You are still too optimistic."

"Even if someone who can turn the tide appears in the Qing Dynasty and uses your power to suppress the revolutionaries, that would be too unacceptable."

At this time, Li Qiwei was finally moved, and at the same time, he discovered a problem that he had been ignoring.

That is, he is the only one in this world who knows the direction of future history.

Therefore, he can take his time and quietly develop education and improve technology.

As long as we have absolute force before the critical point, we can protect China. But others don't know.

Zhou Ziyu didn’t know, and neither did the revolutionaries.

In their eyes, the Qing Dynasty is now showing signs of revival, which is alarming.

If another figure like Kangxi or Yongzheng emerges, the revolution will definitely face unprecedented challenges.

Therefore, Zhou Ziyu must first liberate his mind and then consider science.

From his point of view, there is nothing wrong with this idea and it is even the best option.

Only at this time did Li Qiwei feel the greatness of his predecessors in history.

They sacrificed their lives and shed their blood without fear, not because they saw the future, but because they believed in the future!

As long as they have faith in their hearts, even if there is darkness ahead, it will not shake their determination.

Li Qiwei would never dare to be so arrogant as to persuade Zhou Ziyu not to take risks.

If it weren't for the efforts of these revolutionary organizations, could the Qing Dynasty really have been declared extinct in 1912?

At this moment, Li Qiwei realized that the reason he could climb the technology tree with peace of mind was that he was standing on the shoulders of his predecessors.

He was in awe.

Although he still won't change his mind.

Because the revolution did not solve the real problems, decades of chaos followed.

However, he can provide these great predecessors with help to the best of his ability.

"Brother Zhou, I understand your idea."

“But I have my own beliefs.”

"Your path is to solve the most pressing problems of our time."

"But my path is to prepare for the future."

"Once a revolution breaks out across the country, it will inevitably fall into chaos."

“By then, it will be even more difficult to engage in education.”

"Besides, I have news for you."

“The development of physics has reached a critical stage.”

"In the future, there may well be very scary weapons."

"The amount of manpower, material resources, and financial resources required for this type of weapon is unimaginable."

"If we don't get hold of this weapon in the first place, we will be in a very passive position."

"This is the most fundamental reason why I have been patient and low-key in developing education."

When Zhou Ziyu heard the secret deep in Li Qiwei's heart, he was also shocked and broke out in a cold sweat.

He didn't expect that Li Qiwei would have such difficulties.

Considering his status as a great master of Western learning, this statement cannot be false.

Then it makes sense to plan ahead decades.

"Qiwi. You. Hey."

"Perhaps in the future all the people in the country will need to thank you."

"In fact, there was a revolutionary organization that planned to assassinate you before."

"Because they believe you are a running dog of the Qing Dynasty. Otherwise, why would they spare no effort to help the Tartars with education?"

"But after today, you deserve all of our admiration."

"You are prepared to spend your whole life fighting for China!"

Li Qiwei was also shocked and broke out in a cold sweat. He didn't expect such a thing to happen. Fortunately, he opened up to Zhou Ziyu today.

Otherwise, it would be very unlucky if you were taken away by your own people.

"Brother Zhou, to show my support for you, I can introduce you to some Western arms companies."

"I think a revolution without the support of force is meaningless."

Zhou Ziyu was overjoyed, "That's great, Qiwei, you really solved the urgent problem."

"On behalf of all the people with lofty ideals across the country, I want to thank you."

Li Qiwei said quickly: "I am only doing my bit. You are the ones doing the truly dangerous things."

"Brother Zhou, please go back and spread the word that I am not a running dog of the Qing Dynasty."

Zhou Ziyu laughed loudly, "Don't worry, Qiwei, your innocent heart is evident to all the world."

"Besides, don't worry, I will continue to work at Huangpu Polytechnic University."

"Since you have such a grand plan, I will naturally lend you a helping hand."

"I hope that in my lifetime, I can see the grand occasion of China dominating the world!"

Li Qiwei laughed loudly and said, "Don't worry, Brother Zhou, this day won't last long."

(End of this chapter)