The Wind Rises in 1898: Becoming a Warlord Starting in Southeast Asia

Chapter 125 Breaking Through the Wall with a Powerful Machine

What the hell!

MIT?

Power machinery!

Chen Feng was overjoyed, feeling as if a fire was burning in his chest.

These were extremely rare top-tier technical talents during the late Qing Dynasty!

Let alone a hundred Qing Dynasty scholars who only knew classical Chinese, even a thousand or ten thousand of them piled together couldn't compare to an expert in power machinery like this!

The Qing Dynasty truly deserved to perish!

Despite possessing such a treasure, they discarded it like trash. The officials at the Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau only had eyes for the ready-made machines from foreigners, and they had no idea how valuable technological self-reliance was!

Just as he was about to speak, Chen Ronggui pointed to the passage in the book that was circled in red, his voice becoming more earnest and filled with barely suppressed excitement: "Until last month, I happened to read your book, 'The Rise of Great Powers: Britain,' which says that the Industrial Revolution is the foundation of a strong nation, and technological self-reliance is the backbone of a nation. Britain broke through the impasse with the steam engine, which led to its glorious reign as the sun never sets." These words were like a thunderclap that woke me up!

When I was studying in the United States, I made a special trip to England to investigate. I saw with my own eyes factories in Birmingham running day and night with steam engines, and trains shuttling between cities and the countryside. That was the immense power brought about by technological self-reliance!

"And you and the Chinese Free Army have given me hope!"

Chen Ronggui changed the subject, his eyes burning with passion, "You not only dare to fight the Spanish to the death, but you can also independently smelt steel and manufacture weapons. This is exactly the foundation of a strong country mentioned in 'The Rise of Great Powers'!"

The Jiangnan Bureau had steel but no weapons, and the Qing court only knew how to seek peace, but you were different!

You have the courage to fight, and even more so, the determination to develop independently. This is precisely the path to self-reliance that I have always pursued for the Chinese people!

Chen Feng looked down at the annotation on the page that read, "Chinese people should break the deadlock through industry and become self-reliant through technology," then looked at the light in Chen Ronggui's eyes and chuckled inwardly.

This is the advantage of having a good reputation; you don't need to go to great lengths to find talent. People with ideals, ambitions, and real skills will naturally come to you.

He turned to the side and pointed to the factory in the distance: "Mr. Chen, you flatter me. The Free Army is where it is today thanks to the hard work of our brothers and the support of technical talents like Mr. Wu Yangzeng. We can indeed smelt steel and manufacture guns, but we are in dire need of experts like you in power machinery."

Chen Ronggui quickly took out a stack of blueprints from his canvas bag and spread them on the wooden box next to him. "This is my design for a 1.2-horsepower single-cylinder gasoline engine. It is lighter and more fuel-efficient than a steam engine. It can drive lathes, water pumps, and can even be converted into motorized tools."

The book "The Rise of Great Powers" says that Britain rose to power through the steam engine, and we Chinese can also stand on our own by developing our own power systems!

The Chinese Free Army has its own steel, a fighting force, and with this engine, it will surely forge a path of Chinese self-reliance.

the way!"

They even brought the design drawings?

Chen Feng became increasingly excited and immediately leaned closer. His eyes fell on the precise structural markings on the blueprints, and he felt a sudden burst of inspiration.

He immediately said, "Come on, I'll take you to see Mr. Wu Yangzeng. One of you understands metallurgy, and the other understands machinery; you'll definitely be a perfect match!"

Having said that, he stepped aside and led the way without further ado, his eyes filled with longing as he glanced at the blueprints.

With the independently developed gasoline engine, lathes can be freed from the cumbersome constraints of manpower and steam, and factory efficiency can be at least doubled.

Water pumps can be motorized, making farmland irrigation much more efficient; more importantly, they can be used to drive the upgrading of the military industry.

The real confidence will come when we can build gunboats, armored vehicles, and even airplanes and tanks powered by internal combustion engines!

The three soon met at the bicycle factory.

Wu Yangzeng took the blueprints, his brow furrowed as he examined them closely. After a long while, he immediately poured cold water on the idea: "General, I heard about gasoline engines when I was studying in America years ago. Building this thing is incredibly difficult! As difficult as climbing to heaven!"

He held up two fingers and said in a deep voice, "There are two major hurdles."

First, the processing precision and materials are not up to par!

To manufacture the crankshaft for the engine, high-strength alloy steel is required. Manganese needs to be added to the steel. I need to experiment slowly to determine the specific proportions and how to control the smelting temperature. I can't guarantee the timeframe.

Even more critically, the cylinders and pistons require incredibly high precision, which our existing lathes simply cannot manufacture. The major powers would never sell high-precision lathes to foreign companies, so we had to rely on skilled technicians to hand-grind them—a process that was not only time-consuming and labor-intensive, but also had a pitifully low success rate!

He paused, pointed to the annotation in the corner of the drawing, and said in an increasingly heavy tone: "Secondly, this spark plug is a big problem! It requires high-temperature resistant ceramic insulation material. We can't even fire ordinary porcelain well now, let alone this kind of special ceramic."

And the electrodes need to be made of corrosion-resistant alloys, which is beyond my area of ​​expertise; I've never even heard of where to get them!

Upon hearing this, Chen Ronggui's expression immediately turned serious, and his fingers unconsciously clenched the hem of his clothes.

This was what he feared most: the blueprints he brought with such enthusiasm would be blocked by the technological barriers of reality, and he was afraid that Chen Feng would back down and no longer be willing to invest in research and development.

Although Chen Feng did not understand the specific technical details, he was well aware of the decisive significance of internal combustion engines for industrial upgrading, and he also knew that overcoming technical challenges was never something that could be accomplished overnight.

He immediately declared loudly: "Technical problems have never been a problem for me! If we lack materials, we'll buy them; if foreigners won't sell, we'll scavenge them on the black market; if we can't buy them, we'll make them ourselves and refine the alloys ourselves!"

There's nothing in this world that money can't solve; if there is, it's because you haven't spent enough money!

Even if it costs millions of dollars and takes years to develop this gasoline engine, I can afford to invest and wait!

As he spoke, he turned to Chen Ronggui and patted him heavily on the shoulder: "Don't worry, I will definitely support you with all my might! Let's follow the blueprints first, find the foreign powers to order the parts, and move from assembly to self-production step by step."

"I will never betray the general's trust and expectations!"

Chen Ronggui's eyes welled up with tears, and his voice choked with emotion. All the worries and anxieties of the past few days transformed into boundless enthusiasm at this moment.

Chen Feng was in a great mood, and on his way to the camp, he couldn't help but hum a tune from later times.

With the addition of such top talent and renewed hope for gasoline engine development, the Free Army has finally taken another crucial step on its path to industrial rise.

As soon as they stepped into the camp gate, Qian Biao stepped forward to report: "General, a German guest has come to visit. He says he is the German consul in Luzon named Friedrich Kluge, and he has been waiting for a long time."

German consul?

Chen Feng paused, his smile fading slightly, a hint of surprise rising in his heart.

Why would the Germans suddenly come knocking on our door at this critical juncture?

He strode toward the reception room and, from a distance, saw a man of about forty sitting through the open door.

The man was dressed in a sharp black suit, his tie was perfectly tied, and he had a serious expression, looking extremely old-fashioned.

"Consul Kruger, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting." Chen Feng stepped forward and extended his hand.

In the instant of shaking hands, a map of Germany's current strength in Asia flashed through his mind: a total force of only three or four thousand men, and the main naval force consisted of only one armored cruiser, the "Deutschland," three protected cruisers, plus some insignificant gunboats and torpedo boats. In terms of strength, it was far inferior to the deployment of Britain and the United States in Southeast Asia.

Yet this country, with its weak military in Asia, dared to come knocking at this time.

They couldn't possibly be unaware of the news that the US military was about to take over Luzon, and they were even more aware of their cooperative relationship with the US military.

What exactly is this old guy doing here?

Kruger clearly didn't understand Chinese, and as soon as he sat down, he spoke in fluent English with a German accent, his tone tinged with surprise: "Chen, you are younger than I imagined, and more charismatic than the rumors suggest."

Chen Feng led him into the reception room and asked directly, "I wonder what brings Mr. Kruger here today?"

I am aware that your country secretly supported Spain in this Spanish-American War, and I also know that you are likely aware of my cooperative relationship with the US military. Logically speaking, there shouldn't be much room for cooperation between us now.

Kruger didn't mince words. He picked up the iced tea on the table, took a sip, and put the cup down, his tone already carrying a hint of sincerity: "To be honest, the US military has now blockaded the waters off Manila. In the entire Luzon region, only your and the Zheng family's merchant ships can pass under the noses of the US military."

The American victory is imminent, but our German trading company still has a considerable amount of goods stockpiled in warehouses across the country. If these are seized by the American forces, the losses will be incalculable. I hope you can help smuggle them out; a generous reward will follow.

Chen Feng remained expressionless and asked, "Such a big matter, you should have contacted the Zheng family first, right? After all, their shipping network in Southeast Asia is much more advanced than mine."

"To be honest, the Zheng family has many concerns and dares not offend the US military, so they have clearly rejected me."

Kruger readily admitted, a hint of helplessness flashing in his eyes, "Their business spans across Southeast Asia, and they are unwilling to risk damaging their relationship with the US military for a few goods in Luzon."

Chen Feng did not rush to respond; his mind raced.

Germany's interests in Luzon are already limited, so the amount of stockpiled goods is unlikely to be too large, and the risk of assisting in smuggling seems low.

However, Malolos has not yet received his approval, nor has an autonomy agreement with the US military been signed, and his legitimacy has not yet been recognized.

If news of the smuggling leaks out, the US military will inevitably become suspicious, which may lead to unforeseen complications and affect the overall subsequent plans.

They can only start helping after at least signing a formal agreement with the US military and gaining control of Malolos.

After considering the pros and cons, Chen Feng immediately said, "There's really no way to help you get your goods out of Luzon right now. The US military is watching too closely, and the risk is too great."

"But if you trust me, you can have your citizens transfer the goods to areas controlled by my Chinese Free Army. I will send people to safeguard them properly. After the war ends and the situation in Luzon stabilizes after the US military takes over, I will help you transport the goods safely."

"Sure!" Kruger nodded with a smile almost without hesitation, a barely perceptible glint in his eyes.

Through these few probing questions, he had already grasped the key.

The Chinese Free Army and the U.S. military are not unbreakable allies. Chen Feng has his own considerations and bottom lines in his actions and has not completely relied on the U.S. military.

Kruger leaned forward slightly, his tone carrying a deeper meaning, and asked again, "Chen, I'm curious, can the conditions promised by the US military truly satisfy your ambitions?"

As far as I know, the United States will never allow a truly independent and powerful Chinese force to emerge in Luzon.

Aren't you afraid that once they have complete control of Luzon, they'll turn around and target you?

"Of course I'm afraid."

Chen Feng, seizing the opportunity, deliberately feigned concern and asked, "Since Consul Kruger has said so, presumably..."

"Do you have a good plan to teach me?"

A glint flashed in Kruger's eyes, clearly indicating he was prepared, and he immediately said, "Chen, it's good that you can see the situation clearly."

After the Spanish withdrawal from the Philippines, the US takeover of Luzon was far from smooth. The independence army would not easily surrender and would likely continue to cause trouble for several more years, which is your most precious window of opportunity.

You need to rapidly increase your strength during this chaotic period, and we in Germany are precisely the kind of country that can provide you with sufficient assistance.

"What kind of help?" Chen Feng asked at just the right moment.

Kluge chuckled, "Precision machine tools, artillery ammunition, special materials—we Germans can sell you all of that. You could never get these things from the United States."

That sounds nice!

You still have to spend money to buy it!

However, being able to purchase these core technologies and materials that were blocked by the great powers is already a huge surprise!

Chen Feng inwardly curled his lip and asked, "I'm willing to buy from you if the price is right. But I believe you Germans aren't just looking to do business, are you?"

Upon hearing this, Kruger was not embarrassed by having his thoughts exposed. Instead, he tilted his head back and chuckled, "Chen is indeed a smart man. He understands immediately."

He leaned back slightly, picked up the iced tea on the table, took a sip, and then slowly began to speak: "Doing business is fundamental. We German businessmen never miss any opportunity to make money. It's only natural to sell high-quality machine tools and artillery to those who know their value. But besides that, we do have a little bit of selfishness."

He abruptly changed the subject, his tone becoming serious: "You should know that the Far East today is dominated by Britain, the United States, France, and Russia."

Britain occupies India and Malaya, and controls the Strait of Malacca; the United States has swallowed Hawaii and is about to take over the Philippines, its ambitions are obvious; France holds the Indochina Peninsula, and Tsarist Russia is eyeing the Northeast.

Only Germany's voice is too weak on this land.

Kruger leaned forward and lowered his voice: "We need an ally, an ally in Luzon, and even in East Asia, who can speak up for us."

You are different; you have an army, territory, and capabilities.

More importantly, you are not affiliated with any major power. The US military wants to use you, but also guards against you; the British military looks down on Chinese influence and doesn't bother with you; the French military is preoccupied with its own problems and has no energy to deal with you.

He spread his hands, his tone full of temptation: "What we're selling you isn't just machine tools and artillery, but a way for you to break free from the constraints imposed by the US military."

If you use our equipment to build stronger weapons and produce better steel, you won't have to depend on the Americans anymore.

All we need from you is a commitment to prioritize cooperation with German trading companies once we've established a foothold in Luzon: [regarding] the interests in the Far East.

In matters of interest and conflict, please give more consideration to Germany's position.

Kruger looked at Chen Feng, his smile full of meaning: "This isn't control, it's cooperation. You strengthen yourself, and we gain a foothold in the Far East. Isn't that much better than you just becoming a vassal of the Americans?"

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