The southern suburbs of Brussels, the capital of the Kingdom of Belgium, is the famous Waterloo! Napoleon I was finally defeated here.
The spring breeze in March already has some warm feelings, but people still can't do without thick woolen coats. In the ancient battlefield, a group of people were walking among the endless withered grass. They seemed to be in a very good mood. Occasionally, a flower peeking out from among the grass could make them stop.
An old man with gray hair and beard in the crowd was the focus of the audience. He kept pointing his fingers at the ups and downs of the ancient battlefield, and in his words recited the scenes of the battle that changed the structure of Europe.
"Although we have different positions from Napoleon Bonaparte and we stand in different classes. But we also have to admit that this is a unique military commander and a relatively outstanding politician..."
"If he had won the war, what would the situation in Europe have been like?"
"Dear teacher, if Napoleon I had won, the life of the First French Empire would have been extended. So is there a possibility that the First French Empire, under the leadership of Napoleon Bonaparte, would actively develop maritime interests and expand colonies? , will we replace Britain's number one position in the world?" asked a young man in the crowd.
This person who was respectfully called the teacher was Blanqui, who gave Napoleon III a huge headache.
Today, taking advantage of his good mood, he took a group of students and friends to the ancient battlefield in the southern suburbs of Brussels for a walk.
After hearing the student's question, he couldn't help but laugh, "No, no...it's not that simple!"
"A few days ago, I received a letter from an old friend in London, in which he also discussed this issue. He gave me some suggestions that are worth thinking about!"
"Britain's strength does not entirely depend on their military strength. The Royal Navy of the Empire on which the sun never sets is indeed the best in the world and has maintained their country's hegemony, but you have to think deeply about why such a fleet would Britain appears, not other countries!”
"My old bearded friend said something that I deeply agree with. Technology is the primary productive force. The root of Britain's strength is that he stood on the historical opportunity of the first industrial revolution and successfully carried out it. A technological breakthrough.”
"The breakthroughs and widespread application of science and technology have allowed their domestic productivity to develop rapidly. It is precisely because of the advancement of productivity that the scale of their industrial product production has been greatly improved. For example, the UK can produce textiles in large quantities. It’s big, has good quality, and the price will be cheaper, making it more competitive in the international market.”
"Because this kind of competitiveness will bring endless commercial benefits, it will stimulate and force the entire British society to dump industrial products around the world. And if they want to dump industrial products around the world, they must have a powerful navy. To protect.”
"And in order to maintain such production efficiency, they also need a lot of raw material bases and product dumping bases. In this production model, Britain is destined to follow the path of colonialism."
"Now do you understand the cause-and-effect relationship? It's because Britain stood at the top of the technological tree at that time. This technological advantage was converted into a huge productivity advantage. At that time, Britain's production efficiency was the first in the world, and any No country can compare.”
"The great improvement in productivity has brought enough high-quality and low-priced goods, and these low-priced and high-quality goods must be dumped around the world. This is business interest."
"With commercial interests, humans will do everything possible to safeguard these interests, so that the British political system, military development, and diplomatic direction all revolve around this core force."
"That's why they invest huge sums of money to continuously expand the royal fleet, and that's why they continue to expand their colonies. This is what Easterners call cause and effect."
"Okay! Now let's look at the question you just mentioned. If Napoleon I succeeds, will it replace Britain? The answer is definitely no, because France did not have a technology that could surpass Britain at that time. system."
"Without reverse technology, it cannot bring about great improvements in productivity. When your country's productivity cannot surpass that of the UK, your product competitiveness will naturally be weaker than that of the UK. So how can you replace the UK's?" What about national status?”
The students around them looked like they suddenly understood, and they all nodded, "That's true. Until now, we in France still haven't universalized compulsory education for all. On the other hand, after Gladstone came to power in the UK, he was trying every means to promote it in Parliament. His universal compulsory education bill.”
"Even Prussia has started compulsory education for all. As you can imagine, they are all trying their best to climb the peak of the technological tree! At this point, France is indeed behind them."
“So, if we build a brand new republic, then the first thing to do must be Guangxing Education. We must do everything we can to stand at the peak of the next technological breakthrough. This is the only way to improve national strength. "
Blanqui said in a low voice, "I have another deep worry! If the working class wants to seize power, it cannot rely solely on military uprising. Of course, passion is necessary, but in the final analysis, if you want a long-lasting political power, you still need countless smarts. The brain!"
Blanqui suddenly fell silent at this point. He recalled the words in the bearded friend's letter, which made him very uneasy.
Who would have thought? Technology is the primary productive force. This sentence was not thought of by that old friend, but by a wise man from the East. Who is this wise man from the East? The old bearded friend didn’t know.
But Blanqui is not a fool. He can guess the clues with just a little thought. The bearded man lives in the slums of London. What kind of Oriental guests can he see?
Who else but the Eastern mission in Europe? And besides that person, who else in that Eastern mission could say such wise words?
What a man that is hard to figure out! Blanqui couldn't help but sigh in his heart.
At this moment, a figure suddenly ran out from the wasteland. "Teacher! Teacher! There is a telegram from Paris."
Blanqui took the telegram and read it at a glance. He frowned and shook his head with a sigh, "Failed... Gambida rejected our joint request as I expected... He finally chose those capitalists." !”
"What a pity, what a pity!"
