In another time and space, Paris, with its spacious streets and magnificent beauty, was actually the masterpiece of Haussmann, the mayor of Paris in the mid-19th century. It took him more than ten years to completely transform the entire city from top to bottom, leading to its current prototype. As for Paris at this time, it is still a traditional city left over from the Middle Ages. There are dilapidated wooden shacks everywhere beside the ancient buildings; the streets are narrow and crowded, sewage flows across the ground, human and animal excrement is all over the ground, and the stench is everywhere, so much so that the king does not want to live in the city.
How did the old saying come about? After entering an abalone shop, you won't smell the smell for a long time.
From the moment he landed in Le Havre, an indescribable smell lingered around Zhao Xin; after attending a dinner attended by the mayor, councilors and gorgeous women, His nostrils were filled with the strong smell of perfume again. As soon as I got up on the third day, the allergic rhinitis I had not suffered for many years finally came to my door.
Okay, now I can't smell anything...
When the long carriage convoy entered the city of Paris, it was welcomed by countless citizens who came after hearing the news. The "sans-culottes" in Paris looked curiously at the "sans-culottes" from the East. When they saw that the Chinese people waving to them from the covered carriages were actually wearing straight trousers, they immediately burst into enthusiasm. cheers. Only some well-informed businessmen were surprised, because the dress and even the mental outlook of the Chinese people in front of them were completely different from the Chinese people on the porcelain and picture albums; the most important thing was that they did not have that little braid!
Among the people in Beihai Town, except for Zhao Xin and Deng Fei, everyone else, including Jiao Xun, Huang Chengji, and Elu, looked indifferent to the boiling scene in front of them, except for occasionally smiling and waving in greeting. . You must know that they have already experienced a scene of nearly ten thousand people watching in Le Havre before, but now it is just a small thing.
"Mr. Jiao, this place is really dirty, far worse than our Beihai Town!"
After hearing what Elu said, Jiao Xun nodded slightly, deeply agreeing with it. Huang Chengji, who was standing next to him, pointed to a building and said, "The house here looks unique, but I don't know what it looks like inside."
Elu said: "I think they are all the same, almost the same as the one in Le Havre."
Huang Chengji retorted: "Commander, this is the capital of a country, how can it be the same as a port! Cousin Li, don't you think so?"
At this time, Jiao Xun's mind was not at all on the conversation. The reason why he was willing to travel thousands of miles to the West was not only to see the scenery, but also to meet the European mathematicians Zhao Xin mentioned. During the days of studying diligently in Beihai Town, Jiao Xun, who was immersed in mathematics, read many works of European mathematicians from the 17th to 18th centuries with the help of Markarius and Ferapontov. If Euler, whom he admired so much, had not passed away nine years ago, he would have really wanted to write a letter to him.
That's right, Jiao Xun, who had read the Four Books and Five Classics, was most interested not in being an official, but in studying mathematics. Especially after being framed by his relatives and rescued by Zhao Xin and Wang Yuanfang, Jiao Xun's view of human nature became increasingly pessimistic. From then on, he plunged into books and ignored everything.
With a good foundation in studying the Book of Changes and arithmetic in his early years, Jiao Xun has read all the basic mathematics books in Beihai Town in the past two years, and the teachers in the primary school are not enough to teach him. After Zhao Xin learned of the situation, he took the time to have an in-depth talk with Jiao Xun. He said that since you have no intention of career, then do something for me.
Naturally, Jiao Xun wanted to repay the family's savior. He didn't even ask, he just said that it was not against human ethics and morality. Zhao Xin said that he will give you two years to prepare for the first higher education college in Beihai Town, and you will be the principal. At present, there are primary schools and technical schools in Beihai Town, but there is no school that teaches advanced knowledge.
There is no need to worry about the liberal arts in the college. Most of the people in the "Eight Eccentrics of New Yangzhou" are masters of Confucian classics in this era; but the science is too weak. Whether it is Wang Zhenyi or Jiao Xun, their level is at most the high school mathematics of later generations. Even in some aspects it is enough for junior high school level.
Just when Zhao Xin was thinking about whether to recruit more people from another time and space, Degenie happened to go to Bacheng to ask for help. As a result, Zhao Xin's eyes naturally fell on those European mathematicians of this era, and Jiao Xun and Huang Chengji also followed.
When he was in Senegal, when Jiao Xun learned from Zhao Xin that a massacre had occurred in Paris, he was a little anxious and didn't know if he would be able to meet the math masters Zhao Xin mentioned.
It is said that there were six most famous mathematicians during the "French Revolution", and they were also called the "Six Heroes of Mathematics" by later generations. Lagrange, who had just married, Condorcet, who was a member of the National Convention, Monge, who was currently serving as Minister of the Navy and would later advocate the founding of the "Ecole Polytechnique", and Lacroix, who would later serve as the director of the mathematics department of the Collège de France, were known as Lazar Carnot, the "organizer of victory", and Laplace, who first predicted black holes in the universe.
Although they were all from the eighteenth century, their achievements were first-rate even in later generations; it was the research and theories of these people that laid the foundation of modern mathematics.
We must know that the three industrial revolutions in human history would not have been completed without the participation of mathematicians and the application of mathematical theories. If China under the rule of Beihai Town wants to be proud of the world, it needs a large number of mathematical talents.
Oh, right! There was another person who Fang Hua came to Zhao Xin personally before leaving and strongly urged him to save him - Lavoisier.
Zhao Xin, who was waving to the crowds on both sides of the road, looked at the faces and dilapidated streets outside the window, and suddenly the passage from Dickens at the beginning of "A Tale of Two Cities" came to his mind:
"The times are holy, the times are evil. This is also the world of ignorance, this is also the world of wisdom. This is also the season of light, this is also the season of darkness. This is also the year of faith, this is also the year of great confusion. This is also the year of great beauty. In the spring of spring, this is also the winter of despair. People may be capable of all things, but people may accomplish nothing. For me, the blue clouds will rise straight up, and for me, the yellow springs will fall forever."
Deng Fei, who was sitting opposite him, listened and said, "I noticed that since you became a disciple of Wang Zhong, your speech has become more and more formal. What are you babbling about?"
Zhao Xin asked: "Have you not read the opening paragraph of "A Tale of Two Cities"?"
"I think I saw it in middle school, but I don't remember it."
Degenie on the side asked curiously: "Mr. Zhao, are you reading poetry? Can General Deng translate it into French so that I can appreciate it?"
Zhao Xin thought for a moment, and then repeated it in English stumblingly. Before Deng Fei could finish the translation, Degenie was stunned. After a while, he looked at the scene outside the carriage, recalling what he had heard about what happened in Paris before. He repeatedly muttered words such as "ignorant wisdom" and "dim light", and his eyes became increasingly dim. .....
The accommodation for the group from Beihai Town was arranged by the Paris City Council in a unit building at the southeast corner of Place des Vosges. The two buildings are adjacent to each other, with a total of four floors including the attic. The red and white exterior walls and dark blue roof, supplemented by Rococo style decoration, look very good from the outside. This is a wealthy area in the city, with good security, surrounded by green trees, and a beautiful environment. It is completely different from the shabby neighborhoods that Zhao Xin and the others saw before.
After everyone got off the bus, the special envoy who made a special trip to Le Havre to greet the Beihai Town delegation, Henry Tundu, the secretary of the current Minister of Foreign Affairs and Military Affairs Pierre Lebrun, introduced diligently: "Gentlemen , this used to be the residence of a certain count, but he had fled to Brussels in disgrace with the Count of Provence, so the National Assembly confiscated the place and classified it as public property. Before I left, the mayor, Mr. Villeneuve, welcomed me Since everyone has arrived, I have ordered people to clean this place up."
After Henry Tundu finished speaking, he called to the row of people standing in line at the door to introduce him.
In order to welcome the God of Wealth who came from afar... ahem, it was a friendly delegation. The mayor of Paris actually arranged for two full-time butlers who had served the nobles - wearing wigs, knee-length shorts and stockings. A dozen handy servants, several cooks and four coachmen.
Zhao Xin and Deng Fei glanced at it and then nodded pretendingly. The two looked at each other, and Deng Fei took Henry Tundu aside and whispered. Not long after, Henry Tongdu bowed slightly to Deng Fei, walked up to the two housekeepers and gave instructions. Several cooks and half of the servants were immediately unemployed.
Zhao Xin walked up to a housekeeper and asked in English: "Do you speak English?"
"A little bit, sir."
"what is it call?"
"Auguste Bouvet, sir."
"Huh?! Have you ever been a painter before?"
"Sir, you are really good at joking." Buwei covered up his embarrassment with a smile and thought, how did this person know that my ancestor was a painter? Could it be Mr. Tundu who said that? He couldn't possibly know!
"Okay. I don't care whether you have been a painter or not. In fact, I don't care about this either." After Zhao Xin said this, he took out a leather bag containing more than thirty half-thaler silver coins from his shoulder bag and handed it to He said to Buwei: "Go and share this money with those unemployed guys. Don't let them rejoice in vain."
Bu Wei took the money bag in surprise and thought it was really heavy. He walked up to the servants who were watching eagerly and unwilling to leave, and said: "The Chinese are really rich! Look, they reward you with this, saying that you can't let everyone's work go in vain."
When they heard that money was going to be distributed, everyone who was frustrated and unwilling to leave immediately gathered around. Buwei gave each of them two silver coins, and everyone suddenly smiled. At least they and their families would not have to go hungry for a week. And those who stayed saw that the "Chinese Master" was so generous to those who left, so they would definitely get a lot more for themselves, so they worked harder to move things.
Zhao Xin did this intentionally. In addition to maintaining the mystery of the Orientals, he also wanted to give the Parisians an impression through small things. They are a group of people who are kind to others and will not suspect anything strange happens in the city in the future. onto their heads.
Later, under the guidance of Bu Wei, Zhao Xin and his party walked into the house and found that the furniture inside was very gorgeous. The corridors and the walls of the living rooms in various rooms were covered with Chinese-style flower and bird wallpapers. Zhao Xin reached out and touched it, and found that it was actually made of satin.
Bu Wei on the side introduced: "Sir, these wallpapers are all shipped back from Guangzhou. They are the same in other rooms, but the patterns are different."
Zhao Xinxin said, "I'll be a good boy. How much will it cost?" At this moment, he thought of the low-class civilians in ragged clothes on the street, and couldn't help but shake his head.
Bu Wei thought Zhao Xin didn't like it, so he quickly said: "Sir, if you don't like these, I can find someone to replace them."
"No. That's it."
When Zhao Xin was led upstairs and downstairs by Bu Wei, the thing that worried him most happened. There was only one bathtub in the whole house. The most terrible thing was that there was no toilet, only a few wooden boxes. toilet! Taking into account the public health level of Europeans in the 18th century and the certain diseases caused by the chaos in the private lives of nobles, Zhao Xin decided not to use this thing even if he died!
Although I didn’t come to Paris specifically to use the toilet this time, eating, drinking, and defecating for more than 200 people every day is really not a small problem...
"Buwei, I have a little question."
"Please give me your orders, sir."
"How do you deal with this toilet every day?"
"Sir, this is not something you should worry about. But since you asked... someone will collect it every morning."
"Oh! Then that thing...you know, how will you deal with it?"
Bu Wei turned his head and looked behind him, and whispered to Zhao Xin: "Usually they are transported to a place outside the city and dumped. If no one pays attention, those people will secretly dump them into the Seine River."
"Okay, I understand!"
Before leaving, Henry Tondu told Deng Fei that a carriage would pick them up at seven o'clock in the evening. Eliguardet, the chairman of the National Convention, would host a dinner to welcome these guests from China, which would include many members of the National Convention. Important people will be present.
After the group of people settled down after struggling for a long time, Zhao Xin immediately asked Elu to invite Deng Fei and Degenie to his room for a meeting. In addition, two soldiers were arranged to stand guard at the stairs to prevent the housekeeper or servants from arriving uninvited.
De Guigne's family was in Paris, and his father had been the director of the Syriac Department of the French Academy before the Revolution. The first thing he had to do at this moment was to go home and have a look, and inquire about the situation of the Temple Castle where the king's family was imprisoned.
Zhao Xindao: "It's best to find the floor plan inside and outside the castle. Money is not an issue, you must be careful."
Degene thought for a while and said: "Actually, the Temple Castle is not far from here. It only takes ten minutes to walk. I can take a carriage and pretend to pass by and take a look first. As for the map, there must be one in the Royal Library. This is the one I need. I left it to my father, who had worked as a secretary and translator for Oriental languages, to figure it out.”
Deng Fei added: "The city of Paris is too chaotic. You'd better bring a gun when you go out, just in case."
During the days after arriving by boat, the members of the special operations battalion would practice marksmanship on targets in the sea every day. Sometimes Degene would come to the deck and fire two shots. As time went by, he also used the revolver in Beihai Town. Very skilled.
"Okay. I will definitely be back before seven o'clock in the evening and attend the dinner with you."
Zhao Xin frowned and said, "Is your noble status okay?"
Degene said: "What's the problem? My family doesn't even have a fiefdom. Besides, I'm the one who facilitated your visit. Those guys from the National Association won't touch me!"
Zhao Xin nodded and asked someone to take two large cans of tea and two bolts of silk from the package he had brought, and gave them to Degene to take home. At the same time, he was given one hundred thaler gold coins privately to use as activity funds.
At the same time, an old friend came to the home of Georges Jacques Danton, who had just resigned as Minister of Justice. This man was very young, less than thirty years old, but he was already a core figure in the Jacobins. Because the Jacobins would sit together high in the chamber when the National Convention met, they were also called the "Mountains."
The two chatted for a while about the North Sea mission that had just arrived in Paris and expressed their opinions. Zhao Xin's move to pay the dismissed servants more than half an hour ago quickly reached Dandong's ears.
Dandong took a sip of wine and sighed: "It seems that those Chinese people are quite rich."
Robespierre said: "I am more concerned about the food on that big white ship they parked on the sea."
"Food?" Dandong's eyes widened immediately. "How do you know? How many are there?"
"They just made a business of three thousand pounds of wheat (1,360 kilograms) in Le Havre. Don't ask me how I knew about it." Robespierre took a sip of wine and continued: "According to them According to the customs declaration, there was at least five thousand pounds of wheat on that ship.”
Dandong raised his glass and said: "Then let's each show our talents tonight and buy all the Chinese people's food, and we can make a good fortune."
Robespierre smiled and waited for the other party to drink the wine, and suddenly said: "George, frankly speaking, as a friend, I have to remind you. You are powerful, rich, and quite popular with everyone, but in my opinion Come on, you are slipping into danger step by step without knowing it."
Danton looked at the other party in confusion, only to hear Robespierre continue: "The rich are afraid of your power and prestige, and try to find opportunities to defeat you; although the poor will forgive you for your wealth, but only if you use it. Wealth brings them revolutionary righteousness, rather than making a fortune at this time.”
"The justice of the revolution... After going in such a big circle, what you actually want to say is for me to support the execution of the king, right?" Dandong was leaning on the sofa, looking at the fair-faced man in front of him with a sneer. A thin companion in a gray wig.
Robespierre pursed his lips and said in a deep voice: "I don't want to hurt the king or his family. What good does this do to me? But the war is not over yet, and we will reach a point where we cannot have both. We can only choose between saving the king and saving the fruits of the revolution. If that day comes, we need to know how to choose, don’t we?”
Dandong smiled slightly and said nothing. He knew what Robespierre said was right, but for some reason, he had the urge to break the other person's neck at this moment.
This guy is so cold-blooded that it chills you from the bottom of your heart. It’s so scary!
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