Zai Zhen interrupted the conversation of several people and said: "The special mission will officially set off in three days. You must arrange your own affairs."
No wonder some people suspected that Li Yu had forced his way in because he was leaving so soon.
For Li Yu, it was indeed a sudden incident, and he really needed to make arrangements, but then he thought about it, what can he do to make arrangements?
The only thing that needs attention may be the silver and telescopes in the house. In total, there are more than 240 silver dollars and more than 350 taels of silver, which can be regarded as a small sum of money.
Among them, 100 taels were the banknotes from Henghe Bank given by Yikuang. These were easy to carry and keep, but the rest were more troublesome. Li Yu gritted his teeth and decided to find someone to be his housekeeper.
Li Yu found the little boy at Chongshi School and through him came to the old man's residence outside Andingmen.
Not far outside Anding Gate, I started to smell the stench of feces, and flies were flying everywhere. I really don’t know how a place like this could be inhabited.
After the old man learned of Li Yu's intention, he refused at first: "My dear friend, I have received so much favor from you, how can I be embarrassed to be your housekeeper again?" He pointed to the rags on his body, "What about you? Look at me like this."
Li Yu said: "It's okay, old man, I think you are the perfect fit."
"But I also..."
"Don't refuse. I'm going abroad in two days. The house is unattended, and I can't find anyone I can trust for a while."
Li Yu came to him because the old man had received a great favor from him, so he must be dedicated to his affairs, and he could get more income, so why not do it.
Seeing Li Yu's insistence, the old man accepted it.
Li Yu gave him a salary of 3 dan a month, which was 1 dan above the market price, and he also had to pay for food and housing. In addition, he was given 2 taels of silver to change into clothes for his body.
The old man's nose was sore and he was about to shed tears again. Li Yu hated to see the elders cry, so he quickly said: "Old man, you go buy clothes first, and I will wait for you at the house. By the way, I forgot to ask, what should I call you?"
The old man said: "Master, you can just call me Lao Wangtou from now on."
"Then I'll call you Uncle Wang!"
When Uncle Wang entered Li Yu's house, he felt as if he had gone directly from the latrine to the heavenly palace, which was completely incomparable. He chose one of the three houses in the outer courtyard, which was originally where the housekeeper and servants lived.
As for things, there is nothing to explain now anyway, you just need to take care of your home during this period.
The time soon came to set off. The departure location was Zhengyangmen East Railway Station, which was later renamed Qianmen Railway Station. Anyone who has been to Beijing to see the flag raising will basically see this building. It is just east of the Zhengyangmen Arrow Tower and has a very retro British style.
However, at this time it was just a newly built railway station, not completely completed, with only a simple platform.
In fact, it was not the earliest railway station in the late Qing Dynasty, but the Majiabao Railway Station a few kilometers away from Yongdingmen. It was built and put into use by the British in 1897.
Majiabao Railway Station is the ancestor of Beijing's railway stations, but it is at least four or five kilometers away from the nearest city gate, Yongding Gate. It is much further south than the current high-speed rail Beijing South Station, and even outside the South Third Ring Road. , you can imagine how inconvenient it is.
The reason, of course, is that our Empress Dowager Cixi and other conservatives cannot accept "monsters" like trains and do not allow trains to enter Beijing.
After the completion of Majiabao Railway Station, it quickly promoted the continuous development of commerce and transportation in the surrounding areas. In 1899, the German Siemens Company even undertook the construction of a 7.5-kilometer tram line from Majiabao to Yongdingmen. It is what the common people call "dangdang car", which makes this area even more prosperous.
Passengers who got off the train could directly transfer to the tram to enter Beijing, which was much more convenient. It is the earliest tram in Beijing and the first tram line in China.
However, later the Boxer Rebellion emerged and the slogan "Support the Qing Dynasty and destroy the foreign countries" was put forward. Because the Majiapu Railway Station was built for the British, the station and the small Western-style building where the British lived were the first to be burned down by the Boxers, which was known as the "Western-style Tower Incident" in history.
With the destruction of Majiapu Railway Station, the tram line that only existed for a few months became the shortest-lived tram line in the world. The tram was smashed, the poles and tracks were demolished, and China's first tram line met the same fate as the railway station.
After the Eight-Power Allied Forces invaded the capital, they stationed troops at the Temple of Heaven. In order to facilitate the transportation of supplies, they built a railway directly to the west gate of the Temple of Heaven. Although Cixi opposed the railway entering the city, she had no choice but to do so.
Afterwards, Majiapu Railway Station underwent a restoration, and in 1902 it received Cixi and Guangxu who fled west to Luan. What's interesting is that Cixi fled the capital in a carriage, but when she returned to Luan, she took a train that she had always opposed. How ironic!
But with the completion of the Zhengyangmen East Railway Station, which is much more convenient, Majiabao Railway Station has lost its glory.
The procession on both sides of the platform to see him off today was quite spectacular. The leader of the Qing court was Na Tong, Minister of Household Affairs. In addition, the British Legation, the Japanese Legation, etc. also sent people to see him off.
The locomotive is a steam locomotive, dark as a whole, with a golden dragon inlaid on the side, the so-called "Dragon Locomotive", and it is also a steam locomotive made by the Qing Dynasty itself.
As soon as Li Yu got on the train, he saw Pu Lande. Both of them were surprised: "Why are you here?"
Puland smiled and said, "I'm going back to Shanghai and I'm on my way. Where are you?"
"I am now a member of the mission." Li Yu said.
"Great! I got news from the British Headquarters yesterday that the second paper you published has received great attention from the academic circle. I guess the Royal Society will also want to meet you."
Li Yu was a little embarrassed and said, "I should be the one to visit them."
Puland said: "I will send a telegram to the headquarters when I arrive in Shanghai to follow up on your trip."
Pu Lande and Li Yu sat in the regular carriage. As for Bei Ziye Zai Zhen, there was a special luxury private room. The furnishings and decorations inside were extremely luxurious, definitely beyond the first class cabin.
The train ran even slower than the current green trains, almost at a speed of about 60 per hour, and headed toward Tianjin. Li Yu, who is used to riding high-speed rail, was really uncomfortable at first.
The train stopped at Tanggu Port in Tianjin. At this time, Yuan Shikai, the Governor of Zhili and Minister of Beiyang, was not in Tianjin. It was Tang Shaoyi of the Tianjin Customs Department who personally greeted the delegation and then assisted the group to transfer to the Anping Steamship of the Steamship Merchants Company.
Tang Shaoyi originally followed Yuan Shikai's arrangement and wanted to send some red envelopes, but for some reason Zai Zhen didn't accept them, so he had to give up.
Amid the cheers of the people on the shore, the ship's whistle blew long and loud.
set sail!
