Chapter 197 Final preparations before entering Sichuan

Author: Zhe Lei

Chapter 197 Final preparations before entering Sichuan

"Son, tell me, am I a failure as a father?"

“When I returned to Beijing excitedly, I thought that the old Congress had lost its prestige, its spirit was gone, and its restoration was under false pretences, which was just a waste of time. It would be better to directly reform the Congress, convene the Provisional Senate, amend the Organic Law of Congress, and create a new Congress. It not only achieves the purpose of reforming the National Assembly, but also conforms to the spirit of the Constitution."

"It was with good intentions, but I didn't expect that some people actually refused to establish it on the grounds of violating the "Provisional Constitution". They said that the day when the National Assembly was established was the time when the Provisional Senate was dissolved, which was not legal. They accused me of favoring some of my interests and feelings. , regardless of the country’s fundamental laws.”

"But who am I, your father? I have rescued Emperor Guangxu, united with President Sun Yat-sen, and worked with General Cai E. What kind of battles have I not seen? What kind of scenes have I not seen? How could I give in so easily? For these little people!"

"Sure enough, after your father and I's unremitting efforts, even at the expense of publicly turning against Sun*, we finally succeeded in reforming the National Assembly. Unfortunately, after all, we know the people and the faces but don't know the hearts. We fell into the trap of Duan, and in the end it was all in vain. , what kind of nation, what kind of republic, they are all just pretense, excuses, and deceptive stuff.”

"The emperor is in power, there are no heroes in the world, and there is no hope for Congress. He has been reduced to the position of finance minister. Since taking office, he has devoted himself to saving money. Although the plan is simple, it is difficult to implement. Borrowing so much money, not only one Not a single cent was used for the livelihood of the country and the people, but was instead robbed and misappropriated by these warriors."

Having said this, Liang Qichao couldn't help bursting into tears. He raised his head and closed his eyes for a long time, turning the depression in his heart into a long sigh on his lips.

"Well, forget it, forget it, no matter what other people say about me, I have recently invented a sin of my own. Where is the source of the sin? Because I have never been able to get rid of the old concept of 'political meritocracy' and always wanted to Relying on an inherent old force to improve this country."

"So I have had several experiences with people who I shouldn't work with or who I don't want to work with. Although I am confident that I have not done anything bad, I am inevitably used by others to do bad things. My conscience suffers endlessly, and I feel that I am indirectly guilty. !”

"Your father and I, have we been a failure in this life..."

Just at this moment, there was a sudden sound of the door opening outside the house, and then the house immediately became bright.

"Dad, so you are in the house?!"

After Liang Sicheng saw the strange look on his father's face, he immediately turned off the light and wanted to quietly exit the room.

It turned out that Liang Qichao's call was all a personal monologue. He locked himself in the room and talked to himself in front of a dark mirror, as if the person in the mirror was his eldest son.

Speaking of which, when Liang Qichao assumed the post of Chief of Finance, he originally wanted to do something big. He regarded financial issues as a key to leading the country to the road of construction. During his five-month term, he organized the establishment of a currency committee and a wartime fiscal and financial review. to study and formulate fiscal and financial policies.

A number of financial and administrative inspectors were also selected to form a delegation to Japan’s Ministry of Finance to inspect financial administration, learn from advanced foreign experience, and cultivate domestic financial talents.

In addition, we should prepare a fiscal budget, live within our means, and try to reduce the fiscal deficit as much as possible.

It can be said that they have been doing practical things and striving to improve the financial situation of the Republic of China.

Unfortunately, when the military was in power, these new financial policies could not be implemented at all. Most of them ended up in a dead end. The local governments not only withheld money, but also demanded money from the central government. Even if Liang Qichao tried his best, he could not change the status quo.

In the end, I had to end it hastily and resigned from the position of Chief Financial Officer.

In such a relatively private space, Liang Qichao poured out all the words he had accumulated in his heart for a long time like shaking beans.

Unexpectedly, before he finished speaking, the real eldest son came to the door.

With a snap, the lights were turned on, the room returned to light, and Liang Qichao returned to reality.

"It's okay. I was sleepy while reading in the afternoon and accidentally fell asleep. I kept dreaming in my head." Liang Qichao waved his hands and pretended to be as if nothing had happened. However, he could hide it from others but not himself. After a moment of hesitation, Liang Qichao

He asked tentatively: "I didn't say anything just now, did I?"

Liang Sicheng stopped and shook his head: "I didn't say anything. The room was quiet when I came in."

Unexpectedly, Liang Qichao was not only unhappy after hearing this reply, but also a little angry: "If you didn't hear me talking in the room, how would you know there was someone in the room? At a young age, you have to start telling lies to fool people, and go back and read "The Analects of Confucius"

Copy it three times by hand and give it to me."

Liang Sicheng's head sank and he said dejectedly: "Okay, I'll go back and copy it right now..."

"Wait a minute." Seeing that the door was about to be closed, Liang Qichao suddenly stopped him and said, "Did you come to see me just now?"

Liang Sicheng slapped himself on the forehead and said with some annoyance: "Professor Cheng Nuocheng from Peking University came over and said he came to see you for something important. He has been waiting at the door for a long time."

Liang Qichao suddenly felt happy on his face, but when he thought about his current predicament, people had tried to persuade him to stay away from politics. Unfortunately, he was wrongly paid for these good intentions, and a faint look of shame appeared on his face:

"Did you say you wanted to see me for anything?"

After Liang Sicheng thought about it carefully, he confirmed: "I didn't say anything specifically. Do you want me to ask you first?"

Liang Qichao sighed and said quietly: "Forget it, there is nothing you dare not face now. Let's lead the way."

But before he had even taken two steps, Liang Qichao suddenly stopped his son again: "What I said just now was harsh. There are still heroes in this world, such as Professor Cheng in front of you. You must learn from him in the future."

Although Liang Sicheng was a little confused by his father's words, he still nodded: "I will definitely learn more from Professor Cheng."

Liang Qichao rubbed his son's head: "But for now, you should go and copy "The Analects" a few times. There are some things that there is no benefit in knowing in advance."

"Ah? Father, didn't you just say..." Liang Sicheng was a little confused and wanted to continue to argue.

"What are you talking about? I just asked you to copy the Analects of Confucius. Go quickly. When I come back, I will see your homework on the desk." The kindness on his face disappeared and Liang Qichao said sternly.

Helpless, Liang Sicheng had no choice but to copy "The Analects of Confucius" according to his father's wishes.

Liang Qichao gently closed the door. After walking into the yard, he couldn't help but look at the study. Through the shadow on the window, he saw his son copying books hard and felt a little distressed. But after thinking about his current predicament,

The steps under my feet became extremely firm again.

Shaking his head, he strode towards the reception room.

Cheng Nuo on the other side was teasing Liang Qichao's little daughter in the room.

He was quite friendly and kept making funny faces on his face, making him giggle.

"Zhuangzhuang, can we discuss something? In the future, don't call me uncle, just call me brother. The louder and crisper the call, the more candies I will give you. Do you think that's okay?"

Liang Sizhuang tilted his little head and pointed his index finger at his lips, as if he wanted to eat but didn't dare to eat: "But...but my dad doesn't let me eat sweets."

Cheng Nuodi took out a small package from his pocket, spread it in the palm of his hand and peeled off the outer oil paper layer by layer. Inside were a few grains of rock candy. He said badly: "If you don't tell, I won't tell, your dad."

How do you know?"

Even though Liang Sizhuang had seen a lot more snacks than children from ordinary families, candy was still a very precious thing in this era, and the ones Cheng Nuo brought out were even rarer.

, so after seeing these pieces of rock candy, my eyes suddenly lit up.

Just when Cheng Nuo thought the "coaxing" was successful, Liang Sizhuang suddenly thought of something, swallowed his saliva directly, waved his little hands and said firmly: "But daddy also told me not to eat food from strangers."

Cheng Nuo knelt down and continued to seduce: "But brother is not a stranger. We met in Shanghai before. We should be friends."

Liang Sizhuang shook his head firmly: "Daddy said that everyone except family members are strangers."

Cheng Nuo didn't want to give up and struggled: "Does this include me, eldest brother?"

Liang Sizhuang said without hesitation: "Yes, including uncle."

Hearing this, Cheng Nuo felt powerless. Unexpectedly, he went around and around and was finally taught by a child. He even failed to change his words. His face was really dull.

Just when Cheng Nuo felt frustrated, Liang Qichao slowly walked over.

After seeing Liang Sizhuang here, the lines on his face suddenly became more amiable. He knelt down and opened his arms: "I said where did my little Zhuangzhuang go? It turned out that he was helping his father entertain guests. It's really

Daddy’s good daughter.”

As he spoke, he couldn't help but put his face against his daughter's cheek, and the doting in her could not be concealed.

Cheng Nuoya, who was watching on the side, felt sore. He stood up and put the rock candy on the table. He couldn't help but said, "It's better to have a daughter. I already want one."

There were still guests to entertain. Liang Qichao stood up slowly, held his daughter's little hand and said with a smile: "Zhiyuan, why did you think of me today? Did something happen to my student Baili?"

He looked at the rock sugar on the table and asked curiously: "Sugar? Is it possible that your Zhonghua Brand does not make soda ash but instead makes sugar?"

Cheng Nuo was a little embarrassed. He originally wanted to tell the truth, but when he saw Liang Sizhuang making faces for him, he couldn't help but feel guilty and said: "Yes, it's just a test for now. When the time comes, we will make plans according to the needs of the people."

Just-in-time production.”

Liang Qichao was very pleased with this answer: "Okay, now our domestic sugar market is flooded with foreign products, and the trade deficit is growing. I'm just waiting for you to turn the tide."

Cheng Nuo originally wanted to fool him, but seeing Liang Qichao's serious sincerity, it was difficult to say that sugar production only existed in his mind, otherwise there would inevitably be a crack in the trust between the two parties, which would affect the effect of Cheng Nuo's visit.

Speaking of which, the reason why Cheng Nuo rushed to Liang Qichao's home before leaving for Sichuan was because the Academy of Sciences' financial situation was getting bigger and bigger, and its financial situation was becoming more and more complicated.

At first, Cheng Nuo did everything himself, but later found that his energy was limited, so he transferred the power to Jiang Jiangzuo.

But now that the Academy of Sciences' industry is already quite big, it's hard for Jiang Jiangzuo to take care of it, especially since he is busy with other things, and he really can't take care of it. Besides, he is not doing this himself, and he was kicked out by Cheng Nuo before.

Ducks are on the shelves.

So taking advantage of the opportunity to enter Sichuan, Cheng Nuo planned to leave this matter to professionals, that is, the former chief financial officer who had just resigned - Liang Qichao.

Professionals do professional things, this is the employment principle that Cheng Nuo has always believed in.

On the other hand, Liang Qichao, as the son-in-law of Guizhou, has constant connections with the southwest. When he defeated Yuan in his early years, he sent Cai E a telegram falsely claiming that Feng Guozhang had launched an army to attack Yuan, and urging Cai E and the Yunnan army and civilians to revolt as soon as possible. This encouraged him

This weakened the morale of Yunnan officers and soldiers and accelerated the outbreak of the War to Protect the Country.

In the middle, he cooperated with Tang Jiyao and Cai E many times and had a close relationship.

After successfully overthrowing Yuan, Liang Qichao's reputation in the southwestern provinces reached its peak.

Unfortunately, Cai E died young and Liang Qichao, who lacked the support of the military, had to return to Beijing.

But even so, with such a reputation, if Cheng Nuo can bring Liang Qichao with him this time, it will be easier than starting from scratch by himself.

And following Liang Qichao's thinking, Sichuan was also one of the ideal places to produce sugar in the future. After all, Sichuan was one of the three largest sugar producing areas in my country at that time, and the national sucrose production basically remained at a high level.

If sugar production is successful, in addition to ensuring people's livelihood, it will also be a war preparation material, and it can also produce high explosives.

The so-called one sulfur, two nitrates and three charcoals, plus a little sugar, is the principle.

Of course, this is only what happens after the acid and alkali. For now, let’s finish this matter first.
To be continued...