He Linshu, Yang Jiannian, Chen Binshi and Wang Jinyong are all descendants of Nanyang Chinese.
Among them, Chen Binshi’s father Chen Jinzhong and grandfather Chen Dusheng were well-known wealthy Chinese businessmen in Singapore in their early years. In 1873, Chen Jinzhong immigrated to Han at the invitation of Li Mingyuan and served as the deputy minister of the Ministry of Commerce of Han.
In 1880, affected by the administrative consolidation storm in the Han Kingdom, Chen Jinzhong, together with Zhang Fanglin and other hundreds of officials from Nanyang Chinese businessmen, took the initiative to donate more than 50% of their property to the central government to show support for the country's internal consolidation actions.
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In 1881, Chen Jinzhong's second son donated 700,000 taels of silver in his own name to build several large hospitals in Songjiang Prefecture and Xingjing Prefecture, and was immediately praised and promoted by the central government.
Since 1880, the Chen family has successively donated a total of about 4 million taels of silver free of charge. The descendants of the Chen family have also withdrawn from the fields of ocean shipping, grain, rice, and cloth sales, and have turned to the army, navy, and political fields.
After ten years of subtle development, the label of the richest Chinese in Singapore that was attached to the Chen family in the early years no longer exists. When the Chen family is mentioned again, the first impression that ordinary people have is that of the Cong Long Gongxun family. Both father and son are in politics and the military.
Elites and pillars of the world.
The achievements and glory of the Chen family today are all due to Chen Jinzhong's control and control. However, as the New Year of 1889 approached, Chen Jinzhong's physical condition was deteriorating, and he had a premonition that his time was running out. Chen Jinzhong Yu
In July 1888, he resigned as Director-General of the Ministry of Commerce and concentrated on recuperating at home.
"New Year is coming soon. When will Ding'an, Ziyi, Xiufen and others come back?"
Chen Jinzhong sat on a chair with the help of his servant. After taking a few deep breaths, he asked.
"The fourth brother, the sixth sister, and the seventh sister sent a telegram, saying that they will set off the day after tomorrow and will be able to reach Chang'an City in about a week."
Chen Binshi stood behind his father, gently beating Chen Jinzhong's back and saying softly.
"A week has passed in the blink of an eye. Doctor Zhou said after the diagnosis yesterday that my body's bones will be rested and I can survive for two or three years."
After sitting on the recliner and resting for a while, the expression on Chen Jinzhong's face gradually returned to normal, and his tone of voice was much calmer than before.
"There are four sons and three daughters in the three generations of the Chen family. Two of your eldest brother, third brother and fourth sister died in childhood, and one died of a serious illness in Singapore, Nanyang. The remaining four brothers and sisters, the sixth and seventh are you.
As a woman, she is already married to a foreigner and cannot help the family much. Your fourth brother Ding'an grew up in the local area and has an open mind. He has always wanted to be a teacher in school and has no intention of developing a career.
"Among the three generations of the Chen family, you are the only one who has ever studied abroad and served in the navy. Therefore, after becoming a father for a hundred years, the burden of developing the Chen family will fall on your shoulders."
Chen Jinzhong put his right hand on his son and warned, "Bin Shi,
You are the second son of the Chen family and the heir to the title of Viscount Yifeng. You must strive for opportunities in the navy, and you cannot let the glory of Viscount Yifeng that your father spent half his life to gain decline in your hands!"
"Children, remember your father's teachings and don't dare to slack off at all!"
Chen Binshi hurriedly supported his agitated father and responded seriously.
"Your temperament has always been calm, and you are not as alert as Linshu, Jiannian, and Jinyong. Therefore, if you want to go further in serving in the navy, you must put aside the airs of being a noble son and pay more attention to and understand the officers and soldiers on the ship.
In this way, even if you do not perform well in terms of combat command ability, you can still achieve good results by relying on the support and trust of your subordinates. "
"It is the duty of the Navy's Political Propaganda Department to understand the family situation of junior officers and soldiers on the ship. As a captain of a light cruiser, would it be suspected of overstepping his authority by intervening in the private affairs of junior officers and soldiers?"
Chen Binshi couldn't bear to refute his father's teachings, but he still expressed a puzzling question in his heart.
"Binshi, you should really learn from Xu Zhixuan, Yang Guangrong's descendants who studied abroad. At the beginning of the establishment of the local navy, most of the generals and soldiers at all levels came from middle- and lower-class families, and in the Western powers, naval officers were the children of aristocrats.
The situation in which officers and ordinary navy soldiers have clear hierarchies and do not have contact with each other is completely different."
Chen Jinzhong sighed and taught patiently, "Both the navy and the army were created by His Majesty. The two armies were established for more than 20 years. Every year, His Majesty goes to the Naval Officers Academy and the Army Officers Academy to participate in the graduation ceremonies of the military students and honor outstanding graduates."
Students hand-delivered swords and graduation certificates.
In terms of background and busyness, can you, a captain of a light cruiser, compare to His Majesty?
When His Majesty is preoccupied with many things, he often takes time to visit the army and navy to inspect and express condolences. Among the more than 100,000 army and navy officers and soldiers, not only officers at the general level and above are all familiar to your Majesty, but also many outstanding officers at the school level.
Their names, backgrounds.
Members of the German Officer Training Corps all said that the local army and navy are united, the training is interesting, and the morale is high. In fact, the local army and navy can achieve today's victory, in addition to the superficial factors of timely updating of weapons and equipment and sufficient logistical support, the most important factor is
It is His Majesty who always pays attention to the army and navy. Without His Majesty’s love for the soldiers and the efforts of the middle and lower levels, no matter how sophisticated the equipment is, we will not be able to exert the combat effectiveness we have today.”
"The child is dull and only then did he wake up after listening to what his father said today."
Chen Binshi recalled Li Mingyuan's previous inspections of the army and schools. In the naval base and naval officer academy, he clearly distinguished many grassroots officers and called out their names, and he suddenly said.
"Although my father has not served in the army, his experience in the army and politics are similar. To be a general or commander, one does not necessarily have to have superb commanding skills in battle, but he must have the ability to unite middle- and lower-level officers and soldiers. According to each
The characteristics of subordinates and the ability to reasonably arrange different positions.”
Chen Jinzhong wanted to spend the last two years of his life trying his best to pass on his experience in politics and life to his son, so he tactfully spoke to his son about many topics that were previously taboo.
"Your Majesty is in the prime of his life. According to your current physical condition, he can continue to rule for at least thirty years. Within thirty years, even if a constitutional monarchy is implemented, with your majesty's prestige, military and political affairs will still be decided by him alone.
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In terms of naval affairs, compared with Luo Linshan, Zhao Yongzeng, Wang Dashan, Wang Xiaoshan and other army generals, Chen Sen and Li Han have more modest qualifications and military exploits. The reason why His Majesty selected them as two chiefs of the Navy is because senior
Naval generals are scarce, and the only candidates who meet the selection criteria for Minister of the Navy and Chief of Naval Staff are Chen Sen and Li Han.
Judging from my father’s experience in business and politics for more than thirty years, although Chen Sen and Li Han are the two chiefs of the navy, the final decision-making power still lies in the hands of His Majesty.”
Chen Jinzhong took the ginseng tea handed over by his son, and after taking a sip, he continued, "Under Chen Sen and Li Han, the former naval counselor and now the new commander of the Atlantic Fleet, Major General Hou Taiyuan, and the former commander of the Marine Corps, now trust the Pacific
Rear Admiral Feng Guoan of the fleet is a transitional figure. After the next year, young officers with experience in studying abroad will grow up. The candidates for the two navy chiefs and the commanders of the two fleets will be selected from the officers who have studied abroad.
At present, there is a phenomenon of disconnection of some officers in the local navy. This phenomenon has a certain negative impact on the comprehensive combat effectiveness of the navy. However, for your generation of naval officers who have studied abroad, it is a rare opportunity to rise to the top. As long as you are in the army in the next year
In joint naval exercises and in the next few years of service, if you show your due ability and be promoted to rear admiral, or even become the commander of two fleets and the two chiefs of the navy, it is not without hope!"
Speaking of the core, Chen Jinzhong stared at his son seriously and warned again, "The joint military exercises between the army and the navy and the opportunity to run for the main battleship can be said to a large extent determine your final development in the navy in the next few decades.
future!
Running for battleship captain and joint army-navy military exercises are two equally important things, and you must not miss this precious opportunity due to negligence!"
"Keep your father's teachings in mind, and your children must strive hard and not let their father down!"......