Chapter 581: 1914 AD
Ask for help. Time flies, and more than a year has passed. Now it's a male,? Year, month, day. April Fool's Day in the West, in a few days, will be the traditional Chinese festival Qingming.
In the past year or so, China's industrial construction has not slackened, and with the further strengthening of German investment in China, China's industrial construction achievements are very eye-catching; although China's central government has always remained silent about the specific industrial construction achievement data, according to the data of the press itself, China's economic development is quite amazing. Compared to Japan's sluggish economy, this can indeed be called an "economic miracle." ”
Of course, China's industrial foundation is weak, there is a lack of talent, and in addition to the interference of traditional economic forces, under the current social situation, it is indeed difficult to improve the degree of industrial expansion, and the consumption capacity of the people has become saturated, unless the income of the peasants, who account for the majority of the people, can be further increased. The country's economy will soon lose that dynamism it had in previous years.
That's why. The one formulated by the central government, the "four industrial exhibition sentences" is still not completed, but overall. A basic industrial system was indeed established, and the development of light and heavy industry was relatively coordinated, and because of German aid. The exhibition of heavy industry is particularly fast, especially the steel industry is the most eye-catching, the original large-scale steel, butterfly charcoal joint enterprise Han Yeping Company has been exhibited as the second largest iron and steel enterprise in the Far East, second only to Japan's Yawata Iron and Steel Works, last year a total of nearly 200,000 tons of steel, as a comparison, Germany's total national steel output last year was 1.5 million tons.
In addition to Han Yeping, Sichuan Chongqing Iron and Steel Plant, Liaoning Benxi Iron and Steel Plant has also been completed and put into operation, although the scale, output is far less than Han Yeping, but the existence of these steel plants, indeed greatly changed the face of China's heavy industry, it is also the high-quality rails produced by these steel factories to ensure the construction of several railway traffic arteries.
The construction of the Longhai Railway and the Guangdong-Hankou Railway has provided a broad market for China's iron and steel mills, and most of the rails and railway equipment needed for railway construction rely on China's iron and steel mills. It is precisely by relying on such a step-by-step and sentencing industrial construction and layout that China's light and heavy industries can achieve such achievements. This is also the "four industrial exhibition plan" to show a strong driving force, this industrial construction plan has attracted the attention of the industrial powers, although there are many economic experts on this economic exhibition plan to sneer, that the government has intervened too much in the economy, contrary to the principle of "free economy", but it is undeniable. More and more people in economic circles have seen the benefits brought about by this planned and step-by-step development of the national economy. The Russian tsar even ordered the Chancellor of the Exchequer to conduct an in-depth study of the issue in order to give a stronger impetus to the Russian Empire's military-industrial exhibition in the face of a full-scale conflict in Europe that could erupt at any time.
Although the Russian Empire seems to have been inspired by the rapid development of Chinese industry, in the eyes of the world's industrial powers, the rapid development of Chinese industry is indeed not good news for the industries of various countries accustomed to treating this country as a raw material and commodity market, and in the face of increasingly strong Chinese goods, China's domestic market, which is occupied by foreign foreign goods, is gradually occupied by Chinese goods. Cotton cloth, garments, household goods, chemicals, means of transportation, and even munitions and weapons, foreign merchants were surprised to see that the people of this country seemed to be able to give up foreign goods, because their countrymen offered goods that were cheaper and more suitable for consumption
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Without the support of the central government, Chinese goods would not have begun to occupy the domestic market for foreign goods in such a short period of time, and although it was impossible for the central government of China to establish effective tariff barriers due to Sino-foreign treaties, China's light and heavy industrial enterprises had achieved at least the same competitive position as foreign goods through the reduction and exemption of domestic taxes, coupled with the shrewdness and diligence of Chinese merchants. Only then can Chinese commodities gradually crowd out the living space of foreign commodities.
Although the domestic tax rate has been deliberately reduced. But China's central finances don't show any particular constraints, and perhaps more to China's chemical companies than tax consolidation. The chemically synthesized anti-inflammatory drug sulfonja and its derivatives produced by these enterprises have been sold well all over the world. The profits from the sale of these drugs brought a lot of money to the central government, and the related patent licensing also contributed to the central finances, of course, at the same time, the widespread use of synthetic anti-inflammatory drugs further helped the European powers to consolidate their colonial cause in Africa and other places, with the help of synthetic anti-inflammatory drugs, the European colonial army was able to penetrate into the areas that they had not dared to set foot in before, they showed more resources and wealth, and correspondingly, the conflict between the colonial powers became more intense, especially the conflict between Britain and Germany, This has made the overall situation in Europe more and more tense, and although everyone does not want to fight, they all think at the same time. An all-European war seemed inevitable. Perhaps, the world's strategic landscape will also change as a result.
In order to weaken their opponents and strengthen their own power, Britain and Germany are engaged in diplomatic warfare around the world. In order to consolidate the interests of the Far East and further strengthen the friendly relations between China and Germany, in the past year or so, Germany has invested more energy in China, technology and capital continue to enter China, while earning profits for the German industrial consortium, but also earning the friendship of the Chinese, Germany has replaced Britain as China's largest partner in foreign trade, and now China and Germany. In the words of the British newspapers, China and Germany are now "quasi-allies", correspondingly, Britain has also increased its aid to Japan, trying to maintain the already very fragile Far East in the Far East German government loans are also one of the important reasons why China's central finances can maintain the operation, Germany not only exempted part of the amount of the "Gengzi indemnity" like the United States, but more importantly, A large part of these refunds were used by the central government of China for defense construction and water conservancy projects, and the large hydropower station in the middle reaches of the Yellow River under construction is an important project in the Sino-German cooperation plan, and its main construction funds are commercial loans guaranteed by the German government. Loan in mark, repay in mark.
Although the hydropower station on the Yellow River has not yet been built, it is undeniable. The "dam" of strategic cooperation between China and Germany has been erected, and more and more Chinese young people have developed a strong affection for Germany, and they have traveled tirelessly and long distances to study in groups to study in Germany, at their own expense or at public expense. "As for the previous" unpleasant. It seems to have been forgotten by people, consciously or unconsciously
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Among the young people who went to Germany to study, there were many young Wehrmacht officers, who studied at the German ** School and studied the relevant theories of the Sixth Army, the Navy, and the Air Force, and many of them were officers at the rank of colonel and general, such as Brigadier General Meng Fei, a famous general of the Sixth Army Aviation Unit of the Chinese National Defense Forces.
Now, Brigadier General Meng Fei is sitting in an open-top domestic car, proudly admiring the scenery on both sides of the street.
Meng Fei went to Germany half a year ago to study abroad, when he was still a colonel, and he was in the same military school as his old friend, Luftwaffe Captain Yin Maiman, the difference is that Captain Yin Maiman was Colonel Meng Fei's flight instructor, which once made Colonel Meng very embarrassed, and he even had the idea of taking a telegram to return to China. Asking Mr. President to demote his military rank to captain, so as not to lose face as a Chinese colonel, of course, at the last moment, Meng Fei still dispelled this idea, after all, he did not spend many days in the German flight school, and soon after, he went to an aircraft factory under the management of the Krupp industrial complex, where he specially supervised a group of international students to learn German internal combustion engine manufacturing technology, so as to provide a faster development path for China's internal combustion engine manufacturing industry.
Speaking of which, Meng Fei's flying career is longer than Yin Maiman, when he flew a plane to bomb the Qing army in Chengdu, Yin Maiman was still studying in the German 6th Army School, so. Meng Fei has some opinions on the fact that the president sent him to study in Germany, but the president also said that as long as Meng Fei returns from his studies, he will be promoted to be a brigadier general, and now, Meng Fei has returned from his studies, and the president has indeed not broken his promise, and now the reason why Meng Fei drove to the Presidential Palace Commander's Hall is for this rank promotion ceremony, but considering that he has been notified of his promotion to brigadier general yesterday, then, his current military rank is brigadier general, a brigadier general who is only twenty-nine years old this year.
This domestically made sedan was bought by Meng Fei out of his own pocket, and he saved up for a year to buy the car, although his income was not high. However, this kind of car is not too expensive, because of the use of the latest assembly line production method, this kind of domestic car is only sold for 350 US dollars, which is also the price of exporting to foreign countries, converted into Chinese dollars. It's almost 1,500 Chinese dollars, and of course, if it were only based on military salaries, Brigadier General Meng would not have been able to afford a car so quickly. However, he has a specialty, that is, playing bridge, and more than half of the car purchase money was won from those German ** officials when he was studying in Germany.
Wearing a crisp military uniform. Driving a brand-new car, of course Meng Fei is proud of the spring breeze, and he looks forward to it, but unfortunately he is alone in the car, and there is no female companion, which is somewhat unpleasant, of course Meng Fei is not Mr. Daoxue, actually. There is no courtesan he knows, and there is also a platoon, and the reason why he doesn't bring a female companion now is just to avoid trouble, after all, he is going to the presidential palace, and not everyone can go to that place, if he brings a courtesan, the president may give him a blank look at most, but if the president's wife asks about the lady's profession, it will inevitably be a little embarrassing, the president hates those guys who lie, especially when this guy is about to be promoted to brigadier general
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Driving a sedan and whistling. Pressing the horn, Meng Fei finally rushed to the presidential palace, and saw his old friend Zhang Guangyang from afar, no need to ask, this is also a promotion to the military rank in the presidential palace, the list Meng Fei saw yesterday is very clear, Zhang Guangyang was promoted from major to lieutenant colonel, speaking of which, the lieutenant colonel is two levels lower than the brigadier general, so, when he saw Meng Fei, Zhang Guangyang could only give the other party a military salute first.
Meng Fei patted the carriage and returned a military salute, Zhang Guangyang quickly flipped into the carriage, and then whistled, and the five naval officers who followed him rushed up and stuffed the car to the brim like a can.
Although the car is stuffed with military officers, the presidential palace cannot be entered for the time being, because the presidential palace is now also full, and today Mr. President has to meet with many people, most of whom are politicians and international friends, for the simple reason that this year is the election year of the Republic of China.
According to the Constitution of the Republic of China. The term of office of the president is five years, and the last presidential election was in the year of Du, and it is exactly five years to the old year. It's time for a presidential election, and according to the Constitution, Congress will also be re-elected this year.
Just this fall. The congressional election and the presidential election will be held one after another, and this is also the second general election year after the republic, and the last general election was during the period of war and chaos in the country, and it was carried out quite sloppily and hastily.