What kind of transport is better for long-distance travel, an ocean liner with a cruising speed of twelve knots or a business jet with a cruising speed of four hundred and fifty knots?

The answer is obvious. Pen? Interesting? Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 ｉｎfo

"I need a 'Gulfstream' ......" Qin Lang's fingers tapped rhythmically on the armrest of the chair, but he didn't realize this action, because his attention was focused on another place: the not-so-distant future, the end of the twentieth century and the beginning of the twenty-first century.

An era of fast movement, an era of tight pace, an era of convenience and speed, an era that only takes a dozen hours to cross the Pacific Ocean without having to sail at sea for more than a month.

Qin Lang often thinks of that beautiful era, but never once has his longing for it been as strong as it is now—there is no doubt that he doesn't like to waste precious time on travel at all. Of course, he had made such a long journey, from one side of the Pacific to the other, but it only took one time to suffice - and he had to repeat it again.

Qin Lang was filled with a disgust at the whole thing.

A "Gulfstream", or rather, a passenger plane, this is what he needs, something that will solve his travel problems - unfortunately, now it can only be a wonderful and illusory fantasy.

It was now 1898, and aviation pioneers were still trying to find a way to fly like a bird, and the first flying machine that relied on its own power to take off would not appear until five years later, and the first test flight was only taxiing in the air -- according to the flight record of the "Aviator 1," Qin Lang thought it was only taxiing -- twelve seconds, forty yards, and it was still a long time before the birth of a passenger plane that could be put into practical use.

At least thirty years...... Qin Lang recalled the date when the Boeing 247, Douglas DC-1 and Lockheed "Iletkora" were put into commercial operation, which is not very exact, but it will definitely be more than thirty years. Of course, there are some earlier options, such as the Ford three-engine airliner built by Ford, and Handley. Page's series of airliners...... But if he needs a qualified business jet, he will have to wait thirty years.

Thirty years is obviously a long time, though. Although he could have waited until that day, waiting was not a fun thing at any time......

Maybe...... Can this process be accelerated?

Qin Lang thought about it carefully. Yes, he could speed up the process, not in 1903, but now. Someone should be sent...... A letter should be written to Samuel at Smithsonian College. Langley[note] could also send someone to Ohio to visit a pair of brothers there, Wilbur. Wright and Orville. Wright.

Hopefully, the two bicycle builders and repairers have shifted their interest from two-wheeled human-powered vehicles to machine-propelled aircraft[Note 2].

I hope so.

Qin Lang first identified the first thing to do when he returned to San Diego, and then began to spend more time perfecting it—the first step was to conceive of the important letter that he was going to send to Mr. Langley. It must be said that this is a complicated job, much more complicated than similar work that Qin Lang has done before - after all, he has studied chemistry and physics, likes firearms, knows automobiles, knows history, and knows very little about aviation and aircraft.

He had to think carefully and carefully, carefully choosing and figuring out every word, in order to finish the letter and keep it in just the right place; When he was doing this kind of thing, Qin Lang would put all his energy into it, and he didn't want anyone to disturb him and destroy his train of thought.

It's a pity that there are always people who bother him.

Easy to water. Although he remained in Beijing, controlling the mercenaries and completing Qin Lang's plans, he contacted Qin Lang every day - by radio, Yi Shui could always report to Qin Lang what he considered important and indeed of some importance, the latest developments in the quarrels and peace negotiations between European countries.

Qin Lang didn't want to care about these things, it was pointless, and there was no need, because everything was exactly the same as he expected: with overwhelming superiority, Britain and its allies were crushing Germany little by little, shrewd Italy had openly stood on the side that would win, Austria's position was gradually loosening, and Germany could only rely on the stubbornness and hysteria of the Second Kaiser Wilhelm, a meaningless struggle, to exhaust Britain's patience.

However, the absence of further development is not in the least surprising - although at first there was some speculation about whether the German government would make a desperate gamble and send reinforcements to China despite the strong warnings of Britain and France. There were even bets.

Of course, it would be foolish to expect and gamble on the wrong option, because it was obvious that as long as Britain and France banned the German fleet from entering the ports under their control, and prevented other countries from opening them, the reinforcements sent by Berlin would never reach China.

Perhaps the emperor was mad and burned with rage, but he was not enough to make such a lowly mistake, and his ministers were able to maintain a certain sanity.

So the Germans' struggle was all about words, emphasizing positions, re-emphasizing positions, and constantly emphasizing positions, day after day, over and over again, never stopping......

Until finally, one day.

The German said: "I reiterate once again that it is the unchangeable divine will of the Emperor to send reinforcements to China and punish those barbarians."

"Enough!" The French slapped the table, "If Berlin must send 100,000 troops to China, then you will find a way to send the troops over yourself." But we will continue to negotiate with the Chinese government and reach an agreement. ”

"The German government must make a decision immediately." The British were a little more modest, but there was no essential difference, "whether to unilaterally maintain a state of war with China, or to return to the coalition camp and conclude a peace agreement with the Chinese government." The Government of the British Empire hoped that the German Government would give an answer within twenty-four hours, otherwise it would be considered that Germany had chosen to continue the state of war and that the provisions concerning Germany would be removed from the peace agreement. ”

An ultimatum that shows that Britain, France, Russia and the United States, as well as Italy and Japan, have no intention of continuing the game. So, despite their rage, the Germans replied: "I have to discuss it with Berlin before I can give an official answer." ”

"Yes. But only twenty-four hours. "The British showed themselves to be gentlemanly.

"Only twenty-four hours." The French repeated.

It was undoubtedly a time frame to spend twenty-four hours with Berlin discussing an important matter of great importance, which would affect the face of Germany and the Kaiser, and to reach an agreement - and the matter involved the Emperor himself, whose opinion had to be consulted in any decision.

Still, the Germans did the job and gave an official answer before the deadline.

“…… The German government agreed to participate in the negotiations. He made a lengthy speech, looking for a lot of plausible reasons for the decision, but for the British and the French, it was only the last sentence that made sense.

They laughed. The British said: "The whole world will be pleased with the wise choice of the German government......

Then his smile froze.

"The conditions of the negotiations of the German government were," the Germans began to read out, "first, that the Chinese government must pay a billion taels of silver to the German Empire......"

"A billion taels!" The British cried out, "This is not at all a good faith negotiating condition." ”

There is no doubt that the Chinese government could not have paid such a high war reparations – or even through a loan – that large reparations could not have been obtained. Over the past half century, the British have gradually taken control of China's tax revenues by various means, and they are well aware of the country's financial situation.

And there are two dangers of the Germans' demand: either it will lead to a breakdown of negotiations, so that Berlin can return things to the old ways; Either China accepts this condition, because it cannot pay so many reparations, and Germany will naturally get a lot of things that it would not have been able to obtain in the first place.

For example, the German concessions and military bases all over China, such as China's economic lifeline and mineral resources, such as a market that is unilaterally open to German companies.

Politically, the British have always been sensitive and vigilant enough. So now, in order to protect their own interests, they have to stand up for China's interests.

One billion taels, no way!

But the Germans insisted on their terms. "A billion taels of silver, the minimum amount to compensate the German Empire for its losses."

"The Chinese cannot accept such conditions. The conditions of the German government will lead to the breakdown of the negotiations. "The British are categorically against it." The Government of the British Empire would not include this requirement in the terms of the negotiations. ”

The French were also against it. "The Government of the French Republic likewise refuses to include such unjustified demands in the negotiations."

"One billion taels, not a penny less." The German was strongly insistent, and then pointed out the window, "Please listen, the German military is holding a protest against the negotiation with the Chinese government, and we ......"

Outside the window there were indeed protests from the survivors of the German expeditionary force, opposing the negotiations and demanding revenge, but the only reaction of the British was-

"Good." He said, "If the German government is willing to ask for a billion taels, then please send reinforcements of 100,000 troops, and ask the Chinese government for it, and the British Empire will complete the negotiations according to its own policy." ”

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Note: Langley was a pioneer in American aviation and a tester of carrier-based aircraft technology [The first flight of the first aircraft developed by Langley was carried out on a warship, catapulted and took off, but it was not successful]

Note 2: The history is 1899 (to be continued, if you want to know what happened next, please log in to the www.qidian.com, there are more chapters, support the author, support genuine reading!) (To be continued.) )