The February spring breeze is like scissors, and there is still a burning feeling on the cheeks. A special train at the Beijing Railway Station was quietly parked on the platform, and the special train was hung with 4 carriages. One carriage is a dining car, two carriages are special sleeper compartments, and one carriage carries the guard troops. The station was temporarily under martial law, and a large number of military and police officers were eyeing the platform, and there was no doubt that important figures in the state government had to take a special train to travel, a phenomenon that was rare at the Beijing Railway Station.

A black car stopped on the platform, and President Deng Zixuan and his wife Gao Waner got out of a small car in the middle, and then Zhang Zhidong, Li Hongzhang, Sheng Huaixuan, Hu Xueyan and other government officials came out of the front and rear cars. After the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, Deng Zixuan accepted the invitation of the President of the Republic of Lanfang to visit Kundian, the capital of the visiting country. Deng Zixuan's itinerary has been carefully arranged, in fact, this is Deng Zixuan's suggestion. The train departs from the capital, with the first stop being Wuhan, then Changsha, followed by Guangzhou.

Deng Zixuan was to stay in these three cities, and then Deng Zixuan arrived in Hanoi via Nanning, Zhennanguan. After that, we boarded the ship through Hanoi and went directly to Kun Dian, the capital of the Republic of Lan Phuong. The date of Tang's visit lasted for four months. The president's entourage included Vice Premier and Minister of Foreign Affairs Li Hongzhang and his wife, Minister of Commerce Qin Fanhe and his wife, Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Kwong Jiazhi and his wife, Beijing Mayor Kang Youwei and his wife, and CIA Director Wan Chuan and his wife.

Kwong Jiazhi and Kang Youwei accompanied the visit, which seemed to be new. In the future, Kwong Jiazhi will become the vice premier of the national government, and Kang Youwei will become the foreign minister. On the platform, Deng Zixuan said goodbye cordially to Zhang Zhidong and other government officials who came to see him off, and Chen Jintang, Pei Gejin and other generals who came to see him off. Also on this visit was Navy Commander Fan Tao. Fan Tao will lead the convoy to Haiphong Port to wait. With a whistle, the train started slowly, and Deng Zixuan waved to the people seeing him off in front of the window.

The train sped across the vast field, and the white traces of the mountains in the distance disappeared from time to time. It seems that the snow in the mountains has not yet melted. Deng Zixuan talked with Li Hongzhang and others, Wan'er was lively with the ladies in another carriage, only Wanchuan walked around in each carriage, and it was his responsibility to ensure safety along the way. In the box, everyone was satisfied with the scenery outside and gradually lost interest. Li Hongzhang changed the topic and said: "President, the Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge will be opened to traffic in August. I estimate that Lin Xu, the governor of Huguang Province in Wuhan, will ask you to give the bridge a name. ”

Deng Zixuan said with a smile: "A bridge flies north and south, and the moat becomes a thoroughfare." This is the first majestic bridge in the land of China, and it should be given a resounding name. I think it's called the first bridge in China, although the name is cheesy, but it is clear at a glance that women and children know it. "Good name for China's first bridge. China represents the aspiration of the Chinese nation. The first meaning is to be unique and memorable! Li Hongzhang nodded to the dragon, and several others echoed it.

Qin Fan said: "President, is the next step to build a bridge in Nanjing?" Deng Zixuan shook his head and said: "The Nanjing River is vast, and the geology of the riverbed is very complicated. Although our bridge construction team has accumulated some experience in preparing for the construction of the Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge, our technical ability is not enough to build the bridge in Nanjing. I believe that within 10 years, there will definitely be a more majestic bridge in Nanjing, and then we will build a road and railway bridge. ”

Everyone was happy when they heard this, and the words that had come out of Deng Zixuan's mouth. Basically, it was achieved, and everyone was convinced. On the topic of bridges, everyone expressed their opinions. A few hours passed. Deng Zixuan subconsciously looked at his watch and said: "Everyone, it's lunchtime, the people take food as the sky, and their stomachs are ready to give their opinions." Everyone entered the dining car, and the ladies were already in place. The food truck is filled with a unique fragrance that whets everyone's appetite.

It was midnight when the train arrived in Wuhan, and everyone was asleep on the ferry. Deng Zixuan woke up and realized that the carriage was shaking. The lights on the dock were dim, and Deng Zixuan got up to wake Wan'er up. "What happened?" Wan'er asked from the other side. "It's time to Wuhan, the train is ferrying, you can continue to sleep!" Wan'er put on her clothes and came to the window and looked out, the bridge under construction in the distance was brilliantly lit, and a giant dragon blocked the river.

"This is the bridge you are talking about, and it really looks like a giant dragon lying on the surface of the river," Wan'er seemed to come to her senses. "You see the bridge is almost closed, and we can pass directly on the bridge after it is opened, so we don't need a ferry." Deng Zixuan looked at the majestic bridge and muttered, "The person who built the bridge is really amazing, can people walk on the bridge?" "Of course you can leave, I'll take you there when I have the opportunity in the future." While the husband and wife were chatting, there was a collision, and the ferry approached the south bank.

Wuhan Railway Station is divided into two stations: South Bank and North Bank. As the largest industrial city in the Central Plains, Wuhan's night seems to be boiling. Many factories are in operation, and the roar of the night sky is faint and faint, and a unique melody is emitted under the night sky. The special train stopped at the North Station, and the sky to the east was already white. Lin Xu, governor of Huguang Province, Xiong Lin, mayor of Wuhan, and other officials greeted him on the platform. The North Station is under martial law, and there are no other passengers on the platform except for the military and police.

"President, ma'am! It's been a great journey! Lin Xu stepped forward to salute. Deng Zixuan shook hands with Lin Xu and Xiong Lin respectively. Xiong Lin said: "President, madam, the hotel is ready, please get in the car." "You're from the 5th phase of the Fellow Academy?" "Yes, the president, your subordinates are your disciples!" "Ha Lu Ha! The students of the 5th phase of the Tongren Academy have become the backbone of the empire, which is really gratifying. ”

"President, my juniors are currently distributed in the north and south of the river, and a huge bureaucratic system has been formed, and there are few officials left in the former Qing Dynasty. The seeds you sowed back then have borne fruit. Lin Xu said with a smile. Everyone went straight to the hotel, and because they didn't have a good rest, everyone hastily made up for sleep with breakfast. At noon, Lin Xu hosted a banquet to entertain Deng Zixuan and his party as the host, and because Deng Zixuan was passing through Wuhan, he did not summon other officials.

In the afternoon, Lin Xu and Xiong Lin accompanied Deng Zixuan and his party to the Yellow Crane Tower to browse the style of Wuhan City. Ascending the Yellow Crane Tower, the outline of Wuhan can be seen at a glance. Seeing Deng Zixuan's focused expression, Lin Xu said: "President, Wuhan has changed a lot, is it still the ancient city you are familiar with?" "The last time I came to Wuhan was more than ten years ago, when Jiangbei was still ruled by the Qing court. I can't imagine the changes in Wuhan in the past ten years, and it seems to have been reborn. ”

Deng Zixuan pointed ahead and said: "Wuhan has many factories and has become the largest industrial city in the Central Plains. The size of the city seems to have doubled, dense high-rise buildings have appeared, and it has the functions of a modern city, and the three towns of Wuhan have been merged into one. "President, I heard that the last time you came to Wuhan, you planned a turtle and snake lock on the Yellow Crane Tower, and you still need to tie the bell to the bell, so let's give our bridge a name!"

Deng Zixuan said with a smile: "Master Li is really like a god, and the pen and ink are waiting!" "The rice paper was brought up, Deng Zixuan swiped it overnight, and the 5 big characters of "China's First Bridge", the dragon flying and the phoenix dance were presented in front of everyone. Deng Zixuan's calligraphy has already developed a certain level of attainment and formed his own style. Everyone has clicked, but Li Hongzhang's comments are three points. "Although the president's handwriting is written in cursive script, it has formed its own style. The elegant font shows the imagination, the strong and powerful stroke, the strong will quality and rigorous style, and the president's character is vividly portrayed on the stroke. ”

Wonderful comments, everyone applauded warmly. Deng Zixuan waved his hand modestly and said: "Lord Li has won the award, and I am far worse than Master Li in terms of calligraphy, why not ask Lord Li to make a preface." Li Hongzhang was a little excited, and he humbly gave up his pen and made it. Li Hongzhang's ancient writing is profound, using five-character poems as the preface, and the font is also self-contained, which has won full applause. Everyone looked at the river again, and the majestic first bridge of China approached magnificently.

The next day, Deng Zixuan listened in detail to Lin Xu and Xiong Lin about the economic development and industrial layout of Huguang and Wuhan, Deng Zixuan said: "As the largest industrial and commercial city, Wuhan's economic scale is not enough, and it needs to be developed more vigorously. At present, Wuhan has achieved remarkable results in stimulating the economy of several provinces in the Central Plains, and has played the role of a thoroughfare of nine provinces and extending in all directions. ”

"Wuhan's geographical location is unique, it is an important part of the troika, to form a Shengjing industrial base, Baotou industrial base, Wuhan industrial base complementary pattern. At present, we are in the process of laying out iron and steel enterprises in the coastal zone, and Wuhan Iron and Steel Plant is involved in the bottleneck of ore, so we will not expand production capacity in the future. It should focus on machining, inland waterway ship manufacturing, and large-scale equipment manufacturing, including locomotive and vehicle manufacturing. ”

"Next year, the government is preparing to build a group of large passenger car manufacturing plants in Wuhan, with the development of our road transport, large-scale flow of personnel, passenger cars for the railway to break up the passenger flow, has been urgent. In addition, Wuhan, as an ordnance industrial base, should be renewed. Regarding the development of the weapons industry, the government has a long-term plan, and if it wants to become an aviation base, the government will provide abundant funds at all times. ”

There are many disadvantages of scattered layout, and large-scale industrial bases can concentrate on talent flow, capital flow, logistics, and complete types of mechanical processing, which can play a role with high efficiency. At the same time, environmental pollution can be centrally controlled. What Deng Zixuan doesn't want to engage in is vicious competition in factories everywhere, and three identical enterprises can form a benign competitive environment. Deng Zixuan stayed in Wuhan for two days before heading to Changsha accompanied by Lin Xu, the governor of Huguang. (To be continued......)

PS: The first stop of the protagonist's southern tour is Wuhan