Chapter 46: Jisheng University Military Department? Seeking Support

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  The weather was at its brightest, with the sun shining freely and illuminating the mountains and rivers. In the southwest of Windsor Castle, a dozen horses galloped through the forest, startling the birds and beasts that were hiding here into a frantic escape. The people on horseback were all wearing bright red military uniforms, and they were all officers and soldiers of the British Royal Guard.

  Jason raised a Brunswick rifle and fired with a loud bang. His marksmanship was naturally terrible, after all, he had only held a semi-automatic pistol before today, and hadn't even fired a single shot. After the gunshot, a British rabbit let out a sigh of relief and quickly escaped. Another gunshot rang out, and the rabbit fell to the ground, dying with hatred in its eyes. Prince Albert handed the rifle to Brown, the butler of Windsor Castle, and took another loaded Brunswick rifle, smiling at Jason and saying, "Jason, you need to aim before firing." Jason smiled wryly and shook his head, handing the rifle to a nearby British Royal Guard officer. He spread his hands and laughed, saying, "I'm really not good at shooting, it seems like I'm not fated to have weapons!"

  "Jason, it seems you're not only inept with weapons, but also with horses. You might just become the only baron in all of Europe who can't ride a horse." A short-haired, brown-haired woman wearing a feminine hunting outfit, following behind Prince Albert, looked at Jason with curiosity and said with an exaggerated tone, before bursting into a fit of silvery laughter.

  She is Queen Victoria who has just given birth!

  The mission of Dr. John Snow as the royal accoucheur has also been accomplished, five days ago, on April 25th, the Queen gave birth to a princess named Alice. The entire delivery process was smooth and uneventful, but Dr. Snow still received an award for his contributions in setting up a small maternity hospital for the British royal family and training midwives and physicians. At the suggestion of Prince Albert, Queen Victoria is preparing to grant Dr. Snow a baronetcy title. It's not actually a real noble title, just a title that can be granted to commoners, which could even be purchased with money in earlier years.

  In addition, the election of the Royal Society has also come to an end, and Zhu Jishi was elected as a member of the Royal Society without any suspense. Compared with Baron, being a member of the Royal Society is obviously more valuable.

  However, Zhu Jishi was still very pleased to be called "Sir", and being able to associate with the nobility a bit, whether it was for his current pharmaceutical and rubber business or for going to the East to run a university in the future.

  Perhaps it was during pregnancy that she couldn't go anywhere, and being cooped up in the room for too long was unbearable. Today, I heard that Prince Albert wanted to go hunting with Duke of Teck, and Her Majesty the Queen actually came out together with them——this would be hard to believe back home, but European women don't seem to follow the custom of postpartum confinement...

  Prince Albert, Queen Victoria and the Duke of Wellington are no longer hunting but strolling through a fairy-tale landscape. In the distance Windsor Castle glows golden in the sunlight, while on the lush green meadows, the Royal Horse Guards in their festive uniforms are training, either wielding swords or jumping over obstacles on horseback.

  Prince Albert stretched out his hand, "Water." A deerskin-covered flask was handed over, the prince opened the lid of the flask, but did not drink, instead gazing far away at the cavalrymen on the grassland.

  Zhu Jishi said calmly: "I heard that the British cavalry is the strongest in the world and constitutes the main force of the British army, is this true?"

  Prince Albert nodded slightly, just about to answer Zhu Jishi's question, but was preempted by Queen Victoria, "Jason, your statement is incorrect. The British Army is not the Mongolian Army, and it's not relying on a single cavalry to conquer the world. In fact, European armies all rely on multiple branches working together to exert combat effectiveness. An army usually consists of artillery, light infantry, line infantry, light cavalry, heavy cavalry and other branches."

  Zhu Jishi turned his head and glanced at Victoria, smiling: "I didn't expect that Your Majesty the Queen would be quite familiar with military affairs."

  "It's all just common sense, you know. The court libraries of Hanover and England are full of military books." Queen Victoria smiled complacently, as if to tell Zuo Zongtang that she not only knew how to bear children but also understood military affairs!

  "Oh, so which category do these Guardsmen belong to, heavy cavalry or light cavalry?" Zhu Jisheng asked with interest.

  "They are cuirassiers, don't you see the shiny breastplates on their chests?" Queen Victoria pointed at the cavalry and said, "Cuirassiers belong to heavy cavalry, mainly fighting in formation charges. In addition, there are also lancers using long spears in Europe who fight with the same method of formation charges. By the way, Jason, I don't know who told you that British cavalry is the strongest in the world? Because such a statement is obviously wrong. In fact, the cavalry of England, France and Russia are all very powerful, each with its own strengths, making it difficult to distinguish between them. However, most military books believe that French cavalry is the strongest, after all, France is the world's number one land power."

  "Jason, you're very interested in military topics, are you thinking of opening a military course at universities in Hong Kong?"

  Zhu Jishi and Silvia Louise were just getting into the conversation when they were interrupted by a sentence from Prince Albert.

  Zhu Jishi didn't hide it, but frankly admitted: "Albert, I think the military science of the West is probably of great interest to every ancient Eastern country? If my university in Hong Kong wants to recruit students from the noble families of Qing China, it's best to offer military courses."

  "It's also true that whether it's Russia's reforms or the Ottoman Empire's reforms, they all started with the military, followed by economics, and finally involved politics. I suppose Qing will follow this path as well."

  Albert, Prince of Wales, looked at Jason with a serious expression and smiled: "Jason, if nothing unexpected happens, you should be reused by the Qing court soon. Who knows, when you return to Europe next time, you might become an official of the Qing Dynasty. I hope we will still be friends then."

  It seems that the Prince of Wales is taking it for granted, but it's not surprising. After all, being beaten and then reforming to become stronger has happened in many countries. Although the effects of reform are different, there hasn't been a country that got beaten and didn't reform, stubbornly sticking its head into the ground like an ostrich. I suppose the Qing Empire won't be such a fool either?

  If the Qing dynasty wants to reform and strengthen itself, it naturally needs to use people who understand the West. Zhu Zhiyue is obviously such a person. If he were a Russian in the era of Peter the Great or an Ottoman Turk in the era of Selim III, it would be no problem for him to become a high-ranking official. Moreover, today's Qing dynasty is even more closed off than Russia and the Ottoman Empire back then, being completely ignorant of the West. With someone like Zhu Zhiyue, who is knowledgeable enough about the West to be considered a university graduate, offering his services, it would be foolish not to make good use of him.

  Zhu Jishi smiled wryly and said: "Albert, don't tease me, I'm not the kind of person who can enter politics."

  He paused for a moment and then continued: "My ideal is really just to run a decent university, introducing Western advanced science and thought to Eastern students..."

  Prince Albert slightly turned his body, looking at Zhu Jishi with some surprise. Although this person has a very high position in academia, but by looking at the company he established using his own invention, it can be seen that he is not just a bookworm who only knows how to do academic work. How could he give up such an opportunity to enter the upper echelons of Qing China?

  Queen Victoria, who was standing beside him, slightly raised an eyebrow and said: "Jason, actually Albert sincerely wants to help China reform and become a civilized country, so you don't have to worry."

  Of course, this statement is half true and half false. The British certainly have ambitions towards China, but it's not possible that Prince Albert wanted to turn China into a British colony completely. After all, China is too far from Britain and too large, making it difficult to swallow in one go. Moreover, China is a unified empire, unlike India which can be slowly annexed piece by piece. In fact, even now, the British have not yet completed their annexation of India.

  Moreover, in Albert's and any other European politician's view, China would definitely reform after being beaten. The question now is who will "help" China to reform? France or Britain?

  According to the latest reports received by Prince Albert and the British Cabinet, the negotiations between French envoy Tcheng and the Qing government have been going on for a long time. It is said that the French government is pursuing an objective unfavorable to Britain! They may provide China with arms and send people to assist the Qing government in building fortifications and casting cannons! If the Qing government prepares to reform at some point in the future, it is very likely to accept French assistance - after all, the French have a habit of being self-proclaimed teachers, and almost every backward country's reforms have had French advisors participating...

  Perhaps the special envoy of the Qing emperor has already secretly arrived at the Tuileries Palace and is discussing with King Louis Philippe a treaty to hire French advisers to help with reforms!

  "Now I don't even know where to start to run a university well, how can I dare to think about transforming a country? Perhaps the goal of running a university well requires me to devote my entire life's energy?"

  "Jason, I can offer you some help with setting up a university," Albert said with a smile.

  "Help?" Zhu Jishi's eyes flashed, as if he had thought of something, and after a pause, he said gratefully: "Albert, then I'll thank you for your help here first, and I'll come to trouble you when the time comes."

  Albert smiled slightly and said, "Then it's settled."

  "Then help me get a piece of land on Hong Kong Island first? At least 1,000 acres."

  "A small matter, I'll give you 2000 acres." Prince Albert agreed without hesitation. After all, land on Hong Kong Island was not expensive at the time and nobody really wanted it. "I'll write to the Governor of Hong Kong right away and have him prepare the land for you. By the way, what will your future university be called?"

  "Jisheng University, named after saving the world and rescuing people." Zhu Jisheng said with a straight face.