Class 231 Wireless Radio

  A group of people left Xiaosi Alley, entered Jubaomen, and went up to a large wine house. The shopkeeper had already prepared the best seats by the window on the second floor, with tea, fruit plates, and dishes all ready. Someone had already rushed back home to invite Sun Gang's father to come over.

  After a brief conversation, Sun Gang's father arrived. Upon seeing him, it was clear that he was an old acquaintance - a former slave who had been very low-key in the labor camp and hadn't spoken much. Later, during the war, he had gone missing for a while, got shot multiple times in the leg, and now wore a black eye patch on his face. He walked with a bit of a limp, but judging from his current attire, it seemed that life was treating him quite well - he wore a silk robe, a martial arts headband, and carried an ebony cane, all while being supported by several ruffians as he made his way up the stairs.

  Seeing Liu Ziguang, Old Sun hastily kowtowed: "Manager Liu, old 2046 Sun Jian has arrived, three knocks on the head to thank you for saving my life." Liu Ziguang hurried over to support him: "We're all old friends, why so much courtesy? We've slept on the same big bed and eaten from the same big pot. Come, come, sit down and talk slowly."

  Originally, Sun Jian was a coachman at the Nanjing Zhenyuan Escort Agency. He wielded a nine-section whip with supernatural skill. Eight years ago, while escorting a shipment in Shaanxi Province, he was robbed by mutinous soldiers and taken captive. Later, during a battle against the Qing army, his leader Li Zicheng was killed, and most of his men were captured and became new recruits for the Qing army. Sun Jian was then captured again by the Ming army during their southern campaign and ended up as a slave laborer in an iron factory.

  His son had learned the family's traditional nine-section whip technique from a young age. After his father went missing, he hung out with local ruffians and became a notorious figure in the city at just 19 years old. When his father returned home at the beginning of the year, the whole family was reunited, overjoyed beyond measure.

  Sun Jian often told stories about his time as a slave laborer in the iron factory, exaggerating Liu Ziguang's heroics to mythic proportions. He even set up an altar for Liu Ziguang at home and offered incense daily. As a result, Sun Gang became extremely sensitive to the number 9527 under his father's influence, combined with Liu Ziguang's extraordinary abilities, he confirmed that this person was indeed the benefactor in their family.

  Liu Ziguo burst out laughing and praised, "Brother Sun is indeed a true descendant of a heroic father, his Nine Section Whip technique has reached the realm of perfection!" Hearing such high praise from the legendary hero, Sun Gang couldn't help but feel proud, just as a smile was about to appear on his face, he was hit by Sun Jian's stick on the back of his leg. "You rascal! Have you greeted Uncle Liu with a bow? Quick, call him Uncle Liu!" Liu Ziguo had a bright future ahead of him, and having such a connection wouldn't do any harm.

  Sun Gang hastily kowtowed again, greeting him with the etiquette of a younger generation. Liu Ziguang disliked being called "uncle" by someone only a few years older than himself, so he helped Sun up and said, "Heroes have no generations, and the rivers and lakes have no age. Let's just call each other brothers. I'll call you Big Brother Sun, and Little Sun will call me Big Brother too. That's best."

  They were all military men and didn't bother with those mundane formalities. When Liu Ziguang spoke, the Sun father and son just went along with him, and they started addressing each other in a casual manner. Liu Ziguang introduced the Ai mother and son to the Sun father and son, and after exchanging pleasantries again, they agreed that the Sun family would take care of the Ai family from now on, ensuring that no one would dare bully them in Nanjing, which also alleviated Edison's worries about his family.

  After three rounds of wine, Sun Jian asked: "Honorable uncle, what is the purpose of this trip to Beijing?" Liu Ziguang said: "It's still about asking for the hard-earned money owed to us by those iron factories. Since there are no outsiders here, I'll be straightforward - now that we have some savings, I want to build my own power and create a new world."

  Sun Jian praised: "A good man should be like this! I don't know if Master Yan has recruited satisfactory subordinates?"

  Liu Ziguang patted Edison's shoulder and said, "This is the greatest gain of my trip to Beijing - Science and Technology Empowering the Military! This was said by a great man. With Mr. Ai, my 500 elite troops will surely shake the world!"

  Sun Gang, who was standing beside him, discontentedly pinched the nine-section whip at his waist, but with his father by his side, he didn't dare to act rashly.

  "I'm old and wounded, or else I'd really like to serve in the death camp for my lord. Sun Jian let out a regretful sigh, "What do you think of my son's martial arts skills? I intend to have him follow you closely, serving you day and night, don't know if you're willing or not?"

  "Lang is good at martial arts, Liu Mou asked for it but couldn't get it, just being in front of the saddle and behind the horse would be exempt. I need to have ears and eyes in the capital, big or small matters can be done with a clear mind, using their sharp men and horses after all is not comfortable." Liu Ziguang had long been eyeing Sun Gang's martial arts and social connections, and the intelligence gathering ability of the local ruffians was still strong.

  "Kuang'er, don't you thank Master Sun? From now on, you can follow Master Sun to build merit and establish a career, with boundless prospects ahead. It's much better than your current job of collecting interest on loans." said Sun Jian.

  Sun Gang hastily left his seat and kowtowed again, after this bow he became a subordinate of Liu Ziguang.

  Once again, he was being polite and courteous, but the people of ancient times were really troublesome, always kneeling down and kowtowing. However, the feeling of having just taken in a new younger brother was great, and from now on, Liu Ziguang would have his own brothers in Nanjing too, and he couldn't help but laugh to himself.

  After having enough wine and food, Sun Jian and Ding Libin went together with silver tickets to help redeem the Ai family's fields and ancestral house. The rascals followed, and it was unlikely that they would be bullied by the pawnshop people. Liu Ziguang took his new younger brother Aidi and Sun Gang horseback riding around Nanjing City.

  All the way listening to Sun Gang telling stories about Nanjing's customs, he unknowingly walked to the outside of Shuixi Gate, possibly due to a subconscious action, Liu Ziguang arrived near the embassy of Song Dynasty.

  The residence of the envoy is vast, with a large courtyard and mansion, situated by the side of Lake Mochou, with beautiful scenery and fresh air. However, there are some small vendors around who seem to be distracted from their business, and at first glance, it's clear that they are spies from the Eastern Depot or the Imperial Guard.

  Liu Ziguang rode his horse along the lake, "What do you know about the travelers from Songguo? Tell me."

  "I'll start," said Sun Gang, "The seafaring ships of Songguo are enormous, with both sails and steam engines. They're much faster than those of Da Ming."

  "Moreover," continued Sun Gang, "the people of Songguo are extremely wealthy. They use gold and silver coins, which have a higher purity than Kuping Silver Sea's. They also use a paper currency called 'jiaozi', which is as trustworthy as the silver notes from Ri Sheng Chang. For large transactions between merchants in the capital and Shanghai port, both silver notes and jiaozi are often used."

  That's interesting. "What else?" Liu Ziguang continued to ask.

  "There's also... another thing is that the traveling Song people shave their heads, but it's not like the Manchu pigtail, it's for convenience when living at sea, they cut it short and it looks quite fierce. If my father hadn't stopped me, I would have liked to try that hairstyle too. Of course, they don't force everyone to shave their heads, some old people and we Ming people all have long hair.

  Also, there's a type of food from the traveling Song people, packed in iron boxes, which can be stored for a very long time. Whether it's pork or beef, or fruits and vegetables, they can all be cooked according to the same method, and even if you leave them at home for years, they won't go bad. The officials and nobles love to eat the traveling Song people's iron-boxed watermelon in winter... what was that thing called again? I forgot."

  "It's called canned food, which is food soaked in concentrated salt water or sugar water to prevent spoilage. It was mainly invented for long-term sea travel." Addison added.

  It seems to be a technologically advanced country. "Have you ever seen the army of Travel Song Country?" Liu Ziguang asked.

  It was Sun Gang who replied, "I've seen their water troops before. They all wear white narrow-sleeved jackets and large trousers, with a white puttee on their heads, even their boots are white. Their faces are tanned very dark, and when they fight, their hands are black too. Last time, a group of sailors caused trouble in the courtyard I was guarding, if it wasn't for my friend from the Five Cities Military Defense arriving just in time, we might have been in trouble. However, nowadays their warships don't often come to the capital city. I heard there are still several ships docked in Shanghai. If you're interested, sir, you can go take a look. As for the infantry, I've never seen them before. Even those responsible for guarding the embassy are from the naval landing force."

  "You only know one, but not the other." Addison continued, "The Song Dynasty's naval forces only wear white uniforms in hot weather, and at this time of year they should be wearing dark blue attire. The court has an agreement with them that allows for mutual visits between their navies, but no more than three ships at a time, and no army personnel are allowed to disembark. Their naval combat strength is the strongest among the countries in Southeast Asia, and the merchant ships they escort have nothing to fear."

  "What about our Ming dynasty's warships? I heard that when the eunuch Zheng He went to the Western Ocean, there was a kind of treasure ship. Can't we surpass their ships?" Liu Ziguang asked in surprise.

  "Of course, in terms of size, the Fu ship is bigger, but other people's ships that travel to Song are made of iron, and in this regard, we can't compare." Edison replied.

  So that's how it is, a mysterious country with an opportunity to go sightseeing. Liu Ziguang reined in his horse and gazed at the Traveling Song Dynasty Embassy building complex amidst the green trees, lost in thought.

  Suddenly, a strange object in the thicket caught his eye, a green metal object resembling a branch, swaying in the wind and clearly distinct from the surrounding real branches. What was such a tall metal rod doing there? Was it... an antenna?

  "Mr. Ai, is it possible that through a kind of wave, information can be sent from here and received immediately thousands of miles away?" Liu Ziguang asked.

  Addison was shocked: "Benefactor, you are indeed profound and mysterious, and you also know about the abstruse magnetic wave signal! It should be possible, I once made a set of such equipment, including: antenna, transmitter, metal filings detector, battery, electric bell, but the signal can only be transmitted for five miles, any further and it becomes unclear."

  "Then take a look at that cluster of trees in the distance, is that motionless branch an antenna?" Liu Ziguang asked, pointing to the suspected antenna.

  But the distance was really too far, Addison couldn't see it, but he admitted: "The discovery of electromagnetic waves is a result of the research of a man named Hao Ci, a Hanlin scholar from Song Dynasty, who has always been ahead in this field. It's not impossible to invent a telegraph machine that can transmit signals over thousands of miles."

  It is highly likely that wireless telegraphy will be used, from Nanjing to Shanghai, and then from Shanghai to the wireless relay ship at sea, and then to the capital of a foreign country, all important information can be transmitted in an instant, keeping secrets quickly. If used in war, it would be like adding wings to a tiger, as long as there are several reconnaissance teams carrying radios, the enemy will be transparent.

  Sun Gang listened on the side and couldn't understand what they were talking about, so he asked them: "What wave are you two talking about? I don't understand."

  Liu Ziguang smiled but did not answer. He had already thought of a plan in his heart for "Painting of Rare Birds". What he wanted to exchange was not the gold and silver of the Song Dynasty, but technology, advanced foreign technology. He believed that the royal family of the Song Dynasty would soon know about this requirement through wireless telegraphy, as for whether they agreed or not, it depended on their political wisdom.