Chapter 962: The Ambitions of the Colonial Ministry (First Update, Please Subscribe)
Who else could it be?
Of course it’s Emperor Zhu!
In fact, as early as three years ago, Nikola Tesla, no, it should be Nikola, a naturalized citizen with the surname Ni and the given name Gula, had already entered the emperor's sight. Although Tesla was not paid special attention to, he still attracted the attention of Emperor Zhu in his own special way.
How could a young student who won the "Royal Young Scholar Award" for inventing a new type of doctor's "X-ray machine" before even graduating from university not attract the attention of Emperor Zhu?
Besides, the name Nikola Tesla was very familiar to Emperor Zhu. So in the next three years, he paid a little more attention to some of his achievements as a graduate student, and even discovered the legend of "rotating magnetic field" while walking on campus.
Emperor Zhu came to a conclusion that Tesla was not buried. A genius is a genius. With a good environment, his achievements will only be greater and better. It is for this reason that Emperor Zhu instructed the company to fund him.
As for what kind of results Tesla would produce in the Ming Dynasty... Although Emperor Zhu was full of expectations, that was all. After all, for the Ming Dynasty in 1881, whether Nikola Tesla achieved success or not had no effect at all.
When Tesla signed the contract with the company with great anticipation, most ordinary people had already eaten Laba Rice and were busy preparing for the upcoming New Year. Every household was preparing New Year's goods, and of course, there were also many people who were eager to return home.
The train sped along in the fiery red sunset, passing through patches of tree shadows and fields. The motionless sky quickly receded, and the dusk deepened. Sun Mei leaned his head against the back of the chair and looked out the window. The golden sunlight shone faintly on him through the window.
Seven years!
For the past seven years, he has been doing business in Hawaii, from a small grocery store in Honolulu to a farm of several thousand acres in Yilan Island. Even now, it seems like a dream.
Seven years ago, even Sun Mei himself never thought that one day he would become a farmer, own thousands of cows, and it took him only seven years to build such a family business. He was even commended by the Ministry of Industry and Commerce of the Empire. The reason why Sun Mei came all the way from Hawaii to the Empire was to attend the commendation meeting held by the Ministry of Industry and Commerce on the 13th day of the twelfth lunar month.
While talking about the commendation meeting, Sun Mei had another desire in his heart.
"Nebula Medal..."
The Nebula Medal was first awarded in the first year of Shengde. Those who have made outstanding contributions to society can be awarded the Nebula Medal. The medal is divided into nine grades. This is the easiest medal for civilians to obtain. Although it is easy, in reality, only a mere hundred medals are awarded every year in the Ming Dynasty.
The commendation conferences held by the Ministry of Industry and Commerce and the Ministry of Agriculture have played a certain guiding role over the years, and each year the recipients of the Nebula Medal receive commendations from the two ministries in the same year.
However, Sun Mei just thought about it.
After all, he attended the meeting as a "representative of outstanding overseas Ming businessmen". A farmer like him would not even have a rank in the Ming Dynasty, even in Hawaii - that place was not Ming territory but overseas, and he was the one who got the nomination.
"Forget it, don't think about this anymore. When we get to Yingtian, go see my little brother first."
Six years ago, Sun Mei brought his mother and brother Sun Wen from their hometown in Guangdong to Honolulu. Because Sun Wen did not want to help in the store but wanted to go to school, he was sent to Daming to study. The two brothers have not seen each other for six years.
"I don't know how my brother's studies are going."
Just when Sun Mei temporarily put aside his desire for the "medal", he did not know that in the office of the Minister of the Imperial Ministry of Industry and Commerce, Liang Baitao, the Minister of the Imperial Ministry of Colonies who was promoted from the post of Governor-General of Beihai, was discussing his affairs with the Minister of Industry and Commerce.
"Are you sure you want to keep this spot for him?"
"Yes, we have to leave one for Hawaii no matter what."
Pointing at Sun Mei on the roster, Liang Baitao's tone sounded very affirmative.
"His farm is not very large. Although it is still okay in Hawaii, there are many farms in the colonies that are bigger than his! You have to think about this carefully."
Fang Zhanbo looked at Liang Baitao and asked again, "There are only a few hundred people who are awarded the Nebula Medal every year. It seems like a lot, but it's rare to distribute it to people from all walks of life across the country. It's a pity to use up a quota directly."
"What is your relationship with Sun Mei? An old friend? Or..."
Before he could finish, Liang Baitao shook his head and said.
"What old friend? My ancestral home is Hubei. It has nothing to do with Guangdong. I am just thinking about Hawaii!"
Hawaii can be said to be Liang Baitao's eternal regret. When he was the governor of Beihai, he always wanted to incorporate Hawaii into the Ming Dynasty. However, due to the time and luck, the Ming Dynasty's attention was not on the Pacific Ocean in those years. From Africa to the Middle East, from the Middle East to Brazil, there was no North. As a result, until he left office, he failed to incorporate Hawaii into the Ming Dynasty.
"What does reciting Hawaii have to do with the medal?"
Fang Zhanbo looked at Liang Baitao with a puzzled look. Everyone knew that Liang Baitao's nickname was "Nine-headed Bird". Who knows what evil ideas this guy was up to.
"How can it be okay?"
Liang Baitao said directly.
"Since the annexation of Brazil, the expansion of our Ming Dynasty has basically come to a halt. But you also know that our Ming Dynasty extends to the four islands of Japan in the west, the North Sea in the east, and Alaska in the north. The Pacific Ocean is almost equivalent to an inland lake for our Ming Dynasty. Hawaii is located in the center of the Pacific Ocean. If our Ming Dynasty wants to control the Pacific Ocean, it must control Hawaii, so..."
Without waiting for Liang Baitao to finish his words, Fang Zhanbo shook his head and said.
"I say, brother Zhixian, Hawaii is important, but you also know the current situation. The situation is very different from a few years ago! We have the "Four Emperors Alliance", and Britain, the United States, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands have the "Five Powers Alliance". And you also know that the five countries, especially London and Washington, have reached a consensus long ago - to resolutely curb our overseas expansion."
"Of course I know all this. The golden age of expansion is over, but... Hawaii is related to whether the Ming Dynasty can control the Pacific Ocean in the future! So, we must take it down no matter what!"
Liang Baitao took a deep breath and then explained.
"So, I want to do something else, such as increasing the influence of Hawaiian expatriates. You know, the Nebula Medal may seem insignificant, but the recipients of the medal have the right to directly submit a petition to the cabinet."
This is the unique feature of the Nebula Medal - one can submit a petition directly to the Cabinet. In other words, it is equivalent to having the privilege of reporting directly to the emperor. Even many middle-level officials do not have such power.
The recipients of the Nebula Medal have such power, and they also have to inspect local areas to ensure that local government offices are effectively managed and that no one is treated unfairly. To some extent, just like newspapers, they are all civil supervision forces on government behavior.
"So, you want to do something about this? But this won't affect the overall situation!"
After understanding the other party's thoughts, Fang Zhanbo frowned and said.
"The overall situation at the moment is that we cannot actively break the balance. If the balance is broken, I'm afraid we will have to fight a war!"
"I know I can't influence the overall situation, and I don't want to influence the overall situation, but..."
Looking at Fang Zhanbo, Liang Baitao said.
"What I want is to increase our influence in all aspects in Hawaii so that the Americans will not dare to act rashly!"
Faced with his answer, Fang Zhanbo thought for a moment and then said.
"Oh, it's New Year's Day now, let's not talk about this. We can talk about it after the New Year..."
"Then what I just said"
Before Liang Baitao could finish speaking, Fang Zhanbo made excuses again.
"Didn't I tell you? Let's talk about it after the New Year. I'll definitely give you an answer then!"
(End of this chapter)
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