In his desperate attempt to bring Louis XVI and the others to join him in misfortune as soon as possible, Qian Long, the old dog, spared no effort and wholeheartedly cooperated with Zhu Jinsong's performance.
However, Qian Long, the old dog, was merely a small part of Zhu Jinsong's plan this time.
In this plan, codenamed "Digging Holes and Severing Roots," after allowing Louis XVI and the others to meet Qian Long, the old dog, and have him instill a slew of specious arguments, it was time for them to witness the current Great Ming.
For instance, they would be taken to see the editorial department of the "Great Ming Newspaper" and witness how its editors nitpicked over every character, where even a single misplaced character could lead to someone's misfortune.
After this stage, they would be shown the benefits of aligning with the Great Ming, such as visiting the study and daily lives of French students studying abroad, and incidentally, seeing a few outstanding French students who had been granted special permission to study Great Ming military technology.
Once this phase was also completed, Zhu Jinsong would take them to witness the production process of steam locomotives—from the steel to the final assembly and testing—to let them know how much money was involved in such endeavors, and to instill in them the theory of "better to buy than to build."
With this combination of strategies, these four great benefactors would likely be crippled, if not completely incapacitated.
There was no need to doubt the intellect of these four great benefactors.
In fact, both what Qian Long, the old dog, taught and the theories of sending numerous students abroad to learn advanced technology and experience, and "better to buy than to build," were experiences refined through countless trials by the Foolish Eagle. Now, Zhu Jinsong was merely returning them as they were, confident that these barbarians would take the bait.
Some might ask if doing so was a bit unethical.
When the Foolish Eagle used laundry detergent as a killer weapon, and when the ambassador of a certain Asian country sat helplessly on a sofa and cried in a small broken pot, did the accusations of unethical behavior from that Asian country have any use?
Perhaps some would also talk about "he who is righteous will have much help." The problem was, the Zhonghua family was considered righteous, yet besides a few staunch allies, who offered help? They were still subjected to various forms of suppression!
Therefore, kindness was indeed a precious and rare quality. While this precious quality could be found in any person in the Great Ming, it could not be found in the Great Ming Emperor.
At the very least, the Great Ming Emperor must not possess this quality when dealing with foreign affairs.
Thus, after letting Louis XVI and the others meet Qian Long, the old dog, Zhu Jinsong directly brought Louis XVI and the others to Qilu University.
Zhu Jinsong pointed at the gate of Qilu University and said, "This is our Great Ming's Qilu University, one of the twenty-eight universities in the current Great Ming. Due to its recent establishment, it currently has only three thousand one hundred students enrolled, and the course offerings are relatively basic. There will certainly be a significant gap compared to the universities in your countries."
Louis XVI stared dumbfounded at the university before him, which was clearly vast in area—its gate alone was several times more magnificent than the gate of the Palace of Versailles. Coupled with the gilded characters at the entrance and the campus environment that looked like heaven from a distance...
Did this significant gap refer to the fact that the Great Ming's universities could only surpass French universities by six streets, and not yet eight?
With this thought, Louis XVI shook his head and said, "No, this is already very good. At the very least, France cannot find any university that can compare to this one, whether in terms of school environment or student numbers."
Huā Shēng Dùn also said with envy, "Yes, our Foolish Eagle currently has several universities, but from what we've seen, our Foolish Eagle's universities are far inferior to your Ming country's universities."
Zhu Jinsong chuckled and, without further pleasantries, led them into the campus.
As Louis XVI followed Zhu Jinsong forward, he quietly asked, "I just saw that there seemed to be soldiers of your Great Ming army standing guard at the entrance of your university campus?"
Zhu Jinsong grunted and said, "Yes, there are Great Ming soldiers standing guard at the entrance of every university, prefectural school, county school, and community school. The difference is that universities and prefectural schools are usually guarded by soldiers under the Five Military Commissions, while county schools and community schools are usually guarded by the Imperial Guard."
"Their duties are also very simple: to guard the school gates and prevent unauthorized personnel from entering the school. Additionally, they are to keep an eye on the students inside. Once a student violates discipline or commits any mistake, they are also responsible for apprehending and questioning them, and so on."
After a brief explanation, Zhu Jinsong pointed to a five-story building not far away in the campus, which occupied a very large area, and said, "This is the Qilu University Library. Its scale is the same as the Shandong Library, and its collection of books is also identical. The difference is that it has specially added many tables and chairs for reading."
After circling the library and walking a considerable distance, Zhu Jinsong pointed to another building not far away and said to Louis XVI, "This is the Qilu University canteen. Both Great Ming students and your French students studying abroad eat in this canteen."
"Behind the canteen is a natural lake. Although it is not large, it has some scenic charm. The small buildings behind the lake are student dormitories, and the dormitories for your French students studying abroad are also located there."
"By the way, among the students sent from France, there is a student named Bonaparte whose performance is extremely outstanding. He has now completed his studies in the Four Books and Five Classics, as well as music, governance, history, and other subjects. Next, he will be going to the Qilu Military Academy under the Five Military Commissions to study."
Louis XVI's heart stirred, and he asked, "Qilu Military Academy? Can I send more officers to study there?"
Upon hearing Louis XVI's words, Paul I, George III, and Huā Shēng Dùn all perked up their ears.
Zhu Jinsong, however, chuckled and shook his head. "It's not that I'm unwilling, but there's really no way. Language, writing, customs, and the like are all different. Even if you send officers to study, wouldn't each person need to be assigned an interpreter?"
"As you know, the Qilu Military Academy is where our Great Ming trains its officers. It is the largest of our Great Ming's seven military academies, with the most officers and the most advanced teaching equipment. It is also the military academy with the heaviest workload."
"Therefore, it's not impossible for you to send officers to study, but they must first learn the language and writing of the Great Ming and reach a level where they can communicate normally with teachers before they can study at the Qilu Military Academy."
Louis XVI shook his head regretfully and said, "Very well, then."
George III quickly chimed in, "Then what about us English? Can we also send people to study?"
Zhu Jinsong glanced at George III, Paul I, and Huā Shēng Dùn and smiled, "Since I have brought you all together to establish the Little Broken Pot, I naturally consider you friends and your countries as friendly nations to the Great Ming. Of course, you can send students, including officers."
"However, as with Louis XVI's issue, the personnel you send must first learn the language and writing of the Great Ming before they can enter the military academy to study."
As they walked and chatted along the way, the group soon arrived in front of a tall building.
Zhu Jinsong pointed to the equally vast and five-story building before them and said, "This is Qilu University's Teaching Building No. 1. Teaching Building No. 2 has not yet begun construction. Once it is fully completed, it is estimated that Qilu University will be able to accommodate around forty thousand students for study and living."
"Including the library, canteen, dormitories, and other buildings we have seen, all the buildings of Qilu University are different from existing Great Ming architecture, whether in terms of building materials or architectural style."
Leading Pierre and the others into the teaching building, Zhu Jinsong then pointed to a large mirror in the center and said, "There is an old saying in our Central Plains hall: 'Using bronze as a mirror, one can straighten one's cap and robe; using history as a mirror, one can understand the rise and fall of dynasties; using people as a mirror, one can gain clarity on merits and demerits.'
"The reason for this mirror here is to allow every student to look at themselves upon entering the teaching building. It serves to straighten their caps and robes, as well as gain clarity on merits and demerits, hoping that they will achieve something each day and not waste their time."
Skipping the first to fourth floors, Zhu Jinsong directly took Louis XVI and the others to the fifth floor, then pointed to a classroom on the right and said, "This classroom is specially allocated for Bonaparte and a few others. Before they begin their studies at the Great Ming military academy, they still have many things to learn."
However, the voice coming from inside the room was rather disrespectful to Zhu Jinsong: "Are you truly stupid! Ah! You are simply incorrigible!"
"You fools, can't you read the questions carefully before answering! The enemy has a thousand men, and you have a thousand men. You can't even calculate how much ammunition you need! Let me tell you, the correct solution to this problem is: judge the enemy's formation, and based on the different tactics the enemy might employ, choose different amounts of ammunition. For instance, for frontal combat, you would need three hundred artillery shells plus ten thousand bullets. If it's dispersed combat, the number of artillery shells can be increased to five hundred, while the number of bullets can be reduced to five thousand!"
"Also, do you even know how to break the enemy's tactic of avoiding battle? You don't even know how to break the enemy's heavy infantry formation when all of our forces are light cavalry!"
"If the enemy avoids battle, we should lure them out! With us all being light cavalry and the enemy all heavy infantry, we should kite them!"
"Were you really soldiers of France before? You are simply the worst batch of students I have ever taught. If I find any old farmer tilling the land on the street, they would be better than you!"
As the scolding from inside the room grew heavier, Zhu Jinsong's expression also grew darker. However, he had to explain to Louis XVI: "This is the teacher privately tutoring Bonaparte and a few others in military knowledge. Their foundation is really too poor."
However, Louis XVI did not pay attention to Zhu Jinsong's explanation. Instead, he looked earnestly at Zhu Jinsong and asked, "Um, I just heard the teacher say that if he randomly picked a farming peasant from the street, they would be better than Bonaparte and the others. Is that true?"
Being asked this by Louis XVI, Zhu Jinsong became a bit conflicted about how to answer.
If he said yes, it would undoubtedly be boasting, but if he said no, it would feel a bit dishonest. Even though the Green Standard Army of the Great Qing was quite useless, in terms of tactics and strategy, any decent Green Standard Army general could easily overwhelm Bonaparte, except for the dishonest ones.
Zhu Jinsong chuckled and said, "How is that possible? In fact, every teacher in the Great Ming likes to say that. Including myself, I am often told by my teacher that I am the worst batch of students he has ever taught."
Louis XVI then realized with a start: "It seems that the teachers in the Great Ming are indeed very strict."
Zhu Jinsong nodded and said, "Yes, as the saying goes, 'If a child does not learn, the teacher is at fault.' Since they have become their students, naturally, the teacher must teach them knowledge diligently."
It's just that this knowledge was a bit skewed.