preface
The subject's heart is a magnetic needle stone, and he will not stop without guiding the party.
As one of the main ways of road transport, rail transport can be said to have made a great contribution to the modernization of the cause. Today, China's railway development has gone through 144 years. In the eyes of the Qing Dynasty 150 years ago, such a thing as a railway, which is a carving insect trick of foreigners, was once regarded by the Qing Dynasty as a kind of for foreigners to erode China.
After 150 years, the unthinking train has also become an indispensable and important tool in China. China's high-speed rail has even gone abroad and has been recognized by people all over the world. The reason why China's railway construction industry can achieve such amazing achievements is inseparable from the efforts of one person. 100 years ago, such a great railway engineer Zhan Tianyou spent 6.93 million silver to build a herringbone railway. A hundred years later, what is the case with the railway?
01
Zhan Tianyou was born in Guangzhou in 1861. Chinese society in the 1860s was in a half-colonized, half-feudal social consciousness. At that time, due to the invasion of foreigners and the decay of the imperial court, the officialdom was corrupt and the people were miserable. Zhang Tianyou's father, Zhan Xinghong, relied on ghostwriting to write letters as a means of making a living. Although the life is very hard, the family is also happy. Fortunately, although the father's current situation is not optimistic. However, he had seen the prosperous world earlier, and he knew the importance of education, so he tried to send Zhan Tianyou to study in order to live a better life in the future.
Therefore, at a very young age, Zhan Tianyou left home and went to the academy to study. Curiously, at that time, he was not interested in Kong Wenyi, but preferred to fiddle with some mechanical parts. In 1872, the Qing government funded and selected 120 young children to study in other countries. Zhan Tianyou's father, under the persuasion of his friends, also sent his son to the recruitment. Fortunately, Zhan Tianyou passed the screening and became one of 120 young children studying abroad.
02
You know, in those days, studying abroad was not without risks. Being in a foreign country, the only thing you can rely on is yourself. Coupled with the corruption and incompetence of the Qing government at that time, coupled with the unique long braids of the Qing Dynasty, which was extremely recognizable, the Chinese were ostracized and bullied in the world. As a result, many young children do not even see the last side of their parents.
It seems that he knows that it is not easy to go abroad, so Zhan Tianyou has devoted himself to studying. While studying at Yale University, he also received a full scholarship. In the face of the insults of foreigners, he never cared. All I wanted to do was to learn to become a martial arts newspaper and the imperial family. After completing his studies, Zhan Tianyou was recalled by the Qing government to support the local government and became a railway project boss.
03
In 1905, the Qing Dynasty prepared to build a railway between Beijing and Zhangjiakou. Due to the weakness of the Qing Dynasty, many great powers wanted to intervene. Expanded influence on the Qing Dynasty. In their view, even if they did not intervene, the Qing Dynasty simply did not have the ability to complete this vast project. For the sake of national righteousness, Zhan Tianyou decided to stand up bravely, so he vigorously defied the public opinion and undertook the responsibility of building the Beijing-Zhang Railway. It should be known that building a railway in the mountains was not an easy task for the technology of that era.
There are also many forces that are also waiting to see his jokes and will not provide him with any assistance at all. Although extremely careful was taken during the construction process, the first section of the railway from Fengtai to Nankou was derailed. And Zhan Tianyou had to face not only the ridicule of the great powers, but even the Qing government began to question his ability. Finally, Zhan Tianyou solved the problem that the hook was easy to break by creating his own "Zhan hook". And he also used his true talent to prove to the world that Chinese there is no shortage of talents.
04
In the process of construction, he also encountered many other crises. However, it was solved with his quick thinking. And also invented a herringbone track to solve the problem of insufficient train climbing ability. In 1909, the Beijing-Zhang Railway was fully completed, which lasted for 4 years. The most striking of these is the herringbone track. It is precisely because of its emergence that the safety and stability of train traffic are greatly guaranteed. In this contest between the great powers and the Qing Dynasty, it was easily resolved by Zhan Tianyou.
The crisis encountered in the construction of the Beijing-Zhang Railway at that time was not small. The most troublesome problem is because of the steep terrain and the large slope. Although in the construction process, Zhan Tianyou has made great efforts to ensure that the cost is reduced while ensuring quality. However, due to the corruption of Qing officials and the darkness of the official field, more than 6 million taels of silver were finally spent, and this amount was equivalent to 1/10 of the total national treasury. Fortunately, after the Operation of the Beijing-Zhang Railway, these costs were quickly recovered.
05
In operation for up to 100 years, the Beijing-Zhang Railway has brought great convenience to the transportation of various places. And this railway, which blocked the dignity of the nation and the integrity of the country, was also protected by future generations. All the passengers on the train passing through Zhangjiakou from Beijing will be grateful to Zhan Tianyou, and even proud of the engineer who is so proud of China. During the construction of the Beijing-Zhang Railway, Zhan Tianyou formulated detailed regulations for railway construction, and wrote to the imperial court to formulate corresponding standards. Since then, it has also cultivated many outstanding railway engineers. Until April 24, 1919, Zhan Tianyou died of illness at the age of 58.
epilogue
At Qinglongqiao Station, you can still see the statue of Zhan Tianyou, not far from his memorial, and his presence is also showing the world how Zhan Tianyou withstood the pressure, created miracles, maintained national integrity, and smashed the conspiracy of the great powers in that era. And his deeds have influenced countless railway engineers. And his kind and the kind of excellent quality that he shows, not afraid of suffering and not being afraid of tiredness, is also worth learning from everyone.
Citations
《Yangtze River》