At this moment in Istanbul, Pang Zhenkun, who was already the chairman of the Chen Han Council, returned to his place of residence with a tired face. Pen & Fun & Pavilion www.biquge.info pity him for this old bone, he has to come to heaven thousands of miles away, and the sea bumps along the way almost killed him. But he still has to come to heaven, Pang Zhenkun has a very heavy task on his shoulders, first, he wants to attend the opening ceremony of the Suez Canal and witness the navigation of the Suez Canal, a canal that has been soaked in Chen Han's painstaking efforts; On the other hand, he wanted to have a good talk with the Ottomans.

The year 1812 is fast approaching.

Peace between the Ottomans and Russia has been going on for twenty years. But everyone was convinced that the hatred of the Ottomans against Russia would not fade from it.

Pang Zhenkun also looked at the thick stacks of intelligence that had arrived one after another from the Office in Europe, as well as the information collected from other aspects, and to be honest, he really couldn't see the signs of Napoleon's use of force against Russia. But he was convinced of Emperor Chen's judgment, and the emperor said that if Napoleon wanted to fight Russia, then Napoleon would have to fight Russia.

He came to send warmth to the Ottoman Empire as Chen Ming's representative, and as for the opening ceremony of the Suez Canal, it was trivial.

2,000 Chinese Wehrmacht troops had already entered the Suez Canal, and a series of required buildings for the customs were completed, as well as enlarged port terminals: the ports of Suez and Port Said. This is the east-west exit of the canal. In the end, it was not the water supply and storage systems that were not completed, but the coal storage yards in the two ports.

The future world is the world of steam engines, and although steam-powered ships are still only tossing in the Mediterranean Sea and the coastal waters of Britain and France, the future long-distance ships will inevitably belong to steam ships. Coal station, Chen Ming has now begun to work on the layout.

From Jinghai to the west, India and Tianfanghai to Mogadishu in Somalia, then Tanzania, then Mozambique, which has been occupied by Chen Han, and then South Africa.

From China to the port of Durban in South Africa to the east coast of the Americas, Chen Han's coaling stations are bound to spread across most of the world.

But just like Chen Ming's 'grand cause' back then, no matter how grand the blueprint is, it needs to be realized step by step.

Chen Han's task now is to finalize the coaling stations at both ends of the Suez Canal, which is an important step in the whole layout.

At most, next year, the latest paddle steamer will go to sea for sea trials, and it will be clear at a glance whether it can achieve a long-distance voyage across the sea. If you can't, then continue to work hard, if you can, you must standardize it as soon as possible, and achieve mass production as soon as possible. The advent of long-distance steamships could bring a transportation revolution to the whole world.

Although the speed advantage of today's paddle steamers is not very large, the cost is not expensive compared to traditional sailboats, but it is by no means cheap. But seriously, this thing is so much better than a sailboat in terms of practicality. The first is navigation without wind or headwinds, and the second is the number of seafarers and their life support, plus the advantage of safety.

Paddle steamers are of course much less safe than propeller ships. But compared to the intricate ropes and sails of the sailboat, this ship is directly a level above the sailboat.

Pang Zhenkun pitched Selim III an upgraded version of the steam paddle steamer, and Istanbul immediately agreed. After such a long time, the paddle steamers used for trade between the Ottomans and France were already detained by the British, but this did not detract from the Ottomans' enthusiasm for paddle steamers. In previous feedback, the Ottoman navy Pasha Envel was already asking if there were any purely steam-powered warships, and further proposed ironclads.

Yes, ironclads.

The ironclad ship, which was upgraded on the basis of the iron-ribbed wood-hulled battleship, is very consistent with the name of the ship. The Ottomans just wanted a steam-powered steamship with a thick layer of iron armor on the outside of the hull, and there was nothing to slow it down. As for what they think, even laymen such as Pang Zhenkun know it very well when they see these materials.

But it's a pity that Chen Han's current technology can't do this kind of request of the Ottomans. Otherwise, Chen Ming would definitely be the first to build an ironclad ship.

In fact, the Steamship Research Institute has not done such experiments, but the ironclad ship that has been built is more like a clumsy harbor floating battery. It moves at a speed comparable to that of a snail, and is not suitable for long-distance sailing.

Faced with the benefits that Chen Han threw over, Istanbul opened his mouth and ate it. The reason why the Ottomans are still not left behind in the production and technology of steam-powered steamships by Britain and France is all due to the support of Chen Han. They know this very well.

But even so, dealing with the Ottomans is really difficult for Pang Zhenkun, because Pang Zhenkun has a very bad impression of the Ottomans. No matter how 'loyal' the Ottomans' current position is to China, apart from this premise, the cruelty and rudeness of the Ottomans have left too many bad impressions on Pang Zhenkun. Let's start with the way they rule internally, in addition to high-pressure or high-pressure, it is no wonder that the places they have conquered for hundreds of years are still in high spirits of independence.

From Greece to Romania to Armenia, there was widespread revolt in the Ottoman 'territories' across Europe. This is a fact that no Ottoman can deny. Each of those localities and rebel groups welcomed the help of foreign forces.

Even in Greece, which had been devastated, resistance groups had sprung up again.

At the beginning, the Ottomans were driven away by the suppression of the Greeks after freeing their hands, and successfully relieved the population pressure of hundreds of thousands of people on the earth, and in the subsequent time, the construction site of the Suez Canal was covered with the corpses of Greek men, which was definitely a brutal and rude method in the eyes of Pang Zhenkun, although Chen Han also benefited from it. It can be said that Pang Zhenkun's heart is that the Ottoman Empire is such a regime, so it doesn't support it.

Although Pang Zhenkun has been an official in the Chen Han Dynasty for decades, pragmatism has a deep influence on him, but some Confucian ideas have a deep-rooted influence on him. It was instilled in his soul when he was growing up as a teenager. Even if he knew that the interests of the countries were of the greatest importance, from a political point of view, China and the Ottomans were natural allies. But his disgust for Osman was still churning in his heart.

But the interests of nations do not look at good or evil. Pang Zhenkun's disgust and disgust with Ottoman has not been a day or two, but he has never shown it on the surface, which shows a problem. Pang Zhenkun is a qualified political figure!

This is like a rabbit in the original time and space, under the banner of the Third World, and doesn't it also support many highly criticized regimes in Black Africa? Doesn't the rabbit know the evils and scolding inside? But again, everything is for the good of the country.

It's just that Pang Zhenkun now feels that he is dealing with the Ottoman Empire with a clear conscience. Therefore, the demeanor of others is very tired, and the 'warmth' he brings is partly distributed to the middle and lower classes, and not all of them are captured by the Ottoman magnates. But after coming to Istanbul and dealing with the Ottomans, Pang Zhenkun knew that his original idea was very ridiculous. Istanbul's elites are not willing to disperse a single cent to others. They are like gluttony, unwilling to let go of the slightest benefit. It is a very simple and easy fact to give some benefits to the middle and lower classes that will win greater benefits for the Ottomans, but no one wants to do it.

The Ottoman aristocracy who threw themselves into industry, each of them had to be a monopolist, and after the fight was inextricable, it was difficult to compromise with each other, but it was only a compromise between the magnates. Some middle- and lower-class Ottomans who wanted to enter their domain would inevitably face commercial, political, and military repression. Moreover, these elites also colluded with the Ottoman city trade guilds......

Seeing what these people had done, Pang Zhenkun had already sentenced the Ottoman Empire to death in his heart. Because as long as there is this group of moths in the Ottoman Empire, it will be difficult for the real modern capital industry and commerce to develop and grow in the Ottomans, and if the future Ottomans cannot climb the tide of modern industrial and commercial development, they will be eliminated by the times.

Pang Zhenkun has been a high-ranking official of Chen Han for decades, and although some phenomena are not pleasing to his eyes, he must also admit that they are unstoppable.

Don't look at the Ottomans, with the support of Chen Han, secularization and New Deal reforms were in full swing, and the whole country flourished, as if ushering in a prosperous era to save fate. But a country ruled by such a powerful nation does not see a bright future and real hope.

Pang Zhenkun now feels pity that it is Selim III, the Ottoman Sultan's Majesty is still sober and has been working hard for his country. But he could be tough with the Janisseri, but against the magnates of Istanbul and the great local feudal lords of the Ottomans, he could not be tough, at least selectively.

Moreover, there is still such a deep Celestial Sect within the Ottoman Empire.

Selim III's series of innovative actions in governing the country were constantly strongly opposed and attacked by the great feudal lords and the elders of the Church, because their interests were affected in the process of change.

And Selim III devoted most of his attention and energy to the army, neglecting the people's livelihood and the economy. Neither he nor his advisers understood the extent to which the technological revolution in Europe was the product of the social, economic, and political revolutions that had been developing since the European Reformation. He lacks a holistic view of administrative, economic or social modernization, and only attempts sporadically to solve old problems in old ways. Many of the financial difficulties stem from the traditional fiscal system, where specific revenues are allocated to specified expenses, bonds are issued for additional debt, and expenditures by the fiscal sector are derived from the initial available revenues. Without a comprehensive budget, the result is periodic fiscal chaos. A number of political and economic advisers provided by Chen Han proposed to Selim III several times to introduce a fiscal budget system, but they were not adopted, and the integrity of Ottoman government officials was extremely dangerous. Government officials have always been relatively independent in their positions, spending as they please, without administrative pressure or financial oversight. Selim III's response to this problem was not to work on a systematic budget system, but simply to make the old one work.

Most of Selim's reforms have only been 'beginning' successes, but Pang Zhenkun still has a good assessment of him. Because if Selim III's reform can be carried out firmly, even if he can't solve the life and death crisis for the Ottomans, he can at least leave the Ottomans with a very good fighting army, and more importantly, he has laid a "wedge" for his successor to reform and pointed out the direction. In the long run, it was to plant some 'consciousness' among the people of the Ottoman Empire to lead to social change, to break an old "iron curtain" of this old society.

Of course, in the current Ottoman society, the ancient conservative consciousness of faith has not been completely destroyed, but has been broken through. The sturdy dam has been drilled by ants with several small holes, which are small but can destroy thousands of miles of embankment.

Selim III's eyes were on the military most of the time, but it was not only the military and technical achievements of the East and the West that swelled throughout the Ottoman Empire, but also the many ideas that made them possible.

It is undeniable that a society that is founded on faith, provides a protective shield against tradition, and loves infighting can have only a small impact. Pang Zhenkun, however, argues that it could lay a broader and more meaningful foundation for the establishment of the secularized Ottomans a few decades later, but it could well be the trigger for the burial of the Ottomans.