Kim Yunzhi, Yu Yunzhong, and Kim Hongji were all representatives of the big shots. Apart from being older, they could all speak fluent Korean Mandarin, and could understand Yuan Weiting's fluent Mandarin as well.
Yuan Weiting sat up straight and frankly expressed his thoughts to the three important people of Korea. "My lords, if we can build a railway police system, in addition to suppressing the bandits who target the railway, we can also let the whole of Korea learn from the police and judicial system of China. I know that you have always hoped to build a judicial system like that of China in Korea. So far, this proposal has been put forward, but it has never been passed by the royal court of Korea. Have any of you ever wondered why this is so? "
The three of them listened to Yuan Weiting's impassioned and generous words, but their expressions were very calm. Yuan Weiting was only 25 years old this year. Like the young people of Korea, he was full of drive and ambition. Coupled with his words, he was a bastard who didn't know the immensity of heaven and earth.
Korea had been a vassal state of China for thousands of years. Although it didn't have a deep history like China, as a secondary civilization of China, Korea was still a civilized country with more than a thousand years of history. Yuan Weiting's idea of trying to seize part of the power had appeared more than once or twice in the history of Korea. According to the traditional saying, this was called "making trouble"! This was the standard way for crafty people to try to get more power into their own hands.
Although the three of them didn't want to immediately oppose Yuan Weiting, they didn't want to support him. Yuan Weiting didn't seem to see what the three of them were thinking. He continued in a tough manner, "It's not a matter of whether to do it or not, but how to do it. I invited the three of you here because I want the three of you to take responsibility. Railway Public Security, Railway Procuratorate, and Railway Court, I hope the three of you can choose one of these three positions. "
Seeing that Yuan Weiting was making a tough apportionment, the three big shots of Korea finally became a little uneasy. Yu Yunzhong said, "Secretary Yuan, this is not appropriate, is it?"
"You don't want to take these three positions?" Yuan Weiting's words went straight to the heart of the matter.
The three of them were all stunned. Yuan Weiting, this reckless boy, was a bit fierce with his words, and his attitude was even more tough. After exchanging glances, Jin Yunzhi asked, "If we don't want to take these three positions, what does Secretary Yuan plan to do?"
With an uncompromising smile, Yuan Shikai said to the three of them, "If the three of you are unwilling to take up these three positions, then I can only settle for the second best and find other Korean sages in our railway system to take up these positions. If the Korean sages in the railway system are not willing to take up their posts, then we can only recommend people from China to take up these three posts. Once the candidates are selected, I will write a report to His Majesty and ask His Majesty to confirm the candidates through an edict. "
Hearing this, Jin Yunzhi, Yu Yunzhong, and Jin Hongji's expressions became even more unsightly. A mere Party Secretary of Korea's Railway and Telegraph Corporation was trying to influence Korea in the name of Emperor Vézé. Jin Yunzhi, Yu Yunzhong, and Jin Hongji all studied at the Nanjing Railway Institute. They knew that although the railway was very powerful, it was not a department that decided national policy in China.
With an unhappy expression, Jin Hongji said in a mocking tone, "I didn't expect Secretary Yuan to be able to go to heaven to listen."
Hearing this, Yuan Shikai laughed heartily, "Haha, although the three of you have been in China for a few years, you have no understanding of China's politics at all. This matter is not a matter of whether or not you can go to heaven to listen. The core concept of our country's system is to promote the development of productivity, and the development of productivity must be coordinated with the social system. Whether it is His Majesty, the party, the government, or the army, they all agree with this concept. As a member of the Restoration Party, I naturally have to agree with the party's program. The establishment of the railway public security, inspection, and law itself is based on this concept. I, Yuan Weiting, am not asking His Majesty for support in my own name, but the system of our country supports my approach. I wonder if the three of you can understand what I'm saying? "
Yuan Weiting said it so clearly that if it was an official of a certain level in the Min dynasty, or a member of the Restoration Party with a certain level of seniority, they would definitely understand. However, the celebrities of Korea could not understand. Even if Jin Yunzhi, Yu Yunzhong, and Jin Hongji were the three outstanding people of Korea, they only reached the level of understanding. It was not that these three people were backward. The feudal system would never consider the core outside of feudal power. For 30 years, the Restoration Party had been committed to promoting industrial development, and now it was promoting capital operation. The purpose of all this was to promote the development of productivity. Yuan Weiting's report was not for heaven to hear. If Yuan Weiting could not finish his work, the higher-ups would not let him go. When Yuan Weiting needed support in the process of his work, the higher-ups would certainly not sit idly by.
Since Yuan Weiting's attitude was so tough, Jin Yunzhi, Yu Yunzhong, and Jin Hongji did not immediately compromise, so the conversation ended there. Jin Yunzhi asked, "I will think about it. Can Secretary Yuan extend the deadline for a few days?"
Yuan Weiting replied straightforwardly, "At most three days. If I do not get a reply from the three of you within three days, I will have to settle for the next best thing and ask someone else."
After sending off the three people, Yuan Weiting immediately went to the train station to meet the representatives of the Korean Railway Union. These union representatives were all Korean. When Yuan Weiting went to various stations in Korea to inspect, these people all knew that Yuan Weiting was now a big figure in the Korean Railway and Telegraph Corporation. Even if they were not familiar with him, when they saw Secretary Yuan Weiting personally come to meet them, the representatives were flattered and bowed to greet him.
Two union representatives came to each big station, and one union representative came to the ordinary small stations. The headquarters of the Railway and Telegraph Corporation, located on the outskirts of Seoul, was a six-story building made of reinforced concrete. It was also a very famous building in Korea. Many of the union representatives were here for the first time. After seeing the building from a distance, they were shocked by its magnificent momentum. Walking into the spacious central hall, they saw the huge crystal glass chandelier hanging from the third floor in the central hall. These union representatives who had never seen much of the world were dumbfounded. They never thought that there could be such a tall and luxurious decoration in the world. Walking up the circular central staircase, they saw the smooth terrazzo steps, the shiny stainless steel railings, and the finely polished walnut staircase handrails. The group of union representatives who thought that the new two-story buildings in each train station were very good did not dare to breathe loudly.
The meeting was held in the conference room of the head office. Standing on the podium, Yuan Weiting glanced at the group of Korean union representatives below with his sharp eyes. He said loudly in not fluent Korean, "You guys should know who pays your salary, right? Is there anyone you don't know? "
Everyone in the Korean union knew that the Railway and Telegraph Corporation adopted a queuing system. According to the busy situation of the work, the stationmaster, deputy stationmaster, and accountants in China would personally pay the salaries. The original reason for this was that the Korean foreman would deduct the wages of the workers. Yuan Weiting did not become famous because of the article about His Majesty Vézé's position in Korea. When he was the accountant of Pyongyang Station, he personally paid the workers to stop the foreman from deducting the wages of the workers. Moreover, when Yuan Weiting was paying the workers, he asked a few questions to the Korean workers. "Who pays you?", "Who doesn't deduct your wages?", "Who do you rely on?", "Who really treats you well?"
These questions were very effective in making the Korean workers understand the current situation and who was their breadwinner. Since then, the Korean workers who worked on the railway no longer dared to disobey the orders of the railway company. It was not that no one tried to resist, but these former rebels all ended up being fired.
"Everyone, the theft of the railway last year has caused us great losses. Do you know how great the losses are?" Yuan Weiting asked.
How could the union representatives or the Korean representatives know how much they had lost? None of them dared to say a word. Yuan Weiting changed the way he put it. "You should know how much your wages were deducted, right?"
As soon as he said that, there was a buzz of whispers in the meeting room. In the first few years, the railway company did not give them a year-end bonus, but at least double their wages. But this year, there was not even double their wages, let alone the year-end bonus. The railway company only gave them 50 catties of beef and mutton for the New Year. In a place like Goryeo, being able to get a salary every month for a few years was like living in heaven. In the countryside, if there was a famine, they would starve. Even if the landlords did not starve, they lacked cash. Not to mention that the railway company workers relied on their salaries to survive, even the families of the railway company workers relied on their salaries to survive. During this year's New Year, everyone still hoped to use the year-end bonus and double salary to add something to their families. The single men also hoped to use the money to pay the betrothal gifts and get married. But they only gave them some beef and mutton for the New Year, which made their dreams go to waste.
Hearing Yuan Weiting's question, the union representatives who did not dare to speak finally couldn't help but speak up. Yuan Weiting slammed the table a few times, and the meeting room became quiet again. Yuan Weiting said loudly, "I'm telling everyone now, just the things that were lost on the railway will not be enough to compensate for the whole year's wages!"
Everyone sucked in a breath of cold air. This number was too frightening!
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
