New Shun 1730

Euler once had some good feelings towards Frederick II. More importantly, he considered himself the successor of Leibniz's Academy of Sciences, and the Berlin Academy of Sciences was Leibniz's hard work.

Euler was not very familiar with Frederick II.

But last year, Frederick I had just died, and his son Frederick II wrote a great article that shocked the European upper class, which Euler also read in St. Petersburg.

The name of the book, combined with the deeds of Frederick II in history, is very interesting.

"Anti-Machiavelli".

The opening preface expresses his disdain for Machiavelli's "The Prince".

[Machiavelli corrupted politics and was committed to destroying the precepts that were beneficial to people. I will defend humanity against this monster that wants to destroy humanity; I dare to question reason and justice, and oppose sophistry and crime; I boldly think about Machiavelli's "The Prince" chapter by chapter in order to develop an antidote to make the poison ineffective. 】

【I have always believed that The Prince is one of the most dangerous works in the world; it is a book that naturally falls into the hands of monarchs, and makes people like the political policies in the book... But I think that monarchs must uphold justice and set an example for their subjects; and must be respectable people with their kindness, tolerance and mercy...】

If you only read this preface, or look at the content of the book, you will be even more amazed.

Frederick II, who was later known for his perfidy, absolute despotism, "superb" diplomacy and "good" international reputation, which made Europe an enemy, denounced the deception and perfidy in governing the country in the book, condemned unjust wars and the use of violence to eliminate enemies.

Perhaps, the first thing a Machiavellian does before taking office is to oppose Machiavelli.

Or maybe he was just venting his resentment towards his father, because his father was a loyal supporter of The Prince, and when his father died and needed to be judged, the son who hated his father couldn't directly say that his father was wrong, so he wrote a book to vent his dissatisfaction.

His father was strict and fierce, and even beat him and his sister when they had a disagreement during dinner. Frederick II's childhood friend once tried to flee to England with him to escape from his father's clutches, but Frederick the Elder executed Frederick the Younger's childhood friend and let Frederick the Younger watch the execution.

But no matter what the reason was, after reading this book, Euler had a great liking for the Prussian monarch, thinking that he would be an enlightened, moral, and European king who was committed to the welfare of all mankind.

A true philosopher king.

He would not be like some kings, who used science, art, and philosophy as a luxury to experience vanity and show their upper-class taste.

At least, that's what Euler thought before the outbreak of the War of the Austrian Succession.

But not long ago, this enlightened monarch who criticized The Prince in his book, denounced deception and perfidy in governing the country, condemned unjust wars and the use of violence to eliminate enemies, the first thing he did after taking office was to betray his original promise and go to war with Austria, and it was an undeclared war.

A year ago, he was still denouncing deception and perfidy in governing the country, condemning unjust wars and the use of violence to eliminate enemies. When he really became a monarch, he immediately shouted "It smells so good."

It's like Frederick II's description of his "weak and kind" cousin Queen Theresa when the three kingdoms divided Poland a long time later: Seeing Poland being divided and the Spear of Christ destroyed. She cried, but she still took it.

She cried, but she still took it.

This is a monarch.

It's almost the same when applied to Frederick II.

He opposed violence and unjust wars, but he still fought undeclared wars for Silesia and tore up two peace treaties in a row.

This Anti-Machiavelli, which was polished by Voltaire and advocated morality and justice, coupled with Frederick II's treacherous and undeclared war, greatly shook Euler's olive branch to Frederick II.

At least now it seems that this monarch is just treating science, philosophy, and art as an expensive luxury.

Those scientists and philosophers may be no different from the court jesters kept by the Russian Empress Anna, who has low taste. They are all embellishments needed by monarchs.

Some people like court jesters, some like tall giant grenadiers, some like scientists or philosophers around them, and some like to write tens of thousands of poems and keep some poets around them. For monarchs, they are all jesters, with only formal differences.

However, even if he was shaken, before receiving the letter from the god-friend from the distant Eastern Empire, even if he was shaken, Euler had made plans to go to the Berlin Academy of Sciences.

Mathematicians also have to eat. They also have wives and children.

The situation in Russia was too chaotic, so chaotic that even a mathematician like Euler, who didn't care about politics, could see that there was going to be a big chaos soon.

Euler had a wife and more than a dozen children, although many of them died young. He hoped to provide his wife and children with a good life, at least not like in Russia where only five of the dozen children died young.

Although the Dashun envoys gave him a lot of gifts and private help in gold and silver when they came to Russia before, it was not just a matter of money.

Rather, the scientific atmosphere in Russia had completely changed, and it was no longer the same as when Peter the Great just died. The nobles pointed fingers at the people in the Academy of Sciences, regarded them as tools, and reduced the subsidies to the Academy of Sciences.

Empress Anna was a typical German landowner with low taste. She was indifferent to the Academy of Sciences and thought that these people were of no use - especially mathematicians, who were not even as good as a craftsman who could make a flintlock.

Empress Anna once expressed her attitude towards the Academy of Sciences to her jesters: Can calculus govern a country?

In short, Euler was determined to leave Russia and take his wife and children to find a pure land. Even if he had doubts about the actions of the new Prussian monarch, there seemed to be no better place to go.

Even if Frederick II was trying to oppose his father who disdained the Academy of Sciences; even if it was just a decoration, it was better to treat scientists as decorations and hobbies than Russia's preference for court clowns and singing and dancing.

But now, Euler received another letter, and it seemed that going to Berlin was no longer the only choice.

In the letter, Liu Yu, who had communicated several times because of the regular 17-gon problem brought back by the Russian delegation to China, was already a marquis of Dashun and the president of the Academy of Sciences.

A Beijing Academy of Sciences, which is the successor of the orthodox Leibniz Academy of Sciences in terms of "bloodline", has started construction and is about to be completed.

This academy will bear the heavy responsibility of "seeking welfare for all mankind and exploring all the mysteries of heaven".

The letter paraphrased a sentence from the ancient Roman epic "Aeneid":

[For all people, life is extremely short, and there is no rebirth after death, but the duty of a courageous person is to prolong his reputation by his achievements. ]

[The stone of the tombstone may weather, decay, and break into sand, and the name engraved on it may become blurred and annihilated into dust. But the science, mathematics behind the name, and the truth that reveals the operation of the world will last forever. This will last longer than stone. ]

In addition to this general high hat, the letter also used the foundation accumulated before to make a metaphor.

Science has countless branches, just like countless seeds and sprouts falling on the ground.

Mathematics, not science, is the water required for these seeds and sprouts.

Some of the seeds in Europe have sprouted, but there is more water, and the mathematical ability is excessive.

There are many seeds sprouting in East Asia, such as physics and chemistry, but there are too many sprouts to lack the "water of science" of mathematics.

Science is not like some things that are truth in Europe but not in Asia. Science belongs to all mankind, so if we want to benefit all mankind with the greatest efficiency and better reveal the origin of the world, we need to "transfer water from the west to the east".

Let the excess mathematical water in Europe nourish the excess scientific sprouts in China to explain the mathematical principles behind the scientific laws observed and summarized.

And the results of these sprouts will eventually belong to all mankind.

In addition to this noble rhetoric, there are also various benefits and material conditions of the Dashun Academy of Sciences. At the end of the letter, Euler was invited as a correspondent friend and colleague, not as the Marquis of Dashun.

Looking at the generous conditions above and the sincere respect, Euler was already moved. The content of the letter was very detailed and solved many of Euler's worries.

Including guaranteeing that there will be a ship every year to carry scientific magazines and letters from Dashun to maintain communication with European countries. Euler's correspondence with friends and colleagues in Russia was also based on years.

There were also children's treatment, living security, the status of academician of the Academy of Sciences' Department of Mathematics, and excellent graduate assistants and students.

At the end of the letter, it said that a high-level invitation group had been sent to various parts of Europe to invite top scholars from various countries to participate in the science and mathematics seminar in Amsterdam.

In addition to showing the latest achievements of Dashun on physics, chemistry, combustion principles, conservation of matter, etc., it will also unify mathematical symbols and standardize the naming of some units.

And it is guaranteed that no political issues will be discussed at the seminar, and no concern will be given to the other party's religious beliefs.

The round-trip travel expenses and living expenses will be reimbursed by the Dashun envoys to Europe.

After weighing the two letters, whether it was out of the need for life or curiosity about some scientific achievements that will be displayed in Amsterdam, Euler made up his mind.

He picked up the pen and wrote a reply to Frederick II, rejecting the invitation to serve as the head of the Department of Mathematics at the Berlin Academy of Sciences.

He stayed in St. Petersburg, quietly waiting for the carriage from Dashun to take them to Amsterdam. He believed that he was a man of his word and would not be stingy with the carriage fee to Amsterdam, and would definitely send someone to pick him up.

…………

While Euler wrote a letter to reject Frederick II's invitation, a letter with another purpose on the ship from Amsterdam was quietly delivered to the French Embassy in St. Petersburg.

Through these letters, several people who were far apart and from different countries who all wanted a coup in Russia were connected and worked for a common goal.