"Mr.
Foreign Secretary, you know, the relationship between China and Britain and France is very stiff now, although our German shipbuilding industry is slightly behind Britain and France, but our German industrial products have always been the guarantee of quality, and your price is too low, I don't think the domestic government will be interested."
The German consul is also very scheming, although the words are not straightforward, but the meaning is already very clear, except for Germany, China can not find a more suitable buyer.Li Hongzhang smiled: "Mr.
Consul, don't think so, Germany is indeed our preferred buyer, but we can also choose not to buy, you know, with China's current national strength, only seek self-preservation, and our army is not bad, I think, even if China's navy is not strong enough, it will not affect our homeland security." ”The German consul said with a smile: "Mr.
Foreign Minister, you are wrong, coastal defense is not only for the protection of territory, but also the embodiment of national prestige. ”"Hehe, Mr.
Consul, everyone knows this, but if the price is not appropriate, if we use money to buy more warships, will we have national prestige, okay, let's not talk about this topic, both of us are underprivileged, the key is to make decisions at the top."
Li Hongzhang looked indifferent.The scheming Li Hongzhang naturally knew that it was useless to talk too much now, and the more he did not let the German consul feel that the Chinese had a strong desire to buy warships, the more it would help the negotiations and the conclusion of the deal."
My friend, I'll get in touch with the country right away, there should be no problem.However, if you only need two ships, you should build a few more, and you must know that your current enemy is very strong, Britain and France have Far Eastern fleets, and Russia also has fleets.Didn't you just experience a big war with Tsarist Russia, you know, a fighting country like Tsarist Russia, when it says it, it will turn its face.By the time the ships we build for you are put into service, they will be able to surpass those of their opponents in terms of combat power. ”The German consul enthusiastically pitched the German warship.Compared with the British, the German navy still has a very large gap, and if they want to catch up with the British navy, they need to build a large number of warships, especially battleships.And all this requires a lot of money, and if a lot of money can be obtained by selling warships to foreign countries, the speed of development of the German Navy will presumably increase a lot.The corners of Li Hongzhang's mouth twitched.However, Li Hongzhang knows that President Meng will not be stupid enough to spend money to buy a large number of warships to come back, and Huaguo's future naval construction will mainly rely on Huaguo's own strength, and at present, as long as it can ensure its advantage over the island countries in the east, it will be enough."
Mr.
Consul, you know, right now we are strapped for military spending.If we can reach a deal, it will naturally be beneficial to both sides, but if the price is really not suitable, or if the price difference with Huaguo is too much, our naval construction plan can be postponed for ten years.So for the time being, order so much.However, I need to order the full set of equipment needed for a large shipyard to be able to build and repair warships of more than 10,000 tons. ”Li Hongzhang said indifferently, "There is also technical support from Germany, and we will pay accordingly." ”"Shipyard, no problem, although the price is relatively expensive, but I know that Huaguo is very rich and can definitely afford it.But.With all due respect, do we have so many skilled shipbuilders and warship designers in China now?"
asked the German consul.In the impression of the German consul, although the Chinese army was strong, the navy was still blank.The German consul did not think that Beizhong was capable of building ships, and thought that Li Hongzhang was bluffing."
Hehe, Mr.
Consul, I thought you knew Huaguo very well, but I didn't expect it, you don't know anything about it, have you forgotten that it is still in the hands of the Qing court, and we already have large shipyards Mawei Shipyard and Jiangnan Shipyard.There are a large number of workers and designers.Especially the Mawei shipyard.As for the designers, the original Mawei shipyard was already able to build cruisers of more than a thousand tons, and after a period of training, they should have made even greater progress.Meantime.I also hope that the German side will urgently support our group of skilled workers and designers, and we will hire them at double salaries. ”Li Hongzhang said with a smile.On shipbuilding.It is true that there is a very large gap between China and the West, but these gaps are not impossible to bridge.The learning ability of Chinese people has always been very good.As long as there is a good teacher to guide you, it is not impossible to catch up with the West."
Well, I'll report this to the German government as soon as possible," the German consul said.He's just a consul, and he doesn't have the right to decide a lot of things.However, he believes that in terms of the current domestic policy, these requirements of the Chinese Navy will be met."
Hehe, thank you, Mr.
Consul, here is a small gift, which I personally gave to Mr.
Consul, you know, this kind of thing, the top is not in a hurry, but the people below us are in a hurry, this is a political achievement" Li Hongzhang reminded.The German consul nodded and said with a smile: "Mr.
Foreign Minister is still a good man, when you were the governor of Zhili in the Qing court, I can see that no matter when it comes, you can stand still, thank you." ”A pure gold pen sent by Li Hongzhang was very heavy, at least tens of thousands of Chinese dollars, and the German consul was naturally happy, "Okay, sir, I will speak for you Huaguo as much as possible."
I will also prepare these things you need as soon as possible" The German consul nodded with a smile and said softly: "Actually, our Kaiser also has a very good impression of your Emperor Huaguo, your Emperor Huaguo, let the Kaiser see the enterprising spirit of the Orientals, and changed his impression of the Orientals for the first time. ”The German consul knows about President Moe.In the eyes of the German consul, President Meng is a magical person, and in a few years, he has created such a big foundation, even in Europe, it is a legendary story.What's more, in addition to ruling such a big country as China, President Meng also pacified Siberia and Central Asia, which is simply appalling.After that, Li Hongzhang quickly contacted the president's secretariat.President Meng listened to a detailed report on Li Hongzhang's contact with the Germans.Princess Katrina Kafu smiled: "Li Hongzhang is indeed quite suitable for diplomacy. ”President Meng smiled: "That's because China has national strength" In the original history, Li Hongzhang has always been a traitor in the face of the feudal diehards within the Qing court.He believes that in the process of pursuing self-reliance, it is necessary to adhere to the general program of foreign affairs of "making peace with the outside and changing the law from the inside," that is, in an environment where foreign powers are surrounded by foreign powers and foreign aggression is becoming more and more serious, we must make the greatest possible use of the diplomatic means of "using the foreign powers to defeat the enemy" to win as much peace time as possible for China's self-improvement in foreign affairs.For this reason, he conceited himself as a diplomat throughout his life, and handled many major diplomatic affairs.Ironically, however, Li Hongzhang was the favorite negotiator of the great powers when they signed unequal treaties that forced China to cede their interests, and it was often the powers who appointed Li Hongzhang to negotiate, and even took bribes in the process of signing treaties with Russia.On July 29, 1871, shortly after the completion of the Tianjin teaching case, Li Hongzhang signed the Sino-Japanese Treaty of Reconciliation with Japan on behalf of China, which was a treaty of equality and reciprocity between the two sides.Sure enough, in the thirteenth year of Tongzhi in 1874, Japan sent troops to invade Taiwan, and Li Hongzhang actively supported the Qing government to send Shen Baozhen as the minister of the Qin Mission to lead a fleet to Taiwan for a tour, and transferred 6,500 people from Tang Dingkui's department of the Huai Army stationed in Xuzhou to Taiwan in batches.Although the matter was temporarily settled with the signing of the Sino-Japanese Treaty on Taiwan, Japan annexed the Ryukyus in 1879 in the fifth year of Guangxu.Before and after the negotiations with Japan, Li Hongzhang also signed the Sino-Peruvian Trade Treaty with Peru in 1874 in the thirteenth year of Tongzhi; In 1876, in the second year of Guangxu, the Sino-British Treaty of Yantai was signed with Britain.The former aims to protect Chinese workers; The latter is a serious negotiation between China and Britain caused by the "Margaret case".Under the threat of the British Minister Wittoma declaring war under the banner, Li Hongzhang skillfully used international law to redeem the rupture.At his suggestion, the Qing government sent Guo Songtao to Britain to apologize, and Guo became China's first minister abroad.However, the treaty also undermined China's sovereignty by opening four more treaty ports, Yichang, Wuhu, Wenzhou, and Beihai, and allowing the British to enter Tibet.In 1883, in the ninth year of Guangxu, the Sino-French War began in Vietnam, and the Qing court ordered Li Hongzhang to coordinate the border war.Li Hongzhang believed that "the coastal defense troops in the provinces are not well paid, and the sailors have not been trained, so they cannot talk about war with the European powers."
He first signed the "Li Bao Agreement" with the French Minister to China, Baohai, and then reversed it for the French government, and then negotiated with the French Minister in Japan without success; When the war entered a stalemate, Cixi reorganized the Military Aircraft Department, and the Lord and public opinion gradually rose.Li Hongzhang signed the Li Fu Agreement with the French representative Frunau on April 17, 1884, and in May, with the French army attacking Lang Son, the agreement was torn up again, and it was not until the Qing army won victories in Guangxi and Taiwan respectively that Li Hongzhang finally signed the Sino-French Treaty of Vietnam with the French representative Badeno, ending the war.France obtained the "right of protection" of Vietnam, and the Sino-Vietnamese border was open to France and other privileges.Therefore, at that time, it was said that "France won without victory, and China was defeated without defeat", and Zuo Zongtang, who had successfully recovered Xinjiang at that time, thought that Li Hongzhang was "worse than ten French generals".In 1895, Li Hongzhang signed the Treaty of Shimonoseki in Shimonoseki, Japan, ceding Taiwan and its affiliated islands, ceding the Liaodong Peninsula, and compensating 200 million taels of silver, but the Liaodong Peninsula touched the interests of the great powers and caused the intervention of Russia, France and Germany, and Japan was forced to agree to return the Liaodong Peninsula, but the Qing court had to pay 30 million taels of silver as compensation.Subsequently, in the name of "returning Liao to meritorious service", Tsarist Russia leased the ports of Lushun and Dalian from the Qing government.In 1896, in order to make Li Hongzhang abandon the Qing government's policy of building its own railway, the tsar approved and bribed Li Hongzhang with 3 million rubles.But Li Hongzhang's final take-home value may only be 500,000, which provoked his revenge on the Russians, who refused to sign at the last minute.Li Hongzhang signed more than 30 treaties in his lifetime, and the unequal treaties signed by Li Hongzhang as a representative of the Qing government with foreign powers include: the Sino-British Treaty of Yantai in September 1876; Concise Articles of the Sino-French Conference of May 1884; The Sino-Japanese Treaty of Tianjin in April 1885, and the Sino-French New Treaty in the same year; The Sino-Japanese Treaty of Shimonoseki in 1895, and the Sino-Japanese Treaty of Southern Liaoning in November of the same year; 1896 Sino-German Lend-Lease Treaty, the same year Sino-Japanese Liaoning South Treaty; In March 1896, the Sino-German Lend-Lease Treaty between China and Australia, and in June of the same year, the Sino-Russian Secret Treaty; June 1898 Sino-British Treaty on the Extension of Hong Kong; September 1901, the Eight-Nation Alliance, Xincho Treaty, etc.Therefore, if we want to say that Li Hongzhang is good at diplomacy, it is better to say that China is now gradually gaining international status.Without international status, it is useless for Li Hongzhang, who knows diplomacy again, and when China really becomes the world hegemon, even if it is a few years old to go out to negotiate, it can still show the prestige of a great power.President Moe sat quietly at his desk, holding hands with Princess Katrina Kaf, his thoughts drifting far, far away to Korea and Japan.In the sixth year of the Meiji era, Saigo Takamori resigned in anger and returned to his hometown because he was not accepted by the "Korean Expedition Theory" and was at odds with the right minister Iwakura Gushi and other important government officials.At that time, the officers and soldiers of the new government, who were born in the Satsuma Domain, also followed Saigo Takamori and resigned and returned to Kagoshima one after another, such as Army Major General Kirino Toshiaki and Shinohara Kunikan.Saigo Takamori, who apparently returned to Kagoshima, was no longer concerned with politics and lived a rural life of farming, fishing, and hunting, but in fact Saigo Takamori still had the country in mind, and he was extremely dissatisfied with the policies of the Meiji government, and he always believed that the government must be reformed.In January 1874, Iwakura Gushi was attacked and injured by a group of dissatisfied warriors in Chishi, and in February, the first large-scale dissatisfaction with the military of the warriors occurred, and the former Saga feudal lord Eto Shinpei launched an anti-government rebellion, and he also resigned and returned to Saga because of the failure of the "Korean conquest theory", and at the same time the Meiji government began to carry out the "Taiwan Conquest" plan, since Saigo Takamori left the government, so many major problems at home and abroad appeared, and the country began to enter a period of chaos.In June, Saigo Takamori set up an educational institution in order to follow him and return to his hometown as a group of young people, so he set up private military schools in Tsurumaru Castle, the former residence of the Satsuma Domain, including artillery schools and gun schools, etc., it is generally believed that the purpose of establishing private military schools was to prevent the invasion of European and American powers, Saigo Takamori was most worried about Russian ambitions, and second, Saigo Takamori saw that the Meiji government was becoming increasingly corrupt and unwilling to reform, and thought that the disgruntled warriors in various places would inevitably launch a rebellion, and that a strong army would be necessary to carry out the revolution again.In 1876, the 9th year of the Meiji era, due to the abolition of the sword order and the cessation of the Iroku policy, there were rebellions against the gentry clan in various places, and on October 24, the "Kamikaze Rebellion" initiated by the Kumamoto Prefecture gentry Ota Kurobano, on the 27th, there was the "Autumn Moon Rebellion" in Fukuoka Prefecture, and on the 28th, there was the "Hagi Rebellion" initiated by Maehara Kassei in Yamaguchi Prefecture.However, the Meiji government was worried about this army, which consisted of the former Satsuma clan that was the most powerful at the time of the war, so Okubo Ritsu sent 23 secret agents, including Nao Nakahara, who was born in Kagoshima, to Kagoshima to investigate the situation of the private military academy and the intentions of Saigo Takamori and others, and planned to assassinate Saigo Takamori.In order to weaken the military power of the Satsuma clan, the Meiji government planned to transport weapons and ammunition stored in the army powder depot in Kagoshima to Osaka, but these actions were known to a group of radical private military academy students, and on the night of January 31, 1877, the military cadets attacked the army powder magazine of Kumata in Kagoshima, and soon the powder magazines of Ishiseikan and Kaminohara, etc., were also attacked, and many places in Kagoshima City were also set on fire, and the riots were out of control, and Saigo Takamori was hunting in Konezhan on the Okuma Peninsula at that time.
After learning of this, although he understood that it was not the time to raise troops, but seeing the arrest of the young students and the actions of the government, Saigo Takamori had no choice but to take advantage of the situation to raise troops to resist the government, and at that time there were 12,000 Satsuma troops and more than 40,000 dissatisfied soldiers from all over Kyushu.In February 1877, the former Satsuma clan elected Saigo Takamori as its leader and launched an armed rebellion against the government, and the Satsuma army was organized into seven brigades with a total of more than 30,000 men.On February 6, before the official mobilization of troops on February 13, the Sahata army held an operational meeting, at which it rejected the proposal of Saigo Takamori's brother Saigo Kobei to occupy Nagasaki in order to ensure supplies and prevent the official army from attacking by water, and to occupy Kumamoto while Kumamoto Zhentai rescued Nagasaki, with a view to taking full control of Kyushu and directly storming Kumamoto Castle.On February 6, Aritomo Yamaguchi secretly ordered Kumamoto Zhentai to guard against the Kagoshima riot, and on the 12th, he further discussed sending troops with the Ito Hirobumi government, the secretary of the Ministry of Industry, and the naval Daisuke Kawamura Junyoshi, and with the consent of the Minister of Taisei Minoru Sanjo, preparations were made for the formation of a crusade force.On the 19th, the Emperor issued an edict and formally formed the "Expeditionary Corps" composed of two brigades, appointing Prince Arisugawanomiya Chihito as the governor of the expedition, and Lieutenant General Aritomo Yamagu, Lieutenant General Kiyotaka Kuroda, and Vice Admiral Junyoshi Kawamura to join the army.Later, the corps was increased to 8 brigades, with a total of 55 infantry brigades, 6 artillery brigades, 1 engineer brigade, and baggage troops, cavalry and other troops, totaling 58,858 people.The Navy dispatched 19 warships with 2,280 soldiers.t1706231537: