Zhang Pengcheng trembled with fright: "So and so is calling."
The officer stammered: "There are two gunboats, flying American flags.
Their gun barrels are so thick, they are facing our provincial capital."
Zhang Pengcheng was also anxious.
He suddenly stood up and said, "Seriously."
The officer said: "A few of me dare to tell lies.
If you don't believe it, just go to the river and take a look."
Zhang Pengcheng asked again: "Then you didn't ask why the Americans brought the gunboats over."
The officer spread his hands and said, "We would like to ask, but we don't speak foreign languages."
Zhang Pengcheng suddenly woke up, opened the drawer, took out the telegram, and reported to Governor Sun.
The Governor was playing mahjong with his concubines in the inner house.
He was slightly surprised when he saw the adjutant chief coming in in a daze: "Pengcheng, why are you panicking?"
"Commander, please take a step to speak."
Zhang Pengcheng whispered.
"What's the secret?
Tell me."
Sun Kaiqin was in high spirits and couldn't bear to leave the card table.
Zhang Pengcheng had no choice but to whisper into his ear: "Commander, American warships have arrived at the center of the river to launch an attack on the enemy."
Sun Kaiqin's expression changed drastically, and he said to his fifth aunt, "Xiaowu, please fight for me for a while."
After saying that, he left the table and went to the front hall, where he asked Zhang Pengcheng carefully what happened.
Zhang Pengcheng took out the telegram and said: "It was all delayed during the Chinese New Year.
The backlog of telegrams is in my hands.
The American Springfield Company sent a telegram saying that we have detained their goods and we want to give an explanation.
I thought that the US warships were coming.
This matter."
Sun Kaiqin immediately said: "Where's Xiao Xia?
Someone's here.
Ask Adjutant Xia to come over."
Xia Jingqi arrived quickly, read the telegram and said in surprise: "Impossible, Springfield Matheson is just a handbag company run by Chen Zikun, how can it alert the US warship."
Sun Kaiqin raised his eyebrows and said, "Then you already knew about this."
Xia Jingqi said: "A Taikoo cargo ship did come to the provincial capital the day before yesterday and said it wanted to transport the firearms.
I replied that they were prohibited materials and had been detained.
They didn't say anything."
Sun Kaiqin said: "Now the American gunboats have arrived at the door of our house.
If the trouble continues, no one can resist it.
You hurry up and solve the problem for me.
I still want to have a peaceful life."
After that, he walked away.
Zhang Pengcheng and Xia Jingqi looked at each other and hurriedly drove to the pier.
The Lunar New Year was approaching and the pier was deserted.
Even the coolies had gone home to prepare New Year goods.
From a distance, they saw two gunboats cruising in the middle of the river with their black muzzles raised high.
Up, colorful flags were flying on the mast.
The Marine Police boat slipped away and the fishermen's sampans were nowhere to be found.
The officials of the Inspector General's Office were anxiously walking around on the pier, unable to talk to the Americans.
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How to solve the crisis?
Fortunately, the warship The people on the boat used binoculars to see the situation here, so they put down a rubber boat and brought a few people over.
The rubber boat landed on the trestle, and officials swarmed around it, nodding and bowing to greet each other.
A foreigner in a suit and ties, a U.S.
Navy lieutenant, and two Chinese people got off the boat, none other than Gong Zijun and Mu Yichen.
The foreigner in a suit was the first secretary of the U.S.
Consulate.
He read out the consulate's strong protest and ultimatum to the officials of the Governor's Office in English with a straight face.
Jiangdong Provincial officials did not have an English translator to accompany them, so Mu Yichen had to perform the translation duties. .
"What the American diplomat means is that you have detained the goods of American merchants carried by British shipping companies without any reason, which has seriously violated the inland waterway shipping agreement and relevant laws signed by Britain, the United States and your country, and after repeated representations to you There is still no sincerity in actively resolving the issue.
The U.S.
Consulate and the U.S.
Navy strongly protest and reserve the right to take further measures.”
The officials panicked.
They knew the other party's diplomatic rhetoric very well.
The further method was nothing more than gunboat diplomacy.
If you don't return my goods, I will bombard you.
The Military Governor's Office is right under the muzzle of the American cannons.
If there is a real fight, the Provincial Army Company will He didn't even have the strength to fight back.
"Misunderstanding, misunderstanding, there must be a misunderstanding here."
Director Zhang hurriedly joked, and the first secretary said coldly: "The British cargo ship has been parked at your dock for several days, and I sent one telegram after another, but you turned a deaf ear. , I don’t see any misunderstanding here.”
Director Zhang said: "Aren't we busy celebrating the New Year?
Besides, what we are seizing are prohibited materials purchased by Jiangbei and have nothing to do with your businessmen."
The first secretary said: "I have all the business letters and contracts here, which are enough to prove that this batch of goods belongs to the American Springfield Company."
Adjutant Xia couldn't help it anymore and said: "Stop trying to scare people with American companies.
The boss behind Springfield Foreign Company is Chen Zikun, and he has nothing to do with the Americans."
The first secretary was a little surprised, turned around and whispered to Mu Yichen, and said: "Oh, I think I understand a little bit.
There is indeed some misunderstanding here.
Before arriving at the destination, this batch of goods belonged to Springfield, USA.
The German company, please note, is Springfield, Massachusetts, an arsenal that produces army weapons for the U.S. government, not the Springfield Company in the Shanghai Public Settlement.”
Now everyone came to their senses.
It turned out that they had really offended the wrong person.
This Springfield was not the other Springfield.
The American state-run arsenal was also called this name.
No wonder the consulate and the US Navy gunboats were alerted.
Director Zhang laughed dryly and said: "It is indeed a misunderstanding.
Since it is the goods of an American merchant, we can just return it after asking the warden for instructions."
Adjutant Xia said: "Yes, yes, it's all a misunderstanding.
So what, we can't get to know each other without fighting.
Since our American friends are here, why don't you just stay for a few days so that we can express our friendship as landlords?"
The first secretary discussed with the navy lieutenant and agreed to Adjutant Xia's invitation, but they were not staying for tea, but to supervise the return of the supplies.
Director Zhang left Adjutant Xia to deal with the Americans.
He flew back to the Governor's Office and reported the matter to Governor Sun.
Ten thousand rifles had to be sent back before they were warmed up.
The Governor was furious, but he had to Accepting their bad luck, the Americans issued an ultimatum, which really pissed them off.
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These foreigners really dared to open fire.
"That's all, go deal with it and don't bother me."
After losing his temper, Sun Kaiqin shook his sleeves and said impatiently.
Zhang Pengcheng accepted the order and returned to the Port Authority office where the Americans were being entertained.
He found that the atmosphere was not quite right.
The American guests' faces were ashen and uglier than when they first arrived.
"Xiao Xia, what's going on?"
Zhang Pengcheng was such a shrewd person.
He immediately guessed that his men had angered Mr.
Yang.
Xia Jingqi rubbed his hands and said: "Didn't the foreigners say that the goods will not belong to Chen until they reach Nantai?
I said that I would pay twice the price to buy these guns and give them each a small rebate.
I don't know how.
The foreigners were angry."
Zhang Pengcheng said: "Xiaoxia, how do you want me to say hello to you?
Foreigners are different from us Chinese.
They are stubborn and accept death.
There is no reason to break the contract after signing it.
You still want to bribe them.
This is not scolding them in public."
What?”
Xia Jingqi said: "Then what can we do?
We can still let these ten thousand guns fall into the hands of Chen Zikun.
Otherwise, we will do it without stopping.
We will burn the goods with a fire.
At worst, we will lose money, and we can't let the arms fall into the hands of the surname."
Chen’s hands.”
Seeing Adjutant Xia gnashing his teeth, Zhang Pengcheng sighed and patted him on the shoulder: "Xiao Xia, family feud cannot be mixed with official business.
By doing this, you are putting the governor on the fire and offending the British and Americans.
Who is so bold?"
Xia Jingqi sighed: "Then return the goods to them."
Forty tons of arms were still shipped to the British cargo ship.
Of course, the handling fees and liquidated damages had to be paid by the Warlord's Office.
Swire Pacific also suspected that the murder and fire on the previous cargo ship were a conspiracy by Jiangdong and demanded huge compensation.
Jin, endless troubles await Adjutant Xia.
When the last box of arms was transported onto the ship, Mu Yichen had a smile of victory on his face and said to the disgraced Xia Jingqi: "Adjutant Xia, the military guard asked me to give you a message, three words: You're welcome. " The whistle blew, and the ship left the dock of the provincial capital and started a new journey upstream.
Gong Zijun and Mu Yichen leaned on the railing and looked out into the distance, seeing the surging and magnificent waves of the river.
"As soon as the foreigners showed up, Governor Sun's people were frightened.
It's ridiculous to think about their servile and frightened look."
Gong Zijun said with a smile.
Mu Yichen sighed deeply: "Having to rely on the power of foreigners to protect ourselves is so sad for a Chinese."
Swire Shipping Company has not developed business in the middle and upper reaches of the Huaijiang River.
On the one hand, it is due to public security reasons, and another important reason is that the rapids and dangerous shoals are not suitable for large-tonnage ships to pass.
In order to successfully transport the forty tons of arms to Nantai, Chen Zikun also came down.
After spending a lot of money, they sent people to blow up the largest reef in Laohutan.
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This project alone cost four brothers.
In the end, Hun Jianglong sent a few brothers with good water skills to complete the project.
After many hardships and obstacles, the river ship finally arrived at Nantai Wharf.
However, the wharf in the small county town was too crude and could only accommodate sailing ships and small-tonnage steamships.
It was better for thousand-ton cargo ships to anchor in the middle of the river and use sampans to go back and forth to the shore.
Transshipment of goods.
The county government requisitioned hundreds of people and worked like ants for a whole day.
Finally, they unloaded the 10,000 rifles.
One hundred tons of high-quality white coal, a specialty of Nantai, was sent into the cargo hold of the ship to protect the people.
The Military Commission had no money to pay for the freight, so it had to pay in kind.
The quality of Nantai white coal was comparable to that of Welsh white coal in England, so the British businessmen were naturally happy to accept it.
At the same time, a batch of Browning 3006 bullets produced by the Springfield Arsenal arrived in Nantai via land.
Unlike the rifles sold as surplus supplies, these bullets cost 100 yuan per thousand rounds.
They were purchased at a high price of US dollars, shipped to Tianjin port for unloading, and then took Jinpu Road to Xuzhou, where they were escorted by troops sent by Chen Tiaoyuan.
There were a total of 500,000 rounds.
In order to thank his sworn brother for his last gift of guns, Chen Zikun gave Chen Tiaoyuan 200 1917-style rifles and 10,000 rounds of ammunition in return.
Later, Chen Tiaoyuan bought a thousand more from Jiangbei at a "low price" of 60 oceans each.
This second-hand rifle allowed Chen Zikun to make some profit on the price difference, but that’s another story later.
Overnight, the officers and soldiers of Jiangdong's 7th Mixed Brigade replaced their old miscellaneous firearms with brand-new American-made firearms, giving them a completely new look.
At this time, there are still two days left before the old calendar year
.
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