Forbidden City, Peking

September 2, 1891, around 10:00 am

Military Affairs Office South Study Room

Although it has been September, the weather in Peking City is still extremely hot.

The mansion report shows that Shanxi, Shaanxi, Dezhou Prefecture, and Hejian Prefecture have all had severe drought for several months, and the rain has not yet fallen. It is also a place where locusts are everywhere, thousands of miles of naked land, and millions of disaster victims go out to beg for life, starving and fleeing everywhere, and countless people go on the way.

Under the shade of the trees, a row of bungalow doors and windows in the south study of the Military Affairs Office were stuck, allowing the heated air to circulate into the room, which could cause some trouble.

Several military ministers sat around with folding fans and chatted. The topic was not about the current important disaster victims' relief, but about the construction of the Summer Palace for Empress Dowager Cixi. They were having a passionate chat.

"I want me to ask for information about the filial piety to the Lafayette in Manchu. Two years ago, Prince Chun Yihuan from the Prime Minister's Navy Office spent 2.6 million taels of silver to build the Summer Palace. Isn't that... Prince Chun Yihuan raised more than 2 million taels of silver in the name of buying guns and cannons for the Beiyang Navy and sent it to the Office of the Interior Office. It is truly commendable filial piety."

"The North and South Navy spend a lot of money. All the iron-clad ships were profitable for the Westerners. If the sea-like silver was thrown into the water, it would be better to use it to build a garden for Lafayette. It would be a good idea to see the light."

"What Lord Ele said is very much. At present, the current state affairs limit is limited, and the money must be used in the place where it can be used. Recently, Weng Tonghe, the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, requested the court to ask the court to say that the purchase of Western guns and cannons was harmful. He replied that the purchase of foreign guns and cannons in the North and South China was suspended for three years. Prince Li Shiduo attached the notice. The court has approved what he reported, and now he can finally save a lot of expenses."

"Hmph, those Westernization ministers are probably going to make trouble again, so I'll have fun now."

"Especially, Li Hongzhang, the Han minister who assisted in the Navy's yamen, was not a worry-free person. He said one by one, and few people could talk about him."

"What are you afraid of him? After all, he is a slave of the Han family, a dog-like figure. He is just a lucky person who has been rushing to destroy the Mao bandits. He has made a lot of money by preparing for the Beiyang Navy over the years. Li Hongzhang has always had millions of taels of silver in private. If the court really wiped his face and investigated it, killing the nine clans would be light."

"Mr. Xu's words are reasonable. We are all from the Han military flag. We are not the same as those Han officials. We are the masters and they are slaves."

"Hahaha... this is exactly what I want."

"Sir Sun, you are close to the eunuch in charge of the Office of the Internal Affairs. How is the garden of Lord Lafayette?"

"I dare not work, Lord Ele asked. I talked about this with the eunuch in charge a few days ago. The Summer Palace has spent 170 to 80 million taels of silver, and it has only been half made. Finally, it has become a little bit like this. After all, it is a royal garden, and the specifications and momentum cannot be a difference."

"After that being said, building gardens for Lord Lafayette is a first-class event. The North and South Navy has fewer ironclad ships to build, and the Han governors hold high power. It is time to control them so that they will not be too presumptuous and arrogant."

"Mr. Ele is the old minister's advice for the country, and I'm concerned about it."

“Additional.”

"Of course, it's up to you."

The three military ministers of the Han military flag nodded like pounding garlic. Ele and Bu looked around proudly, then raised their heads and laughed loudly, their pride was hard to express.

In 1887, Emperor Guangxu took power. Empress Dowager Cixi returned the power of the emperor on the surface, but in fact she still held the power of the court. The poor Emperor Guangxu was just a puppet.

In order to calm the criticism of the ministers in the court, Empress Dowager Cixi said that she wanted to build a garden to enjoy her old age, so she would leave the court affairs to Emperor Guangxu in the future.

Regardless of whether it is the Queen Mother’s delaying strategy, you can always see some hope.

It would cost a lot of money to build a royal garden, but in this way Empress Dowager Cixi could retire and be honored and support, so that Emperor Guangxu could take power alone. Prince Chun Yihuan, the Prime Minister's Naval Affairs Office, was the biological father of Emperor Guangxu, and he had to help his son with his feelings and reason.

So, Prince Chun Yihuan tried his best to get money from the Prime Minister's Beiyang Affairs Office, which is well known.

Just then

The Minister of the Military Affairs Office, Zhang Zhiwan, hurriedly walked in from outside. He held a diplomatic note in his hand. After entering the door, he looked around and saw the Minister of the Military Affairs Office, Erle and Bugao, sitting in the upper seat, holding a folding fan in his hand, and fanning back and forth leisurely.

So Zhang Zhiwan took two steps up and presented a diplomatic note with both hands and said, "Mr. Ele and B, this is an emergency diplomatic note in England. British Minister Hendry is still waiting for the news, so we need to handle it quickly."

"Oh, let's see." When Ele and Bu heard that it was a matter of Master Foreigner, they quickly put down the folding fan, took the diplomatic note and looked carefully, and their faces changed color.

This matter is too big, he can't make a decision!

"Wait and wait a moment, I will personally send the gift to the prince."

Ele and Bu stood up and straightened their clothes, then picked up the diplomatic notes and walked towards the inner room.

The South Study Room of the Military Affairs Office is a door-to-door room. All the Military Affairs Ministers and the Ministers of the Military Affairs Office work here to review the memorials.

Prince Li Shiduo, the Minister of the Leading Military Affairs Office, was in the inner room, and there was a separate door separated by the door. Ordinary people were not allowed to trespass on the important things, reflecting the distinction between superiors and inferiors.

"King of the Ocean Kingdom, the Queen plans to visit Guangzhou Prefecture in the near future?" Prince Li Shiduo looked at the diplomatic notes in surprise, looking a little at a loss; "When will such a country appear, what is the way to go?"

"If you want to go back to the prince, this Ocean Kingdom is located in the southeast of Luzon and thousands of miles away. There is a continent called Australia, which is a dependent of the British Kingdom. This Ocean Kingdom is a powerful force on the road to Australia. It is a new kingdom that has been recognized by the European countries. It is normal for the prince to not know it."

"What's the point of being a small Dongyi country!"

"Prince, this Ocean Kingdom is not a small country in the Eastern Yi. Its territory is vast and it is only slightly inferior to our Celestial Empire. Its country is remote and of course it cannot be compared with Hua Tianbao, the country's national property of our Celestial Empire. However, it is a brave and fierce character. It has fought several bloody battles with the Westerners, but it has won by chance. Moreover, it has severely humiliated the Eastern people a few years ago. It is a wild horse that cannot be restrained. Even the British and Geely countries have to let it establish a new country. This shows the clues."

"Ah... so difficult?"" Prince Li Shiduo's face suddenly changed color.

He knew that the Westerners were very powerful in ships and guns, and even the Easterners were not easy to share. In the early years, the Easterners used the excuse of the indigenous people on the Tai Island to kill fishermen who were storms and encountered storms, and they blatantly sent troops to invade Tai Island. The court spent a lot of effort and paid 500,000 taels of silver to calm the situation.

This Lawshi Ocean Kingdom was able to beat both the Eastern and Westerners to the dust, so it was naturally not easy to deal with. The original contempt immediately disappeared and replaced by deep worries.

After careful consideration, Prince Li Shiduo frowned and asked, "As far as I know, these ghosts in Europa, Hongfan, are also dissatisfied with Wang Hua and brave and cruel people. How could they allow the Ocean Kingdom to be established under the nose?"

"The prince doesn't know that the army of the Ocean Kingdom is very strong. If you fight, you will lose both ways. If you join forces, you will win. The ancestors of the British were pirates, and they were originally a person who seeks profit and avoids harm."

"Oh, so that's it!"

Ele and Bu took a step forward with a pleasing expression and replied in a low voice, "Prince, this Ocean Kingdom is a tough guy. I heard that we were killing white people in Australia like a sea of ​​blood. We can't take it lightly."

"How could you, a monkey who walks birds and dogs, know that the matter in Southeast Asia is so detailed?" Prince Li Shiduo looked unprecedentedly solemn.

He knew that Elehebu was different from a group of noble men of Manchu who were eating and waiting to die in the capital. He was one of the few capable ministers. The sound of "monkey" was of closeness and was not a derogatory term.

"Hehe... I'm going to hide it from the prince. My disciples have many business dealings with the Normandy Foreign Company in the UK. The fur goods there are top-notch, and canned meat sausages that are cheap and good. They can be kept at room temperature for a long time. Milk candy and milk powder are also a must-have for wealthy families. Therefore, I often read some Nanyang newspapers donated by the Normandy Foreign Company. They know that these are all tough characters that are not easy to mess with. The Dutch Red Man who beaten a few years ago was also killed at home in Australia. Tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk

Ele Hebu was born in the Manchu Lan Banner and was a Jinshi. He once joined Shujishi, appointed General Shengjing, and was transferred to the Chief of Chahar.

When Zuo Zongtang was using troops in Xinjiang, Elehebu broke the grain transportation, and transferred the officers and soldiers of the Eight Banners to assist in the suppression. He was promoted to General Ulya Sutai, but he was repeatedly defeated.

In the sixth year of Guangxu (1880), Elehebu was appointed as the commander of the Han army in the Enangbai Banner and was transferred to Mongolia. He served as the commander of Rehe, the Minister of Lifanyuan, the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, the Minister of the Ministry of Residence, and the Minister of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and entered the Military Affairs Office.

"This diplomatic note is not easy to reply!" Prince Li Shiduo was in trouble. He felt like he had taken a hot potato. No matter whether it was the East, the West, the South, the North, the Russia, everything involved in the United States was fine.

Empress Dowager Cixi was in the late stage of fear of foreign countries, and other Manchu ministers were not much better.

When the war between China and France started in the south, Empress Dowager Cixi in the Forbidden City could not sleep day and night, for fear that the blue-eyed and yellow-haired foreigners would come to the city of Peiping again.

What happened back then has left a deep psychological shadow.

Prince Li Shiduo, the leading military minister, was not a decisive and decisive character, but he was reincarnated and was well reborn. In addition, the children of the Eight Banners and Guigua in the capital were all reborn, so he could take the general in the slaughter and sit in a prominent position in this military office.

It looks like a big belly, but in fact it's full of candies inside.

Since the Yongzheng Dynasty, in order to deal with the rebellion of Luobuzang Danzeng in Qinghai, the Military Affairs Office was established. The thirteenth prince, Prince Yi, Yunxiang, led the Minister of the Military Affairs Office, passed down the rules that the Minister of the Military Affairs Office must be the Prince, which has never been changed in the past 100 years.

When he suddenly encountered such a major event, Prince Li Shiduo, the leader of the military, immediately lost his mind; "This matter is very important, and I should not be good at it. You and I immediately go to the palace to meet the Empress Dowager and respectfully ask the Holy Tribunal."

"It's good, just as the prince said."
Chapter completed!