I want to ruin the country

Prince Gong said,

"How big is the largest warship? How advanced is it?"

Armstrong Road,

"Its advancement is unimaginable. It has a displacement of over 114 tons, an average armor thickness of 22 mm, and can reach a maximum speed of knots.

Your Excellency, France and Germany can currently only build ironclad ships with a displacement of about 6,000 tons at most.

There is a generation gap between us and you. To be honest, I don’t know if the Royal Navy will agree to sell this ship to you.”

When Prince Gong heard that the ship was so big and so advanced, he became extremely nervous!

Prince Gong's face showed no sign of emotion, and he said calmly,

"Well then, dear Captain, you better tell the Royal Navy side of the story and we can start talking!"

Armstrong did not give up.

"Your Excellency, could you tell me how many warships we can expect to receive orders for if we can reach an agreement?"

Prince Gong looked at Armstrong's expectant eyes and asked,

"How many large battleships like this can you build here at the same time?"

Armstrong hardened his heart, gritted his teeth and said,

"Three ships!"

In fact, he only has two large shipyards now, and he also has to complete orders from the Royal Navy.

However, he felt that Prince Gong would definitely not be satisfied with two ships, so he directly said three ships.

If he gets an order for three warships, he can build another large shipyard.

As expected, Prince Gong showed a disappointed look.

"Only three?"

Armstrong was a little embarrassed. There was absolutely no other company in the world that could build such a huge ship at the same time.

He said that he could build three ships at the same time, but the Prince of Daqing was still not satisfied. What should he do?

Before he could speak, Prince Gong continued,

"If the price is right, I'll give you an order for three ships in the first batch. The key is that we have to agree on the price!"

Prince Gong did not lie. Even though I bought dozens of ships, it was not a one-time purchase. It had to be done in installments and batches.

I'm giving you an order of three ships worth more than two million silver coins at one time. I think I'm doing you a great favor!

Armstrong didn't know much about the Qing people, and he didn't think that a young man like Prince Gong, who was only eighteen or nineteen years old, had much scheming and negotiation skills.

He thought that Prince Gong was speaking from the heart to him.

He would never have thought that when it comes to scheming, the eight of them combined cannot compare to the combination of Li Hongzhang, Dou Zhenbiao, Lu Yaxuan and Qiao Sansheng.

I guess no one would object if I say these represent China’s highest level of negotiation!

Take Prince Gong for example. Although he is young, he has been exposed to military and national affairs since he was a child and has learned the skills of emperors from all dynasties.

What matters is playing tricks, not showing emotions,

It is not necessarily true that they are born good actors, but those trained by the China National Theatre of China, even if they are extras, are mostly at the level of movie emperors.

Now, Armstrong has basically been following the path drawn for him by these five people.

But, if you say Armstrong is stupid, that is absolutely impossible.

As the saying goes, if it's none of your business, you will cause trouble if it's your business. As long as people have desires and burdens in their hearts, they will easily fall into traps without knowing it!

After saying goodbye to Prince Gong, Armstrong immediately went to visit the Secretary of the Admiralty George.

"What? The warships that are about to be delivered are going to be sold to the Qing people?"

When the Secretary of the Navy, George, heard this, he flew into a rage.

"William, are you crazy? Even though you are my child's uncle, you violated the contract and you have to pay liquidated damages!"

Armstrong said,

"My dear Mr. George, it is not necessary for us to have the Royal Navy at this time.

But I must get the order from Qing people!"

George asked,

"why?"

Armstrong Road,

"They want to purchase a large number of warships. If these orders go to the French and Germans, it will be very detrimental to the development of our shipyard!"

George said,

"Even if I agree, the Prime Minister and the Queen won't agree!"

Armstrong knew he couldn't help but make some promises, so he said,

"George, if this matter is settled, we can discuss your investment in my shipyard!"

George's eyes lit up. This was exactly what he was thinking. He suppressed his excitement and said,

"It seems you are determined, you greedy guy!"

Armstrong said,

"The Royal Navy's order is inevitable, as only we can build such a large warship.

The contract with Qingguo is different, as it has to compete with Germany and France!

Who knows what despicable methods those bastards will resort to to achieve their goals!"

George nodded.

"Wait a moment, I'll think of a way to get Her Majesty the Queen to abandon this warship!"

Armstrong became excited and asked,

"You really have such an idea? If that's the case, all the money saved in liquidated damages will be yours!"

George waved his hand.

"Don't interrupt my train of thought!"

After a while, George said to Armstrong, who was sitting upright with expectation in his eyes,

"William, you have to do this!"

After listening to George, Armstrong gave a thumbs up.

"George, you're so smart!"

Martin invited Li Hongzhang to dinner alone, and Li Hongzhang gladly accepted the invitation.

They ate the foreign food feast that Li Hongzhang mentioned, and then Martin arranged for British strippers to entertain Li Hongzhang.

Li Hongzhang did not refuse and had a one-night stand with the stripper.

Afterwards, Martin took out the check for two hundred pounds and gave it to Li Hongzhang.

Li Hongzhang took it, put it into his sleeve and said,

"We Chinese have a saying, 'It's impolite not to reciprocate', so I'll treat you back!

Mr. Martin, let's meet here tomorrow at 11:00 noon. If you want me to do something, tell me then, okay?"

Martin was so happy that he said cheerfully,

"sure!"

Li Hongzhang also instructed,

"Please come alone. I have an interpreter here!"

“yes”!

After returning, Martin reported to Armstrong that Li Hongzhang had accepted the two hundred pounds.

Armstrong was very happy.

"The Qing people are indeed greedy. Very good! Go see Li tomorrow and tell him our demands!"

Li Hongzhang also reported the details to Prince Gong.

"Your Highness, I am soliciting prostitution on the king's orders. When the time comes, Your Highness must explain this clearly to the Ministry of Personnel and the Censorate!"

Prince Gong laughed heartily.

"Sir Li, you slept with a British woman, and this is something that brings glory to the country. Not only is it not a crime, but it is also a merit. Don't worry, I will testify for you when the time comes!"

The next day, Li Hongzhang and Martin met.

As usual, there was eating and drinking, and finally a performance by strippers. Finally, there was the reserved program, where I had a one-night stand with the most beautiful stripper.

After the incident, Martin felt that his relationship with Li Hongzhang had developed greatly. As the saying goes, it is better to visit a prostitute together than to cross a river together.

When two people do such a dirty thing together, they naturally become good brothers!