Time Travel to 1859: The Iron-Blooded Soldier King

Looking at Liu Ye's back as he walked away, Prince Gong opened his mouth to scream.

Cixi snorted coldly, "Sixth Master, forget it. Since he is willing to rest, let him rest!"

Cixi was also furious. This Liu Ye was really out of line. She and Prince Gong protected him so much, but not only did he not appreciate it, he even threw a tantrum. It was really unreasonable. He obviously didn't give her face!

Prince Gong looked at Cixi helplessly, thinking, "What do you know? Political affairs are easy to deal with, everyone can still handle it, and military affairs can still be barely held up, after all, the Monk King is still there. But what about Western affairs? We finally have someone who understands Western affairs, and now he runs away like this. In the future, if there is anything else, how will we deal with foreigners?"

Yi Yu, standing by, said anxiously, "Sixth brother, look at this! This Liu Ye is so arrogant! He's so brazen in front of the Empress Dowager and you! I suggest a severe investigation and punishment, so that he won't be able to turn things around for the rest of his life!"

"Shut up! Isn't it all your fault?"

Yi Xin was so angry that his veins were bulging. These brothers were a bunch of good-for-nothings who could never accomplish anything and only caused trouble!

"What's wrong? The Qing Dynasty will still thrive even without Liu Ye. There are plenty of capable people in the court..."

Yixi muttered softly.

"Stop talking, all of you, get out of here and go to the clan house to receive your punishment. You are not allowed to come out without my permission!"

Ci'an on the side was annoyed. These people were simply unreasonable. They forced such a good and famous general to resign. Is it easy to have a capable general in the Qing Dynasty?

The princes didn't dare to say anything anymore. They bowed their heads and bowed their backs to pay their respects, then walked out of the palace in shame!

Seeing that all the princes had left, Cixi said bitterly, "They are all a bunch of useless people, alas..."

Ci'an advised: "Okay, sister, after all, they are all relatives and family, what else can we do?"

"That Liu Ye is no pushover. Can't he just give in and save some face for us? Now the situation is completely strained. How is he going to survive in the court from now on?"

Cixi said angrily.

Prince Gong's face was filled with sorrow. He said, "Empress Dowager, now is not the time to be angry. The problem now is that Liu Ye has resigned. What will happen to the Westernization Movement next? We have finally found someone who can speak to the foreigners. Now is the time to rely on him. If he quits, who in the entire Zongli Yamen will understand the foreigners' ways?"

Baojun, standing by, replied, "Prince Gong, Liu Ye was only momentarily furious. I believe he will return to court after calming down. We can all talk to him privately later. You've been so kind to him, I don't think he'll be so disrespectful. It's a good opportunity for both sides to calm down during this time. It will benefit everyone."

Wen Xiang, who was standing by, suddenly said, "Lord Baojun, it's easy for you to say that. Now something has come to my door, and I was just about to report it to the Empress Dowager..."

Prince Gong was startled and asked, "Master Wen, what's going on?"

Wenxiang smiled wryly and said, "During the Taiping Rebellion, banditry was rampant in Jiangnan, and the Taiping rebels' navy was incredibly powerful. Zeng Guofan, the Governor-General of Liangjiang, repeatedly petitioned the Grand Council, requesting the construction or purchase of a Western fleet to suppress the Taiping rebels. However, the imperial court was embroiled in a series of wars with Britain and France, forcing the matter to be delayed. Didn't Prince Gong and I negotiate this matter with the foreigners repeatedly during this period? Now, the British envoy, Bruce, has finally responded, recommending an Englishman, Li Taiguo, who has proposed a fleet proposal to the Zongli Yamen. He can help us purchase several warships in Britain to form a fleet. This fleet would be used to defend against foreign aggression and maritime threats, protect coastal merchant caravans from pirate attacks, and most importantly, be readily available for military operations against the Taiping rebels. Li Taiguo's proposal has already been submitted to the Zongli Yamen, but Prince Gong has been busy with other missions these past few days and hasn't been there, so the matter has been delayed. I came here today to submit this proposal to see what the Empress Dowager and the Prince think."

Prince Gong's heart skipped a beat. What he feared was coming true! Buying a fleet? Damn it, we also need to understand what a fleet is. Foreigners are the most cunning. If we are not careful, we might be taken advantage of by them. Don't let them sell us out and we are still helping them count their money!

Prince Gong asked anxiously, "Where's the memorial?"

Wenxiang quickly handed over the memorial. Prince Gong took it, showed it to the two empress dowagers first, and then took it and read it carefully himself.

Li Taiguo made it clear in his proposal that he would purchase three medium-sized warships and four small warships on behalf of the court, with a total estimated price of five million taels of silver. Since no one in the Qing Dynasty was proficient in warship technology, he suggested that the fleet recruit active-duty officers and retired naval soldiers from Britain to operate them. The court only needed to allocate money and wages on a monthly basis. Seven warships would require about forty officers of various levels and more than six hundred naval personnel. The annual wages, plus other war preparation expenses, would require the court to invest one and a half million taels of silver annually! Once the fleet is complete, it will naturally be able to roam all over the land south of the Huai River without any rivals, and the Taiping bandit problem can be eliminated in one battle! If we start now, Li Taiguo can complete the purchase of warships and the recruitment of personnel in at most six months. The fleet will arrive in China at the beginning of next year and, after two to three months of exercises, it can be deployed in the war!

What a tempting cake!

The power of foreign warships had long been experienced during the two Opium Wars. They were truly formidable. If the imperial court could truly possess such a fleet, the annual investment of over one million taels of silver would be absolutely worthwhile. Even a purchase cost of five million taels would be absolutely worthwhile! However, was there something fishy going on? No one present knew!

Not to mention Baojun, Cao Yuying and others, even Prince Gong and Wenxiang didn't know how much these warships were worth, or how much the British were paid! Everyone was completely in the dark about Westernization, especially armaments. They could only believe what others said. How could this work?

Prince Gong's face was covered in sweat. At this critical moment, he encountered such a situation, but what could he do? All the burdens were on his shoulders, but he didn't understand these things! Zeng Zuo, Li Shen and others in the south might understand better, but the closest one was in Suzhou, 2,000 miles away. A round trip would be 4,000 miles. Even if it was 700 miles expedited, it would still take up to half a month!

Damn it, I’m blind now!