Time Travel to 1859: The Iron-Blooded Soldier King

Hua Ruohan looked at the ecstatic Liu Ye with a smile, and felt proud in his heart. It was all because of his foresight that he met this lucky star. Two million US dollars could bring him at least tens of thousands of US dollars in wealth. This was a huge sum of money, not to mention future income.

Liu Ye continued, "Mr. Hua Ruohan, there's one more thing. I need a batch of muskets and a batch of cannons. I don't need too many, but I need 3,000 muskets and 30 cannons. I wonder how quickly you can get them to me. I need them urgently!"

Hua Ruohan was stunned and asked, "Liu Ye, didn't you purchase a batch of arms from the United States? They used them up so quickly? That's unlikely, isn't it?"

Liu Ye smiled bitterly and said, "Mr. Hua Ruohan, I purchased those arms from your country on behalf of the imperial court. The right to use them is entirely in the hands of the imperial court. Almost all the muskets at that time were equipped to the Firearm Battalion, Baoding Town, and the army under the Monk King. Some were shipped south and allocated to Lord Zeng Guofan to the Hunan Army. There are no more left. In the Battle of the Capital, the Monk King's troops suffered heavy losses. All of the more than a thousand muskets they were equipped with were lost, and there are almost no surplus. The Firearm Battalion and Baoding Town have also experienced several major battles and suffered heavy losses. Now I want to raise another training army in Shandong, but there is no place to find these firearms, so I can only trouble you. I need to get the firearms as soon as possible. The artillery can be delayed for a while, but the muskets must be deployed as soon as possible!"

Hua Ruohan suddenly realized that although Liu Ye won every battle against the Anglo-French forces, he was blown into the Tonghui River in the last battle in order to save the Senggelinqin. As a result, Senggelinqin lost his greatest support, was defeated in one battle, and almost all of his firearms were lost.

Now Liu Ye wants to reorganize a new army, but he has no extra guns and ammunition.

Hua Ruohan pondered and said, "Liu Ye, America is thousands of miles away from China. If you are in urgent need, I am afraid it will be too late to buy from America. Fortunately, the quantity you need is not large. I suggest you purchase it nearby. In Hong Kong and Southeast Asia, I think I can get a batch of arms to support your use temporarily..."

Liu Ye thought about it and it made sense. Even if the speed was the fastest, it would take two months to transport a batch of arms from the United States. After two months, it would take at least two to three months of training for the new recruits to form initial combat effectiveness. In other words, it would take at least half a year, and by that time, it would be too late!

Liu Ye nodded and replied, "Okay, but you must ensure the performance and quality of this batch of muskets. Also, please help me purchase 200,000 rounds of ammunition. I'll give you two weeks to complete this. As for the payment, it's not a problem. I can still come up with the money."

Three thousand rifles and two hundred thousand rounds of ammunition, all together, cost only a little over one hundred thousand taels of silver. For Liu Ye now, this wasn't a huge sum, and he could still afford it. However, it looked like the British were going to make all the money. After all, whether it was Hong Kong or Southeast Asia, they were now almost entirely British, and only the British could afford to stockpile three thousand muskets.

Liu Ye then said: "One last thing!"

Hua Ruohan was sweating profusely and said anxiously, "My Lord Futai, you have already given me enough things to do. Do you want to tire me to death?"

It's no wonder that Hua Ruohan is anxious. Liu Ye has one thing after another, almost without interruption. Not to mention that he is now the minister to China and has a lot of official duties, even if he is his personal secretary, he can't do this, right?

Liu Ye was also a little embarrassed. He chuckled and said, "One last thing, one last thing. This matter will only benefit you, your country, and your businessmen. It will not cause any harm at all. If you do it well, it can be counted as your political achievement as the Minister to China..."

Hua Ruohan said angrily, "Speak now. If you can't satisfy me, Liu Ye, I'm going to walk away!"

Of course, Hua Ruohan was just talking. If he really asked him to leave, he would be reluctant to do so. It was a huge benefit. He had gained huge benefits from Liu Ye. How could he be willing to give it up?

Liu Ye said sternly, "Hua Ruohan, now that I've become the Governor of Shandong, it can be said that the scenario I described to you has come true. Do you still remember the promise I made to you during our negotiations?"

Hua Ruohan was stunned, thought about it, and suddenly realized that Liu Ye had told him that when he became a provincial governor one day, the first thing he would do was to open up the local market, allow American goods to enter Shandong, and even invest and set up factories!

Hua Ruohan asked, "Are you talking about opening up the Shandong market?"

Liu Ye nodded and replied, "It's not just about opening up the Shandong market. I've already made a decision. To attract businesspeople from home and abroad to invest in Shandong, I'm willing to exempt all businesses and industries in Shandong from taxes for two years. For two years, I won't collect any taxes on their earnings. Of course, goods entering and leaving customs will be taxed."

Even so, this information was shocking enough for Hua Ruohan. This was shocking news, what a big deal!

Liu Ye continued, "Your task is to help me contact businessmen from all walks of life in your country and invite them to set up business in Shandong. I, Liu Ye, always keep my word and never go back on my word. This is an opportunity to make a fortune. What do you think?"

A chance to get rich? That's a sure thing! All taxes are exempted! You can't find something this good even if you search for it with a lantern!

Hua Ruohan was immediately excited, his previous dissatisfaction swept away. This matter was obviously aimed at the United States. Only friendly Americans would have this opportunity! As for the British and French, they were a group of bandits. They had just plundered China, and now they wanted China to invite them in. That was a tall order! By the time the relationship between Britain and France and China eased, their merchants and goods would have dominated Shandong. They wanted to turn the situation around, even if they worked themselves to death!

Hua Ruohan laughed and said, "Great, this is indeed a good opportunity! I'll make preparations right away and send a telegram to our government. I don't need to contact them, I'm afraid a large number of merchants will flock to Shandong!"

Hua Ruohan stayed in Jinan for three days with great satisfaction. When he saw the large amount of supplies brought by Zhu Hai upon his return, he finally put his mind at ease. With so many supplies and Shandong Finance and Taxation as collateral, it would not be a big problem to borrow 2.5 million US dollars from American banks. With his own presence and the help of Colt's connections in America, it would not be a problem to make this deal!