Time Travel to 1859: The Iron-Blooded Soldier King

However, Liu Ye's excitement over Yung Wing's return had barely worn off for a few days when he lost his joy because Grand Secretary Wen Xiang arrived in Jinan Prefecture with an imperial decree.

Liu Ye was a little puzzled about Wen Xiang's coming to Jinan. Although he was still the actual controller of Shandong, he was no longer the governor of Shandong after all. Some daily affairs had all been handed over to Guo Songtao, Li Junfeng, Ding Baozhen, Zuo Baogui and others. After all, some information in the capital was not gathered in front of him as before.

Although Liu Ye knew that the situation in Beijing was quite serious, he did not expect it to be so serious that he would be in a situation where he was like a rat crossing the street, and everyone was shouting and beating him!

When Wenxiang took out the imperial edict and read it aloud, everyone realized that something big had happened in the capital!

Liu Ye was dismissed from his post as prefect of Dengzhou Prefecture, but retained his post as admiral of the Shandong Navy. He was sent on a special envoy to Europe and the United States. All Shandong affairs were handed over to Guo Songtao. Admiral Zuo Baogui of Shandong was summoned to lead troops from the three Shandong garrisons into Henan to assist the monk king in suppressing the Nian bandits. Ding Baozhen, the Shandong Provincial Surveillance Commissioner, was transferred to the Supervisory Office as the Left Deputy Censor-in-Chief. All other personnel remained unchanged...

This is going to tear down the framework that Liu Ye has just set up. Not to mention transferring Zuo Baogui out of Shandong, even if Liu Ye is expelled from China and sent to visit Europe and the United States, Shandong's good situation will be ruined. Without Liu Ye in charge, Guo Songtao and Li Junfeng are too inexperienced and will definitely not be able to hold the fort!

Liu Ye's face turned pale and he said coldly, "Bochuan, who meant this?"

Wen Xiang's face was a little unnatural, and he sighed, "Ziming, this matter was the result of a discussion between the two palaces and the Prince Regent. You don't know that the capital is in chaos right now. Even if the two palaces and the Prince Regent tried their best to suppress it, they couldn't deal with the bigwigs in the court. You made too much noise this time, and you offended almost everyone..."

Liu Ye smiled coldly and asked, "Why? Bochuan, does that include you?"

Wen Xiang smiled awkwardly and replied, "Okay, Ziming, now is not the time to joke. I am indeed a little angry with you about Lu Mingsong, but it's not a big deal. Compared with our relationship, it's insignificant. Would I break off relations with you for a waste Lu Mingsong? The cause of this matter is still the aftermath of the Hebitza incident. In addition, your actions in Shandong have angered too many people. Apart from other things, the establishment of a Western school in Dengzhou and the recruitment of a large number of foreign teachers to teach Western theories have offended almost all the great Neo-Confucianists and scholars in the capital. Even Lord Genfeng was so angry that he couldn't eat for several days. This time, your anti-corruption storm on such a large scale has already involved most of the powerful people in the capital. Think about it, when several things are combined and erupted, who can withstand such power?"

Hey!

Liu Ye slammed his fist down on the coffee table and shouted, "Fuck it! These bastards are incapable of accomplishing anything, and are more likely to cause trouble than to do anything. If it weren't for the people here, who would bother with their business? Damn it! I'm happy and carefree. With my ability, I can become a wealthy man who rivals a country and enjoy endless wealth in a blink of an eye! Fuck it! It's a thankless task? There's no need to bother with that. I'll hand over all my power right now! What a bullshit admiral! I quit! Visiting Europe and the United States? Dream on. I'm too lazy to run errands. I'm just looking for a temple to take a nap. Who cares who owns this world? It's not mine anyway!"

After saying this, Liu Ye threw his official hat out, then tore off his official uniform and threw it in front of Wen Xiang!

Wen Xiang was completely stunned. Although he had anticipated Liu Ye's wrath, he hadn't expected it to be this intense! This incident had caused this guy to actually quit!

"Ziming! Don't act recklessly. The two Queen Mothers asked me to tell you to hold your temper for a while. After a year or so, you will be reinstated. You will still be the Governor of Shandong, and you will still have the final say in this area. Do you think the two palaces and the Prince Regent want to destroy all this hard work? The Prince Regent is still heartbroken!"

Wen Xiang quickly advised that, compared to tearing up his court robes and throwing away his official hat, Liu Ye's abandonment of his post was the most fatal. Without Liu Ye, those foreigners wouldn't care about your court! Facing the cunning and greedy Western powers, no one except Liu Ye could stand up!

Zuo Baogui, who was standing aside, said calmly, "Master Wen, not only has the Governor resigned, I have also submitted my resignation to the court. This position of Governor of Shandong is really boring, and I am injured and need to rest. It is really not suitable for me to fight on the battlefield. I hope the court will grant me your approval..."

Wen Xiang's forehead immediately broke into sweat. Not only Liu Ye, but even Zuo Baogui was furious! This was truly devastating. Zuo Baogui was a formidable general. In just over a year, the three Shandong towns had been completely transformed. Even with a one-third reduction in troop strength, their overall combat effectiveness had increased significantly, transforming them into a formidable force comparable to the Hunan Army! If he abandoned his command, wouldn't the three Shandong towns be ruined?

Wen Xiang hurriedly said, "Guanting, Guanting! Don't act on impulse, don't act on impulse! The court is only allowing Ziming to rest for a while. Shandong has Bochen in charge, so shouldn't we still do what we should do? What should we do?"

Zhu Hai sneered at the side and said, "Master Wen, we brothers follow our eldest brother. Wherever he goes, we follow him. Even if he wants to go out to sea as a pirate, we brothers are willing to follow. As for Brother Bochen, I'm sorry, although we have a good relationship, it's not that bad yet! Even Brother Ye has resigned, what's the point of us training the army? It's better to disband it directly. Anyway, we don't get a penny of military pay from the court!"

Unfortunately, Gao Qi was not here. If Gao Qi were here, he would probably overturn the table and jump up and down and curse.

Wen Xiang wanted to die now. He was doomed. He had never expected that things would turn out like this. How could he explain this to the prince?

Guo Songtao, standing aside, replied calmly, "Lord Bochuan, the position of Governor of Shandong originally belonged to Ziming. Because of what happened last time, I had no choice but to usurp his position and look after Ziming. But now Ziming has been driven to the West. How can I still have the nerve to sit on this Governor's seat? Although Songtao cannot understand the meaning of fame and fortune, he still has to maintain his integrity. If Ziming really goes to the West, then Songtao will have no choice but to resign and retire to the countryside..."

"You, are you going to force me to kill myself? Ziming, we two brothers have a good relationship, how can you be so cruel..."