Time Travel to 1859: The Iron-Blooded Soldier King

Woren's face immediately turned as red as an eggplant. This was the second time he was humiliated by Liu Ye!

However, this was also a humiliation for him. Not to mention that the military situation was urgent and reinforcements were needed as soon as possible, every moment was worth a fortune. The cost of traveling by sea and by land was actually not much different, and it might even be cheaper to travel by sea and by land!

A battalion of Qing troops needed 1,500 taels of silver in salary a month, and 300 dan of military rations, which, converted into more than 1,000 taels of silver, plus the expenses for cavalry horses and other expenses, it would probably cost at least 5,000 taels. For five battalions, that would be 20,000 to 30,000 taels of silver. If they were delayed on the road for more than two months, that would mean a loss of 50,000 to 60,000 taels of silver!

Think about traveling by sea. Although renting a large merchant ship is quite expensive, the consumption during the journey is greatly reduced, and a lot of time is also saved. All in all, it is definitely a cost-effective deal!

Even though Weiren was not familiar with military affairs, he had worked as a doctor in the Ministry of Revenue. He knew very well the expenses of a battalion of Qing troops marching and fighting. He didn't understand it just now, and now he was speechless after hearing Liu Ye's two words.

Sushun laughed secretly on the side. This Weiren, a great master of Confucianism, was at a loss when he met Liu Ye, who was always imaginative. Liu Ye's knowledge was truly practical and had unique insights in both marching and fighting and economic affairs. Weiren was just a typical nerd. He was okay as a teacher, but he was obviously far from being able to govern the country.

Sushun has always regarded himself as a man of extraordinary insight, but in fact he does not look down on people like Woren who claim to be noble and upright. Apart from preaching with righteous words, they are completely useless. When encountering major events, they can only watch helplessly.

Sushun turned around and said to Emperor Xianfeng, "Your Majesty, I think Liu Ye is right. Going by sea is definitely more cost-effective than going by land. What we lack most now is not money, but time. Moreover, after calculation, the cost of going by sea may be even less than that of going by land, making it more cost-effective. If we act any slower, I am afraid that Yishan will lose even the area west of the Ussuri River..."

Xianfeng snorted coldly, "Yishan is a piece of trash! I hereby decree that Yishan be dismissed from his post as General of Heilongjiang and ordered to return to Beijing immediately to await further appointment. Tepchin will be appointed General of Heilongjiang Province!"

Xianfeng then asked, "Liu Ye, besides these, do you have any other requirements?"

Liu Ye replied, "Your Majesty, although I am willing to issue a military order and will certainly inflict heavy damage on the Russian army, I am afraid that the soldiers in Baoding Town will inevitably die on the battlefield. I have only one request, that is, once the soldiers return victorious, reward the fallen soldiers and meritorious officials generously, so that they know that our court is thinking of them!"

Xianfeng nodded and replied, "That goes without saying. Just like you have done in the past, as long as you perform meritorious deeds again, I will definitely reward you generously! Send an imperial decree to appoint Liu Ye as the Inspector General of the Three Northeastern Provinces, a third-rank official with the title of Admiral. He will set out on a chosen day!"

Liu Ye quickly replied, "I am deeply troubled. Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty. The military situation is urgent. I cannot remain in Beijing any longer. I will return to Baoding immediately to prepare for military operations. I also ask Your Majesty to allocate funds, food, and military equipment as soon as possible so that the army can assemble as soon as possible!"

Xianfeng asked, "How can we rent this American merchant ship? Where can we find one?"

Liu Ye was stunned. He hadn't expected Xianfeng to ask such a question. Could it be that if he held tens of thousands of taels of silver and shouted, "Here is the money, who will come to make money?", no one would come to rob him? That would be a real joke!

Liu Ye said helplessly, "Your Majesty, there is no need to worry at this time. There are many American ships in Tianjin now. Since we opened the port of Tianjin, American ships transporting goods are everywhere. It will take two or three days to find a suitable ship. When the time comes, Your Majesty only needs to order the Ministry of War to transport guns, artillery and ammunition to Tianjin. I have conducted special shooting training for each battalion under my command within a month. Although I cannot say that they are proficient in guns and artillery, they can use them correctly. I think they can also fight the Russian army!"

Xianfeng nodded. When it came to Western affairs, the ministers in the court were all outsiders and could only rely on Liu Ye. Since Liu Ye was confident that he could find a merchant ship, then it would be up to him.

Liu Ye did not stop for a moment and returned to Baoding from the capital.

When He Qimou saw Liu Ye coming back, he quickly asked, "Yezi, what happened?"

Liu Ye smiled bitterly and said, "This time, it's a hurdle for us brothers. The emperor doesn't plan to send us more troops. With only these two thousand people, we are facing more than three thousand Russian troops. I hope the Russian army doesn't send more troops. We should be able to deal with more than three thousand Russian troops. But if the Russian army really has as many as five thousand, we will definitely not be able to do it..."

He Qimou's face turned bitter as he replied, "Even if the Russian army only had three or four thousand men, we still can't deal with them now. We only have three hundred muskets and a dozen or so cannons. Even if we count the old cannons from Baoding Town, there aren't many left. The Russian army is equipped with a large number of cannons and guns..."

Liu Ye smiled and said, "Fortunately, the emperor has agreed to allocate all the remaining rifles and artillery to us. Almost everyone in Baoding Town has a rifle, and there are 20 artillery pieces. With the current artillery, we can form an artillery battalion. Well, a cavalry battalion, an artillery battalion, and three infantry battalions. Basically, we still have a certain degree of confidence."

He Qimou asked, "When do we set off?"

Liu Ye paused and replied, "We'll have a day tomorrow to reorganize. Each battalion should pack up all their supplies. The day after tomorrow, we'll march straight to Tianjin. From Tianjin, we'll rent American ships and head straight for Chongjin, North Korea. We'll land there and penetrate deep into the Russian heartland. We want to catch them off guard and strike them where they're off guard!"

He Qimou nodded. This was the only way now.

Liu Ye continued, "Brother Qimou, I need to go to Tianjin first to meet with the American consul in Tianjin and rent a ship from him. I'll leave everything here to you. You must reach Tianjin in six days. As for the cavalry, Luo Bicheng will lead them personally and accompany me first!"

He Qimou said in a deep voice: "Don't worry, brother, leave all these matters to me!"

Liu Ye nodded and said to the others, "Everyone, this battle is of vital importance. Brothers below, it all depends on your commander. You must defeat the Russian devils. When I am away, all military camp affairs will be decided by Lieutenant General He. Anyone who dares to lose his temper, don't blame me for being ruthless!"