The anti-Qing movement began with the looting of the Eight-Nation Alliance.

Upon hearing the foreigner's words, Shen Lian's face immediately darkened.

"Sir, what did he say?" Lu Da could tell at a glance that the other party had ill intentions, so he turned to ask Shen Lian.

“He called us yellow-skinned pigs and told us to get out!” Shen Lian said coldly.

"Fuck you! You white pig, how dare you insult our elders!" Lu Da punched the tall foreigner to the ground.

As soon as they made their move, the foreigners who had been watching the commotion suddenly surrounded them. Lu Da and his companion quickly pulled out the Mauser pistols they had just acquired.

"Stop! Stop it, you bunch of bastards!" Just as the two sides were facing off, a tall, slightly overweight, blond foreigner in his forties walked over.

"Mr. Jason, these yellow-skinned pigs attacked first," the drunkard said, swaying as he got up from the ground.

"If you call me a yellow-skinned pig again, I'll make sure you don't live more than three days!" Shen Lian said coldly.

"Shut up, you bastard! I saw you start this trouble! Apologize to the three gentlemen right now!" Jason roared.

Seeing that the other party was still unconvinced, Jason leaned close to their ear and whispered, "Damn it, didn't you see the guns they're holding? In this country, would a guard be an ordinary person who can carry guns like that? I just heard them call him 'sir,' this guy must be a high-ranking official of the Qing Dynasty."

"Sir, I'm sorry. My companion is drunk! Please forgive him." Jason turned to Shen Lianyi and patted his chest.

"Make him apologize, or I don't mind having another corpse in the canal!" Shen Lian refused to budge, betting that the other party wasn't some big shot. Even if officials from the concession came, he wasn't afraid; what could they do to a mere prefect?

Jason shook his head and turned to the drunkard, saying, "I can tell he wasn't joking when he said he'd kill you! If you really want to die, keep causing trouble! Do you think the embassy will stand up for someone as insignificant as you? Haven't fewer Westerners died in the last six months?"

The drunkard sobered up by then, and seeing Shen Lian's icy gaze, sweat poured down his face. After struggling for a moment, he could only lower his head and say, "I'm sorry!"

"Hmph! From now on, show some respect to me, and remember this is China!" Shen Lian said this in English. After speaking, he glanced around, and the foreigners who saw his gaze all turned their heads away.

Shen Lian had genuinely intended to kill him just now; he'd been infuriated by movies before, let alone someone daring to insult him to his face. He'd already planned that if the other party didn't apologize, he'd have Lu Da and the others stay behind to find an opportunity to kill him.

"Alright! It's all a misunderstanding, everyone, let's continue drinking!" Jason dispersed the crowd.

Shen Lian, feeling restless and unwilling to stay any longer, led Lu Da and the others outside.

"Sir, please wait a moment! May I buy you a drink?" Jason stopped Shen Lian.

"Thank you! I'm not in the mood for drinking now!" Shen Lian shook his head.

"Then shall I invite you to have a cup of coffee next door?" Jason continued his enthusiastic invitation.

"Alright!" Shen Lian nodded. After all, the other party had just helped him out of a predicament, so he should give them face.

The four went to the café next door, and Jason ordered four coffees. "My name is Jason, from the German Empire. May I ask your honorable name and where you work?"

“Shen! You know I’m an official?” Shen Lian raised an eyebrow.

"Hehe! I not only know that you, Mr. Shen, are an official, but I also know that your official rank must be quite high!" Jason smiled mysteriously.

Shen Lian didn't speak, but nodded to confirm the other party's guess.

"Mr. Shen, do you need to buy weapons? I happen to have a batch of rifles on hand!" Jason said eagerly.

Shen Lian couldn't help but laugh; today was truly a good day. He had just acquired a batch of weapons from the Machinery Bureau, and unexpectedly, he would run into an arms dealer while simply strolling around town.

"Rifles? I do need those; I'm just about to arm an army. But I don't want junk." Shen Lian said slowly, taking a sip of coffee.

"Great gun, absolutely great gun. Your country's army is equipped with a lot of Mauser 1888 Commission rifles," Jason said with delight.

"Thank goodness, I've finally found a buyer," Jason thought to himself. He'd been in China for six months, and if he couldn't sell these guns, he'd go bankrupt.

"1888! I thought it was Mauser 98!" Shen Lian pouted.

“Mr. Shen, the 1888 is still one of the best rifles in the world. As for the Type 98 you mentioned, we have only just equipped the Imperial Army with it. It is definitely not available on the market.” Jason didn’t know how this Mr. Shen knew that the German army had already equipped itself with the Type 98 rifle.

"Alright! The Type 88 will do. How much are these guns for you?" Shen Lian took out a cigarette and offered one to Jason, then lit one for himself.

Jason took the cigarette, glanced at Shen Lian with interest, and then lit his own match.

“Thirty taels, I only have thirty taels for one. I have a total of two thousand.” Jason held up three fingers.

"Heh! Jason, are these old guns that your German army re-equipped with? You dare to ask for thirty taels?" Shen Lian sneered.

"They were indeed replaced by our army, but I guarantee they're all in excellent condition, about 80% new. I had each one maintained by someone," Jason argued, his face flushed. Damn it! How does this Qing Dynasty official know everything?

"Never mind then! You should find someone else! Thanks for the coffee." Shen Lian said, getting up to leave.

"Wait, Mr. Shen! The price is negotiable, I can offer a discount." Jason quickly grabbed Shen Lian. He didn't want to miss out on a customer he'd finally gotten.

“Jason, do you know how much a Type 88 rifle that our own arsenal copied costs? Ten taels!” Shen Lian shook his head and held up one finger.

Jason's face turned pale upon hearing the price. He wouldn't even cover his costs if he sold it for ten taels. No wonder his guns hadn't sold.

“However, our arsenal has limited production capacity, and I want to get the guns as soon as possible. If you could lower the price of these guns, I would be willing to take them.” Seeing Jason’s dejected look, Shen Lian chuckled to himself.

“Sure, sure! How about twenty taels? I need money to transport it, and I’ll lose money if it’s any less,” Jason said pitifully.

“We’ll talk about this batch of guns later, Jason. Can you get any other weapons? Like Maxim guns and cannons?”

“Yes, yes, yes, my uncle works in the logistics department. I can get you any weapons you need,” Jason quickly assured him.

"You can even get your hands on the Type 98?" Shen Lian smiled.

"Our country hasn't even finished replacing the Type 98 rifles yet. Buying a large quantity is impossible; I can only get you a few dozen." Jason scratched his head, a little embarrassed that he had exaggerated earlier.

Shen Lian curled his lip; "What use are a few dozen! I have tens of thousands of troops."

Jason's eyes lit up when he heard that Shen Lian had tens of thousands of troops. Weapons for tens of thousands of troops—that's a huge order! He couldn't afford to miss it.

“Mr. Shen, you can equip yourself with the Type 88 first! When the opportunity arises, I will definitely help you get the Type 98 as soon as possible, and you can switch to it later! Other Maxim guns and cannons are also negotiable.”