Master Yuan, start!

"Exactly. Liu and Lin provoked border conflicts and incurred the wrath of foreign nations. They should be dismissed from their positions as commanders of the left and right wings and reduced to ordinary sailors!"

Li Hongzhang finally finished reading the Spanish protest letter. After hearing what Zhang Peilun said, he raised his head and frowned:

"Youqiao, the South China Sea Fleet has made a name for itself overseas this time. They shouldn't be treated this way, right?"

"General Tsuen, if we don't punish them severely, how can we give the Spanish an explanation?"

Zhang Peilun once served as the Minister of Fujian Shipyard. After the Mawei Shipyard was destroyed by the French, he was recruited by Li Hongzhang and appointed as the Minister of Guangdong Shipyard. He was also recruited as Li Hongzhang's son-in-law.

In the original time and space, he later disagreed with Li Hongzhang on his attitude towards Russia, so he resigned in anger and returned home.

However, in this time and space, he is still Li Hongzhang's good son-in-law and a good helper in shipbuilding affairs.

Liu Ruifen and Zhang Peilun usually advocated being neither humble nor arrogant and taking a tough stance against foreigners, but this time they both wanted to deal with the South China Sea Fleet.

"Yuting, what do you think?" Li Hongzhang looked at Ding Ruchang beside him.

"I think it's time to teach these bastards who are used to getting away with it a lesson."

Seeing that the three men were all filled with righteous indignation, especially Ding Ruchang, as the admiral of the South China Sea Fleet, not only did he not protect his subordinates, but he also joined in shouting for fighting and killing.

No matter how slow Li Hongzhang was, he realized that the three of them were deliberately putting on a show for him.

"Hahaha, I'm not stupid, why do you three have to retreat in order to advance?

The South China Sea Fleet has won a great victory, so why should I punish them?"

Seeing that Li Hongzhang had no intention of surrendering to the Spaniards, the three of them were naturally delighted and congratulated him:

"Marshal Quan, Hunan and Hubei are busy with their civil war, and Yuan Shikai is busy raiding the Yansheng Palace. In the whole world, only Guangdong and Guangxi have allowed the South China Sea Fleet to go abroad to show off its power.

Comparing these three things, scholars all over the world will know who is truly devoted to the country and who is a true patriotic and loyal minister!

"How could I be the kind of person who pursues fame?" Li Hongzhang waved his hand to show that he didn't care, but the expression on his lips had obviously betrayed him.

He worked as a paperhanger all his life, and especially after the signing of the treaty between China and France ceding Taiwan and Vietnam, he was scolded by scholars all over the world.

It is of course false to say that Li Hongzhang did not care about public opinion. He was just pretending not to care because he was criticized so harshly.

Now that he has an opportunity to reverse his reputation, Li Hongzhang naturally wants to seize it.

At his age, he wanted to leave a legacy for his descendants and a good reputation for himself.

Now the prototype of the former has been formed, and Guangdong and Guangxi as well as neighboring Hunan, Fujian, and southern Jiangxi have been brought under the management of Li Hongzhang.

The latter's opportunity to clear his reputation would be even more precious, so Li Hongzhang made up his mind to seize this good opportunity.

Thoughts flowed, Li Hongzhang did not talk about the South China Sea Fleet, but talked about the past:

"Since taking office in Guangdong and Guangxi, I've had many dealings with foreigners. I've just realized that, although the world is vast, only countries like Britain, France, Russia, the United States, Germany, and Austria-Hungary can be called powerful nations.

The rest are all so-so, and are even worse than Japan.

I truly regret signing a Most Favored Nation Treaty with Peru, a small country in South America. I am ashamed to face the people of this world."

Speaking of this, Li Hongzhang couldn't help but sigh.

"General Quan, you must not blame yourself. How many people in the court at that time understood the world situation?

Not everyone is like Yuan Shikai, and not everyone can write articles about the rise of a great power. This is not Marshal Tsuen's fault! "

Ding Ruchang was a rough man, but rough men's words are often the most heartwarming. His words, "It's not Marshal Tsuen's fault," made Li Hongzhang feel much better.

"How can I be without fault?" Li Hongzhang walked down the stairs and changed the subject, talking about the South China Sea Fleet again. "I just learned this year that Spain is now a weak country in Europe. Therefore, I will not pay attention to this so-called letter of protest."

Li Hongzhang raised the paper in his hand and threw it aside.

Seeing that Li Hongzhang was determined to fight to the end this time, Zhang Peilun and Liu Ruifen put aside their pretense and asked seriously, "Marshal Quan, the Spanish consul has threatened to ask the French for help. We must be on guard."

"French?" Ding Ruchang didn't understand the European situation. "Why would the French help Spain with such a thankless task?"

Zhang Peilun explained to Ding Ruchang, "Yuting, you don't know that the Spanish royal family is now the Bourbon family, which is from France. Although France is a republic and has no emperor, the Bourbon family still has great influence in the French government."

"It's okay," Li Hongzhang said to Zhang Peilun confidently, "If Spain can find the French, I am not without help!"

9. "I wonder what plan Marshal Quan has?" Liu Ruifen asked with a bow.

"It's just using barbarians to control barbarians," Li Hongzhang replied slowly, twirling his white beard.

"The Philippines is entirely occupied by Spain, and has never had any disputes with other European countries." Zhang Peilun still had some understanding of the European situation, so he was puzzled:

3. "Marshal Tsuen, are you British? But the British have long occupied India and opened many more ports in the Qing Dynasty. The Philippines is actually quite useless to them."

Lu: "No, although Spain has no disputes with other European countries, it is not without its covetousness in the Philippines."

At this point, Li Hongzhang remembered what Yuan Xiangcheng had said to him in the telegram, and said slowly to the people in front of him:

"Joining forces with the United States to formulate laws can resist the combined pressure of France and the West."

"Join the US to formulate a law?" Zhang Peilun and Liu Ruifen were both a little surprised. They had no idea why the Americans could get involved.

Seeing that the two were puzzled, Li Hongzhang then told them the strategy that Yuan Shikai had told him.

After receiving the news of the victory of the South China Sea Fleet, Yuan Shikai knew that Li Hongzhang was in trouble and might have to kneel down to the foreigners again.

Therefore, he used the global strategic perspective of later generations to offer advice to Li Hong in the 19th century. He believed that Americans were very coveting the Spanish colony of Cuba, and pointed out that once a war broke out, the United States would not let go of the Philippines.

"Lord Li, although Xiangcheng is in the north, his heart is still with China.

You and I each serve our own master, but we must not tarnish China's reputation. Now, hearing that the South China Sea Fleet has defeated the Western barbarians, Xiangcheng feels deeply honored.

However, the Western barbarians will definitely retaliate and will inevitably join forces with France to launch an attack. Marshal Tsuen can only unite with the United States to deal with the Western-French alliance.

The United States has long coveted the Spanish colonies and has been eyeing Cuba in the Americas.

Lord Li, please remember that the British cannot be trusted. If you seek their mediation, the cost will be too high. Lord Li, please be cautious!

"Yuan Xiangcheng is truly a god!"

After listening to Yuan Shikai's words as relayed by Li Hongzhang, the three people in the hall sighed sincerely.

Chapter 167 Zhangyu Cabernet Sauvignon

In the city of Lushun, in the main hall of the government office, Yuan Shikai, Kuang Chunhua, Xu Shichang and Zhang Bishi, who came all the way from Southeast Asia, gathered at a table.

Yuan Xiangcheng specifically instructed in advance that this banquet would not be based on social status, but only for relatives and friends to meet each other, without any red tape.

The table was filled with Northeastern specialties such as pheasant, roe deer, dog meat and sorghum porridge, in addition to two bottles of red liquid.

0 Under the watchful eyes of Kuang Chunhua and Zhang Bishi, two Southeast Asian Chinese, Xu Shichang and Yuan Xiangcheng both poured a glass of red wine into their mouths.

It goes straight down the stomach!

Lu Xushichang took a breath, grinned, frowned and put down the glass, finding it difficult to accept the taste of the wine.

9 Seeing Xu Shichang's expression, Zhang Bishi's eyes showed worry.

Sure enough, is brandy still too strong and difficult to be accepted by the officials and people of the Northern Kingdom?

He couldn't help but sigh in his heart, and at the same time turned his gaze to Yuan Xiangcheng on the other side.

"Good wine!"

Yuan Xiangcheng was different from Xu Shichang. He put down his wine glass and savored the sweet aftertaste in his mouth: "This wine has a slight fruity taste and a long aftertaste."

"Mr. Yuan has hit the nail on the head," said Zhang Bishi, a Chinese overseas in Southeast Asia, rising from his seat excitedly and bowing.

"This wine is made from grapes, and it's fermented for 49 days after distillation, so it has a light grape flavor."

Fu Feiqun 8607*30

Zhang Bishi, whose original name was Zhang Zhenxun, was a famous Chinese businessman in Southeast Asia in the late Qing Dynasty. He started many businesses including colonization, mining, and shipping.

In 1869, his total assets reached 8000 million taels of silver, while the annual income of the Qing Dynasty at that time was only 7000 million taels. He was truly rich enough to rival a country.

In 1892 in the original time and space, his talent was connected with the Qing court, and he was discovered by Li Hongzhang, who appointed him as Consul General of Singapore.

In this time and space, under the leadership of Kuang Chunhua, Minister of the Agriculture and Industry Department of the Red Confucian Society and General Manager of the Incheon Machinery Bureau, Zhang Bishi was invited to Lushun in advance and met Yuan Shikai.

"The head instructor can even get used to this wine?" Kuang Chunhua was a little surprised. "Since coming north, few people have praised this wine."

"Hanyang, why are you so disrespectful? You should call him Lord Yuan." Zhang Bishi glared at his distant nephew.

"Brother Bishi, there's no need to be so formal," Yuan Xiangcheng said with a faint smile. "Hanyang once studied at the school I sponsored, so calling him Chief Instructor is a sign of intimacy."

"I never thought that my naughty nephew was actually a disciple of Lord Yuan. I am sorry for being rude." Zhang Bishi had just sat down when he stood up again to apologize.

Seeing Zhang Bishi so reserved, Yuan Xiangcheng pretended to be angry and said, "Brother Bishi, I said before that this banquet is just for personal friendship. If you still keep calling me Lord Yuan and Governor Yuan, then I will be really angry.

Today at this table, Brother Bishi, just call me Weiting."

"In that case, I will follow Yuan...Ru Weiting's wishes." Zhang Bishi finally felt relieved when he saw that Yuan Xiangcheng did not seem to be lying.

Zhang Bishi recalled the ups and downs of life he had experienced in the Qing Dynasty on his journey north.

After receiving the letter from his nephew, he heard that the governor of the court wanted to meet him. He was very excited and took a boat north early.

When docked in Guangzhou, he happened to see the South China Sea Fleet returning with a great victory. As a top Chinese businessman in Southeast Asia, he knew how important such a feat was to the improvement of the status of the Chinese in Southeast Asia.

At that time, he did not bother to go north, and directly sent someone to deliver his business card to the Governor-General's Office of Guangdong and Guangxi, intending to meet Li Hongzhang.

However, after waiting happily for two days, there was still no reply. When he sent someone to ask again, the doorman said that Lord Li had already left for an inspection elsewhere.

Despite being full of enthusiasm, Zhang Bishi was never even able to meet the Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi. He then realized that he was just a "businessman" and how could he get close to the high and mighty Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi?

After leaving Guangzhou, he wanted to return to his ancestral home in Meizhou to pay homage, but because he was dressed in a Western suit, he was stopped at the dock. Even if he took out money to pave the way, he could only move around in coastal towns and was not allowed to enter the inland.

Therefore, after repeated setbacks, he became discouraged and continued to head north to accept the invitation of his nephew.

Unexpectedly, he felt a different kind of attention from the Governor-General of the Three Northeastern Provinces. Yuan Shikai was not only approachable, but also praised the Southeast Asian specialties he brought with him.

Zhang Bishi was a little panicked at first, but he finally realized that although Yuan Xiangcheng was a third-class duke, he did not have the sense of superiority that he had in the officialdom.

He really doesn't care about this.

Since Yuan Xiangcheng was no longer putting on airs, Zhang Bishi also opened up. He pointed at the cup of red liquid and said, "I didn't expect that Lord Yuan could actually drink this foreign stuff."

It’s just brandy, it’s not like I haven’t drunk it in my previous life, Yuan Xiangcheng thought to himself when he heard this.

There was a reason why Kuang and Zhang were surprised.

The drinking habits of the Chinese people since ancient times can be roughly divided into high-concentration white wine in the north and low-concentration yellow wine in the south, depending on the region.

Products such as beer, grape wine, and red wine have not yet been introduced into China on a large scale. Even grape wine is classified as fruit wine in traditional Chinese winemaking.

Fruit wine generally has a low concentration, so brandy, as a "fruit wine" in a broad sense, has an alcohol concentration of up to 40, which is naturally not popular among people nowadays.