Master Yuan, start!

"The British have chosen an excellent partner in China, and may even turn China into a second India!"

"France, oh France, how long will you lag behind Britain?"

"Gallic, are you going to surrender to the Anglo-Saxons in East Asia?"

Aoliwei knew that such sensational headlines were not uncommon in Le Parisien.

Citizens denounced the French government's strategic failure in East Asia, which has caused Chinese leaders to become hostile to France.

Similarly, the French people were dissatisfied with the government's slow progress in overseas colonization and wanted to establish an India belonging to France.

And the Vietnamese colony was far from enough in their view.

France has longed for China for too long. Indochina alone is not enough to satisfy the appetite of 4000 million Gauls.

Since Britain can own the whole of India, the Gallic rooster must at least occupy China south of Lingnan, so that it can be considered "on par" with Britain in the international arena.

Now France's infiltration plan has only taken the first step.

Having just secured the right to build the Sichuan-Hankou Railway by making friends with Li Hongzhang, he could not give up halfway.

Thinking of this, Consul Aoliwei waved his hand and said:

“Invite Mr. Sun from Formosa to give more speeches in Xiamen.

If the effect is good, let him go to Wuchang and give two speeches to explain the Formosa people's desire for friendly relations between China and France.

But please note that if someone asks about federal autonomy, just say that the time is not yet ripe and evade the question.

Also, send someone to publish this news in the newspaper."

The liaison officer wrote down everything Consul Ao Liwei had just said.

When he heard the last sentence, he looked up and asked, "What news?"

"Let's say France is happy to see peace in China and can provide a large loan for China's public works construction.

If Li Hongzhang is willing, the loan can be disbursed immediately!"

"Construction loan?" The contact's eyes widened. "Mr. Consul, as far as I know, you don't seem to have that authority."

"Of course it's fake." Ao Liwei smiled and said, "In fact, this money was a military loan that Li Hongzhang had previously sought from the Banque de l'Indochine."

Chapter 378: Successful Assassination of Liu

The sky was clear and the air was fresh. In Wanxian County, Kuizhou Prefecture, Chongqing, a very backward place in China at the end of the 19th century, a few street lights were erected.

This is not an international trade center, nor are there any foreign concessions.

Looking around, you can see endless hills everywhere.

On the hill, there are several dirt roads trampled out by people, winding and twisting.

Going up the dirt road, there are cliffs that are nearly 90 degrees in all directions. Going down the dirt road, there is the mighty Yangtze River that flows endlessly.

This is the only eastern passage for entering and exiting Sichuan.

In the darkness of the night, the occasional bird calls could be heard, sad and melodious.

However, what was more common was the sound of the river water hitting the rocks on both sides.

The traditional, almost idyllic life is still maintained here, and modern large-scale industrial machinery seems to be nowhere to be seen here.

The reason is very simple, the people here make a living by taking boats, facing the dangerous San Er Chu ...

Therefore, the traditional Three Gorges ferry workers still have their place here.

However, not everyone is confident enough to conquer these cliffs and the turbulent river.

The local people have longed for a convenient and safe way to leave Sichuan.

Today, local people gathered in the county town to watch the construction team that came from afar, watching them set up street lights for night construction and drive in the railway pile foundations, and burst into cheers.

The railway has become a new safe channel for leaving Sichuan recognized by the people of Sichuan.

Compared with the people of Chongqing Prefecture, the people of Wanxian undoubtedly have a stronger expectation for "safety".

People from all over Wanxian gathered in a small open space on the riverside, jostling each other and cheering for the official laying of the railway.

The Sichuan-Hankou Railway adopts a multi-line construction model, starting from Chongqing and extending to Wanxian. At the same time, it also starts from Wanxian and extends to Yichang.

In Wanxian City, people in various costumes were crowded together in a disorderly manner.

Surrounded by guards, Liu Bingzhang walked towards the designed Wanxian Railway Station Square with a smile, ready to visit the groundbreaking ceremony.

In this crowded crowd, two inconspicuous men were standing on the Wanxian city wall, looking at the turbulent river, listening to the clanging sound of hammers, and smiling at the corners of their mouths.

These two people are not ordinary people. One is Liao Zhongkai, the minister of the Huaxing Party in Guishan County, Guangzhou, and the other is Liu Shiliang, the minister of the Huaxing Party in Wanxian County, Sichuan.

Both of them were very young and had similar interests. They became close friends as soon as they met.

Liao Zhongkai rushed to Sichuan to follow Li Jingfang to inspect the construction of the Huaxing Party.

However, he happened to catch up with Liu Bingzhang who was visiting railway groundbreaking ceremonies in various places in eastern Sichuan. At Liu Shiliang's invitation, he followed him and visited the scenery of Sichuan together.

The two men arrived in Wanxian this afternoon, just in time for the people to gather together to witness the start of railway construction.

Therefore, Liao Zhongkai and Liu Shiliang simply made an appointment to meet on the city wall, drinking together facing the river and chatting.

"Brother Yibai, how does the morale of the people here compare to that of the people in Lingnan?"

Liu Shiliang proudly pointed to the Sichuan people who were cheering under the city wall, then turned and asked Liao Zhongkai beside him.

"The people's morale can be used, the people's morale can be used!"

Liao Zhongkai was also very excited.

He didn't expect that in the isolated inland area, so many people could burst out with such enthusiasm.

Upon hearing this, Liu Shiliang pretended to be modest and said, "Ah, I can't compare. I guess I can't compare to Lingnan.

Guangzhou has been open for over a hundred years, and its prosperity is comparable to that of the small Wanxian County.

Liao Zhongkai smiled and said, "Brother Liu, why do you keep nagging me like that? The people of Guangzhou are Chinese, and the people of Wanxian are also Chinese. The same things that the people of Lingnan can use will sooner or later be used by the people of Wanxian.

Just like this railway, it is a good thing that enriches the country and benefits the people. The people in Beijing and Tianjin have it, the people in the south of the Yangtze River have it, and now the people in Sichuan have it too.

"It's a pity that the situation in Sichuan is unstable. If the railway can be built to the plateau, then those chieftains will have a harder time causing chaos and the country will be able to remain stable forever." Liu Shiliang shook his head and suddenly sighed.

"Last time, when Commander-in-Chief Liu sent new troops to Sichuan to reform the local chieftains, they had already reached Dajianlu, and the chieftains were about to surrender.

However, Marshal Tsuen insisted on calling off the offensive, saying it might provoke a counterattack from the British, and he just sat back and watched the chieftains rest and regroup their troops.

"The first push was strong, the second weakened, the third exhausted. After that, the troops in Sichuan were never able to advance that far in one go again." Liu Shiliang finished speaking with a helpless expression.

Liao Zhongkai naturally knew what Liu Shiliang was talking about. Sichuan Governor Liu Bingjiu once sent troops to Sichuan to clear out the chieftain forces, but was called back by Li Hongzhang halfway through the battle.

"Brother Liu, you live deep in the interior and may not be aware of the global situation.

Further west of the river is Tibet, which is like a sharp blade standing upright on India.

India is called the jewel in the crown by the British, and it is a place where no mistakes can be made.

It is easy for the new army to conquer, but how to defend?

The British sending troops from India to harass us is much better than our support from Sichuan.

Therefore, rather than wasting our strength by taking that piece of land, it is better to leave it in the hands of those lamas for the time being, as long as they do not completely turn to the British. "

Hearing this, Liu Shiliang laughed and said self-deprecatingly, "President Yuan's approach is still the most satisfying. No matter what the consequences are, we will fight first and talk later. It doesn't matter whether they are French or Russians!

It's no wonder so many people support him. If I were an ordinary citizen, I would be no exception."

Liu Shiliang was muttering some complaints to himself, although he didn't mean it and the listeners took it seriously.

Liao Zhongkai, who was standing by, was slightly stunned, but couldn't help but fall into deep thought.

The Huaxing Party was the largest party in Lingnan, and almost everyone was proud to join the party. However, after arriving in the north, Liao Zhongkai discovered that the support rate of the Huaxing Party was not that high.

The reason why it is so powerful in Guangzhou is probably because it has the support of the "local party" and the people are willing to support the local political party.

When they arrived in Sichuan, although the Huaxing Party still held the majority, the people generally had a favorable impression of Yuan Shikai and the Social Revolutionary Party.

This phenomenon forced Liao Zhongkai to become alert and at the same time, he began to question himself.

What advantages does the Huaxing Party have compared to the Socialist Revolutionary Party?

Although Liao Zhongkai was in the Huaxing Party and was a close friend of Huang Xing, the general manager of the Huaxing Party, he also admired Yuan Shikai very much. He admired this man who did not want to be emperor and was willing to be the general leader.

95872)siwu old drought teaching flow

The Huaxing Party's purpose is to "expel the Tartars and restore China."

It's funny to say that the Tartars were expelled by Yuan Shikai, and China was also restored by Yuan Shikai.

The Huaxing Party in Lingnan was just following in others' footsteps and repeating what they had said.

However, Liao Zhongkai did not understand why Yuan Shikai was unwilling to support federal autonomy?

Can't he see the public opinion in Guangdong?

In Liao Zhongkai's view, we cannot blindly copy the foreign system. France's land area is only the size of a Chinese province, so there is no problem in implementing a central republican system.

But China has a vast territory and billions of people.

We should learn from the American system of federal autonomy and federal republic.

Republic, republic, harmony within the republic; federation of provinces and republic, self-government and harmony within the republic.

A series of thoughts swirled in Liao Zhongkai's mind. He shook his head and put these thoughts behind him.

He turned around and looked at the crowd with Liu Shiliang, and saw Liu Bingzhang, who was surrounded by a group of people, walking forward.

...

Liao Zhongkai and Liu Shiliang were looking at Liu Bingzhang, and some of the people below were also staring at Liu Bingzhang.

In the crowd, the assassin Lao Ma, who was mixed in the crowd, felt helpless. He had been waiting in Wanxian for so long and finally waited for Liu Bingzhang's arrival.

He heard that Liu Bingzhang would rush back to Chengdu after today. Seeing that he had no chance, he had no choice but to squeeze into the crowd to see if he could get a chance to take action.

But who would have thought that people were so crowded and close to each other that they couldn't move at all.

"Old Ma, there are police officers!"

The accomplice pointed at his men and the baton-wielding patrolman at the station entrance, and said nervously, "I'm afraid you can't get through with a gun."

"Can't get through? We have to get through even if we can't. Don't forget, we received 1000 eagle dollars from them!"