Master Yuan, start!

Just when Duan Qirui and Sheng Fei thought that the Japanese army would be completely wiped out today, several large-caliber artillery shells suddenly whistled in from the distant sea!

Japanese Navy, here we are!

The Japanese navy, which was ordered to support the army, saw that they were being beaten back step by step. If they did not take action, they might not be able to bring back even a single person. So they ignored the friendly forces and the enemy and bombarded the beach where the Jiashen Right Army and the Japanese army were entangled.

A round of salvos, with shells carrying sand, shattered the bodies of a large number of soldiers, leaving bloody trails on the beach, successfully delaying the offensive of Jiashen's right army.

But because they did not avoid friendly forces, nearly half of the people in this bloody trail were Japanese.

Seeing that the Japanese navy was determined to bombard the beach regardless of their own lives, Duan Qirui had no choice but to order a halt to the attack and let the front-line troops withdraw from the battle. At the same time, he ordered the field artillery to bombard the Japanese fleeing to the beach.

But the Japanese Navy was no pushover. The field artillery of the Jiashen Right Army could reach the beach, but could not reach the warships on the sea.

No matter how small the cannons on the Japanese Navy's warships were, they were no match for the land-based artillery of the Jiashen Right Army. Another round of salvos destroyed several field guns. Duan Qirui and Sheng Fei had no choice but to order the artillery to retreat, and the Jiashen Right Army could only watch the Japanese retreat under the cover of the warships' artillery.

"Fuck that old bitch!" Sheng Fei from Tianjin couldn't help but swear.

"Forget it, Lao Sheng, we just let the Japanese pirates escape. Wait two years and let Lord Yuan lead us to Japan. Then you can kill countless Japanese pirates at your leisure."

...

On the afternoon of the second day, when Yuan Shiguang arrived in Busan with Ma Jianzhong, King Lee Hee of Korea, and Korean ministers Kim Byung-si and Kim Hong-jip, the Jiashen Right Army had already cleaned up the battlefield.

The Japanese used the tactic of adding dumplings to the enemy's defenses and sent more than 3 troops to land in Korea. Over half a year, more than 7000 troops were killed or wounded. In the final Busan beach encirclement and annihilation battle, more than 8000 troops were annihilated, totaling more than 15000 people. Of course, this also included hundreds of people killed by Japan's own warships.

If it weren't for the Japanese Navy's indiscriminate bombardment at the end, Duan Qirui would have been confident of annihilating all the Japanese on the Busan beach.

Of course, the Jiashen Right Army also paid a heavy price. In the first half of the year, in the pursuit battle with the Japanese army in the southeast of the Korean Peninsula, the Jiashen Right Army lost more than 3000 people because they were unfamiliar with the terrain and were ambushed by some Korean puppet troops. In the subsequent encirclement and annihilation battles, due to the attack at all costs, such as forcibly crossing the river and throwing bombs, and hand-to-hand combat with the Japanese army on the beach, more than 3000 people were killed or wounded, and the total number of casualties was more than 6000.

However, the Jiashen Right Army's troops were replenished very promptly, and the losses after a battle were quickly made up. The people near Seoul were encouraged by Lord Yuan to join the army enthusiastically.

The two regiments of the Jiashen Right Army always maintained a full staff of 25000 to deal with the Japanese army, and in the later stages of the war, they also formed the Jiashen Right Army's First Mixed Brigade of more than 5000 people to participate in the battle.

At the edge of the battlefield, King Lee Hee of Korea was shocked when he heard the report. In his eyes, the powerful Japanese army was driven into a corner by Yuan Shikai's army like a dog, which made his uneasy and restless heart gradually calm down.

The accompanying Korean ministers Kim Byung-shi and Kim Hong-jip further strengthened their idea of ​​a big deal, and at the same time, they also remembered the "North Korea China Theory" that has been frequently mentioned in newspapers in recent years.

"If Korea were a province of China, would it be doing better than it is now, under the rule of Yuan Shikai?"

In the eyes of the accompanying Korean reporter Li Wanyong, Yuan Xiangcheng, who was of the same age as her, had long become the hope of Korea's future. With her report, the news that Yuan Xiangcheng's Jiashen Right Army "completely wiped out" the invading Japanese also spread rapidly in Korea and China.

Yuan Shikai became the number one foreign war hero in the hearts of the people of the world, and the Jiashen Right Army surpassed Zeng Guofan's Xiang Army, Zuo Zongtang's Chu Army, and Li Hongzhang's Huai Army, becoming the number one army in the world in the hearts of the people.

Chapter 79: Aftermath of the War

The news of the end of the Dinghai Qing-Japanese Korean War soon reached the Qing court through telegram and then spread throughout Beijing.

Most of the people in the city were celebrating and were not stingy in praising Yuan Shikai. The lights in teahouses and restaurants were kept on all night long, but the Infantry Commander's Office seemed to have forgotten the curfew rules and turned a blind eye.

Some were so overjoyed that they threw silver coins into Yuan Xiangcheng's courtyard in the capital. Others followed suit, causing the old Henan servant who stayed behind to shout, "Don't throw it away in vain! It's all in vain! Go home quickly!"

Inside the Forbidden City, the lights were still on, but the ministers at the central government showed rare joy on their faces.

"Congratulations to Her Majesty the Empress Dowager. Yuan Shikai has completely wiped out the Japanese army in Korea. This is a rare great and complete victory for Emperor Renzong in nearly 60 years. Yuan Shikai was able to achieve this victory thanks to Her Majesty the Empress Dowager's dispatch and full support in Beijing!" Sun Yuwen, Cixi's loyal servant, was truly happy for her master, and also for Yuan Shikai.

The Mongolian Elhab also reported the good news to Cixi. Zhang Zhiwan was a calm person and was not as eager to flatter as Sun Yuwen, but he also told the Empress Dowager that Yuan Shikai was a pillar of the country and should be promoted and reused.

It was rare for Cixi to laugh out loud in front of the ministers. During this period, he was really exhausted by the calls from the court and the people for the emperor to rule the country personally.

It seems that as long as the emperor personally ruled the Qing Dynasty, everything would go smoothly. Does this mean that if the emperor personally ruled, the foreigners would not attack the Qing Dynasty? Or does it mean that if the emperor personally ruled, the Qing Dynasty would be invincible?

Just then, the news came that Yuan Xiangcheng had completely wiped out the Japanese army, which made her breathe a sigh of relief. Yuan Xiangcheng was the person she promoted, and it was she who asked Yuan Xiangcheng to train the new army. Although the other four armies of the Jiashen Fifth Army remained the same, Yuan Xiangcheng's Jiashen Right Army was trained after all.

First, she dealt a heavy blow to the French army, and then she encircled and annihilated the Japanese army. Such achievements were achieved in just over two years. Who can say that it was not the credit of Cixi?

But what kind of reward would she give to Yuan Xiangcheng?

Last time, he was awarded the title of First Viscount and Minister of Haidong Affairs, which is already a second-rank official position. To move up further, only Governor-General or even Governor-General can satisfy him. He can't be transferred to the central government to serve in the military affairs, right? How old is he? I heard he is only 28!

But where can he be appointed as governor or governor-general?

After much thought, Cixi couldn't help but come up with a bigger plan in her mind.

"Before he left last time, Yuan Shikai said he intended to abolish the feudal system in Korea and establish provinces. Now everyone in Korea is in awe. If he can take advantage of this great victory to successfully incorporate Korea into the court's territory, I will not hesitate to give him a super-class title and the title of governor." Cixi's old voice came from the thick gauze curtain, shocking everyone in the hall.

The super-grade title is the earl and above. There were precedents of Han people being granted titles in the Qing Dynasty, but most of them were in the early Qing Dynasty. Zeng Guofan, the most famous person in the late Qing Dynasty, was only granted the title of marquis. Li Hongzhang and Zuo Zongtang were earls.

However, if we compare their achievements, Shi Lang, who recovered Taiwan, was also granted the title of marquis by Emperor Kangxi. It seems that it is not too exaggerated to grant Yuan Shikai the title of earl or marquis.

Yuan Xiangcheng is less than 30 years old, is he going to be awarded a super-grade title? The picture is too beautiful, Yu Han: Rake three horses, 曛谌擞行浣 ants胞麻

As for the Governor of Korea, there was nothing surprising about it. Korea was acquired by Yuan Shikai, and it was a common practice in the court to let a general who had suppressed a rebellion in a certain place guard a certain place for a period of time.

In other words, he was too young and had no achievements in the imperial examinations, otherwise he would have been able to come to Beijing and serve as a minister of military affairs.

None of the ministers had any objection to Cixi's words. Thus, two edicts, one explicit and one implicit, were issued from the Forbidden City and sent to Haedong, Korea.

The official edict praised Yuan Shikai as a pillar of the country, and specially awarded him a three-eyed hat with a peacock feather, a yellow riding jacket, and allowed him to ride a horse instead of a sword when entering the court. The edict also conferred the title of first-rank lady on Yuan Shikai's wife, and ordered the local people of Chenzhou Prefecture to erect a monument to commemorate the Yuan family.

Duan Qirui, Sheng Fei and others who made contributions to this battle were given the title of Admiral, and Feng Guozhang was given the title of General.

As for the secret decree, the news of conferring the title of overclocking and the governor's hat was told to Yuan Xiangcheng intact.

Yuan Shikai, who had just returned to the capital, had not yet learned the news, but he had already launched waves of purges in Seoul.

Yuan Shikai ordered the confiscation of property and land of all the nobles and Korean gentry who participated in the rebellion, to be used for future equal distribution of land.

This move raised more than 300 million taels of silver for Yuan Shikai, greatly alleviating his financial difficulties in recent times.

At the same time, he announced the confiscation of all Japanese assets in Korea, including but not limited to newspapers, banks, and trading companies. Even diplomats in the Japanese embassy and consulate were "courteously escorted out of the country."

Standing on a boat at the Incheon dock, Japanese Minister Shinichiro Takezoe fiercely threatened the armed Koshin Right Army: "The Great Japanese Empire will not admit defeat. Let Master Yuan be prepared to face the wrath of all Japanese people!"

8 This move also allowed Yuan Xiangcheng to obtain assets worth nearly one million taels. As for the future claims from the Japanese government, Yuan Xiangcheng did not care at all.

Whether the Meiji government can still exist in the future is another matter of debate.

7 After dealing with the financial matters, Yuan Shikai was troubled about how to deal with the Korean scholars who participated in the rebellion.

Kill all 6? It would be a waste, since they are educated.

If Lu Ke was not killed, it would be difficult for him to explain to the entire North Korea, especially the people of Seoul.

After much deliberation, Yuan Shikai finally decided to screen these Koreans and punish those with blood on their hands on the spot. The rest would be sent back to China, starting from the Yalu River, and resettled in Shengjing, Niuzhuang, Lushun, Jinzhou, Liaoyang, and Changchun, to contribute to the reclamation of Northeast China.

4 After dealing with the personnel matters, it is time to truly face the current situation in North Korea.

"Sir Yuan, the current situation in Korea must undergo a...a change, just like the reforms in Western countries mentioned in the newspapers. It's time for Korea to change too!" After returning to Seoul, Kim Hong-jip knew that Korea was no longer under the control of King Lee Hee. To remain loyal to Lee Hee was a dead end. He could only place the hope of Korea's turnaround on Yuan Xiangcheng.

Everyone in the city of North Korea took to the streets and went out of their homes, shouting "Master Yuan! Master Yuan! Master Yuan!"

Defeating the Japanese has been the long-cherished wish of the Koreans for hundreds of years. Yuan Shikai finally fulfilled their dream, which was something that no Korean king in history had been able to do. What qualifications did Li Xi have to compare with Yuan Shikai at this moment?

Not to mention that Yuan Shikai would take time out every month to sit and discuss with the people in Seoul, ranging from the current situation in Korea to Western knowledge, from astronomy and geography to interesting historical events.

Everyone thought that Lord Yuan was a modern-day Zhuge Liang, and everyone submitted to Yuan Xiangcheng.

If Yuan Shikai had not forcibly taken away the land of the wealthy families and implemented equal distribution of land, there might not have been this rebellion in Korea today.

"Sir Yuan, can we discuss the equal-field system again?" Jin Hongji knelt down and begged Yuan Xiangcheng.

"If there is room for change in the equal-field system, then Korea will definitely fall into the hands of Lord Yuan. Even... even deposing and enthroning the king will not be a difficult task." After thinking for a moment, Kim Hong-jip, the leader of the Sadae faction among the Yangban nobles, showed his trump card to Yuan Xiangcheng.

In order to protect their land, the Shida faction among the two classes did not hesitate to surrender to Yuan Shikai and betrayed the rebel faction belonging to the two classes, just to seek a glimmer of hope. However, surrender was only temporary. If Yuan Shikai was defeated, they would not hesitate to stand with the rebels and launch a fatal attack on Yuan Shikai.

But after Yuan Shikai's victory, the last hope of the two classes of the Si Dae faction was shattered. They could only beg Yuan Shikai to show some mercy and give these Korean nobles hope of survival.

"The land must be distributed equally!" Yuan Xiangcheng's words did not give Jin Hongji any hope, but at the same time, he did not want there to be any more turmoil in Korea under his rule in the short term.

"But how to distribute the land equally can be discussed further." After saying this, Yuan Xiangcheng walked out of the palace, took the telegram from Ming Ye's hand and looked at it carefully.

Chapter 92: Yuan’s selfish motives for land reform

The zero telegram said that Yi X would come to Korea with an imperial edict to grant rewards and at the same time assign an important task to Yuan Shikai.

and the Russians defined the Sino-Russian border in Outer Manchuria.

After the signing of the Sino-Russian Beijing Treaty, part of the border between China and Russia in the eastern section of Outer Northeast China, which is the Ussuri River section in later generations, remained undetermined, and the ownership of a small part of the land was disputed.

This treaty was signed in 1886 in the Liuyuan time and space, but in this time and space, because Yuan Shikai was in Korea for a long time, the Russian Far East officials were afraid to put too much pressure on the Qing court. It was not until Yuan Shikai and the Japanese were fighting in Korea that they made a request for boundary demarcation to the Qing court.

But this time, Yuan Shikai obviously surprised the Russians and solved the Japanese problem in just half a year, which gave him the opportunity to participate in the Sino-Russian boundary demarcation negotiations.

During the Qing-Russia negotiations in Yiyuan time and space, with the efforts of Wu Daji, Yiktang'a and others, the Qing government recovered a small hilltop and won the right to navigate Chinese ships on the Tumen River.

The reason why Russia was able to make concessions was that the Beiyang Fleet had just caused a big disturbance in Yokohama Port and forced the Japanese to pay 5 taels of silver as compensation.

3 The Russians felt that the Qing Dynasty had gained a certain strength after the Westernization Movement. In addition, the Far East was short of troops, and the enemy was strong and they were weak, so they offered some benefits to the Qing Dynasty's negotiating representatives.

After winning the territory of a mountain and the navigation rights of the Tumen River, the negotiating representatives Wu Daji and Yiktang'a really decided to stop while they were ahead. Adhering to the attitude of Qing officials not to cause trouble, they signed a treaty that satisfied both parties.

It is basically impossible for both parties to be satisfied after a treaty is signed. If this happens, it must be that one party has suffered a loss but has not noticed it.

In this way, the Qing Dynasty in Suo Yuan's time and space missed an opportunity to make the Russians bleed and even gain access to the Sea of ​​Japan.

If the Russians could make a little concession to the Qing court, it would mean they could make more concessions.

You must know that the teacher once said that the great powers will never be unreasonable if they can. If they are forced to sit down and reason with you, it must be because they cannot beat you and they have no choice but to do so.

NBut in this negotiation, Yuan Shikai will not let the Russians get what they want. He wants to trick the Russians and at the same time take the opportunity of negotiating with the Russians to abolish all the treaties signed between Korea and Japan.

：86-59738 Jiulaohan

To quote a phrase from later generations, Japan at that time could be said to be Korea's largest trading partner, and its trade volume was even much higher than that of its suzerain state, the Qing Dynasty.

Moreover, North Korea's exports to Japan far exceed its imports. North Korea exports hard currencies such as food, precious metals and medicinal materials to Japan, and relies on smuggling to import large amounts of gold into Japan.

Japan, on the other hand, reciprocates North Korea in two ways. First, it acts as a middleman, importing cheap industrial products from Europe and the United States and reselling them to North Korea at high prices, profiting from the difference. If that were all, North Korea would not be unacceptable, as some modern industrial products are still in demand in North Korea.

The second is to export Japanese-made industrial products, but in the later period, Japan often exported inferior industrial products made in its own country to North Korea, and sold them at the original price of European and American industrial products, making the North Koreans miserable.

It can be said that the North Korea-Japan trade contributed at least half of the warship manufacturing costs of the Japanese Combined Fleet in the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895.

Therefore, Yuan Shikai's top priority in controlling Korea was to quickly cut off trade between North Korea and Japan. Even if he could not control the smuggling trade due to manpower issues, he had to strictly prohibit official commodity trade. He wanted the Chinese to make the money!

...

When he returned to the palace, Yuan Xiangcheng saw that Kim Hongjip was still kneeling. At the same time, his Korean friend and one of the prime ministers, Kim Bingshi, also came to the hall.

"I am Jin Bingshi, a humble official from the state, and I am honored to meet Lord Yuan." After Jin Bingshi came to the palace, he communicated with Jin Hongji for a while, and also learned about Yuan Xiangcheng's determination to distribute land equally, so he made such remarks intentionally.

Yuan Xiangcheng deliberately ignored the distant tone in his voice, stuffed the telegram into his uniform pocket, took two steps closer, and helped both Jin Bingshi and Jin Hongji to their feet. "Brother Shengchu, Jin Bingshi, you and I have been close friends for five years. Why do you still use words like "minor minister of a lowly state" and "Sir Yuan" to mock me?"

Jin Hongjiu also didn't expect that Jin Bingshi would speak like this and dare to deliberately alienate the relationship between them in front of Yuan Sixiangcheng. Therefore, after being helped up, he stood aside silently and didn't dare to say a word.

Looking at the expression on Jin Bingshi's face, Yuan Xiangcheng thought of the aggrieved Wang Yousheng in the later TV series "Bright Sword". The difference was that Wang Yousheng had a sad face, while Jin Bingshi could still maintain the most basic expression management.

Seeing that Yuan Xiangcheng still recognized him as a close friend, Jin Bingshi said to Yuan Xiangcheng, "Weiting, now that the rebellion is about to end, I have nothing to worry about.