The sun never sets.

At this time, the Japanese yen was still very strong. Even though it had depreciated due to the domestic economic depression, it was still more valuable than the RMB. Ten million yen is not a small amount. Last year, the Japanese government's fiscal revenue was only 4 million yen. The Japanese government can organize girls to sell themselves in Southeast Asia on a large scale, and can also organize young men to work in China on a large scale. It's a pity that the People's Party only needs well-trained industrial workers. Otherwise, if they could get millions of young men to work there at once, wouldn't they make a fortune?

The People's Party has massively reduced the consumption of the middle and upper classes, but for the lower-class people, not only has their consumption not been reduced, but it has improved a lot. Specifically for the working class, the average wage level has increased by two to three times compared to before liberation. Almost one person working in a state-owned factory can support a family of three. If both husband and wife have formal employment, they can eat meat twice a week. Of course, generally no one would be so extravagant. Eating meat twice a week? Then do you still want to live? The right thing to do is to save money! At the end of the month, it is good to taste some meat. Whether it is a worker or a farmer, they usually don't want to use more oil when cooking.

China is still a poor and backward agricultural country. It is just a little better than a few years ago, but even at this level, it is several times better than Japan. Japan's chaebols are the model among capitalists. Compared with them, 996 is nothing. In the previous Japanese textile factories, capitalists used a large number of child laborers and female workers. After working hard for a year, the workers not only did not make any money, but also owed the boss a large sum of money. There are countless expenses such as clothing fees, food and accommodation fees, etc. As for wages, they have to be deducted from many things. With this calculation, the workers have worked hard for a long time, not only can they not save any money, but they are burdened with debts!

Ito Hirobumi had long felt that this was not going to work, but he was not strong enough to make changes. Now that he had power, he could issue orders. Mitsui, Mitsubishi and the like, who had eaten their fill, now all vomited out. Ito Hirobumi cleaned up the Seiyukai, which he had founded, and overthrew many people, including Watanabe Kunitake, the vice president of Seiyukai and the government's Minister of Finance (equivalent to the Minister of Finance). After changing the name to the Japanese People's Party, he replaced a group of new people and learned the policies and systems of the People's Party.

Although there is still some chaos in Japan, the situation is much better than before. Some people even think that Prime Minister Ito has accomplished what the military has not done. For example, Japan has obtained the vast market of the entire northern China, and the market of the entire China and the entire Asia. After the signing of the peace treaty between China and Japan, citizens and capital of the two countries can travel freely. Isn't this what Oyama Iwao and Yamagata Aritomo wanted to do but failed to do?

Japan's transportation industry, especially in shipping, is much stronger than China's. Previously, the People's Party's transportation was handed over to foreign merchant ships and cargo ships. After the Sino-Japanese armistice, this piece of cake soon fell into the hands of Japanese shipping companies, after all, the Japanese freight rates were much lower.

After the war, Japan's chaos had not subsided, but the economy had begun to recover. Prime Minister Ito distributed land to farmers and won over the broadest class of farmers, thereby controlling a large number of land forces, improving Japan's domestic economy, and improving the operating conditions of industry and commerce. His position was already unshakable.

The only way to defeat Ito Hirobumi was to physically destroy him. As it happens, Japan has never lacked people with lofty ideals who hold samurai swords and shout "Heaven will punish the traitors".

Chapter 370 Study

"Heaven punishes the national thief!"

Several men dressed as ronin rushed out of the crowd, shouting "God punish the traitors!" as they rushed towards Ito Hirobumi's carriage.

After the Taisho Restoration, assassinations and stabbings were everywhere, as if time had gone back several decades and Japan had returned to the era before the Tokugawa shogunate war, when assassinations were carried out every day.

The wanderers were shouting, and the guards were yelling, "Stop them!"

"shot!"

"Don't let them get close!"

"boom!"

A ronin was hit by a bullet, and his whole body shook, and he fell limply. Several of his companions rushed forward and fought with the guards with samurai swords. Daikakuya Shishin rode on horseback, watching the ronin being beaten back by bayonets, but he did not relax at all. He looked around nervously, suddenly clenched his fists, turned over and threw himself off the horse's back to the ground.

"careful!"

He shouted loudly, but his voice was drowned out by the roar of the heavy machine gun. Flames spewed out from the second floor of a house next to the street, and the sound of "da da da" was heard. The bullets of the heavy machine gun whipped back and forth like a whip. Wood chips flew everywhere, and the wooden boards were riddled with holes. The horses pulling the cart were killed immediately, and the cart was torn into pieces.

"Asshole! They even pulled out the machine gun!"

Regardless of the pain in his body, Dajuewu Shizhen jumped up from the ground, pulled out his pistol and samurai sword, and roared: "Follow me!" He bumped into the open door, and several soldiers rushed to the second floor with rifles. The sound of pistol and rifle shooting and human screams were heard from above, and the soldiers who rushed up were driven down by the assassins again.

"This is the army!" Master Dajuewu's face was distorted, "Throw grenades!"

These soldiers had fought against the Chinese before, and their tactics were absolutely top-notch, but how could they not defeat a few assassins? Those ronin outside were just there to attract attention, and the group upstairs were the real killer!

The soldiers threw grenades to the second floor. There were sounds of objects hitting wooden boards. Dajuewu Shizhen clearly saw several grenades thrown down from the upper floors. "Baka!" He didn't have time to think, and rushed out the door with a soldier beside him.

"Boom!" "Boom!"

"boom!"

The bombs upstairs and downstairs exploded almost at the same time. Before Dajuewu Shizhen could get up from the ground, the soldiers rushed in again. This time, the assassin failed to repel the soldiers. There were continuous rifle shots and the roar of the officers, "Leave him alive!"

A moment later, when Daijukuya Shizhen got up dizzy, Lieutenant Nagao had already walked down from upstairs with his soldiers. "Are there any survivors?" Daijukuya Shizhen had no hope, nor did he really need a confession, he just asked out of habit.

"No," Lieutenant Nagao shook his head and said, "The last person committed suicide with a pistol. This is not an assassin, but a dead soldier!"

"Humph, those people are becoming more and more blatant!"

Dajuewu Shizhen patted his military uniform and ordered: "Leave a few people here to handle the scene, and the rest of you follow me to the Metropolitan Police Department!"

There was no one in the carriage, and Ito Hirobumi was not in it. Even if the carriage was torn to pieces by heavy machine gun bullets, the Prime Minister would not be hurt at all. This incident was a trap set by the Metropolitan Police Department, specifically used to lure those reactionaries hiding in the dark. The ruling class of the old era would never voluntarily withdraw from the stage of history. They always wanted to fight back and struggle. It would take at least several years for the Taisho government to suppress all those people.

It was only after the People's Party launched various movements, including the "Three Antis", "Five Antis", "Sweeping Black and Evil", and "Suppressing Counterrevolutionaries" that it completed the integration of resources in northern China. It also took advantage of the state of war to carry out internal cleansings again and again, which made the rule of the people's government more solid.

After the war in Korea ended, the United Nations Command was naturally disbanded. The warring countries distributed the spoils according to their contributions in the war. The People's Party took the largest part, and the Grand Duchy of Siberia and the People's Republic of Korea received some compensation. The People's Republic of Ryukyu did not receive any compensation, but they could rebuild their country on their homeland, which was the best spoils of war. As for the Russian Empire, because they did not make any contribution in the war, the war reparations they received were similar to those of the People's Republic of Korea and the Grand Duchy of Siberia.

It is said that Nicholas II did not say anything about this, but the ministers in St. Petersburg were very dissatisfied. It's okay to be dissatisfied, because the new Pacific Fleet of the Tsarist Russia has been staying in the port. Without results, there is no credit, and without credit, there is no money. We should pay attention to fairness in doing things, and Chairman Lin has always been fair.

After the war, the army of the Grand Duchy of Siberia was greatly reduced, from 200,000 to 50,000, and then from 50,000 to 10,000. Most of the Siberian troops were transferred from Europe. Compared with the barren and cold Far East, the warm Europe was more attractive. Not only did a large number of officers and soldiers return to Europe, but even many people in the Primorsky Province packed up their belongings and followed the troops back to Europe.

In order to increase the number of residents in the Far East, the Tsarist Russia made great efforts and provided strong policies and financial subsidies. However, the financial situation of the Tsarist government has always been poor, and it almost relies on loans from the French to survive, so subsidies are naturally unavailable. The living standards in the Far East are far inferior to those in Europe, and the culture is also mediocre.

After being massacred by the Japanese army, the remaining people naturally did not want to stay here any longer. Japan was defeated, but who knew what would happen in the future? It would be better to return to Europe.

However, some people think that there is a lot to be done in the Far East, such as Chekov and Andrei. Five years ago, they were just low-ranking arms dealers in Primorsky Province, but now they are well-known figures in the Grand Duchy of Siberia and councilors of the Free City of Vladivostok. They have people with money and guns under them, and they are like local tyrants. They are doing well in the Far East, so they are unwilling to go to Europe.

The Grand Duchy of Siberia also copied many of the People's Party's rules and regulations, nationalizing all the land and distributing land to farmers for free, etc. However, it was relatively more relaxed in terms of industry and commerce, and not many industries were nationalized. The main reason was that there was not much industry in the Far East, and the Tsar was crazy to develop heavy industry in the Far East. In addition, because Vladivostok was recaptured by the People's Army, it did not become the capital of Siberia, but became the "special zone" of the Grand Duchy of Siberia, and the people of the Grand Duchy of Siberia called it the "free city."

Grand Duke Nicholas was somewhat dissatisfied with this, but thinking about the hundreds of thousands of troops of the People's Party in the Northeast, he could only swallow his dissatisfaction. The control of the free city of Vladivostok is much looser than other places. Except for people like Nicholas who are responsible, everyone else likes it. The Grand Duchy of Siberia contributed a free city, North Korea has Busan as a "special zone", and Japan has also taken out Osaka as a free trade city.

Well, they learned this from the People’s Party, or were forced to learn it, while Chairman Lin learned it from “history”.

Chapter 371 Roosevelt

The changes in Japan shocked the Chinese the most, followed by the British, and then President Roosevelt. The United States had always been worried about the Anglo-Japanese alliance. If the British and Japanese reached a military alliance, the British Royal Navy and the Japanese Combined Fleet would have a two-pronged approach to the United States of America. President Theodore Roosevelt spent a lot of energy on breaking up Britain and Japan, and achieved good results. But after Japan turned left, President Theodore Roosevelt saw a new threat appearing across the Pacific.

After China and Japan got closer, the Combined Fleet was no longer a threat to the United States, but in the long run, a united East Asia would be a major concern for the United States. President Roosevelt believed that it was necessary to strengthen the army and navy of the United States of America, to build a stronger navy, and to deploy a strong army in the Far East (Philippines). Influenced by the "arms race" in Europe, the U.S. Congress agreed to President Roosevelt's shipbuilding plan, but did not agree to send more troops to the Philippines, as there were already enough troops in that damn place.

The United States first united with the Philippine national insurgents to drive away the Spaniards, and then turned its guns to suppress the Philippine insurgents, turning the Philippines into a colony of the United States. The commander of the US military in the Philippines was the famous five-star general MacArthur - the father of the famous general. After becoming the governor of the Philippines, the old MacArthur was busy strangling the insurgents in the jungle every day, and often shouted for more troops and more military funds.

No matter how old MacArthur yelled, or how President Theodore Roosevelt made his impassioned speeches, Congress would not throw more money into the Philippines. After snatching the Philippines from Spain, they have been losing money until now. It is unknown when they will make back their capital. Why should they continue to throw money into it? It is impossible!

Although Congress agreed to the shipbuilding plan, the proposal to expand the army was rejected. President Theodore Roosevelt said to the Secretary of State in a depressed mood: "I am the president of the great United States of America, but my power is not as great as that of the chieftain of the natives of the Far East!"

"Who are you talking about as the native chief?"

Roosevelt replied: "Of course it's China's Lin! He can mobilize hundreds of thousands of troops to fight the Russians and the Japanese. I can't even send 20,000 more troops to the Philippines! Those isolationists can't see the situation clearly at all!"

"The Chinese are no longer indigenous, sir. After defeating 400,000 Russian troops, China is now considered one of the great powers." The Secretary of State reminded President Theodore Roosevelt, "According to the news sent back by Ambassador Rockhill, the People's Party's army has more than one million soldiers, and the number of reserve forces is several times that!"

"So I said that the isolationists in the country don't understand the situation at all! With so many Chinese troops, they will definitely seek the unification of China. Then more Chinese - maybe 10 million ground forces - will pour into Southeast Asia, followed by India, and will directly destroy the British crown!"

The Secretary of State smiled and said: "If something like that really happened, it must be God's will."

President Theodore Roosevelt was very conflicted. He was worried that China would become a threat in the future, but he also wanted to instigate the Chinese to take the lead in destroying the world hegemony of the British Empire. However, the People's Party was too difficult to control. In many things, it did not follow the baton of the United States. It repeatedly refused to spread the gospel of God in China, and refused to open up the financial sector to allow Americans to reap the benefits. This made President Roosevelt very dissatisfied. He had previously thought about replacing the president of the People's Party, but after several attempts, he found that it did not work. He then thought about peaceful evolution, but the pace of peaceful evolution was too slow. Theodore Roosevelt could not wait, so he wanted to find another president in China.

A force acts as an agent.

After picking and choosing, he found that he had no other choice. He did not want to choose the People's Party. Yuan Shikai was an agent of the British. Tang Caichang and Cai E in Yunnan and Guizhou were fighting with the French. The only people who could get American investment were Sun Wen and Huang Xing in Guangzhou. The two sides contacted each other, and a big money sponsor took the initiative to come to the door. Sun Zhongshan was very excited and thought that their business had hope. However, the Americans refused to provide interest-free loans, refused to sell weapons at low prices, and refused to sign an offensive and defensive alliance treaty with the Guangzhou Military Government.

After figuring out the Americans' intentions, Sun Yat-sen was stunned, while Huang Xing angrily said that the US government wanted to annex them instead of supporting a just cause. The Americans only wanted to make a profit and were unwilling to lend money, even though Guangzhou said it could pay high interest rates. How could they be sincere? It would be better to cooperate with the People's Party, which was willing to sell arms, and at a much lower price than the international price.

After defeating the Russian and Japanese armies in succession, the People's Army seized a lot of weapons. There were three or four calibers of rifles alone, and even more models of cannons. They were mainly Russian, Japanese and British weapons, while the People's Army mainly used German weapons. Those trophies could not be piled up in the warehouse to get moldy, so they were refurbished and sold.

The U.S. government's search for agents in China had failed miserably, but in studying the situation in China and Japan, Theodore Roosevelt discovered something that interested him.

Theodore Roosevelt did not take the oath of office on the Bible, because the former president was shot to death, and he became president. After becoming president, Roosevelt proposed his own anti-trust policy. He asked Congress to legislate to impose reasonable restrictions on the business activities of the trust. His most famous anti-trust action was to sue the Northern Securities Company, which monopolized the transportation within a large area of railway operations, including the North Atlantic Railroad, Quincy Railroad, and Chicago Railroad. The Supreme Court eventually ruled 5:4 that the company violated the Sherman Antitrust Act. After that, he filed lawsuits against more than 40 companies, disbanding the beef trust, oil trust, and tobacco trust. Theodore Roosevelt also earned the reputation of "trust buster" because of this.

Obviously, Theodore Roosevelt was ideologically left-leaning, which was contrary to the right-leaning political trend in the United States. Because of the economic crisis, Roosevelt also received a lot of support, otherwise his antitrust policy would not have been passed by Congress. However, the power of the opposition was still strong, and Roosevelt found that he had accomplished some things, but failed to accomplish more. The power of the US president is limited, unlike Lin Yongchang in China and Ito Hirobumi in Japan, who can do whatever they want.

Separated by the Pacific Ocean, Theodore Roosevelt could not really understand the situation in China and Japan. He only saw the success of the People's Party and the Taisho government in centralization, but did not see the external and internal difficulties faced by the two countries. Even if he saw it, he would not care.

Chapter 372 Beiyang

In 1904, the theme of the whole world was the same as last year, the naval arms race. After the Germans invented the dreadnought, all the powerful countries followed suit and built up their navies. The new warships made the old battleships become outdated toys. Whoever could go faster and further on the new path would control the ocean.

The British hegemony is based on absolute naval superiority. The British, the Germans, the French, the Americans, and everyone else know this. So the Germans built one ship after another, and the British docks were filled with dreadnoughts under construction. Other powers, not wanting to be left behind, also followed suit and built new warships. Even if they did not want to challenge the British naval hegemony, they could not be left too far behind, otherwise they would not be able to speak in the future.

As for the Chinese overturning the Japanese and the military coup in Japan, it was just the indigenous people on the edge of the civilized world fighting each other. Who cares? Most people can only see what is happening in front of them. They neither understand nor care about what is happening in East Asia. Anyway, there has been a war over there for so many years, and it is normal for it to continue.

Politicians with real foresight can see that things are changing, but they don't think China can really affect the world situation. At most, it can cause some trouble to other powers. In their view, no matter how China develops, it will at most be another Tsarist Russia. Although the name of "European Gendarmerie" and "European Steamroller" is loud, it has never been truly integrated into the European circle. Tsarist Russia has always been despised by the powers, and the same is true after China became a power. Now China has replaced Tsarist Russia and has become the last one in the ranking of powers.

When the People's Party was fighting Japan in Korea, there were rumors that the Chinese were going to order battleships from Germany and France. When the war ended, there was news that the battleship ordering plan was cancelled. The cost of a battleship is 200 million pounds, which doesn't seem to be too much. Buying a few shouldn't be a problem, but the navy can't have only a few dreadnoughts. Shouldn't we also buy a few other cruisers and destroyers? Even if we have battleships, we still need people to drive them, ports for supplies, and docks for repairs, right? With this calculation, if you want to maintain the existence of a fleet, you can't afford it without an investment of tens of millions of pounds.

Seen the Union Ship

After the Japanese fleet destroyed the city of Rajin, Lin Yongchang was still very interested in the large fleet, but after a calculation, he decided to give up and just buy a few destroyers to train the navy. In order to win over the Taisho government of Japan and ease the pressure on the Japanese headquarters, the People's Government also gave Japan an order for destroyers.

China has a long coastline and needs a strong navy, but China must first have a strong army, which is determined by China's geographical environment and national defense needs. Before the economy develops, it is impossible to invest too much money and manpower to build a large navy.

The Sino-Japanese War and the Russo-Japanese War in the original time and space proved this point very well. The main reason for the destruction of the Beiyang Fleet was not because it lost the naval battle, but because the army collapsed. The Russian Baltic Fleet was also completely annihilated, and the army was also beaten back step by step. The performance on the battlefield was very bad, but because it could still hold on, it refused to pay a penny of compensation, which surprised the Japanese who wanted to make a fortune. They didn't expect the Russians to play like this. Because they failed to get war reparations, the people in Japan made all kinds of big news and burned down Hibiya Park near the Tokyo Imperial Palace.

The Japanese government borrowed money to fight both the Sino-Japanese War and the Russo-Japanese War. Japan made a fortune in the Sino-Japanese War, but suffered huge losses in the Russo-Japanese War. It took a long time, until the First World War, to pay off the debt.

In addition to the Sino-Japanese War and the Russo-Japanese War, the development path of New China is also to develop land first and then the sea. With so many "precedents", Lin Yongchang made up his mind to improve the economy first and then develop the navy. As long as Chairman Lin has made up his mind, no matter how others persuade him, it will be useless. Yan Fu and Sa Zhenbing were obsessed with building the largest fleet in Asia, but Chairman Lin suppressed it with one sentence, "No money!"

A penny can make a hero, and lack of money is the biggest problem. Sa Zhenbing was still not convinced and said that some of the money could be diverted from the army's military expenditure, education funds, railway construction and river dredging funds. Lin Yongchang did not refute him, and a large number of people stood up to criticize the navy for having no sense of the overall situation and only knowing how to run their own gangs.

After Zhao Bi commanded his troops to destroy the Japanese First Army and liberate Seoul, his temper flared up. He was now the Army Chief of Staff. When he heard that Sa Zhenbing wanted to embezzle the Army's military funds to buy battleships abroad, he rushed to Sa Zhenbing's residence the next day and scolded him. Zhao Bi also wrote to the central government, saying that the navy was too ambitious and did not care about China's current actual situation. Other senior government officials, such as Qiu Jin, Lin Heier, and Liu Chengxiang, also criticized Sa Zhenbing. Now that China has not yet been unified, the navy wants to build a large-scale navy and recruit some Fujianese. What is this trying to do? Is it to create an independent kingdom for the navy? Does Sa Zhenbing want to be the second Li Hongzhang?

Many people in the navy used to work in the Beiyang Fleet. As we all know, most of the Beiyang Fleet were from Fujian. Almost all the captains of the main warships and senior officers were graduates of the Fuzhou Naval Academy. Many of the middle-level officers were former Chinese students studying in the United States. After being recalled to China, they studied naval warfare at the Fujian Naval Academy and then served. The Beiyang Fleet was Li Hongzhang's private fleet, so it is not a bad idea to change its name to the Fujian Fleet.

Sa Zhenbing had never thought of establishing an independent kingdom, but he did prefer Fujianese in recruiting students. He was not the only one who did this, but a large number of people who came from the Beiyang Fleet did the same. Their reason was that Fujianese were good at swimming, and many of them had worked on ships, so they could train and learn faster. Do these words make sense? Of course they make sense. But China is so big, are Fujianese the only ones who are good at swimming?

Sa Zhenbing and his men's actions had long caused dissatisfaction in the central government, and even some people in the navy were not happy with these Beiyang remnants. They kept talking about the Beiyang Fleet, saying that it was the largest fleet in Asia and the sixth largest fleet in the world. Come on, the Beiyang Fleet had been completely annihilated, and even the flagship was towed back by the Japanese as a trophy. Is it interesting to still talk about those old things?

Chapter 373 Overturn

The activities of Sa Zhenbing and others in Taiyuan had a counter-effect. Chairman Lin did not appease them as he did last time, but brought the matter out for discussion. Public opinion was very unfriendly to Sa Zhenbing and others. Some people thought that they could not see the situation clearly, while others thought that they ignored the overall situation and had the intention of forming a small gang. Even more seriously, they thought that some people in the navy had disregarded the interests of the country and had close contacts with British journalists, diplomats and the navy after the British fleet bombarded Yangzhou, which was suspected of leaking state secrets.

Soon, after discussion, the Central Standing Committee removed Sa Zhenbing and others from their positions in the navy, mainly those who had worked in the senior ranks of the Beiyang Fleet and were currently in high positions in the navy, so that they could focus on teaching and no longer manage specific affairs in the navy.

In just over a month, the semi-independent naval forces that once existed outside the central government were marginalized. The speed was so fast that many people had not yet reacted. Sa Zhenbing did not expect this result. This was completely different from what he thought! Chairman Lin did not say this last time. Why did he suddenly take such a heavy hand this time? Could it be that there was a bad person in the central government?

Sa Zhenbing was so excited that he wanted to continue writing to Chairman Lin. Yan Fu, who had rushed over from Qingdao, was still sober. He broke into Sa Zhenbing's residence and burned the half-written letter.

Sa Zhenbing saw Yan

Yan Fu was very happy and wanted to ask his best friend for advice, but he didn't expect Yan Fu to burn his manuscript. Sa Zhenbing was surprised and angry. While trying to save the manuscript, he shouted, "Jidao, what are you doing?"

Yan Fu, whose pen name was Jidao, had studied at the Fujian Naval Academy and the British Royal Naval College, just like Sa Zhenbing. He grabbed Sa Zhenbing and shouted, "Ding Ming, you are confused!"

Sa Zhenbing was stunned when he heard this. Niutou looked at Yan Fu and asked, "What am I confused about?" Without waiting for Yan Fu to answer, he quickly turned around and tried to rescue the manuscript, but it was too late. Several sheets of rice paper had already turned to ashes in the flames.

"Alas, I have revised it several times......"

Yan Fu said with a serious expression: "Let me ask you, has anyone from the UK come to see you during this period?"

"Yes, my former classmates at the Royal Naval Academy, and that Australian journalist Morrison..."

"That's why I say you are confused!" Yan Fu said angrily, "The British Far East Fleet bombarded our port. Don't you know about this? If you know... and you still dare to interact with the British?"

Sa Zhenbing was puzzled. "Doesn't this just prove that China needs a strong navy? Besides, isn't that incident already over?"

"Alas," Yan Fu was in a headache, "Ding Ming, you have no sensitivity to politics! What time is it now? Who is the president? How can he let it go? Don't you know that the army is gathering in Jiangsu and Henan?"

The People's Party has made some efforts to cover up the troop movement, but with so many cannons and trains, it can only be concealed for a while. After a long time, the news will inevitably get out. And this is obvious. The enemies in the northeast have been dealt with, and the direction of the People's Party's next deployment of troops is obvious. Either it will enter Sichuan from Shaanxi, or cross the Yangtze River to liberate Jiangnan, or both routes.

Even ordinary people could see that the atmosphere was becoming increasingly tense, not to mention military leaders like Yan Fu and Sa Zhenbing. Although the People's Navy was still very weak, it was not completely powerless. If a war really broke out, those few warships could still do something.

"You mean..." Sa Zhenbing hesitated, "We are going to fight the British?"

"It's hard to say. I don't know either."

Yan Fu shook his head and said, "Maybe it's just a war with the south, or maybe the British will get involved, it depends on the attitude of the British." He stared at Sa Zhenbing and said, "At this time, you have close contacts with the British and Nanjing people, and you also involve the Navy Department in an attempt to threaten the central government. What kind of nature is this? In the previous dynasty, it was collusion with foreign countries during wartime. Don't you know what the consequences will be?"

"No, I didn't!" Sa Zhenbing shouted, "I am Chinese, how could I sell out my country? I didn't, I didn't!"

Yan Fu said calmly: "Whether it is true or not is not up to you to decide, but it depends on the evidence. If you were... a bystander, what would you think when you saw the navy's behavior?"

Sa Zhenbing gradually calmed down and said with a wry smile: "I really didn't think that much. I just wanted to take advantage of the opportunity of defeating the Japanese to rebuild China's navy. Is this wrong?"

"You want to rebuild the Chinese navy, that's right, but you're using the wrong method. The central government has its own plans for the navy. From now on, we will just teach quietly in school and write articles when we have free time, and don't get involved in politics."

"Jidao, you are a great talent, you can translate foreign works, but I don't have this ability."

"Then write a memoir! Write about the Beiyang Fleet. We were defeated in the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895. How did we lose? We may not be able to figure it out, and perhaps what we think is not right, but we can record what happened at the time in full, and let future generations judge the right and wrong."

Yan Fu said: "You can also write down what you saw and heard at the Royal Naval College of the United Kingdom. Brother Ding Ming, our era has passed, and it is time to give our place to the young people!" He was older than the other party, and it was rare for him to call Sa Zhenbing "Brother Ding Ming".

Sa Zhenbing looked at Yan Fu. He had just turned fifty, while he was not even fifty yet! For naval commanders, they were in their prime, so how could they be abandoned by the times? He was very unwilling, but when he thought about it, Yan Fu was right. They should have left the stage of history along with the Beiyang Fleet.

"I won't give up! I still want to lead the Beiyang Fleet to defeat the Combined Fleet!" Sa Zhenbing hammered the table and roared in a low voice: "I just won't give up!"

Yan Fu sighed and patted his old friend on the shoulder. "The Beiyang Fleet is gone, and the Combined Fleet has been defeated. It was not on the ocean. Chairman Lin won without fighting. He defeated the Combined Fleet without fighting. This is better than the best case scenario we could have imagined."

"But the Combined Fleet is still there, and they may become our enemy in the future!"

"Maybe, but the possibility is too small. Chairman Lin is not the Queen Mother of the East, nor is she... So be it. Take good care of your health. Sooner or later, we will see the Chinese Navy reappear on the sea!"

Yan Fu was a man from the old times, and he was unwilling to speak ill of his old superiors, even if it was to

Li Hongzhang was unwilling to speak, so he only mentioned Empress Dowager Cixi, and did not mention Li Hongzhang's name. The defeat in the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895 was certainly not Li Hongzhang's sole responsibility, but he must also bear leadership responsibility. As more and more relevant information was disclosed, Li Hefei's reputation became worse and worse. But the saddest thing is that fewer and fewer people mentioned Li Hongzhang's name. He, together with the Beiyang Fleet, had become a symbol of the old era. Everyone only knew that there was such a person and such an incident. At the Qingdao Naval Academy, students talked about Zhao Bi's liberation of Seoul and Liu Chengxiang's bombardment of Busan. What they talked about the most was that Chairman Lin just stretched out his hand and annihilated 200,000 Japanese troops in Outer Northeast China.

In Yan Fu's view, defeating Japan was not the most difficult thing. What surprised him the most was Chairman Lin's ability to "turn his hand to make clouds and turn his hand to make rain". He disintegrated the Japanese government without making any noise, and the huge force of the Combined Fleet had no place to be used. He had never seen such a skill before, but only read about it in history books.