At the banquet, most of them were joking, and they didn't talk much about the gains and losses of Margaret's case. Then the six of them came to the Chrysanthemum Hall, sat on the Westerner spring sofa, drank tea while talking about secret things, and did not even serve the entourage.

Fan Dahui handed Prince Gong a copy of the fold, bowed his head and said: "Prince Gong, this is a plan formulated by the lower officials according to Lord Li's intentions, specifically to deal with the British and French, and to engage in a national independence movement in Annam and Burma. It is necessary to let the British and French smoke behind their buttocks, and they will not have the ability to covet the Qing Dynasty in a short period of time and create a peaceful external space for the Qing Dynasty. ”

Prince Gong opened the fold, looked at it carefully, felt uneasy in his heart, frowned, and asked: "Li Guolou, such a whole method is easy to be criticized by foreigners, and it costs hundreds of thousands of silver, and in the end, we have not reincorporated Annam and Myanmar, can we get it?" ”

Li Guolou owed a debt, and said respectfully: "Prince Qiqigong, the lower officials think it is definitely worth it." The times are different, and it is inevitable to let the vassal state become independent, and if you want to let the vassal state that accepts external ideas be reincorporated into the territory of the Qing Dynasty, it will lose the hearts of the locals, and some locals will even support being colonies of the French and British, and use the power of foreigners to confront our Qing Dynasty. Our support for the independence of Annan and Burma also comes at a cost, that is, to take advantage of this opportunity to extend the border to favorable places. Expelling the foreign forces from these two countries will give us a geographical advantage in the future. Our generation has laid a good foundation, and we don't know what the next generation will say. As for spending money to feed those white-eyed wolves, it is also a matter of necessity, and the lesser of the two evils, even if Annam and Burma become independent, will not pose a threat to the Qing Dynasty. If there are many border disputes, we can take measures to draw the border line first, let the Burmese and Annam people sign a border treaty, and write it clearly in black and white, and if we want to get our support, we will also have to pay the price. If you don't do this, the British and the French will fight our national idea, the Yunnan-Guizhou border is restless, and there will be more and more incidents, this time a translator dies, next time it will not be so simple, how shameful it will be engraved on our faces, and we will all become national sinners. Let the British and the French get bogged down in the quagmire of the national independence movement, this is called retribution, and the British dare to make a fool of themselves and recognize that the Andijanians established the state of Jedeshar as a sovereign state, and we will support the Burmese people in their struggle for independence. If you can't do it, you will come to the dark, and we won't admit it if you kill us. ”

Fan Dahui wrote the plan, and he couldn't let the prime minister's yamen discuss it, and it could only be operated by a few important ministers of the state in the dark, so Li Guolou didn't write it, so he didn't let the foreign spies catch the handle of the Qing Dynasty.

Prince Gong fell into deep thought, he is the executor of national policy, and this kind of major matter related to national policy cannot be easily expressed. According to Li Guolou's ideas, there are advantages and disadvantages, and the gains and losses must be determined by a strong man.

Li Hongzhang looked through the excerpts, and he had already had this kind of idea, that in order to gain political superiority, he must have military superiority. Li Guolou advocated that after seeing through the root cause of this matter, and standing on the high plane of justice, countless people will die for national independence. National heroes will grow and sprout on the land of Burma and Annam, and unsung heroes will fight to the end with the British and French. The Yunnan-Guizhou region is not his sphere of influence, and his influence can be extended to the Sichuan-Yunnan-Guizhou region through the layout. Li Guolou said what he thought in his heart, and the family's power could be expanded to the southwest region.

The overall situation is unparalleled, Li Hongzhang thought far, showed a pleased smile, and said: "Li Guolou, have you grown, through a border dispute, you can have so much understanding, worthy of being the first stick of the Westernization faction." If you have a strategic advantage, you can use it tactically. Prince Gong, we must stand on a strategic height to see through the truth of things in order to achieve an undefeated position. The lessons of the Margaret case deserve to be profoundly summed up, and it is time to change our policies toward Myanmar and Annan, and if we do not change, will we still be like conservatives, who are still like ostriches in the sand, looking at the world with black eyes, and talking nonsense all day long. ”

Prince Gong nodded slightly and said, "Well, it's time for a change." But is Liu Yongfu reliable? The elder brother will be remnant, have you really reformed yourself? Give the Black Flag Army a development and growth, don't rebel against the Qing Dynasty again like Zhang Xianzhong, this king thinks that this path should be modified.

First, it is necessary to send people to personally inspect the Black Flag Army stationed in the Red River and learn more about the movements of this army. Even if you want to use this army, you can't rely on an independent person like Liu Yongfu.

This is our bottom line for those who are obedient to the rebels, and we must not raise tigers for trouble. The established national policy of the Qing Dynasty was that land would rather be ceded to foreigners than to rebels, and that it would never be open to the rebels. The supernumerary Black Flag Army of the Qing Dynasty is a stepmother who raises a dog, and if she is fattened, she will be killed. A few screams can still be a watchdog, and the master will throw a few bones to raise this unruly dog. Li Guolou, do you understand? ”

"Thank you Prince Gong for reminding me that Weichen didn't understand a person and talked on paper, which almost misled the country and the people, and delayed the country's plan. The minister did not have a far-sighted vision to see for a long time, and the long-term stability of the Qing Dynasty needed a harmonious society. Li Guolou's face was red, his neck was thick, and even his ears were red and purple, this time he was not careful, and he was criticized by Prince Gong.

Like Liu Yongfu, who is in a foreign country and still pulls out an army, he is Zheng Chenggong when he becomes bigger, that is, an independent local warlord, who listens to the Qing Dynasty more and does not listen to the tune, and on the surface recognizes a monarch father, and will constantly reach out to the court to ask for money and food. When he was small, he fled back to the Qing Dynasty when he had nowhere to stand, telling that he was overseas and had a heart that was loyal to the Qing Dynasty, and he could also be added to the rank of knight, which was widely praised by the world. This kind of national hero is worthless, has different aspirations, and is mostly a hero, pulling the tiger skin of a national hero to deceive the eyes of the world.

Prince Gong squinted at Li Guolou, wanting to see through whether Li Guolou would rebel? The first condition for the Manchu aristocracy to use Han Chinese is that if they are loyal and righteous, and those who are disloyal and unfilial, they will never become officials in the Qing Dynasty. Li Guolou's parents passed away, and he can't see his filial piety to his parents, but can only see whether Li Guolou takes good care of his family members? The members of the Li family are all officials, and they are big businessmen, Li Guolou cares for his family members and meets the standards of being an official in the Qing Dynasty. Although the style is different from Li Hongzhang, it is much the same, and Li Guolou seems to meet the conditions for successor. Prince Gong's face is kind, and Li Guolou's proposition is flawed, but the overall situation is still feasible. The flaws are not hidden, and Li Guolou has to be divided into two, and if there are tainted people, it is not easy to use it, and he also buried a nail in Li Guolou's mansion, one will never betray others - Xi Shi - Zhen Yuhuan.

Prince Gong likes Li Guolou very much, cherishes Li Guolou's talent, and regards Li Guolou as a protégé. This is the genius of the Westernists, not fighting alone, but thousands of Westernists joining hands to fight against the old forces. After reading this excerpt today, Prince Gong swept away the gloom of the past, and said with a smile: "Li Guolou, don't feel sorry for yourself, this king doesn't blame you, I still see your progress from this excerpt, as long as you use people properly, the operation is simple and easy, and you can be more secretive." The second opinion of this king is that it is beneficial for us to make progress in many ways and to carry out a national independence movement, not to have a single monopoly, but to produce a number of leaders of the independence movement. We can't even send people to command the battle, because if we are caught by the British, we will have to start an international dispute. ”

Prince Gong continued, divided into ten opinions, the general framework has been established, and the decision-maker's opinion is clever. It is to establish Li Guolou's proposition, and then retouch it, and it will become Prince Gong's valuable opinion.

The three staff members of Fan Dahui, Xu Zhan, and Zhang Jingtian nodded frequently, and kept taking notes, this is the program of action of the Westernists, and the task is carried out under this framework, and the sky is also held by Prince Gong when the sky falls. Who would have thought that the Westernists who betrayed the country's sovereignty were the mortal enemies of the foreigners, and they would use practical actions to bury the colonization and save the people of Annam and Myanmar from the dire colonial rule. The tea party in the Chrysanthemum Hall turned into a military meeting, and a practical action plan was formulated for tomorrow's meeting of the Military Aircraft Department.

After sorting out the bill, Li Hongzhang took the draft from Xu Chan and sighed: "Hey! I'll take it back and look at it, and tomorrow I'll present it to the emperor in person, and then destroy this draft, and I'll have nothing to blame!" ”

Li Guolou glanced at Li Hongzhang deeply, now the national policies are formulated by Li Hongzhang, whether good or bad, Li Hongzhang is carried by himself, the right to let a person be strong and competitive, and the Qing Dynasty uses Li Hongzhang to formulate a trajectory for development. Whoever wants to overshadow Li Hongzhang is Li Hongzhang's political enemy.

Weng Tonggong, Zhang Zhidong and Li Hongzhang are at odds, because they have touched Li Hongzhang's authority, and the political struggle will force you to express your stance if you don't want to take sides. He wanted to break away from Li Hongzhang's system, but he fell deeper and deeper, and he had become the mouthpiece of the Westernists, and even the people on the street knew what he advocated. When he came back this time, he had a big quarrel with the Qing school and conservatives, I wonder if it will bring disaster to his career? In the final analysis, if there is a mistake in the reform of the Westernist faction, Li Hongzhang will push him out at any time to settle the matter. He loyally protected Li Hongzhang this time, if he didn't reciprocate, but fell into the ground, don't blame him for being a gentleman before a villain in the future.

Li Guolou spends the belly of a gentleman with the heart of a villain, and hopes that Li Hongzhang will fight with him, who will win and who will lose, it is not yet known? If mistakes made after the independence movements of Burma and Annan, it can be seen that Li Hongzhang is a person. Li Guolou is not in a hurry, and he doesn't believe that things will be smooth sailing, he is waiting to see the freshman play.

"The Margaret Case" extends the changes in the foreign policy of the Qing Dynasty, and the action plan was formulated at the afternoon tea party of the overall situation, and then how to solve the Margaret case itself? In order to give an explanation to the emperor and calm the anger of the court, this pit was dug by the Westernists themselves, Prince Gong and Li Hongzhang had no light on their faces, and once became the object of criticism by the court, and were scolded by the students of the Gongyuan all day long.

This incident made Prince Gong value Li Guolou, and said with a smile: "Li Guolou, the king is joking, don't worry, men can afford it, they can put it down." Be broad-minded, this is how long you live, personal grievances will be put aside, your every move, the people will stare at it, and this kind of thing will be avoided. ”

Li Guolou moved the corners of his mouth in embarrassment, and said: "Prince Gong, the lower officials have nothing else to ask for, and the amount is not mentioned." I have long let go, others will not let me put down, remind me from time to time, let me cry out in vain. ”

The sound of laughter in the chrysanthemum hall brought a touch of relaxation to the tense work meeting.

Xu Zhan was the first to ask for advice: "Master Li, what do you think of the Ma Jiali case?" If the British minister, Wittoma, remains intransigent and refuses to revise these eight treaties, we will have no room for manoeuvre. ”

Xu Zhan believed that he was a great contributor to the "Margaret Case", and it was he who persuaded the British Minister Wei Tuma, who was about to return to China, to return to the negotiating table from Tianjin Wei, and then the revised draft of the "Margaret Case" was also fought by him on the basis of reason, which made the Minister of the Kingdom give in to Wei Tuma, and only then did he have the current draft treaty.

Li Guolou looked Xu Chan up and down, this is a conceited and talented person, bought an alternate official hat, and later left Li Hongzhang's protection, and let him go to the local at least three rank officials, Li Hongzhang values Xu Chan very much, and is Li Hongzhang's first think tank. But how can this kind of person compare with him, it's too bad.

"Mr. Xu, I would like to ask you, if the British Minister Wei Tuma really wants to go back to London, England, and leave Tianjin Wei with a ferry ticket, you rushed from Beijing to Tianjin, why is Wei Tuma still in the Tianjin Legation, what is he waiting for? Who gave you the message? You still don't get it, do you? Li Guolou shook his head and sighed lightly, the British Minister Wei Tuma laid out, Li Hongzhang didn't even see that "The Case of Margaret" was the death of a translator, not a single British, and the pathfinder team had no property loss. Under this pretext, the British Senate and House of Representatives agreed to wage war against the Qing Dynasty, and the British people did not agree, which is a Western ** constitutional monarchy empire.

"This" Xu Xuan's eyes swept towards Li Hongzhang, and Li Guolou's first sentence knocked him down. Wei Tuma sold the ticket to leave Tianjin Wei, it was the inside line that told Li Hongzhang, and then Li Hongzhang gave the order to let him stop Wei Tuoma no matter what, could it be that the British did it on purpose. The more he thought about it, the more likely it became, he couldn't point the finger at Li Hongzhang, Xu Zhan opened his mouth, but he didn't dare to speak.

This time, the Tongzhi Emperor was furious because he thought that the British Minister Wei Tuma was making a big fuss and infinitely magnifying a small matter to a contest between countries, so he still refused to sign a treaty. Improper handling will make the Westernists lose power, "The Case of Margaret" has become a weather vane in the court, and has become a contest between political forces, in which the mystery has been seen, the conservatives have fallen into the ground, and Prince Qing pointed the finger at Li Hongzhang to drive Fu Xiang down.

Li Hongzhang took retreat as advance, and said implicitly: "In terms of the art of war, the British minister Wittoma used intimidation tactics, and returning to London, England was a smoke bomb. But the enemy is strong and I am weak, and it is not okay to not accept the softness. ”

How dare Li Guolou offend Li Hongzhang, and besides, Prince Gong is sitting next to him, he always has to give face to Master Fu Xiang, and he said in a voiceover: "Lord Fu Xiang can see it thoroughly, and he knows that he is half-true and half-false, so he can only be soft." ”

"Hmm" Prince Gong and the others nodded, commending Li Hongzhang for his foresight. They are grasshoppers on a rope, one is prosperous and the other is lost, and if they do a bad job, they want to damage the interests of a collective, how can they smoke their mouths and revise the content of the contract again. Li Guolou is the special envoy for the negotiations, and the core content of the contract will not change, and some of the contents of the treaty will be slightly modified, so that the British can give up a little bit of their interests, and peace is the most important thing in everything.

*^_^* R