Because he had an office in Hong Kong, and because his right-hand man Guo Songtao also happened to be on an errand in Hong Kong, Wu Chaoyue received the news in advance that the British diplomatic envoy Clarlondon was about to visit Hubei, and also learned that Clarlondon was very likely to establish formal diplomatic relations with the Hubei Provisional Government on behalf of the British Government. Pen? Interesting? Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 ｉｎfo

On the Chinese soil of this era, no Chinese knows what this means better than Wu Chao, and no one understands better than Wu Chao how much the Hubei Provisional Government will be of great help to its own anti-Qing resistance against Russia and the unification of China once it is recognized by the British Government, the hegemon of the world today. Therefore, overjoyed, Wu Chaoyue immediately visited the British Legation in China in person, confirmed the truth of the news with the current British Minister in China, and inquired about the personal situation and specific intentions of the British diplomatic envoy Clarlon.

"Dear Wu, your news is really well-informed, I only received this news this morning, and I was about to surprise you, but I didn't expect you to know it. Yes, our diplomatic envoy, Mr. Clarlon, is visiting Hubei and would like to meet with you to discuss diplomatic matters. ”

After giving Wu Chaoyue an accurate answer, Pruss smiled again and said, "But for the sake of our personal friendship, I have to remind you that Mr. Clarlondon is not as good a talker as me, and you must be prepared to cry when you deal with him at the negotiating table." ”

After listening to Prussia's general introduction, Wu Chaoyue found that this foreign devil was really not intimidating himself, the upcoming British envoy Clardon is indeed not a good man and a woman, he entered politics at the age of 20 and has been in politics for more than 30 years, and several ups and downs have not been able to stop him from climbing from a small government clerk to today's footsteps, and he is especially good at diplomacy, in the Crimean War, the French stupidly sent 400,000 troops to the British as cannon fodder, resulting in more than 90,000 French soldiers killed and only 22,000 British soldiers killed, Carat London has played a big part in this. The post-war British government, which forced Tsarist Russia to disband the Black Sea Fleet and return Turkish territory, is also one of Kralon's masterpieces.

Fortunately, the information provided by Pruss clearly showed that Clarlondon was not interested in the corrupt and brutal Manchu court, and when the Taiping army rose, Clarlondon strongly advocated neutrality in the British Parliament and suggested trying to establish formal diplomatic relations with the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, which led to the visit of the British minister to China at the time, Wen Han, to Nanjing. In addition, because of the churning of Wu Chaoyue's demon moth wings, Kralondon also helped China get Sakhalin back at the Paris Peace Conference.

After probably introducing Wu Chaoyue to the situation in Carladon, Prus, who had made a lot of benefits in China through Wu Chaoyue, said casually: "Wu, I know that you very much hope that our British government will officially recognize the Hubei Provisional Government you created, and from the perspective of personal feelings, I also hope that you can do this." So I have to warn you, be careful of your Qing court, if they are willing to give our British government more Far Eastern interests in exchange for our British support for them, then Mr. Clarlon, out of his mission and duty, may not consider accepting it. ”

"The Wild Boar Skin family also understands modern diplomacy?"

Wu Chaoyue smiled dumbly, but still thanked Pruss for his kind reminder, and at the same time, considering that Cixi and Devil Zi Liu, the two dog men and women, could sell anything but their own lives, as well as the practical problem that the Manchu court was making every effort to win military assistance from foreign powers, as well as the greedy nature of foreign devils who saw money, Wu Chaoyue was still very careful to send news to Guo Songtao, asking him to pay attention to the contact between the Manchu court and the British envoys, and once it was found that the Manchu court really managed to contact and negotiate with Clarlondon and his party, he must make every effort to collect specific information.

Then, of course, Wu Chaoyue took the time to personally carefully prepare and arrange various matters for the reception of Clardon and his party, and this happened to be another advantage of Wu Chaoyue - before the crossing, he relied on foreign trade to eat, Wu Chaoyue was not only familiar with the various details of receiving foreign guests, but also knew the preferences and habits of foreigners, and there was absolutely no problem in pleasing foreigners in terms of diet and daily life.

In terms of details, there is absolutely no problem with guarantees, but on the key issue, Wu Chaoyue is extremely difficult and can't make up his mind for a long time - how many countries will he sell to the British? In order to get the most out of the least cost?

…………

After Wen Xiang, the Minister of Military Aircraft of the Manchu Qing Dynasty, heard that Clarlondon was about to visit Hubei on behalf of the British government, he immediately sent the news to Beijing as soon as possible, which immediately attracted the attention and attention of the Manchu court.

Wu Chaoyue also ignores another potential enemy, the Tsarist government, which is currently the most hostile to Wu among the Western powers. After the Hankou detective heard the news that the British envoy Kralondon was about to visit Hubei, the Russian minister Ignatiev also immediately wrote a letter to his old friend Guizi Liu, making a small report to Guizi Liu, and also briefing Guizi Liu on the dangerous consequences of the Hubei Provisional Government once it was officially recognized by the British, and suggesting that Guizi Liu make every effort to prevent the Wu army from formally establishing diplomatic relations with the British, and buy Britain for the use of the Manchu court at any cost.

In addition, for the sake of the long-term interests of the Tsarist government in the Far East, Ignatiev had already made up his mind to bring his own dry rations to obstruct the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Wu army and the British, and to destroy the relationship between the Wu army and the British, so as not to surpass the unification of China by Wu, who was tough on Russia, and become a stumbling block to the Tsarist government's plan to annex China and establish Yellow Russia.

Let's take a look at the reaction of the Manchu court, after the letter of the vicious villain Ignatiev was delivered to the devil six, the devil six, who had already attached great importance to this matter, naturally did not dare to slack off, and immediately ran into the Forbidden City to meet Ci'an and Cixi, and introduced the danger of the situation to them. As a result, Ci'an and Cixi also panicked when they heard this, and hurriedly asked Devil Liu: "Old Six, is there any way to stop this matter, so that Yingyi's envoy can ignore Wu Chaoyue and help us clean up Wu Thief?" ”

"The only way to contact the British envoy is to preemptively contact him, buy him at any cost, and tell him that as long as Yingyi helps us deal with Wu Chaoyue's rebels, open ports, cut land, and compensate for military expenses, any conditions can be negotiated."

Devil Six didn't want to answer like this without thinking about it, and then Devil Six frowned and said: "But even if you do this, I'm afraid you can't be sure, last time Wenxiang reported that the public opinion and popularity in Yingyi are very much towards Wu Chaoyue rebel, so Yingyi's Hong Kong Governor Bao Ling said that he would not dare to make decisions and start a war with Wu Thief." If Queen Victoria of Yingyi had given Kra London a will to Wu Thief, it would definitely not be so easy to buy Kra London. ”

Until now, he has not been able to win over a Western power to deal with Wu Chaoyue, and after listening to the words of the devil Liu's worries, Ci'an and Cixi are of course worried, and after thinking about it for a long time, Cixi said: "If it is difficult to buy it directly, can you find a way to separate?" Let the Wu thief and the British foreigners turn their faces first, and then we can buy the British foreigners, it will be much easier. ”

The devil almost didn't cry when he heard it, and said: "Sister-in-law, you are really embarrassed to die for your brother, the Wu thief's family has three generations of Tongyi, and the three generations of grandparents and grandchildren can all speak foreign language, I heard that Wu Chaoyue's only son is also studying in a foreigner's school in Shanghai, and the four generations wear a pair of pants with the foreigner, what can the courtier's brother do to separate the relationship between them and the foreigner?" ”

Cixi had no choice but to shut up, but Ci'an over there had an idea, came up with a very genius idea, and blurted out: "Send someone to pretend to be a thief of Wu, kill a foreigner of the British envoy group, and blame Wu Chaoyue for the traitor, so that you can be separated." ”

Cixi and Devil Six were stunned together, all of them were surprised by Ci'an's whimsy, but Ci'an said to himself: "If this matter is successful, then even if the foreigners suspect that we did it, as long as they can't grasp the evidence, they will have no way to take us." In addition, with the insatiable character of foreigners, they will inevitably take the opportunity to extort Wu thieves on a large scale, and once Wu thieves can't bear it, we will have the opportunity to buy British foreigners. ”

After opening his mouth for a long time, Devil Six came back to his senses and said in surprise: "Brilliant plan!" We can't separate the British foreigner and Wu Chaoyue rebel now, because we can't find a place to start, once this matter is successful, Wu thief and British foreigner are estranged, and we want to separate them There is a way. ”

"Immediately give Wen Xiang a decree, let him try to buy the envoy of Yingyi, and try to act according to the plan, kill a foreign envoy to blame the Wu thief." Ci'an snapped.

"I'm afraid it's too late." Cixi said: "The British foreign envoys are just passing through Hong Kong, and they are afraid that they will not be able to do it in time, and second, Hong Kong is now British territory, and it is very dangerous to do it there, and once the foreigners catch the assassins, the consequences will definitely be unimaginable." ”

"Then do it in Shanghai!" Ci'an said quickly: "Shanghai is now controlled by the Wu thief army, and the concession is mixed, so it is easy to do it, and it is easy to escape after success, so it is the most ideal location." Sixth brother, you personally arrange this matter, you must find the most reliable person to do this errand! Be sure to splash dirty water on Wu Thief too! ”

Admiring the speed of the two sisters-in-law's thinking, Devil Six hurriedly nodded his head to receive the order, and at the end, Devil Six also had an idea, and hurriedly said: "By the way, in fact, we can also make a fuss in Hubei Province, the nest of Wu thieves." There have been local newspapers before, saying that Ye Mingchen's family in Hanyang not only swore to death not to use foreign goods, but also instigated the people of Hanyang to expel foreigners several times. ”

It is naturally extremely dangerous to do this kind of thing in Wu Chaoyue's lair, of course Ci'an was a little hesitant, but Cixi thought about it a little and said: "You can give it a try, but it is definitely unrealistic to ask Ye Mingchen's family to do this kind of thing, just ask them to make some trouble after the foreigners arrive in Hankou." Sixth brother, you come forward to do this, and use your reputation to tell Ye Mingchen's family that as long as they succeed in making trouble, you will ask the imperial court to posthumously confer Ye Mingchen's title and nickname. ”

"Tell me to go to the front again, and let me carry the black pot when the foreigners buy me, right?"

The devil six was angry in his heart, but the devil six was not stupid, and immediately said that he was not familiar with Ye Mingchen, and nominated Peng Yunzhang, the minister of the Military Aircraft Department, to come forward to handle the errand, but Cixi did not insist, and immediately nodded and agreed. At the same time, Ci'an, Cixi, and Devil Liu, who did not know how to take advantage of the conflict of interests of the great powers, also made up their minds and decided to bribe the Russian minister Ignatiev with a lot of money, and let him help persuade the British envoy Kralondon not to formally establish diplomatic relations with Wu Chaoyue.

Even a coup d'état can be launched, and the devil Liu, who is naturally very good at assassination, sent several absolutely reliable assassins south from the sea on the same day, and rushed to the Shanghai Concession to wait in wait. At the same time, luck was also on the side of the Manchu court this time, and when the coup group's will to Wen Xiang was sent to Hong Kong, the British delegation led by Clarlondon was preparing to leave Hong Kong the next day, leaving Wen Xiang with a day to negotiate.

On the same day, Wen Xiang opened the way with a lot of money, and finally met Clarlondon to directly express the attitude of the Manchu court - as long as the British government does not establish diplomatic relations and an alliance with Wu Chaoyue, then any conditions can be negotiated. Although the veteran diplomat Kralondon did not immediately agree due to domestic pressure, but only promised that he could consider it, he was directly happy in his heart, and said secretly: "Stupid Chinese pigs, take the initiative to expose your hole cards so early, this time I just don't want to make a big profit for Britain and myself." ”

A few days later, the British envoys and the Wu army's representative Guo Songtao arrived in Shanghai smoothly in the fleet, and the old comprador Wu Wu, who had already been determined to help Sun Tzu rebel, led Zhou Tenghu and others to greet him on the wharf, and received Clardon and his entourage with the most solemn courtesy.

As a result, two days later, on the evening of the same day, a British journalist who accompanied the British envoy to China was killed by the Qing assassins in the concession. In the end, the Qing assassins deliberately left behind the bayonets of the firing pin guns with the marks of the Wu army in Shanghai, planted the blame on the Wu soldiers, and then fled.

Ci'an, Guizi Liu and others just underestimated Wu Jun's reaction speed, even at night, just after receiving the news, Zhou Tenghu immediately ordered Wu Jun's soldiers to block the large and small wharves and concession roads, not to give the assassins a chance to escape overnight, and at the same time immediately contact the Concession Ministry of Industry Bureau to understand the case and hunt down the murderer.

At the same time, after the news was reported to Clarlondon, although Clarlondon immediately suspected that this was a good thing done by the Manchu court, but out of duty and mission, Clarlondon still protested to Wu Lao comprador at the first time, demanding that Wu Lao comprador hand over the murderer and punish the real culprit behind the scenes.

"Mr. Clarlon, please rest assured, give me a little time, I will dig three feet into the ground to catch this murderer, and give you a satisfactory explanation!" Old comprador Wu gritted his teeth and said: "If I can't do this, I won't have the face to mix in Shanghai anymore!" ”

I knew very well that Wu Jun was wronged, but Clardon still threatened: "Mr. Wu Jianzhang, I can give you three days, but if you can't find the murderer within five days, I will ask you to punish the biggest suspect at present, Deng Siyuan, and ask you to bear all the consequences caused by this!" ”

"Mr. Clarlon, it won't take five days!" Old Comprador Wu's confident answer surprised Kralondon, and said: "I only need one day, and if I can't catch the murderer before sunset tomorrow, I will personally bear this charge!" ”

"One day?!" Clarklondon was surprised and said, "Wu, are you so confident? With a population of over 600,000 in Shanghai, can you find the killer among so many people in one day? ”

Old comprador Wu smiled and said, "Mr. Clarlondon, you have never been to China before, and you don't know what kind of organization is the most powerful in China. Fortunately, this old man of mine has a very high status in this organization, and there are more than 600,000 people in Shanghai, and there is no one who can have a higher status in this organization than me. To do this kind of thing in Shanghai, the chaotic party in the capital has picked the wrong place! ”

Wu Lao's comprador relied on the most important thing to do this, of course, was the large and small gangs in the Shanghai Concession, and as a result, these disciples and disciples did not disappoint Wu Lao's compradors, and all of them went out to dig three feet into the ground, and it was only at noon the next day that the four internal guards sent by the Manchu court from the capital were all captured alive and taken to the front of Wu Lao's comprador to ask for credit.

But it is also a pity that although all the witnesses present at the time recognized the murderer of the British journalist, these four Qing court guards who were loyal to the Manchu court all insisted that their mastermind behind the scenes was Deng Siyuan, the general of the Wu army.

In desperation, Zhou Tenghu, who accompanied the trial, could only suggest that Deng Siyuan be sent to confront him, and after obtaining the consent of Wu Lao Comprador and Clarlon, Meng Qi, who was dressed in military uniform, was quickly led in front of the four assassins. Then Zhou Tenghu pointed at Meng Yu and said to the four assassins: "He is General Deng Siyuan Deng, did he order you to do it?" ”

"Yes, that's him!"

The four Qing court guards insisted one after another, but to their surprise, all the British envoys present roared angrily, and Zhou Tenghu also scolded with a smile: "Silly fork, he is General Meng Yumeng, you have been tricked." ”

When the four guards shouted in frustration, Clarklondon also sighed and said to Old Comprador Wu: "Wu, since it has been proved that this matter was not at the behest of your generals, then this matter has nothing to do with you. You can interrogate yourself, I won't interfere, and I'll tell you when I have the result. ”

After that, Clardon led the envoys and left, but as soon as the foreigners were gone, the four unlucky guards immediately peed their crotches—because not only were all the Wu soldiers around them smiling, but even the old comprador Wu rolled up his sleeves with a wicked smile and asked fiercely, "Like steaming?" Teriyaki? Or do you like blanching? ”

"I recruit, my name is Ling February, the Han army is a red flag person, a guard of the Great Interior, and I was sent by Prince Gong."

"Someone, please come back to Mr. Clarlon, I've already recruited."

After receiving the news, Devil Six didn't get angry, just sighed and said with a wry smile: "Yes, the black cauldron still hasn't run away." ”