After getting a message from the West and an urgent telegram from Tang Jingsong.

Cixi was relieved.

For Taiwan, a lonely and small place hanging overseas, Cixi did not care at all.

Just like the annexation of Ryukyu by the East in recent years, some ministers in the DPRK and China shouted that they were mercilessly refuted by Cixi.

The territory of the Qing Dynasty is tens of millions of square meters, this place is a fart?

Such a large area is about the same size as the more than 20,000 square kilometers of land west of Sarekole occupied by Tsarist Russia the year before last.

Sarekole is still on the mainland, and the imperial court has not moved, let alone this chicken-ribbed broken island!

As a result, the Qing imperial family immediately stopped, and sent another telegram to Li Hongzhang, asking not to entangle the matter of sending troops to Penghu in the East first, and to concentrate on letting the Japanese evacuate the army outside Yanjing first.

And all parts of Fujian and Guangzhou, which got the news, also immediately stopped.

It turned out that the Japanese fought Taiwan, and they also promised the West that they would never attack the cities on the south coast of China.

It's great that after tea and dinner, I chattered and commented on it; Or get drunk high in the wine shop, slap the table and brag passionately.

That's it!

The entire Qing Continent immediately shifted its gaze one after another, and no longer looked at the life and death of this small island.

"Whew-"

At noon on the same day, the First Guerrilla Group of the Japanese Combined Fleet sailed to the Penghu Islands and sailed around the islands to find out the deployment of the Qing troops on the islands and find a suitable landing site.

Fisherman's Island Fort.

The guard general Liu Zhongliang stood on top of the fort with a battalion of men and horses, looking at the four Japanese warships showing off their might on the sea, and everyone was angry.

"My lord, sink them with cannons, these dogs!"

Artillery commander Liu Changgen stood by a 7,000-pound bronze cannon and gritted his teeth to ask for shelling.

"There is no will of the imperial court, and besides, the Japanese warships are only cruising and not attacking, who dares to order the cannons?"

Liu Zhongliang's heart was beating violently, if the Japanese really attacked the Penghu Islands without timely support, the outcome would obviously be self-evident.

"I'll go to the main island; Chen Keshu, here you stare me to death, no one is allowed to fire, otherwise be careful to come back and peel your skin! ”

After Liu Zhongliang explained the game, he strode off the fort and walked towards the beach by the sea swinger surrounded by Yuweng Island and the main island of Penghu, preparing to board a sampan boat and go to Magongcheng, the main island opposite, to discuss the plan.

Yoshino.

"Cowardly as a mouse, don't fire a blow!"

Seeing the warships passing by the Gongbei Fort on Penghu Island and the Yuweng Island Fort in turn, the fort was full of Qing troops, but they did not dare to fire a cannon.

The commander of the First Guerrilla Force, Major General Sameshima Rengui, couldn't help but show a contemptuous smile on the corner of his mouth.

And beside him, the head of the Yoshino ship, Heyuan, wanted to look at a big one, but he didn't stop at all on the Penghu Islands, nor did he look west at Mawei and Xiamen in the direction of Huli Mountain.

Instead, he looked north with a look of reluctance.

"Heyuan, what are you looking at?"

At this time, the Yoshino ship had already sailed to the northern sea area of the Penghu Islands, and the Samejima personnel looked at the line of sight of the source of the river, only to see the vast blue water, and couldn't help but be curious.

"I'm looking at Lushun! Although separated by 3,000 miles of seawater, my eyes can still stay on Port Arthur. ”

He Yuan said with a gloomy and angry face: "Just because the group of cowards of the Beiyang Naval Division of the Great Qing Dynasty hid in Port Arthur as water rats, every military operation of the empire must be escorted by the whole navy. And now an armistice treaty will be signed, but the main force of the Beiyang Naval Division still exists, and it will still be a strong opponent of the empire in the future! ”

"That's why it's all the more important to capture Taiwan! As long as Taiwan is occupied, as long as the empire is willing, even if the Qing Dynasty buys warships from the West, it cannot pass through the Taiwan Strait; ”

Sameshima said loudly: "From Taiwan to Miyako, Okinawa, Anmi Oshima, all the way to Yakushima and Kagoshima, the empire can completely block the North China Sea and trap them!" ”

Hearing Sameshima's analysis, Kawagen Yoichi, Deputy Captain Yamada Hikohachi, Staff Officer Nakamura Shizuka, and Captain Kamaya Tadamichi all nodded contemplatively, and then looked excited.

"Commander, what you said is true; As long as the island of Taiwan is captured, no Qing warships will be allowed to pass through the Taiwan Strait, and if they dare to make a detour through the Miyako Strait, they will quietly send warships from Keelung Harbor to sink them. ”

Yamada Hikohachi said with a smile: "If you buy one, you will sink one, and see if there is more silver in the Qing Dynasty or more cannonballs in the empire!" ”

Toyo, Maseki.

After yesterday's humiliating commotion at Maguan Port, reporters from Western countries sent telegrams one after another, despising the rudeness of the East.

On the night of the 8th, Ito Hirobumi ordered the Shimonoseki Police Station to block the Maguan Port, and no idle personnel were allowed to enter, so the Maseki Port was immediately cleaned.

March 9 in the Western calendar, around 14:30 p.m.

Li Hongzhang took Senator Li Jingfang, Counselors Luo Fenglu, Wu Tingfang, and Ma Jianzhong, as well as Oriental translators Lu Yongming and Luo Gengling, and landed on a ship.

Then a group of people sat in a sedan chair and went to Chunfan Tower.

At 14:50 in the afternoon, Li Hongzhang arrived at Chunfan Tower, rested downstairs for ten minutes, drank half a cup of hot tea, and boarded Chunfan Tower at 15 o'clock to enter the Qingri Peace Talks Conference Room.

At this time, Hirobumi Ito and Mutsu Munemitsu, Cabinet Secretary Tsuyoshi Ito, Foreign Affairs Secretary Katsunosuke Inoue, Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs Keiyoshi Nakata, and Foreign Ministry Translators Mutsu Hiroyoshi and Narahara Tamamasa had been waiting for a long time.

Seeing Li Hongzhang enter the conference room, Ito Hirobumi and several people stood up one after another, smiling and welcoming them.

After some false greetings, Li Hongzhang took the yellow silk burden in Li Jingfang's hand, and after opening it, it was a bamboo tube painted with a yellow dragon pattern.

Li Hongzhang opened the bamboo tube, took out the edict, and handed it to Ito Hirobumi along with its English translation.

Ito also opened the brocade bag on the table and handed the edict and its English translation to Li Hongzhang.

Where did Li Hongzhang know the Japanese language and Yi language, he handed over the Japanese edict to Lu Yongming for inspection, and handed over the English translation to Li Jingfang and Luo Fenglu for inspection.

After reading it, Li Hongzhang and Ito Hirobumi nodded in approval.

Although he knew that there would be no more problems this time, seeing Ito Hirobumi nodding in approval, all the members of the Qing Mission, including Li Hongzhang and Li Jingfang, were relieved.

At this point, when Zhang Menghuan and Shao Youlian came to the East for the first time, the problem of being stuck on the 'national letter' was finally solved.

This crucial first step has been full of twists and turns, and today it is time to negotiate a truce.

Immediately, the two sides took their seats.

The Qing and Japanese countries began real 'peace talks'.

Li Hongzhang first nodded to Luo Fenglu and ordered him to read out the English memorandum of the proposed armistice.

"The Qing and Japanese countries are separated by water, and it is a pity that there is such a war today; Now that peace has been negotiated, at the beginning of the peace treaty, it is proposed to ask the armies of the two countries to immediately hold an armistice, so as to discuss the terms of the peace treaty with each other. ”

Ito Hirobumi's face did not show a trace of discoloration, for this request of Daqing, he could think of it with his ass.

However, as an excellent politician, Ito Hirobumi certainly did not easily reply to the request of the Qing Dynasty when he had an absolute advantage, but continued to start his psychological war.

"This will be done tomorrow."

Ito Hirofumi said lightly, and he didn't seem to see the disappointment in Li Hongzhang's eyes on the other side, but started a long and unnutritious nonsense with Li Hongzhang with a smile.

"Those who neglect diplomatic expertise are not only in your country, but also in other countries. Zhang and Shao did not complete their mission because of the incomplete edict, and Zhongtang should admit that they did not abide by the customs of diplomacy and could not be treated with due courtesy. ”

"What other country is there in East Asia besides your two countries? Although our country is the boss, it is not difficult to contend with the European powers if we can complete its navy and army, develop its endless treasures, and cooperate with your country. ”

——

In the afternoon of the same day, Hirofumi Ito, Mutsu Munemitsu, commanded and arrogant.

And Li Hongzhang has always been submissive, enduring his anger, bowing his head and pretending to be his grandson.

The meeting went on without any progress until it was dark, and Li Hongzhang did not say a word on the way back to the ship until he got on the boat and entered his cabin.

"Bang!" The moment the door was closed.

Li Hongzhang finally changed color and scolded angrily: "He is paralyzed! ”