"There's another way. Pen? Interesting? Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 info" Lin Yizhe said another of his plans, "When the two ships of 'Yuankai' and 'Dengyingzhou' are launched, the slipway is vacant, and the money for 'Kaiji' has not arrived, you can build inland river gunboats first, cover these gunboats are smaller, the process is simple, and the ships are faster, and the imperial court 'Dingguo is edict' several times, ordering the provinces to stop building sailboats and use steamships instead, the provinces need to use a lot, and the people also want to buy, build more such gunboats, you can get great profits, and with the profits obtained, you can build large ships, you can calmly turnover." ”

"It turns out that Kunyu has a plan." Ding Richang listened to Lin Yizhe's words and nodded again and again to express his approval, he looked at Lin Yizhe's confident appearance, and asked with a smile, "Did Kunyu even design the style of this inland river gunboat?" ”

"Sure enough, I can't hide it from Brother Yusheng." Lin Yizhe smiled and took the pen and paper, and drew a rough picture for Ding Richang on the table.

Like the armored cruiser "Kaiji" selected from the French "Dujutuluin", the two gunboats given by Lin Yizhe were also selected from the models equipped by the French Navy.

The gunboats of the French Navy in the 19th century, marked by a displacement of 250 tons, were divided into two classes: upper and lower. Gunboats of more than 250 tons, mainly positioned to carry out cruising operations, are called ocean-going gunboats, which can go to the far seas alone or with other warships. Gunboats of less than 250 tons, positioned to operate on inland rivers or coasts, are called nearshore gunboats. Since the combat environment of China's new gunboats was set to be inland waterways, the two types of gunboats named "Luo Xing" and "Qingzhou" were both small inshore gunboats of less than 250 tons, and both were iron-hulled warships. The "Luo Xing" class borrowed from the French "Big Axe" class (the French Navy's practice of naming gunboats after the names of useful weapons, such as the "carbin", "Javelin", "Turkish scimitar" and other gunboats of the French Navy's Nanqi detachment, which also belong to the "Big Axe" class), with a displacement of only 95 tons and a length of 27 meters. It has a width of 4.8 meters, a draft of 1.3 meters, a speed of 7-8 knots, and is equipped with 1 75 mm Krupp rifled gun (after Lin Yizhe visited Germany to order 100 75 mm guns, 400 guns of the same type have been imported one after another), 2 40 mm Haqikaisi five-barreled machine guns, and 2 Lin's machine guns. The "Qingzhou" class is smaller than the "Luoxing" class, with a displacement of 80 tons, a length of 23 meters, a width of 4 meters, a draft of 1.2 meters, and is armed with three 40-mm Haqikaisi five-barreled guns and three Lin's machine guns. These two gunboats did not adopt the French practice of "small boats carrying cannons", and their appearance was different from that of mosquito boats. From the point of view of actual combat, the French river gunboats had a rather fatal flaw, that is, such ships operating on inland rivers with little room for maneuver did not have any rapid-fire guns for close defense, and once they fell into an ambush on the shore of the inland rivers, their fate would be very worrying. The armament of "Luo Xing" and "Qingzhou" focuses on melee rapid-fire weapons, and they are undoubtedly more powerful than French gunboats in the face of bandits who are not highly armed.

"Kunyu is really clever, this is the method of 'raising a boat with a boat', and the foolish brother should do it quickly." Ding Richang looked at the design sketch drawn by Lin Yizhe, and couldn't help but be overjoyed, he presided over the Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau for many years, although he later left, but has always paid attention to its development and operation, when the Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau fell into financial difficulties, he was also as worried as Li Hongzhang; Lin Yizhe's idea of building a small steamer to help with shipping to Li Hongzhang brought the Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau back to life, and Ding Richang also heard about it, and once sent a special letter to Li Hongzhang to ask for details. And this time, after listening to Lin Yizhe's idea, he immediately realized that it was feasible.

Ding Richang was a quick temper, so he immediately discussed the relevant details with Lin Yizhe, and Lin Yizhe didn't want to disturb Ding Richang's rest, so he planned to leave after discussing with him for a while.

At this moment, Lin Fu, a trusted servant, under the leadership of the housekeeper of Ding Richang's mansion, walked quickly to Ding Richang's bedroom.

Seeing that Lin Fu obviously came to Ding Richang's mansion to find him, Lin Yizhe couldn't help but feel a little strange.

Lin Fu first saluted Ding Richang, and then came to Lin Yizhe and handed him a telegram.

"My lord, there is a telegram from the imperial court, ordering your lord to enter Beijing as soon as possible to deal with the aftermath of the Dian case."

Lin Yizhe nodded quietly, took the telegram and read it carefully.

The content of the telegram was not long, and it said that the British side had dismissed the minister to China in accordance with the request of Prime Minister Yamen, and asked Lin Yizhe to rush to Beijing to deal with the aftermath of the Yunnan case, and to appoint another person.

After reading the telegram, Lin Yizhe did not shy away from Ding Richang, but showed the telegram to Ding Richang.

"There is another appointment from the imperial court?" Ding Richang said with some concern, "Don't be the head of the capital, who chewed the root of your tongue behind your back, and the imperial court changed its mind and found an excuse to remove your minister of the sea?" ”

"It's certain that someone chews the root of their tongue, but they may not be able to move us." Lin Yizhe didn't tell Ding Richang Baoting about it, "It shouldn't be dismissed, but it is possible to send me out for a walk, hehe." ”

Listening to Lin Yizhe's words, Ding Richang remembered the previous excerpt of Qingliu's impeachment of Lin Yizhe and Li Hongzhang and other feudal officials to "form a party" and "feudal town", and he couldn't help but be angry again.

"Kunyu better be careful, don't fall into that clear stream." Ding Richang said, "If you are really sent as an envoy, I am afraid that they will deal with you like Guo Yunxian." And when you are out on an embassy, it is not easy to distinguish between them, and you always suffer a loss. ”

"It's okay, don't we have a telegram now." Lin Yizhe smiled and said, "And it's not bad to go out for a walk, the imperial court now wants to control the water, and there are few shipyards in our country. ”

"That's just as well." Ding Richang nodded, and suddenly said, "Kunyu, you and I hit it off at first sight, I have a reluctant request, and I hope Kunyu will help." ”

"Brother Yusheng's words are fine, as long as the foolish brother can do it, he will not refuse." Lin Yizhe replied immediately.

"That's the case, the daughter of the seventh brother of the foolish brother Risheng, nicknamed Luhua, was lost at the dock a few years ago, Kunyu has a wide network overseas, and has relatives and friends, can you help find out her whereabouts?" Ding Richang remembered the past, and a trace of sadness flashed in his eyes.

"Is this the case?" Lin Yizhe was taken aback, and hurriedly asked carefully, "How did your niece get lost?" ”

"It's hard to explain why!" Ding Richang seemed unwilling to recall this painful past, he sighed, and replied briefly, "There was a servant who reported that he had seen her on the dock, and that he had picked up a ship to England for a man he didn't know very well, this woman was originally a twin sister, and it was her sister who was lost, and her sister was still there, Kunyu has relatives and friends in England, can you help me find out, if you can find the best, but you can't find it, it's just destiny, I have done my best, and I can be regarded as worthy of the seventh brother." ”

"The foolish brother wrote it down." Lin Yizhe said, "Brother Yusheng, don't worry, this matter is wrapped up in the foolish brother." ”

"Then thank you Kunyu!" Ding Richang was grateful.

Lin Yizhe looked at Ding Richang's excited appearance, and suddenly understood why Ding Richang, who was in historical time and space, became the pioneer who first advocated the protection of overseas Chinese nationals.

In the general impression of later generations, Ding Richang was a politician with a reformist spirit in modern China and a doer of the Westernization Movement. What is not well known, however, is that he gained a new understanding of overseas Chinese in handling foreign affairs and in dealing with foreign affairs, and put forward a series of proposals and measures for attaching importance to, caring for, and protecting overseas Chinese at an early stage, many of which were adopted by the Qing court, and he was an indispensable pioneer in protecting overseas Chinese.

Ding Richang's idea of protecting overseas Chinese first stemmed from his understanding that the rapid growth of the economic power of overseas Chinese was conducive to China's "self-improvement and prosperity." Since the 19th century, the development of the capitalist economy in the world has provided the conditions for the development of the industrious and shrewd overseas Chinese, and the estrangement between the Western colonizers and the indigenous people has given them a good opportunity for development. The first to realize the strength of overseas Chinese were some coastal local officials related to "foreign affairs." In July of the fifth year of Tongzhi (1866), Jiang Yifeng, the governor of Guangdong, said, "In the inland provinces of Fujian and Guangdong, there are not many people who go to foreign countries to do business. There are about 100,000 people in Singapore, more than 200,000 in San Francisco, and tens of thousands in Penang and Galabad. "I asked the imperial court to send envoys to various places to contact the guards, so that the upper and lower levels could communicate with each other, and the internal and external qi would gather." Subsequently, Ding Richang, who "came from a poor background, came from a prefecture and county, knew the people well, and grew up in the hometown of overseas Chinese in Guangdong," pointed out that "there are about 30,000 people in Siam, 230,000 in Luzon, more than 20,000 in Galaba, hundreds of thousands in Singapore, and 890,000 in Penang." There are about two or three hundred thousand people in San Francisco, both old and new. It was suggested that the Qing court "choose envoys to be stationed in different countries, or send one envoy to several countries, or one envoy to each country." He also said that the role of sending envoys can "get through China's affection," and that those who go abroad from China will be attached to their hometowns, so that "China will have one more help."

Although a small number of local governors expressed their opposition to sending envoys, due to the strong approval of Zeng Guofan, Zuo Zongtang, Li Hongzhang, and other leaders of the Westernization faction, as well as the pressure and persuasion of the Western powers, Premier Yamen finally decided to send envoys to the foreign countries, but the question of the selection of personnel was quite difficult. At that time, traditional ideas still deeply influenced most Qing officials. Most of them disdain diplomacy and even regard it as a daunting way to go abroad. In 1875, Guo Songtao was appointed Chinese minister to Britain, and his friends Li Henian and Feng Yuji strongly advised him not to go to the "barbarian state". Western-style officials were concerned about China's lack of personnel to serve as envoys. Ding Richang has a unique view on the issue of candidates, and he said in the "Coastal Defense Regulations" that foreign-related talents, "as long as they can handle the arduous situation of the times, there is no need to recount whether they have qualifications or not." In the seventh year of Tongzhi (1868), Ding Richang had a unique vision and recommended Li Fengbao, who was born with a talented background, to Zeng Guofan, the governor of Liangjiang, and suggested that Li Fengbao be sent to visit a foreign country with Rong Hong. In the first year of Guangxu, Ding Richang recommended Li Fengbao to envoy to foreign countries. Li Fengbao successively went to France and Britain, and later served as acting minister to Germany, and also served as minister to Austria, Italy, and the Netherlands, becoming a leader in the diplomatic circles at that time. In addition, Ding Richang's attention to the selection of talents is also set on overseas Chinese, "Now the Russian consul in Singapore, that is, the Chinese Panyu surnamed Hu (Hu Xuanze), more than 100,000 Chinese in Singapore all obey the command of the surname Hu. It is suggested that the Qing government contact Hu Xuanze, an overseas Chinese consulate in Singapore, to serve as a consul, and specifically put forward a plan to borrow local overseas Chinese consulates as consuls abroad, so as to solve the contradiction that there is a lack of people who are "worthy of this choice". Later, Chen Shanqian (the first acting consul of Luzon), Zhang Zhenxun (vice consul of Penang, consul general of Singapore), Zhang Yunan (vice consul of Penang) and other overseas Chinese leaders of the local overseas Chinese community all became consuls.

Ding Richang is very concerned about the fate of overseas Chinese abroad. In the late Qing Dynasty, there were millions of overseas Chinese, and their distribution area ranged from Nanyang to North and South America, Africa, Australia, and all over the world. At that time, China's "Chinese people lived in foreign countries, and they were often discouraged by their loneliness and were despised by people from other countries", and they eagerly hoped that the Qing Dynasty would send officials to protect them. The Qing government not only did not care about the overseas Chinese, but also took precautions. Ding Richang broke away from the stereotypes and directly expressed the idea of protecting overseas Chinese. In 1867, when he replied to Premier Yamen's question about the dispatch of envoys, he suggested that the Qing government "set up a city department to go to various countries to manage the Chinese" to protect and liaise with overseas Chinese, and for the first time explicitly proposed the establishment of an institution similar to a Western consulate overseas to manage the Chinese. Ding Richang's proposal to establish a consulate was not immediately adopted by the imperial court. It was not until 1877 that Ding Richang echoed Guo Songtao, who was serving as minister in London, and finally urged the Qing court to set up China's first consulate in Singapore, so that the Chinese government could act in accordance with the international practice of the 19th century and set up consulates in places with a large number of overseas Chinese to protect the interests of overseas Chinese. Since then, the Qing court has established 45 consulates in more than 20 countries.

In the first year of Guangxu (1875), Ding Richang served as the Minister of Shipping of Fuzhou, and proposed to send ironclad ships to patrol the seas to comfort overseas Chinese and protect overseas Chinese, "China's ocean is the widest, and at present there are very few large and small ironclad ships that must be No. 10, and will come from those who can create very few No. 30, Fang Shi to defend Haikou and travel to five continents to protect the Chinese." "The first Chinese naval warship to make a voyage to the South Seas was a self-built warship of the Fujian Shipyard, which arrived in Singapore at the end of 1876 and provoked an enthusiastic response from the Chinese community. Since 1876, the Qing Dynasty's Beiyang Fleet has visited Nanyang Chinatown five times, and the motherland's warships have caused a sensation in overseas Chinese society wherever they go. ”

The Qing Dynasty's first serious diplomatic protection of overseas Chinese began with the negotiation of Chinese laborers in Cuba and Peru. Overseas Chinese in Cuba and Peru continued to report to the Qing Dynasty and state the tragic situation of abuse. In 1874, the Qing Dynasty Prime Minister's National Affairs Yamen sent Chen Lanbin, Rong Hong and others to Cuba and Peru to investigate the abuse of Chinese laborers, collect various testimonies and complaints, and then negotiate with the Peruvian and Spanish governments. On the issue of selecting candidates for negotiation representatives, Li Hongzhang played "Ding Richang...... is familiar with foreign affairs, and the operation is appropriate" and "is always respected by foreigners", and strongly recommends Ding Richang as the representative of the exchange. On August 7, 1875, Ding Richang negotiated with the Peruvian government's representative, Ellemore, on the seventh day of the seventh month of the first year of Guangxu (August 7, 1875), and Ding Richang sent a note to the Peruvian government, "properly eliminate the previous mistreatment of Chinese laborers, and handle it in accordance with the special articles and peace treaties." It is strictly ordered that the assets of Chinese workers should be protected to show their trustworth. Peru replied: "Cha Huamin is a domestic worker in his country, and his country is determined to protect his strength, and he cannot be compromised in the slightest...... In order to eliminate all the evils for the Chinese workers, so that they can all live in peace. Subsequently, the Qing government signed the "Cuban Chinese Workers Clause" with Cuba, and the Peruvian government signed the "Special Article of the Sino-Secret Conference" and the "Sino-Peruvian Trade Treaty".

In the course of handling the Cuban incident, Ding Richang gained a deeper understanding of the plight of overseas Chinese; during his tenure as governor of Fujian, he said: "Fujian and Guangdong provinces have many people and few places, and all the unemployed and poor people come to Peru, Cuba, and Luzon to sell foreign laborers as domestic workers, not to mention tens of thousands of people every year. However, foreigners regard overseas Chinese as dogs and horses, and once they are in a cage, they will forever fall into a sea of suffering. About 100 people went to sea, and about two-tenths of them died of hunger and cold on the way, and about five-tenths of them were tortured and destroyed by them after they arrived on the ground. Even the living also returned home for tens of thousands of miles, and there was no news, and their parents and wives could only see it in their dreams. Those who speak are sad, and those who hear them are in tears." For the overseas Chinese workers and businessmen living abroad, his feelings of concern jumped on the paper, and in line with this was that he actively adopted countermeasures, on the one hand, severely cracked down on abduction activities, suggested that the Qing government prohibit outsiders from setting up recruitment bureaus (commonly known as "piglet houses") in various coastal areas, and demanded that local governors and gentry draw up regulations to eliminate malpractices in accordance with the treaty, and strictly prohibit luring Chinese workers to go abroad. On the other hand, he also realized that the contradictions between land and population were becoming increasingly acute, and that the migration of Chinese overseas had formed an irresistible historical trend, and that measures could only be taken to protect the Chinese who had gone abroad. In view of the fact that overseas Chinese were oppressed but had no way to complain, Ding Richang proposed the establishment of a "newsprint hall" at the treaty port,...... Chinese and bullied by foreigners can be written in newsprint, announced to various countries, so that they can hear about it and make it bend to the other. "Mobilize public opinion and disclose the suffering of overseas Chinese.

Ding Richang's idea of protecting overseas Chinese can be said to be an objective reflection of the formation and development of overseas Chinese society in the second half of the 19th century, and the growth of overseas Chinese society's own economic strength and the call for protection from the motherland gradually attracted the attention of the Qing government, both inside and outside the government and the opposition. They began to appeal to the imperial court to liaise and protect overseas Chinese and use overseas Chinese capital to revitalize the country, and Ding Richang was an outstanding representative of them. The Qing government's policy toward overseas Chinese began to change from laissez-faire to protection and management. In the process of this change, Ding Richang, as a pioneer in China's establishment of consulates and protectors of overseas Chinese, can be said to have played a crucial role in promoting it.