"Prince Gong's Manuscript: On Coastal Defense":

“…… Tracing back to Gengshen's provocation, the pain is deep. Pen % Fun % Pavilion www.biquge.info...... Ministers and other ministers undertook the affairs of various countries, and discussed military training, surplus salaries, training machinery, and making ships. There are those who disagree with each other and obstruct the qualifications, those who fail to expand the funds, and those who have established the initial foundation but cannot continue to hold it for a long time. There is less concentricity, and there are many objections. The grievances in the bureau are not known to the outside world, and the important business is regarded as permanent, so that the enemy police are unprepared and unprepared. In view of this, we have to think about it later. Now Japan's provocation is growing, and its troubles have already been seen. With the untaming of a small country, it is difficult to prepare for it; The views of Western countries are changing, and those who are on the verge of suffering are also unseen. If it happens suddenly, what is the basis for rescue? and now it is urgent to take precautions, which is already a plan to make up for thoroughness; So far, there is still no preparation, and there is no time to ask for help. Only the upper and lower hearts, inside and outside the heart, the outside of the bureau one heart, from beginning to end, hard and chaste, and the history of eternal one heart. Everyone has insight into the background, and pays attention to everything, for the plan that can really stand on their own, and for the plan to prevent external troubles, they are self-reliant, and the external insult is submerged. In the past, people said: You can defend and then fight, and you can fight and then you can make peace. This person knows it, and the overall situation today cannot be delayed. The ministers and others have carefully discussed with the public, and I would like to summarize a few of the urgent matters that should be done, and ask the ministers of the North and South Oceans, and the governors and generals along the coastal rivers to make detailed preparations, and will take practical measures one by one, and then the ministers in the court will discuss in detail. If the articles drafted by the ministers are consistent with the proposals, they should be prepared; If there is a good policy in addition to the Articles, that is, the meeting will be held together, and the decrees will be complied with after they have been agreed. The general period is well prepared, and the best is to help alleviate the current urgent tasks, and to enrich the country's long-term plan, and the ministers are very fortunate! The world is very lucky! ”

"Qing Palace Archives: February 20 Edict" (The First Coastal Defense Preparation):

“…… The training of soldiers, simple weapons, shipbuilding, fund-raising, employment, and durability of the Wang's ministers are all important and appropriate. Li Hongzhang, Du Xing'a, Shen Baozhen, Li Henian, Li Hanzhang, Yinghan, Lin Yizhe, Zhang Zhaodong, Wen Bin, Wu Yuanbing, Yulu, Yang Changrui, Liu Kunyi, Ding Richang, Wang Wenshao, and Chen Xiang will make detailed plans, and will take practical measures one by one, limited to one month, and no empty words are allowed! ”

"Weng Tongyi's Diary":

“…… Today, the Cabinet Concert Hall will see the draft of the recital. …… On the matter of coastal defense, Yu also drafted a draft, but Li Lansun thought it was inappropriate, and it was easy to write a new draft. …… It seems that it is not feasible to borrow foreign money, and Lin Yizhe has a lot of people who agree with it, which is really child's play. …… The purchase of an ironclad ship is not a trivial one, especially one that should not be wasted because of choking. The revival of the palace added a steamer, supplemented by land soldiers, and the old wooden ship was abolished to specialize in the maintenance of ships, and the ironclad ship should be purchased by Lin Yizhe to see its actual effect, and then continue to buy. Raising a salary, increasing salt, borrowing foreign money, opening a mining plant, etc., I am deeply afraid that the flow of disadvantages will be easy to occur, and many obstacles will be hindered, and this proposal will not be feasible! ……”

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At the beginning of 1875, the Chinese political scene was quite lively, and after the edict on the preparation of coastal defense was issued, the ministers played like snowflakes, and the content of the discussion was also full of wind and water.

Shen Baozhen, the governor of Liangjiang and the minister in charge of coastal defense and the affairs of various countries, stressed in a loud voice that "coastal defense is the most important task today" and strongly advocated giving priority to the improvement of coastal defense and the establishment of a navy.

Li Hanzhang, who was the governor of Huguang at the time, was worried about the old problems of "following the rules of appeasement" and "pulling the skin in everything", and he pointed out in particular: "In the middle of the bureau, it is advisable to work together and maintain, without looking at the past, without confusing people's words, from beginning to end, hard and chaste, the history is eternal, and there is no or a little time, Si Gong is loyal to the same end, the effect of self-improvement, and there are people who can manipulate coupons." ”

Li Henian, governor of Fujian and Zhejiang, reminded: "Hearing foreigners' discussions, it is said that the Chinese have no fixed views and no perseverance, and this is unavoidable. ”

Ying Han, governor of Liangguang, Yulu, governor of Anhui, and even Peng Yulin, who was ordered to inspect the Yangtze River naval division, believed that instead of strengthening coastal defense, it was better to "rectify the defense of the Yangtze River" and think that it was "a long-term plan for the southeast."

Although Du Xing'a, the general of Shengjing, believed that the preparation for defense should be "mainly based on training on land and water," "it is especially advisable to urgently train the land soldiers." As for shipbuilding, it can be "tried by the Fujian Shipbuilding Bureau and the Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau, and then added as appropriate." ”

However, Hunan Governor Wang Wenshao was unable to say whether or not he could say between the "coastal defense" on the southeast coast and the "fortress defense" on the northwest frontier, and he seemed to have a heart for attaching more importance to "fortress defense."

Ding Baozhen, governor of Shandong, and Wu Yuanbing, governor of Jiangsu, analyzed that Russia is the biggest threat, and they are clearly inclined to "blockade defense" and advocate the use of troops in Xinjiang. At the same time, it was also proposed that the northeast region is close to Russia, and the safety of the "land of Longxing" in the Qing Dynasty should be concerned.

The Great Qing Dynasty, which is full of holes, is full of dangers, where is it not in danger, where is it not necessary to rectify it properly, where is not to spend a lot of money on the treasury?

In Tianjin, Li Hongzhang, the governor of Zhili and the minister of Beiyang, and his right-hand man Xue Fucheng closed the doors and windows of their study and stayed up all night for the purpose of preparing for coastal defense.

Xue Fucheng's word Shuyun, No. Yong'an, a native of Wuxi, Jiangsu, although he read poetry and books in his early years, he didn't even get a formal lifter. However, his ambition is not to do this, but to care about the overall situation of the world and the country, and he has tempered himself into a new type of intellectual who is well aware of the current situation, has a thorough understanding of the situation, and has a strategy for governing the country and strengthening the country in his chest. In the fourth year of Tongzhi, at the age of 28, he gave Zeng Guofan a "book of ten thousand words", advocating "planning to become rich and strong, setting the scripture system, eliminating the sideways, preventing foreign insults, and correcting customs", the article almost touched on all the problems that the whole of China urgently needed to solve, and for Zeng Guofan, who was famous and powerful at that time, except for Kuang Zheng's persuasion, there was not a single word of praise and flattery. Xue Fucheng's unique insight and character were immediately appreciated by Zeng Guofan, and he was immediately invited to enter the curtain to counsel the military and government affairs, and Xue Fucheng was also known as one of the "Four Sages of Zengmen" at that time.

In fact, in the year of the Haiphong Planning, 39-year-old Xue Fucheng had just switched to Li Hongzhang's shogunate. But his talent and insight soon won Li Hongzhang's appreciation and respect. His analysis of the root cause of China's poverty and weakness lies in his conservative analysis, his proposition that China must "change and then win" in order to keep up with the trend of world development, and his assumption that "after thousands of years, China will not be able to recreate opportunities because of Westerners' learning", his investigation of the Western social system and the political ideal of establishing a constitutional monarchy in China have had a major impact on China's future development.

Among the court discussions, only Li Hongzhang entrusted Xue Fucheng to draw up the most to-the-point, and its production played a role in overwhelming public opinion.

Xue Fucheng, as the spokesperson of Li Hongzhang, his words are enough to make fine beads of sweat ooze from the back of the viewer:

“…… Since the establishment of foreign affairs, the cases that have been completed one after another are nothing more than grievances. Until this year, Japan's military mobilization of troops to Taiwan was driven out after a bloody battle by soldiers on land and water...... At the beginning of the Taiwan affairs, he was the prime minister's yamen, saying that it was a peace situation, and it would be a war preparation, and the peace could be achieved quickly and lasting. The foreigner's argument is unreasonable, he presses each other with military strength, and I want to win it with my pen and tongue, and this must not be counted. If you prepare in advance, the Japanese soldiers will not dare to come, so how can it be said that the defense can be delayed one day? The Prime Minister Yamen has asked for six articles, and the current urgency and the long-term plan for the future have been comprehensively summarized, and Xun is the key policy for saving the time. It is not easy to do it suddenly, talents are rare, funds are difficult to raise, and fields are difficult to change, so it is difficult to get rid of habits. The line is not changed, although the daily fortification, it is still a cake! ”

Then, he pointed the sharp point of his discussion at the "theory of blockade defense" that emphasizes the defense of the land frontier, and further emphasized the reason why "coastal defense" is more important than "blockade defense":

"In the past dynasties, most of them were in the northwest. Its strength and weakness, the shape of the guest and the host, are all suitable for each other, and there are still boundaries between China and foreign countries. Today, more than 10,000 miles of southeast sea frontier, all countries trade and preach, come and go freely, gather the hinterland of Beijing and provinces, Yang is the name of reconciliation, Yin is the plan to devour, a country is a problem, all countries are inciting, it is a change that has not been seen in thousands of years! The speed of the ship's telegraph is instantaneous; The precision of the ordnance machine is 100 times the workmanship. Wherever the shells go, they are indestructible, the water and land passes are not enough to restrict, and they are a strong enemy that has not been seen for thousands of years! The multiplication of external afflictions is so changing, and I still want to use it to form a legal system, for example, a doctor treats a disease, regardless of the disease, and uses ancient prescriptions, but it has not been effective. ”

Since then, his argument has turned to criticism of current affairs:

"Since Gengshen, he has been introverted and introverted, and he has been generous and expelled from the sea. Outsiders do not understand the difficulties in the game, and ask what is the way to improve themselves? How can you resist insults? is at a loss on the basis of the mystery. Since ancient times, there has been no one who can win without knowing his own enemy. If his strengths and weaknesses have not yet been discussed, but if he wants to show his will in a desperate bet, wouldn't he treat state affairs as child's play! ”

He went on to offer his own insights:

"If you want to rectify coastal defense today, you have no other way to start by changing the law and employing people. I hope that my emperor will take care of the importance of the people of the society, the times are extremely difficult, and there will always be a sense of self-sufficiency, save redundant expenses, pay attention to military reality, and cultivate talents...... So that all the people with lofty ideals in the world are not aware of foreign affairs, and they can gradually become stronger in all aspects of military training, and they can be sincere in their actions. ”

The so-called "law changes" proposed in this "bombshell" like compromise mainly refer to the reform of the old military system and the establishment of a new type of navy and army; The so-called "employing people" mainly refers to the training of new-style military and economic personnel. He stressed the need to "urgently train naval divisions" and agreed to set up the Northern, Eastern, and Southern Ocean navies, and that "the ironclad ships of the outer sea division and the cannons and iron ships of the Koukou are indispensable." Each oceanic navy must have two large ironclad warships, and "if there is an incident in one place, six ships will be liaison, and the remaining ships will be attached to it." At the same time, he also advocated "opening up sources and reducing expenditures" and "following the example of Western law," developing civilian enterprises, setting up factories to manufacture farming and weaving machines, mining coal and iron mines, and setting up steamships, railways, and telegraphs.