"Then thank you to Shopkeeper Chen." Lu Qingyun took the paper envelope and put it away, with a faint smile on his face, "If the shopkeeper Chen is free, you might as well go to Beijing to stay for a few more days, and the brothers will accompany a few people to have a good time." ”

"That's nature." Chen Yucheng said with a smile.

The two exchanged a few polite words, Chen Yucheng thought about it again and again, and finally couldn't help asking: "Master Lu, it's not that I'm talking too much, I heard that there is a war going on in Japan, and it's not very peaceful, let's transport so many 'white goods' to the past, it's too risky, if it's a loan to the Japanese, can't you take the money bank or a foreign bank's money order?" Why do you have to transport it? ……”

"The owner didn't explain, just to ask Lu to come to escort him, I can't inquire, hehe, what's the use of this, I can't talk nonsense." Lu Qingyun smiled, "However, the owner must have the owner's considerations, so we don't have to worry about it, right?" Hehe. ”

"However, this is far away, no bills of exchange, all spot, isn't it too dangerous......" Although Chen Yucheng was a little hesitant, at this last moment, out of loyalty to Hu Yulin and the duty of a businessman, he still had one more sentence.

"The owner wants a spot, not a bill of exchange, I think there is some difficulty." Of course, Lu Qingyun understood the risks involved, rolled his eyelids, and replied, "Let's do things for the owner, and we still have to bear this little risk." ”

"That's it! Is that! Chen Yucheng nodded again and again.

"This time I hired this Russian steamer, just so that this foreign ship can run fast, and it is also flying the Russian flag, not only can it arrive as soon as possible, but also make the pirates dare not act rashly, but it can reassure the owner earlier." Lu Qingyun proudly pointed to the Russian merchant flag on the mast. Said with a smile.

Chen Yucheng and Liu Chunhe glanced at the Russian flag in unison. Quickly exchanged glances.

"This steamer is running fast. It can save half the time compared to the wooden boat, and the brother took this steamer when he returned from the South Seas. Chen Yucheng said, "I heard that the sea has also been much calmer in the past two years. Along the way, I didn't encounter pirates. ”

"Yes, since the shipmaster built the warship, the pirates on this sea have exterminated a lot for the sailors, although there are still pirates on the shores of some islands, but they generally don't dare to fight the idea of this steamer." Liu Chunhe also said.

I heard Liu Chunhe mention the "ship administration". Chen Yucheng hurriedly glanced at Liu Chunhe, Liu Chunhe suddenly remembered the grievances and grievances between the proprietor Hu Yulin and the two big names of the shipmaster, Shen Youdan and Lin Yizhe, and knew that he was speechless, so he quickly shut up.

"Yes, these pirates are all wooden boats, where can they catch up with this steamer, hehe. Besides, this time, even if you run into pirates, you're not afraid! Lu Qingyun didn't seem to hear the clue, and said as well. While patting the revolver on his waist, he pointed to the retinue behind him who were carrying foreign guns. smiled, "If you come, it's just time to practice guns, hehe." ”

"That's, that's." Chen Yucheng laughed twice with him.

"I'm afraid that I ran into the rebels on the Japanese side, and I heard that the rebels also have a ...... of soldiers" Liu Chunhe thought about it, and still had one more sentence.

"Although there is a war on the Japanese side, whether it is the Japanese government or the rebels, they are courteous and protective to the foreigners and our vast expatriates, and the Russian steamer specially found by the owner has come to escort the Russian steamer to the sea of Japan, and the rebels have a hundred guts, and they dare not touch us." Lu Qingyun said with a smile.

"That'll be fine." Liu Chunhe was relieved when he heard that a Russian warship had come to escort him.

After a few more words of gossip, Chen Yucheng raised his hand and said goodbye: "It's not early, we'll leave the boat after a while, let's leave, I wish Lu Ye a smooth journey." ”

Lu Qingyun returned the salute and sent Chen Liu and the others from the Fuzhou branch of Fukang Qianzhuang out of the cabin and off the trestle. After a short time, the "Funing" sounded its whistle and slowly sailed away from the dock.

After checking the cargo hold one by one and locking the door of the cabin where the boxes were stored, Lu Qingyun returned to his cabin. Probably a little tired, he lay down in bed, and after a while, he fell asleep.

In the dream, he dreamed again of the aunt Sister Ayu, who was in Beijing, and the time when he was tender and sweet......

It is precisely because there are these aunts and wives who can fool around with the managers below in various places, and the managers everywhere are grateful for the blind eye of Master Hu and work hard to do things, so that Master Hu's business is getting bigger and bigger, and it is becoming more and more prosperous......

"Bang!"

Just as Lu Qingyun in the dream was intoxicated by Sister Ayu's gentle township, a loud noise suddenly came and Lu Qingyun woke up from the spring dream.

"Bang!" There was another sound, Lu Qingyun heard that it was the sound of cannons, and he was shocked, and immediately pulled out the revolver pinned to his waist.

He said in his heart, couldn't it be that he had encountered a pirate? With a thought in his mind, he immediately rushed to the porthole and looked out.

And when he saw what appeared in front of him, Lu Qingyun's eyes suddenly widened, and the revolver in his hand fell to the ground all of a sudden.

Outside the porthole, the figures of the two warships were clearly visible.

These were two tall and large three-masted Western-style giant ships, the bow of which was as sharp as a knife, plunged vertically into the sea, splitting through layers of waves, and stretched forward a huge mast, which looked murderous, and what frightened him the most was the huge cannon muzzles with black holes on the hull.

He habitually raised his head and looked at the top of the mainmast, hoping to see a pirate flag there, but what he didn't expect was a strange flag with a cross pattern in a circle!

Seeing this flag, Lu Qingyun's heart sank suddenly.

"Sir, find a Lucia merchant ship."

On the flybridge of the ironclad ship "Hiei", a Satsuma naval officer said to the commander of the Satsuma Navy, Rear Admiral Heihachiro Togo.

Heihachiro Togo nodded, and then he raised his binoculars and carefully observed the Russian merchant ship in front of him with the captain of the "Hiei", Hikonojo Uemura.

Because of his outstanding achievements, Heihachiro Togo became the "god of war" of the Satsuma Navy, because of his outstanding achievements and talents, Lin Yiqing, who was the chief of the general staff of the Satsuma Army, believed that he should be the most suitable person for the commander of the Satsuma Navy. It was on the recommendation of Lin Yiqing. Saigo Takamori in the way of "Great Shogun Order". Ordered the appointment of Heihachiro Togo as commander of the Satsuma Navy and the promotion of his rank to rear admiral.

Originally, the Satsuma Navy did not have a naval commander, and the supreme commander was Lin Yiqing, chief of the general staff of the Satsuma Army, but Lin Yiqing commanded land battles for the most part, and in addition, the Satsuma Navy had fewer ships, and the operations were mostly carried out by one or two warships in groups, and no fleet battles were carried out, so there was no commander who commanded the navy in a unified manner. After Russia sent troops to Japan and the Russian Far East Fleet was also concentrated in Japan, the Satsuma Navy felt great pressure, and Lin Yiqing also thought that a naval commander should be set up to share his own powers, and in the Satsuma Navy, Togo Heihachiro was the first in terms of military merits and generals, and Togo Heihachiro had studied in Britain and was the only candidate for naval commander, so Lin Yiqing's recommendation letter went up. Not only did it immediately get the approval of Saigo Takamori, but it also received the support of the Satsuma army commanders such as Kirino Toshiaki and Shinohara Kunikan. Heihachiro Togo's appointment as commander of the Satsuma Navy can be said to be a natural fit for everyone.

After Heihachiro Togo was promoted. The ironclad ship "Kongo" that he had commanded was now under the command of his friend Shigeto Dewa, while the ironclad ship "Hiei", which was originally commanded by Shigeto Dewa, was commanded by Hikonojo Uemura, the captain of the former "Mt. Fuji", who became famous for his raid on Tokyo Bay.

After taking office, Heihachiro Togo actively prepared for a decisive battle with the Russian fleet, but what he didn't expect was that since the Russian army arrived in Japan, it had fought with the Satsuma Army many times, and the Russian fleet and the Satsuma Navy had never fought.

The reason for this situation is solely because of the interference of the great powers.

As opponents in the Crimean War, Britain and France have always been extremely vigilant about Russia's expansion in the East, and this time Russia quietly sent troops to Japan in advance to "help Japan fight thieves", which caught Britain and France quite off guard, but the two countries quickly found a way to deal with it, that is, the Russian army could only fight with the Satsuma Army on land, and as for the sea, it was resolutely not allowed. The reason is very simple: the Russian army entered Japan in the name of the "Volunteer Army" -- although both the British and the French understood that the Russians were only under the guise of a "volunteer army", and in fact many of them were regular troops, and the army could "volunteer," but the navy could not. If the Russian navy were to intervene in the war, it would not only radically change the nature of the war, but also upset the balance of power in the Far East, in which case Britain and France would have sent their naval and army forces to stop it, as they had done in the Crimea. This situation is something that the Russians do not want to see, so the Russian Navy has no other action than to rely on the Japanese convoy of escort ships in the name of "protecting the diaspora." As for Satsuma, Lin Yiqing also knew very well that if the Satsuma Navy and the Russian Navy were to engage in a war, in addition to the huge disparity in strength between the two sides, it would be difficult to defeat, and that once the two sides fought, the Russian side would be given an excuse for the navy to participate in the war.

For Lin Yiqing's orders, Togo Heihachiro has always strictly obeyed them, because he had studied at the British Merchant Marine School, was familiar with public international law and international maritime law, and understood the reason why Lin Yiqing asked him to do so. However, many captains of the Satsuma Navy, such as Hikonojo Uemura, were very unimpressed with this, and it was only under the strict orders of Lin Yiqing and Heihachiro Togo that they did not act rashly. For this reason, the officers and men of the Satsuma Navy have been depressed.

But just a few days ago, Lin Yiqing's warrant made them excited again.

In the warrant, Lin Yiqing said that in order to solve the shortage of currency caused by the war, the Japanese Government purchased a large amount of silver ingots from foreign countries and used foreign ships to ship them to Japan to mint coins in order to solve its financial difficulties. After this order was issued, the entire Satsuma Navy was very excited, and immediately set off with a hundred times more spirit.

In order to be able to expand the search area, Togo Heihachiro divided the entire Satsuma fleet into two groups of ships according to similar ship types, and went to sea separately, and this time he himself led the two ironclad ships "Hiei" and "Kongo", the main forces of the Satsuma Navy.

What Togo Heihachiro didn't expect was that the first time he led the fleet to sea, he ran into a Russian ship.

Heihachiro Togo stared at the Russian-flagged ship in the telescope. Silent for a long time.

"There's something odd about this boat." Hikonojo Uemura muttered softly. Although his voice is small. But it was still heard by Heihachiro Togo.

"What's weird? Uemura-kun? Heihachiro Togo asked, but still didn't put down the binoculars.

"This ship is under the banner of Russia, but the name of the ship is the name of Qianguo, and there are not only Russians on board, but also Qianguo." Hikonojo Uemura said, "It's really strange. ”

"That's right, this boat is exactly what we're looking for." Heihachiro Togo finally put down the binoculars. Hikonojo Uemura immediately saw the gloomy face of Heihachiro Togo.

"Oh? Why? Togo-kun? Uemura Hikonojo asked a little strangely, "Is there a relevant explanation in the information of the staff headquarters?" ”

"The information provided to us only says that the ship carrying the silver ingots departed from Fuzhou, and that the silver ingots were purchased by the government from the merchants of Qianguo at a high price. It will be loaded and shipped out of Fuzhou. ”

"There are ......Qianguo people on this Russian ship," Uemura Hikonojo's face showed excitement, "So, this ship is what we are looking for?" ”

"Fuzhou is an important treaty port of the Qianguo, and its status is equivalent to that of Osaka in Japan, and there are many ships coming and going from various countries. The Qianguo people also often commissioned foreign merchant ships to transport goods. Heihachiro Togo shook his head again, "So it's just that there are people from the Qianguo above to make such a judgment." is not exact. ”

"Then the ship in front of you ......," Hikonoki Uemura hesitated.

"But what you just said is correct, this ship is indeed the target we are looking for." Heihachiro Togo said.

"How do you know? Togo-kun? Uemura asked again.

At this time, the "Hiei" had already approached the "Funing" with its speed, and Uemura Hikonosei could already see the expressions on the faces of those on the ship who were pointing at his warship.

"There's something unusual about the ship's load." Heihachiro Togo pointed to the waterline of the "Funing" and said in a deep voice, "This will only happen if it is loaded with extremely heavy goods." ”

After listening to Heihachiro Togo's explanation, Hikoyuki Uemura suddenly realized.

"Togo-kun really deserves to be a top student of the British Empire Merchant Marine School!" Hikonojo Uemura loudly praised his fleet commander, "A rough man like me can't notice this at all!" ”

After listening to Uemura Hikonojo's praise, Heihachiro Togo was not happy, and his face became even more gloomy.

How did Uemura know that Heihachiro Togo actually didn't feel much pride in his background in the British Merchant Marine School. Because Togo Heihachiro was the first batch of non-commissioned officers selected by Japan to study in the UK, after arriving in the UK, he was refused to enter the British Naval Academy, but transferred to the Merchant Marine School for further study, and the internship also started as the lowest sailor. However, Liu Buchan, a cadet of the Qianguo Navy who went to the UK to study at the same time, and others directly entered the British Naval Academy for further study!

In fact, the British did not bully the Japanese, the reason why Liu Buchan, a classmate of the Qianguo of the Dongxiangs, was able to enter the Naval Academy was because he had completed all the basic courses in the Ship Master School and graduated with excellent grades, and the starting point and military rank were higher than those of the Dongxiang Heihachiro. You have to start from scratch.

Heihachiro Togo struggled to suppress the past that came to his mind, and he stared at the Russian merchant ship in front of him and ordered, "Send a signal!" Order the ship to stop sailing! Undergo a clinical inspection! ”

"Cross Pill Flag! This is...... The warship of the Satsuma rebels! ”

When Lu Qingyun came to the deck flybridge, he happened to hear the captain of the "Funing", the Russian Karensky, also on the flybridge, and scolded the Satsuma warship that appeared.

"What a barbarian!" He said loudly in Chinese, "They are violating international law!" I must report to my country's consul when I go back! ”

"Mr. Kalensky, they ...... What's to be done? Lu Qingyun asked.

"They ordered us to stop the ship or they would fire on us!" Kalensky said angrily, pointing to a string of signal flags on the mast of a Japanese warship.

"These Japanese rebels are too bold! How dare you move the ships of the Great Russian Empire? Lu Qingyun wanted to remind Karensky of the fact that this was a Russian ship and cheered him up.

"The Satsuma people are the most barbaric people in Japan! They're all pirates! Kalensky, a retired Russian naval officer, apparently knew a lot about the situation, "It is said that this warship originally belonged to the Japanese Navy, and the Satsuma people on it rebelled, killing all the non-Satsuma sailors on board, so that this warship joined the rebels!" It is said that after they killed people, in order to destroy the evidence, they cut the corpses into pieces and threw them into the sea, staining the sea all red! What a bunch of robbers! Savages in the word! ”

Hearing Kalensky tell the bloody history of the Satsuma warship in front of him, Lu Qingyun suddenly felt a little black in front of him.

He knew that this time, he was afraid that he would be in big trouble.

In fact, at the beginning, he was mentally prepared for the difficulty of the task assigned by the owner Hu Yulin, but he did not expect that his life would be in danger on this trip. (To be continued......)

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