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Zhu Honglan's eighty-year-old mother, an illiterate old lady in the countryside, heard that the foreigner had been rescued, worried about her son's life, her legs were weak, she knelt down in front of Song Xiaofei with a plop, hugged his thighs, and pleaded with tears: "Lord Governor, my son is confused for a while, begging your lord to spare his life." My eldest son is dead, and if my younger son has any more longs and shorts, my old bones will be gone. ”

Song Xiaofei picked up the old lady and said, "Don't worry, old lady, there is a clear way for this official, it depends on whether your son can walk or not." ”

Zhu Honglan saw the white-haired old mother pleading for herself, she couldn't bear it, and she didn't feel that there were two lines of tears on her face, and when she heard Song Xiaofei say that there was still a clear way, she hurriedly threw the knife in her hand, knelt beside his mother, and said: "The adult is kind, the villain is unforgettable." I don't know what the way to go, but please let me know. ”

Song Xiaofei said: "This official sees that you and the others are all villagers practicing skills, and their original intention is also to protect their families and defend the country, which is different from the bandits of Yue Migong and Duan Er's blind man. The governor will set up a police security bureau in Jinan and other provinces, and the officials and gentry will jointly organize it, and your Dadao Club can assist the squires in maintaining local law and order. ”

Zhu Honglan asked, "What is the Police Security Bureau?" ”

Song Xiaofei thought to himself, at this time, explaining to Zhu Honglan what the police are is tantamount to playing the piano to the cow, so he said: "It is similar to arresting fast, but it is specifically responsible for maintaining local law and order and dealing with small disputes among the people." ”

Zhu Honglan didn't have the idea of falling into the grass, and with a place to use, he discussed with Liu Shiduan, the second leader of the Big Knife Society, and others, and finally agreed to accept Song Xiaofei's "Zhao'an". In order to show his sincerity, Zhu Honglan patted his chest and said, "I will lead the brothers of the Great Sword Society first." Go and get the heads of Yue Migong and Duan Er's blind people to see the adults. ”

Song Xiaofei said: "These bandits come and go without a trace, which is really a headache for the local government." It is very good to have your help, and I will send 500 officers and soldiers to help you suppress the bandits. ”

Thereupon. A hostage crisis was resolved, Zhu Honglan and others escorted Song Xiaofei down the mountain, and when they arrived at the intersection, Wang Shizhen, Duan Qirui, Xi Muqing, Dadao Wang Wu and others were waiting at the intersection early, Xi Muqing saw Song Xiaofei, like a little girl, in front of everyone's eyes, threw herself into his arms and cried: "I thought I would never see you again." ”

Song Xiaofei smiled: "You have no confidence in me so much? ”

In the following month, the Dadao Society actively assisted the government in suppressing bandits. Zhu Hongdeng and Liu Shiduan actually captured Yue Migong alive, exterminated Duan Er's blind man and other bandits, and ruled Shandong for a while.

Song Xiaofei seized the time to rectify the rule of officials, set up patrol police, seized all the tobacco houses in Jinan, opened the Shandong University Hall, built new schools in various places, and developed coal mines and raw silk factories. He also transferred Zhan Tianyou from the Beiyang Naval Division to serve as the chief engineer, and cooperated with the China Railway Company set up by Wu Tingfang to build the railway from Jinan to Tianjin, and completed the track-laying project in just over 70 days. The Civil Code Ordinance and the Commercial Code Ordinance have also been promulgated.

Because of the strong support of Li Hongzhang and the Empress Dowager Cixi, and the ability to make full use of the various resources of the Huaijun Group, the appearance of Shandong under Song Xiaofei's administration has changed greatly. Talents were prosperous and financial resources were abundant, and it became one of the central areas of China's new policy of Westernization in the later period at that time. Plus the advocacy of newspapers such as "Declaration" and "Strong Country Daily". Song Xiaofei became a hot "political star" in the Qing Dynasty for a while, and his fame surpassed that of Zhang Zhidong, the governor of Huguang, who had hosted foreign affairs for many years.

Just when Song Xiaofei's reform in Shandong was steadily advancing. Li Hongzhang sent an urgent telegram and asked Song Xiaofei to rush back to Tianjin immediately. Song Xiaofei realized that there might be a big change in the situation between the DPRK and China, so he took a train from Jinan overnight and rushed back to Tianjin.

The next day, Song Xiaofei rushed to Li's mansion to meet Li Hongzhang. Sitting down on the kang in the living room, Li Hongzhang told Song Xiaofei that this time it was two very bad news.

Song Xiaofei said: "Please tell the worst news first." ”

Li Hongzhang said: "Yesterday morning, Weng Tong played the emperor, the Yellow River broke in Zhengzhou, the household department was ordered to advance 4 million taels of silver, and then continue to allocate 4 million taels, if other expenses are added, a total of more than 9 million taels of silver was consumed, and the provinces purchased a lot of Western ordnance, ironclad fast ships, new forts, and the annual need for millions of dollars, so the emperor asked to stop purchasing foreign arms for two years, and the emperor allowed to play. ”

"What? Stop buying foreign arms for two years? Although this news was expected by Song Xiaofei, he didn't expect the bad news to come so quickly, at that time, the technology of warships and muskets and foreign guns was updated very quickly, once he did not buy warships and guns for two years, the consequences were very serious, Song Xiaofei asked: "Can the Queen Mother know about this?" ”

Li Hongzhang said: "The Queen Mother is now concerned about the longevity celebration and the expansion of the Summer Palace, and if she makes her unhappy for a while, she will make her suffer for a lifetime, so Weng Tong and Bai Fang are saving expenses, and these two projects dare not stop, and the Queen Mother naturally approved this proposal." ”

Song Xiaofei pinched his fingers and calculated, Cixi is fifty-seven, is it Alzheimer's, such a suggestion is also approved. He thought to himself that although the Beiyang Naval Division controlled the sea power in East Asia and sank the warships once they discovered that Japan had purchased them, firmly stuck the neck of the Japanese navy and forced the Japanese to be unable to purchase warships from foreign countries, Japan's industry developed rapidly, and once the technology matured, it was possible to transform civilian merchant ships into warships. If you don't buy foreign guns and artillery, your new army now has only 17,000 people, and there is still a gap compared with Japan's 60,000 army. If the household department doesn't give money, you have to find a way to raise money! However, the long-term plan is to get rid of Weng Tongyi and squeeze such an incompetent and immoral crappy Hubu Shangshu out of the imperial court, but it really can't be done, so he will make a plan to let people pretend to be a revolutionary party that opposes the Qing Dynasty and restores the Ming Dynasty and assassinates him. Song Xiaofei said to Li Hongzhang: "Master, the maintenance cost of each warship of the Beiyang Naval Division is about 500,000 taels of silver a year, and if it is not replenished, it is equivalent to a pile of scrap copper and rotten iron, what should I do?" ”

Li Hongzhang said: "The old man has more than 10 million taels of funds in hand, but the appropriation and write-off must go through the household department, otherwise it will be embezzlement of public funds." ”

Song Xiaofei said: "When the students arrive, they will find a way to raise money on their own, and as a last resort, they will make up for it from Shandong Province, and the funds for purchasing warships and maintaining the Beiyang Naval Division must not be stopped, otherwise the teacher and I will inevitably become sinners of the nation in the future." ”

Li Hongzhang said: "Weng Tongyi's move is mainly aimed at the old man, and the old man will try his best to help you find a way when the time comes." ”

Song Xiaofei asked: "What about the bad news?" ”

Li Hongzhang said: "Recently, you presided over the new policy in Shandong, which attracted the attention of the government and the opposition and the appreciation of the Queen Mother. It is said that there is a Guangdong man named Kang Youwei, who was introduced by Concubine Zhen's cousin and joined Weng Tongyi's staff and actively planned this matter! Weng Tongyi said in the court that as long as he followed his reform plan, China would be rich and strong in three years, and we told the emperor that it would take twenty or thirty years, so the emperor was quite moved by his reform plan! ”

"Kang Youwei?" Song Xiaofei was taken aback and said: "This person has come to find a student before, and he has experienced the way of changing the law, and he has said it wildly, but in fact, he is half a bucket of water, and he can't eat foreign, that set of Tuogu reform is extremely ridiculous, how can the emperor believe them to draw cakes to satisfy hunger?" ”

Li Hongzhang said: "The emperor is young and vigorous, and he is subject to the queen mother everywhere, so of course he is in a hurry. ”

Song Xiaofei snorted and said: "The student looks at this matter, it may not be bad news for us, Weng Tongyi, the old thief, will soon return to his hometown again, and the Beiyang sailor will have no worries." ”

Li Hongzhang asked, "How do you say this?" ”

Song Xiaofei said: "'Self-inflicted, can't live', the teacher waits and sees, reform is not an overnight thing, they are in a hurry, this is looking for death!" (To be continued......)