The autumn wind has gradually picked up, and the weather is gradually getting a little chilly. This part of North Korea has gradually quieted down after the summer when the wind and waves were stirring and the sparks were splashing.

Nearly 10,000 elite Huai troops under the command of Ye Zhichao arrived in Seoul one after another, and they wanted to divide the defense station. At the same time, he cooperated with Park Yong-hyo to stabilize the ruling system in the core area of Seoul. Just settling down is nearly 10,000 Huaijun uncles, and it takes a lot of effort. After September, more than 6,000 people were transferred to Beiyang, nearly 20 horse infantry battalions were sent to Korea, and three more troops were transferred. For a while, the generals of the Huai army in Korea were star-studded. The battalions were newly arrived, and it was again a troublesome matter to redistribute the benefits.

In addition, the Beiyang Navy Division also pointed out that the areas of Pusan, Incheon, and Ganghwa Island should be used as the base of the Navy Division. The reason for the establishment of the Beiyang subordinate sailors is that nearly 20,000 Huai troops are in Korea, and the Beiyang Naval Division is responsible for the supply of waterways, and there is no base to cooperate, so it is impossible to complete this important task. In order to fight for this news place, there were some open and secret battles with the battalions of the army division in Korea.

The army entered Korea, and the situation in East Asia was shaken. Countries around the world are naturally concerned. Li Hongzhang declared to other countries that he was fully abiding by the provisions of the Sino-Chinese Treaty of Tianjin, and that both countries had the responsibility to protect the stability of Korea. At a time when Ben was involved in a coup d'état in North Korea, it was completely reasonable and lawful to send troops to stabilize the situation in North Korea. Once the negotiations are over, the 20,000-strong army will definitely retreat and return to China as soon as possible.

20,000 soldiers were put out, which was a rare large-scale mobilization lineup in the Qing season. Moreover, these troops are not the kind of defense forces distributed all over the country, they are the best equipped and longest-trained in the Qing Dynasty, and they are equivalent to the elite battalion leaders of the Qing Strategic Reserve in the Zhili area! Not to mention the mobilization of the Beiyang Naval Division, a modern fleet that can be called first-class in the East Asian Ocean, to escort and patrol.

Observers from all levels of the Qing Dynasty and even some countries believe that unless they are determined to fight a decisive battle against the Qing Dynasty in Korea, they will inevitably settle the issue through negotiations, just as they did in the Taiwan incident more than 10 years ago. North Korea, which is no better than Taiwan, can maintain a considerable military presence through supplies from the Yellow Sea, coupled with the forces of the Beiyang Naval Division. The Qing State is tantamount to putting on a posture of fighting on the inside line, and with the national strength of the country, it is inevitable to retreat.

The development of events is generally consistent with the world's judgment of the situation. At the time when the coup d'état in Korea had only taken place for a long time, the Minister and Consul of Yanjing and Tianjin simultaneously questioned the Prime Minister's Yamen for Foreign Affairs and the Minister of Beiyang Trade and Trade at the same time. Partial mobilization has even begun in the country - at least on paper. And in the domestic newspapers, it was declared that there was no room for negotiation in this matter, and there was no need to negotiate, and that the Qing State had killed the guards in Korea and monitored the diplomatic institutions that surrounded them, and that the will of the empire must be embodied with strength! The momentum was raging.

However, as soon as the Qing court announced that Li Hongzhang would be appointed as the minister with plenipotentiary powers for negotiations, after the Sino-French war, the last important minister of Xiantong, who was a little disgraced, jumped to the center of the stage. It was said that Ben's tone was softened first, and he agreed to start negotiations with the Qing court in Tianjin. The asking price of the negotiations was extremely high at the beginning, the Qing court withdrew its troops from Korea, Korea was completely unarmed, the compensation was given for the loss of 6 million taels of silver in Korea, the parties were punished, the treaty of Tianjin was reformulated, or Korea was declared to be separated from the vassal system of the Qing court, or Korea was declared to be under the joint protection of China, and the two countries enjoyed exactly the same status and interests in Korea.

Li Hongzhang was old and spicy, and at the beginning he sent 9,000 elites, all of whom were sailors, into the court. The old man took out a dead-to-death posture this time, and I don't know if he was stimulated by Xu Yifan's toughness in North Korea. As soon as the 9,000 army moved, it was immediately a cheering voice in the country. To the surprise of observers from all over the world, he immediately took a step back, and at least the Minister and Plenipotentiary Asuka who appeared across the table at the negotiating table smiled a lot.

It is said that the amount of compensation demanded in this case has been reduced to 2.5 million taels of square silver, and the punishment of the parties has become a demand for the parties to apologize. There was no mention of Korea's status as a vassal state of the Qing Dynasty, but only demanded that the Chinese government enjoy common interests, and that after the negotiations were over, all troops must be withdrawn.

Seeing the change in his attitude, I don't understand where in Beiyang. After the first army was dispatched, it was not allowed to be repeated, and the second 6,000 land division was also transferred out of Beiyang and then went to Korea. Even a number of fully Western-trained sailor battalions and mine battalions of the Gongwei Naval Division have been transferred out! Almost all the mobile troops that could be mobilized in Beiyang went to the south of Korea empty. At the negotiation table, Mr. Li's cabinet was also unyielding, except for the parties who could go to apologize, the others were almost not an inch.

After the second batch of troops was renewed, it was said that Ben's attitude was softer. According to Li Hongzhang's telegram to the imperial court, he was extremely optimistic about the conclusion of the matter: "...... It is not difficult for people to gradually fall within my scope, and their cunning is not for sale. Thanks to the Queen Mother and my emperor, the blessings of the sky. The minister worked hard to manage the Beiyang powerhouse, and the two divisions of the water and land worked hard for 20 years, and it was completed today. At home and abroad, it has become a deep-rooted and unshakable trend......"

After the Sino-French War, because Li Hongzhang presided over the peace conference, he was scolded by the government and the opposition to the point of stink. withdrew from Beiyang several times to rest, and his co-organizer of the university never went further, all of which were signals from the imperial court to suppress him. Li Hongzhang himself also understands that he is too powerful and too strong, and he has been working his own territory in Beiyang. watched the imperial court foster local forces to divide his power and weaken his influence. For example, Lianghu Zhangzhidong, Liangjiang Liu Kunyi, and even reuse the original Hunan people. The fight with personal grudges between him and Weng Tonghe has always fallen behind, and there is almost no spokesperson for him in the military plane. Both the government and the opposition are on guard against the Huai system.

But this time, when the incident started, the old man turned over again! The negotiations were so smooth that the name of Bismarck of the East was called sky-high, and his status as an important minister was unshakable. He wants to be bent on getting good and finish this negotiation smoothly!

It is precisely because of the negotiation that there can be no problem, which is related to Li Hongzhang's great cause in the evening. Only at the beginning did he reluctantly restrain the Huai army and not pursue too much to the north. Save the trouble and make some trouble in North Korea. The Huai army also understands that such an army is lonely and cannot last long, and this time to fight for Lao Li's face, the expenses of hundreds of thousands of dollars a month are all paid by Beiyang himself. When the peace is agreed, Xu Yifan will be subordinate, and the army will still be withdrawn. Therefore, as soon as he settled down, he was busy with his own affairs, using the steamship to transport North Korean ginseng grain back to Tianjin to sell, and blackmailing North Korean local supplies, and he was so busy for a while. Everyone is leading troops, unlike those guys who are engaged in foreign affairs, the cannons don't go off, and there is no gold or two. In Beiyang Chengping, everyone has suffered enough, why don't you hurry up and make some money for the elderly?

As for Xu Yifan, now everyone is busy scraping the south first, and then going to him for trouble later.

The court almost acquiesced to the current situation in North Korea. The Huai army was transferred to the DPRK, and the name is justified. And Xu Yifan's position is embarrassing. He was a military training minister, and he was originally controlled by the minister of consolation and negotiation in North Korea, which was barely reasonable in North Korea. Now the head of the Korean Propaganda Minister has become a prisoner, and a new Minister of Propaganda and Negotiation has not been appointed. In the ruling system of the Qing court, he did not care about heaven and earth, and was a lonely vassal state. But there are great achievements and heavy troops, how weird it looks.

But the court has the ability to pretend not to see it. Weng Tonghe cautiously proposed to withdraw the Praetorian Guard, since it is a new army with the name of the Praetorian Guard, it is best to transfer it to the Nanyuan area, and train it well to prepare for the country. The big guys are all pretending to be deaf and dumb about his proposal. Who doesn't understand what the old man means, although he doesn't say it, he still doesn't want to catch troops for the emperor? In this fire pit, two hundred and five jumped down with the old man.

Weng Tonghe himself is also weak, the same as Guangxu behind him. Seeing that no one agreed, he quickly stopped mentioning it. Leave it for the future...... Xu Yifan has now become a hot potato, staying in North Korea without embarrassment or embarrassment, and his status is transcendent. Many central ministers have already burned incense at home, and now these two hundred and five are on the bar with Li Hongzhang, Master Li, hurry up and crush this guy! We don't even see it! Xu Yifan added a little disgust to Li Hongzhang, which is also a very happy thing, Lao Li is too strong now!

For Xu Yifan, there are only two words in the center of the imperial court to sigh: "Strange number." ”

He rose to power because of the turmoil of writing on the bus, took power because of the Nanyang trend, and ascended to power because of the coup d'état in North Korea. Although he has not taken a step in the country, he has been going around outside, but everyone can't avoid his influence! Now it is still involved in the open and secret struggle with Beiyang, and in the intrigue between the mother and son of the Queen Mother, the Empress Dowager and the Emperor, they have actually obtained this transcendent status. The emperor didn't want to let go of it, but the queen mother was afraid and didn't know how to deal with it constantly. As a result, the sky and the earth are not collected now...... What an unusual number that has never been seen in a dynasty!

Anyway, it's good that the wind and waves are calm now, and the Qing Dynasty has been gone unhurriedly for so long, so it's good not to have an accident in your position...... For the rest, the emperor Lafayette who is in charge of the house doesn't speak, so let him go......

～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～

Now, this dynasty is on the dock of the Datong River, smiling and waiting to greet the guests.

Behind Xu Yifan, there is the Goshha Guards who have changed into jackets and military uniforms, all of them are bald, their military uniforms are straight, their armed belts are neat, and they stand as straight as a knife. Pu Yangjun, the captain of the guard who was Beizi, tightly tightened his chin with his hat belt, and followed Xu Yifan vigilantly with the command knife at his waist. After a storm in North Korea, the Praetorian Guards were up and down, and the vast majority of people were desperate for Xu Yifan. Especially Xu Yifan's flying soldiers set Hancheng's divine strokes, many people feel that there is a mysterious overlord aura no matter how they look at him now......

Xu Yifan is also dressed in a military uniform, neatly tied. The wharf near his base on the Datong River, under the supervision of sufficient manpower and Zhan Tianyou, has completely changed its appearance, and the trestle bridge stretches far into the river. There are still boats on the river digging sand to deepen the wharf waterway, and a large area around it has been leveled out, and various areas have been planned. The transferred supplies were neatly stacked around the wharf, covered with tarpaulins, and some important machinery and munitions were also covered with sheds to protect them from the weather.

There is even a small railway track ready to be laid, through which the coal transported by ship will be transferred to the newly opened machine bureau, the repair shop, the armament factory, the gunpowder factory...... Many ships running on the river are waiting on the other side of the wharf to load their goods, and the meals, grain, mink, porcelain, and timber produced in North Korea will be resold through the trade routes of Daeshengkui and the Li family in Nanyang. Xu Yifan is now completely shameless, for the acquisition power of these resources, he snatched it from the hands of the North Korean local political axe, the North Korean political axe's purchase price to the private sector is simply too cheap, and it is a profit to sell it out.

After eight months of operation, the construction of his Taedong River-Pyongyang base has begun to take shape.

Of course, this is the result of how much money is thrown down! Huge sums of money were poured from the South Seas, from the North, from all over Korea (the Korean treasury), and then turned into a swarm of workers-technicians, into material machines, into food. The transportation network developed with a lot of money has made the flow of logistics and people also converge here. Thousands of privately minted silver dollars were issued, and the gold and silver that were exchanged were also pooled here, supporting him to issue more silver dollars, and even considering gold coins! The scale of construction has attracted the subdued North Koreans to come here to find work or sell their belongings. Under the rule of Xu Yifan, the northern part of Korea had convenient transportation, and the circulation of goods was abolished (in the sixties of the nineteenth century, North Korea imitated the Qing Dynasty to levy centijin, and the goods were exchanged, and countless centijin were paid along the way), and more and more caravans traveled between northern China and northern Korea. With the income from commercial taxes, the plundering and exploitation of North Korean resources, plus the income from privately minted currency, and the income from the North Korean treasury, after the summer, he invested in factory construction, road construction, the procurement of military munitions, and the expansion of personnel, and actually barely managed to break even, without using his old foundation!

After the summer riots, it was doubly prosperous.

Sometimes, Xu Yifan even hummed a little tune with a bad taste: "For a few years, there was a handsome guy who drew a circle ...... by the Yellow Sea."

Of course, he knew what was the support of all this prosperity now.

In the distance behind him, the military song of the Praetorian Guards sounded: "The Three Kingdoms are brave, Zhao Zilong is the first to be recommended!" Heroes in front of Nagasaka Slope, retreating thousands of generals and killing millions of soldiers......"

The roar of thousands of young and proud voices echoed over North Korea. The Goshha behind Xu Yifan stood more straight, and Xu Yifan just smiled.

As soon as the song changed, it was changed to another song: "...... The flying soldiers drove 800 miles, and the Korean palace was heroic. Hunting and dancing the dragon flag, the East China Sea Xu Dashuai ...... Praetorian Guard, get on the bayonet! Praetorian Guard, get on the bayonet! ”

The song is still ringing, and the shadow of the ship is already visible in the sky.

A small steamer was emitting black smoke, parting the river and reaching the dock, the whistle whined, and Xu Yifan had already arrived in front of the trestle. In the blink of an eye, the small steamer was already leaning on the trestle, and there were a few people standing at the bow of the boat, and Xu Yifan's figure was seen from a distance. The boat just dropped the cable and jumped, and several people jumped off in a hurry.

The first person was dressed in a top hat and had a dark complexion, and it was the new head of the Li family in Nanyang, Xu Yifan's quasi-father-in-law Li Daxiong. After getting off the springboard, he didn't dare to make a big deal with Xu Yifan, but he swept the scale of the dock with a surprised gaze, and then glanced at the well-groomed Goshha behind Xu Yifan, and reached out with a smile to shake Xu Yifan. Xu Yifan just smiled: "Mr. Nobita, the Li family's money is worth spending on this place, right?" ”

Li Daxiong smiled much more enthusiastically than him, and Xu Yifan's shock to North Korea also spread to Nanyang. In the early stage, the criticism of constantly supporting the needs of the Praetorian Guards and spending money like flowing water suddenly became smaller. Not to mention that Xu Yifan also has a Nanyang consolation minister in Java, and now the carriage with the banner of the minister goes out, whether it is an indigenous or a foreign policeman, they all stand up when they see the flag!

This master dares to open fire in Nanyang and the capital of the people in North Korea. It's better not to be offended! Relying on Xu Yifan's influence and borrowing Da Shengkui's business routes, the Li family has done business in North China and China. It turned out that these markets were easily opened up to southern merchants. Just the future benefits of this business, the Li family's upfront investment can be recovered.

However, Li Daxiong has always been a deep person, so he just shook his hand and returned a warm smile: "Does the Li family dare to be driven by Lord Xu?" You're a lifesaver for us! This time, I didn't know what was important, so I left all my business and hurried here...... Your Excellency has paid special attention to the several Western military talents recruited with a lot of money, and all of them have already been brought with the ship......"

Xu Yifan smiled and patted his hands: "Let's talk about it later!" Let's talk about it! Xiao Xuan has been waiting for you for a long time, Mr. Li, I have already arranged a carriage and horse, please hurry up and meet her...... I don't have a grievance to love! ”

This kind of son-in-law's tone towards his father-in-law is really a bit strange, but thinking about Xu Yifan's current status, it is normal. Li Daxiong smiled and stepped back. Naturally, there was Goshha who greeted him.

There were two people standing behind Li Daxiong, a full-body Taoist wearing a patch uniform, and his hands were deflated in the back, and he was ready to salute in the back, it was Tang Shaoyi, the general under Xu Yifan who sent him to the capital for activities, and there was another person with a personable demeanor, sword eyebrows and starry eyes, dressed in a long robe, looking at Xu Yifan's gaze and just smiling and nodding, who else could there be besides Tan Sitong?

Tang Shaoyi had already come down to attend the ceremony, Xu Yifan rushed forward and helped him up: "Shaochuan, Jingshi is running, thank you for your hard work!" We're killing hard here, and we want you to go to the dog hole, go through the door, and lose your smiling face......"

Tang Shaoyi held on and let herself not be too moved by these words, and said with a smile: "Where are the subordinates who have adults who work hard!" Who doesn't feel excited when they hear the deeds of adults in North Korea? Anyway, it's better to be back here! Do what you want to do, and you can gasp louder! My lord, how is Zhan Daren doing? How is it being built now? Is there gunpowder? Is the ordnance out? ”

Xu Yifan waved his hand: "You go to Zhan Daren and say, anyway, it's the two of you who are partnering, I just give the money, and don't ask anything else." Anyway, it's good to be back! ”

Tang Shaoyi smiled, although she was still standing there, but looking at that look, she couldn't wait to see Zhan Tianyou. Xu Yifan patted him on the shoulder with a smile and turned to Tan Sitong: "Fusheng, you are here, I thought you were very happy to run a newspaper, and you didn't want to come to my small place!" ”

Tan Sitong looked like he was smiling, and his newspaper was selling quite well now. Many Beijing bigwigs, the first thing they do when they get up every day is to read the newspaper. It is even rumored that Emperor Guangxu even reads his newspapers every day, and praises him as a genius in the world.

Now Tan Sitong is working on a special topic called the Meiji Restoration -- of course, a lot of information was given to him by Xu Yifan. It also provided funds for him to investigate the current situation of the book without restriction and collect information on all aspects of the book. Tan Sitong's most admired thing for the Restoration is to respect the king, and believes that the Restoration is truly united under this slogan. Because the order is from the top, it is implemented to civilize and strengthen the country. According to rumors, many Beijing bigwigs, and even the emperor, are doubly rewarded because of this.

Many scholars with negative swords, all from the Shanghai Concession to visit Tan Gongzi, Weng Tonghe and he have been in correspondence, some local governors, also have a relationship with him. His position in the hope of the wild clear stream has become more and more stable. So now there is no longer the depressed appearance when he was deported out of Beijing, with a long body and a jade body, and an indescribable literary style.

He hugged his fists at Xu Yifan: "Brother Chuan Qing sent a letter to him, can I not come?" I also happened to meet you, the hero of the dynasty who is flying and domineering! This time, in addition to listening to what Brother Tai has to say, there are some things, and I also want to discuss with Brother Chuanqing......"

Xu Yifan's eyebrows moved, but the smile on his face did not decrease: "Dare not talk to Brother Fusheng!" ”

When they were greeting one by one, several middle-aged foreigners who looked like soldiers had already appeared on the deck, and they had been tired all the way, and these people were still in a straight military posture, wearing old Prussian military uniforms and command knives. The first person was in his early fifties, the lines on his face were as if they were carved out by a knife, his expression was stiff, and his eyes were cast at Xu Yifan.

Li Daxiong, who had not yet left, whispered in Xu Yifan's ear: "Former Lieutenant Colonel Koonz of the Imperial German Army, who once served in the Prussian General Staff, is a good friend of Major Mekel, who founded the Army University for him...... According to the instructions of the adults, I don't know how much effort it took to invite this foreign lord who was resting in Königsberg! ”

Li Daxiong said a series of military terms in a difficult way, which shows that he never understood how much effort he spent to figure out Xu Yifan's recruitment requirements for him. Since leaving Nanyang, Xu Yifan proposed to him to recruit this kind of foreign advisers with work experience in the modern General Staff, and after almost a year, he was recruited with the wealth and strength of the Li family, which shows the rarity of talents!

Xu Yifan's eyes suddenly lit up, this is a baby!

(To be continued)