In the spring season, the land of Jiangnan first ushered in the opportunity for the recovery of all things. After two years of construction, the Shanghai-Nanjing Railway has been put into operation, and looking at the endless plain farmland outside the train window, Peng Yulin is full of emotion.

After the surrender of Yunnan, he and Li Mengqun were held alone, and then on the third day, several Qing army generals came to visit, only saying that the Taiping army was also trustworthy, and did not harm any Qing army, but anyone who was willing to join the Taiping army, the Taiping army accepted, and the Taiping army who was willing to go home also sent home with travel expenses, and finally saved thousands of lives. Peng Yulin and Li Mengqun looked at each other with comfort, and finally did not bear the stigma of the two in vain, as the commander of the first army, surrender is the most humiliating thing.

After learning that the lives of their subordinates had been saved, the two of them were also calm, whether the Taiping Army killed or released it, it didn't matter anymore, they just left it to fate. The next day, they were escorted to Guangxi by a group of Taiping troops. After arriving in Guangxi, he took a boat along the Xijiang River into the Pearl River and then to Guangzhou, and then took the Taiping Navy ship to the north.

When Peng Yulin was in Changde, he had led the Qing Army's naval division and the Taiping Army's Shi Dakai Division's naval division to fight fiercely on the Yangtze River and Dongting Lake for a long time, and in Guangzhou, they happened to see the first batch of Taiping Army's warships ordered from Britain and France returning to China. At that time, Peng Yulin and Li Mengqun were stunned by the lineup of the Taiping Navy, there were a total of six main warships, the largest was the Dingyuan with a displacement of more than 3,000 tons, she was a British first-class battleship, with three gun decks, 108 guns, a capacity of 895 people, and a displacement of 3,500 tons.

This ship was originally a British battleship of the first class Gothenburg, when the Taiping army began to buy British warships. The two sides were still in the honeymoon period, so a contract was signed for the construction of ships, but then because of the events of Sakhalin and other events. Relations between Britain and the Taiping gradually began to cool, and the oak needed to build such a huge warship was really difficult to find, so the Gothenburg was severely damaged in an accident, and finally the Taiping Army and the British negotiated that the two sides agreed to repair the ship and buy it to the Taiping Army after depreciation, which was considered to fulfill the shipbuilding contract. So the Taiping army was able to have a first-class battleship at this time.

The other two British battleships, the Beast Horn and the Flying Flight, were also purchased directly from third-class battleships after repairs. Britain is implementing an armored ship program, and the keel of the famous armored battleship HMS Glory was placed on the slipway of the Portsmouth shipyard in the United Kingdom in March this year, marking the beginning of the British era of ironclad ships. A large number of wooden ships were also preparing to be retrofitted with steam, so many ships that did not meet the British requirements for retrofitting were waiting to be disposed of. That's why Britain used three warships to fulfill the Taiping Army's shipbuilding contract, which is the same reason as the five warships handed over to the Taiping Army early in the morning.

The same setback was suffered by the three warships built by France, which followed in the footsteps of Britain and proposed a plan to refurbish old ships to fulfill the contract. In the end, the Taiping army had no choice but to accept it. As a result, in 1790 and 1791, the French Marines and Marseille Trades, two French first-class warships with a displacement of 2,700 tons, were commissioned into service with the French fleet. and the Orion's 1,500-ton second-class battleship was also refurbished and sold to the Taiping Army.

These ships are forty or fifty years old, especially the independent Beasthorn, which was launched in 1780 as an old ship, although they are all sail warships, but the Taiping Army still gritted their teeth and accepted it, because they didn't want it, Britain and France immediately closed the door for the sale of warships.

Although they are all old-fashioned sail warships, in the eyes of Peng Yulin and Li Mengqun. Still taken aback, a naval formation of six warships. Coupled with the hundreds of small boats such as red single boats, big sand boats, big merchant ships, and fast crabs guarding the surrounding area, it seems to be an unrivaled naval force.

Peng Yulin still can't forget the Wuchang water battle that year, the Changde naval army and the Hunan naval army have an absolute advantage, but after the appearance of the three Taiping Army's new Western warships, the result of the battle was completely changed, Shi Dakai's army took the opportunity to break through the Wuchang encirclement network, and guided the defeat of recovering Wuchang.

At that time, Peng Yulin knew that if the Qing army did not have new warships, it would not be able to match the Taiping army's naval army, and without the right to control water, it would not be able to counterattack any city occupied by the Taiping army along the Yangtze River. Now that the Taiping Army has more and larger Western warships, Peng Yulin already knows that the defeat of the Manchu Qing Dynasty will be irretrievable.

The two followed the Taiping fleet all the way north, and in the waters of Dinghai, they encountered the British Third Fleet, which was also pulling anchor and preparing to leave the port. At that time, Peng Yulin and Li Mengqun were on the deck, and they really thought that a naval battle was about to break out between the two sides from the discovery of the opposing fleet to the fact that the sailors of both sides were preparing for war. But then, after the two sides waved friendly flags, they each stood guard and got out of range of the other's artillery.

Later, the commander of the Taiping fleet, Tongbao, told Peng Yulin that the warships were helpless at sea and that they should be ready for war at all times, which was taught by the British. A large number of fleet members such as Monk Tongbao had stayed in Britain for three years, and Peng Yulin couldn't believe for a while that the famous pirates of Dinghai could be so used by the Taiping Army. Looking at Monk Tongbao wearing a handsome new navy uniform, Peng Yulin thought thoughtfully.

After landing in Ningbo, this navy was temporarily stationed here, because the monk Tongbao received an order from the Admiralty to let the fleet be temporarily stationed in Ningbo, and there were British and French expeditionary fleets gathered in the sea outside Shanghai.

Hearing this, Peng Yulin was still angry for a while, why did the sea area at his doorstep let those foreign devils? But then I was relieved when I thought about it, the Taiping army had finally saved these naval possessions, and it could not be lost just because of an unclear misunderstanding, and no one could say whether the powerful fleet of foreigners would use force against the Taiping army.

When I arrived in Ningbo to change trains, I also heard about the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's strange and pornographic skills early in the morning, Qu Mei Chongyang got out of the train, and Peng Yulin also took it for the first time. When he saw the endless crowd of people and mountains of goods at the station, Peng Yulin thought about it again. The Shanghai-Nanjing Railway was opened at the beginning of this year, and I heard that the Taiping Army and the British were still building a railway from Ningbo to Fujian, and Jiangxi, Guangdong and other provinces were also preparing to build railways.

On the train, through the window of the car Peng Yulin saw the scenery along the way that was constantly regressing, far and near were farmland that could not be seen, it was the spring ploughing season, the farmland was full of busy people, seeing this situation, Peng Yulin sighed lightly: "It is difficult for the imperial court to have this place again." ”

Li Mengqun was also silent for a long time, and finally said: "Long hair is no longer the image of robbery in the past." ”

After arriving in Shanghai, the two were sent directly to the Xiwang's mansion in Shanghai, and after the Taiping soldiers who escorted the two handed them over to the guards of the Xiwang's mansion, they had a special person to arrange for the two to have a full meal, and finally bathed and changed clothes, and the whole bundle was taken to the Xiwang's study by the guards.

The guards of the Xiwangfu prepared two sets of Hanfu straight jackets for the two of them, and prepared a headscarf for the two of them, both of them hesitated a little when changing clothes, and finally wore them calmly, but neither of them wore the red headscarf, so the two of them wore Hanfu straight jackets but the top door was bare, dragging braids behind their heads, and so walking, which caused the female officials in the Xiwang Mansion to laugh at the two all the time.

When they arrived at the study of the King of the West, the two of them saw several people in the hall wearing the official uniforms of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom sitting on the left and right, among which a middle-aged man with a face full of flesh and facing the vicious man on the main seat sat in the middle, this person was wearing a yellow robe, and the hood on his head was embroidered with the word "King Xi".

Peng Yulin's heart sank, and he secretly thought that this person was the first person in the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom who had not met an opponent for three thousand miles, and Xiao Chao, the king of the West, was noble. Li Mengqun thought that this fang was really as vicious as the rumors, but seeing that this person's face was similar and vulgar, how could he make many heroes from the north and south of the river serve their lives?

Seeing the two of them arriving under the escort of the guards, the middle-aged man smiled and said, "Please sit down and talk." Then he said, "You all go down on errands." Everyone received the order, and after a while, the hall retreated cleanly, and even the guards retreated.

Peng Yulin and Li Mengqun glanced at each other, and they both secretly thought that this King of the West was so bold, he dared to see two prisoners alone, wasn't he afraid that they would hurt him violently? Li Mengqun's heart was even more sudden, secretly thinking that although this king of the West seemed to be strong, if he could get a few steps closer, with the help of Peng Yulin, he might really be able to take his life, so that Daqing would have a chance to be saved.

"Sit down and talk, gentlemen." The middle-aged man didn't raise his head, pointed to the two seats next to him, and never put down the copywriting in his hand, and then said: "There are several of my secret guards here, and there is no one else, so you can let go of what you have to say." ”

Li Mengqun was a little hesitant just now, but when he heard that there were several secret guards here, he secretly scolded himself for being stupid, how could the leader of the dignified Taiping Army be so careless? So he dispelled his desperate thoughts, just sat down, and crossed Erlang's legs, not sitting upright like Peng Yulin.

After the middle-aged man picked up the pen and wrote a few words, he put down the pen, looked up and smiled: "I forgot to introduce myself, I am the Western King of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom." ”

Li Mengqun said angrily: "The hat on your head is embroidered with words, when I can't read?" is so boastful, and I don't know how to be polite! ”

King Naxi was not angry, but just smiled and said, "It turns out that Mr. Li still knows Chinese characters, and I also say that Mr. Li only knows Manchu." ”

Li Mengqun's face turned red, and he couldn't speak for a while, Peng Yulin frowned slightly, it seems that this king of the West is thick and fine, and his words are sharp, not as rude as his face.

Li Mengqun held back for a while before saying: "You don't have to spend any words to persuade the two of us, the two of us are not Xu Naizhao, nor Tao Enpei, let alone Jiang Guolin and Zhou Qibin, the two of us are favored by the imperial court, and they only want to be loyal to death, and if they want to kill or chop them, they will come over, and the two of us have already saved the will to die!" There will never be a rebellion from thieves! ”

The king of Nasi smiled calmly, and he shrugged his shoulders and asked, "This king has never thought of persuading the two to surrender, and after the two were captured, can anyone come to persuade the two to return to the kingdom of heaven?" ”

Li Mengqun was angry again, and said angrily: "Then why did you escort me two here?" ”

King Xi's smile was still so kind: "I would like to ask the two of you to send a letter to your Queen Mother on behalf of this king......" (To be continued......)