"As soon as I go out, I don't want to go home for a few months, do you forget your home!" When they met, Wan'er pouted and muttered. "Who said forget home, I'll miss you at night!" Deng Zixuan cheekily hugged Wan'er. Wan'er heard this and pushed away: "You miss me at night, so you don't want me during the day, it's because you can't bear to be lonely and have a woman!" Wan'er changed her face. Where do you want to go, busy during the day, do you know how to do things for officials? I can't slack off at all, but in the dead of night, I can't help but think of you. "That's pretty much it!" Wan'er is pampered by Deng Zixuan, showing the coquettishness of a little woman.

Xiao Beiru is newly married, after a cloud and rain, Wan'er seemed to remember something and said: "Mr. Hu has sent someone to ask a few times, but you have not been at home." Mr. Hu seems to have something very urgent. Deng Zixuan knew what Hu Xueyan was looking for him and said: "Mr. Hu has come back from Shaanxi, presumably Master Zuo's affairs have been arranged, and we will visit tomorrow." I guess we'll be going to Fuzhou soon," "Do you want to go by boat?" Deng Zixuan nodded, and Wan'er suddenly became excited.

The carriage stopped in front of Hu Xueyan's door, and after hearing the news, Hu Xueyan hurriedly came out to greet him. "I said Brother Zixuan, you are mysterious now, what have you been doing when you haven't been at home recently, is there any way to make a fortune by yourself?" "I said brother, what do you think of your brother? I went to Wuhan, and Zhang Zhidong was going to build a steel mill. Since I needed an interpreter to deal with the British, he found me through Sheng Huaixuan, so I spent three months in Wuhan. ”

The two talked and laughed and entered the living room to take a seat, Hu Xueyan's aunt and wife were already familiar with Wan'er, and as soon as they met, they began to talk about clothing and high heels. After the two of them laughed and walked into the back hall, Hu Xueyan said: "I heard that Mrs. has set up a garment factory and a shoe factory, and the benefits are very good, this is a big news!" You kid is really a money obsesser, and you actually let your wife go into battle! "Dude! Madame is idle and willing to do nothing, what can I do. As long as he is happy, it doesn't matter how much money he makes! ”

Hu Xueyan said angrily: "This moth must have come from you, and you actually pulled me, presumably my brother has not forgotten me." My aunt is now obsessed with high heels. But to tell you the truth, women wearing high heels do add a lot of color, and seeing their amorous appearance, my libido has increased, you say it's not strange! ”“haha！ There is a way for women to please themselves. That's true. The dude's libido has increased, and the wife naturally knows that it is because of weishenme, do you say yes. ”

"Fallacies, you are always justified. To get back to the point, Lord Zuo's entry into Xinjiang is very smooth, Agubai is vulnerable, and now Lord Zuo has recovered Dihua. This guy is very cunning, and his whereabouts are erratic. Lord Zuo made up his mind this time that for the sake of complete stability in the frontier, he would completely eliminate Agubo and never suffer in the future. Since I have been well prepared in the west in the past two years, the food and grass problem of the army can basically be guaranteed. Hu Xueyan's face flashed with brilliance.

"Dude! Even if I don't say you can do it, why bother with that! "That's different, I don't even have room to doubt my brother's words now, my old man, I have read countless people in the mall for decades, but I can't figure you out, and it's the same now, sometimes I even think that your vision is not only unique but also very accurate, and I often can't figure it out." To tell you the good news, the coal mountain of Shenmu is simply a mountain of gold, and I have mined it so far. ”

Hu Xueyan was a little excited and continued: "You said that there is fire oil coming out of the ground in Yanqing, Shaanxi, and I personally went to visit it, and sure enough, this fire oil ignites instantly and can be used as a candle." I arranged for someone to dig 20 meters deep in an oil site to build an oil well, which was as inexhaustible as well water. This time I came back and brought a few hundred pounds for lighting. ”

"Brother, just let them be transferred here like coal, I don't think there is any problem with the market!" "I have this plan, I have already arranged it. Now the top priority for you and me is to go to Fuzhou. You kid has hung up Lord Shen's appetite, and it's me who is unlucky. Did you say that the steam locomotive has eyebrows? "When did the brother ever gossip. To tell you the truth, I bought a steam locomotive and 5 cars in the United States through Jardine Matheson, and I expect to arrive at Fuzhou Pier by the middle of this month. You and I will go to Fuzhou to assist Lord Shen in building the steel rails, and we can lay the railway between Fuzhou and Mawei Shipyard. ”

"Great, we'll leave tomorrow!" On the same day, Deng Zixuan went to Rose Villa, inspected the ironware factory and the education school, and got a general understanding of the specific situation. After discussing with Chen Jinji, he rushed back to the city that night. In the evening, I consulted with my disciples again, and I didn't fall asleep until late at night. Early the next morning, Hu Xueyan took his aunt and wife to meet Deng Zixuan and his wife at the pier and boarded the small steamer. This time Hu Xueyan went out for the first time to bring his aunt's wife, the key is that he saw the role played by women, especially seeing that Deng Zixuan's use of Wan'er to engage in Mrs. diplomacy had a remarkable effect, and the shrewd Hu Xueyan naturally wanted to follow suit.

The little steamer was driving on the sea, and Wan'er and Hu Xueyan's aunt's wife, wearing half-heeled leather shoes, stood on the side of the deck looking out to sea. "Brother, this woman does have another charm when she wears high heels, and she seems to have a better figure!" Next to the small table under the parasol, Hu Xueyan and Deng Zixuan chatted. "Brother Hu, you are a woman who does not leave in three sentences. I thought you couldn't accept the women's trendy, I didn't expect the dude to be so open. "Women are stunners, and my brother is probably far inferior in this regard. This time I went to Xi'an, and I took another concubine! ”

“haha！ My brother has a wife with 9 rooms, my brother really admires you! But I wonder if you'll be able to handle it? "Truth be told, it's what I'm most proud of, and if you don't want a fire in your backyard, you have to do a trick." The captain of the little steamer walked over and interrupted their conversation. "Is there anything you can do?" Deng Zixuan asked.

The captain was a little embarrassed when he saw Hu Xueyan sitting beside him, "Brother Hu is his own person, so it doesn't matter if you say it!" "Mr. Deng, Shopkeeper Lin asked me to tell you that he went to northern Jiangsu to recruit displaced people, and this year's drought in Shandong and northern Jiangsu is serious, and a large number of displaced people have appeared." "I know, you go down!" Hu Xueyan asked in confusion: "Brother, what are you recruiting homeless people for?" "I have built many estates on Hainan Island and Guangxi, where the land is vast and sparsely populated and needs manpower. If it weren't for a disaster year, no one would want to go to the wilderness, so the opportunity was rare. ”

"Brother, I've built a few manors in the northwest, and it looks like I'm going to expand the scale. The small investment in the estate pays off quickly, and the results are immediate. "Congratulations on my brother, although the land in the west is barren, there is also a lot of fertile land. Taking advantage of Lord Zuo's strength in the west, Brother Hu must not lose the opportunity. Foreign missionaries, after secret investigations, came to the conclusion that the barren West was a huge cornucopia. ”

Hu Xueyan narrowed his eyes and asked in surprise: "Is this really what my brother said?" "I'll tell you two secrets, you and I are good brothers, otherwise I wouldn't have told you. But I have the condition, if you have to give me 20% of the profit because of this, can you agree? "No problem, tell me what the secret is?" Hu Xueyan's appetite was raised.

Deng Zixuan took a sip of tea and said: "Let's talk about the first secret first, the fire oil you found in Yanqing, presumably Brother Hu knows his magic use, and the profit of this fire oil in the future is astronomical, and at present, foreigners have begun to use this fire oil." There is a limited amount of oil coming out of Yanqing, but in Yumen, Gansu, oil is very abundant, and there are many oil production points, you can dig many oil wells. "I remember Gansu Yumen, what is the second secret?"

Deng Zixuan said: "There is a huge salt lake in the northwest of Qinghai Lake, and its surface is covered with a salt cover, and under the salt cover is the salt of Baihuahua can be eaten directly, especially the mining cost is very low. I can tell you that the salt there can be eaten by the people of the Qing Dynasty for tens of thousands of years, and it is a real cornucopia. Hu Xueyan opened his mouth wide when he heard this, almost stunned.

But Hu Xueyan quickly sobered up and said: "Brother, why don't you mine such a cornucopia yourself, why do you want to give it to me, how do you tell me to believe it?" Deng Zixuan said: "Dissatisfied brother, I don't want to do it myself, but my ability is limited." And the only thing that can be done in this matter is you, especially the western part of the Zuo people, and you are the cadre under the command of the Zuo people, you are the only one. Brother Hu, you and I are brothers, and besides, I want 2% of the profit without any risk, is this reason sufficient? ”

Hu Xueyan was a little excited: "After arriving in Fuzhou, I will immediately send someone to check, if the situation is true, I promise to give you 2% of the profit." "One word is a deal!" "A gentleman's words are hard to chase! Although I am not a gentleman, I am a trustworthy businessman. Do you know what the name of that place is? "Chagan Salt Lake!" Deng Zixuan gave Chagan Salt Lake to Hu Xueyan for the purpose of stimulating the economic development of the northwest, especially the long-distance transportation of salt, which will lead to the economic prosperity of the entire western region. In addition, Zuo Zongtang is in charge of the northwest, and Hu Xueyan is easy to move in the west.

Hu Xueyan was stirred by this big secret for a long time before he regained his composure, and he knew that Deng Zixuan would not talk nonsense. After a long time, Deng Zixuan changed the topic and said: "Brother, the Dongguan Iron and Steel Plant co-founded by you and me has produced iron, and it can produce 2,000 catties of steel per month. "It's really good news, I haven't had time, otherwise I really want to go to Guangzhou to see." "The steel we produce is currently the most high-quality iron ore in the Qing Dynasty, especially the limestone iron ore on Hainan Island, and the high-quality iron ore cannot be found in the entire Qing Dynasty, which can be said to be second to none."

"Brother, for my brother's admiration, you can remotely control Guangzhou while sitting at home, this is not something that ordinary people can do, so doing business, you are the only person in the Qing Dynasty. I listened to Shen Ruisheng's report, where the profits of the money bank have increased dozens of times, and the factories co-founded by you and me make a lot of money, and I, Hu Xueyan, have known that money can be made like this since I met you. Brother, my brother can't be grateful, if my brother needs me in the future, he will be killed. ”

Deng Zixuan knew that under the impetus of his own ghost hands, Hu Xueyan entered his heyday ahead of schedule, and now he is red and purple, especially in helping Zuo Zongtang enter Xinjiang to suppress the rebellion, Hu Xueyan's logistics support has made Zuo Zongtang like a tiger. Deng Zixuan couldn't guess how much Zuihou could achieve, if Zuo Zongtang had no worries, it was possible to raise troops into Central Asia to strangle Agubai, of course, it depends on the meaning of the imperial court. But one thing is certain, the general will not be subject to the king's life. If Zuo Zongtang has a brilliant victory, perhaps the area of territory recovered will be larger than the original history.

When night came, Deng Zixuan stood alone on the deck, looking out into the sea. Unable to sleep at night, Deng Zixuan walked out of the cabin alone and came to the deck to sort out his thoughts. Thinking of Zuo Zongtang's western counterinsurgency, once Zuo Zongtang achieved brilliant results, it would inevitably cause a series of changes. Changes in the political landscape can affect both the imperial court and Western countries. In particular, did the booming economy of the Qing Dynasty arouse the coveting of Western countries? If this reasoning holds, it is possible that the French will move in advance.

Thinking of this, Deng Zixuan broke out in a cold sweat, and it seemed that he had to speed up his armaments to meet the surging changes. If you stick to the rules, you can make a big mistake. To know that the butterfly effect will have a chain reaction, this must be clearly recognized. At present, Deng Zixuan has been trained, and his political sense has become mature, and he keenly sees this.

There was an inflection point in the trajectory of history, and later changes confirmed Deng Zixuan's judgment.