Tianjin, Jingang Bridge. A European-style carriage, escorted by a troop of cavalry, arrived at the center of Beiyang, the Zhili Governor's Mansion in Tianjin. Outside the door, Yang Shixiang and Zhang Peilun, two Beiyang dignitaries, had been waiting at the door for nearly an hour. And when Xu Jie got down from the carriage, the two dignitaries immediately greeted him.

"Jishi is really a genius. In the battle of Datong Jiangkou, our Beiyang Naval Division won a complete victory, and I am afraid that this Qing-Japanese war will end with the victory of my Qing Dynasty, right? Zhang Peilun said with a smile.

"I'm afraid it's too early to say this. If you have something to say, let's go into the house and say. Xu Jie smiled and said.

Zhili Governor's Palace, Li Hongzhang's study. Li Hongzhang, Xu Jie, Zhang Peilun and Yang Shixiang pointed at a huge sand table. This sand table is quite meticulously done, including the northeast of Korea and China, Japan, and the surrounding seas, so it can be said that this battlefield and the area that may become a battlefield are included.

"Jishi, how long will it take for my new Beiyang ship to resume sailing?" Li Hongzhang asked.

"The hull structure was not damaged much, but under the concentrated fire of the Japanese ship's rapid-fire guns and picric acid shells, the bridge was still very damaged, and it may take about 2 weeks to completely repair it." Xu Jie thought for a while and said. In fact, if there are enough workers and equipment, it will not be used even for a week, but the scale of the Beiyang Fleet far exceeds the repair capacity of Lushun and Weihai, and all warships must be repaired in line!

"After the fleet is repaired, will our Beiyang Fleet be able to completely cut off the supply lines of the Japanese Army?" Zhang Peilun asked.

"If there is no external force to intervene, the minefields in the Korean Strait will be cleared under the cover of some warships during the repair period, and when the warships are repaired, there will naturally be no problems." Xu Jie nodded.

"But the problem is that this external force must intervene." Zhang Peilun said with a bitter face.

"What do you mean by that?" Although Xu Jie has been quite involved in Russia's interference, he didn't expect Zhang Peilun, who knows nothing about military affairs, to realize this.

"The Russian envoy has already begun to put pressure on our Qing Dynasty. I want the Qing Dynasty to withdraw from Korea. Zhang Peilun said with a bitter face.

"If Russia intervenes. What should I do with Beiyang? Li Hongzhang asked.

"Hit! It's a big deal to knock out the Russian cruiser fleet again. Xu Jie sneered.

"Which Russian general named Makanov got to the ground? Is the fleet really as strong as the Russians say it is? "Yang Shixiang knows more about the army, but the navy is really a smear.

"Makanov is indeed the best officer in the Russian Navy. But this time, he couldn't win. Xu Jie said and scooped out a document and handed it to Li Hongzhang: "The art of war is cloudy, and the general who travels a hundred miles." Makanov's fleet crossed more than half the world to fight, lacking supplies and training along the way, and both warships and soldiers had reached their limits. And judging by the composition of the fleet, those two protective cruisers are inferior to the Japanese fleet, and the 3 cruisers of the Sea of Azov type are only of the average level. Far inferior to the Garibaldi class, the Rurik is quite powerful, but it is estimated to be at most a grade of PISA. Whether in terms of supply or combat power, the Beiyang Fast Fleet is not afraid to engage it. Xu Jie said confidently.

"What about the Army? If Russia joins forces with the Japanese army to attack our Qing Dynasty from the land, will our Qing Army be able to fight a war? Li Hongzhang asked with a sigh of relief.

"The Russian Army simply can't move. Not to mention that the Russians did not have much preparation for this Qing-Japanese war at all, and the long transportation lines alone were enough to limit the movement of Russian troops in the Far East. What's more, a considerable part of Japan's equipment was purchased from Russia, and now, I'm afraid that Russia's armaments in the Far East are no longer enough to support him in a battle, right? Xu Jie made it clear in a few words the current situation of the Russian Army's foreign strength and middle cadres. …,

"So all we have to deal with is the Russian fleet and the Japanese army?" Yang Shixiang asked.

"And the imperial court." Zhang Peilun spit out 4 words, which surprised Yang Shixiang.

"Could it be that there is a change in the center?" Xu Jie frowned.

"I'm afraid the Queen Mother is already planning to make peace with the Japanese, and the center is very dissatisfied with Lord Zhongtang's private ship. Even the household department has already released a word, and the expenses that have not been reported to the imperial court in Beiyang may not be allocated. Zhang Peilun said sadly. Beiyang can't win, it's guilty, it's okay, it's guilty. Is there still a reason for the existence of this imperial court?

"What do you think?" Xu Jie did not express his opinion. Instead, we must first listen to the views of Li Hongzhang, the leader in charge of Beiyang.

"Those central Mr. Morality are truly hateful. Since some people say that our Beiyang army is self-respecting, the land division is afraid of the enemy. Then give way to a military general who can fight well. Our Beiyang Army will defend the one-third of an acre of land in Liaodong, and the northeast will depend on Ronglu's training and the Eight Banners outside the Guanwai. But the money is really hard to come by. If the center does not pay for the military, these few warships alone can bankrupt Beiyang. Li Hongzhang Tieqing's face showed a trace of sorrow.

"This money is indeed a big problem, and the center has borrowed no less than 20 million taels of silver from foreign countries. Even if there is no such thing as Master Weng. I'm afraid that the center can't scoop up more money. Zhang Peilun said helplessly.

"Actually, this war fee can completely let the Japanese pay! As long as you win the war, you will beat Japan to a dead end, and you are not afraid that the Japanese will not be convinced! The great powers can ask for reparations when they beat me in the Qing Dynasty, why don't I pay reparations if the Qing Dynasty wins? Xu Jie's face turned a little hideous when he said this.

"I'm afraid that's not enough." Li Hongzhang's answer was very simple.

"Then it can only be said from the open source, what the court has is money, as long as it can move the iron crops of the banner people. There's a lot of money, but it's not something that can be counted. I wonder if Lord Nakado still remembers the proposal to expand the scale of private development and establishment of factories? Swap money for permission. This can also have a sum of money, and many wealthy businessmen in the mainland are already very jealous of the factory owners under the rule of Beiyang and the Chinese businessmen in Nanyang! And when I was playing long hair. The provinces can raise their own military expenses, and if I Beiyang can scoop up the financial power, ....... Xu Jie said with a smile.

"Hmm. This is a really good solution, and the license can solve the urgent need. Once a factory is opened, it is possible to open up a wide range of tax sources. It's just that I'm afraid that the imperial court will not let go of its power over finance and taxation. Li Hongzhang's eyes lit up.

"Naturally, I won't let go now, but if Shengjing is in crisis, can the imperial court not let go? If Rong Lu and the Eight Banners fail to form an army, they will face the Japanese army that may knock at any time. Can the imperial court not agree? Xu Jie asked rhetorically.

"The Japanese Navy has been completely wiped out, the lines of communication are already in jeopardy, and the army still has such strength? You have to ....... Li Hongzhang's face changed, and a cold light shot out of his eyes.

"The Beiyang Fast Fleet has to deal with the Russian fleet at all times, and the Beiyang Fleet can barely deal with the Russian fleet only when it gathers together, and after the Battle of the Datong River, most of the warships in the Beiyang need to be repaired, and there are not enough warships at all. The breaking of diplomatic relations is about the multi-headed attack of the small fleet, but this is scattered. It is easy to be eaten by the Russians in one bite, so it can only be organized into two large fleets, so that the sea area that can be controlled becomes smaller. It is impossible to lock it up completely, and the Russians can send supplies to Japan by land or along the shallow waters of the seaside, so the Japanese army really can't cut off this supply for a while! Xu Jie hurriedly explained.

"In other words, the Beiyang Fleet is still underwhelmed? Is there any good way to deal with the Russian fleet? Li Hongzhang was quite satisfied with Xu Jie's explanation, but this Russian fleet was really hateful. If you don't beat it, I don't feel at ease. …,

"The Russians will never fight a decisive battle easily. It is more likely that they will go around in circles with our Beiyang Fleet in the Yellow Sea, the East China Sea, and the Sea of Japan, waiting for an opportunity to take advantage of it. If we were to chase the Russian fleet, it would be extremely inefficient. In the vast sea, who knows where the other party is? Xu Jie is also very worried about this, it has always been difficult to catch attack ships, and this is still in the era when there is no unlimited electricity!

"So there's no way?" There was some disappointment in Li Hongzhang's tone.

"There is a way. However, the results may be a little slower. No matter how strong the cruising warships are, they also need to be replenished, and we only need to fight all the ports in Japan that can provide supplies and maintenance for large warships, and even if we don't fight, the Russian fleet will be finished! Xu Jie said unhurriedly. The war is about supplies, and the supplies are gone, and they are still playing with hair.

"Wouldn't that take a long time? Japan as an island nation. There are just too many ports. Yang Shixiang's face sank suddenly.

"Just because there are more ports doesn't mean there are more places to supply large warships. Are the hydrological conditions of the port met, are the port facilities functional, and are there any ammunition and equipment needed for warships in the port? These are all problems, so on the whole, there are only a handful of places where Japan can supply the Russian fleet! Xu Jie said disappreciatively.

"What about the Army? What does Jishi think is the combat power of the Japanese Army? If once you enter the training army of Ronglu in the northeast of our country and the eight banners in the northeast, can it be supported? Zhang Peilun asked.

"The training army still has some combat effectiveness, and in terms of equipment, it is not weaker than the Japanese army except for heavy artillery. The soldiers had also fought in the northwest, but they had fought with some horse bandits. Which Rong Lu is known as a soldier. But tactical thinking is too backward. The Northeast Eight Banners can't be counted on, and it would be good if it didn't collapse at the first touch. Xu Jie's words were full of contempt for Rong Lu.

"That is to say, it is up to us Beiyang to fight in the end. We won't have a long time to correct? Li Hongzhang raised his eyebrows.

"Basically, there is no correction time, once the Japanese army breaks through the Yayu River. It is expected that the troops will be divided into two routes, one will attack in the direction of Shengjing, and the other will go south into the Liaodong Peninsula to attack our Lushun base, after all, the Beiyang Fleet is a big problem for the Japanese army, and it is necessary to get rid of it as soon as possible. Xu Jie's words made Lao Li even more optimistic, and it was easy to win the naval battle, but he didn't expect this land battle to be so troublesome!

"So can the Japanese Army's logistical supplies keep up? If the Japanese army attacked with all its might, it would be nearly 200,000 troops. Yang Shixiang didn't believe it, tens of thousands of troops in Beiyang were fighting in Korea, and they were tired enough to choke on logistics, even if the Japanese had supplies, it was a question of whether they could be transported to the front line.

"The Japanese army is supported by the whole country, while our Beiyang is fighting with the power of a feudal domain, and the gap is naturally very huge, not to mention that more than 20 years after the Meiji Restoration, Japan's national strength has been growing rapidly. Japan, which is only equivalent to the province of the Qing Dynasty, has almost the same fiscal revenue as the Qing Dynasty. Folk education and industry are even stronger than our Qing Dynasty. In this war, the whole of Japan has made concerted efforts, and the combat power that has erupted naturally cannot be measured by the standards of our Beiyang. What's more, wherever the Japanese army went, they grabbed it. Coupled with the captured supplies, Japan will not collapse for a while because of supplies. Xu Jie said helplessly.

"However, although there are many Japanese troops, if the troops are divided, there will be little threat to our Liaodong defense. With the arrival of new troops in Liangguang and Taiwan, plus the Nie Shicheng troops who were about to withdraw from Korea. At that time, our army will have no less than 50,000 capable soldiers, relying on fortifications and heavy artillery support, which will be enough to hold it. When the Japanese army is tired. Our army will counterattack again! Xu Jie was not nervous about this, in the face of concrete fortifications and machine gun heavy artillery firepower, the Japanese army had no advantage in either pig assault or artillery battle, coupled with naval superiority, it was basically impossible to capture Lushun. …,

"Then I'm relieved. Let Nie Shicheng and Peng Yi deal with the things on the battlefield, let's talk about how to handle the affairs of the imperial court. After explaining the military affairs, Li Hongzhang's hanging heart finally let go of half of it, but above the court, there was still a war that was no less than the confrontation between the two armies on the front line!

"It's not very peaceful in the center right now. The queen mother wanted to make peace, the emperor wanted to fight, and Weng Tongyi and a clear stream attacked the Beiyang Navy Division without declaration. accusing the Beiyang Army Division of being quite consumed and having made no achievements. It's hard. Zhang Peilun sighed.

"Since the center is so unreasonable, then why should I be unreasonable?" Xu Jie sneered. "I'm naturally going to fight in Beiyang. Not only will they continue to fight, but they will also receive most of the Japanese reparations. Otherwise, I Beiyang will not be able to afford military spending alone. Whoever agrees with my Beiyang conditions, who we support. ”

"And then? What to do with Qingliu? Li Hongzhang said expressionlessly.

This public opinion is not something that his Qingliu family can control, there are many people in the world. There are also more people who have seen my Beiyang achievements, not to mention, if the emperor agrees with my Beiyang opinion, Weng Tongyi will not dare to say anything. Xu Jie said disapprerovingly, since he can't win Qingliu in the court, then put the battlefield of public opinion warfare to the whole country. Just be willing to spend money. Black can be said to be white, not to mention that Beiyang is reasonable.

"Release Master Weng's household department to deduct my Beiyang military salary and Qingliu's indiscriminate and wanton slander. Look at what these moral gentlemen are capable of. Xu Jie said.

"Then the Queen Mother can't ignore it, right?" Li Hongzhang was quite satisfied with Xu Jie's disposition, but he offended Cixi, the real power faction, and he was afraid that after this battle, without the coat of the Hou Party, Beiyang would not be easy to mix.

"The Queen Mother wants to celebrate her birthday, and we Beiyang naturally want to give a big gift, but the premise is that someone needs to pay for my Beiyang's military expenses. My Beiyang credit needs to be reported, and these two points are missing. Needless to say, we can't say that I, the rivers and mountains that surrounded the Qing Dynasty in Beiyang, will be torn apart, right? Moreover, Lord Zhongtang holds the Second Division of Beiyang Water and Land. It is the strongest army in Zhili, and the Queen Mother can still see the situation clearly. ”

The meaning of Xu Jie's words is very clear, it is okay for Cixi to have a good relationship, but it cannot be at the cost of Beiyang's net worth and life, even if Li Hongzhang can swallow this breath, the senior generals of the Second Beiyang Marine Division, as well as Liu Mingchuan and others, may not be able to swallow this breath, and the businessmen and Nanyang Chinese businessmen who help Beiyang will not agree. If you pay and are calculated and slandered, then Beiyang can only return blood with tooth for tooth!

"Lord Zhongtang, you are not just the Beiyang family on your shoulders now. Lord Liu in Taiwan, Lord Li in Liangguang, and those people of the Qing Dynasty who paid their money and even their lives for this war are all looking at you. Not to mention ....... Looking at Li Hongzhang with a hint of hesitation, Xu Jie continued.

"What's more?" Li Hongzhang asked.

"What's more, I Beiyang is worthy of the Queen Mother, and even more worthy of Sheji. This Daqing is not the Daqing of his love for Xinjueluo's family, and he can't say that he will sell it! Zhang Peilun said angrily.

"Youqiao, do you think so too?" Li Hongzhang said coldly. "That's it, in the future, Beiyang will also be in charge of you descendants. Even if you fight for your life, you have to leave a foundation for those who follow the old man and help the old man. Immediately, Li Hongzhang was relieved again, Li Hongzhang could be regarded as doing his best to the Queen Mother and the center, but even if Lao Li was loyal, he couldn't control the things behind him. Up to now, Beiyang's dissatisfaction with the imperial court has reached a limit, if you don't "remind" the imperial court, as soon as he Li Hongzhang dies, Beiyang, the world's strongest domain, can hardly guarantee to do something earth-shattering! …,

"Then it's up to you, this time the old man is going to the Forbidden City to see what kind of hearts those little people have when they go to the ground!" Li Hongzhang said with great determination.

"In addition, the students have one more thing to ask for." Xu Jie said suddenly.

"What's the matter? As long as the old man can do it, he will definitely do it. Li Hongzhang looked at his proud protégé and had mixed feelings, without him, there would be no Beiyang today.

"Can you ask the imperial court to allocate a batch of military horses for my Beiyang? Although I Beiyang is good at suffering, I am good at fighting positional warfare. But there were not enough mobile combat horses. Once something happens, it will be quite passive, even if it is to prepare for a counterattack in the future, this cavalry is absolutely indispensable. In addition, if it goes well this time, in addition to allowing the private sector to set up factories, it is also hoped that new-style schools, railways, telegraphs, postal services, and banks can be promoted. Hope that Lord Zhongtang will think twice. After speaking, Xu Jie bowed down.

"Jishi, my old man underestimates you, what you want is unimaginable." Li Hongzhang looked at his proud disciple with deep meaning. "However, for the sake of you for the sake of the country and the people, the old man will help you with this. Jishi, the old man has been doing foreign affairs for more than 30 years, and only now did he realize that he was just a pastemaker, which looked very gorgeous, but in fact it was a papier-mâché, and it fell down when he pushed it. I hope you can truly become a strong country. ”

"When will Lord Zhongtang plan to enter Beijing?" Zhang Peilun asked.

"Don't worry, let's make a noise first!" Li Hongzhang sneered.

Update the big chapter of 5,000 words today. Don't say anything, let's help, it's time for a land battle soon~~~. Your support is my biggest motivation. )