Walking into the tea house, it is a lively scene again, although there is no most common troupe in the northern tavern teahouse, but it is still full of friends, and a piece of shocking wood in the center will say that the ancient and modern romance grievances and relatives and hatreds are three bitter hatreds, which makes Li Mo, who enjoys this life for the first time, very interesting.

After listening to the story for a while, Duan Fei saw that there were really many people in the lobby, so he asked Xiao Er to find a private seat, and after a few people arrived at the private seat for snacks and tea, Du Dazhuang, who had been nervous, could finally rest for a while, and even Duan Fei was a little relieved.

"Sit down, don't be so nervous, no one knows us here." Li Mo pointed to the pistol in Du Dazhuang's open placket, and signaled him to hide it, before he took a leisurely sip of tea and asked Duan Fei, "What do you think of here?" ”

"It's a good place." Duan Fei nodded, since he became in charge of the Intelligence Department, Duan Fei has slowly changed from a nighthawk to a person in power, the fierceness on his body has gradually become introverted, and his horizons have gradually relaxed a lot. Knowing that Li Mo would not be untargeted, he continued: "From the topography point of view, Taiwan is close to the South Seas and north to the Ryukyus, whether it is to enter and exit the South Seas, or Europe to the Qing Dynasty, it must pass through here. ”

"From the bottom up, it is also much better than the north, especially after Liu Ming came to Taiwan, he actively implemented the new policy, built Western-style schools, set up telegraph lines, set up the General Administration of Posts and Telecommunications, repaired railways, and also set up a machine bureau to make its own weapons, and this place has become one of the most westernized places in the Qing Dynasty." Duan Fei couldn't help but smile at the end: "The most important thing is that the territory here is big enough!" ”

"The territory is really big enough, if Oahu can be half the size of Taiwan, I don't have to worry so much." Duan Fei's last sentence not only made Li Mowan smile, but even Du Dazhuang's eyes lit up, secretly wondering if the young master had taken a fancy to this piece of land was big enough!

Li Mo nodded in his heart, and in just a few words, he could see that Duan Fei was indeed working hard. However, Taiwan is not without troubles; first of all, as the situation changes, Taiwan's officials change frequently, and it is difficult to achieve long-term and sustained governance. Moreover, although the territory is large enough and the population is average, the resources are not abundant, and there are almost nothing that can be seen except for wood and camphor.

Moreover, Taiwan is farther south than the Ryukyus, the climate is humid and hot, and the south is more miasma, and there are often outbreaks of plague and malaria.

Of course, more importantly, Taiwan is not a young master in charge, and you have to look at other people's faces at every step and every line here! It's like being your own mother-in-law, you can fiddle with it as much as you want! But if it's someone else's, you have to spend time hooking up first, and then spend the moon before and after, giving gifts and eating in a circle, and finally it depends on whether people agree or not, even if you get to the door, you must be careful not to be looked at by others, secretly told his old man, and rushed over with a big knife.

Even if they get rid of the local officials, they still have to look at the faces of foreigners in Taiwan, whether it is the British in Hong Kong, or the French in Vietnam, or even the Spaniards in Luzon, they are all staring at this place, if they do something here, I am afraid that those powers will have to drive their fleets to clean up themselves!

Although Liu Ming laid the foundation for Taiwan, his successor has been eating his old roots, and there has been no development in the past ten years, and in the eyes of some people in the Qing Dynasty, Taiwan is not only an island, but also an unimportant wild place, so there will be a paper Maguan Treaty, and such a good place will be ceded out!

"It's a pity, why can't this place belong to the young master openly?" Li Mo stretched his waist, relieved the fatigue of the boat, and was just about to speak, when suddenly a long sigh came from behind the screen, which caught his attention.

"Brother Yan, I heard that something happened in the capital? There are two people named Kang Youwei and Liang Qichao, who united hundreds of people to give Li Zhongtang a bus to read? ”

As soon as the voice next door fell, Li Mo suddenly made a silent gesture to everyone. "Books on the bus?" This term immediately made him dumbfounded, because this matter was very famous in the late Qing Dynasty. But that was after the defeat of the Qing Dynasty in the First Sino-Japanese War and the promulgation of the Treaty of Shimonoseki, Kang Youwei and Liang Qichao contacted the re-examination in Beijing, and jointly sent an excerpt to Li Hongzhang, asking the imperial court to refuse peace, move the capital, train troops, and change the law.

With the young master's movements, everyone quieted down, and even the tea bowl that had just been held was put back in place, and their ears were pricked up. Li Mo himself got up and quietly walked to the screen, waiting for the latter to speak.

Brother Yan's voice seemed to be a little hoarse, as if he was very tired, so he continued: "Kang Youwei heard that the imperial court does not want to fight anymore and is ready to give up Korea, and there is also news from the court, the emperor and the empress dowager Lafayette are ready to accept the British proposal, and promise to compensate Yueben 500,000 taels of silver for peace, and also said that as long as Yueben does not change the political situation in Korea, he can garrison troops for a long time to protect the overseas Chinese. ”

"What!"

Before Li Mo could shout, another man behind the screen had already slapped the table and said angrily: "It is said that the naval division has just been wiped out by the Pacific Army, and the Korean land war will definitely be unsustainable, and it is the best time to recover Korea and raise the prestige of the Qing Dynasty!" Why is the imperial court like this, and it also loses money to himself, does Li Zhongtang also look at it? ”

"It's not that Li Zhongtang doesn't want to care, but I heard that this matter is the decree of the Queen Mother Lafayette, because the last naval battle in Beiyang was defeated and several ships were damaged, so the emperor and Lafayette were very angry, if it weren't for a few big people's protection, maybe Li Zhongtang would have been suspended." Brother Yan continued: "Kang Youwei saw this, so he teamed up with Liang Qichao and hundreds of others to write to the imperial court to ask for a refusal to cease war and recover North Korea, and also asked to question Ding Ruchang, send people to have enough new ships, retrain Beiyang, and ask for the reform and reform of the law, and open up new learning!" ”

"This book is good, smack!"

The man who listened to Brother Yan's words should belong to a person with a bit of a spleen, and he slapped the table again, and said sadly: "Ten years in Beiyang, and there are two ironclad ships in Dingzhen to unify the army, but they can't defeat the little one, but in the end, it is still the little Hawaiian Pacific Sailor who has lost the army and sold the island for compensation, and now seeing that the one is powerless to fight again, and does not try to recover North Korea, he even has to lose money to make peace!" ”

"It's really insulting to the country!"

Brother Yan also sighed, and said in an envious tone: "This time I came to Fujian on business, and on the way, I heard that there are already people in Jiangsu and Zhejiang who are clamoring to learn from Hawaii, and in the name of overseas descendants, recall them to train the new army together and bless the Qing Dynasty." ”

"Bless the Qing Dynasty?" The corners of Li Mo's mouth beside the screen crooked, this proposal is not bad, I don't know if the Queen Mother Lafayette will rest assured that he will go back. Before he could finish thinking about it, he heard the man laugh and say, "Jointly bless the Qing Dynasty?!" Hehe, it's really ridiculous, Young Master Li is staying well in Hawaii, how can he go to stir up this troubled water, even if he is willing, I am afraid that those ministers will not be at ease. ”

"yes." After Brother Yan agreed, he continued with envy: "But to be honest, I really want to meet that Young Master Li, and I want to hear how he managed to establish a sailor larger than Beiyang in a few years, could it be that there is really any big treasure on that small Hawaiian island that has been discovered by him?" I've calculated that his warships together will cost at least 100 million taels of silver!

And what makes me wonder the most is how he calculated that he would have fought with my Beiyang sailor on the Yellow Sea that day, and then set up a formation when they went home and waited for them to drill in. ”

"One hundred million taels!" The man took a breath of cold air, thought of the next words, and asked repeatedly: "No, didn't you say that I hit one of his clippers first?" ”

"Hehe, Brother Qiu doesn't know, now that I am in charge of the Tianjin Water Master School, I naturally know a little more than others." Brother Yan smiled: "Not long ago, Lin Tai came to Tianjin on business, but he told me some inside information. ”

Without waiting for another man to speak, Li Mo, who had been hiding behind the screen, suddenly had a sudden heartbeat. "Tianjin Water Master School? Surname Yan? Could it be him? How did he come to Taiwan? If it was really him, then who was the friend surnamed Qiu who talked to him? ”

The two who were talking about the two people behind the screen didn't know that they had been paid attention to, so they only heard Brother Yan clear his throat and lower his voice before saying: "Brother Qiu doesn't know, when the naval battle, although the five ships of Beiyang were sunk, but the two ironclad ships in Dingzhen were also helpless, and finally they had no choice but to withdraw, at that time it was Lord Ding who was injured, and when Lin Tai took over the command, it was already dark, and he was afraid that the ship would come to attack again, so he sent a boat to quietly chase it.

But at that time, it was getting dark, and I didn't dare to chase far, so I heard a loud rumbling sound in the sky, but unfortunately the tracking boat was afraid of being ambushed and didn't take a closer look, but afterwards it was reported that the sailor had not returned, and the port of Sasebo was bombarded. And on the night when Beiyang returned to Lushunkou, that Young Master Li had already arranged people, and sent an ironclad battleship to pick up his father-in-law Fang Boqian, along with all the officers and soldiers and family members on the Jiyuan. ”

"Shhh Such a coincidence? Could it be that he really went down to earth and guessed when a naval battle would break out? ”

"How can there be any mortal in this world, I have been in England for so many years, and I have never seen the Virgin and Son of the Virgin and the Son advertised by foreigners all the time." Brother Yan said this jokingly, and his voice changed suddenly: "I think that this Young Master Li may have already calculated himself, so his sailor has been lying in ambush nearby, and only after the war between me and me in Beiyang will he show the last thunderous blow." ”

"Oh? Then why did he help us fight in the Qing Dynasty? Could it be that he and Yu himself can have an enmity? ”

"I don't know." Brother Yan shook his head and paused for a moment before finally saying, "But I think since this Young Master Li did it on purpose, and he took advantage of the defeat in Beiyang to make a move, I'm afraid." ”

"There's nothing to be afraid of, in fact, his mind is very simple, only six words." Without waiting for Brother Yan to finish speaking, Li Mo bypassed the screen one step earlier, and said as he walked: "Give me back the Chinese sea power!" ”

Seeing that the young master was alone, he walked around to the screen, and Du Dazhuang, who was afraid of danger, hurriedly rushed over with people, only to see two middle-aged men sitting behind the screen, one of whom also had eyes, looking like a teacher.

"Who is it?"

In the compartment, the two of them chatted about their surnames, and suddenly saw a young man in a dress walk in, and just wanted to ask, he saw Du Dazhuang with a few tiger-backed entourages also coming in, and he was a little nervous, but fortunately, the young man immediately waved his hand and let people retreat first, leaving only him and another young man with cold eyes, which dispelled their nervousness.

Seeing that although Li Mo was young, he had an extraordinary spirit, and there was a faint demeanor on his body, so the man with glasses arched his hand and said, "I don't know who Your Excellency is?" ”

"The two gentlemen don't have to be nervous, I happened to hear the gentleman next door just now, and I blurted out to interrupt when I realized something, and I hope the two of you are not strange." Li Mo smiled slightly, and sat down first regardless of whether people agreed or not.

The slightly fat man saw that Li Mo was sitting by himself without asking, and his face was slightly stunned, but the companion next to him, who seemed to be a teacher, stared twice, and suddenly asked, "This little gentleman, but he just came back from overseas?" As soon as these words came out, he suddenly discovered that not only did Li Mo have no braids, but even the entourage who walked in just now had small hats on their heads and did not tie braids.

If this is in Nanyang, it won't attract too much attention if you don't wear braids, but this is Taiwan, the territory of the Qing Dynasty, and such a large group of Chinese dressed in Western clothes without braids are very eye-catching when they go in and out of the tea house and wander the streets, so the two can't help but secretly guess their origins.

Li Mo couldn't help but admire the other party's observation, and he could actually deduce that he was from overseas from his hair at a glance, and suddenly smiled slightly: "Mr. is right, Zai Xia has indeed just come back from overseas." ”

Seeing that Li Mo did not hide it, the two of them also let go of their thoughts and sat down again. Duan Fei immediately asked Xiao Er to change the tea set for the three of them before standing behind Li Mo again.

The new tea is fragrant, and there are Du Dazhuang and others standing guard outside, and some people who want to pass by are also driven away, but they are not afraid of others hearing the conversation here, so after Li Mo took a sip of tea, the corners of his mouth suddenly twitched: "I just heard that Mr. is on an errand in Tianjin Sailor School, surnamed Yan, I don't know if it is Lord Yan Fuyan?" ”

As soon as Li Mo finished speaking, the teaching gentleman's body shook suddenly, and even the eyes behind the glasses lit up slightly, and he said in surprise: "How did the little gentleman know about it?" ”

Sure enough, it's this big bull!

Yan Fu, a famous educator in the late Qing Dynasty, of course, could have been a famous naval scientist, because this guy was studying in the UK with Liu Buyun, Lin Taizeng, and Fang Boqian, and was a high-achieving student who graduated from the Greenwich Naval Academy in the United Kingdom.

Although he is not as famous as Lin Taizeng and other first-line Beiyang generals, he has translated many world classics, especially when translating the book "Theory of Heavenly Evolution", he admires the views in the book, and expounds his views on saving the country and the survival of the fittest with the biological evolution theory of natural selection and survival of the fittest. He was the most famous educator and literati of the late Qing Dynasty.

Could it be that the young master has really become attached to the literati in this life? I actually met this in Taiwan!

At the same time of ecstasy, Li Mo also hurriedly said: "Don't hide it, sir, I have an elder who happens to be serving in Beiyang, and he has great respect for you, sir, and thinks that after Mr. returns from abroad, he does not seek fame, but devotes himself to teaching, and silently cultivates naval talents for the Qing Dynasty, which is really admirable." ”

Young Master Li was full of compliments, which made Yan Fu a little embarrassed, and besides, he didn't want to gain fame, but in the face of the rigid Baguwen, he had to continue to serve as a teacher and learned several times, and hurriedly waved his hand: "Mr. Xiao has won the award, I don't know what position your elders have in Beiyang?" ”

The man next to him was also a little curious, remembering what Li Mo said when he entered the door just now, and asked, "In Xiaqiu Fengjia, Chiayi Xinxue is taught." I don't know what Mr. Xiao just said that the Hawaiian Young Master Li "returned my Chinese sea power" means? ”

Qiu Fengjia!

Behind the screen just now, Li Mo had been thinking about which celebrity surnamed Qiu was in the Qing Dynasty, but unfortunately he really didn't know much about the end of the Qing Dynasty, except for a few who often dangled in his ears in later generations, even the current eight governors couldn't tell him to break his fingers.

In fact, he is not familiar with the name Qiu Fengjia, but in his previous life, when he read the materials introducing Taiwan's history, he saw two sentences, saying that he was a famous scholar in Taiwan and a jinshi, but he had no intention of returning to Taiwan as an official and became a teacher. During the First Sino-Japanese Period, he led the commander of the Volunteer Army, and resisted the invasion of Taiwan with Liu Yongfu and other patriotic generals, and was a patriotic literati.

I didn't expect to be able to sit and drink tea with these two at the same time one day, Li Mo couldn't help but wonder if he was dreaming, and replied: "Mr. Yan said just now that Young Master Li waved the army in the Ryukyus and broke the book, but he actually had other thoughts?" I think Mr. is a little too careful, if the Pacific Army really has bad intentions towards the Qing Dynasty, I'm afraid that Beiyang will not be able to retreat that day! ”

Yan Fu nodded, as the chief instructor of the Beiyang Naval Division, and studied in the United Kingdom, he could clearly know the total size and combat effectiveness of the fleet from the information he obtained later. So what the young man in front of him said was not bad at all, if that young master really had a mind, I am afraid that after the battle that day, Beiyang, which lost five warships and the rest of the ships were damaged, would also be wiped out like himself!

But what does he mean by "return my Chinese sea power"? Yan Fu couldn't help but look at Li Mo again.

Before he could speak, he suddenly saw the latter nodding to the grim-faced man behind him. I saw that the man immediately walked to the door, and after a few words of instructions to the nearest attendant, he returned behind him, looked at the young man and nodded.

Li Mo put down the teacup at this time, his eyes swept over the faces of Yan Fu and Qiu Fengjia, and suddenly the corners of his mouth hooked.

"Don't hide it from the two gentlemen, my name is Li Mo!"

(To be continued)