late Qing Dynasty arrest

The person Li Hongzhang, governor of Zhili, dislikes the most is Zuo Zongtang. He is jealous that Zuo Zongtang has two long-sleeved and good-looking gods of wealth, "Hu Xueyan" and "Qiao Zhiyong". The old officials deposited all the private money and public accounts in the bank, and overnight the deposit figures on the bank's books doubled up, and learned from Li Guolou the amount of deposits in the bank When he broke through the 2000 million taels of silver, Li Hongzhang himself was taken aback. It turned out that his energy was greater than he thought, so he couldn't help laughing loudly.

Li Guolou glanced at him and said: "Master Zhongtang, this is nothing. If the imperial court is willing to let me issue national government bonds, given the current situation of our Qing Dynasty, there is no need to borrow money from foreigners. Why should wealth be given to foreigners? Borrowing from foreigners is very low, and there is no need to pay interest to foreign banks every half a year. One year, two years, or even three years, the principal and interest are paid off at one time, so that the court does not have to bear a heavy financial burden. Hundreds of millions of taels of silver can be used at one time, the interest is low, and private capital can be gathered into the hands of the state. The speed of industrial development can be more than three or four times faster, and you don’t need to tear down the east wall to make up for the west. "

Li Hongzhang looked at Li Guolou in turn, and said, "There will be such a good thing."

Li Guolou said with a chuckle: "Lord Zhongtang, it's just that the reputation is bad. Since then, the Qing Empire has become a big debtor. It is no longer owed to any bank, but to the people of the whole country. National strength, you can owe ten years of fiscal revenue without shaking the foundation of the country, that is to say, we can hold [-] million taels of silver in our hands and use it to develop the national economy. Even the interest is saved, which means that ordinary people all over the country, as well as cheated foreigners, lent [-] million taels of silver to the Qing Dynasty for free. People are scared to death, afraid that if you step down, the country will collapse, and this stall will be spread out, and this is the real rich person."

Li Hongzhang stared deeply at Li Guolou. The young people had strange ideas. They learned from the methods of Western countries and took on debts to develop the national economy. He wondered whether Li Guolou's words were feasible. Next year, if you can successfully complete the set goals, you can see people in rich cities. Please come to the bank. This opinion can be brought up for discussion. Unfortunately, the power of Prince Gong will become smaller and smaller, and our backstage power will become weaker. The difference is that Emperor Tongzhi was surrounded by those Qing sects, and he would be impulsive if he was not careful. We can't spread the stalls all at once. The emperor is too young, and a word is like a river of blood, understand,"

Li Guolou's startled back was covered with cold sweat, his ambition was to climb up with the power, if he got the "[-] million taels of silver" in his hand, the Emperor Tongzhi didn't know what kind of person he would become, he thought It will be a matter of time to establish a great cause like Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, and eventually become Xiang Yu and Napoleon. Fortunately, Li Hongzhang reminded him, otherwise he would be a sinner through the ages.

Li Guolou rolled over and knelt on the ground, and said, "Uncle, I won't bring up this matter again, I'll just go through the errands step by step. If you run too fast, you will fall harder. I know I made a mistake."

"Well..." Li Hongzhang squinted at Li Guolou who was kneeling on the ground. He was a smart person who saw the positive and negative endings of the development of the situation. Surrounded by Western powers like wolves and tigers, there are several countries that hope that the Qing Dynasty will become strong, there are only a handful of them, and the situation of keeping a low profile cannot be changed for the time being. The power of the Qing Dynasty, the foundation accumulated so hard by the Qing Dynasty, must not be destroyed in his hands.

"Xiaolou, don't be afraid of this. I have my own measure. I plan to make it smaller by then. First cut off Zuo Zongtang's left and right arms. Do you understand what I mean?" Li Hongzhang was suggested by Li Guolou I was moved, but I didn't want to make it too big. The Qing government can issue nearly 1 silver bonds to the people every year, so that Hu Xueyan's "Fukang Bank" and Qiao Zhiyong's "Dade Tong" and "Dade Heng" have no business It's easy to do, this trick will make Zuo Zongtang unable to eat and walk around. A noose directly strangles Zuo Zongtang's neck. Let's see who will send money to Zuo Zongtang in the future.

Li Guolou understood, blinked his smart eyes, and said with a smile: "This subordinate understands, Lord Zhongtang's idea is really high."

"Hey hey hey," Li Hongzhang stroked his beard and nodded, complacent about his idea of ​​being able to change Li Guolou's ideas. After June next year, his power will be even greater and no one can shake him.

"Well... Xiaolou, how do you feel dealing with the Prussians these days? What do you think of Liu Mingchuan?"

Liu Mingchuan was born at the foot of Daqian Mountain in Hefei, Anhui. It can be said that he is half of Li Hongzhang's hometown. He was originally a general of the Huai Clan and a capable officer under Li Hongzhang. The gang then started to rob houses, gathered hundreds of poor young men, and became armed leaders who built a village to protect themselves. Two years later, under the banner of "defending the well", they built a fortress on the west side of Daqian Mountain. In 18, a portion of the Taiping Army attacked Changcheng Town and Guanting in Hefei. Liu Mingchuan was ordered to lead his troops to "joint suppression" and repelled the Taiping Army. He was later captured by Anhui The governor Fuji commended him as a thousand generals, and rewarded him with five ranks,

In November 1861, Li Hongzhang recruited brave soldiers in Hefei to organize and train the Huai Army. Liu Mingchuan was recommended to organize a team called "Mingzi Battalion" and set off with him to make great contributions to the Qing Dynasty's eradication of the Tianping Heavenly Kingdom and the Eastern Nian. But the imperial court was afraid that Li Hongzhang would have too much power in the army. After eliminating Dong Nian, he dismissed Liu Mingchuan's official position because of his "poor health", and asked Liu Mingchuan to return to his hometown.

Liu Mingchuan returned to his hometown with the title of first-class baron. Unexpectedly, the "Mingjun" stationed in Shaanxi to suppress the rebellion and the West Nian suddenly mutinied and collapsed within a few days. Activities, seeking recovery, but was idled by the court, even Li Hongzhang's recommendation was useless,

Li Guolou was choked by Li Hongzhang again. When the Prussian asked him a question, it was okay for him to speak bluntly. Liu Mingchuan was a despicable villain who was put into another book by the Emperor Tongzhi and the Queen Mother of the Two Palaces. The person suspected of "rebellion", the court did not kill Liu Mingchuan, it was already giving Li Hongzhang a lot of face. He wanted to cut off his military power, and wanted to insert the forces of the Huai army into the new martial arts hall. Jiang was still old and spicy. Li Hongzhang had already seen through the small calculations in his heart. Li Hongzhang,

Li Guolou chose his words carefully, and after thinking it through, he said, "Master Zhongtang, don't you want to take over your class? Why don't you find a great god to suppress me? Once this person comes, will there be a way for me to survive? I've been busy for a long time, making wedding dresses for others."

Li Hongzhang glanced at him and said, "Xiaolou, it's still too early for you to take over. I'm not old yet, and it will be at least 20 years later. One generation will do the work of another generation. You can subdue those recruits, and those who come to further study As for the officers, who would listen to your fart, and if Liu Ming passed it on to you, who would dare to say a word loudly?"

Li Guolou said yes, don't worry about it, Li Hongzhang's words are clear, he can only take advantage of the situation and say: "Oh, it's because the officials are not careful, I will write a memorial to the emperor when I go back tonight, and recommend Liu Ming to send a new letter to the emperor. Wutang lectures, Mr. Zhongtang, I am afraid that it is not easy to get an official position. The imperial court has just reprimanded Liu Mingchuan, and even his title has been deprived. If I recommend him as a fifth-rank official, the emperor will still have opinions on me up,"

Li Hongzhang said with a strong heart: "Don't mention any official positions. Liu Mingchuan just wants to make some contributions to the country. The book office is suitable for him. Do you understand?"

"My subordinates understand," Li Guolou bowed and saluted. Next, he does not need to intervene in the matter of recommending Liu Mingchuan to be an official. Liu Mingchuan's great Buddha needs at least the official hat of a second-rank military officer, four years older than him. Grade, it's not his turn to recommend,

Li Guolou saw that Li Hongzhang did not bring tea to see off the guests, so he could only continue to say: "Master Zhongtang, the Prussians are serious in their work and do not accept bribes. They can be a role model among foreigners. As long as we are willing to spend our money, a strong Qing Dynasty is just around the corner. For military equipment, the lower officials believe that importing a batch and imitating a batch will not be controlled by others. The result of total westernization is that all the wealth of our country has fallen to the Prussians, so joint ventures are fundamental, and land can be lent out1 In 30, the option of the joint venture should be at least 100% in the Qing Dynasty. There is no such thing as forever, otherwise we will be sinners through the ages. Based on this basic framework and negotiating with the Prussian mission, we will not lose much. The first batch of [-] overseas All of them will be sent to the Prussian Empire. This year, at least [-] technicians will be sent to study. Our machine bureau will immediately make a qualitative leap. We can make ordinary guns by ourselves. Of course, they will have the most advanced weapons in Prussia. It is still possible to sell some of the reserved ones, such as Dreiser firing pin rifles and Krupp cannons, to us. Therefore, the embassy in Prussia has to be put on the agenda. We have built a high-end building of square meters for Prussia, and the Prussians will also give it to us in Berlin. The Qing Mission built a legation, and we can afford the expenses of the mission abroad. The Prime Minister’s Office should start training diplomats, and we cannot recruit foreigners to be the imperial envoys of our Qing Empire Mission. This is really... ··”

Li Guolou coughed a few times and didn't dare to continue. The old antique pretended to understand if he didn't understand, and made foreigners think that they could entrust the state affairs to foreigners. It made the Qing Dynasty lose face and made foreigners look down on the Qing Dynasty. , if he hadn't returned from abroad and took the revival of the Qing Empire as his mission, these old antiques would not know what the world is like,

Li Hongzhang was extremely dissatisfied and said: "Guolou, who can remember what he said so fast? Go back and write down the old notes, write them down one by one, and do things with specific targets. Don't just talk about what you think of."

Li Guolou went all out and was so angry that he couldn't bear it and said: "Zha, my subordinates will definitely write it down. It was my idea to invite the Prussians. I will definitely take this responsibility, but there is a responsibility at the center." Sir, you should carry it yourself. You can’t indulge them just because they have made countless military exploits and have a few scars on their bodies. Degenerate people are hemorrhoids. If you don’t eradicate hemorrhoids, a person will rot from the inside, and he will never be saved.”

Li Hongzhang asked suspiciously, "Li Guolou, what are you talking about?"

Li Guolou knelt down on one leg, bowed his head and said, "My subordinate accompanied the Prussians to visit the barracks, and I found signs of soldiers smoking opium. Others couldn't see it. I am a policeman. Who can hide it from me? Some officers Greeting each other with the rituals of the rivers and lakes, I am very familiar with the rules of the underworld, I know at a glance that they are members of the Gelaohui, Mr. Zhongtang, the Huai army elite soldiers with your hard work, fester at the same speed as the Eight Banners. If there is no war in a few years, this army will be finished. People who lie on their military merits do bad things, and they are more abominable than those veteran soldiers of the Eight Banners. It is still better to kill them, even if they kill half of them, or even start over."

Li Hongzhang grinned grimly and said, "Li Guolou, you are talking nonsense. Some of my Huai soldiers smoked opium."

Li Guolou smiled wryly and said: "Lord Zhongtang, you often walk by the river, so there is no one who does not get your shoes wet. You are such a smart person, you should understand this kind of truth. When you touch something, you will only hurt yourself in the end. I say it all. So, what to do, I won't say much, "

Li Hongzhang was extremely sad when he heard this, and he felt sad. The Huai Army was the foundation of his foothold, and his lifelong fame was based on this army, smuggling and raising soldiers. It was originally the iron law of the Qing army, but in the end, the army was so corrupted. Military discipline, the rate at which the Huai army degenerates is too fast, right?