Chapter 79 Enemies are enemies, business is business
Chapter 79 Enemies are enemies, business is business
Watching Shanghai getting closer and closer, Shao Quanzhong stood at the bow with his hands behind his back, with two beauties, Rong Hui and Wen Xiu, standing behind him. He looked very impressive, but he was actually quite nervous.
It would be fine if Ronghui went back with me to see Rong Hong, but Wenxiu insisted on coming along as well. Isn't this just squeezing me?
Wenxiu's reasons were quite justified.
The trial production of the Hale rocket has begun. The samples were hand-made and tested without any problems.
But if they rely entirely on hand-forging by blacksmiths like in Guangxi, they can only produce a maximum of 300 pieces a month.
This speed was not slow at first, but Shao Quanzhong wanted a lot more, so the first batch of 20,000 would take more than five years to produce, and the food would be cold by the time it was ready.
Originally they were planning to expand the scope and hire more blacksmiths, but Wenxiu heard from old man Ding Gongchen that foreigners had professional machine tools, and if they were used, production efficiency could be increased by more than ten times.
Wenxiu was immediately interested and this time came to discuss with Yung Wing, asking him to purchase machine tools and matching steam power equipment on her behalf.
Although machine tools are expensive, in addition to the Hale rocket, other military products can also be processed in the future. The Wen Arsenal can quickly rise from a small workshop to a world-class second-rate level.
Besides, if Mr. Ding wants to imitate the steam engine, he also needs to purchase samples.
Wenxiu had good reasons to follow.
However, he married Yung Wing's daughter without his consent, so he felt embarrassed to meet him.
If Yung Wing knew that I had married two women at once, would he be so angry that he would duel with me?
If my father-in-law gets angry and beats me, I will just take it for nothing and won't even dare to fight back.
When the ship arrived at the Huangpu River wharf, Shao Quanzhong did not dare to visit the Rong family's small villa, but went directly to the Po Shun Trading Company.
Your father-in-law is at work at this time, so you have to consider your identity as a manager. You can't beat up your son-in-law in the company, right?
Unexpectedly, Shao Quanzhong's worries were in vain. Trembling, he led his two daughters-in-law to meet his father-in-law, who happily welcomed them into the manager's office.
Not only did he not get angry at Rong Hui for becoming Shao Quanzhong's wife without going through him.
Even when he heard Wenxiu introduce herself as the wife of Rong Hui, who was twice as old as him, Yung Wing acted as if he didn't hear anything.
Shao Quanzhong had no idea that it was his father-in-law who instructed Rong Hui to come and take him away.
No matter how smart Shao Quanzhong was, he could not guess the thoughts of Yung Wing and his daughter. Although Yung Wing was an American citizen, he would never marry his daughter to a foreigner like Yang Fang did.
Which official of our Qing Dynasty could be without wives and concubines?
Rong Hui was very satisfied that she could find a man like Shao Quanzhong who was so thoughtful and didn't want to be his concubine. Otherwise, she would definitely not be able to get married, so what was the point of having a bicycle?
The thing he was most worried about did not happen, and Shao Quanzhong felt relieved. The rest of the business was much easier to handle, since they were all his own people.
First, he paid back the thirty thousand silver coins he owed. Then Shao Quanzhong bought three hundred new guns, which were in stock.
At present, the two battalions of the Huai Army have a total of more than 1,300 people, but only 1,100 guns.
Shao Quanzhong planned to equip the logistics soldiers with guns so that they could go into battle at critical moments.
Buy another 300 rifles, one for each man, and there will be room for replacements in case of damage. This will be enough for the time being before the army is expanded.
Then came the big deal. Shao Quanzhong ordered six artillery companies' artillery pieces from the Foreign Trade Company at one time.
包括十二磅过山炮18门、二十四磅榴弹炮3门、三十二磅榴弹炮4门、八英寸口径重炮2门、臼炮12门。
Enough to form four heavy artillery siege companies and two field artillery companies.
Cannons are different from quick-firing guns. They need to be produced on the spot. Once the news of them reached Britain, it would be very difficult to transport them thousands of miles from Britain. If they were to be bought when needed, it would be too late.
Even though it’s expensive, you should buy almost all of them at once.
Including five base numbers of artillery shells, one hundred thousand taels of silver were spent in one go. If it were twenty or thirty million in modern times, Shao Quanzhong would not even blink an eye.
When it comes to buying weapons, every warlord is willing to spend.
Shao Quanzhong also said that within two years, the Huai Army might need more than 5,000 quick-firing rifles to expand its army. Yung Wing promised that the company could definitely supply them, so he asked the head office to prepare the stock.
My goodness, the cost is just a few taels of silver. If it is sold for a hundred taels, the British can afford so many goods.
The amount of money Wenxiu negotiated with Yung Wing was also not small. Shao Quanzhong's subordinate enterprises actually started to buy machine tools, and Yung Wing was very excited.
Although it is still a long way from an industrial system, it is a great start, isn’t it?
Yung Wing's original grudge against Wen Xiu disappeared completely when he received the order for machine tools, steam engines and steam-powered equipment from Wen Xiu.
China's local gentry consortium is about to take the first step towards industrialization, and is willing to spend money. If you, Shao Quanzhong, marry ten or eight wives like this, I will fully support you.
If any big shot's wife can promise to build an industrial system, I will make Ronghui give her the main wife!
Yung Wing was an expert in machine tools, and he spent much more time discussing various machine tools with Wen Xiu than he did buying arms with Shao Quanzhong.
In the end, Wenxiu paid 68,000 taels of silver and ordered more than 100 machine tools.
Yung Wing decided to take a leave of absence from the company and return to the United States in person to bargain for the purchase with the Putnam Machine Company in New York, with which he was already familiar.
The 68,000 taels used up all the funds raised by the Wen family and the money they had recently earned from taking on the logistics of the Huai Army, and also embezzled 10,000 taels from the 50,000 taels order for Hale rockets.
Yung Wing was shocked by Wen Xiu's courage. He did not ask for a penny of commission fee and even paid for his own round-trip tickets to the United States, which was considered a complete contribution to the country.
Yung Wing finally found the direction of his life. When he sent Shao Quanzhong and the other two out, his eyes were bright, as if he was twenty years younger.
"Brother Shao, we have finished our work. Shall we go back?"
"No, it's not finished yet. I still need to find a foreign artillery instructor."
"Then we have to wait until the guns are bought back? I'm afraid it will take a year or so. Is it necessary to hire a foreign instructor now?"
Shao Quanzhong laughed and said, "I have high standards, I hire the best.
There is no one I like among the foreigners in Shanghai now—well, Gordon is okay, but it’s a pity that he can’t vote for me.”
"If there is no Shanghai Beach, where can I find it?"
"Come on, follow me to see Henry Wall."
"Ah? Really? We are mortal enemies with the foreign rifle team. Will they agree to your asking Wall for help?"
"You don't understand. Enemies are enemies, and business is business. As long as it's profitable, Wall can do anything."
"Aren't you afraid that he might ask for too much?"
“No, I’m not afraid of paying more money, I’m just afraid that he won’t be able to find the person I want.
The person I want is in the United States, and only Wall can find him at the moment."
"My dad is going to America soon, can't he help me find it?"
"My father-in-law doesn't have the connections that the Wall Brothers have in the US military. People will trust the Wall Brothers, but they won't trust an Oriental. It doesn't matter if you change your nationality.
We are born Chinese. If you really want to be a second-rate foreigner, foreigners will look down on you. It is better to be a first-rate Chinese."
As the three were talking, they suddenly heard a sinister voice behind them, "Isn't this Butcher Shao?
Having offended the foreign riflemen, he still dares to walk around the streets of Shanghai. It seems that he is tired of living. "
Zhang Siwen was the first to draw his gun. Ten of his personal soldiers held ten revolvers in their hands at the same time, with bullets loaded.
Shao Quanzhong did not panic. He turned around calmly and put his hand on his command knife.
Behind him was Yang Fang, the alternate governor of Shanghai and the person in charge of the establishment of the Foreign Rifle Corps.
He was in his fifties, not wearing official uniform, but a suit and tie, a gentleman's hat, and had a gloomy temperament.
Behind him stood sixty or seventy soldiers from the foreign rifle team, holding American Springfield rifles with bayonets flashing, the muzzles of their guns pointed at Shao Quanzhong and his group of thirteen.
(End of this chapter)