Chapter 142 Bismarck of the East

Chapter 142 Bismarck of the East

Chapter 142 Bismarck of the East

On the 17th day of the first lunar month in the first year of the Tongzhi reign, the Pedder Pier in Hong Kong was bustling with colorful flags flying, gongs and drums beating, and crowds of people.

The British Empire steam passenger and cargo ship Yunsheng No. 1, flying the Union Jack, slowly docked.

The gangplank was put on the dock, and thirty fully armed new army guards ran ashore and quickly stood in two rows, with carbines on their backs, right hands on their pistol holsters, chins raised, and backs straight.

A red carpet was laid all the way to the dock, and Shao Quanzhong, the prefect of Fengyang and commander-in-chief of Fengyang, commander of the Huai Army, and cavalry commander of the Qing Dynasty, slowly walked ashore.

Shao Quanzhong was wearing a brown woolen military uniform, big leather boots, a belt, a pistol, major general's epaulettes, a black woolen coat, and a command knife at his waist.

Behind him on the left is the Qing Dynasty's Woyang garrison commander, Huai Army Major Emery, and on the right is Evan, a Prussian broker dressed in a suit and tie.

Behind her, the tall female bodyguard Hu Liuniang was dressed in military uniform with lieutenant colonel epaulettes, looking heroic.

As soon as Shao Quanzhong got off the boat, the drums and trumpets of the foreign band prepared on the shore sounded. Shao Quanzhong walked slowly along the red carpet, waving his right hand lightly, with steady steps and great style.

There were loud bangs on the shore, thick smoke was everywhere, and more than a dozen cameras were taking pictures one after another.

The reporters who took photos came from all over the world, including the Shanghai Xinbao, the New York Times, the Granda Railway Herald published by Edison, the Moscow News in Russia, the Official Daily News in Japan, the Hong Kong Malacca News, the Times, the Rheinische Zeitung, and so on.

Shao Quanzhong walked along the red carpet to the pier, and the Governor of Hong Kong, Sir Robinson, took off the white glove on his right hand and shook hands cordially with Sir Robinson.

The two men shook hands and turned to face the press corps, smiling at the same time.

The spotlights were on, and the first photo of senior local officials of the Qing Dynasty and the Governor of Hong Kong was captured.

Unfortunately, there is no fax now. The text message will be published on the headlines of major newspapers around the world tomorrow, while the photos will be published later depending on the distance.

Sir Robinson delivered a brief speech, warmly welcoming Sir Shao Quanzhong to visit Hong Kong Island. Sir Shao Quanzhong is a good friend of the British Empire, and his arrival in Hong Kong will surely promote the cooperation and friendship between the British Empire and the Qing Dynasty.

Shao Quanzhong highly praised Sir Law's governance of Hong Kong Island. Under Sir Law's governance, Hong Kong Island flourished, had good public security, and was a model of the British Empire's colonies.

Ahem, the case that just happened where millions of silver were robbed to buy a ship and American citizen Henry Wall was killed, that happened on the high seas and has nothing to do with the Hong Kong government, right?
This time, the governor went to Hong Kong to send 20 students to study at the Royal Naval College. This move will surely deepen the friendship between Qing and Britain. The governor is full of confidence in the long-term friendly cooperation between the British Empire and the Qing Empire in the future.

During the interview, the reporter from the Rheinische Zeitung expressed great interest in the 60 students who went to study in Berlin.

Shao Quanzhong said that he had great respect for the late Prussian soldier Saint Clausewitz and believed that the students sent out would be able to learn the wisdom passed down by the military saint at the Berlin Military Academy.

Britain, the United States and Prussia are all friendly countries of the Qing Dynasty. I hope to have the opportunity to visit Prussia in the future to promote friendly military and economic cooperation between the two countries. It would be an honor to have the opportunity to visit Prime Minister Bismarck.

The next day, the Rheinische Zeitung's unusually exaggerated headline was "Mr. Shao, the Qing nobleman and Bismarck of the East, is eager to promote deeper friendly cooperation with Prussia."

After attending the dinner at the Governor's Mansion, Shao Quanzhong did not stay at the Governor's Mansion, but went to the branch of Wen's Money House in Hong Kong.

Hu Liuniang, who was following behind, had difficulty walking. Just now, at the dance after the dinner at the Governor's Mansion, Shao Quanzhong, a country bumpkin with poor dancing skills, stepped on her feet several times.

She also complained about the dress she had just changed into. Her waist was thin enough, but it still made her unable to breathe. The dress also exposed her chest too low, which she was not used to.

However, she was treated as the prefect's wife and received a high-level reception as the governor's wife, which made her very satisfied.

The backyard of Wen’s Money House was the hideout of the Huai Army Intelligence Department in Hong Kong.

Here, Shao Quanzhong met Liao Rong, who had changed into long gowns, and more than twenty members of the Detective Department's action team, led by Tong Lin and Yang Banhou. He also saw the results of this trip, one million taels of silver.

The density of silver is 10.5 grams per cubic centimeter. In the Qing Dynasty, one pound was 62500 taels. One million taels of silver was pounds. It sounds like a lot, but when put together, it is less than three cubic meters. Two days ago, the Yunsheng No. arrived in Guangzhou first. Shao Quanzhong did not get off the ship. Liao Rong took people to contact the local triad forces.

Yesterday, three Fu ships ambushed on the high seas. More than twenty masters, led by Tong Lin and Yang Banhou, used flying claws to board the "Gestageri".

Tong Lin, wearing standard eunuch uniform, led eight skilled and brave eunuchs in yellow jackets on board, claiming that they were following the orders of the Emperor of the Qing Empire to capture Henry Wall, a wanted criminal who had fled on the run for fraud.

Wall argued on the spot that he was an American citizen. Tong Lin rebuked him, saying that it was well known that the Wall brothers had become naturalized citizens of the Qing Dynasty and accepted employment and rewards from the Qing court.

The stolen money was immediately confiscated, and Henry Wall, a "subject of the Qing Dynasty", was sunk into the sea on the spot.

The captain and his sailors came to stop them, saying that the Qing Dynasty had no law enforcement authority on American ships. Tong Lin and Yang Banhou showed their true colors, and more than 20 masters beat the sailors without any chance of fighting back.

With the cooperation of the Triad gangsters, one million taels of silver were quickly loaded onto the Fu ship and sailed away.

Before leaving, he claimed that his group was the Tiandihui, which was against the Qing Dynasty and wanted to restore the Ming Dynasty. After robbing the silver, he would go to Southeast Asia to recruit soldiers and horses to fight against the Qing Dynasty and restore the Ming Dynasty. If the Americans wanted revenge, they could go and cause trouble for Dong Haichuan and Yang Luchan.

Less than three tons of silver will become the property of Wen's Money House and be paid to Chinese and foreign merchants who do business between Shanghai and Hong Kong with the silver notes of Wen's Money House.

Shao Quanzhong's brief visit to Hong Kong lasted only two days, and he returned by boat the next day.

On the tenth day of February in the first year of the Tongzhi reign, Shao Quanzhong returned to the Fengyang military camp.

As soon as Shao Quanzhong entered the military camp, Haiqing hurried over.

"Brother, this is terrible! You got into trouble in Zhenjiang and ran away, and were immediately impeached by a large number of senior officials. You are now suspended and may be dismissed."

Shao Quanzhong curled his lips and said, "Does the Huai Army still recognize me as the head of the family?"

Hai Qing scratched his head, "That's right, many soldiers asked for permission to rebel."

"That's it. We have the military power in our hands. What are you afraid of?"

"Report, the Grand Canal Governor Yuan Jiasan has arrived!"

Shao Quanzhong led his men to the camp gate to welcome him in person, and said, "Your humble servant greets Lord Yuan."

Yuan Jiasan smiled and patted Shao Quanzhong on the shoulder, "Yuting, your troops are good at fighting, and they are also capable of causing trouble. If it weren't for everyone protecting you during the fight with the Hunan Army, you would have been fired as the prefect."

"Report to the commander, it was the Hunan Army that started it first."

Yuan Jiasan waved his hands, "Okay, okay, it doesn't matter. Britain and the United States officially support you, and the two Empress Dowagers are panicking. Zhang Zhiwan brought dozens of civil servants to submit a memorial, saying that the court intends to punish the heroes who suppressed the Guangdong and Nian bandits. People from friendly countries were inexplicably surprised. I submitted a memorial to tell the court that a brave general like you is indispensable in suppressing the Guangdong bandits. The court has found a way out, and has revoked your punishment and reinstated you."

"Thank you for your care, sir!"

"No need to thank me, but have your soldiers recovered enough? It's time to go to the battlefield. The imperial court has been besieging the Guangdong bandit Chen Ni for several months, but has suffered heavy casualties. If you fail to make achievements on the battlefield, I will not be able to protect you if you get into trouble again."

"I will dispatch troops immediately and capture Chen Yucheng alive for you, sir."

The Huai Army, which was strong in manpower and high in morale, began to mobilize. On March 20th of the first year of the Tongzhi reign, Shao Quanzhong led 14,500 Huai Army soldiers into Shouzhou, preparing to participate in the siege of Chen Yucheng, the King of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.

(End of this chapter)