Chapter 160 Ultimatum
Chapter 160 Ultimatum
Shao Quanzhong and Zhang Zhidong whispered for a long time, and finally Shao Quanzhong patted Zhang Zhidong on the back and said, "Don't worry about it. I'm not as good as you in planning big things, and you're not as good as me in playing tricks on others to get advantage. Leave it to me. Believe me, it's not the time for us to take action now."
He turned around and ordered, "Sixth Lady, call Jiang Chunlin and tell him to keep a close eye on the movements of the Abensi fleet. At the same time, call Liao Haichang in London and let him know the market price of the seven warships in the Abensi fleet. Ask about it first, but don't ask to buy it."
Zhang Zhidong still recognized Shao Quanzhong's ability to take advantage of others by breaking into the door and stealing holes. He stopped talking about the fleet and looked at the imperial letter in Shao Quanzhong's hand.
My lord is really patient. For such a great achievement as killing Shi Dakai, he must be rewarded, but he is not in a hurry.
Shao Quanzhong has now become numb to the rewards, as if a pie in the sky had just fallen on him not long ago. The credit for Li Xiucheng's defeat in the Northern Expedition was inexplicably attributed to the Huai Army.
After opening the imperial edict and taking a quick glance, Shao Quanzhong was very satisfied. It was not the content of the edict, but the format of the edict.
In theory, the Imperial Edict is a secret letter from the emperor to his ministers. Now that the young emperor is not in power, this thing is of course drafted by the ministers of the Grand Council.
Since it was a secret letter and would not be made public, there was no need to be formalistic and just speak for the matter. Shao Quanzhong knew all the characters in this letter and could understand it, and he immediately felt much better.
Shao Quanzhong was appointed as the acting governor of Anhui and was promoted to the third-class baron. You Sihai was granted the title of Jinshi and was promoted to the magistrate of Tongzhou.
Five hundred thousand taels of military funds were allocated, and the Huai Army was ordered to intensify recruitment and training so as to join the siege of Nanjing as soon as possible.
Shao Quanzhong understood the letter, but was also confused.
"Brother Zhang, I understand that we are given money to train our troops, but if Zeng Guofan disagrees, can we go to Nanjing? The court is not giving face to General Zeng?"
Zhang Zhidong nodded, "Yes, our Huai Army has become very powerful without us noticing. During this period, Zeng Guofan conquered Anqing. We eliminated Li Shixian, Yang Fuqing, Chen Yucheng, Zhang Lexing, and Shi Dakai, and we came from behind and made more contributions than the Hunan Army. In particular, the Hunan Army had been chasing Shi Dakai for several years but failed to defeat him. We defeated him in one battle. The court felt that the fighting power of our Huai Army was far superior to that of the Hunan Army, and that joining the siege of Nanjing would surely succeed sooner rather than later. They were already dissatisfied with Zeng Guofan's procrastination."
Ahem, Zeng Guofan didn't waste time. The real bloody battles were fought by the Hunan Army. Our Huai Army just picked up the fruits and took advantage of the situation.
But being able to get a bargain is a skill.
"In addition, Luo Bingzhang's defeat also brought discredit to Zeng Guofan. Now the court recognizes our fighting power. During the discussion of the Military Affairs Council, it has formally proposed the establishment of the 'Xiang-Huai Elite' of the Qing Dynasty."
"Brother Zhang has made great contributions here."
Zhang Zhidong smiled modestly and said, "No matter how good the plan is, it must be based on your foresight and ability to train troops."
The two men flattered each other, and Zhang Zhidong added, "This time Li Xuyi was transferred to the position of Hunan Governor, and the court gave the position of Anhui Governor to the lord, and the territory of Anhui was completely returned to the Huai Army. In addition, this time Lord Qiao was promoted to the assistant minister, awarded the double-eyed peacock feather, and was awarded the yellow jacket. The gap between him and General Zeng is only one step away. This is the court's affirmation of the Huai Army. By the way, why didn't you report more meritorious officials this time, and only reported You Sihai?"
Shao Quanzhong rolled his eyes. "Didn't I think that if I reported less merit and concentrated more, You Sihai would be promoted a few more levels? Sure enough, he got the title of Jinshi and was promoted three levels in a row, surpassing his father."
"This will definitely hit Le Sen hard. He has been eyeing the Jinshi candidate for a long time."
Shao Quanzhong sighed, "Le Sen, please be patient. I must capture You Sihai. His fleet will be of great use to me."
Zhang Zhidong narrowed his eyes and looked towards the east, as if thinking about something. Coupled with the lord's eager attitude towards Asben's fleet, the lord's intention was obvious. This - was it too early to prepare?
Shao Quanzhong was still the second-rank governor of Anhui Province. "Acting governor of Anhui Province" meant acting governor, with the power of governor, but his rank was not promoted for the time being. Being promoted to baron was a big improvement. Yuan Jiasan worked all his life to get a baron, and even Qiao Songnian didn't have a title.
The court urged Shao Quanzhong to train his troops quickly, and Shao Quanzhong really needed to train. After he became the acting governor of Anhui, the territory of Anhui and Jiangnan also belonged to the Huai Army, and the insurance team instructors were sent out again.
No rush, wait until the soldiers come back from vacation. I have to deal with my two wives first today.
…………
Two months later, the Huai Army was fully staffed and trained again. Shao Quanzhong couldn't go to Nanjing right away. He had reported 5,000 casualties, so it was impossible for them to recover so quickly.
"Report, Jiang Chunlin reports that after Li Taiguo returned to the Qing Dynasty from London, he and Colonel Asben jointly issued an ultimatum to the Zongli Yamen. In the end, the two sides quarreled. The Qing Dynasty paid 370,000 taels of silver to the Asben fleet as severance pay, and compensated Colonel Asben 10,000 taels and Li Taiguo 14,000 taels for intermediary losses. The Sino-British joint fleet has been disbanded. Colonel Asben left Shanghai with the fleet this morning and returned home."
Hu Liuniang, who was standing beside him, was shocked. "Yuting, all your efforts were in vain. The fleet ran away."
Shao Quanzhong laughed loudly, "It's right to run away. If I don't run away, how can I buy it cheaper? Come on, follow me to Shanghai!"
Two days later, Shao Quanzhong met his old friend, American Consul Hayward, again.
"Shao, nice to meet you. I have some good news to tell you."
No, I came to talk to you about something.
"In view of the excellent performance of the mercenaries you sent out on the battlefield, the Army of the Potomac asked President Lincoln for permission to give you a reward of $200,000."
When he heard that there was a reward of $200,000, Shao Quanzhong forgot why he came here. Instead of being happy, he became anxious.
"Did you use my mercenaries so hard that you left them behind? How many casualties did you suffer? Were any high-ranking officers killed?"
Seaward looked embarrassed. "General Shao is very accurate. That's right. In the Battle of Chancellorsville, General Joseph Hooker led the 130,000-man Army of the Potomac to attack the 60,000-man Confederate Army. The 11th Army was accidentally attacked by the famous Confederate General Stonewall Jackson. The Potomac Army was defeated and retreated, and had to send your mercenary division to cover the rear—"
Shao Quanzhong stepped forward and grabbed Xi Huade by the collar, "Then why are you laughing? Is this $200,000 for my pension? How many of my people died?"
"Calm down, calm down, Lord Shao. You are now the governor, a high official of the Qing Dynasty. You should behave like a gentleman."
"Go to hell with your gentlemanly manners. I was born a bandit. I tell you, if any of the three generals Chen, Zhang, and Yang is injured, I will kill you and you will avenge them."
Heward laughed. "No wonder your soldiers are so loyal to you. You are really good to your subordinates. You underestimate your subordinates, especially the King of England."
(End of this chapter)