Chapter 199: 99 Miles to the West
Chapter 199: Nine Thousand Nine Hundred Miles to the West
July 25, the fourth year of the Tongzhi reign, Shanghai.
After Shao Quanzhong contacted by telegram and Wenxiu came forward to communicate, Shaanxi-Gansu Governor Qiao Songnian signed the "Western Expedition Loan" contract on behalf of the Qing court with the British representative Hart and the American representative Seaward.
The Qing government borrowed 25 million taels from Britain and 5 million taels from the United States, using customs revenue as collateral, to quell the rebellion in Shaanxi, Gansu, and Yili provinces.
The annual interest rate is 4%, and the repayment period is 39 years. The terms are quite generous.
The condition promised to the British was that the railways in Suzhou Governorship, Hunan, Hunan, Guangdong, Guangxi, Zhejiang, Fujian and Sichuan would be built by Britain, with a 49% stake.
The United States obtained the right to build railways in Shandong, Shanxi and Henan.
This time, our Qing Dynasty is going to build more than 40,000 kilometers of railways, which is definitely a big deal.
That’s right, although foreigners will take advantage of railway tolls, in the long run, this will also promote the development of our Qing Dynasty. Foreigners know this, but as long as the Qing Dynasty is well-behaved, the speed at which our allies make money will also be faster, right?
After signing the contract, Mr. Qiao held a cocktail party to entertain British and American representatives. After returning to Hailing, he immediately started moving.
The Huai Army has withdrawn from the ruins of Jinjibao and advanced to Lanzhou. Lord Qiao, the Governor-General of Shaanxi and Gansu, can finally take office.
Lord Qiao did not take office on his own. He went to Lanzhou with a large number of officials stationed in Lanzhou, including the Gansu governor, the provincial judge, the Lanzhou prefect, and the Gaolan county magistrate.
A large number of officials from the already pacified Shaanxi Province, Lanzhou Prefecture, Ningxia Prefecture, Gongchang Prefecture, and Qingyang Prefecture in Gansu also took up their posts in the same batch.
Military control ended in Shaanxi and half of Gansu, and the imperial court began to send officials to govern.
These officials were all appointed by Mr. Qiao and approved by the Ministry of Personnel. They came from Mr. Qiao's subordinates in various positions, including Lianghuai Salt Transport Commissioner, Jiangnan Provincial Administration Commissioner, Anhui Governor, and Grain Transport Governor. They were all Qiao officials.
The Qiao faction is the Shao faction. These officials may not be honest officials, but they are definitely capable officials who really work hard.
At this point, Shao Quanzhong's followers were spread across Jiangning Provincial Government, Anhui, Shaanxi, and half of Gansu. They also had the support of the Zhang faction based in Henan as a vassal force. Their momentum had surpassed that of the Zeng faction of the Hunan Army, and Zuo Zongtang and Li Hongzhang were completely incomparable.
…………
At the Lanzhou Wharf, hundreds of trackers shouted slogans and pulled a 200-ton transport ship to dock on the bank of the Yellow River.
Hundreds of prepared strong laborers boarded the ship and began to carry the cargo down.
The ship came from Shanxi and traveled along the Yellow River to Lanzhou.
It was just the first of such ships. Shao Quanzhong mobilized a total of 103 ships and conscripted more than 20,000 trackers to transport more than 20,000 tons of Shanxi coal at one time.
It turned out that all the coal used by the Huai Army came from Xuzhou, and it was quite troublesome to transport it to Longjuzhai by water.
Ever since the steam tractor project was launched and Shao Quanzhong was preparing to use that steel behemoth as a means of transportation for the westward expedition, the Wen family invested in Shanxi and developed coal mines.
Although the original intention was to prepare for the Western Expedition, the ultimate goal was to supply the emerging railway era.
Military use takes priority, and once military purposes are met, the materials are used for civilian purposes for profit. This has been the case since ancient times.
Shao Quanzhong stood by the Yellow River, with Le Xiucai, who looked much more energetic, beside him.
Wu Ziyi's arrival took over half of his work. Not only was there someone to take care of the complicated camp affairs, but Wu Ziyi also took over the task of establishing insurance teams in the four prefectures of Gansu that had just been pacified.
Now Le Sen only needs to take charge of intelligence and logistics work, which is a little easier.
"Sir, although this steam tractor costs millions, it is actually much more economical than mules, horses, and camels. It only runs on coal. It can save a lot of manpower and material resources in the Western Expedition."
"That's right. Living things need to eat, which is much more wasteful than iron things and requires more manpower."
"Based on our initial investigation of the Western Regions, Grant originally planned three supply routes. In addition to the normal route from Liangzhou to Hami, it also includes the northern route from Baotou via Uliastai to Barkol, the central route from Ningxia via Bashang Tusu Temple and the northern route. We are also planning to buy food from the Russians as a supplement. After all, the Russians are now at war with the Kokand Kingdom, and we have a common enemy. Now we don't need to do that. With this big truck that can carry 60 to 70 tons, it is enough to transport food all the way to Liangzhou."
Well, Shao Quanzhong's westward expedition this time was to find trouble and have a conflict with the Russians. But that didn't stop him from considering getting some food from them in the early days. Ahem, it would be a waste if he didn't use it.
"Sir, Mr. Qiao is on his way. He brought 30 million taels of silver. Isn't that a bit too much? With the tractors in our logistics, the speed of the westward expedition will be greatly increased. I calculated that it won't cost that much money, right?"
Shao Quanzhong looked to the west. "I told the court that we wanted to pacify Ili Province, but we have to fight the Russians. It's not up to us to decide when the war will end. We have to fight hard. The Russians have already set their sights on the three Central Asian countries and have started to attack Kokand. Since we are planning a conflict with the Russians, we must win. So, are we satisfied with taking back 400,000 square kilometers of land?"
"Ah? Sir, you are so bold that you want to fight the Russians for Central Asia?"
"Why not? If you win the fight, you can take it away."
Shao Quanzhong pointed his whip toward the west, full of heroic spirit.
"When I was in Xi'an, I saw a stele erected by Emperor Taizong of Tang outside Kaiyuan Gate. It read 'The Western Road is 9,900 miles long'. Central Asia is the land of our Han and Tang dynasties. How can we let the Russians take it away? It was fine before, but now I have people with guns. As a descendant of Yan and Huang, I can't lose the land conquered by our ancestors. I can give up other things, but this land, why won't I give it to others?"
Le Xiucai was very excited. Which soldier wouldn't want to expand the territory for the country? It's better to be a centurion than a scholar. Le Xiucai was a practitioner of this saying.
He closed his eyes and thought about the map of the Western Regions. "Wouldn't our borders expand to the Caspian Sea? It's so far away, can we defend it?"
"On the one hand, we need to build a railway there. On the other hand, if we can't actually control it, we can keep it under control. I'm lucky enough to have snatched the Fergana Basin and the Mesopotamian Basin from the Russians. That's fertile land. When our country is strong in the future, we will definitely be able to change the land system and swallow it up. If my descendants are unfilial and become more and more incompetent, it's not something I can control."
The Western Expedition Army camped outside Lanzhou City, and Shao Quanzhong announced that they would rest in Lanzhou City for a while.
Waiting for Tian Xing to send new reinforcements, the army will expand to 80,000 and concentrate on training here. The training time is not wasted, and at the same time, enough food and grass are accumulated, and then the westward expedition to Yili Province begins.
Of course, before the Western Expedition, they had to deal with the remaining bandits in Shaanxi and Gansu, including Ma Guiqing in Hezhou, Ma Zhan'ao in Xining, and Ma Wenlu in Suzhou.
However, these bandits are the remnants of Ma Hualong, and should be much easier to fight than Jinjibao.
A month later, Lord Qiao led a large number of officials to Shaanxi and Gansu, bringing a new batch of food and fodder, and 40,000 newly recruited Huai troops also arrived.
It is already the ninth month of the lunar calendar and autumn harvest has begun in various places.
Thanks to the establishment of an insurance team last year, Shaanxi's public security is stable, and this year the harvest is abundant, so there will be much more food and fodder nearby.
Food and fodder mobilized from the Dan River in the south and the Yellow River in the north also began to be transported to Lanzhou in a steady stream, and the food supplies for the 80,000-strong army on the westward expedition were almost sufficient.
(End of this chapter)