Chapter 246: Money can make you a god
Chapter 246: One hundred thousand dollars can make you a god
The situation was tense, Shao Quanzhong rolled his eyes, "Zhang Zihuai, go over and negotiate, and ask the Russians to bring Burke Huli back to me."
Zhang Zihuai obeyed the order and walked towards the Russians.
Hu Liuniang came over immediately and pulled Shao Quanzhong's arm, "Yuting, will the old Russians be so easy to talk to?"
Shao Quanzhong chuckled, "We have to give it a try. What if they are easy to talk to?"
I have never heard of foreign soldiers being easy to talk to, but Hu Liuniang did not continue to ask questions. She intuitively felt that Shao Quanzhong was starting to do bad things again.
The leading Cossack lieutenant colonel felt relieved when he saw that the other side had sent an envoy.
There are 6,000 people on the other side. If the two countries clash at the border, the 2,000 people will definitely suffer. Since the other side has sent an envoy, there will be no fighting.
He rode to the front of the battle personally, and asked a Brute translator to follow him.
The territory here was ceded from the Qing Dynasty through a treaty last year. Many of the Brute people who originally lived here can speak Chinese.
In fact, Lieutenant Colonel Ivan had been to Ili Province many times to participate in small-scale looting, and he also knew a little Chinese, but he had to maintain his status as a lieutenant colonel.
Hearing the other party's request, Ivan smiled and waved his hand, "Bokhuli is a politician who came to our Lucia for refuge. For the sake of the national system, we cannot return him."
Generally, the border patrol team is a small team of dozens of people. The reason why he brought so many people to patrol is because he got the news from the spies who crossed the border that the Qing government in Kashgar was exterminating the Kokand people.
The Kokand people are also in collusion with the Russians, and they will definitely come here at the critical moment. They have long been prepared to receive fugitives.
Seeing Zhang Zihuai going back in displeasure, Berkhurii and his men cheered after hearing the conversation.
Look, Lady Lucia also supports us!
A thousand Kokand people twisted their buttocks and performed a strange dance towards Shao Quanzhong, hooking their index fingers and spitting. Some even unzipped their pants and urinated towards him, laughing triumphantly.
How about it? You don't dare to come over?
Even an honest man like Song Lao San was filled with righteous indignation. He grabbed the rifle behind him and said, "I'll kill that bastard Burke Huli!"
Shao Quanzhong waved his hand, "Oh, no, no. According to the court leaders, we can't surprise our allies. We are not ready yet, so we can't start a war right away. We have to paralyze them."
"Just endure it then? This is not your style, Brother Shao."
"Who said we have to endure it?"
Shao Quanzhong smiled and gave Zhang Zihuai a few instructions, explained them in detail, then got off his horse, wrote something and handed it to him, and Zhang Zihuai went away again.
Zhang Zihuai did not ask Brut to interpret this time. He whispered something to Lieutenant Colonel Ivan. The Lieutenant Colonel was stunned. "Really?"
Zhang Zihuai put his hands on his hips and said, "Our superior is a first-class earl, an imperial commissioner, the general of Yili, the governor of Shaanxi, and the minister of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. His military rank is general. How can he not talk to a mere lieutenant colonel like you?"
Ivan took the IOU signed by Shao Quanzhong. It not only had Shao Quanzhong's signature on it, but also the seals of the Governor of Shanxi and the General of Yili, making it very formal.
Ivan found several colleagues who knew the business, studied the IOU carefully for a long time, and warned Zhang Zihuai, "If your commander doesn't pay the bill, this evidence will make him lose his reputation internationally. Our million-strong Russian army will cross the border and come to your Qing country to take it for yourself!"
Zhang Zihuai curled his lips, "Our commander always keeps his word!"
"Okay!" Ivan gave a few instructions to his men, who then began to quietly convey the orders.
Berkhuli didn't know what the people over there were muttering about, and suddenly the Cossack leader who came over attacked together. Berkhuli and the thousand Kokand guards were caught off guard and were tied up.
Zhang Zihuai waved his hand, and the two hundred prepared men came to the border, took over the Kokand people who were tied up in strings, and escorted the captives back to the team.
Over there, Lieutenant Colonel Ivan waved the IOU in his hand towards Shao Quanzhong, and even saluted Shao Quanzhong on the spot, and turned around and left with the Cossack patrol team, and left...
Shao Quanzhong returned the gift with a smile and returned victoriously with his men and the prisoners.
When the Huai Army and the Russian Army met for the first time at the border, they acted like friendly neighbors.
Bokhuli beat his chest and stamped his feet, "Oh, heaven, oh, earth, what happened? How could Lady Lucia, whom I had contacted well in advance, sell me out?"
That’s right, the Russians really sold these one thousand Kokand people for a full two hundred thousand taels of silver, but - it was an IOU.
Shao Quanzhong stated that the Berkhurii gang was a group of murderers who had escaped from the Qing dynasty, and he offered a reward of 200,000 taels of silver as an official for their capture.
If the Russian friendly forces can help capture him, the two hundred thousand taels will belong to the Russians. Due to the tight military budget, no cash was brought with me when I went to war. I wrote a note and promised to pay it back within six months.
Lieutenant Colonel Ivan believed what Shao Quanzhong said about the Huai Army's tight military budget, because Russia was even more stressed out, having been in arrears of wages, and encouraged small groups of Cossacks to come to the Qing Dynasty to rob and take the money.
No one is rich, and the Huai Army’s situation is probably the same.
He didn't know that thanks to the open loans from Britain and the United States, Shao Quanzhong's military expenses for the Western Expedition reached 40 million taels of silver, which was more than enough and he was not short of money at all.
With two hundred thousand taels, even the Tsar can be bribed, so a mere thousand lackeys can definitely be sold...
"Yuting, the old Russians are greedy for money and sold out Berkhur, but isn't two hundred thousand taels too much?"
Shao Quanzhong smiled and glanced at Liu Niang who was walking beside him. "Not much, not much. Lao Ge told me that he spent 25 pounds to buy a Kunlun slave, which is equivalent to 88 taels of silver. During the California Gold Rush two years ago, the price of Kunlun slaves had risen to 50 pounds. These 1,000 strong slaves are still worth the price."
Hu Liuniang is not very good at math. She counted on her fingers for a long time and said, "It seems that I am still losing tens of thousands of taels. Well, I can accept a higher price for the bandit leader Burke Huli."
Shao Quanzhong laughed loudly, "These two hundred thousand taels are something the Russians can't get."
Huh? "Yuting, you want to cheat the Lucia people and get something for nothing? I think you are in such a high position now, it is not worth it to affect your reputation for two hundred thousand taels."
"Who said I was cheating? We will definitely be fighting with the Russians in half a year. I won't default on my debt. I will give the Russians the full amount of 200,000 silver coins."
Hu Liuniang realized, "Then take it back, right?"
"How can it be considered robbery? I gave you the money, right? Then the two countries went to war, and I seized 200,000 taels of silver. It was legal, right?"
Hu Liuniang was confused by Shao Quanzhong. After thinking for a long time, she couldn't figure out what was wrong with Shao Quanzhong's logic. "Yuting, you are so mean."
Patting his chest, he said, "Fortunately, we are in the same group."
Shao Quanzhong slapped the loudly cursing Berkhuli with a whip and laughed, "Let's go back and see if Dong Fuxiang has caught Bai Yanhu."
(End of this chapter)