The Qing Dynasty

Chapter 559: Navy Merger
Teng Yuzao continued, "If we can merge these two navies, optimize the personnel, and use them in a centralized manner, I can guarantee that within ten years, I will add at least twenty ironclad ships to the two ocean navies."

"At least ten of these ironclad ships must have a displacement of more than 3,000 tons and a speed of more than 20 knots."

Teng Yuzao's words made Zai Yi gasp.

With a displacement of over 3,000 tons and a speed of over 20 knots, it is a much larger and better ironclad ship than the Zhiyuan that sank during the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895. Ten such ironclad ships would cost at least 10 million taels of silver. If the other ten ships are included, even if their displacement is smaller, the ten ships would cost an estimated 8 million taels of silver.

Zai Yi was gasping for air as he said, "Xingfu, this is just 20 million taels of silver! You have to reorganize the army, build railways, promote Westernization, and build a new city in Tianjin. Each of these will cost tens of millions of taels of silver. Can you really come up with that much money?"

Not only Zai Yi, but even Yang Shiqi was greatly surprised and asked, "Marshal, can we do this?"

Teng Yuzao shook his head and smiled, and said to Yang Shiqi, "Of course we have to do it. Otherwise, the court should ask for someone else, or simply bring the two ocean navies under the direct jurisdiction of the court."

Then, Teng Yuzhao sighed and said to Zai Yi.

"Where do I get so much money? I've roughly calculated that all these things added together will cost no less than 300 million taels of silver, and the biggest part is still spent on promoting Westernization."

"Three hundred million taels!"

The number Teng Yuzhao said scared Zai Yi so much that he shuddered.

Teng Yuzao continued, "Although this will cost a lot of money, it won't be spent all at once."

"As for the source of such a huge amount of silver, there are several ways. One is to attract investment, the second is to borrow from the bank, and the third is to invest in the promotion of Westernization and get some benefits in advance, which can also be embezzled."

"In addition, all the companies under my name will be listed on the stock exchange that will be built in Tianjin. They will issue shares and the funds raised can be used to fill the gap. I can even use the income from railway operations and the income from the three Beiyang customs as collateral to borrow from foreigners."

"With this calculation, the final gap will not be too big."

Only after Teng Yuzhao said this did Zai Yi feel relieved.

Zai Yi thought for a moment and said, "Xingfu, if that's the case, it wouldn't be difficult to merge the two navies and set up a navy department under the Beiyang Minister."

"The Queen Mother would nod even if it was just because you added twenty ironclad ships."

"I just don't understand. You were asked to restore the Beiyang Fleet within ten years, and even wanted you to be responsible for building the outer city of the capital. It's obvious that the Queen Mother was instigated by Yuan Shikai and was trying to get your money. Why do you want to take charge of the Nanyang Fleet as well?"

Teng Yuzao smiled bitterly and said, "Prince Duan, although the court wants to vigorously train a new army, this new army can only take care of the land, not the sea. Our country has a long coastline. If we don't build a strong maritime force, sooner or later we will be invaded by foreign enemies from the sea again."

"For example, in the second half of last year, the Japanese invaded Fujian. If something like that happens again, we will be unable to defend ourselves."

Teng Yuzao said with some self-mockery, "Although I am a little too lax in my duties as governor of this province, Gu Yanwu said it well: to protect the world, even the humblest man has the responsibility."

Teng Yuzhao's words meant that every man has his share of responsibility for the rise and fall of his country, but it was Liang Qichao who condensed Gu Yanwu's words into an eight-character idiom.

Liang Qichao was one of the leaders of the Hundred Days' Reform during the reign of Emperor Guangxu. At that time, he and Kang Youwei were in exile in Japan and were wanted criminals by the Qing government.

Liang Qichao should now be hosting the Qingyi Newspaper in Yokohama, Japan, advocating "rebuking the empress and protecting the emperor". Naturally, Teng Yuzhao could not say what he said.

Not only could he not say it in front of Cixi and the court officials, it was also inconvenient to say it to Zai Yi.

Zai Yi was wholeheartedly hoping that his son Pujun would become emperor.

Teng Yuzao shook his head and said, "Since I have the ambition to serve my country, it doesn't matter if I am schemed against by others."

Zai Yi was deeply moved by Teng Yuzao's words. He stood up from his seat and bowed solemnly to Teng Yuzao.

"Xingfu was full of enthusiasm, but he was schemed against. How unfair!"

Zai Yi then swore to Teng Yuzao, "Don't worry, as long as I, Zai Yi, am still in the position of the Military Affairs Council, I will never let the villain do whatever he wants."

Teng Yuzao also hurriedly returned the greeting, "With the help of Prince Duan, I, Teng Yuzao, will not hesitate to endure more grievances!"

After Zai Yi sat down again, Teng Yuzao spoke nonchalantly.

"As for the court's decision to publish a newspaper, this is also a good thing. I strongly support it. Whether it is Yixin who publishes it or someone else who supports it, it doesn't make much difference."

"I just have one thing I need to explain in advance. Please ask Prince Duan to explain this to the Queen Mother as well."

"Yixing and I have an old grudge. He must seek truth from facts when publishing a newspaper. If he dares to frame the Vanguard Army and me, Teng Yuzao, without any evidence, I will not agree!"

"Regarding the court's plan to take back the coinage rights of the provinces, I think this is a good thing. I also thank the Queen Mother for giving Zhili a break."

"However, I also have a request for the silver dollars. The court cannot prevent the circulation of the silver dollars and corresponding silver dollar coupons issued by Zhili for any reason. I am even preparing to issue paper money. The proceeds will be used for the military expenses of the front army and railway construction. Otherwise, I am afraid that Zhili will have financial problems."

Teng Yuzhao had to speak out many things first to avoid confusion in the future.

The times are different now than in the past. Now, apart from Tsarist Russia still staying in the Northeast, there are no troops from the coalition forces of the great powers within the Great Wall, and the imperial court will no longer have to worry.

Now that things have settled down, they will naturally have some different thoughts. In the past during the war, they would not do anything to him, but now they will no longer be indifferent to him. They may create some resistance for him in some aspects, or even suppress him blatantly, which is all very normal.

Especially the minting of coins and the subsequent issuance of banknotes were extremely important links in Teng Yuzao's fundraising and promotion of Westernization, and there must be no mistakes.

Finally, Teng Yuzao said to Zai Yi sincerely, "As for the two types of artillery of our vanguard army, I can only reveal one first, which is the conscienceless cannon. As for the small cannon, it cannot be handed over for the time being. I can only take it out after the Russians completely withdraw from the Northeast."

Time flies, and in the blink of an eye it is already the end of June in the 28th year of the Guangxu reign. During these ten months, many major events have occurred in the country.

First of all, after Cixi returned to the palace, she immediately issued a series of edicts in the name of Guangxu. The first of which was to posthumously award Li Hongzhang the title of Taifu, promote him to the first-class marquisate, enshrine him in the Temple of the Worthy and the Good, and give him the posthumous title of Wen Zhong.

Then came a series of new policy measures. In Teng Yuzhao's view, Cixi's attitude towards implementing the new policy had obviously changed.

Teng Yuzhao believed that this was closely related to Cixi's hasty expedition to the west and her miserable and embarrassing life on the run, in which she was frightened several times a day. These experiences and unbearable things deeply touched Cixi's heart. In order to consolidate the rule of the Qing Dynasty, she came up with the idea of ​​implementing the New Deal in order to "strengthen the self and avenge the humiliation."

It should be said that Cixi's initiative to propose the "New Deal" was the result of her psychological changes. According to Wu Yong, the local official who was the first to greet the embarrassed Cixi on her western hunt, the magistrate of Huailai and now transferred to the post of governor of Leiqiong, Guangdong, Cixi once talked to him about it on her western hunt.

"At that time, the Boxers had just started to rise up, and there were many opinions. I was undecided about what to do... I was determined not to fall out with the foreigners, but for a while, because the foreigners bullied me too harshly, I couldn't help but get angry... I am the one who is in charge of the family. Now that things have become like this, it is all my fault. I feel sorry for my ancestors and the people. I have so much on my mind, but where can I tell it?"

It is also said that when Cixi recalled her original decision, she said, "Looking back on my life, this is the only mistake I made."

On the evening of the second day after returning to the palace, Cixi officially issued an edict to implement the new policy, which included:

"…There are eternal principles that will never change, but there is no set and unchangeable law of governance. The principle of adaptability has long been seen in the Book of Changes, and the principle of loss and gain can be understood in the Analects…In short, if the laws are not changed and the habits are not broken, it will be difficult to revitalize the country. I order the Grand Councillors, the Grand Secretaries, the Six Ministries and Nine Ministers, the ministers sent to various countries, and the governors of various provinces to take into account the current situation and consult the Chinese and Western politicians, including the court system, the history of the country, the administration of officials and the people's livelihood, the schools and the imperial examinations, the military, the government, and the finances, and to find out what should be changed, what should be reduced, and what should be merged, and to learn from others or look within themselves, and to find out how the country can prosper, how talents can emerge, how the budget can be sufficient, and how the military preparations can be improved. Each of them should state what he knows and express his opinions. The deadline is two months, and he should submit his opinions in detail…"

Before dinner, Teng Yuzhao went to the palace to meet with Cixi. Cixi not only praised Teng Yuzhao for taking over the construction of the Lu-Han Railway, the outer city of Beijing, and the reconstruction of the two oceans navy, but also immediately appointed Teng Yuzhao as the Beiyang Minister with the imperial seal of Emperor Guangxu to lead the two oceans navy, and established the Navy Department, and renamed the navy to the Qing Navy that day.

After Teng Yuzhao finished submitting the application, he and Yang Shiqi took a train back to Tianjin that evening.

Just three days after Teng Yuzhao returned to Tianjin, Cixi officially issued an edict to establish the "Office of Supervision of Government Affairs" headed by Zai Yi as a specialized agency to plan and implement the new policy.

In the imperial edict, Ronglu, the newly appointed Left Censor-in-Chief Aisin-Gioro Kungang, the Grand Secretary of Wenyuan Pavilion, the Minister in charge of the Ministry of Revenue, the Minister of Roads and Mines, the Grand Councilor Wang Wenshao, and the newly appointed Grand Councilor Lu Chuanlin were appointed as ministers in charge of government affairs.

He appointed four people as ministers to participate in government affairs: Teng Yuzao, Governor-General of Zhishan, Liu Kunyi, Governor-General of Liangjiang, Zhang Zhidong, Governor-General of Huguang, and Yuan Shikai, Governor of Henan and President of the Right Army of Wuwei.

Led by Zai Yi, four supervising ministers and four participating ministers were in charge of all new policy matters.

On the third day after the issuance of the New Deal edict, Governor-General Zhang Zhidong of Huguang and Governor-General Liu Kunyi of Liangjiang jointly submitted three memorials entitled "Three Memorials on Reform by the Jiang-Chu Association", demanding that the court learn from Japan in its reform and implement a constitutional monarchy.

Before submitting the memorial, Zhang Zhidong also sent telegrams to Teng Yuzhao and Yuan Shikai to ask them to submit a joint memorial. Yuan Shikai refused flatly, but he suggested that he and Zhang Zhidong jointly sign a memorial proposing the abolition of the imperial examination system.

Teng Yuzao also declined the offer on the grounds that he had not "thought through the reform movement yet."

However, Zhang Zhidong seemed determined to urge Cixi to implement constitutional government, and still insisted on submitting a memorial signed only by him and Liu Kunyi.

However, after these two people submitted their memorials, there was no further news. They should have been kept by Cixi and not sent out. Only the news that Cixi intended to send someone abroad to investigate government affairs was spread.

The fact that Zhang Zhidong and Liu Kunyi's memorial requesting the implementation of constitutional government did not receive a response from the court was exaggerated by major newspapers and magazines and soon became a hot topic in the country. The vast majority of public opinion supported Zhang and Liu, which put the court in a very passive position.

It was not until ten days later, when Cixi saw that the issue of whether to implement constitutional government was becoming increasingly serious, that she was forced to issue another edict.

It was said internally, "You, the officials at home and abroad, must know that the country is in such a state that it cannot be saved by patching up its problems. Only reform and self-strengthening are the lifeline of national security and a turning point for people's livelihood."

I and the Emperor have considered the ancestral temple and the people, and there is no other plan except this."

At this critical moment, we need to be more cautious at every step and conduct detailed and thorough research before we can do anything. We must not act rashly.

In a word, this is what must be done during reform, but how to do it on key issues still needs careful examination before a decision can be made.

Afterwards, as if to divert the attention of the people and public opinion, Cixi issued an edict on training a "new army", promoting commerce, reforming education, reforming the official system, reviewing laws, and planning for the reform of the system.

The content of these new policies covered reforms in the military, economy, education and political system.

The decision to train a new army had already been made. This time it was not only officially announced, but the content was also more specific.

First, it was officially confirmed that the military imperial examinations would be stopped nationwide, which meant that from then on, military officers would no longer be selected and appointed from the military examinations.

At the same time, all provinces were required to follow the example of the Beiyang government and prepare to build new-style military academies;
Secondly, each province was required to "dismiss the old army and train a new-style standing army", unify the numbers of all standing armies across the country, and all new-style armies would be uniformly named the Great Qing Standing Army.

In addition, the Army Ministry's Preparatory Office implemented the plan of training a new army across the country, set up a training department under the Preparatory Office, and established a training office in each province to serve as an institution for provincial leaders to train the "new army."

At the same time, each province was required to pay 10% of its tax revenue as military expenses, and the funds would be distributed uniformly by the Army's Preparatory Office to the new armies in each province to be used as funds for their salaries and weapons.

The locations of the new troops stationed in various provinces, the vanguard army and the Wuwei Right Army that would assist in the training of the new troops in various provinces, and the Huguang New Army were also clarified, and it was required that each unit must reach the corresponding province within one month.

The garrisons of the troops involved in cooperating with the provinces to eliminate the old army and train new troops have not changed, and the vanguard army is still located in the nine provinces.

The vanguard army was numbered the first to ninth regiments, one guard brigade, one cavalry regiment, and three separate artillery regiments.

Regarding the cavalry town, Tie Liang initially only gave it a cavalry brigade. After Xu Shichang argued to no avail, Teng Yuzhao personally went to the capital. After a big fight with Wang Wenshao and Lu Chuanlin in the Grand Council, he went directly to see Cixi under the guidance of Zai Yi.

Teng Yuzhao explained that he did not expect the Russians to withdraw willingly after the time came, and there would probably be another major battle. If there was a cavalry unit, it could quickly move through Inner Mongolia to the northern hinterland of Northeast China, posing a serious threat to the Russian army.

At the same time, since the vanguard troops were stationed in various places and it was difficult to maintain military discipline, he needed to set up a gendarmerie unit and organize it into a brigade.

At the same time, in comparison with Western countries, the Beiyang Navy Department must have a coordinated marine corps.

After Empress Dowager Cixi nodded, the Military Affairs Office issued another document asking Tieliang to follow it, and only then did Teng Yuzao get these numbers.
(End of this chapter)