The Qing Dynasty

Chapter 611: Alliance with Russia to Fight against Japan
In addition to Teng Yuzao, Wei Jinghai and Ye Zugui also knew about world geography. Wei Jinghai only recently gained understanding of the outside world geography when he was studying Russia's Second Pacific Fleet with Teng Yuzao.

As for the rest of the people, they had no idea what Teng Yuzhao said about the Russian fleet's journey from the Baltic Sea, around the Cape of Good Hope in Africa, to China, and there was no trace of emotion on their faces.

Seeing this, Teng Yuzao couldn't help but explain with a smile.

"Lianfu, Juren, and Xingcheng, you may not know how far the Russian Second Pacific Fleet traveled from the Baltic Sea through the North Sea, the Atlantic Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and the South China Sea, right?"

Seeing that the three were a little embarrassed, Teng Yuzao looked at Ye Zugui, hoping that Ye Zugui could explain the confusion to these three people, as well as Wu Peifu, Li Xiangze, and Liu Shijiu who were also confused.

Today, Yang Shiqi, who had the cooperation of the clever Liu Shijiushen, was testing Ye Zugui, which made Teng Yuzhao very satisfied. He was not only satisfied with Yang Shiqi's actions, but also with Ye Zugui's performance.

Ye Zugui's state at least shows one thing, that Ye Zugui will not object to his confrontation with the court, and it is enough for Ye Zugui to have such an attitude, which can at least help him stabilize the navy.

Ye Zugui, with a ruddy face, smiled and said, "My Lords, I have learned from the Marshal about the Russian Navy's movements. I have calculated that the Russian Pacific Second Fleet will depart from the Baltic Sea, bypass the Cape of Good Hope in Africa, pass through the North Sea, the Atlantic Ocean, the Indian Ocean and our South China Sea. The total journey is 18,000 nautical miles, which is 33,000 kilometers when converted into kilometers."

Seeing what he said, Yang Shiqi, Wu Peifu, Li Xianze, Liu Shijiu and others were shocked, while Yang Shixiang and Xu Shichang were a little puzzled for a moment. They knew that Yang Shiqi and others were often exposed to the concept of kilometers, but Yang Shixiang and Xu Shichang were different.

Ye Zugui added hurriedly, "If 18,000 nautical miles is converted into miles, it is about 66,600 miles. Even if the Russians rush to Lushun at the fastest speed, it will take at least six or seven months."

Ye Zugui's explanation finally made Yang Shixiang and Xu Shichang understand the concept of 18,000 nautical miles. They were shocked and opened their mouths wide, unable to speak.

After a long while, Xu Shichang said in astonishment, "Tong Hou, it took the Russians so long to get here on the warship!"

Seeing Ye Zugui nod, Yang Shixiang hesitated and asked again, "It didn't take Yang Ru that long to be the minister to the Russians!"

Yang Ru was the Chinese ambassador to Russia. At that time, the Trans-Siberian Railway had not yet been completed, and one had to take the sea route to St. Petersburg, the capital of Tsarist Russia.

Ye Zugui smiled and said, "The ship that Minister Yang took to Russia passed through the canal controlled by the British. But now that the British secretly support the Japanese, they will naturally not allow the Russian fleet to pass through, so they had to take a detour. This detour took a very long journey."

Teng Yuzao smiled and continued, "The Russians are also very angry, so they took it out on British merchant ships along the way. It is said that they have sunk several cargo ships bound for Britain. Now the British have given this Second Pacific Fleet a nickname, calling them the Mad Dog Fleet."

Teng Yuzao's words made everyone laugh.

Tang Shaoyi suppressed his laughter and said, "This Second Pacific Fleet is really crazy. They even attacked British merchant ships. But are the British just going to let it go?"

Teng Yuzao also laughed and said, "The British have never suffered such a loss, but they are still cleaning up the aftermath of the war in southern Africa and are unwilling to start a dispute for the time being. They just sent a diplomatic note to the Russians, threatening to declare war on them."

Xu Shichang asked, "People on this Russian fleet must go ashore to rest from time to time, otherwise, they will be exhausted after staying on the ship for more than half a year! Besides, they also need supplies."

Teng Yuzao nodded and said, "Of course. Although most of the ports along the way are British colonies, the French are allies of the Russians, and they also have several colonies. For example, Madagascar in the western Indian Ocean is a French colony."

"I guess the Russian fleet will stay there for a while."

"Marshal, since the Russians have come such a long way to send this fleet here, this fleet must be very powerful. If they arrive and then join forces with the fleet in Lushun, the Japanese fleet will probably not be able to withstand it."

Xu Shichang said worriedly, "But if this happens, the Russians will block the Japanese sea transportation, and the Japanese Manchurian Army will be without ammunition supplies, so they will definitely be defeated."

"What the Marshal meant is that at that time, we will join the war again and unite with the Japanese to fight against the Russians."

"Since the Japanese don't have their own supplies, we can drive them away after the war."

"But if that happens, we may not be able to take back Lushun, and the Russians will continue to occupy it."

Yang Shixiang also said worriedly, "Also, the angry Russians may use their fleet to harass our coastal areas!"

"If the Marshal wants our navy to join forces with the Japanese fleet to fight the Russian fleet, that's also inappropriate!"

Teng Yuzao smiled calmly and said, "The Russian Second Pacific Fleet is indeed very powerful. It has a total of twelve battleships, four of which have a displacement of more than 13,000 tons and a main gun caliber of more than 300 mm."

"In addition, there are eight cruisers and ten destroyers, eight auxiliary supply transport ships, and four tugboats."

Teng Yuzao's data surprised everyone. This was the first time Ye Zugui had heard such specific information, Man said.

"Marshal, when the Russian fleet arrives, together with their fleet in Lushun, their strength will far exceed that of the Japanese combined fleet. If we don't intervene, the Japanese combined fleet will surely be defeated!"

Ye Zugui and Yang Shixiang's words made Teng Yuzao smile bitterly.

"Lian Fu, Tong Hou, what you said makes sense. After all, in the face of absolute strength, some conspiracies and tricks will not have any effect."

"However, although the Russian Second Pacific Fleet is very powerful, the main battleships that make up this fleet are of mixed age. The new ones were just built not long ago. There are four such battleships, which should all be in its Second Squadron. However, the old ones are too old, so the speed of the warships in the fleet varies greatly. The faster ones dare not play to their advantage and can only accommodate the slower ones."

"However, even so, it may be difficult for the new and old warships in their fleet to coordinate their actions."

"Besides, the officers and soldiers of these newly commissioned warships may not be able to master the operation proficiently."

"Also, the domestic situation of the Russians is unstable, the quality of their officers and soldiers is not as good as that of the Japanese, and their morale is relatively low. In addition, the long voyage and the fatigue from the journey will also seriously reduce the combat capability of the entire Russian fleet."

"All of the above are extremely unfavorable to the Russians. In our words, the Russians have no advantage in terms of time, location, or people. I don't think highly of this fleet of the Russians, which is strong on the outside but weak on the inside."

"Teacher, if this is the case, we should pretend to join forces with the Russians to deal with the Japanese. Otherwise, according to your analysis, the Russians' Second Pacific Fleet will be destroyed before June next year, or at least defeated. Then the Russians will probably be unable to fight again."

Liu Shijiu also said, "Yes, otherwise by that time, the Russians will stop fighting, and we will have to deal with the Japanese on our own. I'm afraid the price we pay will be even greater."

Teng Yuzhao looked at Li Xiangze, and Li Xiangze also said.

"I agree with what Zi Yu and Liu Zhentong said. When we defeat the Japanese, the Russians will not be able to stay in the three northeastern provinces if they want to." Teng Yuzhao looked at Yang Shixiang, Xu Shichang and Yang Shiqi. After thinking for a moment, the three of them agreed to fight together with the Russians first.

Teng Yuzao nodded and said, "Since you all have no objection, let's help the Russians first."

"However, there must be a way to help the Russians. We cannot go all out for now. It is best to just help the Russians stabilize the situation, or let them fight the Japanese."

Teng Yuzao added, "I can tell you another piece of news. The Russians have trusted Minister Bo Lansun to find Zai Yi privately, hoping to ask the court to help them resist the Japanese. Then they will renegotiate the conditions for withdrawal with the court, but the court has refused."

Yang Shiqi sneered and said, "The Russians never keep their promises. I am afraid of the ropes for ten years after being bitten by a snake. How can I trust them?"

Teng Yuzao smiled slyly and said, "But this Bo Lansun has sent someone to Tianjin secretly, and brought me a handwritten letter from Alekseyev."

Everyone was surprised when they heard that Alexeev had written a personal letter to Teng Yuzao.

Teng Yuzao continued, "Since Alekseyev could not persuade the imperial court, he tried to bribe me to help them deal with the Japanese invasion."

Teng Yuzao spoke without waiting for anyone to ask.

"Alexeyev was willing to pay 100,000 taels of gold, but I refused. I told the messenger he sent that 100,000 taels was too little. I could only help them stabilize the situation in Fengtian temporarily, but I would not directly participate in the war."

"If you want me to join the war, I want one million taels of gold."

Teng Yuzao's lion opened his mouth wide, making everyone laugh.

Yang Shixiang was the first to say, "Marshal, one million taels of gold is equivalent to 350 million dollars. The Russians will never give it. Moreover, Alexeev is only a governor-general. He can't afford so much money."

Xu Shichang also smiled and said, "If the Marshal subtracts one zero, I think Alexeev can probably come up with it if he grits his teeth."

Yang Shiqi suddenly said, "Marshal, this cannot be done. The Russians have no credibility at all. If the Russians tell this matter in the future, it will be very disadvantageous to the Marshal and his reputation."

What Yang Shiqi said made everyone look serious.

Teng Yuzao waved his hand and said, "It doesn't matter. As long as we can drive out both the Russians and the Japanese in the end, no one will mention this matter again."

"Moreover, if the Russians can really give us tens of millions of silver, it will just be a good opportunity to raise a large amount of funds for our future reconstruction of Northeast China. Compared with this, my personal reputation is nothing!"

"In fact, if the Japanese gave me money, I would also accept it. If they could raise 100 million yuan for us, there would be hope for the revitalization of Northeast China."

Hearing that Teng Yuzao wanted to collect money from both sides, Yang Shiqi's eyes lit up and he bowed to Teng Yuzao and said.

"If you can trust me, I will help you with this matter in the future."

Teng Yuzao smiled and said, "Okay! In fact, even if Xingcheng doesn't say it, I still want you to come forward."

Seeing that everyone had no doubt about assisting the Russians in dealing with the Japanese army first, Teng Yuzhao said.

"There's no rush for this. The Russians haven't gotten to the point of pressure yet. If they lose in Liaoyang, they'll probably be willing to pay a large sum of gold."

"Now, we have to make some preparations."

Teng Yuzao looked at everyone and said, "Once the Russians are defeated in Liaoyang, the Fourth Regiment will occupy Xinminfu regardless of whether Alexeev pays or not. As long as the Fourth Regiment appears in Xinminfu, no matter if they are the Russians or the Japanese, they will have to act according to our wishes."

"Until they understand our motives, the Japanese will never dare to launch an attack on Fengtian."

Yang Shixiang nodded and said, "By then, the Japanese might also come into contact with us."

"besides."

Teng Yuzao looked at Xu Shichang and continued, "Before that, Ju Ren will set up the Governor's Office in Zhen'an this month."

Zhen'an is the Heishan County of later generations.

Teng Yuzao looked at Wu Peifu again, "Zi Yu immediately ordered Su Xilin to send a cavalry unit to Tianjin after the meeting, ready to accompany Ju Ren through the customs to Zhen'an. This cavalry unit will stay with Ju Ren for the time being."

"teacher."

Wu Peifu asked in confusion, "If the cavalry station's flag went to Zhen'an via the Khorchin Grassland and Zhangwu, it would be closer. Why did they have to go around and rush back to Tianjin?"

Wei Jinghai smiled and said, "The Marshal has his own intentions in this matter."

Seeing that Wei Jinghai refused to speak, Wu Peifu had no choice but to shut up.

Teng Yuzao looked at Xu Shichang again and said with a smile, "Juren, as the governor, you must take care of things as soon as possible. There are not only many bandits in Xinminfu, Fengtian, Liaoyang, and the west of Haicheng, but also many green camp soldiers from the local government who are secretly working for the Japanese and the Russians, such as spying on intelligence. Zhang Zuolin, the leader of the Xinminfu Horse and Infantry Patrol, is one of them."

Teng Yuzao raised his voice, "We need to strictly control Zhang Zuolin. We can order him to suppress the bandits, but we must be careful not to let him become too powerful."

"At the same time, arrange personnel to restrain and eliminate all those who work for the Russians and the Japanese. For these people, arrest those who should be arrested and kill those who should be killed. Do not be lenient to prevent these people from leaking our intelligence when our troops move in in the future."

Teng Yuzao took a deep breath and said to Xu Shichang seriously, "We must also take action in Xinminfu, Tai'an, Panshan and other places."

(End of this chapter)