The Qing Dynasty

Chapter 612: Taking Money to Join the War
Teng Yuzao warned, "There are people sent by the Army Department and the Shuntian Army who are secretly organizing people to help the Japanese spy on the Russians. These people must be driven out with thundering means..."

Xu Shichang nodded and said, "I will follow the Marshal's order, but it seems that we should not do too much to the people of the Army Department and Shuntian Army, right?"

Teng Yuzao sneered and said, "Just say that this is my request. All officials in the three northeastern provinces must obey the neutral order of the court. Nothing that violates the court's order is allowed to happen. If necessary, use the charge of violating the court's order and kill a few of them."

"besides."

Teng Yuzao said to Liu Shijiu, "Brother, when you return to the army, you must arrange for people to secretly explore the terrain of Xinmin, Liaozhong, Tai'an, Panshan and other places as soon as possible, and prepare for the possible deployment of the Fourth Town and the Seventh Town."

"Zi Yu, you also need to send someone to secretly find out the situation in Zhangwu and Tiaobingshan."

After explaining all this, Teng Yuzhao spoke to Yang Shiqi calmly.

"Xingcheng, now there are voices both inside and outside the government calling for our Zhi army to join the war. We can't be too passive. We also have newspapers, so you have to pay attention to this matter."

"In short, in one sentence, we must make it clear to the government and the people that no matter who wins, the Russians and the Japanese will never return the Northeast to us. If we want to take back the three northeastern provinces, we have to take them back by ourselves."

"Also, yesterday, the British sent troops to invade LS, the capital of XZ. Many Chinese people are not very concerned about this matter because XZ is located in a remote area. You also need to find a way to arouse a wave of opposition and protest in the country."

"You can compare it to Zuo Zongtang's trip to Xinjiang to fight the Russians, and you can also take the opportunity to bring up the current alliance between the British and the Japanese."

"There is only one purpose, which is to distract the attention of the government and the public, so that they don't just focus on us."

"However, you must remember one thing: civil opposition and protests can only be directed towards the Russians, Japanese and British, and should not affect other powers."

Although Teng Yuzhao did not mention the specific arrangements, he believed that Yang Shiqi could do a good job.

This is the second time the British have invaded XZ.

In order to invade XZ, the British made long-term and thorough preparations. In addition to sending 3,000 officers and soldiers to the plateau in advance for adaptive training, they also prepared as many as 7,000 to 8,000 civilian laborers and countless mules and horses.

Last October, the British army set out from the previously occupied Longtu Mountain and invaded XZ territory.

At the end of the year, the British army captured the important transportation pass of Parizond and expelled the local XZ officials.

Although the Tibetan army resisted fiercely, after several battles with the British army, the Tibetan army, which only had homemade guns and cannons, lost about 10,000 people and was no longer able to fight.

So much so that, starting from July, the British army marched straight in, all the way from Gyantse to LS.

Fortunately, the 13th Dalai Lama fled in time and went to Qinghai, and is now on his way to Kulun.

Teng Yuzao sighed and said, "The Tibetans should be very disappointed with the imperial court now. The Dalai Lama fled to Mongolia, probably to prepare for contact with the Russians."

"The imperial court will probably be aware of this and may eventually strip the Dalai Lama of his title, which will be very troublesome. So you have to let the imperial court know about this possibility."

Seeing that Yang Shiqi was somewhat puzzled, Teng Yuzao smiled bitterly and said, "It is inconvenient for me to speak directly about this matter, otherwise the court will probably ask us to find a solution."

"XZ is too far away from us. We cannot send troops. The only way to resolve the issue is through negotiation. This will be very tricky and will also let the British know that they have gone too far. If the Russians send troops to XZ, it will be even more disadvantageous to them. The Russians will even covet their East India. We must make them feel threatened."

The British did not take the Qing Dynasty seriously, but were quite wary of Tsarist Russia which had infiltrated Xinjiang. Everyone present was aware of this.

Teng Yuzao said with some regret, "Although Xiliang sent me a telegram, asking us to assist him in sending troops and keep the Sichuan Army that was on its way in Sichuan, it seems that the Northeast is more important now. If this battle is fought well, it can completely resolve the threats from Japan and Russia to the Northeast, so I did not agree to it."

Xiliang was transferred to Sichuan last year to take over Chen Chunxuan's position as governor.

After Xiliang arrived in Sichuan, his reputation was still good. Xiliang attached great importance to government-sponsored study abroad and had sent students to Japan, France and the United States.

Because he had interacted with Teng Yuzao when he was in office in Shanxi, and because Xi Liang, a pro-war faction, was reinstated after being removed from the post of Governor of Shanxi, he received favors from Teng Yuzao, so he had a good relationship with Teng Yuzao.

After explaining to Yang Shiqi, Teng Yuzao spoke excitedly again.

"What we just talked about was all about the war outside the Great Wall. Now let's talk about something a little lighter."

"You may not know this, but at the beginning of last month at the Olympic Games held in St. Louis, USA, we won the championship in the bicycle speed race."

"Now, the bicycle sales personnel sent by Jizhi have signed a large number of sales contracts with foreigners, and have also signed agreements with companies in the United States, Germany, and the United Kingdom to cooperate in setting up factories."

"The other products we brought are also selling very well. The total amount of the sales contracts signed so far alone is tens of millions of dollars."

As he was speaking, a staff officer pushed open the door and stuck his head in. Wei Jinghai hurried out upon seeing this.

Soon, Wei Jinghai walked back quickly, whispered a few words in Teng Yuzhao's ear, and then handed him a telegram.

Teng Yuzhao took the telegram and looked at it for a few seconds, then sighed and said with a wry smile.

"The negotiation with the British finally fell on us."

Teng Yuzao raised the telegram in his hand and said, "This is the telegram from the court. The British envoy, Sir Thomas Aquinas, said that he cannot represent the British army in East India and wants us to send someone to XZ to negotiate with the British. He is willing to send someone to accompany them and is also willing to contact the other side."

Teng Yuzao said disdainfully, "The British want to drag it out as long as possible, but we can't let them do as they wish."

Teng Yuzao looked at Tang Shaoyi and said, "Shaochuan, this matter is up to you. Do you dare to take responsibility?"

Teng Yuzhao's words made Tang Shaoyi stunned at first, and then he said happily.

"General, I am willing to go."

The reason why Teng Yuzao wanted Tang Shaoyi to negotiate with the British was not only to give him experience, but also because in history it was he who negotiated with the British, and the negotiations were very successful.

Teng Yuzao warned, "I won't say much else. For the time being, we cannot send troops, so we can only negotiate with the British. But there must be two bottom lines. First, no compensation and no cession of land; second, the British must return to India as soon as possible."

"If the British come and don't leave, we will take back the British concessions in Shanghai and Hankou, and drive out all British merchants in Tianjin. We will not allow British goods to circulate in Zhili, Shandong and the three northeastern provinces that we are about to take back."

Seeing Tang Shaoyi taking down his words in a notebook, Teng Yuzao turned to everyone.

"I will not hide another thing from you either, but you must remember that this matter must be kept secret for the time being."

Teng Yuzao looked around at everyone. "The Russian envoy, Bo Lansun, has quietly come to Tianjin and is now outside the Governor's Mansion."

Hearing that Bo Lansun had come, and that he had come quietly, everyone was surprised. After a moment's thought, Yang Shiqi said.

"Marshal, I guess the Russians must want to pay you to send troops!"

Xu Shichang frowned and said, "But the Marshal was in private contact with Alexeev. Through Bo Lansun, wouldn't their Tsar know about it?"

Teng Yuzao smiled and said, "Yes, I guess Alekseyev has reported the matter to St. Petersburg, and St. Petersburg should have made a decision."

"In that case, please go to Xingcheng to see Bo Lansun and tell him that I am not here. Then, let him know what he wants to do."

Yang Shiqi happily responded and went out to meet Bai Lansun.

Just over ten minutes later, Yang Shiqi hurried back.

Ignoring the expectant looks on everyone's faces, Yang Shiqi returned to his seat, first drank the red wine in the glass, and then spoke excitedly.

"As expected, the Marshal guessed it right. He came here under orders from St. Petersburg to discuss the dispatch of troops with the Marshal."

"What did he say!" Teng Yuzao asked with a smile.

Yang Shiqi wiped the corner of his mouth and said with a smile.

"Blanson said that he was sent directly by the Tsar to discuss the matter of sending troops with the Marshal."

"Bo Lansun said that if the Marshal is willing to send troops, they are willing to give the Marshal three hundred thousand taels of gold personally."

"At the same time, after driving the Japanese out of Manchuria, they are willing to hand over the Northeast to the Marshal. If the Marshal is willing to be independent from the court, they can also give him full support."

"They will only retain the control and use rights of the Middle East Railway and lease the Port of Lushun for 100 years. They will not make any other demands."

"That's what they want!"

Teng Yuzao smiled and said, "Tell me, what should we do?"

Without waiting for anyone to speak, Yang Shiqi spoke first.

"Marshal, this is a good opportunity. Since you have already decided to help the Russians fight the Japs first, why not just go with the flow and agree to it."

Liu Shijiu suddenly interrupted and said, "Marshal, I think Lord Xingcheng is right. Anyway, we have to prioritize between fighting the Russians and the Japanese. Why not let the Russians pay some real money first?"

Liu Shijiu's words were obviously recognized by several generals.

Ye Zugui asked anxiously, "Marshal, if that's the case, can our navy also join the war, first cooperate with the old Russian fleet to rush out of Port Arthur, and have a good fight with the Japanese!"

Teng Yuzao shook his head and said, "Tong Hou, this won't work. Even if you rescue the Russian Pacific Fleet now, they don't have the courage to compete with the Japanese Combined Fleet. I guess they will scatter in all directions."

What Teng Yuzhao said was not speculation. The Pacific Fleet in Port Arthur did eventually break out with a few ships, but they either knew they would be disarmed or still had their warships run to Qingdao and become prisoners of the Germans.

There was also a cruiser that ran to Shanghai and was willing to surrender to the Governor-General of Liangjiang, just to save its life.

Teng Yuzao looked at Yang Shixiang and Xu Shichang, "What do you think?"

Yang Shixiang glanced at Xu Shichang and said, "Marshal, I also think that we can take this opportunity to join the battle, but we must control the rhythm to prevent the Russians from being too defensive against us, which will not be conducive to a fallout with the Russians in the future."

Xu Shichang shook his head and said, "Marshal, I am against joining the war now."

Xu Shichang's words made everyone stunned.

Xu Shichang sighed and said, "General, what I mean is that we should wait until they are exhausted before joining the battle. If we take action now, we will not only be known as those who are against the imperial court, but will also cause an uproar in the court and the public, which will do us more harm than good."

"What Kikuto said is worth considering!"

After thinking for a while, Teng Yuzao suddenly laughed, "Juren, if we both join the war and don't join the war, and there is no evidence that we join the war, do you think this is feasible?"

Teng Yuzao's words not only puzzled Xu Shichang, but also confused the others, who looked at Teng Yuzao blankly.

Teng Yuzao smiled and said, "Have you forgotten Wang Decheng?"

Except for Ye Zugui, everyone else was aware of the Wang Decheng incident. This was because Teng Yuzao believed at that time that the Russians would not be able to withdraw from the Northeast smoothly. This was a hidden move made by Teng Yuzao.

But in the current situation, apart from harassing the Russians' rear, what role can Wang Decheng play?
Wu Peifu hesitated and said, "Teacher, Wang Decheng only brought a few thousand people to the Northeast. They didn't even bring a cannon. I'm afraid it would be useless for them to participate, right?"

Teng Yuzao looked at Wei Jinghai, "Ningbo, tell everyone about Wang Decheng's situation."

Although he also didn't quite understand what Teng Yuzhao meant, Wei Jinghai still spoke.

"Although we concealed the truth and arranged for Wang Decheng to go to the Northeast, we have always maintained contact with him, especially since last year, we even established a radio connection with him."

"Although Wang Decheng only took a few thousand people with him, and they were disguised as bandits fighting against the Russians and scattered throughout the three northeastern provinces, Wang Decheng's people are now spread all over the three provinces."

"You may have heard that there are armed forces such as the Mountain Forest Team in many places in the Northeast. Most of them were set up by Wang Decheng's people. Some places even united with some local armed forces. Now the team directly controlled has grown to more than 30,000 people."

Wei Jinghai looked at Teng Yuzao and said, "Although they have a lot of people, they only have rifles and pistols. Not to mention cannons and heavy machine guns, they don't even have light machine guns."

The main forces of the Zhili Army preparing to participate in the war in Zhili, such as Li Xianze's First Regiment, Liu Shijiu's Fourth Regiment, Wu Peifu's Fifth Regiment, Cao Futian's Seventh Regiment, Li Jinyu's Eighth Regiment, and the Cavalry Regiment, were all equipped with a new machine gun developed by Teng Yuzhao based on the Danish Madsen light machine gun and the American Lewis light machine gun that appeared during World War I.

This light machine gun, secretly developed and produced by the Ordnance Department, was named ZS-1 light machine gun and used a magazine to feed ammunition.

Teng Yuzao smiled and said, "I'll talk about Wang Decheng later. Don't keep Bai Lansun waiting."

He looked at Yang Shiqi and said, "Go tell Bai Lansun that they have contacted me and asked me to send troops, but 300,000 taels of gold is too little. I, Teng Yuzao, don't need that little money. They want to pay 1 million taels of gold."

"If they insist on paying 300,000 taels of gold, then I want them to provide weapons, equipment and military pay. I will send troops as soon as I get the money. If they don't contribute, they can pay in batches, and I will also send troops in batches."

(End of this chapter)