Nanyang Storm 1864

Chapter 411 Visiting the patient
March 5 this year

Unable to contain itself any longer, Fuso took action, sending three warships, including the "Yun Yang", into the Port of Busan. It then conducted armed reconnaissance and combat exercises along its eastern coast, displaying its military might.

In mid-September, the Fuso gunboat "Un-Yo" brazenly broke into the Han River estuary, openly carried out armed provocation, and bombarded Ganghwa Island.

They landed on the island, defeated the local defenders, and burned, killed, and looted, creating the "Ganghwa Island Incident" in modern history.

after the incident

The State of Chu announced that it would send the "Zhenbei" ironclad ship formation to visit Naha, Nagasaki and Seoul in October for a warning deterrent cruise.

This made the top leaders in Fuso panic. After receiving clear signals from Chu, they hurriedly contacted the diplomatic envoys of Britain, France, the United States and the Netherlands in Nagasaki to mediate, emphasizing that they had no intention of escalating local confrontations.

The "Ganghwa Island Incident" was merely a conflict caused by the "Book and Contract Stalemate" left over from history. The Fuso Kingdom will definitely exercise restraint and maintain stability in Northeast Asia. It has no intention of provoking the Chu State.

The colonial cause that Fuso had been dreaming of encountered hellish difficulties from the very beginning, which showed the complexity of the situation in Northeast Asia, which was far from comparable to the mild climate of the South Pacific region.

Mid-October
Manila

At the residence of Li Hezhang, Prime Minister of Chu State, located in Longshouyuan District, the entire family respectfully welcomed the arrival of the King of Chu's carriage. Li Jingxi, the eldest son of the Marquisate, led a group of family members out of the house early to welcome His Majesty the King of Chu who came to visit him.

Two days ago, Prime Minister Li Hezhang, who was handling government affairs, suddenly fainted, causing quite a stir in the Chu court.

"Your Majesty, your humble servants, respectfully welcome you and wish you longevity and good health!" Li Jingxi brought all the male members of the Li family to welcome the emperor and said respectfully.

King Zheng Guohui of Chu got off the carriage, a warm smile on his face, and said softly:

"Zhongxian, there's no need for such formalities. Your father is an important minister of state. I was deeply surprised to hear that you were ill, and I came specially to visit you."

"The entire Li family has been deeply grateful to Your Majesty for his great favor and has always felt overwhelmed, wishing we could sacrifice our lives for our country. Now that my father is slightly ill, I have troubled the King to come. My crime is unforgivable."

"Zhongxian, you are too kind." Under the guidance of Li Jingxi, who bowed slightly, King Zheng Guohui of Chu strode through the ceremonial gate and walked towards the main hall, continuing as he walked:
"I know that Zhongxian, having ranked first in the Royal Academy of Political Science, has been appointed to the Ministry of Colonies. He is a rising star, and that's great!

What position do you hold in the ministry now?"

"In reply to your Majesty, I am honored to be a section-level clerk in the Overseas Sima Lai Ya Department, responsible for handling the colonial affairs of Lan Fang Prefecture. My main task is to track and resolve coordination issues related to the construction of the Kunjiang Bridge. I have gained a lot from this practical experience."

"Well, that's right. Applying what you have learned is the right way." King Zheng Guohui of Chu gave a concise evaluation of "not bad". In the heart of the twenty-year-old Li Jingxi, this was undoubtedly like a shot of chicken blood.

"I, your humble servant, feel ashamed. I will take the Imperial Edict as my motto and make solid achievements."

A blush appeared on Li Jingxi's fair face, which had not yet completely shed its youthfulness. He walked as if he was walking lightly on cotton, and his heart was filled with joy.

After all, I am still young and cannot bear the compliment of "not bad".

King Zheng Guohui of Chu was quite optimistic about this young man. As the saying goes, "The famous Li family in northern Anhui does not produce any losers." This was almost unanimously recognized by the high-ranking aristocratic circles in Manila, and each of them was a dragon among men.

The Li family has always been a scholarly family with strict family education. Li Hezhang, the branch of the Li family that immigrated to Southeast Asia, is naturally no exception.

Not to mention their academic excellence, the family members were also very upright in conduct and had a strong sense of family and country, which attracted many high-ranking aristocrats in the Chu State to emulate and learn from them.

in the original history
Li Jingxi was also a prominent figure in the late Qing Dynasty. He was one of the nine governors-general. During his tenure as governor of Yunnan and Guizhou, he suffered from internal and external troubles of the court, which had "fat meat but no claws". He set about establishing the famous Yunnan Military Academy and vigorously developed the economy and industry.

During the Republic of China period, Li Jingxi, who was in his prime, briefly served as prime minister. Although it was only for 8 days, he resigned in anger because of Zhang Xun's restoration, unwilling to associate with these warlords who were reversing history.

From this
Li Jingxi's generation has a strong sense of family and country in their hearts. They are not subservient to power and wealth. They are upright and have a very high standard for being an official. They are absolutely inseparable from the influence of their family's education.

Because of this, King Zheng Guohui of Chu chatted with him in a friendly manner. After walking around the flower path, he saw the gray-haired Li Hezhang wearing a dark Tang suit, standing on the side of the main hall to greet him respectfully.

Seeing King Zheng Guohui of Chu striding towards them, Li Hezhang led his wife and family members in a collective bow, saying, "Your Majesty, I respectfully welcome you. I am a little ill, and I am guilty of troubling Your Majesty to come. I am guilty of death."

"Brother Xianqiao, I am late and have troubled you." When King Zheng Guohui of Chu said this, even though Li Hezhang was experienced and had been in the officialdom from north to south for decades, he was completely defeated by this.

Li Hezhang's eyes were red as he bowed deeply to the ground. His voice trembled as he replied, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty's grace is profound... Even if I were to die, I could never repay you even a fraction."

"Brother Xianque, don't be so polite. You are still ill and need to take good care of yourself. Why are you doing these vulgar rituals of welcoming and seeing off guests?" King Zheng Guohui of Chu stepped forward and held Li Hezhang's arm with one hand, with a hint of blame in his tone.

Li Hezhang stood up and when he raised his head, tears were already glistening in his old eyes. These words of blame seemed to flow into his heart like a warm current, and he wished he could die for the king immediately in retaliation.

As for how much is true and how much is false?

The Li family in northern Anhui produced many important officials in the court, one after another, one cluster after another. The main theme was sincerity, which is the most touching thing.

King Zheng Guohui of Chu and Li Hezhang performed a drama of harmony between the monarch and his minister here. Both of them were veteran actors, but they infected the surrounding Li family members.

After a few casual words, King Zheng Guohui of Chu was about to reach out and support Li Hezhang to go into the main hall.

How could Li Hezhang bear it?
He hurriedly took a step back, turned sideways, clasped his fists and saluted, and said in a trembling voice: "Absolutely not, Your Majesty, you are embarrassing me. Please go ahead, I will follow you at all times." "Alas, brother Xianque, you are bound by these conventional etiquette." King Chu Zheng Guohui sighed helplessly and could only move forward.

This round of exchange between the two ended in a draw.

The King of Chu showed deep concern for his ministers and accidentally injured a large number of people around him.

Prime Minister Li Hezhang strictly abided by his duties as a subject and never dared to overstep his bounds at any time. He responded tactfully and skillfully, especially the sentence "I will follow you at all times" which was the finishing touch.

This is how a superior should be. The King of Chu can show care and humility, but Li Hezhang cannot take himself too seriously and let His Majesty the King of Chu support him as he walks.

If this is the case, his career is probably over.

Li Hezhang's Marquis' Mansion covers a large area, with a total of six courtyards in front and back, and deep and stacked halls and pavilions. The King of Chu visited him only in the inner study room of the third courtyard. The two sat down and had a secret discussion.

After the imperial physician diagnosed Li Hezhang's condition, it was found that he had fainted due to overwork and that it was not a serious problem. He only needed careful nursing care.

As the Prime Minister and Chief Minister of the Cabinet, Li Hezhang dealt with numerous major affairs both inside and outside the kingdom every day. It was also the time when the Chu State was undergoing its second round of in-depth industrialization, with large-scale projects coming one after another.

Since we have money, we will naturally devote ourselves to construction.

The Chu royal family and the Chu treasury frequently made large investments, and gathered Chinese capital from around Southeast Asia and foreign capital from Britain and France to invest in the construction of a large number of key engineering construction and industrial projects.

There are 57 super-large projects worth over one million yuan in the Grand Council, and none of them should be underestimated.

The largest project is the 10-ton deep-water terminal project in Manila, whose specifications and port grades are among the world's best. The investment is as high as more than 1360 million silver dollars, and the construction period is 7 years. The royal fund investment accounts for % of it.

This project was designed to respond to the new trend of larger and larger ocean-going ships under the development of steam industrialization, and to develop Manila into a shipping center for the entire South Seas.

Connecting the inside and outside, communicating between the north and the south, building an ocean route across the Pacific and Indian Oceans, becoming an important node port on the Eurasian route, aiming to face the future of the 20th century...

As Prime Minister, Li Hezhang goes to the 10-ton terminal construction site in Manila almost every month, staying there for a day or two to resolve various urgent matters on site.

And this is just one of many government affairs, and the pressure it brings is quite significant.

In the inner study
King Zheng Guohui of Chu expressed his concern for a few words, and the topic turned to the developments in Fusang in the north. He asked, "Brother Xianqie, what do you think?"

Li Hezhang bowed and made a "tea please" gesture. He originally wanted to light a cigar for His Majesty, but was rejected by King Zheng Guohui of Chu. It is not good to smoke while seeing a patient.

Hearing His Majesty's question, Li Hezhang must have thought about this international issue a long time ago, but he still did not answer in a hurry.

Instead, he thought about it carefully before answering cautiously:

"Report to Your Majesty
Looking back at the more than a thousand years of history since the Tang Dynasty, Japan has always been a country of mean character, being respectful at first and arrogant later, and there is a traceable pattern.

When the Central Plains dynasty was strong, the Japanese were humble and submissive, but otherwise they were brutal and brutal, repeatedly disturbing the border and offending the people, committing countless crimes.

We can understand this by learning from history.

Unfortunately, the land of the Northern Shenzhou is in turmoil at this time, and it is hard for it to take care of itself, let alone return.

Therefore, I am extremely pessimistic about the situation in the north.

The Japanese stirring up trouble is just the beginning, only once and countless times, until they are deeply hurt."

Li Hezhang's words were a bit vague, but King Zheng Guohui of Chu understood them immediately. This analysis based on history and ethnic characteristics was meaningful and very reliable.

The evil deeds of the Japanese are due to their mean nature of bullying the weak. Dramas like the "Ganghwa Island Incident" can only be suspended, not disappear, but will become more and more serious.

Until a force emerges that can strongly contain the Japanese, such as the famous generals who fought against the Japanese pirates in the Ming Dynasty, the situation will only get worse.

Such a judgment is very consistent with the original historical trajectory.

King Zheng Guohui of Chu sighed and said, "Every family has its own problems. For the sake of the kingdom's interests, we shouldn't get too deeply involved in the chaos in Northeast Asia. The waters are too deep."

His statement established the final position of the State of Chu.

"Your humble servant understands and will strictly follow the imperial edict." Although Li Hezhang felt somewhat unwilling, he knew the seriousness of the matter and responded respectfully.

Fuso is a dog raised by the British in Northeast Asia. It's okay to scold him a few times to scare him, but if they really want to beat him half to death with a stick, the British will probably not agree.

Anyone who displeases the British Empire will be in big trouble.

(End of this chapter)