King of Beiyang

Autumn of the fourteenth year of the Guangxu Emperor's reign.

Tianjin was the residence of the Governor-General of Zhili, commonly known as the Beiyang Minister's Office.

Li Hongzhang, the Governor-General of Zhili and Minister of Beiyang of the Qing Empire, is reading a book.

After finishing his busy work each day, Li Hongzhang would read books in his spare time, which was a rare moment of relaxation for him.

I've read this copy of "Zeng Guofan's Family Instructions" countless times.

Zeng Guofan can be considered Li Hongzhang's mentor. As early as the 25th year of the Daoguang Emperor's reign, Li Hongzhang became Zeng Guofan's student, learning practical skills. Two years later, he passed the imperial examination and became a Jinshi.

Li Hongzhang's career also began with serving as a staff member for Zeng Guofan.

Afterwards, Li Hongzhang returned to Luzhou in Anhui Province and founded the Huai Army, which received support from Zeng Guofan.

From then on, Li Hongzhang rose rapidly in rank and is now at the pinnacle of his power.

"It's a win, sir! It's a win!"

The butler came running in from outside, panting, his face beaming with smiles.

"What kind of behavior is this, shouting and yelling? What exactly did you win?!" Li Hongzhang put down his book, looking displeased.

"Master, the Third Young Master has passed! The Third Young Master has successfully passed the provincial examination!" the steward hurriedly reported.

"The third son passed the imperial examination too? Great! That's wonderful! The third son passed the imperial examination at only eighteen years old. He has truly surpassed his father!" Li Hongzhang was overjoyed.

It's worth noting that Li Hongzhang was already 21 years old when he passed the imperial examination.

Last year, when his eldest son, Li Jingshu, passed the imperial examination, he was already 22 years old.

His eldest son, or rather his adopted son Li Jingfang, was already 27 years old when he passed the imperial examination.

His sons were all outstanding, which greatly pleased Li Hongzhang and made him believe that his educational methods had been a great success.

"Father, I heard that my third brother passed the high school entrance exam? That's wonderful!"

A young man strode in, his face beaming with joy.

He was Li Jingshu, the eldest son of Li Hongzhang.

"Hmm! Third brother did a great job this time, not wasting all the years of my teaching!" Li Hongzhang was very satisfied.

In fact, Li Hongzhang has had a lot of headaches over the years regarding his third son, Li Jingyuan.

Li Jingyuan was mischievous from a young age. He disliked poetry and books, but loved to practice martial arts and developed a muscular physique like a warrior.

He also had a great passion for Western learning, and was fluent in English and German. He was also adept at chemistry and physics.

But I just can't seem to get interested in the Four Books and Five Classics.

  

This gave Li Hongzhang a major headache.

As the saying goes, "Of all professions, only studying is noble!"

For scholars, there was only one way out: to pass the imperial examinations and gain official rank.

How can one participate in the imperial examinations if one does not understand the Four Books and Five Classics?

Surely the Li family can't produce a spoiled brat without any official rank?

Fortunately, Li Jingyuan lived up to expectations and passed the provincial examination on his first attempt, which made Li Hongzhang very proud!

He was already looking forward to next year's imperial examination. If Li Jingyuan could pass the examination and become a Jinshi, it would bring glory to the Li family.

"By the way, what about the third brother? Did he find out that he passed the imperial examination?" Li Hongzhang asked.

The butler glanced at the sky and said, "Master, at this hour, the Third Young Master is probably still taking a nap!"

"What? This unfilial son! The sun is almost setting and he's still taking a nap! Go and fetch him right now!" The smile on Li Hongzhang's face vanished instantly.

There were simply too many things about Li Jingyuan that he couldn't stand.

Especially compared to Li Jingshu's gentle and virtuous character, they are simply two extremes.

"Father, my third brother must be exhausted from taking the imperial examinations these past few days. It's only right that he rests afterward," Li Jingshu explained to Li Jingfang.

"Hmph!" Li Hongzhang snorted coldly. Didn't he, as the father, know what kind of person that unfilial son was?

If it weren't for the resemblance between the father and son, he would have even doubted whether the child was his!

In the backyard, in Li Jingyuan's room.

Li Jingyuan had just woken up and was sitting on the bed in a daze.

The imperial examinations are over, and if nothing unexpected happens, I should pass with flying colors this time.

So, after passing the imperial examination, the next step can be implemented.

No one knows that the current Li Jingyuan is actually a time traveler from the future.

The real third son of the Li family, Li Jingyuan, died young.

So Li Jingyuan essentially usurped the position.

Li Jingyuan, though an engineering student who worked in mechanical research and development after graduating from university, had a deep love for history, especially modern history. He had memorized both domestic and international history.

One evening after get off work, Li Jingyuan was hit and killed by a drunk driver while trying to save a child.

Unexpectedly, when he woke up, he found that he had transmigrated and become the third young master of the Li family, who was supposed to die young.

Over the past decade or so, Li Jingyuan has grown accustomed to this new identity.

Li Jingyuan's father was Li Zhongtang, a high-ranking official. Logically speaking, even if Li Jingyuan just lazed around and waited to die, he could have lived a comfortable life.

Even after Old Li passes away, with the Li family's assets, he could live a comfortable life.

But soon, the entire country and nation will fall into an abyss, into an irrecoverable abyss.

No one was spared during the more than half-century of darkness.

Now that we've finally managed to travel to this era, it would be a waste not to do anything.

So, over the years, Li Jingyuan had been making preparations in secret.

First and foremost, those who aspire to great things must have a healthy body.

The original owner of this body died young, presumably because of her poor health.

Therefore, from a young age, Li Jingyuan learned from the guards in his household and worked hard to improve his physical condition.

Over the course of more than a decade, he developed a muscular physique. If this were in later generations, it would be enough to make a group of wealthy women scream with excitement.

Secondly, for the Qing Empire at present, the most critical threat is the Japanese devils in the east.

Since the Meiji Restoration, the Japanese have been tightening their belts and preparing for war.

The target, naturally, was the increasingly corrupt Qing Empire.

As far as the Qing Empire was concerned at the time, only the Beiyang Army was worthy of fighting.

Even on the international stage, the Beiyang Fleet and the Beiyang Training Army were at best third-rate.

Within the Qing Empire, this was a top-tier army. The rest, whether the Eight Banners or the Green Standard Army, were utter trash!

Unfortunately, the Japanese, who had been preparing for decades, were clearly not someone that the increasingly corrupt Beiyang Army could handle.

In the First Sino-Japanese War, the Beiyang Fleet was almost completely annihilated. The Beiyang Training Army also suffered heavy losses.

Li Hongzhang, who was loyal to the Qing Dynasty, had no choice but to take the blame. After signing the Treaty of Shimonoseki, he was dismissed from his posts as Governor-General of Zhili and Minister of Beiyang.

It was after this that Yuan Shikai seized the opportunity to rise to power and inherited the entire Beiyang Group.

Of course, this is also why Li Hongzhang's sons are all disappointing and unable to shoulder the responsibility.

Therefore, the foundation laid by Li Hongzhang ended up in the hands of Yuan Shikai.

Yuan Shikai was an even more treacherous and ambitious man. After the fall of the Qing Dynasty, he attempted to turn back the clock of history and wanted to become emperor himself. As a result, he was remembered with infamy for eternity.

In this timeline, Li Jingyuan absolutely cannot tolerate the Beiyang Group being usurped by Yuan Shikai again!

As the third son of the Li family, it was only natural for him to inherit his father's business and take over the Beiyang Group!