The mage in the late Qing Dynasty

Jiu'ao Mountain is very close to Taipa Island, and he received a reply just after lunch.

Tan Bili heard the news and hid.

Several gambling houses are now closed and their bosses have fled.

Business in Shushan is booming.

"Boss, Tao Tao said that although Tan Bili is hiding, he is contacting the Japanese and preparing to clear his name. He shouted, how can the seized weapons be confiscated and how can they be returned."

Zhao Chuanxin raised his eyebrows: "Oh, that toad yawned so loudly."

"What about us?"

"Let's see what tricks he can do, but I guess it has something to do with the Japanese."

At this time, Chui Shuiju actually went up to Jiuao Mountain.

He was on duty today and it was his turn to take over.

When they got closer, Chui Shuiju pointed at a lamb that was kneeling in front of a house not far away, sticking its butt out and drinking milk. He wondered, "Look at that wagging tail. Boss, why do you think that sheep is so tall?" Like a dog?"

Zhao Chuanxin looked at it and found that it was indeed the case.

This is probably not a native variety.

Zhao Chuanxin said cheerfully: "You don't know something. This is a sheep dog, not a native dog."

Chuishuiju just chuckled, but the other member of the adjudication panel, who was about to take his turn, left thoughtfully.

At this time, a snot-nosed kid ran over with red eyes and complained: "Uncle, my dad beat me again after drinking."

Zhao Chuanxin can't control if parents beat their children.

He casually stuffed a piece of candy into the snotty baby's mouth.

This is the cure for childhood.

As expected, Snotlout showed a smile on his face, but he still gritted his teeth and said, "I hate it when he hits me after drinking wine!"

Zhao Chuanxin squinted his eyes and asked, "What do you hate?"

The snot-nosed kid smacked his lips and smacked the sweet taste: "I hate the person who invented wine."

"..."

Zhao Chuanxin was startled: The hatred is really justified.

…

Tan Bili did not leave Ao Island, and his hiding place was even on Taipa Island.

After visiting Zhao Chuanxin and the Erchen Pill merchant ship incident, Lu Lianruo easily found out where Tan Bili was hiding and paid a visit.

Tan Bili was in the reception room and said calmly: "Nephew Lu Xian, do you have anything to do with me?"

His attitude is lukewarm, as if he is talking to you just for the sake of your damn old man.

Lu Lianruo was not annoyed at all, and said sincerely: "Uncle Shi, I came to visit today. Lianruo is here to persuade me to make peace."

Tan Bili frowned: "Persuading peace? What kind of peace are you persuading?"

Lu Lianruo said: "Actually, Mr. Zhao Chuanxin's original intention is not necessarily to go against all the gambling houses in our island. Wouldn't it be better if everyone makes money by being harmonious and continues to do business?"

Tan Bili sneered, took a sip of tea, and did not answer.

Lu Lianruo had no choice but to say: "Actually, we were the ones who started this matter from beginning to end. Why not give in? Uncle Shi, you see, you have also provoked the imperial navy recently. It is better to do less than to do more... "

This time, before he could finish his words, he was interrupted by Tan Bili, who said in an arrogant tone: "Xiannephew, are you here to see Tan's joke? Today, Tan made a rumor that not only the navy of the imperial court will be freed, but Tatsumaru, all my quick guns have to be returned, and this time Tan doesn’t have to spend a tael of silver. If Tan is not under the command of Amon, even if your father is here, he still has to give Tan three points of thin noodles today."

Lu Lianruo opened his mouth, said nothing more, stood up and left.

No matter how deep your cultivation is, it is still an insult to your late father. The Clay Bodhisattva still has three parts of fire nature.

But I was thinking: As soon as I told Zhao Chuanxin the news, Erchen Pill was detained. This matter was obviously related to him. This Tan Bili has already half-stepped into the gate of hell, and he doesn't even know it yet?

Fortunately, I felt guilty and came to persuade him, but it’s really hard to persuade him with good words!

What's the use of being arrogant now? If you offend Zhao Chuanxin, will you get some good results?

Well, just sit back and watch him build a tall building and entertain guests, but the building collapses!

…

Originally, the captain of the Futatsu Maru had accepted the punishment and decided to comply with it.

The Qing Dynasty's South China Sea Regional Administration Guangdong Fleet had a total of 37 ships.

In fact, the Qing Dynasty also had warships, otherwise it would not have fought the Sino-Japanese War.

It is said that the Qing court's warships are quite advanced.

I was just scared.

The Guangdong fleet has a total tonnage of 11,000 tons and is controlled by Zhang Renjun, the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi.

After the warship was seized and the batch of guns and ammunition was confiscated, especially Tan Bili who was wanted, Tan Bili immediately became anxious.

Immediately call your Japanese friends, offer them the benefits you deserve, and beg them to handle the matter.

After all the connections, Japan's Third Fleet, the third-class cruiser "Izumi", issued a report on the incident to Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Japan was on good terms with Britain at this time, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs immediately contacted the British, who contacted a high-ranking official in the capital.

This man's name was Robert Hurd, and he turned out to be a British guy.

He was a first-rank official, had the title of Chief Envoy, and was in charge of the General Taxation Department of the Qing court.

I have to say it's weird.

This guy was very involved in the Qing court, and even extended his claws into the navy. Fortunately, Li Hongzhang was clear-headed and stopped his behavior in time.

This man was a powerful opportunist. He first sought a high position in the Qing court, and then used his influence in the Qing court to gain recognition from the British and was appointed as the British Minister to China.

On the one hand, he was proud to be British, but at the same time he also had feelings for the Qing court, because all his "skills" came from the power given by the Qing court, so he couldn't stand the foreigners' rough treatment of the Chinese.

However, at critical moments, he would always prefer the British side.

For example, this time, when the British contacted him, he immediately teamed up with Rosada, the new Portuguese governor of Australia Island, and the Japanese colluded.

Not only did they deny it, they said: The Erchen Maru had an accurate receipt and was legally carrying weapons into Macau.

As if they felt that the Qing Dynasty was not worthy of seizing their things, they even said back that Ao Island belongs to Portuguese territorial waters, so the Qing court's interception was an illegal seizure.

Japanese Minister Lin Linquan sent a note to the Qing court, claiming that the Qing court had breached the contract and acted barbarically. It immediately released the Erchen Maru, returned the national flag, severely punished all illegal officials, and expressed gratitude for the bad handling of the case as a warning to others.

Portuguese Minister Bai Langgu was two days late before notifying the Qing court, but his tone was equally unkind: the seizure of the Erchen Maru violated Portugal's coastal rights and hindered Portugal's sovereignty.

When Zhang Renjun got the news, he became angry and said: "It's unreasonable to call a deer a horse! Call the court immediately and you must refute it. The Erchen Maru must not be released!"

However, when he handed the paper to the Forbidden City.

This is what Cixi said to the ministers: "It's just a merchant ship. Don't offend your friends, just let it go. That Zhang Jian'an is too violent."

Jian'an is Zhang Renjun's surname.

Ministers: "..."

Although there were opinions, no one refuted them.

So he promised.

But Lafayette just said that the ship would be released, without giving any details.

Therefore, the ministers who still had some bottom line discussed privately and felt that they could not be so embarrassed and at least found a way out for themselves.

Therefore, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded to Japanese Minister Hayashi Gonsuke and said: "We should ask a neutral country, neither Japan nor Portugal, but the British Fleet Commander to act as an arbitrator and conduct a public judgment on this case."

In fact, now, in the hearts of Chinese people, who is the largest country in the world?

It’s not the United States, it’s not Tsarist Russia, it’s not Portugal, and Japan, which has just emerged a few years ago, is even less ranked, but the British Empire, which is known as “the sun never sets.”

In the minds of Qing court officials, it was fair to ask the British fleet commander to judge.

However, Hayashi Gonsuke categorically refused: “We, the Empire of Japan, and Portugal, unanimously believe that this matter is your fault and does not require a British public judgment.

Not only that, I also want to make five demands to the Qing court.

First, immediately put back the Futchen Maru.

Second, when returning the cargo ship, the Qing warships had to fire cannons to apologize.

Third, the seized guns and ammunition must be purchased by the Qing Dynasty, with a total price of 21,500 yen.

Fourth, deal with the officials responsible for the seizure of the Futatsu Maru, as well as the crew.

Fifth, compensate for the losses caused by this incident and the missed business opportunities.

Only when these five items are met can the Erchen Maru be completed.

Otherwise, the Imperial Japanese cruiser Izumi is just the vanguard, and we will join forces with the Portuguese warships to ask for an explanation from your country. "

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Qing court was afraid of this, and their claws became numb when they heard it.

Report the matter to Cixi immediately.

Cixi was furious and slapped the table on the spot and said: "Is there no lesson learned from the past? Is it worth it for a small merchant ship? I immediately released the Erchen Maru for me, and I agreed to all the conditions. It's no big deal. With the friendship It’s important.”

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs informed Lin Quanzhu of this matter. Lin Quanzhu had been keeping a serious face for many days, and then he smiled.

As soon as this decision came out, Zhang Renjun was shocked when he received the news: "What? Confused, all the princes in the dynasty are really confused, too..."

Seeing that he was in a hurry and had a pale face, and spoke indiscriminately, the master quickly stopped: "Supervisor, please don't lie."

Zhang Renjun took a deep breath: "But this, this, this is simply a great shame and humiliation."

The master rolled his eyes: "Actually, there may not be a turning point. Why not go find that person and talk to him?"

"Who?" Zhang Renjun asked angrily.

The master pointed to the southwest: "The commoner named Zhao."

The master is also bad. In one sentence, he secretly replied to what Zhang Renjun said many days ago.

Nowadays, national affairs really depend on a mere commoner.

Zhang Renjun subconsciously wanted to object, but the words were stuck in his throat and he couldn't say anything.

After a moment, he let out a long sigh: "On the other side of the court, the Queen Mother has already spoken, and there is no room for change. The old lady spoke softly. She is afraid that there is nothing she can do to save her life. It seems that she can only try her luck. So, you go there..."

The master shook his head: "There are too many people who know me. If I am discovered, the news will spread to the ears of the people in the capital, which will delay the important affairs of the Dutai. We don't need to make a big splash, we only need to send a lifetime of faces to the island to bring the news to the immediate area. But. If it can be done, it will be done. If it can’t be done, the supervisor will do his best."

"Okay, let's do it like this!" Zhang Renjun treated the dead horse as a live doctor.

However, it seems that in order to quickly eliminate the disaster, Cixi agreed to the five conditions quickly and implemented them even faster.

Almost on the next day, the Qing court's Guangdong Navy was preparing to release the Erchen Maru on the Kyushu Ocean.

Zhang Renjun, who controls the Guangdong Navy, certainly knows this.

He was so anxious that the corners of his mouth were blistered: "How's it going? Hasn't the messenger arrived yet? The 21,500 yen are already prepared. Hey..."

"Never stop, change horses without changing people, we will definitely get there." The master smiled bitterly, never expecting that the Buddha in the capital had been kneeling for a long time, and even this embarrassing thing was too slow: "It's just that this time, one after another Come on, can he catch up with Zhao Chuanxin?"