Beiyang Dream

Chapter 97 The First Three-Year Plan of the Beiyang Army

On the third day of the fourth month of the seventeenth year of the Guangxu reign, at 1:15 PM.

Hehaixuan is the innermost room on the second floor of Huilinchun Hotel in Hexiwu.

This place is secluded and quiet; people here believe in making a fortune quietly.

Yuan Shikai entered, his Henan accent booming, "Manager, bring out all the best dishes here! Don't look at the menu, just bring out the hearty ones!" A manager, a man in his forties or fifties, responded crisply, "Yes, sir! Snow-boiled carp, braised cuttlefish, braised oxtail..." "Yes, yes, yes, hurry up!" Yuan Shikai waved his hand, then turned and shouted outside, "Liu Tonghai! Why don't you three stand guard outside? Don't let anyone get within ten paces."

Once the curtain was pulled down, only five people remained inside.

Chang Desheng glanced around. A round table, a white tablecloth, and gleaming bowls and plates. A purple clay teapot was still steaming on a small table by the window—tsk, this place is well-chosen. Yuan Shikai, that big eater, must have been a regular here and gotten to know the shopkeeper well. The food here must be top-notch.

Sheng Xuanhuai sat to Yuan Shikai's right. In his early forties, with a fair complexion, gold-rimmed round glasses, and a royal blue satin robe with floral patterns, over which was a black gauze jacket. In later years, he would have been the CEO of a major state-owned enterprise. But in modern times, he was the financial tycoon of the Beiyang government!

Luo Xinglan sat next to Sheng Xuanhuai. He was dressed in the most exquisite silk robe, with eight rings on his ten fingers—the typical demeanor of a wealthy young master, as if he wanted everyone to know how rich his family was. But today, this young master had become an official.

A fifth-rank official, a candidate for prefect of Zhili! The Ministry of Personnel just bestowed this title upon him, it's still fresh in his mind!

Natalie… that woman.

She was wearing a moon-white dress today, with an incredibly slender waist, and her golden hair was styled in a bun, revealing a section of her snow-white neck. When she sat down, the chair creaked and slid closer to Chang Desheng, their elbows bumping against each other.

Chang Desheng moved half an inch to the side.

Natalie followed her another half foot.

Well, this was intentional. He simply stopped moving and even turned to smile at her.

"Ahem." Yuan Shikai cleared his throat: "Young Master Luo, you've done quite a service by delivering silver to Beijing this time. The Empress Dowager was so pleased that she rewarded you with a fifth-rank official hat and the title of acting prefect, to be stationed in Zhili. From now on, we'll be colleagues."

Luo Xinglan quickly stood up, cupped her hands in greeting, and said, "It is all thanks to the Grand Secretary's guidance and the Empress Dowager's grace. From now on... from now on, Xinglan can be considered the parent of the people of the Great Qing."

Chang Desheng thought to himself: "Wow, two hundred thousand taels of silver for a fifth-rank prefect. This deal is really not cheap!"

However, this will make it easier for the Luo family to conduct business in Zhili, allowing them to legitimately become "red-hat merchants" (merchants with official connections to the government). Once the Luanzhou Coal and Iron Joint Venture is established, he will have no problem becoming its general manager or co-manager.

Sheng Xuanhuai smiled and replied, "Prefect Luo is young and promising. In the future, our trade between Beiyang and Nanyang will be much more convenient."

"Convenient, convenient!" Luo Xinglan nodded repeatedly, and when she sat down, her back was straighter than usual. The feeling of being under the weight of a fifth-rank official's hat was truly different.

The food hadn't been served yet. Chang Desheng picked up his teacup, took a sip, and then turned to look at Natalie.

"Madam," he said with a smile, "don't keep it a secret anymore, tell everyone about the news you've received."

Natalie nodded, and spoke in her usual Tianjin accent:

"Two weeks ago, Japan signed a contract with the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in England for an ironclad warship. The standard displacement is over 10,000 tons, the main guns are ten inches, and the speed is 18.5 knots. The contract clearly states that... ...delivery is scheduled for the 20th year of the Guangxu Emperor's reign, 1894 in the Gregorian calendar." She paused, her blue eyes sweeping around.

"The price is £700,000. At the current exchange rate, that's more than four million taels of silver."

This news came out.

Sheng Xuanhuai's teacup, which he had raised to his lips, stopped in mid-air.

Yuan Shikai narrowed his eyes, and the憨厚 smile on his face gradually disappeared. After a long while, he finally managed to utter a sentence:

"Is the news...reliable?"

"Absolutely reliable." Natalie mimicked Chang Desheng's Tianjin accent quite well. "The telegram from our military attaché in London arrived in Tianjin three days ago. The first installment of £150,000 from Japan has already been transferred. The shipyard has all the materials ready."

Sheng Xuanhuai finally put down his teacup and pushed up his glasses: "Where did the Japanese get so much silver? More than four million taels... How much is their annual income?" Chang Desheng chimed in, his tone as if he were reporting a construction budget: "Lord Sheng, I've checked. Japan's army and navy expenditure last year was equivalent to 22 million taels of silver. What about our Beiyang Army? The Ministry of Revenue's allocation and our own resources totaled less than five million. They tightened their belts and could still scrape together more than 20 million taels a year to support their troops. And us? The little money we had to spend on building the Empress Dowager's garden had to beg from Southeast Asia."

His words were really hurtful.

Sheng Xuanhuai dared not utter a sound, and lowered his head to turn his jade snuff bottle.

Yuan Shikai sighed deeply, his breath heavy and hoarse: "The Japanese... how can they risk their entire nation's destiny for such a small place like Korea? And what about us..."

"It's precisely because they've staked their national destiny that they must win." Chang Desheng spoke slowly and deliberately, his tone unusually heavy. "Four million taels to buy this ship isn't just for show. It's for a life-or-death struggle. Once this ship is in the hands of the Japanese—Brother Weiting, Lord Sheng, that thunderbolt from Korea—it's sure to blow up." Sheng Xuanhuai frowned: "Surely not? Having this ship makes them dare to start a conflict?"

"Absolutely, absolutely absolutely," Yuan Shikai interjected, his voice laced with years of pent-up frustration. "Xingsun, why haven't you been to Korea? The Japanese there are getting more and more arrogant every day. In Seoul, the pro-Japanese faction is jumping around like crazy. I..." He gritted his teeth, "I only have four hundred guards under my command, and I have to abide by the treaty, I dare not make a move. These past years have been so frustrating!"

As he said this, he slammed his fist on the table, making the teacup bounce.

Seeing that the atmosphere was sufficiently built, Chang Desheng slowly began to speak: "So, when the Empress Dowager summoned me and Madame Bilo today, she specifically mentioned that there seem to be mines in Korea... right? They can also run some industries and cooperate with Germany."

His gaze swept over everyone present.

"Time is running out, only three years left."

"We have to hurry. Otherwise, once the Korean War breaks out, nothing will be easy."

Chang Desheng gave Luo Xinglan a wink. Luo Xinglan understood immediately and asked, "Zhenbang, what needs to be done?"

Chang Desheng held up two fingers.

"Two major projects."

"First, we need to arrange for our German friends to secure interests in Korea. If Japan doesn't attack, our Beiyang government can still make arrangements; if the Japanese do attack, Germany will have interests in Korea, making it easier for them to intervene. In the end, regardless of who wins or loses, Germany's interests will remain unaffected. This deal is a win-win for both our Beiyang government and Germany."

He looked at Natalie: "Mrs. Bilo, is this deal feasible?"

Natalie laughed: "I'm just a messenger, I can't make the decisions. But... I guess so."

Chang Desheng knew that when she said "should," she meant "can." This was a sure win for Germany.

He turned his gaze to Sheng Xuanhuai.

"Lord Sheng, you are the god of wealth for the Beiyang government. What do you think?"