Part 3 Chapter 24: God of Wealth Investment

The commander-in-chief of the Vietnam Free Army, Nguyen Phucqing, was unable to escape in the end. He put on a torn dress and put on makeup and wanted to escape. On the way, he encountered pursuers from the First Brigade, and a row of bullets knocked Nguyen Phucqing into a sieve. Nguyen Phucqing's concubine was a very affectionate woman. She did not run away with Nguyen Phucqing, but stayed with Calmondo.

None of the thirty-three French officers fled, but gathered in the command post, dressed neatly, then poured themselves a cup of coffee, and sat quietly in waiting for the arrival of the winner.

A dramatic scene happened. When François, the acting brigade commander of the First Brigade, came up with the brigade command center, the soldiers came to report and arrested some French officers. François shrugged regretfully and came to the temporary command post of the rebels.

"François! You are not dead?" Calmondo shouted in surprise. When François saw him, he couldn't help but show a surprised expression and said, "Oh, damn, why are you here? Colonel, aren't you in Phnom Penh?"

Calmondo smiled bitterly and said, "I'm sorry, now I am no longer your boss, but your captive. I hope you and your army can treat these gentlemen with preferential treatment."

"This is absolutely fine. Governor Shen Congyun is a kind person."

His former boss became his own prisoner. François couldn't help but sigh that his fate was changing, and he was also glad that he had made a choice to make Shen Congyun work hard.

The battle officially started to control the situation, and it took only one day to say that it was a quick battle. Being able to achieve such a victory mainly depends on sufficient preparation. Keze began to collect intelligence six months ago, and then comprehensively selected the best route of entry, allowing Wang Chao's troops to use the cover of rainy days to march at the ferry crossing day and night. In the selection of fighter jets, it also achieved the effect of being unprepared. It is not suitable for combat in Vietnam during the rainy season, but Shen Congyun and Keze went the other way.

This was also an insignificant battle. As the winning group of Shen Congyun, he didn't think there was anything to show off. He worked hard for many years to run the new army and invested a lot of money in equipment and was the first-class in the country in terms of staffing. If even a group of mobs could not win, Shen Congyun could really hit him and killed him.

"This can only be considered a practical acting! Focus on the future!" Shen Congyun simply said this at the subsequent summary meeting. What is the future? There was a document "If the war between China and Japan begins" in Keze's bag.

This is a big topic. When Shen Congyun handed over the document to Keze, Keze opened his mouth slightly in surprise. The German nature was reflected at this time. He silently took it and put it in his bag without asking any questions. Keze's manifestation was in Shen Congyun's expectation. Shen Congyun was glad that his annual salary of 20,000 taels of silver per year was not wasted. In the future, it seems that the main energy should be spent on making money, and to prepare for all wars for the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895.

Once the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895 begins, how can the new army far away in Vietnam complete the mobilization in the shortest time? This question is too big, but it must be taken seriously. This is the mission entrusted to Shen Congyun by history.

Railway and shipping are naturally the first choice.

When Chen Congyun came back from Saigon, the first thing he did was to urgently call Zheng Guanying and Keze, who were in Shanghai, immediately put the shipping company's business in priority.

This time, the three major shareholders thought of one another. Zheng Guanying and Stephen had long taken the matter of the shipping company. With the growth of the Sino-US United Group's business, Zheng Guanying, who has always been visionary, thought of this matter half a year ago and discussed it with Stephen at that time. Unfortunately, nothing in the industrial zone in Jiading was formal.

Now Shen Congyun took the initiative to propose that the three of them really hit it off. Currently, the main transportation channel for rails in the coal mines transported from Vietnam is to rent Li Hongzhang's ships from China Merchants. This is a product under the official supervision and business model. Its competitiveness is far less than that of foreign shipping companies. Shen Congyun rents the China Merchants ships for political purposes, and the side effect of the increase in transportation costs. The coal mines transported from Vietnam to Guangzhou and Shanghai are cheaper than coal mines produced by Li Hongzhang's Kaiping Coal Mine, and the profit for every 10 tons of coal mines is only one cent. Among them, there is the factor that Shen Congyun wants to open up the market, but the high transportation costs are also the main reason for the profit of coal mines.

"You must have your own freighter and fleet!" This is the dead order made by Shen Congyun in the telegram.

…………………………

In 1889, there was a little more rain in Shanghai. Although the temperature in southern China is not low, when the rainy weather, when the cold wind stomps into the cuffs and neck, it makes people feel colder.

The four-wheeled carriage was walking on the road in Shanghai. Zheng Guanying and Stephen sat in the carriage. Stephen lowered the curtains on the car window, took back the curse of dissatisfaction and said, "Damn the weather, damn British."

"Don't be angry, you should have known the greed of the British for a long time. This is also the reason why I suggested that the negotiations with the British were just to show other countries. Let's think more about Germany. As a new capitalist power, the Germans' desire for the market is enough to get us a good price. Where can I get the money for six 5,000-ton freighters?" Zheng Guanying said and began to sigh with a frown, and Stephen also frowned.

"Zheng, I don't understand very much. Even if we run a shipping company, do we use so many large ships? Do we have so many cargo transportation?" Stephen asked a very rational question from a commercial perspective.

Zheng Guanying glanced at Stephen and said, "Even if the six cargo ships start construction now, they will be in place in three to five years at the earliest. At that time, these cargo ships will have a place to be used. Brother Zigui often considers the problem from a long-term perspective, so you don't have to doubt it."

The carriage was parked outside the gate of the Sino-US United Group. Zheng Guanying had just gotten off. Tang Shaoyi came up with an umbrella. While picking Zheng Guanying off, he whispered in Zheng Guanying's ear: "Sheng Xuanhuai is here." Zheng Guanying nodded to show that he knew, Tang Tang Shaoyi said again: "Hu Xueyan is here too."

"Ah!" Zheng Guanying stopped and smiled bitterly, "Didn't they bump into it?"

"No, Hu Xueyan came first, I'll arrange to wait in the backyard."

"Hi! Tang, I am a shareholder and your boss. You shouldn't hide anything from me." Stephen, who got off the car afterwards, muttered dissatisfied when he saw Zheng Guanying's expression strange.

Tang Shaoyi glanced at Stephen without refuting him. Zheng Guanying turned around and whispered: "Stephen, what do you know about the private affairs between Chinese people? Go and entertain Shanda of the Steamship Merchants Group."

Sheng Xuanhuai was standing in front of the window and staring outside. He clearly saw the scene of Zheng Guanying and Stephen getting off the car, and Zheng Guanying's expression was a little amused. Sheng Xuanhuai couldn't help but smile bitterly. It seemed that he was really an unpopular person. Since Zheng Guanying left China Merchants Group, Sheng Xuanhuai became the actual new leader of China Merchants Group. With the death of Tang Tingshu, Sheng Xuanhuai became an irreplaceable figure in Li Hongzhang's Westernization Career.

In the business of the Steel Ship Merchants Corporation, Zheng Guanying left because he was dissatisfied with Sheng Xuanhuai's embezzlement of funds several times to do other things. There were some conflicts between the two. Zheng Guanying has always been very dissatisfied with Sheng Xuanhuai's use of an official to suppress merchants, believing that since he wanted to do business, he should do things according to the rules of the traders and misappropriate working capital at will, which is a destruction for the development and growth of the Steel Ship Merchants Corporation.

It’s not a day or two that Sheng Xuanhuai and Zheng Guanying will deal with each other. They usually smile at each other, and there are a layer secretly separated. Why did Sheng Xuanhuai leave on his own initiative when Shen Congyun and Zheng Guanying talked a few times? He just didn’t want to make Shen Congyun embarrassed. However, this time, Shen Congyun was really going to make things difficult for him. Sheng Xuanhuai didn’t go to the Three Treasures Hall without any trouble, so he came here to make Shen Congyun embarrassed.

Li Hongzhang wanted to build a railway, build a railway from Tianjin to Shanhaiguan, and there was a shortage of money to build a railway, so Li Hongzhang asked Sheng Xuan to find Shen Congyun to get some money.

"Zhengxiang!" Sheng Xuanhuai came out from the inside to greet him. Zheng Guanying smiled in surprise and bowed, "Xingsun, it's just right here. You are the God of Wealth. You just borrow some silver from you to spend it."

Sheng Xuanhuai couldn't laugh anymore, and pointed at Zheng Guanying and said, "You Zhengxiang, you are so bad, so thief."

Zheng Guanying smiled and let Sheng Xuanhuai in. As he walked, he smiled and said, "It's not that I don't give Xingsun the face, it's really a tight hand,..."

Sheng Xuanhuai shook his hand and interrupted, "Zhengxiang, please send Zigui a telegram, even if Lord Zhongtang wants to build a railway, he will build a road from Tianjin Shanhaiguan."

"Build a railway?" Zheng Guanying was also stunned and asked involuntarily.

Sheng Xuanhuai nodded, and Zheng Guanying immediately smiled at it and said, "I'll say it earlier. I'll pay for the freight myself, the railway tracks are cheaper, it's a small matter."

Sheng Xuanhuai walked in with a wry smile, and said as he walked: "It's not that it's cheaper, it's that the railway tracks are provided for free."

"Ah!" Zheng Guanying looked like someone who was robbed of Tao, and his head firmly said, "No, absolutely not."

"Yes, absolutely not!" Stephen also understood what Sheng Xuanhuai was here to do after Tang Shaoyi's translation, and his head shook with him.

"Zhengxiang! Don't worry about refusal, discuss with Zigui before discussing it?" Sheng Xuanhuai said with a smile. In fact, he knew it. As long as Li Hongzhang sent a telegram to Shen Congyun, it would not be difficult to accomplish. However, if Li Hongzhang had to use Li Hongzhang to come forward, Sheng Xuanhuai's ability would not be able to show his ability if the matter was done, right?

Speaking of Chen Congyun, Zheng Guanying's face darkened, and glared at Sheng Xuanhuai and said, "Xingsun, you still say I am a thief, I think you are a real thief. You know, Zigui will definitely spare no effort to support him when he hears that he wants to build a railway. But now the company has a big business, so where does it not need money? You are cutting off the firewood from the bottom of the pot."

Sheng Xuanhuai glanced at Stephen and said, "Mr. Stephen, I have something private to talk to Zhengxiang. Please avoid it?"

Stephen muttered dissatisfiedly: "I am a shareholder, I have the right..."

"Stephen, stop complaining." Zheng Guanying's words were still very restrictive to Stephen. Stephen muttered and left, and the subsequent words became Hebrew, and Zheng Guanying couldn't understand them.

"Zhengxiang, the news I just received, Zhang Zhidong proposed to build the Luhan Railway."

“Luhan Railway?”

"Yes, from Lugou Bridge to Hanyang! Li Zhongtang asked me to discuss with Zhang Zhidong in private. The two railways should be built together, provided that they report to the court at the same time. In the future, as long as the railway is built, the required railways will be purchased from the Sino-US Joint Group! Li Zhongtang also sent a telegram to Zuo Zongtang in private, making this suggestion. Guess how Zuo Zongtang called back?" The expression on Sheng Xuanhuai's face was already very telling, and Zheng Guanying took a deep breath and said:

"The three giants join forces to report?"

"Yes! Zuo Zongtang agreed very simply, and he didn't even mention any conditions. He was surprised. Don't say you were surprised. Lord Zhongtang also sighed at that time, saying that he was not as broad as Zuo Jigao. Building a railway is a major event that benefits the country and the people. Zuo Jigao has always taken the world as his responsibility in the face of such big troubles."

…………………………

Although Sheng Xuanhuai did not receive a definite reply, he still smiled when he left. Not to mention anything else, the unified procurement of railway tracks in the future will be enough to impress Zheng Guanying. Sheng Xuanhuai was very proud of this. This trick was suggested by him and Li Hongzhang. There was also the intention of helping Chen Congyun, and there was also the plan to save money from it. You should know that so many railway tracks were bought from foreigners, and the silver was thrown out like a sea of ​​scattered.

Li Hongzhang saved these money and planned to buy a new cruiser from the UK. These were private matters, so Sheng Xuanhuai naturally would not say anything. There was another thing that Sheng Xuanhuai did not dare to say, that is, after the emperor's wedding and ruled, Empress Dowager Cixi wanted to build a garden, but she didn't have the money to move her mind to the military expenses of the Beiyang Navy.

(Note, Liang Qichao said, "Liang Qichao said that since the defeat of Majiang, the ministers have been competing for the navy to train and prepare 30 million yuan...... The Summer Palace project started, and all the funds raised were used for civil engineering." I personally believe in the following view that Cixi embezzled the naval expenses to build the Summer Palace, but only 30 million taels, which is an exaggeration for political purposes. One view is that Cixi embezzled 8 million taels of naval funds before and after, and I personally believe in this view. Even if it is eight million, it is enough to buy another Beiyang Navy. Grandma, Cixi, this bitch!)

The biggest thing that happened in 1889 was the wedding of Emperor Guangxu. Although Cixi retreated behind the scenes, she still controlled the government affairs. Guangxu was just a puppet on the front line in Cixi's hands. Chen Congyun had a clear understanding of this issue. The side effect of Guangxu's entry into power was that Weng Tonghe took money as money. The Ministry of Revenue spent 5 million taels of silver at the wedding. He thought that Weng Tonghe's restrictions on Li Hongzhang became even worse.

After the "Beayang Navy Charter" was confirmed, Qingliu conservative figures led by Weng Tonghe and Li Hongzao began to clamor for the Beiyang Navy to become an army. When the investment was reduced, Li Hongzhang himself boasted, "As far as the Bohai Portal is concerned, there is already a deep and unshakable momentum."

Based on the above two points, the decision of the Ministry of Revenue in 1891 stipulated that the Southern and Northern Navy's Navy would stop purchasing foreign ships within two years. Although there is the shadow of Qingliu led by Weng Tonghe, it is sometimes difficult to explain the whole story of historical issues.

Without talking, he saw Sheng Xuanhuai away. When he returned to the living room, Hu Xueyan had already bowed to Zheng Guanying with a smile and said, "Mr. Zheng is rich! Lord Zuo has submitted a report to the court and proposed to build roads and purchase railways in a unified manner."

Zheng Guanying is really a dumb person who eats coptis chinensis. He has no choice but to provide rails for free. How much does it cost to spend? I finally saved some money to buy a ship, but now it seems that I have lost it.

"Brother Xueyan is joking. You are the serious God of Wealth." Zheng Guanying bowed with a smile.

"Haha, I don't tell lies in front of the real person. Hu Xueyan came today to repay his kindness." Hu Xueyan also made it straight to the point. Zheng Guanying was stunned when he heard this, "How can I explain this?"

Hu Xueyan smiled and said, "I heard that Brother Zheng is running around to raise money to buy freighters. Guangyong is interested in participating in a group. I don't know if Brother Zheng will give you this face."

Zheng Guanying smiled without saying a word and said, "Oh? The news from God of Wealth is that it is clear. Isn't Brother Xueyan raising funds for the Nanyang Navy? Why are you interested in throwing money into my small temple?"

Hu Xueyan smiled bitterly and said, "Gangyi wants to be transferred to the capital, and the new governor of Guangdong and Guangxi is likely to be Li Hanzhang. Therefore, let's wait and see for the purchase of warships. Zhang Zhidong is going to set up a large-scale Hubei Guns and Cannon Factory. Now he is preparing a money-making bureau and issuing silver dollars in Huguang. So, Zhang Zhidong asked Lord Zuo to discuss the silver issue, but Lord Zuo refused and asked me to find a way myself."

Understand! Zhang Zhidong asked Hu Xueyan to borrow money, but Hu Xueyan didn't want to borrow money, so he came to Zheng Guanying and proposed to invest in the shipping company. In this way, when Zhang Zhidong borrowed money, Hu Xueyan had at least some contact to borrow less.

"Haha, Brother Xueyan wants to invest, it's a good thing. But Brother Xueyan should always pay a low price, right?"
Chapter completed!