Volume 1: The Battleship Yitian Changes into the Sino-Japanese War of 1894 Chapter 72: Being Rejected
These days, he summarized the intelligence he collected and sent it to Li Hongzhang so that he could know the current situation around him. These days, his mind has been focused on the issue of purchasing ships.
A few days ago, Li Hongzhang sent him a telegram saying that the Japanese had paid all the indemnities, half in silver and half in gold, and that the navy funds had all been received. Money was no longer a problem, and now it was up to him, the Minister of the Navy, to do his job.
He was really surprised that the Japanese were able to pay the indemnity so quickly.
In order to launch this war, the Japanese risked all their money. Not only did they raise funds for military expenses across the country, but they also issued war bonds in the UK. As a result, this time, because of this little butterfly, the Japanese lost the gamble. According to the information Chen Zhijian obtained from Japanese trading companies, Japan's domestic economy was in a depression, supplies were in short supply, and the people were starving. So where did they get so much hard currency to pay off the indemnity all at once?
This matter needs to be investigated thoroughly! He thought about it, found Chen Zhijian, and asked him to carefully check where the Japanese money came from. Chen Zhijian took the order and left.
After being busy for a while, he put down the work in his hands, lay straight on the chair and began to rest.
The body has rested, but the brain has not.
His mind was now filled with beautiful blueprints for a large navy.
If China had two more "Monarch" class battleships, five "Haining" class fast cruisers, plus a certain number of destroyers and submarines, the Beiyang Fleet would be strong enough to compete with the Russian Pacific Fleet. The Japanese fleet would not be able to compete with the Beiyang Fleet in a short period of time. Then, China could firmly suppress Japan and not give it a chance to rise again!
When China has enough strength and time to develop its own economy, it will not be long before China will completely break free from the shackles of the great powers and truly stand up!
What will China be like in the future? He looked at the fake braid in his hand and couldn't help but smile bitterly.
Thanks to this time traveler, the officers and soldiers of the Beiyang Fleet no longer have to wear braids.
It turned out that after the Battle of the Yellow Sea, many soldiers with head injuries died due to bacterial infection on their braids, which caused inflammation of the wounds. Foreign officers and doctors suggested that the Chinese navy cut their braids to avoid such tragedies. Ding Ruchang agreed with this and, on behalf of the naval officers, submitted a memorial to the court , requesting that the naval officers be allowed to cut their braids, which were a place where dirt and filth could be hidden. As a result, the court refused to allow the braids to be cut, claiming that it was "not in accordance with ancestral system." But the problem of braids easily infecting wounds does exist (it seems that even Emperor Guangxu suffered from this). Ding Ruchang saw that Sun Gang always had a bald head and a fake braid (he was a later generation and would never grow his hair and keep a braid). He couldn't help but have an idea. After discussing with Sun Gang, he wrote a letter to the court, asking the court for a compromise, which was to cut off the braids, make them into wigs and preserve them, and remove the braids to fight in wartime to avoid infection. In normal times, when there were inspections by superiors or military parades, the braids would be put on again, "to show that the ancestral system is not forgotten, which can be a win-win solution." In order to convince the court, Sun Gang also quoted the British tradition of wearing wigs, "British nobles wear wigs to show their supreme honor whenever the House of Representatives meets, the King summons them, and officials adjudicate cases. It is reasonable." After he added this sentence to Ding Ruchang's letter and handed it out, as expected, this time the court agreed.
Fooling the imperial court of the Celestial Empire made him feel very accomplished.
"Only you dare to make such a blatant joke on the imperial court." When his beloved wife found out afterwards, she almost burst out laughing, but she also admired his quick wit. After all, many Chinese men no longer have to wear long braids behind their heads, which is a sign of progress.
"You can solve such a difficult problem as braids, why don't you think of a way to reform women's clothing." That day, his beloved wife looked at him very "seriously" and gave him a very bad idea, "I can't wear suspenders when going out in the summer. I always get heat rash. It's so annoying."
"Oh my god." Sun Gang was so upset when he heard this. " The problem you gave me is too big. I can't solve it for now. Let's discuss it later."
Wearing suspenders on the street in this era? Don't scare me. Thinking about the possible scenarios, Sun Gang felt a chill.
He was just daydreaming about Cao Cao, and then Cao Cao appeared.
Because his beloved wife helped the officers and soldiers of the Beiyang Fleet solve many difficult economic problems and won their unanimous support, she now basically regards the Navy Office as her own home and can come and go freely without anyone bothering her at all.
"Looks like you have a lot of free time today," she said mischievously as she ran in.
"I'm waiting for news from Britain and Germany." Sun Gang said. He had entrusted Chinese Minister to Britain Gong Zhaoyuan to order two "Monarch" class battleships and two new fast cruisers from Britain's Palmer Shipyard, and entrusted Chinese Minister to Germany Xu Jingcheng to order three new armored cruisers from Germany's Vulcan Shipyard. It was already the New Year of 1895, but there had been no response from the two ministers, which made him very anxious.
After so long, won't something go wrong again? He thought with some worry.
Ma Yue walked up to him and gently rubbed his shoulders. She looked at him tenderly and wanted to say something, but seeing his thoughtful look, she didn't have the heart to disturb him.
"Sir, this is a telegram forwarded from the Zongli Yamen." An officer delivering the telegram came in, saw the two of them, saluted, and said respectfully.
Sun Gang took the telegram and the officer turned and left. Sun Gang glanced at the telegram in his hand and his expression changed slightly.
Ma Yue beside him was stunned, tilted her head to look at the telegram, and couldn't help but smile slightly.
Sun Gang looked at her and said blankly, "You expected this a long time ago, didn't you?"
The telegram was from Gong Zhaoyuan, saying that the British refused to sell the "Monarch" class battleships to China!
Seeing his dream shattered in an instant, he felt a deep sense of loss that was simply impossible for him to accept for a while.
He calmed himself down, read the telegram carefully, and handed it to his beloved wife.
Gong Zhaoyuan said that he had negotiated with the British government many times, but the British were always vague. They had no objection to China's ordering of fast cruisers, but they never agreed to buy battleships. "The British are quite suspicious about the fact that our country has huge ironclad ships. I don't know why." In order to buy battleships, Gong Zhaoyuan made a special trip to visit Lang Weili, who was once the chief instructor of the Beiyang Fleet and the current commander of the British Royal Navy Reserve Fleet, listened to his opinions, and asked him to mediate. Lang Weili believed that the British government might not be willing to sell such a new battleship to China. He suggested that if it really didn't work, they could buy British "Centurion" class battleships to replace the "Sovereign" class, and the British government might allow it. However, after he checked the situation, he told Gong Zhaoyuan frustratedly that even if he bought the "Centurion" class battleships, the British government would not agree. In the end, only a contract to buy cruisers was reached.
Gong Zhaoyuan was so angry that she sent a telegram directly to Xu Jingcheng in Germany, asking him to contact the German government to see if he could buy battleships from Germany. "Although the performance of the Chad is not as good as the 'Monarch', if possible, buy one first to meet the emergency." But unexpectedly, the Germans also refused to sell battleships to China this time!
According to Xu Jingcheng, the Germans tactfully stated that they were actually very willing to sell the "Brandenburg" class battleships to China, but under pressure from Britain, they could only accept orders for cruisers. They also said that if China needed ships other than battleships, there would be no problem. In the end, Xu Jingcheng had no choice but to reach an agreement with Germany to order armored cruisers.
"...Last time, when we ordered the two ships 'Chaoyong' and 'Yangwei' from the British factory, they were expensive and of poor quality, and we were not allowed to visit them. When we ordered the 'Dingyuan' and 'Zhenyuan' from the German factory, the British refused to export Compon armour (steel composite armour, also known as steel-faced iron armour) to Germany. After all these things, they now refuse to sell us huge ships. They do not want our navy to be strong. I hope they can make a plan as soon as possible, otherwise they will regret it..." Xu Jingcheng's words made a lot of sense and were helpless. They also saw what the British were thinking, but they had tried their best.
"Are you dumbfounded now?" Ma Yue finished reading the telegram, threw it on the table and said, "What else can we do? Buy from Russia? From the United States?"
Sun Gang gave a bitter smile. To be honest, he was a little dumbfounded.
Not only did the British refuse to sell, they also prevented the Germans from selling battleships to China!
Buy from Russia? You must be kidding! You just forced the Russians out of Port Arthur, and you expect them to sell you battleships? That's as ridiculous as Chinese football winning the World Cup! Not to mention how well their ships are built.
Buy from the United States? Impossible! The Americans and the Japanese are now in the same group! During the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895, the American Minister, Dean Bey, once bluntly said that only if China was defeated could China and the world be "harmonious". At that time, the United States hoped that Japan would open the door to China. Would the Americans sell battleships to China?
Buy from France? During the Sino-French War, France occupied Vietnam by force, and annihilated the Fujian Navy by surprise attack, and caused great damage to the Fuzhou Shipyard. Before the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895, France showed signs of jointly sending troops to China with Japan. Do you expect the French to sell you battleships? I don't think you will.
What should I do? What should I do? His face was filled with anxiety and confusion. Since he came here, he felt panic for the first time.
Looking at his appearance, his beloved wife finally couldn't help but chuckle.
"Look at you now, you're the same as when you first arrived at the beach." She looked at him with loving eyes, which was the expression young mothers often had when they saw their babies doing something stupid.
"Do you have any idea?" Sun Gang grabbed her wrist and pulled her into his arms, pretending to be a hungry tiger pouncing on its prey. "Tell me now! If you don't, I will..."
