Li Xingyuan, the governor of Liangjiang, and Yiliang, the general of Fuzhou, were transferred to the governorship of Liangjiang. Wang Yide, the governor of Fujian and Zhejiang, www.biquge.info moved to Beijing, and Jin Yishan, the governor of Lu'an Prefecture, moved to Fujian and served as the governor of Fujian and Zhejiang. These two edicts were published in the Di newspaper and quickly caused a sensation in the Qing Dynasty officialdom.

Coupled with the recent impeachment of Jiangsu Governor Fu Shenxun and the dismissal of Xu Jishe to take over as governor of Jiangsu, officials with a little vision have a premonition that a storm that can affect the entire Qing Dynasty pattern is coming.

Most of the officials in the southeastern provinces and the officials of the prefectures and counties were nervous, and many officials with a keen sense of smell and timid and cautious had to go up to the fold to say that they were sick and begging, for fear of being involved in the political dispute between Yuan Qi and the imperial court, and some of the bold officials wrote to Yi Zhizhi to show their attitude, and more officials were waiting and watching, not to mention the wealth of the southeastern provinces, this position is also extremely rare, I don't know how many officials are staring at this real lack of official position, they are reluctant.

Some people are worried that some people are naturally happy, and the officials of the Yuan Qi family are ecstatic, Xu Jishe was dismissed and was able to reinstate the governor of Jiangsu, not to mention, Jin Jishan was suddenly promoted from the prefect of Lu'an Prefecture to the second grade and the fourth level directly promoted to the governor of Fujian and the governor of Fujian and Zhejiang.

Yi Zhizhi is satisfied with a recommendation, the dismissed can be reinstated, and the fourth rank can be suddenly promoted to the second rank as the governor, how can this not make the officials of the Yuanqi family ecstatic? This is simply a shortcut to the end of life!

Shanghai, Zhenhai Road, Hongguiyuan.

Mianyu paced back and forth in the room with her hands behind her back, as if talking to herself, "Yi Zhishu is this trying to be the king of the southeast?" ”

Qiu Changshui, a staff member who was sitting on the tea, put down the teacup and said: "Lord, if Yi Guocheng has the heart to be the king of the southeast, he will not only move a governor and governor, and then he should be impeached on a large scale to install his henchmen and cronies." ”

Mianyu stopped and glanced at him, and said, "What do you mean, Yi Guocheng will be impeached next?" Will the court agree? ”

Qiu Changshui said slowly: "If the imperial court does not agree, a large-scale rebellion will inevitably break out again in the southeast, and it will inevitably be more violent. ”

Mianyu frowned, then stretched out, paced back to the coffee table and sat down, and said: "What do you mean, the large-scale party rebellion that broke out in the southeastern provinces is Yuan Qi manipulating behind the scenes?" ”

"Lord Wang might as well think about it, if the Taiping Army is manipulating behind his back, how can he be pacified by the Navy so easily? If the Taiping Army was manipulating behind the scenes, how could the Taiping Army not move during this time? Qiu Changshui said unhurriedly: "Apart from the Taiping Army, who else can have such a great ability to control the party in the capitals of several provinces in the southeast?" Only Yuanqi! ”

Mianyu listened to the cold behind her back, "In this way, sending troops to the northwest, recruiting new soldiers, and assisting the imperial court in encircling and suppressing the Taiping Army are all lies?" ”

"Not necessarily." Qiu Changshui shook his head slowly, "Yuan Qi is going to send troops to the northwest in a big way, how can he not worry about the fire in the backyard?" ”

This is also human nature, with the relationship between Yuanqi and the imperial court, how can you not be wary of the imperial court if you want to send troops to the northwest in a big way? In this way, Yi Zhi's eagerness to consolidate the southeastern provinces is also reasonable, Mianyu pondered for a while before saying: "Do you need to secretly play the emperor and connive at Yuanqi to consolidate the southeast?" ”

"That's not a rush." Qiu Changshui said slowly: "Let's wait and see." ”

Before the words fell, a long man hurriedly came in and reported: "Lord Wang, Citigroup Minister Humphrey. Mashali came. ”

"Hurry up, please." Mianyu hurriedly stood up and prepared to go out to greet her.

Qiu Changshui then got up and said: "The prince is the prince, and he is the current emperor'.....s uncle, and his status is extremely noble. ”

"That's right." Mianyu said with a smile and sat down slowly, "Mr. Lao Fu called the interpreter. ”

After a while, Marshali walked in with an interpreter, and Mianyu sat still, feeling a little unhappy, even if the status was noble, it would not be so rude, right? Immediately bowed slightly and said, "Under the American Minister to China, Humphrey. It is an honour to meet His Excellency Prince Hui in Shanghai. ”

Listening to the interpreter, Mianyu smiled and stretched out his hand and said, "Mr. Minister doesn't need to be polite, give me a seat." ”

Ma Shali Pinsu and Yi Zhixiang and the Prime Minister's Yamen officials enjoyed equal etiquette, Mianyu's high-minded posture made him feel very uncomfortable, and after sitting down, he asked directly: "Your Excellency the Prince, I don't know what to discuss?" ”

Mianyu glanced at the other party's translator and said, "Can you make your translator evade?" ”

After hesitating, Marshali ordered the interpreter to step back, and Mianyu said slowly: "I heard that your country can make Mini guns?" ”

Mini gun? Isn't Yuanqi capable of manufacturing? Marshali groaned slightly before saying, "Not bad." ”

Mianyu said softly: "Can your country sell a batch of precision machine tools for manufacturing Minny guns?" ”

"Did I hear me right?" Marshali said with a smile: "Your Excellency the Prince wants to purchase machinery and equipment from our country to manufacture Mini guns?" ”

Mianyu said: "The price is negotiable." ”

Although Ma Shali is not a China expert, but he is still clear about the relationship between Yuan Qi and the imperial court, and he realized that this is a rare opportunity, Yuan Qi himself can make Mini guns, and it is no problem to sell machinery and equipment to the Qing State to make Mini guns, he immediately opened his mouth, "We don't want money, we need a port like Macau and Hong Kong, and the port of Kaohsiung in Taiwan." ”

Lease the port of Kaohsiung? Mianyu was a little hesitant, although Xianfeng said that he would do whatever it takes, but when the news of the lease of Kaohsiung Port spread, he, the person who handled it, was afraid that he would be used as a scapegoat by Xianfeng, so he groaned slightly, and then he said: "This king can't agree to this, we can pay the gold." ”

"No, no, no." Marshali said with a smile: "Your Excellency does not know about the arms trade, we can sell weapons, but we will not sell the machinery and equipment to make weapons, unless it is exchanged for a large profit. ”

In exchange for renting Kaohsiung Port for the machinery and equipment to make Mini guns, Xianfeng would definitely agree, but Mianyu didn't want to bear this notoriety, so he pondered for a while before he said: "Buy Mini guns from your country, 50,000 pieces!" ”

Ma Shali realized that this was a rare opportunity to seize the port of Kaohsiung, and he was willing to let it go, so he immediately shook his head and said: "I'm sorry, we can't provide such a large amount of arms orders, the Minnie gun is now one of the most advanced muskets in the world, and it can provide up to 3,000 or 5,000 pieces." ”

After a pause, he continued: "If you purchase machinery and equipment, we can train the necessary skilled workers for you, and in addition, we can also provide supporting ammunition factories. ”

Although Mianyu was afraid of the notoriety of buying the country, but could not resist the temptation of the imperial court to make its own Mini guns and ammunition, pondering for two days, he wrote a secret letter to Xianfeng, he did not dare to use a telegram, for fear of leaking the news, in the secret compromise, he said that the Minister of Citigroup asked to sign a formal agreement with the Nanyang Prime Minister Yamen.

In just six days, Xianfeng returned the secret fold, and the Prime Minister of the Ministry of National Affairs and Foreign Affairs Baojun signed an agreement with Ma Shali.

Looking at the Zhu Pi on the dense fold, Mianyu secretly smiled, in this way, this black pot doesn't have to be carried by him! He knew very well that he had to take advantage of Yi Zhi's absence in Shanghai to finalize this matter as soon as possible, and immediately sent someone to let Baojun come in the evening.

After dark, Bao Jun hurried to the Red Longan, Bao Jun, the word Pei Yu, Suo Xue Luo, Manchuria inlaid with white flags, Daoguang eighteen years of Jinshi, the director of the Ministry of Rites, promoted to Zhongyun, three to study for a bachelor, Daoguang twenty-nine years into the prime minister's yamen, tired of moving to the prime minister.

Seeing Bao Jun coming, Mianyu was slightly cold and then retreated, took out the secret fold returned by Xianfeng, covered it up, and only let him see Xianfeng's Zhu Pi.

After reading Zhu Pi, Bao Jun knew that the agreement signed with Ma Shali would not be a good thing, and he didn't ask about the content of the agreement, when he said with a wry smile: "Lord Wang, it's okay to sign the agreement, but the lower official doesn't have a big seal, the seal is kept by Wu Changqing, and the lower official signs this agreement in a private capacity, can it be done?" ”

Mianyu listened to it, and immediately reacted, with Yi Zhi's relationship with Wu Changqing, of course he would hand over the seal letter to Wu Changqing for safekeeping, and secretly annoyed for a while, before he said: "You sign an agreement with Mashali first, and this king will send it to Jingshi to use the seal." ”

Bao Jun couldn't help but say, "What kind of agreement is it?" ”

As soon as Mianyu said the content of the agreement, Bao Jun waved his hand again and again: "Lord Wang, how dare you .....sign this agreement?" ”

Mianyu said in a deep voice: "Do you want to resist the decree?" ”

Bao Jun's face was pale when he boarded, he really didn't have the courage to resist the decree, and after a little hesitation, he said: "Lord, this is not what it used to be, and signing this agreement may not be a big leak." ”

"What else is too big to leak?" Mianyu said in a deep voice: "Don't worry, after the matter is completed, I will transfer you back to Jingshi." ”

On the afternoon of the next day, Ma Shali and Bao Jun signed a secret agreement at Hongguiyuan, the Sino-US Honggui Agreement, in which Citigroup provided all the machinery and equipment to assist the Beiyang Navy Division in establishing a military factory and a gunpowder factory in Tianjin, and sold 5,000 mini guns a year in exchange for leasing the port of Kaohsiung for 50 years. The agreement stipulates that the United States will not formally lease the port of Kaohsiung until the Tianjin military factory and gunpowder factory are officially put into operation. Of course, this is only a draft, and it will not take effect until Xianfeng uses the seal.

Although this agreement is a bit risky, Marshali still feels very satisfied, he believes that even Yuan Qi does not dare to openly violate this agreement, and 10,000 steps back, even if it is a loss, it is nothing more than the loss of a few sets of machinery and equipment, this is simply a profitable business.

Half a month later, Yi Zhifen, who had gone around from Guangzhou, Taiwan, returned to Shanghai, and the news spread, and the Zhenhai Mansion was full of people, and many gentry and businessmen came to visit, and all kinds of carriages and sedan chairs were discharged outside the door.

Seeing Lin Meilian coming in with a stack of names, Yi Zhixin couldn't help but be dumbfounded, and said with a puzzled face: "Who are they?" ”

Without waiting for Lin Meilian to speak, Bao Shichen smiled and said: "They are all shareholders of the southeastern provinces, and there are shareholders whose children are officials!" ”

Hearing this, Yi Zhi couldn't help but smile contentedly, and ordered: "Carefully register and sort out, and file the information of these officials." ”

Bao Shichen stroked his beard and said, "Sir, is this planning to cultivate the Yuanqi Party?" ”

Yi Zhizhi nodded and said: Yuan Qi's current situation, even if I have no intention of forming a party, I will form a party of my own. After a pause, he continued: "In the past, I was unable to protect myself, and I was unable to protect them, but now there is no need to worry, and there is no need to look ahead, it is not chilling." ”

Lin Meilian interjected: "The two provinces of Nanyang need a large number of officials, why didn't the lord think of using them?" ”

"The official of the two provinces in Nanyang is regarded as daunting, and I am reluctant to ask for an alternate officer." Yi Zhizhi said with a smile: "Besides, the two provinces of Nanyang are experimental places to try new management, and young officials who are knowledgeable and easy to accept new ideas are needed. As he spoke, he waved his hand, "Just say I'm busy, let them stop waiting outside, let them leave their addresses, and take the time to meet them in batches." ”

Lin Meilian said quite unexpectedly: "So many people, the lord has seen it?" ”

"It's okay to see each other in batches in the sub-prefectures and counties, no matter how you say it, it's also a shareholder of Yuanqi, it's not good to see it, and it's not good to favor one over the other."

After waiting for Lin Meilian to withdraw, Bao Shichen said slowly: "Since the lord plans to cultivate the Yuanqi Party, do you strike while the iron is hot?" ”

Yi Zhixiang smiled: "Mr. is not worried about being too ugly to eat and becoming the target of public criticism?" ”

Bao Shichen pondered and said: "Excluding the two provinces of Nanyang, at present, only the governors of Anhui, Jiangsu, and Fujian provinces are of the Yuanqi lineage, and there are almost no officials in the prefecture and county of Daozhou..... Far from the point of making the imperial court jealous, the lord may wish to greatly support the officials of the prefecture and county in the southeastern provinces, which can not only consolidate the southeast to avoid worries, but also cultivate power, and many officials in the southeastern provinces have recently said that they are sick and begging ..... to rest. ”

There are many officials who say that they are sick and begging for leave? Yi Zhizhi smiled contentedly, "This opportunity can't be missed." ”

"What's the chance?" With the words, Yan Shikuan walked in slowly, and after seeing the salute, he sat down at the bottom without seeing it, and said: "Big treasurer, Prince Hui has been in contact with Citigroup Marshali three times in Shanghai, and Bao Jun is also involved, I don't know what he is discussing. ”

Yi Zhishu frowned, "Didn't find anything?" ”

Yan Shikuan shook his head, "The precautions are very strict, and I can't find the slightest news, or the shopkeeper will come forward to talk to them head-on." ”

It's all old foxes, what can you say on the front? Yi Zhishu pondered for a while before he said: "Slowly, wait for them to relax and then check, this matter can't be relaxed!" ”

Jingshi, Qianqing Palace, Xinuan Pavilion.

The north wind is howling outside the hall, the snow is falling, the cold wind is biting, but the warm pavilion is warm like spring, Xianfeng sits on the kang and slowly puts down the electric bullet in his hand, which is sent by Yi Zhifen from Shanghai, and the impeachment is the two prefects of Jinhua Mansion and Ningbo Mansion in Zhejiang.

Glancing at Mu Zhang'a kneeling below with an expressionless face, Xianfeng said softly: "Quasi." Kneel down. ”

"The minions obey." Mu Zhang'a hurriedly bowed and said, after saluting, he slowly retreated, out of the warm pavilion, facing a cold wind blowing, he couldn't help but shudder, in less than two months, Yi Zhizu impeached more than 50 prefecture and county officials in the southeastern provinces, including thirty-three prefecture and county officials, twenty-one prefecture and county officials, Xianfeng without exception, all allowed, the government and the opposition were already boiling, he really didn't know when Yi Zhishu would stop.

In the warm pavilion, Xianfeng looked at the caisson with a gloomy expression on the kang, and secretly warned himself, endure, must endure! Not surprisingly, Citigroup's machinery and equipment for manufacturing mini guns and gunpowder will arrive in Tianjin next year, and there are 5,000 mini guns every year.