In March 1907, Wu Haoxuan inspected the Lushun Fortress. In the armistice agreement signed with Japan, it was clearly stipulated that Japan would hand over the Arthur Fortress to the Jilin Army in its entirety, otherwise the Jilin Army would not release Japanese prisoners of war.

Therefore, even though the Japanese were helpless, they did not destroy the Lushun Fortress, so that the Jilin Army could take over the Lushun Fortress completely.

Lushun is located in the southernmost part of the Liaodong Peninsula, about 34 kilometers away from Dalian City in the east, bordering the Yellow Sea in the south, the Bohai Sea in the northwest, and the Shandong Peninsula across the Bohai Strait. In terms of topography, the port is to the south, with Golden Mountain in the east and Cockscomb Mountain in the west, and the port is only 270 meters wide, which is convenient for fortification; Entering the port, it is relatively wide, three nautical miles long from east to west, although the water is not too deep, but it is still a good port. It was first discovered and started to operate during the Qing Dynasty government's construction of the Beiyang Navy. The construction of the Arthur dockyard began in 1881 and was completed in September 1890, becoming an important base of the Beiyang Navy.

In the Sino-Japanese War of 1894, Lushun was easily captured by the Japanese army, and 20,000 inhabitants were slaughtered. Due to the "intervention of Russia, France, and Germany to return Liao", Japan was forced to withdraw its troops from then on. Then, in 1898, Russia forcibly leased Port Arthur and Dalian, and in 1899, it turned the leased lands of Arthur and Dalian into the Russian "Kwantung Prefecture". After seizing the ice-free port of Arthur, the Russians moved the main base of the Pacific Fleet here in 1900 and spent a lot of money to build it into the most powerful fortress in the East. Russia's hegemony in the Far East depends to a large extent on its sea supremacy, and the key to its sea supremacy lies in Port Arthur. Japan also wants to occupy Northeast China, knowing that only by completely destroying Russia's sea supremacy can it ensure the safety of its sea transportation lines and facilitate the concentration of its army forces in a decisive battle with the Russian Army in Northeast China. So the "Oriental dogs" and "polar bears" went crazy in the northeast.

After the occupation of Arthur by the Japanese. Huge investments began in the restoration and expansion of the fortress. The Japanese Navy planned to operate Arthur as an important military port, repairing not only the berths, but also the shore fortifications. However, all this cheapened Wu Haoxuan's Northern Army. With this fortress in hand, it can become a base for the future Northern Navy.

"The Japanese have done us a great favor! If they hadn't repaired the fortress, we'd have just repaired it. You'll have to invest a lot of money! Wu Haoxuan couldn't help but sigh after inspecting the Lushun Fortress.

"Young marshal, this is indeed a bargain we have picked up. Many of the fortresses that were destroyed during the Russo-Japanese War were rebuilt by the Japanese. It is said that in order to restore the fortress of Arthur, the Japanese invested tens of millions of yen. Major General Zhao Tianwei, who temporarily acted as the commander of the Lushun Fortress, said. Once the navy is established, the fortress will be handed over to the navy. Now, it is temporarily stationed by the 2nd Heavy Artillery Brigade. After all, these large-caliber fortress guns can only be operated by the officers and soldiers of the 2nd Heavy Artillery Brigade.

"Hmmm! But. In the next war, Arthur will definitely become the focus of the Japanese attack, and we must find a way to further strengthen the defense of the fortress. Wu Haoxuan said. Whether it was the First Sino-Japanese War or the Russo-Japanese War, the Japanese took the Arthur Fortress as the focus of their attacks. Once the Northern Navy is based in Arthur, the Japanese will inevitably focus on attacking here.

"Young marshal, we can buy some large-caliber fortified guns from the Germans to replace the old coastal defense guns in the fortress." Major General Zhao Tianwei said. Many of the fortress guns in Arthur Fortress are old Russian-made fortress guns. It's been many years, range and power. are far inferior to the current large-caliber fortress guns. If it can be replaced with advanced fortress guns, this will inevitably make the combat effectiveness of Arthur fortress to a higher level.

Wu Haoxuan nodded, he was about to find an opportunity to talk to the Germans about buying weapons and equipment. In addition, although the industrial output of the Germans is not as high as that of the Americans, their technological level is far higher than that of the Americans. The development of the seven northern provinces cannot be completely dependent on the Americans alone. Just as eggs can't be put in one basket, Wu Haoxuan must have more allies.

"Young marshal, the guests have arrived." At this time, Li Yanling said to Wu Haoxuan.

"Well, okay. Let's go meet you. Wu Haoxuan nodded.

At this time, in an office in the Lushun Fortress, two middle-aged men in robes with braids on the back of their heads were sitting opposite each other.

"Hengqi, I didn't expect them to invite you too. It seems that the northern government really wants to build a navy! This is a wonderful opportunity for us sinners! A middle-aged man with a somewhat thin figure said.

"Brother Ding Ming, the Chinese Navy has been in decline for a long time, but our enemies are getting stronger and stronger, if we don't catch up, we will never have a chance again." Another middle-aged man said.

These two people are the guests invited by Wu Haoxuan, Sa Zhenbing and Cheng Biguang. These two were the most outstanding generals of the Chinese navy at the end of the Qing Dynasty, and Wu Haoxuan had to have their support if he wanted to develop the navy. Otherwise, it's all empty talk. After all, the navy is not only capable of having warships, but also needs excellent commanders to command.

Sa Zhenbing is now the prime minister of the Nanyang Navy and the admiral of the Guangdong Navy, and belongs to the Manchu Qing Dynasty. And Cheng Biguang is the commander of the cruiser fleet, which can be regarded as a high authority. It's a pity that the current Chinese Navy has existed in name only. These high-ranking admirals of the navy may sound like big officials, but this is getting farther and farther away from the ambitions they want to achieve.

In the First Sino-Japanese War, Sa Zhenbing was ordered to garrison Ridao and failed to participate in the First Sino-Japanese Naval Battle, which has always been the biggest regret in his life. And his dream is to one day command the Chinese Navy, defeat the enemy of Japan, and avenge the comrades who died in their country.

As for Cheng Biguang, he was the pipe band of the 'Guang C' in the First Sino-Japanese Naval Battle. During the naval battle, the "Guangbing" fired a cannon shot on the Japanese ship "Saikyo Maru" and caused a fire, and the torpedo boat "Fukulong" took the opportunity to fire two torpedoes. It's a pity that both torpedoes missed, and they narrowly escaped. During the naval battle, Cheng Biguang was hit by shrapnel in the abdomen and was bloodstained**.

On January 30, 1895, the Japanese army began to attack Weihaiwei, after which the Beiyang Navy was trapped in Weihaiwei Harbor. On February 11, Admiral Ding Ruchang and Yang Yonglin, the leader of the "Zhenyuan" of the Nursing Left Wing General Military Administration, both refused to surrender and committed suicide. Some foreigners discussed the surrender with Niu Changbing and others from the Weihaiwei Battalion Office, and decided that the American foreigner Haowei would draft a surrender document and surrender to the enemy in the name of Ding Ruchang. On the 12th, Cheng Biguang took the "Zhenbei" gunboat to deliver the instrument of surrender to the Japanese flagship.

After the war, Cheng Biguang was dismissed and returned to his hometown. His younger brother Kuiguang, who was then the "Zhentao" ship pipe belt of the Guangdong Navy Division, joined the Xingzhong Association in Guangzhou because of his relationship with Sun Dacang's fellow villagers. After Cheng Biguang returned to his hometown, he was persuaded by Sun Dacang and his younger brother to agree to join the club. In October 1895, the plan for the Xingzhonghui uprising was leaked, and Cheng Biguang fled to Penang, Nanyang. In 1896, when Li Hongzhang was on a mission to Europe, when he passed through Penang, Cheng Biguang told him, and Li Hongzhang persuaded him to return to China and asked him to be exempted from the responsibility of being wiped out in the First Sino-Japanese War.

Cheng Biguang returned to China and resumed his service in the Navy. Later, he successively served as the warship management belt, the director of the Harbour Master's Department, and the commander of the cruiser fleet. He once led the cruiser Haiqi to England to participate in the coronation ceremony of the British king. Later, large-scale anti-Chinese incidents occurred in Cuba and Mexico. Cheng Suishuai's visit to Cuba was warmly welcomed by the local Chinese, but the Cuban president was intimidated by the military might of the Haiqi warship, so he had no choice but to tell Cheng Biguang: "The Cuban military and civilians will never discriminate against overseas Chinese." The Mexican government apologized to the Qing government for the anti-Chinese incident and compensated the victims for the loss of life and property of the victims. The Chinese warship only canceled the visit. Cheng Biguang conducted a successful gunboat diplomacy during the voyage.

"Brother Ding Ming, do you say that the young marshal of the Northern Army will really develop the navy? They were able to defeat the Japanese in last year's war, and the army was undoubtedly the strongest in the country. If they are willing to develop the navy, this is certainly our hope! A hint of expectation flashed in Cheng Biguang's eyes.

Sa Zhenbing shook his head: "I don't know, the navy is not as good as the army, and it needs to invest a lot of money." However, if the Northern Army does not just want to divide one side, they will definitely invest in the navy. It's just that if we want to defeat our enemies, we need to invest a lot of money, and I don't know if they will be willing to invest. ”

The hope in Cheng Biguang's eyes was instantly annihilated. He naturally knew that the navy was very money-burning. Even the Beiyang government does not have the money to develop the navy now, will the northern government increase investment in this area?

"Haha! General Sa is right when he says that the Navy needs a lot of investment. However, I can assure both of you that the government of the North is absolutely willing to invest in the navy. Our goal is to defeat the Japanese Navy once and for all! A young voice rang out.

Sa Zhenbing and Cheng Biguang hurriedly stood up and looked at the door of the office. I saw a young man in his early twenties walking through the door with a female officer.

"Haoxuan didn't intend to eavesdrop on the conversation between General Sa and General Cheng, and asked the two generals to forgive their sins." Wu Haoxuan apologized first, and his posture was very low.

"The young marshal is serious." Sa Zhenbing shook his head.

"Young marshal, is what you said true? Will the government of the North really make a big push for the navy? Cheng Biguang was a little breathless and couldn't wait to ask. (To be continued......)

PS: The third update is here, and I am anxious to support the recommendation vote!! Thank you for the book friend who only loves history! Thank you for the monthly pass of Dalian Haiyun, Peibin, Ida Rubik's Cube, and Lewd *Trivial Female Breast* room!