Minister Ai Liguo and Xiao Letian parted ways, one heading south and the other heading north. Zai Chun looked at the master with great admiration on the deck. This negotiation was truly wonderful. The resourcefulness and dexterity displayed by the master were really hard to imagine.
Facing the old British fox, instead of firing directly, he used two so-called fictional stories to pry open the psychological defense line, step by step, put the opponent into his own rhythm, and finally won a complete victory.
Zai Chun extremely hoped that he could have such a good eloquence. In the future, he would be able to talk to other scholars in the court. It would be a great feeling.
But why didn't the master feel any joy after boarding the ship, and instead got into the cabin with a tired look on his face? Zai Chun wanted to go in to visit his master, but before he could take a step, he saw Wang Huaiyuan and Sakamoto Ryoma walking in in a hurry, and then slammed the door shut.
"Forget it, let's wait until midnight to talk to the master in detail..." Zai Chun didn't dare to disturb the meeting in the cabin and turned back to his cabin.
The Zhiyuan broke through the waves and began to head north along the coastline of the Jiaodong Peninsula. On the channel beyond the sight of the east, one cargo ship after another was riding the wind and waves all the way north, passing through the Tsushima Strait and heading towards the Sea of Japan.
Countless cargo ships carried the weapons and equipment provided by the Chinese to the Far East Volunteer Army, while military cargo ships from the United States farther south were unloading their cargo. Some ships even headed north without even unloading their cargo.
Hundreds of millions of funds were withdrawn from the south of the Yangtze River and poured into Ryukyu like a river of gold. The arms trade route from Europe has been cut off at this moment. Prussia sent the last shipment of arms planned to the Chinese last month, and the remaining They must use all their resources to prepare for war.
The British inspections of Chinese supplies have also become stricter, and it is impossible to try to purchase arms from other European countries. Fortunately, the U.S. Pacific waterways are relatively safe. Although Americans are accustomed to taking advantage of the situation and driving up prices, there is nothing that can be done about it.
The funds raised from Jiangnan finally came in handy. Greedy American businessmen were shocked by the wealth of the East. Almost all arms traders on the West Coast joined in this once-in-a-lifetime fortune feast.
Money has turned into arms and supplies, and supplies have become the fuel of war that burns lives in the Far East battlefield. The decisive battle in Vladivostok is getting closer and closer.
"How is the weather in Vladivostok now?" Xiao Letian asked.
"It's still very cold, but the snow in sunny areas is already showing signs of melting, and the ice on the river is not that strong anymore. The military reports these days have reported that soldiers and equipment were injured and lost due to the breakage of the ice... …”
"The south of the Yangtze River is already green, but the white mountains and black waters are still frozen. It's also April. Why is there such a big gap!" Xiao Letian rubbed his temples. "Will this have an impact on the war?"
Wang Huaiyuan smiled and said, "The Prime Minister is wrong. The current weather has no impact but is beneficial to us! Because once the snowfall that lasts all winter melts and the rivers are opened, the entire Far East will become muddy, which will be detrimental to the movement of our army. Very disadvantageous!”
Xiao Letian nodded, "Very good, what's the comparison of the strength of the two sides now?"
"Throughout the winter, Tsarist Russian commander Diyachenko has been shrinking his troops. Currently, there are 3,000 Tsarist Russian regular troops in Vladivostok Fortress, more than 7,000 servants in Outer Mongolia, and a total of 10,000 army troops..."
"As for the navy, the 12 Vladivostok defense fleets have a total of more than 2,300 sailors. Once the Russian warships that escaped from Amami Island are reunited, the navy's strength can reach more than 3,000, that's all..."
Sakamoto Ryoma looked through the information with a smile on his face, "On the contrary, Mr. Long is much more optimistic. After a winter of continuous military expansion, General Xiang now has four reorganized divisions, including the first division led by Chu Zhao and the first division led by Lu Ying. The second division is basically built with Chinese officers as the skeleton!"
"The third and fourth divisions led by Shimazu Dairo and Suzuki Tai are composed of Japanese samurai as the management framework. The 40,000-strong army has begun to take shape..."
Xiao Letian frowned, "Is this the general ordered by Master Long? Can the four of them do it?"
Wang Huaiyuan smiled, "If we go by the standards of our Chinese people, the four of them must be close... After all, Hyōtaro Noheita and the others don't have mixed division commanders... But that's the Far East, not the Chinese. With the local soldiers The quality of our officers is enough!"
Wang Huaiyuan is not bragging. The training of Chinese military officers is absolutely No. 1 in Asia, and even in Europe. Shimazu Tairo and Suzuki Tai were far less famous than Nohira Tai and Hyoutaro in the Fuso Samurai officer group, and their positions among the Chinese were not high.
But if such a second-line officer were placed in the Qing Dynasty or Fusang, he would definitely be a proper army commander.
There are also Chu Zhao and Lu Ying, both mid-level officers who grew up together with Luo Huo. They were members of the Shanshen Temple Musket Team back then. Compared with Luo Huo, their abilities are much inferior to those of Luo Huo.
But if they were thrown into the Xishan Camp or the Yulin New Army, they would definitely be treated like top leaders based on their abilities. Needless to say other examples, let’s just talk about the homework in this picture.
In order to draw military maps, these mid-level officers have begun to learn preliminary calculus knowledge, which is an unimaginably high standard in Europe.
"Forty thousand versus 13,000..." Xiao Letian calculated carefully, "On the surface, we do have the advantage, but the quality of the soldiers is different!"
"The Tsarist Russian soldiers who can be stationed in Vladivostok are all carefully selected from veterans, including the servants of Northern Mongolia, who are even more fierce and brutal. At that time, the Eight Banners of the Manchus could only form alliances with them through marriage. , should not be underestimated!”
"By the way! Are there reinforcements sent from Central Asia? Do any of the Tsarist Russian cavalry have any information?"
Wang Huaiyuan's expression became awkward. "I'm really sorry. The CIA's intelligence network on Outer Mongolia is still very rough. After Lake Baikal, that's our blind spot. We really know nothing and our subordinates are incompetent..."
"No, no, no, you don't have to blame yourself. That land is indeed too far away from the Central Plains, and you are not a god... Anyway, the Tsarist Russian reinforcements must be coming in a hurry. Our battle in Vladivostok must be Speeding up!”
"Use the fastest speed to eat up the garrison in Vladivostok, and then order Long Ye to move north and station troops south of Heilongjiang... Then we will be across the river from the Tsarist Russian reinforcements!"
"The weather is getting warmer. As long as the ice breaks on the Heilongjiang River, the Tsarist Russian reinforcements, which lack ships, will never cross the river. If we hold the Heilongjiang defense line, we can make this war a protracted war..."
"Haha, the north of Heilongjiang is sparsely populated. I'll see where they go to get supplies! They will starve to death by then..."
