The telegram was from Cai Bixia. It was short and simple: "Please quickly send an airship to Beijing for exercises!"
"Ouch... It seems that our Navy Flower has made a breakthrough in the capital? Is this a big order?" Xiao Letian shook the telegram and said with a smile.
"The Manchus are not stupid. After fighting against the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom in the south for so many years, these people have already accepted the weapon-only ideology!"
"When really good weapons appear, they are still willing to give them up!"
"With them, you have a financial surplus of more than 10 million yuan a year? Do you still want to purchase weapons?"
"What are you afraid of? Isn't this the best fat sheep given to us?"
"If we don't have money, let them cede land to pay for it. Our fortress plan is short of land anyway!"
People were talking a lot. Xiao Letian turned and asked Luo Huo, "How many airships are returning to China with you this time?"
"Three of them have been packed up and sent to Naha with the ship. The rest of the airships are staying in Germany for weapons system upgrade experiments. It will take at least a year and a half to come back!"
"There are three more ships... hurry up and send them to Cai Bixia. She is talking about a big deal, so there is no time to delay!"
"We really can't rush this!" Luo Huo shook his head. "The three airships have been dismantled into parts. Many of them need to be reprocessed by our factory according to the drawings. It will definitely not work within a month!"
It is not a simple matter to transport a huge aircraft like an airship from Europe back to Asia. No ship can hold the entire airship.
It can only be taken home after being disassembled and packed!
The air bags must be completely deflated and then folded and packed, and the armed pods must also be dismantled. Many wood and metal parts have been left in Europe. As long as the Chinese can produce them themselves, there is no need to waste cabin space!
There is no need to transport the keels, wooden hulls, and a layer of iron armor in the armed pods to Asia!
Just take the drawings and go back to Asia for processing and installation!
The three airships at the moment are actually three large piles of parts in the Naha military warehouse. The parts that have not been brought back are being worked on by a large number of carpenters and blacksmiths!
Xiao Letian thought about it and there was nothing he could do about it. "Hey... send a telegram to our Navy Flower! We can only delay it for another month!"
Cai Bixia, this is really a urgent job! She was responsible for the final implementation of the fortress plan in the capital, but she found that the entire Manchu Qing court was not as easy to deceive as she thought!
Although the Manchus and Qing Dynasties had developed a deep fear of the Chinese people, after studying the history of the Han people for two hundred years, these senior Manchu and Qing Dynasty officials also developed very skilled imperial skills!
Especially the balance method of using the enemy to control the enemy is also very easy to play!
The Chinese, Britain, France, Tsarist Russia, the United States, and the emerging Germany... these countries have diplomatic relations with the Manchu Qing Dynasty, and the water has been muddied!
Under such circumstances, Xiao Letian cannot overly force a sovereign country recognized by all nations!
Although Zai Chun had signed a secret agreement with the Chinese and promised to concession a large number of special zones, after all, this was a secret agreement completed before Emperor Tongzhi came to power!
If the entire Manchu government impeached the emperor's secret agreement collectively and refused to implement it, then Xiao Letian could only stare!
You can't start a war just because of this, right? If you want to start a war, the British will have an excuse to intervene!
After all, we still have to get the opposing forces in Zai Chun to nod and acknowledge this secret agreement, so that we can get those special zones in the concession safely and smoothly!
The task was so arduous that Cai Bixia secretly sneaked into the capital several days in advance just to think about how to break the situation!
During the observation period, Cai Bixia also met with the head of state’s secret ally, Zeng Guofan, the founder of the Hunan Army!
At the critical moment, the old commander gave the key to breaking the situation. Facing the complacent Manchu Qing Dynasty, you can't even think of using normal tricks to impress them!
You can’t talk to these people about industrialization, steel production, natural technology, or new business models!
These things are not urgent for the Manchus! This Eight Banners military group has spent two hundred years evolving itself into an iron-shelled turtle!
"Escape is their first choice when encountering problems. Short-sightedness has become a common problem for them!"
"In the final analysis, the Manchus ruled the Central Plains through the Eight Banners Military Alliance! They prospered by force and ruled by force!"
"The foundation of their rule in the Qing Dynasty lies in their military force!"
"If the Manchu Qing Dynasty can ensure that its Eight Banners military group is the first armed group in the Central Plains, it can also ensure the foundation of their governance!"
"Once this fundamental point is gone! Their painting will be self-defeating... because this group does not have the ability to govern civilly!"
"Not to mention the natural sciences of Westerners now! This is their shortcoming and cannot be made up for!"
Zeng Guofan said to Cai Bixia, "The only way is to sell them anxiety, so that they will always worry that their men have insufficient force and cannot continue to rule such a large country!"
"If you can do this, I think Xiao Letian's fortress plan will be successful!"
Cai Bixia got some advice from Zeng Guofan and immediately found his direction!
When she met Ci'an in Beihai, she was not in a hurry to show off the new Chinese weapons to the Manchu Concession. She was like a witch seducing a child, constantly shaking new toys in front of Zaichun!
Of course Zai Chun was easily fooled, but Ci'an was an old fox. She was not that easy to deceive and instead rejected Cai Bixia's arms order!
Just when Cai Bixia thought that the old commander's strategy was not working, he never expected that Zai Chun's political enemy Prince Gong Yixin would offer him an olive branch!
Prince Qing Yikuang sent an invitation to the Ermao Mansion to entertain the Chinese envoy Cai Bixia at his palace!
It was the first time in the Qing Dynasty in more than 200 years that the arrogant and prejudiced Manchu royal family could entertain a Chinese envoy with a woman!
In a patriarchal society, being able to make an exception for Cai Bixia shows that Guiziliu is really tempted by the Chinese's new weapons!
It has been snowing in the capital for the past three days, and it has been snowing from morning to night, and it can't stop for an hour or two in between, and it will continue to rub the cotton wool!
In the West Flower Hall of the Prince's Mansion, several powerful princes were smoking shisha and discussing together, and were waiting for distinguished guests to come!
"Hey...how can you reason with this! Our majestic prince of the Qing Dynasty has actually been reduced to talking about military affairs with women!"
"This Xiao Letian really looks down on people!"
Yikuang put the hookah on the table and squatted down, his chest filled with anger was like a bellows!
"Okay, stop nagging... Anyway, we are going to drink with Ermao later. Then Cai Bixia will let the women receive it. Why don't you just change it and keep it out of sight!"
It turned out that under Yixuan's arrangement, the spacious West Flower Hall was only a place for men to discuss matters, and Er Mao could drink and talk with several princes here!
But women are not allowed to serve at the table. She has to be sent to the upper room to have wine with the Fujins... Maybe after they have had enough wine and food, the prince will be in a better mood and have a chance to meet him in the living room!
To really talk about things, we have to work hard on this 'accidental encounter'!
