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Volume 1: Fierce Battle in Changsha Chapter 164: Killing with a Borrowed Knife

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    Wen Han and his party left Nanjing after staying for three days. At the dock of Xiaguan Port, Xiao Yungui and Hong Yun'er took the West Palace generals to bid farewell to these "foreign brothers".  Looking into the mist of the morning light, the Hamels staggered into motion with its huge body, heading towards the golden direction of the east, gradually getting further and further away, and finally disappeared at the end of the river port.

    Hong Yun'er stood with her hands behind her hands, looking at the Hamilton in the distance, and suddenly asked in a low voice: "You spent three times the price to get these guns, gunpowder, do you think it was worth it?"

    Xiao Yungui snorted on the side and said: "This is just a stepping stone. I want to make that illusory promise look more real. I hope that nothing will happen to Wenhan. The powers must remain neutral and cannot get involved."

    Hong Yun'er touched her pointed chin and smiled slightly: "It seems that your plan was successful."

    Unexpectedly, Xiao Yungui slowly shook his head and said with a gloomy face: "Maybe, but I have a bad feeling. I think Wenhan's principles are lost too easily. If the principle of neutrality given to him by the British Parliament is very strong,  I don¡¯t think he would dare sell us the artillery on a cruiser even for ten times the price.¡±

    Hong Yun'er nodded thoughtfully and said, "Yes, if he really did that, he might be convicted of treason."

    Xiao Yungui said in a deep voice: "I suspect that he agreed so simply because he wanted to do a favor and give us these arms and lend us our swords to kill people!"

    Hong Yun'er asked curiously: "Who to kill?"

    Xiao Yungui said with a very ugly face: "Of course it's the disobedient Manchu in the north. The British may want to use our hands to teach the Manchu emperor a lesson. After we beat him very painfully, the Manchu will be right  The British surrendered and even sold more interests in exchange for British support. The British are very despicable and they want to benefit from both sides."

    Hong Yun'er exclaimed in surprise: "Will they really do this?"

    Xiao Yungui sighed softly and said: "I just figured it out. If it were me, I would do the same thing. Both sides sell arms. Of course, Britain will make a fortune. As long as we and the Manchus can ensure smooth trade,  The longer the civil war in China lasts, the greater the advantage the British will take. After all, the people who die are all Chinese, and the British will not care at all."

    Hong Yun'er was speechless for a long time, and after a moment she asked in a trembling voice: "Then what should we do?"

    Xiao Yungui took a deep breath and said: "We can only do our best to overthrow the Manchu Qing Dynasty and end this civil war as soon as possible, otherwise this endless civil war will drag China into the abyss"

    On the deck of the Hamels, Lord Wenhan watched Xiaguan Pier disappear into the mist, with a slight smile on his lips: "A very interesting couple, I understand why the Qing army could not defeat them.  ¡±

    Midile said from the side: "Since they can defeat the Manchu army on their own, why do we still need to trade arms with them?"

    Wenhan put his finger under the tip of his nose and sneered softly: "In Chinese terms, this is called the icing on the cake. We should let the Manchu and Qing government understand that if our British Empire turns to support the rebels, then the only thing waiting for them is their demise.  With the powerful rebel army and the excellent weapons of our British Empire, the Manchu Qing Dynasty will be wiped out in a few years, so they can only fully compromise with us instead of sending Wu Jianzhang of Shanghai Dao to ask for help in defending Shanghai.  Our request to enter Guangzhou City turned a deaf ear. More importantly, we are about to make a request to amend the "Jiangning Treaty" with the Manchu Qing Dynasty. We want to take the lead. Instead of using strong military force to force the Manchu Qing Dynasty to surrender, it is better to sell  Send out some arms and let the rebels help us complete this matter."

    Midile frowned and said, "Then what if the Manchu and Qing government still refuses to cooperate with us?"

    Wen Han smiled slightly and said: "Then we will support the enlightened Western King to overthrow the Manchu Qing Dynasty and gain political power across the country. I believe that this regime will be a pro-British regime in the future."

    Midile suddenly realized, and then asked: "Then if the Manchu Qing agrees to cooperate with us, what will the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom do?"

    Wen Han smiled sinisterly and said: "Have we promised anything to the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom? That secret agreement was signed by the Shanghai Consulate. The British Empire can deny it at any time. Mr. Midile, your suggestion is very good. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't  Know how to contract with them.¡±

    Midile felt a little sorry for the Taiping Army in his heart, and frowned and said: "Your Excellency, if the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom gets our arms and becomes very powerful, and the Manchu Qing Dynasty asks us to help suppress it, what should we do then?"

    Wenhan looked at him strangely and said: "Do you think our British Empire's army can't even deal with a group of rural rebels? At that time, I hoped that the British Empire would send troops to intervene in the war, so that the benefits we would gain would not be that simple."?, we can even occupy a good port like Hong Kong on the coast, or a large piece of land, allowing us to expand our territory in the east.  "

    Midile gasped: "Your Majesty, I hope your judgment is correct."

    Lord Wenham smiled confidently: "As the British Minister Plenipotentiary, of course my judgment is correct. Mr. Midile, let's wait and see the good show."

    After the Hamels returned to Shanghai, Lord Wenham sent a more than ten-page report to the UK, in which he analyzed the situation in China and wrote down his suggestions. He hoped that the country would  The instructions given to him by the Parliament and the Prime Minister will authorize him to handle it with full authority.

    After waiting for three days, Wenhan got the news that the Taiping Army had begun to launch an offensive against Changzhou and Huzhou. It seemed that the rebels were moving very quickly. Behind Changzhou were Wuxi and Suzhou, and behind Huzhou was Hangzhou. Once Suhang was captured by the rebels,  Then only some peripheral towns in Shanghai were still in the hands of the Qing army.

    On the day they received the news, French Minister Blomble and American Minister Marsali came to the British Consulate to meet with Wenhan to discuss the current situation.

    In the reception room of the consulate, Wenhan did not reveal anything about his contract with the Taiping Rebellion, but Marsali and Blomble seemed to know something, and they asked for details about the rebels as soon as they opened their mouths.

    Wenhan knew that they must have got the news from Wu Jianzhang of Shanghai Road, and he took a boat to Nanjing. However, he did not intend to share anything with the French and Americans. He just said as usual: "The rebels in Nanjing are very powerful, and they have strength in numbers."  , but they are as arrogant as the Manchus. You must know that their leader calls himself the King of Heaven and is a very arrogant guy. They even think that we are going to pay tribute and become vassals."

    Wenhan described it in an embellished way, not mentioning a series of secret agreements he had reached with the King of the West, and repeatedly emphasized that there was no point in cooperating with the rebels.

    The American Minister Marsali, holding his pipe in his mouth, frowned and said: "Lord Wenhan, is Britain prepared for the upcoming offensive by the rebels? Once the Suzhou-Hangzhou area falls into the hands of the rebels, they will definitely attack Shanghai. What will happen to our trade?  ?¡±

    Blomble said: "I heard that those rebels also believe in Christianity. Our Emperor hopes that the rebels can win. He asked the Holy See to even send a group of priests to China to help them. Lord Wenhan, what is the end of Britain?  What are the plans?" The French Emperor Napoleon III has just received the support of the Holy See and was crowned the Emperor of the Second French Empire. Napoleon III has great respect for the authority of the Holy See and attaches great importance to the spread of Christianity around the world. Therefore, France will support the Taiping Rebellion.  idea.

    Lord Wenhan smiled lightly and said: "I have reported it to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and I am also waiting for instructions from home. However, the interests of the British Empire are inviolable. As for the beliefs of the rebels, I have no comment. I have not worshiped with them.  , have no idea what kind of doctrine they believe in, and the Holy See wants to send someone here? I think the Chinese don¡¯t like anyone interfering with their beliefs.¡±

    Marsali and Blomble both cursed Wenhan for his cunning. Both of them were thinking that if the arrogant British really suffered in Nanjing, Wenhan would not be able to talk so calmly. Wenhan, this old fox, would definitely  Hiding something.

    Marsali waved his fist and said: "Lord Wenhan, we should form a volunteer team to assist the Qing army, defend Shanghai, and defend our concession."

    Bramble frowned and said: "Lord Wenhan, if the rebels are really what you said, I think we should really make some preparations. The combined warships and soldiers of several of our countries should be able to change some of the war situation."

    Lord Wenhan shrugged and said: "As early as March, I suggested to the country that we should use armed intervention in this civil war, but the instruction given to me by the country was to remain neutral, and there was nothing I could do about it. But the suggestion of forming a volunteer team to defend the concession, I think  We can prepare, after all, when there is war, no one knows what will happen. To protect our own citizens and concessions, I think we can still do it." Wen Han then smiled and said: "As for the Manchu and Qing government, I am happy to do so.  Seeing them being taught a lesson by the rebels, Minister Marsali, I heard that your request from the United States to hand over credentials in person was just rejected?"

    Ma Shali raised his head and said: "The newly appointed Governor of Liangjiang, Yiliang, rejected our request to hand over credentials in person. These damn yellow-skinned monkeys, God knows where their arrogance and arrogance came from. Maybe, my lord, you  You're right. Only after the Manchus were beaten badly by the rebels did they know to come to us for help." Then Marsali said angrily: "Like you, I also suggested that the country intervene in this civil war, but the country also gave me  What a shame, neutral directive.¡±

    Lord Wenhan said with a smile: "Since our domestic attitude is neutral, we can only do this and wait and see how the situation changes. I have already handed over the establishment of the volunteer team.Leave it to Colonel Ho. I believe our warships and soldiers from Britain, the United States, France and other countries can defend the concession.  "

    Both Marsali and Blomble nodded, but each was planning how to make contact with the rebels first. The damn British guy in front of them was extremely untrustworthy.

    At this moment, the guard outside the door came in and reported: "Your Excellency, there are several Qing officials outside the consulate asking to see you. One of them, an official who calls himself Ronglu, can speak English. They said they have urgent matters to discuss."
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