Yinluan Hall of the Prime Minister's Office in Beijing

Yuan Shikai carefully read the war report from Wuhan. After reading it, he was furious and slapped the war report on the table.

"Why is Weiting so grand?" Tang Shaoyi slowly took a sip of Anxi Tieguanyin and asked. Tang Shaoyi was invited by Yuan Shikai to discuss important matters today. The two of them had just started to taste tea when a battle report came.

After Tang Shaoyi asked this, Yuan Shikai directly handed the battle report to Tang Shaoyi. Tang Shaoyi opened it and frowned slightly, without much surprise.

Yuan Shikai took this subtle expression of Tang Shaoyi into his eyes and asked: "What? Did Shaochuan have expected that Feng Guozhang would lose the Hanyang Arsenal and surrender?"

Tang Shaoyi knew Qingming in his heart and said with a smile: "Brother Weiting, you really respect me. I am not Jiang Gong Zhuge, how could I predict the future?"

"Shaochuan, don't keep it a secret. Just say whatever you have!" Yuan Shikai said impatiently.

"Haha, it's not that I keep it in hiding, but that I'm afraid that Weiting will get angry when I say it!" Tang Shaoyi said slowly.

Yuan Shikai immediately changed his smile and said, "It's okay, Shaochuan, but it's okay!"

Tang Shaoyi put down the teacup and said, "It is not appropriate to put Wang Shizhen, Duan Qirui and Feng Guozhang together. Although the three of them were made up of the Three Beiyang Masters, they were actually not as united as the outside world imagined. Especially Wang Shizhen and Feng Guozhang, the two have always had gaps. Wang Shizhen has the talent to lead troops, but they are a little narrow-minded. Feng Guozhang is straight-minded and likes to go straight. Sometimes he doesn't know if he offends people. Putting these two people together will definitely cause trouble!"

"Shaochuan means that the three heroes of Beiyang are in harmony on the front line, and Wang Shizhen is in power, which aroused Feng Guozhang's dissatisfaction, which caused Feng Guozhang to lose his arsenal and finally rebel and surrender to the enemy?" Yuan Shikai asked tentatively.

In fact, how could Yuan Shikai not know about these problems? Feng Guozhang was originally the postman in Nie Shicheng's Wuwei Army. He only took Feng Guozhang for himself when he was training in the small station. Feng Guozhang has always been loyal to Yuan Shikai, and Yuan Shikai also saw these things.

However, a few months ago, Yuan Shikai dismissed Nie Shicheng in western Liaoning for disobeying orders and was exiled to Xinjiang. Yuan Shikai observed the reactions of Wang and Feng. Although the two were both subordinates of Nie Shicheng, Wang Shizhen had no objection to this matter. However, Feng Guozhang had always spoken out for Nie Shicheng and had quite a complaint.

Yuan Shikai also considered the overall situation and asked Wang Shizhen to support 50,000 troops to defend Jingzhou. Duan Qirui and Feng Guozhang each led 10,000 people to station in Anqing and Wuhan. The purpose was to try Wang Shizhen to restrain Duan Qirui and Feng Guozhang. At the same time, he also took advantage of the discord between Feng Guozhang and Wang Shizhen to restrain Wang Shizhen.

But what Yuan Shikai did not expect was that his balance strategy actually led to the loss of Hanyang?

Yuan Shikai thought for a long time and asked, "I wonder if Shaochuan has a good idea? Could it be that I will go to the front line in person?"

Tang Shaoyi suggested: "Haha, Brother Weiting certainly doesn't have to go there in person. You have to sit in the Forbidden City. Those princes and ministers are ready to move. But you can send one of the supervisors to the front line to supervise the training of the three armies!"

Yuan Shikai's eyes lit up and he said, "Will Shaochuan go?"

Tang Shaoyi bowed and said, "Shaochuan is not talented, and I am afraid he will not be competent. But Brother Bu Wu (Xu Shichang's name is far-sighted and useful!"

Yuan Shikai slapped his shiny forehead and said, "Tsk tsk, fortunately Shaochuan reminded me, why did I forget Brother Bu Wu! With Brother Bu Wu's help, there will be no danger on the front line, and it's just around the corner to rush the south, haha!"

Tang Shaoyi also smiled slightly.

"I heard that Cheng Biguang's fleet is almost in Malacca. Are all the people who receive him in Singapore ready?" Yuan Shikai asked.

"Haha, you'll be relieved of this Weiting Pavilion. The manpower has been prepared. They are all dead soldiers of Jing Ke. If Cheng Biguang refuses to surrender to the court, he can only be used to..." Tang Shaoyi made a "kill" gesture.

"It's not bad, Shaochuan's business is reassuring!" Yuan Shikai proudly sorted out his horoscope. He had already ordered people to ambush in Singapore. When Cheng Biguang's return fleet passed through the Strait of Malacca, he would definitely dock to replenish freshwater food and coal. At that time, a few people in Singapore...

"There is another thing that needs to be notified by Brother Weiting!" Tang Shaoyi said.

"Oh, what's the matter?" Yuan Shikai asked.

"Russia has sent a telegram saying that they will have a new envoy to Beijing recently to discuss related matters about the ceasing of the three northeastern provinces. I heard that it is still a princess." Tang Shaoyi said.

Yuan Shikai turned black and said angrily: "The Russians are so greedy. I have already ceded Liaodong and Weihai to them first. It is clear that as long as the Russians help me to wipe out Tang Jian's rebels, the Northeast will be theirs. But now, their cavalry are still stationed in Phoenix City and refuse to go south. The Yangtze River channel is still the world of the Beiyang Fleet. Now we want to talk to me about the cedes of the Northeast?"

"The Russians said that an organization called the Bolsheviks has emerged in their country. The leader is a man named Lenin who spreads Marxism in Russia and attempts to rebel. Now the Russian government is trying hard to encircle and suppress. Ambassador Vette has made a promise that after the civil strife is pacified, three months later, he will personally lead the Cossack cavalry south to help Futing unify the north and south!" Tang Shaoyi said.

"Hmph, I hope he is telling the truth. When that princess comes, you can entertain her and arrange to live in the Forbidden City for a while. When will Russia send troops, let's talk about the cedes of the Northeast!" Yuan Shikai sneered.

Tang Shaoyi nodded with a smile.

...

Strait of Malacca.

Cheng Biguang stood alone on the open-air command platform of a "Dragon Hard-class battleship, and saw a looming coastline at the intersection of the sky in the distance.

Cheng Biguang knew that it was in Malacca. At this time, Singapore became the last supply port they docked. As long as they crossed the Strait of Malacca, the fleet would enter the South China Sea and return to the embrace of their motherland.

Cheng Biguang sighed when he thought about the past six months. He was ordered by Tang Jian to take more than 3,000 people who received the new ships to cross Europe on a passenger ship, from Weihaiwei to the East China Sea, cross the Taiwan Strait, headed straight to the South China Sea, drove out of the country, crossed the Strait of Malacca, entered the Indian Ocean, entered the Red Sea through the Gulf of Aden, entered the Mediterranean Sea, entered the Atlantic Ocean through the Strait of Gibraltar, entered the Atlantic Ocean, headed north and south along the Ocean, entered the English Channel, and finally arrived at the famous Portsmouth Military Port in the UK, moored at the Spitherd anchorage outside the port.

It took more than two months for Cheng Biguang and others to arrive in Europe. They then accepted four military-class battleships at the Armstrong Shipyard in the UK. Then they secretly accepted two "Dragon Wire"-class battleships built by the Germans in Germany, accompanied by four cruisers of the same class as the Haichou. In addition, the Germans generously presented six torpedo gunboats.

Cheng Biguang knew that the new ships he had received were all exchanged for Tang Jian's latest triple main gun technology and advanced and mature airship technology.

However, just as Cheng Biguang was about to return, news of civil war came from the country. Emperor Guangxu personally issued an edict ordering Cheng Biguang to return, and after returning to the country, he and Yuan Shikai quelled the rebels of Tang Jian's rebels.

Cheng Biguang and the captains discussed this matter in detail. Every captain here did not want to believe that Tang Jian was rebelling, and what every captain was even more unwilling was to drive a new ship to fight the Beiyang Fleet.

After the resolution, Cheng Biguang decided to wait for the change. After anchoring in Portsmouth Military Port for half a month, he finally got news from the Beiyang Fleet!

It was a telegram from Tang Jian, Fuzhou. The telegram told in detail the "rebellion" of the Beiyang Fleet and revealed the fact that Yuan Shikai colluded with the Russians to persecute the Beiyang Fleet.

After reading the telegram, Cheng Biguang resolutely decided to support Tang Jian and ignored Emperor Guangxu's edict's return to the country. Anyone with discerning eyes could tell at a glance that the edict's edict was just Yuan Shikai's personal order.

Other captains expressed their support for the National Revolutionary Army, so Cheng Biguang held an oath ceremony with all the officers and soldiers at the sea in the Gulf of Latin, uniformly cut off the braids on his head, and expressed his willingness to comply with Tang Jian's "Declaration on the National Revolutionary Uprising", taking it as his mission to overthrow the Qing Dynasty, and speed up his return to Fuzhou and join the Beiyang Fleet.

When nearly twenty warships sailed into the Singgabo Port, tens of thousands of Chinese people across the port welcomed each other. Some old people carried children on their shoulders and held colorful streamers in their hands. They all came to welcome Cheng Biguang's fleet.

Some old men in their seventies were trembling with crutches and were helped to the port. Their eyes were wet, lamenting that our own country also had such mighty warships!

Most of the people who came to the port to greet Cheng Biguang were Singaporeans from the southeast coast, Guangdong, Fujian and other places. After the British ship knocked on the gate, their livelihoods in the southeast coast were affected, and they had no choice but to cross the ocean to Xinjiabo to seek life.

After ordering the docking supply, Cheng Bi walked down the string ladder with several guards naked in a snow-white military uniform.

At this time, among the crowd who came to welcome him, a white-haired old man with a rosewood crutch came out of the crowd. There were more than a dozen burly men with bodyguards behind the old man.

The white-haired old man looked over seventy years old. After seeing clearly that Cheng Bi was the commander of this fleet, he bowed and gave a big gift, saying, "I am Dong Fengguo, president of the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce. I have met the superior here!"

Cheng Biguang quickly helped the old man up and said gratefully: "Chairman Dong doesn't have to be too polite! Cheng Biguang can't bear it!"

"Haha, Lord Cheng, we have added hundreds of thousands of overseas Chinese to welcome you! I have lived for most of my life, and now I finally saw our country's own giant steel ship. If we had this giant ship, we wouldn't have traveled across the ocean to make a living..." As he said that, he choked up several times, and cried in tears.

Cheng Biguang listened silently, indeed, overseas Chinese have been bullied in foreign lands over the years.

Chairman Dong suddenly woke up and apologized: "Haha, look at Lord Cheng, this person becomes long-winded when he gets old. Why are you standing here? Go to Lao Xie's mansion. I will host a banquet to entertain you all today! Fang'er, go back to the kitchen immediately to cook some wine and food. Today I will entertain several adults!"

The middle-aged man, known as "Fang'er", seemed to be the son of the old man. After hearing his father's orders, he nodded and ran quickly into the port.

Cheng Biguang did not refuse, and supported the old man and made a gesture of inviting him.
Chapter completed!