Before leaving for Hubei to take office, Wu Chaoyue secretly reached a dirty deal with the consulars of Britain, France, the United States and Prussia, and also secretly signed the first genuine treason treaty with British consul Aliguo.

At first, the consuls of various countries were very unaware of why Wu Chaoyue wanted to fight for the position of governor of Hubei, and they also opposed Wu Chaoyue leaving Shanghai to take office in Hubei, especially the British consul Aliguo, who had close economic interests with Wu Chaoyue. He even suspected that the Qing court deliberately wanted to transfer Wu Chaoyue from Shanghai to obstruct and destroy Wu Chaoyue's normal economic and trade exchanges with the UK, and clamoring to use force to force the Qing court to take back his life.

Wu Chaoyue of course stopped Aliguo's impulse behavior and explained to Aliguo another deep reason for seeking the position of governor of Hubei, saying: "Dear Mr. Aliguo, leaving Shanghai was indeed the demands I made to the court. The reason was for me, and for you, the common commercial and economic interests between you and me, as well as for the common interests of China and the British Empire."

"Wu, what do you mean?" A Liguo, no matter how China News is, he can't understand Wu Chaoyue's words, and he doesn't understand why Wu Chaoyue left Shanghai and was involved in the height of international relations?

"Dear Mr. Aliguo, do you think it is possible to destroy the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and end China's civil war with the military power in my hands?" Wu Chaoyue asked back.

"It's impossible!" A Liguo shook his head flatly and said, "Wu, forgive me for being direct. With your current military strength, it's not a big problem to defend Shanghai and surrounding areas, but there's no possibility to destroy the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom."

Frankly speaking, Aliguo also added: "And even if you continue to expand your army, it will be difficult to do this. Your army relies too much on Western weapons, and Western weapons must be purchased from Europe and the United States. It is too difficult to replenish them in a long way and cannot guarantee timely supply. Therefore, even if you can gain an advantage on the local battlefield, it will be difficult to win the overall battlefield."

"Thank you for your directness." Wu Chaoyue nodded and asked again: "Then dear Mr. Aliguo, I would like to ask you another question. Even without considering capital, technology and manpower, you and I want to establish an industrial system in Shanghai that can produce modern weapons. Is there any possibility?"

"There is no possibility." A Liguo answered more frankly, saying: "Shanghai only has the advantage of ports, but it does not have the most important coal and iron ore resources for modern industry. Even if it does not consider funds, technology and manpower, and does not have sufficient resource supply, Shanghai cannot afford to build a complete industrial system that can produce modern weapons. Even if it is barely established, it will be subject to insufficient supply of raw materials and the output will never be large."

"So dear Mr. Aliguo, do China's inland have enough coal and iron ore resources?" Wu Chaoyue asked again.

A Liguo vaguely understood what Wu Chaoyue meant, and asked back: "Wu, did you go to Hubei to take office for the sake of China's inland resources?"

"This is just one of my goals." Wu Chaoyue nodded and said, "Dear Mr. Aliguo, remember you once said that after Britain achieved steam industrialization, it came to China to do business in order to find a textile market. At that time, your biggest goal was to let every Chinese wear a piece of textile produced by a Manchester factory. It was only because of opposition from the Chinese court and resistance from the people that they chose opium."

"The Opium War has ended twelve years ago. The main product you export to China is still abominable opium. Most of the people who make China's wealth are opium merchants who even His Highness thinks should be hanged. Because the Chinese government condons to acquiesce opium production and sales, its profits are declining year by year. The true most important industrial products of the British Empire, textiles, industrial equipment, weapons and ammunition, are still not popular enough in China. Not to mention that every Chinese wears a piece of textile produced in Britain, even if every ten Chinese people don't wear a piece of British textile."

Speaking of this, Wu Chaoyue paused and smiled and said, "Mr. Aliguo, if you can take advantage of the opportunity of me to be a governor in Hubei and take the opportunity to open up the inland Chinese market, how many times can you expand your trade with China? How many more industrial products can you sell? With the opportunity of me to master a Chinese province larger than the British mainland, how many cheap resources and raw materials can you get? With the opportunity of me to establish industrialization in Hubei, how many industrial equipment and machinery can you sell, how many orders can you bring to your domestic factories? And with the opportunity of me to establish a new army in Hubei, how many weapons and ammunition can you sell? How many job opportunities and commercial profits can you create for your domestic?"

A Liguo smiled, laughed very happily, and said, "Wu, the prospect you depict is indeed very wonderful and tempting. As your friend, I also believe that after you arrived in Hubei as governor, I absolutely believe that you can open up a vast and infinite Chinese inland market for the British Empire. But Wu, I must remind you that although you have Yangtze River waterways to Shanghai in Hubei, your stupid court has not opened the Yangtze River channel and inland market to our British merchant ships so far. Our ships cannot pass freely on the Yangtze River. Even if you order more industrial products from us, what is the purpose of not being able to transport them to Hubei by ship?"

After saying that, Ali Kingdom added another sentence, "Also, now the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom has controlled a long section of the Yangtze River waterway, and you and I cannot freely carry out trade by hiring Chinese civilian ships."

Wu Chaoyue also laughed, and also very happy, saying: "Mr. Aliguo, let's put the matter of the Yangtze River Channel aside. I just want to ask you now. If I continue to work in Shanghai, can I open up the inland Chinese market for you? Can it help you quickly expand your trade volume with China?"

"It can't be done." A Liguo shook his head and said, "Although Shanghai's import and export trade is constantly expanding and our market is constantly spreading to the surrounding areas, the speed is still too slow. Moreover, due to the war, this diffusion speed has also decreased significantly. The Chinese people even have a problem with eating in the war. How can they buy industrial products from us?"

Frankly admitting that Wu Chaoyue's continued staying in Shanghai has not helped Britain's business interests much. A Liguo said: "Wu, now I fully understand the reason why you voluntarily go to China's inland jobs. I also know that with your power in Hubei and your correct understanding of the West, after taking office in Hubei, it will definitely help us quickly expand China's inland market and expand trade volume with China. But how do you solve this important issue of the Yangtze River channel?"

"Dear Mr. Aliguo, since I dare to take office in Hubei, of course I have the confidence to help you solve this problem." Wu Chaoyue smiled confidently and said with a smile: "Otherwise, the weapons and ammunition I ordered from you will not be transported from Hubei, so what can I use to resist the threat from the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom to me? Will I be seeking death when I am in Hubei, where wars are everywhere?"

"What's the best way?" A Liguo, who had long wanted to open the mainland Chinese market, suddenly lit up his eyes.

Wu Chaoyue smiled and refused to answer, but just looked at the closed door. Ali Guo agreed and stood up to check that there was no one outside the door. Then he closed the door again, walked to Wu Chaoyue and whispered: "There won't be a third person to know, tell me your good idea, Wu, tell me."

"Dear Mr. Aliguo, the stupid Qing court has a fatal weakness." Wu Chaoyue replied in a low voice: "As long as you grasp this weakness and make a fuss, you can definitely force our court to agree to open the Yangtze River channel and open several inland ports to make a trading market. Taking advantage of this weakness is more effective than you launching a large-scale war against China!"

"What's the weakness?" Aliguo asked quickly.

"Grain!" Wu Chaoyue replied with a low voice and solemn voice, "Grain is the lifeblood of the Manchu court. The Manchu emperor and their compatriots ate all the food they produce from southern China and transported to the north through the war. Now due to the influence of the war, the Beijing-Hangzhou Canal has completely lost its function. The grain heading north is transported by sea. As long as you cut off the sea route of the Manchu court, so that the Manchu emperor and his compatriots have no food to eat, you are not afraid that they will not surrender to you!"

Speaking of this, Wu Chaoyue smiled slightly, "You only need to use a small number of warships to block the sea of ​​grain transportation. If you don't want to trigger a war, you can even arm one or two pirates specifically used to plunder the grain ships of the Manchu court, and then use the exchange of sea transportation of grain transportation for protecting the Manchu people, forcing the Manchu court to agree to open the Yangtze River channel and inland ports, and there is also great hope that it can be done."

A Liguo was speechless and asked Wu Chaoyue for a while: "Wu, why haven't you told us such a good way before?"

"In the past, the Beijing-Hangzhou Canal was still open, so what's the use of even if you cut off the shipping?" Wu Chaoyue asked back angrily.

A Liguo suddenly realized, and then he was dancing with his feet and eyebrows. Wu Chaoyue muttered in his heart: "Ancestor Yanhuang, Chinese compatriots, I am not traitorizing the country for foreigners. If the foreigners do this, it is not our Chinese compatriots who cheated on us, but Tungus wild boar skin!"

Wu Chaoyue could use the excuse of different framers to comfort himself and deceive others. However, in order to encourage foreigners to do their best to open up the Yangtze River route, so that he can stay in the inland and maintain contact with overseas, Wu Chaoyue signed a secret treaty with Ali Country, promising as the governor of Hubei to allow the British to freely preach and trade in the trade ports in Hubei, allowing the British to enter and exit the trade cities and live and buy houses. He also agreed to allow the British to obtain a concession similar to Shanghai in Hubei, and promised to protect the personal and property safety of the constituents and the British. At the same time, Wu Chaoyue was not allowed to reach oral agreements with the consulates of the United States, France, Prussia and other countries to make similar promises to encourage them to develop the inland market in China and help the British open up the Yangtze River route.

In addition, Wu Chaoyue also secretly gave Ali's secret tips on dealing with the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, and suggested that the British side should not discuss religious issues with the madmen of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, and only talk about interests in exchange for the Taiping Army to open the Yangtze River channel to Britain. At the same time, it pointed out that Hong Renyi was a person who could fight for it. At this stage, Britain, France and other countries had long been secretly engaged in the Taiping Army, and warships and merchant ships could have been semi-freely in the Jiang section between the Yangtze River Estuary and Nanjing. With Wu Chaoyue's guidance, the negotiations between Britain, France and other countries and the Taiping Army were also smooth.

The most important foreigners have settled, and Wu Chaoyue can basically set off with peace of mind. Although his grandmother Wu Xu, who has not left Shanghai, is reluctant to let his baby grandson wander alone, after the persuasion of Wu's comprador, Wu Xiaoping and others, Mrs. Wu still wiped her tears and stopped opposing. Wu Xiaoping, who was brainwashed by feudal toxins, also asked her son to be careful, work hard and love the people, report the kindness of the emperor, and be at peace with the people. She must not be as nonsense as before. Her unfilial son Wu Chaoyue agreed, and went out with his left ear and right ear. She immediately left her father's instructions behind her, and asked her father to move to Hong Kong with her whole family, and not to stay in the mainland and pull her back.

Of course, Wu Chaoyue could not go to Hubei alone to take office. He also decided to take Feng Wanzhen, a future side of the house, to Hubei to take care of her diet and daily life. His wife Yang Yuru and side of the house, Fu Shanxiang, were asked by Wu Chaoyue to stay in Shanghai. In response, Yang Yuru, who is gentle, dare not say anything, but Fu Shanxiang complained. Wu Chaoyue sighed and told her, "Baby, it's not that I want to neglect you, it's that you have tangled your feet. When I get to Hubei, I can't settle down for a while. If there is any danger, you can't run fast even if you run around with your feet. How can you take care of you? So wait for me in Shanghai. When I settle down, I will definitely pick you up to Hubei and ask you to give birth to a son for me."

With a virtuous wife taking the lead, Wu Chaoyue didn't worry much about Wu Chaoyue, which made Wu Chaoyue hesitate to be the candidate for the soldiers who followed him to Hubei to take office. After learning that Wu Chaoyue was going to lead some old soldiers to take office, Wu Jun was fighting for the courage, whether it was sincere or false, to go with Wu Chaoyue, and his attitude was so enthusiastic that he was just a blood letter. Then, after careful consideration, Wu Chaoyue decided to lead two powerful lackeys Huang Dasha and Cao Yanzhong and two experienced soldiers to Hubei. Nie Shicheng and Feng Sanbao, two very potential generals, of course, had to accompany him. Wu Dasai also had to take the sniper team and the personal soldiers to Hubei.

Finally, when it was time to count the final list of accompanying people, Wu Chaoyue realized that he had gone around and returned to the starting point. The teams who took office in Hubei, including him, Feng Wanzhen, Zhao Liewen and others, happened to be 250 people. Originally, Wu Chaoyue didn't like this number very much, but after thinking about it, Wu Chaoyue gave up the plan to increase and decrease the number of the team and said to himself: "Two-five is just 25. If I hadn't brought out a 25th battalion, then would it be today? Besides, I wouldn't enjoy the Qingfu in Shanghai, but I would have to go to Hubei to start over. What isn't it?"

The remaining Wu Jun Lianyong and Wu Lao Comprador were entrusted to Zhou Tenghu by Wu Chaoyue. Yung Wing, Huang Sheng and others were temporarily staying in Shanghai, preparing to hire civilian ships to transport Wu Jun's weapons, equipment and various raw materials to Hubei through water, and tried to provide Wu Chaoyue with raw materials to produce picric acid and **********. At the same time, Yung Wing and Huang Sheng, two international students who knew goods, recommended two rare scientific talents in the late Qing Dynasty to Wu Chaoyue, namely Li Shanlan and Xu Shou, who were both friends Yung Wing and Huang Sheng during academic exchanges in Shanghai. Although Wu Chaoyue, who had a poor history, had never heard of their great reputation, he also found that they were indeed rare talents through academic exchanges, so he invited them to join their shogunate without hesitation and promised to send people to welcome them to Hubei to help them develop modern industry after they settle down in Hubei.

"Mr. Taofu, Shanghai and my grandfather, I will ask you. Remember, if Xiang Rong and Qishan are two idiots, you must force you to send troops to be cannon fodder for them, you can send some people to do it appropriately, but at least three thousand elite troops must be left to defend Shanghai. You must not let Shanghai have any surprises again! If I fail in Hubei, I still expect Shanghai to be my capital to make a comeback."

After giving Zhou Tenghu this sentence, on November 23, in the cold wind, Wu Chaoyue bid farewell to the old comprador and Wu Xiaoping, who were crying, and took Feng Wanzhen, Xiaoluoli and 248 followers to set off on the ship, took Wusongjiang and Taihu to Yixing, and then went east to Xuancheng by land to Hubei to take office.

In this regard, although the old comprador Wu and Zhao Liewen were both worried that it would take a long time, there was no way. The Yangtze River waterway from Nanjing to Jiujiang was the world of the Taiping Army. Wu Chaoyue, who was as deep as the sea of ​​enemies with the Taiping Army, was destined to be more dangerous and far less safe than taking land. Fortunately, Emperor Xianfeng also knew Wu Chaoyue’s difficulties, and did not specify a specific time for taking office. He also adopted Sushun’s suggestion to let the governor of Huguang Yang Pei temporarily act as the governor, and he would hold his post after Wu Chaoyue took office. Therefore, Wu Chaoyue did not need to worry that he would be beaten by Emperor Xianfeng to take office too late.

The only thing that worries Wu Chaoyue is the safety of Wuchang Prefecture. In order not to have no place to settle down after taking office, on the night of departure, Wu Chaoyue, who was not very superstitious, rarely prayed to the sky, "God bless you, please let my teacher guard Wuchang Prefecture. Teacher Zeng, please rest assured that as long as you can guard Wuchang Prefecture for me, no matter what your strengths and weaknesses are in the future, as a student, I will definitely take good care of your family and your trusted subordinates for you."

…………

"Get out! I'm not dead yet!"

The personal soldiers who roared and pushed them away to dissuade them, and braved the risk of being shot by a streaming bomb, Zeng Guofan, who had already been scooped out of the battlement, once again poked his head out from behind the arrows to look at the situation under the city. Under the snowy Wuchang City, the Taiping Army's siege queue was like waves, one wave after another, and the position of the fierce attack was the third gap in the city wall they used tunnel tactics to blow it out.

"Master General, Changmao attacks too hard, brothers can't stand it anymore!" The messenger asked for help reported to Zeng Guofan in a crying voice, and asked again: "General Li asked Xiaodi to ask you, do you continue to persevere?"

"Persist! Of course you have to persist!" Zeng Guofan shouted with red eyes: "How many long hairs have we killed these days? Give up at this time. Can Changhai let us go? Ask Li Xuyi to defend the gap for me, throw it away, and raise his head to see you!"

After sending away the messenger of the general Li Xuyi's request for help, Zeng Guofan decisively ordered Tazibu to lead the reserve team to reinforce Li Xuyi, and then looked at the direction of Shanghai in the east and said gritting his teeth: "Bitch, aren't you here yet? Your teacher can't hold it!" (To be continued.)
Chapter completed!