Yuan Shikai arrived in Jiangning on the Jian'an warship the next day and visited Zhang Zhidong, who was temporarily stationed in Liangjiang. Before the meeting, he was a little worried that Zhang Zhidong would threaten his current status, but after the two met, he understood that this had already happened.
In his twilight years, the stubborn old man is no longer a concern.
So he was very polite to Lao Zhang, and didn't even pay attention to Zhang Zhidong's somewhat rude words and deeds. Why bother to fight with an old man who was no match for him?
The warship left Jiangning Xiaguan Pier. Yuan Shikai looked at the river and was lost in thought for a while. He suddenly said to Yang Shiqi beside him, "I don't understand how Lin Anhua, as smart as Lin Anhua, could seek refuge with a pedantic old man like Zhang Nanpi."
?”
Yang Shiqi smiled and said: "Why do I worry about things when I am a palace protector? It turns out that it is because of Beiyang's wealth. This Lin Shuo is not a figure in Xiangshuai's pocket. The Lin family in Taiwan can rise again after the internal migration, thanks to Liu Zhongcheng
The father has contributed a lot, and the Lin family has always relied on Commander Xian as its backer. Now that Mr. Liu has passed away, you have an excellent opportunity to bring him to Beiyang."
Yuan Shikai turned his head and looked at Yang Shiqi, "Oh, let's talk about it."
"Your Majesty, are you a little strange about why Lin Anhua is wearing the uniform of a general?" Yang Shiqi saw Yuan Shikai nodding and continued: "That's because of Dongjun. This brave camp was originally composed of the Lin family's hometown warriors in Taiwan. Later, the Lin family
They tried their best to get some people to return to Fujian. But the resettlement of thousands of people became a problem. Although the Lin family had a big business, it was also a problem to feed so many people, so Lin Chaodong found the former governor of Taiwan who returned the loan.
Liu Ming Chuan Gong. At that time, Zhuangsu Gongye was seriously ill, so he wrote to Commander Xian to ask him to take care of him. Commander Xian was indeed a man of friendship, and upon being entrusted by Liu Shengsan, he petitioned the imperial court to let Lin Chaodong reorganize a building in Liangjiang.
The military Yong Camp was paid by the Jiangsu Federation of Ratings. Lin Chaodong reorganized the fifth battalion of the New Dong Army based on the former Dong Junxiang Yong. Its troops were stationed in Taizhou and Tongzhou to assist the Lianghuai Salt Transport Envoy in inspecting illicit salt.
At this time, Lin Anhua established the Dongjun Naval Battalion in Tongzhou and was responsible for detecting smuggled salt at the mouth of the Yangtze River."
"Could Lin Anhua have such financial resources from private salt?"
"In the investigation of smuggled salt, it is inevitable that there will be some conspiracy and collusion with salt lords. However, the annual income is only two to three hundred thousand taels of silver at most. Most of Lin Anhua's wealth is still due to his unique vision. Before the Sino-Japanese War of 1898,
Lin Anhua had already sold off all his property in Taiwan, and instead hoarded it all into camphor. It is said that this made Lin Chaodong lose his temper. But it turned out that Lin Anhua was indeed foresight, and the price of camphor increased nearly ten times.
, Lin Anhua made millions of taels of silver as a result. During the Gengzi Incident, rumors spread in the concessions in Shanghai and other places that the Boxers were going to attack the concessions. Two ships of opium from Sassoon Company in Shanghai were robbed, and the dock warehouse caught fire for no apparent reason, and several foreigners died.
, frightened the foreigners to flee one after another, and even the rich gentry in Shanghai did not dare to live in the concession. For a time, the land prices and real estate prices in the concession plummeted. Lin Anhua took the opportunity to quietly buy in large quantities at extremely low prices, and waited until he signed the "Southeast Mutual Insurance" with the foreigners.
Treaty", the situation in the concession gradually stabilized. After Xin Chou, the land price in the concession increased every year, but Lin Anhua became the largest real estate owner in the concession, with a profit of no less than 30 million taels of silver. The concession authorities also suspected that Lin Anhua was among them
We tried some tricks, but found no real evidence, and finally let it go."
"If this is true, Lin Anhua is quite a figure." Yuan Shikai said with a smile.
"There are also rumors that Lin Anhua once found a large number of pirate treasures at sea, which are worth tens of millions. However, this cannot be confirmed, but Lin Anhua's assets must be no less than 40 to 50 million taels of silver. However,
, Now there is an excellent opportunity. This new army has encountered great difficulties, forcing Lin Chaodong to resign and resign. Lin Anhua will temporarily serve as the commander, but this may not be able to save it." Yang Shiqi paused and continued.
, "Because Lin Chaodong once offended a minister who is now very popular in the DPRK, people are now eyeing the dismissal of this new army."
"Huh? Who did the Lin family offend?" Yuan Shikai asked.
"It's Xiangshuai's brother-in-law Lu Chuanlin Lu Junji!" Yang Shiqi said with a smile, "During the Gengzi period, the Seven-Nation Allied Forces were about to attack Beijing. Mr. Lu, who was the governor of Jiangsu at that time, was very enthusiastic and wanted to lead his troops north to protect them. At that time, Lu
Your Excellency first ordered Dongjun to follow him northward, but Lin Chaodong refused without mercy, saying that except for Commander Xian, Dongjun would not take orders from anyone else. You think Commander Xian and others were engaged in mutual protection in the southeast at that time, so he might have ordered a transfer
Are they going north? Lu Chuanlin had no choice but to lead three battalions of newly recruited soldiers to bravely go north. By the time he arrived at Jining, the two palaces were already hunting west. Speaking of which, the Lu Army's luck was very good, otherwise they would have to be like Li Zhongjie.
He died for his country outside Beijing, but due to this delay, he had to transfer to Xi'an to escort him, and instead he gained the favor of the Queen Mother. However, Mr. Lu began to hold a grudge and fell in love with Lin Chaodong. Since the death of Commander Xian, the Lin family has lost support, but Mr. Lu has become more valuable.
Military aircraft are the celebrities of the day. Do you think Lin Chaodong will have an easy time? Mr. Lu wanted to eliminate Dongjun Yongying in the name of training the new army. Lin Chaodong was discouraged and resigned as the commander of Dongjun and returned to Fujian to retire. Now this army is composed of
When Lin Anhua took over, he hoped to retain his position by virtue of his relationship with Xiangshuai. Unexpectedly, Xiangshuai was very embarrassed about the matter and tried his best to shirk it, which made Lin Anhua feel very cold-hearted towards him."
"So that's it." Yuan Shikai suddenly realized, "Xingcheng wants me to help them?"
"That's right. Your Excellency is now organizing and training a new army. If you can use an excuse to save Dongjun under the Lin family, Lin Shuo will be used by Beiyang, and Dongjun will also be owned by Gongbao. Why wouldn't you do it?"
Yuan Shikai nodded and said: "This is very good, but we have to wait until the right time."
The Steamship Merchants Bureau and the Telegraph Bureau were the two government-owned enterprises that Sheng Xuanhuai had controlled for the longest time and were also the only two government-owned enterprises with huge profits in his hands. During Li Hongzhang's period, Sheng Xuanhuai was still conscientious, but Li Hongzhang lost power after the Sino-Japanese War of 1891-1891, and his successors, Beiyang Ministers Wang Wenshao and Ronglu, were basically
Not understanding Western affairs, Sheng Xuanhuai gradually took control of the two Beiyang-run enterprises. By the time Yuan Shikai took office as the Minister of Beiyang, the wheel ship and electricity bureaus had actually been separated from Beiyang's control. Most of the profits generated in recent years were
Sheng Xuanhuai used it for personal use.
Since Yuan Shikai took over Beiyang, he has been eyeing these two pieces of meat and has been waiting for an opportunity to take back these two industries that originally belonged to Beiyang.
The opportunity soon appeared. In October 1902, Sheng Xuanhuai's father Sheng Kang died of illness. As usual, Sheng Xuanhuai resigned from all official positions and "served" for his father for three years. Sheng Xuanhuai did not want to give up the business he controlled.
But he couldn't violate the "vacancy system", so he had to write to the court to allow him to open vacancies and take on various positions. On the other hand, he called Yuan Shikai to ask for his help, hoping to retain his positions in the rotation and electricity bureaus.
Due to financial constraints at this time, the Qing government also wanted to bring the railway and electricity bureaus back to the Ministry of Household Affairs, so it decreed that in addition to Sheng Xuanhuai retaining the post of railway supervisor, vacancies were allowed to be opened in other offices and departments, and vacancies were also prepared to be dispatched.
Zhang Yi was appointed as the supervisor of the Lun and Electricity Bureaus, so that they could be "relegated to the Ministry of Household Affairs to raise salaries". In order to deal with the court, Sheng Xuanhuai wanted to win Yuan Shikai's support, so he decided on issues such as the ownership and personnel appointments of the Lunner and Electricity Bureaus.
Inviting Yuan Shikai to come to Shanghai to negotiate, unexpectedly, it played into Yuan Shikai's plan.
Yuan Shikai arrived in Shanghai that afternoon. Shanghai Road Yuan Shuxun took a group of officials from Shanghai to the dock of Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau to welcome the Beiyang minister. That night, Yuan Shikai stayed at Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau.
The next day, Yuan Shikai, accompanied by Yuan Shuxun and others, went to Sheng Mansion to pay homage to Sheng Kang, and then talked with Sheng Xuanhuai about the management and personnel arrangements of the Second Electricity Bureau.
"Xingsun, you can't take care of the wheel and the second bureau because of the system. Many people are making plans in this regard. In fact, you should know that once you let these people get it, it will be very difficult to get it back in the future.
.I have thought carefully about the telegram you gave me, and it would be more appropriate to return the two bureaus to Beiyang first. Firstly, the second bureau is the property of Beiyang, and it is justifiable to hand it back now. Secondly, you are an old man from Beiyang.
, this arrangement is temporary, and when it resumes in the future, he can continue to supervise Beiyang's various foreign affairs." Yuan Shikai acted determined to win from the beginning. On the surface, he appeared to be very concerned, but in fact he was persuading Sheng Xuanhuai to be honest.
Hand over your power.
Sheng Xuanhuai was extremely reluctant and excused himself by saying that half of China Merchants Group was now a commercial stock and the personnel arrangements would need to be decided at a board meeting.
Yuan Shikai had long been confident, so he said calmly: "Okay, it turns out that Zhu Baokui, the director of the Investment Promotion Bureau, is working as the general manager of the Beiyang Commerce Bureau. I asked him to come back and discuss with you how to convene the board of directors."
When Sheng Xuanhuai heard this, he was so scared that he broke out in a cold sweat. This Zhu Baokui was Sheng Xuanhuai's hometown in Changzhou. He and Tang Shaoyi were in the same group of young children studying in the United States. Later, they were recruited by Sheng Xuanhuai and gained Sheng Xuanhuai's trust. Zhu Baokui followed Sheng Xuanhuai to run the steamship investment agency and
For many years, the Telegraph Office had been very clear about Sheng Xuanhuai's use of the opportunity to deal with foreign affairs to amass money and line his own pockets. Now that Yuan Shikai mentioned this name deliberately, he was warning Sheng Xuanhuai that you have a pigtail in my hands. I don't want to punish you, otherwise it will be easy
It can destroy your family.
Under the pressure of Lao Yuan, Sheng Xuanhuai could only obediently hand over the second wheel and electricity bureau in his hand to Yuan Shikai. Lao Yuan easily got the second wheel and electricity bureau in his hands, and no longer entangled Sheng's embezzlement of the wheel and electricity bureau.
Regarding the matter of the bureau's public funds, he did not have to let the court know how much money the Second Bureau of Electricity and Television made every year, and he had no chance to influence it.
Satisfied, Lao Yuan took a boat to the north, and soon appointed Yang Shiqi as Assistant Telegraph Minister and General Office of the Investment Promotion Bureau. This trip to the south of the Yangtze River was a fruitful one. Only Sheng Xuan gritted his teeth with hatred, but he could only endure it for the time being. Xu Tu took revenge.
.
At this time, Lin Shuo returned to Xiamen to reunite with his mother because he had reached New Year's Eve.
At that time, Huang Naitang, a native of Fujian and Qing Dynasty, was gathering villagers to reclaim wasteland in Nanyang. When Lin Shuo heard about this, he came to visit him.
Huang Naishang was elected in the 20th year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu. He was quite unusual among the scholars at that time because he was a parishioner and studied in a Minqing missionary school. Such a scholar who received Western education since childhood was able to pass the imperial examination in the eight-part essay examination.
Quite a strange person.
Because Huang Naishang had been in contact with the church since he was a child and accepted Western ideas and scientific knowledge, he was a new-school figure in thinking. In the 23rd year of Guangxu's reign, Huang Naishang failed to take the examination in Beijing. In addition, his third brother Huang Naimo was appointed as the second officer of the Zhiyuan.
Deputy, died heroically in the Battle of the Yellow Sea. The failure of the Sino-Japanese War of 1894 and Huang Naimo's sacrifice inspired him to actively seek political innovation and enrich the people and strengthen the country, and he participated in the political activities of the reformers.
After the failure of the Reform Movement of 1898, Huang Naishang was wanted by the court and fled back to Fujian. Later, he went to Nanyang to avoid pursuit. Huang Naishang saw many places in Nanyang that were vast, sparsely populated and fertile, so he mobilized to recruit landless refugees from the country.
The idea of reclaiming wasteland in Southeast Asia.
In the 26th year of Guangxu's reign, Huang Naishang formally signed a reclamation contract with the King of Sarawak. As the "port owner", he contracted the reclamation rights of Sibu and named the area "New Fuzhou". At the same time, he established the New Fuzhou Reclamation Company.
While he was setting up a company, he returned to China in person and recruited various people, mainly farmers, to go to Nanyang for reclamation.
The biggest problem Huang Naishang encountered at this time was financial problems.
The Huang family was originally from a humble background. Later, they had some savings because several of their brothers became officials, but in the end their financial resources were limited. After meeting Huang Naishang, Lin Shuo expressed his willingness to invest in the New Fuzhou Company, which was tantamount to giving timely help. In the end, the two parties agreed that Lin Shuo would
He invested 200,000 silver dollars to become the owner of the New Fuzhou Company, and Huang Naishang, as the chief proprietor, owned 20% of the company's shares.
Lin Shuo and Huang Naishang cooperated to take the first step in reclamation in Nanyang.