Section 159: Undercurrent of the provincial capital
Chapter 159 The undercurrent of the provincial capital
Even though he was sitting in a bamboo silk sedan, even though there was a good-looking boy servant fanning him in the sedan, and Li Fengjie had just eaten a cup of iced plum soup, he still felt unbearably hot. He was wearing this official robe.
It was hot and heavy. He wanted to take it off quickly to cool off and loosen his penis.
He just came back from Baietan - he attended a banquet, which was held in a restaurant next to Baietan. The banquet was nominally a "summer gathering", and of course there were poems, essays, songs and the like at the banquet.
but the main topic at the banquet was how to "make money".
The banquet was mainly attended by the local powerful gentry. The state of war with the Kun thieves and the ensuing fiasco made the gentry in the provincial capital very uneasy. This included hedonistic aspects - not only the popular Ziming Tower
The Golden Cave has been closed down, and Australian products have gradually disappeared from the market, which has greatly affected the quality of life of the master, wife, young master and young ladies.
Secondly, the Lingao Economy has a multifaceted economic impact on Guangdong, and they have long used Guangzhou as a port for material procurement, which has resulted in the formation of many industries that directly or indirectly rely on the Lingao Economy for their operation.
of upstream and downstream industries.
As a trade window, Guangzhou has many people making profits in the Lingao-Guangdong industrial trade chain. The current hostility between Guangdong and Lingao has caused a huge blow to one of their profit channels. No one
What more money can be made - especially the upstream suppliers of the Lingao industrial system. They have been hit particularly hard by losing the opportunity to export.
Nearly a hundred iron smelting yards in Guangdong have closed down, leaving a large number of workers unemployed. Business houses that used to traffic in coal, timber, grain and other production raw materials have also suffered a heavy blow.
Even downstream sellers are feeling the pain of losing the supply of goods. Prices of Australian goods have skyrocketed, but few have stocked up in large quantities. Even if there is enough inventory, sales have fallen after the price rise.
In addition to the inconvenience in life and business losses, the gentry were also very dissatisfied with Wang Zunde's actions. The pirate officials like Liu Xiang, who constantly harassed the coast, robbed ships and extorted money, were helpless and honestly did business in Lingao.
The Australians who provide all kinds of good things have become the targets of extermination - in their view, this is simply putting the cart before the horse and "starting provocations without authorization." Many people are secretly inciting the provincial officials in Beijing, the science and technology officials and the censors.
activities in preparation for impeachment.
And some headless posters and pamphlets began to circulate in the provincial capital, exacerbating the dissatisfaction. Many yamen, government offices and official gentry residences were quietly thrown into the posters. Some were even posted on the streets. Some of them revealed that
The many messages that came out not only made the officials and gentry feel dissatisfied, but even incited the common people. Various rumors spread all over the sky.
It seems that it is only a matter of time before the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi is replaced. Li Fengjie is eager to try for this position. However, he knows that his plan will be challenged by Xiong Wencan - and Xiong Wencan's holy family is much better than him.
From all aspects, Lao Xiong was more confident than he was if he wanted to seek the position of governor. Li Fengjie thought about it again and again and felt that the only way to start is to recruit the Australians as soon as possible. Although this has certain risks, it can greatly please the gentry and business people of Guangzhou.
. To take a step back, even if he cannot seek the position of governor of Guangdong and Guangdong, he can still maintain his position as governor of Guangdong.
From a military point of view, his staff also believed that there was no hope of continuing the "suppression". According to the reports of the defeated soldiers and the reports sent from various places in Hainan: the Australian military strength far exceeded their estimates. This became
A very dangerous and terrifying enemy. Moreover, this enemy also has powerful maritime power. They may break into the Pearl River at any time and carry out large-scale looting and destruction of the rich delta area.
Li Fengjie's sedan was carried into the governor's office. After getting off the sedan, he went directly into the study - this was where he and his staff discussed matters, and it was very quiet.
The servant helped him take off his official robe and changed into a poplin shirt and a square towel. He also brought water to scrub him. After a while, someone brought herbal tea - his favorite fruit shaved ice because
Ziminglou has closed its doors and is completely gone.
Li Fengjie drank tea and casually looked at the various documents sent by his personal servant.
On the table are the latest various revelations circulating in the city. The contents of the disclosures are varied, but the firepower is concentrated on Wang Zunde and his surrounding staff and cronies. The source is self-evident. Either Wang's enemies or the Australians concocted it.
Many public posts described in detail how Wang Zunde planned a war with the Australians. How Tian Da used Qi Wan's power to extort money everywhere, until the blackmail got to Zi Zihao, forcing Guo Dongzhu and others to escape... Among them
The details of the content and the vividness of the dialogue could only have been written by someone who had personally experienced it.
There are also some posts that look like they were made by Australians: the text is all in vernacular, the text is in popular style, and the printing is exquisite, bound like books. The content is diverse. Some of them are about Wang Zunde’s staff, domestic servants, and confidants.
The revelation of the shady scandal - Li Fengjie thought that Australians are very smart: Wang Zunde's personal morality and reputation are quite good in the officialdom, and it is difficult to slander him with scandals. But the people around him are not so tough. Some of the revelations are
It is a description of various anecdotes and ambiguous affairs in the boudoir of the royal relatives. There are many detailed descriptions, which are vivid and vivid. It makes people's blood rush and is very interesting to read. It is like reading a novel, which makes people unable to put it down. There are even some
The disclosure posts are simply divided into volumes. There is such a difference between the first volume and the second volume, which makes people think of the second volume after reading the first volume. Many people secretly exchange the disclosure posts, and some people even secretly print and copy them privately.
.
In this way, the Australians' disclosures became popular reading and spiritual food for Guangzhou citizens. Even high-ranking officials like Li Fengjie were very interested in it. He was not interested in the explicit descriptions that ordinary citizens were keen on, but he was interested in the pamphlets from time to time.
All kinds of "truths" revealed by the stream are flocking to them.
This special propaganda tactic is the result of the joint efforts of the Foreign Intelligence Service and the "Publication Steering Group". The Publishing Leading Group organized a group of veterans to copy and paste from computers to rewrite this kind of pamphlet. The pamphlet is based on the modern "pocket"
This "small book" is printed in a small size and is easy to carry. The left-behind personnel at Guangzhou Station continue to distribute it through various channels.
There are several books on the table to collect the Australian posters that have just been collected. As the governor of Guangdong, the governor's office receives special attention from the Foreign Intelligence Bureau, and the latest pamphlets will be sent here in the first batch.
Li Fengjie asked his servant to invite a few close aides and picked up an Australian publication. The titles on it were very impactful: "The so-called "Tuen Mun Victory" from the secret archives of the French court", "The former Ming Dynasty"
"Tell me the inside story of the Tianqi Dynasty's recovery of Penghu".
"Australians are very close to current events!" He said to himself, planning to read it later.
On the table, there were several latest newspapers. He opened one and read a few sentences, and his expression suddenly changed.
While the Guangdong officialdom was still conducting frequent private trials and discussions on the issue of recruitment, the news came that the Kun thief had landed on Hong Kong Island. Then, the Kun thief cleanly eliminated Zheng Bao and his gang on Lantau Island.
The message came over. And the sudden escape of Liu Xiang's men made the image of the Kun thief even more terrifying - even the famous shopkeeper Liu Da, who was feared by everyone, disappeared without a trace in front of the Kun thief.
In this way, the original plan of Li Fengjie and others to fight with Liu Xiang and Kun Thief to seize the territory of the Pearl River Estuary, using thieves to attack thieves, was completely over. The Australians were ready to open fire on anyone who hindered them, but Liu Xiang did not
Planning to defend the Pearl River Estuary with arms consumes one's own strength - there is no need to go head-on when there are soft persimmons to pinch.
Between Lingdingyang and Huangpu, there is no force worth mentioning that can withstand the attack of the Kun thieves. If they are willing, they can send their boats straight to Baietan and become the masters of the entire Pearl River arrogantly.
"Dong Weng! It's too late to recruit him." He Chengzong put down the newspaper and said with a worried look on his face. Although He Chengzong was only a scholar, he was highly regarded by Li Fengjie. He was a "strategist" in the shogunate.
According to the news in the Tang News: After the Australians built forts in Hong Kong to eliminate Zheng Bao, warships had already "knocked on the gate" at the Pearl River estuary, especially patrolling in the Lingdingyang area and measuring the water depth. It seemed that there was an attempt to enter the Pearl River.
.If they launch large iron ships into the Pearl River and blast the city of Guangzhou with the legendary powerful cannons, not only will the place be rotten beyond control, but Li Fengjie will no longer have to wear his black gauze hat.
"It's probably difficult to achieve anything just by appeasement," Li Fengjie said. He also hoped that there would be a force that could restrain the Australians to prevent them from becoming bigger and acting more unscrupulously.
Li Fengjie originally hoped that Liu Xiang would stick to his territory. After Liu Xiang slipped away, he turned his attention to the French people in Macau.
Because of the trend of interests, the Francons have always been very concerned about the maritime security of the Pearl River Estuary. They have always had the habit and determination to protect their trade. As long as you point out to them the impact on trade in the Pearl River Estuary once the Ming Dynasty and the Australians go to war, the Francons will
People will definitely dispatch ships to protect the Pearl River Estuary.
Li Fengjie received a report from the Prime Minister of Xiangshan County who was in charge of the war and stationed in Macau: The Francois now have four large ships moored in the port of Macau, all of which are three-masted plywood ships. The ships are equipped with 32 cannons. Judging from the size of the ships,
Said that it exceeded all the ships of the Kun bandits at present-except for the big iron ship. The Francois also had several smaller brigs, which were also equipped with 12 cannons.