Travel through the Qing Dynasty and become emperor

Although there is not much increase in fiscal revenue, there is no shortage of places to spend money.Just talk about the four major events that Guan Xuqing has paid close attention to in the past few years, bureaucratic system reform, basic education popularization, and railway terminal construction.

Construction and the modernization of the army, which one is not a matter of spending money like water.

The reform of the bureaucratic system has made government institutions and functions more modern, and many new institutions and official positions will inevitably be added, such as the establishment of local courts and judges, the establishment of procuratorates and prosecutors

, the establishment of the police station, the establishment of the tax bureau, the establishment of the transportation bureau, etc. These institutions all need new office space, and if they have a space, they need to recruit people. Naturally, this must be funded from the national budget.

out;

Needless to say the importance of popularizing basic education, the famous aphorism of later generations "No matter how poor you are, you can't have poor education" still rings in your ears.Therefore, Guan Xuqing has always been open about the state's expenditure on education.

Appropriate money.After three years, at least one county school (junior high school) and several rural schools (primary school) in each county have been basically realized in the eastern and central regions.Some big houses also have prefectural schools (high schools), while in the west

some minority areas.New-style schools have also been set up in big cities such as Suiyuan (Hohhot), Ulan Bator, Yili, and Dihua (Urumqi). Today, the national literacy rate in the Qing Dynasty has increased from five to five.

The previous ten percent rose to 28%, a full increase of more than ten percentage points. The current education expenditure accounted for more than 20% of the fiscal expenditure of the Qing Dynasty for a long time, and even reached 25.7% last year.

This made other ministries and yamen envy Yung Wing, who was in charge of the Ministry of Rites;

Life at sea is dull and boring. Guan Xu cleared up chatting with the officers and soldiers on board every day to learn about the situation of the navy. He just stood on the bridge and thought about the sea while watching the sea.

.Of course, I will not forget to accompany my wife!

The tight finances naturally affected the expansion of the navy. Over the past few years, except for a few warships that had already been confirmed to be built.The Beiyang Navy added up to build the "Rise"

Capital ships, as well as ironclad ships that have been successfully developed and are already under construction.It's far worse than my neighbor with a strip of water.

Changed the format and changed a bit to vomit blood, and I will never write novels with text in the future

The First Encounter of the Feud in East Asia Chapter 1

"An unknown fleet is found in front of the port side...", "The distance is about 45 nautical miles!"

Guan Xuqing was thinking silently.A loud report suddenly came from the foremast of Zhenyuan.

At this time, the fleet was sailing in the East China Sea.According to the Taiwan Strait, there are still more than 100 nautical miles away.Since warships are much better with less coal than merchant ships, the smoke is naturally much lighter, so you can judge whether it is a merchant ship or a warship based on the thickness of the smoke, and merchant ships generally operate alone, and only fleets will travel together.However, there is still a considerable distance from the place where the Nanyang navy came to meet. Obviously, the fleet opposite is unlikely to be a fleet of the Qing Dynasty.

Because the emperor was on his own ship, Deng Shichang's nerves suddenly tensed up.He sounded the buzzer alarm for all crew members to be on alert, and immediately, the Dingyuan ship was full of people, and the sailors rushed out of the cabin to their posts.The footsteps made the steel deck make a "dong dong" sound.

From the first few wisps of light smoke to the billowing thick smoke later, it showed that the opponent had at least five to six warships.An hour later, the mast of the incoming ship could already be seen from the Zhenyuan ship, and a military flag with a red sun shining in all directions was hung above it. It turned out to be a Japanese fleet.

Today's weather is very clear with good visibility on the sea.After a while, the outline of the Japanese fleet appeared in the southeast direction.There are a total of one large, four small and five warships, and the five warships form a column.The first ship was painted with a very conspicuous white paint, and its size was even bigger than the Zhenyuan, which is known as "the largest ship in Asia".It abandoned the straight sides of the previous warships, and the left and right sides of the ship bulged to both sides. This design greatly increased the buoyancy of the ship and provided conditions for it to have intricate superstructures.

To be honest, in Guan Xuqing's view, this ship is more like a luxury cruise ship than a warship. Two thick cylindrical armored mast towers stand high above the messy superstructure, with a closed mast on top. Disk, the inside of the mast tower is hollow.There are cranes and spiral stairs for people to go up and down, which are matched with the cabin, which is very similar to the Baroque hotel-style building.No wonder the ship has the nickname "Sea Hotel" in history.

This is the "Osh" that was originally abandoned on the berth by France. After being bought by Japan, it has now been renamed the "Kyushu".Although this warship has a unique shape in history.Nothing special about it.Too low freeboard and too high superstructure have affected its combat effectiveness.But such a large battleship of 10820 tons is really in front of us.The impact and deterrence produced cannot be ignored by oneself.

Several commanders of the Japanese provisional fleet on the "Kyushu" couldn't help becoming nervous when they saw the Qing fleet that seemed to be heading straight towards them.Four large battleships built in France have already built the first "Kyushu", and this time the Japanese Navy is taking it back to China.After publicity, Japan has regarded the four giant ships as baby bumps. For this reason, four cruisers, Naniwa, Takachiho, Chikushi, and Kaohsiung trained at the Kagoshima base, were sent to the South China Sea to meet the escort.Before this, the domestic intelligence network that had been monitoring the Qing Navy had reported that the Beiyang Navy would hold an annual ocean-going training in the near future, but it happened to me by such a coincidence.

"Dingyuan, Zhenyuan, Jiyuan, Weiyuan, Rise..., Beiyang Navy has come out in full force, it seems that they can't win." Ito Youheng read silently, and he had spent more than ten years studying China. In the navy, he can tell every Chinese warship like a treasure.Although judging from the ship data, it is equipped with two 275mm and two 340mm 28-fold main guns, and its speed reaches 16.5 knots. The Dingyuan-class ironclad ship with a maximum speed of only 4 knots, and the four 305mm Krupp breech-loading guns of the Dingyuan-class may not be able to penetrate the 25mm thick armor of the "Kyushu", but the Navy accepted it from the Lorient shipyard in France. The "Kyushu" is less than three months old, and the integration training of ships and personnel has not been completed at all. The performance of many ships still needs time to be familiarized with, and after long-distance voyages, some parts of the ship have experienced inevitable wear and tear. and malfunctions, urgently waiting to enter the port for maintenance, this time is not the best state for a naval battle at all.On the other hand, the Qing fleet, although one-on-one, the Zhenyuan-class ironclad ship known as "Asia's largest ship" is far from the opponent of the "Kyushu".Now the real number one giant ship in Asia is the "Kyushu".However, the Qing fleet on the opposite side has four subway first-class ships of the Dingyuan class, and the training between personnel and ships has been going on for four or five years.Almost proficient, with a pair of four. "Kyushu" has no chance of winning.Moreover, it is close to the Zhenhai Naval Base, where the Qing Dynasty spent a lot of money to build. Qing warships can flee there for repairs at any time, and it is more than 15.4 nautical miles away from the nearest Japanese military port, Baxia. It will be difficult to escape the pursuit of the Qing warships and return to the military port.

But at this time he smiled slightly. The above inferences are completely possible under normal circumstances, but when things in the Qing Dynasty can be considered normal, he does not believe that the people who have always claimed to be "the kingdom of brilliance, the king of etiquette" The Qing Congress of the "Bang" took the initiative to declare war on the Japanese fleet. The soldiers were in a hurry, covering the two 275mm M1884QFC breech-loading guns at the stern of the ship and one 340mm M1884QFC breech-loading gun on each side of the ship, and as many as 18 140mm secondary guns equipped on the ship were also included in the gun profile. With the gun door closed, it is completely defenseless.

"Your Excellency, Commander, are you being too cowardly? This is completely against the samurai spirit of our Great Japanese Empire. The domestic people save money and buy such a giant ship as the Kyushu. It is to sink Dingyuan and Zhenyuan, Instead of tucking their tails in front of them..." The captain of the Japanese navy, the captain of the Kaohsiung unprotected cruiser of the Provisional Fleet Cruiser Unit, Oguri Motohachiro blushed authentically, and he was promoted step by step by relying on his military exploits. Hang San and the naval officers waiting to come back from overseas have long been dissatisfied with pushing them everywhere, and at this time they can't understand their behavior even more.

Ito Yutou glanced sideways at Oguri Motohachiro, who was standing straight in front of him: "You idiot, what the people need is a big victory, a big victory that can win the empire living space and a lot of compensation. Not These false faces. The Qing Dynasty on the opposite side is immersed in the lies they made up, thinking that they are still invincible, and that they will be left far behind by the Western countries, giving the Great Japan a hard work. Opportunity to rise. For the Qing Dynasty, Japan is too small. Our only advantage is to wake up before them. The people of the whole country are united, and in the past few years. The Qing Dynasty has gradually woken up. Once the actions of the navy stimulated them , so that they buy giant ships again, the Great Japanese Empire will fall into an endless arms race. At that time, our fragile economy will be dragged down, and all the people will face bankruptcy. Decades of hard work will go to waste, and Japan will forever be reduced to a second-rate country, which I will never allow."

"Hay..." Yuheng Ito, who has always been known for his elegant demeanor in the Japanese navy, turned out to be stern at this time, causing the surrounding Japanese generals to bow their heads and bow their heads.

Seeing the Japanese fleet on the opposite side playing the friendly banner of "the road ahead is calm and the sea is smooth", Guan Xuqing also asked Deng Shichang to return the banner of wishing good luck.

Regarding the "Operation Jingke" that I personally presided over, because it cannot be announced to the public, only a few people in charge of intelligence forces know, even Kang Youwei, Deng Shichang, and Yan Fu, who are completely regarded as confidantes of the imperial party, are also ignorant.Guan Xuqing didn't know if he had done something wrong. The French navy was once one of the best in the world. Even after experiencing such a disastrous defeat at the Battle of Trafalgar, it did not bring them down. The world's first ironclad ship came from France human handwriting.But from the late nineteenth century until the end of World War II, the French navy was largely forgotten.Due to the huge pressure on Germany on land, after the Franco-Prussian War, they devoted their main energy to the army. Because the navy was neglected, the shipbuilding technology was gradually left behind by the United Kingdom, and later it fell behind the emerging Germany and Germany. U.S.The poor realization of French warships in several wars, and the Russian fleet established under the guidance of French engineers were almost wiped out by Japan in the Battle of Tsushima, which made Fang Huai habitually despise like many ship enthusiasts in later generations. Those are called "coffins at sea" French warships.That's why he decided to use four large battleships that Japan dreamed of to drag down the Japanese economy.Because Dingyuan and Zhenyuan were hit by hundreds of bullets in the battle of the Yellow Sea, the impression of standing still was too deep in his mind. In history, if the Qing government was not too stupid, it would not build a new ship for the Beiyang Navy.With rapid-fire guns, the Beiyang Navy did not change equipment, and even the shells were not replenished.It is impossible for the battle in the Yellow Sea to end like that. After all, there is no Japanese warship that can stop and suppress the second ship.Now the Beiyang Navy is several times stronger than in history. Even if Japan has four giant ships, it must not be able to win the Beiyang Navy that has undergone earth-shaking changes in strength.

However, military science is a rigorous science. If the army is still a competition of spiritual will in many aspects, and the air force can also rely on blood and courage to die with the enemy like the Japanese Kamikaze, then the naval ship battle is One of the most demanding items in military science is also the one that is least dependent on human will.

After the Japanese Navy owned the "Kyushu", it was fully equipped to sink Zhenyuan. The Zhenyuan-class iron-clad warship that Fang Huai relied on before as the Great Wall of the Sea was no longer so unbreakable.Although Japan has the four giant ships of Kyushu, Yamato, Musashi, and Katsuragi, the tonnage of the ships is less than 10 tons.Through the development of the Qing Dynasty in the past few years, the total tonnage of the navy has exceeded 20 tons.However, the shadow and deterrence caused by the four giant ships will not dissipate if China does not have battleships of the same level.

For an island country surrounded by sea, it is impossible to talk about defeating it without defeating its navy.With Japan's small and stoic personality, with Britain and France paying for him, sooner or later he will make a comeback.

In recent years, because China has changed the balance of power in East Asia, under the influence of the Sino-French Vietnam War and the Sino-British Burma War.Historically, it was not until the Sino-Japanese War of [-] that Britain and France fell to Japan, which was directly advanced.Part of the excess capital in Britain and France flowed to Japan at the behest of the government. In addition, stimulated by domestic military preparations, Japan's economy has grown rapidly, which is much better than the historical struggle. The giant giant ship has no indigestion either.And Britain and France support in some key technologies.It also made Japan stronger in a real sense.can imagine.In the future Sino-Japanese War, Britain and France, which already regarded China as a thorn in their side and a thorn in their flesh, would spare no effort to support Japan.And once Japan, which has Britain and France paying for its military expenses, shows its wolf nature, the Chinese nation will surely face a severe challenge.

When returning to this era, Guan Xuqing never thought of standing with the British who still maintained their status as the boss at this time, but between Russia and the United Kingdom, he chose the former, and then the foreign policies of Germany and the United States , are all derivatives of this choice.The reason is simple, maybe Russia really hates China, but Russia will never help Japan.From the perspective of geopolitics, there is a natural conflict between the two. Russia’s ports on the Pacific coast are all shrouded in the shadow of the Japanese archipelago, and the Russian Pacific Fleet stationed in Jeju Island and Vladivostok is also threatening the essence of Japan’s coastal areas at any time. , no one can rest assured of the other party.As for China and Russia, Russia's economic center of gravity is in Europe, so it goes without saying what is happening in Central Asia and Siberia bordering China, while China's economically developed regions are all located south of the Great Wall, and the Chinese territory bordering Russia has never been It is not an elite area that cannot be discarded. It is sparsely populated and ruled weakly. Most of the time, it is a place where Chinese exiled prisoners and ethnic minorities live together. Russia has ceded more than 150 million square kilometers from China without firing a shot, and China can also Nearly 200 million square kilometers were cut from the hands of Alexander III, who regarded land as more important than life. The degree of insignificance of these cut-off lands can be seen.

But it is different for Britain. The British diplomatic gentlemen in stiff-collared dresses are naturally inclined to Japan.Between China and Japan, they will only choose Japan.Because Japan is small enough, no matter how powerful it is, it can be controlled in their view. It is a good Doberman pinscher that can be held in the hand and bark at the polar bear in the Pacific Ocean.And China... its history is longer than that of all civilized countries combined!The population is the sum of the entire population of Europe, and it has a huge and vast land.Such a big guy, if it is supported, it will be a lot of effort to control it.And once it is out of control, the rule of the British colonial empire in India and Southeast Asia will be a disaster... The UK will never support the rise of China. What they need is balance. The strength of Japan can help them be optimistic about East Asia This door, and the rise of China will only break this door.

The two fleets passed each other at a friendly distance of twenty nautical miles, each heading towards its destination.

Although they missed it, both sides are convinced that one day, these two most powerful fleets representing East Asia will collide, and the victory or defeat will directly determine the fate of the two nations.We lost in the past, but what about tomorrow?Guan Xuqing looked into the distance, and the sound of the sea was still there.

Competing in East Asia Chapter 1 and the Southeast Coast

A huge fleet of [-] to [-] warships from the Beiyang Fleet of the Qingshui Division bypassed the Leizhou Peninsula in Guangdong and entered the Beibu Gulf, which is calm and rich in fish.

On the east side of Beibu Gulf, across the sea from Leizhou Prefecture in Guangdong is Qiongzhou Prefecture in Hainan Island.In recent years, due to the development of Shilu Jinniuling Iron Mine and the establishment of Qiongzhou Iron Works, this place has developed very fast.

The Haikou Port, which was specially built for it, also became lively. On the seaside of the port area, small western-style buildings made of red bricks and cement can be seen rising from the ground, and people wearing Li, Miao and other ethnic minority costumes shuttle around During this period, they were either working or selling their own goods.Many fishing boats returning from night fishing docked on the shore and began to sell the fish on the boat. Among the fishing boats, there were occasionally two or three cargo ships waiting to be loaded. These boats were all hung with white sails. It looks like a clear white line from a distance.

In fact, the scene here can be regarded as a microcosm of the development of Guangdong Province and even the four southeastern provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian and Vietnam.These four provinces are not only the places where the germs of capitalism were first born in Chinese history.

Jiangning, Suzhou, Yangzhou, Hangzhou, Fuzhou, Quanzhou, and Guangzhou were all large-scale commercial cities in the late Qing Dynasty, and this was the first place to be invaded by Western capitalism. Most of the foreign ports opened after the two Opium Wars were distributed in these four provinces .

The original natural economy and small-scale peasant economy in these four provinces were the most severely damaged, and they were also the first places to accept Western culture, which made them not only have a natural business foundation and atmosphere and strong commercial capital, but also have a good sense of business and atmosphere.In addition, modern universal education was first completed in these four provinces, which made the four provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, and Guangdong have the advantage of talents under the condition of favorable time and place.thus.After the Sino-French Vietnam War and the Sino-British Burma War, the first wave of industrial and commercial development swept across these four provinces first.

In the past three years, the industrial output value of these four provinces has increased ninefold, accounting for two-thirds of the national industrial output value growth; tax revenue has increased sixfold, accounting for nearly half of the national tax revenue. Not too much.

From Suzhou and Yangzhou in southern Jiangsu, through Songjiang in Shanghai, Hangzhou, Ningbo and Wenzhou in Zhejiang, Fuzhou and Quanzhou in Fujian to Chaozhou, Huizhou, Guangzhou, Leizhou in Guangdong and Qiongzhou in Hainan Island The long and narrow industrial belt in the Qing Dynasty concentrated more than half of the heavy industry and more than two-thirds of the light industry in the entire Qing Dynasty. This is China's Pennsylvania.

Guan Xuqing thought of the beginning of the year before last.The cabinet passed the decree to open ports to foreign powers in the four provinces in the south of the Yangtze River to establish a "code commercial zone", and to give more support to the four provinces in terms of government decrees and money, such as implementing preferential tax rates in the four provinces.Attract domestic and foreign capital to enter.

Before 1881, the cumulative commercial tax of various names in the mainland was as high as 55%.But even under such harsh and miscellaneous taxes, Shanxi, Anhui, Zhejiang, and Cantonese merchants still developed to a considerable scale, which is simply unimaginable abroad.On the one hand, of course it is tax evasion, on the other hand, it shows that the pie of Chinese business is too big, and what these businessmen get is huge profits.After Guan Xuqing came to power, he gradually reduced the tax rate through various means.The current domestic commercial tax rate is about 25%. Last year, the land support policy was passed, which further reduced the commercial tax rate in the four provinces to 15%. This tax rate was the same as the British tax rate in Hong Kong at that time.

In addition, in order to facilitate the development of foreign trade in the four provinces, and to purchase machines, talents and technology from Western countries, the Qing Commercial Bank will open branches at major ports in the four provinces.Handle foreign exchange transactions.At the same time, it provides a low-interest business loan of [-] million silver dollars;

As for the "Dian Commercial District", it is actually a special economic zone for later generations.It was Guan Xuqing's experimental field for feudal economic reform.Although it has been in power for nearly ten years, domestic capitalism has developed greatly compared to history.But now the Qing Dynasty is still dominated by a self-sufficient feudal small-scale peasant economy.In order to carry out social and economic reforms and engage in a capitalist market economy, on the one hand, we have no experience, and on the other hand, our thinking has not changed and we are not very accepting. The gradual reform thinking of "crossing the river by feeling the stones" is a necessary thought for economic reform.Through experiments, successful experience will be extended to other regions, and unsuccessful experience will be discarded.

After all, China has been closed to the outside world for hundreds of years. Although some contacts were passively established after the Opium War, for most regions, there is no contact with foreign countries, or there is no means of contact with foreign countries at all.Similarly, China, an ancient oriental country, is also very mysterious and strange in the eyes of foreigners.

So some so-called "windows" are needed.This includes two meanings: one is to learn from and absorb foreign advanced things.The second is to show China's political and economic conditions to foreign countries.Just like a great man in later generations said. "We need windows. Technology windows. Management windows. Knowledge windows. Also foreign policy windows." Ports opened during the two Opium Wars.Its openness is very limited.Foreigners are still regarded as scourges.Some local officials are afraid of conflicts between the people and foreigners.Every time a foreign ship docks.Both sent a large number of soldiers to "protect" foreigners.And strictly limit the scope of their activities.This makes the open ports not play their due role. The "Dian Commercial District" actually further clarified the functions of the open ports.

China is now facing "great changes unseen in a thousand years".The rules and regulations, legal system, and thinking habits of the whole society are still in the feudal economic era.Set aside some areas to implement special economic policies.Let officials in these areas let go.Through the introduction of foreign capital, the introduction of advanced technology, the establishment of factories and the establishment of new financial institutions.Implement different policies from other regions.This will play a very positive role in demonstrating China's progress from a feudal society to a capitalist society.After all, relying solely on propaganda to change the inherent ideological culture of the Chinese people for thousands of years.The process is too slow.What China needs is time.What is most lacking is time.If you can actually make some achievements.It is easier for people to recognize the development and changes of society.

Now it seems.Generally speaking, the upward direction is good.The prototype of a modern industrial zone has been formed here.Due to the rapid industrial development of this area, except for the northernmost Yangzhou Prefecture.Most are located south of the Yangtze River.Therefore, it is called Jiangnan Industrial Zone.in hereafter. The "Jiangnan Industrial Zone" and the "Northern Industrial Zone" where the output value of heavy industry accounts for half of the country, and the "Two Lakes Industrial Zone" known as the "Oriental Ruhr" and the reputation of "China's three major industrial arteries". "Woo... woo..." There was a long sound of the whistle.The ships in front of the combined fleet in the North and South Ocean retreated one after another.In front of these steel behemoths of the industrial age.They are just a light boat in a creek.

Looking at the current situation he created after traveling to this time and space, Guan Xuqing was excited and proud.This is similar to "Red Alert", a classic stand-alone game that Guan Xuqing was obsessed with during his school days. Where there are mines, there will be money. If there is money, there will be a strong industry. If there is a strong industry, there will be a stronger military. strength.And now, Guan Xuqing is digging mines in this fertile land.

Wang Shang, who had been waiting outside the door, brought in the water for washing his face that he had prepared early in the morning. Seeing Wang Shang's puffy feet and bloodless face, he knew that he must have vomited heavily, and he had been blowing the sea breeze outside all night.People who have never been on a warship do not know the hardships on board. When they first boarded, the bumps on the board even the "fisherman" who grew up by the sea had to vomit, not to mention food, housing, and space for activities, etc. aspect restrictions.

"Didn't I tell you to rest in the cabin? I don't need someone to wait on me at night..." Although Guan Xuqing spoke in a dignified manner, he really couldn't stop blaming Wang Shang.