Super Dictator

Li Hongzhang was so skinny that a camel was bigger than a horse. Although he had temporarily lost power and lost the real power of the Governor-General of Zhili and the Minister of Beiyang, he heard that the imperial court would give him the position of Minister of Military Affairs and transfer him to the cabinet, giving him a high-ranking post.

However, the power he has managed for many years is still there. Once something big happens, he, a veteran, will have to be called upon to take action. It is only a matter of time before Li Hongzhang is reused. It's just that some people who follow the trend can't see it clearly.

After Li Hongzhang and Wei Jichen exchanged a few words, they didn't want to ignore the others and started to chat with others in the hall.

All the officials gathered together in small groups to talk, and the servants of the Li Mansion brought some tea and cakes.

Yuan Shikai is the largest official who came to visit Li Hongzhang today. Other officials higher than Yuan Shikai may have been visited by Li Hongzhang two days ago.

Therefore, Wei Jichen is very popular here. From time to time, people come up to try to establish relations, but Wei Jichen always responds to them with a smile.

"The emperor has summoned brother Zijie this time, and I wonder what important tasks he has entrusted him with?" Yuan Shikai asked, standing opposite Wei Jichen with a smile. He also found an opportunity to come over and try to get warm.

Wei Jichen glanced at the somewhat high-spirited Yuan Shikai and thought to himself: The thing he had been planning for a long time must have finally been accomplished, so that's why he was so complacent.

With a sigh, Wei Jichen picked up the tea on the table, took a sip, and said with a frown, "The emperor asked me to go home and wait. I don't know what errands will happen."

Yuan Shikai was a little surprised, rolled his eyes, and then smiled and said: "Brother, why don't you come and help in Big Brother's New Army? You can choose the positions in Big Brother's New Army."

Yuan Shikai promptly started recruiting people to join his team. These days, he really racked his brains and tried his best to find talents.

Damn it, your team of four to five thousand people actually wanted to invite me to go and be your little brother. You are really whimsical.

Wei Jichen still had a smile on his face and declined: "The Emperor asked me to rest, so I will rest. The Emperor asked me to go to your army, so I will go to your army. I can't help myself. I can't help it. Sometimes my reputation is too great." Being big is also tiring.”

Yuan Shikai smiled coquettishly. There was no hint of showing off in Wei Jichen's words, but he had so much capital, he couldn't say much.

"My eldest brother is too Meng Lang. When I see my dear brother, I am instantly moved. Alas, my dear brother, can you introduce one or two fierce generals to our army? Now my eldest brother's army is full of student officers, and they have not done much. I don't know if it will be of any use on the battlefield." Yuan Shikai shook his head and sighed.

Wei Jichen was stunned. He did not expect that the Beiyang Army, which would become famous in later generations, was just a bunch of student soldiers in the eyes of Yuan Shikai.

"Alas, this little brother is back in Tianjin now, otherwise he could still be in Liaodong to help his eldest brother." Wei Jichen replied with a look of helplessness.

He tried his best to make up his mind again. Yuan Shikai's Beiyang Army, Duan Qirui, was originally supposed to be a teacher at the Weihaiwei Suiying Military Academy in Shandong Province, but now Weihaiwei was occupied by the Japanese, and it is unknown where he went. Yuan Shikai should Haven't found him yet.

Zhang Xun, yes, he was the guy who caused a farce of restoration in later generations, but I heard that he was relatively loyal. He seemed to be from Yijun, and he should be under Song Qing. Why didn't I pay attention at the time?

Cao Kun seems to be from Yijun too, why didn't he find out until now?

These famous people in later generations are still serving as soldiers or officers under Song Qing. Why don't they strike first and not give Yuan Shikai a chance?

Well, I'll look for it from Song Qing when the demobilization and adaptation is done, and see if I can find it.

When Yuan Shikai saw Wei Jichen with his head down in thought, he thought Wei Jichen was thinking of someone to recommend for him. If he knew that Wei Jichen was thinking about how to poach someone, Yuan Shikai would probably be furious to death.

Not long after, Li Hongzhang turned around and turned back again. Yuan Shikai did not want to make Li Hongzhang angry again, so he sneaked aside.

"Zhongtang." Wei Jichen called out respectfully.

"Zijie, what are your plans for coming back this time?" Li Hongzhang did know some inside information. He was the one who brought about Wei Jichen's recall in the first place.

"The boy has no idea for a while. After fighting for so long, he feels uncomfortable all over his body when he settles down. He still thinks it's better to stay in the army." Wei Jichen said with a sad face.

Li Hongzhang thought for a while and said: "I will go to Beijing soon, join the cabinet, and be appointed as the Minister Supervising the Military Affairs Department."

When Li Hongzhang said this, he couldn't help but sigh with emotion. These are all false positions. They sound good in name. Can they be compared with the governor of Zhili and the minister of Beiyang?

The minister in charge of the Military Affairs Department said that the imperial court wanted to lay off his Huai Army, so it was really ironic that he was asked to personally assist in the process. The Huai Army that he had created back then had to be disbanded by himself.

Li Hongzhang was a little distracted for a while, but he recovered soon and continued: "The imperial court intends to train a new type of army. You have also seen that even Yuan Shikai, who has never led an army and only helped train soldiers in North Korea, can also train There is a new army. If you are interested, I will guarantee you to train a new army to serve the imperial court."

"Zhongtang." Wei Jichen was a little excited. Unexpectedly, he came to visit Li Hongzhang unexpectedly and even solved some troubles.

The reason why Wei Jichen wanted to use the name of training the new army was because the word "money" was at play.

With this name, you can defraud the imperial court of money and arms and ammunition, so why not do it?

To train the new army, the Qing government must provide strong support.

"Zhongtang, now the Japanese occupy half of my Liaodong. I want to station in Liaodong to prevent the Japanese. In Liaodong, I can train the new army and monitor the Japanese at the same time." Wei Jichen said confidently.

"It seems that I was really wrong when I suggested that the emperor recall you. If you are still in Liaodong now, you might cause something else. You don't know. Hirobumi Ito told me that you were the one who assassinated Kanjiro Nishi. It caused a conflict between the two armies, and I immediately believed it in my heart." Li Hongzhang smiled slightly and said while stroking his goatee.

It turns out that it was this guy who caused him to be recalled. I was confused, but when he saw Li Hongzhang's calm face, Wei Jichen couldn't get angry at all.

"Zhongtang, boy." Wei Jichen hesitated, not knowing how to refute. Li Hongzhang didn't give him a chance to refute at all, and directly concluded that he had done this.

Li Hongzhang raised his hand slightly and said with a faint smile: "Okay, there is no need to mention the past things again. Since you want to return to Liaodong, this matter will be taken care of by me. After the two countries exchange contracts, I will report it to you." Please ask your Majesty and Lord Buddha to let you go to Liaodong and train the new army while monitoring the Japanese."

Wei Jichen gave a long bow and said sincerely: "Thank you Zhongtang. I am very grateful."

Li Hongzhang glanced at Wei Jichen with complicated eyes and said with emotion: "When I was young, I was just like you. I wrote, 'Who will write history in the past ten thousand years, and who wants to be a prince three thousand miles away?' But now, some things are ups and downs. Come on, as we get older, the world still depends on you young people.”

"The old man in the middle hall is strong and strong, how can the younger generation compare to him." Wei Jichen replied flatteringly.

Li Hongzhang coughed twice, and then gasped and said: "You are really old when you say you are old. I will go in and rest for a while. Zijie, just treat yourself as half the owner of this place. Whenever you want to leave, you don't have to come and talk to me again." ”

Wei Jichen nodded, and Li Hongzhang gave the housekeeper a few more words before slowly disappearing into the back door with his stooped body and staggering steps.

Wei Jichen sighed. It seems that Li Zhongtang was hit hard. According to original history, after Li Hongzhang signed the Treaty of Shimonoseki, he vowed never to set foot on Japanese territory again. Later, when he went on missions to other countries and detoured to Japan, he would rather He stayed on the boat and refused to go ashore.

Alas, a weak country has no diplomacy.

After Li Hongzhang left, Wei Jichen suddenly felt a little unmotivated and could no longer stay in the Li Mansion. He took advantage of others and left quietly.