Seng Gelinqin was originally just a "poor Taiji" who herded cattle for others. With the help of his two uncles who were lamas, he was fortunate enough to be selected by Lord Daoguang as the heir of King Suo, and inherited the legacy of King Zhasak of Horqin's Left Wing Back Banner.

Lord

He became the nephew of Lord Daoguang. He was summoned to the capital for "court education" when he was still under age. He went in and out of the forbidden palace and was favored. Later, he married the grandson of Lord Shunzhi, the daughter of Dorobell Wenhe, and became

The royal forehead.

Therefore, in Han Xiufeng's view, Seng Gelinqin was not only the minister in charge of the bodyguard, nor was he just the hereditary Prince Boduole Gatai, he was also a royal relative of the Holy Family!

More importantly, he not only wiped out the Northern invaders' Changmao, saved the capital, and captured the Changmao generals Lin Fengxiang and Li Kaifang alive, but as early as the 20th year of Daoguang's reign, when the Xiyi first started fighting, he had been ordered to patrol

Shanhaiguan and Dagukou defense!

Although seventeen years have passed and Xiyi now is no longer the same Xiyi then, he must feel that he is no stranger to Xiyi.

Because of this, Han Xiufeng would not be stupid enough to teach him how to fight. Instead, he asked Ji Lu to prepare two models of new Western warships, two new foreign handguns, two new automatic firebird guns, and a "

Clairvoyance", a pocket watch and a tall horse bought by Ren Yu'er and a foreigner were sent to the monk's palace.

Seng Gelinqin had received the edict early and thought that Han Xiufeng was here to "preach". He couldn't say anything, but he was thinking about you. Han Xiufeng had only fought a few battles. He planned to deal with it so that he could communicate with the emperor, but he didn't expect it.

Han Xiufeng came here to give a gift, and he was very generous with it, especially the Western horse that the servants had just brought into the stable. It was similar to the legendary sweat-blooded horse, and it was simply irresistible.

Don't reach out to hit someone with a smiling face, you can only treat them with courtesy.

He put down the exquisite model of the gunboat and said with a smile: "I have made my brother spend money, and I deserve it."

"Your Majesty, you misunderstood. Neither the horse nor these foreign guns were bought by Xiaguan from his own pocket. Not to mention that Xiaguan doesn't have that much money, and even if he did, he might not be able to buy them."

"Where did these things and that horse come from?"

"The emperor must have mentioned the matter of 'Hou Yi Tang' to the prince. These things and the horse were obtained by various branches of 'Hou Yi Tang' in the past two years from the Western Yi. The ancients said that only when you know yourself and the enemy can you be victorious in every battle.

Your Majesty, you can be called the pillar of our Qing Dynasty. If there is a war in the future, the Emperor will definitely order your Majesty to wear armor and go to war again, so I feel that these things and the horse just now should be sent to your Majesty as soon as possible."

Seng Gelinqin knew a little about Houyi Hall, but after thinking about it, he couldn't help but ask: "Does the Emperor know?"

"Don't worry, Your Majesty, this is the Emperor's wish, otherwise the Emperor would never order his subordinates to come and pay homage to Your Majesty." Han Xiufeng knew very well that he was a loyal minister, and he was very cautious and only listened to the Emperor. Not only did he

He doesn't move around much like the princes and ministers in the court, and he doesn't move around much like the Mongolian princes on the grassland, so he cares a lot about what the emperor thinks.

Confirming that this was considered official business, Seng Gelinqin felt that he could accept the horse and the things in front of him with peace of mind. While inviting Han Xiufeng to drink tea, he asked: "Brother Han, the emperor ordered you to come to see me. It's not just a gift."

Isn’t it so simple for Ma He to send these things?”

"It's natural," Han Xiufeng quickly put down his tea cup, took out an official document that looked like a folded document from his sleeve, and presented it respectfully with both hands.

Seng Gelinqin took it and took a look, and was shocked to find the four characters "Yi Qing Hui Yao" written on the cover.

I opened it and couldn't close it after taking a look at it, because it listed by date the movements of the British, Chinese, Buddhist, Russian and other foreigners in the past six months. The details include that as of the 28th of the twelfth lunar month last year, Hong Kong, Macau, Xiamen, Fuzhou, Ningbo and

How many warships are there in Shanghai and other places, how many cannons are installed on each ship, how many Western barbarians are there in various places, how many of them are merchants, how many missionaries, how many barbarian soldiers, how many guns...

"What a person who knows himself and his enemy!" Seng Gelinqin didn't expect that "Houyitang" would inquire so carefully. While looking at it, he asked: "Brother Han, you have been dealing with the Western Yi for several years. Do you think the Yi chiefs in Guangdong can learn from it?"

Are there soldiers moving to their hometown?"

"To put it bluntly, I think it can definitely be moved. It's just a matter of sooner or later."

"How many soldiers do you think the Yingyi can move from their hometown?"

"Your Majesty, there are no outsiders here, so I'll just tell you straight away."

"But it doesn't matter."

"Now it is no better than in the 20th year of Daoguang. At that time, the British barbarians had just arrived and had not yet established a stable foothold in our Qing Dynasty. If we sent too many troops, we might not be able to supply food, oil and military supplies. But now they are in Hong Kong, Macau, and Shanghai

Once you have established a firm foothold, there is no need to

They no longer have to worry about the supply of grain, oil and military supplies. And at that time they only had sailing ships that sailed by the wind, but now they have used steam ships that can travel hundreds of miles a day without wind. When do you want to come, when do you want to

Let’s go, there’s no need to look at the wind news anymore.”

Seng Gelinqin subconsciously looked at the foreign gunboat model on the table, frowned and asked: "Is this a ship?"

"Exactly."

"According to what my brother said, it is possible for thirty to fifty warships to come and three to five thousand soldiers to come?"

"The British and foreigners have many merchant houses that do business at sea. They are called companies, and each company has its own merchant ship. Our Nanhai branch and Shanghai branch have found out that the British and foreign ministers and the British and foreign consuls have reported to their queen and prime minister.

Five thousand additional reinforcements were sent, including the Marine Corps, which are barbarian soldiers who specialize in fighting overseas, and the cavalry, which wielded machetes and charged into battle."

Looking at Seng Gelinqin's thoughtful look, Han Xiufeng continued: "And this is just the Yingyi. As far as I know, the Foyi consul has sent a note to the Yingyi minister. Not only does he plan to send troops, but he also wants to communicate with the Yingyi

Let’s advance and retreat together.”

"Where is Miyi?" Seng Gelinqin asked with a gloomy face.

"The Mi and Yi took advantage of the situation and robbed them, claiming that they would not help each other. However, when the British and Yi invaded Guangzhou, they were not idle. Not only did they send out troops, they also shot our Qing soldiers and civilians."

Seng Gelinqin had long known that Xi Yi was starting a fight, but he never expected that the situation was so urgent. After thinking for a moment, he asked, "Do you know when Xi Yi will start fighting with us?"

"Already beaten."

"I mean a big fight."

"It can be as fast as seven or eight months, or as slow as one or two years. In short, if this continues, sooner or later the war will begin."

"If this continues, where do you start talking about this?"

There were many things that were difficult to tell others and there were nothing to worry about. Han Xiufeng simply explained what the foreigners wanted and how the emperor and the princes and ministers in the court responded.

Foreigners want to send envoys to the capital. Not only are they not allowed to bow and kowtow three times when meeting the emperor, but they also have to go to the emperor whenever they want. This is absolutely unacceptable. If they agree, the etiquette will be ruined, and the emperor will still be the emperor.

?

The foreigners not only want the court to abolish the Zikou tax, but also want the court to abolish Jue Pass and Lika. They cannot agree to this. If those Jue Pass and Lika are really abolished, what can the court do to suppress them based on only the land tax and miscellaneous taxes?

Banditry and chaos?

If foreigners wanted to sail freely on the Yangtze River, it would be equivalent to dividing China into two. The biggest worry of all dynasties throughout the ages was to divide the river to rule, and the court would not agree to this condition even if they were killed; as for stationing consuls in various places, no matter what happens

You can meet with the governor or even the Taoist government on everything, so what else do you need from the Ministry of Rites and the Lifan Yuan...

Thinking of this, Seng Gelinqin realized that there was a high probability that he would not be able to avoid this battle, and he stood up with a bang: "It's too much to bully someone, it's really unreasonable! I don't believe that even with all the soldiers and food in the country, we can't defeat him."

These barbarians!"

"What the prince said is absolutely true. I also feel that if we really make up our mind to fight, we may not be defeated. It's just... just..."

"Just what?"

"It's just that in order to suppress Changmao, the imperial court has already been stretched thin with money and food, and it is difficult to move around. It is really powerless to start a fight with the Xiyi at this juncture."

Seng Gelinqin came to his senses and was silent for a long time before murmuring: "The Emperor is in trouble!"

"The lower official thought that as long as he could get through this, everything would be fine. As the saying goes, a country thrives on adversity."

"It's so difficult to build a country. Let's not talk about this anymore. What are your plans next?"

"Your Majesty, I have asked your Majesty for a decree. I plan to go to Tianjin in two months. Your Majesty has given me permission. Your Majesty said that I will give your Majesty the task of inspecting and accepting the grain."

"Just walking around?"

"If I don't see with my own eyes the defenses in the Dagukou area, I won't feel at ease."

Seeing Han Xiufeng's worried look, Seng Gelinqin finally understood why the emperor valued him, a young minister from Taipu Temple who was born in a donation. Although he didn't think that Han Xiufeng might not be able to help much if he really went into battle, but he still

Feeling that someone familiar with barbarian sentiments is better than none, he mused: "It's okay to go and have a look, but isn't there still two months? In two days, I will go to Nanyuan for a military parade. If you want, I can go with you.

go."

"Yes, I am willing."

…

The news that Han Xiufeng led a tall horse to pay homage to Seng Gelinqin, and then followed Seng Gelinqin to Nanyuan for a military parade, soon spread like wildfire.

Sushun never expected that Han Xiufeng and Seng Gelinqin would actually come together. He stared at Chen Fuen and asked, "Brother Shaomo, did you see it with your own eyes or did you hear it from others?"

"Although I didn't see it, those Qiu Baquan stationed in Nanyuan did. There is no way this is false. If Brother Yuting doesn't believe it, you can send someone to find out."

"He has nothing to do with Seng Gelinqin!" Sushun muttered.

Although Jiao Youying despised Chen Fuen from the bottom of his heart, he also disliked Han Xiufeng. He suddenly said: "This may be the emperor's intention. After all, like the monk king, he has led troops and fought in wars, and even led the Heying camp to defend the capital."

.”

Seng Gelinqin never asked about matters in the court, so Sushun never regarded Seng Gelinqin as a threat, but he felt a little uncomfortable after confirming that Han Xiufeng and Seng Gelinqin actually got together. Because it meant

Han Xiufeng planned to be a lonely minister like Seng Gelinqin, or the emperor planned to let Han Xiufeng be a lonely minister.

Thinking again that Han Xiufeng would not listen to him like before, nor would he curry favor with Bo Feng or Peng Yunzhang, let alone get along with Wen Xiang and others, Sushun smiled calmly and said: "That's good, it saves him the trouble."
Chapter completed!