Nine idlers

Chapter 170 Nine Encounters at the Station

Ever since Prince Regent Zaifeng officially took power, the entire Qing court has never been safe.First, he fell out with Xu Shichang and Feng Guozhang, who had always had a good relationship with him, and completely overthrew the Beiyang faction to his opposite. Then he offended Prince Qing Yikuang, who had been watching coldly, and finally created two formidable opponents for himself.Not to mention the fighting between the two sides, even after the fall, they continued to plot. Feng Guozhang alone encountered two assassinations during this period of time, which made the whole capital jittery.

Tianjin, which is close to the capital, was also in turmoil during this period, and seemed extremely nervous.Part of Beiyang Tieliang's first town and Duan Qirui's fifth town were frequently mobilized, and they were stationed in the northern and southern barracks of the Beiyang Army outside Tianjin City, and they seemed to be preparing to control this important military location.The troops in various concessions in Tianjin also retreated into the concessions due to the actions of the Beiyang Army, deployed defenses, and closely monitored the movements of the troops on both sides.For a time, the entire Tianjin Defense War was clouded, and the tension between the various forces could be said to be on the verge of breaking out.

Fortunately, it has recently been reported that the consul generals of the various concessions have joined forces to put pressure on both sides outside the city to dare to make any changes, and the tense atmosphere in the city has only slightly eased.However, many people who came to Tianjin Wei to seek livelihood were afraid of being affected by the flames of war, so they fled to Cangzhou and Bazhou to wait and see the progress of the situation.As a result, there were a lot fewer idlers and hawkers wandering on the streets of Tianjin, and the entire Tianjin Wei seemed much depressed.

At present, besides fighting for the control of Tianjin, Feng faction and Beiyang faction are also trying their best to win over the local forces near Zhili.In addition, Long Jinbao, who is well-known in the martial arts world of Bazhou, is also their main target.Leaving aside Long Jinbao's more than 5000 deadly defenders who have been killed for a long time, the semi-public relationship between him and Xu Changqing, a nine-year-old idler, is enough for those people in the Qing court to spend a lot of money to win them over.

But overnight, Long Jinbao's status changed from a low-ranking non-staff militia commander to one of the few powerful figures near the capital with real power.Not only were all the men and horses under him organized into national titles, but even the official rank was promoted to Cong Yipin. The Qing court also specially arranged for him the position of admiral of the army in Cangzhou, Bazhou and Baoding. The man can be expanded to one. 5000 people.Although both the Prince Regent's Mansion and the Beiyang faction spent a lot of money to win over Long Jinbao, Long Jinbao always followed Xu Changqing's instructions not to get involved in the fight between the two sides and remained neutral.However, what is surprising is that Long Jinbao's vague and ambiguous attitude made both parties very satisfied, and they paid more and more attention to his power, and their win over continued unabated.

For Long Jinbao, a power figure who suddenly appeared, those foreigners in the Tianjin Wei Concession who didn't know the reason were very curious about his rise and wanted to meet him.This day is the birthday of the consul's wife in the British Concession, and the foreign leaders in the Tianjin Concession were also exhausted by the tense atmosphere these days, so they decided to hold a birthday party for the British Consul's wife to relax. The consul jointly invited Long Jinbao to attend the ball in order to get acquainted with him.

The train from Baoding to Tianjin slowly stopped at Tianjin Station, and a dozen people got off in a relatively independent carriage at the end of the special train.These dozen or so people were wearing military uniforms and carrying long guns. As soon as they got off the train, they were well-trained and erected a human wall within three feet. They looked around vigilantly. Due to their special identities, they easily A space has been cleared on a crowded train platform.

The eyes of many people on the platform were attracted by the movement here. Among the crowd, some veterans who traveled north and south clearly knew that these people were definitely not ordinary soldiers, because judging from the figures and walks of these people, they were all proficient The masters of foreign kung fu, and all of them have murderous looks on their faces, and they can still smell blood, which is definitely different from those soldiers trained in the military camp.

Soon the object these people wanted to protect came out of the carriage. He had a ferocious face, a sturdy figure, and was wearing a formal Qing court admiral's uniform. He walked like a dragon and a tiger. A breathtaking spirit.This person is the new admiral of Bazhou, Cangzhou, and Baoding, Long Jinbao. Although he has changed into an official skin and has a little more official authority on him, the aura between his brows is still very strong. Obviously, the country is easy to change, but the nature is hard to change.

"Master Admiral, I'm afraid the foreign devil invited you over this time not just for a simple meal!" Beside Long Jinbao, a thin Shaoxing master with a three-stroke mustache followed closely, and came from his arms. He took out a letter and handed it to Long Jinbao, and continued: "I just got the news this afternoon that the regent left the capital and came to Tianjin. He must have wanted to take advantage of this foreigner's dance to meet your lord, to 'force' your lord." Make a statement!"

The name of this Shaoxing master is Jin Fengjiu. He is from Manchuria with a white banner. People in Bazhou give him the nickname "Two-Headed Tiger".He was originally the housekeeper of Changqing's family in Dali Temple, but he was kicked out because he offended the dignitaries of the capital, and was exiled to the border of Bazhou, where he happened to meet Long Jinbao who was doing business without money.Because he knew a little about the art of matching people, he saw the extraordinaryness of Long Jinbao, so he recommended himself to join Long Jinbao, who was still impoverished at the time, and became Long Jinbao's think tank. He is one of the few people Long Jinbao trusts most, making suggestions and mastering Long Jinbao's information.

"Zaifeng went out in person?" Long Jinbao took the letter and looked at it, frowned slightly, slowed down his pace, thought for a while, and asked, "Where are Xu Shichang and the others? Did they send anyone over? "

"No! The foreigners' invitations were all rejected by them on the grounds that they were busy with business." Jin Fengjiu shook his head, and said with a serious expression: "It seems that they also want to use Zaifeng's hand, 'Force' you to make a choice." He paused for a while, and then said: "A few days ago, there was news from the north that Feng San had been recruited by Cao Kun, and you and Feng San both guarded the capital's north-south fortress. It can be said that it was directly stuck on Zaifeng's throat, it seems that he was a little 'forced' anxiously."

Long Jinbao smiled disdainfully, and said, "It's fine if you're 'forced' into a hurry, but I want to see how much he is willing to pay to buy me as an army admiral!"