The Qing Dynasty is about to end

Chapter 784: I, Da Ying, know how to stir up trouble the most! (Please give me double the monthly ticket)
The carriage rolled over the gravel road in front of Buckingham Palace. Ma Baocai looked at the gilded railings through the window and couldn't help but think of the carved beams and painted buildings in Tianjing City, except that there was more of a local tyrant atmosphere here, as if Queen Victoria was afraid that no one would know she was rich.

"Remember," Ma Baocai said to Hu Wansheng in a low voice, "King Wu once said that this Englishman is the most cunning of the European powers, and is especially good at stirring up trouble!"

"Good at stirring up trouble?" Hu Wansheng was stunned. "The British Empire is already the world's number one power. Does it still need to stir up trouble everywhere?"

"Hehe," Ma Baocai smiled, "Just a nouveau riche. Look at the Queen's house, it smells like a nouveau riche! He can't do anything upright, unlike us."

"We?" Hu Wansheng asked in a low voice, "What we are doing now is not considered stirring up trouble?"

"Of course not! We are exporting the revolution! How can the revolution be considered as stirring up trouble?" Ma Baocai glared at the little prince. "But their means of stirring up trouble are very powerful. We have to be careful when dealing with them. Don't talk nonsense later!"

"Yes, Wansheng understands."

In the blue drawing room of Buckingham Palace, Queen Victoria sat on a gilded chair, her skirt spread out like a deep blue ocean. Prince Albert stood beside her, looking pale, holding a handkerchief in his hand, and coughing from time to time.

"Your Majesty the Queen, Your Royal Highness." Ma Baocai performed a modified version of the heavenly bow, and Hu Wansheng, wearing a military uniform, saluted.

Prince Albert glanced at the two of them and asked, "Whose handwritten letter did you bring this time?"

In theory, Prince Albert was also the "special brother-in-law" or "special brother-in-law" of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, just like Xiao Chaogui! And the God's family members in the Heavenly Kingdom often wrote letters to Victoria, the "sister of the Heavenly Brother", to keep in touch with her.

Ma Baocai was a new official, and he most likely brought a letter from the "Gods in Heaven", which is why Albert asked this question.

"It's a handwritten letter from His Royal Highness the King of Wu."

Albert guessed it! Ma Baocai took the letter from Hu Wansheng with a smile and presented it with both hands.

When Victoria took the letter and opened the wax seal, Albert suddenly said: "You Taiping Heavenly Kingdom people are now all over the world. The 'Heavenly City' on the west coast of Canada, the gold mines of Australia, and the three states on the west coast of the United States."

"There are many people, so they need to eat!" Ma Baocai smiled and said, "In fact, wherever our people go, the local economy will develop greatly! The Governor General's Office of Canada and the Governor General's Office of Australia have also received a lot of money in the past two years, right? Singapore is even a cash cow for the British Empire!"

Victoria frowned at this time and read Luo Yaoguo's handwritten English letter:
"To my dearest fifth sister, Her Majesty Victoria:
May the grace of Heavenly Father be with you. Your loyal ninth brother Luo Yaoguo hereby extends his most sincere greetings to you.

First of all, please allow me to ask about the health of my brother-in-law Albert. I am very pleased to hear that his cough has improved recently. I have enclosed two bottles of Chuanbei Loquat Paste specially made in Jiangnan, hoping that it will be helpful to my brother-in-law's condition. At the same time, please also give my regards to Prince Leopold Jr., and may God bless this lovely child from suffering from hemophilia.

Fifth sister, I discuss the current situation in the United States with you with a heavy heart. You may have noticed that although the Northern Union has an advantage on the battlefield, the South's will to resist has not diminished at all. What is more worrying is that a unified United States will adopt a high tariff policy after the war, vigorously build railways, and attract European immigrants with favorable conditions. According to our calculations, its industrial capacity will surpass that of the British Empire within 30 years.

I suggest that we adopt the following strategy: With a superficially neutral attitude, we can provide defensive weapons such as barbed wire and Mitreus multi-barreled guns to the South through a third-party trading company. This move can not only prolong the war, but also consume the potential of the United States. If it is inconvenient for your country to intervene directly, we can arrange for the merchants of the Real Contracting Party to establish a trading company to specialize in this business. All you need is for Her Majesty the Queen to acquiesce to the customs clearance.

Your loyal ninth brother,

Luo Yaoguo, King of Wu of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom

In Tianjing in March 1864 after the birth of my brother.

After reading the letter, the Queen of England sighed softly, "Your King Wu is really good at stirring up trouble. The American Civil War isn't chaotic enough, and you want to add more fuel to the fire?"

Prince Albert walked to the window and looked out at the garden. "You want barbed wire and multi-barreled guns. We can give them to you. But there is one condition - the Taiping Army in Tianwang City must withdraw."

Ma Baocai's heart tightened. Tianwang City was an important base of the Taiping Army in North America, where three thousand elite troops were stationed.

"Prince," Ma Baocai said with a smile, "I will convey your request to His Royal Highness the King of Wu. However, our church in Australia..."

"We must withdraw!" Albert took another book from the bookshelf and threw it on the table. Hu Wansheng saw the cover clearly - "Land and Freedom: The Agricultural Reform of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom", which was actually an English translation of "The Land System of the Heavenly Kingdom". "This book," Albert said gritting his teeth, "is now widely circulated among Irish farmers. They even formed a 'Land League' to demand the redistribution of land!"

Ma Baocai remained calm: "Thoughts are like the wind. We cannot control where they blow. Besides, the Northern Confederation of the United States now offers Irish immigrants a generous condition that every adult male can get 2 acres of land if he serves for two years. I'm afraid all the Irish who want land have immigrated and run away, right?"

Seeing that Prince Albert was silent, Ma Baocai continued, "Your Majesty, the North of the United States has built an unprecedented steel plant in Pennsylvania. Their railway mileage increased by 1200 miles last year, and that was during wartime! If they were allowed to unify the country..."

"We know the potential of the Americans," Albert interrupted, "but your expansion in Canada is equally disturbing."

This time he did not mention the church in Australia.

"I need to ask King Wu for instructions," Ma Baocai said, "I cannot agree to withdraw troops from Canada."

Albert sneered: "Of course, you Chinese are the best at 'asking for instructions', but don't delay this matter!"

"Of course!" Ma Baocai nodded, "Your Highness, don't worry. Our country has no ambitions towards Canada."

Albert said, "We in the British Empire are not afraid of your ambitions!" His tone softened a little, "As long as your American Legion withdraws, I will allow British barbed wire and Mitreus multi-barreled guns to be shipped to Mexico!"

As Ma Baocai and Hu Wansheng's carriage drove away from Buckingham Palace, Victoria turned to her husband: "Will they really withdraw their troops?"

Albert shook his head: "Not all of them will withdraw. They will leave behind some so-called 'militia', which are actually regular troops in a different outfit."

"Then why did you agree to them?"

"Because we need them to mess up America. Why should I stop them from being villains?" Albert walked to the world map and ran his finger across the North American continent. "A divided America is in the interests of the British Empire. As for those barbed wires," he sneered, "it's better to let Americans bleed a little more! By then, the contradictions between Americans and Chinese will be difficult to reconcile!"

Victoria looked at the vast oriental country on the map and said, "What I am most worried about now is China. They are reviving at an alarming speed. If the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom becomes the master of the Pacific Ocean."

"No, they can't!" Albert's voice turned gloomy.

The next morning, in the small conference room at Buckingham Palace, Foreign Secretary Lord Clarendon was reporting to the Queen.

"Your Majesty, according to the intelligence from our consulate in Shanghai, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's steel production reached 45 tons last year, 2500 miles of new railways were built, and the population exceeded 5.5 million!"

Victoria tapped her fingers on the table. "So, we have to choose between two devils. A divided America, or a strong China."

"Excuse me, Your Majesty," Earl Clarendon lowered his voice, "the best outcome is to let the two countries consume each other. In addition, the Kingdom of Korea has now completed all preparations before the unification of Japan and South Korea!"

Prince Albert coughed as he walked into the conference room. "I just received a telegram from the ambassador to Peru. The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's merchant ships are purchasing large quantities of guano and saltpeter from Peru. They are said to be used to produce fertilizers. True Covenant churches have also appeared in Peru and have begun to preach to the Chinese and Indians there!"

“Same here!” Victoria said angrily. “Just like they do on the West Coast of the United States and the West Coast of Canada!”

The Earl of Clarendon's eyes suddenly lit up: "Your Majesty, speaking of Peru, there is an opportunity to give the Chinese there a hard time. Maybe we can even involve the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom in a war more than 10,000 miles away from their homeland!"

Victoria looked at her foreign minister in confusion, but Albert had understood something: "Spain! Count, do you mean that we can encourage the Spanish to send troops to Peru?"

The Earl of Clarendon laughed and said, "That's right! The Spanish can send troops on the pretext of protecting Peru from the Yellow Peril!"

(End of this chapter)