The Qing Dynasty is about to end

Chapter 866 The enemy is in Dongdian, and the opportunity is in Tianjing City!
In the autumn of the 24th year of the Tianli calendar, the sea breeze from Incheon Port, wrapped in the cold air from the north, hit the dock. Hundreds of sailboats and steamships filled the anchorage, the low sides of the Nanyang Guangchuan ships pressed the waves, the masts of the red seal ships of the Japanese feudal domains hung faded family flags, and the pointed bows of several American clippers cut through the gray-green water. The most eye-catching was the grain transport fleet of the Dongwangfu Shangshu Province, which was deep in the waterline, with bulging sacks piled on the deck, and the hunched backs of the Korean coolies formed a squirming black line, carrying the last bit of rice scraped from the eight provinces of Korea with "heavenly coupons" into the cabin.

"The King of the East is kind and righteous! His kindness is not over yet!"

On both sides of the official road, Korean people in patched short brown clothes held flags made of rags and knelt in two gray walls. Their slogans were blown away by the sea breeze until the gong sounded suddenly -

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Thirty-six red-turbaned warriors carried a golden-topped sedan chair onto the official road. The dragon on the sedan chair bared its teeth and claws in the autumn sun. Tens of thousands of East Palace guards carrying "Tianli 20th Year Model" rifles kicked up rolling yellow dust, and the bayonet forest shone coldly in the sun. Cries broke out instantly, and several white-haired old farmers fell on the bluestone slab in front of the sedan chair, with blood marks on their foreheads: "Your Highness, don't leave! Without you, the two-class masters will come back to peel our skins!"

The curtain of the sedan chair did not move. Yang Xiuqing closed his eyes and leaned against the cushion, his fingertips slowly twisting a string of amber beads. Nanmu Daozi, who was kneeling at his feet, stole a glance at his face, her slender fingers twisting the corners of her clothes unconsciously. She had specially changed into the clothes of a Korean noblewoman today. The dark purple long skirt set off her skin as white as snow, and the golden hairpin in her hair swayed gently with the swaying of the sedan chair.

"Your Majesty," she said softly, her voice as sweet as a spring, "the people's hearts are as strong as iron, and Korea will always be the foundation of the East Palace."

"Iron?" Yang Xiuqing said coldly without raising his eyelids, "It was I who ground the bones of the two classes of landlords into powder and spread them on the fields to fertilize them, so that these untouchables could have food to eat." He suddenly opened his eyes and stabbed the rice with his eyes like knives, "But what about Japan? Four hundred thousand samurai are waiting for me to make a mistake with knives in hand - Rice, tell me the truth, are they really convinced?"

Nanmu Daozi's back was covered with cold sweat, and she leaned her forehead against the sedan chair, not daring to answer. Her slender neck curved in a graceful arc, like a frightened white crane. Yang Chengtian, standing in the sedan door, clenched his sword, his young face tense and livid: "Father, Luo Yaoguo has been running Tianjing for twenty years, and the National People's Congress is his dog."

"Dog?" Yang Xiuqing sneered, and suddenly lifted the curtain of the sedan chair and pointed to the dock. A three-story steamer was spewing out billowing black smoke at the berth, and the golden plaque "Dongdian" on the bow was dazzling in the sun. "See? That steamer is carrying 60,000 shi of grain, and there are more than a hundred ships behind it. Where does all that grain come from? Apart from Korea and Japan, isn't it all from America and those little paradises?"

He retracted his fingers, and the rosary beads turned rapidly between his fingers: "And who is in control of those small kingdoms? The letter from Prince Gan said that the Southern King, the Western King, the Northern King, the Wing King, and the Yan King all welcome me back. It seems that Luo Yaoguo has been in power for twenty years and has offended everyone!"

The sedan suddenly stopped, and cheers of "Long live the emperor" surged in from outside. Yang Xiuqing sneered, "As for heaven." He pointed his finger upwards, "If I supported him, would I still be sitting on an empty throne as prime minister?"

Yang Chengtian felt relieved after hearing what his father said - the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom was different from all previous dynasties. The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom really had gods in heaven, so Luo Yaoguo didn't dare to do anything reckless. If it were any other dynasty, Luo Yaoguo would definitely be the emperor!
"And I am bringing 10,000 elite soldiers with me." Yang Xiuqing said confidently, "If Luo Yaoguo really dares to use a knife, my 10,000 old brothers are not vegetarians! Besides, 40,000 to 50,000 of my old brothers from the East Palace have already gone back one after another. They all have weapons with them, and they are all gathered in Tianjing!"

"But isn't North Korea too weak?" Yang Chengtian began to worry about North Korea's instability again.

"It doesn't matter," Yang Xiuqing waved his hand, "It's enough to have your uncle Fuqing lead 10,000 households to guard Korea. And after your father brings these tens of thousands of households back, he can save 2 million taels of silver every year. With this money, you can bribe the feudal lords in Japan and train new troops!" He suddenly lowered his voice, "Remember, in Japan, only the samurai directly under the Kusunoki Domain and the Shinyo Shrine are reliable! Others, even ordinary officials, are always treacherous."

Kusunoki Inako raised her head slightly, a trace of worry flashing in her eyes: "Long live, recently the samurai of Jingu Fudai Domain, such as Sa, Tu, Fei, and Naga, have been connecting with each other, and many ronin who lost their lords after the Second Battle of Sekigahara are also connecting with them."

Yang Xiuqing waved his hand: "Then hire more ronin." He suddenly stretched out his hand and lifted Daozi's chin, "Your Nanmu Domain now has 350,000 shi. I will give you another 250,000, making it 600,000. Then you can hire 5,000 to 6,000 more ronin. Equip them with the best guns and cannons!"

Daozi's eyelashes trembled slightly, and she bowed deeply: "I will do my best to live up to your trust."

When the sedan chair was carried to the dock, the cries gradually faded away. Yang Xiuqing straightened his bright yellow dragon robe, got off the sedan chair, and stepped onto the red carpeted gangplank to board the Dongdian. On the deck, two hundred carefully selected red-turbaned personal soldiers stood in awe with their guns polished to a shine.

"How many guns are installed on the Dongdian?" Yang Xiuqing suddenly asked.

Hou Qianfang, the Minister of War of the East Palace, who had boarded the ship first, stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, there are six 75mm rapid-fire guns on each side of the ship, and one 150mm heavy gun at the bow and stern. They are all new products produced by the Jiangnan Factory last year."

Yang Xiuqing squinted and looked towards the bridge: "Range?"

"The heavy guns can hit within five and a half miles, and the rapid-fire guns can tear open the armor of ordinary cruisers within three miles." Hou Qianfang replied, "That's right. The Dongdian is an unarmored passenger ship after all. If we can replace it with the Fuso, we will be safe."

"That's enough." Yang Xiuqing patted his shoulder, "We're not going to fight this time." He turned his head and looked at the Fuso, an ironclad ship of the Asahi Navy standing by, "Besides, the Fuso will follow and escort us all the way." He originally wanted to take the Fuso, but after getting on board and taking a look, he found that the Fuso was full of Japanese. And it was not very comfortable either, after all, it was a warship, so he changed to the Toden.

He turned to Kusunoki Inako who was kneeling by the side of the ship and asked, "Has Japan gathered the remaining 120,000 tons?"

Nanmu Inoko hurriedly held up the account book: "It's all ready. But..." She bit her lower lip, "It will take some time to load the grain onto the ship, so it won't be delivered to Incheon in time."

"Then transport it directly to Tianjing!" Yang Xiuqing waved his hand, "You go back immediately and take charge of the matter of increasing the fiefdom, and immediately hire 5000 more warriors!"

"Yay!" Nanmu Inako agreed and breathed a sigh of relief - there was some delay in her purchase of grain from the United States. The grain ship only arrived in Osaka yesterday and needed to be refueled with coal and water. She really couldn't catch up with the trip to Incheon. Fortunately, the East King didn't care.

A burst of hurried footsteps was heard. Yang Chengtian climbed up the gangway panting, "Father, the captain of the Fuso said that the boilers are fully stocked with coal and can set sail at any time."

Yang Xiuqing looked out of the harbor. The 3,000-ton ironclad ship Fuso was slowly turning its guns, and the dark armor belt cast a hideous shadow on the sea. He suddenly laughed: "Luo Yaoguo always laughs at our slow ship. This time, let him see how a 12-knot turtle crawls into Tianjing City!"

On the second floor of the Japanese-style room of Mitsubishi Corporation on the west side of the pier, the paper window was pushed open a crack. Iwasaki Yataro knelt on the tatami, his white socks stained with coal dust from the port area: "Lord Saigo, although Yang Xiuqing's ship is equipped with 14 rapid-fire guns, it is a passenger ship after all, and it can't withstand a shot from the Fuso."

The giant crouching in the shadows slowly turned around. Saigo Takamori's flesh under his samurai bun was tense, and his thick fingers were clenching his sword: "Yang Xiuqing thinks Japanese samurai are dogs?" He laughed like thunder in his throat, "But the ambition of the Satsuma boy, how can he take it away with money?"

Sakamoto Ryoma handed over the telescope and said, "Look, the soldiers of the East Palace are boarding the Fuso. I'm afraid..."

"No problem!" Saigo slammed the paper window shut, his face engulfed in darkness, "Let him enter Tianjing first. If the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom can have an internal conflict, that would be perfect." He suddenly lowered his voice, "Ryoma, Sugita Genpaku of Choshu Domain met with British Ambassador Alcock yesterday."

Iwasaki Yataro's pupils shrank suddenly: "The British want to take action?"

"No, they want to stir up trouble." Saigo took out a crumpled secret message from his pocket, "The British hope that our people can do something in Tianjing, preferably something big!"

The room was dead silent. After a while, Sakamoto Ryoma said softly, "So Yang Xiuqing's trip..."

"He will definitely die!" Xi Xiang sneered, "He thought he could overthrow Luo Yaoguo by relying on magic tricks and the support of tens of thousands of his trusted countrymen. Little did he know that the knife to kill him has been sharpened!" A big hand like a palm leaf fan suddenly slammed on the table, "Prepare the boat! I want to go to Tianjing in person! Pass on my order again, the enemy is on the Dongdian, but our chance is in Tianjing City!"

"Yeah!" Sakamoto and Iwasaki answered and turned away together.

As soon as the two men left, a young samurai in the corner who had been silent all this time suddenly spoke up: "Sir Saigo, Mr. Sakuma of the Four People's Association asked me to tell him that they have prepared 3,000 patriots in Kyoto and Osaka, just waiting for the right time."

Saigo Takamori narrowed his eyes and said, "Tell Sakuma that now is not the time. We have to wait." He wiped his neck and said, "When the news of Yang Xiuqing's death comes, that will be the time for Japan to counterattack!"

"Counterattack?" The young warrior was stunned. "Counterattack means..."

Saigo Takamori said with a smile: "Since the two countries have already united, why should we break them up? What I am dissatisfied with is not the union of the two countries, but that the two countries are not based on Japan!"

(End of this chapter)