Master Yuan, start!

"I've been dreaming of life for 20 years, and now I know who I am." Liang Qichao quickened his pace, feeling the cool breeze.

"The literary style outside the Great Wall is flourishing. The schools in Lushun and Incheon are both pioneering for Chinese people. Salon discussions are all the rage. I won't go back to Shanghai and rely on others for support."

"It's not like I'm dependent on others." Chen Qianqiu knew that Liang Qichao was referring to Kang Youwei.

At the beginning, Kang Youwei's International Repository in Shanghai did promote Western constitutional ideas and introduce the political situations of Western countries. Liang Qichao and Chen Qianqiu also lent their help at this time.

But soon, Kang Youwei was no longer satisfied with translating news from foreign newspapers such as Reuters and The Times.

In order to expand sales, Kang Youwei began to target the more popular newspapers on the market and learn how to distribute them.

The plagiarism, clickbait, and marketing activities that Yuan Xiangcheng had previously asked Yuanshen Tabloid to carry out were soon learned by Kang Youwei, who began to follow suit.

Therefore, he quickly decided to start translating from Chinese to Chinese, selecting and searching for news from newspapers in Tianjin, North Korea, Guangdong, Hubei and other places, and publishing them in the Wanguo Gongbao after making slight changes.

Just as the newspaper sales were rising steadily, there were even several months when its sales were second only to Shenbao, making it the second most circulated newspaper in Shanghai.

Because the articles translated into Chinese involved political topics in the Jiangnan region, Liu Kun, the governor of Jiangnan, soon ordered the newspaper to be closed and "ceremoniously invited" Kang Youwei to a banquet at the governor's mansion.

No one knows what Liu Kunyi and Kang Youwei talked about, but since then, the Wanguo Gongbao no longer reported on current affairs in Jiangnan, leaving the space for other places.

Today, we accuse Yuan Xiangcheng's national defense army of failing to suppress the bandits and nurturing the bandits for their own benefit;

Tomorrow, I will criticize Li Hongzhang's South China Sea Fleet for provoking border conflicts and angering foreigners.

From time to time, they would bring up Zhang Zhidong, saying that he did not respect the people of Hunan and was unworthy of being the Governor of Huguang, and that he should resign as soon as possible.

When the Chinese Herald had developed to this point, any discerning person could see that it had become the mouthpiece of the Governor-General of Jiangnan, and it was at this time that Liang and Chen left Kang Youwei.

However, even after the two left, sales did not see a significant decline because the newspaper still had pages introducing interesting stories and strange things from all over the world.

"It's still better outside the Great Wall." Liang Qichao took a deep breath and pedaled his bicycle vigorously: "Master Yuan never suppressed the freedom of speech, and there are more and more foreign things.

Look, this bicycle we're riding is one that was just produced by the Incheon Machinery Bureau at the beginning of the year. If you operate it properly, it's more than ten times faster than walking!"

"It's good, but it can only be used in the city." Chen Qianqiu exerted force on his legs to keep up with Liang Qichao's speed. "If we go to the dirt roads outside the city, this bicycle is no match for walking."

The bicycle the two were discussing was the latest product imitated by the Incheon Machinery Bureau last year.

Since the 19s, bicycles have become a common means of transportation between cities in Europe.

The original time and space did not gradually enter the lives of ordinary people until after the Republic of China.

There are two reasons for this. One is that the country’s infrastructure has been poor for a long time and the ground is uneven, making it inconvenient for bicycles to travel.

The second is facing competition. With rickshaws being a labor-saving and low-learning-cost service, bicycles are naturally at a disadvantage.

In this time and space, in order to make money, Yuan Xiangcheng desperately put into operation various light industrial equipment. In addition to matches, spinning mills, and telegraphs, he also set his sights on bicycles.

Before cars became widely popular, as long as the bicycle industry was well developed, it would also be a considerable market.

The two rode and chatted all the way, and it was already noon.

Chen Qianqiu felt a little hungry, so he shook his head and looked at the vendors along the street to see if there was any food for sale.

"Zhuoru, stop for a moment." Chen Qianqiu parked his bicycle and leaned against the wall. "I haven't eaten since yesterday evening. I want to go get some rice to fill my stomach."

"Okay, then let's eat something." Liang Qichao also followed suit.

Walking into the restaurant, the two looked around.

"Gentlemen, what would you like to eat?" The waiter was very smart and took the two of them upstairs as soon as he came up.

"Let's take this," Chen Qianqiu pointed to the bright red dishes on a table downstairs. "This looks good.

"Oh, you two really know what you're talking about," the child pulled out a bench, let them sit down, and then introduced: "This thing is called sweet and sour pork. After Lord Yuan came out of seclusion, he missed the delicious food from his hometown, so..."

"Okay, no need for introduction." Liang Qichao waved his hand, signaling the waiter to serve the dishes quickly.

"Since we arrived outside the Great Wall, food and things used by Lord Yuan are everywhere." Chen Qianqiu smiled and poured tea for himself and Liang Qichao.

"It's okay for a small vendor to do this, but it's not like he's in trouble." To think that a restaurant like this would do the same is really unheard of.

"It's said that this kind of food will see its sales increase several times over as long as it's associated with Lord Yuan. It's understandable that the store is doing this."

Chapter 192 The Weird Dispute between Hunan and Hubei

The two of them sat at the table, which was filled with popular summer snacks. The waiter brought a pot of tea and then took his leave to go to the kitchen to prepare the dishes.

There was no one upstairs. Chen Qianqiu put down the teacup in his hand, approached Liang Qichao and whispered:

"Zhuoru, although the Xuantu Salon has been gaining momentum recently, you still need to be cautious when joining it."

"Tongfu, that's wrong." Liang Qichao glanced at the stairs and saw no one coming up. He then bowed and said, "Master Yuan doesn't even ban the idea of ​​a republic, so why would he make a fuss about Xuantu Salon?"

Xuantu Salon, whose name comes from "Xuantu County", one of the four counties in Liaodong during the Han Dynasty, roughly covers eastern Liaoning, southern Jilin and northern Korea.

In the eyes of those who care, the word "Xuan Tu" means tracing back to the origin and restoring the Han Dynasty's rule outside the Great Wall.

Before the Anti-Shandong War, scholars from all over Korea had already learned from Tokyo, Japan at that time, and set up various clubs for people to join.

After Yuan Shikai took charge of the areas outside the Great Wall, such organizations sprang up like mushrooms after a rain.

Therefore, under the influence of a number of XX clubs and XX salons, Xuantu Salon came into being.

Seeing Liang Qichao's indifference, Chen Qianqiu couldn't help but frown. "The idea of ​​a republic and constitutionalism can be justified by using Western learning to enlighten the people. But if it's about opposing the Manchus and restoring the Han people, that's a major taboo in our dynasty!"

"Big taboo?" Liang Qichao put the teacup on the table and said bluntly, "Tongfu, what has happened to the world in the past three years? Don't you see clearly?"

"I know, of course I know!" Chen Qianqiu thought Liang Qichao misunderstood his loyalty to the Qing Dynasty, so he quickly stood up to explain, "Master Yuan took Xuzhou and pacified Henan, but precisely because of this, many censors in the court impeached him, saying that he was too powerful to be controlled and feared civil unrest."

"If we are afraid of civil unrest, then we might as well start a civil unrest. It would be better to march directly into the capital and seize the throne!" Liang Qichao imitated the words from the opera outside the Great Wall and blurted out.

He was four years younger than Chen Qianqiu, at the age of passion. In Korea, he came across many historical materials about the massacres carried out by the Qing Dynasty when it entered the Central Plains, so his attitude towards the Qing Dynasty took a sharp turn.

"Even if we replace the northern court, there's still a little emperor left in the south. What should we do?" Chen Qianqiu sighed. "The National Defense Army did defeat the Jiangnan New Army in Pei County and captured Xuzhou, but that was because they took advantage of the other army's westward expedition.

If we fight further south and deep into the hinterland, who knows who will be able to defeat whom. The Jiangnan New Army is not a pushover.

Moreover, Liu Kunyi has been aggressively expanding his army since he requested the title of Governor-General of Jiangnan. The situation is now very different from what it was three years ago!"

What Chen Qianqiu was talking about was the changes in the situation that have taken place in China over the past three years.

The first was the Battle of Hunan and Hubei. Although the newly formed Hunan Army of the Jiangnan New Army launched a fierce offensive at the beginning, it successively conquered Fengguozhou, Qizhou, and Huangshi, and headed straight for Wuchang Prefecture.

But they did not expect that Feng Guozhang led the 2nd Regiment of the National Defense Army from Shandong to the south, and the army besieged Xuzhou City, and went south along the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, approaching Huai'an Prefecture. There was even a small group of cavalry appearing on the shores of Yangzhou City, only across the river from Jiangning.

After receiving this news, the Hunan Army generals on the front line strongly advocated that Jiangning should hold on first. They wanted to attack Wuchang first and capture Zhang Zhidong alive.

However, in order to strengthen his presence in the Hunan Army, Liu Kunyi in the rear ordered to suspend the offensive and return to Jiangning for support.

Due to disagreements, the Hunan Army on the front line was unable to advance in Hubei. Cixi, who had originally planned to escape again, decided not to do so and wanted to see what the Hunan Army was up to.

In the end, after more than ten days of fierce debate on the Jiangning Hubei front, most of the Hunan Army returned to assist in the defense of Jiangning, and some defended along the west bank of the river. The Hubei Army also took the opportunity to breathe a sigh of relief and recaptured Huangshi after preparation.

Qian 91: ?63 zero demon 0?

Who are the traitors? Of course, it refers to Yuan Xiangcheng's national defense army.

But Liu Kunyi's Hunan Army did not look like loyal subjects of the country, otherwise they would not have invaded Hubei where the imperial court was located.

However, what is strange is that Cixi did issue this imperial edict, and Liu Kunyi was even stranger, as he actually obeyed the order.

Wouldn't that be slapping yourself in the face?

When they started the rebellion, they shouted the slogan "Revenge for the Ninth Marshal" and said they would fight back to Hunan. Why did they stop fighting halfway?

Just when everyone was confused, Cixi issued a new imperial edict in the name of Emperor Baoqing.

In this imperial edict, it was claimed that the war between Hunan and Hubei was caused by the deception of a traitor, and the traitor was Yuan Shikai.

It was Yuan Shikai who deceived Zhang Zhidong into trusting him under the pretext of coal exploration, and then stuffed his troops into the exploration team and raided Pingxiang.

Yuan Xiangcheng was the culprit who angered Zeng Guoquan to death!

Why do you say that?

Seeing that Hunan and Hubei were at odds with each other, this man took advantage of the situation to fish in troubled waters. So as soon as the fighting between Hunan and Hubei broke out in the south, he captured the city of Xuzhou in the north. It was so swift, how could it not be a long-planned move?

Now that Hunan and Hubei are important areas facing the rebels in the north, they should work together to resist Yuan's army.

Therefore, in order to commend his loyalty, Liu Kunyi was renamed Governor-General of Liangjiang as Governor-General of Jiangnan, governing Jiangsu, Anhui, Jiangxi, Zhejiang and Changsha Prefecture, and asked Hunan and Hubei not to fight against each other and be taken advantage of by the enemy.

Lame, the reason is extremely lame. This was Zhang Zhidong’s first thought after seeing the imperial edict.

To be honest, Zhang Zhidong felt that Liu Kunyi would not choose to believe what was said above, and would not give up Wuchang City no matter what.

But in the end, Liu Kunyi believed it and took the initiative to withdraw the newly formed Hunan Army from Hubei and transfer it to Changsha Prefecture.

Just when he was puzzled, a telegram answered his doubts.

It was not until the Hunan Army withdrew that Yuan Shikai sent a secret telegram to Zhang Zhidong, informing him of the discord between the Hunan Army generals.

Only then did Zhang Zhidong realize that he had been used as a pawn by Yuan Shikai without his knowledge.

Cixi, Yuan Shikai and Liu Kunyi, three enemies of each other, tacitly reached a cooperation under the changing situation.

Yuan Xiangcheng intended to take Xuzhou as the starting point for his future southward advance, and Liu Kunyi would not give up directly.

Liu Kunyi intended to reorganize the newly formed Hunan Army, but the Hunan Army had too many people involved and he could not act rashly.

After Cixi fled south to Wuchang, she was controlled by Zhang Zhidong and her life was not easy as she had to rely on others for support.

That's why Yuan Shikai, under the pretext of helping to build an ironworks, informed Zhang Zhidong that there were high-quality coal mines in Pingxiang, luring him to occupy them, and also guaranteed that if a conflict arose, the National Defense Army would not stand idly by.

Cixi also keenly grasped Liu Kunyi's idea. He dispatched a large number of Hunan troops to the west, but did not deploy any defenses in the main defensive area of ​​northern Jiangsu, intending to let Yuan Shikai take it.

Therefore, Cixi took advantage of the situation and mediated between Hunan and Hubei when the war broke out and Yuan's army moved south. In this way, she could take back some power and no longer had to look to Zhang Zhidong for everything.

But, when I think about it, it seems like I’m the only one who suffers.

Zhang Zhidong felt like crying but had no tears.

Chapter 213: Celebrities Gather Outside the Pass

Zhang Zhidong suffered a loss, but did not dare to react too much.

It’s nothing, the foundation is too weak.

In the original time and space, he was able to establish his own faction in Hubei and build Wuchang into the largest city in inland China, relying on the prestige accumulated in the Huguang Governor-General's area for more than ten years and the convenience brought by foreigners.

The completion of the Hanyang Iron Works enabled the company to produce its own weapons; the Hubei New Army was organized, which on paper could compete with the Beiyang New Army; relying on the Treaties of Shimonoseki and Xin Chou, the three towns of Wuhan were built into the first shipping port for foreign goods in mainland China.

But at this time, Zhang Zhidong had only been the governor of Huguang for more than a year when he encountered the dispute between the emperor and the empress.

Moreover, in his reply to the 1890 edition of the Southeast Mutual Protection, he said something softly:

"Rush to aid Hubei in the snowstorm and save the people."