Master Yuan, start!

The atmosphere in Jiangning City was very enthusiastic. Under such circumstances, the British Minister to China, Claude MacDonald, came to visit with the British Consul in Shanghai, Sir John Jordan.

Yes, Zhu Erding was promoted from acting consul to official consul.

When the Qing Dynasty was still in power, Britain's diplomatic personnel in China usually consisted of a minister in Beijing and a consul in Shanghai. Basically, these two people were responsible for Britain's diplomatic affairs in North and South China.

As for other cities, temporary consuls are set up from time to time.

Originally, Britain had a consul in Korea in Seoul, but after Yuan Shikai became governor of Korea and abolished the feudal system and established counties, the political functions of the consul gradually disappeared and were transformed into a single economic function.

After the Republic, Britain also made some changes to the configuration of its diplomatic personnel in China, changing it to one chief and three deputy chiefs.

They are the minister stationed in Beijing, and the consuls stationed in Incheon, Shanghai and Guangzhou.

Jordan was originally an assistant to Robert Hart, the Inspector General of Customs. It was thanks to Yuan Shikai that he was able to surpass a number of British diplomats in China and become the consul in Shanghai as an assistant to a tax officer.

860*3805[auxiliary fee?

Zhu Erdian had a feeling of gratitude towards Yuan Shikai.

The reason was that during the Sea of ​​Japan Crisis caused by the Russian warships' shelling of Yongxing Bay in Korea, since the British Minister to China, Eugene, had returned home, Jordan was entrusted by Hart to rush to Incheon and temporarily act as a mediator between China and Russia.

Afterwards, Yuan Xiangcheng praised Hart highly for his proper response and handling of the crisis.

Hart later reported the matter to London, and Jordan was immediately appointed by London as acting consul in Incheon to handle China-related affairs in northern Britain.

After the Hunan expedition, London transferred Jordan to Shanghai to serve as consul in view of his friendship with Yuan Shikai.

In this way, Zhu Erdian changed from acting consul in Incheon to consul in Shanghai, officially removing the title of "acting consul" from his head.

Anyone with a discerning eye could see that if there were no large-scale turmoil in China, Jordan would be the only choice to be the next British Minister to China, given his relationship with Yuan Shikai.

As for the current British Minister to China, Sir Claude MacDonald, he also had a friendship with Yuan Shikai.

During the Hunan Campaign, with his tacit approval, Churchill's Bangalore Cavalry Regiment encircled the Hunan Army in front of Huai'an City, and established a good relationship with Yuan Shikai.

Maintaining a good personal friendship with the current and future British diplomatic chiefs was actually something Yuan Shikai did intentionally.

At the end of the 19th century, conducting diplomacy in Europe and conducting diplomacy in colonies and semi-colonies such as Africa and Asia were two completely different things.

Take the United Kingdom as an example. The diplomatic details between the United Kingdom and European countries such as France, Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Russia are all in the hands of the Foreign Office in London. Even the diplomatic direction towards the Ottoman Empire is often inquired by the Foreign Office in London.

British ambassadors to various European countries have very little autonomy and are more like puppets of their own foreign ministries.

However, in places like Africa and Asia, British diplomatic officials there have much greater power.

It is not an exaggeration to say that the diplomatic details are completely controlled by local ministers and governors.

Because what London politicians care about is whether they can gain more benefits from these places to feed back to their homeland. As for other things, they are not interested in understanding and do not want to understand.

Therefore, these envoys and governors in Asia and Africa became the only way for London politicians to understand the local areas.

Even if the Prime Minister wants to know certain details, he has to go through them.

Even if the British ambassador to China said that Yuan Shikai was a pretender who supported the republic on the surface but was actually pro-monarchy, the Foreign Office in London would believe it.

This is the particularity of colonial diplomats in the great colonial era.

...

In the reception room, while waiting for Yuan Xiangcheng to arrive, Zhu Erdian looked at the calm Dounale and turned to say, "Sir, London has not authorized us to meet with Yuan Xiangcheng this time. I am worried..."

"What are you worried about?" Douna Zhangqi opened his eyes and asked, "Are you worried about being blamed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs?"

"Not really." Zhu Erdian shook his head and explained, "I just think it would be better to wait until the situation in China becomes clearer, that is, after reunification, before visiting."

Jordan was a farmer's son born in Northern Ireland and did not have a noble title like Claude MacDonald.

He came to China in 1876, the second year of the Guangxu period. Although he had been in China for 21 years, he was still not bold enough in making diplomatic decisions.

Looking at Zhu Erdian, who was about the same age as him but seemed a little reserved, Dounale smiled and said:

“Isn’t the current situation clear enough?

Consul Jordan, it seems to me that if you want to impress the politicians in London, you can't just passively follow orders. You must be decisive and take the initiative to share Britain's worries."

At first, MacArthur thought that taking over as Minister to China would be a period of stagnation in his career.

But what he didn't expect was that the Far East gave him a pleasant surprise.

Whether it is betting on Yuan Shikai and Xiang Yu to unify China;

or to expand the bonded area and import more British goods;

Or they could support Yuan Shikai, deplete Russia's military power, and establish the Ussuri River International Condominium Autonomous Region, which would be administered by Britain.

These diplomatic and economic achievements made MacDonald's name appear more and more frequently in the British Foreign Office, and his status gradually rose.

Especially since the founding of Republic China, the domestic situation has changed, and the Foreign Office in London has sent telegrams almost every day to inquire about specific details. Unknowingly, MacArthur found that he had become the de facto number one in Britain's diplomacy with China.

"Sir, what do you mean?" Zhu Erdian looked up and asked with some confusion.

Hearing this, Dou Nale's eyes gradually lost focus. Thinking of the current predicament faced by the British Empire, he said:

"As you know, I come from the Army and served for a time in the Cape Colony.

I recently received news that the Boer state there is somewhat unstable. Not only did the Transvaal impose heavy taxes on British residents, but it also sentenced a British businessman to death."

"Boers?"

Having stayed in China for a long time, Zhu Erdian was somewhat unfamiliar with this term.

However, he quickly recalled that more than 10 years ago, the British Empire had a conflict with the Boers!

Seeing that Zhu Erdian had come to his senses, Dounale continued, "I have some retired old buddies who are contracting gold mines in the Cape Colony. They told me that there is a high possibility that war will break out again in South Africa!"

"war?"

"Yes, war, a war to end the Boer war." Dounale said with a firm look:

"More than 10 years ago, we had a minor conflict with the Boers. At that time, the French were still licking their wounds after the Franco-Prussian War and had no energy to intervene in South Africa.

However, if there is unrest in the South African colonies at present, I am worried that the French will take the opportunity to threaten the British government in order to expand their colonies in West Africa.

"Will the French help the descendants of Germans?" Jules Verne's first reaction was disbelief.

"Look at how the French are jumping around in China. How could they choose to let go of the closer Africa?" Dou Nale firmly believed in his own judgment.

This is true.

In the historical Boer War, the French seemed to have no involvement, but that was because Britain had ceded large colonies in Central and West Africa to France.

Not only that, Britain also acquiesced to Russia's construction of the Chinese Eastern Railway in China.

The British then verbally deceived William II, saying that as long as he did not support the Boer Republic, they would give him Portugal's African colonies, although they later broke the promise and did not give them to him.

However, it can be said that the British gave up two tangible interests to France and Russia, and sacrificed their own political reputation to William II, before finally deciding to take action to deal with the Boers.

In this time and space, the Russian threat in the north has been eliminated, and the only problem Britain has to face is obstruction from Germany and France.

Dou Nale knew that he could not intervene in Germany, but he believed that there might be room for maneuver in France.

Dounale asserted: "The French will not miss this good opportunity, and this is the time for us diplomats stationed in China to show our presence.

As long as we use Yuan Shikai to threaten France's Far East colony of Vietnam, we can protect the British Empire's Central and West African colonies, and even go further."

As long as the French Far East colonies are unstable, they will naturally focus their attention on Asia.

By then, there would be no need for the British Empire to pay chips in Central and West Africa to appease France.

As he listened, Zhu Erdian understood, and he also understood what Dounal had not finished saying.

Going a step further, it is to make a name for oneself in British politics, thus paving the way for becoming a minister or even entering Whitehall.

Will I, a farm boy from the countryside of Northern Ireland, ever become a Londoner?

When Zhu Erdian thought about the bright future he was about to face, his eyes lit up.

What a good trick! This is to drive the tiger to eat the wolf. No, it should be said that this is a trick of driving the wolf to fight the tiger. The Chinese are the wolf!

Having spent 21 years in China, Zhu Erdian also knows how to use some allusions.

But the question now is, will Yuan Xiangcheng fight?

Although he had hundreds of thousands of troops, Li Hongzhang's southern army was still capable of fighting.

After dealing with these forces, will Yuan Xiangcheng still have the strength to continue moving south?

Zhu Erdian shook his head and looked out the window. Perhaps the answer to this question could only be obtained after meeting the President of the Republic of China.

Chapter 400: Begging for Food

A country's national strength and economic strength are sometimes not synchronized.

Before the information age, when a country's economic strength increased, it would be reflected in its national strength, and this transmission path had a delayed nature.

If we were to estimate, it would be around 50 years.

Britain launched its first industrial revolution in the mid-18th century. By improving the machines of the cotton spinning industry, such as spinning and weaving, Britain had basically achieved the mechanization of light industry by the beginning of the 19th century.

Relying on its strong mechanical light industry, British textiles were sold well in Europe at that time, and France, the Holy Roman Empire, the Ottoman Empire and Russia were all filled with British products.

It can be said that in the early 19th century, Britain was undoubtedly the world's number one in terms of GDP.

However, in the early 19th century, Britain was just a supporting role in Europe, at best the second male lead.

The protagonist was the First French Empire led by Napoleon.

It was not until 50 years later, in the mid-19th century, when Britain had built a huge fleet, that it truly stood above all European countries and became a world leader.

The same was true of the world situation at the end of the 19th century.

At this time, the total value of coal, steel, and electricity production in the United States and Germany had surpassed that of Britain, especially the United States, which far exceeded that of Britain.

However, when did the United States replace Britain and become the world hegemon?

The answer is the mid-20th century, after World War II, also about 50 years.

In other words, the late 19th century to the early 20th century was the most glorious period of the British Empire.

Although the British during this period vaguely realized that Britain seemed to be being overtaken by other countries and its major industrial output was surpassed by the United States and Germany, the world's number one fleet still made them full of confidence in Britain's prospects.

All British subjects bathed in the glory of Queen Victoria and breathed the air of the British Empire.

The mentality of the British at this time is much healthier than after World War I and World War II. They can deal with problems with the mentality of a great power.

Compared with the gains and losses of a country or a place, the British value their global colonial interests more.

Thanks to the premature demise of the "Qing Dynasty", the Treaty of Shimonoseki and the Boxer Protocol, which seriously damaged China and expanded the colonial interests of the great powers in history, were not signed.