latelenovela Chapter 125 Li Zhongtang
Chapter 125 Li Zhongtang
Li Zhongtang arrived very quickly, probably by foreigner's fast ship. Shen Lian currently has neither a noble title nor a higher official rank than him, so he can only go out of the city to greet him.
"Your humble servant pays respects to Your Excellency!" Upon seeing Li Hongzhang alight from his carriage, Shen Lian immediately led the officials forward to pay their respects.
"Haha, Zhiyuan, please rise quickly. You have made such a great contribution to the country, you are truly a promising young man!" Li Hongzhang reached out and supported Shen Lian's arm, and Shen Lian straightened up accordingly.
"Your Excellency has traversed the world for decades and achieved remarkable feats. I have only managed to make a small contribution by chance. How dare I be presumptuous in front of you!" Shen Lian said sincerely.
"Is this kid deliberately messing with me? He doesn't seem like it!" Li Hongzhang thought to himself, knowing full well how many military achievements he had made.
He's accomplished quite a few important things, but when it comes to fighting wars, he's utterly incompetent—don't even mention it!
"Zhiyuan, get in the car! Let's go into the city together. I have something I'd like to discuss with you!" Li Hongzhang pulled Shen Lian's hand and led him to the car.
Here we go again with this "treating scholars with courtesy" act? Aren't you all annoying? Shen Lian thought to himself, but he still had no choice but to get into the car with Li Hongzhang.
"I never expected that Zhiyuan, at such a young age, would not only be such a brilliant strategist but also so capable in governing a city! He truly impresses me! Haha!" Li Hongzhang said in surprise as he looked at the clean streets.
"Hehe! These are all minor matters. It's just that there were too many people and things involved in the past, and no one was willing to do them! I just took advantage of a loophole." Shen Lian nodded with a smile.
"Hmm! It's good that Zhiyuan understands! It's best to be moderate in one's dealings with the court. A tall tree stands out in the forest, and the wind will surely blow it down. Zhiyuan has already achieved extraordinary feats; he should consider his future." Li Hongzhang stroked his beard and said calmly. He greatly admired this younger man and hoped he would have a good ending.
"Thank you for your guidance, Your Excellency! However, some things always need to be done, and I'm still young. I'm sure they won't hold a grudge against a young person like me! Hehe!"
Li Hongzhang didn't say anything more. Anyway, I've already made my point clear. Whether you listen to me or not is none of my business!
"I wonder how Zhiyuan plans to negotiate with the foreign powers?" Since Li Hongzhang was one of the main people in charge of the negotiations, he naturally had to communicate with Shen Lian first.
After all, regardless of Shen Lian's military achievements or the imperial decree, he had to respect Shen Lian's opinion.
"Although we defeated the great powers this time, we are still far behind them in terms of national strength and military power. So we should not offend them too much this time, lest we provoke them and cause another war," Shen Lian said frankly.
Old Li nodded in satisfaction at Shen Lian's attitude. Fortunately, Shen Lian was smart enough not to be a complete fool and hadn't been blinded by his great victory. That made things much easier.
"Other powers are easier to deal with. As long as they receive certain benefits, they are not very interested in war. It is also difficult for them to wage a protracted war with us."
"The greatest dangers to us are Tsarist Russia and Japan. Both countries are eyeing us covetously, always wanting to take a piece of our flesh. So the two countries we really need to deal with are the ones we need to focus on."
Shen Lian spoke eloquently, and Li Hongzhang, who had initially been indifferent, began to take it seriously. He even sat up a few notches.
He hadn't expected Shen Lian to be so young, not only a skilled warrior but also so knowledgeable about the world's major powers and even have a plan to deal with them. This made him value Shen Lian even more.
Shen Lian needs Li Hongzhang's support to achieve his goals. After all, he is currently inferior to Li Hongzhang in terms of both prestige and status.
“These two countries are like two vicious wolves, and we don’t have the ability to deal with them yet. Fortunately, the fact that these two countries are at odds gives us room to maneuver.” Shen Lian smiled crookedly.
"What I mean is to offer Russia some benefits to appease them temporarily. As for the Japanese, I will not let them off this time. This is a good opportunity to humiliate them."
"This little Japanese is nothing more than a dog beside the great powers now. As long as we appease them, they can't cause any trouble. We can also get our revenge for the Sino-Japanese War!" Shen Lian said, glancing at Li Hongzhang, who unconsciously touched his nose.
When Lao Li went to Japan for negotiations, he was shot in the nose, and you can still see the scar now.
"However, our targeting of Japan might cause some trouble for Your Excellency. I urge you to prepare accordingly!" Shen Lian said with a slight smile. Li Hongzhang felt a pang of unease upon seeing this.
"I never expected Zhiyuan to be so skilled in negotiation at such a young age. I really underestimated you. Although your strategies are still a bit immature, it's already quite remarkable!"
"Your insights surpass those of most court officials. Excellent! Targeting the Japanese is only natural, after all, we won this time!"
These are all matters of national importance, how could they possibly concern me personally! Haha! Even if there are similarities, we must submit to the greater good.” Old Li chuckled dryly.
If he hadn't reacted this way, Shen Lian wouldn't have been sure. Now that Old Li seemed a bit uneasy, Shen Lian felt more certain.
"Your Excellency, tens of millions of taels is no small sum. I'll deal with the Yokohama Specie Bank sooner or later, so it's best if Your Excellency makes arrangements in advance." Shen Lian smiled faintly.
"Haha, Zhiyuan, you haven't heard any nonsense rumors, have you? What tens of millions of taels? How come I don't know anything about that! Haha!" Of course, Old Li wouldn't admit it.
If the imperial court and the people of the land were to find out that he had over forty million taels of silver in a Japanese bank, the condemnation of the nation would be overwhelming, and the imperial court would certainly not let him off the hook. He would truly become a rat crossing the street, hated by everyone!
"Oh! Is that so? Then I must have misheard. Of course, Lord Zhongtang is such a highly respected person, and he also has a personal and national feud with the Japanese. How could he possibly accept their money!"
"I was misled by the rumors, and I am truly sorry! I beg Your Excellency's forgiveness!" Shen Lian bowed deeply with a serious expression.
"Hey! Zhiyuan, don't be like that. People like us in high positions are always surrounded by both praise and criticism! I'm used to it, but you'll soon find out, Zhiyuan! Hehe!"
Seeing that Shen Lian didn't press the issue further, Old Li breathed a sigh of relief. He stroked his beard and said magnanimously.
Still pretending with me? I hope you can keep up the act! Shen Lian sneered inwardly.
"No! These rumors are outrageous. To set the record straight and prove His Excellency's innocence, I will immediately order the Tianjin troops to raid the Japanese Gold Standard Bank, search their customer records, and arrest and severely torture all their employees!"
Shen Lian said angrily!