Chapter 53 7. King Chun inspected the navy, followed by Li Lianying holding a long pipe

In mid-April, it is the most pleasant early summer time in the Beijing-Tianjin area. The weather is warm and the smoke is intoxicating.Poplars, elms, and willows have already flourished. Swallows, sparrows, and warblers are singing and dancing all day long. Even the water in the Bohai Bay has woken up from the winter freeze. Now it is no longer cold even after washing hands and feet. In the grand and magnificent Bohai Bay, the water is as blue as dyed all day long, and the waves are as smooth as a mirror.Fishermen who make a living by fishing, ship owners who transport goods to make money, Beiyang sailors who serve as soldiers and eat food, whoever deals with the sea, doesn't like the Bohai Bay that is like a mother with tenderness and fraternity!

The three German warships ordered by the Beiyang Navy in the autumn of the previous year launched from Bremerhaven more than two months ago, entered the Atlantic Ocean from the North Sea, passed the Indian Ocean to the Pacific Ocean, and docked in Nagasaki, Japan ten days ago. After unloading at the port, it will open to Bohai Bay and accept the acceptance of the Chinese government at Lushun Haikou.The reason why we chose to hand over the warships at this time is because early summer is the best season in Bohai Bay. Li Hongzhang has been busy and excited for more than a month.He has always been full of energy, and the more he does big things, the more energetic he is.Although there were many and complicated things, under the command of his Beiyang Commercial Office in Tianjin, everything was going on in an orderly manner.The Beiyang Navy currently has more than 40 large and small sea-going ships. This time, 15 ships were selected from them, divided into left, middle and right wings, and drilled under the leadership of the Beiyang Navy Admiral Ding Ruchang, striving to make a contribution to the national navy. A role model to come.Yesterday morning, the three fast boats sent by the governor of Liangjiang and Nanyang Minister Zeng Guoquan, led by the 68-year-old veteran of the Changjiang Navy Admiral Huang Yisheng, entered Dagukou.As early as the Xianfeng period, Li Hongzhang, who was in Zeng Guofan's shogunate, met Huang Yisheng, who was then the commander of the Navy.More than 20 years have passed, and although this Changsha veteran Hunan Army has white beard and hair, he is still full of energy.Li Hongzhang was happy when his old friend reunited.In the afternoon, after the grand official welcome ceremony, the two old friends on the battlefield talked for a long time.

"Tomorrow at noon, Prince Chun will arrive in Tianjin, and we will go into the city together early in the morning." "Okay, I will accompany you, the minister who will be in charge, to pick up the minister who is in charge." Huang Yisheng smiled and said, "Who else will follow Prince Chun?" "Zeng Jiegang was still in England and couldn't come. Prince Qing said he was unwell and couldn't come. Among the ministers of the Navy's office, Shan Qing was the only one who followed." "I have never met Shanqing. I heard that he was always defeated in the past. Does he have any skills?"

"This person has been following Shengbao in the past. Shengbao is a famous loser, will he have capable people under him?" Li Hongzhang sneered twice, "You said he has no ability at all, and you have wronged him. Prince Jin doesn't care about things. , Prince Qing is old and sick, Zeng Jiegang was in England, and I was in Tianjin, this naval yamen has become his world alone, it is said that he has put his own people all over the yamen." Huang Yisheng said angrily: "Why did the imperial court call this kind of person?" "Oh, don't mention it!" Li Hongzhang waved his hand and said softly, "It's not a good fate! Born in Zhenghuangqi, he is a fool, and he is also born to be reliable, not to mention he has military achievements, and he was a general in Hangzhou. !"

"Shaoquan!" Huang Yisheng also lowered his voice, "From this point of view, Shanqing might be specially sent to the Navy Yamen by the Empress Dowager, you have to be more careful in the future." Li Hongzhang nodded without making a sound. Early the next morning, the Beiyang Yamen in Tianjin was decorated with lanterns and festoons, red and green, drums and firecrackers were fired continuously.A mile away from the yamen, a memorial archway and several scaffoldings were specially erected.The archway and scaffolding are majestic, covered with red and yellow colored silk, and a team of drummers with complete ostentation is specially arranged for it.Li Hongzhang is different from his teacher Zeng Guofan.Zeng Guofan was frugal in everything, and Li Hongzhang talked about being extravagant and showing off his face everywhere. What's more, the people we welcomed today were extraordinary.The predecessor of the Beiyang Commercial Yamen was the Sankou Commercial Yamen. In the ninth year of Tongzhi, the word "Sankou" was replaced with the word "Beiyang".Chun Wang is the highest position that this yamen ushered in in the past 16 or 17 years.Jin Wang not only has the lofty status of the emperor's own father, but also has always lived in seclusion and never left the capital easily. If he hadn't been in charge of the post of Minister of Naval Affairs, he would not have come to Tianjin, and he would not have come out to take the risk of the storm Miles!

As the Minister of Beiyang Commercial Yamen, King Chun's stay this time also gave Li Hongzhang a great deal of face, so he had to greet him with the highest etiquette. At noon, greeted by the third-level officials of Daofu County in Tianjin, the large and luxurious team of Chun Wang slowly entered the city gate and walked straight to the Beiyang Commercial Yamen.Watching the flags fluttering from a distance, the colored cards held high, and more than a dozen tall and strong horses leading the way, Li Hongzhang knew that King Chun was coming, so he led the Beiyang Navy Commander Ding Ruchang, the Yangtze River Navy Admiral Huang Yisheng, and a group of captains. Waiting for the senior military officer to kneel under the archway and wait.

"Li Zhongtang, please get up." Yizhen walked out of the apricot-yellow sedan chair with a smile on his face, and came to Li Hongzhang and the others. Li Hongzhang got up, looked up at Yixuan and said, "My lord, with a body of ten thousand gold, came to Tianjin to inspect the navy in person. It is a great fortune for the veterans and all the officers and soldiers of the Beiyang navy to greet the lord here!" "Li Zhongtang, thank you for your hard work!" Yizhen pointed to the archway and the shack and said, "Why do you need to spend so much, please get on the sedan chair, and let's enter the yamen together!"

"My lord, please get on the sedan chair first!" Li Hongzhang bent over and stretched out his right hand in a gesture.The apricot yellow sedan moved two steps and came to Yizhen's side. "Li Zhongtang, this slave pays his respects to you!" Only then did Li Hongzhang realize that there was a middle-aged eunuch on the left side of the apricot-yellow sedan chair, with one leg bent and one hand thrown forward, making a greeting gesture to him.Isn't this Li Lianying?why did he come here!Li Hongzhang was taken aback. He squinted his presbyopic eyes and took another look. Yes, it was Li Lianying: instead of wearing the usual fourth-rank official uniform, he was wearing a gray cloth gown like an ordinary eunuch. Holding a three-foot-long smoking pipe that was shining all over his body, and a big bright yellow purse embroidered with the pattern of two dragons playing with pearls was hanging on his wrist, he greeted Ann, followed beside the sedan chair, facing Li Hongzhang gave an extremely humble and submissive smile.

"Boss Li, you're here too! I'm too old to see you, so it's really useless!" Li Hongzhang said as he went forward and bowed to Li Lianying to greet him as a landlord. "Li Zhongtang, don't do this, kill the slaves." Li Lianying hurriedly asked Li Hongzhang two more times, walked to Li Hongzhang's side, and said quietly, "The old eunuch next to Prince Chun is sick. I can't do it well. Lafayette asked the servant to replace it, no," he pointed to the cigarette stick and purse, "the servant came to Tianjin just to light the cigarette and wait for the prince to smoke."

"It's hard for Mr. Li." Li Hongzhang smiled and said a few words to Li Lianying and then greeted Shanqing.Everyone got on the sedan chair again.Li Hongzhang's dark green sedan followed closely behind Chun Wang's apricot yellow sedan. Looking at the front, he was holding the sedan chair with one hand and the cigarette pipe with the other. General Manager Li who was walking forward, Governor of Zhili and Minister of the Office of the Navy Yamen Li Hongzhang wondered deeply: How did Li Lianying come to Tianjin with King Chun?Of course, he must have been appointed by the Queen Mother, but why did the Queen Mother send him here?This is really a very unusual thing.It is, first of all, wildly abnormal.Li Lianying was nominally the head of the eunuchs, but in fact he only served the queen mother.He stayed with the queen mother all day long, and now he actually left the queen mother for a few days to light the fire for King Chun.There has never been a precedent of a chief executive leaving the palace to serve a prince, and Li Lianying, the queen mother's favorite slave, has never left the queen mother to go out. Both of these are abnormal.

Abnormal things must hide abnormal intentions behind them.So what is his intention?Chun Wang came to Tianjin to review the navy, which can be regarded as a military move.The former leader of the Huai Army who was born in Hanlin immediately thought of the word "supervising the army". The emperor sent his favorite eunuch to represent himself to the front line to comfort the army, and even lived in the barracks for a long time, so as to understand the situation of the former enemy and supervise the actions of the former enemy's military commander. This is the common "eunuch supervising the army" in Chinese history.Eunuchs and supervising troops are a unique product of Chinese politics, and they fail to succeed.Yu Chaoen during the Tang Dynasty and Gao Qiqian during the Ming Shenzong period are both representatives of the notorious eunuchs and supervisors. The former enemy commanders with a bit of talent and blood all hate this kind of overbearing but ignorant supervisor eunuch.As for officials, historians, and street talkers, they have never praised this bad government.In view of the lessons of previous dynasties, at the beginning of the founding of the Qing Dynasty, eunuchs were strictly prohibited from intervening in politics. As for sending eunuchs out of Beijing to supervise the army, this has never happened.But on the surface, Li Lianying was indeed not the military supervisor, but came with King Chun. If you want to talk about the military supervisor, it can only be King Chun, not him.In fact, Chun Wang is not the supervisor of the army, he himself is the supreme commander of this review.Supervising the army, supervising the army, supervising the supreme commander of the former enemy, so Li Lianying used the name of pretending to be smoking to monitor King Chun?When Li Hongzhang thought of this, cold sweat broke out on his back.If the queen mother doesn't fully trust me, Li Hongzhang, it's fair to say that I'm a Han Chinese and I have the Huai army in my hands.But who is Alcohol King?He is the direct descendant of Taizu Taizong, and he is the biological father of the current emperor. Can you not believe in him?What's more, he doesn't have an army in his hands yet! We can only think of it this way: Although King Chun does not endanger the Qing Dynasty, he may endanger the power of the Empress Dowager himself; although King Chun did not have an army in the past, he is now the Minister of the Navy, and he may take this opportunity to review the parade to cultivate his cronies. In the future, it is possible to have the most powerful army, so Li Lianying should be sent out to monitor in order to prevent it?Queen Mother, Queen Mother, you are over sixty years old and will soon return to the government to take care of you. Why do you have to take such painstaking efforts?After Li Hongzhang had just said these words in his heart, he suddenly thought, maybe Li Lianying's supervisor is not the supervisor, but me who supervises Li?He found that his left leg was numb. It turned out that his right leg had been pressed on his left leg for too long.He changed a bit, put his left leg on his right leg, and then leaned on the soft back cushion, closed his eyes and thought again in the slightly shaking sedan chair. The queen mother is afraid that I will have a deal with the German who sells the ship?Or are you afraid that I will sell private goods in the North-South Parade?Or are you worried that I will form a clique with the King of Alcohol in this parade? By the way, Li Hongzhang patted his left leg lightly: It must be this possibility. He was worried that I would form a clique with King Chun, so he sent Li Lianying out to monitor both King Chun and me. Both of them were under surveillance.After thinking it over, Li Hongzhang felt relieved: I, Li Hongzhang, have never had any ambiguity with the queen mother, and King Chun only has this great ability, and I don't want to form a party with him for personal gain, so just monitor if you monitor! Li Hongzhang did not expect that these thoughts of his had also been in King Chun's mind these days. On the eve of leaving Beijing, His Majesty Yizhen resigned from the Queen Mother.The Empress Dowager had a very kind smile on her face, which was rarely seen on her face.He was a little strange when he heard the queen mother say: "Qiye, I heard that the old Hatou who filled the cigarettes for you in the palace is ill. This time you go to Tianjin, he can't accompany you, and you can't be without someone to take care of you." I think, let Li Lianying serve you for a few days!" After hearing these words, Yizhen was stupefied for a long time: What's going on, Lao Ha is not sick at all, how can the Queen Mother say that he is sick?Besides, how does the Queen Mother know that there is an old Hatou in the palace who specially lit cigarettes for me. Could it be that Fujin mentioned it to him during the chat?Taking a step back, even if old Hatou is ill, there is no reason for the eunuch next to the Queen Mother to go out of the palace to serve me, not to mention that this eunuch is now in charge of the chief of the palace! Yixuan hurriedly said: "The empress dowager's kindness, I have taken it. I have someone to take care of me, don't bother Li Lianying, the empress dowager can't be without him for a day!" Cixi still smiled: "Qiye, you don't know, Li Lianying can serve people, and lighting a cigarette is his special skill. He has served me smoking for more than ten years, and he has trained a little Tanzi in the past two years. You are also a bit like him. You are in poor health, and you haven’t worked in this job for many years. I’m worried that you’ll be bumped by the waves when you go back to Tianjin. Let Li Lianying serve you, so I won’t have to spend every day. Concern in the palace. Besides, Li Lianying can't find another person to wait on. You can enjoy the blessing for a few days!" The queen mother said so, can Yizhen still refuse?He had to accept it with suspicion.Back at the palace, I didn't sleep well all night.Early the next morning, Li Lianying came to Prince Chun's Mansion accompanied by two young eunuchs.These two little eunuchs served Li Lianying at ordinary times, and he took them to Tianjin together: during the day, Li Lianying served King Chun; at night, after Li Lianying rested, the two little eunuchs came to serve him again. Li Lianying took good care of King Chun along the way.He always wears a half-worn gray cloth gown, holding in one hand the extra-long tobacco pipe inlaid with gold and jade that King Chun likes very much, and under the wrist of the other hand is a purse containing special shredded tobacco.During the journey, he always leaned close to King Chun's sedan chair, with one hand holding on to the sedan chair; when resting, he always stood half bent behind King Chun, waiting for orders at any time.Not only was he humbled to King Chun, but he was also polite and courteous to Shanqing and even other small and medium officials in the Navy Yamen.None of these people had ever met Li Lianying, but almost all of them had heard of him.It was rumored that Li Lianying was so pretentious, so arrogant, and so disgusting, but after a few days, the chief executive they saw with their own eyes was not what they said.How is this going?Everyone feels strange.No matter in front of King Chun or in front of other officials, Li Lianying never said a word. As for military affairs, he was even more indifferent.Even so, Yizhen was still wary of Li Lianying.During the day in the sedan chair, he was always thinking about this question: Why did the queen mother let him follow me? Is the queen mother worried about me and let him watch?Or does the Empress Dowager have some private affairs to handle in Tianjin, just like when she sent Andehai out of Beijing?Or did the Empress Dowager ask Li Lianying to take a look at the customs and customs of the Beijing-Tianjin area for her, and maybe she also asked him to take this opportunity to take a look at the behavior of the officers and soldiers of the Beiyang Navy for me? From Beijing to Tianjin, along the way, Yizhen pondered over and over like this, but in the end he didn't come up with a trick.There was only one thing he was sure of: Li Lianying's trip was by no means just pretending to be a fire, he must have a special mission entrusted to him by the Queen Mother.One must not take this extremely humble character with an extremely high position lightly! King Chun brought out from Beijing a mighty team of two or three people to do business and thirty to forty people to serve as attendants. Under the careful care of more than 200 people arranged by the Beiyang Commercial Yamen, they ate well, slept well, and lived well. Well done.In the evening, after King Chun had a rest after dinner, the officials who had been waiting for a long time in the toilet outside the post house began to hand over signs to ask for an audience.They included officials at all levels in Tianjin's Daofu and counties, officials specially assigned by the imperial court to Tianjin Yamen, officials from the new Western Affairs Bureau like Sheng Xuanhuai, and officials from the Liangjiang Governor's Office who followed three speedboats from Jiangning City to Tianjin.Everyone knows that King Chun's status is extraordinary, and everyone knows that this is a rare opportunity to curry favor. Everyone wants to be summoned by King Chun so that they can have a word or two with him.This one-sided view, the gift of a few words, may not be enjoyed in the future official career! Yizhen slowly flipped through the large pile of famous thorns brought in by the chief minister of the palace, read them carefully one by one, and carefully memorized the names, names, official positions, and places of origin of these people one by one.It is rare for him to go to Beijing, and it is also rare for him to contact officials below the Taoist government.He wanted to take this opportunity to summon them and chat with them casually as a way of showing his favor. Maybe, because of this short meeting, they would become loyal retainers for the rest of their lives.But just because Li Lianying was with him, and because he couldn't figure out what Li Lianying was doing this time, Yizhen hesitated for a long time, and decided to see none of them. The long history of Prince Chun's Mansion was ordered to pass on a message: The prince is tired from the journey and needs to rest early. Everyone, the prince has received your wishes. Please go back to the house! All the officials waiting to be summoned were greatly disappointed, but they had no choice but to leave the post in disappointment. Not long after these people left, Li Hongzhang hurried over, and Yizhen was getting ready to go to bed under the service of Li Lianying. "My lord, the three iron ships bought back from Germany sailed from Nagasaki, Japan to Lushunkou yesterday. I don't want the German naval officers escorting the iron ships to see our defenses in the Dagu area, and tell them to anchor at Lushun. After the acceptance check there, all the Germans except the technicians and craftsmen will be sent away.” "Your arrangement is good." Yizhen interrupted. "Thank you, my lord." Li Hongzhang continued, "This old minister wants to go to Lushunkou tomorrow, but I don't know if my lord wants to go." Yizhen has long heard that going out to sea by boat is very difficult, and the most difficult thing is seasickness.When the boat is in the sea, it will sway from side to side when the wind and waves come together.The shaking makes you dizzy, dizzy, and even sleeping on the boat deck will make your internal organs dislocated, and all the things in your stomach will be vomited out; when there is nothing to vomit, even bile will flow out.Yizhen is a person who has been pampered since he was a child, how could he bear this kind of torture.Besides, as the emperor's real father, he couldn't vomit and lose his composure in front of his courtiers!He said: "I heard that people who go out to sea will get seasick, so I won't go, you go with Shanqing!" Li Hongzhang knew that Yizhen was afraid of suffering, so he stopped trying to persuade him.Just as he was about to leave, he saw Li Lianying filling the small copper pot on the end of the pipe with cigarettes. With an idea, he walked over and said affectionately, "Mr. Li, let's go to Lushunkou with us tomorrow!" "Don't you dare!" Li Lianying waved her hands again and again, "This old slave is here to serve the prince. If the prince doesn't go, how dare this old slave go to Lushun? Li Zhongtang, please don't harm this old slave. I still want to keep this pair of slaves. The bitch has served Lafayette and the prince for several years!" Li Hongzhang said with a smile: "The manager is tough and tough, whoever wants to break you can't break it!" After leaving the post house, Li Hongzhang was relieved: It seems that Li Lianying is not here to supervise me! On the afternoon of the third day, Li Hongzhang returned to Dagukou from Lushunkou on a new German warship that had just been inspected and accepted.He went to the city overnight to report to King Chun. "What's the name of this German-made ship?" Yi Zhen asked with a smile on his face after hearing Li Hongzhang's report.Obviously, he is very interested in these foreign ships. "These three iron ships haven't been named yet, my lord, please give them a name!" In fact, more than two months ago, when he knew that the ships had been launched and were sailing towards China, Li Hongzhang had already thought up the names for the three new warships.Fortunately, it hasn't been announced yet, so I just give this honor to this vain prince. "Wow!" Sure enough, Yizhen was very happy.In his opinion, naming the three newly purchased warships means that he is the natural master of the three warships. "Let me think about it." The Qing Dynasty has always attached great importance to the education of the princes, and their teachers are all well-educated people.When Yizhen was a child, he also went to school in the South Study Room for ten years in a regular manner, and read a lot of books. "I think I thought of three names, but I don't know if it will work. Li Zhongtang, you are a scholar from the Hanlin University. If it is not suitable, you can help me change it." It took a bag of cigarettes to compare more than a dozen names over and over again. Finally, Yizhen finally took a fancy to a few. "Who doesn't know that the prince was a great talent among the elder brothers back then. The name he chose must be good. Say it quickly to open the eyes of the old minister." Li Hongzhang urged with a very sincere look.In fact, no one said that Qi Ye was a genius among elder brothers back then. Anyway, such a statement cannot be verified, but it is just that the speaker is easy to say and the listener is happy. "Li Zhongtang, I think these three iron ships come from far away in the West, and their names can all have the character 'far', which is like the generation of our Chinese brothers, they are the generation of far." Sure enough, King Chun is not a fool, this kind of thinking is novel and appropriate. "Okay! Just use the word 'yuan'. It's really wonderful!" Li Hongzhang tapped his palms lightly. He admired this idea from the bottom of his heart. Li Lianying stood aside respectfully and didn't speak, but it could be seen from the smile on his face that he had been listening carefully. "Three brothers from the Yuan family, since you bought it, it is our weapon. I want to use it to deal with foreigners and suppress foreign enemies. This first ship is named Zhenyuan. I also want to use it to stabilize the sea and people's hearts. The second ship was named Dingyuan. I still want to use it to rescue those in need, and help each other, and the third ship is called Jiyuan. Li Zhongtang, what do you think of these three names?" "Excellent!" Li Hongzhang clapped his hands again. "Zhenyuan, Dingyuan, and Jiyuan, these three names actually entrust the prince's ardent expectations for our future navy. Please write down these three names, and tomorrow, I will ask the painter to paint them on the bow. From now on , This is the slogan of our Qing Navy to show the world!" Li Hongzhang's performance made Yizhen very happy. "Li Zhongtang, you still speak well. We must make these three sentences known to the whole world, and let all naval officers and soldiers regard them as the purpose of military training." Li Hongzhang said excitedly: "My lord, I think the review can start the day after tomorrow. I want to arrange three items: first, a naming meeting for the newly purchased iron ship. This meeting will be held on the Zhenyuan. After the meeting Afterwards, the Beiyang and Nanyang field drills. The next day, I accompanied the prince to inspect several coastal forts. After the inspection, the prince rested quietly in Tianjin for two days before returning to the capital. What do you think?" "Okay, that's it!" Yi Di was very satisfied with Li Hongzhang's arrangement.He couldn't think of anything to add, so he said, "Go and make arrangements, prepare for the day tomorrow, and officially start the day after tomorrow!" A round of red sun is rising from the distant horizon, Bohai Bay ushered in another calm summer.Today is an extraordinary day in Bohai Bay, where China's first ever naval review will be held.The three new warships that just entered the port the day before yesterday were spread out and floated smoothly on the sea.These three warships are tall, majestic and magnificent.The snow-white hull, tall masts, thick chimneys, and dark steel cannons all glisten in the morning sun, giving people a majestic and majestic appearance. The names of the ships written by Yizhen himself: Zhenyuan, Dingyuan, and Jiyuan, have been painted on the bow and stern of the three new ships respectively.The Zhengzhong Zhenyuan ship is the rostrum of the naming conference and parade ceremony. Three red ribbons are hung vertically from top to bottom on the high mast, and the words "Wei Zhen foreign enemies", "Stable sea area" and "Rescue danger" are written in sequence. Three sentences.There is a long table covered with white cloth under the red ribbon, and the table is full of flowers, fruits, cups and saucers, etc. At ten o'clock in the morning, Yizheng, Li Hongzhang, Shanqing and other officials from the Navy Yamen, accompanied by officials from the Beiyang Commercial Yamen and the Beiyang Navy Admiral's Yamen, stepped on the long springboard and boarded from the Dagu Wharf. Gunboat Zhenyuan.At this moment, the three new ships sounded their whistles at the same time.Immediately, a huge "woo hoo" sound pierced the sea waves and resounded through the blue sky, attracting the attention of thousands of people.As soon as the siren stopped, the tail gun installed on the rear of the ship began to fire.The three ships have a total of eighteen tail guns, and each gun fires three guns.After the bang of the cannon, a group of dazzling flames appeared in the air, and immediately a bunch of waves flying several feet high in the sea.Fifty-four roars, fifty-four flames, and fifty-four waves made the first naval review in history kick off with an unprecedented and spectacular scene.Although Yizhen is in the honorable position of the emperor's biological father, it is the first time in his life that he has experienced such a grand scene.This kind of ceremony with Western etiquette as the main content opened his eyes and enjoyed the scenery.Prince Chun, who used to hate foreigners so much and regarded all their inventions and creations as miraculous tricks, seemed to bid farewell to the old ideas from the moment, and vowed to be a man who was proficient in Western affairs and integrated into the world. Minister of the Navy of the Qing Dynasty. Accompanied by Li Hongzhang and others, he walked in front of rows of sailors in brand-new military uniforms standing upright with knives, admiring the gunboat Zhenyuan with great interest.This was the first time in his life that he saw the sea, the first time he was on a gunboat, the first time he saw sailors, and the first time he heard strange names such as speed, tonnage, and nirvana.He is extremely novel and excited. Of course, he doesn't understand anything, and he can't find out whether it is good or bad.But he was the supreme commander of the navy of the Qing Dynasty. All the officers and soldiers of the Beiyang Navy, all the experts and craftsmen, from Li Hongzhang to the general gunners, were all listening to his speeches about naval gunboats from amateurs to idiots, and they all complimented him every word Correct, every sentence is wise, only those foreign craftsmen who know Chinese can't stop laughing, especially the eunuch next to King Chun who is holding a long pipe, hanging a big purse, half bowing his waist, and following the steps. wonder.They didn't understand why the Minister of the Navy brought such a monster with him to inspect the gunboat! After the inspection tour, the naming conference was held. Yizhen, Li Hongzhang, Shanqing and others sat at a long table covered with white cloth. All personnel including hand, gunner, and cook. Yizhen sat on the big armchair and read the naming precepts.This precept was written yesterday by Li Hongzhang's yamen copywriter. Make a model article that will be handed down for generations.It's a pity that Yizhen read it aloud without reading it beforehand, so the reading was not smooth and coherent, and the charm carefully created by the author was not read at all.The copywriter who was listening among the crowd fell down in anger and sighed deeply.Fortunately, he was the only one listening in the entire Zhenyuan account. Among the hundreds of people including Li Hongzhang and Shan Qing, none of them cared about Chun Wang's reading aloud.Whether it is cadenced or not, whether it is sonorous or not, in their eyes, it is all the same thing! After Yi Su’s recitation was over, according to the previous training, under the unified command of Ding Ruchang, all the personnel on the three ships shouted in unison: “I would like to obey the order of the prince: Weizheng foreign enemies, stabilize the sea, save danger and help people, and perpetuate greatness.” clear!" Three times in a row, neat and powerful, resounding through the sea and sky.Yi Su was very satisfied with this. After the naming meeting, Li Hongzhang, as the host, set up a table of sumptuous western food in the luxurious dining room of Zhenyuan.The table was filled with steaks, suckling pigs, roast lamb, smoked fish, cheese, bread and various side dishes, as well as whiskey, brandy, beer and other fine wines, and entertained Yizhen and other important officials from the capital. Then go ashore to eat.After the meal, the main content of this review - Beiyang Nanyang General Assembly began.