Chapter 108: Troops Depart for Beijing

  It has come to this, even Song Qing and the three of them had nothing else to say. Even if they dared to speak a calm word, it's estimated that those angry soldiers wouldn't listen, and might even rush up and beat them. Having led so many years of troops, they were very clear that in such situations, the soldiers' aggression was extremely strong. Just like this, Yang Feng successfully incited a military mutiny, then brought the landing ship to take away 10,000 people, preparing to kill their way towards Tianjin.

  Waldsee expressed great incomprehension at their behavior, neither understanding why the Chinese emperor had encouraged them to continue fighting Japan just a few days ago, only to suddenly change his tune and demand they surrender to the Japanese army, nor understanding why these guys didn't appeal through normal channels but instead ran back to armed struggle, and most importantly what would happen to the German troops now that they were gone?

  "Your Excellency, this matter is quite simple. The Emperor's edict is genuine, but the order is also real, only it was not issued by him, but by Empress Dowager Cixi. The mother and son want to use this matter to show their respective control over the country. Our army is just a pawn in their game of power struggle, but pawns also have dignity. They are playing too much, we naturally will not agree."

  As for the defense after we leave, you can be completely at ease. The Japanese army has no ability to attack anymore, and the troops I left behind are all equipped with a large number of poison gas shells. It's not a problem to annihilate the 50,000 Japanese soldiers on the other side. If they really launch an attack, you can use the poison gas if necessary.

  "This matter won't drag on for too long, I reckon at most half a month and we can return. Currently Beijing is almost defenseless with not even one soldier or guard, as soon as we open fire from the Dagu Fort, we can easily march straight to the gates of Beijing City. At that time, the imperial court will give us a satisfactory answer." Yang Feng said.

  He dares to play like this, naturally he has enough confidence. First of all, Li Ergouzi will not intervene in this broken matter. He is still waiting for the time to divide the Japanese compensation. Of course, he does not want to stop fighting before the result comes out. This old thing is indeed deeply aware of his own situation. Knowing that the outcome of a confrontation between two multi-billion pound wealth empires is that even a real empire cannot avoid death, let alone him, a Zhili governor.

  He couldn't stop them anyway, unless he deployed the Beiyang Fleet. But considering Ding Ruchang's slow speed against the 36-knot destroyers and steam-powered torpedo boats, it wasn't hard to predict the outcome. Moreover, their new-style shells had already been mostly used up at this point, directly reducing their combat effectiveness by an entire era. Li Hongzhang absolutely wouldn't dare risk his precious treasures in such a futile effort, or else he would become Empress Dowager Cixi's plaything.

  All that's left is the Dagukou Fort, Luo Rongguang won't give way and directly uses poisonous gas to smoke them out. Of course, they can't use mustard gas, tear gas will be enough. Besides, he's also a member of the Huai Army. Li Ergouzi won't let him truly resist. As for the garrison in Beijing, Yang Feng simply ignored it, but still needs to notify this old thing once. If he doesn't want to get involved in this matter, then think of a way to hide himself.

  The massive looting fleet sailed away from Tokyo Bay. As soon as they left, Ito Hirobumi finally let out a sigh of relief, thinking that Yang Fengyi had chosen to withdraw due to domestic pressure. He didn't expect the other side to surrender, and it was obvious that would be foolish. As long as Yang Fengyi withdrew, the Germans would be easy to deal with, and without the Germans, the Russians would be left alone and helpless. Adding a few more conditions, such as giving them Sakhalin Island, would basically settle the matter.

  Although it was inevitable to cede territory and pay indemnities, at least the disaster of Japan's downfall was avoided. What remains can only be slowly healed. The achievements of the Meiji Restoration over the past 20 years can be said to have been destroyed in an instant. However, as long as the country still exists, there will always be a day for recovery. It's just a matter of pretending to be a good boy for a few more years. The Yamato people may not be good at anything else, but they are world-class at pretending to be good boys.

  This guy is eager to come and negotiate again, but Walderze temporarily refused to negotiate, which Ito Hirobumi still understands. After Yang Feng left, the two countries of Germany and Russia have not yet reached a consensus, it's just a matter of waiting a few more days, but the defense in the north must be strengthened, he ordered the formal formation of the 7th Division from the troops stationed in Hokkaido, the original 7th Division temporarily formed in Tokyo was almost wiped out, and the remaining ones were incorporated into three main divisions as supplementary soldiers.

  The 8th Division, also temporarily formed, was disbanded and its troops were distributed to the 1st, 5th, and 6th Divisions. The number was then used to form the Hirosaki Division in Aomori, allowing Japan to respond to a possible Russian landing with two divisions, the 7th and 8th. Although both divisions were hastily formed and poorly equipped, with only a few artillery pieces, they could still hold off the Russians for a while. At this point, it was do or die, and if necessary, they would pile up bodies to keep the Russian wolves from setting foot on Japanese soil.

  After learning that Yang Feng had withdrawn his troops, Gang Yi hastily informed Yamagata Aritomo of the good news. Although it was a withdrawal and not a surrender, General Yamagata was still very satisfied. Since this issue had been resolved, the negotiations between the two sides naturally continued. However, what left Gang Yi stunned was that the Japanese raised their price.

  "We need three billion taels of silver, not a single cent less." said Shan Xian with an air of importance.

  "But you previously promised 180 million taels!" Jian Yi said incredulously.

  "I changed my mind." said Yamagata, shrugging his shoulders: "What I previously calculated was only the military expenses, but did not include the losses to our country's economy caused by your troops' destruction, as well as compensation for the dead and wounded civilians, and reparations made by their looting."

  "General Shan Xian, this number is too high, we can't agree to it." said Jian Yi weakly.

  "I'll give you a week to consider, and if after a week you still haven't agreed to our terms, I'll continue to blow up the tombs of your emperors." Yamagata Aritomo said with a smile, finding it quite amusing to play with these Qing officials.

  In fact, 300 million taels are still not enough. The 200 million pounds in compensation to Germany would have to be halved, and the remaining amount may not even be enough to make up for domestic losses. Although Yang Feng's looting was not much, the damage caused by his destruction was ten times that of his looting. Especially in Osaka and Tokyo, which were almost completely destroyed. The heavy industry that had been established with great difficulty over the years was reduced to ashes by him in one fire.

  In that case, the British national debt would not be paid, and the money must be repaid. No one dares to owe the British people's money, even if it is Meiji Emperor who goes to ask Queen Victoria for compensation in kind. Fortunately, it will take a few years to mature, so we can delay for a while and see if the Qing emperor agrees to pay 300 million quickly, then we might as well add another 100 million.

  Cixi was taken aback by the new ransom demand from Shan County, but she had also mentally prepared herself for this. The kidnappers were holding someone hostage, so it was natural that they would make a hefty demand. Although 300 million was indeed difficult to accept, if there was no other way out, she would have to agree to their terms. Just thinking about this made her furious with Yang Feng.

  "Where is that little monkey now?" she asked Li Lianying with a sinister tone.

  "Reporting to the Old Buddha, according to the timing, they should have retreated to Taiwan by now." Li Lianying said hastily.

  "Send a decree to Bian Baoquan, letting him lead troops to Taiwan. Once Yang Feng arrives, capture and send him back to the capital in chains. Also, remove Xue Fucheng from his post. They really thought Taiwan was their own domain, even daring to drive away the imperial envoy sent by the court." Cixi said viciously.

  After removing Yang Feng's position, he immediately appointed a new commander, and as a result, after arriving in Taiwan, he was tied up and thrown onto a fishing boat and sent back to Fuzhou. Although it is said that it was done by Yang Feng's soldiers, Xue Fucheng, as the provincial governor, did not stop them either.

  "By the way, what is Li Hongzhang doing now?" After dealing with Yang Feng, she suddenly thought of Li Hongzhang. This old thing's behavior during this period also made her very angry. Although it was not easy to remove him from his position, finding an excuse to teach him a lesson was necessary. Otherwise, he would really be too arrogant.

  Li Zhongtang is said to be ill, and he took a boat to Shanghai yesterday. It's said that there's a new foreign hospital there with very skilled doctors, but they don't make house calls. Li Lianying hurriedly said.

  "Is he ill? He's frightened, I suppose?" Cixi said with a cold smile.

  Li Ergui was really frightened, he never thought that Yang Feng would dare to stage a military coup and even directly land in Tianjin and attack Beijing. However, since this guy has the backing of Guangxu, it's hard to predict how things will end. Anyway, except for the Dagukou Fort in Tianjin, there is nothing that can stop him. If he really uses poisonous gas, then the Dagukou Fort would be completely useless.

  As for the garrison troops around Beijing, such as Fentai's big camp and Xishan's sharp camp, they are just a joke in front of Yang Feng. These people are the elite who have been killed by the Japanese army on the battlefield, and those eight banner soldiers can't stop them from charging. As for the city wall of Beijing, no matter how strong it is, it will be blown up directly like Yang Feng did in Nagoya with a ton of explosives.

  Li Ergouzi realized that Yang Feng's success rate was very high, and if Guangxu had a bit more guts, it would be uncertain whether Cixi could escape this disaster. Unless he personally deployed the Beiyang Navy to intercept at sea, but in that case, not only would several tens of millions of taels of income disappear, but also risk losing half of his warships. The eight high-speed destroyers and one armored fast ship, plus the terrifying steam-powered torpedo boat, made it unlikely for the Beiyang Navy to win.

  In that case the best way is to hide and watch the excitement, so after receiving Yang Feng's telegram, he took a boat to Shanghai on the same night under the pretext of treating his illness.