As the outer port of Rome, the Port of Antium has always been extremely lively. On March 28, one side of the Port of Antium was cleared. Anyone familiar with this scene will immediately know that this is
A big shot is coming to visit.
As expected, it didn't take long for them to start decorating, and the Qing Dragon Flag and words of friendship between China and Italy were also hung. Needless to say, the big shot from the Qing Kingdom in the Far East just didn't know who this big shot was?
More than 20 nautical miles away from the Port of Antium, the French cruise ship Inestre Simon is sailing towards the Port of Antium. Everyone on the cruise ship knows that there is a big shot on board.
Yes, Li Zhongtang, the long-lasting leader of Westernization in the Qing Dynasty and the former governor of Beiyang, is on this ship. This Li Zhongtang's visit sounds simple in theory, but is actually very complicated.
To put it simply, the main purpose of Li Zhongtang's visit was to attend the coronation ceremony of Tsar Nicholas II and to visit other great powers.
It’s complicated, that is, Li Zhongtang was forced to drag his 74-year-old age across the ocean for a state visit. For this reason, Zhongtang’s family was afraid of something unexpected. Except for Li Zhongtang’s two sons, Li Jingfang and Li Jingshu, they were with him.
In addition, a pair of nanmu coffins were specially prepared to accompany them.
Speaking of which, Li Zhongtang ended up in such a situation because of the combined efforts of the emperor and the empress. Yes, the increasingly fierce dispute between the emperor and the empress in the Qing Dynasty was able to push Li Zhongtang abroad with such a tacit understanding, which is enough to show the opposition between the two parties.
Its fear.
However, in the final analysis, this matter was due to Li Zhongtang's lack of strength. The Huai army that he relied on for support was completely defeated in the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1894. If he had not invited foreign soldiers, he would have fallen to the ground long ago.
However, although Li Zhongtang used Italian reinforcements to avoid being killed on the spot, some things were unavoidable. The Huai Army, which had lost its prestige, was left on the Yalu River line outside the pass by the court. It was euphemistically called the Huai Army and was the most familiar with the Japanese.
Therefore, the Huai army needs to be more patient.
And Li Zhongtang, who lost the Huai army, had only one reason to wait.
This happened for no reason. Russia took the opportunity of the coronation of Tsar Nicholas II on May 26, 1896 to send an invitation to the Qing government, hoping that it could send important officials to participate, and more importantly, to discuss how to restrict Japan.
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With North Korea as a springboard, Japan began to arm itself to protect North Koreans who crossed the border for reclamation. Its sinister intentions can be seen at a glance.
That's right, even when it was still a vassal state, Korean people had a tendency to cross the border to cultivate land. On one side was the land outside the customs, which was vast and sparsely populated, and on the other side was the Korean Peninsula, which was sparsely populated and sparsely populated. The Korean people close to the border had long been engaged in cross-border land reclamation.
The wind. Every year after spring, we cross the river boundary to choose a remote location to cultivate wasteland, and wait until autumn to harvest.
Of course, if you encounter officers and soldiers, you will consider yourself unlucky, but at that time, the Qing army had few troops outside the Pass and often only patrolled the border once a year. Under such circumstances, it was really bad luck to encounter them.
Now the Japanese's intention is obviously to encroach on the Longxing land outside the customs. How can they not make the Qing Dynasty fearful and take more precautions. So this time Li Zhongtang went abroad with a different purpose. And this
During his first visit to Russia, he did not go to the Suez Canal and to the Black Sea, but instead came to Italy. This was also Li Zhongtang’s own deep intention.
"Bo Xing, where is this ship?"
In the first-class box, Li Zhongtang, who was not in good spirits, asked his eldest son Li Jingfang.
"Father, this ship is approaching the outer port of the Italian capital. It will arrive in another hour."
After hearing what his son said, Li Zhongtang struggled to stand up.
"Hurry up and get my official uniform and hat. You must pay more attention to the purpose of this visit."
Seeing that the old father was about to get up, the two sons came to comfort him. "Father, please wait a moment. I will get it for you right now."
The second son, Li Jingshu, hurried to get his father's official uniform.
The two of them helped Li Zhongtang put on his official uniform tremblingly, while Li Jingshu helped his father hold his official hat and waited aside.
"Do you know why I attach so much importance to Italy?"
Seeing that the ship would arrive in a while, Li Zhongtang decided to do some on-the-spot testing.
Facing Li Zhongtang's inquiry, the eldest son Li Jingfang replied, "Father, can you continue to make friends with Haoyiguo for his use?"
"Yes and no."
"Father, if you want to make good friends with the country, do you want to show it to the Russians?"
"No."
Neither of them answered correctly, leaving the two of them waiting respectfully for their father's answer.
Although he already knew that his two sons could not inherit his legacy, who didn't want his children and grandchildren to be better than others, but he just didn't give up yet.
After concealing his inner disappointment, Li Zhongtang explained to the two of them. "The purpose of this visit is for the reasons you mentioned, but more importantly, I want to save some time for Gongting (Nie Shicheng) and Dasan (Wei Rugui).
The way back.”
Li Zhongtang's answer made the two of them even more confused. Of course they knew what their father was talking about. Currently, most of the Huai army was deployed on the front line of the Yalu River to watch the Japanese. This time the Italians were visiting the Huai army generals such as Wei Rugui and Nie Shicheng.
What does it matter?
Seeing that his two sons still didn't understand, Li Zhongtang had to break it down and tell them. "This time I went on a trip and resigned from the post of Governor of Zhili and Minister of Commerce of Beiyang. It is impossible for me to go back."
The Queen Mother and the Emperor gave me a warning before I left, that your uncle would step down as Governor of Guangdong and Guangxi and return home after I return. Dasan, after all, Gongting has been with me for many years, and he is afraid that his troops will have a difficult time after I leave.
, so I am visiting Italy this time with the intention of borrowing the power of the people of Italy, and I want to show them something, so it is better to wait until I return to the country."
Well, Li Zhongtang has said it in detail enough. Because he is afraid that when he is not around, the imperial court will take the Huai army to his plate.
Don't think that this is Li Zhongtang's unfounded worries. His family knows his own affairs. The Huai Army was established based on the past histories of his disciples in the past, but now it is also linked by interests.
And facing the high-ranking officials in the imperial court and their generous salaries, how many people can't be won over?
Li Zhongtang was unwilling to surrender the Huai army to others, so he hoped to borrow the help of the Chinese people to give him some buffer time.
Li Zhongtang's words made the two Mr. Li, who dyed their hair, appreciate it carefully.
At this moment, there was a knock on the door, and a voice came from outside the door. "Master Zhongtang, the outer port of Rome has arrived."
When Li Zhongtang and his party walked out, they discovered that the port was crowded with people, all waving the flags of China and Italy. If you look closely, you will find that there are very few yellow people in the crowd greeted at the port, and most of them are Italians. Judging from their cheerful expressions,
We can see from their expressions that they sincerely welcome the visiting Li Zhongtang.
What's going on, Italians welcome Li Zhongtang so much.
Speaking of which, Italians are definitely the most fond of the Qing Dynasty in Europe. Because Italy made a lot of profits from the Qing Dynasty and had many profit-making people, it also spared no effort to promote the goodness of the Qing Dynasty. Of course, the Italian government is also one of them.
Therefore, there are basically no reports in Italy that criticize the Qing Dynasty. They are all praises. In this case, there should not be too many people who have a favorable impression of the Qing Dynasty.
According to statistics, the number of people who came to Antium Port to greet Li Zhongtang today reached 30,000. This is the largest number of foreign guests welcomed by the port in the past ten years, which is enough to explain a lot of problems.
Therefore, if the people of the two countries want to like each other, the most important thing is to have interests as the bond.
After the Inasto Simon came to a stop, Li Zhongtang was greeted with cheers as soon as he appeared. With a smile on his face, Li Zhongtang waved and walked off the ship.
This time the Italian government welcomed Li Zhongtang with the highest standards, and Foreign Minister Bacona walked over to greet him.
"Hello, Prime Minister Li, welcome to Rome."
Amidst the sound of cameras taking pictures, Bacona held Li Zhongtang's hand with a smile.
