Chapter 93 Order of Two Warships

[93] Order of two warships

In Li Hongzhang's eyes, Yao Fan is undoubtedly an interesting young man - rich, proficient in foreign affairs, but unintentionally.

According to his experience, such people are generally spoiled by the wealth and glory of the family. To put it bluntly, they have never suffered, suffered, or been bullied. They don't want to do anything they are not interested in at all. They just want to be a rich and idle person, read some of their favorite books all day, study some of their favorite knowledge, and even become The sky is chasing some popular actors to run around.

Li Hongzhang has not only seen such a person, but also has achieved such a typical achievement - Hua Xifang. This person is now working in the translation hall of the Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau. He is a eunuch and has a rich family, but he has not liked the four books and five classics since he was a child. He is fascinated by general study of mathematics, traveling everywhere, and looking for mathematicians to teach mathematics problems. Later, he went to Anqing Inner Ordnance Station and helped Xu Shou make China's first steam-mobiling wooden sailboat. Now in the translation hall of Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau, he is obsessed with translating Western science books.

However, these people have a huge family business that they need to inherit and operate. If it's not the legitimate son, it's easy to do, but if you are the legitimate son and are destined to inherit the family business and shoulder heavy burdens, you can only put down what you like, do business, manage the farm, and dedicate yourself to family affairs.

Li Hongzhang is very reassuring about such people, but he is not too relieved.

said that it is because these people live a good life and have no motivation or reason to rebel. On the other, they have no ambition. Think about it, they don't even look down to be an official. What ambition do you think he can have?

It is said that they are worried because these people often don't care much about things other than their interests. If you leave things to them, they will always be afraid that they will be fooled by you and don't do anything.

Li Hongzhang knows that this is the most typical strange disease of a rich family - lack of self-motivatedness!

What kind of person is Li Hongzhang?

"Zhongxing Famous Minister!"

"Governor Zhili!"

"Premier's Minister of Beiyang Trade!"

"First-class uncle Su Yi with two eyes!"

"The brave Huai army equipped with 38,000 foreign guns, bird guns, guns, mountain cannons, steel knives, spears, plus 100,000 Huai green battalions and regimental forces!"

The official he raised is as stable as Mount Tai, and the emperor has to give face. It's difficult for others to be flattered, and it's difficult for him to be an official. Where can I find such a favor? As for being able to enter his shogunate, it is even more beautiful. What is the power of Li Hongzhang's staff? Local state government officials dare not look at it! As for how majestic it is to say that after being a staff for a few years, he came out to open a government office and at least to command several counties below?

But Yao Fan, this blind boy, is actually obsessed with money! It's completely out of the world!

Li Hongzhang sighed secretly in his heart and thought, "Yao Fan is really young and lacks experience. He doesn't know that he is a first-class happy thing in the world. He is an official!"

If this son lets me ** for a few years, I can't become a minister, but since he doesn't want to, it can't be blamed for not helping him. If you only ask him to do business for a few years, you will know what is a small loss.

"Yao Fan, I have gone to the Machine Bureau to have a look. The machine you make is really excellent, among which the electric lamp is particularly exquisite. Let me ask you, may buy a set of such equipment for Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau and Tianjin Machinery Bureau?"

"As long as adults are willing to spend money, no matter how difficult it is, I, Yao Fan, can be responsible for it for you."

"Good!

The day before yesterday, I saw that many machine tools in the machine bureau are new goods that have never been seen before. I asked Xu Jianyin and found that it was made internally by your family, especially those pedal and lever machines are the best. They do not burn coal and do not use electricity, which is the most suitable for my Qing Dynasty! Later, I'll ask Xu Jianyin to give you a list. Just buy it for me. Don't worry, I won't lose a taels of money from your Yao family.

"Adult, this steam turbine has just come out. It is the first advanced machine in the world and is the most sought after. I bought it for Lord Ding before, but I got it in advance, and now I want to buy it again. I think if the adult pays the full amount, I can add a plug in the factory and grab the goods before other people's orders. Yao Fan's words were very unbearable.

"Yao Fan, can you pay customs duties on your pen, folding umbrella, thermos, foreign fire and watch?" Li Hongzhang tilted his mouth, not knowing whether he was angry with Yao Fan or because of disdain.

"Well, it's okay for adults to give me 80% of the payment... or 70%?" Yao Fan looked at Li Hongzhang's face bargaining.

"Ding Baozhen asked you to pay half of the purchase as a deposit, but I need 70% to buy it?" Li Hongzhang gently patted the table.

"...Half is half... You don't know, my lord, I have a backlog of goods now, and my hands are very tight. I'm really tightening my belt and squeezing silver in." Yao Fan began to cry poor.

Li Hongzhang looked at Yao Fan's greedy and lazy appearance and felt angry.

"Yao Fan, go and have a look by yourself. What does Qingdao look like now? Obviously, it is not a trade port, but foreigners come in and out every day! Aren't you afraid that the court will investigate you?"

"Adult Mingjian! The younger generation is engaged in transit trading in Qingdao, where the goods shipped from overseas are wholesaled. Those foreign banks come to buy goods and bring some goods as warehouses. They should have paid tax for customs entry. Of course, I also pay taxes when I import. Yao Fan defended.

"The customs is not under my control, and you don't have to say more. I'll give you the list later. I'll pay half of the deposit first, and that's it! Otherwise, if Hurd asks, I won't help you cover it up!" Li Hongzhang said impatiently.

"Your Excellency, since you want to buy it, why not buy some warships?" Seeing that Li Hongzhang was very pleasing to him and easy to talk to, Yao Fan put his nose on his face and suggested.

I heard that you asked Hurd, the head of customs, to go to England to buy four gunboats. Presumably, the British Armstrong Shipyard should be recommending you the mosquito boat designed by George Lendall at this moment, right? I heard that the first two ships recommended, each with a displacement of only 319 tons, 310 horsepower, a speed of 9.5 knots and 60 passengers. It was equipped with an 11-inch 280mm caliber gun that could only fire forward. The gun sank 26.5 tons. Two Hage Kaisi five-blinder machine guns were installed in the rear of both sides of the main gun, and a 12-pound cannon was also installed in the stern. The ship has 0.5 inches of armor, and one price is 150,000 taels of silver.

Your Excellency, am I right?"

Li Hongzhang was creepy when he heard this and asked, "Yao Fan, how do you know such details?"

Yao Fan smiled gently and said, "In the British navy, my family has a lot of ears and eyes. I also know that the displacement of the recommended two ships has increased to 420 tons, but the horsepower has shrunk to 270. It is equipped with a 12.5-inch 38-ton main gun, and still equipped with two Haqis machine guns and a 12-pound tail gun. However, Armstrong Shipyard actually called the speed of this thing to maintain 9.5 knots. I doubt that they sacrificed coal load in exchange for this data.

"Yao Fan, since you know such details, do you think this price is worth it?" Li Hongzhang was stimulated by Yao Fan's 'inside news' and asked repeatedly.

"If I buy it, the price can be reduced by half. As for what price the adult offered to the court, I will insist on the price. Yao Fan openly promised kickbacks without a bottom line.

"75,000 taels a boat?!" In addition to being surprised, Li Hongzhang scolded Hurd for being black-hearted and must have cheated his money.

"80,000 taels."

"Where do you order?" Li Hongzhang continued to ask questions.

"Don't worry, my family has its own way. There are 17 or 18 shipyards in Europe that can build warships, and 5,000 to 6,000 tons of warships have been built, not to mention this kind of small boat? It's a piece of cake." Yao Fan boasted.

Li Hongzhang thought to himself, "At present, I have only signed the first two contracts with Armstrong Shipyard, and the last two have not been signed for payment, so it's better..."

"Yao Fan, would you like to accept the contracts of two such ships?" Li Hongzhang asked.

Yao Fan got up and bowed his hand solemnly: "Your Excellency entrusts the important affairs of the military and the country. How dare I refuse!"

"Yao Fan, don't mislead the country with empty words." Li Hongzhang knocked.

"Yao Fan dare not."

"Good! I will give you the contract for these two ships and pay for the goods in full!"

"Pay all the other purchases together?"

"...No, it's just a warship." Li Hongzhang's face turned black again.

Yao Fan laughed and said, "I'm just asking casually. Don't be angry."

............

Li Hongzhang left, leaving 220,000 taels of silver, including the payment for the two mosquito boats he ordered and the deposit for the turbine generator he wanted to buy for the Tianjin Machinery Bureau.

Yao Fan held silver and sighed at Lao Li's boldness. He felt that if he left this era from now on, he was afraid that this fraud case would be forever in the history of Beiyang sailors. In 1875, a swindler named Yao Fan excused to buy a warship and defrauded all kinds of money from Li Hongzhang, the mediocre minister of Beiyang of the Qing government. 20,000 taels......

"No! No way! I still have integrity!" Yao Fan shook his head and warned himself not to be greedy.

"In addition, Li Hongzhang dares to give me the money, that is, he is not afraid of me running. Even if I make an excuse to go abroad to purchase warships, I guess he will not stop me, just to talk about this trust! Or the despair and helplessness of the Chinese navy! I can't betray and abandon him!

Isn't it a mosquito boat? OK! I'll give it to you!"

A few days later, Yao Fan took a silver ticket, a row of 20 Xiang Yong, and 20 drivers, filled the tractor truck with fuel, and drove back to Qingdao.

Two days later, Yao Fan arrived in Qingdao. It was already the time when the sun went down. The red afterglow sprinkled all over the earth, making Yao Fan feel beautiful.

"Here comes Merrith again? He sells it so fast." As soon as Yao Fan came back, he heard that James Meri had been waiting for him in the inn for three days.

As soon as Yao Fan saw Merriz, the skinny German would come up and hug him.

"Dear Frank, long time no see." Merrix looks very good.

"James, did you sell the dye so soon?" Yao Fan was quite surprised.

"Of course, I promised you, Frank, I said I could sell it all in a month, and I would definitely do it." Merrix said proudly.

"Are you here to continue to stock?" Yao Fan asked

"Yes, the goods are in stock. In addition, I have entrusted someone to help you find Professor Marx. My friend is the first officer of the German merchant ship Humboldt. Humboldt will stop in London when she returns home this time. I gave him 100 pounds to hand it over to Professor Marx, and gave him a Jinhua ham and a bag of tea. Meris showed his merit.

Yao Fan didn't expect that Merrius even knew Jinhua ham.

"Okay, James, please do it as soon as possible. I heard that Mr. Marx's daily life is a little embarrassed and short of money, which is unfair to a great thinker."

"Frank, you are a kind man. May God bless you and Mr. Marx."