Chapter 58: Internal Conflict

  Tan Yanxian was deeply impressed by the grand scale of Li Hongzhang's government office, which had various departments composed of clerks and high-ranking advisors like other governors. However, his government office also included several unique departments such as military supplies, military industry, real industry, diplomacy, and even a foreign advisory group that others did not have.

  "Is this a miniature version of the national institution?!" Tan Yanqing thought to himself, no wonder Beiyang became a talent hub in modern Chinese history with Li Hongzhang's rich talents.

  "Young Zuo, has the arrangement at the General Bureau been made?" Li Hongzhang asked casually.

  "When Ji Menglin went to the Machine Bureau, he had Tan Zu'an stay at his home. He is now going through the General Office's stored documents. Bo Xing called him..." Zhang Peilun replied with a fan in hand.

  Bo Xing was the son of Li Hongzhang's fourth brother, Li Zhaoqing. Thirty-two years ago, in the first year of Tongzhi, Li Hongzhang was already 40 years old but had no children, so his fourth brother gave his son, Li Jingfang, to be adopted by his second brother. Later, although Li Hongzhang had a son named Li Guangbi, he still referred to Li Jingfang as "the eldest son". Starting from the third year of Guangxu, Li Guangbi and Li Jingfang studied together in the Zhili Governor's Office, with Li Hongzhang hiring an English teacher for them. Later, after Li Jingfang passed the imperial examination, he stayed in the North to help with official duties. Eight years ago, he went to Britain as a counselor, and the following year, he became the Minister to Japan as a candidate for the position of Dao. Last year, due to his mother's illness and death, he took leave and was replaced by Wang Fengzao as the Minister to Japan. Now, he is helping Li Hongzhang with diplomatic affairs in his office.

  Li Hongzhang slightly furrowed his brow and said, "Bo Xing is impulsive, can those two get along? How about we change to someone else, it's not like Bo Xing is the only one who understands foreign languages..."

  Although Zhang Peilun was not from Anhui, his father Zhang Yintang was once the Anhui Provincial Governor and a comrade-in-arms of Li Hongzhang when he organized the militia. The two had discussed military strategy together and shared a deep understanding. Li Hongzhang had originally thought that Zhang Peilun, as a younger member of their social circle and a renowned scholar, would be an ideal candidate to inherit his legacy in the Beiyang government, despite his defeat at Majiang. With the backing of the Beiyang government and the alliance through marriage, it seemed certain that Zhang would succeed him. However, Li Hongzhang had no idea that his adopted son, Li Jingfang, did not share his views. Since Zhang Peilun's arrival, Li Jingfang had treated him as a thorn in his side, making things difficult for him at every turn.

  This way, Zhang Peilun's days in Beiyang were difficult, but Li Hongzhang maintained him everywhere due to the consideration of cultivating successors. He knew that people like Li Jingfang had enough qualifications to inherit his career, but the leader of Beiyang must be a person who can tolerate the gap in his heart. Li Jingfang was not competent for this task. However, one was his son-in-law and the other was his adopted son. Even if Li Hongzhang understood the conflict between Zhang Peilun and Li Jingfang, he didn't know how to deal with it.

  Li Hongzhang heard that it was actually Li Jingfang who came to greet Tan Yanxin. Due to his lack of confidence in his own adoptive son's magnanimity, he couldn't help but feel a little worried - Tan Yanxin's thoughts and plans were something he had witnessed before, and it was hard to imagine that a young man under the age of twenty could be so adept at handling the thorny issues currently in his hands. Although this young man still hadn't been able to come up with convincing evidence for himself, Li Hongzhang couldn't deny that their conversation that morning had already moved his heart to love and appreciate talent.

  "Bo Xing and Zu An got along very well, the two of them had been busy in the study for half a day without coming out. According to the servant who delivered tea, they both spoke in foreign languages, occasionally chatting and laughing together, but it was unknown what they were discussing that made them so happy. Bo Xing even asked someone to move the large globe from his house to Tan Yan's office, the two of them walked around the globe without knowing what they were saying... Oh, it seemed like Zhong Peng also went to Tan Zu An's place..." Zhang Pei Lan said with a faint smile.

  "Oh? Are both Zhang Peng and Bo Xing there with him? This young man's demeanor is quite similar to that of Tan Wenqing back in the day!" Li Hongzhang smiled meaningfully.

  "Tan Zu'an's natural talent was extremely high, and he became famous at a young age without being arrogant. Born into an official family, but in his daily life, he did not have the airs of those spoiled rich kids... These are truly rare qualities, Tan Wengong's family education is strict yet has its own unique aspects..."

  Li Hongzhang shook his head and said, "Tan Wenqing's family education is good, but I haven't seen any achievements from his other two sons. If those two sons were half as capable as Tan Zu'an, I reckon Tan Wenqing would laugh in his sleep..."

  After finishing speaking, Li Hongzhang and Zhang Peilun both smiled, and Zhang Peilun said: "Ji Meng is now living in the machine bureau, but Chu Bao..."

  Chu Bao in Zhang Peilun's words is Li Hongzhang's nephew Zhang Shiyuan. His father, Zhang Shaotang, was not only Li Hongzhang's cousin but also his brother-in-law, making them even closer relatives. In those days, the Li brothers' family situation was not good, and they often received assistance from the Zhang family, including help with their marriages. Therefore, the Li brothers naturally felt grateful to the Zhang family. After Zhang Shiyuan failed in the imperial examination after passing the provincial exam, he stayed in Beiyang. His older brother, Zhang Xizhen, who was in charge of the Tianjin Machinery Bureau, died of illness within a few months, and Zhang Shiyuan took over his position.

  It can be said that Zhang Shiyuan was quite serious when he took over the Tianjin Machinery Bureau, and every time he received new-style weapons, he would study them carefully. However, as time went on, he eventually took another path - he embezzled military equipment from the Tianjin Machinery Bureau, amounting to tens of thousands of taels of silver. When Tang Baowen subtly suggested to Li Hongzhang that the products of the Tianjin Machinery Bureau had very serious quality problems, Li Hongzhang also discovered Zhang Shiyuan's small actions, and because the fuses in the naval gunpowder were actually filled with coal ash, the explosive charge was beans or even sand, Li Hongzhang could no longer tolerate Zhang Shiyuan treating his political foundation as a joke.

  For Zhang Shiyuan's face and also for his own sake, Li Hongzhang, although not openly dismissing Zhang Shiyuan from office, dispatched Tang Bowen as the general manager of Tianjin Machinery Bureau, putting him in charge. After Tang Bowen arrived at Tianjin Machinery Bureau, he found that the problems here were more serious than he had imagined, and immediately reported the situation to Li Hongzhang in detail. Li Hongzhang then ordered Tang Bowen to take full responsibility for the affairs of the machinery bureau, rectify the quality problem of military supplies, and also allocated additional funds to improve the production of military ammunition.

  "Let's just ignore Chu Bao, he's a hopeless case, doesn't he know that doing this will get him beheaded?! The navy is the pride of Beiyang**, but the cannonballs hitting the enemy ship can't even explode, if the navy sinks, where will I stand?! What needs to be done now is to quickly clean up Chu Bao's mess and wipe his butt clean, if this time the navy loses and gets screwed, he'd better prepare to wash his neck clean for the executioner's blade!"

  Zhang Peilun sighed and said, "Prime Minister, it's not just a matter of hanging Chu Bao up to dry. He has been in charge of the Machine Bureau for many years, and everyone looks up to him as their leader. Ji Meng is capable, but he can't fully utilize his abilities. Why not give Chu Bao another position and transfer him out of the Machine Bureau..."

  "Young Si, you arrange this matter. Chu Bao's affairs can be big or small. In the imperial court, there are many people watching me, and if I'm implicated, at most I'll just get scolded a few times, which won't do much harm. But if they come after Chu Bao with knives drawn, the consequences will be hard to predict..."

  Zhang Peilun nodded and said, "I'll take care of this matter. Suddenly removing Chu Bao from his position as general manager at this juncture would easily arouse suspicion. Fortunately, this matter has only just been discovered internally and outsiders have not been informed, so careful handling should be fine."

  "What reactions have we had from the various legations?" Li Hongzhang asked.

  Zhang Peilun furrowed his brow and said, "The foreign envoys seem to be taking a rather perfunctory attitude towards this matter. Although they promised to mediate between China and Japan, it doesn't look like they're really paying attention to the situation... Zhong Tang, maybe I shouldn't say this, but in the past we thought that if China and Japan went to war, whoever made the first move would definitely be subject to intervention by the Western powers. Now it seems that Tan Zong'an's words have come true after all. To be honest, I also agree with his reasoning. Speaking bluntly, although both are meat, our Qing dynasty is much fatter than Japan. Even if the Western powers were to occupy Japan, they wouldn't be able to get much oil out of it, but on the body of our great Qing dynasty, they could gain a lot... If nothing unexpected happens, the powers will not intervene in Japan's affairs, and instead choose to sit back and watch the outcome. What's more, I'm even thinking that when our Qing dynasty is at an advantage, the foreign powers will come to intervene - but the object of their intervention would be us!"

  Li Hongzhang fell silent for a moment before saying: "You Xiao Lin, is this your opinion?"

  "I wasn't so sure at first, but now... hey, Zhong Tang is still waiting for Tan Zu'an to come up with a convincing argument, but I'm not feeling too good about it..." Zhang Pei said with a bitter smile.

  "In fact, I'm also in the same situation as you now. This battle is really unpredictable for me, we Beiyang are stuck in the middle, whether it's the Qing court or the Empress Dowager, neither of them can speak without hurting our interests, and in the end, it's still us Beiyang who will be exhausted. As for the Japanese, they don't even want to give us any hope, they're determined to have a showdown with us in Korea. Our only hope to preserve the strength of Beiyang is these foreign powers. I really wish that young man wouldn't be so glib!" Li Hongzhang said with a bitter expression.

  Zhang Peilun closed the folding fan in his hand and grasped it tightly, saying: "Now that the national situation is difficult, when things come to a head, they can't be avoided. The Duke should make plans early on. Fighting or making peace, this measure still needs to be grasped, we really can't let others decide our own way of survival!"

  Tan Yanqing and Li Jingfang did not get along as easily as Zhang Peilun said, but Li was a gentle gentleman who spoke very politely. Tan Yanqing also had to admit that Li Jingfang was a man of substance, having served as Minister to the UK and Ambassador to Japan, making him one of the few talents in diplomacy at the time.

  Tan Yanqing could sense Li Jingfang's hostility towards Zhang Peilun, but he didn't take it to heart. As a famous figure like Zhang Peilun, the old man naturally wouldn't be unaware of him, especially after becoming Li Hongzhang's son-in-law, Zhang Peilun held an extremely high position in Li Hongzhang's government. The old man didn't think that just because Li Hongzhang had sons, Li Jingfang or Li Desheng would inherit Li Hongzhang's legacy. With Zeng Guofan as a precedent, even if Li Hongzhang had problems with personnel management, it was clear that Li Jingfang and the others' foundation and training process were not suitable for becoming the successor of the Beiyang government. On the other hand, Zhang Peilun had this possibility.

  The Beiyang clique held a pivotal position in the late Qing political life. Li Hongzhang was already over 70 years old and could not hold onto the Beiyang for his entire life, so who would be the successor of the Beiyang? All those top predators on the Chinese official scene were pondering this question in their hearts. Although the old man did not belong to the "predator" category, he was also using his piercing eyes to scan the Beiyang system, and Zhang Peilun was ranked second among the Li Hongzhang faction listed by Tan Yankai. As for the first place, it was the Yang brothers who were not very famous at that time.

  Tang Shaoyi can understand the "Northern Government Ranking" in the old man's heart. The reason why Yuan Dashou, the real Northern giant of later generations, was not included is that at this time, Yuan Dashou was hiding in Korea as his own emperor, and in China, Yuan Dashou was just a marginal figure, naturally unable to enter the old man's line of sight. At this time, apart from him, how many people in the world can realize that Yuan Dashou, who is far away in Korea, can enter the highest level of the late Qing political arena in four or five years? The conflict between Li Jingfang and Zhang Peilun was not only well-known among themselves within the Northern Government, but also made a big joke outside.

  Zhang Peilun, along with Zhang Zhidong, Chen Baoquan and Huang Tifang, were known as the "Four Outstanding Officials of the Qing Dynasty". It is said that after Zhang Peilun was invited to Li Hongzhang's mansion, he entered the inner chamber to discuss matters and saw Li's daughter's poetry, which he praised endlessly, thinking it was written by someone with a similar mind. Li asked him to pay attention to his younger daughter's marriage, and Zhang asked, "What kind of talent and status should her husband have?" Li said, "Someone like you would be fine." Zhang immediately knelt down and begged, "Your student has recently lost his wife, and the young lady is also a literary soulmate, so I dare to ask to become the governor's son-in-law." Li had no choice but to agree. When Zhang heard the governor's promise, he quickly got up from the ground and ran outside, telling everyone he met, "The governor has promised me to be his son-in-law!" The folk couplet ridicules them: "Raising an old daughter, marrying a young woodcutter, Li Hongzhang does not distinguish between old and young; resigning from the western seat, taking the eastern bed, Zhang Peilun is neither east nor west."

  In Tan Yankai's view, Li Jingfang was so hostile to Zhang Peilun for two reasons. Firstly, Zhang Peilun was one of the people Li Hongzhang valued most and an important figure he couldn't avoid in his quest for power in the Beiyang government. Secondly, when Zhang Peilun married Li Hongzhang's youngest daughter, his behavior was somewhat improper. Regardless of whether the rumors were true or not, Zhang Peilun's reputation had been damaged. However, Li Jingfang's overreaction and relentless pursuit made Tan Yankai more inclined to believe the rumor, which also led him to lower Zhang Peilun's score when evaluating him.

  But to be honest, in Tan Yanqing's view, someone like Li Hongzhang choosing his own successor would definitely prioritize military talent unless he had no other choice. Otherwise, a civilian successor would need to reach an extremely high level, at least having some understanding of military affairs. Unfortunately, based on his observations of Zhang Peilun, this guy who even carries a fan in winter is far less capable, perhaps because Yuan Datou was too outstanding in history, affecting his judgment and raising his expectations.

  If idiots could fly, the late Qing would be the world's largest airport. Tan Yankai was very clear that in the turbulent skies of this airport, countless idiots from first to ninth grade flew back and forth like a swarm of headless flies, while he coldly observed from the sidelines. Moreover, he also knew that there were some calm guys like him observing the country, including the big-headed guy far away in the northeast, who was about the same as himself, but for now, that big head hadn't yet reached his level of capital. However, Tan Yankai understood that in this era, reading books was not the only way to get ahead, and Korea's "Big Head Brother" was a living example.

  Li Jingfang is not a fool, his experience and insight make him different from some domestic scholars who either put foreigners on a pedestal or bring them down to the ground. Tang Yueliang's establishment of "Qiangxue Wenzhai" was also not for nothing, as he had fully understood the situation of this era through newspapers over such a long period of time. Although he did not travel to the Western powers' strongholds like Li Jingfang, nor did he stay in China's sworn enemy's place, but later generations' refined ideas enabled him to more effectively analyze the data at hand and objectively view the world.

  Li Jingfang actively sought out Tan Yankai because "Qiangxue Bao" was also one of his must-read publications. Like many of the best and most idealistic readers of this era, "Qiangxue Bao" was a window to the world for them. Tan Yankai took advantage of this opportunity to promote his own ideas through small articles like "Editor's Notes", which had an impact on Li Jingfang. Coincidentally, Li Jingfang was originally focused on diplomacy and was very interested in Tan Yankai's "Editor's Notes", often secretly admiring and sighing over these short articles.

  Li Jingfang was willing to help, and Tan Yankai was sought after. What's more important is that he wasn't a Beiyang person, but rather a "guest minister" temporarily helping out, which made him extremely fortunate in avoiding Li Jingfang's taboo. Not only did Li Jingfang speak Japanese, but he had also lived in Japan, and through his mouth, Tan Yankai gained a general impression of some people from this era in Japan - Ito Hirobumi, Mutsu Munemitsu, Oshima Koji... Li Jingfang was surprisingly familiar with these people.