Wen Han and his group stayed for three days and left Nanjing. At the Xiaguan Port Wharf, Xiao Yungui and Hong Yuner took the Western Palace generals to bid farewell to these "foreign brothers". Looking at the mist of the morning light, the Hamiles staggered and activated its huge body, heading towards the golden light in the east, gradually moving away and finally disappeared at the end of the river port.

Hong Yuner stood with her hands behind her back, looked at the Hamiles that were leaving, and suddenly spoke in a low voice, "You spent three times the price to get these guns and guns and gunshot powder, do you think it's worth it?"

Xiao Yungui snorted on the side, "This is just a stepping stone. I want to make that illusory promise look more real. I hope there will be no changes in Wenhan. The great powers must remain neutral and cannot get involved."

Hong Yuner touched her sharp chin and smiled: "It seems that your plan has been successful."

But Xiao Yungui shook his head slowly and said with a gloomy face: "Maybe, but I have a bad feeling. I think Wenhan's principles are too easily lost. If the British Parliament gave him a very strong neutrality principle, I think he would not dare to sell us the cannons on a cruiser to us even at a price of ten times."

Hong Yuner nodded thoughtfully and said, "Yes, if he really did that, he might be convicted of treason."

Xiao Yungui said in a deep voice: "I suspect that he agreed so simply because he wanted to be a favor, give us this batch of arms, and use our knife to kill people!"

Hong Yuner said strangely: "Who to kill?"

Xiao Yungui said with a bad look: "Of course it was the disobedient Qing Dynasty in the north. The British might want to use our hands to teach the Qing emperor a lesson. After we beat him up, the Qing Dynasty would surrender to the UK and even sell more interests in exchange for British support. The British were very despicable. They wanted to get benefits from both ends."

Hong Yuner exclaimed in dismay: "Will they really do this?"

Xiao Yungui sighed lightly and said, "I just realized that if it were me, I would have done this. Both sides sold arms, and of course the UK would make a fortune. As long as we and the Qing Dynasty could ensure smooth trade, the longer the Chinese civil war was fought, the greater the advantage Britain would have. Anyway, the Chinese would be killed, and the British would not care about it at all."

Hong Yuner was speechless for a while, and after a while, she asked in a trembling voice: "What should we do?"

Xiao Yungui took a deep breath and said, "We can only do our best to overthrow the Qing Dynasty as soon as possible and end this civil war, otherwise this endless civil war will drag China into the abyss..."

On the deck of the Hamiles, Lord Wenhan looked at Xiaguan Pier and disappeared into the mist, and a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth: "A very interesting couple, I understand a little why the Qing army could not defeat them."

Midile said on the side: "Since they can defeat the Qing army by themselves, why do we still have to trade arms with them?"

Wen Han put his finger under his nose and sneered softly: "In Chinese words, this is called icing on the cake. We should let the Qing government understand that if our British Empire turns to support the rebels, then what awaits them is a catastrophe. The rebels' strong army and the excellent weapons of our British Empire will be eliminated within a few years. So they can only compromise with us in a comprehensive way, instead of sending a Shanghai road, Wu Jianzhang, to ask for help in defending Shanghai, nor do they turn a deaf ear to our request to enter Guangzhou City. More importantly, we will immediately propose a request to revise the "Jiangning Treaty" with the Qing Dynasty, and we must take the lead. Instead of using powerful troops to force the Qing Dynasty to surrender, it is better to sell some arms and let the rebels help us complete this matter."

Midile frowned and said, "What if the Qing government refused to cooperate with us?"

Wen Han smiled and said, "Then we will support the enlightened Western King to overthrow the Qing Dynasty and gain national power. I believe this regime will be a pro-British regime in the future."

Midile suddenly realized and asked again: "What if the Qing Dynasty agreed to cooperate with us?"

Wen Han smiled sinisterly and said, "Do we have promised anything to the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom? That secret agreement was signed by the Shanghai Consulate. The British Empire can deny it at any time. Mr. Midile, your suggestion is very good. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't know how to make a contract with them."

Midile felt a little sorry for the Taiping Army and frowned and said, "Lord, if the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom gets our arms and becomes very powerful, the Qing Dynasty will ask us to help suppress the attack. What should we do then?"

Wenhan looked at him strangely and said, "Do you think our British Empire's army can't even deal with a group of rural rebels? At that time, I hoped that the British Empire could send troops to intervene in the war, so that the benefits we gain would not be that simple. We could even occupy a port as good as Hong Kong on the coast, or a large area of ​​land, so that we could expand our territory in the East."

Midile gasped: "Lord, I hope your judgment is correct."

Lord Wenhan smiled confidently and said, "As the British plenipotentiary, my judgment is of course correct. Mr. Midile, let's wait and see the show."

After returning to Shanghai, Lord Wenhan sent a report of more than ten pages to the UK, which analyzed the situation in China and wrote all his suggestions in it. He hoped that the Prime Minister's instructions given to him by the domestic parliament would authorize him to handle it with full authority.

After waiting for three days, Wen Han received the news that the Taiping Army began to launch an offensive against Changzhou and Huzhou. It seemed that the rebels were moving very quickly. Behind Changzhou is Wuxi, Suzhou, and behind Huzhou is Hangzhou. Once Suzhou is captured by the rebels, there will only be some outer towns in Shanghai left in the hands of the Qing army.

On the day when the news was received, French Minister Bloompur and American Minister Masali came to the British Consulate to meet with Wenhan to discuss the current situation.

In the consulate reception room, Wenhan did not disclose the fact that he had signed a contract with the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom at all, but Mashali and Blombul seemed to know something, and as soon as they opened their mouths, they asked the details of the rebels.

Wenhan knew that they must have received news from Wu Jianzhang, Shanghai Road, that he had taken a boat to Nanjing, but he did not intend to share anything with the French and Americans. He just said as usual: "The rebels in Nanjing are very powerful, with many people, but they are as arrogant as the Qing Dynasty. You must know that their leader called himself the king of heaven and was a very arrogant guy. They even thought we were going to pay tribute and surrender."

Wen Han described it with great pride, without mentioning the series of secret agreements he reached with the Western King, and repeatedly stressing that cooperation with the rebels was of no point.

The American Minister Mashali frowned with his pipe in his mouth and said, "Lord Wenhan, are there any preparations for the rebels' upcoming offensive? Once the Suzhou-Hangzhou area falls into the hands of the rebels, they will definitely attack Shanghai. What should we do with our trade?"

Blombour said: "I heard that those rebels are also Christian. Our emperor hopes to make the rebels win. He asked the Holy See that the priests could even send a priest to China to help them. Lord Wenhan, what was Britain's plan?" France's Emperor Napoleon III just received support from the Holy See and was crowned the Emperor of the Second French Empire. Napoleon III respected the authority of the Holy See and attached great importance to the spread of Christianity around the world. Therefore, France would have the idea of ​​supporting the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.

Lord Wenhan smiled faintly and said, "I have reported to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and I am also waiting for domestic orders, but the interests of the British Empire cannot be violated. As for the beliefs of the rebels, I have no choice but to say that I have never been with them. I have no idea what kind of doctrine they believe in. The Holy See wants to send someone? I think the Chinese don't like someone to interfere in their beliefs."

Mashali and Blombul both cursed Wen Han's cunning in their hearts. Both of them were thinking that if the arrogant British were really defeated in Nanjing, Wen Han would not be able to talk so calmly. Wen Han must have concealed something.

Masali waved his fists and said, "Lord Wenhan, we should form a volunteer team to assist the Qing army, defend Shanghai, and defend our concession."

Blombul frowned and said, "Lord Wenhan, if the rebels are really as you said, I think we should really make some preparations. The combined battleships and soldiers of our countries should be able to change some of the battle situation."

Lord Wenhan shrugged and said, "As early as March, I suggested to the country that I would interfere with the civil war with armed forces, but the instructions given to me in China are to remain neutral, and I can't do anything about this. But I think it is possible to prepare for the suggestions of forming a volunteer team to defend the concession. After all, no one knows what will happen during the war. I think we can still do it." Then Wenhan smiled and said, "As for the Qing government, I am happy to see them being taught a lesson by the rebels. Minister Masali, I heard that your United States' request to submit a letter of state in person has just been rejected?"

Masalion raised his head and said, "The new governor of Liangjiang Yiliang rejected our request to submit a letter of state in person. God knows where their arrogant arrogance came from. Maybe Lord, you are right. When the Qing Dynasty was hurt by the rebels, I knew that I came to ask for help from us." Then Masali said angrily: "Like you, I also suggest that I interfere in this civil war in China, but it is really regrettable that the country also gives me neutral instructions."

Lord Wenhan said with a smile: "Since we have a neutral attitude in our country, we can only do this and wait and see the changes in the situation. I have left the establishment of the Volunteer Team to Colonel He Bo to handle. I believe that the warships and soldiers of our British, American, French and other countries can defend the concession."

Both Mashali and Blombour nodded, but they were all planning to get in touch with the rebels first. The damn British man in front of him was extremely unreliable.

At this moment, the guards outside the door came in and reported: "Lord, there were several Qing officials outside the consulate who asked for a visit. One of them claimed to be Ronglu could speak English, and they said there was an urgent matter to discuss."
Chapter completed!