After hearing Yuan Keding say that Yuan Shikai's health has recovered a little, Fang Zida, who had finished talking to Yuan Keding, planned to go over and take a look. Unexpectedly, Yuan Keding reached out to stop him and signaled him to go later.

"It's not convenient now?" Fang Zida asked in confusion.

"Bao Cen was back last night." Yuan Keding said with a smile.

Fang Zida suddenly realized and asked anxiously: "So, has Bao Cen's business been done?"

Nodding, Yuan Keding teased the bird in the cage and chuckled, "Of course it's done. Now the old man is talking to them, otherwise why would I stay in the yard?"

"Haha, that's true. Now I've been disturbed. Brother, please rest. I'll go for a walk later." Fang Zida said understandingly. He went to Yuan Sizhen's side in the backyard first, planning to see Yuan Shikai later.

The Baocen that Yuan Keding just mentioned was nothing else, but Yuan Kewen's name. Since Xu Shichang returned, Yuan Shikai had the idea of ​​inviting Wang Shizhen back. From the early years of the Republic of China to the present, Wang Shizhen, the leader of the three heroes of Beiyang, resigned from his post with Xu Shichang, retreated to his hometown Zhengding City, closed his door to thank the guests, and kept a low profile until now. In the past two years, Yuan Shikai invited Xu Shichang and him to come out several times, but was politely declined. It was not until the return incident of Qing Dynasty in China, Germany that Xu Shichang returned to the center at the invitation of Fang Zida. At Xu Shichang's suggestion, Yuan Shikai planned to invite Wang Shizhen again. In order to show sincerity, he not only invited Xu Shichang to write a handwritten letter, but also sent Yuan Kewen as his representative to specially invite him to Beijing.

It seems that Yuan Kewen did a good job this time and has always been ignorant of the world, Wang Shizhen has actually come back. Several old friends who have not seen each other for many years are meeting now, and Yuan Shikai must have to say something private to them. Fang Zida came today, and it was indeed not appropriate to go there at this time.

When I arrived at the backyard, I spoke for a while with Yuan Sizhen, who seemed to be feeling a little uncomfortable. Time flies. After a short while, the sky gradually darkened. Fang Zida was planning to go back to his home with Yuan Sizhen first and come back tomorrow. But at this moment, a servant hurriedly came over and said that Yuan Shikai heard that Fang Zida was at the mansion and asked him to go there now.

When Fang Zi reached Yuan Shikai's side, he entered the house and saw three people surrounding Yuan Shikai, talking and laughing. One of them was Xu Shichang, and the other was nearly 60 years old and with bright eyes was probably Wang Shizhen, who was known as the Dragon of Beiyang. As for another soldier wearing a general's uniform and majestic, Fang Zida never recognized who he was because he only saw his back.

"Haha, Zheng Ming is here, come on, this is your recruiting Uncle Qing Shi. This is Commander Cao of the Third Division."

Yuan Shikai's spirit was indeed much better than before. When Fang Zida came in, he reached out and greeted. After hearing the introduction, Fang Zida suddenly realized that the general was no one else, but the famous Cao Kun.

According to the etiquette, after first paying homage to Yuan Shikai, Fang Zida saluted Xu Shichang and Wang Shizhen one by one, but when it was Cao Kun's turn, the Grand Marshal Cao stood up in a hurry and said repeatedly that he did not dare.

"We are not outsiders. There is no need to be polite, sit down. Let's sit down." Yuan Shikai smiled and suppressed his hands. Fang Zida and Cao Kun looked at each other and sat down together.

"The President's good son-in-law has long heard of the reputation. Today, he is indeed a talented person." Wang Shizhen stroked the beard under his forehead and nodded kindly to Fang Zida.

"Shi Shu Miaozan, Zida is frightened..." Fang Zida stood up in a low key and said modestly.

"Haha, why is Zheng Ming so polite today? Although you met Pinqing once, Pinqing and I are like Brother Weiting's friends for many years. As for Zhongsan, let alone put away your tricks." Xu Shichang joked and smiled, stretching out his fingers to point at Fang Zida.

Fang Zida smiled embarrassedly: "Last time I heard Ju Lao's words, my nephew benefited a lot, not to mention that all the elders here are elders, so being righteous is a courtesy, and not to be abolished."

Xu Shichang was stunned and laughed in silence: "Okay, you guy, you mean to be angry with me, right? Hahaha!"

Seeing that Xu Shichang's face suddenly laughed again, even Yuan Shikai looked interesting. Wang Shizhen, who was a little confused, asked Xu Shichang quietly. Xu Shichang didn't hide it from him, but just mentioned that Fang Zida was too reckless in returning Qingdao to China and Germany some time ago. After he and Yuan Shikai hit Fang Zida for this, Wang Shizhen suddenly realized and couldn't help laughing.

Xu Shichang and Wang Shizhen were talking quietly, but Cao Kun on the other side still sat upright and looked squinting. Although Cao Kun had the lowest status among the people present, it was really said that Cao Kun was Yuan Shikai's true iron confidant. Unlike Fang Zida, who was a son-in-law, he was also different from Xu Shichang and Wang Shizhen and Yuan Shikai who were both superiors and subordinates and close friends. Cao Kun was always loyal to Yuan Shikai. It can even be said that as long as Yuan Shikai said a word, Cao Kun would not frown even if he went through fire and water.

However, Cao Kun is not like Xu. Wang and the two of them are very close. They are from the army. He is a bit rude and has a strong aura on his body. He is a little stubborn and cannons without placing the door. To put it bluntly, Cao Kun is a little stupid when he is doing things. He thinks that in order to negotiate with Sun Wen, Yuan Shikai specially made a trick of fake mutiny soldiers to make money. The purpose is to scare these revolutionaries who only know how to talk big. The specific executor of this matter is Cao Kun. Originally, everything was arranged well and the matter was going according to Yuan Shikai's schedule. But just when Yuan Shikai was secretly happy and felt that he was almost sure to win, he didn't expect that Cao Kun suddenly broke in when he was having a talk with Sun Wen and others. He didn't even look at the situation when he entered the door and shouted loudly: "Master! I'll help you make the mutiny you asked me to do!"

In this way, Yuan Shikai, who was so angry that he was dizzy about the scene, jumped up at Cao Kun and cursed him immediately, asking him to "get out!" at this time, Cao Kun saw clearly that there were those people present. He was stunned and understood that he had said the wrong thing again. He was so scared that his face turned pale and he didn't dare to turn around and ran away in panic.

For this matter, the Beiyang system has been teased by outsiders many times. The scheming Yuan Shikai was wise all his life. Because this turned into a role of shooting himself in the foot, he was almost thrown to his grandma's house. Afterwards, Cao Kun and Cao Dapao almost lost his official position for this matter. If Yuan Shikai had not seen that he had always been loyal to him, he would not have had his current position as the commander of the Third Division.

Fang Zida came, and the few people continued to talk as they said just now. Fang Zida listened for a while and understood that Yuan Shikai originally planned to let Xu Shichang serve as the chief of staff. However, Xu Shichang thought that Wang Shizhen was more suitable for this position than him, so he specially recommended Wang Shizhen to take office. As for Wang Shizhen, considering that he had been away from the center for a long time, he suddenly took up this high position after returning, and felt that it was a bit inappropriate. Before Fang Zida came, both sides were talking about this issue. It has not yet convinced Wang Shizhen.

"Zheng Ming. What do you think about this?" Yuan Shikai really wanted to use Wang Shizhen in his heart, not only to value his talents, but more importantly, the struggle for power and profit between Duan Qirui and Feng Guozhang has become somewhat sharp. Whether it is the president as the head of state or as the leader of the Beiyang clan, Yuan Shikai did not want to see his two generals getting worse and worse. Over the years, his health has not been as good as before, and his problems have been getting better and worse. He has the will to handle government affairs but lacks the ability to do it. There must be someone to help him suppress them, and the best candidates are two, one is Xu Shichang and the other is Wang Shizhen.

Compared with Xu Shichang, Wang Shizhen's advantage as Chief of Staff is obvious. First, Wang Shizhen is the leader of the three heroes of Beiyang, and Duan Qirui and Feng Guozhang both wanted to call Wang Shizhen. Wang Shizhen's reputation in the Beiyang system was second only to Yuan Shikai, and was almost comparable to Xu Shichang. Moreover, this reputation was even more important in the army, and could suppress the two of them. Second, Wang Shizhen was different from Xu Shichang. He was a real soldier, proficient in military tactics, and had great military achievements. He served as the Minister of the Army and Chief of Staff in the Qing Dynasty. It is natural to be the Chief of Staff of the Republic of China again, and no one would raise objections.

"What my father-in-law said is that the son-in-law thinks so too." Fang Zida nodded and said, "Now the Ministry of National Defense has been established, and the candidates for the General Staff are particularly important. If Uncle Shi takes on this position, not only will no one in the army raise objections, but even the government can accept it."

"I'll just say it, and the nephew Zheng Ming must agree with this." Xu Shichang smiled from the side, saying to Wang Shizhen, who was still hesitant, "Pinqing, don't hesitate. If you say it back, aren't you worried that the government will not be able to pass it? Now that Junming has guaranteed so much, you probably don't know about his friendship with Song Dunchu? With him helping to talk about Xiang, you should take office boldly!"

After thinking about it carefully, Wang Shizhen nodded: "Okay, I agree to this."

Wang Shizhen finally agreed, Yuan Shikai felt relieved. Everyone chatted for a while, because Yuan Shikai was not in good health, several people stood up and offered to say goodbye. Yuan Shikai didn't force himself, so he asked Fang Zida to send everyone out for him.

"Brother Zhengming, I, Cao, want you to have a meal tomorrow. Can you please give me a favor?" On the way out, Cao Kun was deliberately behind a few steps and smiled and offered an invitation to Fang Zida.

"Tomorrow?" Fang Zida thought about the arrangement, nodded happily and agreed, "No problem, I'll listen to Brother Zhong's third."

"Okay! It's refreshing!" Cao Kun patted Fang Zida's shoulder happily, then set the time and place. After leaving the door, he hugged Fang Zida, turned around and walked away with a meteor.

"Are you leaving?" When I returned to the room, Yuan Shikai sat in a chair and asked while playing with tea cups.

"yes!"

"Come on! Help me to go for a walk in the yard..." Fang Zida hurriedly stepped forward to support Yuan Shikai, who was a little inconvenient, and slowly supported him out of the house.

It was just dark, and the cool autumn wind blew on his body made people feel very comfortable. Due to the recurrence of the illness some time ago, Yuan Shikai's steps were a little heavy. After accompanying Fang Zida to the courtyard for a few rounds, he became a little tired. He pointed to the Shiting in front and signaled Fang Zida to help him there.

"I'm old... I didn't expect that I'll get old so quickly..." Sitting in the pavilion, Yuan Shikai gently beat his sore legs and couldn't help but sigh.

"The doctor said that you should take care of this disease slowly. If you can't be anxious, since the medicine is effective, you have to continue drinking it. I think, after about half a year of maintenance, you will be the same as before." Fang Zida comforted him.

"Haha, how easy is it?" Yuan Shikai shook his head with a wry smile: "Even if the illness is cured, his health is not as good as before. I remember when I was young in North Korea, I could gallop for three thousand miles of countryside. How energetic was it...."

"You are now the president of the Republic of China. You are much better than when you were in North Korea."

"You can't compare... you can't compare..." Yuan Shikai was slightly stunned and said something stupid. Fang Zida couldn't guess what he couldn't compare, but what he couldn't compare.

For a moment, both of them became quiet. Yuan Shikai looked away and didn't know what he was thinking. Fang Zida didn't speak. He just sat aside. It was not until a long time before he heard Yuan Shikai sigh again.

"Zhengming, you have done a good job recently. I have read the government's report. In recent months, the government has achieved significant results in both financial situation and industrial and commercial development. What do you think? Or what are your plans?"

"Not yet." Somewhat unexpected. Fang Zida answered this way, seeing Yuan Shikai looking at him, Fang Zida explained: "The country is difficult to return, and all industries are waiting to be developed. It is definitely not a matter of one or two days to change. Although many of the work has achieved some results now, this is just a preliminary. Let's not talk about anything else. For example, the national currency reform is far from meeting my expectations."

"Oh, what are your expectations?" Yuan Shikai asked interested.

"The current coin minting is just a temporary measure. You also know that last year, the central government did not unify the whole country, and the finances were facing bankruptcy. Even now, it was only slightly better. Moreover, the southern provinces were still in a semi-prime state at that time. Since the central government has not yet fully controlled these provinces. Military tickets, bank coupons, former Qing Tongbao, and various countries are in circulation, and government credit is just a blank piece of paper among the people. Even if you are willing to change, you can do nothing. Now it is different. The Ministry of National Defense and the National Defense Forces have been effective in the reorganization of local military, government and civil affairs have begun to separate. If nothing unexpected happens, it is expected that the whole country will be truly unified in one or two years, and the central government will also reach all places. Therefore, the current monetary system must be changed accordingly." Fang Zida tried to explain as much as possible in words Yuan Shikai could understand, but when he finished speaking, Yuan Shikai still didn't understand.

"Isn't the silver dollar circulation now good? Why do you need to change it?"

"The purpose of minting is to establish the credit of the central government. From the perspective of financial means, a large amount of minting is just a temporary measure." Fang Zida explained: "The land of China is vast and has a large population. If calculated based on the current development, the amount of minting required for market circulation in three to five years is simply unimaginable. The circulation of so many silver dollars is inconvenient, and the use of silver to mint silver dollars is also a huge waste. You probably don't know yet. According to recent investigations and reports from several branches, silver dollars are not only used in China, but also circulate abroad in large quantities. Some countries, such as Japan and other countries, even when the expatriates return to China, they even privately carry large quantities of silver dollars to serve the industrial needs of various countries. This situation is really worrying."

Nodding slightly, Yuan Shikai said he understood a little.

"So, after the government credit is established, I plan to gradually reduce the minting, change the currency into banknotes, and carry out the second financial reform. In addition, the war that breaks out in Europe has also brought us this opportunity. China has always used the silver standard for thousands of years. If possible, when the reform reaches the second step, our central bank will try to change it to the gold standard and conduct legal issuance. If this reform can be successful, it will bring huge benefits to the country."

Yuan Shikai closed his eyes and thought for a while, and asked directly: "How sure are you?"

"If you are conservative... it is probably from seven to eight minutes." Fang Zida said cautiously.

Nodded. Although Yuan Shikai did not ask again, Fang Zida knew that Old Yuan had already agreed in his heart.

"I know you are busy on weekdays, but no matter how busy you are, you have to think about your family. These days, please pay more attention to Sizhen." Yuan Shikai suddenly said this. Although Fang Zida was puzzled, he nodded quickly to agree.

Seeing Fang Zida's expression seemed a little embarrassed, Yuan Shikai smiled and said, "It's not that you want to find an excuse to scold you, but there is something you may not know yet."

"What's the matter?" Fang Zida asked strangely.

"You kid, Sizhen is pregnant."

"ah!"

Fang Zida was stunned and was ecstatic again. When did this happen? Didn’t he talk to Yuan Sizhen just now? Why didn’t he listen to her?

"Sizhen felt a little uncomfortable at noon today. Her mother asked the doctor to come over and see it. She was indeed pregnant." Yuan Shikai said with a smile. Although he was a family of children and grandchildren, Yuan Shikai was still very happy when Yuan Sizhen was pregnant.

Fang Zida was so happy for a moment that he couldn't help but stand up and wander around there. After walking around for several times, he suddenly remembered that Yuan Shikai was still sitting. He quickly turned around and apologized embarrassedly.

"Okay, I'm a father like this. I'm not much different from you at the beginning." Yuan Shikai smiled considerately and reminded him: "Zhengming, I know that you have a great ability and your talents are first-class. Talent is valuable. It was for this reason that I promised Sizhen to you, and you didn't disappoint me. But you still have to think carefully about things in daily life. You should think more and think more. After all, you are not alone now. You have a family, a wife, and a child soon. The Fang family and the Yuan family will be one in the future. Do you understand?"

"Son-in-law understand." Fang Zida replied respectfully. Although Old Yuan valued himself, he still did not forget to hit him. Fang Zida naturally knew Yuan Shikai's concerns, but he could not say some words directly, so he could only bury them quietly in his heart. To be continued...
Chapter completed!