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After Luo Dagang and Vézé talked for nearly two hours, Vézé arranged a job for Luo Dagang. Go to Hong Kong to transport a batch of equipment back to Guangzhou.
At this time, the Migne rifle had not really appeared, but rifling and fire caps were already common in Europe, and the whole of Europe was completely eliminating flintlocks. He had seen the firearms of Vézé's troops, as well as the cannonballs that Vézé's troops had used when they attacked Guangzhou. Under Vézé's arrangement, diplomats from England, France, and the United States in Guangzhou visited Vézé's troops. He now had a "fairly intuitive" understanding of Vézé's military strength.
Since Vézé's troops could produce their own firearms without relying on Europe, the British and French diplomats had no reason to believe that Vézé would be intimidated by them. England, France, and the United States immediately expressed their willingness to trade arms with Vézé. Of course, Vézé wouldn't object to doing business with foreign devils. According to a recent commercial agreement, England and France sold a large number of weapons to the Viceroyalty. This included 40,000 obsolete British flintlock pistols and 250 French 12-pounder mountain howitzers. These British, French, and American diplomats all had their own related companies and consortiums behind them. Such a big deal was a must for them.
Vézé said that if he was satisfied with the goods this time, Vézé could come again for the next purchase. Therefore, the price was very cheap. A second-hand flintlock with a full set of accessories, including a bayonet, cost four to three. Buy three get one free. The total price was forty thousand taels of silver. As the American Civil War had not broken out yet, the price of a 12-pound howitzer was 160 taels of silver each. 250 of these howitzers were sold for a total of 40,000 taels of silver.
A total of fifty thousand taels of trade was not a big deal in this era, but Britain and France were very satisfied. They had finally opened up a channel to sell weapons to China. Vézé was also very satisfied. After the second YA film war, China was robbed of 1.3 billion taels of silver. Compared to this figure, 50,000 taels of silver was nothing.
In addition to the arms trade, England had trade channels with Japan and trade routes with Chile. They supplied Vézé with saltpeter, sulfur, and copper at very low prices. These resources were very important to Vézé, so he readily reached an agreement with the British.
The British were bold enough. At this time, they were buying tea leaves and silk in large quantities and needed a lot of cash to pay for them. Vézé's deal had solved the Englishman's urgent problem. Therefore, Vézé arranged for Luo Dagang to go to Hong Kong to receive the weapons sold by the British.
Luo Dagang had completed his task very well. The troops had carefully checked the 5,000 rifles and checked the list carefully before sending the weapons back to Guangzhou. The round trip took four days. When Luo Dagang returned to Guangzhou, he was called aside by his wife, Su Sanniang. She whispered to Luo Dagang, "Dagang, the pirate you caught last time is the brother of Liang Changtai, who was in charge of the artillery."
"Huh?" Luo Dagang could understand this, but he did not know Liang Changtai, so he could not match him. Therefore, Luo Dagang asked, "What does Liang Changtai want to say to me?"
Su Sanniang shook her head. "No matter how stupid Liang Changtai is, he will not go to this extent. You do not know him, nor do you know his brother. The evidence of his brother's robbery is conclusive. How would he dare to cause trouble for you? But this time, a lot of people seem to have said a lot behind his back. I am just telling you. "
After receiving his wife's warning, Luo Dagang thought about it and finally found someone he could ask. It was Wei Changrong, the commander of the First Division who had marched with Luo Dagang to Jiangxi. After handing over the weapons, Luo Dagang immediately went to find Wei Changrong.
Wei Changrong, who was busy in the First Division's headquarters, heard Luo Dagang's question and his expression changed. He dragged Luo Dagang into a small office and explained the matter to him.
The Liberation Army punished looters severely. As the saying goes, in troubled times, heavy punishment is needed. This swift and decisive killing was used to deter thieves and thieves. Luo Dagang sent Liang Changan, Liang Changan, and the gang of pirates to the Public Security Bureau. The Public Security Bureau quickly sorted out the witnesses and material evidence and interrogated Liang Changan's gang. With the escorts as witnesses, the matter was handled quickly. The next day, the Public Security Bureau sent the gang to the prosecutor's office next door. The prosecutor's office quickly filed the case, and the opposite court continued the trial. Within three days, after going through the entire judicial process, Liang Changan and his gang were sentenced to death. Outside the court, there was a notice of the trial of the pirates.
The Recovery Society's internal information circulation system also included this judicial notice. Liang Changtai, who was in charge of artillery training, saw the notice of the execution. The names of the people, the places, and the place where the crime was committed. Liang Changtai felt that he could not sit idly by and do nothing about it. He ran to the prison and saw that it was indeed his brother.
After hearing this, Luo Dagang was relieved. In the past, Luo Dagang had felt that the judicial, judicial, and judicial system of the Recovery Society was very cumbersome, but now it seemed to be very beneficial to everyone. Catching the pirates was Luo Dagang's job. If Luo Dagang did not catch the pirates, Vézé would not let Luo Dagang off. Besides, no one knew that the pirates were Liang Changtai's brother. Although Liang Changan and his gang of pirates were caught by Luo Dagang, Liang Changtai had no reason to blame Luo Dagang for this.
However, Wei Changrong said to Luo Dagang with a serious expression, "Chief of Staff Luo, pretend you don't know about this. Don't say anything! "
"Huh? Why? "Luo Dagang asked in surprise. Wei Changrong's attitude was a little too strange, and Luo Dagang could not help but be on guard. Liang Changtai was not a famous person in the Liberation Army. Naturally, he could not be as fierce as the uncle of the King Of The East, Yang Xiuqing. But why did Wei Changrong care so much about it?
Wei Changrong asked, "Brother Luo, let me ask you something. Do you think Liang Changtai's brother should be killed? "
Luo Dagang could not answer for a moment. If he treated Liang Changtai's brother as a pirate, then he naturally had to be killed. However, if he treated this pirate as Liang Changtai's brother, then it would involve a more complicated personnel issue. If he killed this person, then Liang Changtai would definitely lose face. So after thinking about it, Luo Dagang found it really difficult to answer this question. However, Luo Dagang was a man in his fifties after all. He changed his perspective. "What do you think, Commander Wei?"
Wei Changrong was not angry at Luo Dagang's sly answer. He introduced Luo Dagang to the Liberation Army's judicial system. In the Liberation Army's judicial system, legislation and law enforcement were separated. The legislative power was, of course, in the hands of the Commander-in-Chief of the Liberation Army. As early as when Vézé was still the Prince Of Qi of the Taiping Rebellion, this system had already been established. Although people did not clearly understand this at that time, when Vézé organized the military court, when all the provisions were passed, the high-ranking officers had to listen to the legislative staff's explanation of the legal provisions, and finally vote for the final decision.
As a high-ranking officer of the Liberation Army and a member of the Recovery Society, Liang Changtai participated in the discussion and voted in favor of the relevant legal provisions regarding the killing of pirates, as well as the policy to suppress all kinds of disgusting criminal gangs in Guangdong. Therefore, the policies implemented by the judicial system were already legal provisions, and they were all things that Liang Changtai himself clearly supported. Everyone knew that Liang Changtai did not want to kill his brother, but no one could publicly say that Liang Changan would be spared.
At that time, when the military law was established, everyone who participated in the examination and approval had reached a consensus. This was a problem that Vézé had mercilessly pointed out at that time. "What if one of our family members breaks the law?!"
The current judicial system of the Liberation Army was completely born out of military law. If one's family members deserted on the battlefield, there was no need to consider such a good thing as extralegal mercy. Everyone felt that it was a rather benevolent policy to not implicate one's family. There was no need to consider whether to kill or not to kill.
Now everyone knew that if they could not quickly establish a foothold in Guangdong, the entire Commander-in-Chief of the Liberation Army would be the unlucky ones. If the Qing Army recaptured Guangdong, even Liang Changtai himself would not have a good ending. Therefore, from top to bottom, no one dared to speak out.
After listening to Wei Changrong's explanation, Luo Dagang felt even more at ease. After witnessing the King Of The East's domineering behavior and witnessing the King Of The East's family members' misdeeds, Luo Dagang abhorred this kind of nepotism. In fact, he really hoped that by killing Liang Changtai's younger brother, he could rectify the internal discipline and not make it look like the Taiping Rebellion.
Luo Dagang expressed his stance to Wei Changrong. "If Brother Liang wants to talk to me about this, I'll just say that we're doing things according to the law."
"The key is that there's a problem with the law!" Wei Changrong pointed out the final key. "As early as when my fourth uncle was the Prince Of Qi of the Taiping Rebellion, there was a rule. My fourth uncle, as the supreme commander, has the power to pardon! "
"Oh …" Luo Dagang did not know what to say. Vézé was the supreme commander, so it was not surprising that he had the power to pardon. Just like how the Emperor could issue a pardon, Vézé naturally had the same power. After listening to Wei Changrong's words, Luo Dagang finally understood why Wei Changrong was so cautious. According to the operation model of the judicial system of the restored Viceroy's Office, Liang Changan, Liang Changtai's younger brother, was dead for sure. Once this matter entered the judicial system, especially after the court announced the verdict, no one could save him.
If Liang Changtai was just an ordinary officer, he would not have had the chance to meet Vézé, and naturally, he would not have asked for the power to pardon his brother. But as a high-ranking officer of the Liberation Army, Liang Changtai had enough opportunities to meet Vézé.
From the analysis of what Wei Changrong had said so far, Wei Changrong did not want to let the pirates go. Luo Dagang had no intention of letting the pirates go, and after knowing that the pirates were Liang Changtai's younger brother, he wanted to make an example out of them and set the rules. Even if it was Liang Changtai, Luo Dagang believed that if the pirates were not Liang Changtai's younger brother, he would not have let the pirates go.
"Wayne Brothers, I will not go with Brother Liang to see the Military Governor Wei because of this matter," Luo Dagang solemnly stated.
However, this statement did not make Wei Changrong particularly satisfied. Seeing Wei Changrong's hesitant expression, Luo Dagang continued, "Don't worry, I have only heard of this matter. I will not say anything about this matter to the Military Governor Wei!"
Hearing Luo Dagang's statement, Wei Changrong's attitude finally relaxed. He sighed regretfully. "Brother Luo, it's not that we are ruthless. Brother Liang joined our troop in Wuzhou three years ago. If his brother came to us to ask for an official position, even if he did not ask for an official position and only wanted to earn a living under us, who would not take care of him? Now that he has done something like this, and it was done a few days after we took over Wuzhou, it clearly shows that he wants to be an enemy of our Liberation Army. My fourth uncle will not let him go. If Brother Liang went to ask my fourth uncle alone, that is because he values his brotherhood. This is human nature. My fourth uncle will not have any dissatisfaction with Brother Liang. But if someone were to do this together with Brother Liang, not to mention my Fourth Uncle, what would we think? "
"Haha!" Hearing Wei Changrong's words, Luo Dagang was amused. "What would we think? We would definitely think that he wanted to find a way out for his family! "
Wei Changrong nodded his head repeatedly. "Exactly! That was it! Whoever did this, it must be because he wanted to find a way out for his family. If something happened, they could follow this precedent and spare his family. Brother Luo, you are a righteous person. You say that we brothers put our heads on our waistbands to conquer the world just to let this group of bastards do as they please? There is no such logic! You were the one who captured them. If Brother Liang comes to you to complain, you must not get involved in this matter! "
"I know!" Luo Dagang solemnly promised Wei Changrong.
But after the conversation and leaving Wei Changrong's command center, Luo Dagang suddenly thought of another matter. As one of the most prestigious people in the boat army, Wei Ze was obviously not at ease with the boat army. Even if his relatives were not involved in certain matters, many of his old acquaintances would inevitably have a very intense conflict with the restored Governor's Office. If that time came, what choice would Luo Dagang make?
Wei Changrong had already made it clear that he would never support letting these people go. Based on what Wei Changrong had said, Vézé would not let go of anyone who dared to oppose the Recovered Governor's Office. Therefore, Luo Dagang even suspected that Wei Changrong had spent so much effort talking about these things because he was instructed by Vézé.
But Luo Dagang could not produce any evidence. Moreover, Luo Dagang had never liked the criminals. He did not think that he would plead with Vézé for the sake of the criminals.
After calming himself down and sorting out his thoughts, Luo Dagang went to the Viceroy's Office to report to Vézé that he had gone to Hong Kong to retrieve the firearms. At the same time, he also had to report to Vézé about what he had seen in Hong Kong. After the Manchu Qing were driven out of Guangdong, the British army in Hong Kong was the closest military force to Guangzhou. Not to mention that Luo Dagang did not like foreigners at all, from a purely military point of view, Luo Dagang had to pay attention to this military force that was not under the control of the Recovered Governor's Office. After all, Luo Dagang had received staff training and he knew about the Earth. To be able to fight from the British Isles thousands of miles away all the way to Hong Kong in a hundred years, conquering cities along the way and controlling a large number of colonies, the British were indeed a formidable enemy.
When he went to see Vézé, the guards stopped Luo Dagang outside the door of Vézé's office. Luo Dagang saw someone kneeling in front of Vézé in the room, crying and saying something. Luo Dagang only heard the words "brother" and "spare my life" and immediately guessed that the person in the room was probably Liang Changtai!
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