Li Hongzhang's teacher was Zeng Guofan. Zeng Guofan admired Zuo Zongtang's ability very much. When he was building the Xiang Army, he asked Zuo Zongtang for help many times.
Zuo Zongtang refused Zeng Guofan's sincere invitation without giving him face. In the end, he even publicly commented that Zeng Guofan was too narrow-minded. After Zuo Zongtang went to the Xiang Army, he didn't know what to do. As Zeng Guofan's disciple, he was naturally very clear about this history. Unexpectedly, now that Zeng Guofan's coffin had been sealed, Zuo Zongtang actually said bluntly that compared with Zeng Guofan, Li Hongzhang was still far inferior.
For Zuo Zongtang, he had no choice but to make such an evaluation. He knew a lot about Li Hongzhang, but he wasn't very familiar with him, and his personal relationship with him was even more superficial. If it weren't for the reason that Zuo Zongtang couldn't get rid of for the rest of his life, he and Li Hongzhang would have had even less contact. If he used another example, Zuo Zongtang really couldn't find one in a short time.
Although Li Hongzhang was unhappy in his heart, he couldn't show it. He could only ask, "Brother Zuo, how should I improve my position?"
Zuo Zongtang saw that Li Hongzhang did not fly into a rage out of humiliation, so he replied, "The people's dynasty was far better than the Qing Dynasty because the people's dynasty focused on science. If science is used in administration, I think it can be described as professional enough. If I couldn't analyze the underworld problems in Guangdong from a professional point of view, how could I have been promoted later? Later, when I governed Guangdong, I made great efforts to promote the professionalism of Guangdong's administration. Some methods were effective and were popularized. Some methods didn't work well, but I didn't hide it for fear of treatment. I used these as unsuccessful examples to analyze, find the reasonable parts, and find the parts that affected the effectiveness. Otherwise, with His Majesty's wisdom and foresight, how could I have become the governor of Guangdong Province? "
Hearing this, the unhappiness on Li Hongzhang's face had completely disappeared, and he began to think seriously. Zuo Zongtang's meteoric rise was indeed like a myth. Now that it came out of Zuo Zongtang's mouth, it seemed logical. There are many capable people who can govern Guangdong well. Guangdong was a wealthy place. As long as he didn't cause any trouble, it wouldn't be difficult for him to become the governor. However, Zuo Zongtang's achievement wasn't to become the Taiping Provincial Governor, but to make governing Guangdong a "clear" matter. This was easy to say, but in reality, it was time to see the real deal.
Having been an official in the Min dynasty for so many years, Li Hongzhang's biggest experience was that when the Manchu Qing was destroyed, he didn't even know how he was finished. Because as an official in the Manchu Qing, they didn't care about reason, they only cared about results. Therefore, the officials had to be really muddle-headed, or at least pretend to be muddle-headed. If they told the truth in the Manchu Qing, the lightest punishment would be demotion, the most serious punishment would be execution.
If there were Manchu Qing officials like Zuo Zongtang, they could get some officials to do research, and finally clearly tell the central government that the country's policies and direction were the root cause of the gangsters' rampage. It wouldn't be strange if this kind of sacrifice was exchanged for the execution of nine generations. After thinking this through, Li Hongzhang no longer hid it. He told Zuo Zongtang about his work in the past few years, especially the invitation of the Hunan Provincial Party Secretary.
When Zuo Zongtang heard this, there was a hint of ridicule on his face. After listening to the invitation of the Hunan Provincial Party Secretary, he simply sneered, and then said in a sarcastic tone, "Director Li, you are already famous, why do you think His Majesty won't put you in an important position?"
Thinking of Vézé's "important position," Li Hongzhang didn't know whether to laugh or smile bitterly. As a surrendered general of the former dynasty who had a deep understanding of the feudal system, it was almost an insult for Li Hongzhang to be used to analyze Korea's problems.
As if reading Li Hongzhang's mind, Zuo Zongtang sneered, "Director Li, don't belittle yourself. If you were given such a job, it would probably be an insult. His Majesty said something sinister, but it was very reasonable. There were no useless people in this world. Even a poisonous snake could be used as a treasure. When a poisonous snake hides in a pile of treasures, the person who sees the treasures will be blinded by greed, and will not be cautious. Therefore, the poisonous snake will have food to eat, and the treasures will be safe. His Majesty didn't choose the poisonous snake because it was likable, but because the poisonous snake was professional in this aspect. If a ferocious tiger was sent to guard the treasure, the person who went to retrieve the treasure wouldn't care about the treasure in order to survive and pass the test. He would definitely kill the tiger in his way first. In that case, the treasure may not be guarded, and the tiger will be sacrificed. I don't know if other people will do this, but at least His Majesty won't make this choice. In today's world, the people who can do it are professionals. As long as you are professional enough, there will be people who will put you in an important position. His Majesty gave you a chance to perform, but I'm afraid you are still resentful. "
With Li Hongzhang's intelligence, as long as the core points were explained clearly, he would immediately understand. In fact, Li Hongzhang was very proud of his achievements. Using the railway and telegraph as a means, and through the futures industry, which could "pay first" as a tool, China's control over Korea could be described as "nourishing everything in silence." Unknowingly, the details of Korea had been seen through. Even if someone publicly shouted to guard against China, it was useless.
Using the example of a poisonous snake and a tiger as an example, if China sent hundreds of thousands of troops in and used forceful means to suppress Korea, not only would they not make money, but they would also suffer a lot from Korea's counterattack. The Japanese did have this plan. They tried to control things in Korea on the surface to build up Japan's "influence" in Korea. In the end, the Koreans only found an outlet for their economic predicament. A coup from within Korea swept away all the Japanese forces in Korea.
It was not that Li Hongzhang was not wary of Japan's expansion in Korea, but things had developed to such a smooth stage. As long as China's railway and telegraph system worked normally, the railway transport people, and telegraph communication, Emperor Daoyaku, who had regained power, could easily take control of Korea. Emperor Daoyaku was very wary of Japan. Without China's orders, he started to eradicate Japanese forces in Korea.
The people thought that Korea could eat their fill without selling food to Japan, and the upper echelons also found an excuse to embezzle Japan's assets in Korea. And China, who made money for Korea, greatly increased its influence in Korea, and its reputation rose to a new height. If China's painstaking plan was to make a fool of itself, it would not achieve such an effect.
Originally, Li Hongzhang, as the executor, only felt that it was his own hard work. Now that he had jumped out of this scope and returned to Vézé's plan in Korea, as long as the executor was not stupid, this result was almost inevitable.
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