After the New Year, it is the New Year. On the 29th day of the 12th lunar month, the Xiao family mansion in the Tanggu Industrial Special Zone has become bustling.

The sound of firecrackers has never stopped since the morning. The maids and servants who came in were busy and their heels were no longer touching the ground. A flowing mat was opened in the kitchen in the front yard, and the aroma of frying and cooking scattered in the wind. The recruits on duty at the door also had engineers from Europe, officers of the new army, whoever was hungry came in and ate whatever they wanted.

All the couplets and windows of the doors and windows were pasted, and even the dead trees without leaves were hung with fake flowers woven in silk.

The maids and servants all changed into brand new silk cotton jackets. The shopkeeper Fan Jian was very good at doing it. In the twelfth lunar month, everyone would pay three times the monthly money. Now the entire Xiao family's mansion was in full swing. In order to let the prime minister have a good New Year, everyone was busy.

The little emperor Tongzhi did not look like an emperor now. He took off his dragon robe and put on ordinary clothes. Under the protection of Ermao and several big guards, he played all day long, and firecrackers and fireworks were set off.

Xiao Letian seemed to be trying to make up for all the childlike fun that the little emperor had lost for ten years. He asked him to learn two hours of books every day, and the rest of his time was to play. As long as there was no danger, he would do whatever he wanted.

Moreover, Xiao Letian also strictly ordered everyone not to kneel down to worship the little emperor. He just wanted the emperor to land from the clouds to the world. Only a down-to-earth emperor could truly understand the emperor's mental skills taught to him by Xiao Letian.

Not only was the lively crowded people in the Xiao family, Tanggu City, which had lifted the threat of war, was also trapped in a sea of ​​joy. With Xiao Letian's efforts, the people who died and injured in Tanggu received generous pensions. The court actually compensated 200 taels of silver for one life, and even the injured were compensated to varying degrees.

This is rare in the entire Qing Dynasty. I have never heard of the Eight Banners soldiers who have to pay for killing Han people. Isn’t a single life worth a donkey? After the war, it is considered the court’s benevolence and righteousness to be able to compensate for some food.

The people of Tanggu were already rich under Xiao Letian's rule. In addition, the compensation from the court was soon in place, and the entire city quickly came out of the pain of the war, and people's faces were filled with laughter.

Fresh goods from all over the world began to go to Tanggu one after another, dried fruits and low-priced rice from South China, dried seafood and sugar transported from Ryukyu, including Western goods brought by countless foreign merchants, filled the entire market.

Not only that, many businessmen also came from Japan and North Korea. Although they didn’t have any good products, they brought countless women. Dozens of customs shops opened at the end of the year, which made lustful men have a good time.

Business prosperity drives the prosperity of all industries, but Xiao Letian actually did nothing. He just gave business people at home and abroad an opportunity to do business fairly. As a result, what rewarded Xiao Letian was a prosperous port city with a population of nearly 100,000.

The whole city is filled with cheering voices and the sound of firecrackers everywhere. If it is late at night, you will find that the fireworks will not stop after dark, and it will not be over until three in the morning.

This is Xiao Letian's special zone, which is Prime Minister Xiao's concession. The court can only symbolically send officials here. The man who is in charge of everything will always be the man standing on the ocean.

The French escort warships Rome and Lyra have been repaired. Now these two warships are the largest tonnage warships in Xiao Lotte's navy. Among them, Rome was the least damaged and the youngest, so it naturally became Xiao Lotte's flagship.

At this time, there was already floating ice on the sea outside Tanggu. A large amount of sea ice will appear in the Bohai Sea in winter. It is very dangerous to sail at this time, but Tanggu has now become the largest commercial port in the north. Even in winter, many merchant ships come here to trade.

Tanggu must not form a professional sea ice cleaning team, using explosives, iron pliers and other tools to break the ice surface every day to ensure the smooth flow of the waterway.

At this time, Xiao Letian was in the captain's room of the Rome, with warm braziers, exquisite dishes, precious Bordeaux wines... and a very angry face.

Sitting opposite Xiao Letian was Goldmi, the French minister in Dongjiaomin Lane. He dared to come to see Xiao Letian before the New Year, with the purpose of the French prisoners in his hands.

When Goldmi had just arrived in Tanggu, he heard that Xiao Letian was going to meet him on the Romans, and the curly hair of the French giant nose was almost standing up. How could the noble Frenchman accept such a shame?

Just when he was making noise and asking Xiao Letian to get off the ship, Xiao Letian on the deck made him completely lose his temper. "Either we have a secret talk on the Rome, or I invite the ministers of Britain, the United States and Russia to hold talks together. You can choose the two choices yourself."

Goldmi received the order to have a secret talk with Xiao Letian, sign a secret contract without disturbing the international community, and quickly resolve the issue of prisoners.

Now the foundation of Napoleon III's ruling power has been a little loose, and the international environment is not as friendly to France as in the first few years. Britain, which controlled the maritime power, has felt the threat from France. He now has signs of supporting Prussia to contain France.

Facing such a dilemma and encountering such failure in East Asia, Napoleon III was already in trouble with internal and external affairs, and the confidence of the bourgeoisie in the country had been shaken. How could an emperor who could not even defeat Ryukyu lead France to glory?

For the Emperor, the most important thing is to immediately reach a reconciliation with Xiao Letian, immediately calm the impact of this failed expedition, and first devote energy to the country and stabilize his ruling foundation.

Now Xiao Lotte has many bargaining chips in his hands, and the special envoy Molière is one, and the captain of the Lyra, Kraft, Captain Rome, and Molde are also locked in Xiao Lotte's cell.

Not only that, Xiao Letian also had more than 4,000 French soldiers and hundreds of grassroots officers, all of whom were his prisoners.

France cannot leave these soldiers behind. French people who have experienced the Great Revolution are naturally resistant to imperial power. If Napoleon III ignored the lives of more than 4,000 people, then it can be foreseen that serious demonstrations will occur in France.

Xiao Letian settled down on the weakness of Napoleon III, so that he could put pressure on Minister Goldmere at will. Negotiations on the Rome were just appetizers, and there were more conditions that the French could not bear.

"Prime Minister, as a master of Western learning, I think you should understand that negotiating on such a warship is an insult to us French. Are you not afraid that our French Emperor will send an expeditionary force in anger?"

This is not an impossible task. The United States has just ended its civil war and is in a recovery period. In history, Hawaii was not annexed by the United States until 1898. It is only 1866. Xiao Letian has 30 years to conduct a strategy, and everything is still in time.

"Dear Minister, the Tahiti Islands produce only some pearls, corals and tropical fruits. Apart from providing some supplies to the fleet, it is useless to France... It's just a piece of useless, don't let it go."

Note: Tanggu exploded yesterday, and Xinjing was very surprised. The explosion was only more than 40 kilometers away from Xinjing's home. Many people in the world heard the explosion. It was really scary.

There are unexpected changes in the sky, and people will suffer misfortunes every day. I never expected such a disaster. I hope the deceased will rest in peace, and I hope the country can dig deep into the responsible persons and give an explanation to the dead and the living.

The Qing Dynasty Hidden Dragon has set off a new chapter. You didn’t go to Xiao Letian to be the first to take Tahiti to take action. The Polynesian Islands are so beautiful that the scenery is so beautiful that it is so beautiful... It’s a pity that Xinjing has never been there before, so she can only drool in the photos.

Seizing a base in the South Pacific is a good choice even if it has no military value, leaving a vacation spot for China. Xiao Letian is about to start harming the world. Book friends, do you have any plans to harm?
Chapter completed!