Chapter 118 2. Before dying, Jing Zhu persuaded Yang Du to read Buddhist scriptures

Yang Du and Xia Shoutian studied Lao Zhuang's theory every day.Laozi's and Zhuangzi's "Nanhuajing", they have read them many times when they were in school, and now they read these two unprecedented masterpieces when they have experienced setbacks in their careers and achievements in the world, and they are even more emotional.In particular, the thirty-three chapters of the "Nanhua Jing" have profound and strange meanings, and the writing is unrestrained. Reading can not only broaden one's mind, but also make one feel a kind of enjoyment of beauty from time to time.

During this period, Zhang Xun's shogunate in Xuzhou often received letters, discussing the issue of the monarchy with Yang Du, and asked him to write articles about the monarchy.Yang Du thought that Zhang Xun was both powerful and sovereign, and that he might become a leader who would revolutionize Chinese politics in the future, and his already calm heart began to agitate again.He sent many letters to Zhang Xun's shogunate, talking about constitutional government and his views on state affairs, and sometimes asked his friend Fang Biao from the Chou An meeting to go to Xuzhou to attend some meetings on his behalf.

As early as shortly after Yuan Shikai's death, Zhang Xun took advantage of various conditions and opportunities to hold an alliance meeting in Xuzhou with the participation of thirteen provincial military and political leaders, and Zhang was promoted as the leader of the alliance.This Xuzhou alliance has become the third political force besides the central government and the Southwest Military Academy.Zhang Xun's braided image has long aroused Kang Youwei's interest.In the past few years, Kang Youwei edited the magazine "Unbearable" in Shanghai, continued to advocate his royalist theory, and served as the president of the Confucian Church.Kang Meng longed for Pu Yi's restoration, so he pinned his hopes on Zhuang Shuai.Kang and Zhang hit it off.Zhang called Kang a sage of literature, and Kang called Zhang a sage of martial arts. They agreed to restore the Qing Dynasty as their common cause of saints.After a long period of preparation, a good opportunity finally made them wait.

The conflict between Li Yuanhong and Duan Qirui became more and more intensified. With the support of the Congress, Li finally removed Duan from the position of Prime Minister.Duan didn't buy it, and sent telegrams to all parties, claiming that the dismissal order cannot take effect without his countersignature, and he cannot be responsible for all the consequences arising therefrom. A few days later, Ni Sichong, the governor of Anhui, was the first to call to announce his separation from the Central Committee.Immediately afterwards Fengdu Zhang Zuolin, Ludu Zhang Huaizhi, Fujian Governor Li Houji, Henan Governor Zhao Diao, Zhejiang Governor Yang Shande, Shaanxi Governor Chen Shufan, and Zhidu Cao Kun successively declared independence.Zhang Xun took this opportunity to call Li Yuanhong to resign in the name of the Thirteen Provinces Federation.

Li Yuanhong was in trouble, so he asked Xu Shichang to go to Beijing to mediate.Xu proposed that the National Assembly must be dissolved first, otherwise it cannot proceed.Li also asked Liang Qichao for help, and Liang replied with "retire to the beach and die temporarily".The speaker of the House of Representatives, Tang Hualong, resigned, and many members did not attend the meeting. The Congress has become paralyzed.Therefore, the newly appointed Prime Minister Li Jingxi did not dare to take office.Li Yuanhong was helpless.At this time, Zhang Xun entrusted someone to send a message to Li, saying that as long as he is invited to Beijing, all problems can be solved.Li Sui invited Zhang to Beijing.

Zhang Xun's purpose is not mediation but restoration.After ordering Li to dissolve the National Assembly, Zhang led an army of five thousand braids into Beijing.A few days later, Wen Shengkang Youwei entered the capital with a large stack of ancient imperial edicts that had been drafted for Pu Yi, and lived in Zhang Xun's private house. After Zhang Xun entered Beijing, he sent a telegram to invite Yang Du to Beijing.Yang Du heard that Kang Youwei was one of the masterminds of this operation.Kang is a diehard who wants to be loyal to the Aixinjueluo family, and it is not completely consistent with Yang Du's constitutional monarchy.After discussing with Xia Shoutian, Yang Du and Xia Shoutian decided not to go to Beijing for the time being, but to observe the political changes in Beijing in Tianjin.

On the third day after Kang Youwei entered Beijing, the city of Beijing was suddenly filled with dragon flags overnight.The common people were all surprised and uneasy: Why is the national flag of the Qing Dynasty, which has not been seen for five or six years, hanging out again? Could it be that the emperor is going to sit in the Dragon Court again? Exactly so.In the early morning of July 1st, surrounded by civil servants and generals including Zhang Xun and Kang Youwei, 12-year-old Puyi ascended the throne again as emperor and announced the official restoration.At the same time, a series of restoration edicts were promulgated one after another: the state system was changed to a constitutional monarchy, and the name of the country was changed to the Qing Empire.The Western calendar was abolished, and the summer calendar was adopted as Zhengshuo, and July 1st of the sixth year of the Republic of China was changed to May 13th of the ninth year of Xuantong.The new criminal law was abolished and the old criminal law promulgated in the first year of Xuantong was restored.

The new cabinet was also announced.Zhang Xun was the Chief of Political Affairs and Minister of State Affairs, Zhang Zhenfang, the backbone of the Hongxian imperial system, was the Minister of Duzhi, and Lei Zhenchun was the Minister of Army.Then the governors and admirals of the provinces were appointed, Xu Shichang and Kang Youwei were appointed as the principals and vice presidents of Bute Academy, Qu Hongji and Shengyun were awarded bachelors, Zhang Xun was named Prince Zhongyong, and Li Yuanhong, Feng Guozhang, and Lu Rongting were named first-class princes.All the etiquette of the Qing Dynasty will be restored.

Li Yuanhong originally thought that Zhang Xun was helping him to reconcile the political situation, but he did not expect that Braid Shuai had such a trick. He wrote an order to appoint Duan Qirui as the Prime Minister, and ordered Duan to raise troops to fight for rebellion, and sent his secretary to Duan in Tianjin. .After an emergency meeting was held in the presidential palace, Li disguised himself and hid in the Japanese legation.Duan Qirui and Liang Qichao came to the horse factory in the southern suburbs of Tianjin overnight to hold an emergency military meeting, and decided to set up the General Command of the Rebellion Army, with Duan Zi as the commander-in-chief and Liang et al.

This change in Beijing not only failed to get the support of Yang Du, but on the contrary, this talented man who had studied constitutionalism for more than ten years and repeatedly claimed to be loyal to the constitutional belief suddenly woke up.The constitutional trick Zhang Xun played was nothing more than using the name of an emperor to obtain the legal right to rule the world for himself.He satisfies the desires of those wealthy people with various official positions, large and small, all over the place.As for the abolition of the Gregorian calendar, all adopting the old rituals and employing a large number of old people who look like walking corpses completely exposed the ignorance of Zhang Xun and others who went against the trend of the times.This is not in line with the constitution of the emperor, this is simply a farce, a great retrogression of history, and a big exposure of careerists who are trying to sell dog meat.Failure is unquestionable.

This is the third time that the constitution of the former Qing Dynasty was ruined due to the extreme narrowness and selfishness of the Manchus, and the constitution of Hong Xian was destroyed because of Yuan Shikai's mistakes in employing people.The constitutional monarchy has achieved outstanding achievements in Britain, Germany, and the Netherlands, and even won incomparable brilliance in Japan, but it has failed three times in China. Recalling the history of three failures, Yang Du was completely disappointed in China's constitution.Because of Zhang Xun's special relationship with himself during this period, he was worried that with the failure of the coup, people would point the finger at him again, suspecting that he was planning behind the scenes, and he should publicly express his attitude when they were at their worst. Yang Du sent a telegram to Li Yuanhong, Li Jingxi, Feng Guozhang, Lu Rongting, governors and governors of various provinces, as well as Zhang Xun and Kang Youwei, pointing out that changing the monarchy constitution from a republic is equivalent to going against the current, and it is necessary to evolve the spirit of innovation in the form of innovation. The sympathy and admiration of the Chinese and foreign people make the whole world know that this change is for the security of a country, not for the honor of a surname.But this incident is completely contrary to the reform and evolution, and I must not agree with it.Finally, he announced to the world with a very sad heart: He also sent this telegram to Sun Yat-sen, Cen Chunxuan, Tang Shaoyi, Zhang Shizhao, etc., the leaders of the recently established French military government in Guangdong, expressing to the revolutionaries his complete break with the old forces. As Yang Du expected, Zhang Xun and his braided army were no match for Duan Qirui and the rebellious army.The two sides fought only twice, and the former was completely defeated by the latter.The Boyi puppet dynasty survived for only twelve days in Chinese history.On July 12th, the dragon flag in Beijing City gave way to the five-color flag again. Although the Republic once again defeated the imperial system, China's political arena was not at all stable.Revolving around a series of personnel issues such as Li Yuanhong's president, Duan Qirui's prime minister, Cheng Biguang's navy chief, Wu Tingfang's foreign minister and other personnel issues, the usual political strife broke out again.The political situation in China is a headache for the 400 million people in China, and it is also incomprehensible to the people of civilized countries in the world.Yang Du went from extreme sadness to complete despair, and at this time Jing Zhu's condition was deteriorating day by day, which made him sleepless. For more than a year, Jingzhu's condition worsened day by day due to her depression.After the death of the old man Xiangqi, Yang Du began to study Laozhuang, and his mood became more peaceful, and he cared more about Jingzhu.Jing Zhu felt a lot of comfort in her heart.But in the end, due to the serious condition of the disease, the medicine could not help, and she was completely bedridden for a month.When she woke up again after being in a coma for several times, she reviewed the joys and sorrows between her and Xizi over the past twenty years, analyzed Xizi's talent and character, and thought about choosing a suitable path for Xizi in the years to come. Jingzhu loves Xizi so much, she loves her deeply, and she loves her forever.Although Xizi added an unhappy episode to their love life, even though she once lamented that the holy flower of love had withered, and even thought of ending it with death.But now facing the approach of death, Jingzhu is extremely attached to life, cherishes the love in the world, until he forgives Xizi's mistakes, and hopes that he will no longer suffer setbacks and detours in the rest of his life, and will be smooth and happy. After thinking about it for a long time, in a silent night, she held Baizi with her withered hands for a long time, stared at Baizi with her eyes that were sunken for a long time, and said to her weakly, "I have already I can't do it anymore, I have to leave you, Yimei and the children, the old lady, wife and uncle, I really don't want to leave!" As she spoke, tears rolled out of Jingzhu's eyes like springs. Yang Du held her hands desperately, and said with tears: "Jingzhu, don't think so, you won't leave us, you are not yet forty years old, the days ahead will be long!" "Xizi." Jing Zhu stopped her tears and said softly, "I'm not old, so I should have stayed with you. But I know that the vitality in my body has been exhausted, and I can't live for a few more days. I I have talked to Yimei many times, and told her to take good care of you after I leave. Of course, these words are superfluous, and Yizhu's love for you is no less than mine." Yang Du nodded. "However," Jingzhu paused for a moment, then said again, "I know Yimei, she will take good care of you in life, but she is not considerate enough for your concerns. Because she is careless , I always do more and think less.” Truly a confidant in times of need, Jingzhu has a deep understanding of Yizhu's strengths and weaknesses.Seeing that Jing Zhu was struggling to speak, Yang Du poured her a glass of warm water.Jing Zhu took a sip, and said slowly: "For more than a year, you have been in great pain in your heart. I didn't talk to you properly due to illness, and now I feel very sad when I think about it." Yang Du recalled that year when he was transferred from Junxian to Republic, he felt so conflicted in his heart, it was because of Jingzhu's soft and soft words that he regained his courage and strength.After calm reflection, Yang Du knew in his heart that Jingzhu's indifference this year was not due to her illness, but because he had fallen too deep in his mistakes. With a sincere apology, he said to the woman he really loved in his life: "Jingzhu, I am sorry for you. That year in Tanzhe Temple, I made an oath to the Bodhisattva, and I will be a great man who will do great things in this life. Man. But more than twenty years have passed, because I believe in a set of ideas that do not work in China, I wasted my efforts and wasted my time. In the end, it is not beneficial to the country, and I have achieved nothing. What makes me sad is that, I didn't let you see my vows come true, bring you comfort, bring you happiness..." Yang Du's voice hardened, and he could hardly continue.He thought of Jing Zhu and Yi Zhu who lived alone in Xishan and waited for him for five years. He remembered that in the past ten years, she had been ill and had been in the political arena without giving her any glory.Yang Du said sadly: "Jing Zhu, you have suffered so much for me for the past twenty years..." Jingzhu, whose life was dying, felt a huge warmth. She couldn't bear this sudden joy, she just felt a burst of unbearable dizziness, and opened her eyes after a few seconds. But still the beautiful Danfeng eyes burst out.This sentence is enough to comfort the pain of the past twenty years.With a kind heart, she blamed herself for Qian Xiang's indifference. "Xizi, don't say that. Besides, I haven't suffered much. Even if I suffer, I am willing to do it for you. I know you have been suffering from the failure of your own beliefs. In fact, there is no need for it." Jing Zhu said again After taking a sip of water, he continued to speak slowly, "We women don't quite understand men's political beliefs, but I sometimes think that there may be no difference between right and wrong. In those years, Yimei and I were in Xishan Embroidery. For a period of time, we embroidered red, purple, rich and auspicious patterns. We thought they would sell well, but few people bought them. So we changed to embroidering elegant patterns such as landscapes, orchids, and more people bought them. After two months, it didn’t work again, and the scarlet pattern embroidered before became popular again. It seems that it’s not the pattern itself, but the timing. The political beliefs of men are probably similar, and it’s okay when the timing is different. It doesn't work at the right time. Xizi, what do you think?" Jingzhu compares embroidery and governing the country together, and looks at men's careers from the perspective of women, which makes sense.All affairs in the world, no matter how big or small, have the same principles, so Lao Tzu said that governing a big country is like cooking a small fish.As long as you are endowed with intelligence and diligent in thinking, you can realize great truths from small things.What a smart woman, it's a pity that her life is as thin as paper! Yang Du stroked Jing Zhu's cold hand and said, "You're right. I've read Lao Zhuang's books recently, and my mind has opened up a lot, and I've figured it out. As you said, it doesn't matter if it's red or purple, or it's light and elegant. Well, whether it’s a constitutional monarchy or a democratic republic, it doesn’t matter whether it’s good-looking or not. Seeing through this, I will never do that again.” "I know that you are following the teachings of Master Xiangqi, and are supplementing the knowledge of Lao Zhuang. After Sister Shuji came to Beijing, she also taught me to read Lao Zhuang, but I don't quite understand it. It's the sincerity of Princess Miaoyan that you talked about in the early years. The story of worshiping the Buddha left a deep impression on me. For many years, I always thought, Princess Miaoyan is a golden branch and jade leaf, she can get whatever she wants, why does she go to pray to Bodhisattvas and read Buddhist scriptures? Later, I asked some Buddhist practitioners for advice. People, they say that when they read Buddhist scriptures and worship Bodhisattvas, they can forget the troubles in the world. I think that although Princess Miaoyan is a descendant of a dragon, she must have troubles in her heart like us ordinary people, so she will go to worship Buddha; My heart is at peace, so I can go on for decades. So when I was troubled, I kept reciting Buddha like Princess Miaoyan, and my heart was quieter. Especially in the future, I will wear the mask given to you by the master of Miyin Temple. String the rosary, and when you recite Amitabha Buddha again, your heart will feel as calm as water." "Ah, it's so good?" Yang Du said with a little surprise.He suddenly thought of many past events: Miyin Temple, Fayuan Temple, Zongchi Temple, Jichan, Zhifan, Daojie, and Jingwu in the Mercy Nunnery.Once, he proudly took out the string of Songhua jade rosary beads that he had treasured for many years, and told Jingzhu and Yizhu the story of Elder Jue Huan's gift of beads.Jing Zhu said happily, give me this string of beads!So the Songhua jade rosary came into Jingzhu's hands.She thought she was just using it for fun, but she didn't know that she really used it to participate in the Buddha, and it actually worked! "Xizi, I advise you to study Buddhist scriptures in the future, it will definitely relieve your worries." Yang Du suddenly remembered a sentence Elder Jue Huan said that year.At that time, Elder Jue Huan said this: Buddhism and the royal family seem to be separated by heaven and earth, but in fact they are only a step away.Laymen are young, take advantage of the ignorant years to go out and do it boldly. If you are tired of doing the work of kings and bullies, then you can sit on the cattail mat in the Buddhist hall and breathe, maybe you can see more clearly in the world.When he first heard this, Yang Du was astonished. Looking back now, this illusion seemed to be a foresight. will be tired.Now, if you are really tired from the karma of kingship, why not sit on a cattail mat in the Buddha Hall and see the royal family from the perspective of Buddhism?Yang Du nodded and said, "Okay, I'll listen to you." A gratified smile appeared on Jing Zhu's face that she hadn't seen for a long time.After talking for so long, she was too tired. She closed her eyes and rested for a while. Finally, she mustered up the greatest courage, looked at her sweetheart who looked tired and had gray hair on her temples, and said, "Xizi, there is one thing I have never dared to say." Say, I'm afraid you'll be sad. Now that it's come to this point, I have to say it." "What words?" A shadow covered Yang Du's heart. "Xizi, after I die, please dissolve me according to the Buddhist rules, put the ashes in a pottery jar, don't need any mourning ceremony, just put the silk fan and Tanzhe inscription on Jiangting's inscription. Put the worship bricks in the corner of the temple into the earthen jar, and with the silk fan and the worship bricks to accompany me, my soul will be safe. In the future, if it is convenient, I will be buried next to my parents. Their graves are in Changzhou, Suzhou Outside the door..." Jing Zhu couldn't go on talking anymore, tears were streaming down her face, she simply closed her eyes.The more Yang Du listened, the more his heart trembled, and he finally cried bitterly while hugging Jingzhu's thin body.