Chapter 101 Chapter 101 Why did Cixi suddenly declare war on the Eight Kingdoms?

The Empress Dowager Cixi thought over and over again, and did not dare to make a rash decision. According to the usual practice, the Military Aircraft Department planned to issue an inquiry order to the governors of various places, and a copy of Yuxian's book was naturally attached to the order. When Li Hongzhang accepted Yuxian's excerpts, he already knew that Yuxian was using the Boxers to besiege churches and kill foreigners, so he couldn't help but turn pale with shock.While scolding Yuxian for harming the country, he urgently went to the court, saying that Yuxian was confused and should be dismissed for questioning, and then asked the court to recognize the situation and not be misled by fallacies, and should send officers and troops to suppress the Boxers.Li Hongzhang believed that militias should not be relied upon, as they would cause trouble and even harm the country.

Not long after Li Hongzhang's memorandum arrived in Beijing, the memorial jointly titled by Zhang Zhidong, Governor of Huguang, and Liu Kunyi, Governor of Liangjiang also flew to the Empress Dowager's desk. Zhang Zhidong and Liu Kunyi also disagreed with Yuxian's approach.Empress Dowager Cixi became more and more helpless. On June 10, Britain, France, Japan, Russia, Germany, Italy, the United States, and Austria formed a coalition force of more than 2,000 people after discussion. They elected Vice Admiral Seymour of the British Navy as the commander of the coalition forces. Five trains headed for Beijing, intending to use force to force the Qing government to take a stand.

When the news came out, the Boxers acted immediately. First, they demolished the railway to Beijing, and then organized a large number of troops, armed with spears and knives, to stop them along the way, forcing the Eight-Power Allied Forces to be blocked in the Langfang area. At this time, the armies of various countries assembled on the warships outside the Dagukou organized a new coalition force and suddenly attacked the Dagu Fort.The defenders of the fort rose up to fight. After a fierce battle, although the Boxers also sent troops to cooperate with the officers and soldiers, they chanted mantras and drank amulet water, but the fort still fell into the hands of the enemy in the end.

But the Tianjin Boxers immediately united with the local government troops to attack the local Zizhulin Concession, and the Langfang Boxers also began to unite with the local government troops to attack Seymour's coalition forces, causing Seymour to flee to Tianjin. The victory of the Boxers in Langfang made Xu Tong's eyes brighten up.Although it was very late when the news reached the capital, he still asked his servants to carry the lanterns, drove into the garden in a sedan chair, knelt down in front of the Empress Dowager and said, "Empress Dowager, what Yu Xian said is right! , should be aimed at consolidating the hearts of the people. The time to kill foreigners has come! The time to kill foreigners has really come!"

When the queen mother heard this, her spirits lifted quickly, and she couldn't help asking: "Could it be that the boxers are really the nemesis of foreigners?" Xu Tong said again and again: "The Boxers are invulnerable, the foreigners are really controlled by them!" The Queen Mother immediately shouted: "Send all the princes and ministers in Beijing to discuss matters in the garden! It seems that Li Hongzhang is really old! Zhang Zhidong and Liu Kunyi are also confused!" A group of princes and ministers rushed into the garden overnight, continuing the topics that were not discussed during the day.

Duanjun Wang Zaiyi, who replaced Prince Gong as the foreman of the prime minister's office, was the first to say: "I told the Queen Mother, I think Xu Zhongtang is right. I have been angry with foreigners for so many years in the Qing Dynasty, and it's time to end. I listen to people who inquire about the news." Speaking of which, the Boxers drank amulet water before the battle, and during the battle, they silently recited the formula of "swords and guns do not enter the mouth", which really made the guns of the foreigners lose their effectiveness. The Boxers are really the nemesis of the foreigners!"

Gang Yi, Minister of Military Aircraft, also said at this time: "Reporting to the Queen Mother, I have followed the Queen Mother's order to go to Zhuozhou and other places to investigate the reality of the Boxers. The Boxers really killed the foreigners as King Duan said! At this time, I am in Qing Dynasty. With the power of the Boxers, all the foreigners will be exterminated! All the foreigners will be driven out of the country!" After speaking resolutely, he was gearing up, as if he himself had become a member of the Boxers. That night, the Empress Dowager Cixi made the decision to declare war on the eight countries and attack the embassies of all countries in China, and executed Xu Yongyi, Xu Jingcheng, Yuan Xu and others who opposed the declaration of war.

The edict to declare war was drafted by Zhang Jinglian Wenchong, a military aircraft. The general idea is: I have established the Qing Dynasty for more than 200 years, and I have always treated all countries in a friendly manner.Especially after the Daoguang and Xianfeng years, various countries asked to do business and preach in our country, and our country agreed.Unexpectedly, foreigners can't fill their desires. In the past thirty years, they have repeatedly bullied our country, invaded our land, ravaged our people, and extorted our property.The imperial court accommodated a little, but they became more and more arrogant.The small ones oppress the common people, the big ones insult the sacred, which is truly tolerable and unbearable.The children of our country have deeply buried hatred, which is why churches were burned and people were massacred.Even under such circumstances, fearing that the people of our country would be harmed, the imperial court still did not want to start a quarrel. At the same time, it issued an order to protect the embassy and not to fight with the religious people.It can be said that the imperial court has done its utmost to the foreigners.But the foreigners were not only not grateful, but even threatened them even more. Yesterday they even sent a note ordering our army to withdraw from the Taku Fort and hand it over to them to take care of it, otherwise they will seize it by force.What a deception!Our country treats each other with courtesy when interacting with other countries.But the foreigners, relying on their own boats and guns, pressed each other repeatedly, and insisted on breaking with me.For thirty years, the emperor has regarded the people as his descendants, and the people have sincerely supported the emperor.The emperor told my ancestors today that instead of just trying to survive, I would like to lash out and fight foreigners!The emperor summoned his ministers and workers day after day to set a strategy for the battle.My Qing Dynasty is a vast country with more than 20 provinces and 400 million people. Everyone is brave and everyone dares to die.At this critical juncture, the imperial court will give rewards to those who share the same enemy, fight against the enemy, or donate money out of righteousness;

While the declaration of war was submitted to the embassies of various countries, it was also urgently sent to the provinces in the form of an imperial decree.Before Xu Yongyi's execution, he still asked the execution officer to send a message to the Queen Mother: "Don't rely on the militia group deeply, and don't lightly start external quarrels." Xu Jingcheng insisted until his death: "There is no case at home or abroad to attack and kill the envoys." Yuan Xu had only one reason for opposing the declaration of war: "Provocations cannot be started."

The Empress Dowager Cixi labeled all these people as rebellious officials and thieves who "played at will" and "talked too much", and killed them without mercy. Then, on the second day after issuing the edict of declaring war, she ordered Prince Zhuang Zaixun to co-organize the university. Gang Yi, Zai Lan, the right-wing commander, Yingnian, the left-wing commander, Duanjun Wang Zaiyi and others led the Shenji Battalion and all the Boxer regiments in the capital to besiege the embassies of various countries in China located in Dongjiaomin Lane.In order to wipe out the foreigners as soon as possible, Zaixun and others issued notices in various main roads in the capital, saying: those who kill a foreigner will be rewarded fifty taels of silver, those who kill a foreign woman will be rewarded forty taels of silver, and those who kill a foreign child will be rewarded with silver. Thirty two.

The whole capital went crazy!First, Klind, the German minister to China, was killed on his way to the Zongli Yamen, and then a member of the embassy of many countries died unexpectedly.The news spread to Germany, and the German government sent Field Marshal Waldsee overnight to China to find the Qing Dynasty desperately. The Qing Dynasty's declaration of war shocked the world, and the Qing Dynasty's order to besiege the embassy also shocked all countries. At the same time, it also stunned Li Hongzhang. Li Hongzhang fainted before the edict was read by the edict. After waking up, the first thing he said was: "Which bastard gave this idea to the higher-ups? I am a little Japan can't resist it, and even wants to declare war on the eight countries. This is going to kill itself!" The announcement of the declaration of war made Xu Tong, a scholar of Tiren Pavilion, very happy.Xu Tong stroked his beard and said to a group of ministers: "I finally saw this day in my lifetime! I am blessed!" While the Empress Dowager Cixi declared war on the eight countries, she also strictly ordered governors from all over the country to cooperate with the local boxers to vigorously encircle and suppress the foreigners in the territory and exterminate them! On the day Yuxian, governor of Shandong Province, received the decree, he ordered the Fubiao Army to cooperate with the Boxers to besiege the church and kill dozens of missionaries. The foreigners began to go crazy. After the Eight-Nation Allied Forces captured Tianjin City, all countries urgently sent additional troops from their respective countries, and soon assembled more than 20,000 troops to form another coalition army. With Wadexi as the commander, they advanced along both sides of the canal to Beijing. , vowed to destroy the capital of the Qing Dynasty.The Empress Dowager Cixi was a little scared, and urgently ordered Yuxian to return to Beijing to serve, and sent Yuan Shikai to go to Shandong to act as governor. However, the governors of the southern provinces did not act immediately. They called Li Hongzhang, the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi, a scholar of the Wenhuadian University, and asked for policies. Yuan Shikai, the acting governor of Shandong, and others also sent a special person to Guangzhou, hoping that Li Hongzhang could come up with an idea as soon as possible, whether to obey the order or not. Li Hongzhang ordered the Telegraph Bureau to send a report to the governors, saying: "If you want to subjugate the country, you will follow the decree. If you don't want to subjugate the country, send troops to protect the church to ensure the safety of the lives and properties of foreigners in China." Not long after, the United Kingdom was afraid that the Boxer Movement would endanger the country's interests in the Yangtze River Basin, and secretly instructed its Consul General in Shanghai, Huo Bilan, to instigate Sheng Xuanhuai, the minister who supervised the Luhan Railway, to get in touch with Liu Kunyi, the governor of Liangjiang, and Zhang Zhidong, the governor of Huguang. Shanghai Dao Yu Lianyuan came forward and reached an understanding with the consuls of various countries stationed in Shanghai to formulate the "Contract for the Protection of the Southeast" and the "Regulations for the Protection of the Inside and Outside of Shanghai City".Known as "Southeast Mutual Insurance" in history. As the news spread, not only Guangdong and Guangxi participated in mutual insurance, but Shandong, Zhejiang, and Fujian also joined in.Li Hongzhang sent a letter to the consulates of various countries in Guangzhou on the day he participated in the mutual guarantee, saying: "The declaration of war is purely due to the court being fooled by others. The Qing Dynasty is not really an enemy of all countries. It is a misunderstanding." Stay behind. As a result, Li Hongzhang once again said that the declaration of war had only been issued for five days, and the Empress Dowager Cixi issued an emergency decree to retract the order, announcing that the siege of embassies of various countries should be stopped, and that the officers and soldiers should cooperate with foreigners to suppress the Boxers. The governor and envoys abroad issued an edict saying. On the same day, Empress Dowager Cixi urgently issued the "Edict of Guilt" to the provinces in the name of Emperor Guangxu. The full text of the Edict of Guilt is as follows: "Our dynasty has been built with loyalty for more than two hundred years. It is thick and benevolent. In Yujiayu, each has a respectful monarch, and he will serve him to death. The righteousness is not to be seconded. It is the righteousness to calm the chaos, and the sea is safe. It is all thanks to the column. Ancestors and Liezong Wen Mo Wulie, stepping forward to the ancient times, also tired of the dynasty's relatives and sages, supplemented with energy, and the macro economy was difficult. After Daoguang and Xianfeng, foreign troubles gradually arose. Lai Miaomo mo lucked, and the pawns were able to turn the crisis into safety. I Inheriting the Great Order at a young age, admiring the teachings of the Queen Mother, respecting the family law of the ancestors, being respectful, thrifty and benevolent, all the great officials did not dare to pretend to be a little bit, and the subjects of Bohai have seen and heard it all, and it does not mean that it is a recent quarrel Qi, the disharmony between the group and the church, and the sudden change of haste, it was shocking. The Nine Temples' benevolent fathers spread out, voluntarily despised, and they were guilty. However, the bandits of the disasters and chaos, Yi Chaoxi, made the ministers and workers have the enthusiasm of the public and the country, There is no habit of stealing peace. Once it is corrupted, there will be unscrupulous civil and military officials, ministers and workers, both Chinese and foreign. Just think of those who receive favors in ordinary times, how can they be loyal to themselves! An sees the country in danger today. If this is the case, what will he think? It is my fault to know people but not to know them. How can the poor people suffer from this? How can I blame them? I am the master of the world, and I cannot defend the people. To die for the country is nothing to regret! Respect the Holy Mother, the age is already high, how dare you lose your filial piety! Therefore, I respect Luanyu and make a temporary tour of Taiyuan. Fortunately, since I became Taoist, Cigong is safe and healthy, and I can still be the world Consolation to the subjects! From now on, our monarchs and ministers are duty-bound to mediate the crisis situation. The ministries, halls, and officials are dispatched in shifts to sort them out. It is better for the governors of the provinces to rectify the border defense and strengthen the border. According to reports by Liu Kunyi, Zhang Zhidong, etc., businesses along the coast, along the river, and at various ports should be protected as usual, and should be implemented according to the proposal today, so as to show great confidence. The people in each province are different, and if there is no mob gathering to cause chaos, it belongs to the imperial court. Chizi, local officials should still take care of one another and not be discriminated against. The most important thing is to set up officials in the country, each with their own duties, no matter how big or small, both civil and military are suitable outside Beijing. Don't rely on empty words. Be meticulous in all employment, administration, salary raising, and military training, and treat state affairs as family affairs. Don't delay the public if you don't care about it. Although I am not virtuous, I am not far away, but if I repent of the heart of heaven, disaster can be expected! I will inform you of this. I respect this. I would like to transfer it."