Chapter 14 The Fourteenth Round of Yuan Shikai

The train gradually moved southward, and after an unknown amount of time, Tianjin, known as the largest commercial port in North China, was gradually visible.At first, I saw only a very vague outline, and then I saw the taller buildings, so the people in the car, from the Queen Mother down, knew that Tianjin was coming soon!At this time, the drizzle that had just fallen had stopped, the sky was a lovely blue, and the sun was hanging high in the sky like a golden gong, emitting gentle and beautiful light, as if God also wanted to To please the Empress Dowager, I knew that Yi would receive a grand welcome ceremony in Tianjin, so I specially stopped the rain and let out bright sunshine to embellish this lucky victory and make it particularly memorable .Just like the author himself, for the situation he experienced at that time, it can be said that he is still "pretty much in front of his eyes" and will recall it anytime and anywhere.

Tianjin Station used to be a very lively place, although martial law had been proclaimed at that time, there is no doubt that there are no more idle people going around; but our imperial train still disdains to easily enter such a chaotic and noisy place Then, at a place about half a kilometer away from the station, a platform was temporarily built beside the track. ——A platform built entirely of cement.At that time, cement was rarely used in Chinese buildings, so everyone regarded it as very valuable. ——Because the other platforms have been trampled by ordinary commoners, how could the empress dowager be willing to step on such a humble place, so let it go!This doesn't work either!If the Empress Dowager wanted to get off the bus, who would stick her head over to Yiqiu without a platform?Under such circumstances, the imperial platform was built in just a few days.It has two effects: (1) It is isolated from Tianjin Station, and (2) it prevents the empress dowager's jade toe from being touched by the soil that ordinary people have trampled on.Needless to say, the person who came up with this plan must be a very smart character!Readers, try to guess, who is this clever character?Speaking of this man's name, I don't think there will be anyone who doesn't know him?It turns out that this person is none other than Mr. Xiangcheng Yuan Shikai who will forever occupy a very important page in Chinese history!At that time, he was the governor of Zhili Province.Before the Empress Dowager set off from Beijing to go south, he had already decided to hold a grand reception ceremony and a big plan to build a new platform.

The length of this platform is very long, although it cannot accommodate the entire line of imperial trains, it is enough for ten cars.On top of it is a bamboo canopy covered with reed mats, covered with countless dragon flags and other banners, without colorful stripes, green pines and cypresses, and various palace lanterns. The embellishment is really beautiful and moving.Of course, the ground is covered with yellow sand like gold.And on the land in the center, there is another apricot-yellow blanket, which is the place where the Empress Dowager will stop after getting off the car.However, although they designed it like this, no one dared to say whether the Queen Mother really wanted to get off the car when she arrived in Tianjin; just like Yuan Shikai, a minister with power at home and abroad, did not dare to say, "The Queen Mother must get off the car here." .

The platform is newly built, with yellow sand on the ground and a brightly lit reed canopy on the top, which is naturally very luxurious!We poked our heads out of the train window from a long distance to look around, everyone thought it was very pleasing to the eye, and couldn't help rushing to watch; at that time, our train was gradually coming to a stop.At that time, our driver was working with all his energy, because he had received Qingshan's order to make the Queen Mother's car lean against the center of the platform, so that when the Queen Mother got off the car, he could do it. On that apricot blanket.

On this day, all the important officials in Tianjin and around Tianjin, no matter whether they are literary or military, all came here very early to wait for their driving. When we got there, they had a long, long line.The eyes are full of red, red, green and green colors, so dazzling that people can hardly keep their eyes open.As soon as they arrived, they knelt silently on the outward edge of the platform.Kneeling ahead of these people, and prostrate alone, is Yuan Shikai himself! The train rolled in front of them very slowly, and finally came to a complete stop.I usually like to watch the excitement very much, but when I see these clay-carved and wood-like officials, I can't help but feel a little uncomfortable.Especially their airs, it can be said that none of them is disgusting: the head is lowered over the chest, the eyes are fixed on the ground, it seems that they don't even dare to catch their breath. An act of sincerity.But their clothes are always a beautiful bunch.Most of them have feathers made of peacock feathers on their caps; peacock feathers are beautiful, and they have a kind of brilliance in themselves. In addition, the sun was shining at that time, and it was shining through from the outside of the reed canopy. , all the peacock feathers were illuminated, as if they had been transformed into gold leaves, which almost made me suspect that these characters may be the characters painted in various old Chinese novels and other story paintings hanging everywhere. , Repeatedly came back to life, and specially came to pay tribute to our empress dowager.

Although such an elaborate arrangement has been neatly revealed in front of the Empress Dowager, it is still unknown whether the Empress Dowager is satisfied with it in her heart!I think Yi must be very clear about the true meaning of these officials who came to pick him up this time.Because Yi also knows that the officials in this area of ​​Tianjin are by no means better than those in other places; they usually spend money or take advantage of other relationships, such as kinship, nepotism, etc. of.They have neither knowledge nor talent, and they have nothing to gain from the country and the people.But they have a very flattering mind, so they also regard the matter of being picked up by the queen mother as an indispensable means to preserve their jobs and consolidate their status; Opportunity, the extravagant hope of getting a few unexpected benefits.In short, among them, almost none of them came here sincerely to greet the Queen Mother!They all hold a strong selfishness and have hidden plans, even Yuan Shikai himself is no exception!

As soon as I saw Yuan Shikai, I couldn't help feeling a strange feeling, which made my brain immediately stop in a state of contemplation, and stared at him blankly. ——This role is the first president of the Republic of China after the success of the Revolution of 1911.At that time, he usually kneeled respectfully and respectfully on the Tianjin platform to welcome the Queen Mother; who would have thought that he would do such a thing in the future?To be honest, he never dreamed of it himself! —I watched him as if I were looking at a monster who had been famous for a long time and had never seen it; and I was thinking about all kinds of events in the past, that is, all kinds of events that made him famous.

If it is strictly investigated, the Sino-Japanese War in the Sino-Japanese War in the Sino-Japanese War in the First Sino-Japanese War was a shameful and humiliating defeat that caused China to surrender the entire Koryo to Japan. Yuan Shikai can indeed be directly listed as one of the chief culprits.The fact is this: he was originally an extremely irritable character, and especially liked to show off his authority. He wished he could kill many dissatisfied people with a wave of his hand.Unfortunately, the imperial court did not understand his character. When urgent changes occurred in Koryo, both China and Japan showed a state of tension, but the imperial court still wanted to try to eliminate the war; therefore, they sent Yuan Shikai Going to Goryeo to mediate means that I hope that he will be a tactful diplomat, use some dexterity to negotiate with the Japanese, and temporarily seek compromises on various difficult issues.Of course, there is also a hint that China has no intention of fighting for the time being.Unexpectedly, after Yuan Shikai arrived in Koryo, he was so selfish and distracted that he greatly offended the Japanese side. At the right time, the Japanese were no different from a young tiger who just came out of the mountains, and they really wanted to find an opportunity to try themselves. In this way, an ultimatum was issued immediately, and war was officially launched against China, so China's history of national humiliation was also revealed at the same time!What is even more ridiculous is that the result of this incident was so bad, but Yuan Shikai himself became famous upside down.

In addition to this incident, Yuan Shikai has another masterpiece in his life, which can also be regarded as his famous work.This matter has little to do with China as a whole, but it does have a lot to do with the Qing government.If someone puts it on the stage, it will be a song, cry, lament, and hateful tragedy.To describe this incident, I will first discuss Yuan Shikai's character in detail.His usual behavior is always extremely haughty, strutting like no one else around.Because of his simplicity, people often mistake him for a very upright minister; the poor Guangxu suffered a lot from him during the coup of 1898 because he couldn't really know him, so that he was banned. Trapped into a political prisoner-style false emperor.Yuan Shikai himself did not shy away from this matter, and he seemed to enjoy talking about it, so outsiders soon learned the truth.It turned out that after the Empress Dowager returned the power to Guangxu and retired to the Summer Palace, Guangxu made up his mind and planned to use all his strength to implement his New Deal.Because he was eager to achieve this goal, he specially transferred Yuan Shikai back from other positions and taught him to lead an army horse to garrison around the Summer Palace in the name of escort. Yi will no longer come out of nothing to obstruct the implementation of the pro-government, and this is only temporary. According to Guangxu's plan, as long as the implementation of the new policy has achieved considerable results, he will immediately withdraw the army and horses.Unexpectedly, Yuan Shikai, a conspiratorial character, changed his mind immediately. He himself had no likes or dislikes towards Guangxu or the Empress Dowager; What remonstrance, or what feeling of pity happened.He just thinks of himself.So when Guangxu informed him of this secret edict, his brain nerves were already active for his own interests.He felt that if he really followed Guangxu's words, although he would have considerable benefits, such benefits must be very limited; so he thought the other way around, if he didn't listen to Guangxu's words, he would instead Report this secret decree to the Empress Dowager, and a different result will happen!Since he put his own interests at the center, of course he implemented the second strategy, taking advantage of Guangxu's order to teach him to encircle the garden, and quietly went to meet the Queen Mother.He pretended to be extremely loyal, saying that he was following Guangxu's secret order to assassinate the Queen Mother, but he asked himself and felt that he couldn't bear it, so he did not hesitate to go against Guangxu's will and instead came to inform.Although his words were so hollow and unsubstantiated, the Empress Dowager actually trusted him completely.So that night, he led the army he brought, surrounded the queen mother, and entered Guangxu's bedroom with a lightning-fast method.The Empress Dowager was in a rage at this time, and regardless of her dignity, she actually taught someone to drag Guangxu up from the bed, without even asking a word, and immediately forced him to sign the imperial edict to return the power to the Empress Dowager.As a result of this life-and-death struggle, the empress dowager is still in power and has regained her former prestige; but Guangxu is in great trouble!From then on, the Empress Dowager swore that she would never forgive him, and would ignore whatever he said. Of course, Guangxu must have bitter hatred for Yuan Shikai's defection this time, but it is a pity that he never avenged him!When he followed the empress dowager on the yellow train to Tianjin, the life of the political prisoner Yuan Shikai rewarded him had already passed six or seven years. ——Actually, until his death, he never regained his freedom.

Now, let's see!This prisoner-like Emperor Guangxu has already passed in front of his enemy!Although he took one of the cars, but when he arrived at the station, since so many officials came to pick him up, how could he hide alone?He must solemnly stand behind the queen mother and accept the worship of these people.I remember that in the past, when Guangxu and I were talking casually when the Queen Mother was out of sight, I often heard him talk about his own feelings about the 1898 coup: every time, he would always gnash his teeth and scold Yuan Shikai who fabricated lies and framed him.So I have long been extremely excited, intending to see his expression after meeting Yuan Shikai face to face.

The car came to a complete stop.The door of the queen mother's car was parked properly in front of the yellow blanket; probably because of Yuan Shikai's face, the queen mother got out of the car unexpectedly, which was awe-inspiring. Accept the visit of Yuan Shikai and the officials he led.Didn't I just say that Yuan Shikai's kneeling status is a bit higher than others, so he has almost kowtowed at the Empress Dowager's feet.He kowtowed very respectfully, and according to his habit, he usually kowtowed to Guangxu. In fact, Guangxu was standing behind the empress dowager, standing very straight, with a majesty that was not easy to see in the past; but the blood on his face , It was already a little invisible, as white as the face of a dead man, and the lips turned from white to gray, from gray to black, becoming more terrifying than anything else.A pair of eyes were covered with bloodshot red veins, as if fire was about to be spewed out.I can say that I have never seen such an angry and painful expression on anyone's face. If you ask a doctor to test the beat rate of his heart, there will be amazing records and discoveries.I think if Guangxu at that time still had the slightest bit of real power, he would have cut off the head of this famous politician at any sacrifice!And on this piece of yellow sand that has just been paved, there will also be some precious blood stained.Except for his angry expression, Guangxu never said a word, never moved his hands or feet. He was obviously very contemptuous of this treacherous minister who betrayed his freedom: his excessive indifference He told people very clearly that although his only enemy, Yuan Shikai, was kneeling before him, he just pretended not to see it. Yuan Shikai also saw the expression on Guangxu's face, but he knew that this poor character would never do anything again, so he never paid attention to it, and his attitude was still very calm. After he invited Sheng'an, he casually talked to the Queen Mother about it. At the same time, the band that was used as part of the reception ceremony also began to play, but the band Yuan Shikai prepared was not ancient Chinese music, but a very pure Western band.There were about twenty of them, and the instruments they used were the same as those of the brass bands in foreign troops. It is said that the leader of the band was an overseas student paid by Yuan Shikai to send him to Germany to study music and composition.His technique was really good, especially at that time, he was really one of the best Western musicians in China.After he returned to China, he spent all his time teaching a group of young military officers selected by Yuan Shikai how to play Western music. I think it has been a long time, so I heard them play very well. up! Because Yuan Shikai was a soldier, he purposely made the various ceremonies of this pick-up as military as possible; in addition to the band composed of twenty young officers, he also played The army horses of the brigade came, all wearing helmets and armor, lined up neatly about a hundred yards from the platform, and bowed to the Queen Mother.I really don't know what Yuan Shikai wants them to do?If it is said to be for the Empress Dowager to inspect, but there is no official operation; if it is said to be to protect the Empress Dowager, then there is no need for so many, or it can be said that there are as many of them as possible, but what ability do they have to protect the Empress Dowager?If it was to salute the Empress Dowager, then they thought they stood too far away, no matter how much they kowtowed, the Empress Dowager would never see it. At such a grand and solemn gathering, a question as to which music the orchestra should play must of course precede the prearranged ones.According to the customs of the Eastern and Western countries, when there is such a similar etiquette, the first set of songs must be the national anthem of that country.Then ask Yuan Shikai's band to play a Chinese national anthem!But sorry so much!In the Chinese Empire at that time, no one had ever paid attention to what the national anthem was!Therefore, when I surrounded the Queen Mother from the car and walked down to the platform, the brass band actually played "Marcellis Song". "Song of Marcelles" is the national anthem of the French Republic.Although other people don't know it, my sister and I have already heard it by heart, so we couldn't help laughing secretly.However, she couldn't explain it directly to the queen mother on the spot. If Yi knew about it, she might teach someone to drag the twenty-one Xi Lejia (including the captain) to be beheaded.It was not until several days later that I brought up this matter by accident, and suggested to Yi that I should teach those ministers who have nothing to do to make a Chinese national anthem early, so as to avoid such similarities. The joke came out.The Empress Dowager agreed with it, but soon forgot it, so there was never a national anthem until the fall of the Qing Empire. At that time, the Empress Dowager didn't know the mystery played by that group of bands——the French national anthem was used to welcome the Empress Dowager of her country. ——And it was the first time to listen to Western music, and I felt very happy in my heart.After they finished playing the "Song of Marseilles", Yi specially taught Li Lianying to get on the horse herself, went to fetch all the instruments one by one, and asked Yi to check and watch them repeatedly.At the same time, Li Lianying was also taught to ask the band leader about the names, origins, and usage of these instruments.Although Yi was a pure layman, the questions Yi asked were very appropriate, so that the band leader had to answer them all in detail. Playing music is the first program in this pick-up ceremony. After this program is over, various officials offer treasures one after another.The so-called offering treasures is to present the things they have prepared to the Queen Mother face to face for use.Because it is a kind of public and necessary repayment that a minister contributes any gift to the emperor or empress dowager.It's not like the bureaucrats who are known as "public servants" at the moment, although they also accept bribes, they are often ghostly and respectful for fear that people will know; one private and one public, compared, it is really not as good as it used to be. .But as far as their officials and their interests are concerned, the public offering of treasures is actually more painful than the private bribery.Because once the gift is made public, it will not only become obvious to everyone, but also make it look ugly on the spot. Therefore, those who make smaller officials often give their all in order to correct the tribute presented to the emperor or empress dowager. Over the past ten years, the accumulation of eunuchs.So in the final analysis, this habit is also one of bad governance after all.Just like this time the Empress Dowager took the train to Fengtian and passed by Tianjin. Why do you have to offer any tribute?But the more than forty officials kneeling on the platform that day, all of them risked their lives to buy many of the best things and brought them to the Queen Mother, not daring to miss one. If you want to dedicate things to the queen mother, you can't count them as gifts from ordinary people. They have to hold the things one by one according to their official titles, or have their relatives hold the things for them. Send it to the Queen Mother and let Yiyan see it before teaching the eunuchs to accept it.This time it was Yuan Shikai who was the first to offer something on the Tianjin platform.He bent down, his eyes fixed on the ground, but his expression was still very arrogant. He first played loudly to the Queen Mother: "I have a pair of parrots in my possession, and I specially sent someone to find them from India, in order to present them to the Queen Mother, so as to show my filial piety." As he spoke, he waved to a close attendant, who immediately brought a pair of red and green parrots.The parrot was originally a very beautiful bird. Although these two are not sure that they came from India, they do seem to be more beautiful and special; The extremely thin gold-plated short chains let them rest side by side on a beautiful branch.At both ends of the branch, there is a small cup made of white jade, and the book contains water and food for them to eat and drink.When the empress dowager saw this special gift, she seemed very happy; Yi still thought she couldn't see clearly, so she went to Li Lianying to pick it up, holding it about two or three feet away from her, so that she could take a closer look at it. carefully.At that time, we couldn't help laughing secretly, thinking that these two parrots were just a very common bird, and they were worthy of the Queen Mother's high regard. To appreciate them so solemnly is too much!Unexpectedly, after two or three minutes, they immediately showed their strengths, which surprised everyone.It was originally one of the two ends, and suddenly shouted in a very crisp tone: "Good luck, Lafayette!" This call turned everyone upside down!In particular, its articulation is correct and clear, and it sounds like a child's speech, which is even more surprising.Unexpectedly, just as the group of people were discussing privately and being amazed, the other end suddenly shouted: "Lafayette is safe!" I think Yuan Shikai must have spent a lot of painstaking efforts in order to make the two little birds call out such clear words, at least to a certain extent, he must have taught the bird-keepers and spent a lot of hard work on his behalf. !Otherwise, even if they can bark, they can't just bark at the right time like this.But soon someone told me that it took Yuan Shikai only half a year to train the two parrots.He originally wanted to bring it to Beijing to pay tribute, but later he knew that the Empress Dowager would pass by Tianjin on this tour, so he deliberately stayed there, deliberately wanting to show his dexterity in full view, and the Empress Dowager Yibo smiled In fact, ordinary people who are used to keeping birds can make them cry so clearly, even if they want to tell them when to call and when not to call, it is not a good skill worthy of admiration.But after hearing this, the queen mother said that it was very rare, and she couldn't help showing a smug smile.But there is only one, and it is definitely affected by these two little birds. He stands upright from time to time, his face is ashen-white as a dead man, and there seems to be something plugged in his ears, completely ignoring the cries of the little bird. What kind of words did they say - this person is Guangxu! After Yuan Shikai presented the things, the other officials presented what they had prepared one by one, and they brought miscellaneous goods, which were too beautiful to behold; if they wanted to record them one by one, they had to prepare a special booklet.And most of them are food, but these things are raw, because there are too many of them, if they are all cooked, they will be easily spoiled. Now let me give you the details of the forty officials who arrived at the station: the first is the governor, Yuan Shikai. With such a strong strength, no matter in name or in reality, he always stands in the position of a leader.The following is Futai, which is in charge of the civil affairs of a province; the third is Fantai (Commissioner), who is in charge of the province's finances; criminal case.Although these four were clearly assigned to be in charge of the military, civil affairs, government affairs, and legal affairs, their powers and responsibilities were not clearly defined, and they could often interfere with each other or shirk each other.But these can't control them!In short, among the forty officials, the four of them are considered the most senior officials!Except for them, if the round goes on, you have to be honored by the Taoist platform.At that time, a province was divided into several divisions, and each division had a presiding officer, which was the so-called Daotai.In terms of their rank and status, they are almost the same as the mayors of special cities today, but strictly speaking, they are completely different; because the mayors of today often have to directly contact the people, while the Taoist platforms at that time were absolutely They disdain to consult civil affairs. They think that the people are the most humble thing. It is a shame to contact the people directly like a high-ranking official. As for their state and county magistrates, even if there are some who are particularly diligent in their work, they only pick a few more important things to ask. In the province of Zhili, there are seven Chinese and foreign officials with the same official rank as Daotai. Although there are as many as seven of them, their tasks are 120% simple. A small matter, collectively referred to as the general office of the factory.And this is not to say that they are invited to guide or supervise because they have any special research or experience in minting silver coins with drums, but because they want to be officials, their fathers, brothers or relatives teach them to play cameo at will. . Among these officials, there are two more special ones, one is called Seng Gangsi.One is called Dao Jisi, and their status is equal to that of Daotai, but their tasks are similar to those of foreign bishops. They only manage monasteries and monks.If the imperial court or governors want to build a grand sacrificial altar, they will preside over it; if there is any behavior of the monks who do not abide by the rules or the gods are not pious, they will find out and deal with it; if they build a large temple If the house collapsed or the Buddha statue peeled off, they would send craftsmen to repair it at any time, so that it would not lose its original solemn appearance;... In this way, this high official can be accused of innocence by the country!To sum it up: all these high officials are vagrants who are full of food and have nothing to do; they only know how to dress magnificently in front of the people all day and night; Moreover, they are often pretentious and extremely proud, entrusting all government affairs to their subordinate officials, taking it for granted. The Empress Dowager's temper was very fond of exchanging fresh and special flavors. From the moment Yuan Shikai's western band appeared in front of Yi for the first time, Yi found these things very interesting; After "Lis Song"; I feel more and more unheard of, and I can't help but dance a little bit.Therefore, Yi unceremoniously borrowed them from Yuan Shikai and asked them to go out of the customs with them: Of course Yuan Shikai couldn't ask for it, so he immediately ordered the twenty-one young officers to pack up their belongings and climb into the troop car Up, ready to go.The Empress Dowager knew that I still knew a little bit about Western music, at least better than others, so she taught me to contact the leader of the band every time I wanted to hear them play, such as choosing a score, appointing a certain instrument to play a solo, etc. .The orchestra leader himself is a very skilled pianist and cannot speak fluent German. At that time, he was considered a rare talent!