Chapter 37 36. A farce: there are many jokes in the aftermath of the Restoration

From July 1st to 12th, in just twelve days, the restoration farce directed and acted by Zhang Xun came to an end. The restoration is over, but the affairs of the parties are not over yet. For example, Emperor Xuantong Puyi, how should we deal with it?Are the preferential conditions cancelled?These questions will have to be decided by the new power holders. In the eyes of the big bosses of the Beiyang faction, since Puyi was forced to reset during this restoration, they didn't want to pursue it. In the end, the Taibao Shi issued a statement from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, saying that this incident was "Zhang Xun's entanglement, rushing people There is no way to do anything” result, thus gently erasing the responsibility.

It is said that Puyi originally wanted to issue another edict of abdication, but was stopped by Xu Shichang. He changed the original edict of abdication into a statement from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which means that Puyi has nothing to do with this restoration, and this statement It has also been approved by President Feng Guozhang and Prime Minister Duan Qirui.As a result, Puyi can continue to be his closed emperor in the palace, the preferential treatment conditions of the Qing Dynasty can also be preserved, and everything has returned to its original state. The only ones who were completely eliminated were the big braided Marshal Zhang and his braided army.All the braided soldiers who accompanied Zhang Xun to Beijing disappeared without mentioning him, but the braided soldiers who stayed behind in Xuzhou were retained (only their braids had to be cut off). Ni Sichong restrained himself.

As for the elders who participated in the restoration, most of them fled ahead of time, and only a few unlucky ones were caught by the rebel army.His master Kang Youwei was the first to escape. He had been hiding in Tibet since the Reform Movement of 1898 failed. It is said that Kang Youwei did not want to run away at first, but wanted to go to Fayuan Temple to shave or become a monk, but Liang Dingfen, a fellow villager, saw through and scolded: "You don't shave your hair early, and you don't shave your hair later, but you just became a monk here in Chenguang. Do you want to escape?" Kang Youwei said, "Nonsense, how many times have you seen me run away?" Liang Dingfen laughed and said, "If you didn't escape during the 1898 campaign, how could you live to this day? Since you are here this time, since you want to be a hero of the restoration , don’t be afraid of death, if you are afraid of death, don’t come here. If you succeed, you will take credit, if you fail, you will regret your life. Is there a saint like you? From today, I will not recognize you as a Cantonese.”

After all, the imperial teachers Chen Baochen and Liang Dingfen were not held accountable in the end because of Puyi's relationship.The situation of Master Kang is different. These restoration edicts and edicts are all written by him, so what if he doesn't escape? It is interesting to say that it was none other than Liang Qichao, a disciple of Master Kang, who drafted the proclamation against the rebellious army.The two masters and apprentices fled to the end of the world because of the failure of the Reform Movement of 1898. They did not expect to part ways 20 years later. No wonder Master Kang sadly said this sentence: "Today I finally know the meaning of 'return is not the one who helps me' ("Hui Ye is not the one who helps me" comes from, the original text is "Zi said: Hui Ye, the one who is not helping me, I say everything to me", which means "Yan Hui is not someone who is helpful to me, he There is no one who is not convinced by what I say." Kang Fuzi intercepted the meaning of the previous sentence)

During the restoration period, Kang Youwei and Zhang Xun, the "two saints of civil and military affairs", made a lot of jokes.After the war against rebellion began, both Feng Guozhang and Duan Qirui offered 100,000 yuan to buy Zhang Xun's head. Kang Youwei was very happy to hear that, saying that the Empress Dowager Cixi also offered a reward of 100,000 taels of silver to buy his head in the year of 1898. It seems that he and Zhang Xun Xun's value is about the same, but because he is not included in the wanted list, it must be because of his disciples. After hearing this, Zhang Xun laughed and said: "You were only one hundred thousand taels of silver back then, and I am two hundred thousand taels this time, which is worth half of my worth at most. Besides, the reason why you are not on the wanted list this time is because People think your head is worthless!" After teasing Mrs. Kang, Zhang Xun said proudly: "Both Feng and Duan offered 100,000 yuan to buy my head. Damn, everyone wants to buy my head. I am rich, if I have a way to transform, I would like to transform into two Zhang Xun!"

Once, Zhang Xun and Mrs. Kang were bragging together again. Zhang Xun said: "My name is Zhang Xun, and today I really established an inexhaustible honor."Master Kang said with a smile: "My name is Youwei, and today I am also very promising. And my name is not only related to myself, but also has a special relationship with the country. It is said in "The Doctrine of the Mean": "Wealth is everywhere, and you are the son of heaven." , my name is embedded with the words 'you' and 'for'." After hearing this, Zhang Xun thought for a while, then slapped his legs and cursed: "Damn it, you named it after the word 'youwei', Do you still want to be an emperor?" After hearing this, Kang Fuzi said hurriedly, "Don't dare, I really dare not!"

Another time, Mrs. Kang was very upset that he won the vice president of Bute Academy because of himself, so he complained and scolded Zhang Xun, saying: "Since I was appointed for a false position, why bother to send a telegram to invite me to Beijing? After Zhang Xun heard about it, he said angrily: "He doesn't have to do anything, he just got a ready-made position in Bute Court, and now he is not greedy enough. "If he slanders me behind my back again, I will use brutal means to deal with him." After hearing this, Master Kang smiled and said, "Others are afraid of him, but I am not afraid of him." Someone asked why, and Master Kang said : "He has a small gun by his side, and I have a big gun by my side! In comparison, it depends on who is more powerful!"

Kang Fuzi not only has a big hand, but also has a pair of fast legs, so he ran away, but he was also unlucky.Lei Zhenchun, Minister of the Army Department, was the first to participate in the restoration. I heard that the reason why Zhang Xun appointed him as Minister of the Army Department was because of his good name, "Spring Thunder Rolling, Deafening"!This General Zhenwei, who was born in a small station, had once served as the admiral of Jiangbei and the commander of the seventh town. During Yuan Shikai's period, he restored the old comrades.This time he was appointed Minister of the Ministry of Army, and Lei Zhenchun wore a brand-new imperial uniform, and rode a motorcycle to the palace to thank him.After arriving at the palace gate, before the car stopped, Lei Zhenchun jumped out of the car, and fell four or five feet away, bleeding from his forehead.The guard hurried forward to help him, and asked: "My lord, is it painful?" Lei Zhenchun said: "If you feel happy, you don't feel pain."

After thanking him, Lei Zhenchun was rewarded to ride a horse in the Forbidden City. Unexpectedly, within a few days of taking office, the rebellious army invaded Beijing. Lei Zhenchun had to disguise himself as a poor man, and pulled a rickshaw out of Zhengyangmen in a hurry, trying to escape from the East Railway Station.Unexpectedly, the makeup skills are not good enough, and he will be recognized soon, but he is still arrested.Later, someone drew a funny picture in the newspaper, and accompanied it with a couplet: "Not riding a horse in the Forbidden City, but coming to Zhengyangmen to pull a cart!"

After the restoration farce, the only person who was tried and imprisoned was Lei Zhenchun (and he was released after only two years).Others were also arrested, but most of them were given lighter punishments due to connections.For example, Zhang Zhenfang, another veteran comrade of the Restoration, was awarded by Zhang Xun as the Secretary of the Du Branch. He was caught by Feng Yuxiang's men when he fled, but Duan Zhigui was going to release him soon.After Feng Delin, the commander of the 28th Division who was rebellious, was arrested in Tianjin, he was released by Zhang Zuolin who had a suspicion, and finally Feng Delin led the 28th Division into Zhang Zuolin's sect out of gratitude. It is of great help that Zhang Zuolin became the "King of the Northeast".

During the restoration period, there was a joke in the capital of "loyal ministers of the two countries". It was said that there were two big men who attached themselves to the Qing Dynasty and financed the national army at the same time; When the side sends people to contact, they will change into the big dress of the Republic of China, just like an actor performing on stage. After performing a performance, changing clothes is a great joy.Someone asked why they did this, and the two big brothers said: "I can't bear to see the capital corrupt, so I have to sacrifice my personal reputation and run between the two, hoping for a peaceful settlement." I really deserve to be a loyal minister of the two countries!" A big man said coyly, "I am not a loyal minister of the two countries, but a peacemaker between the two parties." Of the two "loyal ministers of the two countries", one is undoubtedly Wang Shizhen, and the other must be Jiang Chaozong.These two, like Wu Bingxiang, Chen Guangyuan and others, are not only not guilty of adversary, but also contributed to "maintaining order in Beijing".After the restoration farce, Wang Shizhen originally felt ashamed to see others and wanted to go back to Zhengding to live in seclusion, but President Feng Guozhang and Prime Minister Duan Qirui rushed to comfort him and persuaded him to focus on the Beiyang Group and continue to serve as chief of staff...Old friend It's hard to be generous, so let's do it! As for people like Jiang Chaozong and Wu Bingxiang, although they also sang along with Zhang Xun, they did their best to maintain order in the city after all, so it is not easy to add crimes. Therefore, Wu Bingxiang is still the chief police officer of the capital, and Jiang Chaozong Because Prime Minister Duan Qirui didn't like it, he was transferred to General Diwei, and the position of infantry commander was replaced by Li Changtai, the commander of the Eighth Division who had made great contributions to the rebellion. After Duan Qirui returned to the capital, he issued an order to arrest Zhang Xun, Kang Youwei, Liang Dunyan and others who were important criminals of the restoration.Needless to say, these people have long since disappeared.Maybe it was because they were wary of rats, or because they felt ashamed in their hearts. Some warlords who were named by Zhang Xun, such as Zhang Huaizhi, Hubei Warlord Wang Zhanyuan, etc., called or wrote to Duan Qirui to plead for Zhang Xun. He wrote to Duan Qirui many times, requesting that Zhang Xun be punished lightly. Don't look at the monk's face and look at the Buddha's face. Chinese people always care about human feelings and face.Xu Shichang also said to Duan Qirui before he entered Beijing: "This restoration was not originally intended to clean up the house. Fortunately, don't use it to add crimes to clean up the house. Although Zhang Xun was the culprit, he was originally a reckless man, and he still needs to be punished." For the sake of the affection of the former comrades, don't force it too much." After hearing this, Duan Qirui said: "Preferential treatment for room clearance, naturally try to keep it, even Shaoxuan (Zhang Xun's word) may not be arrested. You just don't want to Say, I don't have the heart to do harm." With the support of old friends, Zhang Xun naturally has no scruples.When the old man was recuperating in the Dutch embassy, ​​some detectives were ordered to come to investigate, and Lao Zhang was annoyed. He jumped out of the door, holding a quick gun in his left hand, and a pack of letters in his right hand, roaring angrily: "During the Xuzhou meeting, these people were in favor of the restoration, and they signed their signatures. I have all these handwritings in my hands. He is a traitor, and I will declare to the people of my country that I will die with him at that time. Don't blame me, Lao Zhang, for being ruthless!" The detective saw In the face of difficulties, he had no choice but to retreat. Speaking of which, Lao Zhang always claims that he has the signatures or letters of other warlords in favor of the restoration. Is there or is it not?It is said that Zhang Xun later compiled these signatures, letters and telegrams into a book and made a book of the memoir of the restoration. Exactly how, only Lao Zhang and the parties know best. Zhang Xun once told people in private that among these old friends, except Duan Qirui who persuaded him not to do it and said that he would beat him if he wanted to restore the restoration, he was convinced.As for the other warlords, they are all duplicitous guys, they promised well before doing this, and betrayed their friends when the wind direction is wrong, hum, none of them are clean.All in all, all in all, I, Lao Zhang, have been fooled by you. From the heart, Xu Shichang agrees with the imperial system, but he has always been scheming and prudent, and he will not act rashly if the time is not ripe. He once said to Zhang Xun: "I have no objection to the restoration, but the time is not yet ripe. If you ignore the timing , To do such a big thing recklessly is disloyalty to the Qing Dynasty, and suicide to oneself." As for another suspect, Feng Guozhang, according to his secretary Yun Baohui, when Yuan Shikai died, some of Zhang Xun's counselors came to Feng Guozhang's office, and Feng Guozhang did write a letter to Zhang Xun, which was drafted by Yun Baohui, The content is: "Xiang Cheng died, the Central Plains has no master, and the flag of righteousness is pointing north. This is the right time. If the elder brother is the first to launch, the younger brother should be the subordinate and follow behind. It is important to decide quickly, and dare to express your thoughts." Unfortunately, since the time had passed when the letter was delivered to Zhang Xun, this planning had to be abandoned.As time passed, the relationship between Feng Guozhang and Zhang Xun gradually became distant. In addition, Feng Guozhang saw that Li Yuanhong was in a precarious situation, so he also had the idea of ​​​​becoming president.The ridiculous thing is that Zhang Xun still thinks that Feng Guozhang is in favor of restoration. Zhang Xun's restoration failed, and the public opinion was almost one-sidedly calling it perverse, but an old comrade of the restoration stood up and said something fair for Zhang Xun.Who is this person?It turned out to be Ruan Zhongshu, a supporter of the Hongxian Monarchy, but Yuan Shikai's former popular man resisted all opinions, saying that although Zhang Xun's actions were close to careless, he was still a fierce hero.Zhang Xun was overjoyed when he heard about it, and said, "I've been friends for half my life, and if I have this righteous friend, I will die with peace in my eyes!" The most prominent characteristics of Zhang Xun's character are tradition, solid eyes, a little simple and honest, but also very irritable. When these characteristics are combined in a warrior, it is almost stubborn.Think about it, during the Revolution of 1911, it was clear that the end of the Qing Dynasty was coming to an end. Many officials and soldiers turned their backs overnight, but Zhang Xun was the only one who refused to admit defeat and remained loyal to the end. The attack on Nanjing was the most tragic battle in the entire Revolution of 1911. It took ten days of bloody battles for the civilian army to recover Nanjing. It is also worth mentioning that Zhang Xun has a strong sense of hometown, and he takes care of his elders in his hometown. For example, the people in his hometown of Fengxin Chitian Village in Jiangxi Province have gained a lot of glory. Zhang Xun built a big tile-roofed house for each family. , Give what you lack.When Jiangxi people need to build a guild hall for business in other places, whenever they find Zhang Xun, he will generously donate.For example, the Jiangxi Guild Hall in Beijing during the Republic of China was all paid by Zhang Xun. The Jiangxi Guild Hall outside Xuanwu Gate was regarded as the most luxurious Western-style building in Beijing at that time. There is a generator to provide lights for singing at night.For Jiangxi students studying in Beijing, especially those from Fengxin County, Zhang Xun was more responsive and provided valuable scholarships.During Zhang Xun's rise to power, the number of county magistrates with new registries reached forty-seven. Zhang Xun has a hobby that has been intoxicated for many years, which is Peking Opera, and he can be regarded as an enthusiast.During the war against rebellion, Zhang Xun heard that Duan Qirui had sent Duan Zhigui and Cao Kun as the commanders of the East and West Routes to crusade, so he said to Lei Zhenchun and others: "Everyone, don't panic. In my opinion, the two routes The soldiers will be able to settle down in just a few days." When people asked why, Zhang Xun lifted his beard and smiled and said, "Duan Zhigui, the commander of the East Road, Duan is also 'broken'. When our soldiers fight him, I promise to cut him into two pieces with one knife. As for Cao Kun, the commander of the West Road, is even less concerned. Didn’t it be clear in the "Three Kingdoms" that Cao’s army was most afraid of Zhang Yide, and Chang Banpo’s loud roar scared off millions of Cao’s soldiers. When Cao Kun’s soldiers arrived at Lugou Bridge, That is to ride alone, go to drink with him, and he will know how powerful I am." At this point, Zhang Xun danced proudly... In fact, these jokes are all from the Beijing opera "Changbanpo", and Zhang Xun has always pretended to be It was Mang Zhang Fei who was second. In 1922, Zhang Xun, who had failed in the restoration for five years, opened a hall at home to celebrate his 70th birthday. Some famous opera actors such as Yang Xiaolou, Mei Lanfang, Yu Shuyan, etc., led by Sun Juxian, a veteran of the Peking Opera circle in his 80s, came to the theater to celebrate his 70th birthday. The Zhangjia Garden who came to Tianjin to celebrate Zhang Xun's birthday also became an unprecedented event in Liyuan at that time.In front of Zhang Xun, of course these famous actors worked hard, and the rewards they received were quite generous.Especially Sun Juxian, Zhang Xun is his old theater fan, and the reward he gave this time was as high as 600 yuan, which moved Sun Juxian to tears, saying: "Those who understand theater, Zhang Xun is also! After Zhang Xun's death, Sun Juxian even cried and fell to the ground, saying: "Huang Zhong Dalu, I'm afraid I will die!" Zhang Xun's wife, Mrs. Cao, opposed the restoration, but unfortunately she was a woman, and Zhang Xun refused to listen to her advice.After the restoration was successful, Zhang Xun triumphantly told Cao that he had been conferred the title of "Prince of Loyalty and Bravery". Unexpectedly, Cao scolded him and said: "The Republic of China treats you well. Even if you don’t think about yourself, don’t you think about your descendants? Today you have been named the Prince of Zhongyong, and I’m afraid that you will become King of Pingjian tomorrow!” Zhang Xun was puzzled and asked, “Prince of Pingjian What do you mean?" Mrs. Cao said, "You will not be able to protect the leader in the future, and your head will be cut off with one knife. Isn't your neck level with your shoulders?" Zhang Xun was furious when he heard this, and he slammed the door and left. Combined with so many anecdotes about Zhang Xun's life, it can also explain logically and logically why Zhang Xun wanted to show off his prestige and do this major event of restoration.In fact, Zhang Xun's character, creed and taste are completely traditional, mainly in the category of loyalty.In all fairness, this kind of traditional virtue of the Chinese nation should not be ridiculed, but rather precious in a Chinese society where repeated revolutions have caused moral degradation. On October 10, 1918, after Xu Shichang took office as the President of the Republic of China, he immediately ordered Zhang Xun to be pardoned and returned his property.In his later years, Zhang Xun stayed away from politics, "picked chrysanthemums outside the eastern fence, and switched to doing business." It is said that the return on investment in the financial industry was quite good.At this time, when someone asked about his great achievements in restoration, this indifferent and uncontested man, he no longer had the same rhetoric as before, and kept silent at most with a few words. After all, The era that belonged to him has passed, and it is getting further and further away, and it will never come back. On September 12, 1923, Zhang Xun died of illness in Tianjin at the age of 70.In August of the following year, Zhang Xun's coffin was shipped back to his hometown, and was buried under Taoxianling, Chitian Township, Fengxin County at the end of November of that year.After Zhang Xun's death, Puyi gave him the posthumous title "Zhongwu". Where is the emperor's son in the pavilion now? Outside the fence, the Yangtze River flows in the air.Yuan Shikai's restoration failed, and Zhang Xun's restoration also failed. This shows that after the Republic of China, false emperors were not allowed to be, nor were real emperors.In response to Liang Qichao's words, once a Bodhisattva whose throne is like a clay puppet on a wall is thrown into a pigsty, even if he is washed and worshiped again, he has already lost his sanctity.