Chapter 12 Chapter Nine: Bad News Comes

Suddenly, Wang Shang came to Emperor Guangxu and said a few words in a low voice. Emperor Guangxu's expression suddenly changed. He immediately left the theater and hurried back to Yulan Hall... The tenth day of October in the lunar calendar is the birthday of Empress Dowager Cixi. This autumn is breezy and the sky is blue. The palace and the Summer Palace have already been newly decorated, and the whole garden is filled with colorful banners and drums. The 600,000th birthday of Empress Dowager Cixi will be held in the Hall of Renshou. Empress Dowager Cixi has two rare things in her life, one is power and the other is longevity, so the naming of the whole garden is based on the word longevity.The Summer Palace is the meaning of taking care of one's life, and the Longevity Mountain is a symbol of endless longevity. During the Qianlong period, the Qinzheng Hall was renamed the Renshou Hall, which means respecting Confucius' "the benevolent man lives long".The large plaque hanging high in the hall is named "Shouxie Renfu" which also means Renshou.The bedroom of Empress Dowager Cixi is called Le Shoutang.

The majestic and resplendent Cloud Dispelling Hall in front of Wanshou Mountain was specially built for Empress Dowager Cixi's birthday celebration. Inside the hall is a large plaque of "Longevity Without Borders", which shows that Empress Dowager Cixi highly prayed for longevity.The Empress Dowager Cixi is a longevity fanatic, just for the sake of longevity. She openly admitted a candidate named Wang Shoupeng to the top of the list in a palace examination before her birthday to symbolize the auspiciousness of Cixi's longevity. It shows that Cixi's desire for longevity has swelled to the extreme.Therefore, how could her birthday be missed.Not even during wartime.

On this day, eunuchs dressed in brand-new clothes stood solemnly outside the Hall of Renshou, holding thin ceremonial guards in their hands. Today's Renshou Hall is more majestic and majestic because it is filled with colorful flags. The Hall of Renshou is the most solemn golden palace in the Summer Palace. It is the place where Empress Dowager Cixi and Emperor Guangxu meet with ministers, receive foreign envoys, and hold celebrations and birthday banquets. There is a white jade platform surrounded by white jade railings in the hall of Renshou. On the platform, there are two rows of copper dragons, copper phoenixes and copper tripods. "Fu" is a rectangular plaque with gold characters on a blue background. Under the plaque is the Nine Dragon Throne of the Emperor's Ascension Hall. Behind the throne is a golden screen with carved dragons. The throne stands high on the platform surrounded by white marble railings.Cloisonne-made deer, cranes, elephants, and vases symbolize "Liuhe Taiping". The twelve crane lights and candles are all lit up. The candlelight made the solemn and solemn Empress Dowager look even more holy. She was waiting for an auspicious time to arrive.

Outside the Renshou Hall, the princes and ministers led by Emperor Guangxu all wore python robes specially issued by the Empress Dowager on her birthday and knelt and waited outside.Emperor Guangxu, wearing a court cap, python robe and three strings of court beads, entered the Hall of Renshou first, and knelt down three times and kowtowed nine times to the Empress Dowager Cixi to the sound of ritual music. Shouted: "Long live the Queen Mother, long live!" "Everyone who loves you is exempt from courtesy." After that, a grand banquet will be held. Today, the Empress Dowager Cixi is wearing a robe embroidered with the characters of longevity, with three strings of expensive court beads hanging on her neck. Her hair style is the birthday style Danfeng Chaoyang carefully designed by Li Lianying. A luminous pearl flickering in the candlelight, coupled with Empress Dowager Cixi's solemn Nanmu demeanor, looks even more noble and sacred.

The palace band played the music "The Chapter of Vientiane Qingping", and the banquet began. According to the regulations, the birthday banquet of the Qing Dynasty should use the custom of whole sheep banquet before the Qing Dynasty. The eunuchs were busy among the tables in an orderly manner. Li Lianying served Empress Dowager Cixi specially, and the queen mother's banquet table was placed in front of the throne, and only Emperor Guangxu could accompany her at the table.Civil and military officials, princes and dignitaries all arranged to sit inside and outside the hall. After drinking and toasting for three rounds, the court dance team danced the "Eight Banners" toast dance in the colorful hall outside the main hall. Eight bannermen in armor were seen fighting with two men dressed as beasts, which represented the pioneering work of the Manchu ancestors. Spirit.Then there will be a hundred operas, and then there will be performances of various folk arts and acrobatics.Warm atmosphere.

Amidst the sound of banquet and music, Emperor Guangxu led the princes and ministers to kneel down to the Empress Dowager Cixi. Amidst the congratulations, the Empress Dowager Cixi enjoyed the scenery and finally couldn't help showing a rare smile on her face.At the end of the banquet, a piece of music dedicated to the Empress Dowager Cixi was played: "The Chapter of Yiping". After the banquet, three days of theater are given.The Empress Dowager Cixi loves to watch theater the most in her life. She goes to theaters during festivals, emperors and empresses’ birthdays, and even when she is happy on weekdays.

Of course, the play on this auspicious birthday must be watched carefully, and the first three and the second four will be watched for a total of seven days before giving up. In the past few days, a colorful shed has been set up in the Hall of Virtuous Harmony, and the courtyard is filled with colored flags.The Hall of Virtuous Harmony is a large theater building in the Summer Palace. The actors and sets can be raised and lowered. There is also a well under the stage that can spray water to create waterscapes. It is the largest stage in the Qing Dynasty. The opera troupes are specially invited by the most famous folk performers such as Sixi and Tongqing. Among them, the famous actors, famous actors, and famous actors are the most famous in Beijing, such as the famous civil and military veteran Tan Xinpei, the famous actors Chen Delin, Yang Xiaoduo, ten Sandan, Wusheng Yang Xiaolou, Jingjiao Jin Xiushan, Qian Jinfu, Xiaosheng Zhu Suyun, Harlequin Wang Changlin, etc.

After reading the list, the Empress Dowager Cixi showed satisfaction, and asked Li Lianying, "Is that monkey Yang Xiaolou here?" "Bing Lafayette, Yang Xiaolou is here." Li Lianying replied. "Then let him perform "Peach Blossom Meeting" first after the opening scene. The reunion is the most ostentatious reunion." "Follow the order." The requirements of the royal stage are very strict, and there are many lines to be avoided. Generally speaking, those with the same pronunciation as the emperor and the queen mother cannot be used, and even those with the same zodiac sign cannot be used.For example, the zodiac sign of the Empress Dowager Cixi belongs to the sheep, then anyone with the character of sheep cannot be performed, so the famous "Su Wu Shepherd" will never be able to appear on the stage during the reign of Cixi.

It is said that once, an actor who played "Yutangchun" sang the line "When a sheep enters the tiger's mouth, it will go and never return", accidentally offending the Empress Dowager Cixi who is a sheep, and was expelled from office by Cixi never to be able to act.Opera can only be auspicious, peaceful, lively, and joyful, which made opera develop greatly and be limited at the same time during the Empress Dowager Cixi era. After the performance of the lively and auspicious Kunqu Opera "Longevity Without Boundaries", Long Yan was overjoyed, and the Empress Dowager Cixi smiled and delivered the decree to reward the silver taels. Li Lianying gave the reward to the actors kneeling on the stage. "Lafayette's longevity is boundless", the Empress Dowager Cixi, who was so serious on weekdays, was so happy.

Immediately afterwards, the monkey show "The Peach Club" starring Yang Xiaolou was performed. The Empress Dowager Cixi liked to watch the monkey show most, and Yang Xiaolou's role as Monkey King was also very good. Sometimes Cixi suspects that there are insinuations in the lyrics, and the actors will be punished for no reason.It is said that once, when an actor sang "the most poisonous thing is a woman's heart", the Empress Dowager Cixi was furious, and ordered the actor to be pulled out to punish the forty boards. The crying frightened the hearts of the actors on and off the stage.

Today was fine, the performance was very good and smooth, and the Empress Dowager Cixi, who was reclining on the Kowloon throne in the Yile Hall, was still watching the play with relish. She loves watching theater the most. She herself is constantly acting. Starring in a series of thrilling historical dramas in China. The protagonist of the play is herself, a woman who wields the highest authority in China. The performance on the stage is full of joy.Emperor Guangxu frowned, looked at the stage, and thought about the battle far away in Pyongyang. Be the commander-in-chief of the Qing army!As a result, Pyongyang fell, and now our Beiyang Navy is facing the threat of Japanese enemies in the Yellow Sea. The navy equipment is short of silver, but the Empress Dowager Cixi is so extravagant. At this moment, government and military affairs are busy, but Emperor Guangxu has to respectfully accompany him to the theater. The emperor stood absent-mindedly. Suddenly, Wang Shang came to Emperor Guangxu and said a few words in a low voice. Emperor Guangxu's face changed suddenly, and he immediately left the theater and hurried back to Yulan Hall. "Report to the emperor, this is the memorial from the front." When Emperor Guangxu opened the imperial case and looked down, several big characters were printed in front of his eyes: Lushun fell.Gradually, his throat seemed to be choked, and he was too sad to speak. "Preparation, go back to the Hall of Mental Cultivation." "yes." A group of guards of honor for the emperor leaving the palace led in front, and behind the Luanyu of Emperor Guangxu was a row of eunuchs holding various travel equipment. Along the way, Emperor Guangxu wondered whether the fall of Lushun was caused by Empress Dowager Cixi and Li Hongzhang.well!There are too few people who can be relied on in the imperial court. Except for Weng Tonghe's sincerity, everything else is downwind. It seems that we need to add some more reliable people. We will discuss it with Weng Tonghe later. After returning to the Hall of Mental Cultivation, Emperor Guangxu called out: "Wang Shang." "The slave is here." "Xuan Weng Tonghe enters the palace." "yes." Weng Tonghe hurried to the Hall of Mental Cultivation. Since the war between China and Japan, it has become common for the emperor to call him into the palace at night.But today's summoning was unusual, the emperor stopped watching the theater and rushed back from the Summer Palace to summon him, it must be because of the defeat in the Zhan Zhou. "Respectfully, the emperor's peace." "Ai Qing is free from courtesy." Emperor Guangxu helped Master Weng up, looked at Weng Tong and his snow-white beard and hair, and said movedly: "It is really helpless to disturb Master late at night." "Where, where, the emperor is worrying too much. It is a great honor for the old minister to be trusted by the emperor. He is willing to serve the emperor for the rest of his life." After Emperor Guangxu sat down on the dragon chair, Weng Tonghe also sat down on the chair carried by Wang Shang. "Lvshun fell, and Li Hongzhang should bear the main responsibility." Weng Tonghe nodded in agreement. Emperor Guangxu said angrily: "As the commander-in-chief of the Huai Army and the Beiyang Navy, he has been slow to mobilize repeatedly, deliberately delaying the fighters, leaving opportunities for the Japanese to increase troops, and resulting in a disastrous defeat for our army." Guangxu hit the imperial case with his fist and said angrily: "This old and cunning Li Hongzhang never pays attention to my orders. I must dismiss him." Weng Tonghe thought for a while and said, "It's time to punish such a commander. On the one hand, it can also calm people's hearts. It's just that it may be difficult for the Queen Mother to pass." Guangxu said firmly: "No, even if I don't sit on the throne, I will deal with him." Looking at Emperor Guangxu's firm face, Weng Tonghe felt very relieved. The student he had carefully trained had made progress.Since the Empress Dowager Cixi returned to power, she has regarded power above all else. Although she still desperately restrained the emperor and never gave up a bit of power, the emperor seemed to be gradually changing, especially since the Sino-Japanese War. The more he was dissatisfied with the Queen Mother's monopoly and secret restraints, the more pleased Weng Tonghe was that the emperor was no longer weak, and he dared to confront the Queen Mother tit for tat on several major issues.It seems that I should give him encouragement. I am his teacher, and I am duty-bound.So he said: "Punishment of Li Hongzhang will encourage those who are fighting, but it will be a merciless blow to those who are fighting." "Yes, what Master Weng said is true, I just want to give Li Hongzhang some flair, so that he doesn't take this emperor seriously." Weng Tonghe said: "In order to ensure the safety of the capital, the soldiers of Liu Kunyi, the governor of the two factories, must be dispatched to Shanhaiguan as soon as possible to prevent the enemy from entering the pass." Guangxu nodded and said, "I also plan to do so." Weng Tonghe also said: "It seems that the power of the imperial court to lead the battle is still relatively weak. The emperor should use more young people. Wen Tingshi and Zhirui are both radical in thinking, highly patriotic, and more influenced by Western advanced things. We can use them Motivate everyone." Emperor Guangxu nodded: "Yes, from now on, my study will become a place where everyone can make suggestions for me and speak freely!" Weng Tonghe nodded frequently in agreement. "However, Zhirui is Concubine Zhen's elder brother, will it attract..." Weng Tonghe said. "It doesn't matter, Zhi Rui is a man of great ambition. His thinking is very novel and he knows a lot of knowledge about foreigners. I want to learn from him." "Alright, it's time for the emperor to get in touch with some new things. He said: 'Only daily innovation can prosper virtue'. It is indeed an unassailable truth!" "What the teacher said is very true. The imperial court is full of old people. It seems that it is time to inject some fresh blood." The teacher and the student huddled together and talked until late at night. When Emperor Guangxu returned to his bedroom, seeing that Concubine Zhen was not there, he hurried to Jingren Palace. Wang Shang trotted behind him. When he arrived at Jingren Palace, Concubine Zhen was gone, but only court ladies and eunuchs knelt down to greet her. "Respectfully, Your Majesty, I wish you peace." Xiaomei waited on her knees to pay her respects. "Get up." "Where's Concubine Zhen?" "Report to the Emperor, Master Zhen has not returned from the Summer Palace." Xiaomei reported. "Go back to the Hall of Mental Cultivation." "yes." Back in the Hall of Mental Cultivation, Emperor Guangxu felt infinitely melancholy. As long as he didn’t see Concubine Zhen for a day, Emperor Guangxu would feel as if three autumns had passed. He wanted to tell her that I was going to punish Li Hongzhang. Concubine Zhen would be happy for my courage when she heard about it. , but when Concubine Zhen disappeared, he vented his anger on Wang Shang. He yelled at Wang Shang, "Where is Concubine Zhen? Why don't you come back?" "I don't know, I don't know...maybe, maybe Lafayette left her behind." Wang Shang knelt down. "Okay, okay, get up! Stay and stay." Emperor Guangxu's tone softened, and he already felt that there was no reason to be angry with this loyal old slave. In the morning, the Empress Dowager Cixi was standing in the courtyard of the Le Shoutang in the Summer Palace. The four large pots of osmanthus that Li Lianying had prepared for her exuded a strong aroma. She half-closed her eyes, enjoying the heart-warming osmanthus while thinking about something.The Empress Dowager Cixi, who had just passed the 600,000th birthday ceremony, was a little tired, but her complexion was still good. "Li Lianying." "The slave is here." "The emperor watched the play a few times." The Empress Dowager Cixi still half-closed her eyes. "Going back to Lafayette to sing for seven days, the emperor only watched the day of your birthday, and left after a short while." "Ok." Empress Dowager Cixi is still weighing in her heart: the emperor wants to raise his prestige through war and attack my power.snort!It's so naive...why is he getting bolder? ...It was the old man Weng who instigated...to drive him out of the center! ... No, I still think of a way to trap him in the circle of seeking peace, so that he can't tell the truth in front of the emperor... Yes, that's how it is done! "Li Lianying." "The slave is here." "Xuan Weng Tonghe." "yes." Weng Tonghe was taken by Li Lianying to the East Nuan Pavilion of Le Shoutang in the Summer Palace. "The old minister pays his respects to the queen mother, and respectfully asks the queen mother to live forever." "Ai Qing is free from courtesy." Weng Tonghe bowed his head and stood aside. The Empress Dowager Cixi sat on the Jiulong Bao seat and looked at the teacher of the Tongzhi Emperor and the Guangxu Emperor: Yes, he is indeed very knowledgeable, and his family is also very prominent. Both generations of father and son are emperor teachers. Three champions.It stands to reason that I should follow the rules and follow the orders of the court, so why have I been singing against me more and more in the past few years.However, no matter what, I will talk to him first, so I smiled and said: "Master Emperor, how are you doing recently?" "Thank you Empress Dowager for asking, the old minister's body is fine." Weng Tonghe replied respectfully. "The health and well-being of the emperor's teachers is the great fortune of the country. Now that the country is in trouble, it is actually my will to ask the emperor's teachers to come back to the center." "Thank you, Empress Dowager Long En." Weng Tonghe hurriedly kowtowed to Empress Dowager Cixi, but of course he knew in his heart that it was Emperor Guangxu's will. The Empress Dowager Cixi said in a steady tone: "You don't have to be polite, the emperor. In fact, Aijia has always been the main battle. It's just that the current situation of the battle is getting more and more unfavorable for my Qing Dynasty. It's okay if we don't fight. The more we fight, the more we lose. Not to mention the loss of North Korea, even the mainland is now lost, and if the fight continues, I am afraid that even the capital will be lost. So..." She paused, perhaps considering her words. Weng Tonghe thought to himself: Finally, the tail of compromise can no longer be contained, let's see how you cover it up?Then he said: "The old minister is all ears." The Empress Dowager Cixi finally said: "It seems that it is difficult for us to win the Qing Dynasty. Not to mention the loss of North Korea, we lost five warships in the Yellow Sea battle. Now that Lushun has fallen again, you say continue to fight..." Empress Dowager Cixi lengthened her voice again in order to lure Weng Tonghe to share her views.But Weng Tonghe said: "This battle was defeated, but it also demonstrated national prestige and national integrity." "That's right! It's a show of national prestige and national integrity. But if the fight continues, where will the military expenses come from? Now that disasters have been hit year after year and the treasury is empty, what will be used to equip the army? What will be used as military pay? How about national prestige? How about integrity?" Weng Tonghe thought, thank you for being able to say it, you have taken all the money for military pay and naval equipment to the Summer Palace. After years of disasters, you still ordered the whole country to pay congratulatory gifts on your birthday! "So..." Empress Dowager Cixi finally adjusted her words: "So in order to preserve the country and society of the Qing Dynasty, the fighting can no longer be continued. The Aijia sent you to Tianjin to ask Li Hongzhang to ask the Russian Minister to mediate as soon as possible." What?To ask the Russians to come out and negotiate a peace? Weng Tonghe was stunned. "Reporting to the Queen Mother, foreigners are unreliable, and so is Russia. They are only out of interest. Out of their interests, they will never really help us. Their nature is to drive away wolves and attract tigers." "Weng Zhongtang, you are serious." Empress Dowager Cixi was displeased. Weng Tonghe knelt down to the Empress Dowager Cixi and said: "Empress Dowager, I am a close minister of the emperor, and I really dare not take the peace as the world's scolding. Even if the old minister is replaced, the veteran will never be willing to join Li Hongzhang." Empress Dowager Cixi asked angrily: "How dare you resist the order?" Weng Tonghe hurriedly said: "The old minister dare not, the old minister swears to the death that he is unwilling to do things that are compromised." Empress Dowager Cixi saw that his attitude was very firm, so she had to think of another plan, so she said: "The Ai family sent you to ask him why the Huai army failed? It's okay!" "The old minister complies with the order. The old minister will leave." Weng Tonghe got up and saluted, took three steps back and walked out of the main room. The Empress Dowager Cixi looked at his back with lingering anger, and she thought bitterly, anyway, you have to go to Tianjin to meet Li Hongzhang to pass on the decree, and the old man wants you to have something to say in front of Emperor Guangxu, but you can't speak clearly. The official residence of Li Xunzhang in Tianjin. Li Hongzhang was taking a lunch break in the bedroom, when Jing Yuan came in and whispered, "Father, Weng Tonghe, please see me." "Ah! What is he doing here?" Li Hongzhang and Weng Tonghe have always been at odds. On the one hand, both of them are prominent figures in the imperial court. One is an imperial teacher of two generations. Father and son.One is the commander-in-chief who holds the military power of the Beiyang Navy, the Huai Army, the navy and the land army. He is in charge of military power and diplomatic power. Lions and tigers certainly do not give in to each other.So the two rarely get along.On the one hand, the two were suspected of feuding. Weng Tonghe's elder brother was dispatched to Xinjiang by Zeng Guofan for some reason, and Li Hongzhang played a role in fueling the flames. Weng Tonghe always believed that Li Hongzhang supported the army and supported himself, so he supported Zhang Zhidong to fight against him. Therefore, Weng and Li are quite powerful and their relationship is subtle. Today, when Li Hongzhang heard that Mr. Weng had arrived, he went outside the mansion and greeted him in person in the living room without being overbearing. After the two saluted each other, they were seated separately. Both of them assumed a business-like attitude, so there was no exchange of greetings. The waiter brought tea, and Li Hongzhang raised his hand and said, "Weng Zhongtang, please have some tea." "thanks." Li Hongzhang thought that he was sent by Emperor Guangxu, and he must be here to supervise the battle against me. He thought, anyway, I, Li Hongzhang, only have half a fleet. When the time comes, what will I, Li Hongzhang, rely on?What's the use of leading soldiers without soldiers? ... How about Emperor Cha, has he ever led soldiers?Does he know the difficulties of the soldiers?When he was a few years old, he would have been born and died on the battlefield. Without those of us who couldn't die in the hail of bullets, your throne would have been ruled by the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom long ago.What are you, Weng Tonghe?Aren't you just a champion scholar? You know nothing about military affairs, and you haven't even smelled gunpowder. Li Hongzhang had already thought about the reasons for avoiding the war and protecting the ship, and he just waited for the advisor of the main combat faction to speak. Unexpectedly, Weng Tonghe put down his cup after taking two sips of tea, and said frankly, "Li Zhongtang, the old minister came to meet with brothers this time, at the order of the Queen Mother..." Li Hongzhang was startled, why didn't the emperor send you here? "Queen..." Li Hongzhang opened his sharp eyes wide. "Yes, Queen Mother." Weng Tonghe repeated. Really queen? !Li Hongzhang's eyes lit up, thinking that my fleet was saved.Sure enough, Weng Tong and his snow-white beards trembled a bit, and then he said what Li Hongzhang was most eager to hear: unite with Russia to make Japan a reality. Weng Tonghe slowly followed the Empress Dowager Cixi's original words: "Why did the Empress Dowager blame the land and water war for delaying this?...The capital (Shenyang) is important, the mausoleum (the tomb of the Manchu Dynasty) is located, if there is shock, what should be the crime?..." Li Hongzhang turned pale when he heard this, and sighed in his heart, Queen Mother!Can this blame me?The navy has not been updated for more than ten years, and it has not added a ship. The military expenditures are all spent on repairing the Summer Palace and celebrating birthdays.Now it's time to blame me, really... Li Hongzhang was feeling wronged, only to hear Weng Tonghe say again: "The Empress Dowager wants Li Zhongtang to negotiate with the Russians in order to contain the Japanese..." Li Hongzhang's eyes lit up again. The Queen Mother's idea really coincided with the old man's. Although he thought it sounded good to him, he said in his mouth: "I'm afraid foreigners won't buy into my account, but since it's the Queen Mother's will, how dare I go against it." Of course Weng Tonghe knew that the Empress Dowager's edict was exactly what he wanted. Anyway, I had already made him clear about the Empress Dowager's edict, and I only passed on the empress dowager's secret edict, not mentioning my own opinions.So it was said that the Empress Dowager Cixi called Li Hongzhang to negotiate with the Russian envoy Kassini. Weng Tonghe got up to leave after conveying the message, and Li Hongzhang personally sent it out of the gate. Both parties treated each other with courtesy and business as usual from beginning to end. After Weng Tonghe left, Li Hongzhang received a court letter from the Empress Dowager Cixi, asking Li Hongzhang to meet with the Russian Kassini.Li Hongzhang breathed a sigh of relief, with the shield of the Empress Dowager Cixi, his Beiyang Navy was saved.