Chapter 66 Section sixty-six

The Empress Dowager is summoning King Qing and Rong Lu. Although they are talking about the battle situation, from the near to the far, from outside the customs in the north to Jiangsu and Zhejiang in the south, it is equivalent to seeing the overall situation. Let’s talk about the embassy area in Dongjiaomin Lane first. “Dong Fuxiang wants a cannon, I think,” Empress Dowager Cixi said, “It seems that I have to give it to him!” "It's not that the slaves don't give it, there is one thing that we have to worry about." Rong Lu had already guarded against the Empress Dowager Cixi's claim, and thought of an irrefutable reason in advance: "The cannon must be erected on the battlements of Zhengyangmen or Chongwenmen. On the ground, it is condescending, and it is effective when you shoot it out, but from south to north, the cannon does not have eyes, and I am afraid that it will hit the hall, how can it be?"

Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager Cixi was terrified. For the Han people, "Tangzi" is a forbidden place that they are never allowed to enter. Even bannermen, unless they are nobles, or officials in charge of sacrifices in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, there is no way to get a glimpse of it.Because of this, there are some bizarre legends that the Taoist hall sacrificed to Deng Zilong, a famous general of the Ming Dynasty. During the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty, Toyotomi Hideyoshi of Japan conquered Korea. Because Chengzu's biological mother Concubine Concubine was a Korean, and her family was in trouble, the Ming Dynasty should rescue her.In the twenty-sixth year of Wanli, Deng Zilong, with the rank of deputy general, led the navy under Chen Lin's eastward expedition, and was in the vanguard together with Li Shunchen, the governor of North Korea.The veteran, who was over seventy years old, took the lead and was so unstoppable that he died in the sea south of Pusan.

At that time, Emperor Taizu of the Qing Dynasty had already raised his troops. It is said that Chang Weifu went to Liaodong to observe the situation. Once he was captured by soldiers of the Ming Dynasty's Eastern Expedition, and sent to Deng Zilong.In order to repay this great kindness, a special sacrifice was set up.Therefore, people in the capital call it "Temple of General Deng" when they mention the hall. It is also said that Deng Zilong sacrificed his life for the country, turned his disability into a god, and there is his temple on Phi Island in Liaodong.Once the Taizu lost a battle and was in great danger. He had to pray for God's protection in Deng Zilong Temple, but he escaped from danger. Therefore, a temple was set up in Liaoyang. apparition.

There is no question of the truth of this statement, but Tangzi is the place where the emperor's family sacrifices, and the solemnity of the sacrifice is more solemn than that of the southern suburbs.Just as concubines never entered the Taimiao, the Empress Dowager Cixi never went to the Tangzi, but whenever she mentioned the Tangzi, she felt dreadful.Especially when there is a big expedition, the temple must be sacrificed. Now when the army is used, if the temple is destroyed and the gods lose their support, how can they protect the three armies? Therefore, Empress Dowager Cixi waved her hands again and again: "Forget it, forget it! You can't move it!"

"Yes." Rong Lu replied, "Tangzi is just east of Yuhe Bridge, close to the Hanlin Academy. The Gan army burned the Hanlin Academy, but it didn't affect the Tangzi. It's true that the ancestors have spirits. If one or two shells fall there, the slaves will take care of the cannons." Yes, but ten thousand deaths are not enough to cover their guilt." The Empress Dowager Cixi frowned and nodded: "I don't understand!" She said, "Is it true that such a place as big as a palm can't be captured?" Rong Lu didn't answer, just glanced to the side.Qing Wang Yikuang, who was hinted at, immediately said: "Foreigners are 'beasts that are still fighting', and the Gan army is 'a weapon against rats'. For example, if the Tangzi wants to protect, fighting is a restraint. The empress dowager and the emperor Shengming took down the embassy. Victory is not martial! It is not a matter of face to spread legends from all over the world!"

"How can I gain face?" Empress Dowager Cixi was suddenly excited: "Don't talk about foreigners, the southern provinces also look down on the imperial court. However, it's no wonder that they can't even take back their own land in the capital. How can they be taught to look down upon?" "If you go back to the Empress Dowager, the southern provinces..." "Stop talking for them!" The Empress Dowager Cixi interrupted Ronglu's words: "Look, is there any reason for the repeated orders to urge the provinces to transfer troops to pay their salaries?"

So the Empress Dowager Cixi started with the internal crimes of the British and French allied forces in the eighth year of Xianfeng, and counted several times when the capital had police. As long as there was an edict, the governors of the provinces would either personally lead the troops to help, or raise money from various sources.This time, the crisis in the fundamental land was more than eight years old in Xianfeng, but only a soldier sent by Yuan Shikai, the governor of Shandong, and Lu Chuanlin, the governor of Jiangsu, came to Jinjing to share the adversity.As for the edict to urge payment, it is ignored as nothing.Looking back on the past, the Empress Dowager Cixi is quite saddened by the loss of the court's prestige.

In fact, even Yuan Shikai and Lu Chuanlin did not respect the imperial court, but just bought Ronglu's face.Yuan Shikai led one of the Wuwei Five Armies and was promoted by Rong Lu, so of course he had to obey the command, while Lu Chuanlin and Rong Lu had a different relationship.Ronglu's father-in-law, the late Linggui, a scholar of the Wuyingdian University, was Lu Chuanlin's teacher. Rong Lu, who was so boring, was treated very politely, so they became close friends.These are all known by the Empress Dowager Cixi. When I think about it, I feel that Ronglu is different from others after all.Now if there are still ministers in the court who can be afraid of the governor, I am afraid that Ronglu is the only one.

With this change of thought, Empress Dowager Cixi felt that it was inappropriate to blame Rong Lu any more. She suppressed the anger in her chest and asked calmly, "What does Li Hongzhang mean?" Li Hongzhang has been urged by telegram three times to come to Beijing immediately.But Li Hongzhang always said that going to disaster alone would not benefit the overall situation.If you want to negotiate peace, first, you must protect the ministers of various countries; second, you must suppress the boxers yourself.In other words, these were the conditions for Li Hongzhang to enter Beijing, and he would not leave Guangzhou unless these two points were fulfilled.

If it is true, the Empress Dowager Cixi must have thought that Li Hongzhang was coercing the court and stirring up the anger she had just calmed down.So Ronglu glanced at King Qing, and after obtaining a tacit understanding, Fang Shi replied: "When employing people, the empress dowager and the emperor should be extra gracious. The slave is thinking that if Li Hongzhang is transferred back to Beiyang and urged to take office, he will be helpless." It can be excused." "Could it be," the Empress Dowager Cixi asked, "is he using this as a threat?" "Then, he dare not!"

Empress Dowager Cixi thought for a while and said, "Yulu is too useless! But whether Li Hongzhang is willing to take Beiyang, I think, is still uncertain." Both Rong Lu and King Qing had heart problems. One was afraid that he would return to Beiyang, and the other was afraid that he would return to the Zongli Yamen.If the Empress Dowager Cixi said this two or three months ago, she would be a saint for Ronglu and King Qing, but now that things are going on, she can't wait to relieve her burden.When Li Hongzhang came, he was always a great helper, sharing labor, worry, and slander, no matter what, it was in his own interest.So they said in unison: "Yes!" "Okay! What you said is that the Qing will take over Beiyang, then let him go back to Beiyang." Empress Dowager Cixi said, "Of course it is the Governor of Zhili and the Minister of Beiyang. So, what about Yulu?" "That has to be arranged elsewhere." "Go and discuss it." The Empress Dowager Cixi said deeply: "However, you have to think about it. If the court is so accommodating, if Li Hongzhang still refuses to enter Beijing, it will be even more embarrassing." "Yes!" Rong Lu replied, "We must not hurt the court's face again." Next, let’s talk about the powerful enemy that suppresses the border. In addition to Tianjin, the situation outside the customs is also very dangerous. Churches in Shenyang and Liaoyang have been destroyed, railways have been demolished, and Russian troops continue to arrive. If there is a conflict, it must not be the enemy.Therefore, Li Hongzhang, Liu Kunyi, and Yang Ru, the minister in Russia, all sent telegrams directly to General Shengjing Zengqi, asking him not to act rashly, so as not to give Russia an excuse to attack troops.These telegrams were also sent to the Zongli Yamen at the same time, so King Qing had a general understanding of the movements of the invading enemy. "Russia has the most troops from all over the world. Apart from Guan, there are also quite a few in Tianjin." King Qing took the opportunity to say, "Li Hongzhang has been to Russia, and he has a good relationship with the minister of household affairs, Weide, who is in power in Russia. Ten days ago Wade told the imperial envoy Yang Ru that we would never lose peace with the Qing Dynasty, and that it would be best for Li Hongzhang to come to Beijing. The Kaiser also told the imperial envoy Lu Haihuan to let Li Hongzhang come out to negotiate a peace. The matter is really difficult. Please ask the empress dowager, The emperor has issued an order early." The implication is that Li Hongzhang should be in charge of Western affairs.The Empress Dowager Cixi felt that King Qing was too irresponsible and displeased, so she sneered slightly: "Don't keep the word 'harmony' in your heart! If you can make peace, you can make peace, and if you can't make peace, you can't say it. He has served for many years, and he is familiar with military affairs and foreign affairs. As for how to use him, it depends on the situation. How can it be confirmed now that Li Hongzhang came to Beijing to negotiate a peace! Wouldn’t he have lost first?” As soon as they heard that the words were not going well, King Qing and Rong Lu were in a hurry, both unpredictable, they could only meet each other without saying a word. "Emperor," Empress Dowager Cixi turned around and asked, "What do you have to say to them?" Caught off guard, the emperor shivered for a moment, collected himself and replied, "No!" "The emperor has nothing to say, have you all heard?" Why do you need to ask this question?As if leaving room for shirking responsibility in advance?King Qing and Rong Lu felt that the Empress Dowager Cixi's attitude was difficult to understand and they had to be on guard. So after kneeling and withdrawing, they discussed with each other and decided to convey the Empress Dowager Cixi's intentions to the "Military Affairs Office" to see how they reacted. make sense. "Military Affairs Department" is a name chosen by Xu Tong.When the Hanlin Academy was burned, when the fighting spirit was high, the Empress Dowager Cixi once ordered: "Send Xu Tong, Chongqi, Yikuang, Zaiyi, etc. to discuss the military affairs of the capital." Therefore, Xu Tong came up with the "Military Affairs Office". The title implies the meaning of replacing it with the Military Aircraft Department.