Chapter 45 Section forty-fifth

The emperor begged, and the ministers asked, the Empress Dowager Cixi felt that it was not only tasteless to be pretentious, but also self-defeating, because some people thought that "the relationship between the government and the government is very important, so please order a meeting of court ministers", as if the power between the empress dowager and the emperor should be delegated to the ministers. Decisively.This is an intolerable thing in the Empress Dowager Cixi's opinion. So there was another Huanghuang Shangyu, which was ordered by the Military Aircraft Department, sent to the cabinet, and promulgated to the world, saying that the emperor was first in charge of great affairs, resolved doubts and decided policies, and had to be torn up in case of trouble, in order to make it right.Now that the princes and ministers have repeatedly pleaded, "how dare you insist on your own righteousness to abide by the scriptures, so as to violate the opinions of all the people in the world"?It was decided that after the emperor took charge, he would train in politics for another three years.As for Prince Chun, who once had an attachment, he handed over the envoy of Shenjiying Yinyue before the pro-government period. Now that he has been allowed to train the government, Prince Chun should also put state affairs first, pay attention to the overall situation and manage as usual.

※※※ This edict reminded Prince Gong of the decree that after the Xinyou coup, the two palaces were closed, and he was named the king of politics. It was another transaction of mutual benefit between you and me. On the one hand, the elder brother is replaced by the younger brother.Twenty-five years ago, the dust was like a dream, Prince Gong looked at himself in the mirror, his man was gray and bony, and he felt that the heroic spirit of the past could never be found again. In contrast, he was not as good as the eighty-year-old Bao Yun, who was full of energy. King Gong sighed and said, "I really envy you!"

"This mountain is as high as that mountain." Bao Jun replied, "There are still people who envy you! And this person is beyond your imagination." "Who is it!" "Master Seven." King Gong was silent.When mentioning the king of alcohol, he always felt perplexed and unwilling, no matter how he looked at it, and no matter how much he asked himself humbly, he couldn't find anything that the king of alcohol was better than himself?According to the cold eyes of the onlookers, there is a big difference between prosperity and decline. They are all envious of King Chun, but what is King Chun envious of himself?

"Qi Ye is not in good health recently, he is short of breath and weak, and he has to go to court every day. From the sailors in the navy to the painting boat in Sanhai, the red is extremely popular, the busy is extremely busy, and the suffering is extremely bitter!" After all, Bao Jun laughed out loud. "He is a person who can't be idle." Prince Gong said meaningfully: "After a year or two of tossing around, he probably knows that idleness is happiness." "That's why he wants to envy you." Bao Jun asked suddenly: "Master Liu, have you ever heard that the empress has already been appointed?"

"Who is it?" "What do you think!" Bao Jun nodded again: "Kiss is more intimate." "Could it be Gui Xiang's daughter?" Prince Gong asked, "Which one is it?" "Naturally Ergege." "That's right!" Prince Gong recalled that Guixiang's eldest daughter and youngest daughter were both married by the Empress Dowager Cixi, and they were betrothed to Zaize, the eldest grandson of the "Old Fifth Master" Mianyu, and Bei Le Zaishu, the heir of King Fu. , naturally it is his second daughter who is eligible to enter the middle palace.

"I can't remember." Prince Gong asked, "How do you look?" "It doesn't look very good! But I heard that it is a character. Now, the emperor..." Bao Yun looked back and swallowed his words. "Ah!" Prince Gong shook his head and said nothing, thinking of Mu Zong's past, he felt sad. "Fang's homeland is about to become a nest of phoenixes!" Bao Jun said again, "Fortunately, the family law in this dynasty is good. If it was in the previous Ming Dynasty, there would be father and son, two husbands, and the son-in-law of the prince, Baylor, and the duke. The arrogance is still there."

"Our fortune in the Qing Dynasty depends on Fangjiayuan's feng shui now!" "That's a wonderful statement!" Bao Jun applauded, "It's really eloquent." "Forget it! I hope I'm talking nonsense." Speaking of this, Prince Gong, who had been in a haggard mood for a long time, suddenly became excited. He said that the Empress Dowager Cixi at first forbade him to follow the class to celebrate the 500,000th birthday; The two kings, Wang and Dun, both hit a wall, and they seemed to hate and hate him deeply, as if they believed that the foreign insults they had suffered in successive years were all his sins for harming the country.There are many people who hold this view, and it cannot be said that it is wrong, but it is too superficial.

"Why does she not care about the friendship like this? It's not her heart, she has to do it." Prince Gong asked Bao Jun: "You and I have been together for many years, you should be a little different Opinion?" This question stopped Bao Jun, and after thinking for a long time, he replied, "I think it's because I expected too much." "No, no! Did you see it and refuse to say it?" Prince Gong sneered and said, "If there is still someone she fears in her heart, then this person is nothing but a mere one. Do you understand? Why does she reject people thousands of miles away? "

At this moment, Bao Yun naturally understood.The Empress Dowager Cixi is not stingy with giving any kindness to Prince Gong. Although she is at odds with Prince Gong, after all, she drinks water and thinks about her source. Who is responsible for saving the orphans and widows back then?Since the eldest princess's favor has not been replaced, it can be imagined that she has no unresolvable personal grievances with Prince Gong.And so he repeatedly belittled Prince Gong without any pretense of words, indeed, as he said, it was just to "reject people thousands of miles away". Therefore, to put it bluntly, it was the Empress Dowager Cixi who deliberately pretended to have an attitude of deep hatred and hatred, so as to prevent Prince Gong from seeing her.Seeing that she was not serious at first, she was afraid that it would be difficult to deal with Prince Gong's remonstrance once they met.Bao Yun remembered very clearly that several times, the Empress Dowager Cixi signaled to start the construction of the Palace Garden, but Prince Gong just agreed loudly and did not continue.Not only civil engineering matters, but also strict restraint, Prince Gong is especially unwilling to make concessions in terms of etiquette.Bao Yun’s deepest impression is that after Mu Zong came to power, the Empress Dowager Cixi once wanted to summon all the ministers in the Qianqing Palace to announce that since she was listening to the government behind the curtain, she has pacified Hong Yang, suppressed Nianzi, and brought the Zongshe back to safety. I don't express any objection, but I only object to being summoned in the Qianqing Palace, because the Qianqing Palace is the emperor's official office, and the empress dowager is not suitable for visiting.

What about now?The Empress Dowager Cixi not only carried out large-scale construction projects to repair the shortcomings of the Three Seas, but also rebuilt the Qingyi Garden. Not only did she move to the Ningshou Palace where the Supreme Emperor lived, but she often summoned princes and ministers in the Xinuan Pavilion of the Qianqing Palace.All of this will not happen when Prince Gong is in power. Thinking of it this way, Bao Jun couldn't help but said loudly: "Qi Ye usually talks eloquently, always saying that others are not good enough, but who knows that he himself is even worse than others."

"That's what I said, 'It doesn't take much effort to see people carrying the burden.' Now Lao Qi knows that he is struggling, and wants to find someone to help him, but someone refuses. I think this burden is getting heavier and heavier, and he must be crushed. Impossible!" "Ah!" Bao Jun spread his hands, "I can't help you." "Having said that, you and I shouldn't have the heart of watching the excitement, even if we understand his difficulties and say a few words about the joys and sorrows, it will be comforting to him." "Sixth Master!" Bao Jun was really moved, "Your measure is really amazing. I am not as good as you! Sometimes I am not convinced when I think about it, and I have to say a few sarcastic remarks. From now on, I really want to learn from you That's good." "It's not just about people!" Prince Gong said with emotion: "Everyone is responsible for the rise and fall of a country, let alone you and me? Although we are not in the position and do not plan for the government, the heart of caring about state affairs is indispensable." Because of this, Bao Yun often inquired about the government, consciously or unconsciously.He has many former disciples, and he still has a lot of friends. People who usually come to see him always think that it is a last resort for him to retreat to the forest. In order to avoid irritation, they deliberately avoid talking about the court situation.Now that he is enthusiastic about it, others don't have to worry about it anymore, so the actions and inside stories of the court can be heard all the time in Baojun. Apart from the news about the construction of the Three Seas and Longevity Hill, the current important policy of the DPRK and China is financial management. To put it more clearly, how to increase the income of the Ministry of Household Affairs and the Ministry of Internal Affairs.In this regard, Empress Dowager Cixi has her own set of ideas, which are incompatible with those of Yan Jingming, who is well-known for his financial management, and there are often discords between monarchs and ministers. One of the things that Empress Dowager Cixi is most enthusiastic about is to resume making money.Beijing Central Plains used a lot of money to restore the "one penny" money making, so it was necessary to do bronze drum casting.For this reason, Weng Tonghe, Minister of the Ministry of household affairs, was specially summoned to ask him to raise three million silver to buy foreign copper.Weng Tonghe was naturally distressed, and the Empress Dowager Cixi also expressed that she was going to hand over the "handover silver" saved by the palace for several years to the Ministry of Households as a "copper copy" to show her initiative. Now Weng Tonghe had no choice but to bite the bullet, agreed, and went to see Yan Jingming to talk about money when he left the palace.Yan Jingming didn't take it seriously, and pointed out simply and succinctly that if the money is used, the big money must be recovered first.The large amount of privately minted money is extremely light, and if it is all imported into the government, wouldn't it be in vain to benefit the treacherous people and suffer the small people?At the same time, Jingshi Qianpu, with the "four constants" as the pillar, has contributed a lot to maintaining the market.Collecting large amounts of money and restricting money will cause turmoil, and the "four constants" may not be able to support it. At that time, the market will be in chaos and it will become an unmanageable situation. The words hit the nail on the head, but Chun Wang was also thinking wishfully, thinking that the three million silver copper could be cast into six million silver coins, and he made three million silver out of thin air Wouldn't it be wonderful to repair the garden without using naval funds? Yan Jingming couldn't hold on, saying that once the coins worth six million silver were sent out, there would be more money and less silver, and the money would be cheap and the silver expensive. If you are happy with the nobleman, the world will be in chaos. The words were too blunt, and King Chun felt disgusted, thinking that there are various ways to use money, which will never cause chaos in the market. Then he mentioned Wang Anshi's reform. The law is not chaotic, but the unnecessary resistance is too great, so that it cannot be carried out smoothly. It is difficult to refute him by citing scriptures and classics to discuss the past and prove the present. After repeated research, finally a consensus was reached, the fundraising was done according to the plan, and the foreign copper was purchased according to the plan. After the purchase, it was cast with machines in Tianjin and Shanghai, and it was cast into a warehouse. After three years, the situation was inspected, and then the use method. This is an incomplete method, obviously perfunctory.According to this method, not only will it not be possible to make money from making money, but it will first need to advance three million yuan, and after three years, there is no hope of getting it back. What kind of calculation is this. Empress Dowager Cixi was very displeased by this, and summoned King Chun, saying that he was deceived by the officials of the household department.At the same time, it also talked about not doing foreign copper, but rectifying the copper mines in Yunnan.As soon as the news spread, some people were happy for Tang Jiong, who was in prison, thinking that his life was coming. Tang Jiong was arrested in Beijing because he retreated without authorization in Yunnan during the Sino-French War, and was convicted of beheading the prisoner.In a blink of an eye, the winter solstice is approaching, and if the "goujue" is included, there will not be many days to live. Tang Jiong has been in prison for two years. Last year, he was not on the list of interdictors and survived, but he was not pardoned, so it seems that he cannot escape this year.He himself is quite calm, this summer in prison, he wrote a chronicle of himself, and all the funerals have long been explained.But his family, relatives and friends, of course, have to do their best to rescue him, especially the edict to rectify the money law, so there is a chance of survival.Because Tang Jiong served as an official in Sichuan for many years and had a long-standing reputation for being capable, he was reused by his senior fellow Ding Baozhen to sort out Sichuan salt, which was quite effective.In addition, he was a feudal official and governor of Yunnan. If he could be used to manage the mining and transportation of copper mines, it can be said that he is a suitable person and place.Moreover, the capital for copper mining in Yunnan has always been allocated under the Sichuan salt tax. For such "cooperative funds", the provinces that pay the money are always extremely reluctant and come up with various reasons to delay the short-term solution. If Tang Jiong was in Yunnan, it would be difficult for Sichuan to play tricks to "debt". The trouble is that Guizhou doesn't have any prominent officials in the court, so it's hard to listen to this advice that can save Tang Jiong from death to life.His past is very good, so he had to go another way, first entrusting Yan Jingming, and Yan Jingming's family members were in decline, and they consciously hit a snag when they made a suggestion, which made it difficult for others to speak, so they turned to King Chun.Unexpectedly, King Chun is also afraid of hitting a wall.Li Hongzhang, Zuo Zongtang, and Ding Baozhen all begged for Tang Jiong's favor and asked him to accept him. As a result, these memorials or attached films were not released. It is conceivable how the Empress Dowager Cixi hated this man!King Chun, who was becoming more and more cautious, of course refused to meddle in this nosy matter, because it was King Chun who advocated severe punishment of Tang Jiong and Xu Yanxu. The winter solstice is approaching, and the Goujue is approaching. Tang Jiong's relatives and friends from the same village are already preparing for his funeral, but his family is still not giving up. Tang Jiong's two sons, Tang Woyong and Tang Woqi, are both in Beijing. They search for cracks every day, trying to save their father's life, but they run into obstacles everywhere, and finally find a way out.Under the guidance of an expert, Tang Woqi prepared an important gift, specially went to visit Lishan, and kowtowed for help. "Don't dare to do it, don't dare to do it!" Li Shan knelt down to return the salute, helped Tang Woqi up and said, "Your Honor's crime is a bit harsher. Now I can entrust someone to try it for you.But speaking of the above, will the entrusted person be willing to take care of it, and what will be the result after taking care of it?I dare not say.If it doesn't work, don't blame me. " "Yes, yes! Our father and son are already grateful for the help of Master Li. We will not do our best and listen to the destiny. If Master Li tried his best, but it still doesn't help, then it will be irreparable. My father is really unexpected. His old man is under the spring. , I also remember the great kindness." As he said, she shed tears, lay down on the ground again, kowtowed twice, then got up and took out a red envelope, offering it with both hands. Li Shan didn't wait for him to speak, he waved his hands again and again: "No need at this moment, no need at this moment." He said, "If the matter is successful, I will have to ask my brother for two or three thousand silver to spend everywhere. If the matter is not successful, I dare not receive any money. " Tang Woqi insisted on giving it away, but Lishan insisted on not accepting it, and finally said that if Tang Woqi insisted on doing this, he would not dare to take care of it.Hearing this, Tang Woqi didn't dare to force it.Li Shan saw the guest off and agreed to hear back in two days. The reply received on the third day was that the entrusted person was willing to take care of it, but it is unknown what effect it will have. On the day before the hookup, there was no decree.Then we have to wait until the day of execution to see if the miracle of keeping people under the knife can happen?If the ancestors of the Tang family were virtuous, they would not die this year, and they would live two more years.Because the emperor will be in charge next year, and he will be on the same level as the emperor. He is expected to amnesty the world and stop for a year.If you get married in the year after next, if you stop for another year, you will have at least three years to live. It was November 16th, and before dawn, someone rushed to the prison of the Ministry of Criminal Justice to bid farewell to Tang Jiong.Although he was a felon who was executed in prison, he lived in the "Fire Room" of the Ministry of Punishment. He paid for it himself and renovated it to be quite clean. Forgetting is in prison.However, it is impossible to guess whether these two "abodes" can live again.Tang Jiong lived here for two years, and he developed feelings for every couch, so not only did he not care about the tearful guests, but he also caressed and lingered about everything in the house, and couldn't bear to say goodbye. At dawn, the judge of the prison hall came.Although Xue Yunsheng, the left servant of the Ministry of Criminal Justice, was at odds with Tang Jiong, the officers of the Ministry of Criminal Justice were very polite to him. One was his original status as a governor, the other was the red envelopes for festivals, and the third was "being a guest" for two years. Affection.Therefore, they didn't tie him up, but let him wear a big fur coat and a warm hat without a top, get into the blue woolen rear car prepared by his family, and drive straight to Caishikou. There were a lot of people watching the excitement at Caishikou that day, because since the killing of Sushun and Liangjiang Governor He Guiqing, Caishikou had not killed a senior official of Hongdingzi for more than 20 years.Two years ago, when Li Hongzhang and Sheng Xuanhuai wanted to sell China Merchants, because it was Ma Jianzhong who came forward to negotiate with Qichang Foreign Firm, they were accused of being "traitors". It is full of pits and valleys.As a result, everyone was in vain, and Ma Jianzhong was not arrested at all.Tang Jiong is probably going to be killed this day, and it is absolutely true, and not only Tang Jiong is going to be killed, but also Zhao Wo, who is also in the same case. Everyone should see this bad word about Xu Yanxu, the governor of Guangxi who has died of illness. Is there any similarity between the Taoist priest of the third grade and the big and boastful Ma Su on the stage? Zhao Wo's treatment is far inferior to Tang Jiong's. He wears a "big wishful headlock" around his neck and sits on the ground under a mat shed in the northern half of the alley. Tang Jiong sits in a corner of the official hall.Sitting imposingly in the front is Xu Gengshen, Minister of Military Aircraft.His original vacancy is the right servant of the Ministry of Criminal Justice. On the day of execution, the official of the Ministry of Criminal Justice and the Criminal Division will be executed as usual. At this time, he is waiting for the yellow book from the imperial censor of Gyeonggi Province to make an order. surgery. Near noon, a fast horse came to Xuanwumen, but it was not the imperial censor of Gyeonggi Province, but a military aircraft Zhangjing. I saw him get off his horse in the official hall, hurried forward, greeted Xu Geng, stood up and said: "Zhang Zhongtang asked me to deliver the letter, Tang has a kind decree." Zhang Zhongtang refers to Zhang Zhiwan, the Minister of Criminal Affairs who co-organized the university. Tang Jiong is Zhang Zhidong's brother-in-law, and he is also related to Jiajia, so he has to send someone to deliver letters both public and private. "Benevolence! Oh," Xu Geng asked, "Should I go to the military station to serve?" Officials and criminals who have a decree of kindness when they are about to be sentenced do not go out of these two routes, but who knows that they are neither. "It is sent to Yunnan to be dispatched by the Cen Zhijun." That Zhang Jing said again, "Zhao Wo took advantage of it, and sent him to the military station to serve." "This...," Xu Geng nodded and said, "It's an accident, not an accident. You go back and tell Zhang Zhongtang, I understand." Then Xu Geng asked the officer to come over to discuss, because how to deal with it was a big problem. Because it has always been said in Qiujue that all criminals waiting to be executed in prison will be tied to the execution ground, and they will wait for the imperial censor of Gyeonggi Province to get the yellow book of judging before deciding their life and death.People who are not dead must also be present, this is what the saying goes, "accompanied by beheading". There are no more than two kinds of punishments after the accompanying beheading. If the hook is slow, they will still be sent to prison.If there is a decree to reduce crimes, the death penalty must be changed to exile. That is the matter of the Arsenal Department of the Ministry of War, and it will be sent directly from Caishikou to the Ministry of War for distribution.Now it is neither slow hook nor exile, how should we deal with it?The office of the Autumn Trial Office, the Lang Zhong of the Yunnan Division, and other officials who should be in charge, all have no way to do it. "There are laws and regulations, but there are no laws and regulations. I think that in the past two hundred years, similar situations may not be unique, especially in the Yongzheng and Qianlong dynasties, where the power of the sky was unpredictable, and there was always special grace." Xu Geng turned to the chief of the autumn trial office Said: "Master Xue is proficient in laws and regulations, so he must know. He also lives nearby, brother, you have to work hard, come to ask for advice!" This is to order him to ask for instructions from Xue Yunsheng, the left servant of the Ministry of punishment.Xue Yunsheng lives in the north of Caishikou and west of Jiaochangkou, which is called the root of the old wall.The office of the autumn trial knocked on the door and entered, explaining the purpose of coming.Xue Yunsheng was surprised at first, then shook his head, and said lightly: "I can't remember such a case." "Then, according to adults, what should be done?" "Then it's hard to say." Xue Yunsheng replied: "Just wait and see!" The chief of the autumn trial office was very upset, so he nailed another sentence: "Now I am at Caishikou, where should I send it?" "Then you have to ask You Tang." "It was Mr. Xu who called the officer to ask for instructions." "You ask me for instructions, who should I ask for instructions?" Xue Yunsheng's face darkened, and he threw the tea bowl in one fell swoop. This is a sign of chasing guests, and the footman on the corridor immediately shouted: "See off the guests!" The chairperson of the Qiu Trial Office encountered a big setback and was extremely annoyed. However, he still had to perform the etiquette of a judge and got up to say hello and leave.Xue Yunsheng sent it to the dripping eaves, bowed his head and walked inside without looking back.