Chapter 54 Section fifty-four

Thanks to the painstaking care of Princess Rongshou, the Empress Dowager Cixi and the emperor, mother, son, monarch and ministers finally maintained a harmony.The Empress Dowager Cixi also felt that since the state affairs had been decided to be entrusted to the emperor, the "family affairs" might as well be done by the "daughter". Therefore, all the extravagant embellishments and rituals of the wedding ceremony almost made Li Lianying ask Princess Rongshou Ask for instructions.Empress Dowager Cixi has lived in Xiyuan since Wanshou.An auspicious snow is a lot of fun, but the emperor suffers from the snow and the cold, and he has to go back to the palace to do business and study outside the province in the morning and evening.

The first big thing at this time is naturally to prepare for the big wedding in full swing.The Qin Tianjian selected the auspicious day on the second day of November to accept the dowry ceremony, and appointed Minister of Rites Kui Run as the official envoy, and Minister of the Ministry of Household Fukun as the deputy envoy. I checked it myself, because it was rumored that the Empress Dowager Cixi's power was like a bad habit among the people, and they were picky about everything.Gui Xiang lay on the opium couch all day long, in the dark, but he didn't cause much trouble. His wife was very aggressive and had a lot of tricks.After discussing with Princess Rongshou, Li Lianying felt that in such a situation, it was not appropriate to hear about the Empress Dowager Cixi, lest she be angry and embarrass her.Then he had no choice but to compromise and accommodate as much as possible. Therefore, even the usual rituals and rituals had to be carefully inspected.

Ten days before accepting the bride price, Li Lianying came to Princess Rongshou with a sad face and said, "'Fangjiayuan' has come up with another idea. I have something to say today. On the second day of November, we will have a big banquet for all the ministers." "Great banquet for ministers?" Princess Rongshou asked in amazement: "Where is there such a rule? Besides, for the grand banquet for ministers, how can it be the Queen's family's turn to intervene?" "It's not Long Live Lord's feast for the officials, it's the Queen's house."

"What's the point? Isn't this outrageous?" "So it is." Li Lianying said, "Fang Jiayuan's meaning is to invite a decree to give a banquet at the queen's house." "Then," said Princess Rongshou, "they don't know how to treat themselves? No one cares about how they want to invite guests." "It would be great if you understand this truth. Mrs. Cheng'en is afraid that if you invite guests, the guests will not show face, and if you don't resign, it will be too embarrassing, so you want to invite Lafayette to come forward.

Princess, please mention it! " "Bring it up?" Princess Rongshou asked, "Who will pay for the treat?" "Then, princess, don't ask." Princess Rongshou thought for a while and replied: "You go outside to inquire first, is there anyone who can talk? Among the masters in that class, there are many nerds, and they wrote a note later, saying that it is not in accordance with the ritual system, and the empress dowager should take it back. What an inappropriate thing!" "Probably not at this level." Li Lianying said, "Master Du today is no more afraid of trouble than a few years ago. Besides, it's a happy event, so I'm always ashamed to spoil it."

"Okay! Anyway, there are still more troubles. Just follow them! Let's Qing..." Princess Rongshou suddenly swallowed the words that she was going to say, which came from her biological father, Prince Gong: We Daqing... The Qing Dynasty will ruin Zai Fang's homeland. So Princess Rongshou took an opportunity and calmly responded to the Empress Dowager Cixi, saying that her family planned to feast the princes and ministers, but she had to see what the Empress Dowager wanted first, and if it was feasible, please issue a decree, otherwise it would be rejected.The words are very tactful, you can advance or retreat, if the Empress Dowager Cixi disagrees, it is not considered a snag.

But Empress Dowager Cixi didn't say for sure, nor could she say for sure, so she asked, "What do you think?" This question makes it difficult for Princess Rongshou to answer, because she usually talks about it, and often pays attention to the etiquette system intentionally or unintentionally. There is no way to remonstrate. Also because of this vigilance, I thought that the Empress Dowager Cixi might be probing on purpose, so I was extra cautious in my wording. After thinking for a while, I replied: "This is an example that has never happened before. However, it is up to people to make an example. As long as it does not hinder the national economy and people's livelihood, create a new one. It doesn't matter if it's an example. My daughter is thinking that in such a situation, the speaker will not speak."

"The officials have been working hard these days. It's better not to provoke them." The Empress Dowager Cixi thought for a while and said, "It's okay for Guixiang to invite a guest, but there is no need to issue an order. You tell them, just invite them." The first and second rank ministers are ready, the prince does not need to invite, he is a third-class Cheng Engong, and he can't explain the etiquette." Princess Rongshou secretly admired it, this arrangement really made Guixiang face.Because only the first and second rank ministers were invited, it seemed that Gui Xiang, the Duke, was the only one who respected me.What's more, if you want to invite princes and relatives, they may not come, three or five are fine, if there are too many thank yous, there will be a lot of empty seats, which will hurt face.

"You send them a message again, and make a list for me to see, and the seats must be arranged properly." This is a decree in disguise.First and second rank ministers will naturally know that the seats are "imperially appointed", so they dare not not come. "Tell them again, but you don't have to be too far away." The Empress Dowager Cixi said again, "These days, those 'Masters' are looking for trouble, so avoid them a little bit." "Looking for something wrong?" Princess Rongshou asked in confusion. "Aren't those trains?"

Princess Rongshou thought for a while before suddenly realizing.Li Hongzhang bought several trains, which were custom-made in France. There are seven cars in total, one locomotive and six carriages. The most exquisite one is specially prepared for the Empress Dowager Cixi.In addition, two upper-class cars are reserved for the emperor and empress, and two middle-class cars are used for the entourage.Another section is the luggage cart. In addition, there is also a railway track for Qili Road, which has begun to be laid on the open space to the west of Ziguang Pavilion in Zhonghai, and will be completed soon, for the Empress Dowager Cixi to take a test ride.Western miraculous skills and ingenuity have always been hated by defenders of Taoism, so it is natural for the officials to use memorials to persuade them.

"Everyone thinks that I take the train for fun, just like the two small steamers 'Xiangyun' and 'Pengri' that were built last year and placed on Kunming Lake. That's really wrong." Empress Dowager Cixi said: " Look at your Seventh Uncle, the person who opposed Western things in the past has changed in the past two years. Last month, he published a paper and advocated the construction of a railway from Tianjin to Tongzhou. I also want to see what is so good about the railway. place?" This is the reason why the Empress Dowager Cixi explained why she allowed the railway to be built in the imperial garden.Princess Rongshou didn't know much about this matter, so she had nothing to say.Just keep in mind the Empress Dowager Cixi's warning and inform Li Lianying to tell Fang Jiayuan's family to entertain first- and second-rank officials in one fell swoop, and must not be ostentatious. Chengen Gong Guixiang's "big feast of officials", the queen who has not yet entered the palace from the Qing Dynasty, has accepted three kneelings and nine kowtows from a senior official of the first and second ranks. The rectification, which the Empress Dowager Cixi was worried about, and the matter of admonishing the construction of the railway from Tianjin to Tongzhou, finally appeared in the memorial. Sheng Yu, the supervisor of Guozijian, took the lead, followed by Yu Lianyuan, the supervisory censor of Henan Province, and Tu Renshou, the supervisory censor of Shanxi Province, who responded against Zhang.These words are harsh, thinking that the opening of the Tianjin-Tongzhou railway will dig people's graves and destroy people's fields and houses, and it will be enough to make the boatmen, carters and coolies who live on the Tianjin passage displaced. The Alcohol King is extremely annoyed.Therefore, when the Empress Dowager Cixi sent those memorials to the Navy Yamen and the Military Aircraft Office to "discuss together with the memorials", he decided to put them aside. "The memorial, this wave, will naturally subside over time. The situation is tense and tense. Many people are watching the movement of the Empress Dowager Cixi. The railway to the west of Ziguang Pavilion has been laid. Let's see if she will try to sit on this Western wonder in the Forbidden Garden?If the Empress Dowager Cixi took the train, it would mean that she was in favor of building the Jintong Railway.This is no small matter, it must be outspoken and extremely admonishing, and it is necessary to fight desperately.