Chapter 121 History of the Palace Outside the Qing Dynasty (19-1)

It was on the fourth day of July that Jingzhong got the news of Mawei's war.Only by Li Hongzhang's telegram, the words were vague and the situation was unclear, King Chun was very anxious.The navy's defeat is certainly expected, but will the French army make a large-scale landing and will the shipyard be able to hold on?If it is not kept, can the capital of Fujian Province be kept?If these questions cannot be answered definitively, it will be difficult to know what to do.Therefore, apart from sending secret telegrams to the coastal provinces and immediately bombarding French warships imported, the only thing that can be done is to ask the Prime Minister's Office separately about the details of the Battle of Horsetail.

By the fifth day of the lunar new year, all kinds of news arrived, but the opinions were different. Some said that our army was defeated, some said that we lost first and then won, some said that there was a victory and defeat for each other, and some said that we were killed alone.Of course, the most important thing to pay attention to is Zhang Peilun's "self-arrest" telegram.As soon as the Zongli Yamen received it, he immediately forwarded it to King Chun, and the first summoned him together, and then submitted it to the imperial case. Empress Dowager Cixi's complexion was resolute and indignant amidst haggardness. After reading the telegram quietly, she said softly: "A decisive battle must be done!"

"France bullied me too much, there is absolutely no reason to sit back and watch them go straight in." King Chun said: "The navy is defeated, and the land route is really sure. As long as Fuzhou can survive, on the one hand, use Liu Yongfu. On the other hand, urge Cen Yuying, Pan Dingxin hastened to Beijing, which is enough to contain the French army. For the current plan, we must first ask Yizhi, and then make a breakthrough to boost morale and people's hearts. Given the size of China, the vast land, and the population, if you are aroused by righteous indignation, There is no reason why we cannot defeat the French with the same hatred and one heart."

"The bad thing about China is that the hearts of the people are inconsistent. But you can't blame everyone. Although the court has already made up its mind, the people who handle things don't know what their intentions are. It seems that they are wronged everywhere and dare not break with France. This First of all, the outsiders of course cannot understand the intention of the imperial court, so they will inevitably hesitate and back down." The Empress Dowager Cixi sneered and said, "There are quite a few people in the prime minister's yamen, each of whom has his own idea. .Our foreign affairs are really not done well!"

"This is not something that happened overnight. Since the establishment of the Prime Minister's Office, it has not strengthened the country's prestige." The implication of King Chun's words was that he was still attacking Prince Gong. "Actually, if Li Hongzhang is tasked with handling Western affairs, it will save trouble." "There's no need to talk about it right now. Now that there's a decisive battle and we're raising troops and paying, we should have a plan." "Yes!" At this level, King Chun certainly had plans, "The war with the law is focused on the land. Fujian's military affairs still have to use veteran generals. Zuo Zongtang has a long-standing prestige, and the situation in Fujian is also familiar. I feel that May as well let him go there to supervise the teacher."

"Zuo Zongtang is old and not in good health, can it work?" "This is nothing more than taking advantage of Zuo Zongtang's prestige and setting up a town in the south. In addition, of course, someone must be sent to help him. Yang Changjun, the governor of water transport, is Zuo Zongtang's powerful old department. He can be sent to help Fujian's military affairs and supervise the bravery of Fujian." "Of course." Empress Dowager Cixi nodded, "If you want to send Zuo Zongtang to Fujian, of course you have to send Yang Changjun to help him. Besides, Bao Chao and Yang Yuebin can also be used."

"Yes!" King Chun replied, "Once the war starts, there are a lot of clues about military pay and other matters. Please ask the Empress Dowager to disembark the military plane and discuss it with the ministers in detail." The grand plan of fighting and defending can be decided by Empress Dowager Cixi, how to fight and how to defend, naturally depends on King Chun to plan.Among relatives and nobles, King Jin has always been known as a soldier, and he admires Zuo Zongtang very much, and knows that he relies heavily on Li Hongzhang, so he will ask them for advice and do his best, so she is very relieved, but she has something to say .

"He Jing has been in Fujian for seven years, and he has repaired a lot of forts. Why did he not fight? Zhang Peilun is also very capable. Why did he lose like this when he started a battle? Although the ships and cannons are not as good as others, if you are careful, you can let them go without seeing them." The French took advantage. The situation ahead is not very clear now, and it is inconvenient to investigate when it is employing people. However, losing teachers and land is not a trivial matter, and the court records must not be ignored. What to do is appropriate, and you have to Find a way out."

"Yes!" King Chun replied, "In front of the great enemy, it is natural to win the hearts of the people and work together to resist insults as the most important thing. As for the border guards, the responsibility belongs to them. When the horsetail starts the battle, there will be a detailed report, and we must discuss it." Right and wrong, condemnation of meritorious deeds. The imperial court’s discipline, I absolutely dare not favoritism, but I must ask for the empress dowager’s grace, and leave it alone for the time being.” "That's what I meant, as long as you remember it." The Empress Dowager Cixi said again, "Go down and discuss it with Zuo Zongtang! I will hand you the sign in the afternoon."

King Chun withdrew from the Hall of Mental Cultivation, and immediately sent guards to notify them separately, and went to Shiyuan for a party.When he returned to the mansion, the princes and ministers who had been summoned had arrived one after another, a total of four people: Prince Li, Yikuang, Sun Yuwen, and Xu Gengshen. "Where is Zuo Jigao?" King Chun asked, "What if he doesn't come?" "Zuo Hou hasn't arrived at the military plane for two days." Sun Yuwen replied: "I sent Su La to invite, Zuo Hou said to 'listen at home'." "Listen to the ginseng!" Chun Wang was surprised, "Who ginseng him? Why?"

"Yan Shunan posted a report. On Longevity Day, Zuo Hou didn't follow the class to salute, so Yan Shunan went to participate in the resignation. According to the decree: Zuo Zongtang handed over to the Ministry of Discussion." "This is also a trivial matter. Alas!" King Chun said heartbrokenly, "The state affairs are so bad, and you still talk about these trivial matters? Scholar is ignorant, really hateful. Zuo Jigao is also, why bother to lose your temper over such a trivial matter, and be so ignorant Criticism, why bother?" "You can't blame Zuo Hou." Xu Geng is more fair and straightforward, and his words are not as sinister as Sun Yuwen's. , the waist and feet were damaged, and he couldn't kneel and worship Ruyi when he was old. In all fairness, it is also excusable. Yan Shunan took advantage of the topic to say that he was arrogant, and even denounced him as "contemptuous of etiquette and disobedience". Know the general. My lord, please think about it. With Zuo Hou's meritorious service, saying that he is "contemptuous of etiquette and disobedience", isn't it just saying that he is proud of his merits and is about to rebel? These words were not trivial during the Yongqian period, so let's take it today Said, if the sentence of "contemptuous disrespect" is true, it is also a crime of "disrespect". How to deal with it is clearly stated in the law. I would like to ask the prince, whether to take his head off or serve as his army? Even if it is extra favor , I also have to be dismissed, can I do this? If I can’t do this, it will become Ji Gang’s failure, so after all, he only cares about his own quickness, which is really embarrassing for the court.” "Uncle Xing's argument is very fair." King Chun said, "Now we have to think of a way to calm down. I have already presented it face-to-face today, and I still want to invite him to Fujian to supervise the teacher. , what can I do?" "It's very difficult to refute Yan Shunan's excerpt. Because..." Because Yanxu is an official in the Ministry of Rites, the ministers lost their manners, correcting the facts according to the facts is his duty as a courtier, even if the wording is inappropriate, it will be difficult for others to speak.Sun Yuwen explained the reason, but made another comment, thinking that there is only one person with different status and status, who is qualified to correct Yanxu.This man is Alcohol King. "If you want me to talk, I will definitely say it." King Chun replied generously: "In the early years of Tongzhi, the fifth master was in charge of the clan's mansion, and made some messy tricks, which was unbearable. He also said that my wording was too extreme. You might as well quote this story and say something fair for Zuo Jigao. Uncle Xing, I will trouble you to write. Also, did you bring the draft of the declaration of war?" "Brought it!" Xu Geng handed over a copy of the draft, stepped back to draw up a copy for King Chun, first found a copy of the manuscript, carefully read Yanxu's original copy, and wrote a little: "The cabinet issued an edict: Yanxu Zuo: On June 26th, the Longevity Festival saluted, Zuo Zongtang ranked first in the civil service, and did not follow the class to salute and bow down. Deliberation office. Qin here. At the beginning, the minister thought that rectification and incompetence were common occurrences. Yesterday, after reading and sending out all the seal performances, I saw Yanxu's original fold, and the embellishments were all over the place, which is really absurd. Thinking that Yanxu has the duty of rectifying the etiquette, and Zuo Zongtang has the fault of disobeying the etiquette, if this minister discusses the matter as usual, who would not be suitable?It was an excuse to slander him, but he did not have the honor of fighting for decades, and slandered him as a Jinshi, and even denounced him as contemptuous and disrespectful, making false statements and perverting his feelings.At this time, the empress dowager listened to the government behind the curtain, and all the deliberate actions of the courtiers were in the shadow of the candle, and they could not be shaken by it. I was afraid that at the beginning of the pro-government in the future, people who didn't know it deeply, once this wind blows, the evil will grow.During the Tongzhi period, Chen Yixuan wrote a new chapter on duty in Chen Zongren's mansion. Although Yu Yun requested it, he still ordered it because of excessive wording. Yanxu's negligence today seems to be too much compared to the presumptuousness and disagreement of the minister that day.I would like to respectfully fold Chen Zou. " After writing it, he handed it to King Chun. He thought the wording was appropriate and was very satisfied.Immediately, the transcript was submitted.Then continue to deliberate on the text of the edict declaring war. This edict is to "tell the people all over the world". ? Specially expose its unreasonable plot, and announce it to the world." The next step is to encourage civil and military officials, soldiers and civilians in all provinces to make contributions bravely.Among them, Liu Yongfu was specifically mentioned: "This member is originally from China, so he can use it for me. He wrote a short story with the name of the admiral, and rewarded him with a flower feather. He led the troops and won by surprise. The legal person occupied every city in Vietnam and quickly Figure recovery." In addition, as usual, it is stated that "trading countries have signed contracts with China for a long time, and there is no suspicion. They must not reconcile due to injuries caused by legal persons." The sentence ends, implying that it is called a declaration of war, but in fact there is still room for peace. There are still many things worthy of deliberation in the declaration of war, but there are still many major issues to be planned for the deployment of troops and generals, so it can only be finalized.At this time, many military newspapers have been sent one after another, most of which are forwarded by Beiyang. The two most important ones are the telegrams sent by Zhang Peilun to Li Hongzhang, saying, "The fort has been leveled all the way, and Fujian will not defend it. Lun will never return", expressing his determination to live and die with Fuzhou, Li Hongzhang added a sentence: "It's nothing but anxiety." The other is a telegram from Shao Youlian on Shanghai Road. He inquired about a fairly reliable piece of information from a foreigner. It is impossible to judge whether the real intention of the French army is to capture Fuzhou and extort military expenses by "holding the land as a pledge", or to go north in a large scale and directly attack Gyeonggi? But no matter what, the situation in Fuzhou is urgent and the situation in Beiyang is slow. Of course, the emergency is the first priority at present.Chun Wang was very pleased with Zhang Peilun's words "Lun will not return", and thought that with such a determination to die, he could lure the enemy ashore and go deep into the hinterland, so that he could gather and annihilate them with cameras. If the reinforcements can catch up, they can turn defeat into victory. Only Xu Gengshen was the most familiar with the military deployment. At that time, he made a suggestion. While using Bao Chao, he called up the old troops as soon as possible and recruited new soldiers. On standby, he reassigned Zhang Shusheng, who was in charge of military affairs in Guangdong, to help Fujian starry night.At the same time, Zeng Guoquan, governor of Liangjiang, was called to immediately withdraw 200,000 silver from the public funds and hand them over to Fujian as military pay for the Fujian guest army. Speaking of this, it was already past noon, and King Chun hurried to the palace again, "passing the sign" to see the Empress Dowager Cixi.On the same day, there were two "clear announcements", one was to declare war, and the other was to approve King Chun's performance and "hand over Yanxu to the Ministry of Discussion". With this edict, Zuo Zongtang had an explanation.That night, Xu Geng was ordered to pay a personal visit to explain the court's reliance on him.On the one hand, Zuo Zongtang couldn't bear Sun Minwen's and the others' idleness, and on the other hand, he refused to accept his old age. On the other hand, Zuo Zongtang always regarded himself as Zhuge Wuhou. When this "autumn of life and death is critical", it is time to "devote himself to death", and he agreed without hesitation. : "Go to Fujian to fight the French devils." The edict of the declaration of war was not only copied by the mansions, but also the "Shenbao" in Shanghai has been published in full and is known to the whole country. The first person to be blamed was Zhang Yinhuan.Because of his miscellaneous background, he was able to be placed in the prime minister's office, which was a key place. He was discriminated against by the court officials who were born in the right way, and he himself relied on his talent and showed his edge, so he was at odds with his fellow officials.Of course, the most heartbreaking thing for the honest and upright gentleman is that he and Li Hongzhang are both external and internal, and they are trying to maintain a peaceful situation. In some people's eyes, it is Qin Hui and Jia Sidao who seek peace from foreigners.If the draw can really be saved, it's fine, but who knows that after many twists and turns and repeated grievances, the French army still "contrived" in the end. In the battle of Mawei, all the division ships were destroyed.That being the case, why bother to humiliate yourself?If it hadn't been for peace, the time was wasted, and the decisive battle was decided before the French reinforcements came to the east, and the first strike would be the best, and the situation would be completely different. Therefore, Zhang Yinhuan became the target of public criticism.In addition, Zhou Jiamei, Li Fengbao, Ma Jianzhong, and Sheng Xuanhuai, who have been doing Western affairs for a long time, are all gnashing their teeth. Unexpectedly, Yan Jingming was also greatly slandered by him, because he is also a giant in the Lord's Harmony. There are still people who don't let him go. There were many people who impeached Zhang Yinhuan. One of them was Xu Zhijing, a cabinet scholar. He was selected as a Jinshi because he copied an stereotyped essay by Zhang Zhidong Zhongjie Yuan, but he called Zhang Yinhuan a "foreign fellow".The other one is Kong Xiangu in Qufu, Shandong Province. The official worshiped the censor of Zhejiang Dao, and pointed out that Shen Zhang Yinhuan wrote privately to Shanghai Dao Shao Youlian, saying that if France asked for a small amount of compensation, it might as well allow it to leak the imperial edict.When the Empress Dowager Cixi heard someone mentioning compensation to the French, she would get angry, so she ordered the Prime Minister's Yamen to "understand the answer." The reply said that the telecommunications to Shanghai Road was done by a public company, not a private letter.This made the Empress Dowager Cixi, who was already mostly dissatisfied with the Prime Minister and ministers, even more angry. Except for Yan Jingming and others who were on sick leave and on a business trip at that time, there were a total of nine people including Lian Yikuang, who handed over to the Ministry for discussion. At this time, Wu Xun, a censor from Shandong, severely impeached Yan Jingming, saying that he was "obstinate and headstrong, and he was too willful".Empress Dowager Cixi and King Chun respected Yan Jingming very much, so Wu Xun was reprimanded instead.But the rest of the ministers in the Zongli Yamen were not as lucky as Yan Jingming, and the Empress Dowager Cixi changed six at once.The incident started with Zhang Yinhuan, and those who were implicated naturally hated him. Among them, Zhou Derun, a protégé of Weng Tonghe, was the most wronged. He was almost the only one among the prime ministers who took the lead in the war. Yamen, it is a surprise. There are many surprises.The first is the deployment of military affairs in Fuzhou. Zuo Zongtang used the university scholar as the imperial envoy to supervise the military affairs in Fujian. Mu Tushan and Yang Changjun were assistants in military affairs. Zhang, concurrently the Minister of Shipping. The second is Deng Chengxiu as the prime minister.This so-called "Iron Man" speech officer has always been able to fight, and he has never been heard to understand Western affairs, but it is inconceivable that he will be assigned to the Zongli Yamen. So people with good deeds went to inquire, only to find out that he, the prime minister, came from a memorial.In this excerpt, he discusses strategy and discusses three strategies. He believes that France is relying on Vietnam. If the division divides into three routes to attack Vietnam, France will be unable to save itself, and it will never have the power to invade Fujian and Taiwan again.This is the best policy. The best strategy is to divide the troops and defend, fight when the enemy comes, and not pursue the enemy when he retreats. Although the teachers are paid a lot, our army is like this, and so is the French army.As for not daring to speak out because of road blockages and lack of food and wages, it is not only a bad policy, it can be said to be "no policy". This set of words, the Empress Dowager Cixi thought it was very pleasant, so she asked King Chun specifically.The king of alcohol has reached the point where he has no master. The Empress Dowager Cixi said yes, but she dared not reject it, and she didn't know how to reject it.Therefore, Chengzhi sent Deng Chengxiu to the General Administration, and took his three strategies as the basis for instructing the strategy. However, the overall situation is still chaotic. Although the French warships have withdrawn from the mouth of the Minjiang River, their movements are unknown.It is said that the French government disagreed with Guba. Guba strongly advocated marching northward, occupying Zhifu first, then occupying Weihaiwei and Lushun, and directly challenging Beiyang.This is the reason why the imperial court not only did not blame Li Hongzhang at all, but also granted Li Hongzhang the governor of Zhili and Minister of Beiyang Commercial Affairs after Zhang Zhidong and Zeng Guoquan were really eliminated. Yan Jingming, who was in charge of peace, was never taken down, Li Hongzhang, who was in charge of peace, favored Yilong, and Zhou Derun, who was in charge of the battle, withdrew from the Zongli Yamen. These confusing actions showed that the Empress Dowager Cixi did not seem to be determined to break the boat, and King Chun seemed to have There is no certainty of winning the war. So American Minister John Yang came forward for the fourth time to mediate the Sino-French dispute, and the object of negotiation on the Chinese side was Li Hongzhang. It has been nearly a month since the Battle of Mawei, and most of the capital officials in Fujian have received letters from their families, in which they all talked about the Battle of Mawei. So more than a hundred Beijing officials gathered in the guild hall and submitted two public notices. The first was to attack He Jing and Zhang Zhaodong, and the second was for Zhang Peilun, led by Pan Bingnian, editor of the Imperial Academy of Changle, Fujian Presented by the Metropolitan Procuratorate. Naturally, the Military Aircraft Department had already heard the news. In order to quell the public outrage, it first issued an edict on the first day of August: "He Jing, the governor of Fujian and Zhejiang, has been in office for the longest time. He has nothing to do with defense matters on weekdays, and he can't quickly rescue him temporarily. He is dismissed first. Zhang Zhaodong, the governor of Fujian, guards the provincial capital and is helpless. The Ministry of Communications strictly discusses and punishes him. .