The Qing Dynasty

Chapter 323 Cixi's Subtext
Zai Yi was so angry and anxious after hearing Wang Wenshao's words that he couldn't help but curse him fiercely.

"Wang Wenshao, you are so bold! You are just a corrupt scholar, yet you dare to speak nonsense and disrupt the government, alienating the important officials of the court. You really deserve to be killed."

Then, Zai Yi ignored Wang Wenshao who was trembling with anger and hurriedly bowed deeply to Cixi.

"Empress Dowager, please understand. In this time of national crisis, you must not be suspicious of important officials without reason. It will make your relatives sad and your enemies happy, and it will destroy your own great wall!"

"In Teng Xingfu's last memorial, the matter of Prince Qing was clearly stated. Prince Qing made public what the Queen Mother said in private without authorization, which is an unforgivable crime. Just smashing his carriage and giving him a slight punishment is considered a light punishment. This is the first."

"Secondly, at that time, the vanguard army was fighting fiercely with the Japanese chieftains, the Russians, the British, and the Americans inside and outside the Qihua Gate, the Dongbian Gate, and inside the outer city. If the tens of thousands of Boxers in the inner city were provoked by Yikuang to cause trouble, Teng Xingfu would be trapped inside and outside and attacked from all sides."

"If that were true, let alone the subsequent victory in the capital, even whether Teng Xingfu could escape the capital safely would be a matter of debate."

"If the vanguard army is really defeated, the imperial court will be at the mercy of the foreigners and will no longer be able to fight back. At that time, Yikuang will never be forgiven for his crime even if he dies a hundred times. He will become the eternal sinner of the Qing Dynasty."

In order to avoid future worries, Teng Yuzao had already submitted a memorial to explain not only the matter of Zhou Zhan, Liu Zhigang and others looting the capital, but also the matter of Yikuang.

As for humiliating Yikuang, Cixi not only did not blame Teng Yuzao at all, but also praised him for his decisiveness and appropriate response.

When Yikuang returned to the mansion, he must have realized that he had not only angered the Boxers, but also offended Teng Yuzao, and the situation would not be resolved peacefully.

So, as soon as it got dark, Yikuang took his son and quietly ran to the Gansu Army camp to hide, thus saving his life.

Zai Yi continued indignantly, "As for saying that Teng Xingfu was just a warrior, this is Wang Wenshao's ignorant nonsense."

"Teng Xingfu's article "The Rise of Great Powers" is a gem of gems. It is the most profound article in China on the great powers. It is far better than Wei Yuan's "Atlas of All Nations". It shows that Teng Xingfu's understanding of the great powers is so thorough that no one else can compare with him."

"Teng Xingfu's knowledge and insights are unprecedented in history. He is truly a genius. It is no exaggeration to call him the best in the current dynasty."

"Teng Xingfu's talent is incomparable to that of ordinary warriors. Even among the important officials, dignitaries and local governors, no one can be compared with him. With Teng Xingfu in charge of Beiyang affairs, there is no one better than him today. How can we worry about his incompetence?"

In order to speak up for Teng Yuzhao, Zai Yi no longer cared about many things and even did not hesitate to offend all the civil and military officials in the court.

"As for the worry that he will become too powerful to be controlled if he controls both the army and the people, this is sheer nonsense."

"Don't mention that the Governor-General of Zhili has always been in charge of the military and political affairs of a province. Under Li Zhongtang, the Beiyang government rose, and under Rong Da Ren, the Wuwei Army was established. Yuan Weiting, as the governor, took charge of the Wuwei Right Army, but there was no disaster."

"What's more, all the governors and governors-general in the world are like this!"

In fact, after saying this, Zai Yi himself realized that there was a big loophole in his words.

For example, the reason why the current governors and governors were able to sign the Southeast Mutual Protection Agreement was that if they did not hold both military and political power and had no constraints in various places, they would not have been able to sign this agreement at all, and the imperial court would not have been as stretched as it is now when dealing with the invasion of foreign powers.

However, Zai Yi can no longer care about so many things now. He must first help Teng Yuzhao get the position of Governor-General of Zhili. If he can eventually become the Minister of Beiyang as well, it will be icing on the cake.

If Teng Yuzhao could be ranked among the important officials of the court, Zai Yi would most likely get his wish in the end.

Moreover, Cixi had no way to deal with these governors and governors-general now, and could only hold her nose and endure their almost rebellious actions. Cixi did not say anything about this embarrassing situation, and no one dared to openly reveal it, as that would be a humiliation to Cixi.

Therefore, Zai Yi was not worried that anyone would dare to openly confront him with this. Not to mention the old villain Wang Wenshao, even Ronglu, who was extremely popular in front of Cixi, would not dare to do so.

Therefore, after Zai Yi finished these passionate words, he bowed deeply to Cixi again.

"Li Zhongtang has always been a mature and wise man in planning for the country. I second Li Zhongtang's proposal!"

Cixi waved her hand and said with a smile, "Prince Duan, I have always known that Teng Xingfu is a talented person. He is the pillar of our Qing Dynasty and is loyal to the court. I have no suspicion of him."

He glanced at Wang Wenshao and said, "Lord Wang is worried about state affairs with good intentions. You two are both ministers in the same palace and you are both concerned about state affairs. You must not harbor any grudges over this."

Cixi paused and said, "Besides, when the imperial court is using military force, many things cannot be discussed with common sense."

"As the old saying goes, 'the army must be well armed before it moves'. Now Teng Xingfu is fighting in the front, and he will not be able to survive without sufficient food and money support."

"However, this war was launched in a hurry. The imperial court has no more food and money to allocate. The northwestern provinces are all poor and can't afford much money. We can only rely on Teng Xingfu to raise money on his own. If we hand Zhili over to him, he can do what he wants."

Cixi sighed slightly, "Several provinces in the south already have support groups for the vanguard army. I think that other provinces will soon have people coming forward to host such support groups. With Teng Xingfu's status as the governor-general of Zhili, he can move more freely and call on the people of the country to fight the enemy."

Cixi's words made Zai Yi, who had already calmed down, smile bitterly in his heart.

He understood that Cixi agreed to give the position of Governor-General of Zhili to Teng Yuzhao because she had no choice but to do so because the court was running out of money.

If Teng Yuzao was not the governor-general of Zhili, the imperial court would have to take full responsibility for the military pay and food of the vanguard army and allocate food and fodder to it on a regular basis. The money donated by the people of various provinces, including those donated privately to the vanguard army or Teng Yuzao himself, would have gone into the pockets of Teng Yuzao or the vanguard army.

But if the position of Governor-General of Zhili was given to Teng Yuzhao, the situation would be completely different.

At that time, Teng Yuzhao had to rely on himself to provide food and wages for the vanguard army. When Zhili Province alone could not raise enough money, Teng Yuzhao had to use the donated funds to make up for it. The court could only provide some support to Teng Yuzhao when he was short of money.

Cixi continued, "As for what Yikuang did, it was truly a foolish act. I have already issued an imperial edict to severely criticize him."

Cixi smiled at Wang Wenshao and Zai Yi and said, "If it weren't for Teng Xingfu's search for the remnants of the Boxers in Beijing, the capital would have been in ruins. Teng Xingfu's words are not only innocent, but also a great achievement."

Seeing that Wang Wenshao, whose face turned red with anger, wanted to remonstrate with her, Cixi waved her hand to stop Wang Wenshao and spoke in a friendly manner.

"Sir Wang, a country in crisis needs a good general. At this moment, only Teng Xingfu's army can be used. Don't be suspicious without reason anymore."

Wang Wenshao also understood the subtext of Cixi's words, which was telling him that the court still could not do without Teng Yuzhao.

Cixi had said so much that even if Wang Wenshao was ignorant and stupid, he knew the severity of the situation. Although he was still extremely unwilling, he could only shut his mouth.

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(End of this chapter)