The Qing Dynasty

Chapter 511: Zhang Xiangtao Still Has Some Integrity

Yikuang said with great sorrow, "Empress Dowager, although Teng Xingfu has temporarily gained the upper hand, it is because the foreigners did not know the true strength of Teng Yuzao and fell into his trap."

"Once the foreigners take it seriously and send a large number of troops to our Qing Dynasty, with the scattered soldiers and a large group of peasants recruited by Teng Xingfu, they will be able to truly resist the million-strong army of the great powers."

"By then, I'm afraid it will be too late for us to negotiate peace. The foreigners may not be so easy to talk to, and they may not agree to negotiate peace with us!"

"If that happens, our Qing Dynasty will probably be destroyed by the great powers joining forces!"

"Queen Mother."

Although Cixi still had no expression on her face, she never stopped stroking the bronze pestle. It was obvious that she was also very uneasy in her heart.

Yixin continued to insist, "Now, Teng Xingfu has published all his proposals in the newspapers without reporting them to the court or the empress dowager. Where does Teng Xingfu put the court? And where does he put the empress dowager?"

"Teng Xingfu's actions are no different from those of a traitor!"

Seeing that Ronglu was just lowering his head, thinking about something, and Cixi was just listening silently, Yixin couldn't help but feel a little anxious.

"Empress Dowager, I suggest that you should immediately issue an edict to remove Teng Xingfu from his post as Governor-General of Zhili and President of the Vanguard Army, bring him to justice, and recover the large amount of property he stole."

When talking about the lost property, Yixin was even more heartbroken and stood up, beating his chest and stamping his feet.

"Empress Dowager, you have to make the decision for us. Teng Xingfu openly said in the newspaper that he would invest 1 billion taels of silver in Zhili to promote Westernization."

"He is a poor teacher, how could he have such a large sum of money? He is trying to cover up his mistake!"

"If he wasn't the one who seized the gold and silver that the Boxers had robbed from the palaces of the kings and wealthy families in the capital, who else could it be?"

"Now Teng Xingfu dares to openly say that he can come up with 1 billion taels of silver. Isn't this just admitting his guilt?"

"Teng Xingfu is so bold that he dared to deceive the court and the empress dowager. He thought that he had a lot of troops at his disposal and that the empress dowager would not dare to do anything to him at this time of need."

"As everyone knows, such traitors must not be left alone, otherwise they will inevitably grow stronger in the future. There are many righteous and bandit people among their subordinates. If the Queen Mother does not deal with them early, it will be too late to regret it in the future!"

Yikuang almost called the Boxers bandits, but then he thought that although he had not supported the Boxers as strongly as Prince Zhuang Zaixun, he also supported Cixi's indulgence of the Boxers. If he cursed the Boxers as bandits at this time, it would be somewhat embarrassing, so he stopped talking in time.

At this point, whether it was out of genuine concern for state affairs or because he remembered his looted Prince Qing Mansion, Yixin suddenly fell to his knees and burst into tears.

As if Cixi was troubled by what Yixin said, and seemed a little annoyed by Yixin's crying, she scolded him harshly.

"Yixing, why don't you stand up quickly? How can you be so shameless as a prince? I still need this dignity!"

Cixi's harsh rebuke really worked. Yixin Shunjian, who had been crying bitterly, stopped crying, got up from the ground, wiping the snot and tears from his face with the sleeve of his robe, and looked at Cixi with a face full of grievance.

Cixi took a deep breath and spoke in a gentle tone.

"Prince Qing, you are an old minister and an iron-hat prince of the court. You are of the highest honor in our Qing Dynasty and the backbone of the Qing Dynasty. You should know that our Qing Dynasty is now in a precarious situation. We need unity from top to bottom to overcome this crisis." Cixi sighed lightly, and then spoke in a gentle tone.

"The court is now like a broken boat entering the sea, and can no longer withstand the slightest wind and waves. An old minister like you should be more considerate of the court's difficulties and take a long-term view of everything. As for everything else, we have to wait until the foreigners withdraw their troops and the situation stabilizes before we can discuss it."

After saying that, Cixi waved her hand and said, "Prince Qing, you should go back and have a rest. I am a little tired too."

Seeing Cixi driving people away, Yixin was helpless. It was obvious that Ronglu was sitting there without even raising his head, and it was obvious that Cixi had something to say to Ronglu alone.

Yixin took a deep breath, and although he was extremely reluctant, he still bowed to Cixi and left the warm room with a dull look on his face.

After watching Yixin leave the door, Cixi asked the eunuch to change the cold tea for Ronglu and herself, waved her hand to drive out all the eunuchs and maids in the warm room, then took a deep breath and said.

"Zhonghua, please continue."

Ronglu arrived earlier than Yixin. He was originally reporting to Cixi the information he had collected from various sources, but before he could finish, he was interrupted by Yixin.

Ronglu nodded and said, "Empress Dowager, according to a telegram from Hubei Governor Yu Yinlin, Teng Xingfu's article caused the greatest stir in Wuchang."

"The main reason was that after Teng Xingfu's article was published, Zhang Xiangtao also published an article in the Ta Kung Pao to support Teng Xingfu, which caused public unrest in the three towns of Wuchang."

"Under the instigation of the scholars of the Vanguard Army Support Association, a large number of people in the three towns of Wuchang have been marching in the streets for several days to express their support for Teng Xingfu's proposal for peace talks. They have also started to boycott foreign goods."

"It is said that the British Minister to Hankou, Sir Thomas Foster, has protested to Zhang Xiangtao and declared that the foreign powers would never accept the peace terms proposed by Teng Xingfu. The foreign warships on the Yangtze River have even sailed to Wuchang."

"Zhang Xiangtao was unmoved and pulled the cannons of the Huguang New Army and the Seventh Regiment to the river bank. He even ordered the Seventh Regiment to send troops to surround the Hankou foreign concession and threatened to let the Seventh Regiment enter the Hankou concession. Both sides refused to give in and are now in a standoff."

Ronglu's words surprised Cixi, and she asked anxiously, "Will there be a fight?"

Ronglu hurriedly said, "Empress Dowager, please be at ease. In my humble opinion, the foreigners are just bluffing. Their military strength in Zhili is still stretched to the limit, so how dare they use troops in Huguang? You will definitely not be able to start a war."

Cixi breathed a sigh of relief, not knowing whether to praise or ridicule, and said lightly, "I didn't expect that Zhang Xiangtao still has some backbone."

"besides."

Seeing Ronglu hesitating, Cixi waved her hand and said, "Zhonghua, there are only you and me here, what can't be said? Speak, I can bear anything."

Ronglu let out a long sigh and said, "In Wuchang, there are still some scholars and literati on the street who are making up stories about the incompetence of the imperial court. They are afraid of foreigners and dare not take responsibility. They are even clamoring to submit petitions to the imperial court."

"In short, now in all the major and medium-sized cities, people are talking about Teng Xingfu's articles, and they are all praising him. Teng Xingfu's reputation has soared."

Ronglu's words made Cixi silent for a long time. Then she slowly raised the bronze pestle in her hand to her eyes. After looking at it carefully for a long time, she threw the bronze pestle given to her by Zhang Zhidong on the couch.

(End of this chapter)