The Qing Dynasty

Chapter 624 Let’s learn from Zhao Kuangyin

Xu Shichang was not in Tianjin. He had now established his Governor-General's Office of the Three Northeastern Provinces outside the Great Wall.

At this time, Xu Shichang should be suppressing bandits around Xinmin Prefecture and rectifying the local armed forces of varying quality.

Therefore, Teng Yuzhao’s only trusted civil servants in Tianjin now are the Yang Shixiang brothers.

In fact, it should be said that Teng Yuzhao had another civil servant who could barely be considered a close confidant, and that was Tang Shaoyi.

However, Tang Shaoyi is already in Shanghai, and will soon take an airship to fly to southern Tibet via Guangdong and Kunming, and then change to a horse to LS and finally negotiate with the British. Otherwise, Tang Shaoyi can also be counted as one.

Teng Yuzhao always regarded those who followed and helped Yuan Shikai to force the Qing government to abdicate, especially those who later opposed Yuan Shikai's enthronement, such as Xu Shichang, Tang Shaoyi, Cai Shaoji and others, as his close friends and confidants.

In fact, Teng Yuzhao knew very well that the vast majority, or even all, of the Chinese children studying in the United States had no good feelings towards the ignorant Qing Dynasty. As long as there was a strong leader to take the lead in anti-Qing, these people would not have any psychological barriers and would basically support him.

At least in the anti-Qing movement, they will all be loyal supporters of Teng Yuzao!
The two brothers Yang Shixiang were also excited at this time. Yang Shixiang, who knew Teng Yuzhao's thoughts very well, did not say anything, but just looked at Teng Yuzhao with a smile. He seemed to be trying to figure out what Teng Yuzhao was thinking.

Yang Shiqi immediately rubbed his hands excitedly and said, "Marshal, I agree with the generals' proposals!"

Before Teng Yuzao could express his opinion, Yang Shiqi continued, "At present, the new armies in various provinces are not completely controlled by the Ministry of the Army. Many new armies in various provinces only obey the orders of the Ministry of the Army in name, and secretly have inextricable ties with the local governors."

"Now, as long as the commander raises his arm and calls for action, not all the new armies in the provinces will necessarily stand on the side of the imperial court. This is actually a good opportunity to start an uprising."

Then he changed the subject and said, "But before we start, we still need to make some preparations."

Yang Shiqi said excitedly, "The court not only dismissed the Marshal from his post as governor, but now they are eager to remove his military power regardless of the invasion of foreign troops outside the Great Wall. This is certainly because the court has always been wary of the Marshal."

"But this time, the reason for this action should be that the court is under pressure from the Japanese and the British. The purpose is to prevent the Marshal from participating in the war. We can do more about this matter."

"First, stir up public opinion and let the world know that the imperial court is now willing to betray its promise and hide its bow after the birds are all gone in order to obey the foreigners. This will arouse the indignation of the world and allow the Marshal to gain the upper hand in public opinion and take the initiative."

"In addition, if possible, we can also contact the governors and the new army of each province and maintain good relations with them."

Yang Shiqi took a deep breath and said, "When the time is right, let's learn from Zhao Kuangyin and give the Marshal a yellow robe!"

"At that time, we don't ask the governors of the provinces and the new army to stand on our side. It will be enough as long as they can remain neutral between the Marshal and the court in the beginning."

Yang Shiqi’s meaning was very clear, that is, if one wants to rebel, public opinion is still very important.

Moreover, if Zhao Kuangyin was "forced" to wear the yellow robe, it would have a certain effect in quickly rallying those ignorant people in the court and the country who were loyal to the Qing Dynasty. It would also be beneficial to quickly stabilize the situation in various provinces to prevent them from being taken advantage of by the great powers, the emergence of separatist forces, and the triggering of a civil war to quell the war.

Based on the above views, Teng Yuzao believes that what Yang Shiqi said is indeed a safe and feasible way to seize power.

"Correct!"

Liu Shijiu no longer had an indignant look on his face, but was now full of excitement. After hearing what Yang Shiqi said, he clapped his hands in agreement and said loudly, "Marshal, Mr. Xingcheng's method is good. The Qing Dynasty was originally invaded by foreigners. We are in a righteous position by overthrowing the Manchu court and taking back the Han people's country. If we use Mr. Xingcheng's method, it will be even more appropriate."

Teng Yuzao did not comment on what Yang Shiqi and Liu Shijiu said. He just smiled and nodded to Liu Shijiu, then looked at Yang Shixiang. He still hoped that Yang Shixiang could express his opinion.

Although rebellion was inevitable, Teng Yuzhao always hoped that in the context of this great era of dynastic change, he could cause as little unrest as possible and ensure a smooth transition. This was what he hoped to see most.

Yang Shixiang glanced at the faces of those generals who were ready to fight again, and said to Teng Yuzhao with a wry smile.

"Marshal, you know that I absolutely support the rebellion against the Manchu court!"

Yang Shixiang was very worried that his next words would lead to misunderstanding among these generals, so before stating his views, he first made it clear that he supported the rebellion.

Teng Yuzao waved his hand and said, "Don't worry, Lianfu. Although the court has repeatedly pressured us, we are not yet at the point where we have to fight to the death. Today we are just discussing openly how to deal with the court's pressure. You can speak freely."

Yang Shixiang nodded, took a deep breath and said, "Marshal, if that's the case, then I'll tell you. If there's anything wrong, please forgive me!"

Seeing Yang Shixiang's hesitation, Liu Shijiu couldn't help but wanted to speak again, but was stopped by Wu Peifu's pleading eyes.

In Wu Peifu's view, as long as the two major premises of not opposing the rebellion against the Qing court and not opposing the nomination of Teng Yuzao to the throne were met, everything could be discussed, and there would be no problem in listening to what Yang Shixiang had to say.

"Commander."

Yang Shixiang said after careful consideration, "In my opinion, the court's military reorganization and constitutional government are two things that are connected, so I'd better talk about the court's implementation of constitutional government first."

Teng Yuzao nodded and said, "Yes, please tell me about the constitutional government first. I am very interested in the constitutional government of the imperial court."

Seeing that Teng Yuzhao was no longer struggling with the reorganization of the army, Yang Shixiang couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief and said with a smile.

"Marshal, I'm sure you haven't forgotten about the five ministers going abroad, right?"

Historically, the five ministers were scheduled to go abroad at the end of next year, but according to the current historical trajectory, they went abroad for inspection in the 29th year of the Guangxu period, which was in the early spring of last year.

After the battle against the Eight-Nation Alliance, people from all walks of life were deeply moved. They all felt that reform was necessary to strengthen the country and the army. In particular, the publication of Teng Yuzhao's "The Rise of Great Powers" gave many knowledgeable people a basis for reform.

Under the propaganda and agitation of the Qiangxue Society and the Vanguard Army Support Association in various places, not only did the voices of the people calling for reform gradually grow louder, but many court officials also wrote letters to the emperor suggesting the implementation of constitutional government.

All these voices are much stronger than in history!

Among these officials who suggested the implementation of constitutional government, the majority were Qing Dynasty envoys stationed abroad. Domestic officials were also very enthusiastic. Not only middle and low-level officials wrote letters to suggest the implementation of constitutional government, but there were also many high-level officials who called for its implementation.

Among them, Shandong Governor Shang Qiheng and Shuntian Prefecture Chancellor Li Shengduo were the most famous. After Zhang Zhidong and Zhou Fu jointly wrote a letter to the court suggesting that the court implement constitutional government, they continued to promote the benefits of constitutional government.

However, most of the court nobles opposed the constitutional government. They did not dare to do anything to Zhang Zhidong and Zhou Fu, but they were not so polite to others. For example, Li Shengze was specially transferred to be the minister to Belgium.
(End of this chapter)