Qing Yao

Chapter 416 Teacher Wu has also made something of himself.
Zhao An wasn't just acting on a whim, engaging in any dramatic or whimsical thoughts with Xu Lin.

Rather, facts show that a surprise attack on the Forbidden City was theoretically feasible!
If the actual operation is properly planned, there is an 80% chance that the "decapitation" objective can be achieved, that is, the head of the master of the Forbidden City will be cut off and used as a football.

If there were enough manpower, they could even wipe out the Grand Council, the Cabinet, and even the Six Ministries located in the Imperial City!
This would inevitably paralyze the Qing dynasty's ruling center, making it unable to resume operation in the short term, and it might even lead to further internal strife due to the selection of a new emperor.

For a local power holder who rebelled, a paralyzed central empire was like a windfall.

If the Qing government's central command could be paralyzed for a month, Zhao An would probably be at the Yellow River's borders, waving his mighty hand and declaring with the loudest voice on earth: "Eat his mother's ass, drink his mother's ass, I'm here and I won't pay taxes!"

The idea is good, and it's feasible in reality.

The current security measures in the imperial city make entering the Forbidden City quite easy, but if Zhao An could come up with a surprise attack on the Forbidden City to carry out a "decapitation" tactic, others could too.

This "other person" was none other than Zhao An's old acquaintance—the White Lotus Sect.

During the Jiaqing era, the Xihua Gate, where Qingyao was on duty, was breached by the Tianli Sect, a branch of the White Lotus Sect!
The strategy devised by the Heavenly Principle Sect was quite good; instead of blindly storming the imperial city and beheading people, they launched a multi-pronged attack from both inside and outside the city.

Lin Qing, the then leader of the Heavenly Principle Sect, along with Li Wencheng, a key member from Henan, and Feng Keshan, a key member from Shandong, held several secret meetings to formulate a plan for the uprising. They decided that Lin Qing would be in charge of launching a surprise attack on the Forbidden City and capturing the capital, while Li and Feng would take over Henan and Shandong respectively and then lead their troops north to meet him.

If it succeeds, the situation in the North will change drastically in an instant.

After careful preparation, Lin Qing sent 200 members of the Heavenly Principle Cult to infiltrate the city in two teams disguised as various people. One team launched a surprise attack from the East Gate, and the other team launched a surprise attack from the West Gate.

When the Tianli believers who broke in through Donghua Gate approached the palace gate, they were discovered by the guards. After a fierce battle, only a dozen or so people managed to enter the palace.

At Xihua Gate, thanks to the presence of palace eunuchs as accomplices and the cowardly scattering of the gate guards, the Heavenly Principle Cult members successfully entered the Forbidden City. Led by eunuchs, they quickly advanced into the inner court, engaging in fierce battles with palace guards and eunuchs along the way, and at one point even reached the vicinity of the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

Unfortunately, due to the small number of people who broke into the palace and the lack of follow-up support, the White Lotus sect members in the palace were eventually surrounded and wiped out by the Qing army that had reacted.

The later Daoguang Emperor, Mianning, secured his position as crown prince by personally commanding his guards to resist and killing several members of the White Lotus sect with muskets.

This incident was also considered by Emperor Jiaqing, who was in Chengde at the time, to be "something unprecedented in the Han, Tang, Song, and Ming dynasties," for which he issued an edict blaming himself.

If a motley crew of secret missionaries could successfully storm the Forbidden City, why couldn't Zhao An?

Lin Qing could only secretly send two hundred people into the city, but Zhao An could send in even more.

With the cover of the Grand Canal transport, secretly transporting several thousand troops to Tongzhou would be no problem at all. If a few eunuchs or even a few guards were bribed in the capital, this surprise attack would definitely paralyze the Qing central government.

This plan was designated as Plan A by Zhao Anding and would be implemented as soon as the uprising began.

Plan B involves secretly deploying a sufficient number of assassins in Tongzhou and the capital by the canal transport gangs, ensuring that if he were to take up a post in the capital one day, he would always have a force at his disposal that could overturn the table and never be discussed again.

If Sima Yi could close the city gates to prevent the emperor and the general from returning, so could he.

The history of political upheavals spanning five thousand years, both ancient and modern, is the essence of the art of slaying dragons.

If all plans fail, the worst that can happen is to confront Jiaqing at the Qianqing Gate.

If a person dies, a bird will look up to the sky, and he will not die for tens of thousands of years.

Qingyao, who was talking to his guards, never expected that the dignified Acting Governor of Anhui, Lord Zhao, would be eyeing the Xihua Gate, and even intending to recruit him, a first-class guard, as a guide for a day trip to the Forbidden City. After exchanging a few words, he came over with his second-class guard, Alebao, and third-class guard, Deshun.

Albao and Deshun were originally guards who accompanied Qingyao to Anhui. After returning, they were both promoted one rank and served with Qingyao at Xihua Gate. Thirty-five others were promoted to second-class guards at Donghua Gate, while the others remained in the guard service.

Upon seeing Zhao An, Alebao and Deshun were overjoyed. After a warm greeting, Qingyao invited the brothers who had gone to Anhui to have a drink with Zhao An. The place was Bai Kui Lao Hao, a restaurant frequented by their group of guards, famous for its roasted mutton.

Zhao An didn't care what he ate; what mattered most was getting to know these guards better. He readily agreed, and seeing that it was still early, he said he was going to see an old friend. After making an appointment with Qingyao and the others, he left with Xiaoshuan and Xu Lin.

The old friend Zhao An wanted to see was none other than Teacher Wu, whom he had persuaded to teach at the Imperial Academy.

Following the address in Mr. Wu's letter, Zhao An made his way to the "collective dormitory" of the Imperial College located in the outer city.

The Imperial College was the location of the highest institution of learning and the highest educational administration body, equivalent to the later Ministry of Education and National Central University. If it were located in the outer city, it would be inconsistent with its status and function. Only by being located in the Manchu city next to the Temple of Confucius could it meet the sacred status of "respecting Confucianism and valuing the Way".

However, apart from the Manchus, most of the staff working at the Imperial College lived in the outer city after get off work. Since the salaries of the teachers and staff were not high, it was difficult for them to buy or rent houses independently. Therefore, the Imperial College bought a piece of land in the outer city and built some houses for the Han teachers and staff to live in.

Teacher Wu lives here.

Because of the Spring Festival holiday, many faculty and staff of the Imperial College went back to their hometowns for the holiday, and not many stayed in the capital. After making some inquiries, Zhao An and his two companions finally found Teacher Wu's residence.

An inconspicuous little courtyard with only two rooms.

Xiao Shuan stepped forward and knocked on the door, asking softly if Lord Wu was there.

Shortly after, a woman's voice came from inside the house, asking who it was.

Zhao An stepped forward and said softly, "Sister-in-law, my name is Zhao Youlu. I wonder if Lord Wu is here?"

Zhao Youlu?
Wu Weiping's wife, Zhang, found the name both familiar and unfamiliar, and couldn't quite place it. It wasn't until Zhao An outside the door mentioned that he was from Yangzhou that Zhang suddenly realized that the person outside was the former primary school official who had sponsored her husband's trip to the capital.

The door creaked open a crack, revealing half of Zhang's face. She looked Zhao An and the other two up and down, and a barely perceptible hint of contempt flashed in her eyes when she saw that the three were dressed plainly.

"My master is not here. What do you want with him?"

Zhang's tone was neither warm nor cold.

Seeing the woman's attitude, Zhao An frowned slightly, but still maintained basic politeness and said softly, "I am here in the capital on official business to pay a visit to Lord Wu."

Is it a business trip to Beijing?

Zhang wanted to laugh. What official business could a ninth-rank scholar possibly have in the capital, especially during the New Year? He guessed the other party was just trying to make a name for himself.

Zhao An patiently asked, "Where has Lord Wu gone, and when will he return?"

"My master has been invited to a banquet by Prince Jia's residence. By the way, you didn't know, did you? My master has now been promoted to a fifth-rank scholar and is the tutor of the eldest prince of Prince Jia's residence. The prince said that my master is particularly dedicated to teaching the eldest prince, so he specially invited my master to attend the prince's family banquet."

Zhang's tone was very smug, and it also revealed a hint of boasting.

(End of this chapter)