Travel through the Qing Dynasty and become emperor

"So I want to know more about this person. From my point of view, this person has a certain degree of resourcefulness, but I haven't seen how outstanding his military command ability is, so I feel strange. How can this person How could he reach such a prominent position in such a short period of time?" Guan Xuqing rubbed his chin and said thoughtfully.

Feng Xianghua's eyes lit up: "Your Majesty, it is true that this man is cunning as you said, but he is not yet an excellent commander in terms of military command."

"Oh? What's going on?"

"Just because he has an excellent assistant, and that person is Ludendorff!"

"I've heard of this person a long time ago. Could it be that his command ability is better than Hindenburg's, so why is he always at a disadvantage against Hindenburg?"

"Your Majesty, let me tell you that this matter starts from the World War..." Feng Xianghua began to describe the incident between Hindenburg and Ludendorff in detail.

Hindenburg was in Pomerania when World War broke out.He immediately returned to Hannover, and when he passed through Berlin, he went to the General Staff to ask him to be appointed to command the Fifth Army, but the post of commander of the Fifth Army was already held by the crown prince, so his appointment could not be decided immediately. In early August, there were frequent reports of good news on the German western front, but when the war reached the Marne River, it encountered great difficulties.The poor performance of the Chief of General Staff Prittwitz Jr. and his Chief of Staff Waldsee in this campaign led to their replacement.

Ludendorff was chosen to replace Vadsee as chief of staff of the 8th Army because of his outstanding performance in the early war.Ludendorff is ambitious and sharp-edged, and needs to choose someone who is good at getting along with him as the commander-in-chief so that he can let him go.In this way, Hindenburg, who is easy-going and good at handling things, was selected.

In the early morning of December 12, the touted "a pair of commanders in perfect match" met for the first time at Hannover Station.In the car, Ludendorff reported to Hindenburg the situation of the Eighth Army and some instructions that had been issued.

Hindenburg listened patiently for 15 minutes, said, "I don't have a better idea, so let's do it this way," and went to bed.Later, he candidly stated that one of his main tasks at that time was to "make the full use of my Chief of Staff's ingenuity, almost superhuman energy, and unrelenting drive, and create the conditions for him if necessary" .It can be seen how deep Hindenburg's castle is!

On the afternoon of December 12, Hindenburg and Ludendorff arrived at Marienburg, the headquarters of the Eighth Army.Prior to this, Lieutenant Colonel Hoffman, the staff officer of the 25th Army, had drawn up the details of the plan to encircle and annihilate the French Army Ziz and issued corresponding instructions.The battle started on the 8rd, while Hindenburg and Ludendorff were still traveling. Three days later, Ziz fell into a heavy siege, and on the 8st, the British and French allied forces stationed here were wiped out, which is known as the "Battle of Tannenberg" in history.Two weeks after the Battle of Tannenberg, the German army won the Battle of Masurian Lake. The Russian army remaining here was expelled from East Prussia and lost its strategic initiative.However, the German army did not progress smoothly in the Marne River Basin. Due to the defeat of the German army in the first Battle of the Marne River, Little Maoqi was reluctantly dismissed by the Kaiser.To counteract this, the newspapers devoted a full page to the "Victors of Tannenberg" on the evening of the day Moltke was removed from office.Hindenburg became the famous "Wise Commander" overnight.The "Hindenburg fever" was set off across the country. Berlin took the lead in building the Hindenburg Memorial Park. Many streets and squares were named after Hindenburg. Many universities awarded him the title of honorary doctor. Various commodities named after Hindenburg appeared on the market. .

The victory at Tannenberg earned Hindenburg the rank of field marshal, and he commanded the entire army at the Battle of the Marne.For this "genius commander" who suddenly turned around, people who know the inside story will certainly not buy his account.Ludendorff, who thought he had excellent military skills and strategies, once wrote in his diary indignantly: "Will a truly capable person also happen to be a marshal?"

After Hindenburg was transferred to the high command, Ludendorff once said to a person who visited the battlefield in a sarcastic tone: "This is where the field marshal slept before the battle, and here is the place where the field marshal slept after the battle. To be honest, This is also the place where the field marshal slept during the battle." This classic comment later became a joke among the German army.Of course, it also planted the seeds of Hindenburg's dissatisfaction with Ludendorff.

Later, Hindenburg's prestige in the German army grew day by day, and he became the highest officer of the German High Command, with Ludendorff as the chief of staff.Nominally, Hindenburg commanded the whole army, but in fact Ludendorff commanded instead of him. Of course, this all depends on Ludendorff's excellent commanding ability.

As their status rose, the conflict between the two began to deepen. Hindenburg became more and more jealous of Ludendorff's military talents, and expressed extreme indignation at Ludendorff's contempt for him from time to time, but Ludendorff certainly did not. would be willing to kowtow at the hands of a military incompetent officer.

Feng Xianghua said: "Actually, the reason why Hindenburg was able to win the Battle of Tannenberg was mainly due to Ludendorff's excellent commanding skills. But because Hindenburg was the highest commander on the front line, all the halos were naturally set. on the head of Hindenburg. Therefore, even if Hindenburg has seized the German military power now, his power is not stable due to the existence of Ludendorff. But both of them are like a beam and a weight. Don't open anyone."

"So, in your opinion, how should we treat the Kaiser's request to seize power?" Guan Xuqing asked.

"Your Majesty, I think that although there is already a rift between Hindenburg and Ludendorff, the strength of the German army is increasing day by day. We can't use our troops to Germany for a refugee William II."

"Okay, I also have the same intention. For the current plan, it is better to wait and see what happens."

"Emperor Shengming."

While the monarch and his ministers were talking, Wu Tingfang, Minister of Foreign Affairs, walked in, and said as soon as he entered the door: "Your Majesty, I have something important to announce to you."

"What's the matter? Tell me."

"I just received news that Queen Victoria of England... has passed away."

"Ah?" Guan Xuqing immediately changed his color, "Is this news accurate?"

"It's true."

Feng Xianghua said happily: "Your Majesty, Victoria is a god in the eyes of the British people. Now that she passes away, the national power of the United Kingdom will definitely drop sharply. This is great news for us."

Guan Xuqing didn't express any opinion, but a fiery light flashed in his eyes inadvertently!

One day ago, on the beautiful Isle of Wight in England, the 81-year-old Queen Victoria stood in front of the huge glass windows of the palace, looking at the blue water in the distance, recalling her turbulent life and dreaming a lot.This is a beautiful and secluded island located in the south of the UK, close to the north shore of the English Channel, separated from the British Isle by the Solent Strait in a diamond shape, where she can forget about any troubles of time and devote herself to loving her late husband Al In the deep thoughts of Prince Burt.

Victoria, who was nearly 18 years old, inherited the throne of the British Empire and opened a new era for Britain.That was the year she married her cousin Albert, and they had nine children.The relationship between the two has become stronger since they got married, but in 1861, Prince Albert died in the queen's middle age. At this time, it was the heyday of the British Empire. It has established absolute prestige.However, the death of her husband made Victoria unhappy. She had left London for a long time to live in seclusion. Even in public, she did not wear a crown, but always wore a widow's attire.Due to Victoria's long-term seclusion, the prime minister was unable to consult the queen for everything, so the power of the prime minister gradually increased, which made the British constitutional monarchy more perfect.

After Queen Victoria lived in isolation for a long time, she became active again. In 1897, the grand celebration of the 60th anniversary of the Queen's accession to the throne greatly improved the prestige of the Queen and the royal family.

By this year, Queen Victoria was in very poor health, but she still insisted on coming to the Isle of Wight because it was her and her late husband Albert's favorite place.Many years ago, on this island, they were surrounded by lovely young daughters.They talk about love, they enjoy the family happiness in the world.

Thinking of this, a smile appeared on Victoria's lips. She called the royal steward Nantes in a feeble voice, and said to him, "Give me a piece of paper and a pen."

Rising Clouds: World War II Chapter 4 Thirty Chapters The End of an Era

Nantes didn't know what the queen was going to do, so he had to fetch the pen and paper.Victoria wrote a will tremblingly with those hands that had signed many declarations of war. In the will, she wrote the details of her funeral and ordered that she be dressed in a white dress after death.

After writing, she handed over the will to Nantes for safekeeping.

Not long after, British Prime Minister Balfour led Foreign Secretary Smeagley and several senior officials from the Foreign Ministry and the Military Department from London to the Isle of Wight to meet Her Majesty the Queen.

Belfort said to Victoria in a very anxious mood, "Your Majesty, I have to tell you some extremely unfortunate news..."

Victoria was sitting on a large wicker chair by the window, with a blanket covering her legs, looking intently at the sea and blue sky outside the window, and did not respond to Belfort's words.

Belfort said with a sad face: "We were worried about Her Majesty's health, so we didn't tell you the news, but now the whole world knows, we dare not hide it from you anymore... On October 10, the Empire is in the Far East. The jewel of the region, Hong Kong, has been successfully taken back by China..."

After saying this, all the officials present bowed their heads in shame. After a long while, Belfort said again: "Originally we didn't want to convey this bad news to you because of your physical problems, but after all, you are a member of the British Empire." Your Majesty, the people of the empire on which the sun never sets have fallen into incomparable disappointment because of this matter, so...the cabinet has decided after research, and wants to invite you to come out and deliver a public speech to lift the spirit of the people of the empire, You are the master of the empire, the eternal spiritual leader of the empire, now only you can save the people from their sorrow."

Victoria still sat so quietly, still not making any response.

"Your Majesty, please accept our request." Belfort and the senior officials behind him bowed to the queen.

But after a long time, the queen sat there quietly, leisurely like a quiet girl.

Belfort felt a little surprised, and asked a few more words. After receiving no response, he winked at Nante. Nante gently came to the Queen's side, bent down and called the Queen a few times, and then took a closer look. With the look of a queen...

Suddenly, he turned his head and shouted with tears all over his face: "Her Majesty the Queen... has passed away!"

After the death of Queen Victoria, the entire empire on which the sun never sets fell into great grief. The British "Times" published a special issue commemorating the queen in a full page, titled "The End of an Era", which recorded Victoria's ruling from the beginning to the end. This glorious life until his death, in the final commentary written by the British cabinet, said: "The name of Queen Victoria symbolizes an era. During the reign of the Queen, the British people were united unprecedentedly, and Britain became a powerful empire and continued to grow. Development. This is the best legacy that the queen left to the British people, and it is also the most powerful evaluation of her life achievements. There are very few women sitting on the throne of God who can fulfill the duties of the queen so well as Victoria, and at the same time Have such ordinary happiness as a woman. The period of her reign, especially after 1851, is called the Victorian era in British history. The more than [-] years of her reign coincided with the period when the British Industrial Revolution was in the ascendant to its peak. Extremely strong, economically and culturally prosperous, with great development in science and art, the constitutional monarchy has fully matured, and the name of Queen Victoria has become a symbol of peace and prosperity in Britain. Queen Victoria has a distinctive character and a sincere nature. She is loyal to her duties, She has the ability to govern the country; she spends her time not only on work, but also on housework*; she is loyal to her husband and strict with her children, becoming a model for a generation. Her unremitting efforts not only make British literature, art , scientific prosperity, economic prosperity, and the British way of life (such as the afternoon tea of ​​the British aristocrats) has also become the object of people all over the world to imitate since then. The 'Victorian era' will be remembered by generations of British people, Victoria The Queen is the world's greatest female monarch."

Government House of Singapore.

With a shattering sound, the famille rose glazed cup produced in Jingdezhen was smashed to pieces.The blue veins on Yuan Shikai's forehead jumped up, and he sat there panting heavily.All the servants didn't dare to get close, they hid far away, and they didn't even dare to make a sound.

"Get out, get out of the way for me!" Yuan Shikai yelled at the servants.

The servants were frightened and hid outside the house.

Duan Zhigui, Yuan Shikai's godson, just came back from an inspection outside, carrying a few gift boxes in his hand, and came to see his godfather. In fact, Zhigui is only ten years younger than Yuan Shikai in terms of age, but he has always been an expert at climbing dragons and phoenixes, and adapting to the wind.He is a native of Hefei, Anhui Province. He graduated from Beiyang Armed Forces Academy in Tianjin and stayed at the school as a teacher. He later served in the Huai Army and joined the newly-built army of the Empire. He is promoted and taught in the martial arts hall.But he is not a person who can be easily satisfied. In order to climb up, he has his sights on Yuan Shikai, who is appreciated by the emperor.

Yuan Shikai was personally ordered by the emperor to be the Minister of Beiyang, and Yuan immediately transferred Duan Zhigui, who had taken refuge in him and was valued by him, to be the head of the patrol police in the northern section of Tianjin, but Duan was not satisfied with this. Buy famous prostitutes and beauties for Yuan.

Once, Yuan Shikai went to Shandong to inspect the defense of Weihai. Passing by Tianjin, he envied Yang Cuixi, a fairy-like and talented Kunling in Tianjin, and wanted to take him as a concubine, but Yang refused.When Duan Zhigui, who was an attendant, heard about this, he used his power to threaten and lure Yang's father and brother, and offered 1 yuan as a ransom fee, and the Yang family was forced to agree.Duan immediately sent his followers to send Yang to Yuan Shikai's residence in the middle of the night.Yuan Shikai was overjoyed, and thanked Duan Zhigui for making it happen.Naturally, Duan Zhigui looked at him differently.This incident was heard by Yushi Zhao Qilin, so he participated in the impeachment by a memorial, and major newspapers such as "Shenbao" and "Times" did not hesitate to make follow-up reports.

However, Yuan Shikai sent people to intercept Zhao Qilin's excerpt halfway, and his impeachment also failed. Zhao Qilin was dismissed by Yuan Shikai for slandering the names of relatives and important officials.Yuan Shikai's means can be seen at that time.Two years later, Duan Zhigui performed the same scene again.At that time, under Yuan Shikai's vigorous promotion, he served as the supervisor of the Beiyang Navy in Wuhan.Once, Yuan Shikai came to Wuhan for an inspection, and at night he went to the famous local Yiyuan to watch a play. He saw Wang Keqin, a Kunling who is well-known in the north and south, and drool over her beauty.After Duan Zhigui learned about it, he visited Wang Keqin twice and spent 8000 yuan to buy furniture and daily necessities for Wang Keqin.

After this was done, Yuan Shikai was very happy, and Duan Zhigui took this opportunity to recognize Yuan Shikai as his godfather. After Duan's repeated requests, Yuan Shikai had no choice but to agree.Later, Yuan Shikai was appointed as the governor of Singapore by the imperial court, and Duan Zhigui, as a godson, naturally followed suit.This time, he was on behalf of his godfather to inspect the defense situation in the Strait of Malacca. As soon as he came back, he saw Yuan Shikai was furious, so he went into the house with the gift box to see what happened.

Yuan Shikai was still angry, seeing that Duan Zhigui had walked in, he snorted and did not speak.Duan Zhigui smiled all over his face, and after greeting his godfather, he came to Yuan Shikai and said, "Godfather, my son is back, this is the best Korean mountain ginseng that my son honors you, after using it, I guarantee you a long life, haha ..."

Yuan Shikai's anger eased a little, and he said: "How is the coastal fortification in Malacca?"

"Returning to Godfather, everything was carried out according to your instructions. The inside was filled with straw bags, and the outside was paved with stones. No matter who checks, there will be no clues."

Yuan Shikai let out a sigh, and said indignantly: "The imperial court is obviously trying to blackmail my old Yuan. The strengthening of Malacca's coastal defenses should be a matter of the country. I don't know who came up with the bad idea. It is only allocated to us men. One-third of the project funds, and the remaining two-thirds are for us to raise on the spot. Now that the empire is strong, it’s not that we don’t have money. Why should we let the Singapore government pay for it out of our own pockets. But since this matter is clearly ordered by the emperor, we have to do it. The court will not give enough money, and we can't afford that money, so we have to find a way to do it here. The project has been tampered with, this is called a last resort, don’t you think so?”

Duan Zhigui hurriedly nodded and said: "Yes, yes, godfather, you are utterly loyal to the emperor and the court. This is well known, but we have no intention of serving the country, but it is really embarrassing for the Singapore government to raise so much money by itself." I have to use my brain." As he was speaking, Duan Zhigui leaned over and squeezed Yuan Shikai's shoulders and back, and asked tentatively, "Godfather, I just heard outside the door that you seem to be in a bad mood today. , I don’t know why?”