Master Yuan, start!

Note*1: The Shangsiyuan (Shangsiyuan) was one of the seven departments and three courts within the Imperial Household Department, responsible for the use and feeding of horses for the emperor and his court. Three major ranches were located: Dalinghe in Shengjing, Dabusunnor in Shangdu, and Darigangai, respectively, in present-day western Liaoning, Ulanqab in Inner Mongolia, and southeastern Mongolia, on the border with Inner Mongolia.

Chapter 34: Shocking Music in the Palace

"Of course not." Sensing that Cixi was about to lose her temper, Prince Chun Yixun quickly added, "Although the Fujian coast is blockaded, the people are determined to resist the enemy. They are all transporting food and weapons to Taiwan in small boats. Liu Mingchuan has no worries about failure for the time being."

Monthly fee: 9163+010+

Yi X recalled what Yuan Shikai had said at his residence that day. After a moment's thought, he said to Cixi, "The French are now powerful, and our Qing is weak. If we sue for peace now, they will surely demand a huge amount of compensation, and I'm afraid it will be difficult to satisfy their greed!"

We have to fight a war. It won't be too late to ask for peace after hurting the French.

"In addition, there is another matter that I need to report to the Empress Dowager." Yi X said with some concern: "Ronglu reported that there was a fight between the Bannermen and the Candidates in the capital over the question of which was stronger, archery or guns. The Bannerman was beaten to death. I'm afraid that this incident will be used by those in the court who are clamoring for war to make a fuss, and Prince Gong may even take advantage of it."

When Cixi heard that the main faction would make a fuss, she was dismissive at first, but when she heard that Prince Gong Yi might search uN:OlinLu Jusan% and get involved, her eyes fixed and she took it seriously.

"According to what Prince Chun said, we must fight the French, right? But if we lose, won't I be held responsible for the reparations for treason?"

If he doesn't fight, then he's selling out his country? Yi X thought to himself.

"Empress Dowager, the Westernization Movement has been underway for over twenty years now. The Qing Dynasty has gradually acquired more guns and artillery, and its fleets are growing in number. The French have been on a long expedition, and their soldiers are exhausted. We, the Qing Dynasty, are well-rested and may be able to offer a decisive battle."

The three people in the hall ended their conversation, each with their own thoughts, and soon it was time for the grand court meeting...

...

Early that morning, Yuan Xiangcheng packed his luggage, put on the official uniform he had received from the Ministry of War, and took the memorial with him to prepare to go to court.

Facing the cold wind in the early morning, Yuan Xiangcheng approached the Forbidden City step by step, the Forbidden City where people still lived and was full of vitality.

This royal palace, which spans more than 500 years of history between the Ming and Qing dynasties, is full of the crystallization of the wisdom of the Chinese people. There is no time to appreciate its majesty and magnificence in the afterglow of the morning. After crossing the palace gate, Yuan Shikai was already in front of Qianqing Gate.

A thin ray of sunlight shone on the red walls and yellow tiles. Officials in their various uniforms bustled about, some hurriedly signing their names on the court papers, while others gathered together to chat in low voices, awaiting the bell to signal the start of court.

Yuan Xiangcheng also saw Prince Chun Yixun and Ronglu. They nodded slightly and gestured to Yuan Xiangcheng. Yuan Xiangcheng also bowed slightly in return in the crowd.

The bell is ringing!

A group of ministers filed in, led by the noble princes, including Prince Shiduo, Prince Chun Yixun and Minister of the Zongli Yamen Yili, then civil officials like Li Hongzao, and then a group of military generals.

Yuan Xiangcheng could only line up behind this group of people. He watched the big guys walk up to him and stand in front of him before he found a place to stand.

Li Hongzhang was not seen. First, Li Hongzhang was not a Beijing official. He usually only returned to Beijing to participate in small meetings of the Grand Council in major emergencies.

The second reason is that a Japanese delegation arrived in Beijing a few days ago regarding the Seoul Rebellion and demanded an explanation from the country. Li Hongzhang was busy dealing with the Japanese, so he was not in Beijing at the moment.

In the main hall, all officials stood still.

In the center of the hall stood a dragon throne, on which sat a teenage boy with a tense expression and a serious face. He was dressed neatly in his hat and imperial robes, looking like a little adult.

After Yuan Xiangcheng traveled through time, his physical fitness improved a lot. Not only did he eat more than others, he was also stronger than ordinary people, and his eyesight could even see symbols on the eye chart a hundred meters away.

Therefore, he clearly saw the little emperor sitting on the dragon throne. Although his hands were tightly grasping the cushion of the chair, his eyes were looking around at the officials.

It was not until a light cough was heard from the bright yellow gauze behind the little emperor that he became obedient, put his knees together, and sat upright like a primary school student being stared at by his teacher.

After Cixi took her seat, all the officials knelt down and kowtowed, shouting!

"Long live my emperor! Long live!"

"Long live the Holy Mother Queen Dowager!"

Cixi was only at the peak of her power, not the 20-year reign she would have enjoyed. Two years later, Cixi would have been greeted with shouts of "Long Live the Holy Mother Empress Dowager" in the court without the officials being surprised.

"Is there anything to be reported today?" Eunuch Li Lianying shouted at the top of his lungs.

At this time, the right assistant minister of the Ministry of Revenue reported that northern Zhili was hit by a sudden heavy snowfall, which might destroy people's houses and cause disasters, and officials needed to be sent urgently to investigate the details.

The Lifanyuan said that a certain Mongolian prince had come to Beijing to pay homage to Your Majesty and had brought with him dozens of precious treasures from the frontier.

The Ministry of Works reported that a certain part of the canal was blocked again, and at the end of the year, after an agreement with the China Merchants Steam Navigation Company, part of the canal transportation was changed to sea transportation.

One after another, important matters concerning the economy and people's livelihood of the Qing Dynasty were reported to the emperor and the empress dowager by the ministers.

Behind the veil, Cixi also made decisions based on the importance of the matter, such as approval, reconsideration, or handing it over to a certain institution for further discussion.

Afterwards, the Left Vice Minister of Rites said that next year would be the year of the Spring Examination, and there would be a large number of candidates in Beijing, so he wanted Shuntian Prefecture to clear out some vacant houses to accommodate these people.

Cixi said to the Left Vice Minister of Rites: "Okay, let Shuntian Prefecture and the Ministry of Rites discuss it again."

Then he addressed the officials in the hall, "The French have now sent envoys to the court again, saying they want to negotiate a peace treaty with the Qing Dynasty. They also threaten to attack Jiangsu and Zhejiang if the Qing Dynasty does not retreat. My dear ministers, do you have any suggestions?"

After hearing what Cixi said, there was a rare moment of peace in the court. Some of the censors and Hanlin scholars in the hall looked at each other, as if they had not yet decided who would speak first.

"Your Highness Chen Baochen has something to report!"

Suddenly, a loud shout was heard in the hall, waking up the young Emperor Guangxu who was drowsy in the hall.

"Approved!" Li Lianying replied in a pinched voice.

"Now, our nation is in a critical juncture, its survival at stake. Yet, you, the ministers, are obsessed with the past, not reflecting on progress. You are afraid of the enemy's advances, and you are seeking to surrender until you have surrendered. This is not what ministers should do. The people all know that when attacked, they must fight back. Now, even though we have suffered a slight setback, you are still seeking surrender. This is not a wise move."

"I wonder who Lord Chen is referring to when he said surrender?" The attendant Zhong Fangpei stepped aside, bowed to the emperor and empress who were sitting on the throne, then turned around and said to Chen Baochen.

"The one I'm referring to isn't just one person, but an entire faction!"

"I also have a report to make. A bannerman in the capital was beaten to death by a scholar for promoting war between China and France. I hope the Empress Dowager will conduct a thorough investigation!"

"I also wish to report to the Nine Gates Commander Ronglu that he is shielding the criminal and obstructing the investigation. He claims to be protecting witnesses, but in reality he is afraid of influencing the peacemaking process at court, and is attempting to deceive His Majesty!"

One after another, the upright figures of the Han, Zhan, Ke and Dao stood up. Some of them hinted that peace was not an option, while others used the incident of the brawl in the capital to spread the public opinion that they all advocated war.

For a while, it seemed that everyone in the glorious Qing Dynasty had become a war advocate, as if the Qing Dynasty that ceded territory and paid indemnities was not a dynasty at all.

Li Hongzao stood in front of the crowd and listened quietly to the sound of memorials coming from behind him, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but rise gradually.

"Remove Prince Gong and me from our positions as Grand Councilor. I wonder who can help you suppress the officials and stop this trend of advocating war!"

Chapter 35: Request for Training New Troops

The war advocates stood up one after another, as if seeking peace with the French was a heinous crime.

But the peace advocates also had their own people. Zhong Fangpei, a member of the Ministry of War, said to Yilian Modeng Juluzan, a minister of the Zongli Yamen: "The French are now powerful, and we are outnumbered. Moreover, the French have already taken Keelung. If we do not seek peace, how can we protect our territory in the southeast?"

"What a joke! Don't you know how we lost the Vietnam War? The French only deployed a few thousand soldiers on the Guangxi border, but Tang Jiong, Xu Tingxu and others fled at the sight of them. They collapsed without even fighting. It was because of one incompetent general that the entire army was dragged down. You are begging for peace before the battle even starts. Are you also part of Tang and Xu's gang?" Chen Baochen turned around and said harshly to Fang Pei, and even picked out the two defeated generals on the front line of the Sino-French War and criticized them severely.

Tang Jiong was promoted by suppressing bandits. On the recommendation of Zhang Zhidong and others, he was promoted to the Governor of Yunnan. Later, due to the urgent military situation in Guangxi, he was demoted to the Governor of Yunnan and transferred to the Sino-French front.

While defending on the front line, he heard that the North intended to make peace with the French, so he hurried back to the North to take up his post, which resulted in the successive loss of Bac Ninh and Shanxi in Vietnam.

Xu Tingxu's army collapsed without a fight in the Battle of Bac Ninh due to poor preparation and incompetent command.

Both of them were later dismissed from their posts and escorted to Beijing. They are now being held in the Tianlao Prison awaiting their fate.

Chen Baochen singled out Tang and Xu as examples, undoubtedly to scare the monkeys. Look, the unsteady pro-war faction has been detained, and you pro-peace faction still dare to come out and make a scene?

Unfortunately, Fang Pei didn't fall for his trick, and instead attacked the loopholes in his topic.

"Sir Chen, as you said, the corruption in Guangxi is due to the failure of one incompetent general. If we select capable generals to go, the situation in Guangxi may be reversed."

At that time, Liu Mingchuan, who was in charge of the military affairs of the country, was also forced to abandon Keelung at the beginning, but didn't he also win the great victory in Tamsui later? Lord Chen, what do you think of Liu Mingchuan's merits and demerits?

Chen Baochen was speechless for a moment. He originally wanted to make trouble by mentioning Du Liu's death, but before going to court, he received a notice from Shuntian Prefecture Governor Zhou Jiamei saying that Ronglu had sent people to contact this group of people and that he should not mention the matter rashly.

Therefore, they had to temporarily change their strategy to reprimand the incompetent generals on the front lines of the Sino-French War in order to suppress the pro-peace situation in the court.

As the two factions were arguing, Yuan Xiangcheng saw that the time had come and hurried forward, shouting to the little emperor and Cixi:

"Your Majesty, Yuan Xiangcheng, is deeply concerned about the war situation and worries about it day and night. Therefore, I have compiled the methods used to train the new army during my time defending Korea and respectfully present them to the Queen Mother and Your Majesty. I hope to use them to repel the enemy and serve our country with all my loyalty."

"I observe that today is a time of great contention. As nations contend with one another, a modern army is essential. Therefore, I submit twelve points to you, requesting the training of a new army!"

"First, Western guns and cannons are far superior to those of the Qing Dynasty. They are much stronger than ours. Only by continuously importing and imitating them can we fight them and strengthen our Qing Dynasty's military."

"Secondly, the talent of our Qing army commanders is far inferior to that of Westerners. Only by establishing new-style schools to train new military talents and sending people to study in the West can we improve the command of our officers and soldiers."

"Secondly, the Qing military system was difficult to adapt to the large-scale troop operations of Westerners. The only way was to reform the military system and establish a modern combat system or institution."

...

As soon as they saw Yuan Xiangcheng speaking, the ministers of both factions stopped arguing and just watched Yuan Xiangcheng perform quietly.

After listening to this, Cixi asked with great interest: "Yuan Xiangcheng, is this what you did in Korea?"

“Yes, but not all of them. Only one or two of them.”

"Oh? If they only accomplish one or two of these, they can capture Seoul in three days. If they accomplish all twelve, then this new army will be able to conquer the entire world, just like the Eight Banners of the Qing Dynasty, which traversed the entire country when they first entered the country."

"I dare not, but once the army is established and we have enough weapons and food, it will be no problem for us to launch an expeditionary force to annihilate France."

Cixi on the throne did not move, but the little emperor's eyes lit up, and he secretly took note of Yuan Shikai, who claimed that he could defeat the French.

"What a big tone you have, Yuan Xiangcheng! Do you know that if you make a big promise in front of the Empress Dowager and fail to fulfill it, it will be no joke." Ronglu also offered his support at this time.

"It's okay, Ronglu, let him continue speaking." Cixi waved her hand, and Ronglu took the opportunity to step back two steps and stopped talking.

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"You have made a great contribution in suppressing the rebellion in Seoul this time." Cixi said, touching the jade bracelet on her hand.

"Sharing the country's worries is the duty of a minister."

"What a loyal subject, Yuan Xiangcheng! If I were to give you the power to train a new army, when would you be able to drive the French out?"

"Give me a year, and I will eliminate the law in one year!" Yuan Xiangcheng boasted.

The pro-war faction in the court was also a little dumbfounded at this time. Li Hongzao originally thought that Yuan Shikai was a bait thrown by the pro-peace faction to shut them up.

But no one expected that Yuan Xiangcheng would dare to make such a bold statement, "Drive away the law in one year!" Didn't his ancestors live in Henan? How come he looks so much like Yuan Chonghuan? Even the way he made the promise is exactly the same.

9 Did Yuan Xiangcheng know that Yuan Chonghuan’s fate after pacifying Liao in the fifth year was to be executed by slow slicing?

Si shook his head to clear the unrealistic thoughts from his mind, but Li Hongzao was still a little surprised.

Not only Li Hongzao, but also other people in the court, even Ronglu who knew the plan was the same.

Are you crazy about getting promoted? You even dared to say you'd drive the French out in a year. What would you do if the French didn't leave by then?

However, Yuan Xiangcheng had already spoken, and all the officials could only listen quietly and see what Yuan Xiangcheng was going to do next.

3. "Hahaha, Yuan Xiangcheng, do you think I don't know Yuan Chonghuan of the former Ming Dynasty? You dare to shout out the slogan of expelling the law a year ago. You are really courageous." Cixi's arms trembled and she couldn't stop laughing.

"Okay, I'll trust you this time. Since we're training a new army, we can't do it without a set of rules."

"Ronglu!"

"I'm here!" Ronglu immediately knelt down and bowed.