Master Yuan, start!

Zhang Peilun was the Minister of Shipbuilding in Fujian at the time, in charge of the Fujian Navy. He was implicated in the annihilation of the Fujian Navy in the Battle of Mawei, and was therefore dismissed and exiled. The post of Minister of Shipbuilding was temporarily held concurrently by Yang Changjun, the Governor-General of Fujian and Zhejiang.

Zhang Zhidong was acting as the governor-general of Guangdong and Guangxi. The governor-general was originally Zhang Shusheng from the Huai Army, but he was bedridden due to liver disease. Coupled with the bad situation in Guangxi during the Sino-French War, he fell ill and eventually died in office.

Zhang Zhidong did a pretty good job after taking over and won a great victory at Zhennan Pass. So considering his achievements, he was transferred to Wuchang and served as the Governor-General of Huguang.

As for Li Hongzhang, he can be said to be the one who participated in the Sino-French War throughout the entire process, and he can be said to have both won and lost.

He won a great victory at Zhennan Pass and in the defense of the capital, but unfortunately the generals leading the troops were not from his Huai faction. One was Zhang Zhidong and the other was Ronglu.

On the contrary, it was Liu Mingchuan who was defeated in Taiwan and the Beiyang Fleet was almost completely destroyed. These defeats should be blamed on him.

Liu Mingchuan was a member of the Huai Army, and the Beiyang Fleet was also built up by Li Hongzhang. He could not be separated from these two defeats in any way.

Li Hongzhang's positions as Governor-General of Zhili and Minister of Beiyang were certain to be revoked. Judging from the attitude of the French envoy, even though the war was won, the treaty would not be so easy to sign.

If you want Li Hongzhang to take the blame and negotiate and sign the contract with the French, it won't work if you just keep doing it.

Unless there was no need for Li Hongzhang anymore, why would he clean up the mess for the court when he knew he would be demoted to the lowest point?

Moreover, there must be checks and balances on several coastal governors.

Although the Governor-General of Liangjiang, Zeng Guoquan, was dismissed, he still remained in office, and the two Jiangs were still divided under the Hunan faction.

Yang Changjun, the Governor-General of Fujian and Zhejiang, and Zuo Zongtang were comrades-in-arms and from the Chu faction.

If Li Hongzhang was removed from the post of Governor-General of Zhili and an irrelevant person was replaced as Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi, the Huai clique would be left with no one in the three major fiefdoms in the southeast.

In any case, a governor's position must be reserved for the Huai clique in the southeastern provinces. Since Zhang Zhidong has made contributions, he should be transferred from the acting governor-general of Guangdong and Guangxi to the actual governor-general of Huguang.

The vacant post of Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi was given to Li Hongzhang so that the Huai faction would not lose its support in the local area.

In this way, the three governors-general and ministers were lined up in a row to the south of the Yangtze River, belonging to the Xiang, Chu and Huai factions respectively. Only by getting along with each other and restraining each other could the court be stable and safe.

As for the Governor-General of Zhili, Cixi intended to give it to Ronglu, who was loyal and dedicated to saving her. Although he returned to the capital halfway through his journey, Ronglu's spirit was still commendable.

Among the rest of the people, those who deserve rewards will be rewarded, and those who deserve punishment will be punished.

First, we need to commend the soldiers who performed bravely in the five battles of Zhenhai, Weihai, Lushun, Tianjin and Beijing. There is nothing much to say about this.

In the Jiashen year, the commander of the rear army, He Cheng, died in battle. He was posthumously awarded the title of Prince's Guardian and the posthumous title of Zhongjie.

Liu Shengxiu of the front army and Song Qing of the left army were also rewarded according to their merits. In addition to promotions, they were given 100 taels of gold, the title of Baturu and the double-eyed peacock feather.

Rewards of varying sizes were given to the Zhili Green Camp, the Zhili Training Army, and the local militia who rushed to the capital but did not even see the French.

Secondly, he was hesitating whether to hold some officials accountable for losing territory and surrendering to the enemy.

Xu Changshun, the deputy commander of the Nanrui, surrendered to the French army, using the Nanrui as bait to let the French blow up the Zhaobaoshan Fort. However, it is said that he repented at the last moment, shouted a false surrender, and was kicked into the sea by the French, and his life or death is unknown.

In the end, it was Prince Li Yix who made the decision not to pursue the matter further. After all, the court would lose face if the matter were made public, but at the same time, they would not provide much compensation.

However, Yi X and others were a little undecided about the arrangements for Yuan Xiangcheng.

Chapter 61: Five Horses Parade, One Horse Leads the Way

"Prince Chun, I think Yuan Shikai has considerable insights into foreign affairs. If Li Hongzhang resigns, how about letting him manage all the foreign affairs in the Beiyang region?"

Cixi wanted to reward Yuan Shikai for his great contributions, so she transferred Li Hongzhang to the position of Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi, with the idea of ​​letting Yuan Shikai take over some of Li Hongzhang's duties.

"I think that the position of the Zongli Yamen is too high for him to take, and it would be difficult to convince the people. The position of Minister of Commerce of the Northern Ocean is vacant, so why not let him go there to gain some experience?"

Cixi's words seemed to be just suggestions, but how could the military officials in the hall refuse? Moreover, Yuan Shikai saved the capital from danger and was the first to do so, so he should indeed be rewarded.

The position of Minister of Commerce of the Beiyang mentioned by Cixi, also called the Beiyang Minister, is often not awarded to ministers as a separate official position, but exists as a part-time position of the Governor-General of Zhili.

In addition to being the Governor-General of Zhili, Li Hongzhang also served as the Minister of Commerce of Beiyang. Ronglu took the position of Governor-General of Zhili, but he was not good at dealing with foreigners at all.

Yuan Shikai had a deep understanding of Western affairs and was well-versed in the past and present status of Western countries. It was most appropriate for him to be the Minister of Beiyang.

Prince Chun Yix1 also intended to promote Yuan Xiangcheng, but he should have retired in seventy years. If Yuan Xiangcheng still stayed in the military camp training troops all day long, he would be of little help if something unexpected happened when Cixi returned to power.

However, the rewards for everyone this time will have to wait until negotiations with the French, and a final decision will be made before the imperial edict can be issued.

...

After dealing with the important government affairs, Cixi was eager to take Guangxu and other ministers to Nanyuan in the south of the city to review the army.

As the old saying goes, the less you have, the more you want to show off. Cixi was afraid that the news of his escape from the city would spread and be known to the people of Beijing.

Therefore, despite the dissuasion of his ministers, he insisted on going to the Nancheng, which had just suffered from the war and was in ruins, to comfort the Jiashen Five Armies' suppression troops in order to show his courage in not fearing war.

When Yuan Xiangcheng received the news, he just thought it was funny. After entering the city, he had heard from some of the common people that Cixi had disguised herself and left the city.

There were so many people in the capital, and although Cixi was dressed like a peasant woman when she ran, there were so many people surrounding her. Which peasant woman could have such a grand show? She would have been seen by others long ago.

The reason why the news was only circulated privately and did not become a hot topic was, on the one hand, that the defense of the capital had been won after all, and the people did not care about it; on the other hand, they were afraid of being caught by the people from the Infantry Commander's Office and thrown into jail.

However, since it was going to be a review, Yuan Xiangcheng decided to let the Jiashen Right Army show its best momentum and give the people of the capital who had been at peace for a long time a little "parade shock".

When the people of the Banner Han Dynasty who had not yet been affected by the war in the inner city, as well as the young and old men, the scholars who stayed in Beijing, and the idle officials of the six ministries and nine departments, heard the news, they also rushed to Nanyuan, wanting to see how heroic the officers and soldiers who defeated the foreigners were.

When Cixi and her men arrived, the palace guards were on guard one by one on the reviewing stand, and the five armies of Jiashen, which were ready to be reviewed, had already been lined up in an orderly manner on the field in the distance.

Just as people on and off the stage were discussing and the people were looking forward to it, there was finally movement from the east.

"Here they come, Lord Yuan and the others are here!"

Looking towards the crowd, dust was flying in the air in the east, and the Jiashen Fifth Army was walking towards the reviewing stand step by step with heavy and firm steps.

The first five men rode on fine horses, with one horse in the middle leading the way, and the other four horses slightly behind by half a body length.

One of the four horses had no real person on it, but instead had a large banner tied to it, with the words "Jiashen Rear Army, Congratulations on the victory" written on it.

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The method of riding a horse to accept the review was proposed by Yuan Shikai. Since it was a military review, it was necessary to leave a deep impression on the civil and military officials.

At the same time, she also wanted to curry favor with Ronglu. At the most critical moment of the defense of the capital, Ronglu did not go to the battlefield to supervise the battle. Instead, he secretly returned to the city and fled with Cixi and Guangxu.

Cixi might think that he was loyal and devoted to his master, but other ministers might not think so.

Therefore, he took the initiative to propose that the commanders of the five armies of Jiashen should all ride horses for the review, and for He Cheng, the commander of the Jiashen rear army who unfortunately died in battle, a large flag should be tied to the horse's back.

Ronglu has been in a complicated mood since he followed Cixi back to Beijing. He knew that his gamble of sneaking Cixi out of the city this time was right. Cixi also praised him generously when they were leaving the city, saying that he was loyal to the country and cared about his master's safety.

But who would have thought that the defense of the capital was won, and Ronglu had to return to the capital. He also knew that his act of fleeing before fighting would surely cause the ministers in the court to despise him and be ashamed to associate with him.

Therefore, he even felt an inexplicable sense of resentment and blame towards Yuan Shikai, who won the battle to defend the capital. However, his rationality kept telling him to be happy for Yuan Shikai's victory.

Now he is indeed the only one who enjoys the favor of the Empress Dowager and has great royal support. It is estimated that he will have a worry-free career in the future.

But this means that he will become a lone minister who is isolated from all officials.

It is not easy to be a lone minister.

Just when he was struggling with this, Yuan Shikai learned that Cixi was going to hold a military review in the south of the city, so he found him, told him his plan, and discussed it with him.

Ronglu was naturally overjoyed. If he could lead such a march in front of the civil and military officials and the people of the capital, who could say that he was not a great hero defending the city?

In the video, Chunxi decided to plan a five-horse parade.

But when it came to deciding which horse should go in front, they got into trouble. Yuan Xiangcheng wanted to stay out of the spotlight and let Ronglu have more of it.

He suggested that Ronglu, as the imperial commissioner for training the five armies in Jiashen, should ride his horse in the middle and lead the way to show his command.

After all, Ronglu seemed to be in charge of only the Jiashen Central Army, but he actually had the power to control the five armies. It was true that he had made great contributions, but Ronglu ran away at the beginning.

In other words, this is when the leader does something wrong and the subordinates become famous.

What if my fame overshadows that of my superior, Ronglu, and he is still loyal to me and tries to trip me up in the future? What should I do?

Ronglu initially declined, feeling ashamed.

He proposed that He Chengde, the rear army general of Jiashen who died in the battle, should lead the front with his flag and horse. Later, he could not resist it, and Yuan Shikai flattered him several times, as well as a trace of vanity in his heart.

Only then did he seem to have reluctantly agreed to Yuan Xiangcheng's plan of having him ride in the middle and take the lead.

Ronglu's mind was in a mess, but he did not loosen the reins of the horse at all.

The footsteps of the army gradually became louder, and some people who were nearby could not bear the vibration and covered their ears.

As the distance got closer, the five horses gradually lined up and slowly walked towards the officials and people near the reviewing stand.

In addition to He Cheng's flag horse, the other four horses are:

The Imperial Commissioner for Military Training, who was in charge of the Five Armies of Jiashen and the Commander of the Central Army of Jiashen, Ronglu,

Liu Shengxiu, the commander of the front army in Jiashen,

Song Qing, the commander of the left army in Jiashen,

In Jiashen, Yuan Xiangcheng was the commander of the right army.

Kang Youwei and his classmates were in the crowd, looking at the army, and the familiar figures on horseback became clearer.

I just feel that a real man should be like this, who can warn the world with his literary skills and decide the fate of the world with his martial arts skills.

In the scorching summer, there is a refreshing feeling.

"That must be Master Yuan!"

"He's as vigorous as a dragon and as strong as a tiger, with bulging muscles. He must be Lord Yuan Xiangcheng!"

Just as the people of the capital were excitedly discussing and giving instructions to the Jiashen Five Armies on parade.

A gunshot rang out, like a signal, breaking the silence of the soldiers.

Following Duan Qirui's command in the ranks, the soldiers of the Jiashen Fifth Army beside him gradually began to sing a ballad:

"Chinese men, Chinese men, hold up the sky with one hand."

"A sleeping lion for a thousand years, a sleeping lion for a thousand years, a man raising his arm can make ten thousand men stronger."

san...

"Decisive victories on the battlefield, with unwavering resolve, have been won by countless extraordinary men throughout history."

"Broken head in yellow dust, engraved on Yanran Mountain, even now the hot blood is still red."

More than 5000 carefully selected troops from the Five Armies of Jiashen participated in the parade and sang "Chinese Men" at the same time.

This song is the military song of the Jiashen Right Army, and everyone can sing it.

It was also taught in the Beiyang Academy, so most of the soldiers of the Five Armies who went to the Beiyang Academy for further studies could hum a few lines.

Now the loud singing spreads from the Nanyuan parade ground to all directions, piercing the hearts of the audience.

As the bodies of the fallen soldiers were carried across the reviewing stand by their comrades, all those who had hope for this country were moved to tears.