Master Yuan, start!

You said that the Niohuru clan had a daughter who was of marriageable age, and he said that the little princess in the Guwalgiya clan also had a dignified character.

Weng Tong and officials of the Weng faction, as well as the noble princes among the Manchus, are the open imperial party in the court.

In addition, the emperor's opinion cannot be ignored. Since the Sino-French War, Guangxu saw the bravery of General Yuan and begged Cixi to set up a martial arts training room for him in the palace. He practiced swords, guns, sticks and clubs every day, saying that he wanted to learn good martial arts and repel foreigners in the future.

Some ministers in the court even petitioned Cixi to prevent the emperor from getting hurt, but the noble princes refuted this by saying that "practicing martial arts" was a Manchu custom.

After Guangxu knew that his "biological father" was going to choose a wife for him, he would often say at every imperial lecture that he must find someone who could wield a sword and a stick to practice with him in the palace.

When the news of the emperor's daily martial arts training to defend against foreign humiliation spread out of the palace, many scholars secretly shed tears, thinking that they had met a wise ruler.

Therefore, no one knows whether there are any emperor supporters among the group of upright officials such as Han, Zhan, Ke and Dao. Probably there are, otherwise how can we explain the heated discussion about withdrawing the curtain and returning power after the Sino-French War among officials and ordinary people in the capital?

The Hou Party was mostly composed of governors and Mongolian and Han military ministers from various places promoted by Cixi.

Therefore, a very interesting scene was formed in the Qing court after the Sino-French War, that is, the empress's party was mostly composed of high-level Han people and middle and low-level Manchus, while the emperor's party was mostly composed of high-level Manchus and low-level Han people.

Interests, nationality, class and religion mixed together to create this bizarre scene.

The composition of the Hou Party was mainly composed of high-level Han people and middle- and low-level Manchus. The Han people have never had much say in the narrative system of the early Qing Dynasty.

Before the late Qing Dynasty, it was common for Han ministers to be dismissed from their posts for offending the Manchu bannermen, and the lower-class Manchus were treated like dogs by the Aisin-Gioro family and were not treated well. It can be said that the Han and the lower-class Manchus originally belonged to the same class.

In order to control the situation, Empress Dowager Cixi, who was only interested in power, had to show goodwill to the originally powerless Han people and the lower-class Manchus, because the real yellow belts and red belts had a better object of loyalty: the emperor.

This coincided with the rise of Han militia armed forces. With the support of the army outside and the promotion of the empress dowager inside, it was easy for the Han people in the late Qing Dynasty to occupy an important position in the court.

As for Ronglu, although he was from the Guwalgiya clan, a prominent Manchu family, he lost his mother at a young age and his father at a young age. He had suffered a lot since childhood. If he had not been promoted by Cixi, he would have been a wing commander in his life and might have died in a war. How could he have become the Governor-General of Zhili like he is now?

Therefore, most of the members of the Empress Dowager's Party were favored by Empress Dowager Cixi because of their class and interests.

The Imperial Party, on the other hand, was more based on ethnic and religious factors. It goes without saying that the Manchu nobles were born to support the emperor.

Some Han scholars also supported the emperor because the books of sages they had read over the past few decades made them feel that the world needed a wise ruler. As the saying goes, "When a sage appears, the Yellow River will become clear." Only a sage could save the current Qing Dynasty. Once a sage appears, the barbarians will be pacified.

This understanding, mixed with spiritual sustenance and religious beliefs, was strange but also plausible. However, this group of scholars only dared to support it secretly and would never dare to submit a memorial to the emperor.

Therefore, apart from these Manchu nobles, no one in the court dared to say anything, but the people were the ones who were discussing it heatedly.

There is a sense of contrast between "a cold winter in the officialdom and a scorching heat among the people".

Just when Cixi was feeling frustrated and having failed to catch fish, Yuan Shikai came to her aid.

Originally, if the matter of selecting the queen had remained deadlocked, Cixi would have lost more and more face, and all the officials would have become more and more panicked.

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But if she is asked to bow her head, she is unwilling to do so. It is the same reason. Only when a person is sure of victory will he choose to let go; only when the whole world belongs to him will the monarch choose to be merciful.

Although Cixi had the advantage in the struggle between emperor and empress, her advantage was not stable. If she handled political affairs improperly, it would cause turmoil.

As soon as the news of Yuan Shikai abolishing the feudal system and establishing provinces came out, the people in the capital were beating drums and gongs, and composing plays and singing songs. It was very lively.

This trend dispelled much of the rigid atmosphere in the court, and the focus of people's discussion shifted from selecting a queen to how to view the King of Korea's request to return to China.

In the newly renovated Summer Palace on the western outskirts of the Forbidden City, Manchu and Han ministers on standby were enjoying the coolness of summer.

The Summer Palace was originally named the Qingyi Garden. It was burned down by the British and French forces in 1860, the tenth year of Emperor Xianfeng's reign. Reconstruction began before the Sino-French War and was finally completed before the summer of the thirteenth year of Emperor Guangxu's reign.

Cixi issued an edict today to summon eight ministers to discuss a set of rules for the selection of the empress and the return of the King of Korea to China.

In order to show fairness in the selection of the empress, no distinction was made between Manchu and Han ministers. Except for a few iron-hat princes, several central military officials and ministers in Beijing were invited to the Summer Palace.

Everyone had been discussing this in the Summer Palace for the entire morning, and they all chose to ignore the topic of choosing the queen and instead focus on how to deal with the King of Korea.

The king's visit to China is very formal, and the ceremonial arrangements should be similar to those for a prince. The king's biological father, Seon Daewongun, who is under house arrest in Baoding, should also be quickly released and brought to Beijing to be served with good food and drink.

At the same time, following the example of the previous Ming Dynasty, we could allocate a house to them in the capital, and invite them to the court to congratulate and praise us during the four seasons and eight festivals.

It is really difficult to deal with Yuan Xiangcheng. Different people have different ideas about how to deal with him.

Some people thought that Yuan Shikai had made many great contributions and was a honor to the court, so he should be given high honors.

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Some people think that Yuan Shikai's tens of thousands of troops stationed in Korea had already begun to show the signs of a vassal state. When Zeng Guofan made his fortune, the Hunan Army had only more than 6 people, and they were commanded by different generals.

When Li Hongzhang started the rebellion, the Huai Army had only more than 6500 troops, and at its peak it had only 6 to 7 troops.

They had also heard some rumors that after Yuan Shikai used some Western methods to train his troops, all the soldiers only knew General Yuan and not the emperor.

Although the Jiashen Right Army was strong, it was a little too uncontrollable. Yuan Shikai first defeated the French and then the Japanese, and this time he put the abolition of the feudal system and the establishment of provinces in Korea on the agenda.

He has done these great things and seems to be loyal to the Qing Dynasty, but there is no guarantee that he will not be misled by others and develop other thoughts in the future.

"Duke Zhou feared the spread of rumors, while Wang Mang was humble and respectful before he usurped the throne."

Is Yuan Shikai the Duke of Zhou of the Qing Dynasty or Wang Mang of the Manchus?

Just as the officials were arguing, a sharp voice brought them back to silence: "The Buddha has arrived!"

Upon hearing this, all the ministers immediately knelt down and kowtowed, "Long live the Buddha, long live the Buddha, long live the Buddha!"

"My dear ministers, please stand up. Is there any explanation regarding the selection of the empress and the affairs of Korea?"

Chapter 84: Honorary Manchu Yuan Xiangcheng

"Tell me, have you decided on the candidate for the queen?" Cixi asked lazily.

In fact, Cixi had already had someone in her heart. She originally wanted to use the issue of selecting a queen to warn the ministers in the court, but when she found that they were not willing to take the bait, she gave up the idea.

Of course, the reason why she gave up using this incident to pressure the court officials was more importantly because Cixi had the good news brought by Yuan Xiangcheng, which could help her temporarily dispel the doubts in the court.

"Everyone thinks it's unbecoming for an old woman like me to hold national power, but it just so happens that the people I favored defeated the French and restored Korea to China. What, you're talking about the final signing? Forget about the treaty we signed after defeating the French. Just talk about whether we defeated them or not."

With this in mind, Yuan Xiangcheng became a lucky general in Cixi's eyes, and she liked him more and more.

It's not that no one reminded her that Yuan Shikai was a Han Chinese and that he was a difficult person to get rid of, but whether referring to history or the needs of reality, Cixi chose to believe in Yuan Shikai, at least for the past few years.

When Zeng Guofan was said to be a threat to the government and a potential disaster for the Qing Dynasty, he had 12 troops under his command.

Moreover, at that time, Zeng Guofan was the governor-general of Liangjiang, which controlled the richest areas in the world, and his brother Zeng Guoquan was the governor of Zhejiang. The fertile lands of the four provinces in the south of the Yangtze River were all controlled by the Zeng brothers.

Zeng Guofan was also known as the Grand Master of Neo-Confucianism, and all scholars admired him. Furthermore, the previous Emperor Xianfeng had just passed away, and the young Emperor Tongzhi had been on the throne for only a year, so people were in turmoil.

The nine Manchu ministers in Jiangnan all submitted secret memorials saying that Zeng Guofan seemed to have rebellious intentions and might become a disaster. Lin had gritted her teeth and persevered during this most precarious moment of the Qing Dynasty, so she did not believe that Yuan Shikai would cause a bigger fuss than Zeng Guofan.

Besides, compared to the Aisin Gioro family's kingdom, Cixi cared more about the power in her hands as Yehenara Xingzhen.

If he now believed Yuan Xiangcheng's words that he was afraid of becoming too powerful, and asked Yuan Xiangcheng to resign and return to the capital, granting him wealth and honor to be an idle lord in the capital, he would probably be pushing Yuan Xiangcheng to the side of the emperor's party.

Let's not talk about whether Korea can be stable without Yuan Shikai; even if the political situation in Korea is safe after Yuan Shikai returns to Beijing, will they keep a rare general in the capital for nothing and treat him as a rich man?

After Zeng Guofan captured Jiangning, he spent three years suppressing the Nian bandits before entering Beijing. She thought there was no need to be so anxious about Yuan Shikai.

You don't need to give him a big reward. The situation in Korea is unstable, so let him stay there for another two years. I heard that the Russians in the north are also a bit restless, so he has to go and assist Shengjing General Qingyu.

Thinking of this, Cixi no longer hesitated and took the initiative to mention the issue of choosing the queen.

"I see that the Emperor's wedding is a hot topic in the court and among the people. I am the Empress Dowager, and according to clan law, I am also the Emperor's mother. Even if we ignore clan law, I am still the Emperor's aunt.

Therefore, I will not trouble you, my dear ministers, about the selection of the Empress. I will give you two candidates, and you may decide which one is better." Cixi discussed the patriarchal system and human relations, explaining to her ministers her intention to establish absolute power.

"Gui Xiang!"

"I'm here!" A man with a face very similar to Cixi stood out from among the ministers. He was Cixi's younger brother, the Duke of Cheng'en of the Qing Dynasty, Yehenara Guixiang.

"I also saw your two daughters, Jingrong and Jingfen, when they accompanied you to the palace to visit your parents. They were very lovely. I wonder how old they are now."

"In reply to the Empress Dowager, Jingrong was born in 1865, the year of Yichou, and is now 22 years old. Jingfen was born in 1868, the year of Wuchen, and is only 19 years old." Guixiang honestly reported the ages of his two daughters.

"Oh?" Cixi frowned. "The emperor was born in 1871. So, the eldest princess Jingrong is a little old. Jingfen is more suitable."

After muttering a few words, Cixi said to the ministers lying down, "My dear ministers, let's choose Jingfen as the empress. How about the wedding in two years?"

After hearing what Cixi said, the ministers of the Empress Dowager's party certainly had no objection. After all, what the Empress Dowager said was what it was.

The imperial party felt that two years was not a long time. After two years, according to the rule that the Qing emperor must rule the country personally after his wedding, the Empress Dowager would have to give up power. They could afford to wait for two years.

"The Queen Mother is wise!"

So, with everyone agreeing, Cixi drafted an imperial decree to allow Yehenara Jingfen to enter the palace to accompany her, wanting to train her first.

Now that we have finished talking about the Queen, it’s Yuan Xiangcheng’s turn.

The Grand Councilor Sun Yuwen was the first to speak out and expose the court officials' approach to Yuan Shikai's handling of the incident.

"Your Majesty, the situation is now clear. Korea's return to China is a foregone conclusion. The King of Korea should be treated well in the capital and allowed to enjoy wealth and honor.

As for Yuan Xiangcheng, the hero in this matter, I believe that although Xiangcheng has made many great contributions, he is too young. After the defense of the capital, he was awarded the title of First-Class Viscount and the title of Minister of Haidong, which is lower than the first-rank official. This is already a supreme honor. It would be difficult to grant him an actual position." Sun Yuwen stopped talking here, but Cixi understood what he meant. He was just too successful to be a threat to the emperor.

I hope that the Border Guard will win every battle, but I am also afraid that your achievements will be too great and will threaten your master.

However, this was not what Cixi had in mind, so she did not respond. Instead, she looked at the ministers quietly, wanting to hear other opinions.

Sure enough, some dissenting opinions were voiced. Ronglu felt that Yuan Shikai had made a big splash by letting him review the troops in front of the people of the capital, so he naturally wanted to return the favor:

"Lord Sun, you are wrong. Our Great Qing Empire has never had a precedent of not rewarding someone for great achievements. Duke Wenxiang of Fu, Fu Kang'an, was appointed Governor-General of Yunnan and Guizhou at the age of 25. He even conquered the capital of the Gurkha Kingdom and forced it to submit to our Great Qing Empire. For such a great achievement, Emperor Gaozong was generous in rewarding him. He was the first person outside the royal family to be crowned a king.

If the court is reluctant to reward one because his achievements are too great, he will inevitably be ridiculed by the world.

In my opinion, we should give generous rewards, so that the people of the world know that our Qing Dynasty is a great and glorious country, and we will never do anything that is jealous of talented people."

Ronglu's words were full of sarcasm, mocking Sun Yuwen openly and covertly, but Sun Yuwen did not react much after hearing it, and just stood aside indifferently.

To put it bluntly, Sun Yuwen was also a Han Chinese. It was too taboo for a Han Chinese military councilor to propose to reward a Han Chinese general, so he had to say that just now. At the same time, he left a loophole and did not finish the second half of the sentence, allowing Cixi to express herself freely.

Although real positions cannot be granted, honorary positions can be given. It doesn’t cost money anyway, so just give a little.

However, this kind of words can only be understood, not expressed in words. It was obvious that Ronglu did not understand the meaning of his words.

After Ronglu finished speaking, the other Manchu and Han ministers also spoke. It was nothing more than a compromise. The great rewards that Ronglu mentioned were indeed inappropriate, but they could not be given without rewards. They could only be given at the discretion of the court.

Ronglu's opinion was different from what Cixi had in mind. The speeches of a group of ministers that followed made Cixi feel a little annoyed. A few drops of sweat appeared on her forehead and the corners of her mouth kept moving.

Li Lianying cleverly served the iced sugar water that had been refrigerated in the basement overnight.

After drinking some sugar water, the irritability subsided a lot. Cixi moistened her throat and said, "I think it's not possible not to reward Yuan Xiangcheng. Sun Yuwen, your words are inevitably a bit biased."

Upon seeing this, Sun Yuwen quickly stepped out, bowed and apologized, saying that what the leader said was true, that as a confidant, one should know how to take the initiative to take the blame that the leader passed on to him.

After a pause, Cixi joked to Ronglu, "But Ronglu, what you said is a bit exaggerated. Fukang'an was able to be crowned a king because he was a Manchu. Who else could be crowned a king except Wu Sangui and the other rebellious princes?"

Ronglu, you didn't say that when you wanted Yuan Xiangcheng to be crowned king. Could it be that you are dissatisfied with him and want to praise him to death?"

Everyone in the hall could hear the joking meaning in Cixi's words, and it was a rare occasion for them to laugh out loud in such an occasion with so many ministers present.

However, before the laughter had died down, another minister stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, since the time of Emperor Kangxi, the imperial court has often proposed the elimination of the Manchu-Han boundary.