Chapter Thirty: Turmoil (Part 2)

  Before the eunuch's voice had fallen, someone outside the palace was heard whispering: "Your Majesty, the British and French envoys have jointly sent a note saying that Yuan Shikai is a friend of the powers and a loyal minister of the court, and absolutely not an accomplice of the Nine Rivers rebels. The two envoys are willing to vouch for Yuan Shikai." The speaker was a minor official from the Grand Council, who had been tasked with transmitting foreign envoys' notes to the palace since the year 1900. To be precise, it was more like passing on orders, just like a master giving commands to his slaves. This task was not an easy one, as one would receive complaints from both sides, so usually the least popular minor official would take on this duty.

  "Yuan Shikai is a subject of my Great Qing, what business does Guanyang have? Why should they come to bother us?" Little Gong Wang grumbled in dissatisfaction, but only grumbled, the others didn't even dare to grumble, and instead cast their eyes on Empress Longyu's chin.

  "Even foreigners have come to plead for Yuan Shikai. What does everyone mean?" Empress Longyu swept her eyes over the officials kneeling in the Nourishing Heart Palace.

  "Yuan Shikai has come alone, so he must be clear in his conscience. The imperial court cannot chill the hearts of loyal ministers." Prince Qing hastily said.

  "Hum! Yuan Shikai didn't go into opera, what a waste of talent!" Pu Wei hummed and gave Qing Wang a glance.

  Yi Wu said, "Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager is wise and discerning! Yuan Yemou's actions have already revealed his intentions. If he were a guilty person, how would he dare to come forward voluntarily? It would be better to summon him for questioning, so as to avoid any rumors or suspicions that might harm the loyalty of our officials."

  Then it is called Yuan Shikai's audience. Empress Dowager Longyu issued an edict.

  "The Empress Dowager, Yuan Shikai is not wearing official uniform, which does not conform to the imperial court's regulations." Yu Wei said.

  "This is a matter of power! Doesn't even the King understand this principle? If it weren't for someone suspecting gods and ghosts, how would Yuan Shikai have been able to enter the palace unscathed? The precedent for commoners entering the palace was not unprecedented during the Guangxu era." The King looked at Pu Wei with dissatisfaction. What he said about "commoners entering the palace" referred to the incident where Emperor Guangxu summoned Kang Youwei, a candidate in the imperial examination, during the Wuxu year. Afterwards, the "Wuxu Reform" began. However, Kang Youwei, who was then considered a key figure in the reform movement, is now exiled abroad, while Yuan Shikai, who was mistakenly thought to be a member of the reform movement by Emperor Guangxu, has become a powerful figure in the Qing dynasty thanks to the hot blood of the six martyrs of the reform.

  Nothing is more unpredictable than this.

  That eunuch hastily ran to deliver the edict, and after a short while, he brought back a stout man to the Nourishing Heart Palace. The stout man was of short stature, none other than "the pillar of the Beiyang" Yuan Shikai.

  As soon as he entered the Yangxin Hall, Yuan Shikai fell to his knees and knocked his head on the ground, making a loud "thud" sound. He wailed loudly: "The guilty subject Yuan Shikai has failed to repay the sacred grace, I beg for death to atone for my crimes before heaven and earth, to make clear my heart! Wuu... wuu..."

  The crowd looked on, and saw that Yuan Shikai was dressed in heavy mourning attire, without a hat, and his feet were clad in cotton shoes wrapped in white cloth, indistinguishable from the common people who were also mourning. However, his hands were bound behind his back with rope, tied tightly, clearly not by himself. On top of that, several twigs were inserted, indicating that he was willing to take punishment. At this moment, his smooth forehead was already battered and bleeding profusely, yet he continued to kowtow vigorously on the brick floor.

  "Alright, stop kneeling! Someone come and help him up, untie the ropes. All of you can get up too, let's talk." Empress Longyu furrowed her brow, it was false to say she didn't dislike Yuan Shikai, although Emperor Guangxu was cold towards her, after all he was her husband. If not for Yuan Shikai's betrayal, Guangxu wouldn't have been under house arrest in the Yingtai Palace for ten years, only to die there without a clear cause.

  The crowd thanked and stood up, Yuan Shikai was helped up by two small eunuchs, and the rope was also untied.

  "Yuan Shikai, you say you are guilty, what do you mean?" Empress Longyu asked.

  Yuan Shikai wiped the corners of his eyes and knelt down again, knocking his head on the ground: "Your Majesty, I have just learned that the Jiangxi rebels issued a telegram, supporting me as the great leader of the republic. This is my first major crime! I have a belly full of grievances, but nowhere to vent them, a stomach full of injustices, but nowhere to plead my case. I only ask Your Majesty and the Empress Dowager to grant me death, to cut off the hopes of all the petty scoundrels in the world! This is my confession, hastily written, without polish, and due to my indignation, my arm shakes and my hand trembles, the characters are rough and unrefined, which is my second major crime." After finishing speaking, he pulled out a memorial from his sleeve, held it with both hands above his head.

  Longyu sighed and said, "As for the matter of Jiujiang, I know you are innocent and also know your loyalty to the imperial court. This memorial, you'd better take it back. The imperial court has never blamed you, so there's no need to be suspicious. Go back and govern well. If your mind is preoccupied, don't hesitate to ask for a few days off and rest in the capital."

  Yuan Shikai, with a folded memorial in his hand, shook his shoulders and choked back tears as he said: "The trust the Empress Dowager and Your Majesty have placed in me is something I can never repay. Now that the bandits are causing trouble in Jiujiang and Anqing, shaking the whole country, I request to lead an army to quell them, to wipe out the rebels and traitors in one stroke, to be loyal to the court, and to die for the Empress Dowager and Your Majesty. When I return victorious, I will resign and retire to my hometown, never again setting foot in official circles."

  Everyone present was stunned by these words, and Empress Dowager Longyu suddenly lost her composure, casting a glance at Regent Zaifeng's face, waiting for him to speak, but Zaifeng remained silent.

  Yu Wei stepped forward and said: "Xiang Chenggong is loyal to the country, the court will not suspect him. It's better for you to stay in Beijing to oversee the overall situation. As for the rebel army in Jiujiang, it's just a small group of bandits, there's no need for Xiang Cheng to lead an expedition himself, just send a few familiar military officials to command the Northern Navy to march south and that will be enough. Anqing and Jiujiang are both cities by the river, the naval department has already dispatched warships to hurry over, it won't take many cannon shots to break through the city walls and achieve victory."

  "The words of Duke Gong are most reasonable, I concur." Duke Su Zongqi echoed in agreement.

  "This humble one agrees." Prince Qing, Yi Kuang, also stood up and swept his gaze around the room, casting a glance at Yuan Shikai who was still kneeling on the ground. He couldn't understand why Yuan had volunteered to take responsibility at this time, wondering if he had been scared out of his wits and didn't even know how to avoid suspicion. Recalling the scene where he had intercepted Yuan at the train station, Yi Kuang shook his head, thinking that if it weren't for the British Minister, Sir John Jordan, who had guaranteed their safety by patting his chest, Yuan would probably have fled to Tianjin already.

  "Since everyone says so, it is settled then. The imperial edict reads: 'Yuan Shikai has been loyal and dedicated to the country, he is awarded a purple girdle, and granted permission to ride a sedan chair carried by two men within the Forbidden City. During the period of pacifying the rebellion, Yuan Shikai is appointed as acting Minister of War, staying in Beijing to handle affairs, and assisting with military matters.'" Empress Longyu said.

  After finishing speaking, he comforted him again and ordered the eunuch to have Yuan Shikai carried away on a stretcher by two men to the imperial hospital for bandaging his forehead. He then had him escorted back to his residence and also ordered Xiao De Zhang to present two roots of hundred-year-old ginseng to the Yuan residence.

  After Yuan Shikai left, the little Gong Wang Puwei took out two folded papers from his sleeve and presented them, saying: "The slave came on the road and wrote two impeachment memorials, please the Empress Dowager to make a sacred judgment."

  "Whom does the Duke of Gong want to impeach?" Longyu took over the memorial, looked at it for only two eyes, but his face changed, and he looked up at the few people in front of him, saying: "Do you want to impeach Qingwang and Zhang Zhidong?"

  Qingxiang Emperor Yi and Grand Minister Zhang Zhidong were both shocked, and after regaining their composure, they knelt down to plead guilty.

  Yu Wei said, "Qing Wang was ordered to supervise the construction of the mausoleum, but he returned to Beijing on his own accord, which is a serious crime. I impeach him for not following the imperial edict and violating the rules of the court. Zhang Zhidong has been the governor-general of Hubei for many years, and the new army in Hubei was trained by him personally. However, he allowed a large number of rebels to infiltrate, and they stirred up trouble, causing the new army in Hubei to become disloyal and mutinous. I impeach him for being remiss in his duty and failing to eliminate the rebels. Originally, I also wanted to impeach Yuan Shikai and Li Hongzhang, but since they have already been loyal to the imperial court, there is no need to pursue their dereliction of duty."

  "I am guilty!" Prince Qing wept bitterly on the ground. "I heard about the Jiayuan coup and rushed back to Beijing in a hurry, my heart burning with anxiety. I had no other thoughts but the Empress Dowager and the Emperor, now that both palaces are in mourning, the country is in doubt, the Empress Dowager has just ascended to power, and there is no one to sympathize with the orphaned children and widowed mothers. As a slave of the Qing dynasty and the imperial court, if I did not return to fulfill my duty at this time, I would rather die by smashing into the Bodhisattva Cliff."

  Yi Xiu cried pitifully, stirring the emotions of Rong Yu. One person was crying on the floor, and the other was crying by the side of the bed, making the atmosphere in Yangxin Hall even more desolate.

  Zhang Zhidong did not defend himself, and the desolation in his heart had no place to express itself. The Hubei New Army was indeed trained by him, and Pu Wei's impeachment of him was not entirely unreasonable. In fact, even he himself was not quite clear why he had not severely cracked down on the new faction's ideology within the New Army back then. Perhaps deep in his heart, there was a hint of an idea that even he himself was not aware of: The Qing Empire might be finished after all, so it would be better to leave some room for himself, if not for his own sake, then for the sake of future generations.

  Two impeached men, one wailing and the other not saying a word. The benevolent elder who had come to watch the play knew that Director Pu's play was about to end before it even began, so he stood up and said: "I think that at this critical moment in national affairs, we should not pursue these trivial matters, but rather prioritize major military and national issues, and first eliminate the rebellious party and traitorous army."

  The Empress Dowager Longyu wiped the corner of her eye with a silk handkerchief, looked at the two people kneeling on the ground, then at the stunned princes and high-ranking officials, sighed, and threw the two memorials onto the kang table, saying: "These memorials are approved. You can all kowtow now, I'm tired. The matter of sending troops to suppress the rebels will be left to you to discuss, I don't understand it, so I won't interfere."