Chapter 28: The Tower Will Fall (Part 2)

  When Yiliang spoke, all the princes and ministers in the warm pavilion lowered their heads, "I am incompetent", this sentence seems to be Yiliang talking to himself, but actually it is slapping everyone's face.

  "You are ungrateful for the emperor's kindness!" Longyu's face sank, and he gave Tie Liang a cold look. "That telegram wasn't entirely unreasonable either - 'those who occupy high positions without merit'... I think this is referring to you? Since you also know your own incompetence, then step down from the position of Minister of War first."

  "I obey the edict!" Tieliang let out a long sigh. At this time, if his superiors allowed him to resign, that would be for the best, so he wouldn't have to ask to leave himself and be criticized for not sharing the court's worries. Minister of the Army? Whoever wants to sit in this position can sit in it; in any case, Tieliang won't be sitting there. Drawing a salary for doing nothing? This criticism probably applies to everyone in the Nourishing Heart Palace.

  The East Warm Pavilion of the Nurturing Heart Palace suddenly fell silent, with only the sound of a Western-style grandfather clock ticking away, striking at everyone's tense nerves.

  The room fell silent for half a day, and Yu Wei looked at the Regent, Zaifeng, who was still kneeling with his head down. He then looked up to see Empress Dowager Longyu staring at him, so he spoke up: "I received the imperial edict and rushed over immediately. The copy of the telegram is still on its way from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. I'm also very anxious and can't think of a good idea for the time being. However, since this telegram is about the rebels nominating Yuan Shikai as their leader, I think we should call him in too, regardless of his connection to the rebels. We should detain him first while he's still in Beijing. I have a White Rainbow sword with me, which was given to my father by Emperor Xianfeng. If things become urgent, I can use this imperial sword to behead Yuan Shikai, that treacherous official. The sword is right here in the sedan chair; if Your Majesty wants to take a look, I'll retrieve it."

  "Are you saying that Yuan Shikai must be killed?" Empress Longyu asked, a few days ago the little Duke Gong had spoken treacherously, suggesting taking advantage of the opportunity to kill Yuan Shikai and seize control of the Beiyang Army's military power, now it was just a matter of bringing up old affairs again.

  "If the Empress Dowager cannot bear it, then imprisoning her is also a solution." Yu Wei said.

  "Absolutely not!" The speaker was Prince Qing, Yi Ku. Originally, he had been ordered to supervise the construction of the imperial tomb in Badachu, but last night he received a secret report from Beijing about the Ji'nan Incident and returned to the capital without permission. As soon as he heard the call, he presented his card and requested an audience. Yuan Shikai was his protégé, and over the years they had developed a relationship of shared honor and loss. Therefore, no matter what, he had to hurry back to participate in policy discussions. The moment he received the telegram draft, his keen political instincts told him that Yuan Shikai was going to fall out of favor. He couldn't just stand by and watch the joke, as everyone knew he was Yuan Shikai's backstage supporter. If Yuan Shikai fell, it would be a blow to his own "Qing company", which many people were eyeing greedily. The "Yang Cuihua case" two years ago was only a skirmish between the two sides, and the main battle had not yet begun. Saving Yuan Shikai would mean securing the loyalty of the Beiyang New Army, and his own position would be more stable. His money bag would also be safe from being snatched away.

  Yi Xie said: "The rebels are sending telegrams everywhere, supporting Yuan Shikai as the great leader of the republic. This matter is quite suspicious and seems to be a plot to sow discord. The imperial court must not act rashly. Yuan Shikai has received the country's grace for generations and will never betray the emperor's trust. It would be better for the imperial court to use people without suspicion, so it's best to send him to lead the army south, with a deadline to defeat the rebels, which can both repay the imperial court and show the imperial court's trust in him."

  "Send Yuan Shikai to lead the army south? This is even more inadmissible!" On the side, Prince Su Shiyan glanced at Yihe. "The Beiyang Army is the elite of the new military system, and it was they who quelled the rebellion and stabilized the situation. Yuan Shikai has long been in charge of military affairs, with deep roots and a vast network of power; most of the officers are his personal followers. As the saying goes, 'it's hard to gauge people's hearts', especially at this time, the court must be cautious and absolutely cannot put the Beiyang Army under his command! As for Prince Gong's suggestion to arrest Yuan Shikai, it also seems inappropriate. Yuan Shikai has great prestige in the military, and currently no one can match him. Whether arresting or killing him would likely provoke a mutiny in the Beiyang Army, making the situation even more difficult to control. The current situation is delicate, what are the rebels' true intentions? We still don't know. I hope Her Majesty and the Emperor will see clearly!"

  "Yuan Shikai is absolutely a treacherous minister!" Zeng Ze, the Duke of Gong, said gritting his teeth. "Please have Her Majesty issue an edict, I will immediately lead men to capture him. Before coming here just now, I deliberately changed into casual clothes and ran to Yuan's residence to observe, but saw that Yuan Shikai was also in casual clothes getting on a carriage, then heading straight for the Daguanyuan Railway Station. Your Majesty, Yuan Shikai wants to run away! If we go after him now, we can still catch up with him; otherwise, once he escapes to Tianjin and hides in the concession, the court will have no way to deal with him."

  "What? Yuan Shikai has fled?" Empress Longyu was shocked. "Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

  Zai Ze lowered his head and remained silent. Why speak early? If he had spoken out earlier, it's likely that Yuan Shikai hadn't even boarded the train yet. It would be better to wait until he got on the train, and then take action after making sure of a ten-out-of-ten chance of success. At least they could convict him of dereliction of duty. Thinking about it is also laughable - the imperial court was wary of Yuan Shikai's cunning, but didn't think that Yuan Shikai would be so fearful in his heart. After receiving the telegram and learning that he had been nominated by the revolutionary party as their leader, he became flustered and first thought of escaping.

  It's indeed, this sudden change is too abrupt, whoever it was would have been confused. The imperial court wanting to "reduce the power of the vassals" wasn't something that happened overnight either. Yuan Shikai isn't a fool, he naturally understood why he was pulled down from his position as the Beiyang minister last year. As the ancient saying goes, "an ordinary man is not guilty, but he bears the guilt", it's exactly this meaning.

  "The Empress Dowager should not be anxious. The Prince of Gong arrived half an hour earlier than I did." said Prince Qing Yi. "When I came, I also ran to the Yuan Mansion to take a look, and Yuan Shikai was indeed in the mansion, he didn't run away. It seems that the Prince of Gong made a mistake, and the one who went to the train station might not be Yuan Shikai."

  "Impossible! I saw him run with my own eyes." Zai Ze retorted.

  "The Prince of Jingguo's eyes aren't too good, he should go see a Western doctor and get some eye drops or something." Yi Xie said without even lifting his head.

  "Are you sure?" Long Yu asked.

  "This servant clearly saw it and even said a few words to Yuan Shikai," Yi Xiu said. "Your Majesty, the current situation is too chaotic, there are too many rumors, the court cannot be confused. Yuan Shikai is a senior minister of the court, has been loyal to the court for many years, the court cannot chill the heart of a loyal minister."

  "The Regent, what's your opinion?" Empress Dowager Longyu shifted her gaze to Zaifeng's forehead.

  Zai Yu was already drenched in cold sweat, and he prostrated himself to say: "Your humble servant thinks that the memorials submitted by Gong Wang and Su Wang are quite proper, and what Qing Wang said is not necessarily not for the consideration of the court, they are all wise and mature views. Your humble servant thinks that Yuan Shikai's power is too great, it is not a blessing for the court, originally, last year he was transferred from his post in Beiyang to Beijing, just to slightly reduce his influence, now since the southern rebels have already elected him as their leader, the court might as well take advantage of the situation and strip him of his official titles, send him back to his hometown, this way, there is no need to let him lead troops southward, nor is it necessary to detain him in Beijing, I suppose the people above and below Beiyang will not have anything to say."

  "Zhang Zhidong, what do you think?" Empress Longyu looked at Zhang Zhidong, who was kneeling on the edge. In this Palace of Nurturing the Mind, that white-bearded old man was the only Han minister. Originally, according to Regent Zaifeng's intention, it was not necessary to summon Zhang Zhidong, but Prince Qing Yi insisted on calling him, so Grand Minister of Military Affairs Zhang Zhidong still entered the palace by imperial decree.