Chapter Thirty-One: The Yuan Estate

  In the Nurturing Heart Palace, intrigue and plotting were rife. Outside the Forbidden City, things were also far from calm. Yuan Shikai returned to his residence in Xila Hutong, drenched in cold sweat, without even having time to change out of his wet clothes, and immediately summoned two trusted aides to discuss the situation.

  These two confidants were not ordinary people, but old men who had followed Yuan Shikai for many years. One was called Ruan Zhongshu, with the courtesy name Douzhan, a jinshi (a successful candidate in the imperial examination) by origin, and his memorials to the throne were as beautiful as brocade. He was the chief writer of Yuan's secretariat. The other was Yin Mingchu, with the courtesy name Peizhi, the son-in-law of Tan Zhonglin, former Governor-General of Guangdong and Guangxi, a compiler in the Hanlin Academy. Although he had never been on Yuan's staff, he was an intimate friend of Yuan Shikai and also his think tank.

  Yuan Shikai sat down in the study, picked up a cup of hot tea and brought it to his lips, only to find that his hands were still shaking uncontrollably. He let out a long sigh, put the teacup back on the desk, and looked at the two people in front of him, seeing that their faces were also uncertain.

  Everyone's anxiety is understandable. As soon as the Nine-Jiang Telegram was released, even the British Minister sent someone to inquire about it, wanting to probe Yuan Shikai's attitude and see what his relationship was with that "Zhao General Commander". Even foreigners had doubts, let alone those officials in the imperial court who were full of Han Chinese prejudices. Even Ruan Zhongshu and Yin Mingzhu, two people, were suspicious, thinking that Yuan Shikai was hiding something from them. No wonder that after receiving a copy of the telegram, Yuan Shikai's first move was to disguise himself and escape in secret, even entrusting his family to the protection of the British.

  If it hadn't been for the British Minister and Qing Prince rushing to intercept him, Yuan Shikai might have escaped to the Tianjin Concession, and there wouldn't have been that episode in the Forbidden City.

  That play was not Yuan Shikai's own idea, but rather Ruan Zhongshu's plan, plus the support of the British, Yuan Shikai had the courage to perform in the Forbidden City, but even so, after performing this play, Yuan Shikai was also exhausted, as if he had just recovered from a serious illness.

  "Sir, don't you really know Zhao Bei?" Yun Ming Shu couldn't help but ask again.

  "How many more times do you want to ask me?" Yuan Shikai sighed. "Don't mention that I don't recognize him, even my assistants didn't recognize him, that person was like he popped out of a stone, let alone we haven't heard his name before, even the imperial court hasn't heard of it, over the years, the presented leaders of the rebel groups, all with names and surnames, are clearly on record, but no matter how many times I flip through them, I couldn't find one named 'Zhao Bei'."

  "So it seems that the person who sent this telegram must have ulterior motives." Ruan Zhongshu had already made up his mind.

  "That's obvious! He sent that telegram to kill me! This is called 'killing with praise'!" Yuan Shikai snorted. "The imperial court is most wary of having officials who are too popular, overshadowing the court. This telegram clearly shows that it is meant to arouse suspicion in the imperial court. These revolutionaries are cunning and treacherous, we must be on guard! Zhao Bei, Zhao Bei, I've remembered this name now. This time it's a telegram, next time who knows what it'll be? They're experts at stirring up trouble and sowing discord, then muddying the waters to their advantage. In the past, they stirred up the common people, now they're stirring up those banner people, creating divisions and meddling in affairs. I've figured it out, nowadays this world is dominated by the banner people, no matter how loyal we Han people are, we're still just their servants. They let us do things for them, but if we want power, that's like trying to grasp a fish in a tree. Last year when I entered the capital, I knew the emperor's favor had declined. Now my mind is made up, once this matter is settled, I'll resign and return home, living out my days as a fisherman. Whoever wants to protect this Qing dynasty can go ahead, I won't bother with it anymore."

  "General Yuan, don't be discouraged." Yin Mingshu shook his head. "Since the new policies of the imperial court were implemented, General Yuan has been working day and night, diligently assisting in governance, abolishing the imperial examination system, promoting industry, training a new army, and advocating for constitutionalism. The new policies have been making rapid progress, with achievements that are plain to see. Who in the world does not know of General Yuan's prestige? Even foreign newspapers say that General Yuan is a 'wise and powerful leader'. Now that the trend towards constitutional monarchy is gaining momentum, General Yuan has always advocated for it, which is exactly what people are looking forward to. It's possible that those rebels in Jiangxi have taken notice of this point and are supporting General Yuan with sincerity."

  "Yin has read too many books on being a gentleman and still doesn't understand the evil intentions of others." Ruan Zhongshu said with a bitter smile. "Since the rebels have the audacity to revolt, why don't they have the courage to do it themselves? Isn't their rebellion just for their own benefit? They nominated Yuan Gong as the 'Grand Leader' precisely because he is the weak point of the imperial court. The current imperial court is increasingly suspicious of Han people, and Yuan Gong has been in power for a long time, with his followers and old friends all over the country. His new policies have gained popularity, and his advocacy for constitutionalism has put him at the forefront. One misstep would lead to disaster. Throughout history, there are too many examples of high-ranking officials who were not rewarded despite their great contributions. Yuan Gong is also a prime example of 'great merit but no reward.' When he volunteered to lead the expedition, he was rejected in a way that was neither soft nor hard. This means that while the imperial court appears to trust him, they are actually wary of him everywhere, fearing that he would use his military power against the court. Now, having Yuan Gong take charge of the Ministry of War is only a temporary measure, and once the rebels are pacified, it will be time to 'kill the donkey after it has finished grinding the mill'."

  Here is the translation:

  At this point, all three of them were sighing endlessly. Yuan Shikai's heart was filled with a mix of emotions - sweet and sour, bitter and spicy. Implementing new policies, advocating for constitutionalism, and reforming the official system were indeed tasks he had been entrusted with, but they also contained his personal ambitions. If constitutional monarchy were to be truly implemented, wouldn't the position of Prime Minister be reserved for him, Yuan Shikai, given his many years of meritorious service? Moreover, once the constitution was established, it would not be easy for the Emperor to kill him again; everything would have to be done according to the law. However, what Yuan Shikai never expected was that after all his hard work, he would end up losing out - those Manchu nobles actually supported the "new policies", but their goal was not to help him rise to power or limit imperial authority. As a result, when the official system was reformed, Yuan Shikai immediately lost several official hats, and several of his concurrent positions were abolished. In the end, even the Beiyang Army was taken away by the Manchu nobles, leaving him with only the titles of Grand Councilor and Minister of Foreign Affairs. Although his position was still prestigious, he had lost real power. If it weren't for the fact that two years ago, during the reform of the three provinces in the northeast, he had managed to regain control of the Beiyang Army, today Yuan Shikai might have already been beheaded at the city gate.

  The officialdom is full of dangers and difficulties, it's a motto for people in the official circle.

  "Officialdom is like a theatrical performance." Yuan Shikai recalled the sentence his uncle had told him about the secret to being an official, and after all these years, he had also honed this acting skill to perfection. If not for this, he wouldn't have passed through the Forbidden City so easily today.

  Of course, strength is always the first priority. Without strength, no matter how good one's acting skills are, they are useless. Yuan Shikai deeply believed in this point. The reason why the Beiyang Army did not move against him now was because they were afraid of the troops in his hands. Therefore, it was necessary to grasp not only the two divisions and one brigade of the Beiyang Army tightly but also the other divisions of the Beiyang Army. This was not only the capital for his promotion but also the capital for his survival.

  Just as Yuan Shikai was pondering how to deal with the current crisis, he heard someone outside the window whisper: "Master, Yang Du, Mr. Yang, requests an audience."

  "Yang Hui?" Yuan Shikai looked at the two men in front of him, Ruan Zhongshu was still okay, but Yin Mingyu seemed a bit uneasy. This can be understood, now that Yuan Shikai is the boat in the maelstrom of the Qing dynasty's turmoil, there is always the danger of being overthrown, so it's not wise to sit with him at this time. Yin Mingyu had sneaked over last night, no one else knew, if someone came and saw him sitting in Yuan Shikai's study room plotting with this "treacherous subject", he was afraid that his official hat would fly off before the next day, Yuan Shikai had the protection of the British, but Yin Mingyu didn't have the protection of any powerful country, nor did he have the Beiyang Army.

  "Please ask Mr. Yang to sit in the east wing for a while, I'll get dressed and go." Yuan Shikai said to the servant outside, raising his teacup towards the two people in front of him. "You two can leave through the back door, if you're worried about being seen, you can take the British Embassy's carriage in the backyard."

  Two men stood up and bid farewell, hastily leaving the study. Yuan Shikai called over his servant to take away the heavy mourning attire, changed into a light green robe and small hat with a white cloth strip wrapped around it, and rushed to the east wing to receive guests.