Chapter Sixty We Are Counterattacking in Self-Defense

  "What are you talking nonsense, Shizong? What benefits did the Sichuan Army give you? Why are you speaking for them?" The Guangxu Emperor was furious and scolded Shizong. Now that the Sichuan Army had taken the initiative to attack, these ministers were not thinking about how to counterattack, but instead were making excuses for the Sichuan Army, which made the Guangxu Emperor extremely angry.

  "Ah! Your Majesty forgive me, I deserve to die ten thousand times!" Shi Duan hastily knelt down on the ground, continuously knocking his head, begging Emperor Guangxu for forgiveness.

  "Your Majesty, as the monarch, how can you lose your temper so easily? You're being too hasty, this isn't good!" Empress Dowager Cixi frowned and said somewhat displeased. This was the Zhongcui Palace, her territory, and Guangxu Emperor scolding his officials who had surrendered to her here didn't give her enough face!

  "Father, I know I was wrong. The Sichuan troops are attacking the imperial army at will, and they deserve to die ten thousand times. Please, father, agree to let me issue an edict to exterminate the Sichuan troops!" Guangxu Emperor begged again. Although he himself felt that being an emperor was very suffocating, in order to achieve his goal, he had to seek Cixi's consent so as to gain her support.

  "This matter can be discussed later! Isn't Old Six in Chengdu? Let him go see Wang Xiao, figure out what's going on and then make a decision!" Cixi said expressionlessly. War is not just about killing people, but also about spending how much money and grain! The imperial court's finances were already strained, if military expenses increased, what would she use to build her garden?!

  "Father!" Guangxu Emperor wanted to argue, but was immediately silenced by a glare from Empress Dowager Cixi.

  "My family is poor, you may kneel down and take your leave!" said Empress Dowager Cixi.

  "Yes, I, your son, take my leave!" The Guangxu Emperor had no choice but to reluctantly withdraw.

  "The Old Buddha, your humble servant is taking his leave!" Sheng Xuan also kowtowed to Cixi and prepared to depart.

  "Zeng, the Grand Council will issue an edict to Liu tomorrow, ordering him to meet with Wang Xiao and get to the bottom of this. If Sichuan troops have attacked our forces without cause, they must be made to give us a satisfactory explanation!" Cixi said finally.

  "Yes, your humble servant obeys!" Shi Duo hastily acknowledged the order.

  The next morning, the Grand Council issued an imperial order to summon Gongqinwang Yixin, who was stationed in Chengdu, to meet with Wang Xiao and investigate the reasons why the Sichuan troops had attacked Qinghai.

  Yixing, Prince Gong of the First Rank, also known as the Master of Leshou Tang, was a Manchu prince and politician of the Qing dynasty. He was the sixth son of the Daoguang Emperor and the younger half-brother of the Xianfeng Emperor. His mother was Empress Jing of the Borjigit clan.

  In 1850, he was appointed as Gongqinwang (恭亲王) by the will of Emperor Daoguang. During the reign of Xianfeng Emperor, Yixin's political status was not very important, and he only served as the leader of the Grand Council from 1853 to 1855. In 1860, during the Second Opium War, Yixin was appointed as a plenipotentiary minister to negotiate with Britain, France, and Russia, and signed the Treaty of Beijing. After Xianfeng Emperor's death in 1861, Yixin conspired with Empress Dowager Cixi to launch the Xinyou coup, successfully seizing power and being granted the title of Qīnguó Wáng (议政王). From 1861 to 1884, Yixin served as the leader of the Grand Council and the leader of the Zongli Yamen, although he was stripped of his title as Qīnguó Wáng in 1865 due to Cixi's suspicion. However, he remained at the center of power. In 1884, he was finally dismissed from office due to the failure of the Sino-French War. After that, Gongqinwang Yixin was sent to Chengdu to coordinate with the Sichuan Army and the Qing court, avoiding conflicts between the two sides. At the same time, he secretly investigated the strengths and weaknesses of the Sichuan Army and its attitude towards the Qing court. In fact, this was equivalent to exile.

  After receiving the order, Gongqin Wang Yixin did not dare to slack off and immediately went to the Chuanxi Touring Censorate to request an audience with Wang Xiao. However, Wang Xiao evaded him and refused to see him until the afternoon when Liang Xingrong, the head of the touring censorate's attendant office, met with Yixin.

  "Gongqin Wang wants to see the commander, but I don't know what it's about. The commander has been busy lately, inspecting the industrial park, and doesn't have time to meet with you, Your Highness. If there's something on your mind, you can tell me and it'll be the same!" Liang Xingrong said with a smile.

  Gongqin Wang Yixin naturally knew that Wang Xiao didn't want to see him, but he couldn't do anything about it. He was now just a powerless and idle prince, and Wang Xiao not putting him in his eyes was also very normal.

  "The Governor is busy with official duties and cannot spare the time to see me, which is also understandable. I have come today on the orders of the imperial court to ask why the Sichuan army has launched a large-scale invasion of Qinghai, do they want to reopen hostilities with the imperial court?" asked Yi Xin sternly.

  "This, please also inform the imperial court that we in western Sichuan have never had any intention of starting a war with the imperial court. The Qinghai affair is just a small skirmish and will soon be over!" Liang Xingrong hastily said.

  "A minor conflict? But the memorial received by the imperial court from the Governor of Shaanxi and Gansu clearly stated that the Sichuan army had invaded Qinghai in large numbers!" Yi Xin would not have believed Liang Xingrong's explanation so easily.

  "Your Highness, it seems that the Qinghai side did not tell the imperial court the truth! Last October, the Qinghai cavalry disguised themselves as bandits and attacked our Sichuan Western Army's 10th Brigade with a force of over a thousand men. The battle was fierce, causing heavy casualties for our army. Of course, we cannot just sit back and do nothing about it. Therefore, this current attack is merely a self-defensive counterattack by the Sichuan Western Army against the Qinghai cavalry, purely a punitive action against them, absolutely not with any intention of going to war with the imperial court!" Liang Xingrong replied.

  "What? The Qingma Army attacked the Chuanxi Army last year? Is there some kind of misunderstanding? Or were they really just bandits?" Yi Xin asked in surprise. This was the first time he had heard this news, and it seemed that the imperial court was also completely unaware of it. It appeared that this incident was not initiated by the Chuanxi Army, but rather was a provocation by the Qingma Army.

  "Your Highness, I guarantee that everything I said is true. This time, the action of the Western Sichuan Army is only to punish the Qingma Army. Of course, if the other two families of the Ma family army want to join in, we will not be afraid. However, we do not want to conflict with the imperial court. After punishing the Qingma Army, we will withdraw from Qinghai and will not occupy the territory of the imperial court!" Liang Xingrong said again.

  "Very well, I will report this news to the imperial court!" Prince Gong Yi Xin said.

  After achieving his goal, Yi Xin immediately bid farewell and had to report the news to the imperial court as soon as possible so that the imperial court could make a decision.

  Chuanxi Inspection Commissioner's Office, Wang Xiao's study room. Liang Xingrong came here after meeting with Prince Gong Yi Xin. Wang Xiao, who should have been inspecting the industrial park, appeared in this study room, as if he had never left.

  "Old Liang? Is he gone?" Wang Xiao raised his head from behind the desk, rubbed his sore eyes, and asked.

  "He's gone, he's been sent away!" Liang Xingrong said with a smile.

  Although they were very clear about the purpose of Prince Gong's stay in Chengdu, under the strict surveillance of the Sichuan Army, he could not investigate any news.

  "General, are we really going to return Qinghai to the Qing court after annihilating the Green Horse Army?" Liang Xingrong asked.

  "Haha, Old Liang, you believe this too? When have you ever seen us spit out the fat meat that's already in our mouths? Not just Qinghai, but Gansu must also be grasped in our hands!" Wang Xiao said with a smile.

  They had already received the news of the victory of the 10th Brigade of the Western Sichuan Army in the Niugou Battle, and by now, they had eliminated more than one-third of the Qingma Army's forces, with very light losses on their own side. This made Wang Xiao extremely satisfied. He was also very pleased with Wang Yuze's performance in this battle. In his view, it wouldn't be long before Wang Yuze became a qualified successor. If possible, he hoped to see the day when Western Sichuan unified the country. However, he knew that all of this was just wishful thinking. His body had been getting worse and worse, and he didn't know how much longer he could hold on.

  "But General, what if the Qing court is dissatisfied and declares war on us?" Liang Xingrong asked with some concern.

  "That's nothing, he wants to fight, and I'm not afraid of him. The railways to Guiyang and Kunming are now open, so we can take down Guizhou and Yunnan provinces at the same time. Although the Sichuan army has been tempered for over a decade, its edge has not become dull, but rather sharper. If the Qing court wants to start a war, it's just right that they should taste our ferocity again!" A glint of sharp light flashed in Wang Xiao's eyes!

  PS: The second update is here!