Cao Kun deliberately made his face serious and solemn, and said: "So in the final analysis, the problem lies with the president himself. Now I, Cao Laosan, come to see you, brother, just to ask you a question
So, should we look towards the overall situation of Beiyang or should we look towards the president alone?"
Speaking of this, Duan Qirui had already guessed Cao Kun's intentions. He had already expected that there would always be some people in Beiyang who would not keep to themselves and would definitely take advantage of this opportunity. It is obvious that Cao Kun is such a person
.He was very annoyed in his heart, but he was not in a hurry to show it on his face.
"What are your plans?" After a while, Duan Qirui asked further in a monotonous tone.
"Actually, I have made it very clear. If the President continues to act on his own will, he will definitely cause disaster. At this time, someone in Beiyang should stand up and take charge of the overall situation. No matter what method is used, the President must know the stakes of the matter.
, If the President still refuses to listen, then we will have to invite another wise man to take over the position of leader of Beiyang." Cao Kun saw that Duan Qirui still seemed unwilling to make his words clear, so he stopped being polite and said
Simply put it more directly.[
"Is this your plan?" Duan Qirui sneered and said these words jokingly.
"Brother, I told you that I, Cao Laosan, am just a rough guy and I can't think of many solutions. Since the problem lies with the President, and the President refuses to repent, this is obviously the President's fault alone.
Why drag down more people? To use an analogy, there is an extra thorn in the flesh. If it is not pulled out as soon as possible, the whole piece of flesh will rot sooner or later." Cao Kun said in a rough voice.
, seemingly showing an uneducated image.
"According to what you said, you just planned to pull Xiang Cheng out as soon as possible like a thorn in his flesh? After driving Xiang Cheng away, are you still planning to take over and become the so-called new leader of Beiyang yourself?" Duan Qi
Rui's face became more and more ugly, and his voice became more and more sulky.
"How can I, Mr. Cao, be so virtuous that I dare to make a mistake? No, this time I made a special trip to see my elder brother just because I hope that my elder brother can carry this banner. With my senior brother's qualifications and prestige, as long as I raise my arms, I can do it again."
With me, Cao Laosan, echoing from the side, we will definitely arouse the response from those in Beiyang who have the overall situation in mind. When the time comes, we will all regard my old brother as our new leader in Beiyang, no matter whether he persuades the president to abolish the imperial system, or otherwise
If you have any other plans, we will definitely support them with all our strength. Just to ensure the overall stability of Beiyang." Although Cao Kun could hear the bad side in Duan Qirui's tone, he still had to bite the bullet and put himself in the end.
The final bottom line was thrown out.
He came to Duan Qirui today naturally because he understood Duan Qirui's temper. Although Duan Qirui is a nostalgic person, there is definitely no favoritism as long as it involves the overall situation of Beiyang. What's more, Yuan Shikai is now
Treating Duan Qirui like this, and even vowing to appoint him to replace Yuan Shikai in charge of Beiyang, I don't believe that Duan Qirui has no desire for progress or revenge.
After hearing what Cao Kun said, Duan Qirui snorted coldly and said sarcastically: "You are really whimsical. You just want me to be the one who takes advantage of you and make Beiyang a mess. You
Cao Kun has a few kilograms and a few taels, but he actually has the nerve to say that he is coming to attack Xiangcheng's palace from the side. I think if you let this news out today, you won't be able to leave Beijing tomorrow."
Cao Kun didn't understand the meaning of Duan Qirui's tone for a moment. He just thought that Duan Qirui was worried that he would not be able to support Duan Qirui alone, and then he put on a show and said: "Brother, although I, Cao Kun, am nothing,
But as the saying goes, ants cannibalize elephants only in numbers. To be honest, brother, not only most of our immediate people are dissatisfied with the president's proclaimed emperor, but also his disciples and ministers.
There are also those who complain. When I passed through Anhui a few days ago, the two Ni brothers and Qu Weiqing, who had just organized the army in Wuhu, all came to see me and asked me to talk to my brother about the following when I go to Beijing.
What people mean..."
Duan Qirui's expression deteriorated instantly, and he yelled in anger: "What did you say!"
This sudden scene startled Cao Kun, and even Xiong Bingqi and several guards who were guarding the door couldn't help but quickly turned around and looked into the house. Duan Qirui had already suppressed a burst of anger before, but he just thought about it.
Cao Kun kept saying that he was thinking about the overall situation of Beiyang, so he didn't get angry immediately. But now he suddenly heard that the Anhui clique's Bu Qu actually communicated with Cao Kun in private, and even asked Cao Kun to come to Beijing to say such treasonous things.
, I can’t accept it no matter what.
Even though he knew that Yuan Shikai was now suspicious of and excluded him, he would never do anything to feel sorry for Yuan Shikai or Beiyang. Yes, because Yuan Shikai insisted on proclaiming himself emperor, he attracted a lot of attention to Beiyang's inexplicable attraction.
There are a lot of crises. But in the face of crises, Beiyang should strengthen its internal unity and unite with the outside world. How could it be possible to rebel at this time and secretly plot to force Yuan Shikai to retreat and establish a new leader?
He had earlier expected that the proclaiming emperor would definitely cause disaster within Xiao Qiang. He thought there was some room for error in what Cao Kun said, but now he saw clearly that the other party was actually such a culprit.
Cao Kun was stunned for a long time, and finally came back to his senses. He realized that Duan Qirui was not easy to talk to, so he quickly put on a smile and said: "Brother, don't be angry. What I said before was not all about discussing our Beiyang affairs."
It’s just a way out. It’s all because I, Cao Laosan, am uneducated and can’t come up with any good ideas. I hope you can be considerate, brother, and don’t take it to heart. If you have anything to say, let’s sit down and talk slowly. How can we find a solution to the problem if we don’t talk about it?
What’s the best way?”
Duan Qirui scolded: "Talk? I have nothing to talk to you. You keep saying it is for Beiyang, and now you are encouraging me to join you in civil strife. Is this for Beiyang? China has suffered so much in the past few decades.
Is there still less civil strife? It’s long past time to unite and work together to eliminate all the warlords in the country and promote the early reunification of northern and southern China. If you start to cause conflicts within ourselves, doesn’t this give those warlords a chance?
"
Cao Kun's expression suddenly dropped. Although he was slightly inferior to Duan Qirui in terms of qualifications, he was still a general guarding one side. He was three years older than Duan Qirui, but he was very talkative.
He is an "old brother", but in the end he is taught a lesson by this "old brother" as if he were a grandson. How can he calm down the evil in his heart?
What he said before may not be what Duan Qirui meant, but his attitude when he spoke was not only polite and thorough, but he also said hello in advance before speaking, claiming that he was "not very well-educated" to set the stage.
But Duan Qirui was really not polite at all and just demolished the steps without any mercy.
"Brother Duan, you can't say that. You and I should be very clear about the principle that long-term pain is worse than short-term pain. I kindly came to you to discuss it, but you are kind enough to give me any face. Whatever you say, if you can If you don't agree with the proposal, at most it will be dropped, so why give me, Cao Laosan, such a big label."
"We don't agree with each other. But after talking to you today, I can see clearly what your intentions are. I tell you, as long as I, Duan Qirui, have this tone for one day, I will definitely keep a close eye on you."
You conspirators. If anyone dares to harm our overall situation in Beiyang, a man named Duan will go into battle naked and you will fight him to the end." Duan Qirui angrily threw out his attitude.
Cao Kun was so angry that he simply didn't say another word, turned around and walked out. This meeting was known to have ended on bad terms, but whether it was Duan Qirui or Cao Kun, both of them had deep feelings in their hearts.
Gradually, we came to understand each other's positions.
After leaving the train station, Cao Kun angrily got into his carriage and ordered the team to go into the city.[
Adjutant Xiong Bingqi followed Cao Kun's carriage on horseback. After walking for a while and almost away from Majiapu Railway Station, he approached the carriage and asked cautiously: "Commander, is Mr. Zhiquan not at all?"
Any ideas?”
Cao Kun in the carriage snorted coldly and cursed in a rough voice: "He is just a stubborn person. I have never seen such a stubborn person. Let him go. I can't leave him."
Road, I don’t believe there is any way to go.”
Xiong Bingqi sighed, and after a while he asked for instructions: "Should we first send a telegram to Hunan to inform Wu Ziyu and let him prepare first?"
Cao Kun was silent for a while, and finally said with some help: "There is nothing we can do now. We can only take the wrong approach. Is there still a chance in the south? When you go back, you will send the telegram. Not only must you send
Wu Peifu, Wang Zhanyuan, Tang Xiangming, and Chen Shufan should also say hello first. However, the content of the message should not be too direct. In everything, some escape routes should be reserved in advance, hoping that there will be some turning points along the way. The savings will be so huge.
It takes a lot of trouble.”
Xiong Bingqi nodded and responded solemnly: "I understand, I understand."
After a pause, he asked with some worry: "The commander-in-chief made it so obvious just now. Since Mr. Zhiquan does not support it, what if he secretly reports to the president that we have evil intentions?
this……"
Regarding this point, Cao Kun was indeed a little worried. After hesitating for a while, he finally said: "With Duan Qirui's character, he will definitely not report it at this time. What's more, what I said just now is accurate,
He has evidence after evidence, and now he is being criticized by the president. Even if he says it, no one will believe it. In short, we just need to be careful with our words and actions these days."
Xiong Bingqi felt that Cao Kun's words made sense, but in all things, he must pay more attention to this aspect. He suggested: "Otherwise, let's send some people to keep an eye on Mr. Zhiquan, just in case."
Cao Kun thought about it, and it was definitely better to be careful when doing things, especially when he was in Beijing now. After nodding slightly, he said in a gesture: "Remember to find some smarter people, do you understand?"
Xiong Bingqi responded: "Please rest assured, Commander, I will definitely handle the matter without leakage in this humble position."
"That's good. Well, look, we in Beiyang are really due for a big change. Didn't it say in ancient books, how can we stay the same?"