Every autumn, Emperor Tongzhi would go hunting in Rehe. He would also meet with princes, nobles, and religious leaders of various ethnic groups, and give some rewards to envoys from vassal states. In previous years, the two empress dowagers would come forward. All he had to do was show up and sit on the throne. That's right, this year he took charge of the government personally and was very hands-on. He had to meet with princes and nobles from far away every day, and he also had to have fun at night. He worked hard for more than a month before returning to the capital.
Now that he has returned to the capital, Li Guolou's case can no longer be postponed, and necessary punishment is still needed. Emperor Tongzhi Zai Chun sat on the dragon chair in the upper study room and watched the Yamen of the Prime Minister's Office draw up a list of punishments for Li Guolou. Next Prince Shou Gong Yi Xin sat on the porcelain stool, and Li Hongzao and Weng Tonghe sat on the porcelain stool.
Regarding the case of Imperial Envoy Li Guolou dispatching officers and soldiers to exterminate the Japanese Black Dragon Society in Tianjin without requesting an order, the Yamen of the Prime Minister's Office wrote a detailed account of the case, severely condemning Li Guolou in the wording, and the final verdict was to pull out the flower feathers. , the official rank was demoted to the second level, and 50,000 taels of silver were handed over to the Ministry of Household Affairs to atone for his sins. He still had the title of a fourth-grade civil official. Li Guolou was asked to serve as an escort to transport a batch of military supplies to Lanzhou, and he was made to suffer the hardship of sleeping in the open air and was exiled to the army. Sent to Lanzhou for three years.
This bill was the punishment given to Li Guolou after several changes, and it was final. Regarding Li Guolou's contribution to the Qing Dynasty, the two empress dowagers were quite emotional and had already spoken, and they could be knighted. Originally, they were waiting for Li Guolou to be knighted. The imperial court was going to make Li Guolou a baron next year, but they didn't expect that they would give him a gold medal and let him cause international disputes by killing members of the Japanese Black Dragon Society who were protected by the Qing government without trial. This was a very bad move. The international precedent has made foreigners filled with indignation, and they all want to stand up for the Japanese Black Dragon Society and seek legal justice.
Emperor Tongzhi drew on the fold with a pen, drew a red circle, closed the fold, and said angrily: "As an imperial envoy, Li Guolou did not want to solve the problems for the imperial court, so he did such an outrageous thing. It is really outrageous." He has lost his decency and caused the court to lose face in front of foreigners. I will enforce the family law and punish this slave."
Li Guolou's status is somewhat special. He has raised the flag and joined the Manchus. He is a Manchu with a yellow flag. He is not only an important minister of the court, but also a domestic slave of Emperor Tongzhi. The Qing Dynasty has two sets of national systems, one is the law of the court, and the other is The system is the Eight Banners system. Sometimes the laws of the Qing Dynasty and the Eight Banners system are in conflict and contradict each other. The two systems coexist and cause many unclear things. As the leader of the Shangsan Banners, Emperor Tongzhi had no control over his slaves. With the power of life and death, he can punish his slaves with lynching.
Li Guolou is protected by the Empress Dowager Cixi and the Empress Dowager Ci'an. Everyone knows that nothing serious will happen. Letting Li Guolou go to Lanzhou and be sent to the army for three years is also an act of deception. After a while, Li Guolou will be allowed to return to the army again. In the court, Emperor Tongzhi served him according to the family law and also punished him a little. Prince Gong Yixin took the lead to speak and expressed his attitude: "Your Majesty, Li Guolou, as an important official of the imperial court, did not want to serve the country, but used his own selfish interests to harm the Japanese pirates. It's really unbecoming, but I really can't understand why the Japanese government sent people to protest. Members of the Black Dragon Society will be executed or imprisoned in Japan. They are illegal organizations, and we have the Nian Army and the White Lotus Sect of the Qing Dynasty. Likewise, they should all be killed long ago. Let us, the Qing Dynasty, eliminate the Black Dragon Society on behalf of the Japanese government. The Japanese government should applaud them."
Hearing Prince Gong Yixin call the Japanese Japanese pirates, Emperor Tongzhi not only smiled, but immediately tightened his face and said solemnly: "Emperor Meiji took the wrong medicine and always caused trouble for our empire. Last time it was about the Ryukyu vassal state. This time It's a matter of the Black Dragon Society. How dare such a small country run rampant? Let's see how I deal with them in the future."
With the help of a group of good ministers who planned state affairs for Emperor Tongzhi, Emperor Tongzhi seemed to have become a talented and strategic monarch, overlooking the people in all directions. In the future, he would also learn from the ancestor Emperor Kangxi to conquer the four directions to expand the territory of the Qing Dynasty, and re-incorporate Ryukyu into the Qing Dynasty. In the territory, he suddenly remembered the benefits of Li Guolou. He couldn't live without the financial expert Li Guolou. The reform of the Qing Dynasty also needed Li Guolou's advice. He hoped that this time he would kill him so that the "dog slave" could learn a lesson. , I will definitely kill you without mercy next time.
After several long talks with Li Guolou, Weng Tonghe had a new understanding of Japan's actions, and immediately spoke: "Your Majesty, Japan is also pursuing its strategy, buying two British cruisers, and selling many more Foreign guns and artillery are also building a modern army, and they have the ambition to annex Ryukyu, a vassal state. Emperor Meiji sent troops to Ryukyu to steal our vassal state of the Qing Dynasty. Now he canonize Shoutai as the Ryukyu vassal king. In the future, Ryukyu will be annexed and become Japan's territory, Korea, a vassal state of the Qing Dynasty, is Japan's next target. Toyotomi Hideyoshi's plan to expedition to East Asia has now been revived. Among the powers that covet the territory of the Qing Dynasty, apart from Russia, Japan is the most dangerous neighbor. Japan In the same vein as Russia, they all want permanent land. Unlike the United Kingdom, Prussia will give us a concession of land in a few decades or a hundred years. To deal with Japan, we must learn from the previous dynasty and must defeat them. If you beat the Japanese pirates painfully and indulge them, there will be endless troubles, so there is still a positive side to dealing with the Japanese pirates like Li Guolou did. If you offend the Qing Dynasty, you will be punished with thunderous wrath."
Prince Gong Yixin and Li Hongzao stood by and nodded in agreement frequently. This was also the main reason why Li Guolou did not lose the trust of the court. A targeted approach can be effective in critical moments. The Black Dragon Society hid so many arms in Tianjin with ulterior motives. , who plotted evil in the Qing Dynasty and should be exterminated. As for the methods Li Guolou used were too extreme, they can be used as a warning and will not be used as an example in the future.
Emperor Tongzhi showed the stability of a young man, with no emotion or joy on his thin and fair face. He said slowly: "Well, when Li Hongzhang comes back from his overseas inspection, he will bring back a number of advanced Western facilities and build a number of advanced factories. After ten years of hard work, I believe that a powerful Qing Dynasty is just around the corner. It is better to be a mature and prudent person. Li Guolou just lacks a stable character, so I have to bear the consequences for him. People who don’t know how to advance or retreat are not qualified to take on big responsibilities. .”
The three important ministers of the imperial court looked at Emperor Tongzhi on the dragon throne and did not dare to agree with him. It seemed that Li Guolou had many errands, the chief academic administrator of Xinwu Hall, the supervisor of Wanshou Mountain Project, the chief academic administrator of Qingzhong University, and the minister in the upper study room. The position was still reserved for Li Guolou. He didn't look like someone who was unworthy of the big responsibility. I don't know what Emperor Tongzhi was thinking. He imprisoned Li Guolou for more than a month and sent him to blow the northwest wind.
As Li Guolou's mentor, Li Hongzao would also be implicated when his students made mistakes. He kept holding back and did not speak, but always expressed his attitude. He said reluctantly: "Your Majesty, Li Guolou is young and energetic, and he has too many errands. It’s not good. It’s better to remove Li Guolou from several official positions this time, so that he can concentrate on running his errands and stop making mistakes.”
Weng Tonghe was anxious. Only Li Guolou could hold the position of chief academic officer of Xinwu Hall. He could restrain Li Hongzhang from encroaching on his influence in the army. He said first: "Your Majesty, Li Guolou commands more than 150 people in Xinwu Hall." Famous school officials and students entered Tianjin City overnight, acted decisively, and eliminated a cancer in the Qing Dynasty. Although the killing was too heavy during the operation, they killed all the resisting Japanese pirates with one blow. It has been seen that he has excellent military skills Talent, besides doing a good job in dealing with the aftermath, Xinwutang school officials and students have been trained, and the position of the chief academic administrator of Xinwutang cannot be removed."
"Yes, I understand." Emperor Tongzhi thought in his heart. Li Guolou had to earn back the personal money of the empress dowagers of the two palaces. He did not want to allocate more money from the Ministry of Internal Affairs to the Wanshou Mountain project.
Prince Gong Yixin was also anxious. Only Li Guolou could be the chief academic officer of the Qingzhong University to build the first Western-style university in the Qing Dynasty. Although this project was officially funded by the imperial court, it was also supervised by Prince Qing Yikuang. But who is Prince Qing Yikuang? Does he not know? The greedy Prince Qing will not stop until the money allocated by the imperial court for the establishment of Qingzhong University is used up. He does not want Qingzhong University to become an unfinished building. , only Li Guolou supports the overall situation.
Prince Gong stood up hastily and said: "Your Majesty, for the position of chief academic officer of Qingzhong University, only Li Guolou can do a good job in all preparations. Prince Qing also mentioned many times that Li Guolou is good at organizing and coordinating various tasks. It has a great bearing on this aspect. The position of chief academic officer of Qingzhong University cannot be removed. This position is too important and needs to be reserved for Li Guolou. I will protect Li Guolou with the throne. In two years, a brand new Qingzhong University will be built. , if Li Guolou is abolished, the 300,000 taels of silver that the imperial court invested in Qingzhong University in advance will be in vain, and the additional amount will need to be at least doubled, and possibly even more."
"Really?" Emperor Tongzhi couldn't explain it clearly. The royal family always wanted a share of the pie. He had already experienced this from mining, ginseng, fur and other huge profit industries. The industry that the late emperor rewarded several princes has become a family It would be a fantasy for him to take back the inheritance. He thought carefully and said dryly: "Well, it is still Prince Gong who is an old minister looking for the country. I understand. Sit down and speak to Prince Gong slowly."
Prince Gong sat down relaxedly, his fear finally subsided. Emperor Tongzhi pondered for a moment and then said: "In charge of the Wanshou Mountain project supervision, the position of minister in the study room is still reserved for Li Guolou. The official position of doctor in the Hanlin Academy is neither fish nor fowl. He is still exempted. As for the post of third-class bodyguard, I think it is better to keep it for him. Without the rank of military attache, those Qiu Ba will go to heaven, so it is convenient to go out."
"The Emperor is a wise man, I have no objections." Li Hongzao successfully completed his mission and suffered a lot. Let him say that the people next to him who took Li Guolou's benefits can be separated from each other. But he did not expect that this time Li Guolou capsized, there was no one. People have added insult to injury, and all the doors in the court are sealed. The quiet scene makes people forget about Li Guolou. Money can make ghosts go around. The wise sayings remain unchanged. Those who can balance all the forces of all parties will be in the big world. In the Qing Dynasty, there was only Li Guo Tower.
Emperor Tongzhi said: "Weng Tonghe, what has Li Guolou been doing at home recently?"
Weng Tonghe often went to Li Guolou's home, became familiar with the situation, and hurriedly replied: "Your Majesty, Li Guolou studies every day, studies the teachings of saints, improves his character and recuperates with articles on benevolence, righteousness and morality, and regrets that he has betrayed the emperor's trust and entrustment. , I reflect on my behavior every day.”
Emperor Tongzhi had been sitting for too long, and his legs and feet were numb. He stood up and walked back and forth. Here, he did not need to be as formal as the Yangxin Hall. He could casually discuss with his ministers and said: "Well... I see When I write articles in Li Guolou, I have to have a big head. One moment, I can speak in the vernacular, and the next moment, I become a knowledgeable scholar. My poetry has improved, and I still show off my Manchu. Alas, a fickle person has an unstable character. !”
"The emperor's words are true. I also thought that Li Guolou needed to practice more. Children of such aristocratic families have been used to enjoying fine clothes and fine food since they were young. They have never known the sufferings of the people. It is time for Li Guolou to If Lou goes to the northwest border and suffers a little, he will be more stable in the future." Prince Gong Yixuan seemed to know the sufferings of the people and spoke from the standpoint of the common people in the world. No one could speak against him. Emperor Tongzhi still trusted him since he took office. Youjia allowed him to slowly turn back to the Prince Gong who dared to speak out and act as a prince in the past, and his life of drunkenness and dreams of singing and dancing at night finally came to an end.
Emperor Tongzhi was in a relaxed mood, the Qing Empire was developing for the better, and the country's great undertakings were flourishing. Although the case of the Tianjin Black Dragon Society affected the Qing Empire's international reputation, corrupted the imperial code, and was criticized by Westerners for having no human rights in the Qing Empire, But the Qing Dynasty did not let the Qing Dynasty cede territory and pay compensation. Even the Japanese government only protested and did not ask for compensation. This time the court only had to push Li Guolou out to punish him, so the emperor Tongzhi could still laugh, and little Japan was bored. He was afraid that the Qing government would expel the Japanese workers and the affairs of the vassal country of Ryukyu would not be over. When the Beiyang Navy was built, he would win back the lost Ryukyu country and the Qing Empire would open up new territories. I have been exposed to Japanese swords since childhood.
Emperor Tongzhi seemed to see an endless force of Beiyang naval forces firing at two Japanese armored ships amid the rolling waves. Countless yellow dragon flags were fluttering in the wind, and the people standing on the deck of the ship were commanding. It was his most admired minister, Li Guolou, the national hero of the Qing Dynasty, who was standing on the deck of a tall and majestic iron-clad ship. Who can guess the emperor's skills? Emperor Tongzhi was quite happy that Li Guolou dared to take on the task of annihilation. The righteous act of the Tianjin Black Dragon Society, the Japanese pirates who could not be killed, actually bullied the Chinese Empire. When the power reaches the sky, he will conquer all directions, expel the Western powers from the territory of the Qing Dynasty, return our great rivers and mountains, and restore us. Eight Banners spirit,