Chapter 273 Hunan-Huaihe Confluence
Chapter 273 Hunan-Huaihe Confluence
Outside Dongzhimen, the Hunan Army camp, where Zeng Guofan personally led 25,000 Hunan troops to station, awaiting tomorrow's military parade.
The person who actually led the Hunan Army to review the troops was the young general Liu Jintang promoted by Zeng Guofan.
Zeng Guofan himself was going to Chengtian Gate to review the matter with the emperor tomorrow, and he had just returned from the city.
The 56-year-old Zeng Guofan already looked old. He returned to the camp and sat there in silence.
Zhao Liewen, the closest aide, came over and asked, "Why is Commander Zeng sighing?"
Zeng Guofan came to his senses and shook his head.
"I entered the city this morning and was received by His Majesty, which was very disappointing."
Zhao Liewen waved his hand, "Your Majesty is only eleven years old, and state affairs are not in your hands, so why should General Zeng mind?"
Zeng Guofan did not need to be cautious in front of his confidants and sighed.
"I'm not talking about the emperor. The Western Buddha who is in charge is of ordinary talent and has nothing to say when we meet. Prince Gong is shaky and can't stand on his own feet. Wenxiang is narrow-minded and doesn't know how to ask for help from others. The people in charge of the Qing Dynasty are all like this. Alas, I regret swallowing paper."
When besieging Tianjing, the Hunan Army had an army of 300,000.
After the city was broken, Zeng Guofan went from Anqing to Tianjing. More than 30 generals under his command gathered in the big tent without saying a word.
His student Peng Yulin handed him a note that read, "Half of Jiangnan is under my control, are you interested, teacher?"
Zeng Guofan was horrified, swallowed the note, and wrote a couplet on the desk, "Countless flowers are reflected in the sea, and the flowing water and high mountains are known by the heart."
After writing, go back to the account.
After Zeng Guoquan and his generals read the couplet, they knew that Zeng Guofan had no intention of rebelling, so they left in displeasure.
Later, the Hunan Army captured Li Xiucheng. Li Xiucheng had advised Zeng Guofan to become emperor. Zeng Guofan killed Li Xiucheng to silence him for fear of being hated by the court. He also expelled Zeng Guoquan, who had made great contributions.
Hearing Zeng Guofan say this, Zhao Liewen laughed out loud, "Marshal Zeng made a wise move at that time, there is no need to regret it. Now Qiao Songnian is going to lead the Military Affairs Council, and with the Huai Army around, the Hunan Army had no hope of success at that time."
Zeng Guofan snorted, "Qiao Songnian certainly won't rebel, but Shao Quanzhong brought the Western Expedition Army into Beijing and did what Dong Zhuo did. He is so domineering, won't he rebel?"
Zhao Liewen pondered for a long time, "Shao Quanzhong did not rebel halfway. Once the army reaches the capital, he will definitely not rebel. He is also a smart man. He knows how to wait for the right opportunity."
Zeng Guofan had a question, "The Huai Army is strong at this time. If we don't rebel now, will there be another chance in the future?"
Zhao Liewen sighed, "He is just waiting for an opportunity. The world has been unified for a long time, and it is bound to be divided. However, the master's virtue is heavy, and the atmosphere is not open. If there is no heart rot, the situation will not collapse. Zhang Zhidong gave the two masters the strategy of the new army, and he is a traitor to the country. I estimate that the disaster in the future will first fall, and then the state will be without a master, and people will rule by themselves, and it will take less than 20 years!"
Zhao Liewen was Zeng Guofan's think tank and a truly unparalleled patriot.
What he meant by the above paragraph was that the emergence of the new army was a sign of the uprising of the princes at the end of the Han Dynasty. As long as the emperor or the empress dowager in power made a wrong move, the Qing Dynasty would collapse due to the uprising of warlords.
Zeng Guofan had always been quite impressed by Zhao Liewen's talent. After hearing this, he shook his head and sighed, "What a pity, I am old. Shao Quanzhong can wait, but I can't."
He turned around and raised his voice, "Someone, call Ji Ze!"
A scholar in his twenties came into the account, wearing the uniform of a student from the Imperial College. He was Zeng Guofan's son Zeng Jize.
Zeng Guofan's eldest son Zeng Jide died young, and Zeng Jize is now his eldest son.
Zeng Jize had been a student of the Imperial College because of his father's great achievements. When his father went to Beijing to meet the emperor and led the Hunan Army to review the military parade, he came to visit. After they finished talking, he was about to return to the Imperial College, but he didn't know what his father wanted him to do.
Seeing that his father was writing a letter, he did not dare to disturb him. He waited for a long time, and when Zeng Guofan finished writing and turned around trembling, he went over to support his father and massage his back.
Zeng Guofan said kindly, "Jize, how is your study of Westernization going?" "Reporting to Dad, my study of Westernization is already among the best in the Imperial College, and I also attended classes at the Tongwenguan and learned English."
Historically, Zeng Jize started learning English at the age of 35. But now, influenced by the new version of the Westernization Movement led by Shao Quanzhong, Zeng Jize became interested in Westernization earlier.
"That's good. Take this letter from your father and visit Shao Yuting. You should regard yourself as his nephew and follow him in handling foreign affairs. Remember, you don't have your father's military strategy and prestige. You must not act on your own just because you have the support of many Hunan Army generals."
Zeng Jize was one year older than Shao Quanzhong, but his achievements were much less. Shao Quanzhong's sons, Jiming, Jisi, and Jizeng, were not of the same generation as Zeng Jize, but they sounded like they were from the same generation, and they had no psychological barriers to considering themselves as younger generations.
Zeng Jize took his father's letter and read it. "Dad, why are you so polite to Shao Quanzhong and want me to become his disciple? Our Zeng family is now powerful in the world."
Zeng Guofan sighed, "I am an old man now. Thousands of ships pass by the sunken boat, and thousands of trees bloom in front of the dead tree. The future belongs to Shao Yuting. I have to consider the future of our descendants of the Zeng family and the young generals of the Hunan Army."
Zeng Jize was a filial son, so he had to obey his father's words even if he didn't understand them. He went out with the letter in confusion. When he looked back, he saw his father's hunched body, and his heart ached.
…………
Shunyi, on the banks of Chaobai River, the former residence of Shao Quanzhong.
Looking at Shao Quanzhong's back as he walked into the old residence, Hu Liuniang gritted her teeth and snorted.
Then he hid behind a nearby tree, and together with the two imperial masters opposite him, he turned his back to the two newly renovated earthen houses and fulfilled his responsibilities as a bodyguard.
Suddenly, a woman's scream was heard from the room, followed by Shao Quanzhong's "Huh?", and then the conversation between the two people in the room became quieter and could not be heard clearly.
The Prince Zhongshun's Palace on the Chaobai River and the villa that served as the temporary residence of the Holy Mother Empress Dowager were built at the same time before Prince Zhongshun arrived in Beijing.
The Empress Dowager Cixi took her second son Zai Yi out of the city, saying that she was going to inspect her new villa. In fact, she was taking her son to pay tribute to the young yamen runner who was killed by her order.
However, she asked her son to wait in the villa first, and she deliberately wore casual clothes very similar to those she wore back then, and entered the shabby house that was so unforgettable seven years ago.
Looking at the shabby house with bare walls, the Empress Dowager Cixi's mood was completely different from seven years ago.
Those who say that the Qing Dynasty harem was ugly actually saw a photo of the 70-year-old Empress Dowager Cixi and the old palace maids who had served her for many years.
Are there any good-looking 70-year-old ladies? Those ugly palace maids were working people, not concubines.
Could the emperor really be face-blind and treat himself badly? Look at the photos of the last emperor's empress Wanrong, that's the real level of the harem.
To be honest, as a royal family that has been genetically modified by beautiful women, my husband Xianfeng is considered a handsome man. But he is a cripple and in poor health - you know.
So far, the only man the Empress Dowager Cixi had met besides Emperor Xianfeng was this one.
Now thinking back, he was a very handsome young man, and he was only 20 years old at the time, which was the peak of a man’s physical strength…
She did not regret sending someone to silence her, but she really missed the first time they met.
Now she hasn't touched a man for seven years. Now she is over 30 and her thoughts are very different.
Looking at the still familiar and unforgettable hometown, her body was trembling slightly.
Suddenly, there was the sound of heavy military boots outside the door. Who is so bold as to walk around me like this? Are all the guards dead?
The door was roughly opened, and a cold wind rushed in. The Empress Dowager shuddered and turned around...
(End of this chapter)