All forces in the capital were in action. The princes were having meetings, Qingliu was also having secret discussions, the queen mothers of the two palaces were busy, and the local governor's informants in the capital also began to secretly connect with each other. Even foreigners were in action. The American Minister Under the protection of a group of new troops, Hua Ruohan secretly came to Xiao Letian's house in Huahua Hutong.
It is said that Xiao Letian's house in Huahua Hutong does not actually belong to him at all, but to Fuqing. It was first one of the foreign residences of Fukangan, an important minister during the Qianlong period, and later it slowly spread to Fuqing, a collateral descendant. in hand.
When Cixi launched the palace coup, he ordered the Ministry of Internal Affairs to inspect the mansion. At that time, Cixi's cousin was already ready to break up with her cousin. Everyone knew that the royal family had no family ties.
When Xiao Letian led his troops to Beijing, all Cixi's previous decrees were nullified. The prisoners in the prison were immediately released, and all confiscated property was immediately returned. As for those who died under torture, the court also promised to provide certain compensation.
The house in Huahua Hutong was the first to be returned. When Xiao Letian returned here on horseback with his soldiers, Fu Hui was already waiting at the door with the returned slaves.
The moment Xiao Letian's horse team appeared at the entrance of the alley, all the slaves left behind knelt down and cried loudly, "My aunt has returned home... Say hello to my aunt."
After any family has experienced a major change such as a house confiscation, they will cherish the hard-won stable days. They know that without the uncle's incredible skills, the family would really have failed.
Fuhui looked at the galloping horses in the distance. The scene in front of her suddenly overlapped with the scene when she first met Xiao Letian two years ago. Two years ago, under Nian Gen, several tall horses brought Xiao Letian to her. From then on, Fu Hui's heart never left his side from the beginning of the day.
The north wind, the snow, the warm flower hall, the steaming hot pot, listening to the men drunkenly pointing out the country, watching the handsome and shameless Xiao Letian bragging, every scene at that time, Fuhui will never forget.
Today, Xiao Letian is back again, with the same tall horse, the same direction, the same naughty smile on the horse, and tears wet Fu Hui's eyes.
Xiao Letian rushed to the door of the house and looked at the tearful Fuhui as she got off her horse. Without saying a word, he held her in his arms, "I've suffered so much for you. You've really suffered..."
All the strength of a woman will melt away in the arms of her lover. Fuhui, enjoying the sense of security, burst into tears, venting all her grievances over the past year at this moment.
"Why don't you take me out with you...Why do you leave me alone at home...wuwuwu..."
Xiao Letian stroked Fuhui's hair and counted the white hairs that suddenly appeared on it, feeling a surge of sadness in his heart. The door of the mansion was now half open, and the seal of the House of Internal Affairs had not been torn clean and was still blowing in the wind. The family members kneeling on the ground were crying.
"Okay, sir, I'm back, and our family will be safe... Come on, go to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and give me all the things that belong to us. If there is one less thing, I will demolish one of their houses."
There was no need to wait for the new army to take action. A group of eunuchs came from the depths of the alley. When they saw Xiao Letian, they knelt down and said, "Prime Minister, please calm down. Prime Minister, please calm down. We have sent everything back. I guarantee that there will be nothing missing..."
With a wave of their hands, the young eunuchs carried the boxes and looked them over in front of the housekeeper. The old housekeeper energetically counted with the eunuchs from the Ministry of Internal Affairs. This time he was going to cheat them hard.
"No, no, our cloisonné vase is not that small. It is at least a generation old. Could it be that you have swapped it."
"The Dongzhu that our uncle gave to the young lady is three big boxes. Why are there only two boxes left? How dare you be greedy..."
Xiao Letian and Fu Hui laughed out loud when they saw the old housekeeper blackmailing the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and then looked at the embarrassed expressions of the eunuchs, "Let's go to the back house and see my favorite red sandalwood aircraft." Is the ivory bed still there..."
Fu Hui's ears were itchy from Xiao Letian's blow. How could she not know what her man was thinking? She blushed and could only secretly pinch the soft flesh around her waist.
Fortunately, all the large pieces of furniture in his house have been sealed in place. The Ministry of Internal Affairs only moved away small valuables and loose money. The servants can live here after a little tidying up. I don’t know if Xiao Letian and Fu Hui were intimate. However, anyway, the maid who finally fetched water for the wife came out of the bedroom with a red face.
The refreshed Xiao Letian performed a set of nondescript Tai Chi in the garden and stretched his muscles. "Come here, take my post to Dongjiaomin Lane to invite the American Minister Hua Ruohan, and say that I will treat him to dinner..." Damn it, the stove at home is out, you go to Quanjude and pay to book a table for me."
"Hey, I'll do it now." The old housekeeper quickly sent someone to inform Quanjude. At this time, Quanjude had just started his business. Yang Quanren, a native of Hebei, led a dozen workers to open the first roast duck in the capital.
The old housekeeper also couldn't figure out how the master knew about such a little-known little shop. There were so many big businessmen in Beijing. Didn't this make this little shop famous?
From now on, this small shop can display the favorite sign of Donghai Prime Minister Xiao. The first hot meal the Prime Minister led his troops to Beijing was served by Quanjude. They must not brag about this for the rest of their lives.
Come on, servants can't interfere with the master's affairs. Whatever the master says is what he says. When Boss Yang heard that Prime Minister Xiao of Donghai would eat his roast duck for the first meal when he returned home, he jumped up with excitement.
"Guys, today is the day to make a name for yourself with all the guy stuff."
When Hua Ruohan's carriage arrived at the Huayuan Alley at night, the back kitchen was already bustling with people and the food was fragrant.
"Mr. Minister, it's nice that I haven't seen you for more than a year." Xiao Letian personally greeted him outside the gate.
"Xiao Letian, oh no, I should call you Prime Minister Xiao. I really can't imagine that you have only been in people's public opinion for just two years, and you can actually do so many unimaginable things... You It has really scared me, and even my heart, an elder statesman, can’t bear it.”
"Hahaha, you will have more surprises in the future. Please come in. I have prepared a feast for you."
Fried gizzard liver, cooked shredded duck vegetables, duck fat custard, duck feet with mustard greens, marinated duck gizzards, salted duck liver... Finally, there is a golden and fragrant roast duck, which is cut into 108 pieces in front of the guests. This is the rule. This is called a finicky thing. It must be cut into 108 pieces. If there are too many or too little, it will not work. Finally, the duck rack will be made with a portion of salt and pepper and a portion of stew. A serious whole duck feast will be completed.
"I have to admit that you Chinese are really good at eating. I really can't imagine how I will live after returning to China. Without so much delicious food, I will definitely be very sad in my later years."
"This is not easy. Either you settle here, or you invest in Chinese restaurants in the United States. Don't worry, we will jointly establish a joint venture. We guarantee that we can open it all over the United States. You will definitely become a rich man."
"Hahaha, you can consider it, you really can consider it." Jonas turned to look at Boss Yang who was kneeling on the ground. "I have nothing to reward you. We can take a photo with you later and you can hang it in the store." Tell the guests that even foreigners and the Prime Minister like to eat the roast duck you cook."
Boss Yang was so excited that he couldn't speak. He kept kowtowing and backed away little by little on his knees. He knew that from today on, Quanjude would prosper.
After the digression, the two began to secretly communicate about the current situation. After sharing their plans, Hua Ruohan said in surprise.
"You want to reply to the Eight Kings' Political Consultation. You want to form a noble council. Moreover, you want to take Emperor Tongzhi on a study tour. You want to be the emperor's teacher."
"Why did you make this choice? Do you really have no dream of becoming emperor? You know, you Chinese people don't have the dream of becoming emperor."
Listening to Hua Ruohan's test, Xiao Letian curled his lips and smiled, "Come on, stop testing me. If I really rebel against you, the United States will be the first to refuse to agree. I'm right, right?"
"You think I don't understand international law. Since the Qing Dynasty has signed an agreement with Britain, France, the United States and Russia, then you have recognized the legitimacy of the Qing Dynasty's rule. Only with the Qing government can you continue to do big business, especially the United Kingdom. The customs in Qing Dynasty are under control, and they will recognize my legitimacy."
"You wish the Qing Dynasty would last forever, because you know that only with the help of the Qing government can your economic colonization plan be feasible..."
Hua Ruohan smiled bitterly, "I can't lie to you, but you have wronged us, the United States, this time. The ones who have the greatest interests in China are Britain, France and Russia. We, the United States, don't have many interests, so we still hope to change. Only when there is change can we have it." Any chance?"
"Old and cunning..." Xiao Letian smiled and poured him a glass of wine. "Despite how fierce I am, my strength is actually very weak. It will be difficult for me to deal with either the Hunan Army or the Huai Army with full force against me... Besides, I have always thought that being an emperor is a hard job, and only fools love that throne."
"What I want is to have an invisible influence on the world. Being able to advance and retreat, to show and hide, is the way to go." Xiao Letian dragged his chin and said thoughtfully, "I don't want to be a saint. I just want to change some unreasonable things in this world through my efforts. Being able to make changes and make myself live comfortably is my ultimate goal in life..."
"What emperors, generals and ministers are, they are all false. The wind and rain will always blow away the wind."
The secret meeting between Xiao Letian and Hu Ruohan lasted for four hours. By the time they took pictures with Boss Yang, it was already past three in the morning.
Hua Ruohan promised to use his influence to unite some Western countries, and then collectively put pressure on the Qing court to promote Xiao Letian's plan. He knew the influence of Western powers on the Qing government. As long as more countries were united, the Qing court would You have to bow your head too.
Xiao Letian promised to let American chaebols invest in Lotte Matheson, but the shareholding cannot exceed 30%. This is the limit that Xiao Letian can give. Hua Ruohan is a person who knows things. He knows that Xiao Letian's future goal is to make Lotte Matheson become China's central bank that issues banknotes.
This is a sure-profit deal, and the eyes of the Western consortium have long been red.
