It was very common in the Qing Dynasty to grant seats at court meetings. After all, the emperor was also reasonable. He would have his ministers stand for several hours in a meeting. One of them was physically exhausted, and the other was not the style of a wise king. Therefore, granting seats was a common practice. Something.
But the Taihe Palace Meeting is different. This is the largest meeting in the empire. In order to show its unique status, there is no precedent for granting seats here.
But today was different. Weng Tonghe fainted from anger. In addition, seeing that the court meeting would be endless in a short period of time, some elderly ministers could no longer bear it, so no one present objected to the Queen Mother's proposal.
However, there was a slight mistake when dividing the embroidery piers. Seats were never given in the imperial meetings, so there were very few embroidery piers around the Hall of Supreme Harmony, and the placement of chairs took up too much space. As a result, the front steps were left at the end. The high-ranking officials were all seated, but the lower-ranking officials behind them had nothing to gain.
Xiao Letian and the others were also among the group without seats, but this could not help Xiao Letian. He only whispered a few words to a new soldier, and soon a group of soldiers carrying horses came in.
"Sit, sit, sit... try the new army's pony, I'm sure it's more comfortable than the embroidered pier... Come on, come on, Mr. Wang, you're welcome, you take one, Mr. Li, you also get one, Mr. Zhang, you also have some... "
Manchu officials in court uniforms sit on ponytails in the Hall of Supreme Harmony. This is such a post-modern style painting. If it were recorded and kept as historical archives, it would definitely surprise future generations of historians.
There were also some accidents during the horse riding process. These small folded horse carriers were cross-folded with only a few canvas bags on top, which was the most common style in military camps in later generations.
The Manchu and Qing officials obviously had no experience in doing Mazha. They thought they had to sit half-stretched on the edge of the chair as usual. According to the rules of the Manchu and Qing courtiers, you cannot fill the seat given by the emperor, so you can only be careful. Sit on one side to show respect.
However, the center of gravity of the maza is not as stable as the embroidery pier or the chair. If the buttocks are only touching one side, wouldn't it be a fall? There was only a crackling sound, and all the officials who were unable to sit down and pulled up their buttocks all fell down.
"Hahahaha..." The little emperor couldn't help it anymore and started laughing while sitting on the dragon throne. He suddenly discovered that anything would become particularly interesting as long as Xiao Letian was involved.
Ci Xi said with a sullen face, "Your Majesty, please pay attention to your appearance. How can you be so impudent and disrespectful as the Emperor?" Tongzhi's head dropped after the curse.
Ci'an was good at smoothing things over and said immediately, "Okay, okay, let's move on to the discussion. There are a lot of important things today, so don't waste any more words. Just now Zuo Zongtang also had Fu Qing's proposal. Does anyone have any objections?" ah."
The royal family had long been united in their opinions. In order to facilitate the rule of the empire, the telegraph line had to be set up. All the royal family were silent collectively, and the local governor could not object. Qingliu was also silent now, and the issue of the two telegraph lines of the empire was just broken. Passed.
"Since everyone has no objections, let the emperor use the treasure. The two telegraph lines from Beijing to Xi'an and Beijing to Shanghai are under the responsibility of Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister Fu Qing. The imperial court will allocate 200,000 taels. The remaining funding gap can be raised by the private sector... Three years, the Ai family only gives you three years, Fuqing, do you dare to issue a military order?"
"If you dare, I will succeed in three years." Fu Qing patted his chest and sat down to promise.
"Okay, who else has something to report next?" Ci'an quickly started the next one to avoid having a long night and a long dream.
At this time, Xiao Letian suddenly stood up, "The foreign minister has something to report... After more than two years of construction, the Tanggu Special Zone has begun to take shape. Now the minister is asking the court for permission to expand the scope of the special zone... and please exempt and exempt tariffs for ten years. Later, foreign ministers returned the imperial court to a prosperous industrial zone..."
The special zone expansion plan mentioned in Xiao Letian's excerpt is actually just a formality in the court. Everyone already knows that the royal family and Xiao Letian have secretly made a deal, and today this is just a formality.
Xiao Letian took advantage of the military power of his victory over Maile to greatly expand the size of the special zone. Not only was Tanggu taken away by him, but his black hands even reached to the Ninghe River in the north. He had already captured two counties. in.
Xiao Letian's goal is Kaiping and Luanzhou in the north, aiming at the rich coal and iron resources there. Now that Letian Yang Company has built a dock at Caofeidian Haikou, coal and iron ore from Kaiping and Luanzhou will soon be transported by sea. It was transported directly to Tanggu.
Now that Xiao Letian has sent new troops to actually blockade the area he wants, all that is left is for the court to go through the motions.
Since the terms were negotiated before, the queen mothers of the two palaces and the royal princes had no choice but to admit their mistakes. The area of the Tanggu Special Zone was expanded ten times, and it was changed to a ten-year concession signed by Xiao Letian, the prime minister of Ryukyu.
Not only that, the imperial court also allowed the special zone to establish mineral bureaus in Kaiping and Luanzhou, and local officials were not allowed to interfere. This also recognized Xiao Letian's privileged status in disguise.
Xiao Letian is not an Englishman, and his concession is different from that of Hong Kong. The officials in the Tanggu area are still appointed by the court, and the Qing Dynasty's rightful name will not be shaken.
Xiao Letian took away the lining, and the court saved face. This was a happy situation for everyone, and the Qingliu people did not dare to talk too much. After all, the new army had actually controlled the land.
Xiao Letian also knows how to be grateful for reciprocating kindness. When the decree to transform the special zone into a concession was issued, Xiao Letian immediately wrote another book.
"The foreign minister heard that the Queen Mother of the East wanted to spend her old age in Jingshan, but the palace in Jingshan had long been in disrepair and no longer matched her status as the Queen Mother. In particular, the foreign minister offered a million eagle oceans to repair the palace and plant flowers and grass for the Queen Mother. Please accept it, the Queen Mother."
With a bang, the hall exploded. It was a trivial matter for Xiao Letian to send money. It didn't matter whether it was one million or two million. What mattered was what the Empress Dowager Dong wanted to do. The empress dowager no longer lived in the Forbidden City, but went to live in Jingshan. Is this a prelude to splitting the imperial court?
Weng Tonghe gave his men a wink, and the group of Hanlin officers went out to dissuade them as if they had been given blood.
"No, Queen Mother, absolutely not. Jingshan is just a garden for the royal family to visit occasionally. In the final analysis, it is an extension of the imperial garden. It's okay to take a look around on weekdays, but it is against etiquette to stay there permanently."
"The Queen Mother, think twice. If the Queen Mother leaves Ouchi, it will only make the government and the public suspect that there is a gap between the two Queen Mothers. At that time, the people's hearts will be unstable."
"Yes, especially Jingshan, which is the place where Chongzhen died. This place is ominous..."
Listening to Qingliu's obstruction, Ci'an's face became gloomy. He was framed by Cixi. What are you Qingliu doing? He was besieged on Jingshan Mountain and couldn't even drink tea. What are you Qingliu doing? Now the Ai family wants to go out and hide. In my free time, you jumped out to point fingers.
Okay, okay, you are really a good minister of the Ai family. Just wait. Thinking of this, Ci'an turned to Cixi and smiled: "Sister, it seems that the courtiers are not willing to let my sister go out to hide for a while. What do you think we should do about this?" .”
As soon as Cixi was unfaithful, she quickly mentioned Ci'an, "How can you say this? If my sister wants to live on Jingshan Mountain, she must like the beautiful scenery from the heights and distant views on Jingshan Mountain, as well as the openness of the rippling blue waves of the North Sea. As long as my sister is in a good mood, she will live there." It’s my sister’s blessing.”
"My sister still has 200,000 taels of private money here. Giving it to her is considered a sign of filial piety..."
Cixi cursed in her heart, but she still had to swallow the bitter water. After this palace change, Ci'an has become very different from before. She is no longer the modest gentleman she used to be. She was not like this at that time. Baht and penny must be compared.
If Cixi does not agree to Ci'an's conditions, then Ci'an will not accept the reason for this palace change, and then she will investigate thoroughly to the end, even if she splits the court to capture Cixi.
With the support of the New Army, the forces of the Manchu Reformists, and the secret encouragement of the Hunan Army Group, Ci'an's strength is now far greater than that of Cixi. Judging from the few soldiers in Cixi's hands, Xiao has already been defeated. Lotte killed all the elites and turned the rest into migrant workers.
I have to bow my head. Ci'an can put the blame on Ande Hai and Sister Wu, which is for the sake of the overall situation. If Ci'an doesn't know how to advance or retreat, then she will not control the government to the end in real history. died.
Weng Tonghe and the others felt a wave of frustration in their hearts. The Great Council had not won a single victory so far, as if all the ministers had abandoned them. All the former allies had twinkling eyes and dared not look into his eyes. Weng Tonghe knew that They betrayed their beliefs as well.
Qingliu had no way of guessing how many secret connections Xiao Letian had made during these days. The money he spent was as countless as the sea water. Half of the real estate in Longxugou was sold and half given away. With the addition of shares, it has been created It has become a very powerful business empire, and under the operation of Lotte & Co., the first dividend has been distributed.
Who among the princes, nobles, and officials of the Han Dynasty will have trouble with money? As long as Xiao Letian does not rebel, and as long as his righteousness is not lost, everyone can sleep with their heads covered with quilts.
As long as Qingliu jumped around on his own, the Queen Mother finally passed the move amidst the congratulations of most of the courtiers. Weng Tong's head was spinning with anger.
"Are you going to lose? Why can't you win a game? Are you really going to lose..."
Time passed by, Prince Gong proposed that the court train its own Western-style army, and there was nothing to discuss, so just to demonstrate the combat effectiveness of martial arts in the Hall of Supreme Harmony during the New Year, the Manchus had to train their own Western-style army.
Subsequently, there were memorials for additional investment in the Shanghai Special Economic Zone and the Guangzhou Special Economic Zone, both of which were unanimously approved by the court. It seems that Xiao Letian's sudden rise has really shocked many officials.
It was already close to noon, and the hungry officials were holding on to the time and felt that the court meeting was almost over by now, and it was estimated that the court meeting would be dismissed soon for everyone to have dinner.
The topics that should be raised are almost there, and people are looking forward to the last proposal, which is when Xiao Letian's new army will withdraw from the capital.
After a brief silence, Prince Qing Yikuang, as the cannon of the royal family, finally spoke: "Your Majesty and the Queen Mother, Ryukyu Prime Minister Xiao Letian's new army has been stranded in the capital for several months. I don't know when the court is going to let the new army withdraw. It is really against the rules for the soldiers of the vassal state to take over the city defense of the Qing Dynasty."
"Even if it's urgent, there still has to be a head start."
As soon as Prince Qing said this, the whole hall fell into dead silence.
