Cixi felt more and more that Li Tuo was a treasure to her. After Xiao Wuye accidentally mentioned it, Cixi discovered that this ordinary Zhang Jing from the Military Aircraft Department was actually a talent!
When running errands, you always feel at ease and are very thoughtful. From time to time, various surprises are given to you. For example, in the case of Salonga, it was just a big gift package sent by Li Tuo for nothing, which was an unexpected surprise.
Today, Li Tuo's expression seemed to be holding something back. Cixi nodded and all the eunuchs and maids around him retreated, leaving only three of them in the Nuan Pavilion.
Li Tuo pretended to be mysterious and said, "I can still guess a little bit about what the Queen Mother is worried about... The Queen Mother wants to show her abilities in front of Beiyuan and Prince Gong, so you stepped forward to calm this storm. mission, right?”
"This beacon fire on the Great Wall! It is really a huge event. Once it starts brewing, the world will be shaken! People will be devastated!"
"But the common people are nothing but the warmth of a gust of wind. What they see is the excitement, while the scholars and officials in the world are the ones who care about the door!"
"Even if we kill the entire Salonga family, and add countless bizarre news pieces together, even if we successfully divert the attention of the common people, what will happen in a year or two?"
"This thorn will always be pierced in the hearts of scholars and in the minds of officials... Therefore, we still have to deal with the root cause. We have to make the officials in the court quiet, and they have to suppress their subordinates. Power, this can truly and perfectly quell the beacon incident!"
"Oh...that's interesting, and the truth is right, but what should we do?" Cixi asked with a smile.
Li Tuo said confidently, "The situation in the court seems chaotic right now, but the order is still very clear... The foreigners and Xiao Letian of Donghai are actually a group of politicians who represent the interests of businessmen, and those people are more interested in money." …”
"Xiao Letian's many big money-making projects have not yet been fully launched. He probably has no interest in starting a war with the imperial court in the short term. The same goes for Britain, France, Russia, the United States and other countries. As long as they don't lose money, they will definitely not overthrow the Qing Dynasty!"
"It will be easier to sort out the forces within the imperial court. Prince Gong and others will never be of the same mind as the Han people during the Beacon Fire Incident. Beiyuan is also dominated by the Manchus... The only one we have to worry about is Marshal Zeng!"
"It was Zuo Jigao who started the beacon fire, Marshal Zeng who was in charge of the capital, and then the Ninth Marshal of Jiangnan, Li Hongzhang and others were still picking up... Their attitudes are the most critical!"
"To put it bluntly...the danger in this matter lies with the commander-in-chief!"
Mentioning Zeng Guofan's name, the Dongnuan Pavilion suddenly became quiet. Cixi sighed, "Hey... Zeng Guofan has become more and more angry as he gets older. During this period, he and Yi Xin were completely at odds with each other. How could they be like this before... "
Li Lianying smiled and said, "Actually, the commander-in-chief also supports the emperor! The commander-in-chief also wants to keep the long live master safe and in power..."
"Yes!" Li Tuo slapped his thigh, "You are right. The Marshal is indeed supporting His Majesty, but it is an indisputable fact that the Marshal and Prince Gong have sharp conflicts!"
"And doesn't the commander-in-chief really want Han Chen to have more power? Therefore, it is very possible to use the Beacon Fire Incident to create something to suppress Prince Gong and the others, and finally gain more power for the Hunan Army faction!"
Cixi had grown up in the political circles of the capital, so she understood the secrets here as soon as she thought about it, and that was the truth!
"So...you, Li Tuo, have the ability to calm down the commander-in-chief's anger?" Cixi asked calmly.
"Yes!" Li Tuo's eyes lit up. "Queen Mother, please look! This is the treasure!"
Li Tuo knelt on the ground, took out the sapphire blue fan cover from his sleeve, held it in both hands and handed it to Ci Xi.
Li Lianying took the fan cover and frowned when she saw the old appearance. "What is this? A fan?"
When she opened it, Li Lianying clicked her tongue and said, "Isn't this... is this too fake? Tang Yin's fan collection is so tattered? Is it real?"
Cixi took the fan and played with it. It was an ordinary Xiang Fei bamboo fan, with water plants and two small shrimps painted on it. The structure was very simple, but the signature of Tang Yin was very large.
"Li Tuo, what kind of medicine are you selling in this gourd?"
Li Tuo was not impatient, "Queen Mother... Many people say that this fan is fake, and there is some truth in that, because Tang Yin doesn't draw many shrimps, and one of the characteristics of his paintings of shrimps is that he never draws eyes. !”
"But this fan has eyes on Xiami, so people think it's fake!"
"But they were wrong... In this world, there are actually two Tang Yin fans whose faces are made of blinded shrimps, and this is one of them!"
"This fan was copied from Salong'a's house, and its original owner should have been Mu Zhang'a!"
Ci Xi's expression gradually changed. She looked at Li Tuo and nodded, "Keep talking..."
"Yes! Queen Mother... Tang Bohu has only painted two fan pages with eye-catching shrimps in his life, and these fans were actually given to Qiu Xiang! It was requested by his favorite woman, so he made an exception!"
"This allusion is only known to some scholars in Jiangnan. The information is very secretive, so even antique dealers don't understand it. Many people just regard this fan as a Xibei product!"
"But Mu Zhang'a is a person who loves Tang Bohu's calligraphy and painting very much... It is reasonable for him to collect this fan!"
"Your Majesty, guess who gave this fan to Mu Zhang'a?"
With a clatter, the fan closed, and Cixi slapped the table, "Could it be that..."
"Lafayette Shengming...you guessed it right...this fan was given to Mu Zhang'a by Zeng Guofan! It was this fan that made Marshal Zeng rise two levels!"
"Your Majesty, you are a sensible person... Who promoted the commander-in-chief when he was sitting on the bench in the capital? He was promoted to 12 levels in seven consecutive years, from the seventh grade to the second grade..."
"Old Buddha... Without a backstage, even if Marshal Zeng is a god, he wouldn't have that much ability!"
Black history, now it’s time to dig out the dark history! Cixi and Li Lianying's eyes lit up. From Li Tuo's mouth, they learned a little-known historical secret.
Zeng Guofan's family is not actually a wealthy and powerful family. It can only be said to be an ordinary small landlord class. It is not easy to raise children to study for the imperial examination. When Zeng Guofan was an imperial scholar in the capital, the family was no longer able to Provide more financial support.
Rice was expensive in the capital, and life was not easy. Qingliu officials were very poor, and Zeng Guofan's salary was not enough for his daily life. Every year, he needed some silver from his family to live on.
Such a poor life made it impossible for Zeng Guofan to find a way out!
But the opportunity finally came. When Zeng Guofan was thirty-three years old, Emperor Daoguang ordered him to go to Sichuan to preside over the provincial examination. This was a business trip under orders, and the travel expenses could be paid in advance from the Ministry of Household Affairs.
Zeng Guofan made an advance payment of one thousand taels of silver, and it was with this money that he found the treasure in Sichuan!
In a secluded antique shop, Zeng Guofan found this eye-catching shrimp fan with Tang Yin's signature on it. The ignorant antique shop owner only offered it two hundred taels.
Zeng Guofan, who had picked up a big leak, kept his composure and talked hard with the boss to lower the price. In the end, he got this authentic piece for fifty taels.
There are only two pieces of Tang Bohu's dotted shrimp fans in the world, and they fell into the hands of Zeng Guofan!
Of course, he would not keep such a treasure for his own enjoyment. Mu Zhang'a, who loved Tang Yin's calligraphy and painting, was Zeng Guofan's target. After returning to the capital, Zeng Guofan gave him tea and other local products brought from Sichuan.
How could the dignified military minister like this little tea? The reception was light, but when Zeng Guofan presented this fan, the door to officialdom was completely opened!
From that moment on, Zeng Guofan's road to promotion was uneventful. It wasn't until Ding You came home later that he encountered the Changmao Rebellion, and then he had the opportunity to resurrect in his hometown and create the Hundred-War Hunan Army that shocked the Qing Dynasty. military!
"Old Buddha...Wei Chen is in a position where he can hear these little stories about the government and the public, so he was careful when he ransacked his house..."
"Lafayette is truly blessed... I didn't expect that Wei Chen would make the right bet!"
Note: This chapter is also in reserve and will be updated as normal tomorrow!
