Chapter 190 Emperor Tongzhi went his own way (1)
Zuo Zongtang captured Suzhou, and Emperor Tongzhi was very happy. He quickly issued an edict: Zuo Zongtang had done a great job in suppressing the bandits, and was awarded the title of Co-organizer of the University, and the rank of first-class light chariot captain. Jinshun was punished by reinstatement and dismissal, and he was rewarded with a yellow mantle and a clear title of "Yong" in Hua Ling. Admiral Song Qing was particularly brave and wore a pair of flower feathers. Liu Jintang made an indispensable contribution to Jinji Fort by storming directly, and was rewarded with the rank of captain of the first-class light carriage. Yuan Baoheng, Zhan Shifu of Zhan Shi Mansion, raised military salary without any mistakes, and rewarded the top rank.
Prince Gong Yixin sent a message: Your Majesty, Ganlong has been pacified, and our army's momentum is raging. It is time to march west with drums to wipe out Agubai, Baiyanhu and all the ugly captives in the Rakshasa Kingdom. The western frontier will be determined in one battle.
Tongzhi Emperor Dao: The best way to govern the world is to use people. However, people are different. There are gentlemen and villains. We must distinguish whether they are virtuous, and then we can select the virtuous and use them, then the world can be governed. When the army comes out of the pass, a single move can affect the whole body. Zuo Qing Zongtang's eyesight has been dim and his mind has been in a trance recently. His declining condition makes it difficult to coordinate the overall situation. According to my wishes, Jin Shun led his troops to rush to the ancient city and join forces with Jing Lian to suppress it. Mu Tushan went to Anxi, Dunhuang, and Yumen to station himself in the area to prevent and suppress the enemy as a backup. Song Qing and Zhang Yao led their troops to Hami, and together with Wen Lin and Ming Chun, they suppressed the bandits. The transfer of food and pay to each army was supervised by Zuo Zongtang, who provided continuous support. If the army was delayed due to the lack of food and pay, I would only ask Zuo Zongtang.
Yi Xin said: "To report to the emperor, the army has no leader, and the three armies are exhausted. The rights and responsibilities are unclear, and there is blame, and the battle will be defeated." The main general of the Western Expedition was none other than Zuo Zongtang.
Emperor Tongzhi said: "I have no choice. Zuo Zongtang is suffering from a chronic illness and has asked for a vacancy. What can anyone do?"
Wen Xiang, Minister of Military Aircraft and President of Wuying Palace, said: "I am reporting to the Emperor that I have dismissed Admiral Cheng Lu and massacred more than 200 people in the Quan family's village. The harm was huge. If you want to ensure a hundred years of peace, you dare not rush for a temporary effect!" Cheng Lu was killed indiscriminately by the harsh sect, and the plot was extremely serious. Wu Ke, the censor, thought that there were ten crimes that could be punished and five that could not be slowed down. I thought it was extremely true. I implore my emperor to kill Chenglu to serve as a warning and strengthen the momentum of the army's westward march!
Yi Xin said: "Admiral Cheng has been dismissed from work outside the grain collection and returned to the grain stall to donate. The people are dissatisfied. Since he is falsely accused of rebellion, he has arrested and killed more than 200 people. This is really hateful and should be executed!" However, Chenglu mistakenly heard someone's words and sent troops, and did not go to attack in person. This is different from the fact that he falsely accused the people of being traitors. Should he be executed instead? I sincerely ask our emperor for judgment.
Emperor Tongzhi said: If Cheng Lu really kills innocent people indiscriminately, he should be beheaded! According to the previous decree, Chenglu was supposed to join Tao Maolin, Lianjie, Heling, and Luo Bingzhang to march westward. However, he was short of money and money, and Cheng Lu could only form an army of three thousand. When Chenglu arrived in Suzhou, at the beginning, the front line of the Qintong Army arrived at Yumen to search and suppress bandits. They killed hundreds of food-protecting thieves at Xindunzitan. The rebel ministers of Suzhou colluded with bandits to besiege the Golden Pagoda. Jing Chenglu sent troops to rescue them and won a great victory. From this point of view, there is no good-for-nothing person in the world.
Cheng Lu may have come back to life. Wu Kedu, the censor, was furious and said again: "The admiral Cheng Lu has been dismissed. If he makes false accusations and slaughters people and villages, he is a traitor." By slowing down his execution, not only would he be unable to deal with the people who were about to die, but he would also be unable to obey and offend the ministers who were executed. I sincerely ask Your Majesty to be decisive and act righteously as soon as you are successful.
If I want to have something to say, I'm afraid I won't be tired of discussing it; if I want to be silent, I'm afraid I won't be able to hold back what I have to say. Looking up at the house and sighing, there is no accusation. Every time I read Song Dynasty minister Zhang Yong's memorial to Ding Wei, I can't help but admire him. I would like to see the ancients being loyal to their emperors, patriotic, and working hard without caring about their own lives. I am also willing to imitate this foolish pillow and ask the emperor to cut off Chenglu's head first and hang it in Gao Street as a thank you to the people of Gansu. Then he beheaded his ministers and hung them at the gate of the clan to thank him for his salary.
Emperor Tongzhi watched the memorial and angrily said: Wu Kedu is bullying me! It's so disrespectful, I'll kill you immediately!
Officials from the Ministry of Punishment, Dali Temple, and the Metropolitan Procuratorate rushed to make promises, but Wang Jiabi, the young minister of Dali Temple, was silent. The memorial said: Wu Kedu was harmed by his son, so his words were not without passion. In the end, it was out of public anger and out of stupidity. Sincerity. Our emperor has set up a speech officer, and supervision is his duty. If those who have nothing to say cannot speak, and those who have something to speak dare not speak, and keep silent among each other, it will become a common practice over time, which may not be a blessing to the country. Wei Chen really didn't dare to accompany the painting.
When the queen mothers of the two palaces heard about it, they quickly comforted her.
Empress Dowager Ci'an said: "Wu Ke can't kill him if he reads it. If he insists on doing it, he will definitely block his way to become an official!"
Empress Dowager Cixi said: Only Zuo Zongtang can control the chaos in Western Xinjiang. The Zuo family conquered Fujian and Yue in the east, and conquered Ganlong in the west. Looking at the whole world, there is no one who is better than his right! My emperor must not act alone.
Emperor Tongzhi said: At the beginning of his pro-government, Zuo used his resignation to threaten him, and Wu used his momentum to suppress him. Both Zuo and Wu were unscrupulous.
Empress Dowager Cixi said: State affairs are like boiling soup; under my emperor's new policy, the Military Aircraft Department and the Six Ministries and Nine Ministers are supposed to solve problems and provide full assistance! However, there are as many people as crucian carp crossing the river. The emperor's edict to the northwest has been passed on! Zuo Qing Zongtang has anecdotes, but he must also know the good intentions of our emperor. Cheng Lu's case is related to the authority of our emperor. Whether he misheard or not, whether he killed indiscriminately or not, it doesn't matter anymore! The imperial minister, Prince Chun Yixuan, quickly summoned the six ministries and nine ministers for another review.
Emperor Tongzhi said: Many thanks to the Queen Mother and the Queen Mother for showing mercy!
On September 28, 1873, Emperor Tongzhi issued an edict: In accordance with the decree of the Empress Dowager Ci'an and the Empress Dowager Cixi, and with the blessings of the Empress Dowagers of the two palaces, I have been personally in power for more than ten years. I have worked twice as hard and have no time to rest or relax. Therefore, in order to express my gratitude to Ci Huan, my heart is really filled with fear, so I have asked the Minister of the Interior to find ways to donate money for repairs so that Saint Ci Yan can use the funds to support her.
One month later, Emperor Tongzhi issued another edict: In the eleven years since the Empress Dowager of the two palaces has listened to the government behind the curtain, she has worked hard day and night, worked extremely hard, worked hard to summarize tens of thousands of people, and been open-minded to accept public opinion. She is holy and wise. Table, thus leading to a prosperous era of peace and prosperity in the sea.
Since I took charge of the government on the 26th of the first lunar month of this year, I have never failed to express my gratitude for your kindness. I have read among the books in Yangxin Palace that there is a collection of poems on Forty Scenes of the Old Summer Palace written by Emperor Sejong Xian. I remember that the Old Summer Palace was originally a place where our ancestors came to visit and listen to government affairs. Since the emperor's reign, the two palaces have not been enshrined. The Empress Dowager lived in the garden, but she felt uneasy and thought about returning to the old system. But now that the money from the treasury is being collected, if repairs are carried out as usual and the money saved by the department is used, it may not be enough.
I have thought about it again and again, and I can only build the Anyou Palace where the saints are enshrined, the two palaces where the empress dowager lives, and the place where I stay to listen to the government, and the other places for sightseeing will not be restored. That is to say, officials from the prince level and outside the capital were asked to contribute according to their ability and donate money for repairs. After the Minister in charge of the Ministry of Internal Affairs collects the donation, he can apply for the award at any time and have the King, Minister and others verify and handle it. I can please the sacred hearts of the empress dowagers of the two palaces, and I can express my modest devotion below.
