Who can send a guard to pick it up, only the emperor!

Han Xiufeng felt that entering Beijing this time would not be as simple as being transferred to the general administration department, but no matter how he asked the two guards and couldn't tell the reason, he could only follow them to the capital.

It was the middle of the night when I arrived in the capital, not to mention ordinary people, even ordinary civil and military officials couldn't enter the city in the middle of the night, but there were two guards all the way unimpeded, until they arrived at the Yamen of the General Administration Department located in the southwest corner of ** and next to Luan Yiwei.

Although the Beijing officials do not need to go to the official department to receive the certificate, and who will be distributed to which yamen official will be informed, but how to take office in the middle of the night, not only can not see the officials, but even a few people!

Han Xiufeng was suspicious, but when he arrived at the door, he could only let Gu Jinyan wait outside, so he walked into the government office with the two guards, said hello to an experience on duty and a pen note, and then came to a public house with the door open.

There was a lamp lit inside, a man was sleeping soundly on the desk, and a little eunuch was leaning on a chair and snoring. The tall guard coughed dryly and reminded: "Father-in-law Liu, father-in-law Liu, Master Han has arrived, and he has come back from his humble position." ”

"Ah......h

"Father-in-law Liu, I brought Master Han here."

The old eunuch raised his head, subconsciously wiped his saliva, rubbed his eyes, confirmed that it was Han Xiufeng who was standing outside the door, and hurriedly got up and said, "Master Han, I am waiting for you, our family has been waiting for you for a whole day!" ”

The little eunuch also relieved himself, and hurriedly bowed down and said, "The little one has seen Master Han, Master Han is auspicious!" ”

Han Xiufeng recognized them as eunuchs from the Inner Music Office, because he had seen them in the Old Summer Palace when he was in the Spring Festival, so he hurriedly turned his back to the guards and quietly took out two silver tickets from his sleeves, walked up to him and stuffed them in his hand, and then asked, "Gonggong Liu, have you been waiting for the next official for a day?" ”

The old eunuch glanced down with the help of candlelight, and found that it were two silver tickets of one hundred taels, and immediately smiled: "This can still be fake!" ”

"The next official is late, let my father-in-law wait for a long time, please forgive my father-in-law."

"Master Han, what are you talking about, it's almost dawn, let's hurry up and get down to business," the old eunuch straightened his clothes, and then his face turned straight: "The emperor's command!" ”

"Minister Han Xiufeng respectfully invites Saint Ann."

"St. Bow." The old eunuch cleared his throat, looked at Han Xiufeng who was kneeling in front of him, and said in a low voice: "According to Ye Mingchen, Yiliang and others, Chief Yi and Mai Lian Le Bi Om coveted it in vain, and met with the second governor in Guangzhou, Shanghai, Kunshan and other places, presented a note of national credentials, and insisted on making a contract for 12 years...... The Yingmi Eryi ships arrived in Tianjin on the 24th, but the Manchu Dynasty was civil and military, and no one was able to do anything!

Wenqing, the secretary of the quasi-household department, ordered Han Xiufeng, the same governor on the south bank of the Yongding River, to be the general political envoy. Ye Mingchen, Yiliang, Gil Hang'a, and Xu Naizhao, the governor of the Revolution, all wrote banknotes for reading. He also excerpted the 234th and 234th years of the Daoguang Trade Treaty, and read it together, so as to familiarize himself with the situation in order to prepare for the consultation of the ministers of the Military Aircraft Department. ”

Han Xiufeng didn't expect that the person who promoted him to be the counselor of the General Administration Department was actually a scholar of Wuyingdian University, a bachelor of the Hanlin Academy, and a scholar of the Ministry of Households, who was walking in the military aircraft department, and he didn't expect that the foreigner's ship had already arrived in Tianjin, so he was stunned for a while.

"Master Han, Master Han ......"

Han Xiufeng relieved himself, and just as he didn't know what to say, the old eunuch pointed to a wooden box in the little eunuch's hand and said: "Master Han, the folding pieces and the emperor's edict are all here, you can hurry up and take a look, maybe the adults at the military aircraft department will summon you to ask questions at dawn." ”

The foreigners' warships had already arrived in Tianjin, and Han Xiufeng could imagine how anxious the emperor and the princes and ministers were, but as the emperor said, no one in the Manchu Dynasty had ever dealt with Xiyi, and he couldn't figure out the reality of Xiyi, and he didn't know how to deal with it for a while.

Thinking that there would be no good end to the affairs of the government, Han Xiufeng realized that this general secretary was not so easy to do, but he came here, so he could only stubbornly say: "The lower official obeys the order, and the lower official will look at it." ”

"Also, you just know about it, only you can watch these folded pieces, and after reading them, we will come and get them back, and we will send you new ones."

"I don't know that the adults of Tongzheng can't read these folded films?" Han Xiufeng asked subconsciously.

"I can't."

Years ago, the news that Changmao had killed Jinghai reached the capital, and tens of thousands of people ran away overnight. If the news of the arrival of the foreigners' warships in Tianjin leaks out, the people in the capital will definitely be panicked. Thinking of this, Han Xiufeng hurriedly said, "Xiaguan understands. ”

"Then our family will retire first, and go back to the palace first."

"Xiaguan sends Gonggong Liu off."

"Don't, don't, don't."

Just like this, Han Xiufeng was still a little unsure, and couldn't help asking: "Gonggong Liu, what should I do here with the Yamen of the General Administration Department?" ”

The old eunuch reacted and couldn't help laughing: "The two Tongzheng adults know that you are here to handle the affairs of the country, and they will not give you a special mission." Besides, what kind of yamen is the General Administration, not to mention the experience and senatorial, even if it is the deputy envoy and the general administration, it will only be regarded as a promotion level, people are like a marquee to change constantly, it is good to be able to work for a year, who will care about whom? ”

As the old eunuch said, these vacancies in the General Administration Division, including the Manchu and Han Tong political envoys, are all promoted to the next level. For example, Lang Zhong of the Sixth Department was promoted to the political envoy department to participate in the council, and the political envoy department was promoted to the council outside. And only those who have successively served as the Wai Lang, Lang Zhong, Yu Shi, Zhangdao Yushi, Zhi Shizhong, Zhangke Shizhong, Honglu Temple Shaoqing, Guanglu Temple Shaoqing and Tongzheng Secretary Senate can be promoted to the fourth grade, which is jokingly called "Nine Turns Dancheng".

Another example is the editors of the Hanlin Academy, because the Hanlin Academy does not have official positions from the sixth grade, from the fifth grade and the positive five grades, so after mixing up the seniority of the compilation and inspection, he either goes to the prefect outside the country, or transfers to the Taoist as a speech official, and then goes to the Zhan Mansion to be a Zanshan, Zhongyun or concubine of the Zhan Mansion. And the promotion to the fifth rank of the concubine has to face another hurdle, only among the many competitors to win the extreme, can be transferred to the general secretary of the council, Guanglu Temple Shaoqing or return to the Hanlin Academy to serve as a speaker.

I thought that there would be two senators in the General Administration, and one of them was still reserved for the Manchurians. Thinking that he had taken up this vacancy, it was equivalent to blocking the promotion of those Langzhong and those Hanlin officials in the Sixth Department, Han Xiufeng asked with a bitter face: "Gonggong Liu, what about the lower officials?" ”

The old eunuch didn't react for a while: "Master Han, what do you want to ask?" ”

"The lower official wants to ask how long this senator can last."

"You are different from them, if you want to say that there are only eight talents in the capital, there are more people in the capital! But are they familiar with the situation and proficient in the affairs of the country? Even if they were given the opportunity to do the errand, would they be willing? So no one can do without you, otherwise those adults and even the emperor in the Military Aircraft Department want to ask Yiqing, where can they find someone to ask? ”

Gonggong Liu realized what Han Xiufeng was worried about, thought about it and said with a smile: "There are only a few shortcomings in the capital, Lord Wenqing originally wanted you to go to the Ministry of War to be Langzhong, Lord Sushun said that the Ministry of War has a share of things in the Ministry of War, if you go to the Ministry of War to be Langzhong, you will not be able to handle the affairs of the Ministry of War wholeheartedly, if you really don't care about anything else, maybe someone will gossip behind your back, saying that your corpse is a vegetarian meal." The emperor felt that it made sense, so he said conclusively that he would go to the General Administration! ”

"It's just a matter of being a political secretary, but in this way, I'm blocking other people's path to promotion......"

"Isn't there still a few deficiencies in Zhan Shifu and Guanglu Temple, the six branches are the same as the five products, and the one that should be promoted can be promoted, but the path of promotion is a little narrower than before. However, your worries are not unreasonable, so be cautious in the future and don't get caught up in the hands of those who want to go crazy. ”

"Xia Guan understands, Gonggong Xie mentioned it."

"Don't talk about it, hurry up and do it, it is said that the Yichuan will stop at the mouth of Dagu, the emperor is really in a hurry!"

"Understood."

……

Although the reputation of the General Administration Department is not obvious, it is a hot shortage in Beijing, although the next thing to do is what no one wants to get involved in, Han Xiufeng is still grateful to Su Shun in his heart, grateful to the emperor, and wants to share his worries for the emperor in his heart. But when I first arrived, I couldn't see those folded pieces for a while.

The experience of being on duty at the Yamen of the General Administration Department tonight, the pen post style and the soap lily are more shrewd than the other, and they all know that the emperor can send guards to pick up Han Xiufeng, who can make Gonggong Liu in the concert office wait here for a day, is definitely Jian Zaidi's heart and the holy family Enlong, who have come to visit.

Finally sent them away, and asked them to call Gu Jinyan in and guard the door, and then used the key left by Gonggong Liu when he left to open the Nanmu box, and took out a bunch of folded pieces and those peace treaties signed by the imperial court and foreigners.

I don't know if I don't see it, and I'm surprised when I see it.

It turned out that the ministers of the United States and France were the first to provoke this matter, and they had signed a peace treaty with the Qing Dynasty during the Daoguang Dynasty, which was clearly written in black and white at that time, "Once the peace treaty is agreed, the two countries shall abide by it and shall not change it lightly." Although there are also provisions that certain provisions should be amended "after 12 years" in the future, it is clear that such changes are only for the different situations at each port, and there are no slight variations in all trade and surface sections, in other words, the contract can be amended after 12 years, but only to amend the minor issues.

But now they have proposed that all coastal areas and the interior be opened up, that they should sail freely on the Yangtze River (Yangtze River), that opium should be legalized, that the inland tax or sub-export tax on foreign goods should be abolished, and that they should even send people to the capital and meet with the governors of the provinces at any time...... In other words, they are not just going to make a treaty, but they are going to make a new peace!

The peace treaty signed between England and the Great Qing Dynasty did not contain a 12-year amendment clause, so it stands to reason that it is not possible to put forward a non-separate demand for amendment, but they actually said that they should "be all in one"!

On 26 March this year, the new British minister Roaring (Bao Ling), together with the British and French ministers, sent a note to Ye Mingchen, the governor of Liangguang, proposing to amend the treaty. Ye Mingchen avoided them, and even forbade them to enter Guangzhou City.

They couldn't see Ye Mingchen, so they rushed to Shanghai in early May and sent notes to Yiliang, the governor of Liangjiang, and Xu Naizhao, the governor of Jiangsu at the time, wanting to meet and revise the treaty.

Xu Naizhao's top priority at that time was to quell the chaos, worried that they would fall to Liu Lichuan and other rebellious parties, so he met with them, but when he saw the demands they made, he was dumbfounded, and he didn't dare to agree to it without permission, and he didn't even dare to talk about it. Bao Ling was in a hurry, so he took a military boat up the river to find Yiliang, and by the way, he made a deal with Changmao who was entrenched in Guazhou, and even shouted that if he didn't see them again, he would go to Tianjin. Yiliang wouldn't see them, but he didn't want to see them completely fall to the long hair, so he sent someone to tell them that you don't come to me, and don't go to Tianjin to find the governor directly under him, because it is useless to find them, and the emperor has already issued an order to let the two governors, Ye Mingchen, be solely responsible for the negotiations.

The envoys of the Three Kingdoms believed it to be true, and left Hunan on the ninth day of the seventh month to return, but when they arrived outside the city of Guangzhou, Ye Mingchen avoided it again, and played Tai Chi as before.

The envoys of the three kingdoms may have felt deceived, and in a fit of anger they rushed to Shanghai with a military ship, and the governor of Liangjiang, Yiliang, and the governor of Jiangsu, Gil Hang'a, not only avoided seeing each other, but also did not have a word for accuracy, so they led the warships north to Tianjin.

The foreigner's warship stopped at the mouth of Dagu, and the imperial court had ordered Changlu Yanyun to send Wen Qian to "refuse with righteousness, and reason with the camera, so as to impress the heart of the Yi", "so that he would not dare to covet it in vain and return to the south". He also ordered the deputy capital of Shanhaiguan Fuller Duntai and the general soldier of Tianjin Town Shuangrui to lead the soldiers bravely, detectives day and night, Changchuan drills, and wait for dispatch. At the same time, the local officials were ordered to show the people and strictly prohibit the people from doing business with foreigners.

However, it can be seen from the edicts issued in the past few days that the emperor is not very confident in whether Wen Qian can "convince the heart of the Yi chief".

It is worth mentioning that Xu Naizhao's dismissal was not as simple as he thought he was ineffective in suppressing thieves, because the emperor criticized it in a secret letter: Xu Naizhao supervised Shanghai for a long time. Everywhere is held hostage by the British Buddha Yi (Anglo-American law), this rate and note, tantamount to giving people a handle, especially do not know the general situation, very hateful, has made a clear decree, will be dismissed!

It can be seen that what the emperor really hates is that Xu Naizhao rashly went to meet with foreigners, not that he was ineffective in suppressing thieves. If it is really about the ineffectiveness of the thief, the monk Lingqin, Shengbao, Xiang Rong and Qi Shan, who is said to be sick, are not the same, but they are just reprimands, although they are dismissed, they are dismissed and retained.

Thinking of Xu Naizhao's fate, Han Xiufeng secretly decided that if the emperor and those adults in the military aircraft department asked, they would only say what they could say, such as what foreigners look like, whether foreigners' guns are sharp, how many cannons there are on foreigners' ships, and foreigners' temperament, etc., must not have any opinions.

As for how to deal with it, it was a matter for the emperor and the princes and ministers to discuss. A small general secretary can only help collect and analyze the situation for the emperor and those adults in the military aircraft department to consult.

Han Xiufeng made up his mind, and then held his chin to recall the experience of dealing with foreigners in Shanghai, especially those new things, after all, he had to report more or less things that the emperor and the adults of the Military Aircraft Department did not know. If you follow the script when you reply, and say something that the emperor and the princes and ministers know, then this general secretary will be done.