"King Pang, we got a chick back this time, and we are specifically honoring King Pang." These were the first words that Miss Narannaruo heard when she woke up. Dizzy, as if in a long dream, Nalanneruo couldn't even remember what had happened. I didn't hear this sentence. She wanted to get up, only to find herself tied up. I wanted to scream, only to know that my mouth was also gagged.

"What a bullshit woman. It's freezing on this day, who has this mind? Another man laughed.

I was kidnapped by horse bandits? Miss Nalan's sanity synthesized several past and present facts, and finally confirmed this "absurd" status quo. Immediately, a great fear suddenly arose in her heart, and she knew nothing about men and women. It's just an instinct to feel if there is some change in your clothes. It's okay, but the clothes all over the body have a familiar feeling. It's just that the sturdy bondage makes her feel extremely uncomfortable.

"Huge King, brothers know your intentions. Last time, Brother Xu said that the huge king of Fujin Gege of several palaces had not been on the wheel for so long, and he was very upset in his heart. This time, I introduced my brother to follow the huge king, and I must ask the brother to find a good one for the huge king. The chick brothers didn't move at all. Wait for the huge king to use it first. ”

The bandit's shameless voice and the unmistakable meaning of the voice made Nalannaruo want to faint and fear fainting.

"Alas! Create less sin and accumulate more virtue. "The king said such a sentence with a very good conscience.

Nalanne was pleasantly surprised when he heard the huge king continue: "Look at you guys so interesting, just this once." ”

The huge king revealed his true colors, and almost scared Miss Nalan unconscious.

Footsteps sounded, and several men came in from outside, and the two of them picked up Narannaruo and put her on a chair and sat down. Miss Nalan struggled desperately, and thought of her father, mother, relatives and friends, after being insulted by this group of horse bandits, how should she meet people in the future? In this chaos, the last and most vivid thing that came to her mind was Chen Ke's appearance. Thinking of this "big thief" from a literati background. A sense of longing and courage suddenly welled up in Nalaner's heart. Despite the gagged mouth, she shook her head and tried to speak.

Seeing such a fierce action of the captured chick, the horse bandits laughed. Pang Zi didn't mean to mess around, but he felt that this might be a good opportunity to get rid of. "Let her go as much as possible and see what she says." Pang Zi said.

Because he was blocked for too long and tried several times, Nalan Neruo finally regained his ability to speak, "Do you know Chen Ke of the Anhui People's Party? Nalanarro shouted.

Pang Zi's face changed drastically, and although the other bandits did not know that Pang Zi was from the People's Party, they also knew that the People's Party, which was now unparalleled, and their leader Chen Ke.

"Below is Chen Ke's cousin, a few heroes, don't hurt your own family by mistake!" Miss Nalan's nondescript words made Pang Zi feel that the matter was serious and funny.

Miss Nalan didn't understand the rules of the rivers and lakes at all, and she didn't know that she was asking for her own death. Although Chen Ke is famous, Anhui and Beijing are thousands of miles apart. The horse bandits in front of him had never dealt with Chen Ke, and there was no reason why they had to sell face to an unknown guy. And even if they were afraid that Chen Ke would retaliate in the future, instead of Nalan Neruo running to Chen Ke to complain, killing Nalan Neruo with one knife would be the best choice to prevent future troubles.

Luckily, Nalanneruo met Pang Zi, "Then tell me what's going on?" Pang Zi asked.

After all, Miss Nalan is a reader, and the Nalan family used to make a wide range of literati, and there were quite a lot of boring books. Miss Nalan has also fantasized about how to be with Chen Ke many times. As previously imagined, Miss Nalan told a story that could not have been more mediocre. In this story, Miss Nalan calls herself Li Nana, Chen Ke's cousin. Chen Ke's mother's surname was Li, but she died early. After Chen Ke went to the revolution, the Li family went into hiding. This time, he took the opportunity to escape from the capital.

The horse bandits were not interested in this story at all, and it could be seen that Pang Zi listened carefully, and they were not easy to interrupt. After the story was finished, the horse bandit asked, "King Pang, do you know this surnamed Chen?" ”

"Well, a friend of mine knows him. Brothers, wait for me to ask a few more questions. After Pang Zi finished speaking, he asked about Chen Ke's appearance.

Miss Nalanero, who has now changed her name to Li Nana, told Chen Ke about his height and appearance, as well as what books he had written, and when he became a parent.

Pang Zi also knows the real information of "Li Nana". If Pang Zi's family was more experienced, such as raising several daughters with hard work, he would naturally be able to find some of the problems in these words. But most of Pang Zi's life so far has been spent on the battlefield with the god of death, and it is really too difficult for him to understand such a thing as a girl's heart. The most important thing is that Pang Zi was also making excuses for himself not to be violent to girls. So he actually believed.

"Brothers, this is really that Chen Ke. Brother, can I ......"

As soon as the words came here, several horse bandits had already interrupted Pang Zi's words, "King Dag, we all know that you are a righteous person. We won't embarrass you, you have the final say on what you do with this chick. But when the king sees your friend, he doesn't want to mention a few of us. ”

"Of course." Pang Zi hurriedly replied.

When Nalanna, whose current name is Li Nana, heard this, her eyes turned red and tears suddenly appeared. Getting rid of a terrible fate is certainly one of the reasons, but she was saved by relying on the reputation of the person she admired and favored, and what Li Nana wanted most about this matter was to catch Chen Ke, who was far away in Anhui, to cry about her grievances.

Untying Li Nana, Pang Zi asked, "Miss Li, what are you going to do now?" Do you want me to send you home? ”

Nalanne, who is now known as Li Nana, wanted to say yes, but she instinctively felt that if she went back like this, not only would she not be able to raise her head in front of her parents and friends, but she would also lose an important opportunity. After thinking about it for a long time, Li Nana finally said a sentence, "I ......, I want to go to Anhui to find my cousin Chen Ke." ”

Arrange for someone to send Li Nana to the Shandong base area first, and then to the Anhui base area. Pang Zi continued to wreak havoc on Beijing with those heroes. The ravages soon came to an end. On December 22, 1908, Pang Zi received the news. Beiyang Yuan Shikai has already transferred troops to the north. Tell the horse bandits of the teams who followed him that they have been in the limelight lately and run away. Pang Zi himself gathered the remaining comrades and retreated all the way to the Shandong base area.

Since the fall of the Ganshan Green Camp, the regent Zaifeng has completely collapsed. He was willing to seek the near and far, so that the decision of King Qinqin of Ganshan Green Camp was once understood by the ministers of the court. There is no need to reach Zhang Zhidong's political ability, and the act of seeking the near and far itself represents the imperial court openly saying to Yuan Shikai, "We don't believe you!" "Officials with IQs above average know it's a last resort. No one is willing to express his position at this time, and at this time, he can't openly get along with the regent, and the regent may not be able to clean up Yuan Shikai, but it is more than enough to clean up himself.

Until the hundreds of captives who wore only shirts and tied human heads, seals, and military flags around their necks were released by thousands of horse bandits under the capital. The capital has carefully examined it, and these barefoot poor guys are indeed the remnants of the Ganshan Green Battalion who came to King Qin. The attitude of the court towards the regent immediately changed one hundred and eighty degrees. Prince Qing was silent on the surface, but behind his back. The recital that asked Yuan Shikai to enter Beijing was piled up a few feet high on the table of the regent. The foreign legations also again used an ultimatum to ask the Qing court to transfer Yuan Shikai back to restore order.

Ten thousand horse bandits were able to toss the capital into such a situation, and most of the Manchu officials who were accustomed to obeying the Qing court were dead. They remembered one thing, when Xuantong ascended the throne, he sat on the dragon chair and cried loudly, and Xuantong's own father Zaifeng couldn't help but go up and advise, "Don't cry, it's almost over." Many ministers were already frowning.

"It's almost over!" Yes, looking at the current situation, the world of the Qing Dynasty is really coming to an end. Yi Zaifeng showed his attitude towards Yuan Shikai, and there were countless courtiers who rebelled against him in history. Don't you rebel and wait for death?

Beiyang was originally founded in Jianghuai, and Li Hongzhang first followed Zeng Guofan to raise troops, and then created his own Huai army. After destroying the Tianping Heavenly Kingdom, the Huai army pacified the Twist Army. Starting from the grassroots level, these two people rose to the rank of central minister. At that time, with the help of these two people and Zuo Zongtang, there was a situation where the world supervised and cared for half of the Han people. Although the officials of "The Life of Cixi" did not dare to collect the original, the manuscript with the last prophecy deleted was by no means one or two. The officials have personally experienced or heard a lot of things, and after comparing it with "This Life of Cixi", everyone can see clearly that the Empress Dowager Cixi played with the two like dogs through her wrists, and finally forcibly weakened the Nanyang New Army from the former Beiyang and Hunan armies to such an extent.

But to fight a faction, you have to borrow a faction, and the rise of Yuan Shikai and Zhang Zhidong in Beiyang is the price that has to be paid. How could Yuan Shikai not know the fate of the two seniors? Therefore, Yuan Shikai insisted on holding on to the military power, just because he was afraid that he would end up with a rabbit and a dog cooking one day.

Yuan Shikai's Beiyang Group is committed to seizing the leading power of the constitution, and the purpose is to promote the constitution to the "responsible cabinet system", so as to achieve the situation of Beiyang taking power in the center and suppressing the clan. In the south, Cen Chunxuan contacted Qingliu and the gentry and celebrities, trying to bring the constitution to the road of "parliamentary system" by overthrowing Yuan Shikai, so as to achieve a situation in which the "gentry dominated by Qingliu" took power.

Cixi quelled the struggle with skillful tactics, striking at the Qingliu gentry while eliminating the Beiyang Central Department. The old lady promulgated the "Outline of the King James Constitution" to establish absolute imperial power, and told the world in this way, "If you want to seize power, don't even think about it!" "If Cixi can really live for another ten years, I am afraid that she will really be able to complete this arrangement.

Three years ago, a group of bandits of the People's Party suddenly appeared in the heart of Anhui, and under the leadership of Chen Ke, a young Beiyang junior, the People's Party conquered the city and was invincible. Many of the new armies were either completely wiped out, almost completely annihilated, or suffered heavy losses. Even the famous Beiyang New Army and the Hubei New Army were not spared. Yuan Shikai sat on the three towns, and the new army did not dare to act easily.

The people in the imperial court knew very well that Zaifeng had cut off the supply of the Beiyang Army in Henan. Now if you want to extinguish the rebellious party in Anhui, it is extremely difficult for the court to work together, not to mention such a situation of hatred by monarchs and ministers. Yuan Shikai can still maintain a temporary stability if he does not enter Beijing. When Yuan Shikai entered Beijing, it was also a time when the contradictions were completely made public. Today, when even the last "suspected army" in the hands of the imperial court has been destroyed, the three towns of Beiyang can completely use force to solve political problems. Moreover, Yuan Shikai even has quite legitimate political reasons to resolve this contradiction.

When Yuan Shikai was in power...... the Qing Dynasty changed from "almost over" to "it should be over".

Therefore, when the regent Zaifeng publicly announced at the court meeting on December 20 that he would summon Yuan Shikai back to Beijing, the ministers looked at Zaifeng's face and wanted to see some clues from Zaifeng's face. Surprisingly, Zaifeng did not react at all except for a kind of calmness that seemed to give up. That kind of calmness is very much like the calmness of people who have seen through life and death. Since the regent has such an attitude, the officials below naturally don't say anything more. What else do they have to say?

When the news of Yuan Shikai's return to Hebei reached Henan, Yuan Shikai's subordinates immediately set off a wave of excitement. These generals, who had already resolved to be loyal only to Yuan Shikai, knew that this was the surrender of the Qing court. After returning to the capital, there will definitely be a dragon fight, but now returning to Beijing must be an order of the imperial court, and Yuan Shikai cannot be made to make his own decisions.

Yuan Shikai Beiyang did not have an overwhelming military power. All the civil officials in Yuan Shikai's Beiyang clique would support Yuan Shikai's seizure of dominance, but they may not necessarily support Yuan Shikai's public usurpation of the throne by a certain dynasty. Entering Beijing with the backing of troops will make Yuan Shikai fall into the name of a traitor, and the current Yuan Shikai can't afford this hat.

In fact, if you really ask yourself, these generals who decided to overwhelm Yuan Shikai with their lives are not ready to be thieves.

Yuan Shikai was not excited, the military strength of the People's Party really made him feel a lot of pressure. This time is not enough to communicate with the governors in various places. Provincial autonomy is easy to say, but it may not be so easy to get local governors to accept it. The governor was not the emperor of the soil, and the purpose of Cixi's efforts and skills was to break up the power of the feudal officials.

However, politics is like a seesaw, which effectively weakens the power of local officials, but allows the power of the local gentry to rise. At the end of the day, everyone has to live. Officials come today and leave tomorrow, who has the heart to really bury their heads in local affairs. With the power of the upper echelons unable to sustain themselves, the gentry quickly gained a great say in various places.

Of course, the governors wanted local autonomy, and they also wanted to own a province for thousands of generations. Putting aside this long-awaited "idea", the reality of the Governors is that their power is far from being able to take root in the territory where they are now. Unless Yuan Shikai can convince the governors of all regions to truly believe that the governors will definitely be able to get the land of this province, then the governors have no reason to support Yuan Shikai's struggle with the regent Zaifeng. If the governor supported Yuan Shikai and was thrown away as a ......, it would be better to maintain the status quo than to do such stupid things as "being sold and helping people count money in sacks".

This has formed a very wonderful situation, Yuan Shikai has not entered the central government, and his words have no weight. However, without the support of the governor, Yuan Shikai's efforts to become the central government could easily be frustrated. In case the governors join forces to accuse Yuan Shikai of being Cao Cao, it will really be difficult to clean up. The governors could spit on themselves, and afterwards said, "I was deceived and wronged Yuan Gong at that time." "Anyway, in order to fulfill his promise, Yuan Shikai has to give them territory. Yuan Shikai was disgusted and it was still a trivial matter, but it was a major matter to break his plan of action.

At this time, Yuan Shikai really hoped that a guy like Chen Ke would be able to give advice by his side. Then Yuan Shikai can hand over these tasks to Chen Ke and concentrate on more important things by himself. However, although Chen Ke did not come, a guy named Yang Du defected to Yuan Shikai's door. Yuan Shikai thinks that although Yang Du's ability is not as good as Chen Ke, in the current situation, Yang Du is a very useful person.

Before the work of liaison and supervision was completed, Yuan Shikai first sent Wu Fengling, the fourth town, to lead troops to "go north to suppress bandits and restore order in Zhili". and ordered to "exterminate the bandits in Shandong" in the fifth town of Shandong.

Both armies are moving at a rapid pace. Shandong's Fifth Town easily "restored order". Wu Fengling, the fourth town in the north of Zhili, was a little slower. He first sent people to guard the main road into Taihang Mountain, and then used the Beiyang infantry as the nodes in various places, and the horse team as the mobile force. Dragnet searches were carried out in various places. Huangzhuang has long been robbed, except for the People's Party disguised as horse bandits, the real horse bandits have neither the strength nor the guts to harass the city of Beijing. The horse bandits all entered the southern part of Hebei, which had not yet been plundered. This happened to be caught by the fourth town and beaten violently.

Yuan Shikai had a strict order that he was never allowed to swallow up the looted property without permission, and the violator would be killed. Wu Fengling of the Fourth Town knew that this order must not be disobeyed. Every time the Beiyang Army annihilated a group of horse bandits, they first tortured them to extract a confession, and after the confession was completed, they returned the finances to the place where they were robbed according to the confessions of the horse bandits. In the end, they beheaded all the horse bandits in the places they plundered, so as to prove the merits of the Beiyang Army to the local people.

The local landlords and gentry naturally gratefully presented the Wanmin umbrella, and the official documents to announce the good news were also sent upward. Yuan Shikai did not persecute the central government, but used factual results to prove his role. With the head of a cage of horse bandits sent into the capital, with the extinction of horse bandits outside Beijing. The damaged railroads and telegraphs began to be restored, and the capital was soon restored to its former state. The voices praising Yuan Xiangcheng up and down were higher and higher.

On January 20, 1909, Yuan Shikai finally completed the final territory negotiations with the People's Party, and the governors who needed to be contacted in various places were also contacted. He set off to take the sixth town of Beiyang to Beijing. The second town stayed in Henan in order to "guard against the chaos in Anhui".

Yuan Shikai's march was not fast. The closer the Beiyang Army was to Beijing, the more the clans in the capital were like ants on a hot pot. They all firmly believed that as soon as Yuan Shikai entered Beijing, he would start a liquidation of them. In order to avoid this almost immutable ending, the clans lobbied desperately. Zaifeng had actually thought about it a long time ago, but in the current situation, he didn't dare and was unwilling to use any more violent means. In the past, Zaifeng had some useless but existent "suspected army" in his hands. Now even this little capital has been consumed in the ravages of horse bandits.

It is entirely possible to kill Yuan Shikai, invite Yuan Shikai into the Forbidden City, whether it is poison or something else. Even a group of eunuchs and palace maids with weapons in their hands could kill Yuan Shikai. But what's the point? After doing it, Zaifeng must face the bloody revenge of the Beiyang generals. Although the clans are more secondary, Zaifeng can still understand such a simple truth. If the clan kills Yuan Shikai, the Beiyang generals will definitely not think that the clan will "not blame the past and then reuse themselves", and the Beiyang generals will unanimously think that they are the next to suffer.

But unable to withstand the crying and begging of the clan and the blind persuasion of his two younger brothers, Zaifeng finally agreed to the clan's request. Zaifeng also rarely put forward his firm opinion. It's like, "I can do something." But you will never allow bloodshed. In the event of bloodshed, I will immediately resign as regent. Others do whatever they like. ”

Yuan Shikai originally couldn't get this level of information, and the new people who surrendered to Cheng quickly reported to Yuan Shikai. "Zaifeng actually has such insight?" Yuan Shikai couldn't help but sigh.

Zaifeng is not afraid of the dead in Beiyang, and he is not even planning for himself. He was also thinking about his son, the little emperor Xuantong, and all the clans of the Manchu Qing Dynasty. Once the clan provokes a bloody conflict against Beiyang, the clan as a wealthy family will definitely suffer a comprehensive bloodbath in retaliation.

"Chen Ke really did the right thing." Yuan Shikai secretly praised. If the clan is not forced to such a state, what is the use of Yuan Shikai even if he returns to Beijing. As an old rival of Beiyang for so long, the clan has undoubtedly reached the point of exhaustion. For the first time in so many years, Yuan Shikai was completely in the upper hand, and Yuan Shikai only felt high-spirited. If it weren't for Yuan Shikai's decentness, he would have wanted to laugh out loud now.

But just when he was in high spirits, another doubt suddenly popped up again, "Is the alliance with Chen Ke right or wrong?" Just thinking of this question, Yuan Shikai couldn't help but shudder.

The People's Party, a horse bandit force that ravaged Hebei and Shandong, could strategically be used to cut off Yuan Shikai's retreat. The People's Party, which occupied Anhui in Hubei, fought from the south, and Yuan Shikai and the Beiyang Army of the Three Towns became a situation of catching turtles in the urn. Where did he retreat then? If it goes to the direction of northern Jiangsu, the Beiyang Army still cannot get rid of the fate of being attacked from two sides. The southern part of Shandong was in the hands of the People's Party, and it was a nightmare to be ready to deal with several thousand cavalry on the road.

This cavalry from Shandong could not only give the Manchus the final blow, but also give Yuan Shikai a fatal injury. Chen Ke only opened the card of cooperation after the layout. In pursuit of efficiency, Chen Ke even sent tens of thousands of troops from Anhui to Hubei. The results of this launch were extremely profitable, and after the People's Party seized the three towns of Wuhan, it ensured its own supply of weapons and ammunition. Long before Yuan Shikai reaped the fruits of victory, the People's Party had already begun to taste the delicious taste of victory.

Even if Yuan Shikai seizes the central power in the future, what can he do? At the stage when he had just seized power, Yuan Shikai's position was extremely unstable. Calling on all walks of life to encircle and suppress Chen Ke is completely self-exposing his shortcomings and bringing disaster upon himself. After seizing power in Beijing, Yuan Shikai did not dare to leave Beijing at all. Ironically, the Beiyang Army in this matter really had to assume the purpose of its establishment, "to protect the safety of the capital". The second town of the Beiyang Army, which is now hanging alone in Henan, is not so much to guard against Chen Ke, but rather to be Chen Ke's hostage who threatens Yuan Shikai. Chen Ke's annihilation of the Beiyang Army of the Three Towns may break his front teeth, and it will be much easier to annihilate the second town of the Beiyang New Army. Chen Ke may not be able to overthrow the Manchus, but he has the ability to completely disrupt the strategy that Yuan Shikai has invested so much energy in.

Even if the two sides are now cooperating sincerely, Chen Ke wants to control the land of the four provinces, but Yuan Shikai also wants to unify the north and even the whole country. When Yuan Shikai integrates the national forces, it will take more than ten years. At that time, it is difficult to say whether Yuan Shikai was alive or not, and how much Chen Ke's strength would swell. If you want to solve Chen Ke, there is only one way, which is to contact the foreigners and ask the foreigners to send troops.

However, this plan also had fatal flaws, and one of the Manchu crimes was "betraying the country for glory". If Yuan Shikai did not want to bear the same infamy, he had to be cautious, not only could he not lead foreigners into China to fight, but he also had to take back a lot of their power in China from foreigners.

Even Yuan Shikai was desperate, and immediately after seizing power in Beijing, he tore his face and invited foreigners to send troops to attack the People's Party together. However, in recent years, the Manchu Qing Dynasty's fiscal revenue was 80 million taels per year, but the expenditure was as high as 100 million taels. Such a huge fiscal gap will not change this year. Foreigners have always had a great appetite, so they asked foreigners to send troops to help, and Yuan Shikai had no confidence to change this financial problem within three or four years. I don't have the financial resources to reassure foreigners. The tariffs of the Manchu Qing Dynasty are now in the hands of foreigners, what mortgage is Yuan Shikai going to take? Take the land as a mortgage, don't say that the whole country will not agree. I'm afraid that Beiyang will resolutely not agree.

After thinking about it, Yuan Shikai found that in the next three to five years, the strategic foundation for the decisive battle between Beiyang and the People's Party was not mature. Not only military strategy, once Yuan Shikai usurped the power of the Manchus, he would not even have a reason to unite with the governors to crusade against the revolutionary party. To put it mildly, the mutual trust between Yuan Shikai and the governors is only not as good as the mutual trust between him and Chen Ke. Even if Beiyang and the People's Party fight to the death, Yuan Shikai still feels that he can believe Chen Ke's words. Although he didn't know the reason, Yuan Shikai felt this very intuitively.

Chen Ke took the initiative to ask for cooperation, without shyness, without twisting, and without asking for a sky-high price. It was at this time that Yuan Shikai's lifeblood was firmly held. On the one hand, there is the brilliant future of Beiyang's entry into the center, and on the other hand, the tragic ending after losing both sides with the People's Party. Now even the attitude of the Beiyang Army Yuan Shikai cannot be completely controlled. It may not be right for him to let Feng Xu speak in public at that time, but now it seems that even if Feng Xu was not allowed to speak in public at that time, would the People's Party have no way to privately agitate the Beiyang Army?

The People's Party did not engage in conspiracy, they just told the truth, and pointed out the path that was most beneficial to Beiyang and the most beneficial to the People's Party in the midst of the complicated future.

Thinking of this, Yuan Shikai finally came to his senses. All his grievances were not actually grievances about what was happening now. Rather, it was his great dissatisfaction with Chen Ke's dominance of the situation. In the long-term vision of the future, Yuan Shikai has clearly known that he is not as good as Chen Ke. In 1909, Chen Ke was only 29 years old. Compared with the status he has obtained now and the strength he has mastered, Chen Ke is even a little too young. Yuan Shikai's grandfather, father, and uncle have not yet lived past the age of 60. Yuan Shikai is not superstitious, but he cares a lot about this 60-year-old curse. He was born in 1859 and is exactly 50 years old this year. In another ten years, Yuan Shikai will face the 60-year-old mark. At that time, Chen Ke was only 39 years old in the prime of life......

"This is fate!" Yuan Shikai closed his eyes and muttered. Chen Ke's appearance made Yuan Shikai only one step away from the supreme throne. Before that, Yuan Shikai even thought that he might not be able to realize this dream in his life. But before he was about to achieve his goal, Yuan Shikai realized that he actually wanted more. What he wants is to be the only leader in China, and he wants to be the supreme power. Others can only get power from Yuan Shikai's power, not like Chen Ke, who is superficially dependent on Yuan Shikai, but in fact has the same real power as Yuan Shikai.

Under the torment of this emotion, Yuan Shikai suddenly reflected on himself, "Am I too greedy? ”

This question didn't last long, and Yuan Shikai answered his own question, "Yes, I am indeed too greedy. When Yuan Shikai was young, he read that the emperors were alchemizing pills and seeking immortality, and he laughed at those people for not being satisfied. At that time, Yuan Shikai was still young, and the future was far greater than the past. When he faced that his dream in this life was about to come true, Yuan Shikai found that he might not be much better than those emperors.

Thinking of this, Yuan Shikai got up and went to the table, sharpened the ink and sticky pen, thought for a while, and wrote a poem, "A hundred years of heart is always long, and the ambition is not rewarded at that time." The wild old man has a soldier armor in his chest, and he is a little prince under the eyes of the fisherman. Thinking that there is no rock in the world, sighing that Shenzhou has become lacking. The end of the world is gone, and the smoke and rain are a fishing boat. ”

When Yuan Shikai was hit the hardest by Cixi a year ago, he was even mentally prepared to be driven home at any time. At that time, Yuan Shikai was disheartened and fantasized about being a fisherman, taking a small boat and fishing in a deserted field. Looking back on my state of mind at that time, this poem can still be made.

After reading this poem several times, Yuan Shikai's mood gradually calmed down. After going to this impetuous mind, Yuan Shikai gradually regained his former calmness. Chen Ke is undoubtedly able to do even if he calculates? Providence is providence, Yuan Shikai seems to be beautiful now, but in fact, the future is still very risky. The regent Zaifeng said that the clan is not allowed to cause bloody conflicts, and it is not allowed that any guy in the clan will commit a second, in the Forbidden City, in many places, you can kill people if you want to. In the face of this risk, Yuan Shikai did not care. Zhuge Wuhou said "listen to the destiny of heaven and do your best", Chen Ke can not predict the prophet, but he and Yuan Shikai have the will of heaven. And it is difficult to say who Providence favors.

Thinking of this, Yuan Shikai threw the written poem in the brazier and burned it, turned his head and called his soldiers in, "Order, go north!" ”

It was in the southern suburbs of Beijing that the regent Zaifeng made one last attempt to use the power of the Manchus to save the fate of the Manchus. Yuan Shikai received an edict from the regent Zaifeng, and after being given many official positions and honorary titles, the regent Zaifeng forcibly exploited Yuan Shikai's power on the grounds that Yuan Shikai had a "foot disease". ordered Yuan Shikai to return to his hometown as soon as possible.

Zaifeng himself didn't think that this edict could really be effective. He knew that as long as Yuan Shikai returned to the center, he would rely on the support of the forces in the imperial court and the support of foreigners. It is impossible for Zaifeng to fight Yuan Shikai.

Although this edict is outrageous and unreasonable, it is in a sense the last possible way to resolve the problem peacefully. Jaefeng is to show that he willingly accepts the notoriety of not treating ministers well. But he won't make any more unreasonable demands. In the history of the Manchu Qing Dynasty, there are countless worse mistreatments of their subordinates. If the imperial power is still the same, Zaifeng's approach may not be excessive.

But the Manchu imperial power was no longer the same.

In the astonishment of everyone, Yuan Shikai respectfully accepted the edict. The news spread throughout Beijing at breakneck speed.

It was not the army that took the lead in resisting, but the police in the capital. Since Yuan Shikai knew Zaifeng's arrangement, he naturally refused to bear the notoriety of mutiny. The only thing that can effectively deter but not the army is the police. The police system established by Yuan Shikai took on the task of guarding the capital during the horse banditry rampant. After going through hardships, they finally managed to keep the capital free of large-scale civil strife. Unexpectedly, Lord Yuan, who pacified the horse bandits, was treated like this, and as soon as the people who had already secretly negotiated took the lead, the indignant policemen gave up their positions and took to the streets to start protesting.

It is the police who usually run the capital, and they personally march to protest, and who can stop them. Everywhere the team went, the yamen closed one after another. Angry police protested with no way out, so they simply went to the gate of the Forbidden City to protest. The gates of the Forbidden City were closed, and although the guards did not allow the police to enter, they did not dare to disperse.

It was led by police protests, followed by protests organized by all walks of life. Beiyang has strong power in the capital, and as long as someone takes the lead, all walks of life who are "grateful to Dade" for Yuan Shikai have protested and petitioned. asked the imperial court to take back the fame and continue to appoint Yuan Shikai.

Zaifeng simply hid in the Forbidden City and didn't come out. He was ready to see how long the gang would last.

These people are indeed ready to be consumed, they not only besiege the Forbidden City, but also besiege a clan. The clan knew that they had provoked the anger of the public, and they did not dare to go out.

In the next few days, the Beiyang Army and the New Army surrounded Beijing, but did not enter the city at all. Zaifeng was blocked, and anyone who tried to spread the news was stopped by "people from all walks of life" and refused to leave. In the past, when they encountered this incident, they naturally violently committed violence against the blockers, but now they can only accompany the laughter to explain to the "people from all walks of life", "Ladies and gentlemen, let me make way is not okay." I'm just doing what I'm told, I'm just doing what I'm told. ”

You can't do what you're told! The masses asked these people to hand over the edict, and if they were in chaos, the masses would never let these people out. The Manchu Qing system in Beijing finally became a pitiful isolated island in the "vast sea of the people" organized by the Beiyang organization.

Not only the city of Beijing was paralyzed, but also the bureaucracy. In this arena where the clan wanted to use the prestige of the Manchu Qing Dynasty to make a final gamble on the future, there were no officials in the capital to support the regent Zaifeng.

When the embassies of various countries once again demanded that Zaifeng put an end to this "anarchy" situation, the masses gave way to the foreigners. Since they had long known the purpose of the foreigners' actions, the "masses of the people" even applauded and supported the foreigners for the first time.

Zaifeng still ignored this. And that's what he expected. Beiyang is strong in the center, and Zaifeng can't fight. Now Zaifeng has to look at the opinions of the governors of the provinces. If the governors of the provinces united against Yuan Shikai, Yuan Shikai would eventually give in.

After 15 days of the siege of Beijing, the governors, who had not said a word about it, finally sent a telegram to Beijing. The first telegram was made by Zhang Renjun, the governor of Liangguang. Zhang Renjun is not a member of the Beiyang line, and the old man is still quite loyal to the Manchu Qing Dynasty. But this time, Zhang Renjun thought that the imperial court's deprivation of Yuan Shikai's official position was a "chaotic fate". Yuan Shikai has no merit and should not be treated like this.

As soon as this telegram was issued, other provinces responded one after another, and with the exception of Anhui and Hubei, which were controlled by the People's Party, most of the governors supported Yuan Shikai. Those who don't support Yuan Shikai are just silent.

Seeing that three-quarters of the governors in the world supported Yuan Shikai, he calmly said to the Empress Dowager Yulon: "I have done my best. ”

Zaifeng then issued an edict as the regent, "Restore all Yuan Shikai's duties." ”

Yuan Shikai had already returned to his home in Tianjin at this time, waiting for the final ending of the story he had planned in a heavy guard.

This order reached Tianjin, and Yuan Shikai immediately expressed his willingness to saddle horses for the Manchu Qing Dynasty.

Zaifeng then issued the last edict as the regent, "Zaifeng resigned as the regent and returned to the empress dowager." ”

Although he is not a competent politician, Zaifeng is not a person who does not know the general situation. Now that Yuan Shikai has won a complete victory in this struggle, Zaifeng knows that there is no point in continuing the struggle. If Jae-bong still holds the position of regent, this seemingly glorious title will not only ruin Jae-bong, but also lead the clan into a terrible abyss.

On February 10, 1909, Yuan Shikai, as the victor, returned to Beijing.

On February 15, with the support of Prince Qing Yixuan, Yuan Shikai withdrew from the disarmament department.

On 18 February, the establishment of a Cabinet of Transitional Responsibilities was announced.

On February 22, the cabinet list was announced. Prince Qing served as prime minister, Yuan Shikai was elected vice premier, and cabinet members included Minister of Foreign Affairs Liang Dunyan, Minister of Civil Affairs Zhao Bingjun, Minister of Civil Affairs Yan Xiu, Minister of Education Tang Jingchong, Minister of War Wang Shizhen, Minister of the Navy Sa Zhenbing, Minister of Justice Shen Jiaben, Minister of Agriculture and Industry Zhang Jian, Minister of Posts and Telecommunications Yang Shiqi, and Minister of Politics Da Shou. And Hu Weide, Wu Zhen, Chen Jintao, Yang Du, Tian Wenlie, Tan Xueheng, Liang Qichao, Xi Yan, Liang Ruhao, and Rong Xun were appointed as deputy ministers of each ministry.

From 1861, when Li Hongzhang, then a subordinate of Zeng Guofan, first recruited the Sanshan Tribes of Xixiang in Hefei through Zhang Shusheng, to 1909, Beiyang officially grasped the central power. In the past 48 years, the Beiyang Group has experienced the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, the Westernization Movement, the First Sino-Japanese War, the Gengzi Incident, the People's Party rebellion, the horse bandits ravaging Zhili Shandong, and the Manchu diehards counterattack.

Despite the changes, Beiyang is also divided into two major faults: Beiyang before Li Hongzhang and Beiyang after Yuan Shikai. In 1909, the cadres of this group finally took charge of the various ministries, suppressed the power of the Manchu sect, and the Manchu center had become the Beiyang center.

At this time, some people rejoiced, some people beat their chests, some people raised glasses to celebrate, and some people cried. Beiyang put an end to the history of the supremacy of the Manchu dynasty, but no one can guess where the situation created by Beiyang will take China.