What is a revolution, relying on underground gangs for riots and assassinations, and using open newspapers for agitation and propaganda? Or will it cultivate and train loyal and daring armies to overthrow old dynasties and establish new nations?

Perhaps both, but what else, is the practice of the constitutionalists who are regarded by some revolutionary parties as conservative and backward and who denounce the foxes as tigers and shamelessness, not a revolution?

In terms of motives, although the Qing court hoped to establish a constitution in exchange for eternal unification and eternal stability. Pen? Interesting? Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 However, the outcome of any reform measure is a compromise after a struggle of power, and it is not something that the designer can fully control. For example, the Qing court set up the Advisory Bureau and the Information Yuan, which were intended to be tame advisory bodies, but once they were born, they would grow on their own, and once they really fulfilled their democratic and supervisory functions, they were no longer just rubber stamps.

In a sense, the introduction of Western democratic methods of operation has played a revolutionary role in breaking the rigid habits of traditional Chinese politics, such as the electoral system has broken the non-competitive nature of traditional politics, parliamentary politics has challenged the non-openness of authoritarian rule, the organization of political parties has overcome the non-organization of popular participation in politics, and local autonomy has dismantled the non-autonomy of the centralized system.

Judging from the practical activities of the Advisory Bureau, the Advisory Council, the organization of political parties, and local self-government, once the Pandora's box of preparing for the constitution is opened, the enthusiasm of the people (mainly the local gentry) for political participation will continue to heat up, and finally it will be unstoppable like a flood.

In other words, once political reform is initiated, it can only move forward, not backwards, otherwise the energy of the people will be extremely terrifying.

In short, it is no exaggeration to say that these are structural changes, not revolutions, but revolutions. With the efforts of the Constitutionalists and the populace. China's gradual transition from an authoritarian system of more than 2,000 years to a modern democracy does not seem like an unattainable dream.

In accordance with the plan for the preparation of the constitution, preparations for the Council began in 1908 in the provinces, and an election was held in 1909. In official documents, the Advisory Bureau and the Advisory Council are both transitional bodies that practice parliamentary democracy, and the Advisory Bureau corresponds to the local councils. The Senate corresponds to the National Assembly. As a result, the constitutionalists acted quickly.

As early as 1906, calls for "organizing a political party before preparing for a constitution" began one after another. First, Zhang Jian, Tang Shouqian and others established the Preparatory Constitutional Association in Shanghai to cater to the preparatory constitution of the Qing court; In March 1907, Kang Youwei and Liang Qichao established the Imperial Constitutional Council with the royalists as the team, which began to take shape as a political party.

On April 12, 1907, Chen Wenqiang initiated and organized Zhang Jian, Tang Shouqian, Tang Hualong, Tan Yanmin and others to invite the heads of the provincial constitutional comrades associations to gather in Shanghai. Convene a general meeting.

With the largest number of participants, the widest coverage, and the extremely well prepared, the constitutionalists or constitutionalists began to establish political parties and vigorously promote the development of constitutionalism.

In Chen Wenqiang's view, it is more accurate to call the constitutionalists constitutionalists, and the degree of fanaticism about constitutionalism. On a par with the revolutionary party's addiction to violence. It sounds incompatible, but in terms of the end goal. But they are on the same path.

To be clear, the constitutionalists are nothing more than old, cautious revolutionary parties, and the revolutionary parties are no different from constitutionalists as they grow older, mature, or abandon violence.

Everyone's purpose is only one, that is, to get the Manchu court to hand over and delegate power. It's just that the means used are different. When one of these means does not work, moderates become radicals and pacifists become violent, which is also a predictable development and transformation.

Chen Wenqiang's efforts to promote the constitutional movement were to force the Qing court. If the Qing court compromises. If power is delegated and relinquished, it is naturally better to peacefully win power into the hands of the constitutionalists than in the hands of the Qing court; If the Qing court delayed perfunctorily, it would be infuriating the constitutionalists and dashing their hopes and pushing them into the camp of the revolutionary party.

Therefore, Chen Wenqiang will never be satisfied with the constitutional timetable proposed by the Qing court. Establish political parties, elect members of the Advisory Council, establish an Advisory Council, prepare for local self-government, establish the Senate for Parliament, and convene the National Assembly expeditiously...... He and his think tanks have roughly devised a strategy of pressing step by step in accordance with the democratic process of Western countries, and each step must be completed as soon as possible, so that the Qing court will not have time to delay and expose its true colors of stupidity, short-sightedness, and autocracy as soon as possible.

Since it was the first time that a conference of this magnitude had been held, the order of the venue was a bit chaotic. However, the attendees' soothing or fierce speeches were occasionally interrupted by the rising and falling applause and laughter, and the atmosphere of the venue was quite lively and free.

Although it does not claim to be a political party to the outside world, the "National Constitutional Council" established has already taken the form of a political party, and most importantly, it has united the constitutionalists of the provinces with great fanfare.

As the initiator and moderator, Chen Wenqiang deserved to be the rookie standard-bearer of the constitutionalists, and he took out the documents that had been prepared for a long time, such as the "Constitutionalism Constitution Membership Charter", "Membership Code", and "Constitutional Council Internal Election Method", so that the constitutionalists had their own labels, rather than distinguishing them in words and actions.

The constitutionalists not only had their organ, the Times, but also had a unified leadership body, and elected the officers of the general meeting and the provincial branches, so that the constitutionalists moved from loose to united and united, and from doing their own thing to acting in unison, and made progress in a radical rebirth.

Zhang Jian, Tang Shouqian, Tang Hualong, Tan Yanmin and others deeply praised these changes, and they believed that otherwise, they could not strengthen their momentum and urge the Qing court to establish a constitution as soon as possible. With the convening of the National Constitutional Council, the constitutionalists are no longer a small circle of gentry and businessmen from Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, Hunan, and Guangdong, but have expanded almost to the whole country, and in the future, they will recruit a large number of members and even officials who support the constitution, thus spreading their influence from the people to the government.

The congress discussed and voted on the proposal put forward by Chen Wenqiang, and the "Regulations for the Election of Urban and Rural Local Autonomy" and "Regulations for the Election of Urban and Rural Local Autonomy" were successively revised and passed, which will be submitted to the Constitutional Review Center for approval, and then the imperial court will be urged to formally promulgate and implement them.

It can be said that the introduction of these constitutions and rules was the initiative of the constitutionalist faction, rather than waiting for the drafting of the constitutional review hall of the imperial court. The time is advanced, and the reversal is formed. In addition, the press restrictions at that time were not strict, and the public support of public opinion could not only alleviate the asymmetry of information, but also create a greater momentum among the people.

After such an operation, Lao Tzu is a hardcore constitutional. Chen Wenqiang holds the flask himself. At the closing reception of the seven-day conference, he poured wine for all constitutional fans and old-timers. Well, it would be more accurate to say that it is the hardcore constitutionalists.

"Wen Qiang." Zhang Jian, who was elected president of the Constitutional Council, stretched out his hand and shouted, affectionately beckoning Chen Wenqiang to his seat.

This table is full of heavyweights of the constitutionalist faction, and it is also the core of the current constitutional council. President Zhang Jian, Vice President Zheng Xiaoxu, Secretary Lei Fen, Deputy Secretary Liu Chunlin. Tang Shouqian, President of Jiangsu Branch, Tan Yanhong, President of Hunan Branch, Tang Hualong, President of Hubei Branch, Pu Dianjun, President of Sichuan Branch, etc. As for Chen Wenqiang, he is the president of the Guangdong branch and the secretary general of the Constitutional Council.

"The back waves of the Yangtze River push the front waves, young people, the most promising one is Wen Qiang." Zhang Jian did not hide his appreciation, and said with a smile: "Not only constitutional experts, but also industrial and commercial operations are unparalleled, and there are people with guns in their hands, we old guys." I'll count on them later. ”

"Yes, Wen Qiang's business group, as well as this railway patrol police, are all elite weapons." Tan Yanmin nodded, "With this, we constitutionalists can be tougher and not be regarded by others as talents, scholars, and the imperial court." You also have to look at us. ”

Although the constitutionalists gradually grew in all provinces, most of them were wealthy industrial and commercial gentry. But the weakness is the lack of guns. The Shanghai merchant group should be the first to try, and then it will be extended to all commercial ports across the country, which can be regarded as an armed force controlled by the constitutionalists. The railway patrol police formed by Chen Wenqiang by building roads were regarded by the constitutionalists as the second force in their hands.

"Seniors are right." Chen Wenqiang said with a smile: "As the saying goes: show talent rebellion, three years will not succeed." We don't want to rebel, but we also have the power to protect ourselves to be more at ease. Moreover. This preparatory matter for the constitution is likely to be full of twists and turns, and it is not as easy as everyone thinks. In the democratic political process of Western countries, it was normal at first to go back and forth. Let's accumulate more strength. If the people are mobilized again, this constitutional movement will be promoted, and the imperial court will definitely be more serious. ”

"Yes, if we don't push it, the imperial court will actively establish a constitution?" Zheng Xiaoxu shook his head and said: "Seven years, ten years, the preparatory period for the constitution of the imperial court is so far away. If you can seek truth from facts, what can you not prepare for for three years? ”

For three years, these guys are really. Chen Wenqiang sneered, but nodded again and again, "How can you give up easily when you get it in your hand?" The main purpose of this constitutionalism is to let the court cede power and delegate power, although the situation is forced to establish a constitution, but where will those high-ranking and powerful relatives and nobles in the court take the initiative? You have to have someone pushing behind you to keep moving forward. ”

"Constitutionalism is the trend of the times, and in addition to the relatives and nobles of the DPRK and China, more and more officials are still inclined to this." Tang Shouqian stroked his beard and said slowly: "Now that the Constitutional Council has been established, it is almost no different from a political party, and signatures, petitions, and demonstrations in the future will always make a momentum, so that the court cannot delay." ”

"Rest easy." Zhang Jian pressed down his hand and said: "The articles of association have been sent to the capital, and we will see the news of the review hall of the constitution. Everything has to be done step by step. And first of all, we must master the knowledge of constitutionalism and do a good job, so that the court has no perfunctory excuses. For example, in this election, the local governor must not know how to operate; As for us, there are also many people who are at a loss. Since we are the backbone of the constitutionalists, we must shoulder the heavy responsibility of guidance and leadership. ”

"What Ji Lao said is extremely true!" Lei Fen, a relatively young graduate of Waseda University, was a very active and well-educated figure in the conference, and he was a very active and knowledgeable figure in constitutional politics, and he deeply agreed with Zhang Jian's words, "You can imagine how interesting and hectic China's first election was. We have already worked out the relevant rules and methods, and our comrades in the committee are naturally the first choice for those who want to guide the election work in various localities. ”

………

Listening to the aspirations of these constitutional fans, almost all of them are optimistic and uplifting remarks, Chen Wenqiang does not want to pour cold water, after all, this is to promote social development and political progress. But he had other aims, and the convening of the Constitutional Assembly wanted to take the opportunity to finalize it.

If China's feudal history revolves around political power struggles, it is impossible to gain insight into the essence of Chinese history without understanding the imperial tricks. The central authority of the Qing court was declining, and the new policy was full of complaints, the main reason for which was the financial problem. If you use the trick of money, will you be able to hasten the fall of this decaying dynasty?

Currency wars and financial crises were obviously unfamiliar to the Qing court and to most Chinese people, even stranger than constitutionalism. I don't know how powerful it is, and I don't know how to prevent it. Chen Wenqiang did not necessarily want to create a financial turmoil, but he wanted to use monetary means to control finance, control the market, and thus hit the finances of the Qing court.

At that time, the chaos of the currency circulating in the Chinese market had reached outrageous proportions. In addition to the traditional patterned silver, copper coins, and various silver dollars from foreign countries, local strongmen also "minted" coins privately. In addition to these metal currencies, there are also banknotes issued by provincial government, commercial banks and banks, as well as foreign banks.

In 1903, the Qing government envisioned a gold standard. In addition to the impetus for the unification of monetary policy, the decline in silver prices in the international market is also the main driver. However, this was met with widespread opposition from the local governors, and Zhang Zhidong became a strong spokesman for them. Zhang Zhidong pointed out from the perspective of "people's livelihood" that most of the people at the bottom of China settle their accounts with copper coins, and the use of the gold standard is obviously too far from the topic and unrealistic, and letting silver coins that exceed their actual value circulate in the market is tantamount to encouraging the circulation of currency with insufficient fineness, and it is also equivalent to stealing the people's fat and ointment in disguise. In addition, although the silver discount is not conducive to repaying debts, it is conducive to encouraging exports and restricting imports, which is conducive to enriching countries and strengthening their armed forces in the long run.

Any reform, including the reform of the Unified Currency, is not just an issue of economics, but a question of political economy. The Manchu central government, on the one hand, demanded that the governors contribute to the fiscal reform, and on the other hand, sought to centralize power in an attempt to gradually weaken their power. This is in stark contrast to Japan's centralization of power through the Meiji Restoration, followed by a variety of top-down reforms.

Faced with strong local opposition, the Qing government decided to maintain the silver standard for the time being, pinning its hopes on a uniform silver coin standard.

…………… (To be continued.) )