At the entrance of a palatial mansion on Xuandemen Street, a Lanny sedan chair stopped. Out of the sedan chair came a middle-aged man in a purple robe, who was Li Hongzhang, the Minister of Military Aircraft.

The gatekeeper saw that it was Li Hongzhang, and hurriedly went in to report. After a short time, the housekeeper of the mansion went out to greet him. led Li Hongzhang in, through the long corridor to the back garden.

I saw an old man wearing a white cloth shirt and a gray horse coat leisurely playing Tai Chi.

"The prince is tough. Hongzhang has a greeting for you. Li Hongzhang knelt down as he spoke.

"Oh, Master Lee. Why do you make such a big gift? Although you are a servant of my house, you are now the Minister of War and Aircraft like me. You and I are courtiers, and it doesn't have to be like this. "It was Prince Gong who spoke.

"Sixth Master, you have always been my master. Li Hongzhang will never forget the grace of his master wherever he goes. Li Hongzhang continued.

Prince Gong stopped, but the towel handed by the servant wiped the sweat from his forehead and wiped his hands again. He returned the towel to the person next to him and continued, "Get up and go into the study." ”

The two entered the study, and the host and guest seats were seated. Li Hongzhang opened his mouth and said: "France sent troops to attack Vietnam on a large scale, advancing by sea and land, and trapping Hanoi, Nam Dinh, Ha Duong and other places. And invaded Hue, the capital of Vietnam, and the king of Vietnam fled out of the capital. Now I am asking for help from the Qing Dynasty, and the excerpt has been sent to the military aircraft. ”

"Then hurry up and present it to the emperor? Why are you running here for me? Prince Gong said.

Li Hongzhang looked at Prince Gong with a smile, wanting to see something in his eyes. However, this prince, who is very deep in the city, did not show a trace of his own opinions or opinions.

"Lord, the emperor is in power. And quite attacking the ancestral style, doing things is still based on stability. Now that the rebellion has just been put down, the treasury is still empty. At this time, it is inconvenient to send troops to Vietnam. Li Hongzhang said tentatively.

Prince Gong took a cigar from his cuff and lit it with a match. Blowing out the matches, he said faintly: "Vietnam is the gateway to Guangxi of my Qing Dynasty, and if France is allowed to occupy it, it will always threaten the southern gate of my Qing Dynasty." ”

Li Hongzhang rolled his eyes and answered: "What does the prince mean...... To go to war against the French? ”

Prince Gong took a sip of tea and continued: "The emperor has been staring at that little thing in the south since last year, and that little bit of bad things in Chao Xian. The emperor sent two bidders to test the combat effectiveness of the new army. Now that we have sent troops to Yunnan, Guizhou, and Guangxi, what do you think will happen to our little emperor? ”

Li Hongzhang seemed to see the blue sky through the clouds, and immediately said: "The emperor is going to declare war on the French?" ”

Prince Gong took a deep breath of his cigarette, nodded and said: "The emperor already has a score in his heart, let me tell you the truth, the emperor has ordered Zuo Zongtang to prepare grain and grass for the governor of Liangguang, and a cart of military food is being sent to Guangxi and Yunnan." ”

Li Hongzhang exhaled heavily, and his heart was shocked. Hurriedly said: "Lord Wang, I can't afford to toss it now." I also asked the prince to persuade the emperor that the French fleet had been assembled in the Taiwan Strait. If war breaks out, the southeast coast of the Qing Dynasty will be in shambles again, and the economy that has been developed with great difficulty will be paralyzed again. ”

Prince Gong muttered: "Our emperor has a big idea, I can't persuade him." I advise you not to talk too much, when Lafayette specially chose him to be the emperor, and within a few years he killed Lafayette. Ten-year-old pro-government, hehe, more powerful than the Holy Grandfather! ”

Li Hongzhang fell softly on the chair, and said with a dull gaze: "I don't know whether this battle is a blessing or a curse, if you win, you will be empty for hundreds of miles of wasteland, and if you lose, the country will be ruined!" ”

Early the next morning, Guan Xuqing screamed. The whole palace was still shrouded in darkness, and the ministers entered the palace with lanterns. In the Taihe Palace, Guan Xuqing sat high on the dragon chair and looked at the two rows of civil and military ministers standing below. Open Cavity:

"Ladies and gentlemen, I believe you have all heard of the war in Vietnam. I would like to hear your opinions, whether it is war or peace, and please draw up a charter for you. ”

At this time, Zhang Zhidong, the squire of the military department, took a step and said: "Your Majesty, Vietnam is a vassal of my Qing Dynasty, and it pays tribute to my Qing Dynasty every year. It is also the gateway of Guangxi, and the old minister thinks that Vietnam and my Qing Dynasty are lip-to-mouth relations. Troops should be sent to Vietnam to fight against France. ”

As soon as Zhang Zhidong's words fell, waves were set off in the court. Prince Lu, who was trying to protect himself, stood up again and said: "Your Majesty, please treat Zhang Zhidong for the crime of misplacing the king." I am now in the Qing Dynasty and have no time to take care of myself, as long as the French do not enter the territory of my Qing Dynasty. I only need to stabilize the frontier, and I don't care about anything else. Mr. Zhang's words misled the country, the monarch, and the world. ”

At this time, Weng Tongsu came out and said: "Your Majesty, from the fifth year of Tongzhi. France's aggression against Vietnam has never stopped, and now it is occupying the capital of Vietnam in order to use it as a base for invading our Qing Dynasty. Instead of spending a lot of manpower to defend the frontier, it is better to help Vietnam dare the French out. ”

"Lord Weng said very much, Hue and my Guangxi are only separated by a mountain, the so-called can be sent and the evening can come. It is impossible to prevent it at all, how can others be allowed to sleep soundly on the side of the couch? The minister advocated raising troops into Vietnam and driving out the French. Peng Yulin said.

And Li Hongzhang and Prince Gong already knew the emperor's thoughts, and they were silent. And Prince Alcohol of course depends on his son's opinion. The rest of the voices asking for war, and the diehards led by Prince Yan still advocated peace. There was a quarrel, and it was fierce. I almost didn't roll up my sleeves and fight in the court.

Guan Xuqing looked at the situation, and it was obvious that there were more people advocating war against France than those seeking peace. And most of the neutral people are loyal to the emperor, as long as Guan Xuqing gives an order, they can swear to the death.

"Everyone, I have made up my mind. Declare war on France! I will not pursue any previous dissenting opinions. From now on, we monarchs and ministers are united, and all we are discussing is how to fight against France. and nothing else, and then vainly seek peace. Chop! "Guan Xuqing cut the railway.

"Wow!" There was a sound of kneeling.

After a long discussion, it was finally decided to appoint Zuo Zongtang as the commander of the Nanyang Naval Division. Responsible for the operation of the French Navy. Peng Yulin went to the Governor of Guangdong to prepare grain and grass. Liu Mingchuan's ten standard men and horses all entered Vietnam to fight, and then Lu Yiwei's department was transferred as the second echelon to garrison Yunnan and Guizhou provinces. The rest of the units were stationed in place and moved after listening.

As soon as the decree was issued, the armies of the provinces were mobilized ordinarily. The Fujian Navy Division in the Mawei Military Port set sail at anchor and assembled in the Taiwan Strait. On the official road leading to Vietnam, the military flags were hunting, the horses' hooves were moving, and the mighty brigade of men and horses marched towards the Vietnamese border on foot......

The warships assembled on the seashore and the sea, and the soldiers exchanged their guns and guns, and the muzzles of the guns were unanimous. The flags of each ship are waving the flags, a busy scene before the war!