Chapter 222: "I Beg You"

"Boom, boom", this is the sound of shells exploding. Watermark Advertising Test Watermark Advertising Test "Knock Knock", which is the sound of heavy machine gun fire. "Bang bang", this is the sound of a pistol...... Who would have thought that a country could have four wars at the same time in one day.

In the Siping direction, the Qing infantry advanced step by step under the cover of artillery and grenades of various calibers. Tieling, Shuangping, Changchun, Jilin...... The 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 6th Divisions of the Qing Imperial Army, plus the Independent Artillery Division, totaled more than 40,000 people, and simultaneously launched an attack on the remaining more than 20,000 Russian troops in Siping. A tight encirclement, advancing step by step. With the superiority in numbers, weapons, and supplies, the Qing army will finally defeat the Russian army and wipe them out, which has been unanimously agreed upon by all countries in the world. The only difference was that they disagreed on whether the Qing could end the war before the Russian minister Cassini arrived in Mukden to meet the Qing emperor.

On the Yalu River, the Japanese stormed the Qing army's defense line. Especially in the direction of Jiuliancheng, the Japanese army concentrated the main forces to attack day and night. The beachhead of the Korean army was occupied by the Japanese army several times, but fortunately, the fire technical support of the two artillery companies of the Qing army cut off the Japanese attack force, and the Korean king also personally supervised the battle, so the Korean army was able to withstand the Japanese attack. But the casualties of the poorly trained North Korean troops are still too high.

In Shandong, the independent divisions were slowly advancing into the peninsula, and the Beiyang divisions were also advancing towards the peninsula. At this time, the Boxer Boxer activities had just begun, and the participants were more ordinary farmers and small handicraftsmen, with no leaders to dispatch and no sharp weapons; And he brought his own axe, and he only ate small rice and cornmeal. Neither seeking fame nor profit, desperately disregarding himself, putting his life on the battlefield, all the same. All in one. They only kill foreigners and religious people, but they do not harm civilians. In some cases, the Boxers even took on the responsibility of maintaining law and order. It's not enough to just kill such a civil unrest, but it's even harder to appease it, because it's hard to distinguish between good and evil. Liu Kun, who was in front of him and had a tendency to deteriorate, came up with a solution. Arrest all the foreign missionaries. and seized the property of the church. In this way, it is possible to claim the arrest of all the foreign clergy internally, so as to make the people angry. Externally, he asked Li Hongzhang to inform the ministers of various countries in China in the capital. In this way, missionaries from all countries were first protected. The effect was very good, and the people saw that the imperial court sent troops to deal with the foreigners, and the ministers of various countries also accepted this method of the Qing court. It's just that there will still be some boxers with other intentions who will confront the imperial army head-on, and the natural reward for these people is blood and fire. Comfort. Show the heart of the court. town, to show the determination of the imperial court. Liu Kunyi had another task when recruiting migrant workers, collecting evidence of the crimes of foreign missionaries.

In Guangzhou, the southernmost part of the country, the gunfire of the uprising deeply shocked Tan Zhonglin, the governor of Liangguang. Although he had been informed of the incident and even given him a plan for the rebels' uprising, he was still a little suspicious. It was not until the guns of the rebellion rang out that he began to mobilize the garrison to suppress it. But the insurgents had already occupied some key positions, and Mr. Tam and his repressive forces believed it was only a matter of time before the rebellion was crushed. However, he has lost the first step, but the casualties and time of the counterinsurgency process have also been prolonged.

From the north to the south of Xinjiang, there were flames all over the world at the same time in one day, which made it difficult for all countries to understand. Guangxu was also an emperor who made a difference, and the economic indicators of the Qing Dynasty were also rising rapidly. Industry, agriculture, and especially enterprises invested in China are also recruiting a large number of people. Why did such a thing happen in the Qing Dynasty, which had a relatively stable society? Now that the interests of various countries in China are also increasing, they can't help but ask: What happened to the Qing Dynasty?

But what made the ministers of various countries even more unable to react was that at this time, the Qing Navy launched a Busan landing operation the next day, and the Pacific Fleet shelled the port of Pusan in the early morning, and the 1st Marine Division led by Ding Ruchang captured Busan in only half a day. At the same time, the Beiyang Fleet, which had completed its replenishment, was approaching the Japanese mainland.

As a result, Liu Buyun, who was bent on the shame of blood and Wuwu, was scolding at Japan: "The Pacific Fleet is too dark and black, and there is nothing left for Lao Tzu." "Osaka was not allowed to fight, and in other places, because Japan spent all its money on construction in Tokyo Bay, there was nothing left of Japan's coastline except for fishing boats. A few broken fishing boats were not worth the money for the shells, and Liu Buyun, who was angry, drove directly to the gate of Tokyo Bay. This made the Japanese battleships even more afraid to go out.

Although it is not known when the war in the northeast will end, the Russian army is already trapped and will not be able to fight for a long time. And Japan on the Yalu River is not worried, can there still be good fruits of little Japan to eat after cleaning up the Russian hair? As for the fist rebellion in Shandong, the imperial army has been transferred, and it is a matter of time before the chaos is quelled. The first to extinguish the flames was Canton, and the rebellion lasted only one day before it was completely crushed.

The streets and alleys of Beijing, restaurants and tea shops are living as usual, and there is no longer as panicked as when the Russian army went south.

"Look, what are those rebels in Guangzhou doing?" In the teahouse, an elderly man slapped the newspaper on the table and said angrily: "Don't talk about what you did to rebel, but also rob it." It's obviously a group of bandits, and they're still bandits under any banner. ”

The old man's words drew the same accusations, and several photographs in the newspapers made it clear that several men dressed in the same costumes as the rebels stormed the gold shop, and they not only robbed the shop, but also killed people. In particular, in the photo of the robbery, one person is putting gold jewelry in his pocket, and the gun in the other's hand is a dead shopkeeper, and the deep black photo can still be seen fresh flowing from the shopkeeper's chest. The newspapers included not only photographs, but also confessions from the families of the victims of the rebellion.

"What kind of republic, what kind of new China, these are all these rebellious and demagogic words. Those mountain kings also said that they wanted to rob the rich and help the poor, but they didn't do anything like robbing homes and houses. If they really want to rob the rich and help the poor, why don't they rob those corrupt officials and corrupt officials? "There are the same complaints in restaurants in Shanghai.

"Don't get involved with these people in the future. What is asking for the people's lives is actually to fill their own pockets. The revolution is underfunded, and it can openly rob ordinary people of what they have. If this is also called a revolution, then it is also the life of the common people. The tea shop in Guangzhou City was even more condemning: "Poor Zhang Yuanwai has suffered such a catastrophe." I even bought jewelry at his store. ”

Instead of suppressing the news of the uprising, Guangxu let the Wuhan Times report on the rebellion in Guangzhou. The entire course of the rebellion was reported in detail, and even the slogans of the rebellion were listed one by one. "Overthrow the imperial court and achieve a republic." "Establish a new government. Realizing the "New China" ...... Except for the phrase "Expelling the Tartars." ”

"What is a republic, can you explain? Who knows what the new China should look like. In a country where nine adults are illiterate, who do you talk to about the republic? Even if you say it, how many people can understand. Once your republic succeeds. And how can you guarantee that these simple people will not be deceived again? You want a republic, that's your idea. But why do you impose your ideas on others, why do you want to kill those who reject your ideas? Why? ”

This was an article published on the front page of the "Wu Shibao" on the third day of the Guangzhou Rebellion -- "A Message to the Rebels." Written by Guangxu himself, so the article directly belongs to Emperor Guangxu of the Qing Dynasty - Aixin Jueluo? Zaitian. Of course, Guangxu will not say that this article has been revised by Tang Shaoyi and other civil and military generals. It is precisely because this article is aimed at the vast majority of ordinary people that it is all popular in terms of word choice and sentence construction. This is also the reason why military generals are involved in the revision.

"What is a Republic? I understand, but I don't explain. Because everyone's understanding will be different, I don't want to impose my ideas on everyone. I have set up a Beijing Normal University Hall, so I have supported the governors of various places to set up colleges and universities in various places. I not only let the school teach the Chinese thousand-year-old Confucian culture, but also let the school teach Western knowledge. It is hoped that all people of insight in the Qing Dynasty will seek from learning to pursue the road to a truly powerful country. However, the prosperity of a country cannot be achieved by just a few or a small number of elites, which requires the joint efforts of every Qing people. You know, it was these illiterate peasants who worked in the fields at the foot of the mountain. It is to provide food for everyone in the Qing Dynasty. You must know that these workers who have just entered the factory use their hands to produce goods and weapons. It was these copper-smelling merchants who were able to sell the goods produced by the peasants and workers. It is precisely because of agriculture, industry, and commerce that there are scholars to manage such a huge country, and because of agriculture, industry, and commerce. Only then can the country have a tax burden and form an army to resist foreign aggression. Three thousand years ago, Mencius also said: The people are precious, the society is secondary, and the king is light. Li Shimin, the thousand-year-old Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, said: The king is like a boat, the people are like water, and water can carry a boat and overturn a boat. Today, I also want to say: Because the people have homes, there is a country, and the people are the foundation of the country. Thousands of years ago, the ancients knew that the most important thing in a country is the people who work all day. ”

"And what are you doing? but you were slaughtered because they did not want to believe in your republic. Is it true that your republic is to make all the people of the world believe in your republic, and that your republic is to be built on the blood of those who do not believe in your republic? Such a republic is not needed. ”

“……”

"I'd like to know, did you think about this country before you started the rebellion? It is said that 'Cang Liao knows etiquette and knows honor and disgrace when he has enough food and clothing'. Do you know how many people in this country have toiled all day but have not been able to fill their stomachs? Drink thin when you are free, and eat dry when you are busy. I came up with this idea because I couldn't eat enough. I sat on the court hall but was silent, what a Ming monarch, what a holy lord, I am not rare. I have only one simple expectation, so that the world will be peaceful, so that everyone can have enough to eat. A republican can eat a stomach? A revolution can you have enough food and clothing without farming? But you let these people, who are not yet hungry, to change their lives and do what righteousness. You know, it's proper to eat and dress warmly. If you can make the people of the world have enough food and clothing, then there is no need for you to say it, and the people of the world will drive me out of the throne. Looking at all countries in the world, only China has endured ups and downs for 5,000 years. Why? It is because of these tenacious people that they are the most solid backbone of my country. When you turn the guns of the revolution at these simple people, have any of you ever thought about them? ”

"If nothing else, let me discuss your rebellion. You want to overthrow the court on the spur of the moment, have you ever thought about the consequences of doing so? The court has fallen, the emperor is gone, and all the ministers have been killed by you. Now it's your turn to sit in the court, don't blow any slogans, don't talk about the future, just talk about the present. You come to tell me and the people of the world how you will stabilize the country and how you will resist foreign aggression. Do you have the financial resources to support the day-to-day operation of the Qing Navy? Do you have what it takes to command the Qing Army? Among you, are there any generals who can stabilize the country and calm the country, and martial arts can calm the external troubles? Do you know that the Pacific Fleet alone costs 2 million taels of silver a month to be able to operate? Not to mention the extra cost of shells and repairs during the war. Do you know how much silver it took to keep the imperial court running in a year during the entire Qing Dynasty? ”

"You don't know, and you don't seem to need to know. Because you even got the money for rebellion by robbing the rich, do you mean that after you overthrow the court, you will rob the people of the world to sit in the court? Will you be able to defend your country? You can't do it even more, because you even gave you the guns for the rebellion from the Japanese. Why did the Japanese support your revolution? Why do you want to support your revolution as 'selflessly' when Japan is saddled with the world's largest debt? Because they want your revolution to contain my Qing army. so that their army can rush into the land of the Qing Dynasty and fight. to loot. Have you forgotten the scenes of thousands of miles of mourning in Liaodong and Shandong in the first year of the First Sino-Japanese War? It's good that you are small in number and not enough force. Only the local garrison could put down the rebellion. Have you ever wondered what will happen if you have enough force to take the city of Canton? ”

"Tell me if your rebellion succeeds. As soon as you occupy Guangzhou, the imperial court will send troops to quell the rebellion. Where did the soldiers of the imperial court come from, the Eight Banners or the Green Battalion? Neither. Because you have the strength to occupy the city of Guangzhou, you can defeat these Eight Banners Green Battalion, so if you want to put down the rebellion, you can only transfer troops from the front line to resist the Japanese and Russian invasion. As a result, there will be insufficient forces at the front, positions will be lost, and there will be defeat. Then Japan and Russia can attack Shanhaiguan, and they can attack the city of Beijing. At that time, they will force me to sign a humiliating agreement, and they can cut off the land of the Qing Dynasty and capture the people of the Qing Dynasty. You can also force me to compensate them for a huge amount of compensation. The court is very poor, what should I do if I can't take out so much money? Then the court will ask the people, can't they beat the people if they can't beat the foreigners? At that time, the imperial court would snatch the last copper plate and the most peaceful grain in the hands of the people, because the imperial court would pay compensation to Japan and Russia. Then the people rebelled. You are also marching north in the name of the revolution. Then my army and your army fought a great battle in the Central Plains. In this way, Japan and Russia will be even happier, the Russian army can continue to move south, and the Japanese will attack our coastline. However, for our own sake, we ignored foreign enemies and fought in the Central Plains. The whole of China is in flames, and the people either join your army or join my army, because they will be killed if they do not join. Then the farmland is uncultivated, and the factories are unworked. Civilians either died on the battlefield or starved to death on the streets. Is this the republic you want? You obviously don't understand that once your uprising succeeds, this is the inevitable end. ”

"Do you know that just for the sake of a Shandong fist rebellion, the independent division and the Beiyang Army that were originally going to reinforce the Yalu River went to Shandong to put down the chaos. Do you know how many benefits I promised to Korea in order to enable the Koreans to help the Qing Dynasty defend the Japanese? Why do you force the court to hand over the money and food that was supposed to be used on your own people to others? You can be dissatisfied with the court, you can think about your republic, please don't kill your own people. ”

"How many people in the Great Qing Dynasty knew about the ambitions of the Japanese. Let's go and look at history, the Japanese have been planning China since the beginning of the Ming Dynasty. Have you forgotten that you burned, killed, and looted in the Qing Dynasty in the first year? The defeat in the First Sino-Japanese War forced the Japanese to pay an indemnity of up to 200 million taels of silver to the Qing Dynasty, hoping that Japan would never have the ability to start a war again. The funny thing is that at that time, there were still scholars who said that the kingdom should be gentle to influence the state. As a result, the Japanese borrowed money from all over the world, and not only paid the reparations in one lump sum, but also purchased six 10,000-ton battleships and six 8,000-ton heavy cruisers. Everyone knows that the Dingzhen No. 2 of the Beiyang Naval Division, which was once the largest ship in Asia, do you know what the Dingzhen No. 2 warship, which is only 7,000 tons, is in front of this latest 10,000-ton battleship? It's the target, just like the difference between a child and an adult. Did the Japanese buy so many such powerful warships and put them at home as decorations? No, they want to use these warships to defeat our Qing Imperial Navy and attack our Qing territory. Then I can force the people to loot the last of the people's grain and give it to them. The reason why the Japanese 'selflessly' gave you guns to rebel is that they want you to share the power I used to attack them. Let's see, Japan, which has not even returned from the warship, can't wait to get a piece of the pie when it sees Russia invading China. It's like if it weren't for the Japanese, would I still need to divide my troops? Russia, I have long since driven them home. I didn't expect it, I didn't expect it. The Shandong boxers gave me a punch in the back, but you republican rebels gave me a near-fatal shot. Fortunately, there are not many of you, but fortunately, there are brave soldiers who have defeated you and thwarted the conspiracy of Hichishi himself. ”

"Look at the simple faces of the people, look at the calloused hands of the industrious people. Think a little more for them, think more for them, don't point a gun at them. It doesn't matter if your rebellion is successful or if I suppress it justified. I beg you, I beg you in front of all the people of the world. You just want to rebel, can you rebel again when I clean up Japan and let the country have no more external troubles? I beg you......"

ps:

This article is really difficult to write, and it took me four days to write it. In fact, Peng Yu really wanted to write with great enthusiasm, even if he wrote it like this, he was actually really dissatisfied with it. It's a pity that it's really beyond our reach.

Thank you all for your support until now.