In the morning, after Deng Zixuan got up, he went outside for a one-hour morning exercise, which was a habit he had developed for many years. At breakfast, Li Hongzhang asked, "Commander-in-chief, what are the arrangements for today?" Deng Zixuan pondered for a while and said: "When I go to the Forbidden City, I want to meet the Empress Dowager Cixi, Emperor Guangxu and those princes Baylor, and their future fate must be properly arranged." In addition, I want to discuss with the six princes, and I must explain clearly the policy issues related to ethnic minorities, so that they can have a correct understanding. ”

Li Hongzhang asked tentatively: "What are your plans for the Empress Dowager Cixi, the Guangxu Emperor, the Manchu nobles, and the ministers of the Qing court?" This kung fu Wan Chuan walked in and said: "Report to the commander-in-chief, I just received the news that Chen Jintang and Pei Gejin led the headquarters to Baoding, and it is estimated that they will be able to reach the capital the day after tomorrow." In addition, the Shanghai side sent a telegram that the fleet of Zhang Zhidong and his wife passed through Shanghai and was estimated to arrive at Tianjin Port the day after tomorrow. Deng Zixuan nodded to indicate that he understood, and then said to Li Hongzhang: "The question you just asked, we will talk about it on the way." ”

The carriage stopped in front of the Qing Gate, and Deng Zixuan and Li Hongzhang got out of the car. Paused to inspect the Daqing Gate. After a long time, Deng Zixuan said: "Huanghuang Ancient Yanjing, Jin Yuanliao founded, the beginning of the Jingjing difficult division, the patrol of the time of the residence, the control of the Han and Tang Hong, the king of Deli Shang Zhou, the towering Daming Gate, such as Cuizhi southward." Li Hongzhang said with a smile: "This is Gu Yanwu's Jingshi poem in the Ming Dynasty, which is already distinctive, highlighting the magnificence of the Ming Gate at that time." During the Yongle period, when the famous gate was built, Zhu Di, the ancestor of the Ming Dynasty, ordered the scholars to solve the problem of Jin: the sun and the moon, the light of the heavens, the mountains and rivers of the emperor's residence. Cheng Zu was overjoyed and rewarded. ”

Deng Zixuan sighed and said, "The stars are moving, and with a flick of your fingers." After more than 500 years of ups and downs, Daming Gate is still towering, but the dynasty has changed several times. They don't know how to feel about it. "The commander-in-chief has something new and has been taught here." Li Hongzhang Bingxue is smart. "Yes, whether it is the Daming Gate or the Daqing Gate, they can't bless the emperor's dream of a thousand years."

"The Imperial Palace is magnificent, but the people who live in it are disappointing. The emperors of the Ming Dynasty were not as good as a litter, and so were the emperors of the Qing Dynasty. It's just ridiculous. The Empress Dowager Cixi's ability to control power and play conspiracies is superb, and to put it bluntly, it is a woman's little trick. If she had half of Wu Zetian's ability, the Qing Dynasty would not have come to this point. Li Hongzhang's face was a little red. He heard the sound outside the strings, and the implication was that the Empress Dowager Cixi was nothing more than that, and you were being toyed with.

Deng Zixuan saw Li Hongzhang's embarrassment and explained: "It's no wonder that there are one soldier and one bear." Maybe I'll do the same right under her nose. You can't use your genius skills. Over time, you will smooth out the edges and corners, and the so-called ambitions and ambitions will be consumed in a state of observation and caution. It was precisely when I saw the incompetence and decline of the Manchu court that I pulled the flag and rebelled. History has proven that there is no way out for the so-called yellow power, and human history will enter a magnificent era. In a word, as long as it is gold, it will shine, even if you are poor and grassroots, you may become the head of state, Brother Li. Would you refuse such a prospect? ”

Li Hongzhang said: "The commander-in-chief gave a lecture yesterday. Let me suddenly open my mouth, its far-sightedness, insight into everything, make me feel painful and ashamed. "Although China opened the doors and windows and began to peek at the shijie outside, breathing in the fresh air. But what we see is only the appearance of shijie on the outside, and we don't really understand its connotation. To this day, we are still ignorant of how to take ourselves as the foundation and the West as the Chinese application, and how to organically combine the advanced things of Western countries with our traditional concepts. ”

"Please give the commander-in-chief advice," Li Hongzhang was completely convinced. "Although we are now in a state of war with Western countries, it does not mean that we are on top. Putting aside the conflict of interests, we are significantly behind in the ideological field compared to the developed countries, and we have nothing to show off in terms of scientific jishu. The four great inventions of antiquity have intoxicated us for thousands of years, and have not yielded any results since. The feudal imperial system imprisoned invention and creation. It can be said that the little achievements of our military government have been learned from foreigners, and we are still students in front of them, so we must catch up??????。

As they spoke, the two crossed the Jinshui Bridge and entered the Forbidden City from Tiananmen Square. In the Forbidden City, there are many female dependents of the prince Baylor hanging out, and many children are playing, and it seems that they have become accustomed to life here. The people inside didn't know Deng Zixuan, but they knew Li Hongzhang. The evil god came suddenly, and they didn't know what bad luck had befallen them again, so they rushed to report to their master.

Emperor Guangxu played and walked in the courtyard, and he was full of fun. Since the fall of the Qing court, Cixi's management of him has changed greatly, and he is no longer as strict and ruthless as before, so the Guangxu Emperor gradually regained his youthful nature. The Empress Dowager Cixi was grooming and dressing, and during this time Cixi seemed to have recovered, and her face was flushed. Since the Forbidden City is relatively stable, her state of mind has also improved. It is an indisputable fact that the Qing court has fallen, and it is useless to be sad or unwilling, and people will always survive. Fortunately, everyone is safe, their lives are protected, and their lives are temporarily worry-free. Although the standard of living has dropped by 7 percent, it has little impact.

Yi 60 was shocked to hear that Li Hongzhang was coming, but did not go to greet him, and immediately went to Cixi's bedroom. The Forbidden City was relatively closed, so he didn't know that Deng Zixuan had arrived in Beijing. Emperor Guangxu stood up immediately when he saw Yi 60 walking into the courtyard, and he was a little afraid of this sixth prince who usually didn't smile or smile. Yi 60 ignored his existence, which would have been kneeling long ago. Right now, in the eyes of Yi 60, with the fall of the Manchu Dynasty, the emperor no longer exists.

Hearing the movement, the Empress Dowager Cixi stood up from the dresser, and the maid whispered: "The Empress Dowager! The sixth prince is here! Cixi turned around and saw Yi 60's face a little flustered and asked, "Your look is wrong, what's wrong?" "Queen Mother, Li Hongzhang suddenly came to visit!" Cixi's face twitched imperceptibly: "I haven't seen him for several months, what do you mean by coming here suddenly?" "I don't know, Your Majesty guesses, there has been no movement, I'm afraid we're going to pay attention."

Cixi sighed and said, "It's a disaster that can't be avoided." We can only be at the mercy of others now, did Li Hongzhang come with soldiers? "It's not just two people and a few guards." "In this way, the slave family guesses that it will not be used against us. It seems that we are asked to move out of the Forbidden City, but in fact, we have been mentally prepared to move out of the Forbidden City. A eunuch came in to report: "Li Hongzhang has arrived." Cixi nodded and ordered the eunuch to bring everyone else.

Li Hongzhang and Deng Zixuan walked into the living room, and saw Cixi and Yi 60 looking at him and said, "Queen Mother, Sixth Prince, I haven't seen you for a long time." Recently, I have been busy with government affairs and have no time to take care of it, so please understand. Cixi had no expression on her face. Probably in the heart of the arranger cat crying mouse fake compassion. Li Hongzhang was still elated: "Let me introduce to you, this is Deng Zixuan, commander-in-chief of the Northern Expeditionary Army of the Guangzhou Military Government." Cixi and Yi 60 suddenly widened their eyes and aimed at Deng Zixuan. The two didn't expect Deng Zixuan, who is famous all over the world, to be so elegant.

Deng Zixuan smiled and said, "How is it?" I can imagine that the two of you are a little disappointed, in your impression, I should be five big and three thick, green fangs! Yes, I have taken the Xiucai exam. is a weak scholar. Some people say that scholars rebelled. It's just not self-defeating and self-defeating. But the fact that I stand before you today fully demonstrates that things are not static, and that anything is possible. Cixi's face turned pale, her lips squirmed, and she wanted to say something, but she didn't say it.

Yi 60 said with a cross heart: "I want to know how you will settle us, is it exile or house arrest?" Let's be content to save our lives, and give us a happy word. Deng Zixuan knew that the sixth prince was a little arrogant, and he had a heart at this point. Therefore, I wanted to adjust their appetite and said: "There is no hurry in this matter, it is rare to see you." Naturally, we want to talk openly and honestly. I know that you hate me, and I ruined the Qing Dynasty. But I don't hate any of you, I hate the Manchu dynasty and the evil feudal imperial system. ”

Li Hongzhang saw that Yi 60 had a bad attitude, Cixi didn't say anything, thinking that Deng Zixuan could be angry, but when he saw that Deng Zixuan was still smiling and talking and laughing freely, he was relieved and secretly thought: Deng Zixuan is really determined, really extraordinary, this is the demeanor of the emperor, compared to Cixi and Yi 60 are clowns. Li Hongzhang's views have changed greatly, at this time Cixi and Yi 60 seem to be too ordinary in his eyes, ordinary like ordinary people. Li Hongzhang knew that Deng Zixuan was ridiculing, so he looked at his words coldly.

Many Manchu princes and ministers and Baylor Ye flocked in, and the little emperor Guangxu also came in, walked to Cixi and sat down, staring at everyone with ignorant eyes, with a somewhat worried expression. "You probably don't know my identity, let me introduce myself, my name is Deng Zixuan, and my position will be omitted." Hearing Deng Zixuan's three words, there was a Baylor Ye who did not obey the call, and his face turned pale on his knees, and some ministers began to tremble.

Deng Zixuan smiled: "Is it difficult for me to be the devil?" Don't be afraid, everybody. I'm here to see you today, so please be seated. Deng Zixuan's smile was lovely, perhaps it had an infectious effect, and the two young princes helped the Belle Lord who was sitting on the ground to the chair and sat down. Deng Zixuan continued: "All of you rest assured, I will neither exile you nor house arrest you, and let each of you live with dignity, I promise." I'm here today to see you, and you've got a lot to say and you don't vomit. ”

Seeing everyone pricking up their ears, Deng Zixuan's face became serious and said: "Today's opportunity is rare, I will show it off in front of you, let us relive the history of the rise of the Manchu Qing Dynasty and the process of coming to an end." First of all, we start with the rise of the Manchu Dynasty, and as the victor, I am qualified to comment on the honor and disgrace of the Manchu Dynasty. At the beginning, Nurhachi's thirteen armor rebellion was an angry rebellion after being enslaved, and then he gradually gained a foothold in the northeast by hiding in Tibet. At that time, the Ming Dynasty did not realize how serious the consequences of the rebellion of a few grass bandits were. With his tenacity, perseverance, and perseverance, Nurhachi pacified the Manchu tribes and laid the minimum conditions for the rise of the Manchu Qing. ”

Deng Zixuan did not use insulting language, but an objective evaluation, and his views were novel, and even Li Hongzhang was attracted. Seeing that everyone present was fascinated by what they heard, Deng Zixuan continued: "For the rise of the Manchu Dynasty, the powerful Ming Dynasty still did not realize the danger, and they still sang and danced, drunk and dreamed of death. When the Ming Dynasty realized the danger, it was no longer able to extinguish the raging fire of the Manchu Qing Dynasty. ”

Speaking of the critical moment, Deng Zixuan stopped. He took out his pocket watch and glanced at it, and continued: "China is a country of etiquette and ancient civilization, and Chinese culture has a long and profound history. Right now I'm a guest, and you're hosts. Look, it's noon now, so hard that you don't understand hospitality? It seems that the heritage of Chinese culture is still lacking" Cixi was a little flustered when she heard this, and her eyes were aimed at Yi 60. Yi 60 said: "Commander-in-Chief Deng, we Manchus are well versed in hospitality, but now??????。 Deng Zixuan waved his hand and said: "It's okay to have coarse tea and light rice, I don't pay attention to it, I have a glass of water and wine, maybe my judgment is more exciting." ”

Li Hongzhang interjected: "Although Commander-in-Chief Deng is rich and rivals the country, he is usually very frugal, so I think he eats here. Commander-in-Chief Deng advocates equality, so don't be hypocritical. Yi 60 had no choice but to order the imperial dining room to bring the food to Cixi's bedroom. Deng Zixuan sipped the tea, and found that Cixi was secretly looking, not knowing what he was thinking, Guangxu waited for his eyes to look at him intently, obviously Fang Cai's words deeply attracted him.

Deng Zixuan secretly thought: You must be stripped of your skin, so that they can truly surrender in the depths of their hearts. (To be continued......)

PS: This chapter describes the protagonist's entry into the Forbidden City and the finalization of the fate of Cixi, Guangxu and the prince and minister Zuihou.