The Qing Dynasty is about to end

Chapter 506 That's not a devil, that's a ghost! (Please subscribe, please vote)

When Wu Chongyao and Bishop Viale-Prera ​​were contentedly boarding the carriage for the return trip and disappeared into the rainy night of Vienna, Gorchakov finally couldn't suppress his doubts. He stood in front of Grand Duchess Natalia who was about to leave from the back door of the church and suddenly asked loudly: "You are not the Tsar's special envoy. You are falsely conveying the Tsar's will, right?"

A gust of wind blew open the half-open back door of the church, and a rainstorm suddenly rushed into the dilapidated little church. The cold raindrops hit Natalia's porcelain doll-like face, but she didn't even blink: "His Majesty the Tsar did not order me to go to the East to find out the truth about magic, but I know that was his inner thought, otherwise he would not have asked me to escort the 10 million gold rubles!" She lifted her cloak and took out a Russian version of "Revolutionary Book Collection" from a shoulder bag hanging on her bare shoulders and handed it to Gorchakov, "The devil not only cursed the death of the Tsar, he is cursing the world!"

In the dim and flickering candlelight, Gorchakov took the collection. Below the title were the author's name and the translator's pseudonym. The author's name was exactly the Russian word for "a ghost", while the translator's name was two Cyrillic letters В and Л - this was a common tactic used by revolutionaries in Russia, using a pseudonym consisting of two Cyrillic letters to publish articles and books to avoid being caught by the OBSTE.

"He not only predicted my uncle's death, but also our demise! The demise of all of us." Natalia's snow-white face was flushed with excitement. She said to Gorchakov in Russian quickly and hastily, "The first half of the Revolutionary Book Collection teaches people how to rebel, from serfs and young officers to great nobles! And the second half is about the Land System of the Celestial Empire, A New Treatise on Governance, and an ideal new world. You should take a good look at it. After reading it, you should know who the Prime Minister of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom is."

Gorchakov was sweating coldly: "Natalia, you mean him, him."

Natalia clenched her fists, her face cold: "He is a ghost! A ghost who may have mastered magic!"

In the courtyard outside the British Museum's library department, a group of young and middle-aged men in cheap suits and slovenly appearance, as well as a second-rank official from the Qing Dynasty wearing a full hat and a peacock feather, were gathered together and having a heated discussion in English about demons and ghosts.

The second-rank official of the Qing Dynasty who was wearing a hat and a peacock feather was Lord Bai Siwen, the Qing Dynasty's first-class imperial envoy and plenipotentiary minister to England, France, Prussia, Austria and the Holy See.

This Mr. Bai went to Europe with Sushun, Li Hongzhang, Yuan Bao and others. Now everyone else has gone back to pursue their own careers, but he was left behind by Sushun in Europe. He served as the minister to five countries and traveled on public funds between London, Paris, Berlin, Vienna and Rome with the funds left by Sushun. He also wrote a book "Bai Siwen's Journey to the West" and asked his attendants to send it back to China for publication. It is said that it is quite popular in the Westernization circles in the north!
At the same time, Lord Bai was also doing well in Europe. Although he was a member of the Eight Banners, he was not the kind of "silly old man" who carried a bird cage all day and could do nothing. He was the "study tyrant" among the Eight Banners and was actively motivated! Moreover, his family had been learning the Russian language and taking care of Russian affairs for generations, and he was one of the Eight Banners members who had been responsible for opening their eyes to the world. In addition, he was studious and motivated, and he had mastered Russian very early.

After arriving in Europe, he continued to improve himself and became able to speak fluent English. In order to investigate the internal situation of England for the imperial court, he traveled around the European continent and found a good place filled with all the knowledge of England near the Qing Embassy in London, which was the library collection of the British Museum.

So starting about a year and a half ago, a second-rank official from the Qing Dynasty could often be seen borrowing books from the British Museum's library collection department.

This second-rank official of the Qing Dynasty was easy-going and talkative. Especially after he mastered English, he would often get together with some "book friends" to discuss topics related to "Anti-Scripture", "True Testament", "The Theory of Heaven", "The Book of Prophets", "The Land System of the Celestial Kingdom" and "New Treatise on Aids to Administration", as well as the vigorous Taiping Rebellion.

As the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom's Wu Chongyao delegation arrived in Europe and sparked a "magic fever" in England, Bai Siwen, a Qing envoy who came from the "country where angels descended" and had even seen angels themselves, often became the focus of discussions.

Under the ancient locust tree in the courtyard, five or six people sat around Bai Siwen. The sunlight passed through the treetops and turned into spots of light, swaying on Bai Siwen's official uniform. He held the Russian version of "Revolutionary Book Collection" in his left hand, and held a jade-studded pipe in his right hand. He was debating with several people sitting around in fluent English: "I think what is described in "On Heaven" is not the real heaven, but the goal of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom. It is a paradise on earth where everyone can have enough food and clothing, there will be no hunger and cold in the world, production is extremely developed, and material is extremely abundant! Although the scenes in this paradise are impossible to realize on earth, they are described very realistically. And each version is more real and richer than the last. It covers all aspects of food, clothing, housing, transportation, etc." A man opposite him with a big beard and a long beard said: A bearded middle-aged man in his thirties suddenly interrupted him: "Why is the scene in "The Paradise" impossible to achieve? Mr. Bai, do you know? The wealth created by mankind in the past hundred years is more than the total wealth created by all mankind in all past centuries, I mean the sum of all the centuries from the birth of mankind to the middle of the 18th century! Can you imagine how much wealth mankind can create in the next hundred years? With so much wealth, the world in "The Paradise" is entirely possible to achieve!" This man was called Moore, a German scholar and newspaper editor living in London.

"The past hundred years have seen faster development, but that doesn't necessarily mean the next hundred years will see the same development! Moreover," Bai Siwen lifted the hem of his official robe, revealing Oliver Twist on his knees, "this book describes the current situation in London - a hundred years ago, two hundred years ago, three hundred years ago, the beggars in London were almost the same as those described in Oliver Twist, right? There may be some improvement, but not much. In the heavenly London in The Theory of Heaven, not only is everyone well fed and clothed, and there is no longer the miserable situation in Oliver Twist, but there are also many benefits such as medical care, education, unemployment benefits, and pensions. In addition, not only can white people enjoy many benefits, but even Indians and blacks can be equal and friendly with white people in London, without distinction. Such a London is impossible, not to mention a hundred years, even a thousand years!"

"Unless there really is a Heavenly Father!" said an Italian Carbonari, who tucked under his arm a newly published copy of the Manifesto and a print of an imaginary portrait of Hong Xiuquan - a portrait that True Covenant missionaries had distributed in large quantities in Japan, Southeast Asia, and the western United States, and somehow even in London.

Bai Siwen smiled and twirled his beard. "Yes, unless there really is a Heavenly Father! But as far as I know, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom only had one prophet, and he had no other magical powers besides prophecy. Otherwise, how could the Qing Dynasty have persisted until now? A prophet with abundant martial virtues has appeared in history, right? What kind of country did he create?"

A French exile with a baby face and a big beard interrupted with a sneer: "The protection of small producers in the "Land System of the Celestial Empire" may be the basis for building a paradise on earth." He deliberately placed the French translation of "The Land System of the Celestial Empire" on a stone table.

Bai Siwen recognized this man. His name was Pierre-Joseph Proudhon. He was a French exile who fled to Britain because he opposed Napoleon III. Bai Siwen shook his head and said, "One or two acres of land per capita is simply not enough to protect small producers. One acre in China is just a very small piece of land, about one-sixth of an acre. So once the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom establishes industry like Britain and France, it will definitely expand outward! And war, especially war between powers, will only destroy the wealth accumulated with great difficulty! As far as I know, the intensity of wars in human society in the past hundred years is also unprecedented, right? If mankind will create unprecedented wealth in the next hundred years, it will definitely destroy unprecedented wealth through war. Unless there is a Heavenly Father!"

"The people are God's Father!" A tall, handsome middle-aged man who was sitting with Moore suddenly stood up and waved his fist vigorously.

Bai Siwen shook his head: "Are you European people willing to share the world with Indians, Africans, Indians and us Asians? If not, then you have occupied the most and richest land in the world, and you must suppress others in order to defend these lands. There is no such thing as a people's father! Unless there really is a father. But unfortunately, even if there is, he cannot come to our world. And the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom does not have any magic power except prophecy!"

The discussion continued until the closing bell rang. Bai Siwen was registering at the lending desk for the book "History of British India" that he would pick up tomorrow. The administrator suddenly whispered, "Mr. Minister, there is a visitor waiting for you in the rare book room."

Walking through the corridor filled with ancient Chinese books, Bai Siwen saw a figure wrapped in a black cloak in front of an unknown fragment. The man turned around, revealing a pale and sickly face.

Bai Siwen was stunned for a moment, then he quickly bowed and said in English: "Hello, Your Highness!"

(End of this chapter)