Nanyang Storm 1864

Chapter 111: The Imperial Court is Shocked (The third part of the daily update of words has been sent, please support with monthly tickets and recommendation tickets)

Zheng Guohui did not get angry after hearing this, but picked up the tea and took a few sips gently. This was his experience after becoming an official, and it was very useful.

If you are unable to make a decision for the time being, you might as well let it go.

Looting definitely happened. During the Tongzhou militia period, Zheng Guohui led his troops to fight everywhere without any food or pay. If they couldn't rob the enemies, they would rob the rich and just find a random crime to accuse them of.

Not only the Tongzhou militia did this, but the Hunan Army and the Huai Army also did so. It was almost a common unspoken rule.

The court had no money and was fighting a war, so the soldiers couldn't just starve, right? This was also something the court tacitly approved.

The prerequisite is not to do something that is hated by both humans and gods and to kill everyone.

With this gene, He Ruolin, the defender of Xuzhou, and Zheng Jiabao, the defender of Huai'an, would not be too honest. It was almost a routine operation for them to find a few wealthy people who were stingy and unwilling to show filial piety, rob them, and then accuse them of "collaborating with bandits."

But there should be no "killing innocent people to claim credit". Whether before or after the reorganization of the Green Camp soldiers, there were rewards for killing enemies on the battlefield, but the rewards were not much.

The heads of these common people are worthless. It is not worth it for the officers and soldiers to gamble their future and be held accountable by their superiors, which may lead to them losing their heads.

This army, which originated from the Tongzhou militia, had strict military discipline. The same was true for the Hunan Army and the Huai Army, which is why they were so famous and could not tolerate slander.

"Forming cliques for personal gain and enriching officials" does exist, but it cannot be admitted. Admitting it is tantamount to seeking one's own death.

As for the charge that "the commander-in-chief indulged in wine and women and acted extravagantly", it was a purely fabricated charge and was not worth refuting. Instead, it would get negative points if it was presented to the court.

Say one thousand, preach ten thousand.

The factional struggles in the imperial court never cared about right or wrong, but only about bringing down the opposing officials.

With thoughts racing

Zheng Guohui figured it all out. He put down his teacup, straightened his clothes, and said nonchalantly, "If you want to accuse someone, you can always find a pretext. I'm sure Brother Xianqu already has a plan."

Your Li family has two high-ranking officials who can be regarded as Prince Gong's right-hand men in the court. The other family is the Zeng brothers of the Hunan Army. Don't you know what the situation is?

Zheng Guohui thought that he was not yet at the level of Prince Gong's right-hand man. At best, he was just a thin branch under the big tree with deep roots and lush leaves.

It's not that important and can be sacrificed.

Li Hezhang did not hide his feelings in front of the smart man and said directly;
"The immortals have joined forces with some other county officials and have jointly submitted an impeachment memorial in the name of the general, impeaching the governor, Elong, on 12 major charges. It has already been submitted.

A copy of the memorial was left among the documents that the General needed to review.

Since you are throwing dirty water, even if it is thrown on your body, it will not be clean. Who are you afraid of?

"General, I'm afraid you don't know yet, but Prince Gong Yixin, having been criticized by some villain, has been dismissed from his position as Regent by the Empress Dowager and has been granted the privilege of walking in the inner court and taking charge of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs."

"What……"

This news was like a bolt from the blue, shocking Zheng Guohui to the point of being completely shattered. He hurriedly asked, "When did this happen?"

Li Hezhang forced a smile. This incident was probably a big blow to the Li family. He replied:

"Just after the general left for Southeast Asia, editor Cai Shouqi was the first to launch an attack and impeach Yi, saying that Prince Gong had usurped power, accepted bribes, and acted in a selfish and arrogant manner. Subsequently, impeachment memorials poured in like rain.

two days later

The two Empress Dowagers issued an edict in the name of Emperor Tongzhi, dismissing the Prince Regent and all other positions for his disrespect for the emperor.

Above the court
Prince Gong Yixin's face turned pale. He neither spoke to defend himself nor knelt to beg for mercy. Instead, he stood in the court for a long time without saying a word.

The ministers in the court knelt down and begged for mercy, and the two Empress Dowagers showed special favor and allowed him to walk in the inner court and take charge of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Oh my god, is it that fierce?
Zheng Guohui was completely shocked by the factional struggles in the court. It was difficult to understand his feelings at the moment unless you were there in person. All kinds of emotions surged in his heart.

in his eyes

Prince Gong Yixin was a man of extraordinary talent. It was precisely because of this white jade pillar that supported the sky and this purple gold beam that the imperial court was able to usher in the so-called "Tongzhi Restoration" and survive the most difficult forty years of turmoil.

From the death of Emperor Xianfeng until thirty years later, Prince Gong Yixin almost independently supported the government.

The imperial court successively suppressed the Taiping Rebellion, the Nian Bandits, the Hui Rebellion and dozens of uprisings of varying sizes across the country. The population and national strength were greatly restored, and a brief period of prosperity and development emerged.

this period
It was also an era when the imperial court opened its doors to the world and accepted the influence and edification of foreign trends, mainly due to the enlightened policies of Prince Gong Yixin, who promoted the development of the "Westernization Movement".

Railways, telegraphs, steamships, modern printing, gunpowder guns, iron ship construction, newspapers, books, films, Western medicine, bicycles, and cars were gradually introduced into the country, and military academies were established to introduce Western military concepts.

The construction of the Kailuan Coal Mine, the Mawei Naval Academy, the establishment of the Beiyang Navy, the active expansion of foreign exchanges, and the advanced foreign ideas of national independence and revitalization, all originated from this enlightened Prince Gong.

This is the Prince Regent, who works hard for the court, devoting his heart and soul to stabilizing this precarious mess.

You just deposed such a person. How ruthless were these two Empress Dowagers?

No, he has long hair but little knowledge, and is indeed a short-sighted person.

Li Hezhang saw the indignant look on Zheng Guohui's face and kindly said, "Eight or nine out of ten things in this world are not as we wish. Even someone as respected as Prince Gong cannot avoid being impeached by villains, let alone you."

"Brother Xian Que is saying that if one is not envied by others, he is a mediocre person."

"Right on my mind."

"Then you and I share the same suffering. From now on, we should support each other through life, pursue the careers we love, and not get bogged down in these petty pursuits." "That's what I sincerely wish, but I dare not ask."

Li Hezhang casually mentioned his book bag, and then he and Zheng Guohui looked at each other and laughed.

Zheng Guohui slapped his thigh and stood up, saying with great pride, "Forget about these trivial matters, let's go eat first. This general is already starving, and nothing is more important than eating."

"My lord, the immortals please follow the horse."

"Let's go, let's go, let's go eat. If the cook's cooking isn't delicious today, I'll give him thirty lashes to vent my anger."

The two of them walked back together, chatting and laughing, and the others followed.

Zheng Guohui's confusion was resolved.

No wonder the Governor Elong jumped out and started biting people madly. It turned out that Prince Gong above him was overthrown and lost the honorable position of Prince Regent. It was like a phoenix falling to the ground, no better than a chicken.

The governor Elong took refuge with the diehard forces such as Uzigeri Woren in the court. For a while, his vision was greatly improved and he felt that he could compete with him.

Actually, think about it

Zheng Guohui felt that Prince Gong Yixin, sitting in such a high position, was trying so hard to please everyone, but he might not be able to please anyone.

Yi supported Zeng Guofan, Zuo Zongtang and others in promoting Westernization, but advocated weakening local forces, which would inevitably affect the interests of Chinese governors in the southeastern provinces and easily arouse dissatisfaction.

Yi promoted Westernization and promoted Han officials. This led to strong dissatisfaction among diehards in the Qing court, such as Wuqigeli Woren, who believed that this violated the ancestral system and was undermining the power of the Manchu royal family. Naturally, they wanted to pull him out of power.

At the same time, Yi's power was limited and he could not meet the various excessive demands of the great powers, which also made him dissatisfied.

You are already a minister of the Royal Council, but you cannot cede some land or open more commercial ports. What's the point of shirking responsibility?

The two Empress Dowagers used Yi Ping to stabilize the situation and also gave him enormous power. For a time, he was second only to three people and above ten thousand people.

But as Prince Gong Yi's fame grew, this caused unrest in the palace.

Under the control of this contradictory psychology, the palace consciously fostered two or even multiple political factions, causing them to restrain and fight each other, while she herself sat firmly on the Diaoyutai.

This old-fashioned method of checks and balances is still useful today.

But this stupid woman didn’t even think about whether the current imperial court could withstand the turmoil?
Zheng Guohui is now considered a senior official of the imperial court. If he thinks about the whole story together, he will understand the mystery.

I know it, but I don’t know what to do.

My words don’t count!

"I know how to govern a country and bring it to the forefront of the world's powerful nations. Please give me a chance to sit on the throne of the Prince Regent, and I will give you a powerful and peaceful era..."

Ahem... If Zheng Guohui dared to say that, he would probably not be beaten to death, but he would be ridiculed and attacked to death by those court officials, and everyone would think he was crazy.

then what should we do?

It’s better to eat it cold and then go straight to the rice.

After dinner, Li Hezhang had a private conversation with Zheng Guohui for half a day.

At dusk

He hurried to the dock and boarded the boat, then sailed straight to Jinling City to take charge of local affairs.

He had been in Chongming Island for a few days, mainly to meet Zheng Guohui. The two sides communicated the important matters face to face, and then he would return immediately.

Zheng Guohui was no longer in a hurry. He stayed on Chongming Island for one night. After listening to the report the next day, he walked around the town and the villages below to understand the actual situation of the refugees.

Today on Chongming Island

The population is as high as 8.7, and this is when Zheng Guohui's forces held back and picked up some strong and young refugees and transferred them to the island one after another.

It is the spring famine season now, and there are too many people who have no food to eat. Refugees are going out from village to village to beg.

If we let the collection go, we won’t be able to control 20, let alone 30 people.

His cheap father-in-law Li Hanzhang served as the governor of Hunan, and his second uncle Li Hongzhang served as the governor-general of Liangjiang. Zheng Guohui's influence covered the entire Jiangnan Province, and his influence extended directly from the Han River to the Yangtze River.

The Zheng family's grain ships were traveling back and forth, so carrying a hundred or so refugees on one ship was nothing. It was just a matter of going along with the flow.

To go south to Chongming Island, you have to go downstream. When sailing on the river, you just need to set the sail and steer the boat, and the surging river water will push the boat forward.

On Chongming Island

Now they are divided into two groups. One group does not want to leave their homeland, so they stay on the island permanently as tenants. They are gradually arranged to live in the original residences of the settlers and build mud houses to settle down.

From now on, people will work from sunrise to sunset and enjoy a peaceful life without suffering from the disasters of war. This will require nearly 4 people.

The other part will be transferred to Southeast Asia one after another. Every time a fleet arrives, it will take away two to three thousand to three to four thousand people, and a stable route to Southeast Asia has been formed.

Such immigration transportation greatly reduces the reception pressure on Mindanao and makes it easier to resettle them.

Accepting a batch every half a month or 20 days is better than accepting or people at once, and it is more reasonable.

(End of this chapter)