Beiyang Dream

Luo Jingrou smiled, but then pulled a ruler out of her sleeve!

It had brass edging, was made of rosewood, was palm-width wide, two feet long, and felt heavy in the hand. This was something she brought from Tianjin; it was the Chang family's family rule, specially prepared for Qingzi.

Who else could it be for? Right now, Luo Jingrou is the only one in Chang Desheng's house, and she doesn't even have a child yet!

Haruko could take it, so why should Mrs. Luo be polite now? She should just beat her up.

"Now, I'll ask you questions, and you'll answer them."

Luo Jingrou slammed the ruler on the table, making a crisp "smack": "If you don't answer well, you'll get a slap on the palm."

Haruko knelt on the prayer mat, head bowed, and softly replied, "Hi!"

"Who exactly are you?" Luo Jingrou asked.

"I am Haruko Okura, the adopted daughter of Kihachiro Okura."

Luo Jingrou smiled.

The smile was quite gentle, but when Haruko caught a glimpse of it out of the corner of her eye, she thought to herself: Oh no, I'm about to get beaten up.

"You're being naughty," Luo Jingrou said, "lying. Hold out your hand."

Haruko hesitated for a second, then obediently extended her left hand, palm up.

Luo Jingrou raised the ruler and, without any hesitation, struck the child three times heavily.

The sound of "slap, slap, slap" was quite crisp, and it hurt a lot, leaving a red mark every foot long.

After Qingzi finished being beaten, she raised her head and smiled gently at Luo Jingrou: "Sister Jingrou still cares about her little sister and didn't use too much force." Luo Jingrou also smiled: "You little girl are quite resilient."

"It was Sister Jingrou who went easy on me."

"Should we ask Zhenbang to come?" Luo Jingrou raised an eyebrow. "He's strong."

Haruko smiled even more sweetly: "Okay."

Luo Jingrou scoffed inwardly: This girl's skin is really thick. Well, she's met her match.

She placed the ruler on the table and changed her tone: "Then you have to tell the truth, who exactly are you? Who arranged for you to become the adopted daughter of the Okura family?" Haruko didn't speak.

Luo Jingrou wasn't in a hurry and continued, "You must care a lot about this identity, right? Although you're just an adopted daughter, you're still part of the Okura family. Your adoptive father is Okura Kihachiro, the head of the Okura family. Life as Okura Haruko must be wonderful, right? For someone from a poor background like you, that's wealth you'd risk your life to protect, am I right?"

Haruko's fingers curled slightly.

That's obviously right!

"If Kihachiro Okura knew your true identity, it would have been exposed long ago," Luo Jingrou paused, lowering her voice, "it would have been exposed back when we became friends at Cheltenham Girls' Academy. Could you have continued being an Okura-style foster daughter?"

Haruko's expression finally changed.

She suddenly looked up, her eyes wide: "You...you knew all along?"

Luo Jingrou chuckled inwardly: How would I know? It's all thanks to Brother Zhenbang's sharp eyes that he saw through you, you little devil, at a glance!

But she remained expressionless, only offering a cold smile: "What do you think?"

Haruko's lips trembled, but she couldn't utter a word.

Luo Jingrou continued, her tone unhurried: "You've always been trying to please others, to please me, to please Brother Zhenbang. You're always so obedient, so exceptionally obedient! I've never seen a rich heiress like you... Your original background must have been very difficult, right?"

Haruko shuddered slightly again.

Luo Jingrou looked at her and softened her voice: "Qingzi, you know you've been exposed, yet you still risked entering the Chang family. Isn't that because you've thought it through... even if it means betraying the Okura family, you still want to protect your identity and wealth? You value the wealth the Okura family gave you more than your own life, don't you?" Qingzi remained silent for a long time.

Finally, she softly uttered a single word: "Hi!"

The sound was very soft, like the buzzing of a mosquito.

Luo Jingrou laughed again: "From now on, whatever Okura Kihachiro gives you, you can take it. I'll give you another portion, how about that? Haruko, you know what kind of person I am... I love throwing money at people."

Haruko's eyes were already red.

She slowly bowed down, pressing her forehead against the back of her hand: "Qingzi is willing to follow your lead, sister."

"Tell me," Luo Jingrou leaned back in her chair, "Who exactly are you?"

Haruko straightened up, took a deep breath, and began to speak:

"My original name was Akagi Haru. My family were originally hatamoto samurai of the Tokugawa clan. After the fall of the shogunate, our family fell into ruin. When I was born, my family was almost destitute, but my father seemed to still live in the past. From a young age, he would tell me about the former glory of the Akagi family—the hundreds of kan of stipend, the ancestral sword, and the rewards from the shogun's family. When he talked about these things, his eyes would have a rare vitality and light."

She paused.

"So I've always longed for an upper-class life since I was little. I wanted to wear nice clothes, eat exquisite pastries, and live a life where I didn't have to worry about tomorrow."

"Later, my father died of illness, and my mother could no longer afford to support me and my siblings, so she sold me to one of my father's friends. That person sent me to a school run by the Genyosha."

"When I was 13, because of my outstanding performance in all aspects, my exceptional beauty, and my ability to please people, the Genyosha sent me to the Okura family to become their adopted daughter." Luo Jingrou interjected, "What tasks did the Genyosha and the Okura family initially assign you?"

Haruko looked up at her: "It's about getting close to you."

Luo Jingrou raised an eyebrow: "Me?"

"Yes," Haruko said. "The Genyosha does business with 'Nanyang Sisters' in Southeast Asia, and the Okura Group smuggles arms to Southeast Asia. They both need a reliable Chinese gang as a partner. Marrying me into a prominent Chinese family in Southeast Asia through you is the ideal way." It turns out that Haruko's initial goal was to become Luo Jingrou's sister-in-law.

"What about Brother Zhenbang?"

"Dealing with Lord Chang... was just a temporary task." Haruko's voice lowered. "The Okura Group knew nothing about this from beginning to end. It was a temporary task given to me by Genyo Social.

She looked up at Luo Jingrou with teary eyes: "Now that I think about it, I really regret what I did to offend Lord Chang. Qingzi is willing to be punished, however she is punished."

Looking at her pitiful appearance, Luo Jingrou snorted inwardly: Still pretending.

This time, however, she did not use the ruler. Instead, she picked up a brown paper bag from the table, untied the rope, and poured it onto the table. A pile of documents came out with a clatter: household registers, indentures, contracts of sale, official prostitute registers, redemption documents, donation documents, and certificates of release from prostitution.

Everything is available.

Haruko was stunned.

"These are all prepared for you," Luo Jingrou said. "From now on, your identity in the Chang family will be that of Kim Soo-yeon, the courtesan presented to Brother Zhenbang by Li Zuyuan, the military and naval commander of Hamgyongnam-do. Keep these documents safe; they are all genuine, and no one can find any fault with them. I will also arrange for someone to teach you Korean."

Looking at the pile of documents, Haruko thought to herself: So this best friend of mine had already figured me out completely.

Her lips moved, and after a long pause, she finally spoke: "Thank you, Sister Jingrou."

"Don't thank me yet." Luo Jingrou pointed to the desk in the corner. "Go write there."

"What should I write?"

"Confession," Luo Jingrou said. "Who is your superior? How do you contact them? And what kind of training did you receive at the Xuan Yang Society Academy? Write it all down for me."

Haruko was silent for a few seconds, then softly replied, "Hi."

She stood up, walked to the desk, sat down, and began to write.

Luo Jingrou sat there, holding her teacup, watching her write stroke by stroke. The room was quiet for a while, with only the occasional sound of paper turning.

Qingzi finally finished writing the last stroke. She put down her pen, blew on the ink to dry it, and walked over with the papers in both hands, handing them to Luo Jingrou. Luo Jingrou took them, didn't look at them, and threw them directly into the drawer.

"Haruko," she said.

"As long as you behave, Genyosha and Kihachiro Okura will know nothing." Luo Jingrou looked at her gently. "You will still be Kihachiro Okura's good daughter."

Qingzi bowed again, saying, "Yes, thank you for your kindness, Sister Jingrou."

Luo Jingrou stood up, walked to the wardrobe, and opened the door.

Inside hung a set of North Korean women's clothing—a light pink short jacket, a light blue long skirt, neatly folded underwear and white socks, and a pair of small boat shoes.

"Change everything for me, inside and out," Luo Jingrou said. "Give me all the luggage and clothes you brought from Yuanshan. Don't keep a single one." Qingzi stared at the Korean dress for a few seconds, stunned.

Then he nodded slightly: "Yes."

She took off her plain kimono, along with her undergarments, folding them neatly and placing them aside. Then she changed into a Korean dress—a short top and long skirt, narrow sleeves and a fitted waist—a completely different look from the kimono she was used to. She tugged at the hem of her skirt somewhat uncomfortably, then looked down at her boat-shaped shoes. Luo Jingrou looked her up and down, then nodded: "Hmm, not bad. Let's go, Zhenbang is coming back, let's go greet him. Remember, you must kneel to greet him and introduce yourself as your servant, Jin Xiuyan."

"Yes, I understand."

Haruko followed behind her through the corridor.

But then she remembered what Chang Desheng had said to her at the Wonsan dock: "Little fox, once we get to Seoul, see how I deal with you." Soon, she'd be getting her comeuppance...

At the same time, in Gyeongbokgung Palace, Lee Hee was already asleep, or rather, he was pretending to be asleep.

But the voice of the eunuch outside the door forced him to get up.

"Your Majesty, Queen Min and Lord Yuan have arrived."

Li Xi's face turned pale. Well, trouble is coming!

He had just finished dressing with the help of the eunuchs when Queen Min and Yuan Shikai entered. Queen Min walked in front, her face even more unpleasant than Lee Hee's, while Yuan Shikai walked behind, his face gloomy. This reminded Lee Hee of the time when Yuan Shikai led troops to arrest his father, Daewongun, and when he led troops to storm Gyeongbokgung Palace to kill the Enlightenment Party.

Now, Yuan Shikai has troops in his hands again!

Queen Min spoke up, even foregoing the formalities: "I heard that Zhao Bingji was disrespectful to the envoys of the superior nation at the Huiqing Tower today, uttering wild words!" Lee Hee was taken aback: "Zhao Bingji was merely drunk and spoke carelessly; it cannot be taken seriously."

"That's the truth when drunk!" Queen Min immediately erupted, her face turning ashen. "That old scoundrel Jo Byung-jik said things like 'Using barbarians to change Chinese ways, the ancestral laws cannot be changed,' Your Majesty, are you just letting him say that?"

Li Xi shrank back, "Jiaren... Jiaren..."

Yuan Shikai spoke up at the opportune moment, his tone somber: "Your Majesty, if I may be so bold as to say something unpleasant, the phrase 'using barbarians to transform the Chinese' cannot be uttered lightly in this dynasty. If it is interpreted as an act of overthrowing the Qing and restoring the Ming, even I, your minister, will find it difficult to protect you. Currently, the Qing Dynasty has troops in Korea. If this reaches the Empress Dowager's ears, she will issue an imperial edict..."

It turns out that Yuan Shikai's method of clearing obstacles wasn't to reason with people, but to eliminate the person who raised the issue. He seized upon the idea of ​​"using barbarians to transform China," steer it towards the path of overthrowing the Qing and restoring the Ming, and relentlessly persecuted that old man, Zhao. With him dead, the entire Korean state naturally shut up! No one dared to use the Westernization Project as a topic for factional struggle anymore.

Queen Min is close to him, and these days she's been showered with money by Lady Luo, so of course she'll speak up for him.

Moreover, that old man Zhao is a man of the Daewongun, and not in cahoots with Queen Min.

When Queen Min translated Yuan Shikai's words into Korean, King Yi Hee's face turned ashen, as white as a sheet of paper.

He thought to himself: How did this suddenly become about overthrowing the Qing and restoring the Ming? Old Zhao just said something about "using barbarians to change Chinese culture," how did it turn into overthrowing the Qing and restoring the Ming? Premier Yuan is trying to kill someone!

He wanted to say something in his defense, but after opening his mouth, he didn't know what to say.

Queen Min and Yuan Shikai stared at him like two knives, one on his left and one on his right, trapping him in the middle with nowhere to hide. "My lord..." he began with difficulty, "Zhao Bingji is, after all, a veteran minister, and a man of the Daewongun..."

Queen Min's face darkened further, and she transformed from a tigress into a human: "Russian warships are currently in Wonsan, and Japan is eyeing us covetously. The only thing Korea can rely on is the Qing Dynasty! This old scoundrel's words have offended the Qing Dynasty to the death. Such a person cannot be allowed to live; he must be executed!" Lee Hee-jin was terrified. He thought to himself, "Execution for just one sentence? Is it really necessary?"

He glanced at Yuan Shikai, who remained expressionless and merely gave a cold snort.

That cold snort was more effective than anything else. Li Xi sighed inwardly: This old man Zhao can't be allowed to live...

He shrank his neck and said in a voice as low as a mosquito's buzz: "Then...then I'll send you to North Hamgyong Province."

Queen Min translated these words into Chinese and told them to Yuan Shikai.

Yuan Shikai didn't respond, but just silently looked at Li Xi.

Li Xi swallowed hard, then added, "Never let him come back, is that alright?"

Yuan Shikai then slowly nodded and cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards Li Xi:

"Your Majesty is wise."

Queen Min turned and left, her steps light and quick.

Yuan Shikai followed behind him, paused at the door, and glanced back at Li Xi:

"Your Majesty, tomorrow at court, you have another decree to issue... regarding the military academy and bullet factory in Zhennanpu, which are jointly operated with the Beiyang Army... Please approve it!"

Queen Min turned around and translated Yuan Shikai's words again, adding, "Your Majesty, if we want to protect ourselves, we need a new army... Even three thousand is better than none. What are you hesitating for?"

Li Xi didn't look up: "...I understand."