Chapter 111 Taiwan
On June 1, 1895, the Yangxin Hall.
Emperor Guangxu sat on the dragon chair and stared blankly at His Royal Highness's ministers.
Tang Jingsong, the governor of Taiwan, faced Emperor Guangxu and knelt in the center of the hall. The ministers bowed down and stood on both sides of the hall. None of them dared to look up at Emperor Guangxu on the dragon chair, nor did they dare to face Tang Jingsong kneeling on the ground, so they had to bury their heads and stare at their toes.
Tang Jingsung is in his 40s and is in his prime. However, at this time, Tang Jingsang seems to be an ancient year. His face is withered, his beard is white, trembling, and he kneels on the ground, which is difficult to continue.
In the hall, Tang Jingsang's hoarse voice echoed.
The dazzling sunlight projected from the open door of the temple, so that Emperor Guangxu could not open his eyes. The summer of Yiwei came quickly. After May, the temperature rose sharply, and the weather in early summer was like a steamer.
And the temperature in the hall seems to have risen a lot because of the arrival of Tang Jingsong. The officials in the hall were all well-dressed, and many people's foreheads were already sweaty, and even a thin layer of sweat was soaked out of Emperor Guangxu's neck.
However, Tang Jingsang is still chattering. The ministers were extremely impatient, but no one dared to interrupt Tang Jingsang's words. Even Emperor Guangxu's heart was like a fire, but he had to listen patiently.
A eunuch carefully handed a wet towel to the emperor. Emperor Guangxu knocked the wet towel to the ground. The eunuch was so scared that he fell to his knees: "I deserve to die, I deserve to die!"
Tang Jingsang, who knelt on the ground and chattered endlessly, finally stopped and looked at Emperor Guangxu with an angry face.
Emperor Guangxu knew that he was gaffe and pointed to the eunuch and shouted, "Go and bring a chair to Lord Tang!"
The eunuch was amnesty. He got up in a hurry, took out a round stool from the apse and sent it to Tang Jingsong: "Lord Tang, please sit down."
Tang Jingsang knelt on the ground, but did not move: "Your Majesty, I am guilty and dare not sit down!"
"What's wrong with Lord Tang?" Emperor Guangxu tried to slow down his tone.
"I am the governor of Taiwan, please treat the crime of losing Taiwan!"
Emperor Guangxu couldn't stand it anymore. He grabbed the teacup on several cases and hit it in front of Tang Jingsong. The fragments and tea splashed on Tang Jingsong's official uniform.
"Tang Jingsang, you are too much!"
Tang Jingsong's tone became deeper and deeper: "Taiwan is the merit of the Holy Ancestor Emperor. Now it is buried in the hands of the minister. The minister's crime is unforgivable. Please treat it!"
Tang Jingsong moved out of the holy ancestor Emperor Kangxi. Emperor Guangxu trembled angrily and stared at a pair of eyes, but he couldn't get out!
Tang Jingsong, a scholar in the fourth year of Tongzhi (1865), took over the alternate chief of the Ministry of Li. In the eighth year of Guangxu (1882), France invaded North Vietnam. I asked him to go to Vietnam to contact the Black Flag Army to resist the law. He traveled between Hue, Baosheng, Shanxi and Beining, strategizing for Liu Yongfu of the Black Flag Army, united all parties to fight against France and participated in the two battles of Hanoi and Shanxi. After the Sino-French War, he was transferred to Taiwan Road in Fujian and promoted to Taiwan's political envoy.
Last year, Taiwan governor Shao Youlian saw that the Japanese coveted Taiwan, and the court came up with the idea of ceding Taiwan to the Japanese in exchange for peace. Shao Youlian felt powerless to recover, afraid of losing Taiwan's notoriety, dredge his joints, and was transferred to the governor of Hunan. The position of governor of Taiwan is headed by Tang Jingsang.
Not long after Tang Jingsong acted as the governor, the Qing-Japanese War broke out, the Qing army retreated steadily, and the Japanese army pressed forward step by step.
In January 1895, the Japanese army launched the battles of Shandong and Liaodong. At the beginning of the battle, the Japanese army was like a broken bamboo and frequently won in Liaodong and Shandong. In this case, the Guards Division remaining in the country can't sit still.
The Guards Division is the most elite unit of the Japanese army. The equipment of this unit is one level higher than any other division. The officers and soldiers who can be selected as the Guards Division are all excellent soldiers in thousands of miles. Most of the top students of the Japanese Army University have entered the Guards Division. The Guards Division is the pride of Japanese soldiers and represents the highest level of the Japanese army. In peacetime, the promotion opportunities of officers and soldiers of the Guards Division are far greater than those of other troops. In fact, the Japanese military has formed a tacit understanding - the Guards Division is the cradle of the star.
However, the Qing Japanese War broke this tacit understanding.
The Japanese army has a total of 7 divisions. Except for the Guards Division, all the other 6 divisions participated in the war. They made outstanding achievements in North Korea, Liaodong and Shandong and created a miracle in the face of the rotten Qing army. Countless officers and soldiers have been promoted because of their achievements, and the speed of promotion is so fast that it is shocking. Among them, the most typical one is Shenwei Mitsushin. Before the war, he was only a major. At the end of the war, he actually became a major general!
The Guards Division, which watched the fire across the shore, had no size. They can only watch others make contributions and increase their ranks.
Therefore, when the Japanese army set foot on the capture of Lushun in Liaodong, the Guards Division intensified its preparations for Taiwan's battle. They pressured the cabinet through the military to solve Taiwan with military action.
At this time, Hirofumi Ito's cabinet adhered to the policy of Taiwan's political settlement, that is, to force the Qing court to sign the alliance under the city through the Shandong Campaign and cede Taiwan to Japan, so as to achieve the purpose of capturing Taiwan without blood.
Ito Hirofumi's claim was supported by Emperor Meiji. In the base camp, although the main war faction was very popular, there was nothing to do with the emperor.
However, in the later period of the war, Zhou Charter led the Zhang army to conquer Lushun and disrupted Japan's operational deployment. The war situation gradually developed in a direction that was unfavorable to the Japanese army, and the Japanese army was likely to have achieved nothing on the Chinese battlefield. Within the base camp, calls for the capture of Taiwan by force sounded again.
Under this *, the base camp finally decided to form a southern combat cluster, and transfer three brigades, a mountain artillery squadron, and auxiliary arms from the Guards to form an independent mixed brigade, with Yoshihide Bizhi Island as the commander, supplemented by several cruisers and troop carriers to launch an attack on the Penghu Islands.
The Qing army in Penghu is weak, poorly equipped and demoralized. The Japanese independent mixed brigade is armed to the teeth. The firepower equipment of this unit even exceeds that of the German Army's co-formed troops. Moreover, the independent mixed brigade has long been full of energy and morale. They forcibly landed on the west coast of Lizhengjiao, and succeeded in landing at the cost of only one killed and 10 injured. Four days later, the Japanese army captured Magong City, an important town in Penghu, and announced the occupation of Penghu.
In the past, to attack Taiwan, we must first take Penghu, Penghu will be lost, and Taiwan's gateway will be opened.
The Bizhi Island Brigade won the first battle and was full of arrogance. The rapid collapse of the Qing army in Penghu made the officers and soldiers of the independent mixed brigade believe that the capture of Taiwan was a good job to win fame. They didn't even have to worry about casualties. The officers and soldiers were eager to fight.
After the Qing-Japanese Armistice Agreement was reached, the Qing court decided to abandon Taiwan and send Li Jingfang to Fujian to prepare for the completion of the peaceful exchange of Taiwan with Japan. However, the eager independent mixed brigade quickly launched the landing battle against Taiwan Keelung on the grounds that it had a long way to go and did not receive an order to armistice! Japanese warships approached Keelung Port and were ready to launch landing operations. They are worried that once Taiwan completes the peaceful crossing, they will lose this opportunity to win the war.
The situation in Taiwan is critical. Tang Jingsang decided to strengthen the northern coastal defense line and ask the court for help, hoping that the court would send reinforcements to jointly resist the Japanese attack.
However, the reinforcements did not look forward to it, but came the news that the court officially ceded Taiwan to Japan!
The news came, and Tang Jingsang was like a thunderbolt! The gentry in Taiwan are fierce and strongly oppose the cession of Taiwan to Japan. The gentry rushed to the governor's government to submit a petition, asking Tang Jingsong to report to the court and withdraw his order. Liu Yongfu led the Black Flag Army to actively prepare for war in the Tainan area and prepare to fight against the Japanese army. Local residents in Taiwan have joined the Black Flag Army one after another. Taiwanese students who rushed to take the exam in the capital also gathered to the Prime Minister's government to write a bloody letter, pleading for the court to take back their lives.
Taiwan's soldiers and civilians do not want to belong to Japan. They do not want to be subjugated slaves, and Tang Jingsong does not want to see himself become the last governor of Taiwan and lose the land of his ancestors, which will be scolded for a lifetime!
However, it is very difficult to save the situation.
The imperial court has decided on a national policy to cede Taiwan, and the Japanese bayonet has approached Taipei. At this time, if the court withdraws its order and declares the agreement to cede Taiwan invalid, the Japanese can also seize Taiwan by force!
In the face of the aggressive Japanese army, Taiwan's resistance is too weak, and they can't get any assistance, whether it's the army or the food.
However, Tang Jingsang still wants to have a try! After all, the Qing Dynasty has not officially signed a diplomatic agreement with Japan. Until now, Taiwan is still the land of the Qing Dynasty!
Tang Jingsong came to Beijing with his staff Qiu Pengjia and came to the Premier's government. He asked to see Rong Lu, the Prime Minister of the Prime Minister's government, hoping to persuade Rong Lu to report to the court, take back his order, send reinforcements to Taiwan, and jointly defend Taiwan with Liu Yongfu's troops.
However, Tang Jingsong closed the door at the prime minister's government, and Rong Lu excused him for various reasons, but did not see him.
Tang Jingsong also had some backbone. Rong Lu avoided him. Tang Jingsong simply ran to the Forbidden City and quarreled about meeting the emperor directly!
Emperor Guangxu originally felt guilty about ceding Taiwan, but that was the meaning of the Empress Dowager Buddha, and the emperor had nothing to do. Moreover, the agreement had taken effect, and the Qing court could not break his promise. What's more annoying was that even if the Qing court wanted to defend Taiwan, there were no soldiers to send.
The Qing army, which had just passed the Shandong Campaign, was exhausted. In this battle, the Qing army narrowly drew with the Japanese army. The generals had a lingering fear of the strength of the Japanese army. No one wanted to cross the sea and go to Taiwan to fight with the Japanese. Isn't that hitting the knife!
The only Zhang Jun who can fight has been dismembered by the imperial court, and Zhou Charter, the commander of Zhang Jun, also died. This unit no longer exists.
Emperor Guangxu was willing to rescue Taiwan, but the military power was in the hands of the Empress Dowager. The only troops that the emperor could mobilize was the Nahawu's Xiaoqi camp, which was the emperor's private army. Emperor Guangxu pointed to Nahawu to support him. He was not willing to send to Taiwan to die with the Japanese.
Therefore, when Emperor Guangxu saw Tang Jingsong, Tang Jingsong asked the court to send troops to protect Taiwan, which made Emperor Guangxu extremely embarrassed, but Tang Jingsong was also loyal. The emperor was not easy to reprimand, so he had to listen to Tang Jingsong's chatter patiently.
Emperor Guangxu planned to wait for Tang Jingsong to finish speaking, then give him a kind advice, and then leave him in the capital and give him a position as a servant in the household department, which is considered to conclude this public case.
Taiwan is already Japanese.
How did you think that this Tang Jingsang didn't eat softly and hard, and actually moved out the Holy Ancestor Emperor in front of the ministers!