71 Salt and Maintenance

In the early morning, outside the Donghua Gate of the Qing Palace, it was heavily guarded. Four burly bodyguard military officers, wearing uniforms of the new army and wearing sabers, came to the Qianqing Palace early and stood upright.

In a short time, ten ministers of state, including Hu Weide, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Zhao Bingjun, Minister of Civil Affairs, Shaoying, Minister of the Army, Wang Shizhen, Minister of the Navy, Tan Xueheng, Minister of the Department, Tang Jingchong, Minister of Justice, Shen Jiaben, Minister of Posts and Telecommunications, Liang Shizhi, Minister of Industry and Commerce, Xi Yan, Minister of Industry and Agriculture, and Da Shou, Minister of Lifan, came into the palace.

According to the rules, they first sat down in the porch on the southeast corner of the Qianqing Palace Gate, where the princes and ministers entered the court to wait for the decree.

Today, the Empress Dowager Longyu, with the six-year-old little emperor Pu Yi, held the last ceremony of the Qing Dynasty in the Yangxin Hall. Yuan Shikai, the prime minister, still said that he was ill and did not enter the DPRK. The Minister of State, wearing a crown and a robe, entered the porch in the southeast corner of the Qianqing Palace Gate and sat down for the order. They sat silently and drank a bowl of tea, but their expressions were different: Hu Weide, Zhao Bingjun and Wang Shizhen's eyebrows were flying, with a ecstatic look; Liang Shiyi narrowed a pair of mysterious eyes; Tang Jingchong The expression was dull; Shao Ying looked angry; Da Shou hung his head helplessly; Tan Xueheng and Xi Yan looked sad.

After a long time, a eunuch finally came and reported: "The Empress Dowager has arrived in the apse. Please go to the palace."

Ten ministers of state stood up, habitually put on the top of the cover and the robes on their bodies, came out of the porch and walked to the hall. They walked ten feet away from the throne, lined up in a row, and stood facing the throne. The four bodyguards in the hall with sabers stood behind the minister. Shi Xu, the Minister of the Interior, and Xu Shichang, the Cabinet Associate Minister, were also called to come to the court.

A eunuch shouted, "Please the empress dowager!"

After a while, two eunuchs came out of the apse and stood on both sides of the throne. At this time, the Empress Dowager Longyu led the six-year-old little emperor Puyi to the hall slowly.

The ministers hurriedly knelt down to the Empress Dowager. Empress Dowager Longyu waved her hand gently and said, "You don't have to do the old salute. Today, just bow!"

So, the ministers stood up and bowed three times to the queen. Long Yu nodded unnaturally as a return gift. After the ceremony, Longyu sat on the throne in the middle, and Emperor Puyi of Xuantong sat on another chair next to him.

Hu Weide stepped forward and said, "Prime Minister Yuan Shikai was not able to see him in person because he was in poor health, so he asked Hu Weide to lead the ministers of state to the palace to say hi to the empress dowager and the emperor."

Empress Dowager Longyu nodded and said, "Okay." Then he said, "Yuan Shikai has been deeply favored by the emperor and has made a lot of efforts for the country and the royal family. Now it is not easy to make peace can satisfy the north and the south, give preferential treatment to the royal family, and support the situation up to now. The emperor and I handed over the power of the country to Yuan Shikai to run the republican government in accordance with the conditions of the peace. An edict was issued today to announce the abdication.

The imperial eunuch put the last three edicts in front of the Empress Dowager Longyu. She looked at a few lines, and tears covered her eyes. At this time, Xiao Dezhang, the chief eunuch, hurriedly ran in from the door of the Yangxin Hall and knelt in front of the empress dowager to enjoy the report: "The empress dowager, Prince Chun Zaifeng and Prince Gong Puwei came into the palace, and they cursed all the way!"

"What are you scolding?" Empress Dowager Longyu quickly wiped her tears and asked. Xiaode looked at the empress dowager and the ten ministers of state standing on both sides of the throne, and stopped talking.

"Just say it!" Empress Dowager Longyu's tone was very hard.

"They scolded Yuan Shikai as a traitor. They opposed the abdication edict and wanted to enter the palace to argue with the empress dowager."

"You send someone to intercept the palace door and don't let them come in and disturb it!" The Empress Dowager Longyu said firmly. She has never had such a tone. After saying that, even she herself did not understand why she had always been indecisive and could say such decisive words today.

Xiaode Zhang Gang answered and left, and the Empress Dowager Longyu continued to read the abdication edict. She read a few lines, and tears gushed out again and covered her eyes.

She really can't bear to look at it anymore. She felt that what she was holding at this moment was not an edict, but the country of the 264th year of the Qing Dynasty. She really didn't want to send it out, but she had no choice. She glanced at the ministers standing on both sides of her, as if they had become fierce beasts, with greedy eyes and looking at the imperial edict in her hand.

Suddenly, Empress Dowager Longyu cried bitterly and hugged the paper abdication edict with both hands. The whole palace is full of a horrible and gloomy atmosphere, and the air seems to have condensed, as if it were a royal mausoleum that has been buried for thousands of years.

Hu Weide was worried about an accident, so it was difficult to communicate with Yuan Shikai. Because Yuan Shikai racked his brains and planned the forced palace with them, it has now come to an end. As long as he takes the abdication edict and gives it to Yuan Shikai to the whole country, his mission will be completed. If there is a change in the middle, Longyu refuses to hand over the imperial edict, and Zai Feng and Pu Wei rushed into the palace again and messed up the matter. What should he do? At this time, Long Yu couldn't take care of the identity and decentness of the queen. He cried loudly and shouted, "Ancestor! Ancestors!"

Seeing this, the little emperor Puyi also inexplicably followed "wow" and cried.

When Hu Weide saw that Longyu was holding the abdication edict and refused to hand it over. He was afraid of an accident, so he couldn't wait to run up and take the edict from Long Yu's hand and go away. But he squeezed a few tears out of his eyes and choked and said respectfully to Long Yu, who was crying to death: "Empress dowager, this is the only thing in the overall situation now. The Empress Dowager can be wise and take care of the whole royal family and the people. How can Yuan Shikai and the ministers and the people not know that they will never live up to the kindness and kindness of the Empress Dowager. Moreover, the preferential conditions have been determined, and there will be a five-ethnic republic in the future. I pray for the Empress Dowager to take care. Don't worry, Empress Dowager.

Instead of stopping crying, the Empress Dowager Longyu cried even more painfully. She still held the abdication edict tightly in her arms with both hands, afraid of being suddenly snatched away by someone.

At this time, Xiao Dezhang, the general eunuch who had been fed by Yuan Shikai for a long time, said first: "Look at the slaves, whether it's the republic or the monarch, the old master is all the same. Speaking of the monarch, the old master is just a treasure. Speaking of republican, the empress dowager is still the empress dowager. But this has to be agreed to the 'condition'. If you don't want to, if the revolutionary party hits Beijing, it's all over!"

Empress Dowager Longyu was scared by this and cried even more sadly.

At this time, Zhao Bingjun, Minister of Civil Affairs, also woke up and quickly handed Hu Weide a wink and pointed his finger to his sleeve. Hu Weide suddenly realized that he remembered a telegram from Sun Yat-sen given to him by Yuan Shikai before entering the palace. He hurried forward and said, "The Empress Dowager, here is a telegram from Sun Wen. I almost forgot it. Damn it!"

"What did Sun Wen's telegram say? Is the revolutionary party going to change its mind again?" The Empress Dowager suddenly stopped crying and asked with sobs.

Hu Weide was happy to hear this and opened the telegram and said, "I'm in a hurry. Representative Jian of Shanghai Wu Zhiyong: Today, with the consent of the Senate, if the Qing Emperor is not abdicated before 12 p.m. on the 15th, the preferential treatment conditions will be withdrawn. This cloth will be transferred to Beijing. President Sun Wen. Zhen."

Long Yu listened, like a crash covering the top, landslide and cracking. She trembled all over and fell to the ground. The two eunuchs hurriedly helped her up. She sadly handed the edict to Shi Xu, the Minister of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and Xu Shichang, the Deputy Minister of the Cabinet. After they sealed the imperial seal, they handed it over to Hu Weide. Hu Weide held it in his hand and read it aloud:

"I am under the decree of the Empress Dowager Longyu: In the past, due to the uprising of the People's Army, the provinces responded, and the nine summer was boiling and the lives were ruined. I specially ordered Yuan Shikai to discuss the overall situation with the representatives of the people's army, discuss the parliament, and vote on the political system. In the past two months, there has been no sure way. The north and the south are separated, pointing to each other. The merchants are on the road, and the scholars are exposed in the wild. The country is not determined for a day, so the people's livelihood is uneasy for a day.

Today, the people of the whole country are psychologically inclined to be republicanism. The southern and central provinces not only advocate the front, but also the generals in the north also advocate the future. The people's hearts and fate can be known. How can I bear the honor of a surname and the likes and dislikes of the people. With the general appearance, the internal review of public opinion, the emperor specially led the rule of the whole country and designated it as a republican constitutional state. I am close to comforting the heart of the sea and looking forward to governance, and the ancient holy world is the righteousness of justice.

Yuan Shikai was elected as the Prime Minister by the Senior Executive Yuan. At the time of the new and old metabolism, it is appropriate to be the party for the unification of the north and the south, that is, Yuan Shikai organizes the temporary republican government with full authority and negotiates the unified measures with the civilian army. In the general period, the people are safe, and the sea is safe. It is still the complete territory of the five tribes of the Republic of China when the Han Manchu and Mongolia return to Tibet. Yu and the emperor can retreat for leisure, travel for a long time, and receive the preferential gifts of the people. Isn't it good to see the success of Zhizhi in person! "This is it."

After reading the imperial edict, the last ceremony of the Qing Dynasty was over. Hu Weide took the edict and led the ministers to bow three times to the Empress Dowager Longyu and Emperor Xuantong again, and then withdrew from the hall. From then on, he was no longer a minister of the Qing Dynasty.

Empress Dowager Longyu watched these people walk out of the hall, and the little emperor Puyi beside her was still ignorant as usual. How could he know what had happened? After everyone left, Puyi was also in a hurry to jump off the throne and wanted to get out of the gloomy hall to play. When Empress Dowager Longyu saw it, she hurriedly hugged the little emperor. Unexpectedly, she cried too sad just now. The two almost fell to the ground. Fortunately, the eunuchs hurried over to help him. With the help of the eunuchs, the Empress Dowager Longyu and the little emperor Puyi then returned to the palace.

Thousands of generations are always a dream, and it has changed the world. In the 28th year of the Qing Dynasty, after entering the customs, he opened the foundation from Yanjing, the capital of Dornon, the regent, and finally ended with the regent. Could it also be caused by the number of days?

The edict was drafted by Zhang Jian, the former minister of the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce of the Qing government, the current chief of industry of the provisional government of the Republic of China, and the top scholar of Enke in the 20 years of Guangxu. Yuan Shikai personally added the sentence "that is, Yuan Shikai will organize the provisional republican government and the civil army with full authority to negotiate and unify measures". Since then, the republican government has not been elected by the parliament, but by the appointment of the Qing government. Sun Yat-sen was extremely angry about this. He called Yuan Shikai to protest: "The republican government cannot be appointed by the Qing Emperor." However, this edict is an abdication, just like a last word, and there is no reason to change it by resurrection. Yuan Shikai later returned to Sun Yat-sen and said, if he wanted to change it back, wouldn't he have to do another restoration and abdication? Sun Yat-sen was speechful for a moment, and finally he had to stop.

Yuan Shikai's move is really well-intentioned and cunning.

There are also two edicts, one is to promulgate preferential treatment conditions, and the other is for civil and military officials to follow their duties, and there is no difference.

Yuan Shikai has already been ready to accept the edict. Near the diplomatic building, five steps, ten steps and one post, especially at the door of the diplomatic building, are heavily guarded. From the gate to the main hall, there is a line of guards. In the main hall, there are military officers at all levels standing on both sides. If you go further in, there are some important officials. In the middle of the main hall, there is a large case, and in the middle of the case, there is a red sandalwood flower frame.

When Hu Weide and others walked into the hall with the imperial edict, more than a hundred people in the hall were silent and very quiet. Yuan Shikai came out of the inner room. The cabinet ministers that Hu Weide went to meet with Hu Weide as the leader stood in line. Yuan Shikai looked devout and gently straightened his clothes. He walked to Hu Weide and bowed respectfully to the edict. He took the edict from Hu Weide's hand with both hands, put it on the large shelf on the big case and displayed it, and then turned to stand.

Hu Weide said loudly, "The Empress Dowager handed over the power of the country to Gong Bao. Please organize the republican government as soon as possible to live up to the wishes of the Empress Dowager."

Yuan Shikai replied respectfully: "Yes!"

After accepting the edict ceremony, Yuan Shikai turned around and said to Hu Weide and others, "Thank you for your hard work. Go to the back room and have a rest!"

Yuan Shikai stroked the braid behind his head that had been kept for more than 50 years and said, "It's time to cut this braid..."

When cutting, the reporter next to him suddenly followed the camera shutter, and the magnesium light was brilliant and dazzling. Yuan Shikai said, "When I practiced the new army, I felt that this braid was really in the way. But this braid has been with me for many years. Once it is cut off today, I'm really not used to it!"

After cutting, Cai Tingan handed the braid to Yuan Shikai. Yuan Shikai stroked it, sighed, and threw the braid to the ground. Then, he stood up and laughed and said, "Let's be salty and renewing!"

Yuan Shikai laughed with great excitement. Others also followed Yuan Shikai's example and cut off their braids.

At the same time as the announcement of the abdication, Yuan Shikai issued a "true telegram" to express his approval of the republic. The original message was as follows: "President Sun of Nanjing, Vice President Li, the president of various ministries, and the Senate: The republic is the best national body, which is recognized by the world. Now it has been leaped by the emperor's government. In fact, the years of efforts are also the endless of the Republic of China. Happiness. Since the Qing emperor resigned from the imperial edict and signed by Shikai, the day of the announcement was the end of the pro-government, that is, the foundation of the Republic of China. From then on, efforts have been made to achieve a perfect position and never let the monarchy practice in China again. Now the unified organization is the most important and complicated. Shikai is urgently willing to travel south, listen to the great religion, and co-conspire to carry out the law. It is only because the order in the north is not easy to maintain, and the military is like a forest, and it must be deployed. The people of the people of the Northeast are not completely consistent, slightly shaken, involving the whole country. All the kings are all understand the situation, and they will be able to understand this hardship. As for the important issues of the construction of the republic, you have studied well, and how to negotiate the method of unified organization, Shang Xi quickly saw the teaching. Yuan Shikai is really."

Yuan Shikai thought that his work of forcing the Qing Emperor to abdicate had been completed, and he had fulfilled his promise, so he had to wait for the South to fulfill their promise - to push Yuan as the first president.