Chapter 7       Following Eunuchs (1)

The emperor smiled proudly, "It's not simple! It's really not easy for the Third Prince to say this! Well, I won't mention it today. After returning to Beijing, I will go to the Ministry of Revenue. I will learn the study of Duzhi with Yan Jingming, so that I can share my worries and work hard in the future."

Zai Wei was overjoyed! Among the many princes who grew up, Zai Ying was the most favored by the emperor. However, he was not in China and it would take several years to return from the United States. Therefore, in these years, it was a good time to try his best to win the favor of the king. Zai Li did not mention it, but the rest were all secretly trying. In fact, not only were they, their mothers, who were not in front of the emperor on May Day, and they made some tactful statements. However, the emperor was very strange and did not take the use of his children very much. Except for the eldest prince who asked for orders several times, and finally got his approval to take on the boat abroad, everyone around him still studied in the study room every day, and the errands were not delivered at all.

There are government orders between the temples and the court has a ancestral system. Such things cannot be invited without any intention, so the princes had to secretly worry. This time, I heard from the emperor that he would accept his orders to go to the Ministry of Revenue to handle the work. Zai Wei knew that the Ministry of Revenue was the first place in the emperor's heart among the six ministries. He still came from the Ministry of Personnel, the head of the six ministries. With the respect of his prince, he would not be able to be ashamed of the people below? At that time, he would do several errands and invite the emperor to favor him. The benefits would not be included in the future!

Before he could kneel down and thank him, the emperor had already restrained his smile, "Yan Jingming?"

"I'm here."

"The third prince is your master in his own hands, but your subordinate in his own hands. If you dare to regard him as the prince's honor and have many supporters, I will be the first to spare you if I have to deal with this evil! Hum?" After saying that, he bet his eyes on his son and said in a cold voice, "This is not only for Yan Jingming, but also for you. The Ministry of Revenue is in charge of the power of the world's divisions. Don't think that it is my son, and you will have any arrogance after you arrive. With your talent and knowledge, within ten years..." His sentence paused, "After returning to Beijing, you will be in the ministry, don't think about becoming an official master when you enter the door. Yan Jingming, let him go to Fujian to make a post."

"yes."

The emperor thought for a moment, and suddenly shook his head again, "This is not possible. Even if I have an order, it will be difficult to stop the bastards from being flattered. Let's do this, Zeng Guofan, this matter does not have to be deemed to the will, and it does not have to be spread to everyone. Third brother, I would like to give you another name, just like the name, so I don't have to change it. Change your surname to Gan. I am a member of the Ministry of Revenue and I will join the job with this name."

"My son thanks the emperor."

"You guys..." The emperor pointed to Zai Chun and Zai Feng with his hand, "As the third prince's example, he changed his surname to Gan. He went to the Ministry of Works and the Ministry of Justice to work. They all started with the lowest-level pen style. If he gave it to others, let me know that you rely on your descendants to be the masters and be vigilant in the ministry, and carefully your skin!"

The two brothers Zai and Zai Feng were naturally ordered to be honest and met and thanked him. "Emperor Ahma, where is the son?" Zai Li asked in confusion, "Brothers have all their jobs, and my son also wants to contribute to the Emper Ahma!" He said with great grievance, "Emperor Ahma, you can't favor one or the other!"

"You don't have to hurry. Ama will deal with it in your use. Don't mention it today. I'll explain it in detail to you when you arrive in Shandong."

Zai Li raised his mouth high and retreated unhappily.

*********************************************

After taking a few children away, the emperor and his close minister Zhan Yan smiled, "I read the "Records of the Holy Ancestors" back then, and I felt that Emperor Ren was wise and magical. There were almost moral changes during his lifetime and after his death. I reflected on myself and my soul was uneasy. My descendants were only under the pure emperor. Alas! I don't know if he had the blessings of his elders and had the blessings of the heavenly family."

"The emperor speaks like this, but it is not something that his subordinates dare to say. The world is determined by one. My emperor is wise and wise as the sky. His princes are pure and friendly. I think there will definitely be no matter behind King Xuan of Qi."

"In this case, Zeng Guofan can talk to me." The emperor sighed, shook his head and threw this complicated emotion behind his head. "Let's discuss the serious matter." He said, "I have read the memorials submitted by Weng Tongshu and Ruilin. I have thought about the matter for a long time. Although I have seen a little bit of a look at the naval affairs, it is still far from what I need. Especially now, there are only two shipyards in Tianjin and Anqing. The warships and gunboats produced every year are not enough. If a navy is built in the southern province, where are the talents and equipment? Instead of doing so, it is better to put it aside for the time being and wait until the coastal defense of several provinces in Shandong, Zhili and Liaoning are further strengthened."

Zeng Guofan's heart moved and immediately stepped forward, "I would like to forgive me for not agreeing with the emperor's words."

"you say."

"I am following the emperor to the east. I saw that Tianjin and Lushun are strong in coastal defenses, and the borders are foolish. I think that the defenses of the provinces in the north should be perfect and not be improved. However, the coastal defense of the south country now relies entirely on the Yangtze River Navy and the coastal provinces with the coastal defense. How can we achieve the effect of resisting the enemy? In addition, the livelihoods of several southeastern provinces have flourished and many people. Once there is a police officer, he will rely on the troops on the land and have no way to resist. The country is bullied by troops. I am afraid that the people will be displaced and will be in danger of shaking the foundation of the country?"

"What do you mean? What does it mean to resist? In the seventh year of Xianfeng, the Qing Dynasty had no navy to fight with the enemy, and allowed the British and French coalition forces to go deep into their hearts. In the end, they were obediently captured by our Qing Dynasty? Why are they being swept by the soldiers? The people suffer from displacement? If I didn't see you old, I would first ask a crime that shakes your heart."

"The emperor wants to punish the old ministers, and I cannot argue, but I ask the emperor, are the provinces in Fujian and Guangdong not the territory of our Qing Dynasty? If so, why can't we establish a navy?"

"Bold!" The emperor's face immediately turned cold, "Zeng Guofan, since you entered the officialdom, I have seen that although you are too stupid, you are still diligent in serving the Lord, so you have more tolerance. In your opinion, can I be a deceptive master?"

"I dare not. The emperor treats the old minister with great kindness, but how dare he be dishonest? However, the emperor and the southern provinces are important places for our Qing Dynasty to pay taxes, and we must not lose any mistakes in a single day. Establishing a navy and eternal border is the national policy that the emperor repeatedly declared orders, but why..."

"Zeng Guofan, don't do this with me! Do you think your little thoughts can be hidden from me? Li Hongzhang is your student, and Weng Tongshu has always been with you for many years. They took turns to submit memorials, just watching the navy handle it, and they are very likely to use it to seek personal gain for themselves? Do you think I don't know? Just take the old things I just said, Qingliu attacked the major affairs of the ship administration, thinking that the expenses were too heavy, Shen Baozhen did not mention it.

Li Hongzhang also wrote many letters to express his opinions, on the surface, he agreed with my edict, but in fact? In the letters he dating Wang Kaitai, he said, 'I knew I was not enough to resist the insults, and it was only more expensive. Now that I have accomplished my business, I want to do it well.' But when I saw the court consistently implementing the ship administration, I changed my mind and agreed to the report. I have kept him in office as the governor of Anhui for nearly ten years. You two junior brothers don't think about why?"

Zeng Guofan's face was pale! Even he didn't know about this, how did the emperor know about it? He heard his words concisely, it didn't seem like groundlessness, but... how did the emperor know about Li Hongzhang and Wang Kaitai's correspondence? He was stunned and hurriedly knelt down, "I... am confused, I am confused!"

"In the 15th year of Xianfeng, Shen Baozhen built a new gunship for the Anqing Shipyard and requisitioned the army. He thought that the Naval Academy students were practicing for training. Li Hongzhang was slanderous and gave all the old and broken ships, as well as even the British and French warships seized by Anshan Lake and the newly built good ships and the Clippers were handed over to the Yangtze River Navy. If the Wuwu had not told me about this, I would not know at all! Later, I recruited Shen Baozhen to the front of the emperor and asked him about this matter personally. Shen Baozhen was still concealed by Li Hongzhang. Although Shen Baozhen was a gentleman who was open and did not discuss the wrong people, there was no need for you to turn around. Did I say you wrong?"

"This is why I dare not use the importance of the sirens to interfere with the words and deeds of foreign officials. The emperor clearly understands it."

"I understand that you don't have such courage!" The emperor snorted coldly, "And you..." He pointed with his hand, "Military Affairs Office, such a big name! Everyone said that only when you enter the Military Affairs Office, you will be considered as a master. However, unexpectedly, the Military Affairs Office has long been a place for confrontation between the Qingliu in the North and the South! He always thought about his own fame and fortune, and he was afraid that he would have thrown the words he had taught me before."

The emperor became more angry and the more he was, the more he cursed the court, and the officials from both sides of the country and abroad were ruthlessly scolding everyone, scaring everyone to meet, "...What good thing is the Yangtze River Navy? Relying on his years of military service and making many military achievements, he was simply staying in the camp as a master! Li Chengmou, Li Chaobin, Peng Chuhan and others only knew about long dragons and sampans, but not at all. They were over fifty years old and were arrogant and could not withstand the storm of the sea, nor were willing to bow down to the Westerners' ropes. The ships they led were just a few months later, choosing to try guns and cannons in the inland river when the waves were calm!" He whined a few times and said sarcastically, "I don't believe you will not know all of the above? You have to find another way to know the details?"

"The responsibility of yin and yang is to educate all officials. As the chief military officer, I failed to perform my duties and lost the emperor's trust. I was the first to ask for punishment and asked the emperor to punish me." After saying that, Yi was the first to take off his warm hat and lie on the ground to apologize.

"I told you about this today, not to hold any of you responsible." He sighed dejectedly and came to his seat. "You have been with me for decades of friendship with the king and subjects. You also know that anyone who can leave you with a sympathy will never say such a serious responsive word. However, compared with coastal defense and naval construction, administration is the first chronic disease of our Qing Dynasty. Otherwise, even if the court takes out more money to build more ships, there is no use to find a few talents who can be called good morals?"

"emperor……"

"Let's go down, I'm a little tired and don't want to talk today."

Seeing that he was in a bad mood, everyone didn't dare to say anything. They touched him on the spot, bowed and retreated.

******************************************************

On September 19, the emperor took the Dingyuan ironclad ship and set off south from Lushunkou to Yantai. There were warships, gunships and ships from Britain, France and other countries on the sea. Civilian merchant ships were whistling and yelling their own tributes. These were all etiquettes between the two countries' exchanges, and they were also reported in advance through embassies and general offices of various countries, so they would not cause any panic jokes.

This time, there was a man named Sheng Xuanhuai, who was from Changzhou. His father Sheng Kang was a Jinshi during the Gengzi period. Later, he went to the Yanfadao in Wuchang, Hubei. This was a very famous fat man. Sheng Kang was good at dancing and had been in office for many years and had accumulated a huge fortune.

In the 27th year of Daoguang, Li Hongzhang entered the northern examination for the provincial examination, probably because he was not accustomed to the local environment. After the first "art making" ended, he suddenly became ill. Yang Juxian, who was the same name, cooked the decoction for it. It was not until the three exams were over. He then went out of the examination with Jienangong, and they were the most in the same year. Therefore, they had the most friendship. Li Hongzhang was grateful for the help of the same year, so he was naturally grateful to the Yang family and loved the house. After Yang Juxian's death, he supported Yang Zonglian, Yang Zonghan, and Yang Yicheng's three sons. Later, through the relationship of his teacher Zeng Guofan, Yang Zonglian, among the Yang brothers, was sent to Liu Mingchuan, who was training troops in Zhili, to be in charge of the grain station. This was also a very plump shortage. Because of this, the Yang family and the Li family had a very good personal relationship.

Later, Li Hongzhang changed to Anhui. Yang Zongying felt deeply that his father had a shortage of talents, so he recommended Sheng Xuanhuai to join Li Hongzhang's shogunate.

Sheng Xuanhuai was not very introductory in handling the imperial examinations, but he was still very capable of dealing with daily documents. He helped the elderly handle things in his father's office. He was smart and talented. He came to Li Hongzhang's command to live up to his high expectations. He was hardworking, shrewd and skilled, hardworking, and frugal. He quickly gained the favor of Li Hongzhang. He was the first to be assigned to the commission and the commission as the commission office, and was the secretary and deputy director of the General Affairs Office, and was directly responsible to Li Hongzhang.

Li Hongzhang was sent to Anhui to serve as the prefect of Anqing. The Anqing Shipyard was under the jurisdiction of the government. He knew very well that the emperor attached great importance to the Anqing Shipyard, so after taking office, he worked tirelessly to build ships. In addition to building ships, he often discussed the purchase of ships with merchants from various countries. Although most of them were unable to finish the matter, it also left a deep impression on the emperor. Among them, Sheng Xuanhuai made great efforts.

If it were according to the rules of the Daoguang period, Sheng Xuanhuai's family wealth had been in Li Hongzhang's house for many years and donating a replacement road would not be considered difficult. However, after Xianfeng, the donation door had been closed and could not be completed at all. Therefore, Sheng Xuanhuai had to continue to do his copywriting in his mansion and also a job in the Shipyard Camping Office. Later, the Naval Academy was established, and Li Hongzhang recommended him to the college and became the general office of the college Camping Office.

After the 17th year of Xianfeng, the calls for the preparation of naval forces in Fujian, Zhejiang, Guangdong and other provinces have become increasingly high. Li Hongzhang and others have been writing to the post several times, but the emperor has never agreed to it, but he has never explained the reason, which has caused many doubts in the provinces, but he has no way to ask questions.

This time the emperor went to the east to see the naval construction, Sheng Xuanhuai was the general manager of the Academy's Camp Affairs Office, and was also the general manager of the general manager of the coastal defense forces in Dagu, Lushun, Yantai and other places, and accompanied him to the eastern tour.

With his rank, he was not allowed to go in front of the army, so he had to follow the crowd. However, Sheng Xuanhuai was very smart. With Li Hongzhang's many years of training, he gave him a letter to approach Yang San, the eunuch who was the emperor. So after the journey to Yantai, Sheng Xuanhuai tried his best to find an opportunity to approach Yang San. They had always had dates, but there were not many opportunities to meet directly. In addition, Yang San was a very important eunuch around the emperor, almost inseparable from the side. When the emperor wanted to rest, he avoided the cabin where the guards sat. It was difficult for officials of all sizes to meet him alone.

However, Sheng Xuanhuai was not without gains. Although Yang San could not meet, he dealt with Sula he brought with him. This Sula was named Rui Jinshan, which was actually Yang San's eyes and ears. Of course, it is hard to say that he is very powerful.

Therefore, Sheng Xuanhuai's intention of getting close to his relationship was as if he had a clear view of the fire. Fortunately, his identity was much worse than his master and no one was paying attention to it, so he might as well take advantage of the momentum to get close to Sheng Xuanhuai. However, if he had a master, he would have a servant. In front of Sheng Xuanhuai, he did not dare to be on par, and he would always speak respectfully and intimately.

The first time I met, I was not convenient for each other to have a deep conversation, but I just had to deal with the courtesy, but the situation was different from returning to Tianjin from Lushun. Because the emperor had to check the fort and look at the school in Tianjin during this trip. There were five days of reunion. Not only did the time be calm, but Sheng Xuanhuai also had a mansion in Tianjin. He invited a private apartment to have a chat, so he could avoid people's eyes and talk about everything.

That day, Sheng Xuanhuai verbally invited him to have dinner at home. But soon after noon, he sent a car to pick up Ruijinshan. The host and the guests were both plain clothes and met in the flower hall where they were sitting, so they were less restrained. From the experiences and stories of this trip, they quickly talked about Yang San.

"Jinshan," Sheng Xuanhuai called his name affectionately, in the tone of reunion of old friends, "How many years have you been with General Manager Yang?"

"Four years."

"Four years? That's...You followed him shortly after General Manager Yang arrived at the emperor. No wonder he treated you as a confidant."

"I dare not say that he is the confidant of General Manager Yang. However, if anything happens, he always tells me that it is."

"So, you will enter the palace every day?"

"Yes."

"Then, the emperor also meets Luo every day?"

In these places, Derui Jinshan was judged and did not dare to brag: "Where are we here to come to Master Long live?" He said, "Even if there is a person with a strong man, he will not dare to walk over without calling!"

"That's right!" Sheng Xuanhuai said in a concerned voice: "The emperor believes that General Yang is in charge of the situation. He may be summoned at any time and serves there from morning to night. He really needs to have the spirit of a dragon horse to deal with it."

"Yes! Don't talk about the general manager, even us are enough." Rui Jinshan said, "The imperial pharmacy has a lot of tonics, but he is hot and dare not take it randomly."
Chapter completed!