1905: Beer Hall Speaker

Page 36

Officials were trying to persuade Zhao Yan, who had been in Beijing for almost a month and his actions had confused everyone. He simply issued a telegram to the whole country announcing that the provisional government had been officially established and asked everyone to be obedient. Then he sent some central inspection teams to go down to the local areas.

And then nothing happened. There were no other actions. The coronation ceremony that the people of the world had been waiting for for almost a month was not held, nor was the abdication ceremony. The most outrageous thing was that Zhao Yan didn't even hold a sacrificial ceremony to the heavens!

Zhao Yan sat on the kang (a heated brick bed) in the imperial study, holding the national treasury account book and turning it over and over with great patience: "What kind of grand ceremony is this? According to you, are you going to put on the yellow robe and then have a grand military review?"

"All those fancy things are useless; we still need to be thrifty and frugal!"

It wasn't that Zhao Yan didn't want to do it, but after reading the budget report submitted by his subordinates, he completely lost the will to do it.

National-level ceremonies are either not held at all, or they must be held in a very proper and orderly manner, and the price of doing so is a lot of money.

After Zhang Mingqi and Lu Zhaoxuan from the Prime Minister's Office arrived in the capital, they pulled several officials from the Ministry of Rites out of the death row and asked them to prepare a set of procedures for the grand ceremony.

The entire set of ceremonies, including the sacrificial ceremony to Heaven, the flight crew ceremony, the enthronement ceremony, and the founding military parade, can be completed for only five or six million taels of silver.

Even with this amount, they were still spending it frugally. Fortunately, they didn't need to build any palaces, as everything was already in place. However, the necessary rewards and expenditures in terms of materials and manpower were still indispensable.

Chinese ceremonies are no joke; the ceremonial attire alone costs a lot of money. Those dragon robes and official robes, though worn only a few times, are definitely not cheap.

Upon learning this, Zhao Yan immediately called for a halt. What a load of rubbish! As long as one holds power and has enough prestige, there's no difference between being a head of state and an emperor. Who are we spending so much money on for these empty titles?

Only the ordinary people of Beijing, military and government officials at all levels, and foreign diplomats could see it. Did Zhao Yan need to prove his prestige to these people? Obviously not.

Especially foreigners, what if they see you making such a big show of things and come looking for debts?

Therefore, Zhao Yan simply cut off all the empty ceremonies and rituals. Apart from the subsidies and bonuses promised to the military and government at all levels, all the rest of the money was kept in the national treasury, not a single penny was given away!

Seeing that he couldn't persuade him, Zhang Mingqi changed the subject: "Your Majesty, since we're not holding a ceremony, then the offices of all the government departments need to be provided. You can't keep all those government offices to yourself!"

After the revolutionary army took control of the capital, all the government offices and mansions in prime locations within the second ring road were firmly held by the enemy property department, which refused to hand them over to anyone.

The Prime Minister's Office went to try and get back the original six ministries to restore order to the office, but Zhao Yan still refused to give them up.

Are you kidding me? This prime location within the Second Ring Road is meant to be sold for profit in the future. It's such a waste to give it to a bunch of officials as offices.

Zhao Yan said directly, "There are empty rooms everywhere in the Forbidden City. Let each department choose one. Apart from the Imperial Study and the Hall of Supreme Harmony, which are the head of state's offices, all the other halls in the Forbidden City, including the sleeping quarters and the inner palace, can be used as offices!"

To save money, Zhao Yan adopted a "take-what-you-need" approach, using the Forbidden City as a ready-made central government office. With an area of ​​720,000 square meters and a building area of ​​150,000 square meters, it was more than enough to accommodate all the major central government agencies.

Don't even mention turning the Forbidden City into a museum. If you did that now, no one would dare buy a ticket to come. It would be a sure-fire way to lose money, and you'd have to invest a lot of money in maintenance every year. You might as well use it as an office.

Zhao Yan alone could not possibly use all these halls; leaving them to gather dust would be a waste.

Seeing Zhao Yan's stingy demeanor, Zhang Mingqi immediately understood. As a veteran civil official, he figured that since Zhao Yan had spoken, he wouldn't hesitate and promptly chose the Zhonghe Hall as the office space for the Prime Minister's Office.

All the other departments were excitedly choosing locations to work in the Forbidden City. It felt so good! A republican government is the best; we must have a republic.

Of the three main halls in the outer court of the Forbidden City, the Presidential Office occupied the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the Prime Minister's Office occupied the Hall of Central Harmony, Wang Chongshan immediately occupied the Hall of Preserving Harmony on behalf of the Ministry of National Defense, which was reorganized from the Revolutionary Army Headquarters, and officials from the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Industry, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs occupied the Hall of Military Prowess and the Hall of Literary Glory, while the other departments squeezed in wherever they could.

Zhao Yan was secretly pleased. He had saved a lot of money. He knew these officials very well. If he really allocated funds to them to build office buildings, seventy percent of the money would end up in their pockets!

The officials were also delighted. Working within the Forbidden City was a privilege they never dared to dream of. From now on, they could confidently tell people that they worked inside the Forbidden City!

Zhao Yan was very stingy with unnecessary expenditures, but very generous with necessary ones, especially when it came to spending other people's money. After all, he didn't need to spend his own money to repair the Forbidden City; he could just distribute what was already there.

This is perhaps the source of Zhao Yan's personal charm: he is always clear-headed and always willing to make sacrifices.

After dividing up the Forbidden City, Zhao Yan ordered the nationwide agricultural tax to be waived for a year. He had seized power, and the military and government had both benefited, but the common people had not received any benefits. Naturally, Zhao Yan would not forget them.

Officials did not object much, since the most important task this year was to establish central authority and gain real control over the provinces.

During the transition between the old and new governments, local administration was in complete disarray, and tax collection was extremely difficult. The central government might even have to take the blame for the local governments' exorbitant taxes. So, the government decided to exempt all agricultural taxes for a year to give the central government time to clean up the administration.

Some officials even proposed a general amnesty, but Zhao Yan resolutely rejected it. Amnesty my foot! Anyone who breaks the law, whether it's the old or new dynasty, must go to jail. Apart from political prisoners who oppose the Qing dynasty being pardoned, all other criminal offenders will still be dealt with according to the law.

At the same time, Zhao Yan not only refused to pardon them, but also ordered severe punishments in various places, especially to thoroughly hunt down and purge the remaining Manchus who were on the run. Anyone who harbored Manchu bannermen would be punished equally and have their property confiscated.

The property of Manchu bannermen in various regions must be resolutely confiscated. 30% will be retained by the local governments, and the remaining 70% will be handed over to the central government. The central inspection teams and party representatives dispatched to various regions will not do anything else but focus on this one matter.

The inspection teams and party representatives sent out all received the highest instructions, which was to make money. Except for the poor, they were to keep a close eye on all other social strata who had money and try every means to make money for the central government.

The treasury gates were locked, allowing only entry but no exit. Zhao Yan was like a miser, staring at the accounts every day. He was happier than anyone else when a sum of money came in, but immediately started cursing when a sum of money went out.

Nobody knows what this leader is up to. In any case, no new dynasty monarch in history has ever been so stingy. It seems that he conquered the country for no other reason than to seize the national treasury.

He didn't care about the throne, the palace, or the imperial lineage; he only cared about the money in the national treasury.

In other dynasties, the first thing a new emperor did after ascending the throne was to clarify personnel matters, grant amnesty to the world and reward his officials, and then seize the time to consolidate his power.

But after Zhao Yan came to power, he focused solely on the purse strings and the military; everything else was just fluff.

Chapter 66 Trouble Came Knocking

Just as Zhao Yan was diligently saving money to lay the foundation for governing the country, troubles from the outside began to come knocking.

British Minister Plenipotentiary to China, Sir John Jordan, came to request an audience; this was his third such visit.

Zhao Yan had no choice but to meet with Zhu Erdian in the Imperial Study.

Upon meeting, Jordan immediately launched into sarcasm: "Your Excellency Zhao Yan, a half-British, is truly honored to receive you. May I ask, do you still believe in God?"

Zhao Yan, without blushing, said, "Mr. Jordan, what are you saying? I don't understand a word you're saying. If you came here today just to spout this nonsense, then you can leave. Don't waste my time!"

Jordan stopped pressing the issue, paused for a moment, and began to get down to business: "First of all, on behalf of the British Empire, I congratulate you and your army on winning the war and replacing the Qing dynasty as the ruler of this country."

"The British Empire hopes to continue our friendship and traditions with the new Republic of China."

Jordan rattled off a long speech, but Zhao Yan only understood one sentence: to continue friendship and tradition. In reality, it was just about getting the new government to continue recognizing all of Britain's special interests in China, including concessions, indemnities, customs, and salt taxes.

Then, changing the subject, Jordan questioned: "The British Empire attaches great importance to friendship and relations with China, but your country does not seem to share this view. I would like to ask why the Republic of China abolished its embassy in the British Empire?"

Half a month ago, Zhao Yan ordered the abolition of the fifteen embassies of the former Qing Dynasty stationed abroad and recalled all diplomatic personnel. The main reason was that Zhao Yan found that not only did these people not do their jobs, but they were also taking money! He could no longer tolerate it.

Zhao Yan almost had a stroke when he saw the Qing government's diplomatic appropriations account book from 1905, which was last year. The expenses of the 15 Qing government embassies abroad, including personnel salaries, housing expenses, transportation costs, hospitality expenses and all sorts of other expenses, totaled 1.17 million taels of silver from the government's appropriations!

The embassies in the UK, Russia, France, Germany, and the US all had the same amount: 41040 taels. This 41,000 taels was just for staff salaries! This kind of fake accounting is an insult to people. If this wasn't a coordinated fake accounting, Zhao Yan would dare to cut off his own head and use it as a football!

If you spend so much money to bring glory to the country and seek benefits for the country, then it can be tolerated. But you haven't done anything worthwhile, and you've put all the diplomatic pressure on Zhao Yan's head. What use is Zhao Yan to support you?

Therefore, after Zhao Yan took office, he recalled all the ambassadors and closed all the embassies, determined not to be taken advantage of.

If they were to send someone in the future, they would have to send capable and loyal subordinates. Zhao Yan would not dare to use the good-for-nothings left behind by the Qing Dynasty.

“Mr. Jordan, as a newly established regime, the Republic of China has not yet been recognized by other countries, which means that there are currently no diplomatic relations between China and other countries. Under such circumstances, it seems reasonable for me to recall diplomatic personnel, right?” Zhao Yan patiently explained.

As if he had anticipated this, Jordan immediately produced a letter of credence as if by magic: "This is a letter of credence establishing diplomatic relations, personally signed by His Majesty Edward VII. The British Empire is willing to recognize the legitimacy of the Republic of China and establish diplomatic relations with the Republic of China!"

Recognition from the British Empire would have been something most people would have gladly accepted, but Zhao Yan shook his head and said, "No, this is an illegal establishment of diplomatic relations. Right now, there's some kind of prince in Korea, Aisin Gioro Zaixun, who has established a government-in-exile."

"Since the British Empire wants to continue friendship and tradition, go find that Zaixun guy. Since you've recognized the Qing government-in-exile, then don't come looking for us!"

Jordan was stunned. The other side was completely unpredictable. He quickly explained, "That was just a foolish decision by London politicians. His Majesty the King and I ourselves adhere to the One China principle. We still maintain that the new government of the Republic of China is the legitimate government of China!"

Recognizing the legitimacy of Jae-sun's government-in-exile in Korea was purely a decision made on a whim by London politicians. The Japanese were foolish, but the British were not.

The British were just clinging to a sliver of hope, trying to have their cake and eat it too, but Zhao Yan astutely discovered their scheme.

Now Jordan dared not continue to insist on the two Chinas policy. He immediately declared that he would abandon the Qing government-in-exile. After all, all of the British Empire's interests in China were under the nose of the new regime. At present, all the British concessions in China were blockaded by the revolutionary army, and people were starving to death. Jordan could not afford to be in a hurry.

Zhao Yan still insisted on refusing the letter of credence and the recognition from the British Empire: "Our regime has been initially established, and we are very grateful for the recognition from the British Empire, but I still cannot accept the letter of credence. After all, I have not yet been elected as the leader through democratic processes and am merely a temporary leader who is not recognized by the people."

Therefore, I have no right to accept this letter of state. After all, it is not a fair exchange; I have neither the qualifications nor the right to accept a letter of state from His Majesty the Emperor of your country!

Zhao Yan refused to engage, even waving the banner of democracy, which left Jordan speechless. Jordan vehemently retorted, "Don't you know what kind of country you're in? Democracy, my foot! You've already entered the Forbidden City and are living in the Imperial Study, what nonsense are you spouting to me!"

Seeing that the other party was playing the blame game, Jordan immediately stopped pretending: "Your Excellency, since you have rejected the friendship of the British Empire, then I can only discuss this with you on a business basis."

Please immediately end the blockade of the concession areas, lift the ban on foreign merchants in mainland China, restore the original status quo, and recognize the foreign concessions and other related special interests in China!

Zhao Yan was furious: "You blockaded us first, why can't I blockad you? This is also a matter of reciprocity. If you're so capable, then let your Great British Empire form another Eight-Nation Alliance!"

"On behalf of the government of the Republic of China and its 400 million people, I hereby declare that you may come here to do business, but you will not be allowed to rob us!"

"The Republic of China refuses to recognize any unequal treaties signed during the Qing Dynasty and is determined to reclaim the concessions, ceded territories, customs duties, and salt taxes!"

"The issue of sovereignty is not open to negotiation; this is the bottom line of the Republic of China, a bottom line that cannot be crossed!"

Before, when I was in power, I could only be a servant. Now that I'm in power, with hundreds of millions of taels of silver piled up in the national treasury, I'm not afraid of you!

Why be so stingy? It's so that we can be tough now. With hundreds of millions of taels of silver in military funds, do you think I'm afraid of you?

"Let's calm down, Your Excellency! Continuing to talk will only lead to war, and I think war is completely unnecessary for both of us. These are all things that can be negotiated."

Jordan felt that he was not enough to lead an army alone. It was no longer possible for the British Empire to send a large army to invade China, because the British Empire had already suffered greatly in South Africa. The small country of South Africa, with its hundreds of thousands of Boers, had almost caused the British Empire to suffer a major setback.

The Republic of China and the Chinese Revolutionary Army are far more troublesome than South Africa. These people are not like the Manchus who would spit out silver if they were intimidated. They are real tough guys who dare to fight.

Jordan then shifted the focus and pressed further: "Why was your country able to lift the blockade on the American and German concessions and trade with the Americans and Germans?"

Zhao Yan raised his head and said seriously, "We've talked to them, and they love China!"

Jordan said, "We can talk, and we can love China too!"

Zhao Yan replied: "The Americans have agreed to give up their concessions and unequal treaties in China, and the Germans are also willing to accept China's redemption of the Qingdao concession within ten years, and have promised to jointly manage the concession area and give up extrajudicial rights."

Both the US and Germany have pledged to engage in equal and open relations with China. What is Britain willing to agree to? What can it offer?

Both the United States and Germany are orphans excluded from world trade. Their interests in China are so limited. Seven or eight out of ten Chinese markets have been divided up by countries like Britain, France, and Japan. They have long been fed up with this. Since they can't get a share themselves, they might as well find a way to overturn the table.

The complete opening-up policy proposed by Zhao Yan was a deadly temptation for Germany and the United States, two powerful countries that desperately lacked markets for industrial dumping!

Compared to the complete opening of a market of 400 million people, the concessions and special rights in China were insignificant. The Germans were willing to fight a war for the market, let alone give up some colonies.

Needless to say, the United States is also eager to acquire a vast market to match its powerful production capacity. The Commonwealth and French colonies couldn't squeeze in, leaving only China as a blue ocean. Given the opportunity to penetrate it, they definitely have to take advantage of it!

Zhao Yan's meaning is now very clear: he wants to hand over the bargaining chips first before he can enter the Chinese market. What are these chips? They are, of course, the concessions, customs, and tax rights!

Jordan fell silent. This was a huge matter. Even as a plenipotentiary minister, he couldn't make a decision. Moreover, the mainland would never agree to such conditions!

War is inevitable! The British Empire will not intervene directly, after all, the lesson from South Africa was too painful. Fortunately, they still have a dog in the Far East, otherwise they would not know who to turn to now.

Chapter 67 The Excited Germans

"Someone come here and invite the German Ambassador, Mr. Schulz, over for dinner!"

After seeing Jordan off, Zhao Yan immediately began to call for reinforcements. The best way to deal with the imperialist camp was to lure them with benefits and then divide and conquer them.

Germany is probably the toughest country in the world right now, and Wilhelm II is probably the most courageous man. During the Boer War, he dared to confront the world's superpower, the British Empire, and openly supported the Boers while secretly and openly bleeding the British in South Africa.

Looking at the world today, the country that most wants to dismantle the British and French colonial system is probably Germany. The United States is far behind in this respect. Germany was a true man who dared to think and act, while the United States at present is at most a European lackey who dares to think but not act.

Once something happens, it will happen again. Since the Germans dared to do it once in South Africa, they would be even more willing to do it once in the Far East, China.

Moreover, aiding China would have been far more effective in bleeding the British than aiding South Africa. Britain dared to blockade South Africa because it was such a small territory, but blocking China would have been a massive undertaking, and could have easily provoked public outrage.

More importantly, other countries, such as France and Russia, were also happy to see the British stumble. After all, this world hegemon had lingered in its position for too long, and its subordinates were all dissatisfied.

After receiving Zhao Yan's invitation, German Ambassador Schulz quickly arrived at the Forbidden City.

Zhao Yan also instructed the Imperial Kitchen to prepare the finest food and wine to serve them. Zhao Yan spoke fluent German, and Schulz was also quite good at Chinese. With the two of them present, there was no need for a translator.

Sitting on the kang (heated brick bed) in the Imperial Study, the two drank and chatted merrily in a very harmonious atmosphere. Compared to when Julian came over before and couldn't even get a cup of tea, Schulz's treatment was much better.

As they drank and chatted, Zhao Yan deliberately showed some worry, and Schultz, seeing this, immediately asked him a question.

Then Zhao Yan poured out his grievances to Schultz, saying that the British were going too far, that they wanted to create a Great Commonwealth in the Far East and monopolize the Chinese market, and so on.

Schulz knew Zhao Yan was talking nonsense, but he still cooperated by joining in the condemnation of the British for their shamelessness, and his words subtly revealed Germany's support for China's resistance against British hegemony.

But as for how exactly to provide support, Schultz remained tight-lipped, keeping it a secret for now.

Left with no other option, Zhao Yan had to resort to his trump card: China's Five-Year Development Plan!

This is a grand blueprint that Zhao Yan has been planning for a long time, and it is also a far-reaching strategy to completely transform the land of China. The entire plan is currently still in the draft stage, but the core idea is that within ten years, China, which was originally an agricultural country, will be transformed into a preliminary industrial country!

Zhao Yan couldn't possibly tell Schultz, a foreigner, his entire strategy, but he could reveal his plans for the industrial sector to Schultz.

Zhao Yan frankly stated that the Republic's government will invest a total of at least 500 million taels of silver in China's industrial development over the next five years, and will import equipment and technology from various industries, including steel, chemicals, energy, and machinery manufacturing.

Schultz's eyes lit up. What was this? It was like a windfall! This was the first time in the world that a national-level macro-investment had been made in the industrial sector.

With such massive government investment, the amount of private capital following suit would be even larger. If Germany could take all of this pie, there would be no need for a war; it could simply rise peacefully!

As for whether supporting such an industrialized nation would pose a threat to Germany, Schulz didn't care at all. Germany was surrounded by a ring of industrialized powers, and across the strait was the world's superpower, the British Empire. Why would they care about an industrialized power rising up in the Far East, thousands of miles away?

Militarily speaking, China's rise poses no threat whatsoever to Germany, at least not at this stage.

Economically speaking, Germany is not afraid of China's rise and becoming their competitor. Industrial development does not mean you are competitive. Even a powerful Germany could not break through the trade barriers of the British and French colonial spheres. If China can break through them, I would even be happy to lend a hand!

The current global landscape is not so much a unipolar world with multiple superpowers, but rather a purely unipolar world. The British Empire completely dominates the global order, and even the French dare not challenge it, having developed a green-water navy.

The Germans desperately needed an ally to share the burden; if Russia weren't so close, Germany would have even considered supporting Russia.

Now China has shown such potential, and it is thousands of miles away. It can both hold back the British and not pose a real threat to Germany. Such an ally is simply too perfect.

Most importantly, this favor wasn't for nothing; we made money! We could absorb the excess domestic industrial capacity and create trouble for the British—a sure win.

This is such a good deal that even the French would be eager to do it, let alone the Germans. If you don't sell, someone else will. These days, apart from national treasures, everything else can be sold. As long as you have money, you can buy anything.