Twentieth Century Chronicle

Page 107

A young soldier standing by the roadside suddenly spotted a familiar face among the prisoners being escorted and couldn't help but shout out. The man turned around, nodded slightly to him, and then continued forward with the group without saying a word.

The Yi Army soldier was immediately enraged and said to his comrade, "This is Xiao Liu from my village. He joined the army with me. Now that he's on horseback, he doesn't recognize me. This is so heartless!"

But his companion, watching the other's retreating figure on horseback with envy, said, "Is that the fellow villager you changed your name to? If you had stayed back then, maybe you'd be the one riding that horse now. Hubei is so close to us, we're practically fellow villagers. These days, you have to follow your fellow villagers. If you follow northerners, we'll only be able to be lowly soldiers..."

Russian prisoners of war kept entering Beijing and then heading to the Qianmen Railway Station. This scene not only numbed the residents of Beijing, but also gave the old and young men of Beijing a sense of pride when they saw the captured Russians for the first time.

It was indeed quite difficult. Five years ago, these Russian devils were still killing and burning in Beijing. Who would have thought that they would now be prisoners in front of them? This made many people feel relieved. However, as the number of Russian prisoners of war continued to decrease day by day, the people of Beijing began to fear the Hubei people who had captured the Russians. Such a brave army was something that the Manchus could not withstand.

Previously, the Manchu bannermen were indifferent to the parliament's investigation into the retreat of the Beiyang First Division. They thought that as long as the country belonged to the Manchus, who could hold the Manchus accountable for their mistakes? Now, they all feel that the country no longer belongs to the Manchus. If they continue to fight against the Han people, it is estimated that the Han people will retaliate against the Manchus. Some bannermen have begun to resign from the army and even refuse to receive their military pay.

The matter of the rout was no longer so indifferent. Some Manchus advocated that they should punish the prisoners themselves first to avoid the National Assembly taking drastic measures, since the Beiyang Army was now unreliable. However, the Russian prisoners were the most humiliated as they passed through Beijing. Knowing about defeat and witnessing defeat are two different things. Now the Chinese were displaying the bloody defeat of Russia to the world, which greatly damaged Russia's image.

Chapter 378 Adjustments in Russia's Diplomacy Towards China

When the Sino-French friendship and trade agreement was announced, the Russian Minister to China, Ressal, felt that he was no longer deeply moved, because the Chinese had given him quite a few shocks or shocks in the past month.

Not only has Wuhan consistently demonstrated its toughness towards Russia and used its military force to prove the source of this toughness, but Yuan Shikai, the Governor-General of Zhili, who has always been regarded by foreign ministers as open-minded and wise, is now also showing a tough stance towards Russia.

On June 14, Yuan Shikai formally proposed to the Russian consul in Tianjin that he take back the Russian concession in Tianjin, arguing that the Russian navy's firing on Qinhuangdao port had destroyed local prisoner-of-war camps and hospitals, and therefore they wanted to take back the Russian concession in Tianjin to house Russian prisoners of war and war refugees.

The Russian concession in Tianjin was actually quite large; the Laolongtou Railway Station was even once part of it. However, due to protests from various countries, the Russians had to relinquish their occupation of the Laolongtou Railway Station area.

However, the Russian concession in Tianjin could not compare with the concessions of other countries south of the Haihe River. Because Russia had Manchuria and Kwantung Leased Territory under its control, it did not value the Tianjin concession as much. While other countries needed to develop the Tianjin concession in order to gain a foothold in northern China, Russia did not need to consider this issue at all in northern China, because Russia was located in the north of China.

Therefore, until 1906, the Russian concession in Tianjin saw almost no development, while the concessions of other countries across the river underwent a complete transformation, with modern docks and streets being built, and the vast fields and ponds of the past being rapidly replaced by buildings and streets. At that time, there were only slightly over 200 Russian residents in Tianjin, less than half of the number in the United States, while Japan, which had the largest Russian population, had more than 1700. Therefore, the number of Russian troops stationed in Tianjin was also quite small, only about twenty.

However, even if Russia didn't value the Tianjin concessions, it wouldn't easily give them up, as they represented the face of the Russian Empire. Therefore, when Wuhan reclaimed the Russian concession in Hankou, the Russians viewed it as a declaration of war against the Russian Empire. However, after Wuhan actually declared war on the Russian Empire, Russian diplomats realized they were out of reach. Their previous overly aggressive statements in diplomatic settings not only failed to harm Wuhan but also damaged the empire's prestige.

However, Yuan Shikai still understood the prestige of the Russian Empire, after all, the Russian army was right next to him. So even though the Russian army declared war on China, Yuan Shikai did not dare to take back the Russian concession. He only asked the Tianjin consulate to guarantee that the Russian army could not land in Tianjin.

However, after the prolonged siege of Shanhaiguan and the annihilation of the Western Route Army by the Wuhan army, the empire's prestige had lost its deterrent effect on the Chinese people. Yuan Shikai's formal proposal to him to reclaim the Russian concession in Tianjin indicated that even the astute Yuan Shikai no longer wanted to maintain a close relationship with the empire.

Of course, Resar did not regard Yuan Shikai's actions as an insult to the Russian Empire. As a diplomat, he only needed to analyze the current situation rationally to know that Yuan Shikai was trying to curry favor with the Japanese and express his stance of severing ties with the Russian Empire.

This made Russia's situation in the Far East extremely dire. Given China's size and Japan's naval power, this was no longer a situation that Russia could weather with only partial mobilization. However, nationwide mobilization would mean abandoning Europe, and neither Germany nor Austria-Hungary would let go of such a golden opportunity to completely tie down Russia's power in the East.

If Germany were to support Austria-Hungary's offensive strategy in the Balkans at this time, Russia would suffer an unprecedented defeat in the region. The current state of affairs in the Balkans represents the culmination of nearly a century of Russian efforts. If a crisis were to occur in the Balkans, it could completely thwart Russia's dream of accessing the Mediterranean, a result that Russia cannot tolerate.

Ressal could only make concessions to the Chinese because he could not allow them to expel him from Beijing as well, thus severing diplomatic ties between the two countries. As long as he remained there, it meant that St. Petersburg still had a direct channel for negotiations with the Chinese.

Between Japan and China, Russia has no choice but to reconcile with China, because the two countries not only have disputes over the Korean Peninsula but also compete for naval power in the Pacific. Reconciling with China would only mean Russia losing some of its continental interests, while reconciling with Japan would mean losing not only its continental interests but also its naval power.

After much deliberation, he finally issued an order to First Secretary Krubonsi, demanding that the Tianjin consulate hand over the Russian concession outside the consulate to the Chinese. He then personally drafted a telegram to St. Petersburg, explaining why he had to do this and confessing to the Foreign Minister that "...the previous negotiation terms with the Chinese had been rejected by the Chinese."

According to their parliamentary resolution, they claimed to restore the Treaty of Nerchinsk to its original effect. However, after exchanging views with various Chinese figures, I believe that this demand was merely a tactic to boost the confidence of their people… However, the general view among the Chinese is to restore the situation to what it was before the Boxer Rebellion, meaning that we must completely withdraw from Manchuria and Outer Mongolia, while retaining our rights to the Chinese Eastern Railway and the leased territory of Kwantung Leased Territory. This is the peace condition that the Chinese can accept. However, the thoughts of the Wuhan side are still unknown…”

The Russian response greatly relieved Yuan Shikai. Although he made a strong statement to the Russian consul in Tianjin, demanding that the concession be returned by June 20, he was still somewhat hesitant, because he was not very confident and did not know who would ultimately win.

However, reclaiming the Russian concession in Tianjin was better than launching a counterattack against the Russian positions. Having received substantial aid from Japan, the Beiyang Army could not remain silent after Japan joined the war. The Japanese advocated that the Beiyang Army should launch a counterattack against the Russian forces in front of them as soon as possible, and then join forces with the Japanese army in the Fengtian area.

However, Yuan Shikai still understood the true strength of the Beiyang Army. For example, when Duan Qirui commanded the Beiyang Army to launch a counterattack against Chengde, Duan Qirui initially obeyed Yuan Shikai's orders and only made a show of force against Chengde, without intending to sacrifice his own strength for the victory of his ally.

However, with the successful encirclement of the Russian Western Route Army by the Hubei New Army, Duan Qirui was somewhat unwilling to be a mere supporting character. Who wouldn't want to be a national hero? Moreover, the Russian army was fighting so badly, unable to advance at Shanhaiguan, and Zhangjiakou and Huailai were actually surrounded by the Hubei New Army. Could the Beiyang Army be intimidated by such a defeated army?

Therefore, Duan Qirui tentatively launched an attack on the outskirts of Chengde. As expected, the Russian troops, lacking the will to fight, began to desert, which gave Duan Qirui a slight idea to encircle and annihilate the Russian forces in Chengde. However, although Major General Oranovsky, who was stationed in Chengde, had lost confidence in rescuing the main force at the front, he also knew that Chengde was a key point for receiving the main force's retreat, so he held it firmly.

Soon, the Beiyang Army's weakness of lacking stamina became apparent. The Beiyang Army was not incapable of fighting. The Beiyang soldiers selected from the Xiaozhan training camp were known for their honesty, stoicism, and obedience to military orders. After undergoing rigorous Western-style drills, this army was actually quite close to a modern force. Therefore, in the Battle of Shanhaiguan, the Beiyang Army, with the Hubei New Army at its core, was even able to withstand the bombardment of hundreds of Russian cannons and naval guns without a large-scale rout.

However, Yuan Shikai needed this army to obey him, so he appointed a large number of his own people to the officer ranks, bringing the factionalism of the old Huai Army into the Beiyang Army. Although this greatly strengthened his control over the army, it also led to the rapid corruption of the Beiyang Army officer ranks. In 1903, some officers dared to embezzle military pay, and at that time the Beiyang Army had only been established for a short time.

This is completely incomparable to the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army. From the very beginning, the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army established its own political ideology, purged opportunists and reactionaries from the army, and established soldiers' committees and party branches to supervise the conduct of officers. Although this made many officers who advocated revolution feel dissatisfied, the Workers' Party did not make any concessions.

Under such forceful transformation, the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army was quite consistent in its identification with the leadership of the Workers' Party and with laborism. While personal cliques did exist within the Red Army, they were severely criticized. As a result, the Red Army's fighting spirit far surpassed that of the Qing Army and the Beiyang Army, and even the Russian Army.

After breaking down the small cliques within the military, the Military Commission's leadership over the army was beyond question. As a result, the army's logistics work became unified and improved. The soldiers of the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army did not have to worry about any logistical problems. Any troubles that were difficult to resolve at the front line would be handed over to the Military Commission for resolution.

For example, in the battle against the Russian Western Route Army, the Red Army soldiers found that mounting machine guns on carts for mobile firing was very effective against the advancing Russian cavalry and infantry. However, the existing carts were not suitable for long-distance movement of machine guns, so the Military Commission had to arrange for arsenals or other industrial sectors to redesign a lightweight cart suitable for mounting machine guns.

For example, southern soldiers rarely had experience riding horses, but cavalry had a greater advantage than infantry in fighting on sparsely populated grasslands. The Military Commission believed that in addition to recruiting cavalry units in the north, solving the problem of infantry movement speed was also a direction to be addressed. Therefore, after the Zhengtai Road was recovered, it was imperative to build a railway from Taiyuan to Datong, Guihua, and Kulun.

Some committee members also believe that in addition to railways, defense highways should be built, because some of the freight trucks purchased by Wuhan have shown good performance. These trucks can carry 2 tons of cargo and travel at 35 kilometers per hour on dirt and gravel roads. This means that if the highway from Datong to Kulun is completed, the journey will only take 30 hours, whereas it currently takes at least a month.

Compared to the vast resources required to build a railway, constructing a highway is far more economical and would also provide a vast market for the automobile factory currently under construction in Wuhan. Furthermore, given the current floods in the south and droughts in the north, organizing disaster victims into groups to build highways as a form of work relief is far better than simply providing them with handouts.

The close ties between the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army and the government, as well as the industrial and agricultural sectors, meant that this army was not merely a military unit; it was essentially an organic part of the Wuhan government and the industrial and agricultural system. Its losses could be replenished at any time, and development in the rear also spurred the development of the entire army. In contrast, the Beiyang Army was isolated; it was merely fruit plucked from someone else's tree by Yuan Shikai—once eaten, it was gone.

When the Russian troops in Chengde became familiar with the Beiyang Army's offensive rhythm and launched a counterattack after receiving support, the Beiyang Army could not hold on. This was because the Beiyang Army received no better support from the rear than the Russian army, and the problems discovered at the front could not be quickly communicated to the rear for resolution. It was only the entry of Japan into the war that prevented the Russian army from expanding the war in the west, allowing Duan Qirui to stabilize the situation and avoid a complete rout.

However, Duan Qirui could only report to Yuan Shikai that "the Russian army has not completely lost its courage and still has the strength to fight again. It is not something our army can defeat."

Chapter 379 Yuan Shikai's Dilemma

Duan Qirui's report also alerted Yuan Shikai. He secretly summoned Feng Guozhang back to Tianjin. At first, Yuan Shikai only asked about the situation at the front. Feng Guozhang also said without any concealment: "Our army has the strength to defend, but lacks the strength to attack. It is not difficult to stabilize the stalemate at the front, but it is really difficult to cooperate with the Japanese army to counterattack Fengtian."

Yuan Shikai shook his head and said, "It's too early to talk about cooperating with the Japanese counter-offensive. Let the Japanese say whatever they want; we'll make our own decisions. I called you back not to discuss the counter-offensive."

However, speaking of the battles at the front, I still have a question: is the gap between us and the Hubei New Army really that large? Zhiquan told me that we can't break through the Russian positions, but the Russians can easily breach our positions. I'm thinking, Chengde and Shanhaiguan are only separated by one Hubei New Army unit each, so how come others can take them and hold them, while our Beiyang Army can't?

Feng Guozhang's eyes flickered. He really didn't want to answer the question, because telling the truth would offend everyone in the Beiyang government. Could he really tell Yuan Shikai: "If the upper beam is crooked, the lower beam will also be crooked"?

Although the Huguang New Army did not obey the imperial court's orders, they still had their own principles, and they were an army that they paid for themselves. On the other hand, the Beiyang Army received military pay from the imperial court but claimed to listen to the commander-in-chief, which was difficult to justify.

Furthermore, the money of the imperial court was not earned by itself, but rather plundered from the people. The Beiyang Army, which enjoyed the support of the people, had to obey the imperial court's orders to suppress the people, simply because the people asked the court to take measures to protect the country. What honor was there in doing such a thing? Therefore, the Beiyang Army was very clear about its own position: they were the court's lackeys.

Would a lackey without a sense of honor really be willing to die for his masters? Well, you have to treat your lackeys well. The Beiyang Army's treatment was indeed better than other armies in the country, except for the Hubei New Army and the Imperial Guard. Only the Beiyang Army had decent treatment, but it was still far from the treatment of a true lackey.

Although the officers of the Beiyang Army received good treatment, the soldiers could not enjoy the same benefits. As a result, the Beiyang soldiers were essentially paid like cattle and horses but did the work of lackeys.

Therefore, while having officers lead the charge might yield a few elite soldiers, expecting soldiers to fight recklessly is wishful thinking. When officers are fearless, the soldiers below can muster the courage to follow; but if officers are timid and hesitant, the soldiers will run just as fast.

From a certain perspective, the officers of the Beiyang Army were essentially Yuan Shikai's personal associates. They might still strive for Yuan Shikai and the future of the Beiyang Army, but dying for the country was truly not worth it. No matter how loyal they were to the country, it was not as valuable as receiving a word of praise from Yuan Shikai.

Therefore, while there might be a few fearless individuals in the Beiyang Army, it's impossible for everyone to be fearless, because no one had a reason to be. This is similar to the Huai Army, which had fierce generals like Zuo Baogui and Nie Shicheng, but more often consisted of figures like Ye Zhichao. Even Ma Yukun considered retiring and handed over the army to people from Hubei, which shows that the old system of loyalty between ruler and subject, father and son, was truly unsustainable.

As a modern military talent who had returned from studying abroad, how could Feng Guozhang not understand the spiritual appeal of European nationalism and statism to the army? But could he honestly tell Yuan Shikai this? Yuan Shikai would probably suspect that he was planning to switch sides and have other ambitions.

Therefore, Feng Guozhang could only stammer, "My Beiyang has guns and money, but Hubei not only has guns and money, but also ideology. I observe that all countries in Europe and America that have strong armies must talk about ideology. So my Beiyang may be the hero of the past, but Hubei will surely be the hero of the future."

Yuan Shikai glanced at Feng Guozhang, momentarily at a loss for words. He wanted Feng Guozhang to offer some advice, but the latter had instead passed the problem back to him. Was the Beiyang Army's inability to fight because he couldn't come up with a strategy?

Seeing the atmosphere gradually cool down, he could only laugh it off and say, "Hubei really has a lot of talent. When Xiangyan came to visit me last time, he said that people in Beijing and Tianjin are saying that Hubei has five tiger generals: Lin, Wu, Fu, Cai, and Lan, while Tian Junyi and Tang Caichang are the 'Sleeping Dragon and Phoenix Chick'. Hehe, they really put our Beiyang Army to shame."

Feng Guozhang was also surprised to hear this, and subconsciously replied, "Then wouldn't Xiang Shuai become Liu Bei?"

Yuan Shikai was taken aback, and then he began to realize that this rumor seemed to be more than it appeared, and rather seemed to be an attempt to bolster Zhang Zhidong's power. However, he quickly shook his head and said, "Xiang Shuai may not want to be like Liu Bei, but others may have the same idea. After all, only Liu Bei can control those arrogant and unruly generals. However, the court is too weak now and cannot support such a Liu Bei."

Feng Guozhang fell silent. Beijing did seem quite lively. It sounded like just a rumor, but it was a real problem for Zhang Xiangshuai. It was fortunate that it was Zhang Xiangshuai; if it were anyone else without his prestige, they would be in real trouble.

Yuan Shikai suddenly stopped and looked around. The two of them were walking and talking in a corridor, with no one in sight. He then turned to Feng Guozhang and said, "I called you back from the front line because I have something I want you to do."

Feng Guozhang immediately came to his senses and solemnly asked Yuan Shikai, "Please speak, Your Excellency."

Yuan Shikai said, "Have you heard that the National Assembly is going to investigate the defeat of the First Division?"

Feng Guozhang nodded and said, "I have heard about it. It is said that Fengshan has already submitted a letter to apologize, but can the court really listen to the National Assembly?"

Yuan Shikai pondered for a moment before saying, "Actually, people in Wuhan told me that they suggested that the Beiyang Army take over the First Division, dismiss all unqualified personnel, and keep the security of Beijing under their control. They also suggested that the Manchus should no longer interfere in military and political affairs, and that the standards for the expenses in the palace and the Manchus's money and food should be re-established. The state should no longer support those idle people."

Feng Guozhang's expression changed immediately, and after a long while, he said, "Your Excellency, this is no small matter. If we are not careful, we will become the target of everyone's criticism."

Yuan Shikai nodded, but his expression wasn't as tense as he said, "Of course I know that Wuhan doesn't have good intentions either. They just want the Beiyang clique to show its stance, whether it's on the side of the court or intends to stand with them. But do you think the court can be held up by the Beiyang clique alone?"

Feng Guozhang opened his mouth, but ultimately couldn't utter any words of unwavering commitment. The strength of Wuhan had developed to such a level that the Beiyang Army was already far behind. In his view, Duan Qirui's deployment for the attack on Chengde was standard and without any obvious mistakes; he himself would have done no better. However, the tactics implemented were simply inadequate, which highlighted the gap between the Beiyang Army and the Hubei New Army.

The Hubei New Army attacked Dushikou and launched a counterattack against the Russian forces in Zhangjiakou. The tactics they used were actually similar to those arranged by Duan Qirui, or rather, Duan Qirui's arrangements had already imitated the enemy's intentions.

However, the Beiyang Army lacked the initiative to act independently from its main force, and it also lacked the courage of the Hubei New Army to launch a small-scale attack on a large Russian force, which resulted in two completely different battle outcomes.

In the battles between the Beiyang Army and the Russian Army, apart from a few instances where the Beiyang Army outnumbered the Russians, the smaller forces almost never managed to shake the Russians' fighting spirit; instead, they lost confidence and retreated first. On the other hand, the Hubei New Army repeatedly managed to engage large Russian forces with small units, fighting to the death and instilling fear in the Russians, ultimately causing them to collapse when pursuers arrived.

How long could the Beiyang Army withstand such an army? Feng Guozhang was also unsure, but he was very clear about one thing: although the officers in the Hubei New Army envied the treatment of the Beiyang Army, very few were willing to switch sides. On the contrary, the Beiyang soldiers who fought alongside the Hubei New Army were now increasingly looking up to the Hubei New Army. They opposed the oppressive behavior in the army and the rule of enforcing military law without the review of the soldiers' committee.

In the Beiyang Army, it was common for veteran soldiers to bully new recruits, and for officers to arbitrarily beat and verbally abuse soldiers. This was especially true after the adoption of Japanese-style training methods, which led to superiors becoming extremely brutal towards their subordinates, frequently slapping them across the face, as the Japanese army heavily emphasized corporal punishment. Previously, Beiyang soldiers dared not resist, as Yuan Shikai only valued obedience; regardless of reason, anyone who dared to defy their superiors would lose their head.

However, now that the Hubei New Army was supporting these soldiers, it ignited the rebellious spirit of these Beiyang soldiers. Even Feng Guozhang could only ask the officers to restrain their behavior, after all, everyone had to cooperate with each other to resist the Russian army. This was not like the usual drills in the barracks; on the battlefield, angering the soldiers would result in being shot in the back.

If the Hubei New Army was only good at fighting, then Feng Guozhang was nothing to be afraid of. It was just a matter of each serving their own master. If they couldn't win, they could just take off their uniforms and become ordinary citizens. But how could they betray the court after receiving military pay?

But this current court, despite their desperate efforts at the front, only saw a small number of Russian troops detour and appear in the suburbs of Beijing. As a result, the Manchu armed forces, who were receiving the best treatment, collapsed without a fight. Such cowards still try to suppress the Beiyang Army and prevent them from taking the lead, even stealing the title of the First Division of the Beiyang Army. How many people are truly sincere in serving such a court?

As Feng Guozhang was pondering, Yuan Shikai said again, "Hubei has already swallowed up the Yi Army. Jiang Guiti is now hesitant. If my Beiyang still has to obey the orders of the court, I think Jiang Guiti will also have to side with Hubei."

Although I want to be a loyal subject of the Qing Dynasty, the court is unwilling to relinquish power. Now, if we are slow to act, we will be slow to act again. If Hubei gains control of Jiang Guiti's forces, then the gates of Beijing will be wide open to Hubei. At that point, what will I use to stop them from entering the capital?

There's only one way now: we must first take control of the capital, then negotiate with them in the National Assembly. It's best to avoid conflict if possible. As for the Manchus, they really should relinquish their position…”

Chapter 380 Qianhai

When Feng Guozhang obeyed Yuan Shikai's orders to go to Beijing to take over the Beiyang First Division, Zhang Zhidong was also on the orders of Empress Dowager Cixi to summon Qin Lishan to his residence in Baimi Alley on the east side of Qianhai Lake, to inquire about what Wuhan wanted to do.

Although the scenery in the north and the south of the Yangtze River is very different, the area around the three lakes in Beijing is actually not much different from the scenery in the south of the Yangtze River. In the height of summer, the lotus flowers on the water and the weeping willows planted densely on the banks look no different from those in Wuhan, except that it is not as humid and hot.

Zhang Zhidong's residence had a garden that led directly to the sea, and there was even a small pier where one could take a pleasure boat—a common layout among the high-ranking officials and nobles in the area. After Qin Lishan arrived at Zhang's residence, he was led by Zhang Zhidong's servants to a pavilion in the back garden near the sea, where Zhang Zhidong was sitting, enjoying the cool air and the view.

Although Qin Lishan did not attend the Lianghu Academy, the Shiwu Academy had close ties with it, so it cannot be said that he and Zhang Zhidong were completely unconnected. However, the fundamental reason for Qin Lishan's respect for Zhang Zhidong lay in the industrial foundation that Zhang Zhidong laid for Wuhan. As the term "industrialization" became popular in Wuhan, anyone willing to develop industry was regarded by the Workers' Party as a progressive element who could cooperate with them.

According to Lin Feng's ideas, no matter how good the ideal of scientific socialism is, it cannot be accomplished by intellectuals and peasants alone. Ultimately, it requires the leadership of a large and awakened proletariat for scientific socialism to be realized. The proletariat and industrialization are inextricably linked, so China needs industrialization, and therefore even China's bourgeoisie has become a progressive force.

Compared to the feudal landlord class within China and capitalism abroad, both the Chinese bourgeoisie and proletariat were essentially oppressed. This is the difference between the Chinese socialist revolution and the European socialist revolution, because the latter had already completed the bourgeois revolution, overthrown the feudal landlord class, and the bourgeoisie occupied the dominant position. Therefore, the bourgeoisie was naturally regarded as the greatest enemy of the proletariat.

Although Zhang Zhidong was a scholar-official who upheld the Qing dynasty, the Self-Strengthening Movement he promoted gave China an opportunity to enter the modern era. Therefore, the Workers' Party held Zhang Zhidong in relatively high regard. Of course, the Workers' Party did not believe that this Han scholar-official, who had reached the pinnacle of the Qing civil service, would fully support their views, as this would be tantamount to negating his life's achievements and abandoning his teachers, friends, relatives, and family—a situation almost unheard of in history.

If there is any difference between the Labour Party and other revolutionary parties, it lies in this method of class interest analysis. The Labour Party does not believe that teacher-student relationships and blood ties can make people betray their class interests, while the revolutionary parties believe that they can persuade people to support the revolution through personal feelings, because they believe that they are doing the right thing and that others should support them unconditionally.

Initially, Labour Party members were somewhat resistant to this party discipline because they felt that developing the party in this way was too slow and could not compete with the revolutionary parties in terms of momentum within the secret society. However, the current Labour Party members feel that this discipline is indeed very effective, at least the ideological differences among party members are much less than those of the revolutionary parties.

Even after the revolutionaries transformed into the Tongmenghui (Revolutionary Alliance), the Tongmenghui was in complete disarray. Almost every small group spoke its own mind, and there was no unified political program. They could only agree on the matter of opposing the Qing Dynasty, but they could not even agree on how to oppose the Qing Dynasty.

Although the Restoration Society was within the Tongmenghui, some members of the Restoration Society were now more inclined to align themselves with Wuhan. According to the left-center-right analysis, the left wing of the Restoration Society was at least in agreement with the Labor Party on the issue of developing China, while the center-right wing of the Restoration Society opposed the Labor Party's advocacy of eliminating the landlord class, which is why they continued to remain within the Tongmenghui.

The reason why the revolutionaries identified more with the Tongmenghui was similar to that of the center-right wing of the Restoration Society. They were disgusted by the Labor Party's clear advocacy of eliminating the landlord class, because most of these people came from the landlord class. They joined the revolution to overthrow the Qing Dynasty, not to let peasants overthrow them.

In order to consolidate his leadership position within the Tongmenghui, Sun Yat-sen had to distance himself from the Workers' Party. In fact, he still wanted to cooperate with the Workers' Party, because at that time, the Workers' Party was the only revolutionary group in the country that had a real territory and was developing rapidly. He also hoped to get support from Wuhan so as to establish the Tongmenghui's regime in Guangdong and Guangxi.

However, the Workers' Party's revolutionary propositions were too radical. Sun Yat-sen believed that opposing imperialism was correct, but strategy was crucial. After all, imperialism was too powerful, and openly opposing it would only embolden the imperialists to support the Qing government. Secondly, regarding anti-feudalism, he argued that China did not have feudalism because it had been eliminated by the Qin Dynasty. Therefore, the Workers' Party's anti-feudalism was essentially anti-landlordism, but not all landlords were bad people; how could they be generalized?

Because the Guangdong and Guangxi regions that Sun Yat-sen chose were close to the coast, they were more susceptible to the influence of foreign powers. Therefore, he could only emphasize anti-Manchu sentiment but refused to openly oppose imperialism. Instead, he strongly urged the court to oppose imperialism in order to damage the relationship between the court and foreign powers and give the public the illusion that the Tongmenghui was also anti-imperialist.

Of course, the Workers' Party viewed Sun Yat-sen's clever strategy of opposing imperialism as a sign of insufficient confidence and strength. They dared not even publicly articulate their political ideals, so how could they expect the masses to follow them to sacrifice their lives? Therefore, the Tongmenghui ultimately could only rely on its own members to carry out assassinations, failing to mobilize the masses at all. And without the support of the masses, how could a revolution succeed?

Looking at Qin Lishan, who stood before him neither humble nor arrogant, Zhang Zhidong was momentarily stunned. He truly hadn't expected these young men to achieve such results in such a short time. As the Governor-General of Huguang, he had only accomplished a few specific tasks, and was still far from achieving the goal of enriching the country and strengthening its military. However, these young men had only occupied Huguang for two years, and now the Hubei army was able to resist the Russian army. This had almost achieved the goal of enriching the country and strengthening its military that he had once desired.

Judging from the development of Wuhan in the past two years and the performance of the army, Zhang Zhidong did not actually have any ill feelings towards the Workers' Party formed by Tian Junyi and others. His loyalty to the Qing Dynasty was only because China had lost the banner of the Qing Dynasty and might be in a worse situation, so he had no choice but to continue to maintain the rule of the Qing Dynasty. It did not mean that he had any blind loyalty to the Manchus.

Empress Dowager Cixi was aware of this, which is why she sent Zhang Zhidong to the capital, hoping he would seize the opportunity to reclaim power in Hubei from the court. After all, Zhang Zhidong wanted to maintain the overall stability. However, Zhang Zhidong didn't overturn the table; instead, a group of young people in Hubei did, which backfired on Cixi. Cixi didn't think she had done anything wrong, because this was exactly what she had feared, but she still couldn't stop it in time.

However, the astonishing strength displayed by Hubei afterwards baffled the Manchu and Han nobles in Beijing, including Empress Dowager Cixi. Even now, while the Manchus were fleeing in defeat, the Han Chinese were sending large numbers of Russian prisoners of war to Beijing. According to etiquette, such a great victory could be used to offer sacrifices at the Imperial Ancestral Temple, but Wuhan had no such intention; they simply used Beijing to send the Russian prisoners of war to various places for resettlement.

This action by Wuhan shows that they have no respect for the imperial court, or rather, they don't take the imperial court seriously at all. In addition, Wuhan demanded an investigation into the defeat of the Beiyang First Division in the National Assembly, but the Beiyang, represented by Yuan Shikai, remained silent. This made the Manchu nobles who were originally showing off their power in the capital panic.

The Manchu nobles still had confidence for two reasons: first, they had the military force of the First Division of the Beiyang Army; second, they had the legitimacy of the imperial court to command the Beiyang Army. Based on the experience of the early years of the dynasty, the Manchu army supervised the Han soldiers to suppress the Han people in various places, and the country could not be disturbed. This is what the Manchu nobles often said: "As long as there are soldiers, what is there to fear?"

However, the Manchu military is now collapsing at the first sign of trouble. Who can we rely on now? The Beiyang generals who once claimed to be willing to die for the court are now all silent, letting Wuhan pressure the emperor in the National Assembly. Although the National Assembly is located in Beijing, the Manchu nobles in the capital do not dare to confront Wuhan's representatives. Everyone knows that if Wuhan withdraws its representatives, it means it is preparing to use force to eliminate the Qing Dynasty.

Judging from the current situation, the first person to jump out and oppose Wuhan is essentially signing their own death sentence. If the Manchu nobles had such courage, they wouldn't need to flee at the first sign of an enemy. Therefore, although the Wuhan representatives were vehemently criticizing the Manchus within the National Assembly, the Manchu nobles were all cowering like tortoises, completely lacking the swagger they once displayed in front of the Beiyang Army.

Since the Russian prisoners of war passed through Beijing, Prince Qing had even stopped going to the Grand Council and repeatedly requested to resign from his post, but the palace refused. The palace was astonished to find that its control over the city was weakening, which led to Zhang Zhidong's invitation to the representatives from Wuhan today.

After turning his gaze away from Qin Lishan, Zhang Zhidong finally asked, "What exactly do you want? You should know that we are still at war with the Russians. Making a fuss about the Manchu-Han divide now is just giving the Russians an advantage for nothing."

After pondering for a moment, Qin Lishan said, "Precisely because it is wartime, military discipline should be even more strictly enforced. It's unreasonable for the Manchus to escape unscathed while the Han people have to fight desperately on the front lines. That doesn't make sense at all."

After a long silence, Zhang Zhidong finally spoke and asked, "If the court insists on ignoring the decision of the National Assembly, what do you plan to do?"

Qin Lishan smiled slightly and said calmly, "It's nothing serious. If the court can't carry it out, we can do it on its behalf. What's so difficult about dealing with a mere division of rebels? Our army is ready. As long as the National Assembly issues a notice, we will come to Beijing to quell the Manchu rebellion."

Zhang Zhidong's face immediately darkened, and he said, "Where did these rebels come from? The claim of a Manchu rebellion is utter nonsense. How can such rhetoric convince the people? Are you disregarding the Beiyang Army by doing this?"

Qin Lishan replied without hesitation, "The Guangxu Emperor will prove to us that all the Manchus in Beijing are rebels. Xiang Shuai may not know, but Yuan Shikai has already telegraphed me, expressing his support for our suppression of the rebellion. After clearing out the Manchu rebels in Beijing, we will work with the Beiyang government to handle the aftermath..."

Chapter 381 Empress Dowager Cixi's Countermeasures

Zhang Zhidong understood from his conversation with Qin Lishan that Wuhan did not actually care whether the imperial court would persevere to the end in this national war; they simply wanted to demonstrate their stance to the world by drawing a line between themselves and the imperial court.

If the previous mutiny in Wuhan was supposedly carried out under the guise of Duanfang's name, then Wuhan no longer needs that prestige. In the two wars against foreign powers, Wuhan has established its own prestige and proven that the victories in these wars had nothing to do with the imperial court. The Manchus' rout on the battlefield is the best proof of this.

Therefore, Wuhan's insistence on dwelling on the Manchu defeat in the National Assembly was not to punish anyone, but to plant the impression among the people that the Manchus had not contributed anything in the national war and only knew how to run away. How could such Manchus dare to ride roughshod over the Han people who were defending their homeland?

Zhang Zhidong quickly went to the palace to report the results of the conversation to Empress Dowager Cixi and expressed his views: "The longer this matter drags on, the more it gains momentum, and the lower the court's prestige will become. If this continues, the people will not only hate those few fleeing Manchus, but the entire Eight Banners group..."

Before the Boxer Rebellion, Empress Dowager Cixi almost always made decisions unilaterally, even Li Hongzhang could not interfere. After returning to Beijing following the Boxer Rebellion, she relinquished much of her power, which was one of the reasons why the New Policies were able to proceed. However, Cixi knew in her heart that she did not willingly relinquish this power; the Boxer Rebellion had severely damaged the prestige of the central government, and without the support of local power holders, the court's decrees would likely not even leave Beijing.

She brought Zhang Zhidong to Beijing and brought Yuan Shikai to the forefront, hoping to leverage the power of these two local strongmen to seize local power and thus maintain the authority of the central government.

The mutiny in Wuhan was indeed unexpected and created a major loophole in her plan to consolidate power. Fortunately, the Hunan clique had indeed declined, and no new successor emerged, thus keeping Jiangsu and other places under the control of the court. However, the plan to rebuild the court's authority did fail. Even the new policies promoted by the court were not as radical as those in Wuhan, which greatly disappointed the local reformists.

But if the Russians hadn't attacked, Wuhan would have had no excuse to send troops north, and the Qing Dynasty could have maintained its position for a while longer. However, this war tore away the last veil of pretense for the Manchus, and Wuhan's aggressive posture at this time made Empress Dowager Cixi feel a chill in her heart.