Chapter 55 Yuan Shikai

On the eve of the Empress Dowager Cixi's birthday, disasters suddenly occurred in North Korea, the country was in chaos, and Japan sent troops to intervene, seriously threatening the interests of the Qing Dynasty.Therefore, Yuan Shikai, the envoy of the Qing Dynasty in North Korea, and Feidian Li Hongzhang, requested to send troops for reinforcements, which caused China and Japan to start a quarrel, and the battle cloud suddenly rose.The Qing army lost consecutive battles, and the Empress Dowager Cixi was extremely depressed, so she had to send another decree to cancel the celebration.When the birthday comes, he will only be congratulated in the Paiyun Hall.

Yuan Shikai, whose name is Weiting and whose name is Rong'an, was born in Xiangcheng, Henan. People call him Yuan Xiangcheng.And because the silver coins (silver dollars) made when he was the president of the Republic of China have his bald, fat head and big ears on the head, people also call him Yuan Datou. He was born in the ninth year of Xianfeng (1859). His ancestor Yuan Jiasan and his father Yuan Baoqing were not small officials in Xianfeng and Tongzhi.Although he was not born in the imperial examination, did not study many books, and looked ordinary, he became famous very early. In the eighth year of Tongzhi (1869), the knight-errant Zhang Wenxiang stabbed Ma Xinyi, governor of Liangjiang, to death.Because the matter was so important, the Qing court first sent Zhang Zhiwan, Governor of Water Transport, and then Zheng Dunjin, Minister of Criminal Affairs, and Zeng Guofan, who was named Marquis and succeeded Governor of Liangjiang for his meritorious service in suppressing the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, to try the case.At that time, Yuan Shikai's father, Yuan Baoqing, was a Taoist priest and assistant to the new barracks. He and Sun Yiyan, the feudal official, both advocated the punishment of Zhang Wenxiang, but General Kuiyu and Mei Qizhao did not advocate torture. Afterwards, Sun Yiyan and Yuan Baoqing were asked to participate in the interrogation.Sun Yiyan thought that the opportunity to speak for Ma Xinyi had come, so he went to Yuan Baoqing to speak up.It happened that Yuan Baoqing was not there, and Yuan Shikai was guarding the door.When Sun Yiyan expressed his thoughts excitedly, Yuan Shikai smiled and said: Uncle Shi, my nephew said something that I didn't know how to advance or retreat. From my nephew's point of view, this is Zheng and Zeng Gong using this method to block the mouths of the two of you. , the result is that he will not use torture, nor will he bite anyone out, it is still Zhang Wenxiang's business alone.

Sun Yiyan was skeptical of Yuan Shikai's words, but he still fought hard with Yuan Baoqing. As Yuan Shikai said, Sun Yiyan and Yuan Baoqing were exhausted, but Zhang Wenxiang was still not sentenced.This case that shocked the whole country was left alone. Sun Yiyan later lamented that he had been studying for more than 40 years and was an official for more than 40 years, and he was worse than a twelve-year-old child in seeing things.Since then, the twelve-year-old Yuan Shikai has gained some fame among some officials.Bachelor Duan Jingchuan also said that he is extraordinary. Yuan Shikai likes to study, but he does not rely on the imperial examinations to gain fame like his grandfather and father, and then climb up step by step.He always wanted to take a shortcut, so he went to Shandong to join Wu Changqing, the commander of the Huai Army, as an assistant in the camp affairs office.Later, Wu Changqing was transferred to North Korea, and because of the incidents in France and Vietnam, Wu Changqing was transferred to Jinzhou.

Wu Zhaoyou, the successor general, heard of the turmoil in the Korean palace, and urgently summoned Zhang Guangqian, the commander-in-chief, to discuss.At this time, Yuan Shikai had donated the title of Tongzhi. Wu Zhaoyou called Yuan Shikai to discuss, and Yuan Shikai advised him: "If you don't enter the tiger's den, how can you get tiger cubs."Now you can send troops quickly, smash into the Korean palace, save the chaotic party, rescue the king, and then decide according to the situation. Wu Zhaoyou said: "I heard that there are Japanese soldiers guarding the palace. I'm afraid it's not easy to attack."Yuan Shikai said that the Japanese soldiers should not be feared.So Wu Zhaoyou sent troops to attack the palace.Sure enough, as Yuan Shikai said, the Korean king and his son were quickly rescued.However, Japan refused to let it go.Later, Li Hongzhang signed two agreements with the Japanese envoy Ito Hirobumi, but finally there was no fight.At this time, Yuan Shikai had been appointed Minister of Commerce and Industry in North Korea.

In the 20th year of Guangxu (1894), during the Sino-Japanese Sino-Japanese War of Sino-Japanese War of 1894, Yuan Shikai returned from North Korea and went to Beijing to report the military situation. He met Li Hongzhang and expressed his interests.The general idea is: to supervise North Korea and take charge of the government on behalf of the Japanese to prevent the Japanese from coveting the peninsula and making the Qing Dynasty passive. Although Li Hongzhang admired him very much, he made Yuan Shikai withdraw his talent and give in, showing off his edge.Yuan Shikai saw that the court had no intentions, so he had to leave with a sigh.

In the Sino-Japanese Sino-Japanese War of 1899-1895, both the navy and land armies of the Qing Dynasty were defeated by Japanese soldiers, and ended with compensation.Yuan Shikai heard that the Japanese were going to kill him, so of course he didn't dare to go back to North Korea, so he stayed idle in Beijing.At this time, Yuan Shikai was still an unknown person in Beijing, a small fifth-rank acquaintance, not an official in Beijing at all, and there were a lot of officials who were senior to him.Of course, Li Lianying would not take the initiative to make friends with him. However, Yuan Shikai was a person unwilling to be inferior to others, and he was very good at making a living. He moved around, desperately trying to get close to the famous people at the top, in order to make a career in the sky and make a fortune.Coincidentally, he finally found out the news that his sworn brother Ruan Zhongshu was working as a teacher in Li Lianying's home, and he was very happy.He knew that through Ruan Zhongshu, he would definitely be able to meet Director Li, and as long as he saw Director Li, he would not worry about not having an official position.

It was more than ten years ago that Yuan Shikai got acquainted with Ruan Zhongshu.At that time, Yuan Shikai had not yet become an official. He came to Shanghai from Henan, but failed to find a job, so he went from Shanghai to Shandong to join his uncle's good friend Wu Changqing.This year was the eighth year of Guangxu in the Qing Dynasty (1882). Yuan Shikai happened to meet Ruan Zhongshu on his way to Beijing to wait for the test, and the two went together.Getting along for several days, the words are very speculative.When they broke up in Jinan, the two were reluctant to part, so they became brothers.Ruan Zhongshu saw that Yuan Shikai was shy, so he helped Yuan Shikai a considerable amount of money and became a close friend.

Yuan Shikai reminisced about the friendship in the past, and he thought that if Ruan Zhongshu could be found for help, it would not be difficult to meet Li Lianying.So, he went to visit. Besides, since Ruan Zhongshu broke up with Yuan Shikai that year (the eighth year of Guangxu), he went to Beijing to wait for the test.He was good at writing, and he came to take the test after he won the exam. He didn't pass the exam at that time, so he stayed in Beijing and continued to prepare for the exam. It just so happened that Li Lianying was about to hire a teacher from the teacher to tutor his younger sister.Teaching such a library can be said to hardly affect my own reading, so Ruan Zhongshu applied to Li's residence.Coupled with Ruan Zhongshu's flexibility, he was appreciated by Li Lianying both in terms of literary talent and sophistication, and he has been teaching in Li's residence for more than ten years.

When Yuan Shikai came to Li's mansion, he said he wanted to see Ruan Zhongshu, and the disciples reported to him immediately.Ruan Zhongshu heard that his friend Yuan Shikai, whom he had not seen for many years, was visiting, so he came out to greet him in person and invited him into the study.After the two sat down, they shared their farewell feelings.Talking about the recent situation, Yuan Shikai took the opportunity to change the topic to ask Ruan Zhongshu for help and meet with Li Lianying, Chief Executive Li. Ruan Zhongshu saw that Yuan Shikai was in an urgent mood. He thought that a friend he hadn't seen for many years asked for his name, and he had to agree because of his affection. Besides, if he didn't agree, it would appear that he had no status in Li's residence.Therefore, he generously agreed, expressing that he must facilitate this matter, but he could not set the time, and he wanted to test Li Lianying's tone before making an agreement.

Because whenever Li Lianying had free time, she always went to the museum to chat with Ruan Zhongshu for a while, and even ate and drank together.Once, taking advantage of Li Lianying's visit to the study, he said to Li Lianying: Director Li, I have a word, I don't know if I should say it or not? Li Lianying said with a smile: "Sir, it's outrageous to say that. As long as I can do it, I will try my best to do it."Isn't Mr. unwilling to be quiet and idle in the study, and want to take a walk in the officialdom? Seeing that Li Lianying didn't refuse his request, Ruan Zhongshu knew there was something to be done about it, so he laughed and said: That's not true, Zhongshu is not talented, he just wants to compete for a position in the department.I have a good friend named Yuan Shikai, who once served as Minister of Commerce and Industry in North Korea.After returning from North Korea, he lived in Beijing. He wanted to see Director Li and asked me to tell him.

Li Lianying smiled and said: "Since he is Mr. Ruan's friend, then he is my friend. There is no reason not to see him, but I haven't had time for the past two days."The day after tomorrow night!I am waiting at home. Ruan Zhongshu didn't expect that Li Lianying would be so happy that he could finally boast of his status in the Li family in front of Yuan Shikai. He was immediately overjoyed and informed Yuan Shikai to prepare. It turned out that Li Lianying heard from Ruan Zhongshu that Yuan Shikai was Yuan Jiasan's grandson. Although he didn't know Yuan Shikai, he did know Yuan Jiasan, his sons Baoheng and Baoling, nephews Baoqing and Baozhong, and some of their fame. Knowing that although Yuan Jiasan does not have the influence of Zeng Guofan, Zeng Houye, Li Hongzhang and Li Zhongtang, he still has a lot of close friends and has certain influence in the court and among the vassals, so he decided to meet him. When the time came, Yuan Shikai was taken by Ruan Zhongshu to the Flower Hall of the Li Mansion to meet Li Lianying, and Ruan Zhongshu also sat beside him.There seemed to be a tacit understanding between Li Lianying and Yuan Shikai's words, and the conversation was very speculative. It can be said that they hit it off right away. From then on, the two got closer and closer. Li Lianying still entertained Yuan Shikai in the mansion from time to time, treating him as a guest of honor, and often invited Ruan Zhongshu to accompany him during the dinner.Yuan Shikai took the opportunity to show his courtesy and tried every means to please Li Lianying, and Ruan Zhongshu also helped him.Not long after, Li Lianying and Yuan Shikai became good friends of Jinlan.Li Lianying is eleven years older than Yuan Shikai, the elder is the elder brother, Yuan Shikai is the younger brother, and they are called brothers. Now that he has become Li Lianying's brother-in-law, it will be much more convenient for Yuan Shikai to enter the gate of Li's mansion.Since Yuan Shikai embraced this pillar, he naturally held on tightly.He boasted wildly outside, and soon stood out from an unknown little man, and many people were proud to know Yuan Shikai.Of course, these people wanted to take advantage of Yuan Shikai's ladder to follow Li Lianying's path, and Yuan Shikai wanted to use these people to strengthen his prestige.Sure enough, Yuan Shikai became famous very quickly, and was introduced by Li Lianying to worship Yikuang, Prince of Qing, as his teacher. Later, he got acquainted with Rong Lu, Kang Youwei and others. It can be said that Li Lianying and Yuan Shikai depended on and took care of each other, and their relationship network became more and more dense, forming a huge interest group.