C52 (1/2)
Chapter 52 - Ci Xi's cousin?
Great Ancestor's words of 'strategically speaking, we should look down on the enemy, but strategically speaking, we should pay attention to the enemy' was far too logical. Xiao Letian had always been bestowed with an iron law, for example, dealing with the current situation where there were many people around.
Looking at the general trend in the long run, the late Qing's Clear Stream, who was represented by the corrupt Confucianism, was destined to be swept into the dustbin of history. Even the Imperial Advisor Weng Tonghe was sent back to his home country by Ci Xi, stripped of all his official positions, and in the end, the old man died a depressed death.
To the grand historical tide, the Confucian Scholars who tightly clung to the Saints and spoke highly of them were unable to defend themselves against the rumbling steel waves of the Industrial Revolution and the surging tides of the natural sciences. Right now, they could only rely on thousands of years of inertia and a bit of folklore to maintain their final bit of dignity.
In terms of strategy, Qing Liu was not a match for Xiao Letian at all. They were not worth it for Xiao Letian to take action, and would jump into the historical trash can sooner or later.
However, in terms of tactics, you definitely could not underestimate the power that this group of Qing Liu possessed. From the case of the temple fair kidnapping, to the various difficulties Qing San Ye had encountered, anyone with a discerning eye would be able to tell who had done it.
The reason why Qing Liu was so strong was because they had taken control of the entire imperial examinations system from the bottom level to the top level. From the basic training of talent to the Beijing's entrance exams, these were the traditional positions of the Qing Liu students. They used the identity of a teacher and student to form a huge network of contacts, one that could not even be controlled by the imperial power in a given period of time.
Not only that, but these scholars were also in control of the public's opinion. In the Empire's grassroots, each and every naturally formed village, who could the illiterate peasants be disobedient to? The mouths of these scholars living in the village formed the most basic circle of public opinion in feudal China. They were part-time media personnel, living newspapers and the internet.
Xiao Letian could imagine, that these evil mouths were making up lies to deceive the common people. In their mouths, Xiao Letian had already become a demon, with his green face, fierce teeth, eating human flesh, bringing the foreign ghost soldiers with him in an attempt to subvert Great Qing Dynasty.
”Sigh!” Xiao Letian let out a long sigh, ”Master San, ah, Master San, you are an honorable noble of the Manchuria, after your achievement, these scholars would not dare to do anything to you. The tactics you use can be said to be the most 'affectionate' one. If I were to participate in this field trip, the poison scheme that Qing Liu came up with would be something that you would never be able to imagine even if you died … Forget it, even if you beat me to death, I won't get involved with you! ”
In the end, Xiao Letian decided to ignore the Qing San Ye's request for help. When Fu Hui found out about this news, she looked like a grieving woman. In the end, even Hu Niu could tell that there was a problem. The Qing San Ye is our benefactor, can't you help us? Wasn't it just going out to do some research? You have traveled all over Europe, are you still afraid of exploring the borders of the Great Qing? ”
Xiao Letian said with a bitter face, ”What do you know? The difficulties San Ye is facing right now are doubled, if I go there, the difficulties he is facing will be doubled. ”If you don't want me to go to save the fire, then that would be lighting the fire …”
Fu Hui was, after all, an aunt of the eight flags of the capital, so her distance towards politics was not that far. When she heard what Xiao Letian said, she was immediately stunned: ”Are you saying that someone is causing trouble for my brother?”
Xiao Letian shook his head: ”Isn't this nonsense? Once Industrial Zones is successful, he will have to absorb countless civilians to work inside, and the corresponding technical training will also be required. ”Once a person opens their eyes, it will be hard for them to fool him. As workers who have received education from the West, they will be the first to abandon those lies …”
”Why are the Qing Liu people playing tricks on us? They are too afraid. They are afraid that one day, the people will not believe their words. What saint's words, what righteous words are rejected, how are they going to fool the people? ”That is to say, all of the difficulties San Ye has encountered are all artificially organized …”
”Don't worry, San Ye is after all a noble member of the Manchu. ”On the contrary, if I were to step in, you would be fortunate enough to see the luxurious scene of people swearing, and you might even have to kill a few of them …” Xiao Letian drank his wine helplessly.
Pah! Fu Hui angrily threw her chopsticks on the table, ”You dare to touch my brother, these bastards want to die. I'll go to the palace and look for the empress dowager. I'll look for the Old Buddha to come out …” With that, Fu Hui stood up and was about to leave.
”Ah?” Go to the palace and look for the Empress Dowager! ”Are you joking …” ”I am the daughter of the Fuche and I have been married to a member of the imperial family for generations. Even Empress Dowager Ci Xi was familiar with me when she first came to the palace …”
”Are you for real?” Xiao Letian subconsciously stood up, and grabbed onto Fu Hui's small hand, causing her to blush on the spot.
”This... What's so good about that... The empress dowager's birth mother is a woman of our Fuche. According to seniority, I should call her auntie, but she … ”Of course she's my cousin …” The more Fu Hui spoke, the lower her voice became, and in the end, her face was flushed red and she shrank her head back to her chest.
Xiao Letian was stunned. He was extremely familiar with Ci Xi's life, but he did not know anything about Ci Xi's birth mother's identity. This was also because of the ancient people's habit of not wanting to record women in history books.
Ci Xi's father, Hui Zheng, was previously an Anhui, Ning Chi Guang's, Daoist Priest.'s mother was the Fuche, which meant that Fu Qing and his sister were definitely his cousin to Ci Xi. The two of them should call Ci Xi ”Cousin Sister”.
”How can this be? Since San Ye has such good relatives, why are we spending money to buy officials? ” Xiao Letian asked in confusion.