Chapter 197, "Enduring the humiliation and bearing the burden"
On November 1, 1634 AD, accompanied by the roaring salute and the passionate "Ode to the Motherland" (adapted version of the lyrics), there were also envoys from Japan, the Netherlands, North Korea and other countries to watch the ceremony and congratulate them, spanning six continents (Except Europe), the Global Chinese Travelers Alliance, which borders three oceans (excluding the Arctic Ocean), ended its two-year preparation phase and officially held the founding ceremony in the newly completed capital Chinatown (Perth, Australia).
After a series of campaigns, lobbying and behind-the-scenes deals, he successfully became the first Supreme National Chairman of the Chinese League, Comrade Wen Desi. With his carefully combed hairstyle and a silver-gray high-end woolen tunic suit, Smiling broadly, he delivered his inaugural address on the South Lawn of Capitol Hill.
- Regarding the issue of standard attire for the top leaders of the Chinese League and government civil servants, some people initially clamored for the "revival of Hanfu", and many people were deceived into believing it. However, when the relevant departments actually obtained dozens of sets of "Eguan Bo belts" from the Han Dynasty from a certain costume movie prop group, everyone was shocked. Then I reluctantly tried it on for a few days. Most of the time travelers said with pained faces that wearing such clothes in daily life was simply asking for trouble for themselves. Therefore, it is better to keep pace with the times and change customs. good.
In the modern world, even a country like Japan that is keen on maintaining traditional customs does not force the Prime Minister to wear a kimono to work!
——In fact, the kimono in modern Japanese society has also undergone many improvements and changes compared with the real ancient kimono.
Of course, if in this world that is about to be conquered by the Chinese, civil servants in the Chinese League are still allowed to wear suits and ties, it would feel a bit unjust, and it would seem to be a bit of a praising of foreigners. So I made a compromise and wore Mao suits as the standard uniform.
(Personally, I have always felt that ties are really useless and very uncomfortable to wear, but they are also quite expensive.)
That afternoon, the boulevard under the Eiffel Tower was filled with all kinds of colorful flags and decorations. Colorful balloons were floating in the sky. A band in gorgeous uniforms played a cheerful waltz. There are people wandering around in silly puppet costumes.
On the neatly manicured lawns by the roadside, long dining tables covered with snow-white linen were set up, filled with a dazzling array of sweets, fruits and dishes, all served on huge white porcelain plates or glassware. inside. There is also a charcoal stove and grill set up at one end of the table. The chef wearing a white hat is skillfully turning large pieces of steaks, pork chops and fish steaks, turning whole lobsters, suckling pigs and roast ducks, and cooking them in oil. There are French fries and chicken nuggets fried in the pot, making a mouth-watering "sizzling" sound and bursts of strong spices that can melt the nasal mucosa of a person.
Although the dishes at the buffet banquet were very rich, in order to prevent drunken people from making trouble and causing riots, only juice, soda, low-alcohol beer and kvass were served as drinks. However, the travelers and citizens present have long been accustomed to this, and the foreign visitors are also very interested in doing as the locals do. They each hold a large dinner plate filled with dishes in one hand and a wine glass in the other. They sit or stand while chatting. While eating with gusto.
There were also many young men and women in festive costumes, dancing happily to the cheerful beats played by the band.
However, even in this joyful and joyful atmosphere, there seems to be a small patch of unharmonious haze...
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"...Hmph, this Kun is really abominable! There is no etiquette in a grand state banquet, and there is no even the most basic courtesy of sitting down. He actually lets the guests carry the plates, pour the wine and eat! Could it be that they treat us as if they are What a disgrace to the beggar in front of the soup kitchen!”
Beside a round table shaded by trees, Xia Yunyi, deputy envoy of the envoy sent by Emperor Yonghe of Shanghai, sat upright and muttered angrily.
But even though he was cursing, the plate in front of him was still full of delicacies, such as crab cakes, fried shrimp, steak, fried eggs, onion rings, grilled chicken, salad tomatoes, small cakes and French fries, everything. They all had it, holding a full glass of coconut juice in their hands, and pouring it into their mouths while cursing.
"...Exactly, this Kun man is so vulgar. Although he claims to be a Miao descendant of the Song Dynasty, he must actually be just a pretense of being a lowly barbarian from overseas."
Another Jiangnan scholar sitting next to him drank the beer in his glass in one gulp, and then gently tapped the tall glass in his hand while saying disdainfully, "...Kunren pretended to be a Chinese nobleman, but he No emphasis on Confucianism and the Holy Religion If you don't learn poetry and etiquette, you just indulge in strange skills and tricks, which is really the way to death! Even if all the tools are exquisite, what use are they to the country and the people? To govern the country and bring peace to the world, you still have to rely on moral articles. ! ”
"...not to mention that as soon as the Kun people founded the country, they abused their people's power and built a lot of construction projects, without the simplicity of the new dynasty! Look at how many beautiful buildings, jade buildings and majestic palaces the Kun people built in the capital? Even this is useless The tall towers all have to be Built with steel! It’s comparable to the extravagant efforts of King Zhou of Shang Dynasty to build a deer platform to make Daji smile! How much taxation and extortion of people’s wealth must this Kun’s court have to fill the financial hole?”
Xia Yunyi wiped his mouth, raised his finger and pointed at the Eiffel Tower beside him, and said with a sneer, "... He is so extravagant and lustful, and has no regard for the people's power. It can be seen that the people under his rule must be in dire straits! If there is a slight change, the people will probably be killed. uncover The country is already in such danger, but they still don’t know how to recover, but they continue to launch military campaigns in all directions! Humph! The lesson from Qin Shihuang and Emperor Yang of Sui is not far away! br>
In response to this high-level discussion, several Confucian scholars from the Ming Dynasty mission all nodded repeatedly and praised Xia Yunyi for being "really knowledgeable." Then someone quoted the classics and criticized the female concubine for dressing boldly and exposing her arms and legs, which was really immoral. She even danced in the street and hugged men, which was really shameless. Some people also told anecdotes about the Kun thieves' various debauchery, cruelty and greed... The final conclusion was that "the Kun people are short-sighted, ignorant of poetry and etiquette, and disrespectful of scholars and scholars, and they will perish soon." Completely forgetting that he came to ask for help because the country was about to be destroyed.
So, he finally took the opportunity and managed to chat with the Foreign Minister of the Chinese League for a few words. Fang Yizhi, the envoy of the Yonghe Emperor's court asking for help, who was returning with a glass of wine and sitting down, was almost furious when he heard that. Put on airs immediately He scolded, "...Xia Yunyi! Why are you making so much noise outside again? Can't all these fine wines and delicacies stop your bad mouth? Could it be that you really want to ruin the imperial court's affairs? "
Seeing that Fang Yizhi was obviously really angry, Xia Yunyi snorted. Although he couldn't bring himself to apologize, he lowered his head, stopped talking, and just concentrated on eating and drinking. And the others also fell silent. Fang Yizhi glanced at them coldly again, then sat back on the table and took a bite of the steak. The rich and plump texture and the spiciness of the black pepper sauce poured into his mouth, but Fang Yizhi felt... So bitter...
——This trip to Australia as an envoy to ask for help is really not going well. I am afraid that I will return without success...
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The Yonghe Emperor, who was restored in Shanghai, has been in turmoil almost from the beginning of his birth.
In the spring, the Qing army had already launched an attack on Emperor Yonghe's army. The Suzhou Prefecture that had been massacred was ravaged for the second time. The rabble hurriedly gathered by the Jiangnan gentry was overwhelmed in one fell swoop. , it was only thanks to the desperate defense of Jiangyin City and Shanghai City that they managed to survive.
Before Fang Yizhi's mission set off, Emperor Yonghe suffered another military disaster this summer: the two princes of the Qing army, Abatai and Azig, joined forces to march eastward and mobilized more than 50,000 troops. , bypassing the hard nail of Jiangyin, and poured into Suzhou and Songjiang under the jurisdiction of Emperor Yonghe from the west.
Facing the massive attack by the Qing army, the dilapidated Suzhou Prefecture fell almost instantly. Within the territory of Songjiang Prefecture, only Shanghai County, where the Yonghe Emperor's court was stationed, withstood the Qing army in a deadly battle under Sun Yuanhua's supervisor with its solid fortress system and relatively sufficient troops. Kunshan, Jiading and other towns were all able to withstand the Qing army. They were attacked and massacred by the Qing army. Even Songjiang Fucheng in Huating was captured after three days of fierce fighting. Immediately after Xu Jie, the famous prime minister of the Jiajing Dynasty in the Ming Dynasty, the Xu family in Songjiang, which was famous for its wealth, could not escape, and the entire family was massacred by the Qing army.
Next, Azige's Qing army continued southward and penetrated deep into Jiaxing Prefecture in Zhejiang Province, destroying counties and slaughtering cities along the way. Rivers of blood flowed wherever they passed. It was not until Haining County at the southernmost tip of Jiaxing Prefecture that they were shelled by Australian warships. The Qing army, which had already looted, retreated calmly. However, they still stationed troops in Taicang and Kunshan. They might attack Shanghai again at any time and put the Yonghe Emperor's court to the sword. The remaining remnants of Donglin were driven into the sea.
What's even worse is that seeing the Yonghe Emperor's court in Shanghai in such a bad state and vulnerable to the invasion of the Qing army, the surrounding neighbors also started to take advantage of the situation. First of all, Captain Su, who was in charge of the Taihu Water Bandits Twelve Chain Docks, the "Emperor Wu" who had just ascended the throne on the West Dongting Mountain Island, led a group of Taihu Bandits ashore, all the way into Jiaxing Prefecture, and also occupied Tongxiang. , Jiashan and other places. Then, Wen Tiren, a famous official in the late Ming Dynasty who was currently entrenched in Huizhou and served as the leader of Emperor Chongzhen and Crown Prince Zhu Cixiang, also personally led his troops back to his hometown of Huzhou and mobilized the power of the Wen family to capture Huzhou without any bloodshed. Finally, the Chinese League's Zhejiang Occupation Force Headquarters stationed in Hangzhou, seeing that the Yonghe Emperor's court was so muddy that it couldn't even act as a buffer, sent troops north again and occupied Haiyan County in Jiaxing Prefecture. It serves as a forward outpost and peripheral barrier to defend Hangzhou.
At this point, the territory under the name of Emperor Yonghe shrank significantly again in just half a year. As all suburban counties such as Kunshan and Jiading changed hands, Huating, the capital of Songjiang, was massacred by the Qing army and turned into a wasteland. This poor country has only two isolated cities left, Shanghai and Jiangyin, plus Chongming Island. Moreover, the troops were short of rations and had no pay and silver. Xu Guangqi, the chief minister of the cabinet, had no choice but to die in anger and worry in early August. In order to avoid the Qing army, Yonghe Emperor Zhu Yihai simply fled to Chongming Island by boat and refused to land. He was jokingly called "The Emperor of the Sea".
Faced with such a desperate situation, anyone with a discerning eye can see that this *** in Shanghai is almost unsustainable. Like any employees of a company on the verge of bankruptcy, the Jiangnan gentry who were originally trapped in Shanghai also began to think of changing jobs.
However, looking around, these charming and talented people sadly found that they had no place to change jobs!
——Needless to say, the Australian thieves in the south have always been disrespectful, despised etiquette, poetry and books, and trampled the gentry and talented people like them into the mud. The Manchu and Qing Tartars across the way, when Huang Taiji was in power, had They used to treat the scholar-bureaucrats with some courtesy, but now slavery has been fully restored. The national policy is to "degrade all the people in Jiangnan as slaves." They join the slave leader who can only be an accountant in the past, and there is no thought of becoming an official.
Among the remaining two forces, the "Great Wu Empire" of the Taihu Twelve Chain Dock Water Bandits is simply a puppet thug pushed out by the Australians, and it is more powerful than the Shuibo Liangshan in the play. What's worse, instead of surrendering to this guy, you might as well pull the pole and become a bandit! Although the little emperor Zhu Cixiang of Huizhou was an orthodox Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, compared with the situation of Emperor Yonghe, he was only half a catty.
So after going around in a circle, these Jiangnan Jin gentry found that they had no way out - the world of Ming Dynasty was finished, and all the major forces in the surrounding area were using them as fat pigs to kill them, and they did not give preferential treatment to the scholars or open up subjects. Due to Shi's plan, the remaining small piece of territory is also in danger.
In order to protect the last two lonely cities and survive for a while longer, these noble scholars had to be servile and kneel in front of the Australian thieves who they had always disdained and despised, begging for help from those lowly pirates and craftsmen.
Think about these Donglin scholars who are famous all over the south of the Yangtze River. They were originally from rich and powerful families. They were all noble and noble, and they regarded themselves as talented people who could govern the country and help the world. Now, in just two or three years, they have suddenly become The country is ruined, the family is ruined, and the people are impoverished. It is like falling from the clouds into the quagmire.
——The Ming Empire, which respected the scholars and treated the Jin gentry favorably, fell apart; the Tartars and bandits who slaughtered the Jin gentry and abused the scholars were everywhere. No matter how ruthless and disorderly they were, the scholars in Jiangnan could not deny that the sky was falling. The terrifying reality of a sinking earth.
Under such a severe gap, many scholars could not accept such a cruel reality, thinking that there must be something wrong with the world, and they became insane. Some hanged themselves, some went crazy, and some became monks... However, today's Jiangnan Buddhism was by no means a pure place. Both the bandits and the Qing army were very fond of cutting down mountains, destroying temples, robbing nuns and killing monks. As a result, many scholars who had already ordained their families had to be "returned to secular life" and escaped.
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In addition to these mentally weak losers, there are other Jiangnan celebrities who are mentally tough and continue to grit their teeth. After Xu Guangqi died of illness, "city building expert" Sun Yuanhua took over the position of chief minister of the cabinet and continued to lead the Yonghe court's cause of the Anti-Japanese War. However, all the food and wages in Shanghai were exhausted, and Sun Yuanhua was also a clever woman who could not make a living without rice. Under his persuasion and coercion, Fang Yizhi, Xia Yunyi and other famous people from the south of the Yangtze River finally went to Hangzhou again to beg for military pay and food assistance for the sake of the imperial government and the country.
Later, because the occupying military authorities in Hangzhou argued that they did not have enough authority to make the decision, these Jiangnan scholars were like Jing Ke stabbing the King of Qin, with the tragic mood of "the wind is rustling and the water is cold, and the strong men will never return once they are gone." I boarded the big iron ship of the Australians and prepared to "go deep into the wilderness" and go to the Australian capital to "cry Qin Ting". No matter what, I had to try to get some help from the Shanghai court that was struggling to support me.
It has to be said that through the massacre by the Qing army and the earth-shaking changes, the talkative experts and paranoiacs among the Jiangnan scholars have been almost eliminated. No matter how good or bad their character is, the remaining guys are at least capable and willing to do things.
However, although today's anti-Qing martyrs are relatively brave and courageous, they still fail to escape the historical limitations of their circle, and their views are still very different from those of modern travelers. Not to mention the diplomat's ability to bend and stretch.
——In many cases, those "righteous men" with the most backbone often mean the conservatives with the most granite heads. Just as the Westernizers in the late Qing Dynasty were mostly cunning villains, the die-hards were mostly "gentlemen". Although people like Fang Yizhi and Xia Yunyi are strong-blooded, they can fight to the death on the battlefield to the last moment and fight with their full names. But when I need to be submissive and ask for help, I seem very reluctant and reluctant
For example, even though the Yonghe court had been reduced to only two counties, the mission still regarded itself as a sovereign state. At the same time, it deceived itself and regarded the Australians, whose territory spread all over the world, as a small barbarian state. It should be noted that governing the country and the people is a skill only for scholars. Even if you are an invincible force in the world, you can only conquer the world at once, but you cannot rule the world at once. Seeing so many famous people from the south of the Yangtze River "enduring the humiliation" and going deep into the wilderness to come here, you Australian "frontier savages" should be flattered, feel the brilliance, and give all your hospitality to them.
Who would have expected that when the Australians visited the State Guesthouse in the capital, the standard of hospitality they received from the "Australian government" for envoys from the "Celestial Kingdom" was actually ranked behind the Japanese Japanese and Western red-haired barbarian envoys, and on the same level as the barbarian chiefs in northern Saibei!
——You modern time travelers don’t think that they have anything to do with “bearing humiliation and bearing the burden”. Instead, you think that these people are here to beg and eat free food. But they are clearly already in such a state of desolation, yet they still look at people through their nostrils with such a stinking air... Are there any of you in the world who are begging for help like this? Anyway, China is now rich in emperors, and there are not even 10,000 but a few thousand emperors. The little territory you have is really not as big as a hunting ground of a tribe!
As a result, these Jiangnan scholars, who thought highly of themselves, became furious on the spot, waved their fists and started shouting. Unexpectedly, the Australians actually rolled their eyes and cursed: "...How dare a group of low-income people who came to beg for food dare to shout and drink like this? If you want to live there, live there, if you don't live there, get out!"
The Confucian scholars added fuel to the fire after hearing this. They rolled up their sleeves and planned to teach this disrespectful guy a lesson. But a few strong bodyguards with big muscles and round waists immediately stood on the opposite side, looking at them with evil eyes... These gentlemen had to stay away. Later, someone felt deeply humiliated and clamored to jump off the building. However, they jumped several times back and forth, but no one came to stop them. In the end, they had to give up in despair.
Next, everyone in the mission knew about Deputy Ambassador Xia Yunyi's confidant Chang Sui molesting the Australian maid, and Xia Yunyi making a fuss about it. But the problem is that the Jiangnan scholars don't feel that they have done anything wrong at all - in their eyes, a classless "Yi Cheng" and a group of humble "slaves", can't they still call and drive them? Does it make sense? As for asking maids to "accompany guests to bed", it was the norm in the Ming Dynasty. There is no reason why it wouldn't work here in Australia! It is clear that the Australians are deliberately making things difficult and humiliating themselves!
Despite this, they still understand the principle of "people have to bow their heads when they are under the roof". Therefore, in the face of the overwhelming power of the Australians, the entire mission once again chose to "bear the humiliation and bear the burden" and detain Xia Yunyi with humiliation to prevent him from causing any more trouble. However, Deputy Ambassador Xia Yunyi was also stimulated to the point of anger, and his mentality was seriously unbalanced. He shouted angry words for several days in a row, and endlessly compiled all kinds of wrongdoings about the Australians, even when the Dutch "Red-haired Barbarian" envoy came to visit. , this guy didn't hold back at all, so much so that he "surprised allied countries"...
Compared with deputy envoy Xia Yunyi, Fang Yizhi, as the envoy, at least understood his mission, was quite involved in Western learning, and had a more open-minded mind. He finally did not regard the Australians as barbaric beasts. It's a pity that he didn't actually correct his posture. He always felt that people like him were struggling to support themselves in Songjiang and resist the Manchu and Qing Tartars. This was because of their righteousness. Since Australians still consider themselves to be descendants of the Chinese, food, ammunition and weapons should be provided free of charge. It makes no sense that passionate warriors like them are working hard at the front, while the Australians are huddled behind the battlefield to watch the fun and make money.
Therefore, although Fang Yizhi finally showed an attitude of asking for help, he always asked for this and that every time he opened his mouth. He wanted everything from silver, ordnance, and food, but he was unwilling to pay any price. He also insisted that Australia People have the obligation to satisfy all their needs... Obviously, such a begging routine is still completely incompatible with the thinking of the time travellers. The relevant departments stated that they did not treat the Qing army as a dish at all, let alone being taken advantage of.
In short, after a series of events, Emperor Yonghe of the Ming Dynasty's envoys for help successfully turned themselves into a piece of stinky shit. No one in the Chinese League wanted to deal with this bunch of useless losers anymore. I just plan to entertain them until the celebration is over and then send these people away.
Regarding this, Fang Yizhi, as the envoy, had just vaguely heard a hint of the news. He couldn't help but be anxious. He wanted to find the newly appointed supreme leader of the Australians to say a few words, but he couldn't find him. Finally, he found a few Australian officials he knew, but they "talked little to nothing", and a few members of the mission only complained all day long and were not helpful, so Fang Yizhi had to worry about drinking. . What he didn't know was that at this moment, Chairman Wen Desi was not at the celebration, but quietly came to a wilderness in the suburbs...