Chapter 189 Li Qiwei, the Imperial Master of the Qing Dynasty, presented a birthday gift with a laser orb
November 16, 1904, was still a difficult day for ordinary people.
The whole of 1904 was still a difficult year, with constant natural and man-made disasters.
Wars, natural disasters, hunger, disease, oppression by the government, and bullying by foreigners.
In terms of war, Yingru is fighting in full swing in the north, leaving countless local people displaced and their families destroyed.
Britain invaded the West in an attempt to do evil at home.
In terms of natural disasters, earthquakes, floods, and droughts are raging in the country, making the people miserable.
As for hunger and disease, they can happen anywhere in the country.
A powerless family, if one of these things happens, it will be ruined.
This is the current living situation of the people at the bottom under the rule of the Manchu Qing Dynasty, revealing a sense of lifeless despair.
If it weren't for Li Qiwei's drastic education reform, it would barely bring a trace of upward vitality to this country.
I am afraid that it will make countless people with lofty ideals look up to the sky and sigh.
The Manchus and the Tatars deserve to die!
Of course those in power can see and know the suffering of the people, but they turn a blind eye and ignore it.
Because today, there is only one major event in the entire Qing Dynasty, and everyone is busy with this major event.
That was the seventieth birthday of the current Queen Mother Lafayette.
The Qing court held an extremely grand "Longevity Celebration".
The Forbidden City is ablaze with lights and colorful decorations, and there is a festive atmosphere everywhere.
This is in sharp contrast to the miserable life outside the city.
The signs of the demise of the Manchu Qing Dynasty have become more and more obvious, and now it is just the final flashback.
Cixi's birthday ceremony was not held in the Forbidden City, but in the Summer Palace in the western suburbs of the capital, where the environment was better and Cixi loved it.
It is clear that the country has reached the end of the year that is riddled with problems, but Cixi, who likes extravagance, still holds a birthday feast extravagantly.
The entire Summer Palace was decorated like a fairyland on earth, and the ruined scene that was destroyed by the Eight-Power Allied Forces a few years ago was completely invisible.
The vain Cixi made a false edict and did not allow officials to send her gifts.
However, no one dares not to give it away.
Because Lafayette may not remember who has given gifts, but he must remember who has not given gifts.
If you are held in a grudge, your career in this life will come to an end.
The most important part of gift-giving is of course the singing ceremony, which is when the little eunuch introduces the name of each gift loudly.
It not only highlights the minister's respect, but also shows the nobility of Cixi's demon in the world.
Summer Palace, Leshou Hall.
This is where Cixi lived in the garden.
At this moment, Le Shou Hall was filled with civil and military officials, and they even crowded outside the room. There were nearly 200 people crowded together.
Cixi was so happy that she even invited foreign envoys to show her royal majesty.
At this moment, Cixi completely forgot that a few years ago she was beaten like a lost dog.
Now there is only one thing on her mind, her birthday must be a glorious one.
There is a special link before the gift-giving, that is, the first, third, and second place candidates among the new scholars will celebrate the Queen Mother's birthday together.
This year's palace examination is held later to cater for Cixi's seventieth birthday, which is the so-called happiness upon happiness.
The number one winner is Zhu Ruzhen, the third place winner is Liu Chunlin, and the second place winner is Zhang Qihou.
After Zhu Ruzhen, the new number one scholar, entered, Cixi asked him his name and place of origin.
Zhu Ruzhen knelt down and replied: "The student's name is Zhu Ruzhen, from Guangdong."
Unexpectedly, Cixi immediately became angry after hearing this. Li Lianying saw that she was thinking of something bad and quickly asked Zhu Ruzhen to go out.
After a while, Zhu Ruzhen, who was looking confused outside, became even more confused.
Because the Queen Mother decreed that Liu Chunlin was knowledgeable and talented and could be of great use, and he should be selected as the number one scholar in the new Cochin.
Zhu Ruzhen felt that God was joking with him, so she replied, "The number one pick is gone?"
How did he know that after the invasion of the Eight-Power Allied Forces, Cixi fled in a panic and threw Guangxu's concubine Zhen into a well and drowned.
When she heard the word "zhen" in the name of the number one scholar, she instinctively felt disgusted.
And what Cixi hated most in her later years was the Cantonese people.
Because Hong Xiuquan, Kang Youwei, Liang Qichao, Sun Yat-sen, etc. are all Cantonese, now we can add Li Qiwei.
For various reasons, Cixi directly demoted Zhu Ruzhen to second place, and the latter wanted to cry but had no tears.
As Cixi's confidant, Li Lianying was familiar with her moods, moods and anger, and quickly winked at the little eunuch next to her.
So, the little eunuch immediately said loudly: "The auspicious time has come, let all officials present gifts!"
The officials present were all shocked, the highlight of the day was here.
Congratulations!
The people who give gifts are also sorted from high to low.
First came the princes and nobles, then the high-ranking officials of the ministries and departments. All kinds of gifts were dazzling.
After all the officials in Beijing have donated, it will be the turn of officials outside Beijing.
They couldn't come to the birthday party, so they could only send gifts.
Every time the little eunuch sang, Li Lianying would introduce the uniqueness of the gift to Cixi.
Liangjiang Governor Liu Kunyi presented a screen, which was made of fine glass with rosewood edges.
You know, glass is a rare thing nowadays.
Although the Qing Dynasty could make glass during the Qianlong period, most of it was so turbid that it could only be used as a container and had no appreciation value.
Really exquisite and clear glass is a high-end product of this era and is very precious.
Not to mention such a large piece, coupled with the various jewelry decorations around it, its value is inestimable.
Cixi was very happy and issued a decree to reward Liu Kunyi.
Then came the gift from Yuan Shikai, Governor of Zhili. Yuan Shikai was very down-to-earth and did not try to be clever. He prepared all kinds of fur coats, gold and silver jewelry, and loaded a cart full of them to Cixi.
Cixi showed a rare smile and said deliberately: "This Yuan Shikai is too arrogant."
How could Li Lianying not understand what Cixi meant, and echoed with a smile: "Master Yuan has a high position." "Lafayette treats him well, so he must not go out of his way to honor you."
Cixi couldn't stop smiling. She promoted and liked Yuan Shikai because he valued his simplicity of mind and his loyalty to herself.
Had it not been for Yuan Shikai’s informant, she would have been kept in the dark by the people who carried out the Reform Movement of 1898.
The singing ceremony continued, and soon, a gift aroused the surprise of everyone in Le Shou Hall.
Just listen to the little eunuch loudly say: "Li Qiwei, the master of the Qing Dynasty, I would like to offer you a birthday gift, a laser orb!"
As soon as the little eunuch finished speaking, all the civil and military officials were whispering. , you look at me, I look at you.
They know the orb, but what is this laser orb?
Could it have been tempered by lightning?
Now Li Lianying was also confused. He had been with the Empress Dowager Cixi for many years and had never seen any treasures, so he could introduce the various gifts.
But this laser orb is indeed beyond the scope of his knowledge.
Cixi looked calm and could not tell what she was thinking, but she was already even more unhappy with Li Qiwei.
What a messy gift!
At this time, Li Lianying hurriedly walked to the little eunuch and took out the congratulatory message for the donation of the laser orb, which indeed contained the details of the orb.
He took the gift and walked quickly to Ci Xi, with a chrysanthemum-like smile on his old face.
"Lafayette, this is a good gift."
"Master Li said that the entire body of the laser orb is made of high-quality glass."
" It went through eighty-one polishing processes before it became perfectly transparent."
"The most important thing is that an extremely rare substance was added inside to make the orb emit a bright green light. .”
"Master Li said that this substance is called 'radium', which is a very rare chemical element in the West."
"I really don't understand this, please teach me."< br>
With that said, Li Lianying respectfully handed the laser orb to Cixi with both hands.
Cixi picked up the glowing green orb in her right hand and turned her anger into joy. Her favorite color was green.
The green color of this gift is so bright that people can’t help but indulge in it.
Moreover, the size of this orb is so large that it can hardly be held in one hand. Cixi liked big ones throughout her life.
Clearly she couldn't put it down, but Cixi still said reservedly: "What rare element, maybe it was the monkey monkey who deceived the Ai family."
Li Lianying smiled awkwardly and did not dare to reply.
At this time, a foreigner suddenly walked out of the crowd. It was the British Minister to the Qing Dynasty, Sir Sa Daoyi.
I saw him step forward, first congratulate Cixi, and then said: "Queen Mother, I think this gift is very good."
"Because it represents the highest achievement in the field of Western science."
"Although the material of the orb is glass, which is not expensive, the radium doped in it is worth tens of thousands of gold."
"This substance was discovered by a female scientist in Europe and has very miraculous effects."
"It can kill diseased tissues in the human body and keep people healthy for a long time."
< br>“Such a big radium orb, if you, Queen Mother, keep it by your side for a long time, it will definitely prolong your life and keep you young forever.”
"In Europe and the United States, aristocrats and wealthy people like to use radium to show their noble status."
"Because this substance is very rare, the output is very small, it is a priceless thing, and its value is immeasurable."
"I think it is countless times more valuable than Master Yuan's car of jewelry."
"This is a very rare gift."
Sa Daoyi After finishing speaking, he still looked at the orb with his eyes, obviously he also wanted one.
He envied Ci Xi because he was so caught up in the situation that he didn't know what was going on.
If Li Qiwei were here, he would definitely hold the other person's hand cordially and say: Brother Sa, thank you, I will give you ten pills another day.
By the way, please help me bring one to the King of England and the Prime Minister. I am loyal to the British Empire.
Sure enough, after listening to Sa Daoyi's explanation, the smile on Cixi's face became even stronger, and she kept rubbing the laser orb with her hands.
Eternal youth is a temptation that no woman can resist.
Prolonging life is a temptation that no one in power can resist.
As a female in power, this laser orb completely hit her heart. It was simply born for her.
The most important thing is that this magical radium was discovered by a woman, and Cixi was even happier.
Ever since she listened behind the curtain, she has been dissatisfied by many officials, who believed that she was a woman and could not interfere in national affairs.
So, in order to gain power, she did not hesitate to kill a large number of people.
Who says women can't do it?
Look, women can have a big impact on the world too.
She controlled the Qing Dynasty herself, and this European woman controlled science.
At this time, her grudge against Li Qiwei completely disappeared. Although Sun Houhou escaped, he still seemed to be very understanding of people and the world.
I can't let my ministers feel cold, otherwise no one will be willing to go out of their way to give gifts in the future.
Cixi made up her mind to arrange a position for Li Qiwei after the academic department is established next year.
Since the other party likes education, let him do it, as long as he does not touch military power.
The birthday banquet ended in a cheerful atmosphere, and Li Qiwei's laser orb left a deep impression on everyone.
It seems that you still need to learn some scientific knowledge these days, otherwise the gifts you give will be just vulgar gifts.
As soon as Mr. Li takes action, ordinary people can’t even figure out what the thing is, which shows the huge gap.
After returning home, many officials urged the family's children to go to new universities as soon as possible so that they could please the Queen Mother in the future.
When the news about today’s birthday banquet reached Li Qiwei, he smiled slightly and thought:
Now a certain big boss named Sun in future generations will face Cixi who was radiated by radium. , I probably can’t do it anymore.
(End of this chapter)