Chapter 132: Letter on the Bus

Suddenly, a thunderbolt came from the blue sky. He actually received a telegram from the Military Affairs Office, saying that Wei Jichen was assassinated by the Japanese and died. Guangxu burst into tears and said to his attendants: "I have lost a beloved general, the court has lost a pillar of talent, and my Qing Dynasty has lost a minister who can enter the central government." Guangxu was overwhelmed with grief and immediately issued an order to posthumously confer the title of Prince's Guardian on the former governor Wei Jichen, and to grant him a pension according to the rules for the deaths of admirals in battle, and to posthumously confer the title of Zhongjie. His life and military exploits and the details of his death were announced to be submitted to the National History Museum for biography, and special shrines were established in the provinces where he made meritorious deeds, the places where he died, and his hometown - Shengjing, Haicheng, and Tianjin. Cixi received the news of Wei Jichen's death When she was tired from listening to opera, she was drinking tea in the Yangxin Palace while asking Li Lianying to massage her back and legs. When she recovered her spirit, she wanted to go and see juggling. The Military Affairs Office sent a telegram, which was jointly sent by Ma Jinxu, Nie Guilin and others: "After the Japanese pirates occupied Ximu City, we, under the leadership of Wei Jichen, the assistant military affairs officer, actively planned a counterattack and prepared to recover the lost territory. The Japanese pirates were terrified and panicked. At this important moment, the Japanese used despicable means to assassinate General Wei and buried explosives in Haicheng. Finally, General Wei died before he could achieve his goal. We are all sad and disappointed. "After reading the telegram, Cixi had no intention of listening to the opera anymore. She immediately summoned Prince Gong, Sun Yuwen and Xu Yongyi, the three ministers of the Grand Council, into the palace. The three ministers naturally knew what was going on. They had all read the telegram and were silent for a while. "The situation on the front line is not good. Wei Jichen died at the hands of the Japanese before he could recapture Ximu City. As the ministers of the central government, can you sleep well?" Cixi closed her eyes, sighed deeply and asked. "We, the ministers, have been planning day and night for the critical state affairs, hoping for a turnaround. Now Wei Jichen has unfortunately passed away. We believe that we should urgently dispatch Heilongjiang general Yiktang'a and Jilin general Changshun to Haicheng to continue Wei Jichen's counterattack strategy and must recover Ximu City. Before that, all armies should be prepared for defense. "Prince Gong, Sun Yuwen and Xu Yongyi shouted in unison. They had already thought of a plan before entering the palace, so when Cixi asked about it, they were naturally calm and had something in mind. Cixi's face showed no joy or anger. After a long while, she opened her eyes and said, "Now that things have come to this, there is only one way to do it." Although she did not know how to march and fight, she knew that Changshun and Yiktang'a were far away from Haicheng. If these two people led their troops into Haicheng and planned a counterattack, it would take an unknown amount of time. What kind of changes would happen in the meantime, only God knew. The death of Wei Jichen surprised all the staff generals of the Japanese headquarters. Originally, in order to deal with Wei Jichen's counterattack, the Japanese headquarters had decided to postpone the grand strategy of going south to attack Shandong. Let Oyama Iwao's Second Army reinforce Gaiping to ensure that Ximu City would not be lost. Now Wei Jichen As soon as they left, the Japanese headquarters immediately felt relieved and decided not to reinforce Gaiping. Moreover, Nogi Maresuke had always told the headquarters and Oyama Iwao that even if Wei Jichen personally led his troops to attack Ximu City, he would have a way to deal with it. The local newspapers were the last to learn of the news. On January 5, the editors-in-chief of many newspapers such as Shenbao, Xinwenbao, and Wanguo Gongbao all read the bad news in the Beijing newspaper. When Lin Zhixing, the editor-in-chief of Wanguo Gongbao, saw the news, it was no less than being hit on the head by a hammer. He felt dizzy and felt that his eyes were full of It was pitch black. Although Lin Zhixing had never met Wei Jichen, he was already impressed by Wei Jichen's courage. Moreover, the manuscript "On Protracted War" sent by Wei Jichen two days ago made him deeply impressed and admired. He seemed to see a general who was both civil and military, full of ambition, worried about the situation, lit a lamp late at night, wrote angrily, and finished it in one go. The thousands of words became a masterpiece that will be passed down through the ages. Lin Zhixing believed that as long as this article was published, the Chinese people's confidence in resistance would surely increase, and those who sought peace would surely think twice. If they leave later, the Japanese will surely panic. Lin Zhixing has already contacted colleagues from all over the country and decided to publish only this article on the entire newspaper page on the same day. He wanted to let all Chinese people see this extraordinary article at once. Unexpectedly, before the article was published, this most outstanding general since the founding of the Qing Dynasty did not fall on the battlefield, but was assassinated by the Japanese. Alas! Without this man, who would I go with? Lin Zhixing sat down on the chair weakly, closed his eyes, and a line of tears flowed down. "Newspaper seller, newspaper seller! General Wei was assassinated by the Japanese and died unfortunately. The world mourns together, and the sun and the moon have lost their brilliance." "The Japanese pirates were afraid of General Wei and actually killed General Wei in a despicable way. The soldiers on the front line were all crying. "The next day, the streets were filled with newsboys. They were still shouting loudly, but their voices were filled with indignation and sadness. "The full text of General Wei's essay on protracted war has been exposed. Every word he said is so precise. The Japanese will surely lose, and China will surely win!" "Brothers and sisters, the Japanese are timid and cowardly, but they are not invincible. They were afraid of General Wei, so they buried explosives and assassinated the general. The whole country is mourning." The newsboy's sad cry made countless people stop. "What? General Wei was killed. Is this true?" "The Japanese assassinated General Wei! "Countless people bought newspapers and saw the words in black and white, and they all mourned for Wei Jichen. In the capital, candidates from various provinces have gathered here to prepare for the April joint examination. The west of the city is where candidates from various provinces gather. They are worried about the current situation and their own future and fate. When they heard the shouts of the newsboy, they were all surprised and shocked, and then a sensation broke out.

The young scholars who came to take the exam were all full of enthusiasm. Even if someone bought a newspaper, they were silent after seeing the news of Wei Jichen's death. When they saw Wei Jichen's discussion on protracted war, they were deeply inspired. "General Wei, I, Kang Youwei from Nanhai, have always admired you. I didn't expect to hear such bad news before I even met you. Guangxia has read your masterpiece. Protracted war, protracted war. Kang will definitely continue your legacy and unite with the scholars in Beijing to advise Your Majesty. I suggest that Your Majesty listen to General Wei's advice: boost the morale of the world, move the capital to establish the foundation of the world, train troops to strengthen the world's power, and reform the world to achieve governance." Kang Youwei fell to the ground and cried loudly, causing countless scholars to cry with him. "Yes, we must continue General Wei's will and never seek peace with the Japanese. We must fight to the end. Brother Nanhai, let's unite and let the court see our opinions." "That's right. General Wei is a man of genius. In his article on protracted war, he analyzed the situation of both sides clearly. Now he was assassinated by the Japanese. How can we not let his wishes come true? I heard that the court has sent officials to Japan to seek peace. How can we remain indifferent?" The surrounding scholars all agreed with Kang Youwei's suggestion. Kang Youwei stood up suddenly, wiped his tears, and said with great emotion: "Kang will go down and draft a letter to your majesty. Please go down and unite with the candidates in Beijing. We will hand over this letter to the Censorate and let the Censorate pass it to your majesty." "That's right. We will contact fellow townsmen, friends, and all those who are concerned about state affairs, inherit General Wei's will, and swear to fight the Japanese to the end." The scholars left in a hurry, running for this passionate heart.