Just as the Hubei Campaign kicked off and a decisive battle within Beiyang officially began, the situation in Beijing also underwent some subtle changes. This change was not only the attitude of the Beijing political circle towards the Hubei Campaign, but also

It is only the pressure from all aspects caused by the anti-imperialist public opinion that is currently in the limelight outside. The most important one is concentrated in Xinhua Palace, the so-called choice of the future by those in power.

It has to be said that the domestic situation envisioned by the Hankou Beiyang Military Reform Committee was correct. As time went by, public opinion became more and more fierce, especially the southern revolutionaries who added fuel to the flames. The timid bureaucratic class and those ambitious factions within Beiyang

Politicians also echoed it, and the anti-imperialist momentum created became more and more serious and intense day by day.

For Yuan Shikai or other bureaucrats who support the imperial system, the enthusiasm of public opinion is just empty. These voices can indeed bring a certain amount of pressure, but as a common saying goes, "It is impossible to curse people to death."

So from the beginning, they were still able to deal with it calmly, especially after they established the Central Guards and invited Duan Qirui to come back to take charge of the overall situation. However, as time goes by, these people increasingly find that the so-called public opinion is not powerful.

It must be false, and it is possible to curse people to death.

At this stage, even if the Central Guards are fighting against the rebels in Hubei, the outside world is still not optimistic that Xinhua Palace can continue to control the situation. The two factors that have the greatest impact on the political power of the Chinese Empire are the civilian demonstrations

, strikes, demonstrations, and even many small acts of sabotage; secondly, many bureaucrats within Beiyang are determined to overthrow the imperial system, and this determination can be traced back to the current Prime Minister Duan Qirui.

Since Duan Qirui is an unswerving anti-imperialist, no matter what results Hubei can achieve, the monarchy will inevitably end. The victory or defeat in Hubei is nothing more than deciding who will rule after the abolition of the monarchy. If the Central Guards are defeated

Well, it must be Cao Kun who comes to Beijing to reorganize the Beiyang government; if Cao Kun is the only one, maybe Yuan Shikai can continue to put on the generalissimo uniform after taking off the dragon robe, and at the worst, he can sit firmly behind the scenes and control the Beiyang government.

Only at the end of all this, the internal conflicts in Beiyang may come to an end, but after this large-scale internal fight in Hubei, no matter who the winner is, how will they face the next round of domestic conflicts? Especially

It is the National Protectorate Army that has occupied Changsha for almost half a year to recuperate, and the southern provinces are brewing different plots to fight for power. All of this is not to clean up the mess, but to leave the mess in Beiyang.

Who will clean up?

Therefore, among those bureaucratic classes who have been clamoring for anti-imperialism, they don't care at all who wins the Hubei Battle. When Yuan Shikai chose to take this path, many people were disappointed. Even if many people were just vassals from the beginning

Cao Kun tried to use Cao Kun to achieve the goal of opposing the monarchy, but from the beginning to the end he had no intention of causing fratricide within Beiyang. According to everyone's estimation, things should have developed after Cao Kun of Hankou issued an anti-monarchy declaration.

, Yuan Shikai should obey the public opinion and step down obediently. Then everything will develop more easily.

It's a pity that sometimes I am too trusting. I have already guessed that Yuan Shikai's character will never give up easily, but there are still so many people who are willing to put all their efforts into it. The result is the current situation where it is difficult to get out of the situation.

Although it is already late spring, summer still seems far away. The weather in Beijing is windy, sandy, dry and cold.

Yuan Shikai's physical condition has actually reached the end of his strength. In private, many people are talking about it, thinking that His Majesty the Emperor's body and bones are like those in Beiyang today. The energy and spirit inside have been hollowed out long ago, leaving only this appearance.

The skin is empty, and I don’t know how long it will last.

Yuan Shikai himself also knew very well that it can really be regarded as a miracle that Yangshou can be delayed to this day. The medical officer's office, whether it is Western medicine or Chinese medicine, whether it is a month or the current May, has always been

It is believed that Yuan Shikai's physical condition is hanging by a thread. He may be able to survive this winter if he takes good care of himself. If there is a little more stimulation, everything will never be the same. Originally, Yuan Shikai's subordinates and children planned to use everything they had.

There are many ways to prevent him from being irritated, and he even wants to use deception to temporarily get over the current situation. However, Yuan Shikai has been letting people from the Military Staff Office stationed in the wing for the past five months, and personally handles people from all over the country every day.

official business.

In other words, he can personally understand the truth of any disturbance in the country at the first time.

As for the increasingly serious strikes, city strikes, and school strikes in Beijing and Tianjin, the first thing that bore the brunt turned into a wave of resentment that lingered in Yuan Shikai's heart. He heard several times that things were going on in Baoding and Shijiazhuang.

It got so big that a series of bloody conflicts even occurred, causing many newspapers to criticize the government's barbaric and cruel behavior. Faced with such fierce criticism from the outside world, Yuan Shikai almost fainted every time.

The Central Guards that had been assembled in Henan had been silent, and there was even great internal turmoil.

This incident almost made Yuan Shikai bedridden. After three days and three nights of rescue, he was barely able to drag him back from the gate of hell. Fortunately, things did not become too bad, especially after entering the prison.

After May, Yuan Shikai's look and mood finally recovered. Now he can get out of bed and move around reluctantly.

At least for now, all the previous doubts about Yuan Su's collusion with the South can be left behind. As long as Yuan Su can concentrate on fighting this battle, no matter what the battle will be like, he will eventually be able to win.

Everyone has hope.

After Yuan Shikai's physical and mental condition improved, Duan Qirui came to Huairen Hall again in the afternoon and submitted to Yuan Shikai the relevant agenda for the abolition of the imperial system. From January to today, Duan Qirui made arrangements for the abolition of the imperial system.

Qi Rui never took it lightly for a day. On the contrary, he spared no effort to advise Yuan Shikai whenever he had the opportunity.

Because Henan had been on hold, Yuan Shikai had some excuses to make excuses, and then he fell ill for a while, which delayed the matter. But today, it is obvious that he can no longer find any other excuses. Not only that, Duan Qi

After meeting Rui, his tone became more decisive.

"Regarding ceremonies, ceremonies, government announcements, restoration of Congress, resignation, abdication, etc., the charter has been clearly drawn up and distributed to various departments yesterday. I have sent invitations to all the cabinet members and envoys from various countries in Dongjiaominxiang.

, the first press conference is scheduled for the 25th of this month."

After listening to Duan Qirui's words, Yuan Shikai's physical condition, which had improved slightly, suddenly changed drastically from the inside out. Fortunately, Duan Qirui's preparation for abdication did not happen in a day or two.

I have been arranging and planning bit by bit before, and I have said hello many times beforehand. The only thing that makes me feel uncomfortable is that there may have been opportunities to delay and escape before, but now the time has come to implement it.

At this stage, there is no longer any way to delay or escape.

Yuan Shikai naturally didn't have many objections. Apart from pretending to think deeply for a while, and even giving an affirmative answer after thinking about it, his other thoughts could only be thoughts hidden deep in his mind.

After sending Duan Qirui away, Yuan Shikai suddenly felt worried and helpless.

I have to say that when I was desperate, I really didn't think too much. I only knew that I could invite Duan Qirui as soon as possible to stabilize the situation inside Beiyang. But now, although the situation still looks so bad, there are some good things.

Stiff, not only that, but having said that, since the situation cannot be restored as soon as possible, what is the point of asking Duan Qirui to come out? What is the benefit of the concession promise made in the first place?

Even though Duan Qirui has been emphasizing that the current domestic opposition is getting more and more serious, the root cause is the imperial system.

But Yuan Shikai still had a reason to refute, that is, before Cao Kun caused trouble, the people in most provinces in the country still supported the imperial system. In his opinion, the biggest danger now is not the imperial system, but the reactionary elements in Hankou. Because of this,

He hated Cao Kun with all his heart.

With such thoughts, Yuan Shikai's desire to give up the imperial system became stronger and stronger. Not only was he unwilling to give up the imperial system, but he also blamed Duan Qirui for not focusing on rectifying the overall situation of Beiyang.
Chapter completed!