The relationship between Guan Zhuofan and Cixi has undergone qualitative changes; Cixi herself, what important changes have taken place?

Guan Zhuofan studied history and had such an opinion: No matter how capable the royal sister of the original time and space is, in the final analysis, she does not really have a complete sense of "reform".

This is not a problem for Cixi alone.

The premise of "reform" is to sincerely admit that we are backward, and that we are backward in all aspects. In the original time and space, in the decades of "Tongguang Zhongxing", the ruling class of the Qing Dynasty, from the central to the local, produced many talents, but almost no one was willing to really pierce this layer of window paper, whether on the table or in private. Even when you are alone at night, when you ask your heart with your mouth, it is about the same.

Therefore, a saying has been coined that "the master is strong in order to control the country" -- this statement is at most an admission that "the inch is long, and the ruler is short." However, no matter how short the ruler is, no matter how long the inch is, is not the ruler longer than the inch?

This argument is the limit of what conservatives can accept, so the reformers can only work "inches long" and do not care about their own "rulers are short". China's modernization construction can only barely stumble forward between the old and the new.

Kwan Zhuofan did not intend to criticize his predecessors. Given the sheer size of China and the enormous inertia of its civilization system, it is almost an inevitable choice to slowly grope its way forward without any success template -- referring to the successful transformation of the old agricultural country into a modern industrial country -- under the premise that it can be learned.

There is no way we can afford not to pay the price of trial and error.

Otherwise, even if the general direction is right, if the steps are too hurried and too big, not only will you pull the eggs and tear the crotch. Able to wrestle and roll over. It will not even be able to close it. Roll off the cliff, shatter your bones, and never turn over.

There are not too many such examples, ancient and modern, Chinese and foreign, historical reality.

Guan Zhuofan found that in the 21st century, there are more or less angry young people who denounce the late Qing rulers on the Internet for "losing power and humiliating the country". It's actually terrifyingly conservative in his bones. Not to mention the reform of the system, even a change in the title and slogan can cause them to oppose it overwhelmingly. The reason, in the final analysis, is nothing more than "I am a beautiful China, civilized utensils, why not?" Why do you ask all the barbarians to be outside the barbarians? Disgusting! ”

Is there any difference between this tone and "immutable chaos of the ancestral law"? This kind of person, if born in the late Qing Dynasty. 100 percent will become the most powerful opponent of reform and the real initiator of their bitter "loss of power and humiliation of the country".

Well. If you mix it well, you can use it to make a clear stream, which may be a good material.

Reform? It's really hard!

Slightly digressed, back to Cixi.

Lacking a true sense of reform, Cixi also lacked a basic concept of industrialization.

The "basic concept of industrialization" is about more difficult than the "real sense of reform", and many concepts about industrialization, most of which were summed up by later generations, were not very clear in the middle of the nineteenth century.

In the minds of the ruling class of the late Qing Dynasty, the east and east of modern industry did not completely get out of the way of "strange skills and tricks" from beginning to end.

Zeng Guofan once said to Guan Zhuofan: "Looking at foreign affairs today, if there is something right, the power will be operated by the General Administration, and the matter will not leave the port, and in the port, Shanghai is the most important." The meaning of the words is exactly the same as what Guan Zhuofan thought at the time - the capital has strong conservative forces, and it is not a good place to do foreign affairs, and to really promote the development of foreign affairs, it also depends on local self-improvement.

However, that was what he thought "then", and the current situation is very different from "then".

On the one hand, he has already led the central pivot and grasped the leadership of foreign affairs; On the other hand, after several years of development, foreign affairs have achieved initial results, and people's ideological concepts, including those of conservatives, have also undergone initial changes.

It is impossible for foreign affairs to develop only in a few coastal "windows" forever, and if we want to further promote foreign affairs, make them develop in depth, and carry them out in parallel throughout the country, the change in the concept of the "brain" -- the supreme ruler, the most important and basic condition for the success of the reform, cannot be evaded.

So, how can we help the supreme ruler, Cixi, change his mindset?

In a word: get out of the deep palace and open your eyes to the world!

Use the most direct and intense visual and auditory sensory stimulation to make the royal sister understand: where are the people? Where are we? How big is the distance? How is the ideal plump? How skinny is reality? Can you close your eyes and not admit that you are lagging behind? Can you catch up without changing your course?

There is a trip to Tianjin for the "Queen Mother's Military Parade".

Guan Zhuofan believes that in front of the majestic and huge steel body of the "Champion", the most conservative and defensive people will not be immune to shock, nor can they face this "power of destroying the country" and say: This is just a "strange trick". What's more, the Queen Mother was originally gifted and intelligent, and she was originally one of the smartest people of this era?

In the original time and space, Cixi's faintness in her later years was really: she had "little reading" and little knowledge, and she had lived in seclusion in the deep palace for a long time, and her ears and eyes were closed - no matter how smart a person is, if he does not study and does not come into contact with the outside world, he will inevitably be out of touch with the times after a long time; When you get older, your brain will inevitably become a mess.

Cixi's reaction was even better than Guan Zhuofan's most optimistic estimate: the military parade and artillery exercise at the small station had done enough foreshadowing, and Cixi and the "Champion" met for the first time, and without Guan Zhuofan doing any substantive guidance, the royal sister came up with the most simple concept of industrialization - she instinctively began to calculate and think about the relationship between steel production and national strength and military strength.

Later, when Kwan Zhuofan introduced to Cixi the significance of the oak tree in achieving British maritime supremacy, she switched from oak to steel, and Cixi's thinking changed without hindrance, which naturally further strengthened the concept of "building a country with steel" and "strengthening the army with steel".

When the 110-pound "Armstrong" breech-loading rifled gun on the bow of the "Champion" roared, the whole person of the imperial sister was swept into the blazing smoke of the industrial revolution, and she was suffocated for a moment, and after recovering her breath, she could no longer retreat from this steel road.

In addition, the enjoyment of modern lifestyles also played a crucial role in the transformation of Cixi's ideology.

The development and progress of history are closely related to the change of lifestyle. Each productive force corresponds to a production relation, and at the same time, it also corresponds to a unique way of life. People who have entered a new way of life instinctively support the productivity and production relations behind this way of life.

Guan Zhuofan believes that in terms of the absolute value of quality of life, a small white-collar worker in the 21st century is far more than an emperor in the mid-19th century in many aspects.

First and foremost, the flush toilet.

If you want to rank the seats, Guan Zhuofan believes that the flush toilet is definitely the first place in the division between the lifestyle of the industrial society and the lifestyle of the agricultural society.

I can't imagine how a person who uses a flush toilet can still be accustomed to the traditional "night incense"?

It is easy to go from thrift to luxury, and it is difficult to return to thrift from luxury.

In addition to the flush toilet, the heating of the Guangang Palace is evenly warm, wrapping the whole body, and there is no trace of fireworks, which is not comparable to the traditional "earth dragon".

The "faucet", which sends out hot and cold water as soon as it is unscrewed, is a "big killer" comparable to the flush toilet.

The bright and dazzling gas lamps and kerosene lamps illuminate the night as day, and the candles that used to be used are not as good as the ones.

In addition, the comfort of sitting up and lying down, like a big bed and a "sofa chair" that is hard and soft, and wants to refuse to welcome back, is not comparable to the hardwood board covered with cotton mattresses.

There are also many details, for example, the soft and thick face towel and bath towel, which are much easier to use than the various silk cotton towels used by Cixi before, which left a very deep impression on the royal sister.

Guan Zhuofan did not miss any opportunity to "teach props", he said to the Queen Mother that this kind of "towel" is woven with a steam loom, and our own hand-operated loom cannot be woven.

"We have a population of 40,000 in China, and this 'towel', if one for one person, is 40,000,000." Towels can't be used for a lifetime, for one, another 40,000! ――Queen Mother, please think about it, what kind of business is this? Also, how many steam looms are needed to weave one after another '40,000,000' towels? How many iron mines and coal mines are needed to manufacture and operate these many steam looms? How much tax can these factories pay to the imperial court? How many workers can be hired and how many families can be fed? ”

"On the one hand, the treasury is full, and on the other hand, the people have work to do and eat, the Queen Mother, please think about it, isn't that a peaceful and prosperous era? Even if there are Hong, Yang and the like, how can they demagogue, tell the common people to let go of their good days, and follow them to go crazy and seek death? ”

The royal sister was thrilled when she heard this, and at the same time couldn't help but be in a trance: Why, just such a simple "towel", it actually turned into a trick and conjured up a lot of things behind?

Guan Zhuofan said with a smile: "Back to the Queen Mother, in fact, it's more than that!" This 'towel' is not just woven out, but also bleached, printed and dyed, so to make a 'towel', in addition to the loom, but also bleaching and dyeing - just like the loom, this bleaching and dyeing machine are also driven by steam, and they are also made of iron, and they also have to eat coal! ”

"So, more mines are going to be opened!"

"Also, bleaching, dyeing, no bleaching agents, dyes? Queen Mother, please see, this is another big piece of business! ”

"In this case, foreigners call it an 'industrial chain', which means one and two, two and three, three and four - in our words, it is a chicken laying eggs, eggs laying chickens, chickens laying eggs, eggs regenerating chickens, and the cycle is endless - a simple 'towel' can really create a huge situation!"

In short, openly and secretly, Guan Zhuofan repeatedly instilled such a concept in Cixi: a fresh meal in the Guangang Palace, flushing toilets, heating, faucets, gas lamps, kerosene lamps, sofa chairs, spring beds, towels, etc., etc., there is a huge system of eating coal, spitting smoke, and steaming, which operates day and night, endlessly.

If you want to keep these things going for a long time, you have to build this system!

*(To be continued......)