Though it was easy to be skeptical of Kang, I tried to stay neutral. I reminded myself that I might be blinded by my own limitations. China had a deserved reputation for being self-righteous and inflexible-opposed to change of any kind. I knew we had to change, but was unsure of the way. I tried to hold my tongue.
The throne was caught in the middle when the court broke into two factions: the reformers versus the conservatives. Kang Yu-wei's friends claimed that they represented the Emperor and had the support of the public, while the Manchu Ironhats, led by Prince Ts'eng, his son Prince Ts'eng Junior and the Emperor's brother Prince Ch'un Junior, called their counterparts "bogus experts in reform and Western matters." The conservatives labeled Kang Yu-wei "the Wild Fox" and "the Bigmouth."
The Ironhats played right into Kang's hands. Overnight, their attacks raised the failed Cantonese scholar from relative obscurity to national renown-"the throne's leading advisor on reform."
The moderates at court were in a bind. The reforms Yung Lu and Li Hung-chang had set in motion were swept aside by Kang's more radical plans, and now they themselves were being pushed to choose sides. Making matters worse, Kang Yu-wei boasted to foreign journalists that he knew the Emperor intimately.
On September 5, 1898, Guang-hsu issued a new decree stating that he had "ceased to be concerned with pruning branches"-Kang Yu-wei's language-and was "looking to rip out the rotten roots."
A few days later the Emperor dismissed the Imperial councilors along with the governors of Canton, Yunnan and Hupeh provinces. My palace gate was blocked because the governors and their families had come to Peking seeking my support. They begged for me to control the Emperor.
My office was filled with memorandums sent by Guang-hsu and his opponents. I concentrated on learning about my son's new friends. Touched by their patriotism, I was concerned about their political naiveté. Kang Yu-wei's radical views seemed to have changed my son's way of thinking. Guang-hsu now believed that he could achieve reform overnight if he pushed hard enough.
As the leaves took on autumn colors, it became more difficult to restrain myself-I was sorely tempted to interfere with my son.
In the midst of the turmoil, Li Hung-chang returned from a trip to Europe. He requested a private audience and I was pleased to receive him. Bringing me a German telescope and a cake from Spain, Li described his trip as an eye-opening experience. He even looked different; he'd left his beard untrimmed. Replying to his suggestion that I should travel myself, I could only lament that the court had already rejected the idea; Guang-hsu had worried that I might also be shot. The court believed that I might be taken hostage and that the price of my release would be China's sovereignty.
I assumed Li Hung-chang had let his beard grow fuller to hide the scars of his wound. I asked if his jaw still bothered him, and he assured me that it was no longer painful. I asked him to show me how to use the telescope. He pointed out the eyepiece and how to focus and told me that at night I could see distant planets and stars.
"The Emperor would love this," I marveled.
"I did try to bring one to His Majesty," Li said, "but I was denied entrance."
"Why?" I asked.
"His Majesty dismissed me on September 7." Li Hung-chang spoke matter-of-factly. "I am jobless and titleless."
"Dismissed you?" I could hardly believe what I heard.
"Yes."
"But… my son didn't inform me."
"He will soon, I am sure."
"What… what are you going to do?" I didn't know what else to say. I felt terrible.
"With your permission, I would like to leave Peking. I want to move to Canton."
"Is that why you came, Li Hung-chang?" I asked. "To inform me?"
"Yes, I come to bid farewell, Your Majesty. My close associate S. S. Huan is prepared to serve you in all matters. However, it would be best to keep him away from royal politics."
I asked Li Hung-chang who would replace him on the diplomatic front. Li replied, "Prince I-kuang has been the court's choice as far as I understand."
I felt desolated.
Li nodded slightly and smiled. He looked frail and resigned to his fate.
We sat staring at the exotic cake in front of us.
After watching my friend disappear down a long corridor, I sat in my room for the rest of the afternoon.
Just before dusk I heard loud noises at my front gate. Li Lien-ying entered with a message from Yung Lu, who had joined the crowd outside begging me to stop the Emperor.
"Kang Yu-wei has talked His Majesty into issuing death warrants for the officers who refused their dismissals," Yung Lu's message read. "I have been ordered to arrest Li Hung-chang, who the reformers believe has been the major roadblock. I am sure it won't be long before I receive the order for my own execution."
Should I open the gate? Things seemed to be falling apart. How could the dynasty survive without Li Hung-chang and Yung Lu?
"The newly dismissed ministers and officers have come to kneel in front of the palace gate." Li Lien-ying looked overwhelmed.
I went out and crossed the courtyard and looked through the gate. Casting long shadows in the dying sunlight, the crowd was on its knees.
"Open it," I said to Li Lien-ying.
Two of my eunuchs pushed the gate open.
The crowd turned silent the moment I appeared on the terrace.
I was expected to speak, and I had to bite my tongue in order to swallow the words.
I remembered my promise to Guang-hsu. My son was only exercising his rights as Emperor, I told myself. He deserved complete independence.
The crowd stayed on its knees. It hurt me to see that people were filled with hope in me.
I turned around and told Li Lien-ying to shut the gate.
Behind me the crowd stirred, rising to its feet and muttering louder and louder.
Later I would learn that Yung Lu had other reasons to join the dismissed officials. While working on building the navy, he kept an eye on foreign governments to make sure they were not connected with subversive elements in China. However, intelligence showed that British and American missionaries and English adventurers with military backgrounds were secretly agitating in favor of a constitutional monarchy. Although Yung Lu's true purpose was to avoid being forced to crack down on reform, which by then had turned into a country-wide movement, he was especially alarmed by the high level of subversive activity going on at the Japanese legation. The suspected agents were members of the Genyosha Society, ultranationalists who were responsible for Queen Min's assassination in Korea.
Prince Ts'eng, his son and Prince Ch'un Junior were convinced that Kang Yu-wei was supported by the foreign powers as a cover for an armed coup.
Yung Lu said in a message to me, "The Emperor's trust in Kang Yu-wei has made my work impossible."
"I have no option but to support the throne," I wrote back to Yung Lu. "It is up to you to block any uprising."
31
Early one morning Yung Lu appeared unannounced at my palace. "Ito Hirobumi is on his way to Peking." Ito was the architect of Japan's Meiji Restoration and had served as prime minister during our recent war. He had played a leading role in the murder of Queen Min.
"Is… Ito not afraid?" I asked. "Guang-hsu could order his beheading for what Japan has done to China."
Yung Lu paused a moment and then replied, "Your Majesty, Ito comes as the Emperor's guest."
"My son invited him?"
"Ito claims that he has retired from politics and is now a private citizen."
"Does Li Hung-chang know about this?"
"Yes. In fact, he sent me. While Li feels that it is no longer his role to offer the throne advice, he didn't want you to get the news from the Ironhats."
"His enemies accuse him of being self-serving, but our friend has always embodied what is most kind and wise in the Chinese character."