In the west warm cabinet of Yangxin Hall, which is on the east side of the famous Qianlong Sanxi Hall, a round table has been arranged, and a cloisonné and copper hotpot in the middle is burnt with silver silk charcoal inside. A group of white meat, blood sausages, prawns, sea cucumbers, deer tendons, venison... The rich dishes are covered with sauerkraut and vermicelli.

The whole house is filled with a strong meaty aroma and a fresh and sweet aroma. This is the unique way to eat hot pot brought to the Central Plains by the Qing Dynasty. It is a bit like the Jiangnan Weihuo hot pot, but the ingredients are more domineering than Weihuo hot pot, and the ingredients also pay more attention to wild game, which has the tough temperament of the Baishan Black Shui people.

The circle around the cloisonné hotpot is filled with some appetizing side dishes, which are not large in quantity but are all exquisite. At first glance, it is the specialty of carefully cooked by the imperial kitchen, and it is definitely not warm-water meals.

The reason why Cixi and Ci'an were able to hold a hot pot banquet outside the pass was a very clear signal. Today, there were not so many courtesy meals at the family banquet, and there were no more etiquettes, and there was also a vague meaning of bridging the conflict between the two empress dowagers.

Li Lianying and Zhou Daoying were holding a wine pot next to the table, and the other was holding a towel, smiling like two old chrysanthemums. Such a warm and friendly atmosphere was rare in the Forbidden City.

In fact, they also knew very well that this kind of banquet was very inconsistent with etiquette and law. Although the rules of the Qing Dynasty were much less than those of the previous Ming Dynasty, the widowed sister-in-law and her brother-in-law gathered together for a meal, and there was no third party present, so this situation was not allowed.

But who can control it? The core senior management of Man Ren is the next four. Only they can cause trouble for others, and who can still cause trouble for them.

What's more, the two eunuchs in charge of the family dinner have already issued a ban order, so they don't want to know a little bit of the shadow outside the court.

"This is the five-year Chen Shaoxing wine sent by Jiangnan. Sister warm but not dry, so you have to drink a few more glasses... Two uncles, the deer jelly sent by the Heilongjiang General outside the pass this year is really good, try it more..."

Cixi toasted with dishes and was very good at everything. The atmosphere on the scene made him extremely warm. If everyone present hadn't known everyone's background, the new arrival really made her fool the past.

Prince Chun sighed in his heart, when you forced Ci'an to Jingshan and almost hanged him, you were not so kind. Now that the secret order of the Emperor's Emperor has been burned down, you are so confident.

The most basic quality of politicians is to be able to take it and let it go. Only ordinary people will hold a grudge for the rest of their lives. The politicians in the court are mortal enemies today and will return tomorrow and be allies. The interests are greater than the sky, and personal face is nothing.

The sweet Shaoxing wine was not high, but the reaction was still very strong. After three or four cups, the two empress dowagers' faces became more rosy.

Ci'an took a few sips of hot soup and pressed the alcohol and said with a smile, "I am still very happy in the Qing Dynasty. Although the years are not going well, there are always people who can turn the world around at critical moments. The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom is in trouble and a group of Hunan Army came out. The northwest is a little chaotic, and Zuo Jigao..."

"When the British and French coalition forces came, the Ai family really thought that the country was about to end, but they didn't expect that the group of Western barbarians would leave after taking some money... and also provided a lot of mercenaries to help us get long hair. Do you think this is not a blessing in heaven?"

Cixi slapped her in the face and said, "That's right! If I had known that the foreigners had not overthrew our Qing Dynasty, they just wanted money. Why should we fight with them when we started a war?"

Yi? Smiled wryly, "Hey... At that time, all the civil and military officials and the ancestors of the court were exhausted by internal and external troubles, and Sushun's group kept slandering... As a result, my brother thought from the bottom of his heart that foreigners were like Changmao, who were here to overthrow our world!"

"As a result, I finally talked to foreigners in Sijiu City and realized that from beginning to end, all the people wanted was switches, and they wanted to do business... To put it bluntly, it was because our Qing Dynasty was too rich, and everyone was jealous and anxious!"

"We have to use our skills to solve problems with money. It would be strange if we don't suffer any losses..."

Cixi nodded, "Fortunately, the difficulties have passed. Although Xiao Letian has popped up now, there are also Yang Zhi, the French and Russians to restrict him... What does this mean? It means that our Qing Dynasty is not over!"

In today's small meeting, Yang Zhi's great revelation made these four people feel good. Sometimes it is like this in life. The root of panic is because you don't understand it. Once you understand the routine, no matter how powerful the enemy is, it is not that scary.

What's more, Xiao Letian is not that powerful yet, and there are still some forces in this world that can control him.

When the four of them were in a good mood, they drank a few more drinks. Just when the four of them were feeling the troubles of the past few years, a sound of footsteps suddenly sounded from outside the hall. A little eunuch and a duty officer from the ** yamen kneeled outside, sweating all over.

"Qi reported to the Empress Dowager, **yamen received an urgent call from Jiangnan... Lord Zeng called!"

"Huh? The Grand Marshal has sent a telegram? Didn't there have been congratulatory messages to the court before the New Year?" Everyone's eyes changed, and Li Lianying quickly brought the telegram up.

According to the Qing Dynasty official system, during the Spring Festival, unless the yamen in the country involves military lifelines, there will be five days of enfeoffment, which is the legal rest day of the Qing Dynasty.

However, during the implementation process, people usually rest until the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. Of course, the court will not cause trouble for the people below because of this little thing, so the yamen will not do anything bad in the first lunar month.

Zeng Guofan had already sent a New Year greeting telegram to congratulate the emperor, the empress dowager and the Qing Dynasty for generations before the Spring Festival. According to common sense, there will be no movement before the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, and today is the first day of the Lunar New Year!

Ci'an snatched the telegram from Li Lianying and looked at it in one glance. Finally, the expression on her face was extremely incredible, "How could this happen? This... the general is going to enter Beijing? He asked the court for the position of governor of Zhili!"

"Ah?" Everyone was stunned. No one expected that Zeng Guofan would send such a telegram during the New Year.

In fact, according to the original historical rules, after the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and the Nian Army were pacified, Zeng Guofan was quickly transferred to the capital. After being appointed as a marquis, the court did not let him go, but directly arranged it to the position of governor of Zhili.

What's even more interesting is that the governor of Zhili was in the capital for most of his time, and the governor's yamen in Baoding basically stayed for a few days, which shows the Qing Dynasty's taboos towards Zeng Guofan.

However, Xiao Letian's sudden appearance changed the situation. Due to the addition of Xiao Letian, a sudden disruptor, a certain idea that had been suppressed within the hundreds of thousands of Hunan troops began to move again.

Needless to say anything else, just when Xiao Lotte's Lotte Foreign Company opened in Tanggu, Jiushuai Zeng Guoquan actually supported him. The profound meaning in this made the backbone of the court chill.

After thinking about it, the court felt that half of the Jiangnan area had to be shocked by Zeng Guofan because he was a little more mature and persistent. Once the radicals within the Hunan Army reached an alliance with Xiao Letian, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Therefore, Zuo Jigao's Western Expedition was much smoother by the historical Western Expedition, and he took away more resources. The purpose of the court was to hope that Zuo Zongtang would take away more elite Hunan Army forces and completely divide the Hunan Army into two parts, northwest and southeast, so that a joint force could not be formed. (To be continued)
Chapter completed!