China by Edward Rutherfurd (historical books to read TXT) 📕

the emperor remarked. He seemed to wince when he said it—though whether it was on account of some pain in his body or the thought of the barbarian troops, I couldn’t say. “Could they breach our defenses?”

“The best person to ask would be Mr. Liu,” Prince Sushun said. And they all looked at the head eunuch.

I’d never seen Mr. Liu put on the spot before, but I must say he handled it well. “I can’t claim to be a military expert,” he said in a decided manner, “but as Your Majesty knows, I carried out a thorough inspection. Last year, when the barbarians attacked the forts, they were beaten back. Since then, the defenses have been enlarged. There are miles of mud and barriers to cross. Even the barbarians’ cannon will be of little use to them. Our officers would rather die than give way, and the troops are well under control. Any attempt on the forts will take a terrible toll on the barbarians—surely more than they can sustain.”

It was clever: He didn’t actually promise victory, but you couldn’t fault his facts.

The emperor nodded wearily. “I wish someone would explain to me the true nature of these barbarians. Letters have been written to the British queen, but there has never been any reply. Are they trying to destroy our kingdom?” He looked around the circle of advisors. Neither Prince Sushun nor his brother answered. Mr. Liu gazed at his feet. The faces of the other ministers were blank. None of them wished to commit himself. The emperor turned to Prince Gong. “Well, Brother?”

Prince Gong wasn’t afraid. Was there a hint of contempt in his eyes as he, too, gazed at his fellow counselors? Perhaps. I wasn’t sure.

“Your Majesty, I’ve spoken to everyone who has dealt with these people,” he answered firmly, “and I am convinced: The barbarians from the West are interested in only one thing, and that is money. They want to trade. The ships and troops their rulers have provided are there only to smash anything or anyone that stands in the way of their making money.”

“Can their governments be so base?” the emperor asked.

“I have discovered something about their navies—especially the British, who are the most warlike. It seems that beyond a pittance to keep them alive, the sailors are paid by giving each a share of the value of the ships and treasure they can capture. That is their livelihood, from the greatest admiral to the humblest seaman.”

“So even their governments are pirates!”

“Exactly. It has been so for centuries. Consider also,” his brother went on, “that each time we’ve tried to stop their evil opium trade, they’ve sent in gunboats, forced treaties on us, and demanded reparations so huge that even our treasury is sinking under the burden. Is this any different from the criminal gangs who, regrettably, exist in our own cities and who extort protection money from the townspeople?”

“It’s the same,” said the emperor.

“Everything makes sense if we understand that their sole aims are trade, piracy, and extortion.” Prince Gong paused. “Yet strangely enough, this may be good news.”

“How so?”

“Because if money is their only interest, then they have no reason to destroy or take over our kingdom. And beyond the extortion that is the result of their greed, there has been no sign that their object is conquest. We have been afraid, for instance, that they will join with the Taiping. Yet despite the fact that they apparently share the Taiping’s religion, they have made no attempt to form a joint army.” He looked around them with some satisfaction. “I would even go further, Your Majesty. Since they worship nothing but money, I suspect we might be able to make the British serve us.”

“In what way?”

“Pay them to turn their cannon on the Taiping.”

“Well.” The emperor turned back to the others. “What do you think of that?”

I wondered what they did think. There was a daring intelligence in what Prince Gong said. It was clear they didn’t like that.

“I think we have to wait and see what the barbarians do,” Prince Sushun said.

“Wait and see,” said his brother.

“Wait and see,” said all the ministers.

Then the emperor turned to his wife the empress and asked her what she thought. I was surprised he did that, with all those men there.

“I’m sure I don’t know,” the empress said sweetly. Actually, she’d have said that to almost any question you asked her. She was just telling the truth: She had no idea.

Then the emperor turned to the Noble Consort Yi, and I realized what he was doing. He’d asked the empress only out of politeness. It was the concubine he really wanted to hear.

From where I was kneeling, I could see her in profile. Her face was very calm. She bowed her head modestly. “I venture an opinion only at Your Majesty’s command,” she said quietly, and inclined her head again. She really was admirable. “No one could doubt the wisdom of Prince Gong,” she began, “but given all he has just said about the greed of the barbarians and how they will wage war to satisfy their lust for money, have we not also seen that this same quest leads the barbarians to take territory? They took Hong Kong. When they quarreled with the governor down at Guangzhou, they threw him out and ruled the city—a major Chinese city!—as if they owned it. In the ports where we’ve allowed them to trade, they refuse to obey our laws. They want to set up alien states within our kingdom. So I ask myself, where will this lead? They may not want conquest, but they mean to take bites out of the empire wherever and whenever they please. And surely this is not desirable.”

I noticed several people were nodding. The emperor turned to Prince Gong. “Well, Brother?” he said.

Prince Gong didn’t look annoyed at all. I think he admired the Noble Consort Yi. “I agree the barbarians will take all they can. But they can be