In 1917, Zhang Xun led 5,000 braided troops into Beijing under the name of "mediating the dispute between the government and the courtyard". Immediately launched the Qing imperial restoration movement, announced Puyi's restoration, and restored the xuanun era.
However, republicanism is the aspiration of the human heart. Zhang Xun's perverse behavior was soon met with strong opposition from the people of the whole country, and various warlords even sent troops to requisition.
In this case, the braid army collapsed at the touch of a button. Zhang Xun could only flee to the Dutch embassy to avoid disaster, and Puyi, who sat on the dragon chair for 12 days, also had to announce his abdication.
After Duan Qirui took power, he issued a warrant for the arrest of Zhang Xun, who subverted the republic.
(Zhang Xun)
But why, in the end, not only did the Beiyang warlord not hold Zhang Xun accountable, but he also lived his old age with extreme luxury?
This is because there is one person who plays a role.
This person was Zhang Xun's wife Cao Qin.
Speaking of which, Cao Qin and Zhang Xun have the same disease and pity each other, and they are both poor and orphaned.
When Zhang Xun was young, he lacked discipline and had the vice of stealing chickens and dogs, and was notorious in the township.
People are poor and have bad habits, and it is difficult to get a daughter-in-law.
So living to the age of 28, Zhang Xun is still a bare stick.
However, Zhang Xun was poor, and Cao Qin was even poorer. Her grandmother was unable to raise her, and in order to find a way for her to live, her grandmother promised her to Zhang Xun.
Zhang Xun did not spend a few dollars to marry a 13-year-old daughter-in-law, which was a great fortune.
Zhang Xun felt that he was running from time to time, and he should go out and give it a fight. Therefore, soon after his new marriage, he bid farewell to Cao Qin and went to Changsha to become a soldier.
Unexpectedly, when he went, his life took a big turn.
Zhang Xun is very courageous, frank and straightforward. Coupled with the fact that he still had some cleverness, he was quickly appreciated, and soon after he became a soldier, he was promoted to a staff general.
In 1895, Yuan Shikai oversaw the training of the New Army. Hearing that Zhang Xun had the name of bravery, he recruited him to his subordinates and successively appointed him as the engineering battalion pipe belt and the middle army of the camp.
The Gengzi Rebellion was a catastrophe for many people, but for Zhang Xun, he benefited.
(Cixi)
It turned out that after the Eight-Nation Alliance entered Beijing, Cixi fled with The Guangxu Emperor.
At cixi's behest, Li Hongzhang signed the Treaty of Xinugu with the great powers. The great powers, which had gained great benefits, agreed not to hold Cixi accountable and withdrew from the city of Beijing.
Now that the great powers are gone, it is time for Cixi to take off and drive back to Luang.
At this time, Yuan Shikai, who had always been good at political speculation, immediately offered hundreds of thousands of taels of silver as a road fare, and also ordered Zhang Xun to lead a team to escort Cixi.
Zhang Xun did his duty along the way, lest he lose a bit. Even when hemorrhoids attacked and the blood stained his pants, he refused to rest.
After Li Lianying cleverly told Cixi about this matter, Cixi was greatly moved.
In addition, she saw that Zhang Xun was doing things steadily and old, so after returning to the capital, she promoted Zhang Xun to the position of imperial bodyguard and put him in charge of the security of himself and Guangxu.
It was only at this time that Zhang Xun took Cao Qin, who had been living in the countryside for a long time, to the capital and reunited the husband and wife.
By this time, the couple had been separated for 11 years.
Although Cao Qin was born in the countryside, after becoming a family member of the army, she could provide a lot of help to her husband.
At that time, Zhang Xun was ordered to garrison Nanjing, but the grain supply and ordnance were dispatched by Cao Qin, who remained in Beijing.
In addition, Cao Qin is very talented in financial management.
Zhang Xun's savings over the years have been used by her for a variety of investments. Because of her accurate vision, her investment is very profitable, so Zhang Xun has never been the owner of lack of money.
(Zhang Xun's Braided Army)
After the establishment of the Republic of China, Zhang Xun consciously "received great favors in the former Qing Dynasty" and always disapproved of the republic. He also said many times that he must be loyal to the Qing royal family.
When the Beiyang government encouraged everyone to cut their braids, Zhang Xun refused to cut them to death, and did not allow the Wuwei ex-army led by himself to cut braids. Therefore, Zhang Xun's braid army has become a maverick landscape among the Beiyang warlords.
In the process of investment and financial management, Cao Qin has already felt that the republic is the trend of the world. Therefore, she persuaded Zhang Xun many times, hoping that he could conform to the trend of the times and support the republic.
Helplessly, Zhang Xun insisted on being loyal to the Qing royal family, so Cao Qin could only give up.
In 1915, after the failure of Yuan Shikai's restoration, he became ill and soon lost his life.
At this time, the Beiyang government was also in a mess. Although Li Yuanhong was Yuan Shikai's designated successor, the real power was in the hands of Duan Qirui, the premier of the State Council.
Because the two have different views, the contradictions are becoming more and more acute. But the two are equal in strength, and neither can squeeze out anyone, so at this time, pulling foreign aid has become the key.
Zhang Xun had military power and was an old Beiyang warlord with strong influence. So Li Yuanhong wrote to him and summoned him to Beijing to mediate.
For Zhang Xun, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
It should be known that after the establishment of the Beiyang government, Zhang Xun has been unwilling, and as early as when he was stationed in Xuzhou, he has been making preparations for restoration.
Therefore, after Zhang Xun received the order from Li Yuanhong, he quickly led 5,000 braided troops into the city of Beijing.
(Zhang Xun restoration old photo)
According to the "Records of the Beginning and End of the Restoration", after Zhang Xun led the braided army into Beijing, Cao Qin heard the news, immediately chased after him, and persuaded him bitterly to invite him back to Xuzhou, but Zhang Xun insisted on refusing.
In desperation, Cao Qin saw that Zhang Xun and Kang Youwei and others often conspired until late at night. Because she could not be relieved, she ordered her servants and maids to often serve in front of Zhang Xun and Kang Youwei. It was clearly said that it was for their dispatch, but in fact it was to monitor what they were saying.
As a result, these words naturally made Cao Qin's heart jump. After Zhang Xun entered the inner chamber, she led Zhang Xun's favorite concubine and children to kneel in front of Zhang Xun, crying bitterly and begging him to return to Xuzhou.
However, no matter how Cao Qin cried, Zhang Xun still refused to change his mind. He even reprimanded her loudly in front of the concubines and children.
Cao Qin saw that he could not reverse Zhang Xun's thoughts, so he quietly found a cousin, gave him a silver ticket of 300,000 yuan, and ordered him to go to Guangzhou and give the silver ticket to Sun Wen to support the revolution.
Cao Qin deserves a lot of political vision. This move of hers is not only to pay for Zhang Xun's risks, but also to leave a way for future generations to live.
Sure enough, Zhang Xun's restoration was soon defeated by the crusades of various warlords.
(Duan Qirui)
Because of Cao Qin's support for this move of the revolution, after Duan Qirui took power, although he issued an order to arrest Zhang Xun throughout the country, because Sun Wen mediated from it, he still asked for forgiveness for Zhang Xun's crimes on the grounds that "the times are difficult and talents are rare".
Since then, Zhang Xun has been working as a Yugong in Tianjin. Because of his great influence, Zhang Zuolin and others invited him out of the mountain many times, but he refused.
The reason for this is that Zhang Xun can see clearly that it is useless to go out of the mountains, and it is no longer possible to restore the Qing Dynasty. More importantly, he has more than 60 million assets under his name. In addition, there are more than 70 money houses, gold shops, movie theaters, banks, factories, etc. opened in his name, and these investments are lucrative every year, which is enough to make him live a very luxurious life.
And these investments, Zhang Xun is just a pseudonym, the real responsible person, is his wife Cao Qin, who shares happiness and hardship with him.
Because of this, Zhang Xun could not do without Cao Qin, a sage internal helper, and asked her "like a mother, the family affairs are no big or small, and they have asked one by one."
(References: "The Beginning and End of the Restoration", "Beiyang Figures: Zhang Xun")