I Became A Hidden Powerhouse Of The British Empire [EN]: Chapter 278

< The Happiness Evangelist (2) >

The Shanghai Governor-General’s residence of the British Empire was now quite presentable.

The gloomy atmosphere in the beautifully decorated reception room wasn’t just my imagination.

“Thank you for coming such a long way, Prince Gong.”

I’d heard a lot about him, but this was my first time meeting one of the few capable members of the Qing imperial family at the end of the dynasty.

He struggled to drag the Qing dynasty, which was teetering on the brink of ruin, back from the edge, but was ultimately sidelined by Empress Dowager Cixi and failed.

This figure, viewed with mixed feelings for his perceived passivity in the decline of the East Asian order centered on the Emperor, received my greeting politely.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Aisin-Gioro Yixin. I have heard much about your Excellency’s reputation.”

In truth, it’s only natural for a member of the Qing imperial family to act this way, so criticizing him for it might be holding him to too high a standard.

But I wasn’t here to support the Qing imperial family. As the son-in-law of the British Empire, eager to exploit this situation, I needed to relentlessly probe the other party’s weaknesses.

“I’ve heard a great deal about you as well, Your Highness. I understand you have the complete trust of the Qing Emperor.”

“It’s not to that extent.”

“I heard it was, but you’re being modest. By the way, it must have been difficult to come all the way from the capital. I didn’t expect you to arrive so quickly.”

Nanjing, which the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom’s rebels had recently established as their capital, wasn’t that far from Shanghai.

Of course, this distance, which would be like going from Seoul to Gwangju in modern terms, is practically next door by continental standards.

“So I took a ship from Tianjin by sea. The rebels hardly operate any ships, so the sea route is safe.”

He looked down at the cup of coffee in front of him and asked.

“But isn’t your country also close to those rebels? Are you sure you’ll be alright?”

“According to reports, they almost consciously treat us as if we don’t exist. Logically, if those leaders have any sense, they wouldn’t want to make us their enemy when they’re already fighting against the Qing.”

“But isn’t your country demanding the immediate extradition of their leader?”

“Yes, but we only want Hong Xiuquan, not the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom itself. Who knows, maybe the second or third in command within the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom are fighting fiercely among themselves, and they might unite to get rid of Hong Xiuquan.”

Though the Qing dynasty doesn’t want to admit it, the scale of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom has surpassed what can be called a simple rebellion.

From the moment they seized control of the Jiangnan region south of the Yangtze River, the wealthiest and most populous area in Qing, they became a force that was hard to simply dismiss as rebels.

In particular, the fact that those dissatisfied with the Manchus are gathering one after another, and their numbers are constantly increasing, is significant.

Even when I was in my home country, I didn’t expect it to progress this quickly. At this rate, shouldn’t we consider it even more accelerated than in the original history?

The problem is whether the Qing imperial family understands this situation correctly.

If they’re still unable to distinguish right from wrong and believe they can overcome this on their own, what should I do? Fortunately, Prince Gong wasn’t such a foolish person.

“The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom rebels are currently riding high on their victories, and their confidence is sky-high. Even if England is the strongest country in the world, those ignorant people won’t properly understand what that means. So they won’t abandon Hong Xiuquan.”

When you think about it, it’s all your fault, Qing people.

No, you should have at least caught the civilian rioters. Because you lost to them, the prestige of the British Empire, which defeated the strongest power in Asia, Qing China, is indirectly declining.

As Prince Gong said, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom leaders might think that since they are fighting against the Qing dynasty, they can also take on the British Empire, which defeated the Qing.

It’s an absurd delusion, but people tend to fall into all sorts of delusions when they’re doing well.

“So, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom will not abandon Hong Xiuquan. Qing is not in a position to immediately defeat the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and hand over Hong Xiuquan to us. Is that how I should understand it?”

“…That’s how it is right now, but we are doing our best and will produce results in the near future.”

“The situation is already too dire to simply let it go. It’s fortunate that many European countries are not yet very familiar with the situation in Asia, because we can easily predict what kind of reaction they would have if this situation reached their ears.”

In the original history, the European reaction to the Taiping Rebellion wasn’t that bad at first.

In the beginning, the Taiping Rebellion was known as a revolution based on Christian ideology.

Since they didn’t know the truth, some even praised it as the history of God.

But when they opened the lid, the reality was a mess.

The leader claimed to be the brother of Jesus, and the second-in-command claimed that God could enter his body and possess him, which cooled the atmosphere.

When the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom combined with communist ideology and began to take on an anti-foreign stance, everyone rushed to help defeat them.

And judging by the looks of it, things don’t seem to be much different now.

“Prince Gong, you may not know this, but Hong Xiuquan is touching on elements that are taboo in European countries all at once – both religiously and socially. And even in a situation where this is somehow achieving results, he is challenging the British Empire’s royal family. Even if it’s a claim close to their unilateral delusion, we cannot take this matter lightly.”

“Of course, I know.”

“But you’re telling us to blindly trust your country and wait? That doesn’t make sense. The fact that I, of all people, came here myself should already convey the seriousness of the situation.”

Prince Gong’s gaze wavered back and forth.

He clearly knows what we’re going to ask for, but he doesn’t have the means to refuse, so how frustrating must it be?

Still, befitting the most capable member of the Qing imperial family, he seemed to have something in mind and preempted me before I could say anything.

“So, Your Excellency… It’s really embarrassing, but could we receive help from Great England? If we could, there would be nothing more reassuring.”

“You want us to provide support to overthrow the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom?”

“Yes. In fact, didn’t your country also introduce the elite Eight Banners [Qing military units] to help us in the war against Russia and annihilate the Russian army? Unfortunately, due to the resulting gap in troops, we were unable to focus on the south. The fact that we couldn’t stop their expansion was ultimately due to this reason…”

He’s using his head well. So, because we helped you, the rioters were able to grow their power, so if you have a conscience, you should help us this time?

It sounds plausible at first glance, but unfortunately, I know the situation in Qing better than Prince Gong, and I certainly don’t know less.

When you look at the details, it’s nothing but nonsense, but who are you trying to deceive?

“I know that the Manchurian Eight Banners fought against Russia, but were the Manchurian Eight Banners originally planning to fight against the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom rebels in the south?”

“That’s not the case, but still…”

“Besides, when you think about it, isn’t it because Qing sent troops to Joseon for no reason that they were suspected of forming an alliance with Russia? If we clarify the cause and effect, your country doesn’t owe Qing anything. Qing paid off its debt to your country by attacking Russia. Am I wrong?”

“…No. You are right, Your Excellency.”

“But there seems to be no room for disagreement that Qing needs our help. Of course, we have just finished a war, so we won’t be dispatching a large number of troops. But we will provide assistance to the extent that we can.”

I asked Qing to hand over detailed data analyzing the current scale of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and their military strength, and decided to take a break.

It’s hard to see it as a typical civil uprising, as the scale is growing so large.

It seems to have already surpassed the level that the British Empire can push back on its own, so if we face it alone, we will inevitably suffer damage.

Then, what if we borrow the strength of our allies?

If we do well, we might be able to move the seeds of conflict sprouting in Europe to this side.

* * *

While Killian was deep in thought about the much more chaotic situation in Qing than expected, the Joseon Dynasty was also experiencing the effects of the great storm caused by the King.

In particular, the Jongchin [royal relatives] scattered throughout Joseon were at a loss as to how to react to this sudden news.

-We will examine those who possess the qualities of a king, adopt them as our son, and then appoint them as the Crown Prince.

At first glance, it seems like a golden opportunity that will never come again, but there were too many things to believe it at face value.

First of all, descendants of the direct royal line up to the fifth generation were not allowed to hold proper government positions, so few of those close to the direct line studied diligently.

In other words, if they were to be judged on the depth of their learning, those close to the direct line would inevitably be at a disadvantage.

Then, are the collateral lines in a better situation? Not necessarily.

The collateral lines were spending their days walking on eggshells, being mindful of everyone’s eyes.

Among the powerful Sedo families [powerful in-law families who dominated Joseon politics], there were not a few who contacted Jongchin who were known to be highly educated in advance.

“Do you have any intention of running in the Crown Prince appointment that His Majesty is presiding over this time?”

“You must have mastered the Four Books and Three Classics [Confucian texts], of course?”

“His Majesty is very interested in modernization. You should show that you are interested not only in Confucianism but also in Western technology.”

If they could install a royal family member they controlled as the Crown Prince, the family that drew the winning ticket could quickly rise to the core of power.

How could they miss such an opportunity?

And of course, the Andong Kim clan and the Pungyang Jo clan had no intention of yielding this opportunity to other families.

The numerous powerful figures in Joseon put their heads together and repeatedly inferred who the likely Crown Prince candidates were, and whether the King had any candidates in mind, and began to narrow down the candidates.

Soon, the names of several likely candidates were mentioned.

And one of them was designated as the grandson of Eunsin-gun, the half-brother of King Jeongjo.

Heungseon-gun, Yi Haeung, was on his way to Shanghai by ship, as if fleeing.

In name, it was to discuss future plans with Killian in Shanghai, but in reality, it was because he felt pressured that his life would be shortened by the Sedo families if he stayed in Hanseong [old name for Seoul].

‘Hoo… These crazy people. There’s no madness like it.’

In fact, Yi Haeung had not imagined that such a thing would happen, so he was simply bewildered by the current situation.

If his wife, who is currently pregnant, gives birth to a child, he might try to have that child adopted into the direct royal line to seize an opportunity, but he has never thought of running as a candidate himself.

But suddenly, he’s being called one of the leading Crown Prince candidates, which is absurd.

Moreover, isn’t he currently six years older than the current King?

He was in a situation he had never dreamed of, so he couldn’t make a proper judgment about what to do.

So, he volunteered to talk to Killian, whom he knew, and boarded a ship to Shanghai.

‘But I heard that His Majesty said that Killian would attend the candidate selection… Does that mean that he will influence the selection process?’

If he’s just observing, there’s no reason for him to come all the way to Joseon, so it’s probably the case.

But… is that really possible?

Killian is a Jongchin, but he is clearly a person of England and a member of a foreign royal family.

For such a person to influence the selection of the next king of Joseon?

‘Should I assume that rumor is true?’

It has not been officially announced yet, but the rumor that Joseon, Ryukyu, and the shogunate of Wa [feudal Japan] will recognize the Queen of England as the new Emperor is spreading like a fixed theory.

To recognize the Queen of the Western barbarians as the Emperor? It seemed like a bad joke, but if that were really the case, it would not be impossible for Killian to influence the selection of the next king of Joseon.

Even if he doesn’t directly choose, the current King may nominate the next king and go through the process of formally appointing him as the Emperor’s representative.

Having sorted out his thoughts to this point, Heungseon-gun clutched his suddenly pounding heart and unconsciously calmed his breathing.

If… if all these assumptions are true.

Wouldn’t it be possible to prevent the powerful officials of the Andong Kim clan or the Pungyang Jo clan from having their way?

A person with excellent scholarship among the Jongchin of Joseon.

And a person who knows Killian and can talk to him about this topic first.

In other words, the person closest to the throne of Joseon at this moment.

As Yi Haeung saw the scenery of Shanghai, which was faintly coming into view in the distance, he unconsciously muttered.

“Should I… at least try to challenge it?”