Chapter 30: Resentment in the South (Part 2)

Geographically, Vietnam can be divided into three regions: Tonkin, Annam, and Cochinchina. By this time, Cochinchina had become a French colony, where the French had established a fairly stable rule. Two to three thousand French troops and several thousand colonial forces held firm control over the region.

Tonkin, where the Xiliu Camp was located, was known to the French as “Tonkin” and was a land plagued by war. The foundation of the Vietnamese kingdom, however, lay in Annam. At the heart of Annam was Huế. As the Vietnamese said, “The region around Mount Heng can sustain people for generations,” referring to the Huế area. The Nguyễn dynasty established its state there for three and a half centuries. Though it couldn’t be said to sustain people for eternity, it was still a long-lasting dynasty.

The political core of Huế wasn’t in any palace but in the emperor’s favorite mausoleum. This mausoleum, built by Emperor Tự Đức for himself and originally named Vạn Niên Kỷ, became the famous Thánh Địa Huế, a must-visit attraction in Huế. He had a special affection for this mausoleum and spent most of his time there. Even when France seized six provinces in Cochinchina, he continued to rush its construction. The laborers, overwhelmed by the hardship, rebelled, leading to the mausoleum being renamed Thánh Địa. In Thánh Địa, Emperor Tự Đức was the central figure.

According to Vietnamese historical records, he had an average appearance—neither tall nor short, neither fat nor thin, with skin that was neither dark nor fair. He resembled a Confucian scholar. He preferred to wear a small yellow headband, yellow clothes, yellow trousers made by the Imperial Household Department, and yellow leather shoes. He usually had a kind temperament and was a diligent emperor.

Since ascending the throne at the age of 19, over 31 years, he had risen at 5 a.m. every day and begun his work at 6 a.m. But today, in Thánh Địa, Emperor Tự Đức appeared extremely anxious. He had always favored concubines, having more than a hundred of them. This was a major concern for the entire Nguyễn dynasty—not because of his lustfulness, but because, despite 31 years on the throne and hundreds of concubines, he still had no heirs.

This usually moderate and diligent emperor could only respond by taking in more concubines, hoping to conceive a child. If that failed, he would take in more. Since the beginning of his reign, this vicious cycle had repeated over a hundred times, leaving the emperor himself in despair.

Now, several extremely beautiful concubines stood by his side, occasionally handing him the memorials brought by eunuchs. These days, there were especially many memorials, and the usually calm Emperor Tự Đức became irritable. He would often strike the memorials fiercely with his red pen. Since the harem was not allowed to interfere in politics, they dared not meddle much, only listening quietly: “Detestable! Truly detestable!”

“Even the Liuyi Camp comes to cause trouble for our great Nam,” Emperor Tự Đức said, sighing as he looked at the flood of memorials. “If the ruler is not a traitor, then all his subjects are traitors…”

This was a phrase often repeated by the last Ming emperor, Chongzhen. Seeing Emperor Tự Đức sighing so deeply, the concubines also felt a hint of sympathy for him.

They dared not say a word more, only standing obediently by. When memorials were brought by eunuchs, they handed them to the fifty-year-old man to annotate in red ink before forwarding them to the Cabinet. They were highly skilled at this task, but today there were simply too many memorials, pouring in like snowflakes.

Si De felt extremely exhausted yet forced himself to stay alert, reviewing documents for eight or nine hours straight, taking only one meal in between, his energy waning steadily. The concubines continued to stand by, not daring to speak. They knew the King of Yue had a relatively moderate temperament, but on this matter, not even his brothers and nephews would yield an inch. Speaking too much might mean being banished to the cold palace.

Though they knew the old emperor’s red-ink annotations were often arbitrary and full of errors, they could only watch those flawed annotations go to the Cabinet. Looking at this emperor, who appeared frighteningly aged, they even felt pity for themselves. They were all daughters of good families, skilled in music, chess, poetry, and painting since childhood, with graceful appearances and gentle temperaments. If not for being trapped in the palace, they might have long been together as husband and wife. But now, they could only maintain a stiff smile on their faces forever.

With such poetic grace and a reflection as clear as jade, they could only gaze at the cold moon in the autumn palace, never seeing the world outside again. As they pitied their own fates, their delicate hands handed over various memorials. One beautiful concubine glanced at one of the documents and saw only the words “Liu Zi Ying,” which suddenly filled her heart with sorrow. She remembered two lines of Hu Chunxiang’s poem: “If only I could become a man, heroic deeds would be within my reach.”

Emperor Si De’s expression darkened. Seeing the memorial from Liu Zi Ying, he felt utterly at a loss and recited those two lines again: “The ruler is not a ruler who brings ruin to the country; all ministers are ministers who bring ruin to the country…”

“All of them are asking for reinforcements, food, and funds from the imperial treasury. Instead of worrying for me, the emperor, they only think about obtaining more funds from the treasury. Where do I get so much money?” Si De was furious. “Where would I get such funds? If I really had that much, how would I have lost the six provinces of Nam Ky back then?”

This was a matter he hated deeply. When the French demanded reparations, he ordered the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Personnel to melt all the ceremonial utensils and silver bricks and ingots in the palace, yielding only 72,000 taels. Later, when people inspected the remaining treasuries in the three provinces of Nam Ky, they found only 720 taels of gold, 2,220 taels of silver, and 10,500 copper coins—far insufficient to cover the French demands.

With no more funds left after losing Nam Ky, he had to resort to measures like allowing opium trade, selling titles, and permitting criminals to pay to avoid punishment. But the imperial treasury was empty; nothing was left. “I’ll show them just how little money we have left.”

Yet the concubines around him always knew some hidden truths. Watching his delusional words, they could only maintain their professional, half-smiling expressions. But among them, someone repeated Hu Chunxiang’s two lines: “If only I could become a man, heroic deeds would be within my reach.”

All they had left was this faint spark of ambition. And Si De repeated for the third time the warning of the former Ming emperor Chongzhen: “The ruler is not a ruler who brings ruin to the country; all ministers are ministers who bring ruin to the country!”

He simply made a heavy mark on the memorial scroll and said solemnly, “I believe the king shall never die. In the past, Emperor Shizu fought through countless battles under great hardship, pursued by the Western invaders across the river using crocodiles as a means of crossing. Our southern kingdom has endured for three hundred years—how could it perish at the hands of an insignificant man like Li Yangcai?”
“Li Yangcai, from the Liu Army, a Frenchman—wait and see! When I restore order to the land, I won’t spare anyone!”