Then, as Nicholas passed through the courts of the palace, he stared with surprise, not unmixed with indignation, at the disproportion of the numbers of Chinese to those of the Tartars. Yet again, surely it was but gratitude on the part of the young Emperor to reward those who had restored him to the throne of his ancestors; still a strange fear crept over him, and he said, almost in a whisper, "Truly, O illustrious prince, these barbarians have taken possession of the empire." "It is as wise, O youth, to make a virtue of necessity, as it is childish to resist the decrees of fate," said the general; and then a pang of disappointment shot through the youth's heart; his illusion vanished; moreover, he would have given his life to have avoided the scene before him. They had entered the great hall of audience; there, upon the golden dragon throne, surrounded by the warrior princes and chiefs of Mantchouria, sat the Emperor. The Emperor, indeed! not Yong-Li, but a Tartar child of six years of age. Heartsick, enraged, he would have spoken. The general perceiving his misery, clutched his arm. Nicholas checked his impatience, but nevertheless muttered, "Surely the heavens will fall, for the great Woo-san-Kwei has proved a traitor." CHAPTER XL. THE GREAT BOY EMPEROR.--NICHOLAS MEETS WITH A FEARFUL SURPRISE. Once having entered the rich empire of China, the Tartar king determined to remain, and thus artfully sent Woo-san-Kwei, the only man he feared, to chastise the rebels in Chen-si, so that he could the better introduce more and more of the warrior tribes beneath his rule: moreover, he was so cruel to those who resisted his army, and so generous and kind to those who submitted freely, that the people, glad to get a sovereign who had power enough to crush the rapacious nobles, unanimously hailed him Emperor; before, however, he could be formally installed, he became seized with a mortal illness, so, calling his brother Amavan, he created him regent during the minority of his son Chun-ti, a child six years of age.