China should bury head to work diligently for 10 years and then raise head to face Japan.

He and Zhang ignored Empress Dowager Cixi's declaration of war against the foreign powers and continued to suppress the Boxers. Yuan would not be present when the Abdication edict was issued by Empress Dowager Longyu on 12 February 1912. Both wanted Yuan on their side.

Yuan Shikai (Wade-Giles spelling: Yuan Shih-kai; simplified Chinese: 袁世凯; traditional Chinese: 袁世凱; pinyin: Yuán Shìkǎi; Wade–Giles: Yüan2 Shih4-kai3; 16 September 1859 – 6 June 1916) was an important Chinese general and politician famous for his influence during the late Qing Dynasty his role in the events leading up to the abdication of the last Qing Emperor of China his autocratic rule as the second President of the Republic of China (following Sun Yatsen) and his short-lived attempt to revive the Chinese monarchy with himself as the "Great Emperor of China. His courtesy name was "Weiting" (Wade-Giles spelling: Wei-ting; Chinese: 慰亭; pinyin: Wèitíng; Wade–Giles: Wei4-t'ing2) and he used the pseudonym "Rong'an" (Wade-Giles spelling: Jung-an; Chinese: 容庵; pinyin: Róng'ān; Wade–Giles: Jung2-an1). "
Like many Chinese men before 1949 Yuan used and was referred to by many different names.