"History is called Emperor Yao, and his benevolence is like heaven, but the emperor of Daxing is really and harmonious." This is the reason why after Kangxi's death, people chose the title of "Emperor Shengzuren" for him. Kangxi was indeed an accomplished emperor. He has been particular about wenzhi martial arts all his life, and he has done it himself. Not only that, but most of his reign was not as extravagant and lavish as other emperors, but he handled political affairs very diligently.
However, Kangxi was not the kind of serious and old-fashioned emperor that people remembered. Not only is he not old-fashioned, but he is also very trendy, able to accept and tolerate new things. In order to eat chocolate, Kangxi also took great pains to read the "instruction manual". So what's going on here? In 1706, the Kangxi Emperor wanted to eat chocolate for the first time. The Minister of Internal Affairs, Wai Lang Heshiheng, found foreigners and asked for 8 kinds of chocolates with different flavors.
Not only that, in order to allow the Kangxi Emperor to correctly quote chocolate drinks, foreigners also wrote a 1,000-word quotation method to teach Kangxi to drink drinks. The content of the instruction manual is very detailed, and it introduces Kangxi to a series of information such as the source, origin, appearance and so on of the chocolate. However, kangxi actually frowned after drinking chocolate. He felt that the drink did not seem to be very tasty, and it was very bitter after taking in, without the slightest sweet feeling.
And it has no medicinal value, purely to satisfy the appetite of a few people. So Kangxi never drank chocolate drinks again after satisfying his curiosity. He Shiheng also went to consult the foreigner, who told him that chocolate was not a medicine and could not cure the disease, but it could make people with bad stomach and cold physique drink some properly. After the Kangxi Emperor heard these words, he only said a faint word of understanding, and there was no more following.
The Kangxi Emperor not only had the courage to try foreign food, but he was also very interested in religious beliefs and science and technology in other countries. During his lifetime, he often discussed a series of scientific problems with a foreigner named Xu Risheng. Xu Joined the Society of Jesus in 1663. Later he came to Macau in 1672. In 1673, a missionary who was very close to the Kangxi Emperor introduced Xu Risheng to the imperial palace.
Since then, Xu Risheng and the Kangxi Emperor have become increasingly close. He also wrote music textbooks in Chinese and personally supervised craftsmen in the manufacture of Western instruments. He personally taught Kangxi to play these instruments. Xu Risheng works conscientiously and carefully, treats people with informality, tolerance and generosity. This is because he has these shining points on his body, so the Kangxi Emperor loves him very much. In 1688, Kangxi even sent Xu Risheng and others to negotiate border issues with Russia.
In 1690, a campaign against missionaries broke out in Shandong, and many innocent missionaries were persecuted. So Xu Risheng asked the Kangxi Emperor to calm down, and the Kangxi Emperor also issued a "RongJiao Order". Later, after Xu Risheng's death, the Kangxi Emperor wrote a poem to mourn him. All in all, Kangxi was an emperor with a very new vision and new eyes.
Never complacent, the Kangxi Emperor was always very good at learning and imitating the strengths of others, and worked hard to enrich himself. But the most ironic thing is that his descendants are diametrically opposed to him, and slowly take the Qing Dynasty to a closed road of no return.