Eunuchs were a special profession to serve the emperor, and in the hierarchical feudal period, the status of eunuchs was generally relatively low, and they were generally slaves driven by the nobles at will.
However, there are always exceptions to everything. Among the many eunuchs, there were some who came and went, and by the favor of those in power, became well-known figures.
For example, in the late Qing Dynasty, the famous eunuch Li Lianying is a typical example. According to relevant information, Li Lianying was born in 1848 and was originally named Li Jinxi.
After entering the imperial palace in the 5th year of Xianfeng and becoming a eunuch, he came to empress dowager Cixi by chance.
According to the ancestral system of the Qing Dynasty, the highest rank of eunuchs was four pins, but Empress Dowager Cixi, because she favored Li Lianying, broke this ancestral system and made Li Lianying the chief eunuch of Zheng Erpin, and let him rule all the eunuchs in the palace.
Li Lianying did not live up to Empress Dowager Cixi's expectations, he always had a way to make Cixi happy, and he could generally handle the things that Cixi explained.
It is worth mentioning that Cixi has long been known as Lafayette, and she has always been quite satisfied with this title. The first person to propose such a title was Li Lianying.
It can be said that Empress Dowager Cixi relied on Li Lianying's service and lived a more comfortable life. Li Lianying, relying on the favor of Empress Dowager Cixi, gained a lofty status and also took the opportunity to loot a lot of money.
After Cixi left for the west, Li Lianying also lost his patron, and he chose to retire after a hundred days of filial piety for Cixi.
However, he did not enjoy his old age in peace, and not long after leaving the palace, he died in a hurry. Li Lianying's death has always been a mystery, and few people know the specific causes and consequences.
In the 1960s, some cultural relics experts found Li Lianying's tomb. After obtaining the approval of the relevant departments, they decided to dig up Li Lianying's tomb and conduct archaeological research.
Everyone thought that when Li Lianying was in the Qing Dynasty, even if she had a certain power and status, the specifications of her tomb would not be particularly high, and it would be easy to dig up.
However, after taking real action, everyone helplessly found that Li Lianying's tomb was far stronger than everyone imagined.
The person in charge of the excavation, who spent more than a week, used several broken hammers, and did not succeed in opening the tomb.
Later, under the guidance of a local, the experts found a shortcut directly to the cemetery.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, they bypassed the fortified area and entered Li Lianying's tomb as they wished.
Experts later recalled that Li Lianying's coffin was purple-red in color and had some exquisite patterns on it, which looked particularly gorgeous.
The purple-red coffin is parked on a white jade coffin bed, which was a high-specification burial method during the Qing Dynasty.
The expert in charge of the excavation plucked up the courage to approach the coffin and use the tools to pry it open. At the top of the coffin was a thick layer of clothing, and when it was taken out, it was a well-textured robe.
Although it has been buried underground for decades, it has basically not been damaged much and is quite well preserved.
Immediately afterward, archaeologists took out more than 50 precious burial items in Li Lianying's coffin.
At the critical moment when everyone was quite excited, a person suddenly shouted. This screaming person, in the process of carrying the relic, accidentally touched a "leg bone".
His hand only touched slightly, and the "leg bone" broke. This is also a taboo thing for archaeologists.
However, everyone quickly calmed down, because this broken leg bone was not a real bone, but something made of cotton. It was only because it was too old that it had become a little dark and hard, and it had a bone-like feeling.
Subsequently, archaeologists accidentally found that in Li Lianying's coffin, except for the skull, the others were filled prostheses.
What's going on? Could it be that li Lianying's body had undergone any abnormal changes? This speculation was particularly frightening, everyone couldn't help but take a breath of cold air, and some experts were even frightened that their legs and feet were numb, and it was even a little difficult to stand.
However, the archaeologists were not really fooled by the speculation, and they quickly came up with some more reasonable speculations.
Archaeologists generally believe that li Lianying's coffin only has a head because he died unnaturally.
When Li Lianying kept filial piety for Empress Dowager Cixi, her physical condition was relatively good. Supposedly, he should have lived a long time and should not have died so soon.
Therefore, there is a good chance that he was assassinated that year, and although there is no conclusive evidence, this speculation is particularly reasonable.
When Li Lianying was working at Cixi's rear side, she often favored Empress Dowager Cixi and sought personal interests for herself.
In this case, he will certainly offend many powerful people. While Empress Dowager Cixi was still alive, Li Lianying could use her power and position to continue to be a blessing in disguise.
However, after the death of Empress Dowager Cixi, Li Lianying lost this dependency. Because of this, he hurried out of the palace, away from the land of right and wrong.
Judging from the results, even though Li Lianying has left the core of power, his past grievances have not been written off.
In the end, he was assassinated by the enemy family and fell to the end of being in a different place, which is also reasonable. So, who was the person who killed Li Lianying back then? There is a lot of speculation about this.
Some people believe that it was Yuan Shikai who killed Li Lianying. Some people also believe that the person who murdered Li Lianying was Empress Dowager Longyu's confidant Xiao Dezhang.
These two speculations seem to have some truth, but there is no objective basis. Therefore, it has not been adopted by the people. All in all, Li Lianying's death is still an unsolved mystery.
It is worth mentioning that when Li Lianying died, although the Qing government had reached the point of crumbling, the imperial court still issued 1,000 taels of silver and built a relatively luxurious tomb for Li Lianying.
From this point of view, the Qing government can also be regarded as giving Li Lianying great sorrow. Throughout Li Lianying's life, it can be said that he has experienced great ups and downs, he has had brilliant moments of calling the wind and rain, and he has also had unknown moments of despair.
Everything has become a passing cloud. Because of the historical story, Li Lianying is still the focus of discussion among some scholars.
Some people believe that Li Lianying was a greedy and cunning person who deceived and deceived, and half of the Qing Dynasty was destroyed in his hands.
Some people also believe that Li Lianying was just a servant of Empress Dowager Cixi's side, and if he had to be regarded as a figure like Wei Zhongxian and Liu Jin, it would be too much to lift him up.
What do you think about Li Lianying? Welcome to leave a comment.