The end of the Guangxu era was not actually the time of his death, but after the failure of the Pengshu Reform Law that he implemented against Cixi's wishes, after the failure of the change, Cixi once again monopolized the power. She used Guangxu's illness as an excuse for herself to listen to the government, and the previous way of listening to the government was still to listen to the government, and this time she began to sit side by side with the emperor. Guangxu had basically become a puppet emperor, and Cixi asked him to speak, so that he could speak, and when necessary, he could only use his nod to make a reluctant response.
After retiring from the dynasty, Cixi would also imprison Guangxu in Yingtai, which was a water prison specially set up by Cixi for Guangxu, because it was surrounded by water on all sides, so it was named Yingtai. Regarding the imprisonment of the emperor, this had not yet appeared in the Qing Dynasty, and the boldness and cruelty of Cixi really made the world dare not compliment. After the failure of the change, not only was Guangxu punished, but all those who had served him were also executed or assigned to the frontier.
When he was in Yingtai, Cixi sent a group of eunuchs, but the main role of these eunuchs was to monitor him, and in order to prevent him from escaping, Cixi destroyed the only suspension bridge leading to Yingtai and installed it only when needed. According to the records, in the winter of one year, because of the cold weather, the river surface was frozen, because the ice layer was very thick, so Guangxu slipped away privately, but was soon discovered by the eunuch and arrested. Since then, there has been no ice on the surface of the river, and it has all been chiseled open.
It is said that even if the window of the room where he was held was broken, no one dared to repair it, because Cixi would not allow it. The poor Guangxu Emperor had lost his political rights and freedom, and he himself lamented that he was not even as good as Emperor Xian of Han. The imprisoned Guangxu life is too monotonous, every day except for the Shang Dynasty, he can only be monitored in the house, so he hates the current life, more cruel Yuan Shikai, it is Yuan Shikai who leaked his secrets, he will change the law and fail, he often draws turtles in the places where he is imprisoned, and on the back of the turtle is Yuan Shikai's name.
This ritual lasted for 10 years, until 1903, when Deling entered the palace. Deling's father was a minister in France, the United States, etc., so she was proficient in English. After she entered the palace, in addition to waiting for Cixi, she would also teach Guangxu to speak English every day, teach her to dance, and they were also teachers and friends, so that Guangxu saw a little color. This period of life is also very precious to Deling, and has left materials for her future creations, and also retained some precious historical materials.
When Guangxu was thirty-four years old, Guangxu and Cixi fell ill at the same time, and there is a record of this incident in Guangxu's diary, saying that he must die a little later than Cixi, so that he can take revenge. But who expected this diary to be known to Li Lianying, who told Cixi, who was naturally very angry. Therefore, in history, Cixi did die a little later than Guangxu, but many people suspected that cixi killed Guangxu.
When Guangxu was 38 years old, he died, and finally completed his tragic life, which I think is a relief for him, but until he dies, there is still an unfulfilled wish, that is, to kill Yuan Shikai. Unfortunately, after his death, another child of his family was put on the throne, and his life was also a tragedy.