The Qing Dynasty ruled the country for 200 years after the Manchu invasion, especially after the 100-year reign of Kangxi and Qianlong. At that time, the country was prosperous and strong, and trade was rich, so in the eyes of the Western powers, the Qing government was a piece of fat that was rich and oily. Various countries rushed to China for colonization, especially the British began to transport opium to China, in order to make the Chinese people and soldiers lose their will due to opium addiction, resulting in China being called the sick man of East Asia.
Lin Zexu was then serving as the governor of Huguang. Anticipating the serious consequences of opium, he began to petition the emperor for a ban on smoking. But the ministers and emperors were in Beijing at the time, blinded by the prosperity of the time, and no one realized that China at that time was very backward in technology and weapons, and was very arrogant in thinking that it was a superpower, enjoying pleasure and self-anesthetizing every day. At that time, Western countries were already carrying out scientific and technological revolutions, carrying out economic plunder among countries, and striving to improve military weapons and strengthen their own strength. Therefore, the gap between the Qing government and the Western powers is already very large.
Lin Zexu was in a coastal city at the time, and he had a lot of contact with various countries, and after Britain and France brought opium into China to obtain a large amount of money, the Chinese people also began to be eroded by the addiction of opium, and they drunkenly dreamed of death every day. Lin Zexu realized that the people and soldiers at that time had lost the ability to fight.
The country also does not have enough gold and silver to support the army, which is very dangerous for China. So he began to ban smoking at the same time as asking for advice, he also knew that his smoking ban would definitely touch the interests of Western countries, and he understood that there would be various possibilities that could happen to him, so he prepared for the worst.
First, Lin Zexu's smoking ban
In 1839, after the Daoguang Emperor received Lin Zexu's report on the ban on smoking, the Daoguang Emperor recognized the harm of opium in China, so he was very much in favor of Lin Zexu's anti-smoking behavior in Guangzhou. At the beginning, when Lin Zexu's anti-smoking campaign had certain achievements, the Daoguang Emperor rewarded Lin Zexu with the "Fu" and "Shou" plaques he had written to show the reward.
After the anti-smoking campaign became larger and larger, britain and France suffered a huge impact on the economy, britain and france began to send troops and fleets into the Pearl River to prepare for the attack on Guangzhou. Lin Zexu, anticipating in advance that he would be attacked by Britain and France, made a good defense along the coast, and this attack made Britain and France unsuccessful. The British army helplessly began to advance along the coast towards Tianjin, directly approaching the city of Beijing, and the Daoguang Emperor did not think about how to resist but chose to make peace.
In order to get britain and France to retreat, the Daoguang Emperor asked Iribu to communicate whether it was the economic trade between the two countries or whether the british and French invasion was caused by the anti-smoking ban. At that time, both Iribu and Qishan belonged to the peace-seeking faction, and in order not to fight, they told the Daoguang Emperor that the British and French march was entirely caused by Lin Zexu alone. The Daoguang Emperor listened to the partial letter and directly ordered Lin Zexu to be demoted to investigate.
Later, after the defeat of the Jing rebel general and the British army, he did not reflect on himself, but blamed Lin Zexu, believing that as long as Lin Zexu was dealt with severely, the British would negotiate peace with the Qing government. The Daoguang Emperor was frightened by his many defeats in the battle against Britain and France, and immediately ordered Lin Zexu's official title to be issued with frontier Ili.
In the First Opium War, Lin Zexu's act of selling cigarettes at Humen made everyone remember his name, and also let posterity see this hero who first opened his eyes to see the world, but it was also because of the ban on smoking that Lin Zexu was framed as a criminal, resulting in his later years spent in the frontier.
2. Descendants of Lin Zexu
Lin Zexu married Zheng Shuqing, the daughter of Zheng Damo of Zhixian County, Yongcheng County, after Zhongju, when Zheng Shuqing was Miss Qianjin of Jinshi Mendi, while Lin Zexu was a poor Xiucai, and this marriage was talked about at that time. After marriage, the two had a very good relationship, and Lin Zexu never took a concubine. The two had a total of 8 children in their lifetime. Except for Lin Qiubai and Lin Jinluan, who died prematurely, the other three sons and three daughters are well known.
First of all, as the eldest son, Lin Ruzhou, who was intelligent and studious from an early age, entered the official field to serve the country after entering the examination, but it was the time when Lin Zexu was framed and demoted, so because of his father's reasons, he could only do an editor. It was not until after Lin Zexu's death that his official position was promoted to the rank of attendant. His descendant Lin Honghan was also very capable, and was the principal of the Jinling Petrochemical Workers' School at that time.
As the second son, Lin Congyi's life was more difficult and bumpy than that of his elder brother Lin Ruzhou. When Lin Zexu was sent to the frontier to go to Ili, Lin Congyi followed him, although the conditions in Ili were difficult, but he took care of Lin Zexu while enriching himself, in order to prepare for the opportunity to have a large exhibition in the future. Until the death of Lin Zexu, Lin Congyi began to shine in the official field, relying on his own ability to serve as a coastal defense military reserve, which is the same as the current commander, which is similar to the current commander of the military region.
Lin Gongshu was Lin Zexu's third son, and he and his second brother went to Ili to take care of Lin Zexu. After Lin Gongshu was introduced to the official field after serving Lin Zexu's funeral, he served in the official positions of the Criminal Department, chief minister, and member of the foreign lang, and finally abdicated in the official position of supervising the imperial history.
Lin Zexu's three sons are not as famous as Lin Zexu, but because of the influence of their father, their sons are also upright and honest in the official arena, inheriting the same family style as Lin Zexu. In addition to these three sons, Lin Zexu's grandson is also very famous. The most familiar is Lin Zengtong, who joined the Communist Party of China after the victory of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, and his job at that time was to collect intelligence and cover his companions, so he long assumed the name of Li Liang, made great contributions to the anti-war work at that time, was persecuted after a mission, and was tortured and killed in order not to expose his companions and intelligence.
There was also Lin Moqing, a famous diplomat, who, under the pseudonym Ling Qing, followed Chairman Mao in Yan'an and talked with American reporters after the founding of New China. In 1980, he became Permanent Representative of the United Nations. As the saying goes, the father of the tiger has no dog, Lin Zexu is a great hero praised by everyone, and his descendants are also the best in the society at that time under the influence of Lin Zexu's family style.
3. Summary
When the Western powers invaded China, Lin Zexu, as one of the first awakened people, realized that he could not close the country and dared to confront the strong. During the Opium War, he not only safeguarded the dignity and interests of the Chinese, but also showed the ambition of the Chinese people. Lin Zexu's spirit of taking the country and the people as his own responsibility has been passed down by his descendants. It has not stopped for a hundred years. In the future, this spirit will also be learned by us and then continue to shine, I believe that in the future, we will also bear the patriotic responsibility and continue to work hard to move forward.
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