Before 2008, there was a huge doubt about the cause of the guangxu emperor's death, and it was not clear whether he died of illness naturally or was killed unnaturally, so there were many suspicious claims, and even natural disease and death were once the mainstream view in the historical circles. However, this accurate answer was finally verified by modern scientific means 10 years ago, that is, through repeated testing and analysis of the hair, bones, clothes and environmental samples inside and outside the tomb of the Remains of the Guangxu Emperor, it was found that the Collar and hair of Guangxu were stained with a high concentration of arsenic trioxide (that is, arsenic), and the arsenic trioxide in the stomach area of the robe was caused by the erosion of body fluids when the corpse was decomposed, and the arsenic trioxide in the hair and collar was also a remnant of the erosion of corpse fluid. Ordinary people will die of poisoning by oral arsenic cream of 60 to 200 mg. The total amount of arsenic detected on some of the Guangxu Emperor's clothes and hair alone was as high as about 201 mg, so the truth about the cause of Guangxu Emperor's death was revealed, that is, the 38-year-old Guangxu Emperor was indeed poisoned by arsenic. So, what was Cixi doing in the first or two days of the Guangxu Emperor's death?
November 13, 1908 (the thirty-fourth year of Guangxu) is the day before the death of the Guangxu Emperor, at eight o'clock in the morning, Prince Qing entered the palace to see Cixi, at this time Cixi's condition improved and his spirit was comfortable, but at this time the Guangxu Emperor was in a worse condition, and he was already in a state of sleep all day and less awake. It is said that when the Guangxu Emperor was sober, he sent the empress to report to Cixi that "I am afraid that he will not be able to serve the empress dowager for a long time, and ask the empress dowager to choose an heir to take the throne, and cannot delay it any longer." However, whether such a statement really came from the Guangxu Emperor's original heart, and whether he really sent the empress to say such a thing, cannot be examined.
On the same day, after Prince Qing arrived at the palace, Cixi ordered that he immediately summon the ministers to the Yiluan Hall to discuss the matter. Although Cixi was unable to support herself when she was deliberating with the chancellor, she still spoke as before, her voice was loud and powerful, her expression was calm and self-assured, and the participants were very surprised. It is said that the meeting on that day was presided over by Cixi alone, and the other important ministers attending the meeting were: Prince Qing, Prince Shuo, Military Minister Yuan Shikai, Zhang Zhidong, Lu Chuanlin, shi xu, and so on. Cixi began at the meeting by saying: "Now that the time has come, we must appoint an heir to the emperor according to the edict when he ascends the throne." I've made up my mind, but I still want to consult with you and hear what you mean about the heir? Prince Qing and others advocated that LiBel Zaizhi's fourth son Pulun or King Gong be more important to Pulun, on the grounds that Pulun's line belonged to the Daoguang Emperor's Long Branch, and Zaifeng the Prince of Alcohol also agreed with this opinion. The rest advocated Puyi, the son of Zaifeng the Prince of Liluo.
After listening to the opinions of the people, Cixi also said: "In the past, when I said that ronglu's daughter was the king of alcohol as a blessing, I intended to make her son an heir as an heir, as a reward for Ronglu's loyalty throughout his life, so I decided to establish the son of king of alcohol and at the same time make prince of alcohol the regent of the jianguo, which was a position that was particularly high compared to the previous king of the government." Hearing this, Prince Shuo hurriedly prostrated his head and thanked him, saying that he was afraid that he would not be able to take up his duties. After the meeting made a decision, it immediately issued two edicts: one was the edict of Prince Zaifeng of Feng as the regent of the jianguo, and the other was the edict ordering Puyi, the son of Prince Shuo, to enter the palace to raise him.
At the same time, he also ordered Prince Qing to inform the Guangxu Emperor of the above two edicts. At that time, the Guangxu Emperor was just sober, and after listening to Prince Qing's edict to the Empress, he said to him, "Wouldn't it be better to establish a long prince?" But don't be confused, the empress dowager's idea is good. Later, when he heard that Prince Alcohol was the regent of the Supervising State, he showed a look of joy, and it was already three o'clock in the afternoon, and two hours later Prince Alcohol sent the young lord Puyi into the palace.
At seven o'clock on the second day (November 14), the imperial doctor said that the emperor's nose was flapping and there was a bulge in the stomach, which were ominous signs. On the same day, the imperial court also issued an edict to the provinces: The emperor is critically ill, and asks the provinces to find a good doctor to go to Beijing to diagnose the emperor's illness, and also details the emperor's illness in the edict, and it is unknown whether his words are full or not. At three o'clock in the afternoon, Cixi personally went to Yingtai to visit the Guangxu Emperor's condition. At that time, Guangxu was already unconscious, and then when he was slightly conscious, the eunuch palace maid was ordered to wear a longevity dress for him, although the emperor did not want to wear it, but it was useless, and at five o'clock in the afternoon, the Guangxu Emperor swallowed his last breath. It is said that cixi, the empress, two concubines, and eunuchs were present at the scene. Cixi returned to the palace without waiting for the emperor to finish the dragon robe, and passed on the emperor's will and testament ordering the new emperor to ascend the throne.
At this point, the Guangxu Emperor has completed the path of 38 years of life, the record of this information does not mention the process of poisoning the Guangxu Emperor, it is expected that the Guangxu Emperor should indeed be ill at that time, but it should not die so quickly, someone must have quietly put arsenic cream in his medicinal food, making him die quickly, but this truth in addition to Cixi, which specific executor dares to admit it? Therefore, it can only be a secret that all people who know the truth are rotten in their stomachs, but fortunately, modern technology has restored that sad history and uncovered the truth of the death of the Guangxu Emperor.