No matter how rich you are and how socially you are, the final destination is still the second part of the field.
As the saying goes: "People will die and their words are good", which means that at the end of life, people will get rid of the shackles from the world, summarize their lives from the perspective of a bystander, or hope that others will inherit their will, or learn lessons to let future generations take a warning.
Since ancient times, the emperor will be used to confessing things before dying before he is willing to drive to the west, at this moment of life, in fact, it has little to do with good and evil loyalty, as long as you let go of the attachment in your heart, the words spoken are naturally very useful.
So do you know how Empress Dowager Cixi, the "Lafayette" who covered the sky with her hands in the late Qing Dynasty, spent the last day of her life?
Picture: Stills of the courtiers standing in front of Lafayette Empress Dowager Cixi
1. "Lafayette" Empress Dowager Cixi
1, in the folk word of mouth
Although Cixi was a "weak woman", she was the most powerful woman in the Qing Dynasty, and there was no one, she firmly controlled the two emperors of Tongzhi and Guangxu, listened to the government, and reached the peak of power.
It is precisely because of this that the evaluation of her in later generations is quite polarized, and it is often more derogatory than praise, so what is the attitude and evaluation of Cixi by the people of the late Qing Dynasty?
Although the situation was forced, but after the signing of the "Xin Ugly Treaty" that humiliated the country, Cixi's reputation in the folk was absolutely plummeting, and he did not dare to compliment, it is said that when Cixi was in Henan, he wanted to taste the local famous "Four Seasons Pills", and the officials immediately asked the chef to do it, and as a result, the cook scolded while doing it: "How not to let the foreign devils blow up the old woman of this defeated country"!
When the people next to him heard it, they immediately advised him not to talk indiscriminately, saving himself from disaster, but not scolding and not being happy, so the two of them decided to change "Four Seasons Pills" to "Sixi Pills" after discussion, of which "Fried Sixi" is the harmonic sound of "Fried Cixi". Although this is a folk legend, it can also be seen how unpopular Cixi is in the hearts of the common people.
Image: Stills of the chef cooking
2. The last day of Cixi
Cixi died on November 15, 1908, and the day before, that is, on November 14, the penultimate emperor in the history of the Qing Dynasty, Guangxu, died, according to the reason given in the history books, he died violently, and Cixi was very sad when he learned of it, which was very abnormal for Cixi, who had always been known for his fierceness.
On the 15th, the morning of the last day of Cixi's life, she began to preside over the affairs of the Guangxu Emperor, and arranged for Puyi to succeed to the throne as emperor in the midst of all the chaos, and after everything was arranged, she returned to the palace for dinner, and after noon, she felt a little discomfort.
She thought she was tired, so she asked the palace ladies to retreat and rest on their own, but after a while, she did not feel that the situation had improved, but was accompanied by intermittent breathing difficulties, and she expected that her time might be short, so she gathered the courtiers and began to draft the will.
Image: Stills of Cixi lying down and resting
As to why Empress Dowager Cixi died immediately after the death of the Guangxu Emperor, some people analyzed that she was overworked, and her age caused a recurrence of the old disease, and some people thought that this was a complete conspiracy. But in any case, the day after Guangxu's death, the most powerful woman in the history of the Qing Dynasty also went to Hexi.
Regarding her funeral, in addition to the records of historical materials, we have also left a large number of precious photos, from which we can see that the entire funeral can be described as infinite scenery, even comparable to the emperor of the Eight Classics of Zheng'er.
Not only that, but the gold, silver and jade objects for Lafayette's funeral are innumerable, and the most representative funeral product is the night pearl that Cixi asked to contain in her mouth before she died.
Image: Stills of the Pearl of the Night stuffed in Cixi's mouth
2. Empress Dowager Cixi's last words before her death
1. The cause of Guangxu's death
Here is a thing that many people wonder, according to historical records, the Guangxu Emperor was only 38 years old when he died, which was the age of the right year, and he had not found any disease before, why did he suddenly die violently?
In 2008, the forensic department of the Beijing Municipal Public Security System used modern science and technology to test the remains of the Guangxu Emperor and found that it contained a very high concentration of arsenic, which basically shows that the Qing Emperor did not die normally, but most likely died of arsenic poisoning.
So the question arises: who would kill an emperor who had little real power? Who has the opportunity and the ability to kill an emperor?
Whether it is the people or the academic community, this question has been debated endlessly, although there is no definite answer so far, but most people believe that the biggest suspect is Empress Dowager Cixi. Because Cixi had always feared that after his death, the Guangxu Emperor would quickly seize power and completely negate himself from the history books.
Maybe she felt that she would not be at peace after she died, so she simply dragged Guangxu along the road, so that it would be "fair", and judging from the situation at that time, Cixi did not have to make any effort to do Guangxu.
Image: Stills of the Guangxu Emperor being poisoned
2. Cixi's three confessions
Cixi had a period of coma on the 15th, and when she woke up, she arranged three things, one of which was to announce that Puyi would be the new emperor of the Qing Empire, and let his father Zaifeng be the regent of the Qing Dynasty.
Second, it was announced that women would not be allowed to interfere in politics from now on. This matter Dahui felt was quite ironic to say from Cixi's mouth, because Cixi herself was a woman, and she also controlled the power of the Qing Dynasty for decades, but before her death, she demanded that women should not interfere in politics in the future.
Isn't it denying all your previous actions? Isn't it just punching yourself in the face? Of course, at that time, although everyone knew it, it is estimated that no one dared to say so. Why did Cixi do this? She should realize how much disaster she has brought to the country by listening to the government, so she does not want future generations to follow in her footsteps.
Third, it was declared that eunuchs were not allowed to govern. Why did Cixi announce this rule on her deathbed? Obviously, during her reign, the eunuch clique headed by Li Lianying was too powerful, and she was afraid that after her death, Li Lianying and others would follow the example of the former dynasty and bring calamity to the country and the people, so she made this decision.
Photo: Cixi lied Puyi as emperor before his death
Let's be fair, although Cixi's life behavior has been controversial, the last three last words are still quite insightful, and it can be regarded as a "summary" of her life!
Article author: Dahui
The entire graphic was produced by the team of the Big Cafe Say History Studio!