From ancient times to the present, many people will crave more power, and even eventually involuntarily embark on a road of no return. There are few officials who can make an exception in this regard. Therefore, even in the era when the monarchy had just ended, Yuan Shikai still had the dream of becoming an emperor, and even became a public enemy of the world.
Yuan Shikai was nothing more than a thief in the eyes of the world, and he greeted both sides just to realize his dream of being an emperor. But times have changed, and wanting to be emperor is a fool's dream, and no one in the world will agree. After the peaceful overthrow of the Qing Dynasty, Yuan Shikai knew very well that Chinese was very disgusted with the feudal monarchy that had lasted for more than two thousand years, and that the absolute monarchy given by the gods was no longer prevalent, and he used the advanced constitutional monarchy system abroad to let Beijing and its provinces vote for the emergence of the emperor, but in fact, the vote was under Yuan Shikai's control. The tweets of the provinces unanimously read: "Yuan Shikai, the current president of the present dynasty, is the emperor of the Chinese Empire, and he enshrines the supreme and complete sovereignty of the country to the emperor, inheriting the heavens and building the pole, and passing it on to all generations." ”
But he was wrong to do so, first of all, a constitutional monarchy simply does not work in China. The Chinese emperor has ruled for more than two thousand years, and he has the final say in the world with just one word. His goal was complete dictatorship, and like the Emperor of Japan or the Emperor of Germany, the Emperor had the flag of a constitutional monarchy, but in reality he had the final say, and the Emperor had an absolute say. Yuan Shikai longed for such a president, so he changed his tricks and began to lie to Chinese people.
On September 28, 1914, Yuan Shikai led a hundred officials to the Temple of Confucius to worship Confucius, and on December 23, he went to the Temple of Heaven, dressed in ancient costumes, and performed a great prayer. Therefore, when Yuan Shikai first restored, he rebelled and left.
After he proclaimed himself emperor, a nationwide campaign for protection broke out, and the provinces broke away from him and declared their independence. Envoys from various countries also issued verbal warnings to Yuan Shikai, and under the pressure of the outside world, Yuan Shikai, who had only been emperor for eighty-three days, announced his abdication. Frustrated and bitter, Yuan Shikai, who succumbed to the hatred of the world, died of uremia on June 6, 1916.
But Yuan Shikai was very accurate in determining and appointing candidates, knowing that he was about to die, and he came face to face with his son Yuan Keding to point out the way he would rule in the future. He told him about the three people his son could rely on, and said this sentence: "These three people can save The fate of China, they are Li Yuanhong, Xu Shichang, and Duan Qirui." "Later, they did have a huge impact on the social process and had a profound impact on the future direction of China."
Of course, the development of history was indeed carried out in accordance with Yuan Shikai's expectations. After his death, after a war of interests, Li Yuanhong became the second president of the Republic of China, Duan Qirui became the prime minister, and Xu Shichang later became the fourth president.