In the late Qing Dynasty, Cixi held the supreme power in China, but she was short-sighted and selfish. In the face of foreign aggression, step by step concessions have led to the fall of a large part of China's territory. Cixi was conservative in her thinking and unwilling to accept new things. Some advanced countries in the West once wanted to introduce science and technology to the Qing Dynasty, but they did not receive any support from those in power headed by Cixi.
Li Hongzhang, one of the leaders of the foreign affairs movement, saw that foreign trains were very advanced, fully powered, and had strong transportation capabilities. He wrote to Empress Dowager Cixi proposing to build a railway in the northeast, but Cixi opposed it. Because Cixi believed that the construction of a railway would be harmful to the transportation of the Qing Dynasty, Li Hongzhang later argued on the basis of reason, repeatedly emphasizing the benefits of trains, and Empress Dowager Cixi reluctantly agreed.
By the beginning of the 20th century, the tracks of trains had been paved into China. Cixi had also taken a train, and the first time she took the train, she made three very strange requests, which made the people who were doing things really spend a lot of effort.
At that time, Cixi wanted to take a train from Beijing to Shenyang Fengtian. Because of the long distance, some officials were worried that Cixi's carriages and horses were tired, so they suggested taking the train. Cixi was reluctant to sit down, but after some consideration, she agreed, and then went to the Ministry of Internal Affairs to supervise the matter.
The Ministry of the Interior ordered the locomotive to be sprayed golden yellow to show the majesty of the royal family. Fearing danger, Cixi ordered the train to drive back and forth several times to ensure safety. In addition to these, Cixi actually made three very strange requirements, which made the drivers and flight attendants at that time really bitter.
First Cixi demanded that the train must be empty before she got on the train. Because she believes that her status is the most noble, only she can climb up first, and other people can follow. After the Ministry of Internal Affairs asked the relevant personnel to arrange the matter of driving the train, they ordered everyone to get off the train and wait, and when Cixi got on the train, they would follow up.
Secondly, Cixi demanded that the person driving the train must be a eunuch. Because the men who served in the palace were purified, the driver of the train was not a eunuch. Some people suggested that it would be better to let them clean up and then drive the train! This request frightened the drivers of the time and resigned, and the Ministry of The Interior weighed it up and decided to let the drivers wear the clothes of eunuchs to deal with it.
In the end, Cixi demanded that she be the only one on the train, and everyone else should stand. These drivers and masters could only stand and drive the train the whole time, and none of them dared to sit down while Cixi was asleep. Under normal circumstances, this train runs from Beijing to Fengtian, which can be reached in one day and one night, but this tossing and turning, it takes three days and three nights, which can toss the people who were serving at that time enough.
From this incident, we can see that Cixi is not only ignorant in his thinking, but also stuck in his own way. She was also particularly resistant to the development of new technologies, and with such a person ruling, it was no wonder that the Qing Dynasty would be destroyed.