The highest eunuch was the Sipin "Palace Supervisor and Consul", whose Yamen "Palace Supervision Office" (also known as the Honorable Office) was a subordinate organ of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and if the eunuchs committed illegal acts, the Ministry of Internal Affairs had the right to take it first and play it later. There is an iron plaque cast in front of the Jiaotai Hall of the Qing Palace, and the inscription reads: "Those who violate the law and government, steal power and pay bribes, entrust internal and external yamen, make friends with Manchu officials, be good at foreign affairs, and speak to officials and officials, Ling Chi will be executed." ”
The power of eunuchs in the Qing Dynasty was not the same as that of the Han, Tang, and Ming dynasties. And Li Lianying's position on the political stage in the late Qing Dynasty is by no means That of Liu Jin on the theatrical stage. After Cixi's death, Li Lianying was able to retire completely, which was also directly related to his personality.
Although he had millions of taels of silver, he did not dare to take the title of Second Grade; as a member of the Erpin Grand Officer, he did not dare to wear the Erpin Red Crown when he was instructed to accompany prince Shuo on a tour of the Beiyang Marine Division in 1886, and only wore the golden top of a Qipin Minor Official. Because Li Lianying knew that it was "illegal" for eunuchs to give the second product to wear, if they showed "special honor" at this time, it would be a curse. Therefore, Li Lianying's attitude is very restrained, cloth shoes, cloth clothes, every day holding the prince's long pipe cigarette bag, large cigarette pack, waiter to install cigarettes, do not know the root, all think that he is the prince's attendant. And to avoid all those who have entered the Gurudwara is to great disappointment to those who attempt to offer their offerings.
That's why Li Lianying was so cautious, because he knew that Prince Gong was the biological father of the Guangxu Emperor and the sister-in-law of Empress Dowager Cixi, and the power was definitely not under Prince Gong who killed Andehai. He was instructed to accompany the prince on a tour of the navy, and public opinion in the government and the public was afraid of opening the precedent of eunuchs supervising the army, and the imperial historians were watching at this time, and even if Li Lianying had the heart to love money, he could only take obscure measures and never dared to "invite trouble."
Li Lianying often said to his subordinates: "A ministry of internal affairs, every year a steady hundred thousand taels of silver, enough for me to spend, there is no need to hand over foreign officials, handing over foreign officials is dangerous." ”
After Gengzi, when Yuan Shikai, Yang Shijun, and others paid tribute to "Lafayette", the general dispatched an errand officer to send a copy to Li Lianying first, Li Lianying was short-sighted, and the errand officer who smelled the gift was about to arrive, and he had already welcomed him out of the door. If the gift received is worth "one thousand", the next day the gift will be returned "eight hundred", the intention can be described as good and bitter, because the refusal to accept offended people, accepting it is afraid of provoking things that are not easy to deal with, so the "eight hundred" to "one thousand" strategy is used to offset each other.
All in all, in the political arena of the late Qing Dynasty, Li Lianying was able to take the last "horn", and he was facialized in novels and dramas.
In the court dispute, he greeted Cixi and Guangxu left and right, courted on both sides, and sought "glory" in the cracks. He does not have the ability to control the political situation of the military, and not only is this objectively impossible, but also subjectively has no ambition. In the end, what he wants is to be a rich man who does not "show his face" to live forever. Li Lianying often said to her subordinates: "The master is a tiger, I am deeply favored, I must not be careless, the greater the grace of heaven, the more dangerous my life, I must not be careless." ”