In the history textbook, Cixi left me with the image of a loser's daughter, and the most profound impression was not what she did, but the "Yi" character of her emblem "Yi Guifei" was too difficult to write. The word "Yi" means "beautiful".
Cixi in the palace fight drama is a sinister and vicious and frightening fierce child. The Cixi in "Hanging curtains and listening to the government" is Cixi played by Liu Xiaoqing, which freezes many people's impressions of Cixi. The creepy scene at the end of the film: Cixi puts Li Guifei into the wine urn, which is completely fictional. Historically, Concubine Li and Cixi lived apart and died well.
People are accustomed to stigmatizing Cixi and ignoring basic historical facts and logic.
The 26-year-old Cixi, together with the 24-year-old Ci'an and the 30-year-old Prince Gong Yixuan, either dismissed the "Eight Ministers" appointed by Xianfeng, either to death or beheaded.
The 26-year-old Cixi was able to calmly and coldly launch the "Xin You Coup" and control the political situation at the time of the sudden change of the storm, comparing the age and seniority of the "Eight Ministers of Gu Ming" (the leading Su Shun was a university scholar, 45 years old), we could not but give up our personal likes and dislikes, and admit that Cixi's killing determination was not to lose to Lü Hou, Wu Zetian and Liu E.
The "Xin You Coup" established the political pattern of the last 50 years of the Qing Dynasty, and is also a typical and landmark event in Chinese history, and a model for the study of power struggles.
First, the situation of Cixi before the coup d'état of Xin You.
Let's compare these three predecessors of Cixi: Lü Hou of Liu Bang (195-180 BC) reigned for 15 years, Emperor Gaozong of Tang reigned for 22 years (683-705), Empress Dowager Liu E of Song Zhenzong held power for 11 years (1022-1033), and Concubine Yigui of Qing Xianfeng reigned for 47 years (1861-1908). The first three had already been empresses before the imperial court or the curtain was bowed, and they were firmly rooted, and they did not lack the support of their henchmen and minions.
Cixi was still a concubine before she came to power, and originally the Yehenara clan was a taboo for the Ai Xinjue Luo clan. Her biggest bargaining chip was the identity of the emperor's birth mother and a "tongdaotang" seal for the emperor's custody. The emperor's birth mother had not yet had time to help her obtain the status of empress, but instead became a reason to endanger her life. Why?
In order to prevent Zhao Jieyu, the "Lady of Hook Yi", from becoming the "second empress of Lü Hou", Emperor Wu of Han cruelly forced the birth mother of the successor Emperor Han Zhao to die in Yunyang Palace. However, Emperor Wu of Han guarded against foreign relatives controlling his son, but he could not prevent Huo Guangquan from turning to the opposition.
Because there is such a precedent to follow, this makes Cixi terrified. Cixi launched a coup d'état, not first of all to seize power, but to save her life, and to seize power is also to save her life. The strong motivation to save lives awakens potential gifts.
Cixi also had a reliable ally: Xianfeng's seventh brother, Wang Yizhen of Alcohol County, was the husband of Cixi's younger sister Wanzhen.
Overall, Cixi was weak at the beginning of this power struggle between you and me.
If Cixi did not have a strong psychological quality and a natural sensitivity to power struggles, in the face of the situation at that time, there was no other way but to be at the mercy of the powerful ministers.
Second, the political situation before the coup d'état.
Xianfeng Emperor, Ai XinJue Luo. Yi Xuan (1831-1861), reigned for eleven years (1850-1861) by Emperor Wenzong of the Qing Dynasty, was not the best candidate for the throne in hindsight. The emperor's bad luck, the disaster to the country and the people, internal strife and external troubles all let him spread the stall. During his reign, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Movement was like a day in the sky, and it was half of the country; The British and French forces burned the Yuanmingyuan and forced the Qing government to sign the Treaty of Tianjin first, and then the Treaty of Beijing.
Taking advantage of the fire and looting, Tsarist Russia forced the Qing government to sign the "Sino-Russian Treaty of Yaohun", the "Sino-Russian Treaty of Tianjin" and the "Sino-Russian Treaty of Beijing", and occupied a large area of territory of the Qing Dynasty.
Compare the situation of the Xianfeng Emperor, which is very similar to that of Ming Chongzhen and the old Jiang of the Republic of China: when Ming Chongzhen was in place, there was King Li Chuang inside and Emperor Taiji on the outside; When old Chiang Kai-shek came to power, there was a red regime inside and a Japanese invasion of China outside. Both men became kings of the kingdom. The Xianfeng Emperor was almost the king of the fallen country.
Under such internal and external difficulties, xianfeng, in addition to lacking the courage and responsibility that a monarch of a country should have, also has the four hobbies of alcoholism, lust, addiction to tobacco, and obsessive opera, which harm health and lose their minds. When the country was in trouble, he took a group of courtiers, a group of concubines, and a group of dramatists to hide in the Rehe Palace and enjoy tobacco, wine, sex, and drama. Finally, he died of illness in the "Smoke Wave Zhi Shuang" Hall, and the so-called "Eight Ministers" around him would not be so high as to go anywhere.
Third, the forces of various factions concerned before the coup d'état of Xin You.
1. The ministers around the co-founders, Hubu Shoshu Sushun, became the faction with the highest power at the behest of Xianfeng. This faction consisted mainly of clan nobles and military ministers.
2. The ministers who were alienated and jealous by the Xianfeng Emperor and excluded by the Sushun clique around Prince Gong Yixuan, such as Wen Xiang and Senggelinqin. The Yixuan clique represented the Emperor Yin nobility, including Yizhen (奕譞), the prince of Alcohol County (later the Prince of Alcohol, father of the Guangxu Emperor). Yi Chen did not yet have real power, but he took the opportunity to negotiate with the British, French and other powers, won the trust and goodwill of the great powers, and attracted a group of people, such as Guiliang and Baoxun.
3. Western powers. Because Sushun took a tough attitude towards the Western powers, the Western powers secretly supported the Yixuan clique.
4. Harem forces. Ci'an seems to be humble and graceful, but in fact has the great wisdom of Emperor Zhenzong of Song's empress Liu E, and Ci'an let Cixi exert her wisdom. The East Palace and the West Palace cooperate with tacit understanding and complement each other perfectly, which is rare in the history of palace entanglement. The so-called claim that Ci'an held the Xianfeng Secret Edict to suppress Cixi can be said as a wild history. In this coup, the two houses joined forces as the first link of success.
Until ci'an died of illness in 1881, for twenty years, there were occasional disagreements between the two palaces, but the balance of power was generally guaranteed.
We generally emphasize Cixi's sinister cunning and ignore Ci'an's great wisdom, and Cixi's obedience to Ci'an shows Cixi's superiority.
Fourth, the major events of the seventy-four days before and after the Cinsi coup.
On August 22, 1861, the Xianfeng Emperor died. On his deathbed, he made a decision:
1, Li Zaichun (born to Cixi) as the crown prince.
2, ordered the former ministers Zaiyuan, Duanhua, and Jingshou, the university scholar Sushun, and the military ministers Mu Yin, Kuang Yuan, Du Han, and Jiao Youying to be the ministers of state of Praise and assist the young lord.
3. The seal of "Imperial Reward" was awarded to Empress Dowager Niuhulu (Ci'an) and the seal of "Tongdaotang" was conferred on Crown Prince Zaichun (managed by Concubine Yi Guifei). After the Minister of Gu Order's intention is drawn, he must stamp the seals of "Imperial Reward" and "Tongdao Hall" before it can take effect.
This is a simple balance of power design. It backfired, and always backfired, and every emperor tried to carefully arrange the aftermath, but in fact, the aftermath was arranged by the descendants. Qin Shi Huang could not do it, and after his death, Hu Hai killed all his brothers; Liu Bang could not do this, and after his death, Lü Hou made his beloved Lady Qi an adult; Zhu Yuanzhang could not do it, and after his death, sun tzu's throne was taken away by Zhu Di. How can Xianfeng do it? Xianfeng's arrangement was rearranged by the living two months later.
After Zaichun succeeded to the throne, He honored Empress Dowager Niuhulu as empress dowager, with the title of Ci'an, and honored his birth mother, Concubine Yi, as empress dowager, with the title of Cixi.
Cixi sent his close associate An Dehai back and forth to the capital to contact Yi Chen.
On September 5, 1861, Prince Gong was allowed to rush to the Rehe Summer Resort to prostrate himself at the Zi Palace of the Xianfeng Emperor. Yi Xian met with the empress dowager of the two palaces for two hours, secretly discussed decisions and steps, and returned to Beijing six days later to prepare for a coup d'état.
Yi Xun won the support of the military attendant Katsuho and the prince of Korqin, The Monk Greenqin.
Empress Dowager Lianggong relieved Duanhua of some of his military powers on the grounds that duanhua had held too many posts, and instead made Wang Yizhen of Alcohol Commandery the commander of the infantry and took charge of the garrison of the Beijing Division.
On October 26, 1861 (the 23rd day of the ninth lunar month), the coffin of the Xianfeng Emperor was transported back to Beijing from Chengde. The Empress Dowager of the Two Palaces, on the grounds that the Emperor was too young to be able to bear the law, the Two Palaces and the Young Emperor Zaichun, as well as zaiyuan and other seven major ministers, returned to Beijing from the middle road, and Su Shun escorted the coffin slowly.
On November 1, 1861 (the 29th day of the ninth lunar month), the empress dowager arrived in Beijing, and on the same day summoned Yi Chen and other close ministers to make secret arrangements. The next morning, a coup d'état was launched, first imprisoning Zaiyuan and Duanhua in the Zongren Mansion, and then sending people to Miyun to arrest Sushun.
On November 3, 1861 (the first day of the tenth lunar month), YiXun was appointed king of the Parliament and walked on the military aircraft.
On November 8, 1861 (the sixth day of the tenth lunar month), Prince Zaiyuan of Lingyi and Duanhua the Prince of Zheng committed suicide, and ordered the general Sushun to die at Laishikou, and the other five were either dismissed from their posts or Shubian.
The empress dowager of the two palaces began to bow down to the government.
Fifth, what did Cixi do right?
1. The two palaces cooperate tacitly, and the tribulations are shared;
2. Identifying YiXuan as an ally is a classic success story of finding the right person and doing the right thing. The truth is too simple: the enemy of the enemy is the friend.
3. It is very important to select Andehai as the contact person, use the right person, and when it is critical, someone is willing to take risks and not betray.
4. Control the military power and get the support of the military attendants who hold the military power. The reason is too simple: the gun comes out of power.
5. Break up the eight ministers, turn the seven into headless flies, and isolate the leader of the sushun.
6. Returned to Beijing early to get out of the dangerous situation, and won four more days. To seize the opportunity, rather than sit still, for the power struggle, time is really life. A few years later, when Tan Si conspired with the same group of imperial parties to "surround the garden and kill the queen", Cixi was like a foot crushing ants, and sent the six gentlemen to the vegetable market mouth with lightning speed. Cixi started with a coup d'état, and Tan Sitong was obviously no hotter than the old empress.
Cixi was able to succeed because the eight ministers underestimated their opponents, and the key was that Cixi was in danger of dying, and she was fighting for her life. Cixi seems to have a natural sensitivity to the power struggle. And the eight ministers lack this awareness.
Sixth, what did the Eight Ministers do wrong?
Not dividing Ci'an and Cixi was the first mistake.
Not cutting off the connection between the Rehe Palace of the Empress Dowager of the Two Palaces and the capital was the second misstep.
Giving up military power is tantamount to seeking one's own death, and it is a third mistake.
Not taking advantage of the time and place that was originally occupied is the fourth mistake.
Not uniting the Emperor Yin nobles was the fifth misstep.
Belittling orphans and widows, arrogance, and misjudgment of the situation are the sixth mistakes.
You see, for seventy-four days, the eight ministers almost did only do anything but wait to return to Beijing to take power. A good hand of cards, played poorly.
Seventh, Cixi is a model for the study of the psychology of power.
Reading the Twenty-Four Histories gives people the overall feeling that there is no power that can only be manipulated by others, that with power, one can manipulate others, and when there is power and no power, there will be no recovery. Lü Yan, Wu Zetian, and Cixi understood more deeply than these eight ministers and did it more thoroughly.
In fact, these eight ministers are typical of the ministers of the three dynasties of Jiaqing, Daoguang, and Xianfeng: when there is nothing to do, wait for an accident; When something happens, nothing happens.
They treated the invasion of the great powers in this way and signed a contract, not because the ships of the Western powers were strong and strong, but because they were too mixed;
They treated civil strife in this way, not because King Hong Tianwang had God's help, but because they were weak and explosive;
Now they also treat a 26-year-old Yi Guifei and a 24-year-old queen like this, and they are finished playing!
If you want to study the psychology of power, Cixi is a highly representative model.
In the arena of power struggles, the weak can't do it, the sentimental can't do it, the serious can't do it, the rule-abiding can't do it, and the bad luck can't do it.
The power race requires a strong body; Stout nerves; Bursting ambitions; Patience built on self-confidence to break down opponents; It is so good that one doubts the luck of karma. Such talents can survive to the end in the cruel and ruthless power struggle, Cixi, Wu Zetian, and Lü Hou are these three fierce horns.
People without power can see through the bearishness and see through the light; With power, we are not willing to give up voluntarily.
There are two Cixi in history: compared with the meteorology of "Tongguang Zhongxing" in the twenty years before Ci'an's death and the state affairs after Ci'an's death, in the first twenty years, Ci'an was at the helm of the overall situation, and Cixi contributed wisdom; Twenty years later, Cixi Kun Gang was arbitrary and arbitrary. Because when power loses its checks and balances, power loses its balance.
Didn't Cixi understand that no matter how luxurious the mausoleum and the biggest night pearl could help her soul reincarnate? Her logic is that as long as she lives in the world, she is the phoenix of the people, and it is the phoenix that suppresses the dragon's head.