First, the Qianlong Master of the "Five Blessings" and "Ten Perfections"
"The emperor takes turns, and this year comes to my house."
In the history of the mainland, the number of people who could sit on the dragon chair was at best 500 people. Most of them did not seek their own thrones, but inherited the throne. In fact, this is a very risky position. With ambition, courage, wisdom and luck, the ancestors sat on the dragon chair in the bloody rain and wind, passed on to future generations, causing them to fight each other, and finally they could not escape being expelled, usurped, and cursed. Therefore, "May the world not be born in the imperial family" is not "Versailles literature", but the voice of the heart. Therefore, the emperor is not a profession that is envied by people. Rebellion is nothing more than an official forcing the people to rebel, and in order to survive, some people become emperors, and they also follow the trend.
However, historically, there was an emperor who was an exception. He began to be emperor at the age of 25, reigned for sixty years, and served as emperor for three years.
He did not seize the throne by killing his father and brother like Li Shimin and Yang Guang.
He was not swayed or controlled by powerful subjects like Emperor Xuan of Han and Ming Wanli.
He did not suffer for immortality like Emperor Wu of Han and Ming Jiajing.
He was not suppressed by the powerful empress dowager like Emperor Hui of Han, Emperor Zhongzong of Tang, and Tongzhi of Qing.
He was not forced into the palace by his sons like Tang Gaozu and Emperor Wen of Sui.
He enjoyed the "Fortune of Fortune" in the world and lived to the age of eighty-nine.
He is Emperor Gaozong of Qing, who loves Shin Kyora. Hongli, Qianlong Emperor (born 1711- died 1799), ascended the throne in 1735, abdicated in 1796. "Qianlong", meaning "Tiandao Changlong", some auspicious, atmospheric, pleasant adjectives in the Kangxi Dictionary, were used for the temple numbers, era names, and honorific titles of the Qing emperors, and were also used for the emblems of the empresses. Some live up to their names, most are overdone.
If the emperor can live like him, it is estimated that as long as there is a little hope, there will be countless people to rush to do it.
Fortunately, Qianlong, is definitely an outlier, only this one, there is no second. It is estimated that since the birth of the people, ancient and modern, there is no second, like him, at the same time to enjoy the blessings that the world can give.
The most rare thing is not the supreme power, nor the strong body and endless wealth, the most rare thing is his normal psychology, not tossing, not perverting, which is very rare for the emperor.
Six times in Jiangnan, laboring the people and hurting money; Daxing "literal prison", imprisoning thoughts; Connivance and indulgence, appeasement and greed; Good joy, boasting of "ten complete". Wait, compared with the absurd and toss-tos peers in history, it is really nothing.
There is only one drawback, the lack of vision, or the lack of vision of the world, and the great opportunity to open your eyes to the world. When a twelve-year-old English boy kneels down on one knee in front of him, an eighty-two-year-old man, it is tantamount to apocalypse! It is no different from the end of the entire eighteenth century represented by his Qing Empire and the beginning of the entire nineteenth century represented by this little boy's British Empire. With Qianlong's extraordinary talent, he can only be confined to fixed vision, and cannot break through limitations, which shows how rare it is to have foresight and foresight!
Maybe it's because it's so perfect.
Maybe it's because it's too rich.
Qianlong, an outlier, ambushed the biggest variable in a country.
"Poor is changing, change is general" implies another meaning: not poor and unchanging. Change is not from the endogenous power, not to take the initiative to change, but to be forced!
The descendants of Qianlong were forced to sign the Treaty of Nanjing, the Treaty of Beijing, the Treaty of Maguan, and the Treaty of Xinugu, and to pay compensation for the loss of land. In this way, everything changes.
Perfection and luck hint at decay and upheaval. Qianlong's "Five Blessings" and "Ten Perfections" have ambushed the unprecedented changes in three thousand years.
Second, Qianlong let Daqing miss an opportunity to integrate into the world.
Sir George Thomas Staunton (b. 1781 – died 1859)
I chose to start with this lesser-known Englishman and tell the history of the late Qing Dynasty for seventy years.
In 1793, when the British Magalney mission visited China, the twelve-year-old Staundong served as an interpreter for the group, and met the 82-year-old Qianlong Emperor, who gave a purse he carried with him to this clever and not stage-timid child.
The mission of the British mission was to establish trade and diplomatic relations with the Qing Dynasty, but they were all rejected by the Qing.
In 1810, he translated the Laws of the Great Qing and published it in England, the first book to be translated directly into English by Chinese.
In 1816, the 35-year-old Staunton Jr. visited China with the Amistad mission as a deputy envoy, and he had lived in Guangzhou for 18 years. The visit to China still did not achieve its purpose, and due to the dispute between the two sides over etiquette, the delegation was unable to meet the Jiaqing Emperor.
At that time, the Qing Dynasty exported three treasures: tea, porcelain, silk, earned a lot of silver, and foreign trade was a large amount of excess. Britain is the world's number one power, and India has been incorporated into the map. But the United States has become independent. The UK has a big appetite for raw materials and the market and wants to do business with China. However, the position of the Qing Dynasty was: "The Heavenly Dynasty is rich in products and omnipotent, originally it did not rely on foreign goods to have it, especially because the tea, porcelain, and silk jin produced by the Heavenly Dynasty were necessary for western countries and Erguo countries. ”
Because of the propaganda of Marco Polo's Travels, China is regarded as a place of longing for Europe because of its rich civilization, and ideological giants like Voltaire do not hesitate to praise China.
Longing arises from ignorance, and estrangement and even hostility arise from thorough understanding. The relationship between the British like Magalney and Staunton and China is like this. They did not achieve the purpose of developing trade in China, but through these two visits to China, they found out the reality, mastered the waterways along the river and the coast, learned about the backward equipment of the Qing army, and had a near-intuitive understanding of the autocratic corruption of the Qing bureaucracy. Therefore, their visit is no different from "Trojan Slaughter City".
After a visit to China in 1793, Magalney said: "The Qing government is like a dilapidated first-class warship, and the reason why it has not sunk in the past one hundred and fifty years is only due to the support of a class of lucky, capable and alert officers, and she is better than the neighboring ship only in her size and appearance." But once an incompetent man is in command on deck, there will be no more discipline and security."
After that, there was no longer a Marco Polo-style imagination of China. Including the German philosopher Hegel, the evaluation of China began to be negative or even hostile.
In 1840, the British Parliament debated whether to go on an expedition to China, and the then 59-year-old Staunton Jr. supported Prime Minister Palmerston's aggression against China. This Palmerston may be forgotten, but his words are often quoted: there are no eternal friends, only eternal interests. （We have no eternal allies, and we have no perpetual enemies. Our interests are eternal and perpetual, and those interests it is our duty to follow。 The result of the vote was: 271 votes in the main war versus 262 in the anti-war. Since Little Staunton was one of the few Chinese experts of the dynasty, his opinion should have a decisive influence.
In June 1840, the Opium War broke out.
On August 29, 1842, on board the British flagship "Khan Hua", the Chinese Qing government all accepted the peace clause proposed by the British, and Qi Ying and Pu Dingcha signed the first unequal treaty in modern Chinese history, the Sino-British Treaty of Nanking.
Magalney, Amistad, and Little Staunton did not get it through negotiations during their two visits to China, and Britain got it all from the Treaty of Nanking.
Some people see him as a white-eyed wolf because of the change in Staunton's attitude toward China, which is a self-inflicted and amorous injury. As if Grandpa Qianlong rewarded him with a purse, he should return the favor. This is similar to the current mood: whenever a Chinese bureaucrat emerges in the United States, some people on our side will regard him as a compatriot on their own. In fact, we should learn from them to regard national interests as the first priority, and not be affected by private feelings.
Third, the "edict of sin and self-righteousness" of The King of Shoucheng.
Jiaqing (b. 1760 – died 1820), Ai XinJueluo. Emperor Qingrenzong was a mediocre and wise ruler.
"He Yan fell, Jiaqing was full." As soon as Qianlong collapsed, He yan was picked up by Jiaqing, and the 200 million taels of silver embezzled by He Yan were confiscated. In this sense, Qianlong connived with He yan and helped his son.
What Jiaqing inherited from Qianlong was the ostensible "prosperous era of Kangqian", but in fact, he inherited the dangers. The nineteenth century began with the White Lotus Rebellion in the Chuanchu region and ended with the Boxer Rebellion. Pressed the gourd, and raised the scoop. Civil unrest has not subsided in a hundred years.
Jiaqing smoothly inherited the throne from Qianlong, not only because of Qianlong's thoughtfulness, but more importantly because of the patience and cultivation that Jiaqing himself possessed. He was extremely disgusted with He yan, and in the three years of Qianlong's abdication, Jiaqing was also able to hide his hair. This requires extreme concentration, which can be done by non-idle people. Throughout the history of imperial succession in Chinese history, bloody rain and wind are the norm. Although there are many doubts about the edict of Jiaqing's concubine Min Ning (Emperor Daoguang), there are no accidents. Jiaqing's succession and succession are very stable, and can be regarded as a wise emperor.
Jiaqing was a competent shoucheng prince, and during his reign, he practiced frugality and diligence in governance. "The heart of the emperor is the heart, and the rule of the emperor is the rule." As long as the ancestors have said or done, he will carry them out according to the gourd. Because it is too mediocre, the sense of existence in history seems to be weak. However, it is impossible not to mention the "change of decanter unitary"
1813).
On September 14, 1813, Lin Qing, the leader of the Tianli Sect, sent about 200 Tianli Sect members to the capital disguised as traders. According to the plan, it was scheduled to wait for the arrival of reinforcements from another leader, Li Wencheng, but unexpectedly, Li Wencheng had been detained and had to hurry up. At noon the next day (August 15 of the Jiaqing Leap Dynasty), the eunuchs Liu Jin and Gao Guangzhang, as an internal response, attacked the Forbidden City from the directions of Donghua Gate and Xihua Gate. About forty or fifty believers invaded the Longzong Gate (it is said that an arrow from that time still remained on the plaque) and went straight to the Yangxin Hall.
The general Ce Ling, who was guarding the noon gate, fled in front of the battle after receiving the news that the Tianli Sect had invaded. The well-bred women in the palace were discolored and chaotic. Fortunately, Empress Nuhulu maintained her composure, and she sent someone to find the emperors and grandchildren who were studying in the study.
The second son of the Emperor Min Ning (son of Empress Xiaoshurui of the Hitara clan and later the Daoguang Emperor) guarded the Yangxin Hall with a shotgun, calmly and calmly commanding the officers and soldiers who came later to fight with the Tianli Sect. In the evening, under the joint siege of more than a thousand well-equipped officers and soldiers, the Tianli Sect was finally outnumbered and completely annihilated in the area of Wuying Hall. Lin Qing himself was arrested two days later.
The news of the Tianli Sect's attack on the imperial palace was reported to the Jiaqing Emperor on the way back to Beijing from Rehe. Jiaqing was shocked and thoroughly investigated the beginning and end of the incident. He found that it was the emperor's close eunuchs who provided the tianli sect's secrets to the imperial palace, and that the plan of the tenrikyo sect's rebellion had long been reported by insiders, and the princes and ministers who received the information ignored it, did nothing, and allowed the incident to develop to an uncontrollable point.
In any case, this incident stripped the Great Qing of gold and jade, but it turned out to be a failure. The Imperial Forest Army of the Gongwei Jing Division was so negligent in their duties, the bureaucrats at all levels were so corpse-like, and the eunuchs were so blind and conspired with thieves.
The Jiaqing Emperor issued a "edict on one's own guilt" for this reason, exclaiming that the case had "caused the Han, Tang, Song, and Ming dynasties to do something that had never happened", and the edict said: "When it changes for a while, disasters accumulate day by day, and today's great evils are in the four words of 'playing according to the rules'" In the center of the country, such a thing in the Forbidden City is indeed unheard of, and it can be regarded as an earth-shaking and serious incident that shakes the foundation of the country.
Jiaqing reigned for 25 years (1796-1820), Xiao Guicao followed, but the tree wanted to be quiet and the wind was not stopping. The "change of decoction" is not only a lingering shadow that entangles Jiaqing, but also pierces the fairy tale of "Kangqian's prosperous life", and the decline of the empire and rivers is hidden.
However, the fact that the king of a country can issue a decree for this purpose shows that self-confidence is still there, the sense of responsibility is still there, and it shows that the country still has hope.
Fourth, Daoguang flinging pot Lin Zexu.
When I was a student, the first two books of history class were in the ancient history section, and I was able to get a perfect score. When I reached the third book, I couldn't continue to learn, so I opened the book, and every three or five minutes, it was a treaty that lost power and humiliated the country. Holding your breath, those historical events will not be remembered. As I grew older, I calmly learned the lesson of modern history. Ancient history, far from reality, can only be read as a story; Modern history, there is no sense of distance, can not see the virtual reality. Modern history, Yin Jian is not far away, you can know the rise and fall.
The Daoguang Emperor supported Lin Zexu's ban on smoking, and modern history began.
Daoguang, Ai Shin Kyora. Min Ning, Qing Xuanzong (1781-1850) reigned for thirty years (1820-1850), how many thirty years can a dynasty have? Ascending the throne at a young and powerful age, with his intellect and energy, he could have worked hard to reverse the decline. In the face of an unprecedented invasion of powerful enemies and the completely unfamiliar rules of the game, they still cling to the shortcomings, refuse to change, and miss the opportunity to turn crises into opportunities.
During Daoguang's reign, he quelled Zhang Ge's rebellion and reformed Caoyun and Yanzheng. These achievements are simply negligible compared with the "Treaty of Nanking" in which the country was humiliated.
Daoguang's administration made two major mistakes.
One of Daoguang's major mistakes was to choose the wrong successor and abandon the six with four (six sons Yi Shu, four sons Yi Xi), which is a bit of an afterthought. Although it is true that there are unknowable factors of fate that are doomed in the dark. We can only judge from the results. Prince Gong Yixun was a political talent, strong and strong. Health was very important to the emperor. Xian Feng was weak and finally fell at the top of the double mountain of the British and French alliances and the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.
The harem interfered in politics and was guarded by the Ai Xinjue Luo family for two hundred years, and Daoguang's wrong decision allowed the weak fourth son to succeed to the throne, indirectly achieving Cixi's 47-year reign.
The second is the two ends of the first rat during the Opium War.
In 1838, Lin Zexu wrote in his capacity as the governor of Huguang about the dangers of Chen Opium: "If you leak it, it will mean that after several decades, the Central Plains will have few soldiers who can resist the enemy, and there will be no silver that can be fed." Thinking of this, I can be without a chestnut! ”
Daoguang authorized Lin Zexu to be the minister of anti-smoking Chincha.
Lin Zexu, with the close cooperation of Deng Tingzhen, the governor of Liangguang, and Inspector Yiliang, seized more than 20,000 boxes of opium and ordered them to be destroyed at Humen on June 3, 1839. Lin Zexu banned smoking in Guangdong and was supported and appreciated by Daoguang.
Although Lin Zexu is upright and conscientious, he is not arbitrary, he pays great attention to strategy, and it can be seen from Lin Zexu's recital and Daoguang's edict that Lin Zexu ensures that Daoguang knows the whole process and acts according to the will; Lin Zexu unites colleagues and subordinates, pays attention to mobilizing the masses, and obtains their cooperation; Lin Zexu dealt with the British merchants and British troops, paying attention to reasoning and evidence. The most valuable thing is that Lin Zexu prevented the problem before it happened, did not act rashly, but made sufficient combat preparations and paid attention to foreign affairs.
Fearing Lin Zexu and Deng Tingzhen, the British army detoured through Guangdong and Fujian, captured Dinghai, Zhejiang, and headed straight for Tianjin. The powerful ministers Mu Zhang'a and Qi Shan took the opportunity to slander Lin Zexu, attributing the British invasion to Lin Zexu's smoking ban. Qi Shan played Chen "The only thing that the British are dissatisfied with is Lin Zexu, as long as Lin Zexu is punished, the problem can be solved." Daoguang went down the slope of the donkey, entrusted Lin Zexu, and forgot how he had praised Lin Zexu's anti-smoking skills. Daoguang's Zhu Batch is as follows:
"The severance of trade, the severance of commerce; If you break the law, you can't clean it up. Nothing more than empty prevarication, not only will there be no real help in the end, but many waves will be generated. Si ZhiYu was indignant and saw what Ru said to Yuanye. Special Message. ”
Lin Zexu played a fold to the Daoguang Emperor: "The Guangdong Customs has levied more than 30 million taels of silver, and those who reap its benefits must prevent their harm." If the previous tariff was one-tenth of the tariff, the cannon was built, then the system of yi was already abundant, and it was still tricky. ...... The tariffs of eastern Guangdong, which are richer than those of other provinces, are the most defensive silver, and from then on, the manufacture of cannons must seek extreme profits, and shipbuilding must seek extreme strength.
The Daoguang Emperor gave instructions next to Lin Zexu's sentence "If you use one-tenth of the tariff before, build cannons and build ships": "A piece of nonsense." ”
20 years later, the Second Opium War, thirty-five years later, the Sino-Japanese War, forty years later, the Eight-Nation Alliance burned the Yuanmingyuan, and in the final analysis, the four words of Daoguang: a faction of nonsense.
Lin Zexu was demoted to a position of four years.
Daoguang's attitude toward Lin Zexu was the same as that of later Cixi toward those officials who supported the Boxers (毓贤, Zaiyi, Zailan, Zaixun). Daoguang, like Cixi, let his courtiers carry the pot on top of the pot. Jiaqing can condemn himself for the "Tianli Sect Incident" (癸酉之變); Later, when the Sino-Japanese War failed, some ministers asked Guangxu to punish Li Hongzhang, and Guangxu said that he was also responsible, and Daoguang could pretend to be confused about the defeat of the Opium War, and find a loyal minister like Lin Zexu as a scapegoat.
If you can't beat Britain just because your equipment is inferior, you are forced to sign an alliance under the city, you have no choice but to forgive. However, the defeat of the Opium War, Daoguang's abandonment of Lin Zexu, is one reason; There are two years before and after to circumvent and turn back, and missing the great opportunity to make up for the dead is the second. At first, he was inexplicably arrogant, and then he was unbelievably afraid to give in, and since then it has become the standard two-step approach for the Qing court to deal with the West.
After the Opium War, the indemnities for the cession of land, the loss of power and humiliation of the country, and the attribution to backwardness and beatings are, I think, excuses. The defeat of the Opium War was the sin of Daoguang himself and could not live.
Daoguang's wrong choice pits his descendants and also pits the Great Qing.
As the king of a country, let the loyal ministers take the blame for the king's decision-making mistakes, and the country will perish.