preface
Since ancient times, honor and status have been human nature. During the 296-year reign of the Qing Dynasty, the honor of the crown was none other than the "three-eyed dazzling". It symbolizes the emperor's highest praise for officials, but it is also due to the harsh conditions of the award, and only 8 people have been granted this honor for more than 300 years. These eight people have their own legends, what kind of people are they? What kind of effort did it take to get this supreme glory in the dynasty?
As early as the beginning of Nurhach's establishment of the Later Jin regime, the Manchus had a tradition of bestowing flowers as honor. In the Qing Dynasty, the flower ling system was even more mature, and it was divided into one to three eyes according to the number of flower eyes on the feathers, of which the three-eyed flower ling was the rarest and was the highest honor given to officials by the monarch. But if you want to get the three-eyed dazzle, the emperor's favor alone is not enough. Just like the powerful minister Hejun, he won Qianlong's trust, but he never won this honor.
So, what exactly are needed to obtain this three-eyed dazzle that only 8 people have been given?
First, the strict threshold: the grade must be high enough, and the bloodline is pure enough
In the Qing Dynasty, if you want to obtain the three-eyed dazzle, the first threshold is grade and bloodline. Officials below the sixth rank could not be appreciated by the emperor, no matter how good their political performances; Even the senior foreigners of the fourth and fifth grades have a hard time getting close to this honor. No matter how strong the strength is, the door is not enough, and it can only stop there.
Because the three-eyed dazzle represents not only personal honor, but also the monarch's praise for his courtiers. Officials wearing three-eyed dazzles must have sufficient grade qualifications to be worthy of the emperor's appreciation. Therefore, most of the officials who have obtained the three-eyed dazzle are at least the second product or from the first product. Most of these officials have already entered the inner circle of the DPRK, serving as ministers of the Ninth Secretary or even the Minister of Military Aircraft, and participating in the core decision-making of the DPRK's politics. They were deeply trusted by the emperor, and they had the qualifications and strength to open up territories and conquer the battlefield. Receiving the Three Eyes is nothing more than an emperor's recognition of their outstanding achievements and battle exploits.
Relatively speaking, even Zhixian, which has a good character and is deeply popular with the people, can hardly touch the glory of the three-eyed dazzling. Because no matter how good the performance of local officials, it is limited to one side and is not enough to constitute a huge contribution at the national level. Just as Li Hongzhang, a heavy minister of the late Qing Dynasty, said: "Being an official with three qualities is already a masterpiece, and achieving one product is becoming a sage." First- and second-grade officials are the ones who are really likely to touch the three-eyed dazzling honor.
In addition, the pure-blooded Manchurian magnates were also treated more favorably by the monarch. In the early days, 100% of the high-ranking officials who obtained the three-eyed dazzling were Manchurian nobles or bannermen. This fundamentally reflects the interest tendencies of the Qing ethnic minority ruling clique. Especially in the early Kangxi period, Han officials had very few opportunities to enter the core decision-making circles. Even if someone mistakenly obtains the three-eyed dazzle, it will be strongly questioned and opposed by Manchu officials. For example, after Shi Lang's platform made meritorious achievements, some Manchu ministers advised Kangxi: If the Han people win this honor, I am afraid that it will "damage the mainland body".
It was not until the Qianlong period that the situation eased, and a few outstanding Han officials had a slight chance of being given the Three Eyes. But even at the end of the Qing Dynasty, the proportion of Manchu-Han with three-eyed dazzles was still seriously unbalanced—only 2 of the 8 winners were Han. The second Han won the three-eyed dazzle 150 years later, and Li Hongzhang won this honor, which shows the depth of the gap between them.
It can be seen that the decent lineage of Gaomen also plays a pivotal role on the way to obtaining the three-eyed dazzle. The Manchu preferential treatment made Han officials, even with outstanding political achievements, often blocked by their bloodline from the door of honor.
2. Outstanding military merits and political achievements: It is necessary to make great contributions to the country
However, in order to obtain the three-eyed dazzling, it is not enough to have a high-level and decent bloodline and grade, the most fundamental thing is to have outstanding military or political achievements and make great contributions to the country.
During the Kangxi Dynasty, Shi Lang, who had made meritorious achievements in pacifying Taiwan, received the three-eyed dazzle as a Han. This is mainly because of his outstanding military merits in annihilating Taiwan's Zheng regime with the power of a province and returning Taiwan to the rule of the Qing Dynasty. Shi Lang was born in a cold family, and was originally just an unknown petty official who served as a field guard. However, he was resourceful and courageous, and soon promoted to general with talent, and was ordered to lead soldiers and horses into Taiwan.
Two years later, the Zheng clan of Taiwan had collapsed, and Shi Lang's army returned in triumph. Shi Lang, who was suffering from a stubborn illness, wanted to retire to the countryside and asked the emperor to give him a fertile farmland. However, when the emperor heard the report of Shi Lang's defeat of the Zheng army, he was shocked by his excellent command skills. So not only did he refuse Shi Lang's request, but he personally summoned him to Beijing to be knighted.
For several days, Kangxi and Shi Lang cross-dressed around the streets to admire this humble and simple Han general. On the day of the court, Kangxi offered to reward Shi Lang again and asked him what he wanted. Shi Lang pushed back and forth, and finally only asked for a three-eyed dazzling as an honor. So Kangxi personally took off his flower lings and gave them to Shi Lang as a sign of praise. This also opened the way for the Han people to obtain the three-eyed dazzle.
Since then, many famous generals who have fought on the battlefield and made outstanding battle achievements have also won three dazzling dazzles, such as Fu Erdan, one of the "Eight King Kongs" of the Qing army, and Yargumuroli, who crushed and defeated the Dzungar army many times. These people were all awarded the emperor's high praise for their extraordinary military talents and merits.
Fu Erdan was originally a member of the yellow banner of Manchuria, who diligently learned the art of war since he was a child, and was famous for his courage and good fighting. At the age of twenty, he went to Gardan with the army and made his first achievements. Since then, he has led his troops into no man's land and is invincible. Especially in the battle with Amursana, Fourdan was outnumbered and defeated Amur's 50,000-strong army. This battle defeated the ambitions of the Dzungar kingdom in one fell swoop and captured the northwestern territory for the Qing dynasty. When the Qianlong Emperor heard the news, he immediately praised him and gave Fu Erdan the three-eyed dazzling of glory.
Of course, it is not only military attachés who can obtain flower lings. Zaifu who was known for his political achievements, such as Ortai, who keenly discovered that Nian Xinyao was secretly powerful and deeply trusted by Qianlong, was also given the Three Eyes Flower to highlight his outstanding political achievements.
Born in an aristocratic family under Manchurian Zhenghong, Ortai was good at poetry since childhood, and had a lot of experience in national affairs. After being promoted to university scholar, he was the first to discover Nian Xinyao's conspiracy to fabricate military information to Qianlong and privately expand the army, saving the imperial government. Qianlong admired his talent and loyalty, so he ordered the painter to paint a golden three-eyed portrait to represent the emperor's praise and reward for him.
It can be seen that to get the three-eyed dazzling, it is far from enough to rely on the emperor's favor. Excellent military merit and political achievements are the decisive factor. Regardless of the martial arts ministers, as long as they have made outstanding achievements in the governance of the country, they will have the opportunity to receive the honor of three dazzling for their merits. This reflects the high value of this honor, which is only awarded to well-deserved heroes.
Third, have both ability and integrity, and good conduct: we must have noble moral character and be blameless
However, outstanding merit cannot simply be equated with three-eyed dazzling. Even if the military and government are complete, it is difficult to obtain the emperor's praise if the character is not good.
Take Li Hongzhang as an example, he made outstanding contributions to matters such as firmly controlling the direct subordinate and pacifying the Taiping Rebellion; He was also forced to cede Taiwan with the Qing because of the signing of the Treaty of Shimonoseki, which was criticized by both the government and the public. This made the Guangzong Sect no longer bear to see him wearing the three-eyed daisy, and took back the honor he had previously given.
Li Hongzhang, as a heavy minister of the late Qing Dynasty, also won three dazzles for his military and political talents. He was born in a scholarly family, and after being admitted to junior high school, he served as an inspector of important provinces. During his tenure, Li Hongzhang used external forces to quell the rebellion of the Taiping Rebellion, keeping the Qing court from perishing. On the other hand, he actively studied Western technology in his direct subordinates, making the local area rich and stable. These exploits made him notorious and regarded as a famous protector.
At first, Li Hongzhang didn't care about the three-eyed dazzle, just as a flashy symbol of power. It was not until the Guangxu Emperor personally gave him three dazzles to show his recognition of his outstanding achievements, that Li Hongzhang was deeply honored. He treasured the flower lings and rarely wore them, only during grand ceremonies. Because Li Hongzhang believes that his credit is far from enough to match the three-eyed dazzle.
However, the good times did not last long, and after the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese War, Li Hongzhang was forced to sign the Treaty of Shimonoseki, ceding Taiwan. This incident made him notorious, and the three-eyed dazzle was also questioned by public opinion. Under pressure from all parties, Emperor Guangxu could no longer bear to see him wearing a flower ling, so he withdrew this honor.
It can be seen that good conduct, both ability and integrity are also necessary conditions for obtaining the three-eyed dazzle. This honor must prove that its recipient is well deserved. Otherwise, even if the achievements are high and criticized by public opinion, it is difficult to escape the fate of being taken back.
Only by meeting the above three conditions can we obtain this supreme glory
To sum up, in order to obtain the Three Eyes, the following three conditions must be met:
The grade is high enough, and the bloodline is pure enough; Outstanding military merits and political achievements; Good moral character, both ability and integrity.
One or two is not enough, all three must be in order to be favored by the emperor. Therefore, in more than 300 years, only 8 people have obtained the three-eyed dazzling, which can be imagined as high as the threshold is. Each of these eight people is a well-deserved wise man, and their legendary stories have also made the legend of the Three Eyes.
epilogue
Today, with the passing of the feudal dynasty, this unique honor is also history. But the spirit behind it lives on - only those who have truly made great contributions to the country deserve the supreme praise; A person's achievements in honor and disgrace are all in his attitude and deeds, not in his lineage.
This is also the historical revelation that we need to learn today. Regardless of the origin and opportunities, only by making unremitting efforts can we stand out in the times and obtain our own glory. Hard work can achieve an extraordinary life, which is a precious treasure left to us by history.