On the 23rd day of the eighth lunar month of the thirteenth year of Yongzheng, the Yongzheng Emperor, who had reigned for thirteen years, died in the Old Summer Palace. It was customary for the emperor to issue an edict to his subjects after his death. Yongzheng clearly passed the throne to Hongli in his edict, and at the same time named four people, so that Hongli would protect them after he ascended the throne.
These four people are Prince Zhuang Yunlu, Prince Guo Yunli, University Scholar Zhang Tingyu, and University Scholar Ortai. Yunlu and Yunli are the sixteenth and seventeenth sons of Emperor Kangxi, belong to the absolute close branch clan, and are also Qianlong's uncles. Needless to say, Zhang Tingyu and Ortai were the most powerful courtiers of the Yongzheng Dynasty, and they were extremely powerful ministers.
How did Yongzheng evaluate these four people in his edict
Yunlu was born in the thirty-fourth year of Kangxi, and in the battle of the princes for the crown in Kangxi's later years, Yunlu was still young and did not participate in the battle for the prince, which laid a good foundation for his future ending.
Yunlu himself also had no political ambitions, and he only served as the head of the Internal Affairs Office in the last years of Kangxi. In terms of talent, Yunlu is far from being able to compare with his brothers, and he only wants to be a rich prince all his life.
Yongzheng still cared for this younger brother, and after ascending the throne, he passed him to Bo Guoduo, the prince of Zhuang. You must know that Prince Zhuang is one of the eight iron hat kings, and Yunlu is so lucky to inherit the prince and have the strong family property of Prince Zhuang's mansion.
Yongzheng said in his edict: "Prince Zhuang is kind-hearted, peaceful and prudent, but he has little responsibility in case of trouble, and he will not make mistakes." This evaluation is very objective, and it is also a reminder to Hongli not to entrust him with important tasks, but also not to embarrass him.
Yunli was born in the thirty-sixth year of Kangxi, he did not participate in the competition for the crown like Yunlu, and he himself was indifferent to fame and fortune, he did not like to deal with courtiers, and his favorite thing to do was to study calligraphy and poetry, and he was a typical scholar-type prince.
Yunli did not have any outstanding performance in the Kangxi Dynasty, and he did not have any title until Kangxi's death. After Yongzheng ascended the throne, he almost single-step Feng Yunli was named the king of Guojun, and six years later, the prince of Jinguo.
Yunli's talent is far above Yunlu, but unfortunately he is not in good health, Yongzheng cherishes this younger brother very much, and does not dare to let him work hard. So in the edict it is said:
"Prince Guo is loyal and upright, has excellent knowledge, and is a useful talent for the country, but he is usually weak and impatient, and if he encounters a major event, the kings and ministers should be considerate, and do not let it hurt his body, if this damages the spirit of the virtuous king, and cannot handle government affairs for the country, it is a pity."
Yongzheng's meaning is very clear, asking Hongli not to arrange too many affairs for Yunli, so as not to hurt his vitality. Yongzheng was inspired by this, because Prince Yi Yunxiang was exhausted because of his poor health, and he didn't want Hongli to repeat the mistakes of the past.
Zhang Tingyu, as Yongzheng's confidant and important minister, is very diligent and diligent, and all the records left by the Kangxi Dynasty that are unfavorable to Yongzheng have been wiped clean under Zhang Tingyu's rafter-like pen. In other words, Zhang Tingyu made great contributions to the promotion of Yongzheng's position.
Yongzheng commented in his edict: "The scholar Zhang Ting's jade is pure and complete, and he serves sincerely, and he compiles and repairs the records of Emperor Shengzuren, and has a lot of propaganda. Every year, he writes an edict in accordance with the decree, and he can convey his intentions in detail and instruct his subjects, which is a great achievement. ”
Obviously, Yongzheng is very sure of Zhang Tingyu's work, and the implication is to let Hongli continue to reuse Zhang Tingyu with the grace of the whole monarch and ministers.
Ortai has an innate advantage over Zhang Tingyu as a banner man, and the first half of his life was mainly to serve as a feudal commander and promote the reform of the land and return to the stream. In the second half of his life, he was transferred to Beijing as the chief military minister, ranking ahead of Zhang Tingyu.
In the edict of Yongzheng, Ortai was evaluated: "The university scholar Ortai is loyal and loyal, talented and economical, calms the people, appeases the frontier, and Xun is a famous minister who is not born in the world."
Yongzheng's meaning is very clear, that is, Ortai has great talents, Wen Ke Anbang Wu can set the country, and he is the assistant minister he left to Hongli.
In the edict, he not only spoke highly of Zhang Tingyu and Ortai, but also broke the routine and gave them the highest honor, that is: "I can ensure that these two people will always be unswerving." In the future, the two ministers will enjoy the temple to show their grace. ”
What about the end of the four?
Overall, it's not ideal. After Qianlong ascended the throne, Prince Zhuang Yunlu ranked first among the prime ministers as the prince of the clan, and Qianlong gave him very high treatment, thinking that he was an uncle and exempted from bowing to the palace.
However, Yunlu regarded himself as the elder of the clan, and he was a little carried away, and he had frequent contacts with Prince Li, the son of the abolished prince of the Kangxi Dynasty, which caused great dissatisfaction among Qianlong.
In the fourth year of Qianlong, Emperor Qianlong took thunderous measures to attack Honghui and others, and Yunlu was removed from the prince's double shuangfeng and dismissed all errands. It's just that in view of filial piety, Qianlong didn't make it too difficult for him, and he still saved him face. In the thirty-second year of Qianlong, Yunlu died.
Prince Guo Yunli was appointed as the prime minister after Qianlong ascended the throne, but only three years later, Yunli died of illness. He also did not do a vigorous political performance in the Qianlong Dynasty, Qianlong was still good to this uncle, Yunli had no children after his death, Qianlong succeeded his younger brother Hongzhan as an heir, and inherited the title of Prince Guo.
Zhang Tingyu and Ortai's ending was more miserable.
When Qianlong ascended the throne, Zhang Tingyu was already a veteran of the three dynasties, and his strength did not allow him to keep a low profile.
However, Zhang Tingyu and Ortai were at odds, and this led to party disputes, which were called Zhang Dang and Hubei Dang, and the two factions were incompatible. Ortai died in the eighth year of Qianlong, and Qianlong gave him the highest honor of enjoying the Taimiao and enshrined in the Xianliang Temple according to Yongzheng's instructions.
However, after Ortai's death, his family had an accident, and Ortai was also implicated, and his tablet was ordered by Qianlong to withdraw from the Xianliang Temple, which also shows that Qianlong has a deep prejudice against Ortai.
In the thirteenth year of Qianlong, it was a "disaster year" for Zhang Tingyu, this year he asked for retirement, and told Qianlong not to forget Yongzheng's instructions, so that he must enjoy the temple after his death.
This move caused great dissatisfaction among Qianlong, who thought that Zhang Tingyu could not trust him, and it was obviously a predetermined matter, so why should he reiterate. There is a gap between the monarch and the minister, which means that Zhang Tingyu has endless shoes.
Qianlong used various reasons to humiliate Zhang Tingyu to the fullest, and the guards raided his home and took back all the imperial gifts. Although Zhang Tingyu retained the honor of enjoying the Taimiao, his old age was very miserable.
The four people who asked Qianlong to take care of in Yongzheng's edict, except for Yunli's short life, the other three did not end very well. It seems that Yongzheng still seems to have forgotten the old saying: once a son of heaven and a courtier.