Preface
There are many touching moments in history, and Emperor Xianfeng gave Ci'an a secret decree before his death, and Cixi cried bitterly after seeing the secret decree 20 years later, which is undoubtedly one of them.
So, what kind of secret is hidden behind this story, and how important is the content of the secret message enough to make Cixi cry so bitterly?
1. The temptation of power
In 1861, Emperor Xianfeng of the Qing Dynasty died at the age of 31. On his deathbed, he realized that his son Jae-soon was too young to control the government. What worries him even more is that although his wife Niu Hulu (Ci'an) is virtuous and gentle, she has a simple personality and is difficult to deal with the power struggle between the government and the opposition. And what he was most worried about was that his concubine Yehenala Xingzhen (Cixi) was ambitious, and it would definitely set off a bloody storm in the future.
Xianfeng knew that once he died, Cixi would definitely take the opportunity to seek power. As a wise monarch, he naturally will not sit idly by. So, he came up with a clever plan to try to limit Cixi's power on his deathbed.
First of all, Xianfeng left two seals. A "Royal Reward" is stamped to Ci'an, and a "Tongdaotang" is stamped to Zaichun. Only when both seals are stamped on the edict at the same time will it take effect. In this way, Ci'an and Jae-chun were able to check and balance Cixi's power and prevent her from monopolizing power.
In addition, Xianfeng also left a secret edict for Ci'an. The secret edict reads: "Holding the child is in the court, I am afraid it cannot be controlled." Beware of it now. Even if there has been, the edict will give death, do not hesitate. This means that if Cixi usurped power in any way, Ci'an could directly execute her according to this secret edict.
The reason why Xianfeng was so cautious was because he was well aware of Cixi's ambitions and intrigues. As a wise monarch, he had insight into Cixi's nature and foresaw that she would stir up a bloody storm in the future. Therefore, he had to take such measures, trying to limit Cixi's power before his death, and maintain the century-old foundation of the Qing Dynasty.
However, whether Xianfeng's plan can succeed is another matter. After all, the temptation of power often leads people to lose their minds and go to the point of no return. It remains to be seen whether Cixi will be seduced by this temptation and eventually set off a bloody storm.
Second, step by step
After Xianfeng's death, Ci'an obeyed the edict and took power, assisting the young lord Zaichun. Although Cixi was canonized as the empress dowager, she had no real power at first. She was disgruntled and secretly arranged, first wooing Prince Alcohol and his wife to do internal response, and then with the help of Prince Gong's power, she launched a coup d'état and eliminated Su Shun and other eight auxiliary ministers.
Cixi's ambitions can be described as unfathomable. She knew Xianfeng's plan before she died, but she was unmoved. Instead, she embarks on her own power play.
First of all, Cixi wooed Prince Alcohol and his wife. The couple were influential in the imperial court, and Cixi hoped to use their power to fight against Su Shun and other eight auxiliary ministers. Under Cixi's soft grinding and hard bubbles, Prince Alcohol and his wife finally agreed to her request.
Next, Cixi found Prince Gong again. The prince also had a certain position in the imperial court, and Cixi hoped to use his power to launch a coup d'état and eliminate the eight auxiliary ministers. Orchestrated by Cixi, Prince Gong eventually joined the power struggle.
In this way, Cixi united Prince Alcohol and Prince Gong to launch a coup d'état. They first rushed back to the Forbidden City from the Rehe Palace on the grounds of mourning Xianfeng, and then took the opportunity to launch a coup d'état and eradicate Su Shun and other eight auxiliary ministers.
The success of this coup d'état marked the beginning of Cixi's rise to power. Although on the surface, Ci'an and Cixi ruled together, in fact, Cixi had already begun to dominate the government. She was ruthless and repeatedly eradicated dissidents, making Ci'an respect and fear her.
Cixi's move was undoubtedly a blatant betrayal of Xianfeng's edict. But she doesn't seem to care about that, as long as she can hold the power, everything else doesn't matter. Her ambitions and intrigues are being realized step by step.
III. Mother-child feud
After Tongzhi ascended the throne, he became closer to Ci'an, and stayed away from his biological mother Cixi. This undoubtedly made Cixi feel very dissatisfied. As an ambitious woman, she couldn't accept that her son would prefer another woman.
In Cixi's view, Tongzhi's behavior was undoubtedly a betrayal of her. She believes that as her own son, Tongzhi should be closer to herself than to be kind. This kind of situation of mother and son turning against each other made Cixi feel very angry and aggrieved.
Later, Tongzhi died, and his nephew and nephew Guangxu succeeded to the throne, and the situation did not improve. Guangxu still preferred Ci'an, which further intensified the contradiction between Cixi and Ci'an.
Cixi felt deeply aggrieved, believing that her children had been confused by Ci'an. She began to suspect that perhaps Xianfeng's secret edict before his death was correct, and that she should have gotten rid of Ci'an long ago, instead of ruling the world with her.
This situation of mother and son turning against each other is undoubtedly a microcosm of Cixi's desire for power. Not only did she not tolerate her son getting closer to another woman, but she even began to wonder if Xianfeng's edict was correct.
4. Conspiracy to poison and kill
Once, when Ci'an inadvertently mentioned the secret edict, Cixi's heart was undoubtedly shocked and angry. She opened the edict tremblingly, and when she saw the handwriting on it, she couldn't help but burst into tears. This husband, who was once deeply loved, turned out to be so distrustful of herself, which was undoubtedly the biggest blow to her.
In order to comfort Cixi, Ci'an simply burned the secret edict. But this decision doomed her fate. A few days later, Cixi sent a box of cakes, and Ci'an happily ate three pieces, but soon died of poisoning.
Behind this conspiracy is undoubtedly Cixi's thirst for power. She could not tolerate the presence of Tzu An, as it meant that she could not take full control of the power. So, she did not hesitate to use poisoning to completely eradicate this eye-catching opponent.
Cixi's behavior was a blatant betrayal of Xianfeng's edict. Not only did she not abide by Xianfeng's will, but she resorted to even more cruel means to realize her power ambitions. This obsession with power is poisoning her mind step by step.
Fifth, monopolize power
Cixi's lust for power was finally completely satisfied after Ci'an's death. She became the de facto supreme ruler of the Qing Dynasty and held power for 49 years.
During this period, Cixi lowered the curtain three times and imprisoned Guangxu for 10 years. Her rule can be described as extravagant and erosive, completely ignoring the interests of the country. Under her rule, the Qing dynasty weakened day by day, and eventually fell after her death.
Cixi's behavior was a complete betrayal of Xianfeng's edict. Not only did she not abide by Xianfeng's will, but she completely controlled the power and squandered the country's resources. This obsession with power eventually became one of the important reasons for the fall of the Qing Dynasty.
Cixi's life is undoubtedly the epitome of a power game. In order to gain more power, she did not hesitate to betray Xianfeng's will, eradicate the obstacle of Ci'an, and eventually became the de facto ruler of the Qing Dynasty. But her rule also led to the decline of the country and became a sinner of history.
This obsession with power is the deadliest temptation in human nature. It makes people lose their minds and go to the point of no return. Cixi's life is the best footnote to this temptation. Her story is a reminder that we should stay away from the temptation of power and walk on the path of justice and goodness.
epilogue
Power is the deadliest temptation in human nature, it makes people lose their minds and go to a dead end. In order to seize the imperial power, Cixi did not hesitate to hurt her best friends, and although she finally reached the pinnacle of power, she was also criticized for this and became a sinner in history.
Her life warns us that the price of power is heavy, that the path to power is often tortuous and cruel, and that we should stay away from the temptation of power and walk on the road of justice and goodness.