In the late Qing Dynasty, the two empress dowagers ruled side by side, triggering a magnificent court struggle. Ci'an was of noble birth and was canonized as empress in her early years in the palace with a high status, while Cixi was the biological mother of Emperor Tongzhi, but she was only a lowly nobleman at first. The disparity in status and personality between the two doomed them to a protracted contest on the road to power. Ci'an was generous, benevolent, and disciplined, while Cixi was ambitious and enterprising. Who will have the last laugh in this palace battle? Will Cixi really be as cunning and ruthless as rumored, and will eventually overpower Ci'an? Or will Ci'an's noble character and wisdom make her invincible forever?
Ci'an was of noble birth and had a lofty status
Ci'an was born in 1838, surnamed Niu Colu, and was a native of Manchuria with the Yellow Banner. Her father, Mu Yang'a, once served as Youjiang Province in Guangxi, and his family was illustrious. Ci'an received a good education from an early age, and at the age of 14 she was elected to the palace and was soon canonized as empress by Emperor Xianfeng.
At that time, there was already a concubine in the palace, but she died of illness in 1849, and the following year Emperor Xianfeng ascended the throne, Ci'an was naturally promoted to the new empress. From concubine to queen, Ci'an only took 40 days, which can be said to be the fastest promotion successor in the Qing Dynasty.
As the queen of Xinke, Ci'an's status is naturally supremely respected. She was not only noble-born, but also noble and virtuous, and was highly appreciated by Emperor Xianfeng, and was known as a "female saint". In contrast, Cixi, who entered the palace in the same year, was only a lowly Lan nobleman at that time, and her status was far inferior to Ci'an.
According to the strict rules of the Qing Palace, Cixi naturally had to be respectful to Ci'an, for fear of the slightest disobedience. As the master of the harem, Ci'an also often taught the concubines to abide by the palace rules and etiquette and live a frugal and modest.
On one occasion, when the ministers offered generous gifts to please Ci'an, Ci'an did not accept any of them, and admonished Cixi: "If we receive one more gift, the common people will suffer one more hunger and cold." We should break these bad habits. ＂
Tzu An himself set an example, never using expensive embroidery for clothing and curtains, let alone importing foreign fabrics. She leads by hand-embroidering a pair of uppers every year. She also requires the people in the harem to do what they can, and she never asks the palace maids to serve.
In the eyes of Emperor Xianfeng, Ci'an's words and deeds are flawless, so he respects her very much. In contrast, Cixi was not familiar with the palace rules when she first entered the palace, and once combed the Feiyun bun of a Manchurian woman, she was severely reprimanded by Ci'an and asked her to abide by the laws of the palace.
It can be seen that Cixi gradually grew up under Ci'an's teaching. And Ci'an's noble background and lofty status naturally made Cixi jealous. Although Ci'an was generous to her, the disparity in status between the two doomed them to a protracted battle for power in the future.
Ci'an, generosity, benevolence, wisdom, Tongzhi, Guangxu respects
Tongzhi ascended the throne at the age of six, and the empress dowager Ci'an and Cixi started a career of more than 20 years. During this period, Ci'an won the respect of the Tongzhi and Guangxu emperors with his generosity and wisdom.
At that time, although Ci'an was over the age of six, he still maintained his generous and benevolent character. She is kind and polite, and never rude and arrogant. Even with his subordinates, Ci'an is always kind and magnanimous. Once, a palace maid cried because of a mistake in her work, Ci'an did not scold her, but comforted her and said: "It is inevitable that there will be negligence in doing things, and you should be more cautious next time." ＂
In contrast, Cixi's temper was much more short-tempered. She often shouts and drinks at her subordinates, and she scolds her at every turn. Once, a eunuch accidentally knocked over a tea cup, and Cixi immediately smashed the tea tray in her hand, almost injuring someone.
Faced with this situation, Ci'an never blamed it, but quietly said to Cixi: "The Queen Mother must not be angry, it is useless." Although Cixi was unconvinced, she could only swallow her anger in front of Ci'an.
During the Tongzhi period, the empress dowager of the two palaces had disagreements on many major decisions. For example, when it came to choosing a queen for Tongzhi, Ci'an favored the Mongolian nobleman Alut clan, while Cixi favored the Fucha clan of the Yuanwailang family. In the end, Tongzhi chose the Arut clan recommended by Ci'an.
This decision undoubtedly made Cixi lose face, and even her own son did not support her. But Ci'an's wisdom and foresight made Tongzhi deeply respected. The Arut clan later became a virtuous queen, and Tongzhi was very satisfied with this.
During the Guangxu period, although Ci'an was old, he still held the highest decision-making power. Once, Cixi wanted to renovate the West Garden, but Ci'an thought: "What can I do if I have no money?"
In general, Ci'an won the respect of the two emperors with his virtue of generosity and wisdom. She is well-behaved, generous and benevolent, and never domineering. In contrast, Cixi was ambitious and enterprising, but she could only swallow her anger in front of Ci'an. The difference in personality between the two doomed them to fall into a protracted contest on the road to power.
Ci'an decisively eliminated the traitor and outwitted the cunning Cixi
An Dehai was Cixi's favorite eunuch, and his power gradually swelled to the point of lawlessness. Not only did he have an arrogant attitude towards Ci'an, Emperor Tongzhi and Yixun, but even the emperor wanted him to score three points. This kind of arrogant and domineering behavior has long annoyed the Empress Dowager Ci'an.
In 1869, An Dehai violated the ancestral system and went out of Beijing to play without authorization. He sat on a large Taiping boat, claiming to be the minister of the Qin Mission, looting the people's wealth along the way, swaggering and disturbing the people, and the great movement attracted the attention of Ding Baozhen, the governor of Shandong. Ding Baozhen immediately arrested An Dehai and rushed to the court.
The fold happened to be taken into the hands of Yi Xun, and Yi Xun couldn't bear what An Dehai had done, and immediately started to kill. He presented his own recital and Ding Baozhen's recital to the Empress Dowager Ci'an.
After Ci'an saw the twists and turns, he did not hesitate to order An Dehai to be arrested. She knows very well that An Dehai has completely lost control, and if she does not get rid of this scourge, it will bring greater turmoil to the government. So, Ci'an and Yixun joined forces to capture and kill An Dehai in Beijing.
This decisive and resolute action made Cixi helpless, although she was unwilling. An Dehai is her favorite person, and now that she has been single-handedly eliminated by Ci'an, Cixi naturally feels that she has lost face. But she also knew that she was powerless to resist in front of Ci'an.
In fact, Tzu An not only showed a high degree of political wisdom in this matter, but also showed extraordinary foresight in many other major decisions. For example, when choosing an empress for the Tongzhi Emperor, Ci'an strongly recommended the Mongolian nobleman Alut clan, while Cixi favored the Fucha clan of the Yuanwailang family. In the end, Tongzhi chose the Arut clan recommended by Ci'an, which was undoubtedly a wise decision.
Another example is when Cixi wanted to repair the West Garden, Ci'an rejected it on the grounds of "lack of money and helplessness". It can be seen that she attaches great importance to frugality and is unwilling to squander the wealth of the country. In the face of Ci'an's resoluteness, Cixi could only swallow her anger.
From these examples, it can be seen that despite Cixi's cunning and resourcefulness, she was often at a loss in the face of Ci'an's wisdom and decisiveness. In contrast, Ci'an was far-sighted, and his wisdom in knowing and employing people far surpassed that of Cixi. Her generosity, generosity, and disciplined style have won the respect of the Tongzhi and Guangxu emperors, and she has also won widespread love and admiration among the government and the opposition.
Kindness, generosity, benevolence, and love have won the admiration of all people
Although Ci'an was born as a queen, she was never arrogant because of this. On the contrary, she has always treated people with the character of generosity and benevolence, and has won the love and admiration of all the people in the government and the opposition.
In the palace, Ci'an set an example and taught the harem concubines to abide by the palace rules and etiquette and live a frugal and modest. She herself is the best example - she never uses expensive embroidery for clothing and curtains, let alone imported foreign fabrics. Every year, she has to embroider a pair of uppers by herself, which is a rule for the harem.
Ci'an also requires everyone in the harem to do what they can, and she herself never asks the palace maids to serve. Once, when a palace maid cried because of a mistake in her work, Ci'an did not scold, but comforted her step by step: "It is inevitable that there will be negligence in doing things, so you should be more cautious next time." ＂
In contrast, Cixi's temper was much more short-tempered. She often shouts and drinks at her subordinates, and she scolds her at every turn. Once, a eunuch accidentally knocked over a tea cup, and Cixi immediately smashed the tea tray in her hand, almost injuring someone. Faced with this situation, Ci'an never blamed it, but quietly said to Cixi: "The Queen Mother must not be angry, it is useless." ＂
In terms of government affairs, Ci'an has always adhered to a frugal style. Once, Cixi wanted to renovate the West Garden, but Ci'an rejected it on the grounds of "lack of money and no money". It can be seen that she attaches great importance to frugality and is unwilling to squander the wealth of the country.
Even for ministers, Ci'an treated everyone equally and was generous. On one occasion, when the ministers offered her generous gifts to curry favor with her, Ci'an accepted none of them, and admonished Cixi: "If we receive one more gift, the common people will suffer one more hunger and cold." We should break these bad habits. ＂
It is this kind of generosity, generosity, and disciplined style that won the respect of the Tongzhi and Guangxu emperors, and also made her win widespread love and admiration among the government and the opposition.
Even under the later Tongguang system, although Ci'an was old, he still held the highest decision-making power. She often puts the national interest first and vetoes some decisions that are out of date. For example, when Cixi wanted to repair the West Garden, Ci'an vetoed it on the grounds of "lack of money and helplessness". In the face of Ci'an's resoluteness, Cixi could only swallow her anger.
In general, Ci'an has won the love of all people with his generous and benevolent character. She follows the rules, is diligent and thrifty, and always puts the interests of the country first, and this noble character naturally won her the respect of the Tongzhi and Guangxu emperors, and also made her widely admired by the government and the opposition.
Ci'an's untimely death was full of doubts
One night in 1881, the 45-year-old Empress Dowager Ci'an suddenly died in the palace. The death of the highly respected and admired Empress Dowager undoubtedly caused an uproar at the time.
The official version is that Ci'an felt slightly unwell that night, and the imperial doctor thought it was just a minor illness and did not need to take medicine after checking her pulse. But no one expected that Ci'an would die that night. This perfunctory statement naturally raises questions.
Soon, all sorts of speculations and rumors spread among the people. One of the most well-known theories is that Ci'an and the Empress Dowager Cixi had an evil relationship, causing Ci'an to commit suicide by poisoning himself in a fit of rage.
It is said that at first the two palaces got along well, but later Cixi fell ill, and Ci'an presided over the government alone, Cixi was deeply dissatisfied with this, and once scolded Ci'an in person. In the face of Cixi's unreasonable accusations, Ci'an was so angry that he swallowed the cigarettes in his snuffbox and committed suicide.
However, this statement also seems a bit far-fetched. After all, as the ultimate decision-maker, Ci'an has a lofty position and should not be influenced by Cixi. Moreover, Cixi did not dare to be rude to Ci'an.
Another, more widely circulated version is that Cixi poisoned Ci'an. It is said that Emperor Xianfeng left an edict before his death, asking Ci'an to supervise Cixi. The kind-hearted Ci'an informed Cixi of this edict. Who knew that Cixi hated this deeply, so she moved to kill, and finally poisoned Ci'an.
This statement is undoubtedly more plausible. After all, from the very beginning, Ci'an was two levels higher than Cixi, and there were etiquette contradictions between the two. Later, although the two palaces were in the same boat and the relationship was once harmonious, as Cixi's desire for power grew, contradictions gradually emerged.
For example, on the matter of An Dehai's execution, Ci'an did not consult with Cixi, which made Cixi very angry. For example, in the matter of establishing a queen for Tongzhi, Tongzhi finally chose the Alut clan that Ci'an favored instead of the Fucha clan recommended by Cixi, which was undoubtedly another heavy blow.
More importantly, after the death of Tongzhi, the Guangxu Emperor, who was supported by Cixi, became closer and closer to Ci'an, but became more and more distant from Cixi. This made Cixi's heart extremely unbalanced, and her resentment towards Ci'an can be imagined.
Therefore, fueled by various contradictions, the dispute between the two palaces is inevitable. And in the end, Cixi, an ambitious and enterprising woman, is likely to dominate the rivers and lakes at the cost of removing Ci'an, the biggest obstacle.
However, all this is just speculation and conjecture of later generations. The cause of Tzu An's death remains a mystery and is inconclusive. Time has passed, more than 200 years have passed, and this mystery may not be completely solved.