<h1 class="pgc-h-center-line" data-track="140" > preface</h1>
Ai Xin Jue Luo Puyi was the last emperor in the history of the Qing Dynasty, known as the Xuantong Emperor. At the same time, he is also the last monarch since Qin Shi Huang established the emperor system, and his life can be said to be a miracle, a microcosm of China's century-long great changes.
One day in January 1952, after a fierce ideological struggle, Puyi decided to confess his treasure in prison. Puyi was the last emperor of the Qing Dynasty, and there was nothing wrong with hiding treasures, of course, this is enough to show that Puyi really changed his mind, and it was the time to resist the United States and aid Korea.
The picture shows Puyi
Chairman Mao was the leader of New China, and in Puyi's consciousness, he always thought that Chairman Mao was a "monarch" in the new era, and he did not expect at all that when he actually met Chairman Mao, everything broke his cognition.
<h1 class="pgc-h-center-line" data-track="139" puyi was arrested >, and he had a shadow in his heart</h1>
Puyi, born on the 14th day of the 14th spring month of the 32nd year of Guangxu (1906), was a great-grandson of Emperor Daoguang of the Qing Dynasty, the grandson of Yizhen the Prince of Alcohol and Liu Jia of the Lateral Fujin Dynasty, and the son of the regent Zaifeng and Consort Fujin Suquan Guarjia Youlan.
As a royal bloodline, Empress Dowager Cixi has a preference for this little doll, and since Cixi abolished the title of "Big Brother", Puyi has become the best candidate for the next emperor. This was undoubtedly an opportunity for Puyi, in 1908, when the Guangxu Emperor Zai Xiang was seriously ill, Empress Dowager Cixi raised Puyi in the palace, and in this year the Guangxu Emperor died and Puyi succeeded to the throne.
The picture shows the young Puyi
On February 2, Puyi took the throne in the Taihe Temple, Zaifeng Regency, the final royal structure of the Qing Dynasty was formed, but at this time there were already problems, in 1910 the Guangzhou Uprising broke out, the Qing Dynasty was already in chaos, after Wang Jingwei's assassination failed, but Zaifeng did not pay attention until a year later when the Wuchang Uprising broke out, Zaifeng suddenly panicked.
After the news of the Wuchang Uprising came, it can be said that the Qing Dynasty was in chaos, and Zaifeng had no choice but to send the Minister of War, Shuai Chang, to lead the Beiyang Army to the south to suppress the revolutionary army, but Liu Chang could not command the Beiyang Army at all. Seeing that the rights and interests of the Qing Dynasty were persecuted, Zaifeng had no choice but to use Yuan Shikai, which directly led to the demise of the Qing Dynasty.
It should be known that Yuan Shikai was a particularly scheming man, and during his tenure as governor of Huguang, he was eager to take over all the military power of the Qing Dynasty, and in the end he did not move, forcing Zaifeng to resign as regent, and Yuan Shikai made a secret agreement with Sun Yat-sen of the "Wuchang Uprising", and if Puyi abdicated, he would give the post of grand president to Yuan Shikai. Yuan Shikai agreed, which is the historical "Yuan Shikai stole the fruits of the Xinhai Revolution" and became the president of the Republic of China.
The picture shows Yuan Shikai
In fact, Yuan Shikai's wishful thinking was very shrewd, and on February 12, the first year of the Republic of China (1912), The Empress Dowager Longyu came to the throne and promulgated the "Abdication Edict" in the name of the empress, and Puyi abdicated. According to Yuan Shikai's promise, he needed to pay 4 million taels of silver to the Qing dynasty royal family every year, and as for Puyi, Yuan Shikai temporarily let Puyi live in the Forbidden City.
You know, Puyi is now 6 years old, and he has a certain view of Yuan Shikai's approach, coupled with the encouragement of the small eunuchs around him, he is easy to have conflicts with Yuan Shikai. In 1913, Yuan Shikai gave Puyi a New Year's greeting, but did not use a kneeling prayer, and Puyi was deeply shocked.
From 1913 until 1924, Puyi in this decade, can be described as sending people under the fence, obviously in his "home", but has been in a state of being played, in fact, Puyi has always had a dream of "escaping" from Beijing, this year The "coup" that occurred in Beijing was the turning point of Puyi's fate.
On the night of October 22, 1924, Feng Yuxiang, commander-in-chief of the Third Army of the Zhi Army, suddenly defected to Beijing and put Cao Kun under house arrest for bribing the election of President Cao Kun, which led to the downfall of Wu Peifu. In order to get things done, Lu Zhonglin led troops into the Forbidden City and drove Puyi out of the palace, which is the famous "Beijing coup" in history.
The picture shows that after Puyi's amnesty, he and Lu Zhonglin met unexpectedly
So, where did Puyi go out of the palace? Yes, Puyi was taken in by the Japanese, and after he followed the Japanese to Tianjin, he received extremely high treatment in the foreign concession, remembering Yuan Shikai's various dissatisfaction with him, he found the feeling of being the emperor here, so he slowly became a "puppet" manipulated by the Japanese.
From 1925 to 1932, Puyi lived in Tianjin for seven years, until 1931, when Japan launched the long-planned "918" incident, Puyi established the "puppet state of Manchukuo" under the manipulation of the Japanese, changed his name to "Emperor", and changed his name to "Kant". In the hearts of the Chinese, Puyi fell into the quagmire step by step, and he also visited Japan, all of which can be described as a deep sin.
From 1934 to the surrender of Japan in 1945, Puyi can be said to have lived a life of relish in this decade, but he does not know that what awaits him will be severe punishment by Chinese people. In August 1945, Puyi knew that the trend was over and decided to flee by plane from Shenyang to Japan, but was unexpectedly arrested by the Soviet Red Army, and his dashing life was completely over.
The picture shows Puyi who was captured by the Soviet army
<h1 class="pgc-h-center-line" data-track="138" > Puyi was extradited back to China and imprisoned</h1>
In 1946, Puyi attended the International Military Tribunal for the Far East as a witness. In his testimony, he claimed that during his tenure as Emperor of puppet Manchukuo, he was completely at the mercy of the Japanese occupation authorities and had no personal freedom. Although Puyi's words are true, the heinous crimes he committed are incorruptible, and he even acted very panicked when he was informed that he was going to be handed over to the Chinese government.
On October 1, 1949, the founding of New China, in July 1950, Puyi was extradited back to China, according to Puyi's recollection, when he got off the train, he thought it was the execution ground, and his legs were weak with fright. Later, he was escorted to the Chinese War Criminals Management Center, where he knew he would be reformed, but he still thought that he could not escape the fate of being executed.
In fact, it is no wonder that Puyi, as the emperor at the end of the Qing Dynasty, was born with feudal ideas that were difficult to remove no matter what, in his eyes, the last emperor of a dynasty would not have a good end, such as Li Yu, the lord of the Southern Tang Dynasty, because a song "Yu Meiren" brought the disaster of killing, and for example, Chongzhen killed his daughter with a sword before committing suicide.
All this gave Puyi a psychological shadow, which is enough to show that he repented of his mistakes. In 1952, Puyi heard that the war to resist US aggression and aid Korea was still continuing, and after several days of arduous ideological struggle, he decided to hand over his treasures, and he expressed his hope that these treasures could be handed over to the state and make some contributions to the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, including several small jade seals.
The picture shows Puyi in prison
After Puyi came to the Fushun War Criminals Management Center, he seemed to be even more panicked, many of them were Kuomintang war criminals, and compared with them, he was a "high-ranking and powerful person", but he was also out of place. Puyi later recalled: "I am afraid of death, even more afraid of torture, not to mention the pain of skin and flesh, even if someone slaps me like I used to treat others, it is not as good as dying." ”
Puyi's pressure is so great that only he seems to know that as a former emperor, he will not wear clothes and fold quilts, familiar with the days when meals come to open his mouth, and now everything needs to be done by himself, Puyi lost his way, and even thought of suicide. He said that I had a lot of food, I couldn't sleep well, and if there was any wind and grass at night, I would be frightened.
It is also such an environment that Puyi sank down to write his autobiography book "The First Half of My Life", from his birth, to his own puppet emperor, to prison reform, which can be said to be mentioned. Chairman Mao gave a fair appraisal of the book. Chairman Mao said: Puyi's book I can't read a little bit, Puyi wrote himself too 'bad', his fate is caused by history, there is no need to impose all the faults on himself, this book is better to say a confession.
Pictured| Chairman Mao
Because of Puyi's special status, Chairman Mao did not forget his concern for Puyi, and in 1955, when attending the first session of the National People's Congress, Chairman Mao gave Zaitao a task -- to visit Puyi at the Fushun War Criminals Management Center. At that time, in the Ai Xin Jue Luo family, Zaitao had the largest generation and the highest status, and it was most appropriate for Zaitao to visit Puyi, but this made Puyi feel very surprised.
The reason is that during Puyi's tenure as emperor of puppet Manchuria, the Japanese had people ask Zaitao to take office, Zaitao was a real Chinese, treason and surrender to the enemy would not be done, and he also claimed to break off relations with Puyi. Now, the uncle who had turned against him suddenly came to see him, and Puyi was naturally very surprised.
However, what Puyi did not expect was that Zaitao told him that it was no one else who asked him to come to see Puyi, but Chairman Mao Zedong, the leader of New China, and Chairman Mao asked him to tell Puyi that he should study well, reform well, and deal with it correctly and leniently in the future. Puyi was deeply touched to hear all this, you know, when he was at the mercy of the Japanese, Chairman Mao was leading the Red Army to March to Yan'an, he had never met Chairman Mao, but Zaitao's words gave him another interpretation of the "king" in his heart, and even said that Chairman Mao was not what he thought.
The picture shows Puyi and Zaitao (center) Pujie (right).
After that, in the few years of prison, Puyi actively reformed, and when he was imprisoned in the war criminals management center, Puyi gradually learned to tie his shoelaces, wash his own clothes and other common sense of life, and also swept the imperial consciousness in his mind and established the concept of citizenship.
In the autumn of 1959, under the management of war criminals in Fushun, Liaoning Province, Puyi heard his name at the first batch of amnesty war criminals, which he never dreamed of. Yes, he was pardoned. In fact, the day before his amnesty, the prison director made a simple inquiry to Puyi, and the prison director said: "If you amnesty, what will you do?" Puyi said: "If it is me, it is completely the party's leniency to me, I was guilty in the first half of my life, the party gave me the opportunity to change evil and follow the good, and I will definitely follow the party in the second half of my life." ”
Although Puyi had a certain degree of ideological preparation, Puyi was very helpless, and later he recalled: "This is because the biggest attraction of amnesty for war criminals is the reunion of relatives, but I do not have this problem, because my parents are no longer alive, there are no children, and my wife is divorced." ”
Therefore, Chairman Mao specially received the last emperor. It can be said that the meeting between Chairman Mao and Puyi dispelled the big knot in Puyi's heart and also gave Puyi a clear understanding of his own life, which became a legendary story in the history of New China.
Figure | Puyi who was pardoned
<h1 class="pgc-h-center-line" data-track="107" chairman Mao invited Puyi to dinner > helped Puyi untie the knot</h1>
After Puyi was specially assigned, he was assigned to work at the Beijing Botanical Garden. For Puyi, it is already the biggest concern. In the Spring Festival of 1962, Chairman Mao sent someone to inform Puyi that he wanted to feast puyi for dinner, which made Puyi a little flattered.
In fact, as early as 1956, Chairman Mao spoke of Puyi at the enlarged meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, saying: "All counter-revolutionaries should be given a way out of life, so that they have the opportunity to rehabilitate themselves, and in doing so, it is beneficial to the people's cause and to the international impact." In this sentence, Chairman Mao not only sent a signal to Puyi's amnesty, but also pointed out puyi's significance to the Chinese people and even history.
Before the banquet began, Chairman Mao said to everyone in a polite manner: "Guess who I invited, give you a hint, he was your boss." "The people present here are all old seniors like Zhang Shizhao, but they can't guess it when they listen to Chairman Mao's prompts. Who will be your boss?
After a while, when Puyi came, Chairman Mao smiled and said, "What, I don't know anymore?" This is Puyi, he was the Xuantong Emperor, we were all his people, isn't it our boss! "Just after saying that, the crowd was so empowered, so it really is.
Figure | Chairman Mao and Puyi were together
The first time Puyi saw Chairman Mao, he was infected by Chairman Mao's affinity, and he did not expect that Chairman Mao was so kind that he completely broke his cognition. Chairman Mao talked to him about his books and about this not-so-hearty meal. Chairman Mao said: "I have read your book, and you have written yourself too 'badly', and this is all caused by historical reasons, not yours. ”
After listening to Chairman Mao's words, Puyi wanted to shed tears several times. Chairman Mao was also concerned about his marriage, and considering that Puyi had no wife, he said that he could introduce him to a daughter-in-law, and jokingly said: "How can the emperor not have an empress?" ”
During the meal, Puyi's heart knots can be said to have been opened, and this meal was very comfortable to eat, chairman Mao smiled and said: "Daqing should have a jade seal, right?" Where has your jade seal gone? Puyi was full of regret when he heard this question, he said that the ancient imperial palace did have a jade seal, but he was lost, when he was in prison, he once took out a batch of national treasures to the state, ordered to donate to the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, including jade seals, but small jade seals, as well as seals and other treasures.
The picture shows the treasure seal handed in by Puyi
Chairman Mao did not blame Puyi, and also took out the "big seal" of New China to make Puyi long eyes, this meal can be said to be quite pleasant to eat, Puyi's impression of Chairman Mao is even deeper, and after the meal he also took a group photo with Chairman Mao. It was also this banquet that made Puyi have a new interpretation of New China and Chairman Mao, and his concept of citizenship became stronger and stronger, before he was the emperor, now he is a citizen, he feels that he is the happiest person in the world.
<h1 class="pgc-h-center-line" data-track="144" > Puyi wanted to write "The Second Half of My Life" in his later years, but unfortunately did not write it</h1>
Puyi was received by Chairman Mao, which is an extremely important thing in the history of new China, and when he was in the botanical garden, an Englishman once asked Puyi, saying that you were the emperor before, and whether you felt wronged to let you come here as a gardener.
Puyi replied, "I would rather be a gardener than an emperor." The Englishman was so surprised that he returned home and used it as an anecdote. After visiting, some foreign progressives reported: "Only when we see Puyi can we profoundly feel what China's socialist transformation is." ”
Considering the first half of Puyi's life, Chairman Mao arranged for him to serve as a commissioner of literature and history in the Literature and History Committee of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. Puyi had lived in the Forbidden City, and it was better for him to supplement the literature and history materials. Considering the problem of life, Chairman Mao also said to Premier Zhou: "I heard that Puyi's salary is only 180 yuan, is it too little?" In the end, Chairman Mao entrusted Zhang Shizhao to give a part of his manuscript fee to Puyi, who was grateful for his receipt.
Under the care of Chairman Mao, Puyi's concept can be said to have progressed very quickly, before he had been avoiding being called emperor by others, now it didn't matter, he was not escaping the whole fact that he was once an emperor. There are also some old people who will kneel and pray when they see Puyi, and Puyi immediately criticizes these people for being backward in thinking.
As for Puyi's book, "The First Half of My Life" was written from his family lineage until 1959, when Puyi participated in the social visit organized by the War Criminals Management Institute. Puyi went from being a last emperor and a war criminal to consciously repenting of his sins and becoming a newcomer, the process of ideological transformation was chaotic, and there were many places in the historical facts that were inaccurately described. Thanks to the attention of Chairman Mao and Premier Zhou and the positive response of the heads of relevant departments, in the early 1960s, "The First Half of My Life" was given the opportunity to be published.
Figure | Puyi and his wife revisit the Forbidden City
In 1962, Puyi married Ms. Li Shuxian under the arrangement of Premier Zhou, and in 1964 he was appointed a member of the National Committee of the Chinese Political Consultative Conference, which was his last political identity in his life. But Puyi's health is not good, his ability to take care of himself in life is also limited, in the stormy environment, he quietly completed this life.
He changed from an emperor to a citizen, which is a miracle in the history of New China, and in his later years, he wanted to write "The Second Half of My Life", but unfortunately did not write it. Although the second half of Puyi's life was short, he loved a new life, praised the new society, cherished the opportunity for transformation, and was received by Chairman Mao and Premier Zhou on many occasions.
At 2:30 a.m. on October 17, 1967, Puyi passed away and his body was cremated on October 19, 1967. According to the instructions of the central government, Puyi's urn was moved to the first room of the Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery. Today, Puyi is gone, and the story of him and the leader of the new China can be said to be one of the spiritual legacies that has been passed down for a long time. (Text/Curtain)