Written by | Zhao Nengjing
In 1898, a few months after doing the Four Pin Qing and walking on the military aircraft chapter, Liu Guangdi, one of the six gentlemen who participated in the "Penghu Reform Law", was killed at Caishikou. In addition to the changes in the late Qing Dynasty, Liu Guangdi had another identity, a poor Beijing official, and almost extreme poverty ran through his life. The extreme poverty that led to his extreme poverty was more than his high standards of self-esteem.
Liu Guangdi came from a poor background in school, and after entering the army in the examination, he could not enter Beijing due to his family's poverty and filial piety. Until a few years later, he went to Beijing to do the qualification to become a Beijing official for ten years.
Liu Guangdi
Because there was no money, he could not afford to pay the rent in the city, so he found a few broken houses in the ruins of the remote area as a residence, "In the southwest gate of feipu, there are several huts, two or three friends visit, then sell liquor, cook taro wheat to feed customers." He himself wore "a cloth robe, ten years of buyi", "except for the dress, there is no trace of clothing around him on weekdays", and there is nothing else in the house except a little book. The wife is "poor", and the child wears "cover clothes and torn pants", like a little named Hanako.
Because of the remoteness of his residence, he walked "twenty miles from his apartment to the office" every time he went to work. Therefore, when he encountered "a car when the road was too bad on a rainy day", he relied on a pair of legs for the rest of the time, which was completely different from the image of the Qing Dynasty officials. In addition, most of the officials at that time maintained a certain rhythm of party banquets to maintain the presence of the circle. And Liu Guangdi, because of his poverty, "usual banquets and drinks and food are not much." ”
Qing Dynasty official uniforms
For this situation, Liu Guangdi can endure, more because his origin makes him feel that he is very good now. According to his recollection, his grandfather could not afford to wear cotton clothes in the middle of winter, so he couldn't help but go to the neighbor's house and sit by the iron stove, so that his face was blackened. In the end, "I was not allowed to take less whiskers, and I was fed for a day and then died." By the time of his father, the family's condition had not improved much, and eating meat once every two or three months was only a few or two, so Liu Guangdi did not seem to find it difficult to be a poor official.
In addition to being poor, liu Guangdi is also reflected in the diligence, often take the initiative to work overtime, "after the dismissal of the job to the summer is very diligent, every month will be twenty-eight or nine times." At that time, when he could work twenty days a month, he "saw Qin Min", so "all the villagers said that if they were so angledgy, after a few years, they would surely become popular." Unfortunately, the last "red" is the blood spilled on the mouth of the vegetable market.
Qing Dynasty Feng Lu
In addition, Liu Guangdi is introverted, does not have many words, and in the words of today's people, he is "not very social", often "less social travel, avoid socialization", even if he has to participate in the end, he is sitting alone and "widowed". Because of such a personality, many colleagues saw him all day long without saying a word, and he was a Beijing official in Beijing for ten years, "although his fellow villagers do not know his name." ”
For this, he himself seems to know that "cold and remote", the last thing he wants to do is to deal with all kinds of things.
In addition, Liu Guangdi's starting point when he obtained the meritorious name was to be a famous minister, an absolutely honest minister similar to Jackie Chan, so he refused all unspoken rules and never contacted foreign officials, so no one could send him any gifts.
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Therefore, when he encountered promotions, he still had to lose money, because he needed to buy matching clothing, but his income did not increase, and he said in a letter to his friend: "Brother does not distinguish between military aircraft and money, if it is not too much, the compensation is still small, if it is not yet able to quit, then he must pay five hundred gold per year."
Therefore, in the end, his life was basically on the verge of ruin, but he was full of thoughts about how to save Daqing. After a heavy rain, the house leaked, the window paper was blown by the wind, and even a framer could not be found, because the price was too high.
Kyoguan
So how much legal income can Liu Guangdi earn? Roughly speaking, it was more than three hundred taels of silver, but it could only meet thirty percent of its expenses. Then other officials can rely on various rules to operate, and life can be good, but Liu Guangdi never talks about this.
In addition, poor Beijing officials like Liu Guangdi are not unique. For example, his hometown friend, who went to Beijing with Liu Guangdi before and after, also served as the chief of the bureaucracy, so in Liu Guangdi, who did not have many friends, they became relatively good friends, and often studied the world's major events together. Sometimes I "talk about learning about the world, and I can't bear it until midnight." ”
This Jingguan named Wang Shusan was as poor as he was, and his health was sick, so he wanted to resign and return to his hometown many times, and he barely supported himself with the encouragement of Liu Guangdi. Later, when he finally had the opportunity to release the magistrates, he finally failed to survive poverty and died of serious illness, which was the same tragic end as Liu Guangdi.
And Liu Guangdi continued this poverty until he was caught, and even the officers and soldiers in charge of the arrest came to his house and were shocked and sighed when they saw the situation, "It is not an official." ”
Liu Guangdi calligraphy
Fundamentally, the rejection of all official rules, the reliance on that little bit of courtesy, and the lack of contact with people everywhere have led to more isolation. As for how to become an official, in fact, there was a rather extensive and vivid dialogue circulating during the Jiaqing period.
A book of "Qing Dynasty Records" records that someone wrote to Cao Zhenpu, a scholar of the university, asking him for tips on the promotion of his career. Cao's answer was actually: "Ru wants to be willing to be a eunuch? First of all, there must be internal support, and the bribe fee should not be stingy. The attitude must be extremely round and harmonious, and it should not be taken seriously in case of trouble. Do not be serious in all things, do not have the heart to fight and make meritorious achievements, and do not think that you are loyal. In case of difficulties, take advantage of the circumvention, the most important, for the word "ambiguous", do not make a discussion. Don't be stubborn. Therefore, the tragedy of Liu Guangdi may lie in his personality and his inability to wander among the Beijing officials at all, and finally put his name on it.