In 1859, Zuo Zongtang almost lost his head.
In that year, Zuo Zongtang, who was working in the shogunate of Luo Bingzhang, was sued by Fan Xie for a dispute with Fan Xie, the commander-in-chief of Yongzhou Town. After the Xianfeng Emperor received the case, he let out a harsh word: "Zuo ZongTangguo has an illegal affair, and he is allowed to correct the law on the spot." "Zuo Zongtang was in the Luo Bingzhang shogunate, as an aide to handle many important military and political affairs, although this was a last resort under war conditions, but after all, it was a violation of the system, if the Xianfeng Emperor really wanted to pursue it, Zuo Zongtang was only afraid of having 10 heads, and it was not enough to cut it."
What is touching is that when Zuo Zongtang encountered the disaster of killing himself, many people he knew and did not know stood up without hesitation and risked their lives to speak for him.
Among them, there are Zuo Zongtang's good friends Hu Linyi, Guo Songtao, and others, as well as Gu Wenbin, Pan Zuyin, and others who were entrusted by Hu Linyi and Guo Songtao to speak on Zuo Zongtang's behalf. Pan Zuyin, in particular, deserves to be said separately.
Pan Zuyin was a native of Wu County (present-day Suzhou, Jiangsu) and never intersected with Zuo Zongtang from Hunan. Pan Zuyin was born into a family of official eunuchs, and his grandfather was Pan Shi'en, the ruler of the Qianlong Dynasty, who was a scholar of Wuyingdian University. His uncle was Pan Shihuan, a tanhua in the Qianlong period. His father also served as a cabinet secretary and cabinet poet.
In 1848, on Pan Shien's eightieth birthday, the Daoguang Emperor rewarded Pan Zuyin with a meritorious name, asking him to study for at least three years. Of course, Pan Zuyin is also very contentious. In 1852, Pan Zuyin entered Beijing to participate in the examination, and won the third place in the first division (Tanhua) and entered the official field.
The Xianfeng Emperor admired Pan Zuyin and arranged for him to walk in the South Study and consult with him on major state affairs anytime and anywhere. At that time, Guo Songtao was with him in the South Study. After zuo Zongtang incident, Guo Songtao first found Su Shun, who was hot in the imperial court, and asked him for help. Although Sushun was a Manchurian with a blue flag, he always had a good feeling for the Han people, and Zeng Guofan, Hu Linyi, Guo Songtao and others were promoted by him. Su Shun told him, "I must wait for the ministers to have a loose sponsorship before I can speak." Therefore, Guo Songtao found Pan Zuyin and asked him to act as Shangshu.
Guo Songtao told Pan Zuyin: "When Zuo Jun goes, Hunan will not have any support, it will collapse, and the overall situation in the southeast will no longer be questioned." ”
These words persuaded Pan Zuyin. Pan Zuyin turned to Emperor Xianfeng and said: "Chu Nan's army has made meritorious contributions to this province, aiding Jiangxi, Hubei, Guangxi, and Guizhou, and the direction to Kejie is dispatched by Luo Bingzhang, and it is actually decided by Zuo Zongtang, which is common in the world, and it has long been in my Shengming Cave Book." Last year, the reverse chief Shi Da drove back to Hunan, claiming hundreds of thousands. With the salaries of this province and the soldiers of this province, the four realms will be cleared in a few months. At that time, the thieves traveled thousands of miles, all in zongtang's plans. If you look at it from another place, there are people who can't be contained. It is a country that cannot go a day without Hunan, and Hunan cannot go a day without Zongtang. Zong Tang is a man, negative and upright, jealous and hateful. Hunan is not a member of the Xiao People, does not follow his own selfishness, thinks of slander, and has been for a long time. The Governor of Huguang was confused by the floating words, and it was inevitable that there would be a place to lead the rope to criticize the roots. Zong Tang was a national, and it was insignificant to stay, and the situation in southern Chu was particularly important, and he had to pity for the country. ”
This remark introduced the great role played by Zuo Zongtang in the luo bingzhang shogunate, analyzed the severe situation facing Hunan, and impressed the Xianfeng Emperor with every detail. The Xianfeng Emperor consulted SuShun, who said: "Since the suppression of the rebellion, Hunan has borne the brunt of it, but it can not only defend the mainland, but also raise armaments and salaries, foreign aid to the four realms, and all the merits of Luo Bingzhang are the merits of Zuo Zongtang." ”
In a word. Zuo Zongtang not only successfully escaped a disaster, but also became famous all over the world because of the saying that "the country cannot be without Hunan for a day, and Hunan cannot be without Zongtang for a day".
It can be said that Pan Zuyin saved Zuo Zongtang's life. In this regard, Zuo Zongtang often had a grateful heart. Zuo Zongtang later led his troops to fight, and after the official went to Zhejiang governor and governor of Fujian and Zhejiang, every winter, he would send 1,000 taels of silver to Pan Zuyin as a "charcoal tribute". This is the most "charcoal respect" received by the Beijing officials.
Not only that, Zuo Zongtang also gave Pan Zuyin a big gift.
During the Daoguang years, Shaanxi unearthed a precious cultural relic, the Western Zhou Dynasty. When Zuo Zongtang was the governor of Shaanxi and Gansu, his aide Yuan Baoheng bought the Western Zhou Dynasty For 700 taels of silver and gave it to Zuo Zongtang. Zuo Zongtang knew the value of the Western Zhou Dynasty and gave it to Pan Zuyin. Since then, the Western Zhou Dynasty has been circulating in Pan Zuyin's home.
[References: Draft History of the Qing Dynasty, Commentary on Zuo Zongtang, etc.]