Author: Moon Xiao Makeup
At the moment when she was selected to enter the palace when she was 13 years old, she did not expect that this was not only the beginning of her life's prosperous and splendid embroidery and carvings, but also the beginning of her life's withering and decaying, gloomy and terrifying. She was too bright and too simple, how could she have expected that the deep palace was not the back garden of her house.
12 years of deep palace favor, so that she has been oblivious, thinking that she can indulge in sex, thinking that she can do whatever she wants. Deep in the crevices of that bustling and desolate harem building, how many pairs of cold eyes, maliciously staring... Devouring man's innocent nature, devouring man's fantasy of all the beauty of life.
In 1888, the thirteen-year-old Zhenfei entered the palace at the same time as her sister, and was valued by Cixi, who was named Zhen Concubine and her sister Jin Concubine.
Guangxu was a year, and the two were promoted to concubines at the same time.
Princess Jane's childhood, which was raised in a carefree environment, was very much loved by her uncle. Although his uncle was a Manchu, he longed for the culture of the Central Plains and liked to interact with the Famous Scholars among the Han People, and the Champions, Bangyan, and Tanhua were all his "guests on the throne".
Because he loved Zhenfei, he invited a leader to teach Zhenfei a lesson, Zhenfei's "three views" were completely subverted, in the past she listened to "three from four virtues", all tired of listening, and now listening to a completely new set. What algorithms, astronomy, geography, but also came into contact with some restoration ideas.
The love of her father and brother and the opening of the teacher made her grow up in a completely different environment from other girls, her thoughts were more open, her behavior was more active, and her speech was more bold. Perhaps, it is precisely because she is so different that young Guangxu will be deeply fascinated by it!
Life in the imperial palace was both strange and new to Princess Zhen. Naïve and erudite, she did not realize how terrible the sinister and terrifying "Cixi", the authoritarian and greedy woman, was. She listened curiously to them about how Cixi chose an heir and how she listened to the government, and what interested her most was that the emperor had once taken a fancy to the second daughter of Dexin, the inspector of Jiangxi, and because Cixi was worried that she would compete with the empress for favor in the future, she sent both daughters home.
Princess Zhen cobbled together scattered words, knowing that the young Guangxu Emperor was not only unable to govern, but also unable to choose her own marriage, And Princess Zhen had a lot of pity for the young Guangxu Emperor.
In the eyes of the young Guangxu Emperor, Zhenfei was like the only vivid, bright, fresh sunshine in the Forbidden City full of death, decadence, and decay, a free and unrestrained wind. It was the hope he had never encountered in his gray life, and it was also a warm light of his life.
Princess Zhenfei is not only good at calligraphy and painting, chess, but also plays "transvestite" with the emperor, she dresses up as a boy and looks very dashing, and the Guangxu Emperor who often teases laughs.
At first, even Cixi liked this pretty, lively little girl, whose innocence brought life to the cold harem. Because her handwriting was very beautiful, Cixi often took her around to play and let her write to the ministers.
Princess Zhen was like a butterfly, freely moving through the court, she felt that Cixi was not so terrible at all, everyone was very kind to her, the emperor also loved her, and life was simply beautiful.
She did not know that the gloomy court could only feed decaying souls, vicious corpses, and even if those darkness longed for light, they would not become light, but would only devour light.
The arrival of the camera made Zhenfei very happy. At that time, everyone was very afraid of photography, and the camera was considered to be a "Western obscene thing", which would take people's souls, and taking more photos would make people live longer.
Princess Jane was still a half-grown child, and she was very curious about the camera, and she didn't care so much. Not only did she like to take pictures of herself, but she also taught Guangxu and the eunuchs how to use cameras, and she secretly got a camera from outside to take pictures in the palace every day. Later, Princess Zhen wanted to increase her income and asked her personal eunuch to open a photo studio outside donghua gate. She hopes to have more money and give her more freedom to pursue her hobbies.
This was known to Empress Longyu, who told Cixi, who summoned Concubine Zhen and reprimanded her fiercely. In fact, Cixi also loves to take pictures, so why reprimand Zhenfei? Because Cixi was particularly domineering and domineering, she felt that she had already said that she was not accurate, and Zhenfei continued to do it, but she did not take her as Lafayette in her eyes at all. She blamed Zhenfei and beat the eunuch Dai Anping, who opened the photo studio, to death on the spot. Since then, no one in the palace has dared to talk about taking pictures.
Cixi's feud with Zhenfei began around this time.
Once, Guangxu rewarded Zhenfei with a palanquin carried by eight people, but was touched by Cixi, who angrily rebuked Zhenfei and returned the palanquin.
Princess Zhen went back to the Guangxu Emperor to cry, the Guangxu Emperor was very dissatisfied with Empress Longyu, the last photo studio was Longyu's secret, this time is not also Longyu Gaomi? According to a later recollection of a palace lady surnamed Liu, the Guangxu Emperor even started beating Longyu.
Empress Longyu and Cixi were already on the united front, and Cixi felt that this was coming at her (in fact, it was), and the Guangxu Emperor did not dare to fight Cixi, so he had to anger Empress Longyu. She was very dissatisfied with Zhenfei and looked for her everywhere. The Guangxu Emperor made a cheongsam for her to wear out of the pearls and jadeite in stock, and Cixi happened to meet Zhenfei when she was walking around the imperial garden, and was so angry that she not only let the eunuch take off Zhenfei's clothes, but also blamed Zhenfei thirty times.
All this only deprived Zhenfei of her position in the harem and humiliated her, but it did not make her lose her life.
She didn't know how terrible the palace was, and continued to do whatever she wanted, following joy and happiness.
In this year, there was a man named Geng Jiu, who hoped to seek an official position in Guangdong Province, and another person named Baoshan, who wanted to pay for forgiveness, so they bribed the eunuchs who were close to Zhenfei. Princess Zhen did not know the weight, and even agreed to run for him.
In fact, buying officials was not forbidden in the Qing Dynasty, and Kangxi allowed to buy officials. In the Qing Dynasty, there were three ways to elect officials: yinfeng, imperial examination, and donation.
But why can't Princess Jane do this business?
Princess Zhen offended the interest group headed by Cixi and Li Lianying, and Cixi asked the four adopted sons who helped Li Lianying to seek officials, and the result was that they were full and filled with Zhenfei's people, and Li Lianying got a sentence, "Fill the vacancies and obey the ministerial system." The old woman and the old eunuch almost vomited blood on the spot, and Cixi was extremely disgusted with Zhenfei.
Princess Zhen was claustrophobic in the inner cell of baizimen on the second long street of gongxi, and ordered the chief eunuch to be specially guarded, and from then on, she was isolated from Guangxu and could not meet.
According to the "Overview of the Forbidden City", the small courtyard where Zhenfei was imprisoned was originally the place where the attendants stayed, and Zhenfei lived in the westernmost of the three rooms in the north, the door of the house was locked upside down from the outside, and eating, washing, etc. were handed out of a living window by the lower person. Princess Zhen lived a particularly miserable life, eating the food of the next person, and was greatly tortured physically and mentally.
In 1894, the Sino-Japanese War broke out, and the defeat of Jiawu and the signing of the Treaty of Maguan greatly stimulated the Guangxu Emperor. He participated in the Restoration Movement with great enthusiasm.
Why Guangxu likes Zhenfei, on the one hand, is because Zhenfei is still young, lively and lovely, and has shallow experience, so she has no intentions, on the other hand, because Zhenfei advocates Western learning and has her own unique views on the affairs of the DPRK and China, which coincides with the Guangxu Emperor's idea of restoration. (National News, p. 11)
At this time, Zhenfei may have been released, she was very supportive of the emperor and also participated in the Restoration Movement. She not only supported Guangxu and encouraged him to express more independent opinions, but also exchanged letters with the Reformists, which completely angered Cixi, who was so angry that she had to kill her.
In 1898, Cixi launched a coup d'état, once again bowed to the government, hunted down the reformists, imprisoned the Guangxu Emperor in Yingtai, Zhongnanhai, and imprisoned Zhenfei in the cold palace of Empress Jingqi Pavilion.
Cixi persecuted Zhenfei in utter desperation, and she lost her freedom in life and was severely tortured. Princess Zhen was imprisoned for two years, her body dirty and shaped like a beggar, but she never forgot the Guangxu Emperor. The Guangxu Emperor also unanimously remembered her, and with the help of the eunuchs, the Guangxu Emperor came to the Beisansho many nights and cried with Zhenfei through the window, and the two encouraged each other, hoping that one day they would see the light of day again and live happily together. Unfortunately, this is already a luxury.
On July 20, the 26th year of Guangxu (1900), the Eight-Nation Alliance army came to the city of Beijing. Cixi decided to take Guangxu and the rest of the party out of Xi'an. At this time, everyone changed their cloth and gathered in the Leshou Hall in the back hall of The Ningshou Palace, and Cixi suddenly felt the past and sent Zhen Concubine out of the prison. "Princess Zhen is young and beautiful, and will be insulted by foreigners, and ashamed of the patriarchs." "Waiting for excuses, the strong word to take away Zhenfei inconvenience, leaving behind and fearing that her youth will provoke right and wrong, because the eunuch was ordered to open the manhole cover in front of the Leshou Hall and ask Zhenfei to commit suicide, and Zhenfei refused to die." The eunuchs were ordered to push The Concubine into the well, who was only twenty-five years old. Performing this order were Cixi's foreman eunuch Cui Yugui and palace princess Dehuan.
There are many opinions about the death of Zhenfei, and every time I read it, it will be heart-wrenching:
After analyzing and comparing the historical data, we believe that it is still the old eunuch Tang Guanqing of the Qing Palace who said that it is the most reasonable and reliable:
On July 19, Zhenfei Jing Gengzi entered Beijing (this date is wrong, but he said that it was the day the coalition army entered Beijing, indicating that it was the twentieth day - the author's note), Cui Yugui led a fast gun team of forty people to guard the gate, and Yu also led forty people to guard the Leshou Hall. After noon, Yu rested at the back door, and after suddenly visiting Cixi, he came out from the inside, and there was no one behind him, and he privately thought that he would go to Yihexuan and then move forward to support. Even after the Leshou Hall, he actually followed the west corridor, and yu was quite shocked, and said: "Where is Lafayette?" "Don't ask, just do as you please." And at the corner gate turn, he said: "Ru can wait on the Yihe Xuan Corridor, if someone peeps, do not shoot." "Yu Fang was horrified, Cui Yugui came, helped the back out of the corner door to go west, stealing or martyrdom also, but did not dare to ask. Young, smell Zhen Concubine, please Anbi, and wish the old ancestors good luck. Later, he said: "Is it still a matter of words, Yihe fist troublemaking, foreigners entering Beijing, what to do?" Following the gradual fading of his voice, he muttered indistinguishablely, and overheard a loud voice: "Let's jump the well with our children!" The concubine cried for grace, and Yun did not commit a major crime. Later: "Regardless of whether we are guilty or not, will we be left to be poisoned by foreigners?" You go down first, and I go down. The concubine bowed her head and mourned. After the whirlwind, Hu Yugui. Your concubine said, "Please obey the Lord's will!" Concubine Yue: "Ru He also forced me to yay!" Gui Yue: "The Lord goes down, I still go down!" Concubine Fury said, "Ru is not worthy!" "At this point, I was confused and overwhelmed. After hearing this, he exclaimed, "Throw her down!" Then there was a writhing sound, and then there was a bang, thinking that the concubine had fallen into the well. The Guangxu Emperor lived in the Yangxin Hall, which was not yet known.
Although Tang Guanqing was not present, he saw Cixi and Cui Yugui with his own eyes, and heard the conversation between the three people at that time and the voice of Concubine Zhen falling into the well, and what he said should be correct.
An old palace lady surnamed He who had served Cixi once recalled the incident as follows:
The escape was in the twenty-sixth year of Guangxu, that is, on July 21 of the year of Gengzi. On the afternoon of the first day, the old lady took a nap in the House of Leshoutang. As usual, I was in the palace, with my back to the western wall, sitting on the brick floor, facing the doorway. This is the rule of the waiter's bedchamber. Suddenly, the old lady sat up and opened the tent. The usual work of picking up the tent was done by the maid. Today was an accident and startled me. The old lady hurriedly washed her face, and without a command, she walked out of the Leshou Hall by herself. We followed the old lady to the middle of the west corridor, and the old lady said, "You don't have to wait." These were the first words of the old lady when she woke up from a nap. We watched as the old lady walked north by herself and entered the Yihexuan. For about half an hour, the old empress dowager came out of Yihexuan, her face blue, and she didn't say a word. We came back from the porch to welcome the old lady back. At night, someone secretly said that the old lady gave Zhenfei death and let people push Zhenfei into the well. We can't say a word.
What this palace lady surnamed He said was completely consistent with what Tang Guanqing said. This palace maid surnamed He also said that in the early years of the Republic of China, Cui Yugui once visited her home and personally told the story of the execution of Concubine Zhen, which was basically the same as what Tang Guanqing said. This shows that the plot of the murder of Concubine Zhen that Tang Guanqing told is true.
In the spring of 1901, the Qing court made peace with the Eight-Nation Alliance, and Cixi, Guangxu and others prepared to return to the dynasty. However, Cixi had the nightmare that the precious concubine wanted to take her life every day, and when she returned to the palace, she ordered someone to salvage the bones, put them into a coffin, and bury them in the palace cemetery of Enjizhuang outside Fucheng Gate, and tried to cover the ears of the world in the name of "martyrdom of zhen lie".
In the second year of the Republic of China (1913), his sister Concubine Jin (then Emperor Kao Jin Guifei) moved Zhenfei to be buried in The Garden of Guangxu Chongling Concubine, and built a small spiritual hall for her to enshrine Zhenfei's tablet, and a paper plaque was hung on the spiritual hall, which read "Jingwei Tongcheng" to praise Zhenfei's true feelings for Guangxu.
After Zhenfei's death, Guangxu often stared at her tent and sat like a wooden man for several hours. What is the use of mourning after death? In the end, the couple in distress could not look forward to seeing the day again.
In China's long history of 5,000 years, Zhenfei was the only concubine who accepted Western ideas, dared to compete with the feudal etiquette of the court, and possessed extraordinary courage and will. She was a man of straight nature, did not please the powerful, and did not like the rules of the court.
For the Guangxu Emperor, she was precious and unique, she was light, warmth, hope, one of the few hopes in his withering life, and the only place where he could breathe freely in the Forbidden City, which was full of intrigue, sin, and murder. Everyone says that he spoils her, because she is beautiful, she will come to things, she is small, she is lively, in fact, the factors that can make men move may be these, and it should be more than these that can make men walk through the long years with her, and still do not change their original intentions. There are also tribulations and hardships, there are like-minded people, there is mutual pity, and there is twilight.
They are tough grass that grows in the crevices of the rocks, cut by the sharp edges of time, still looking up at the sun, they are a world that Cixi can't understand, and they are the other shore that Cixi can never swim.
Princess Zhenfei was not a perfect person, however, she was the right person for the Guangxu Emperor.