Zhang Tingyu was a political figure that had to be mentioned in the three dynasties of Kangxi, Yongzheng, and Qianlong, who entered the army during the Kangxi dynasty and was a very popular subject of the Yongzheng Dynasty, but when he arrived in the Qianlong Dynasty, he "planted his head". Zhang Tingyu was the second son of Zhang Ying, who was a scholar during the Kangxi Dynasty, a scholar of the Wenhuadian University and a scholar of the Ministry of Rites, and was a courtier used by Kangxi. There was a powerful old father, Zhang Tingyu was 28 years old, who quickly entered the South Study, became Kangxi's secretary, and from then on, 22 years ago, he dedicated the years before the age of 50 to the Kangxi Emperor.
After Yongzheng succeeded to the throne, considering that he was the son of Zhang Ying and indeed capable, he summoned Zhang Tingyu to the center of power, and successively served as the Rebbe Shangshu, the Hubu Shangshu, the Official's Shangshu, the Bai Bao heDian University Scholar (the first assistant of the cabinet), and the chief military minister. Yongzheng praised him: "Pure in quantity and sincere in his service", and was "the first propaganda force among ministers"! To put it bluntly, he is praised for his great power. Zhang Tingyu served Yongzheng conscientiously for 13 years, and Yongzheng felt his credit and said to Zhang Tingyu before his death: "After a hundred years, you can enjoy the Taimiao Temple."
What is Taimiao? It is similar to the folk ancestral hall, which is a place where one surname and one family worship the ancestral spiritual seat, and the Taimiao Temple is the place where the imperial family worships the ancestral spiritual seat. That is to say, as long as Zhang Tingyu died, his spiritual seat should be enshrined in the royal ancestral hall of the Great Qing Dynasty, enjoying the incense of the descendants of the Ai Xinjue Luo family for generations, and as long as the Great Qing dynasty does not die, the incense will not stop, which is definitely the greatest glory after death in the feudal dynasty.
When Qianlong became emperor at the age of 24, Zhang Tingyu was already 63 years old. At first, Qianlong was still good to Lao Zhang, he was again appointed as the prince's master, and then he was awarded the minister of affairs, and when Qianlong went out on tour, he entrusted the affairs of the capital to Zhang Tingyu. After Qianlong ascended the throne, he wanted to correct the "fierce and severe" imperial court atmosphere during the Yongzheng period and change it to leniency and peace, and as a result, Zhang Tingyu repeatedly wrote against Qianlong's opinions, and even when the court was discussed, he was not polite, and Qianlong gradually had an opinion on Zhang Tingyu in his heart.
Qianlong was particularly shrewd, and his impression of Zhang Tingyu was not as good as Yongzheng's. Qianlong could see at a glance the scheming behind Zhang Tingyu: on the surface, the Grand Duke was selfless and did things for the king, but in fact, he "fought for himself without controversy." Zhang Tingyu has done a lot of things for the family, and the water is not leaky, and ordinary people can't see it, but Qianlong can see it. There were 19 officials in the Tongcheng Zhang clan in the dynasty, and Zhang Tingyu's in-laws, yao shi, also had more than a dozen people, plus Zhang Tingyu presided over the imperial examination many times, and there were many protégés and officials, and there was already a suspicion of forming a party.
At this time, Ertai, who was originally able to compete with Zhang Tingyu, had already died, and Zhang Tingyu's family, as the leader of the Han Dynasty, was dominant, so how could Qianlong sit idly by? Qianlong's first reaction was to quickly promote his own confidant, the new star of Manchurian politics, Neqin, and in the name of "Manchu and Han, with Manchu as Respect", ranked the ranks of Neqin before Zhang Tingyu. Embarrassed by ne qin himself, he quickly wrote to ask for resignation, explaining how he could rank ahead of the elders of the three dynasties with his seniority? However, the Qianlong Emperor refused Neqin's request and insisted that Neqin be ranked high.
This is obviously a suppression of Zhang Tingyu. Zhang Tingyu understood that it was time to find a way to retreat. Zhang Tingyu resigned and begged Qianlong for permission to return to his hometown. But unexpectedly, Qianlong refused, and said that you have received great favors from the Three Dynasties, and you are entitled to the Taimiao Temple on the bequest of the former emperor, how can you tell the old man to return to your hometown. In the fourteenth year of Qianlong, the elderly and frail Zhang Tingyu repeatedly asked for retirement, and Qianlong moved his heart of compassion and agreed to Zhang Tingyu's plea, and also wanted to achieve a good story of harmony between kings and subjects. If only the story ended here.
But Zhang Tingyu then made a mistake, he received the news of retirement, he was happy at first, ready to return to his hometown in Anhui. Subsequently, he worried that Qianlong would renege on his promise and not allow himself to enjoy the Taimiao Temple. He even asked Qianlong to write a "letter of guarantee" to ensure that he could enjoy the Taimiao Temple. This is simply ridiculous to the extreme, is this not a clear distrust of Qianlong? Qianlong was annoyed in his heart, but he did not have a seizure, an old and confused slave, what was he planning with him? Wrote him an edict. If only the story ended here.
Qianlong thought that the next day Zhang Tingyu would come to thank the emperor for his kindness, and then he pushed the boat along the water and fulfilled Zhang Tingyu. However, Zhang Tingyu actually let his son come to thank him for himself. Qianlong couldn't help it this time, was he too serious about the emperor? Angrily demanding that the Military Aircraft Department draft a plan to let Zhang Tingyu "understand the echo"! Wang Youdun, the military minister at the time, was Zhang Tingyu's protégé, and when he saw that Qianlong was in a hurry, he hurried to report to the Zhang family privately so that the teacher could have a preparation.
As a result, Zhang Tingyu was confused again, and before the edict was issued, Zhang Tingyu had already knelt at the gate of the palace all night to apologize. Qianlong was horrified: Zhang Tingyu knew that the edict had not yet been issued to you, it was simply "hand and eye to the sky", and when people left, they also arranged an "eyeliner" to be by my side, what do you mean? Strict investigation! In addition to pursuing the leaker Wang Youdun, the Ministry of Punishment also gave Zhang Tingyu's handling opinion: depose Zhang Tingyu for all honors and officials, and plan to behead the marquis. Qianlong naturally did not treat a three-dynasty elder in this way, beheaded the marquis, and announced that Zhang Tingyu's title had been stripped, and the "temple of the Yongzheng Emperor" rewarded could be retained.
Zhang Tingyu was extremely embarrassed, his body and mind were severely hit, and he just wanted to escape. In the fifteenth year of Qianlong, Zhang Tingyu once again asked to resign and return to his hometown. Realistically speaking, Zhang Tingyu's request for retirement this time is somewhat "out of date." In the fifteenth year of Qianlong, the eldest son of the emperor, Yong Huang, fell ill and died, and the emperor was in the pain of losing his son. This time Qianlong was completely angry, and on the grounds that Zhang Tingyu was Yong Huang's teacher but had no sad feelings, he dismissed Zhang Tingyu from being entitled to the Taimiao Temple, but was exempted from punishment, and Zhang Tingyu retired with a gray face. If only the story ended here.
Sichuan scholar Zhu Quan was questioned for corruption, Zhu Quan was Zhang Tingyu's relative, or Zhang Tingyu recommended him, Zhang Tingyu was inexplicably involved. Qianlong used this as an excuse to order the recovery of all the items that the former emperor had given to the Zhang family. Qianlong's close minister Debao carried out the recovery work, but took away all the things with writing in the Zhang family. Because the civil servants who had once held high positions would inevitably write some memoirs and other books after retirement, Qianlong wanted to see if Zhang Tingyu had the intention of slandering the imperial court. But nothing was found, and Zhang Tingyu's caution saved the lives of the old and young.
Twenty years after Qianlong, Zhang Tingyu died of illness and was buried in Longmian Mountain. In the end, Qianlong still followed his father's will and let Zhang Tingyu enjoy the Taimiao Temple, which also made Zhang Tingyu the only Hanchen in the Qing Dynasty to enjoy this honor. However, Zhang Tingyu did not live to wait for this day, and he was depressed. (Reference: Draft History of the Qing Dynasty)