The unity of public order in the world has been unified for a long time, and it is bound to be tamed to division, but the Lord is heavy and the atmosphere has not been opened. If it is not a rotten heart, it will not be a situation of disintegration. In the intensity of the day, the calamity of the other day must first be completely overthrown, and the rear state has no master, and the people govern themselves, and they will not be able to survive for fifty years.
This is the view made by Zeng Guofan and his aide Zhao Liewen on June 20, 1867 (July 21, 1867) about the fall of the Qing Dynasty. 44 years later, the Qing Dynasty collapsed, and the chaos that followed was exactly what he said. Judging from the literature that exists now, Zhao Liewen was probably the first person to accurately make such a prediction.
Who is Zhao Liewen? Turning over the history of the late Qing Dynasty, it seems that his sense of existence is not strong, in fact, he is an aide around Zeng Guofan, although compared with Li Hongzhang, Peng Yulin, Zuo Zongtang and other people around Zeng Guofan, he is one of the most valued people of Zeng Guofan, and also affects many choices in Zeng Guofan's political career.
Zeng Guofan
How could such a small person make such an accurate and profound judgment on the Great Qing after helping Zeng Guofan destroy the Taiping Army? If we look deeply into this man, we will find that his great wisdom is no less than that of any contemporary.
After listening to Zhao Liewenshi's earth-shattering prophecy, Zeng Guofan pondered for half a day and asked Zhao Liewen, "But when you move south?" Obviously, Zeng Guofan disagreed with Zhao Wenlie's point of view, Zeng Guofan believed that the Qing Dynasty could not be completely overthrown, and at most there was a situation like the Song Dynasty in which the north and south were divided and half of the country was maintained, but this view was directly denied by Zhao Wenlie: "Fearing that Lu Shen (the fall of the country), may not be able to achieve the Jin and Song dynasties." ”
However, although Zhao Wenlie replied firmly, Zeng Guofan still refused to believe it, and then Zhao Liewen expressed some views in detail, not only did he think that the general trend of the Qing Dynasty had gone, but also that the number of qi was approaching, and there would be no more hope. In the end, Zeng Guofan became more and more desperate: what I look forward to every day is to die early, and I do not want to see the day when the Qing Dynasty will fall.
Zhao Liewen
Although the conversation touched Zeng Guofan in no small way, various ideas kept flashing into his mind in the days that followed. He sometimes agreed with Zhao Liewen's views, and sometimes he had doubts, thinking that the Qing Dynasty would not die so quickly. Whether it was out of his own considerations or the responsibilities he shouldered, he did not want the Great Qin Dynasty that he personally saved to come to an end.
However, it was not until Zeng Guofan went all the way north to visit and investigate, and came into contact with the core figures of the top leaders of the Qing Dynasty, he completely lost his illusions about the Qing Dynasty, and he saw that in the palace, there were people who enjoyed pleasure, and no one cared about national affairs. And the emperor is even more suppressed without the right to speak, the power is in the military aircraft Gongdi, although the Gongdi is very talented, but can not be alone. At this time, Zeng Guofan completely understood Zhao Liewen's words.
Prince Gong (middle)
Zhao Liewen's wisdom is not only reflected in his miraculous prediction of the fall of the Qing Dynasty, but also in the many choices he made in his life. For example, he handled the matter of being an official very artistically.
After following Zeng Guofan for many years, Zeng Guofan found that Zhao Liewen was extremely intelligent and had a very high theoretical level, but he lacked practical experience, and if he exercised a little in practice, he would definitely become a talent. So after the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Movement, many of Zeng Guofan's staff were recommended to become officials, and Zeng Guofan suggested that Zhao Liewen become an official, but he was rejected many times, although he refused, but he expressed his loyalty to follow Zeng Guofan.
Zeng Guofan fought against the Taiping Army
Zeng Guofan was very touched after hearing this, and sent a pair of calligraphy to Zhao Liewen: "The first yu and his love can be described as sincere. Zhao Liewen was extremely touched after reading it, so he begged Zeng Guofan to accept him as a disciple, and Zeng Guofan gladly agreed. In the following time, Zhao Liewen and Zeng Guofan became more and more close, and Zhao Liewen became the spiritual reliance of Zeng Guofan, although he was the same as father and son for teachers and students. Zhao Liewen seized a rare opportunity to get close to Zeng Guofan in a very critical time, which can be said to be a turning point in his life.
Zhao Liewen's cleverness lies in the fact that he bet his treasure on Zeng Guofan instead of doing something on his own. He was playing a game, but he was sure that he would win, because the political environment at that time was extremely harsh, and if he was not careful, he would be doomed, so it was better to surrender to the big tree, and Zeng Guofan just had a great merit, at least in the next few years, it was still a big umbrella, so it was a very correct choice for him not to be an official, and it was very correct to be bent on advising Zeng Guofan.
Zeng Guofan (right)
In February of the eleventh year of Tongzhi, Zeng Guofan died of illness at the Jiangdu Official Office, and Zhao Liewen was deeply sad after learning the news, but because of the distance and the fact that he was still on official business, he could not personally go to mourn. Zhao Liewen blamed himself very much for this, coupled with his inner sadness, and soon became seriously ill. Knowing that Zeng Guofan was very peaceful before his death, his heart was greatly comforted.
After Zeng Guofan's death, Zhao Liewen resigned from all his posts and returned to his hometown, after seeing the situation clearly, he knew that Daqing's qi number was about to run out and would soon collapse, and the only benefactor who could give him hope also left him, and he had no more motivation. Returning to Yamada was his only option, and it was the best option.
Heaven put the building
After Zhao Liewen resigned from office, he married two concubines in succession, plus the previous one wife and two concubines, and married 5 wives and concubines in his lifetime. In addition to occasionally going out to visit friends and sending love to landscapes, Zhao Liewen's daily life is mainly to read and write in a fancy garden and play with gold and stone inscriptions. He also specially built a library building, named "Tianfang Building". For more than ten years, he kept buying books and books, eventually reaching tens of thousands of volumes, becoming a famous book collection place in Jiangnan.
Zhao Liewen's retirement life is leisurely and happy, which also fully reflects his wisdom as a person, who can see the situation clearly and go with the flow. If you learn from Zeng Guofan, it is better to look at his staff member Zhao Liewen.