In the middle of the night on January 16, 1889, heavy snow fell in the Forbidden City, but a fire of unknown origin broke out in the palace, which burned down the largest palace gate, Taihe Gate. The Qing Dynasty calligrapher Weng Tonghe recorded in "Weng Tonghe Diary": "This disaster is amazing and thrilling, how can I do it!"
The disaster is "thrilling" not only because of it. Let the Gate of Supreme Harmony turn to ashes, but a month later, Emperor Guangxu's wedding ceremony will be the most important gate that the queen must pass through. Seeing that it would be impossible to repair the palace gate within one month, the Empress Dowager Cixi ordered to pierce a colored paper to the Taihe Gate. Next, the best craftsmen in Beijing rushed to work day and night, and finally before the ceremony put a Taihe gate with a fake and true color. The shed was erected.
On February 26, the wedding ceremony was held as scheduled. The most important woman in the history of the Qing Dynasty entered the Forbidden City through this paper-bound fake palace gate. Her name is Yehenara Jingfen, but people more often call her the Queen Mother Longyu. Her life is like this papilled door of the Supreme Harmony, seemingly noble, but full of a touch of tragedy.
Empress Longyu is kind but cowardly and mediocre in appearance. Therefore, Emperor Guangxu only favored the lively and beautiful concubine Zhen, and was very cold towards Longyu. Although the Empress Dowager Cixi is Longyu's aunt, she can't say how much she likes this wood-like niece. The old eunuch Xin Xiuming once wrote in his memoirs: "(Queen Longyu) has the power of the Sixth Palace in the court. In fact, he is controlled by the Queen Mother and the Emperor, but cannot control the Second Concubine. Eunuchs, do not dare to be proud of themselves.”
lived like a transparent person for nearly 10 years. On November 14, 1908, Emperor Guangxu died in the Hanyuan Hall of Yingtai, Nanhai, and Cixi followed him on the second day. Away. At this time, Emperor Xuantong, who was only 3 years old, ascended the throne by his will, and Empress Longyu became the most noble woman in the Qing Dynasty, and was known as Empress Longyu in history.
At that time, the Qing dynasty was already in the midst of wind and rain, the emperor was young, and the Queen Mother Longyu could only listen to politics with the curtain, and was in charge of court affairs with the regent Zaifeng. This is a difficult task for the cowardly empress Dowager Longyu. She is not good at communication, so she has no cronies. She is not good at knowledge and knowledge, so she does not know how to secure her throne. In the decadent Qing Empire, she could only take care of the little emperor as much as possible with a motherly heart, and could not do other things.
In October 1911, the Revolution of 1911 broke out. Empress Dowager Longyu and Yuan Shikai had an hour-long conversation in the Hall of Yangxin. She finally sighed: "I don't know everything well, and I will serve as Yuer in the future." 1912 On February 12, 2008, the Empress Dowager Longyu and the little emperor promulgated the "Edict on the Abdication of the Qing Emperor", and China's 2,000-year-old monarchy was completely ended in her hands.
In this difficult decision, Queen Mother Longyu did not play too many important roles, and even when Yuan Shikai put forward various conditions, she also accepted them one by one. In the rolling wheels of history, she is unable to fight and has no political ambitions. The only thing she can consider is whether she and the young emperor can survive safely, and whether there can be a stable situation in the world.
The only time she struggled with reason was to protest for Puyi's living expenses. When Yuan Shikai agreed to abdicate the edict, she set a guarantee of 3 million taels of silver per year for Puyi, but the empress dowager Longyu felt too little. She tried her best to maintain the final dignity of the royal family and forced Yuan Shikai to raise the cost to 4 million taels. It can also be seen here that the Empress Dowager Longyu has a love for the little emperor.
After Puyi’s abdication, Sun Yat-sen, Li Yuanhong, and Huang Xing all praised the Queen Mother Longyu as the “Yaoshun”. She seemed weak, but this decision took the overall situation into consideration and avoided the country’s troubles. The split also preserved the safety of the Aixinjueluo family. Looking back at the imperial families that have fallen through the dynasties, there has never been any one who has received such preferential treatment as Qingshi. Although she is a sinner of Ai Xinjueluo, she is not a historical hero.
However, the end of the Qing Dynasty's rule by hand was still too big a blow for the Empress Dowager Longyu. She was depressed from then on, and died in the Changchun Palace in February of the next year.Long died at the age of 46. After her death, she received glory and condolences that even the Empress Dowager Cixi had never received. Yuan Shikai ordered the national flag to be held at half-mast for three days, and officials all wear filial obedience on the 27th.
In addition, Yuan Shikai personally wears black gauze on his arm to make a memorial service. There are also memorial services held all over the country to mourn this enlightened, benevolent, and late Qing empress dowager who pushed China to republic. At that time, the "Ta Kung Pao" commented on her: "Neither attached to the emperor, nor did she have the political achievements, but only to let virtue be high and call billions of people. It was not the change of the state, but a little respect. Since the ancient times, only the former Qing Longyu Queen Mother."
"Asia Daily" also expressed its condolences: "The Queen Mother Longyu has passed away. She will not be moved by relatives and expensive rumors, and advocate republic. Republic of China. Today, when the imperial family collapses, my five nationalities should sympathize and mourn."
Everyone praises her for her wiseness and care for the common people, but behind this is a woman who is up and down in history. Too many helpless in. For the Empress Dowager Longyu, many things are not something that can be done or not done by "thinking or not wanting". The only thing she has ever fought for in her life is probably the 4 million taels of silver she won for the little emperor. The rest All as her last words said: I don't know where the soul is.
