(I) 19th century Qing Dynasty The rivers are falling and are shaking.
This end is Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Movement , and the other end is the outbreak of the Opium War, and ethnic riots in the Shaanxi-Gansu region are mixed in the middle.
However, for the Western powers, China, which is "on the verge of death", is like a covetable piece of fat. They are eyeing each other and are trying to "tear" away from this huge territory of China.
As the saying goes, "There is the first thing to do when you get close to the water." We have to be "good neighbors". Seeing China's internal and external troubles, we can no longer hold back our desire to move!
So, Japan, located on the coast of the East China Sea, began to invade Taiwan, my country, and , located in the northwest direction, Tsarist Russia, began to occupy Yili, Xinjiang. The already corrupt Qing government was unable to control it for a while when it was attacked from both sides. They urgently needed someone who could turn the tide and save China from the fire.
Thankfully, this person appeared in time.
He is the "No. 1 Greatest Man in Five Hundred Years" in the eyes of Liang Qichao; in the hearts of historians, "the person who made the greatest contribution to China's territory except Tang Taizong ", an eternal hero who has been recorded in history, and one of the "famous officials of the revival of the late Qing Dynasty" - Zuo Zongtang .
(II) The Qing Dynasty was in a downturn at that time, with internal and external troubles, and a downward trend.
A poor scholar named Zuo Guanlan in a small county town in Hunan Province barely supports the living expenses of a whole family through the meager income earned by teaching.
However, although life is stretched, he insists that letting his children study is the best way out.
What's more, Zuo Zongtang's youngest son was smart and studious since childhood. He won the first place in the county exam at the age of 14. When he participated in the Changsha Prefecture Examination at the age of 15, he ranked second after an old scholar and had long become a well-known "child prodigy". Zuo Guanlan was very pleased with this.
If everything goes well, Zuo Zongtang should get a higher fame and further reach the peak of his life.
(Portrait of Zuo Zongtang)
But unexpected events have occurred. Within a few years, Zuo Zongtang's parents died one after another. The family's changes not only made Zuo Zongtang fall into great sadness, but the scientific research road has also become particularly bumpy.
After six years of mourning, Zuo Zongtang regained his strength and wanted to achieve his ambitions in the imperial examination, but unexpectedly, he worked hard for many years and took three scientific tests, but he missed the ambition of a Jinshi again and again.
Dismayed, Zuo Zongtang simply gave up the scientific research and instead studied practical knowledge such as water conservancy and agricultural reform.
After a period of hard study, Zuo Zongtang's knowledge has become increasingly progressive, and more famous officials around him have become more and more famous. A local big-named Zhou Heng married his beloved daughter, who was both talented and beautiful, to Zuo Zongtang because she liked Zuo Zongtang's talent. Since then, Zuo Zongtang, who had a family, has been at ease to study his knowledge of "being practical and practical".
As the saying goes: Those who are like-minded can encounter it but cannot find it.
Zuo Zongtang, who is focused on "the study of the world", does not know that his intellectual proposition has infected his lifelong nobleman - Tao Shu .
Tao Shu is a shrewd and capable official. Not only was he praised by the emperor in his political achievements, but he also achieved the same goal as Zuo Zongtang's "practice in the world" in academic terms.
The same hobbies and insights made the two of them fall in love with each other at first sight, and they had an appointment to have a fun day.
With the appreciation of Tao Shu, a high-ranking official, Zuo Zongtang's fame quickly rose, and many officials even wanted to directly hire Zuo Zongtang for their own use.
However, Zuo Zongtang chose to refuse to leave the mountain in the face of a steady stream of visitors. So in the end, the famous Zuo Zongtang alarmed the first-rank official who is famous for banning smoking - Lin Zexu .
1849, when Lin Zexu was passing by Changsha, Hunan, he proposed to meet Zuo Zongtang.
However, Lin Zexu must not know that Zuo Zongtang also admires Lin Zexu for a long time!
Now, facing the sudden invitation from his idol, Zuo Zongtang was so happy that he was at a loss. That night, when the two met on the agreed boat, Zuo Zongtang was overly excited and fell off the boat.Although the scene was a little awkward and funny, it did not affect the interest of the two of them talking. Lin Zexu expressed his affirmation and even said: In the future, you, Zuo Zongtang, will be the one who can defend Xinjiang.
This famous conversation was called "Xiangjiang Night Talk". The two also reached a consensus that night, namely: resolutely counter external forces infringement against China in any form, and the plan should be implemented in specific measures, that is, "ban smoking" and "guarding Xinjiang."
However, "everything is ready, but the east wind is still not available", Zuo Zongtang still needs to wait for a suitable opportunity.
(III)
Until 1851, after the outbreak of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, the Taiping Army invaded Hunan. Hunan Governor Zhang Liangji panicked and asked for help from Zuo Zongtang after being recommended. When the family and country were in danger, Zuo Zongtang did not hesitate and immediately agreed to come out.
Zhang Liangji also heard about Zuo Zongtang's talent, so he granted the full authority of command to Zuo Zongtang.
Zuo Zongtang did not disappoint his trust. When the city gate was bombed open by the Taiping Army, Zuo Zongtang personally led his men to the front line of battle, repelled the enemy troops in the attacking city many times, and successfully defended Changsha City. After this battle, Zuo Zongtang became famous and was officially awarded the position of county magistrate by the court.
Not long after, Hunan Governor Zhang Liangji left Hunan, and the successor was Luo Bingzhang , who made contributions in the siege of Changsha. Luo Bingzhang also admired Zuo Zongtang very much, so he used all kinds of tricks and pleased Zuo Zongtang to stay and help him preside over the military and political power in Hunan. Zuo Zongtang was not polite either. After staying, he took over everything in all matters, and fully demonstrated his title of "Doctor". Not only did it solve the hidden fiscal crisis in Hunan, but it also implemented reforms to the grain tax system in Hunan. While reducing the burden on farmers, these measures also prepared sufficient military expenditure for Hunan's Hunan Army , which made great contributions.
(IV) However, when it comes to the Hunan Army, it is worth mentioning that the founder of the Hunan Army, Zeng Guofan, and Zuo Zongtang are old acquaintances. The two of them participated in the provincial examinations on the same stage and won the first and second respectively. Therefore, they have always maintained a very close relationship.
Therefore, when Zeng Guofan felt that his troops were insufficient when he was conquering the Taiping Army, he immediately thought of Zuo Zongtang. So, Zeng Guofan recommended to the court and asked his friend Zuo Zongtang to build a partial teacher to help him. After receiving the approval of the court, Zuo Zongtang immediately started to form a team called "Chu Army" and vowed to be "equal" with his predecessor Zeng Guofan. As we all know, Zeng Guofan's Hunan Army was very strict, and the "Chu Army" under Zuo Zongtang was no less, and it was soon built into an elite army with strict discipline.
Soon after, when the Taiping Army conquered the Qing government's Jiangnan Daying again, Zuo Zongtang personally led the Chu army into Jiangxi. Relying on his super high combat literacy and his own military talent, with the cooperation of other troops such as the Hunan Army, he quickly defeated the main force of the Taiping Army in Jiangxi.
Rewards on merits, Zuo Zongtang was officially promoted to "Border Chief Official" and became the highest executive in charge of local military and political power.
(Five) A few years later, the remaining troops of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom were completely wiped out.
However, although the imperial court solved the big trouble of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, peasant uprisings in various places still increased and decreased. Just as the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom was pacified, the ethnic riots in the Shaanxi-Gansu region had to be resolved. Just when Zuo Zongtang was busy quelling local riots, the Central Asian Uzbeks rush into Xinjiang, occupied most of Xinjiang, and announced the founding of the country without authorization, and Xinjiang was almost lost.
However, the real threat does not come only from Aguber, what really matters is the United Kingdom and Tsarist Russia behind him. At that time, Britain was competing for spheres of influence with Russian . They supported Aguber in private and even supported Aguber's large number of guns and ammunition. Tsarist Russia forced Agubai to surrender to him and sent troops to invade Yili, Xinjiang under the banner of "helping China to guard the territory".
At this time, Zuo Zongtang had just quelled the riot and his ambitions were not destroyed. Therefore, he wrote to the court to send troops to recover Xinjiang, but this move triggered a dispute between "coastal defense" and "guard defense" within the Qing court.
, headed by , Li Hongzhang, , believes that Xinjiang's land is deserted, and recycling will empty waste of money and grain, which will only increase the burden on the people; while the Crossing Defense faction led by Zuo Zongtang is alone, but Zuo Zongtang is determined to give in. He said:
"The two roads in the north and south of the Tianshan Mountains are rich in resources, cattle and sheep are everywhere, and horses are herds. The collection of coal, iron, gold, silver and jade is extremely rich.
The so-called thousand-mile desert is actually a basin of treasure. Moreover, Xinjiang and Mongolia are one. If Xinjiang is not protected, Mongolia will not protect it, and if Mongolia is not protected, the capital will not protect it."
, Zuo Zongtang's words made the court realize the importance of Xinjiang and immediately decided to recapture Xinjiang.
However, the Qing court had financial difficulties, so the military expenditure needed to recover Xinjiang could only barely raise 5 million taels, which was still a bit far from the actual expenditure. There was no choice but to use his money shop friend to borrow money from foreign banks, which solved the problem of military pay.
When he went to war, 64-year-old Zuo Zongtang wrote a last letter to his wife, and then sent it together.
Relying on his strong military literacy, Zuo Zongtang quickly fought and took back all the places in Xinjiang except Yili in two years.
fighter jets are improving, so Zuo Zongtang wants the court to negotiate with Tsarist Russia to withdraw troops in the form of diplomatic negotiations. However, he never thought that Chonghou, a diplomat sent by the court, a diplomat, arbitrarily divided Yili to Tsarist Russia during negotiations. This move made Zuo Zongtang very angry. He angrily scolded Chonghou: Seek peace before the battle is fought, donโt forget that the wolf enemy wants to eat all his flesh and bones!
However, the road has been completed. So Zuo Zongtang thought about it again and chose to go into battle again and use force to regain Yili.
At this time, Zuo Zongtang was already 69 years old.
On the way to the battle, Zuo Zongtang was unwell and often pleaded with hemoptysis. However, the physical illness did not make Zuo Zongtang and his army timid, but instead became more fighting spirited. He even ordered people to carry his coffin and walk with him, holding a horse-haired body-wrapping mentality to protect Xinjiang.
Finally, Tsarist Russia was defeated in the momentum of Zuo Zongtang's vow to fight to the death, surrendered and signed the "Treaty of Ili" with the Qing government, and Xinjiang finally returned to China's territory.
However, Zuo Zongtang was not idle after this.
Although he is almost in his twilight years, he clearly saw the huge military differences between the Qing court and the world's powers. Therefore, with the cooperation and leadership of Zeng Guofan, Li Hongzhang and others, they began to set up factories in various places and build water conservancy, and implemented a vigorous " Westernization Movement ", which made the long-decaying Qing government rejuvenate the hope of revival, and they were called "famous officials of Zhongxing" in history.
However, the rise and fall of a country is ultimately determined by the decision-making level, and it is not supported by the passion of a few ministers.
Therefore, this "Western Affairs Movement" that saved the national destiny began in a vigorous manner, but it was also destroyed unexpectedly.
(enterprise factory in the Westernization Movement)
(VI) Looking back at Zuo Zongtang, this man who was honest all his life and proud all his life, and was later called ", the number one tough guy in the Qing Dynasty" by later generations,
"tough guy" is not only reflected in his resistance to pressure and regaining Xinjiang, but also in all aspects of life.
For example, when Empress Dowager Cixi held a birthday party and the ministers were rushing to give gifts, Zuo Zongtang came empty-handed and was confident;
For example, when he saw a sign "Chinese and dogs are not allowed to enter" hanging on the park door in Shanghai Concession , he ordered the smashing on the spot and "tied" the British people who came to question;
... and so on.
(the "Chinese and dogs are not allowed to enter" in the concession)
If you need to use a word to describe Zuo Zongtang, I think the most appropriate thing should be "young aura".
At that time, he was young, and he had his family, country and the world in his heart, and his dreams were as good as Zhuge Liang.
When he was middle-aged, he presided over the reform and wiped out the riots. He was as firm as iron along the way;
He was in his late years, and he remained ambitious and put life and death aside in order to protect the dignity of his family and country.
Along the way, Zuo Zongtang has never forgotten the youthful ambition in his heart. Even though he is nearly 70 years old, he is still the clear boy who "he can let him be strong, and the breeze blows through the hills."
Now, Xinjiang is full of beautiful scenery, with the north and south of the Tianshan Mountains full of fruits and fruits;
Is anyone still remembering: A 70-year-old man carried a coffin to fight and defended 1.66 million square kilometers of territory for China.
