After the Revolution of 1911, Puyi abdicated and the Qing court was destroyed, which marked the end of the feudal dynasty era in China. But this does not mean that the feudal ideas rooted in people's hearts have also disappeared. Yuan Shikai, who wanted to be emperor, built a "Chinese Empire"; Zhang Xun, the "braided commander" who was loyal to the Qing court, later supported Puyi's restoration and became emperor for 12 days. The results are self-evident. Things that go against the trend of the times are not to be done after all. Although the results are all failures, the two protagonists have completely different reviews. After becoming emperor, the former was scolded by the whole country and soon died in depression; although the latter failed in restoration, he was praised by "loyalty".
What kind of person is Zhang Xun? The last loyal minister of the Qing Dynasty.
Zhang Xun was sent to Guangxi to participate in the Sino-French War after joining the army in Changsha in his early years. He was promoted by leapfrog because of his fierce fighting. During the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895, he was transferred to Fengtian with the army and also went to the Korean front. Before being assigned to the small station to train with Yuan Shikai, he had already been promoted to the position of imperial guard.
During the Wuchang Uprising, Zhang Xun served as the guard of Nanjing. Facing the fierce attack of the revolutionary army, he completely ignored the dissuasion of "leader" Tie Liang and insisted on fighting the revolutionary army. Especially in Tianbao City and Yuhuatai, the two sides fought many battles. So that on the day when Hanyang fell, the Nanjing guarded by Zhang Xun was still in the hands of the Qing army. Unfortunately, he did not belong to the Beiyang family and could not get any support. After his power was exhausted, Nanjing had only fallen.
After Puyi abdicated, Zhang Xun, in order to show his loyalty to the Qing court, he and his subordinates all kept the braids. At that time, people called him "braided handsome" and his army was called "braided army".
What kind of person is Zhang Xun? Although he has not received a complete modern education, he is a talent who keeps pace with the times.
When Zhang Xun fortified Nanjing, he mainly fortified Yuhuatai and Tianbao City. Yuhuatai is the gateway to Nanjing. It has always been the case that as long as the Yuhuatai is taken, Nanjing can be taken. However, many people do not understand the fortification of Tianbao City. Later, they discovered that if you follow the traditional art of war to fight Nanjing, Tianbao City is not very important, but with railways and highways, it is different. Without controlling Tianbao City, all transportation routes will be exposed. Under the firepower control of both sides, Zhang Xun is a general who keeps pace with the times and understands the characteristics of modern warfare.
In addition, Zhang Xun and Zhang Zongchang are very similar in fighting. Both have no formal military education, but they will have an innate inspiration when fighting. When he fortified Tianbao City, he often used trains to transport troops. When he retreated from Nanjing, he took away all the trains on the line. Nanjing is a very good transportation hub, but the revolutionary army can only see and cannot use it. Zhang Xun is very forward-looking.
Zhang Xun was used as a tool by Duan Qirui and others during the restoration of the Braid Army. Although he has his own ideas, his strength is too weak to control the situation. At that time, Qi Rui organized the rebel army to attack Zhang Xun. In order to put pressure on him, he sent two planes to bomb the palace. The people in the palace were panicked when they heard the bombing of the plane, and didn't know what to do. Finally, they ran to the Qianqing Palace with Puyi. Because this is the place to sleep, they think that the place to sleep is always the safest place.
In 1923, Zhang Xun died of illness in Tianjin, and Puyi bestowed the posthumous title of "Zhongwu". The end of Zhang Xun is the end of Chinese classical traditional officials. Since then, there have been few loyal ministers in China.
