Mr. Yang Naiji, a contemporary scholar, wrote circumstantial evidence that Yong Zhengdi died of Dan medicine poisoning through the first-hand materials such as "Do Your Duty to Clear the File" collected by the Qing Dynasty Interior Office in the First Historical Archives of China. Mr. Jin Hengyuan (the seventh generation grandson of Yin Zhen, the 14th son of Kangxi, mainly engaged in the study of Qing history) thinks that Mr. Yang Naiji's exposition is objective and credible.
Yongzheng is a good Buddha. He worshipped Taoism when he was young. After becoming emperor, he was very busy seeking immortals to visit Taoism and seek immortality. He not only invited Taoist priests into the palace, but also hoped that the palace where he lived could imitate the famous Buddhist temple and Taoist immortal view, including the surrounding environment, so as to facilitate imitation. It can be seen that he is almost obsessed with Taoist immortal theory.
According to historical records, there was "seven holes bleeding" in Yongzheng. Seven-hole bleeding is a serious reflection of poisoning. Yongzheng took pills refined by Taoist priests and the so-called "elixir of life" for a long time. These pills contain high content of mercury, lead, cinnabar and other minerals, and they are all calcined at high temperature and very hot. After Yun Xiang's brother died, it was reasonable for Yongzheng to take Dan medicine in greater doses in order to live forever.
Before Qianlong officially ascended the throne, he had issued a decree to expel the Taoist priests in the palace. It can be seen that the death of Yongzheng is closely related to Taoist priests. Because Ganlong knew the harm of erysipelas, he would immediately expel the Taoist priest from the palace above many state affairs.
Extended data
Yongzheng's death has a lot to do with his years of hard work and physical overdraft. It has a lot to do with his long-term restlessness, sleepless nights, inattention and fear of retribution; It is also related to his long-term continuous use of Dan medicine and the accumulation of a large number of poisons in his body;
In his later years, in order to live longer, he took more pills and even took aphrodisiacs indiscriminately, which was the direct cause of his sudden death. It is not necessarily comprehensive to attribute the death of Yongzheng to "exhausted work". The story of Lv Siniang's revenge and Yongzheng's beheading is purely folk imagination. There is no reliable evidence and it is not a historical fact.
People's Daily Online-Did Yongzheng really die suddenly in Yuanmingyuan? Reveal the truth about Yong Zhengdi's death.