Emperor Guangxu (1827- 1908) was the ninth emperor after entering the Qing Dynasty. His last name is Aisinggioro, and his first name is Zai Tian. He is the second son of Yi Xuan, the seventh son of Daoguang Emperor, and his mother is the sister of Cixi. He is the cousin of the Tongzhi emperor. On the fifth day of December in the 13th year of Tongzhi (1874), the Tongzhi emperor Zai Chun died, and Cixi, who was about to lose the authority to manipulate the Qing Dynasty, did the same thing and chose Zai Tian as the emperor.
In the 11th year of Xianfeng in Qing Dynasty (186 1), on July 17th, Emperor Xianfeng collapsed in Jehol Palace, and Zai Chun, the eldest son of the Sixth Emperor, was appointed to the throne, and he sent Prince Yi, Zheng Qinwang Duanhua, an imperial envoy Jing Shou, a co-organizer of the university students, a military affairs minister, a ministry of war minister, an official department to wait on Lang Kuangyuan and does not. At the same time, he skillfully passed the personal seals "Imperial Reward" and "Tong Ren Tang" as symbols of imperial power to the queen and son to prevent the assistant minister from usurping power. Zai Chun was young, and her mother Yi Guifei became the Empress Dowager, occupying one of the symbols of imperial power. Therefore, from the beginning, the Empress Dowager and the Minister Gu Ming clashed. During the funeral of Emperor Wenzong of the Qing Dynasty, the Empress Dowager and the Game? Launch a coup, get rid of Su Shun and eight other ministers. 126, Prince Gong, together with the university students, ministers John, Zhan, Ke and Dao of the Sixth and Ninth Departments, met the Queen Mother personally in charge of major affairs and fixed the power of the Queen Mother with hanging articles of association. So that the Empress Dowager of the two palaces actually took all the power of the emperor. On the first day of November, a hearing ceremony was held in hall of mental cultivation, so the system of "nursing students" became a "hanging curtain" system, which opened the era of tongzhi when the Empress Dowager of the two palaces listened to politics.
On the fifth day of December in the 13th year of Guangxu (1874), Tongzhi died, leaving no children. Who is the emperor? The Queen Mother of the Imperial Palace presided over a meeting of the king, and the ministers attending the meeting commented in succession and expressed their opinions. In fact, Cixi had an idea. When she saw that her ministers couldn't come up with a specific candidate, she suggested that Zai Tian, the son of Yiyou, be the emperor, and those knowledgeable ministers would do whatever they wanted. In this way, the Guangxu dynasty began.
Why didn't Empress Dowager Cixi choose others, and chose Zai Tian to inherit the throne?
According to the traditional view, Cixi chose Zai Tian as the emperor, mainly because Zai Tian was young, and the Empress Dowager could continue to listen to politics, and the overall situation remained unchanged. The Tongzhi Emperor Zai Chun died, and Cixi, who was about to lose the power to manipulate the Qing Dynasty, did the same thing again. In order not to be the Empress Dowager, she took care of herself, so it was better to choose a contemporary young emperor. Because I gave Emperor Xianfeng an heir, I can still listen to politics and retain my existing power. Therefore, Zai Tian, who was only four years old and had no experience, was admitted to the Forbidden City Palace from the Alcohol Palace in Taiping Lake, and officially announced that Zai Tian had succeeded to the throne and changed to Guangxu, which meant that he had the mood of being the first emperor. All this was done on the day of Tongzhi's death. This lightning speed reflects the power and desire of Empress Dowager Cixi and the complexity of its means. Zai Tian became another political tool of Cixi and was promoted to the throne of the emperor. Of course, researchers also admit that Zai Chun is the son of his sister and is related to Cixi, which is also one of the important factors.
In addition to the above traditional views, many people think that Zai Tian is not her nephew and nephew, but her own son. There are many stories and different legends about Zai Tian's life on the streets of Beijing.
The first legend holds that Zai Tian is the son of Empress Dowager Cixi and eunuch An Dehai. Rumor has it that eunuch An Dehai had a fake operation before he entered the palace, but he was not a real eunuch. After entering the palace, An Dehai was good at flattery, especially pleasing Cixi. When there was a coup in mind, he made great contributions. Therefore, Cixi was very kind to him and obeyed him. When Emperor Xianfeng died, Cixi was only in her twenties. She became a widow at a young age, and the young woman in her prime could not stop the turbulent Chun Qing. An Dehai is good at reading people's minds. If you know what Cixi wants, tell Cixi that she is false eunuch. Hearing this, Empress Dowager Cixi was very happy, and the two became close friends and lived together. Although they are very secretive, there is no windtight wall in the world, and the story of Cixi and Andehai soon spread in the palace. When Emperor Tongzhi and Empress Dowager Ci 'an found out, they hated An Dehai's guts. Cian also found it difficult to deal with the accident for a long time, so he joined hands with Emperor Tongzhi to get rid of An Dehai. Because of the special relationship between An Dehai and Empress Dowager Cixi, she didn't take anyone seriously and ran amok. So from the emperor to the minister, everyone wants to get rid of it.
Soon, An Dehai urged Cixi to send him to Jiangnan to purchase dragon clothes and travel as a layman. I don't want to. It was stipulated in the Qing dynasty that eunuchs were not allowed to leave the palace, otherwise they would be killed without forgiveness. An Dehai arrived in Shandong, where he was captured and beheaded by Ding Baozhen, the governor of Shandong Province, who was holding the imperial edicts of the Empress Ci 'an and the Emperor Tongzhi. Empress Dowager Cixi was very angry when she heard the news, which angered Queen Cian. There was a thorn in Ci 'an's words, and she said, "Sister, know in your heart that this is for her own good. The ancestral system stipulates that eunuchs are not allowed to leave the palace, and criminals are killed without forgiveness! " When Cixi saw it, the handle was caught, and the consequences were unimaginable, so she had to bear the pain and take a long-term view. Before long, Cixi knew that she was pregnant with An Dehai's child, but she didn't dare to make public. She endured until the baby was born and gave it to her sister.
However, this legend is not without flaws. An Dehai was executed in the eighth year of Tongzhi (1869), while Emperor Zai Tian of Guangxu was born in August in the tenth year of Tongzhi (187 1). It is impossible for Cixi to have a baby after 25 months of pregnancy. Some people say that since there is this legend, we can't imagine it completely according to common sense: (1) Is Andehai false eunuch after all? It should be clear that Ding Baozhen killed An Dehai in order to identify himself; (2) Cixi is used to cheating. She can give her children to her sister to raise. There is no doubt that she can also cheat on her child's birthday. It's hard to say whether it's true or not. But one thing is clear, and that is how to say that Zai Tian, Emperor Guangxu, and Cixi are related by blood.
According to the second legend, Empress Dowager Cixi especially likes to eat "lying eggs", and she eats four soups of lying eggs every morning. The lying eggs in Jinhua Hotel in Beijing are the most famous. Cixi once ordered someone to buy it at Jinhua Hotel, and it really deserved its reputation. They are tender and delicious. She told Li to make it for her at Jinhua Hotel every day. The next morning, the waiter of Jinhua Hotel delivered the suitcase to the palace gate, and then Li gave it to Empress Dowager Cixi for food. After a long time, Li Rang asked the hotel waiter to send the lying eggs directly to the kitchen of the palace. Legend has it that one day, Empress Dowager Cixi got up early and was walking in the palace accompanied by Li when she suddenly saw a young man coming in a hurry with a lunch box. Cixi asked Li, "Who is he?" Li replied: "He is a young man from Jinhua Hotel, named Shi, who comes to deliver fruit to Lafayette every day." . Cixi asked the young man to approach, looked at him carefully, and saw that he was in his twenties and was clean in vain. Although he is dressed as a man, he can't hide his beauty. Cixi immediately fell in love with this handsome young man and ordered him to wait on breakfast. The young man was also very forthcoming, and he did things simply and quickly. Empress Dowager Cixi was very happy and was left in the palace to wait on the Empress Dowager. Sleeping eggs were given to other boys by Jinhua Hotel. As a result, Cixi was pregnant with the boy's child. After the child was born, although the Western Empress Dowager could not bear the separation of flesh and blood, as the Empress Dowager, her power would be threatened, so she gave the child to her sister, Prince Fujin, for support. This child is Zai Tian, the later Emperor Guangxu. After the child was sent away, Cixi was tired of the stone, so she ordered someone to kill the child in the palace.
Like the first legend, this legend has many unconvincing points according to common sense: first, the meals of the queen mother, emperor and empresses are fixed and cannot be customized outside. Even if it is customized, it must be supervised by the little eunuchs. How could it be from a hotel waiter? Second, Cixi lived in the inner court of the imperial court, and there were many maids and eunuchs who served her. She has to appear in court every day. If she is pregnant and has a baby, how can she lie to so many people? So this legend is not credible. But, on the other hand, the rules are made by people. If people don't realize their ideals, anything can happen.
Compared with traditional stories, these two legends are less convincing, and how Cixi chose Zai Tian to ascend to the throne still needs further academic research.