Xiao Zhuang is beautiful in nature, persistent in nature, fond of reading, smart and resourceful. When Huang Taiji was in power, she was the right-hand man. "The more years you spend sponsoring internal affairs," and "Taizong Wen helped build Peiji." He assisted Huang Taiji in inheriting Nurhachi's achievements, continued to unify the ministries of Jurchen, and constantly used troops against North Korea and the Ming Dynasty, which stabilized Huang Taiji's dominant position and laid the foundation for entering the customs. In the eighth year of Chongde (1643), Huang Taiji died of sudden illness before establishing an heir. At that time, Xiaozhuangfang was 32 years old. In the face of the complicated struggle situation of "Wang brothers fighting for chaos and spying on artifacts", she took her time, exerted her strategy and won the support of all parties. Finally, her son Fu Lin succeeded to the throne. When Fu Lin came to Beijing to be called the emperor shunzhi, she fully supported the governance of the country. In the eighteenth year of Shunzhi (166 1), the emperor shunzhi died of illness and was succeeded by Michelle Ye. She carefully cultivated Michelle Ye, formulated a general plan for governing the country for him, and guided various government affairs, and finally made Kangxi a very successful monarch in the history of China.
By September of the 26th year of Kangxi, Xiaozhuang, who had worked hard all his life, died of illness at the age of 75. In the political life of half a century, from the period of Emperor Taizong, to the period of the emperor shunzhi's rule, and then to the early Kangxi Dynasty, Xiao Zhuang was a respected historical figure in the whole Qing ruling group. She devoted a lot of efforts and made important contributions to the establishment and development of the Qing Dynasty, and was worthy of being an outstanding woman who experienced three dynasties in the early Qing Dynasty.
Assist Shunzhi in succession and lead his own affairs in many difficulties. As mentioned above, when Huang Taiji died suddenly in 1643, there was a fierce battle for the throne among the nobles of the Manchu Dynasty because the heir to the throne was not established. At that time, the most powerful and influential Prince Dourgen of Switzerland and Prince Haug of Su both had the desire to seize the throne, and they were evenly matched. If it is not properly solved, Manchu may be torn apart. Therefore, Xiao Zhuang, with the support of the filial piety queen, used the power struggle between Dourgen and Haug to skillfully negotiate and persuade, which made Dourgen and Haug weak and difficult to convince the public. The two sides had to reach a compromise, proposing that Huang Taiji's nine sons and six-year-old Fu Lin should inherit the throne, and agreed that the Eight Banners should be controlled by Dourgen and Zheng Qinwang Girallang. This compromise not only inherited Fu Lin's throne, but also avoided the division of the Qing regime due to civil strife, which was a crucial move for the Qing dynasty on the eve of its entry into GATT.
In May of the first year of Shunzhi (1June 644), Dourgen led the Qing army into Beijing. In September of the same year, Xiao Zhuang entered Beijing with Shunzhi, and Fu Lin made Beijing its capital as the founding emperor of the Qing Dynasty. However, due to his outstanding military exploits and growing influence, Dourgen ignored the young Shunzhi, blatantly monopolized the power, attacked him in groups, rejected dissidents and sought to ascend the throne, which constantly threatened Shunzhi's position. To this end, Xiao Zhuang used strategy to win and control Dourgen's carrot and stick. On the one hand, he managed to make him devote himself to the great cause of Yu Daqing's reunification and serve the rule of the emperor shunzhi. He was successively named Regent, the Regent of his uncle and the Regent of his father, which made him occupy a high position and satisfy his selfish desires. On the other hand, he tried his best to curb the expansion of his ambition, and used various forces to prevent his ambition from succeeding. It was not until the seventh year of Shunzhi (1650) that Dourgen died of illness that the emperor shunzhi began to take power.
When Shunzhi led the government, he was still a teenager of thirteen or fourteen. Xiaozhuang is not only his mother, but also his powerful protector and mentor, trying his best to help the government. In order to eliminate the residual forces and various anti-Qing forces as soon as possible, she tried every means to win over a group of powerful upper-class forces of the Han nationality, trying to make Kong Youde, Wu Sangui and Geng who had surrendered to the Qing Dynasty submit to the Qing Dynasty and become Wang Jinjue. Kong Sizhen, the daughter of Kong Youde, the king of Pingnan, was also adopted as a daughter by the monarch, and she was in the Education Palace. He also married the daughters of Huang Taiji and Princess Heshuo to Wu Xiongying, the son of Wu Sangui, the then King of Yue, through marriage, who was both kept in a cage and controlled. In addition, due to the long-term war in the early Qing Dynasty, social production was seriously damaged, a large number of victims were displaced, and the society was extremely unstable. To this end, Xiao Zhuang advocated thrift in the palace many times and used the surplus money in the palace to help the victims many times. This is not only conducive to easing social contradictions and maintaining social stability, but also conducive to stabilizing Shunzhi's dominant position. The social contradictions in the early Qing dynasty were complicated, including the sharp contradictions of Manchu and Han nationalities and the conflicts of rights and interests balance within Manchu. In such a complicated and contradictory situation, the Qing Dynasty was able to quickly realize the rule of the whole country for many reasons, and Xiao Zhuang's assistance to Shunzhi was indispensable.
What needs to be explained here is that there are some contradictions and barriers between Xiaozhuang and Shunzhi. Xiaozhuang, as a Manchu aristocratic woman rising in the northeast corner, has a strong national concept different from that of Manchu and Han, and always hopes to maintain the old customs and systems of Manchu more. Taking advantage of the tradition of marriage between Manchu and Mongolian, she chose many Mongolian concubines for Shunzhi's harem and made her niece and granddaughter the queen of Shunzhi. However, as a new generation of Manchu aristocrats, Shunzhi advocates Chinese culture more, and he is also an emotional middleman. He struggled for the autonomy of marriage. He doesn't like the queen Xiaozhuang chose for her, but he only loves his favorite Dong Eshi. It is a pity that Dong Eshi died young, which caused Shunzhi, who suffered a heavy emotional blow, to be disheartened and unwilling to run a state, and to convert to Buddhism with all his heart. All these make Xiaozhuang extremely disappointed and unhappy. In the eighteenth year of Shunzhi (166 1), Shunzhi was depressed and died of smallpox. In great grief, Xiao Zhuang turned all his thoughts and energies to Michelle Ye, the new heir to the throne.
After careful training and assisting Kangxi to succeed in governing the country, Shunzhi died. Under the auspices of Xiao Zhuang, Michelle Ye, who was only eight years old, was declared emperor Kangxi. Kangxi lost his biological mother at the age of ten just after the mourning of his father. Xiaozhuang loves his grandson Michelle Ye very much. Seeing that he lost his parents, he took care of him more and took up the responsibility of raising him without hesitation. As Michelle Ye recalled in the future: "When I was a toddler, I was taught by my holy grandmother that everything I ate, moved and said was elegant." Even if you live in peace and loneliness, how can you teach? If you dare to cross the line, at least you must be supervised, and you will succeed by relying on grams "(see the second episode of the imperial edict of Qing sages). It can be seen that Xiao Zhuang took care of Michelle Ye's diet, daily life, words and deeds in every possible way, and was very strict, and cultivated this grandson in full accordance with the emperor's standards. In order to make Michelle Ye receive Manchu culture education since childhood, she instructed Sue malagu, the maid she relied on, to take care of Michelle Ye's life and taught him to speak and write Manchu. At the same time, let him into the study room, and invite famous teachers to read the Confucian Four Books and Five Classics, saying, "Never dare to deceive yourself", thus forming a deep foundation of China traditional culture. While studying Manchu-Han culture, Xiao Zhuang also instilled the idea that "the ancestors started riding and shooting, and the armed forces should not be rushed", so that the riding and shooting skills of Michelle Ye, the head coach of the Guards, were taught every day, just like reading and writing, and finally Michelle Ye was proficient in archery and archery, and deeply understood that "it is advisable to think about one's ancestors, take martial arts as the priority, and not give lectures for one day", and worked hard to learn Wen Tao and martial arts.
Because Kangxi succeeded to the throne at a young age, he was assisted by four ministers: Sony, Suksaha, Kubilon and Ao Bai. Xiao Zhuang also taught Michelle Ye to participate in the discussion of state affairs, learn from the ruling experience, and often instilled in Michelle Ye the idea of "winning by many", demanding that Michelle Ye be "generous, kind and respectful" and always be cautious and diligent in state affairs, so as to consolidate the inheritance left by his grandfather and father and gradually make Michelle Ye mature politically. Because Ao Bai, one of the four ministers of Fuzheng, was stubborn and dogmatic, he tried to play politics without authorization. Kangxi was obviously dissatisfied. Finally, in the eighth year of Kangxi, Ao Bai was outsmarted, ending the period of Fuzheng, and Kangxi officially took power.
After Kangxi ascended the throne, Xiaozhuang was still often consulted for military affairs, as the biography of the Empress Dowager Xiao Zhuang said: "The Empress Dowager did not pre-treat, and the court began to complain a lot." Therefore, before his death, Xiao Zhuang participated in the planning and decision-making of many major events in the early years of Kangxi. For example, in the 14th year of Kangxi (1675), the San Francisco Rebellion and Bourny of Chahar, Mongolia, took the opportunity to rebel, which seriously threatened the security of the capital. Kangxi was very worried. Xiao Zhuang timely recommended to Kangxi that "Tu Hai is outstanding in talent, which is only allowed". Kangxi immediately wrote a letter to Tu Hai, and led the troops to quell the rebellion in Bourny and turn the corner.
In his later years, Kangxi fondly recalled: "I lost my father when I was young, and I have been teaching my grandmother for more than 30 years, which made me." Without grandma, it would never have been established today. "Kangxi also infatuated with his grandmother. He goes to Xiaozhuang for instructions and greetings almost every day. When Xiaozhuang was seriously ill, Kangxi served carefully and accompanied him day and night. After Xiaozhuang died, Kangxi almost fell into pain. Kangxi became a feudal monarch because of Xiao Zhuang's careful cultivation and assistance.
About "The Empress Dowager Marries"
In the TV series "The Secret History of Xiaozhuang" and some anecdotes of the Qing court, unofficial history's Romance and note novels, historical mysteries vividly describe the legend that the Queen Mother married Dourgen, but is this really the case in history? It should be said that this is a historical mystery with various lawsuits. Today, there are still some people who are sure, and there are still some people who doubt.
The theory of the Queen Mother's marrying first attracted the attention of historians. One of the ten poems "Poetry of Building a Palace" written by Zhang Huangyan, a adherent of the Ming Dynasty, says, "It's a good idea to marry in life." ? Honey, Cining Palace is full of rotten doors. Yesterday, there was a new note in the erotic palace. It was very kind of you to marry the queen mother. The word "Zhang Huangyan" was written in the seventh year of Shunzhi, which seems well-founded. Besides, Dourgen has been called "the Regent of the Emperor's Father" in the fifth year of Shunzhi, and Cining Palace is also the living room of sourdrang dowager. Said the wedding was held in Cining Palace, obviously referring to the fact that Empress Xiao Zhuang married Dourgen. There are other arguments in favor of the empress dowager's marriage: First, Dourgen was honored as the "Regent of the Emperor Tai Shang", which was related to the empress dowager's marriage; Secondly, according to Jiang's "Donghua Record", among the charges against Dourgen, there are not only those who call themselves "the regent of the emperor's father", but also those who "kiss the inner court of the palace", which seems to imply that Dourgen forced the queen mother to marry him; Third, Xiao Zhuang's will Kangxi should not be buried with Huang Taiji. Are you hiding something because you married Dourgen? Fourth, Manchu, as a minority in the north, is known as the old custom that brothers are always brothers and sisters, and brothers should marry their brothers and sisters. Even if they get married, it is not unethical.
Meng Sen, a master of Qing history of the older generation, has already written Textual Research on the Empress Dowager, which refutes all kinds of grounds of the theory of marrying the Empress Dowager. Meng Sen thought that Zhang Huangyan was a minister of the Ming Dynasty, and he was hostile to the Qing Dynasty, so his poems were inevitably defamatory. In addition, Shunzhi called Duoer Zhou "the regent of the emperor's father", suggesting that the ancient monarch of China called the old minister "Guan Zhong" and "respecting the father", which is not sufficient. As for the so-called "palace courtyard", it is not necessarily the Queen Mother Xiao Zhuang who suspects that Dourgen has another disorderly palace. Moreover, Xiaozhuang doesn't want to be buried with Huang Taiji, because Zhaoling has been buried with a filial queen, and the second queen has not been buried with her husband. There are many examples in ancient times.
However, Mr. Meng Sen's theory is not conclusive. After reading Meng Sen's Marriage of the Empress Dowager, Mr. Hu Shi once criticized the book, arguing that Mongolian "failed to explain the title of the emperor's father" and "seems unable to take the title of the emperor's father as an example of Guanzhong and Fu Shang". Since then, whether before 1949 or after the founding of New China, scholars have constantly expressed their positive views on the theory of "the empress dowager married", but they have not put forward more conclusive evidence.
In view of the above situation, the author thinks that the theory of "the queen mother marries" can still be regarded as a historical mystery. However, whether this statement can be established or not will not affect Xiaozhuangwen's historical position as a generation of outstanding women.