The rise and fall of eunuch power in Qing Dynasty can be divided into four stages: Shunzhi, Kangxi, Qianlong and Tongguang. Shunzhi entered the customs, followed by ouchi, and the palace was still compiled by the four divisions and six bureaus of the Ming Dynasty; In the ten years of Shunzhi, there was a "inner thirteen yamen", which was called Ming system in history. This is the resurrection of the eunuch system, presided over by eunuch Wu.
At this time, the three flags on the dragon's entry into the customs turned out to be the minister of the son of heaven. According to the truth, the housekeeper in the palace should be them, not eunuchs; Since the eunuch got the right, it will inevitably conflict with the three flags coating. So the two sides broke up in discord. In the fifteenth year of Shunzhi, Wu was arrested for "cheating and accepting bribes by officials inside and outside the traffic", but with the favor of his ancestors, Wu got nothing; On the second day of the first month of the eighteenth year, Sai-jo personally went to Fayuan Temple to see Wu Qifu. After returning, he was unprepared and died of smallpox on the seventh day of the first month. Wu's desire to become a monk is to escape into an empty net because of sin, or to become a monk on behalf of the emperor. There is no exam today.
Sai-jo collapsed and three flags were painted to fight back, especially the white flag. The so-called three flags mean yellow, yellow and white respectively. The two yellow flags were originally led by Taizong, mainly slaves, so they should be different from the next five flags; The main flag of Zhengbaiqi is Dourgen, who died childless. The white flag was painted with the three flags on it, but it was also different from the two yellow flags. The coating of Zhengbaiqi is nominally for the Queen Mother, so the selection of milk weaving is Zhengbaiqi. When the Three Banners seized power from the eunuchs, that is, the Zhengbaiqi directly appealed to the Queen Mother Xiao Zhuang, and with the support of relatives, it was able to win a great victory; Its way is to offend yourself with the tone of testamentary edict, and the substantial reform and abolition of the "inner thirteen yamen" is one of them.
The posthumous edict of Shunzhi is the most important document for the founding of the Qing Dynasty. It is of great significance that the Qing Dynasty can last for a long time. According to legend, it was rewritten by Wang Xicheng, a great scholar, at the behest of sourdrang queen, which was quite different from the last bow of ancestors. One of them is the cloud:
The ancestors started their business and never appointed a middle official. The Ming Dynasty perished because of the appointment of an official temple. I know its disadvantages, I don't think it's a warning, and I set up thirteen yamen, which is no different from Ming, so that it is one of my sins to engage in malpractices.
On February 15th, 18th year of Shunzhi, in January after the Holy Father ascended the throne, the imperial edict was officially changed to "inner thirteen yamen", and Wu beheaded was mentioned. He also mentioned a Manchuria and a traitor Wu. I don't know who this Yi Tong is, but if he can go deep into the palace, he will be a respected minister. Press: Tong Zao married Essien Joro for the Han people, and the mother of the Holy Father left Tong's home. At that time, the clansman named Tong was called "Tong" because the officials didn't know how many there were.
In the Kangxi dynasty, eunuchs were not as popular as when Shunzhi was in power, but they were still many cronies of the emperor, and their words were quite different. Liang Jiugong, Kangxi's most trusted eunuch, died in Jingshan Park for fear of sin after Yongzheng ascended the throne. For example, the descriptions in the Beijing Opera Comics and A Dream of Red Mansions show that there were quite a few eunuchs in Kang Yong. Until the Qianlong dynasty, the party was greatly reduced.
Emperor Gaozong hated eunuchs very much. I guess this is because he was born in a humble family. He was often despised by eunuchs when he was raised in the palace. The emperor's method of suppressing eunuchs was quite ingenious: he changed eunuchs to Qin, Zhao and Gao, and combined them into the word "Qin" as a warning. The eunuchs in the Ministry of Internal Affairs all changed their surnames to Wang, because Wang is the biggest surname. If someone goes to the internal affairs office to inquire about secrets and asks about "father-in-law Wang", I don't know which eunuch Wang is, so I have to return in vain.
There is also a famous story. One year, when Emperor Gaozong visited Jehol, a eunuch ran amok and was scolded by the county magistrate. At that time, it was a high-level cloud crisis, and the emperor not only did not sin, but praised it. This is particularly evident in the emperor's hatred of eunuchs.
During the jiadao period, eunuchs never dared to do anything wrong. By the end of Xianfeng, eunuchs were addicted to debauchery. Cixi staged Xinyou coup, An Dehai gradually became domineering and illegal because of secret letters, and then Ding Baozhen was demoted to Jinan, which was a big case-solving for the late Qing Dynasty. Since then, it has been quiet for about ten years. When I went to Li, I found myself very popular, and I learned a little about it. I can already see the news.
At the peak of the Ming Dynasty, there were tens of thousands of eunuchs. In his later years, Kangxi chatted with ministers about his early experiences. It is said that there were too many eunuchs in the Ming Dynasty to feed them every day. If eunuchs are sent to a secluded place, they may starve to death because they are sick and can't get up. Although there were restrictions on the number of eunuchs in the Qing dynasty, there were still about 3000 at most.
Most of these 3,000 eunuchs came from JD.COM and southern Hebei. There were Fujian eunuchs in the Ming Dynasty, only in the Qing Dynasty. Eunuchs also have grades, and the highest is the three products. In Li's mind, Cixi is the only eunuch who wears a red crown.
The eunuch leaders are called "master servant" and "master servant", but they are generally distinguished by "manager" and "leader". There are two general managers: big general manager and second general manager. Generally speaking, the queen mother, the emperor and the eunuchs in the queen's palace are all in charge, and the princess palace is only the leader. From the general manager to the eunuchs, they all call their empresses "masters" and the emperors "Long live the Lord". The first emperor added a title before the word "Lord", such as the ancestor "Lord Shunzhi" and the sage "Lord Kangxi". As for calling Empress Dowager Cixi "Lafayette", that is a special case.
Ouchi is divided into nine regions, such as Gan Qing Palace, hall of mental cultivation and Ningshou Palace. There are different places under each area, such as the "internal performance office" of Gan Qing Palace, with a total of 48 places. Each district has a general manager, who belongs to "Duling City" and is called "Jiutang General Manager". It is the highest authority of the eunuch department. In case of major events, "Duling City" will convene a meeting of the general managers of the nine halls for decision. Manager Tang Jiu's level ranges from level 3 to level 5.
There are forty-eight princes and eunuchs in forty-eight places, with grades four to nine. Of course, the dirtiest eunuchs are assigned to serve everywhere. The lowest and most bitter is the eunuch who cleans the place. The eunuch who made a mistake is often sent here as a punishment.
Eunuchs have different joys and sorrows, different jobs and different wealth, and the distance between them may exceed that of any class or industry. On the surface, there is little difference in the treatment of eunuchs. The highest is to give eight taels of silver, eight catties of rice and 1,300 pence a month. The lowest is to give two taels of silver a month, a catty and a half of rice, and earn 600 yuan. But rich eunuchs, where they have money, are like myths. The autobiography of Puyi says:
Ruan Jinshou, the second general manager I used, changed a fur robe every winter, all of which were mink eyes, claws and neck, and didn't wear anything heavy. On New Year's Day, he wore a fur-resistant all-sea dragon leather jacket, which was enough for a small official in Beijing to eat for a lifetime.
Mink skin is now called "mink"; Western ladies regard owning a mink coat as a symbol of wealth and status, while Ruan Jinshou owns dozens of mink robes. Why so rich?
Where did these people get their money? The first is collusion with the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Whenever there is a big project or a big celebration, such as building a palace, building a mausoleum or holding a wedding, we must first talk about the conditions.
For example, Ruan Jinshou, the second general manager of Puyi and later promoted to general manager, blackmailed the "office" when Puyi was married. According to Puyi's self-report:
I stipulated in advance that the number of wedding expenses should not exceed 360 thousand. According to this figure, the Ministry of Internal Affairs can distribute the actual amount to eunuchs. The quantity is small, so it was not spread here by the general manager. Everything is frozen. Kai Zhong, a card shark in the hall, personally went to Ruan Jinshou for this purpose. He begged for a long time, but Ruan Jinshou didn't agree. Finally, he made an offer according to Ruan Jinshou's price in order to get through.
Reporter: There are three points that Puyi said that need to be explained or supplemented. First, the wedding cost only 360,000 yuan, because Puyi was only "emperor behind closed doors". The official budget for the weddings of Tongguang Dynasty and Guang Guang Dynasty and the services of provincial governors totals about four or five million taels of silver. Second, the ministers of the Ministry of Internal Affairs are leaders and do not often go to the yamen; Business work, headed by "Tang Langzhong". "Tang" has the meaning of a departmental official. Third, the title of officialdom in the Qing dynasty can only be called "adult" if it is official to third class. Ruan Jinshou is not only the general manager, but also a waiter in the third grade. He is called an adult, which is unpleasant. But only "father-in-law" is a respectful name for eunuchs. There are no adults, and some eunuchs don't like the name "father-in-law", so they call it "father-in-law".
Another fixed income of eunuchs is a reward. Staff members walk around the palace, celebrate holidays, or are called to participate in celebrations, such as "sitting and listening to the opera". , must give gifts to eunuchs; If there is a reward, the size of the red envelope depends on the size of "En". Ning Feng should not be thin, especially if it comes from a special grace. Pay more attention to it. If you are dissatisfied with it, adding one or two words of gossip after returning to the palace will become a powerful slanderer. If you meet Long Fang, you will soon fall out of favor, and you will fall out of favor because of your smallness.
There are also rewards, which are really spending money to eliminate disasters. Among the punishments for ministers and officials, one is called "imperial edict". The eunuchs sent out are all quick-talking. If they are well paid and rich in red envelopes, they should read the imperial edict and get it over with. If you don't understand this trick and don't say anything, "Shenzhen" will become a painful criticism, and you can scold the ancestors of the 18 th generation.
There are many tricks for eunuchs to make money, but no matter what tricks, they can't escape the word "blackmail" in essence. Here are a few examples:
First of all, Zuo was called into the military plane and entered the pilgrimage from Lanzhou-kowtowing without a hat when summoned, and the top hat was placed right in front. If he is rewarded with a feather, the hat is turned upside down, that is, the tail of the feather is facing the imperial case. When he resigned, Zuo forgot to get his hat back, and the eunuch sent it back to the virtuous hall and pavilion to reward him with 20 thousand silver, otherwise he would be blamed on the official and corrected. Zuo had no choice but to accept his blackmail.
Second, Cixi lived a long time, and a minister from Xinjiang presented a rare play, plus a mahogany-based glass cover; As usual, all these tributes should have a rich "door bag". However, the officials sent by the Xinjiang minister were not very expert and did not do enough, so the eunuchs collapsed: when the tribute was carried into the palace, the officials retreated outside the temple and were called in again, pointing out that the glass was cracked and would break at any time, making it inconvenient to present it. The police officer was in a hurry and didn't know what to do. The eunuch expressed sympathy and said that he could change a glass cover for him, but he had to pay two thousand pieces of silver. The police officer had to send back a telegram and remit money to solve the matter. In fact, the so-called crack is just a eunuch stuffing a hair in the glass cover.
Third, Xu Shi's father, Chong Lun, served as commander-in-chief of the imperial army for a long time. Gengzi was one of the red men in front of Cixi. When he was home secretary, he offended an outstanding eunuch. Once he was called into the palace, passed a temple, spilled a basin of face washing water in the room, and got all his robes and clothes wet. The eunuch hurried out to confess. Chonglun knows their tricks. Now is not the time to lose your temper. He just asked, "The Queen Mother is waiting, and she is soaked to the skin. How can I get in? " The eunuch took out a robe and said good things while complaining. Chonglun spent a lot of money to change into clean royal clothes and go to see Cixi.
There are countless such stories. What if you ask: what if you are not blackmailed? There is also Zhang's story, which can explain everything. Before the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895, Zhang was appointed as the special envoy for the coronation ceremony of Queen Victoria of England. On his way home, he bought an emerald and a red gem ring and presented them to the two palaces. The value of the former is really too much, especially to commemorate Cixi. I didn't expect that Li didn't get what he wanted, because he made Cixi hate Zhang, which had something to do with his later fatal disaster.
It is said that Li said to him, "It is hard for him to remember so clearly! Is it really that we don't deserve red? " Cixi's color changed at that time-it turned out that her lifelong hatred was not in the palace. The two palaces listen to politics, and the public evaluation is that the East Palace has virtue and the West Palace has talent; When the military plane appealed for a ruling, the decision made by Cixi was obviously unshakable, but it was only by asking Ci 'an that it could count. This is a great stimulus to Cixi, so anything that has the distinction of common customs is a great taboo.
In fact, the old customs in Manchuria do not take the distinction between local people and ordinary people seriously, because their identities are basically the same. In the female manuscript, who "refers to the marriage" of the prince and who becomes the "princess" in the palace depends on luck. There were many concubines and concubines in the Qing Dynasty, and it was common that the younger sister was taller than the older one. Even if the aunt of Atrous, the queen of Mu Zong, was chosen as a concubine, it would be inconceivable for the Han people to pay homage to their nieces in the palace, but it was not surprising for the Qing Dynasty.
However, the degree of sinicization in the late Qing Dynasty was very deep, so Cixi's concept of modesty belonged to the Han people, not the standard bearer. The official residence of Han people is not only different in status, but also different in origin. Ci 'an's father works in Youjiang Road, Guangxi, and Cixi's father, Cheng Wai, is a passer-by from Guang Tai, Anhui, with the same birth. On talent and knowledge, kindness is not as good as kindness; And have children, so that the emperor's blood is boiling. In any way, the queen should be her, not Ci 'an, but it just happened to be upside down. This is why Cixi is regarded as a great shame and an irreparable hatred.
Li used this taboo to slander Zhang, which was a very vicious move. Because of Zhang's consistent sympathy and close relationship with Weng Tonghe, he was recognized as the "imperial party". After the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895, Li Hongzhang lost power, Weng Tonghe made friends with Zhang, and the two major policies of financial westernization were firmly grasped by Weng and Zhang. Zhang's "imperial party" color was also stronger, and the "post-party" regarded it as a thorn in the side. It happened that Zhang didn't care; 1898 Before the coup, the German prince visited China, and all the reception and reception ceremonies were arranged by Zhang, leaving almost no room for Weng Tonghe. Among them, such as Dezong's demotion to shake hands with Henry and waiting in the temple, it has been regarded as a big violation by conservatives; When the state banquet uses his personal chef to cook western food, it will dig out the roots of the internal affairs office! Therefore, through Li's relationship, he told Cixi that Zhang "taught the emperor badly". Looking back on the past, Cixi thought that it was deliberate contempt to offer jewelry with blue color as a symbol of concubine. So in the coup of 1898, Zhang was also listed as the culprit.
Dr. Chen Cunren, a doctor in China, is an expert on the physiological problems of eunuchs. He not only studied well, but also collected a lot of materials and pictures. Dr. Chen's article about eunuchs was serialized in Dacheng magazine. Interested readers may wish to refer to it. Here, I want to talk about the psychological abnormality of eunuchs caused by physiological abnormality.
Eunuch's abnormal psychology is roughly composed of three emotions: the first is inferiority complex, which is caused by physical defects and is not difficult to understand; Second, the lack of heart, because "people's great desires" can never be satisfied, so constantly being in a state of loss, insatiable greed for material things, schadenfreude and exaggeration is the reflection of this lack of heart. The third kind can only be summarized by one word "Yin", which is feminine, yin-damaged and insidious, and is formed by physiological female hormones and humble eunuch status.
The eunuch's "lewdness", such as Li's injury to Zhang, is an example. As the saying goes, "an open gun is easier to hide than an open enemy, and an open enemy is more difficult to prevent." Eunuchs use this kind of "yin" tactics, which is extremely terrible. Puyi often suffers from the secret loss of eunuchs. I might as well point it out. He said in his autobiography:
Once I ate six spring cakes in a row and was found by a foreman eunuch. He was afraid that I would be supported by spring cakes, so he came up with a whimsical way to help digestion: he asked two eunuchs to wrap my arms around me and beat me on the brick floor like a rammer. Later, they were very satisfied and said that I didn't ask the spring cake to stick to it because of the treatment.
It is difficult to judge whether this is out of ignorance or intention; But the following example is obviously a deliberate "prank":
This may be considered unreasonable, but there is something even more unreasonable. Before I was eight or nine years old, whenever I was impatient, angry or tortured, my generals and eunuchs Zhang Qian and Ruan Jinsheng would make such a diagnosis and treatment: "Long live the fire in my heart, sing the fire of losing!" With that, he pushed me into a small room and plugged the door backwards. I was in solitary confinement, and no matter how I shouted, kicked the door, begged and cried, no one paid any attention to me. I was not released until I cried enough, in their words, "I finished singing" and "I lost my fire".
For a child, this is a cruel punishment, but in order to "get burned", as a treatment, eunuchs can give it to "Long live the Lord". Please see if "Yin" is terrible.