Chapter 12 The second section "Golden Age" martial arts (

On the morning of October 23rd in the twenty-fourth year of Qianlong (1759), a tall and thin post-horse passed through Xibian Gate and headed straight for Daqing Gate like lightning. What the stagecoach sent was the good news of Fu De, the right deputy general of Dingbian thousands of miles away.He reported to the emperor that all rebellions in the north and south of the Tianshan Mountains had been completely put down.This untamed land has been trampled by the army four times in a row, and finally it has been subdued, and no longer has any differences. This victory is a happy ending of the 70 years of hard work of three generations of emperors starting from the 35th year of Kangxi (1696).The north and south of the Tianshan Mountains and the area around Lake Balkhash have since entered the territory of the Qing Dynasty and are called Xinjiang.The will of the two dynasties was finally fulfilled, and the biggest heart disease of the Qing Dynasty was completely eradicated.When the news came, the forty-nine-year-old Qianlong was filled with sorrow and joy.He immediately paid homage to Jingling and Tailing, and reported the good news to Kangxi and Yongzheng.Looking at the sword left by Emperor Yongzheng, he couldn't help feeling sad, and wept bitterly, because he wrote a poem: "The cemetery is distinguished by the bright peaks and trees, and the crown and sword are kept in the Song Palace. Dare to say that the ambition will become a salt lake, and Yiyun Gong Dingjing Huamen. Fanzi traveled thousands of miles to Xuanwu, and the total lotus was silently blessed by nine heavens. Twenty-five years are like a flash, and the memories of Dinghu are unspeakable."

This victory did not come easily. The incident began in the eighteenth year of Qianlong (1753). In October of this year, an urgent document of six hundred miles was sent to the Qing court from Uliasutai, Mongolia (now the capital of Zabkhan Province in the Mongolian People's Republic).General Cheng Gun Zhabu reported in the memorial that the three small leaders of the Junggar Khanate, Taiji Cheling, Cheling Ubashi, and Cheling Mengke (known as Sancheling in history) led 3,000 Mongolian households, 10,000 With a large population, he announced his separation from the Junggar Khanate and defected to the Qing Dynasty to seek asylum.They left the Irtysh River pasture where they had lived for generations, braved the bitter cold wind, drove cattle and sheep, and brought their children with them. After a long journey of more than ten days, they arrived at the Uliasutai area.

The general said in his report that the Junggar Khanate had been an enemy of the Qing Dynasty for a long time. These people claimed to defect to the Qing Dynasty. I don’t know if they really attached themselves or were they a trick of the Junggar people?He asked the emperor, what attitude should he take towards these people? After receiving this memorial, a smile appeared on the corner of Qianlong's mouth.He wasn't surprised that San Che Ling defected.Since the tenth year of Qianlong (1745), he has received information many times that the Junggar Khanate is in civil strife.The inclusion of more than 10,000 people this time further proves the accuracy of these news.

For generations, the Junggar Khanate has been the greatest threat to the Qing Kingdom. Junggar Mongolia is an ancient Mongolian tribe that has lived in today's Xinjiang and Qinghai for a long time.The Han people used to call them various names, such as "Western Mongolia", "Elut", "Oirat" and "Wala".In the Ming Dynasty, under the leadership of Yexian, these Mongolians created the famous "Tumubao Change" and captured Ming Yingzong. Soon after the Qing Dynasty entered the customs, the Mongols of the Junggar tribe rose again in the north and south of the Tianshan Mountains and established the powerful Junggar Khanate, whose leader was the legendary Mongolian figure Galdan.He is resolute, strong, resourceful and decisive, and after ten years of fighting, he unified the four tribes of Western Mongolia.Afterwards, his confidence soared, and he formulated a grand blueprint to unify the north and south of the Tianshan Mountains first, then unify the entire Mongolian nation, and finally compete with the Manchu rulers of China to restore the old career of the Yuan Dynasty.

The ambitious Galdan had a lot of means. He reformed the grassland law code and was the first to start making copper coins in Mongolia. This stabilized the grassland economy, strengthened the Mongolian cavalry, and soon conquered most of Xinjiang.The ethnic groups in Central Asia have compared him with Peter the Great of Russia in the west and Emperor Kangxi in the east, calling him "Boshuo Ketuhan", and thinking that they are the three great emperors on the Eurasian continent.If he hadn't met the talented and generous Emperor Kangxi, he would probably win Beijing and become another Mongolian ruler in Chinese history.Unfortunately, he was born at the wrong time.The shrewd Kangxi successfully strengthened his win over and control over Khalkha's Mongolian tribe, making Galdan's dream of unifying Mongolia impossible to realize.Then Kangxi led his troops to conquer twice, using the power of the whole country to compete with Junggar and Mongolia, and finally defeated Galdan twice in Ulan Butong and Zhaomoduo.In the thirty-sixth year of Kangxi (1697), Galdan died of depression in the desert embracing unrealized dreams.

Although the defeat of Galdan has always been listed as one of Kangxi's most important military achievements, in fact, the Junggar Khanate only suffered setbacks, far from being defeated.After Galdan, his successors quickly made the Khanate strong again.They regained the old dream of Galdan.In the ninth year of Yongzheng (1731), the Qing Dynasty and the two sides fought again, and the two armies fought in Hetongbo.The Qing army was defeated, and all the deputy generals and below were killed. Of the 30,000 troops on the West Route, only 2,000 fled back to Khobd.This was the worst defeat in the internal and external wars since the establishment of the Qing Dynasty.In the tenth year of Yongzheng (1732), the Junggar tribe invaded again. Fortunately, the Khalkha Mongols, which belonged to the Qing Dynasty, resisted desperately and defeated the Junggar tribe.After the two wars were tied during the Yongzheng period, the Qing Empire and Junggar shook hands and made peace. The two sides demarcated the frontier and started trade. There was twenty years of peace in western China.However, the battle with Tongbo will always be a nightmare for the Qing Empire, and the Junggar tribe has been spying on the interior.Once there is any disturbance in the hinterland of the Qing Dynasty, it may attack quickly like a pack of ferocious wolves, and bite the throat of the Qing Empire severely.

Therefore, since he came to the throne, although the world was peaceful, Qianlong had been vigilantly watching the western territory of the Qing Dynasty, and he would not let go of any news about Junggar. As early as the fifteenth year of Qianlong (1750), more than a thousand households of the Junggar Khanate moved eastward to Chahar and belonged to the Qing Dynasty.Qianlong accepted them without hesitation, and ordered them to be rewarded with livestock and settled properly.From these people, he obtained a lot of intelligence information. It turned out that in the tenth year of Qianlong (1745), Galdan Celing, the former leader of the Junggar Khanate, died of illness. His three sons fought for the throne and killed each other, causing the Khanate to fall apart and its power decline.In the eighteenth year of Qianlong (1753), the new leader Dawaqi crusaded against the Duerbert tribe who did not obey the command. In order to find a way out, San Cheling of the Durbert tribe had to leave his homeland and seek protection from the Qing government. .

Therefore, after receiving the report, Qianlong immediately concluded that Sanche Ling was a true surrender.He ordered the general guarding the border to properly arrange the population of Sancheling, and rewarded them with a large amount of silver, rice noodles, cattle and sheep. For the deputy leader. The 3,000 Western Mongolians who surrendered received such generous treatment, which was beyond their expectations.Not only that, in order to commend Duerbert Sancheling's achievements of "leading more than ten thousand people to return with heart", in May of the 19th year of Qianlong (1754), Emperor Qianlong also specially received Sancheling at Chengde Mountain Resort.The emperor conferred the titles of Che Ling as Prince, Che Ling Ubashi as County King, Che Ling Mengke as Baylor, and the rest of the leaders as Beizi, Gong, Tai, and Ji respectively.He held grand banquets in Wanshu Garden in the summer resort for eight consecutive times.Since the establishment of the villa, it has never been so lively.

The reason why Qianlong treated Sancheling so grandly was not only to commend them for "returning thousands of miles away", but more importantly, to understand the reality of the Junggar Khanate.He had several long conversations with Sancheling and had a deep understanding of the situation in the Junggar Khanate.He found that today's Junggar is in the weakest period in history. The emperor made an astonishing decision: to send troops quickly to wipe out the Junggar Khanate.He issued an imperial edict to explain his thoughts on raising troops to fight on a large scale: (Quasi-Ministry) Over the past few years, we have been looking for each other due to civil strife... This is an opportunity to take advantage of.If you lose this opportunity, in a few years, when the situation is calmed down, you will definitely fight against me again.At that time, if our army fights with it again, the cost will be even greater... I think this is an opportunity, so I plan to divide the army into two groups next year.This is a situation that has not been resolved in the past few decades. I think about it again and again today, and I have to do it. ("Records of Emperor Gaozong of the Qing Dynasty")

With this edict, the entire Qing Dynasty was shocked. As the most blessed emperor in Chinese history, Qianlong was originally a "Taiping Emperor".He took over in peace. During the first 20 years of his rule, the Qing Dynasty was also peaceful, with no police on the frontier.Except for the unnecessary Jinchuan War, the Qing Dynasty did not hear the sound of war. In the eyes of everyone, launching a war of leveling is asking for trouble.History will never blame him for not starting this war.A successful attack on the initiative is of course extremely glorious, but if he fails, the achievements of his 20-year rule will be destroyed, and his reputation will also be ruined.

Therefore, when the emperor decided to send troops in the 20th year of Qianlong (1755), he encountered almost unanimous opposition. One of the reasons is the so-called "unlucky weapon for soldiers". The defeat of Hetongbo more than 20 years ago left a deep shadow in the hearts of Qing officials. When Junggar was mentioned, they were frightened.In their view, it is thankful that the Mongols did not come to attack the Qing Dynasty. How could the Qing Dynasty take the initiative to provoke a war?Indeed, agricultural civilization is not an aggressive civilization of the martial type.Under normal circumstances, the wars between the Han nationality and the surrounding nationalities were initiated by the minority nationalities on their own initiative.For thousands of years, the dynasties of the Central Plains have always lacked the necessary curiosity and spirit of exploration towards the frontier peoples.Almost no politicians and scholars have seriously studied the internal political structure and military operations of these barbarians.In history, the Han Dynasty usually had only one way to treat the frontier ethnic minorities, and that was "Jimi".In other words, passive coping, compromise, and buying with money and cloth.They believe that these barbarians are "dogs and sheep", and their way of thinking is different from that of humans, which is completely unreasonable.They come like rain and go like wind, irresistible and unpredictable.The Han people's inexplicable fear of them has accumulated for thousands of years, and has condensed into the collective subconscious of the Central Plains nation. The second reason is that the Qing Dynasty and the Junggar Khanate have shared peace for 20 years, and both sides have gained huge benefits from this peace.After the two wars at the end of the Yongzheng period were tied, the two sides clearly delineated the border and carefully controlled their own power. There has never been a major friction on the border.The trade between the two sides has also risen rapidly. Each transaction involves tens of thousands of cattle and sheep, which has brought benefits to both sides.After peace was achieved, more than 100,000 troops of the Qing Dynasty withdrew to the interior, saving tens of millions of taels of military expenditure in 20 years. People in Shaanxi, Ningxia, Gansu and other places did not have to bear the heavy task of food supply, and their lives were greatly improved.It was the stability of the frontier that provided important external conditions for the arrival of Qianlong's prosperity.Almost all ministers believed that this state of peace should continue.They even thought that if they sent troops, it would be "unknown", and since the peace treaty between the two sides had been signed, it was unreasonable for the Qing Dynasty to take advantage of the internal strife in Junggar to break the treaty and invade on a large scale. The third reason is that there has been no large-scale war for more than 20 years, and the whole country has become accustomed to peace, "people's hearts are peaceful for a long time."Nowadays, there is a sudden large-scale foreign war, and people are not mentally prepared.Besides, war is the most expensive thing in the world.Especially when going to the Western Regions, a large amount of military food and military supplies must be transported to the West, which is simply impossible within a few months.And once the war fails, these prairie wolves are likely to take advantage of the victory and pursue them, and go deep into the interior in one fell swoop, bringing unbearable disasters to the Qing Empire.No one can bear the consequences. Although Emperor Qianlong had already established an indestructible authority in the Qing Empire twenty years ago and managed to subdue the bureaucratic machinery of the Qing Dynasty, he still encountered huge resistance when his decision was made.These slaves, with the loyalty of the master, flew like a snowflake to oppose the memorial.They all agreed that since the emperor ascended the throne, everything has been wise and great, only this decision was a big mistake. Qianlong dismissed these "loyal" memorials.Because he stood at a different height and angle from everyone else. Emperor Qianlong's ambition, self-confidence and sense of responsibility are second to none among the emperors of the Qing Dynasty.What he bears is the trust of his grandfather and father for two generations.On the anniversary of the death of the emperor's father, Qianlong would wash his hands and burn incense. It will contain the words "Prince Bao Hongli (Qianlong) is kind-hearted, filial to his friends, and the emperor Ren (Kangxi) is the most beloved among his descendants. "Chang Ge" read the emperor's father's edict respectfully, "with the sincerity of aspirations and admiration, and the importance of following the rope with empathy."In the middle of Qianlong's political career, he once said: "Since ancient times, the emperor has entrusted the entrustment to his father, but I have been entrusted by the emperor's ancestor and the emperor's father. Thinking of this, I dare to be lazy in the slightest." ?" He is extremely confident in his abilities, and he is not only satisfied that the generation he rules is safe and sound.His consideration of everything is based on the overall situation of "the Qing Dynasty's billions of years", focusing on the eternal consolidation of the Qing Dynasty.Therefore, he wants to eliminate as thoroughly as possible any factors that threaten the national security of the Qing Dynasty from both internal and external aspects.Eliminating threats to imperial power from the royal family, relatives, cronies, powerful officials, and eunuchs is only half of his national security strategy. The other half is to establish a long-term external environment of stability. Concern about the external environment is the biggest difference between Manchu emperors and Han emperors. The emperors of the Han nationality in the past dynasties have always held a contempt mentality of not caring about the "Sibari" around them.The emperors of the Qing Dynasty never thought this way.The emperors of the Qing Dynasty themselves came from "Yi Di", and their own status as frontier ethnic minorities enabled them to treat and deal with frontier ethnic issues from a completely new perspective.They know that only when they have a deep understanding of the history, current situation, and internal relations of each nation can they properly control them. In order to successfully deal with the frontier issue, the emperors in the early Qing Dynasty were very interested in the history, language, and customs of ethnic minorities, and Emperor Qianlong was an outstanding representative of them.In order to deal with affairs surrounding the empire, he consciously worked hard to learn minority languages.When he recalled his experience of language learning, he said: "At the beginning of my ascension, I thought that when foreign vassals came to the court, they had to understand the language, so I learned it, and I was able to learn it in a few years. So far, I have done my best." Invading into the Tangut language, and then invading into the Hui language, you can learn it and be able to do it.” That is to say, when he came to the throne, that is, when he was twenty-five years old, because the Mongolian leader After coming to the court every year, I started to learn Mongolian, but I have basically mastered it in a few years, and now it can be said that I have studied it deeply.Starting from Mongolian, he began to learn Tibetan again, and later began to learn Hui language, reaching the level of "ableness". What level Qianlong has learned in Uyghur and Tibetan cannot be verified in detail now, but he has indeed reached a level where he can use Mongolian proficiently. Think deeply".In the nineteenth year of Qianlong (1754), when he met Amur Sana at the Summer Resort, Qianlong "inquired about the whole story in Mongolian" and had a long and in-depth exchange. As early as 20 years before Qianlong, Emperor Qianlong had used his language advantage and expended a lot of energy to gain a deep understanding of the history of Western Mongolia. slightly".This article synthesizes Mongolian and Chinese materials, and conducts detailed and in-depth research and description of the historical origin and tribal structure of Junggar. It can be regarded as a very excellent academic work. Based on this accumulation of knowledge, he has a deep and thorough understanding of the Junggar issue.On the surface, Junggar was just a disease on the frontier of the Qing Dynasty, but in fact it was the core of the stability of the entire land frontier.Junggar has a dangerous terrain, and it can control Tibet in the south and unify Mongolia in the east.The existence of this country is related to the stability of Tibet and Eastern Mongolia.If this khanate is not eliminated, Tibet and Mongolia will never have peace.Emperor Yongzheng pointed out this point a long time ago: "Every day that Junggar is not in peace, things in Tibet are not right. Tibetan cuisine cannot be compromised, and the Mongolians are suspicious of it. This is actually a hidden worry for the country, and a concern for the livelihood of the country and the people." Now Although the two sides concluded a peace treaty, the Eastern style of the treaty was not reliable.Once Junggar becomes stronger, it will inevitably tear up the treaty and rekindle the dream of restoring Dayuan. Therefore, "Western Master" has always been an important issue lingering in his mind since he took the throne. Looking back at today's point of time, the 20th year of Qianlong was indeed a golden opportunity for the Central Plains Dynasty to level up the west and completely unify China.The quasi-department is in the weakest period in history, and the soldiers have no fighting spirit.However, after three generations of management in the Qing Dynasty, the national power was strong.At this time, Xingshi is very sure.Opportunities in life are often fleeting, and opportunities in countries and nations are even more so.This situation seems very clear today, but the authorities are obsessed, and people standing at the crossroads of history are often in this mountain without knowing where the clouds are.Almost all the officials of the Qing Dynasty did not see this situation. The emperor and the ministers had tit-for-tat opinions. In addition to their different views on war, the most important thing was that the two sides had different knowledge reserves, national visions, and the amount of information they had.Qianlong stood tall and saw far.However, the ministers of the DPRK and China paid little attention to these "barbarians", and found it difficult to understand Qianlong's decision.Among the ministers of the Manchu Dynasty, only my brother-in-law Fu Heng agreed with the emperor's decision.After the war, the emperor recalled the scene at that time and said: "People's hearts are in peace. Among the officials in the court, only the great scholar Fu Heng and I praised the painting with one heart, and it must be done, and the rest are all in awe." The ability of a leader lies in making a superior decision and effectively implementing that decision.Therefore, the most important thing in this war is not the battle itself, but how to push the machine of the Qing Empire onto the track of war. Emperor Qianlong later recalled: "At that time, he tried his best to reject all opinions and tried his best." ("Five Collections of Imperial Poems") doing ideological work for the bureaucratic group, mobilizing and organizing civil and military officials to participate in this war, made him almost exhausted.He issued numerous decrees, analyzed the balance of power in the Qing Dynasty, repeatedly demonstrated the necessity of sending troops to crusade, and expressed that his determination had been made and could not be shaken.He said: "This is an opportunity to take advantage of. If you miss it and don't plan it, and read it for a few more years, the Iraqi affairs will be a little empty, and the old wisdom will be revived, and then you will have to prepare for the defense, and the labor cost will be even more than it is today." "At this time, Dawaqi is poor and has lost his power, and it is difficult to find someone inside. The hearts of the people are not convinced, and there is no plan to lose it. After a few years, the Iraqi affairs will be settled, and they will still come to embarrass me. It will take more and more trouble." On October 13th, the 19th year of Qianlong (1754), he summoned the kings and Manchu ministers in the Hall of Supreme Harmony, and said to them: "My Prime Minister, all affairs in the world, can only be judged according to reason, and what should be done will never be done for others. Everyone obstructs it. If it is not possible, I will definitely not allow everyone to force a petition. This is what you and others all know. This is an important military matter, and I have already planned it. How can everyone be cowardly, lose the opportunity, and give up halfway. "("Records of Emperor Gaozong of Qing Dynasty") After repeated ideological mobilization, finally, people no longer opposed it on the surface.The Qing Empire was barely on the track of war. However, Qianlong could not find a coach worthy of the post.Among all the ministers, only Fu Heng sincerely supported the dispatch of troops, but he had no knowledge of soldiers, so it was difficult for him to take on such a big task.The Manchu generals who had been safe and sound for decades also "only guarded their wives and children for comfort, and were willing to retreat after hearing the battle."Veterans such as Cheng Yanzabu, Tseleng, and Shu Hede were known to be brave and capable, but they all shrank from this war, "cowardly and cowardly", and had no attitude of striving for the first.Balancing left and right, Qianlong reluctantly selected Bandi and Yongchang as the coaches of the North and West Roads. Next is the food issue.According to the common sense of "soldiers send food and follow", this war cannot be fought at all.Because the time to pacify Junggar came suddenly, the Qing Dynasty was unprepared.There is no food and grass on the front line, and it is too late to prepare.One is to transport grain from the mainland to the west, and the value of each stone of rice is only 3 taels of silver, but the shipping cost is as high as 20 taels.Second, even if the Qing court had sufficient financial resources and could afford the freight, the procurement and delivery time would never be in time. Qianlong brazenly decided to abandon the marching routine, "because of the food for the enemy".In other words, each soldier can eat two months' rations on his own, and the rest of the rations are taken from Mongolian herdsmen along the way.Qianlong's edict was very high-sounding: "Officers and soldiers can kill animals along the way and kill tired animals. Although the livestock owned by the Erut Mongols who have surrendered now should not be seized, they should be used temporarily and compensated in the future. No." This actually allows officials to loot along the way.The so-called future compensation is just empty talk that cannot be fulfilled.This bold move later proved to have planted serious troubles, but at the time it was considered by Qianlong to be the only way. As soon as this decree came out, many ministers were dumbfounded and opposed it one after another.Liu Tongxun, the governor of Shaanxi and Gansu, said that this move was too risky, and that it was still necessary to raise food and pay first, and then enter the army.Qianlong criticized him and said: "Liu Tongxun's performance... is completely inappropriate for this occasion." General Dingxi always also opposes giving food to the enemy.Emperor Qianlong's mouth was dry, and he couldn't help scolding people: "Yongchang is completely ignorant of the importance of the truth, upside-down, and this is the extreme!" After a severe scolding, he finally suppressed the voices of all opponents.In February of the 20th year of Qianlong's reign (1755), the North and West Routes of the Qing army dispatched a total of 50,000 troops, including nearly 80,000 teachers in charge of transportation.Each soldier is equipped with three horses, a total of 150,000 horses.Equipped with 10,000 camels.Qianlong took Amur Sana, an important general who had defected from Junggar, as the forward, so as to achieve the effect of recruiting and surrendering.As Qianlong expected, the Zhunbu had been fighting for years, and the hearts of the people were disturbed. As soon as the Qing army arrived, they surrendered one after another. Carrying ketone cheese, presenting sheep and horses, they went to the left and right, and no one resisted Yan Xing when the teacher traveled thousands of miles." Just after the army was dispatched, 1,300 households from the Zhabi tribe came to surrender, saying, "We are Dawaqi Brutal, willing to be effective."Immediately afterwards, the powerful Datai Jiye of Junggar led his subordinates to surrender.In May, the two armies joined forces in Bole County, Xinjiang (now Bohe City, Xinjiang) and marched towards Yili.The people of Yili also surrendered one after another. "When the soldiers arrived in Ili, there was an endless stream of people holding sheep wine to greet them. The women and children cheered like water and fire. Since leaving the army, there has been no bloody blade and arrowheads. It is unprecedented in ancient times."It fully proves the importance of the timing of this time. Under such circumstances, Dawaqi, the new leader of the Zhunbu, had no intention of resisting, and led 10,000 people to flee to Gedeng Mountain in the southwest of Ili.The Qing army chased after him, captured him and sent him to the capital.The leveling war was first won. Too rapid success often contains problems.After the Qing army conquered Ili, they thought they could seize some livestock and grain.Unexpectedly, the Zhunbu suffered from repeated wars, and Yili had no accumulated supplies.Because of the shortage of military supplies, after the Zhunbu was pacified, the Qing army could only withdraw quickly, leaving only 500 soldiers to serve as the guards of the Qing generals.Amursana was not a peaceful person. Although Qianlong named him the double prince and received the prince's double salary after the suppression of Yili, Qianlong was still not satisfied.Seeing that the troops of the Qing Dynasty had retreated, he had the ambition to become the new Khan of the Zhunbu and occupy the original territory of the Junggar Khanate alone.After pacifying the Zhunbu, Qianlong adhered to the strategy of "divide and rule" and planned to divide the Zhunbu into four so that they would not belong to each other. However, Amursana asked to become the unified leader of the four ministries and surpass everyone else.Of course Qianlong did not agree with his request, so he killed the generals of the Qing army in the 20th year of Qianlong (1755), rebelled and became a Khan himself.In February of the twenty-first year of Qianlong (1756), Qianlong had to send troops again to capture Amursana. The counter-insurgency war was not going well.Due to the haste of the incident, the Qing army set off without sufficient food and grass, and squeezed Khalkha Mongolia along the way.After arriving in Xinjiang, they wantonly robbed the livestock and food in the Zhunbu's hometown.The Zhunbu was already caught in a famine, but when the Qing army came, it made things worse. A large number of people starved to death, and the rest rose up to resist the Qing army.The frontline generals were ineffective, and repeatedly missed opportunities, which made Amursana escape again and again.Emperor Qianlong was helpless.At this time, the Mongolian Khalkha tribe, who had been fully supporting Qianlong's peace, also rebelled. The reason for the rebellion was that the Qing Dynasty's extraction of Khalkha Mongols exceeded the limit. The strategy of "giving food to the enemy" actually evolved into giving food to friends in the war.On the way to Xinjiang, the Qing army, which lacked material preparations, repeatedly plundered the Khalkha Mongols. "Felt, furs and other livestock products were taken away by the Qing authorities through mobilization and requisition. Apart from these, Khalkha labor Men are called up more and more frequently for military service, and they have to provide their own arms and ammunition... Most of the men are taken out of production and sent off to fight". (Zlatkin's "History of the Junggar Khanate") Therefore, under the leadership of the tribal leader Qinggun Zabu, more than 10,000 Khalkha Mongols rebelled against the Qing Dynasty.Twenty-three Zasak princes gathered on the banks of the Kherlen River, planning to launch a war against the Qing Dynasty in Mongolia. Qianlong realized his mistake and quickly turned around. "Beijing understood the crisis. Bogd Khan (Qianlong) knew the dissatisfaction of the Mongols, and wrote to Kulun Hutuktu and Tuxietu Khan in September 1756, saying that he did not know the poverty of the Mongols, He will reward the Mongols for their merit." (Vasilyev, "The Cossacks of Transbaikal") Qianlong knew that just a letter was not enough.He also worked for Jebtsundamba through his close friend Zhangjia III Living Buddha who studied together when he was a child, and promised to be kind to the Khalkha Mongols. He finally appeased the Khalkha Mongols and suppressed the Qinggun Zabu Uprising. Remove worries from the future. Having learned this lesson, Qianlong finally stopped "giving food to the enemy".He learned from the pain and changed the way of fighting. First, he mobilized a large amount of grain and transported it to the front line. Barkol and Hami stored 110,000 shi of grain, which was enough for the army for three or four years. Then in March of the 22nd year of Qianlong (1757), The third march.This time, he finally successfully picked the fruits of victory.After years of wars and famines, the Mongols in Zhunbu were impoverished, disease was prevalent, many died, and they had no fighting power. Wherever the Qing army went, they could win quickly.At the end of the day, Amursana fled to Russia and died of illness in a foreign country. The significance of this war is extraordinary.Since the founding of the Qing Dynasty, the hostile force of the Junggar Khanate has lingered in the west like a black phantom, peeping at the interior, making successive generations of the supreme rulers of the Qing Dynasty restless.Now that the most powerful hostile force in the Qing Dynasty has been completely wiped out, Qianlong can finally breathe a long sigh of relief. But Qianlong still couldn't let go.The ups and downs of this war caused him to experience several torments from great joy to great sorrow.Originally, in his plan, the war would only take a few months and cost millions of taels of military expenditure.Unexpectedly, the war finally dragged on for three years, and one war became three times, and the episode of suppressing the Khalkha Mongolian rebellion appeared in the middle.The quick success promised to his subjects turned into a disastrous victory. The military expenditure eventually reached tens of millions of taels, and many generals were lost. Qianlong became a little angry from embarrassment. The toughness and stubbornness shown by the Junggar Mongols during the war also made Qianlong fearful.Among the four tribes of Junggar, only Duerbert's tribe has been loyally obeying the Qing Dynasty since the first surrender. The other three tribes have repeatedly surrendered and rebelled, causing Qianlong to suffer a lot.This Mongolian tribe, which has repeatedly performed amazing works in history, does have a hard bone that ordinary nations do not have.How to deal with this nation, Qianlong racked his brains.Merely divide and conquer does not seem to be able to completely weaken the power of the Mongols.He is very worried that decades later, the Mongols of the Junggar tribe will be born again in the spring breeze and become the enemy of the Qing Dynasty again. After careful consideration, he made an astonishing decision: For the Mongols of the Junggar tribe, except for the Durbert tribe, "always strictly suppress and kill them." This is effectively a genocidal order. In fact, throughout the leveling war, "cruelty" has always been the main theme.Although there was no planned massacre in the first two leveling wars, the strategy of "giving food to the enemy" itself was a massacre.During the march, the Qing army always used robbery as the only means of supplementing the army.Most of the Junggar Mongols who were robbed of all their livestock later died of starvation.At first, the Junggar people thought that the Qing army was their savior, but when they discovered that they were actually bandits, more and more people spontaneously rebelled against the Qing army and attacked them.Therefore, when the troops were sent out for the second time, the Qing army had already begun massacring civilians.They "would rather kill a thousand by mistake than let one go." Whenever they encountered suspicious Mongolian people, they would kill them all to maintain their own safety.And this strategy was approved and even encouraged by Qianlong.On August 1st, the twenty-first year of Qianlong (1756), Hadaha, the Minister of Counselor of the Qing Army, reported to the emperor that when the Qing army came to Ziermatai, they met Dundok, a tribal leader from Erut. Lead several cronies to surrender.The Qing army believed that they behaved suspiciously and did not dare to determine whether they had really surrendered, so they "killed" Dundok and others, and then led the army to the nomadic land of this tribe, and "completely executed" the unprepared 1,700 herdsmen. exterminate".After Emperor Qianlong received this report, he thought Hadaha was "very brave" and awarded him the title of Minister of the Guards. Before the massacre, Qianlong had directed the extermination of entire tribes many times. After Amur Sana's rebellion, Qianlong appointed new kings of the four tribes of Junggar.Among them, Bayar was appointed as the Khan of the Huite Department, and Shakdurmanji was appointed as the Khan of the Heshuote Department.In October of the 21st year of Qianlong’s reign, Qianlong was furious when he learned that Bayar had followed Amursana’s rebellion. Ji, also secretly ordered the generals of the Qing Dynasty, "If there is any doubt, you should take advantage of it and wipe it out first." Shakdulmanji first surrendered to the Qing Dynasty in the Pingzhun War, so he was named "Heshuote Khan".He is staunchly loyal to the Qing government.When the rebellion broke out, he refused to join the rebels. Regardless of personal safety, he resolutely led more than 4,000 households from his headquarters to leave his hometown and go to the inland, and came to the vicinity of the Qing army garrison. .General Yalha of the Qing Dynasty saw that the emperor was suspicious, so he insisted on the purpose of preferring the left to the right.Although Shakdulmanji had no betrayal, he still planned to kill him. Regarding this massacre, Yalhashan had a lot of brains.He selected 500 people from his own army, pretended to send troops to other places, and passed by the residence of the Heshuote Department for the night.Seeing that it was the army of the Celestial Dynasty who had arrived, Shakdurmanji extended his welcome and spared dozens of the best tents for these Qing soldiers to live in.Even though his tribe was short of food, he still "slaughtered sheep to wait", killed the few dozen remaining sheep, took out all the good wine he had accumulated, and entertained them graciously.The humble Mongol chiefs got drunk at the banquet.In the middle of the night, the Qing army "made an order to attack the sleeping hut" and launched a surprise attack on the sleeping Mongols, killing one yurt one yurt, killing all the Mongols in 700 yurts. "To wipe out all more than 4,000 people."And Khan Shakdur Manji also died a miserable death.According to "Xiao Ting Miscellaneous Records", Shakdulmanji took off his clothes after getting drunk, and fell asleep, unaware of the Qing army who broke in.His wife woke up from her sleep and saw the Qing army slashing at her husband with a knife, so she jumped on her husband naked and blocked the knife for him. As a result, the two were hacked to death, and they were still hugging each other tightly after death. Together, "naked and holding it, like two white snakes winding in a dome". When the situation was reported, Emperor Qianlong praised Yalhashan for "the management is very vigorous", and the Ministry of Communications "discussed according to military achievements".In the second year, Yalha was awarded as the Minister of Counselor, promoted to Minister of the Ministry of War, and later he was named a first-class uncle. If these massacres were accidental local incidents, in the third leveling war, the massacres evolved into a careful deployment.In the third war of equalization, the emperor clearly decreed: "The capriciousness of the Eruts and others is really unacceptable", "It is definitely not suitable for such thieves to be tolerated, but the old, young and weak may use discretion." Keep it in place and arrange another arrangement. The previous two invasions were unavoidable, but if we continue to proceed as before, the soldiers will withdraw, and Iraqi and others will breed troubles again. The past can be a lesson." Under the direction of the emperor, a tragic tragedy kicked off on the western grassland. Sailimu Lake near Yili is one of the largest and most beautiful alpine lakes in Xinjiang. It is like a huge emerald, quietly inlaid in the hinterland of Tianshan Mountains.The snow peaks on the far shore are soaring, and the cattle and sheep by the lake are like clouds, making it seem like a paradise. More than 250 years ago, the most brutal scene in human history took place near this beautiful lake.In the spring of the twenty-third year of Qianlong (1758), it was the season when grasslands turned green and wild flowers bloomed.Thousands of Qing soldiers are engaged in a grand hunt in this season.The targets they hunted were not animals, but human beings, Mongolian civilians of the Junggar tribe in Xinjiang.They entered the valleys, went up the river, searched carefully, and when they encountered a yurt, they rushed in and hacked all the people inside.大部分世代生活在这里的蒙古牧民根本没有弄明白是怎么回事，就一家家被消灭了。 一支拥有二百顶帐篷的蒙古小部落提前下了山，在赛里木湖畔支起了一顶顶帐篷。这支部落已经在这里平静地生活了数百年，他们根本想不到自己有一天会成为自己同类的猎物。部落中的男人骑着骏马，慢悠悠地驱赶着牛羊，女人在帐篷里赶制一天的食物，孩子们淌着鼻涕，扯着刚返青的枝条玩着打仗的游戏。一切都与其他春季没有区别。 中午的时候，急促而纷繁的马蹄声响起。数千名全副武装的清朝骑兵形成一个半圆形，由远及近，围住了这片湖畔的二百多顶帐篷。男人们惊讶得不知所措，张大着嘴呆呆地看着这些陌生的异族人。女人们躲进帐篷由毡缝偷偷向外窥视。只见这些身材矮小的满族军人从一座座蒙古包里把蒙古人驱赶出来。个别人想反抗，立刻被军人砍翻在地。 不到半个时辰，这个小部落的一千多人全部被赶到了湖边。在清军的指挥下，他们中的四百多名男人被挑了出来，每十人为一队，被拉到一个低洼处，挨个儿斩首。一些蒙古男人激烈地抗争质问，这些从天而降的陌生人凭什么如此大开杀戒，得到的回答只是提前的一刀。鲜血流进赛里木湖，近岸的一亩多湖水被染得赤红。大部分蒙古汉子知道任何挣扎都无济于事，习惯于听从首领和命运的他们一个个一言不发，听话地走向指定的地点。一个多小时后，这个小小蒙古部落的男人们被彻底消灭。史书对这种情景的记载是“以次斩戮，寂无一声，骈首就死”。 在处理男丁的同时，在另一侧，分配女人和孩子的工作也在有条不紊地进行。清军从队伍中挑选那些年轻有姿色的女人，以及看起来伶俐聪明的孩子，准备运回内地，作为奴隶。大约三百名妇女儿童被挑走了，史书记载说这些人后来“多死于途”，因为饥饿死于路上。还剩下二百多名老丑病残的女人以及七岁以下的孩子，清军将领一声令下，数百匹战马冲入人群当中，这些没人要的战利品被作为桩靶，为清军的军事训练贡献了最后一点作用。 这是清朝平定准噶尔大军的将军兆惠亲自指挥的搜剿准噶尔蒙古部落的大屠杀中的一个小小场景。 乾隆二十二年（1757年）四月十八日，清将军成衮扎布、兆惠等率兵七千名，从巴里坤起程。此次出兵进剿的目的，并不是追捕阿睦尔撒纳，而是专为剿灭厄鲁特蒙古人。因为蒙古游牧都沿河而居，所以他们的捕杀也沿河进行。乾隆二十二年九月，成衮札布在奏报中，汇报了自己带人捕杀蒙古人的情形，他提到：“在图尔根河，剿杀一百余人，收其妻子器械”，“剿杀塔里雅图河口贼百余人，察克玛河口贼四十余人”，“于济尔哈朗河剿杀厄鲁特七户四十人，于博多美和罗剿杀克鲁特一百五十余人”，“搜取绰和尔所种地亩，剿杀玛哈沁三百余人”。从这些汇报可知，清军剿杀的是散居在各条河流边的厄鲁特牧民和农民，根本不是有组织的叛乱部队。 甚至喇嘛僧人和种田的农民都没能逃脱剿杀。乾隆命令将军到伊犁时，“将彼处喇嘛等剿办”。乾隆二十三年（1758年）八月初四，史书记载清军把在乌梁海种地的五十余户蒙古农民“全行剿杀”。 直至第二年，乾隆二十三年，厄鲁特部余众都逃入了山谷丛林中，乾隆还命人搜捕，以求斩尽杀绝。《啸亭杂录》载，清军将领二人分别从博罗布尔、赛里木两地，如同打猎一般，由两地向中间的伊犁地区合围，这中间数百里地方，不管是山谷还是林区，只要有人住的地方，“悉搜剔无遗”。当时散居的厄鲁特蒙古人无法抵抗，“虽一部有数十百户，莫敢抗者”。清军“呼其壮丁出，以次斩戮，寂无一声，骈首就死，妇孺悉驱入内地赏军，多死于途，于是厄鲁特之种类尽矣”。（《啸亭杂录》） 除了像打猎一样屠杀散居的蒙古人之外，清军进行的另一项重要军事活动，就是把大举投降的准噶尔蒙古部落一批批移送到内地，然后再“办理”。 在清军第三次平准战争中，大部分穷困的准噶尔蒙古人仍然把清军当作把自己从战乱中解救出来的“恩人”，见到清军到来，“妇孺欢呼，如出水火”。更有许多蒙古人听说清军到了，成群结队地，一个部落一个部落地赶赴清军所在地，向他们归顺投降。对于这些人如何处理，心思缜密的乾隆早有指示。早在第三次平准出发之时，他就指示清军将领，在地广人稀之处，见到蒙古人，当时就可杀掉。但是如果遇到大批人户来投降，不要立刻剿杀，因为人数太多，一时杀不过来，“难保无一二逃窜之人，泄漏其事”，令其他部落的人闻讯逃跑。所以他命令，把那些大批投降的蒙古人，要一批批地押送到甘肃内地之后，再全部处死。 乾隆指示的原文是这样说的：“大兵此次进剿，厄鲁特蒙古人必然会大批投诚。如有到巴里坤投降者，可以把他们的头目先行送到京师，其他部众，可向内地迁移，等到过了巴里坤之后，对那些男人，都尽行剿戮。所余的妻子，酌量分别赏给官兵为奴，不得稍存姑息。”（《清高宗实录》乾隆二十二年二月） 清军攻克伊犁之后，乾隆再次下旨说：“现在，两路大军接纳的投降蒙古人甚多。他们外表归顺，内心未可全信。可将他们先迁至巴里坤，然后再迁到肃州，然后进行诛戮。” 数万名投降了清军的蒙古人就这样被长途驱赶到内地，在一些不知名的山谷里，被全部杀掉。 大屠杀的结果是蒙古民族一个重要支系的消失。准噶尔四部，除杜尔伯特部汗策凌始终未叛，对清朝极表忠诚，得以耕牧如常，以及达什达瓦之妻一小部早降后被迁至他地未灭外，几乎全部被杀掉。《草原帝国》称：“准噶尔人民，主要是绰罗斯部民和辉特部民几乎全部被根除。”据清军将领明瑞奏称，经过他们屠杀之后，自巴尔呼特岭到造哈岭、直到纳林廓勒，乌兰乌苏这些地方，已经“不见一人”。 俄罗斯西伯利亚当局则向彼得堡报告说：有一个部落“几千顶帐幕，只剩下三顶”。 这次种族大屠杀的死亡数字，历史上无准确记载。《准噶尔灭亡纪略》中说，屠杀了超过一百万。魏源《圣武记》说，计准部数十万户，“先痘死者十之四”，即因传染病死者十分之四，“继窜入俄罗斯、哈萨克者十之二”，最后“歼于大兵者十之三”。除了妇女、小孩被掠走当了奴隶之外，准噶尔蒙古所剩无几，作为一个大部落已经不复存在。“数千里间无一瓦剌帐篷”。 噶班沙拉勃在《四卫拉特史》中这样记载屠杀过后的场面：“准噶尔地区几经兵火，残破不堪。耕地、牧场荒废，城镇、村庄被毁，人口更是急骤减少。”很多年以后，龚自珍途经准噶尔，看见“准噶尔故壤，故库尔喀喇乌苏，若塔尔巴噶台，若巴尔库勒，若乌鲁木齐，若伊犁东路西路，无一庐一帐，是阿鲁台（即额鲁特，指准噶尔——笔者注）故种者。”（龚自珍《上镇守吐鲁番领队大臣宝公书》） 为了填补准部留下的土地，乾隆从各地迁移人口。其中有吉尔吉斯人、哈萨克人，有蒙古部落的喀尔喀人、察哈尔人，有穆斯林东干人，甚至还有来自满洲的锡伯人和高丽人。十多年之后，土尔扈特部落回归中国，也被安置在这片由于自己的兄弟部落被灭绝而空出来的土地上。 乾隆在国家安全问题上，采取过许多或高明、或精明、或阴鸷的手腕。 有清一代，喇嘛教是国教，但乾隆并不信黄教。他在评论活佛转世时说：“蒙古呼图克图活佛转世，其实是一种取巧方便的办法……佛本无生死，哪有转世？但是不允许转世，那么数万番僧就无所皈依，所以不得不如此罢了。”（《御制喇嘛说》） 从这段谕旨看，乾隆对喇嘛教是不屑一顾的。但是，终乾隆一朝，皇帝对黄教领袖，一直极尽尊崇之能事。他把父亲的故府雍和宫改成喇嘛庙，以示对喇嘛教的尊崇。他对达赖和班禅提高了礼遇规格。为了迎接班禅远来，他专门在承德为班禅修建了一座规模宏大的庙宇——普陀宗乘之庙。这座庙耗资巨大，仅为其中的一座殿宇顶部镀金，就花去黄金一万五千多两。他亲派皇六子远赴内蒙古迎接，在承德的接待更是不计成本，优隆备至。 之所以如此，是因为乾隆很清楚喇嘛教对安定西藏和蒙古的作用。他多次说过“兴黄教，所以安蒙古”，“敬一人而千万悦”。他高屋建瓴，进一步树立达赖喇嘛的权威，由此拥有了确认转世活佛和任命高级教长的权力，从而牢牢地把西藏社会控制在自己手中。 但是，对于伊斯兰教，乾隆采取了完全不同的做法。他深知这一宗教的进取性，因此在回教地区大力推行政教分离，不允许宗教领袖取得世俗权力。他知道，伊斯兰教一旦实现政教合一，必然爆发强大的扩张力量，给帝国安全带来巨大威胁。平定新疆之后，他大力扶植伊斯兰世界世俗贵族伯克的力量，禁止阿訇干涉政治，高明地抑制了伊斯兰教的活力。他还十分高明地将东干穆斯林从中国西北部迁入新疆，利用他们对抗突厥语族的穆斯林，从而实现以回制回，成功地获得了新疆的稳定。即使以现代政治家的标准来衡量，乾隆对边疆问题的处理也是十分高明的。 乾隆的性格中并不缺乏善良、温和的一面，但他的本质毕竟是政治动物。对准噶尔蒙古人的屠杀，固然有泄愤的因素，更主要的却是出于长远考虑。乾隆喜欢做一劳永逸、斩草除根的事。他认为他有这个能力，也有这个责任，为后世子孙消除所有威胁。 种族灭绝，在他看来无疑是消除西部边疆威胁的最彻底、最有效的办法。为了大清王朝万世永固这个最终目标，他可以做出任何决定，也可以把自己变成一头野兽。确实，通过灭绝政策，乾隆皇帝实现了对西部中国前所未有的牢固控制。 对于整个中华民族来说，这是几千年来中国努力控制西域的一个完美结果。从汉代张骞通西域开始，天山南北以及巴尔喀什湖一带就是中原王朝一直努力经营的目标。汉、唐、元这三个强大帝国都实现了对西域的管辖，在这个地方设置过都护府，但是由于距离遥远，风土不同，中央政权一直很难在这里建立直接、持久、稳定的管辖，因此，西域一直是中华帝国版图中最不稳定的部分，与内地的联系时断时续，对内地的臣属也时叛时服。直到乾隆消灭了这片草原上最强悍的民族，把这片土地命名为新疆，中央政府才真正在这里建立了彻底、有力的统治。这一统治建立得相当牢固，在此之后的晚清时期，虽然列国对清朝瓜分蚕食，但新疆一直没有再次分裂出去。 中国的武功，自成吉思汗以来，还没有谁如此一举荡平二万余里，深入不毛之地。元代之后，中国的疆域，从来没有如此巨大，国家的统一，从来没有如此巩固。朝野上下，一致赞叹“国家如天之福”。文人学士纷纷进表上赋，欢呼庆祝。纪昀撰写了《平定准噶尔赋》，称“三十六国，咸遵正朔，浩乎大哉，此王道之极盛，而三五之遐躅也”。赵翼在《平定回部铙歌》则唱道：“一统车书大覆函，持盈睿虑倍寅严；从知兵甲全消日，文德逾敷万国咸。”后世史家也高度评价这一战争。王先谦说：“高宗皇帝……成两朝未竟之志，准回平而北无汉世匈奴之患，金川定而西无唐代吐蕃之扰，保世恢基，其极于无外。”（王先谦《虚受堂文集》卷二，《东华录序》） 除了驱敌拓土之外，平定新疆的另一个意义是它标志着乾隆盛世达到了“全盛”。This last prosperous age in Chinese history is usually called "the prosperous age of Kangxi and Qianlong".In fact, the reigns of Kangxi and Yongzheng were far from perfect.直到新疆战争之后，清王朝在各个方面都实现了对历史的超越，进入无可挑剔的“全盛”。 平定准噶尔战争之后，“盛世”“全盛”等词汇开始越来越频繁地出现在清朝臣民口中。人们不约而同地把这场战争与“全盛”联系在一起。乾隆二十四年（1759年），户部右侍郎于敏中赋诗称颂乾隆皇帝统一新疆的功绩说：“觐光扬烈，继祖宗未经之宏规；轹古凌今，觐史册罕逢之盛世”。（《素余堂集》卷二四）意思明确地说，新疆战争使乾隆超越了祖宗。乾隆自己也宣称，“比年以来西域大奏肤功，国家势当全盛”，（王先谦《东华录》）“方今国家全盛，府库充盈”。（乾隆《圣训》卷一零六）西域战争和府库充盈是乾隆宣布“全盛”到来的两大理由。从此之后，“盛世”就成了清帝国文件中不断提及的词汇，其频率之大甚至达到令人厌烦的程度。及至乾隆晚年所编的《八旬万寿盛典》，“盛世”二字居然出现了七十余次。 确实，以统一新疆为标志，大清帝国的统治攀上了历史的高峰。这一高峰，悬绝于历代的治绩之上。 第一，乾隆朝几乎消灭了对最高权力的所有威胁，实现了前所未有的政治稳定。 历史上威胁皇权的势力有以下几种：一是敌国威胁，二是农民起义，三是权臣专政，四是太监擅权，五是后妃干政，六是外戚乱政，七是朋党之争，八是地方割据势力。这八种势力在历代都此起彼伏，兴风作浪，从来没有被彻底平息过。甚至在雄才大略的康熙和雍正时期，也仍然存在敌国、权臣和朋党的阴影。康熙朝前期，索额图和明珠一度权倾朝野，“是时索额图、明珠同柄朝政，互植私党，贪侈倾朝右”。（《清史稿·索额图传》）康熙朝后期，各皇子纷纷与大臣勾结，朝政一片混乱，以致康熙甚至担心死后可能会出现全国性内战。雍正朝初期，由于雍正喜怒不定、大起大落的个性，先后培养出年羹尧、隆科多两大权臣。年羹尧应召回京，“公卿跪接于广宁门外，年策马过，毫不动容。王公有下马问候者，年颔之而已。至御前，箕坐无人臣礼”。胤禛不得不罗织九十二条大罪将其除掉。雍正晚年，又形成鄂尔泰、张廷玉两大朋党。只有乾隆总结吸取历代统治经验，以极其高明的政治手腕，对内缜密阴柔地化解了鄂张朋党，对外积极主动地消除了敌国力量，把这八种威胁化解到近乎无影无形的程度，确保了皇权的至高无上和政治纪律的高度严明。没有一个大臣，敢于在皇帝面前造次；皇帝一声令下，举国战栗。历史上真正做到了“乾纲独揽”的帝王，唯乾隆一人而已。 第二，经济总量巨大，国家财力雄厚。 一直到乾隆辞世之际，中国都是世界第一大经济强国。据统计，当时中国的GDP占世界的三分之一，超过美国在今天世界上的地位。中国在世界制造业中所占的份额，是英国的八倍，俄国的六倍，日本的九倍，比刚刚建国的美国更不知要多多少倍。（《大国的兴衰》）虽然大清王朝不重视对外贸易，但仅凭其庞大的经济总量，它仍然是世界贸易的重要力量。《白银资本》中说：“中国不仅是东亚纳贡贸易体系的中心，而且在整个世界经济中即使不是中心，也占据支配地位。” 由于经济总量巨大，乾隆时代雄厚的国家财政储备与以往各朝代比是空前的，就有清一代268年而言，也堪称达到了顶峰。康熙朝库存银最高额是五十八年（1719年）的4900余万两，通常存银为3000万到4000万两。雍正年间库存银最高额是6000多万两，最后几年为3000万两。乾隆二十年（1755年）前，通常存银也是此数，二十年后达到4000万两，以后持续增长，三十年（1765年）达到6000万两，三十三年（1768年）超过7000万两，此后一直在7000万两以上，四十五年（1780年）存银7800万两，五十五年（1790年）竟至8000万两。乾隆朝财政收入达到最高峰，是“盛世”的标志之一，也是减免钱粮的经济基础。 第三，军事力量强大，国际地位高高在上。 乾隆二十四年（1759年）统一新疆后，中国疆域极盛，北起萨彦岭、额尔古纳河、外兴安岭，南至南海诸岛，西起巴尔喀什湖、帕米尔高原，东至库页岛，领土面积1453多万平方公里。（《中外通史》）环顾四周，近郊诸邦，皆为属国，“通译四方，举踵来王”，不但传统属邦更加恭顺，葱岭以西，巴达克山、浩罕、安集延、左右哈萨克、布鲁特等，都纷纷遣使来朝。“以亘古不通中国之地，悉为我大清臣仆，稽之往牒，实为未有之盛事”。（《清高宗实录》）就是汉唐时期，也没有如此气派恢宏，威震遐迩。《洪业——清朝开国史》说：“清朝统治者建起了一个疆域辽阔，文化灿烂的强大帝国。在此后的近两个世纪中，中国的版图几乎比明朝的领土扩大了一倍。因而无论国内还是国外，都再没有真正的对手能够向清朝的统治挑战。” 值得特别强调的是，清代对边疆和少数民族地区的实际控制力前所未有。汉唐元明盛时，中国版图也曾经十分庞大，不过那其中许多边疆和少数民族地区都只是对中央政府名义上的服从，王朝对它们缺乏实际控制，比如万历皇帝之控制努尔哈赤部落。只有乾隆盛世，所有王化所不及的地方都被专制权力牢牢控制。一些“顽梗不化”的地区，比如大小金川，虽然不过弹丸，但也被皇帝视如眼中钉、肉中刺，必举全国之力粉碎消化为止。直到乾隆时期，中国才真正对版图内所有土地都做到了强有力的控制和管理，使边疆地区和一些少数民族地区真正成为中国领土不可分割的一部分。 第四，乾隆朝养育的人口达到空前的数目。 中国是一个人口崇拜的国家。在农业作为决定国家命脉的支柱产业的古代，人口数量历来被视为国家兴旺富庶的最重要标志。孟子说“广土众民”。“人丁兴旺”是每个家族的祈盼，养活尽可能多的人，被认为是一个政府最重要的政绩。 在清代以前，中国人口多数时间在数千万，只有少数几个历史时段突破过1亿。中国历史上第一个全国性的人口统计数字5959.6万人，是西汉末平帝元始二年（公元2年）的记录。从那时起到南宋绍熙年间实现第一次翻番，达到1亿人，历时近1200年。从南宋的1亿人口到17世纪中叶的1.5亿人，则用了450年的时间。 乾隆六年（1741年），第1次全国规模的人口普查结果是共有人口14341万，由于经济繁荣，农业发展，到乾隆六十年（1795年），人口增至29696万。也就是说，中国历史上第3次人口翻番，只用了54年时间。而且其直线上升趋势，也与此前波浪式增长迥然有别。人们在论及乾隆年间的人口发展时，几乎较为一致地称为“人口爆炸”“人口奇迹”。以10亿亩上下的耕地养活30%左右的世界人口，而能长期保持国家安定和社会稳定，谈何容易。这不能不说是康乾盛世又一个超越千古的成就。 戴逸先生说：“传统观点认为汉、唐是真正的盛世，无论国力还是文化等诸多方面都达到极盛，而清朝已经开始衰落，不如汉唐。我则以为，康雍乾盛世是中国历史上发展程度最高、最兴旺繁荣的盛世。”从物质财富角度看，这确实是不易之论。