Chapter 31 eternal sinking
It was under the rule of Emperor Jiaqing that the Qing Dynasty completed the key steps towards its irreversible decline: the cancer of corruption eroded from the late Qianlong period to several important organs of the country’s body, and evolved into the flesh and bones in the late Jiaqing period. Diffusion across the board.The poverty of the country and the people are intertwined. The Qing Empire has been emptied of its essence and has become a candle in the wind, completely losing the chance of revival.
The death of the Supreme Emperor made the subjects of the Qing Dynasty, who were celebrating the New Year joyously, have to wear mourning clothes and enter a period of nationwide mourning.Not many were truly devastated, though.The death of an old man who was nearly ninety years old was expected.What really interested everyone was what kind of person the new emperor was.
Although he has been emperor for three years, Jiaqing is still a mystery in the minds of people all over the country.Except for his kindly smiling face and a few impersonal decrees, people know nothing about him.What is this person thinking?Is he playing dumb or is he just really clueless?Does he have the ability to lead the country?What are his governing principles and ideas?People are curious about it.However, the performance of the new emperor seems to indicate that he is a moderate and stable person.There will not be any major changes in the imperial court in a short period of time.
However, the development of things is beyond everyone's expectations.On the second day of Qianlong's death, that is, on the morning of the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, Emperor Si issued a decree that surprised everyone in the whole country: he was removed from the positions of the first favorite minister of Emperor Qianlong and the Minister of Military Affairs and the post of nine admirals. He and Fu Chang'an were ordered to stay in front of the Supreme Emperor's spirit and concentrate on handling the funeral, not allowing them to come and go.The court was full of surprise and suspicion.
On the fifth day of the lunar new year, Wang Niansun, Guangxing, Liu Yong and others went to the public school successively to report all kinds of illegal things.
On the eighth day of the eighth day, the emperor announced the arrest and arsenic, and examined him.At the same time, a large-scale house raid operation was launched, and a staggeringly huge amount of treasure was revealed in the cellar of Hefu.
Only ten days later, the trial was over, and on the eighteenth day of the first lunar month, the emperor sent him a white letter, asking him to commit suicide.
The reason why Jiaqing eliminated Hearsen so quickly was more based on the sense of responsibility of the Qing Dynasty.His dissatisfaction with Hearsen actually represented his dissatisfaction with the government in the later period of Qianlong. In Jiaqing's view, Hearsen was a sign of the deteriorating government and the growing corruption since Qianlong's later years.
Under the rule of Hearsen, in just over ten years, the Qianlong Dynasty completed the transformation from strict political discipline in the early stage to pervasive corruption in the late stage.Under the appearance of prosperity, the heyday of the Qing Dynasty has been riddled with holes.Due to the collective corruption of officials, the common people are in dire straits. On the seventh day of the first month of the first year of Jiaqing (1796), just seven days after Qianlong triumphantly held the succession ceremony, the White Lotus Rebellion broke out in Sichuan and Chu.The uprising swept across five provinces, and the Qing Dynasty was in jeopardy for a while.
It should be said that Zhu and Arsenic's move is a very clever move.Facing the raging flames of the uprising, Emperor Qianlong only knew blindly resentment and hatred, while Jiaqing was able to calmly analyze that the source of the chaos was "officials forcing the people to rebel." Searching, exhausting the fat and anointing of the people, so the radical change is like this. However, state and county officials exploit the small people, not only for self-enrichment, but also for the sake of their superiors. And the governors and officials extort subordinates, not only for personal greed, but for making friends and arsenic." "" It is exploited layer by layer, all for one person. And the endless suffering is what our people deserve.” Jiaqing saw clearly that corruption had become a matter of life and death for the Qing Dynasty.If you want to extinguish the fire of the uprising, you must stop the atmosphere of corruption in the court.But to stop the wind of corruption, we must start with Hearsen.
This strategic move fully demonstrated the emperor's political wisdom in grasping and handling complex political situations.
The fundamental purpose of Zhu and Arsenic is to curb corruption.On the premise of extensively listening to the opinions of officials, a group of ministers who were known for their integrity in the Qianlong era entered the center of the court, while most of the provincial-level senior officials in the Heshen era were replaced. "In early 1799 (the fourth year of Jiaqing), among the eleven officials in important positions who were still in office, six were quickly replaced: they were the governors stationed in Nanjing, the governors of Shaanxi and Gansu, the governors of Fujian and Zhejiang, the governors of Huguang, and the governors of Yunnan and Guizhou. , and the governor of water transportation. The following year, the two governors of the river were replaced." ("Cambridge History of the Late Qing Dynasty in China")
Leveraging the power of punishment and arsenic, an anti-corruption upsurge rose across the country, and a large number of corrupt officials were exposed and severely punished: Zheng Yuantao, the governor of Hunan Province, publicly sold his officials and set a price for his posts, and was convicted and beheaded; He was sentenced to be hanged for extorting bribes; Hu Qi in Daotai, Anxiang, Hubei, embezzled 30,000 taels of military supplies during the process of suppressing the White Lotus Sect, and was hanged by ransacking his home; Common people, being reported by others, dismissed from office...
Of course, the biggest event among major events is the White Lotus Rebellion.Since he ascended the throne, the raging flames of the uprising have been burning with pain for Emperor Jiaqing.Since the first year of Jiaqing, when the Bailian believers first raised the flag of righteousness, the flames of war have been ignited in Hubei, Sichuan, Henan, and Shaanxi provinces, and more than 20 counties and counties have been controlled by the rebels.Emperor Qianlong mobilized troops from seventeen provinces and spent 70 million taels of military expenditure in three years. However, not only was the fire of the uprising not extinguished, but it became more and more prosperous.Jiaqing knew well that this was a massacre related to the life and death of the Qing Dynasty.In fact, the core goal of his resolute and comprehensive reversal of his father's policy at the risk of violating the teaching of "three years of no reform" was to get rid of the confidant of the Qing Dynasty.
Jiaqing knew very well that the main cause of military defeat was corruption.The darkness and corruption in the Chuanchu military camp had developed to the point where it was almost out of control when Jiaqing was in power.The generals in charge of the army all overspend military expenditures, as many as there are.
As soon as he fell down, Jiaqing immediately told the generals: "In the past, the leaders of the army all believed that they could rely on peace. If you want to do it, Yi and others will lose their confidence, but they should put state affairs first and work hard to make a difference."
The Emperor does more than scare people.Not long after taking office, the emperor dismissed Le Bao, the former Supreme Commander-in-Chief of Economics and Strategy, for investigation.
Through the blunt advice of hundreds of officials, the emperor gained a deeper understanding of the long-standing problems in the army, such as decentralization of power, improper strategy, and lax military discipline.Under the premise of fully grasping the situation, Emperor Jiaqing made major personnel adjustments to the army.First of all, he unified the several units of the army that suppressed the White Lotus Sect, and put them under the command of the Ministers of Economics and Strategy of the five provinces to control the military affairs of the five provinces of Sichuan, Shaanxi, Chu, Gansu, and Henan. From then on, the power of military command was unified.
Through the punishment of corruption and personnel adjustments, a stronger logistics support system was initially established.After unremitting efforts, the military war to suppress the White Lotus Sect finally saw a major turning point.At the end of the seventh year of Jiaqing (1802), Eredengbao, De Lengtai, the Governor of Sichuan, the Governor of Shaanxi, and the Governor of Huguang, etc., jointly signed the book with yellow silk on the outside and vermilion on the inside. The foundation is fixed, and the famous rebels in Sichuan, Shaanxi, and Chu are all wiped out." The key battle to suppress the White Lotus Sect was won, and Emperor Jiaqing was very excited and tears filled his eyes.His New Deal finally bears bright fruit.
The stagnant political situation since Qianlong's later years finally turned around. A ray of blue sky finally cracked in the dark clouds of corruption all over the sky, and the Qing subjects who had been depressed for a long time breathed a long sigh of relief.Since the new emperor took power for three years, their confidence in the Qing Dynasty has slowly recovered.This courageous and insightful new emperor seems to be fully capable of reversing the declining trend since Qianlong's later years, and bringing the Qing Dynasty out of the confusion of the post-heyday era and back on the upward track.
With the joy and self-satisfaction of the success of the first government, in the autumn of the seventh year of Jiaqing, the emperor appeared on the dam on a gallant horse.When he was young, he used to hunt here with his father many times. The dense forest with towering ancient trees, the magnificent momentum of thousands of people hunting, and the tense atmosphere of hunting tigers and fighting bears kept him haunted in dreams.Therefore, after the decisive victory in the suppression of the White Lotus Sect, he immediately put "Mulan Qiuxi" on the agenda.The traditional activity initiated by the holy ancestor Kangxi, aimed at contacting foreign vassals and maintaining military equipment, has not been held in time after he ascended the throne.Today, he can finally fulfill his long-cherished wish.
However, the closer he was to the Mulan paddock, the more strange the emperor's mood became.Is this still the paddock he remembers?The palisades around the paddock were crumbling here and there, with gaps here and there.The towering ancient trees in the paddock disappeared, and the remaining wooden pier groaned on the ground like shocking wounds.The ground was criss-crossed by the ruts of timber carts, and in some places it seemed to be a bare road because of the frequent traffic.There are shacks built by wood robbers everywhere, and there are often leftover branches on the ground, and some of them still emit faint green smoke.Obviously, this is the trace of the wood robbers lighting a fire to cook.The emperor later recalled the shock he felt and said: "For more than a hundred years, the autumn paddocks are no different from the private wood factories in Shengjing and Gaoligou."The failure of management is evident.
The well-trained emperor did not lose his temper immediately.He suppressed his anger, followed the route of his father's siege, and led 10,000 cavalry to hunt for a day in a regular manner.In the past, every time the father went hunting, he could hunt fierce animals such as tigers and black bears, and there were tens of hundreds of small animals such as foxes, elks, and roe deer.But he ran around all day and only caught two little roe deer!It's not that his shooting skills are not good, nor that the cavalry don't obey the command, but that there are too few prey.On the one hand, the forest farm was destroyed and the prey escaped; on the other hand, poachers have been sharing this royal hunting ground with the emperor during the years when the emperor was not here.Nine out of ten elk, raw roe and other things have become their dishes.
Back at the Jehol Palace, the emperor enshrined one of the two roe deer in front of the imperial statue of the ancestor in the back building according to the old practice.In the past, there were often more than a dozen wild beasts on this huge three-meter-wide altar, but now, there is only one small roe deer standing alone.I wonder what the ancestors and ancestors would think after watching it?The emperor felt hot and dry on his face.
After being ashamed, the emperor had to sigh with emotion that the Qing Dynasty was not as good as it used to be after all.The heyday is gone forever, and the corruption of the government is far more serious than he imagined.From Nurhachi to Qianlong, whose rule would such absurd things happen?It seems that it will not take a day or two to restore the former glory.
The emperor stopped the siege the next day and began a thorough investigation into the negligence of paddock management.A dozen officials headed by relevant officials of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Qing Jie and Arta, were punished by demotions and fines.
This was just the first of countless things that surprised the emperor, and there were even bigger surprises waiting for him.
On the 20th day of the second lunar month in the eighth year of Jiaqing (1803), the emperor drove back to the palace from Yuanmingyuan to handle business.As soon as the emperor's car entered the Shenwu Gate, a ragged man rushed out from nowhere and went straight to the emperor's sedan chair, holding a shining short knife in his hand!The incident happened hastily, and no one from the huge retinue around the emperor responded. It was the Prince Ding at the side of the sedan chair who subconsciously stepped forward and wrapped his sleeve around the sharp blade.Only then did the guards around him rush forward and capture the man.
This is the first assassination case of an emperor since the founding of the Qing Dynasty.In Chinese history, there are only a handful of such serious cases.According to common sense, this is by no means a simple murder case.A huge interrogation group was immediately formed to find out the black hands behind this man.All kinds of torture were exhausted, but the result of the interrogation was unexpected.
It turned out that this case was really simple, and there was no mastermind behind it.The murderer, Chen De, was an unemployed person in the suburbs of Beijing. His wife passed away last year. He had an 80-year-old paralyzed mother-in-law and two underage sons. hate.On this day, he suddenly thought, since life is better than death, why not die so shockingly.So with a small knife in his pocket, he went straight to the palace.What he didn't even think of was that the palace guards didn't show up at their posts as required, which allowed him to sneak into the west wing of Shenwumen smoothly, almost accomplishing an unprecedented feat.
This assassination case reflected two problems. One was that the government affairs of the bureaucratic system, including the military discipline of the Royal Guardian Forces, were lax, which had reached the point of directly threatening the life of the emperor.Another one, the emergence of a large number of unemployed people, shows that the society can no longer bear the rapid growth of population.The livelihood of the common people became a fundamental political issue that threatened the stability of the Qing Dynasty.
The excitement of successfully calming the White Lotus Sect disappeared without a trace because of these two accidents.Since taking office, the emperor's attention has been focused on the battlefield.Now when he finally had time to take a closer look at the overall situation of Qing Dynasty politics, he couldn't believe his eyes.The White Lotus Rebellion was nothing more than a sore on the body of the empire. The disease in the body of the Qing Dynasty was much more serious than what appeared on the outside.
The most serious problem, of course, is corruption.
Corruption is not incurable as long as it does not spread.Partial and sporadic corruption will exist at any time and under any system.However, once it spreads and becomes a common phenomenon, the difficulty of governance increases exponentially.
Although he killed He Arsenic, although he replaced six of the eleven governors of the country, and although he suppressed corruption in the climax of the White Lotus Sect war, the corruption in the officialdom temporarily subsided, but after the climax, Everything remains the same.Officials from all over the world, from top to bottom, from big to small, are still receiving gifts and giving gifts, buying and selling officials; local yamen are still lazy everywhere, and are indifferent to all the sufferings of the people except for departmental interests.The bureaucracy is no longer ashamed of corruption, it is normal.Even the models of clean government set up by Emperor Jiaqing himself fell into corruption one by one after a little longer.The most typical one is Guangxing, the admonisher who took the lead in exposing Hearsen.This person won the trust of Jiaqing because of his exposure and arsenic, and was entrusted with the important task of taking charge of Sichuan's military supplies.He did not disgrace his mission, was upright and self-sufficient, wiped out greed, and saved millions of taels of silver for the country every year. Emperor Jiaqing called on officials all over the country to learn from him many times.However, such a person also fell into the mire of corruption shortly after he became the Minister of the Ministry of War. In just one year, he embezzled as much as 40,000 taels.
The White Lotus Military News had just been removed from his desk, and countless corruption case files had filled his desk again.Corruption, which was already full of tricks during the Qianlong period, showed many new features at this time: corruption spread to the bottom, all grassroots cadres became power rent-seekers, some ordinary civil servants even became the protagonists of corruption cases; unspoken rules became According to the rules, all the big and small things in the society need to use money to open the way, otherwise it will be difficult to move forward.Some cases that happened around the tenth year of Jiaqing (1805) are really shocking:
Wang Linan, secretary of the Zhili Provincial Chief Envoy, is a small clerk in the Zhili Provincial Department of Finance, at most a stock-level cadre, and it stands to reason that he has no power.However, from the first year of Jiaqing (1796), within a few years, 310,000 taels of silver were actually embezzled.His method of embezzlement is very simple, that is, privately engraved a whole set of official seals from the chief of the finance department (political envoy), the chief of the department to the chief of the section, and then arbitrarily falsified the income and money, and put two large amounts of treasury money into his private pockets. For ten years, there has been no suspicion or investigation.The broken net of the supervision system of the Qing Dynasty is so rotten that it is useless.Even a silversmith in the Hubei Department of Finance (Chief Political Commissioner) took advantage of the ignorance and sloppiness of government officials to keep hiding silver taels privately. After a few years, he actually embezzled as much as 5,000 taels.
Since Jiaqing's pro-government, the Yellow River has burst almost every year.Every year, the imperial court allocates a huge amount of financial funds equivalent to a quarter of the national fiscal revenue for river control, but the results are minimal.Those officials who govern the river openly drink and sing in the river governor's yamen every day, and spend a thousand taels for a table of banquets.Most of the funds for river control have fallen into the pockets of these officials.As for the river harnessing project, they cut corners everywhere.The place where hemp should be used is mixed with a lot of sand and soil; straw piles should be built and filled with rocks, and the straw piles are built, but no stones are put into them at all.As a result, when the flood came, there were breaches everywhere.
During the Jiaqing period, a strange phenomenon also appeared in various places, that is, a large number of "non-staff yamen servants" or "non-staff police officers" flooded the grassroots.The county-level departments recruited a large number of "temporary yamen servants" under the pretext of lack of manpower. They did not occupy the staff and did not pay wages. They used them to set up cards everywhere and collect fees everywhere to make up for the lack of financial funds.Their number often exceeds the official establishment by several times, even dozens of times.For example, in Zhengding County, Zhili Province, there are more than 900 "non-staff government servants", while Renhe, Qiantang and other counties in Zhejiang Province have as many as 1,500 to 600 people.They ran rampant in the countryside, set up clever names, and collected various taxes and fees from farmers over and over again. If anyone refused to pay, they would be locked in private prisons and tortured.They blackmailed small merchants and peddlers in the city, and there were often murder cases, and some lawsuits even went to the emperor.
Since the late Qianlong period, there have been "fiscal deficits" in some places.That is, the local government's fiscal revenue is not enough for expenditure, and it has to operate in debt.During the Jiaqing period, this has become a common phenomenon in various places, and almost every province and county has a financial deficit.In order to maintain the operation of the government and to pay for officials, local governments have to borrow money everywhere, and some even borrow usury from underground banks.
In addition to corruption, the Qing Dynasty has too many unanswered questions.Emperor Qianlong entered history gloriously with the glory of "the perfect old man". The series of deep structural contradictions he had accumulated exploded one after another during Jiaqing's tenure like a time bomb.
First, the Qing Dynasty faced unprecedented population pressure.
The population growth rate of the Qianlong Dynasty far exceeded any period in Chinese history.After Qianlong, although the national strength declined greatly, the population continued to develop along its inherent inertial law.In the 16th year of Jiaqing (1811), it reached 350 million.
The problem of feeding so many people has never been encountered in Chinese history.Population growth has intensified the contradiction between population and cultivated land, and more and more people at the bottom have fallen into absolute poverty. A large number of people have left the land and wandered around, making society on the verge of instability.Millions of unemployed refugees who have gathered in Chu, Guangdong, Jiangxi, Anhui, Guizhou and other provinces for decades are the main cause of the White Lotus Rebellion.The White Lotus Sect uprising was suppressed, but the refugee problem was still unresolved, and the uprising may happen again at any time.Chen De's assassination case is the best commentary on this issue.
Accompanied by the population problem was the serious financial crisis of the Qing Dynasty.
Due to population growth, food shortages, and the influx of silver from America, prices in the Jiaqing period had tripled compared to those in the early years of Qianlong.However, due to sticking to Emperor Kangxi's promise of "breeding people and never adding taxes", the fiscal revenue of the Qing Dynasty did not increase in the same proportion.In other words, during the Jiaqing period, the government's fiscal revenue was actually reduced by three-quarters compared with the early years of Qianlong.This is an important reason for the huge fiscal deficit of governments at all levels.
The financial crisis has led to the aggravation of the problem of arbitrary charges.
In order to make up for the financial gap, local governments can only try their best to increase the burden on the common people, so all kinds of strange charging items have appeared.Although the imperial court stipulated that no taxes should be added, the local governments used various excuses to continuously increase the burden on farmers.The extra tax borne by farmers is several times or ten times higher than the regular tax.Files of petitions from people all over the country pile up like a mountain, but officials don't take it seriously at all, because "the state and county are also familiar with the tricks of the people, but this is nothing more than that." People will always lose when they fight against officials.The social conflicts of the Qing Dynasty were on the verge of intensification, ranging from mass gatherings, which turned into violent incidents, to serious riots, "thus often leading to drastic changes."
Emperor Jiaqing with a strong sense of responsibility could hardly sleep peacefully every night.He tossed and turned on the imperial couch, thinking hard about a solution.
He is determined to intensify the efforts of the "New Deal", and he will never show mercy when one corrupt official is found and replaced.
From the seventh year of Jiaqing (1802) to the tenth year of Jiaqing (1805), there were important personnel adjustments almost every month.Senior officials at the provincial and ministerial levels across the country have been rotated over and over again.Dozens of corrupt officials, large and small, were found.But the momentum of corruption has not abated.The fiscal deficit of local governments at the grassroots level is still increasing.
Obviously, campaign-style punishment of corruption could no longer play a substantive role in the Jiaqing period.One of the reasons is that compared with the total number of corrupt officials, those who are discovered and punished are less than one percent or even one thousandth. The benefits of corruption are too high, but the risk of corruption is too low.The second reason is that corruption has become the norm in the bureaucratic system, and corruption has become the main source of officials' livelihood.If a person is not corrupt, he cannot manage his superiors, make friends with his peers, or even survive in the bureaucratic system.Under such circumstances, the court's "fighting against tigers" has evolved into "wetting the land with water", and its deterrent effect is getting weaker and weaker.
The extremely patient emperor also gradually fell into agitation.A series of reprimands, complaints and even scoldings began to appear in the last edict.This huge bureaucratic system has become an unbreakable community of interests, and we are not afraid of being scolded or beaten.The means and measures he thought were already very severe, after layers of shock absorption by the bureaucratic system of "a dead pig is not afraid of boiling water", when they reached the grassroots level, they turned out to be as gentle as a caress.He realized that what he was facing was a huge chaos, and when he punched it hard, it was like hitting a cotton ball.
The "New Deal" does not seem to be able to save the Qing Dynasty.Where should he go?
In the land of Liaodong in late autumn, the maple leaves are bright red and the pines and cypresses are green.In September of the tenth year of Jiaqing (1805), Emperor Jiaqing led his clan and important ministers to the Manchu Longxing land after a arduous trek.After paying homage to the Xinbin Yongling Mausoleum, they headed west to Shengjing, where they paid homage to Fuling (the tomb of Qing Taizu Nurhachi) and Zhaoling (the tomb of Emperor Taizong of the Qing Dynasty).
In the Long En Hall of the mausoleum, the emperor carefully visited the relics left by the ancestors.The tables and chairs used by Nurhachi look so simple, and the whips used by Huang Taiji are just ordinary cowhide whips without any decoration... These precious cultural relics show the difficult journey of the ancestors in starting a business.The emperor stopped for a long time in front of these relics, often lost in thought.
The emperor wrote an article "Shoucheng Lun" after his east tour, which talked about the issue of "reform".He said that recently, officials have repeatedly pointed out to him that there are many malpractices in the world because the old ancestral laws are no longer applicable, and they demand a comprehensive update.The emperor said that this is a very wrong ideological tendency.He has read Chinese history many times and has a lot of emotion.He found that at the beginning of a dynasty's establishment, it often established perfect rules and regulations.But in the middle of the dynasty, there are often bold descendants who think they are smart and make chaos at will. They want to tear down the mansion built by their ancestors and start a new one by themselves. As a result, the old house is demolished and the new house is not built. Seed of perdition. "The king who subjugated the country is all because he refuses to keep the success."
In a series of articles after the Eastern Tour, he announced the idea of "conserving success" and warned the ministers of the Manchu Dynasty that they must not move around or prescribe random medicines for a dying patient like Daqing.For such a seriously ill patient, the only acceptable treatment plan is to "slowly nourish the body" and "strengthen the foundation and cultivate the essence", and use mild medicine to moisten this dry sick body little by little.This therapy requires a lot of patience, and second, it needs symptomatic supplements.Jiaqing's strength is self-confidence and patience, and he also has supplements in his hands, which are a series of "ancestral methods" used to "cultivate righteousness".
The emperor said that there are many problems in the current Qing society.The root of these problems is not that the institutions are bad, but that the institutions are poorly implemented. "Occasionally, there are one or two mediocre bureaucrats who are lazy and do not follow the old system." They forget the teachings of their ancestors about "hard work" and "diligence in government and love the people". Changed, out of shape.
The emperor said that although the Qing Dynasty now governs the world and has a strong national power, the spirit of hard work of the ancestors should not be lost for a day.The officers and soldiers of the Eight Banners should often think about how the Manchu army endured hardships and stood hard work, forged ahead, and tried their best to change the status quo of "sluggish military affairs and slack military affairs".All civil servants, always think about how many times the current life is better than when the ancestors started their business. They are honest, self-sufficient, and frugal in governance. Only in this way can the rule of the Qing Dynasty be maintained forever.
This decision of Emperor Jiaqing may not be understood today.Looking back at today's historical height, we can clearly see that the problems faced by Jiaqing cannot be solved with the "old ancestral law".
Standing on the shoulders of the prosperity of Kangxi and Qianlong, the social problems encountered by Jiaqing have gone beyond the scope of all China's political experience in thousands of years.The prosperity of Kangxi and Qianlong was the last and the greatest prosperity in Chinese history.This prosperous age has reached the limit of traditional political governance in almost all aspects: whether it is the stability of the power system, the abundance of material wealth, or the maximization of the country’s territory, it has reached the limit of traditional political governance. idealized realm.The formation of this traditional prosperous age has exhausted all the power of the traditional social system.
Everything goes against the grain. This greatest prosperous age in history has also brought about a series of unprecedented problems. The most important thing is that the rapid growth of the total economy and population has made the traditional social mechanism reach a critical point.To continue this prosperous age, the only possibility is to break through the scope of traditional political experience and find a new way out of the "old ancestral law".In fact, any challenge is also an opportunity.For example, population issues.
At that time, the population problem not only troubled China alone, but also a common problem encountered by all countries in the world.Since the Great Geographical Discovery, new varieties of corn, sweet potatoes, potatoes, and peanuts have spread from the New World to the Old World, resulting in an almost simultaneous increase in the world's population for more than a century. In the 18th century, the world's population increased from 641 million to 919 million, an increase of 43.37%; China's population increased from 150 million to 313 million, an increase of 108.67%.
The unprecedented population problem poses severe challenges to countries all over the world.However, it is this challenge that drives development.The history of many countries in the world shows that the tension of population and resources often promotes the first step from agricultural civilization to industrial civilization, and from traditional society to modern society.European countries are gradually embarking on the road of modernization by vigorously developing industry and commerce to absorb excess population, and to solve population pressure through industrialization and urbanization.If China can follow the trend of history and take the development of foreign trade, industry and commerce, and overseas colonization as a solution to the population problem, then it is entirely possible for China to jump on the new car of globalization and open the door from tradition to modernity.
Therefore, what history puts forward to Emperor Jiaqing is not to completely retreat from the tradition, but to take the initiative to boldly attack and reform the traditional political framework in an all-round way. "Conservative" banner.
The general direction of "conservation" is certain, so various specific measures will be taken as the times require.They are like a set of tools that have been prepared for a long time, neatly placed in the toolbox left by the ancestors.
After the emperor got up early to wash, he put aside other things, sat respectfully, and read the first volume of "Records" of the previous dynasty. Except for hunting and fasting, he did this every day, regardless of the cold or heat.
Regarding corruption, financial issues, and population issues, he proposed a set of well-regulated governance plans based on the teachings of his ancestors.
After the failure of the campaign to punish corruption, the emperor realized that beheading alone could not solve the problem.He put the focus of the anti-corruption campaign on education.The emperor's main method to reverse the atmosphere in the officialdom was to select honest officials, guide people through the power of example, educate people, and inspire people's conscience.
In his "On Talent and Virtue", he clearly announced his criteria for selecting talents: "Those who are full of talent and virtue are the best; You can still be a gentleman if you are talented, but if you have too much virtue, you may end up as a villain...It is better to have insufficient talent than to apologize for virtue."
The emperor believed that through ideological education, the atmosphere could be reversed.The emperor said, "Everyone has a conscience", and officials are no exception.The fundamental reason why there are "evil ones" and "greedy ones" is that "education is not good, and people do not know the right way."With good education, officials can maintain their "nature" or regain their humanity.Therefore, selecting the central ministers of the imperial court, setting a series of good examples, and following the example to drive the change of the political atmosphere of the entire imperial court is his core idea of rectifying the administration of officials.
The central ministers of the Jiaqing Dynasty were characterized by good moral conduct and prudence in handling affairs.The old minister Wang Jie left behind by Qianlong was appreciated by Jiaqing for his "loyalty, straightness, and sincerity", and praised him for "straight and straight, and he returned to Hancheng with two sleeves".Liu Yong was also reused because he was called "Qing Jie Zhi Gong".Another important minister, Dong Gao, was also a diligent and upright person. History books say that "the father and son have lived through three dynasties, and they have never added a field of one mu or a house of one rafter."Dai Quheng is "clear in nature, good in silence, and cautious in handling affairs".
However, they also have another common feature, that is, lack of outstanding political talent, far-sighted political vision and innovative spirit.None of them could come up with a slightly innovative solution to the serious social problems of the Jiaqing period.It is Jiaqing's employment principle to prefer mediocre people to those who are "talented but not virtuous" or "impatient and active".Although known as the ancestor of Fa, in fact, this employment standard is not the same as that of his ancestors.Not to mention that during the rise of the Qing Dynasty, a large number of surrendered and rebel ministers of the Han nationality who had "deficiencies in integrity" were appointed. Even during the Kangxi, Yongqian and Qianlong periods, the emperor's appointments also focused on ability and did not stick to small details, which is why they have created more than a hundred years of glory.During the Xianfeng period, Minister Zhang Jixin and Emperor Xianfeng talked about the affairs of the Qianlong period, and had an interesting conversation.Xianfeng said, "The old governors demanded a lot of money."It means that the ministers in the Qianlong period were very corrupt.However, Zhang Jixin believes that during the Qianlong period, although the governors were inevitably greedy and arrogant, their talents were all generous.This statement also applies to the Jiaqing period.
Education-style anti-corruption is actually just trying to catch fish.Because the corruption of the Qing Dynasty at this time was a typical institutional corruption.
Rigid financial system, dysfunctional supervision system, and corruption of cultural traditions were the three major causes of political corruption in Jiaqing, the most important of which was the financial system.As mentioned earlier, from the Yongzheng period to the Jiaqing period, due to the influx of silver from America, prices in the Qing Dynasty tripled.It stands to reason that after prices rise, officials' salaries should at least rise simultaneously.However, from the establishment of the Yongzheng Nourishing Integrity System to the Jiaqing period, Qianlong and Jiaqing did not give officials a single salary increase on the grounds of "ancestor system".In the fifty-eighth year of Qianlong (1793), the deputy envoy of Macartney's mission, the British Stangton, saw this clearly. He said: "In the past century, a large amount of silver has flowed into China from Europe, so the price of goods in China has been significantly increased. Increase. Prices have increased, but the salaries of officials are still fixed, which makes their income out of proportion to their due expenditure. "The salary of Chinese officials is not high, which makes them easy to accept the temptation of gifts." "It is said that Corruption still exists in most of the yamen, and the salaries of Chinese officials are very low, but many corrupt officials can get huge fortunes.”Therefore, in order to solve the problem of corruption, it is necessary to combine it with financial reforms, get rid of the shackles of the ancestral system of "no taxation", substantially increase fiscal revenue, and turn gray income into white income by increasing the salaries of officials.
However, Emperor Jiaqing firmly opposed fiscal reform.
He feared that increasing taxes would cause social instability.Emperor Wanli of the Ming Dynasty sent "three pays" for the war, gouging out flesh and healing sores, shaking the foundation of the Ming Empire.Therefore, the emperors of the Qing Dynasty have repeatedly emphasized that the Ming Dynasty did not die in Chongzhen, but in Wanli.Jiaqing was very impressed by this point, so he was determined to abide by the ancestral motto of "no gift".Not only was there no tax increase, but even due to the frequent exemption of taxes in famine-stricken areas, the tax revenue during the Jiaqing period was even lower than that of the ancestral system.Although the population has nearly doubled, the income from land tax, salt tax, and miscellaneous Fu in the 17th year of Jiaqing (1812) was only 40.044 million taels. Compared with the 18th year of Qianlong (1753), it only increased by 6.3 %.Fiscal revenues are seriously out of reach.
To deal with financial difficulties, Emperor Jiaqing's policy was to vigorously promote thrift.In the tenth year of Jiaqing (1805), he said: "I only care about thrift in order to prosper. The country emphasizes prosperity and harmony, and the population is increasing day by day. Everyone needs what is needed for daily use. What is born in heaven is born in the earth. There are only this number of strengths. If you love luxury and don’t think about frugality, you will immediately see scarcity. How can you preserve life and gather together to celebrate prosperity... You should know how to be frugal, and advocate simplicity.” That is to say, everything on the earth There are countless items that can be produced.The population has increased compared to before, and the items that can be distributed to each person have decreased.所以道理很简单，在人口增长的形势下，每个人都必须以节俭为尚，社会才不至于起冲突。他以身作则，希望文武百官能够效仿，使百姓的生存之资不被过分的剥夺，留有一线生机。所以，他的节俭不止是私德，而且是治国大法。
可惜，这种做法后来证明对解决财政困难作用不大。
解决人口问题，一个重要的手段就是发展工商业。可是嘉庆皇帝却毫不犹豫地掐断出现在他眼前的任何一根工商业之苗。
其实，为了应对人口问题，康、雍、乾时代几任皇帝除了鼓励垦荒等传统型政策外，已经在东南沿海某些省份采取了一些富有近代性内涵的新政策。
雍正年间，中国人口压力最大的地区之一是东南沿海福建和广东两省。为了解决百姓生计问题，雍正解除了南洋贸易之禁。闽广等沿海省份华商前往巴达维亚（今印度尼西亚雅加达，当时为荷兰统治）的贸易重新兴旺起来，从而解决了与外贸有关的那部分人口的生计，同时，对南洋贸易又带动了东南沿海地区外向型手工制造业的发展，也吸纳了部分过剩人口。
乾隆则在雍正的基础上，解除了广东的矿禁，让民间力量可以开采铜矿，以吸纳剩余人口。广东解除矿禁标志着清代国家产业政策一次具有某种崭新意义的重大调整，其影响远远超出广东一省。18世纪初期中国闽广地区在人口压力下最先出现的解除海禁和矿禁，从某种意义上讲，可以看作农业社会的中国迎来工业文明的一抹熹微曙光。
如果嘉庆能在雍正乾隆的基础上继续“解放思想”，那么这一抹曙光也许会演变成朝晖。然而，嘉庆帝是坚定的禁矿者。稳定是他心中的头等大事。他在这个问题上是毫不动摇的。
嘉庆四年（1799年）四月十九日，皇帝下旨说，宛平县人潘世恩和汲县人苏廷禄，向地方官要求在直隶邢台等县开采银矿。这个事可不可办？今天我表个态。
皇帝说，开矿不是小事。开矿需要聚集众人，经年累月。以谋利之事，聚集游手之民，聚众闹事，势在必然。即使是官方经营，也难以约束这么多人。如果听任一二个老百姓集众自行开采，更是非常危险。
皇帝说，朕广开言路，不是要开言利之路。国家经费自有来源，怎么可以穷搜山泽之利呢？
潘世恩、苏廷禄这两个人，以开矿为由，思谋其利，实属不安本分，俱令押送原籍地方，交地方官严行管束，不许出境闹事。给事中明绳官员竟然把这样不合规矩的事上报给朝廷，明显是受了这两个人的请托，希望事成之后，分肥利己，实在卑鄙，必须严加惩处。
凡事以稳定为最高目标，导致嘉庆做出了这个错误决策。这一决定，是对雍正、乾隆时期新政策探索的开倒车。它堵死了大批剩余劳动力的出路，加剧了社会动荡。
御极二十多年，除了亲政初期意气风发过一阵外，越到后来，嘉庆就越深陷无奈、愁闷、苦恼之中。他自以为稳妥的“守成之法”，并没有如他所期望的那样使大清帝国慢慢恢复元气，重现荣光，反而越来越积重难返，不可收拾。在他统治的后期，令他尴尬不已，甚至羞愧落泪的事，不止一件。
嘉庆十八年（1813年）九月十六日黄昏，皇帝正由避暑山庄返回北京，抵达北京城外的白涧时，接到了一个惊人的消息：二百多名天理教教徒，兵分两路，于昨天上午攻进了紫禁城。他们与一些信教的太监里应外合，一直攻打到皇后寝宫储秀宫附近。幸好皇子绵宁带领守卫部队全力抵抗，最终全歼起义教徒。
紫禁城之变是大清衰势的一个特殊表征。在它的背后，是大清深层次问题的不断恶化：人口压力没有丝毫减轻，流民越来越多，土匪四起，邪教横行。除了天理教之外，什么静空天主、老佛门、一炷香、红阳教、清茶教、大乘法门等教门，接踵而出，目不暇给。
嘉庆皇帝的二十多年统治，就在一日日抱怨、迷惑、痛苦、尴尬中过去了。
二十多年间，虽然经常心灰意懒，但是他从来没有放松过权柄，一直到去世前三天，还在不倦地处理政务。
其实，这种勤奋已经成了一种惯性，成了一种“懒惰”着的勤奋。他弄不明白为什么他越努力，形势就越遭。他不明白他已经在中国历史上找遍了所有药方，为什么还是不见效。越到后来，皇帝越对扭转社会大势丧失了信心。他做皇帝已经成了做一天和尚撞一天钟。表面上，他一天到晚，一刻也不休息。实际上，他已经习惯于不动脑子，让祖宗为自己动脑子。“体皇考之心为心，本皇考之治为治。”只要祖宗说过或做过的，他都依样画葫芦地执行贯彻。
到了晚年，他的“守成”“法祖”已经升华到如此高度，那就是每天都死按《实录》办事。
嘉庆二十年（1815年），礼亲王昭琏因小事将其属下人等禁押在王府之内，严刑拷打，手段非常残酷。皇帝闻知十分生气，判昭琏革去王爵，圈禁二年。嘉庆二十一年（1816年）六月，皇帝早起恭阅康熙《实录》，看到内有平郡王纳尔图打死无罪人又折二人手足一事，当时康熙的处理方案是革去王爵，免其监禁。礼亲王案远较之平郡王案轻，于是皇帝当日下旨，改变前判，“敬承家法”，将昭琏释放。
嘉庆二十四年（1819年）十月十九日，宫内文颖馆失火。火势不大，内宫太监鉴于天理教血染紫禁城的教训，怕引来坏人混入宫中，没有开宫门命护兵入内救火，而是由太监们亲自扑灭。按理说这事处理得不能算错，可是嘉庆皇帝在八天之后读乾隆二十六年（1761年）九月《实录》，内载乾隆帝规定，凡宫内园庭遇失火等意外之事，即行开门放外边人等进内扑灭。于是皇帝根据这一记载，以违背乾隆指示为由，下旨处罚有关官员。
正是在这种不论时间地点一律按《实录》办事的原则下，大清朝一天天走向了万劫不复的沉沦，皇帝也在迷茫中一天天老去。
嘉庆二十四年，孔子后人、第七十三代衍圣公进京面圣，回来后把皇帝的谈话一丝不苟地记载下来，使我们得以直击这位皇帝晚年的精神面貌。皇帝一见面就说：“我想到曲阜去，不能，你知道不？山东的水都过了临清了，这个怎么好，真没法。圣庙新修的，我等到七八年去，又残旧了，怎么了？”
过几天辞行，皇帝又旧事重提，絮絮叨叨地说：“我登基已是二十四年，总不能去（祭孔），是个大缺典。我从前虽然随着高宗（乾隆皇帝）去过两回，到底不算。我到你那里去容易，就是路上难，水路罢亦难走，旱路罢亦难走……你看河上水这么大，山东民情亦不好，到底怎么好？弄得真没法，了不得！”
一口一句“真没法”“怎么好”“怎么了”“了不得”，似乎已经成了皇帝的口头语，焦头烂额之态毕显。帝王生涯现在对他来说，简直是一种刑罚。在撒手而去的时候，他的最后一丝意识也许不是留恋而是轻松。
从亲政初期的伟大，到谢幕时的尴尬，嘉庆的滑落曲线如此令人叹息。在全面盘点嘉庆皇帝的统治时，历史书给出的词汇是“嘉庆中衰”，他二十多年的统治，前面连着“康乾盛世”，紧接其后的，则是“鸦片战争”。镇压白莲教居然成了嘉庆皇帝一生的辉煌顶点，短暂的上升期之后，是漫长的下降曲线，正是在嘉庆皇帝的统治下，大清王朝完成了走向万劫不复的衰败的关键几步：腐败之癌由乾隆晚期侵蚀到国家肌体的几个重要器官，演变成了嘉庆晚期的沦肌浃骨，全面扩散。国困民贫交织在一起，大清帝国已经被掏空了精华，成了风中之烛，彻底丧失了复兴的机会。在嘉庆之后，昔日不可一世的大清帝国沦为了任人宰割的对象。这个以英明、仁圣开头的皇帝，后来却作为一个彻底的失败者进入了历史。
皇帝真是一种奇怪的动物，因为他们长得都差不多。从汉代到清代，都是“貌奇伟”“龙睛凤颈”“日角龙颜”“天日之表”，脸上从来不会长麻子、粉刺或者老年斑。
原因是，描写皇帝的外表很难。因为理论上皇帝应该长得很神奇，而实际上绝大多数皇帝长相平庸得掉渣。为了不犯错误，史官们不求有功但求无过，以“龙颜天表”“凤姿日章”之类搪塞。
《清史稿》关于乾隆皇帝的外表只战战兢兢地写了四个字：隆准颀身。而《清高宗实录》则说他“生而神灵，天挺奇表。殊庭方广，隆准颀身，发音铿洪，举步岳重，规度恢远，嶷然拔萃”。
据考证，乾隆身材并不高大。英国使臣马戛尔尼目测说，乾隆帝身高约五英尺二英寸，约一米六。这是八十三岁时的身高，估计年轻时比这要高一些。根据现存的乾隆夏天所穿的十二章朝袍的长度，可以大致推测乾隆身高在一米六六至一米六八之间。
好在乾隆皇帝酷爱画像，至今留下的画像不下百张。由于西洋画法的引进，那个时代的肖像画纤毫毕现。这让我们对他的外表有了二维的认识。戴逸先生这样描述肖像中的乾隆：“身材匀称，丰腴而略矮，身高约一点六公尺。脸庞呈长方同字型，两腮稍削，皮肤白皙，微带红润，眼睛黑而明亮，炯炯有神，鼻稍下钩，体态文雅，外表和平。青年时代是一位英俊潇洒的翩翩佳公子，老年时代，则显示出尊严、和蔼和慈祥。”
画像虽然传神，毕竟是静态的，无法全面传达一个有血有肉的立体形象。朝中大臣天天陪王伴驾，却不敢留下关于皇帝外表的一个字。好在乾隆时期，机缘巧合，一些外国及中国边远地区的使者都见过皇帝并写过回忆录。这些人大脑的格式化程度远低于朝中大臣，因此留下了一系列相当生动传神的皇帝印象。因此，乾隆皇帝是中国古代史上极为罕见地留下过大量可信的音容笑貌细节记载的帝王。
在外国人中，朝鲜人与中国接触可以说最多。作为最忠实的藩属国，朝鲜每年冬至、正月、圣节、千秋等时节都要派使臣去北京朝贺。
1780年，也就是乾隆四十五年，朝鲜人朴趾源随朝贺乾隆皇帝七十大寿的使团前往承德。他记载当年八月十一日见到乾隆皇帝的情景说：
皇帝出自正门……肃然无哗。先令回子太子进前，未数语而退。次命（朝鲜）使臣及三通事进前，皆进前长跪……皇帝问：“国王平安？”使臣谨对曰：“平安。”皇帝又问：“有能满洲话者乎？”上通事尹宗以满话对曰：“略解。”皇帝顾视左右而喜笑。皇帝方面白皙而微带黄气，须髯半白，貌若六十岁，蔼然有春风和气。
对于乾隆皇帝，朝鲜人的评价总的来讲还是比较高的。乾隆皇帝的和蔼可亲善于交往，使使臣们对他的个人印象都不错。
每次回国后，朝鲜小朝廷君臣都要关起门来，好好聊聊这次中原之行。使臣往往要给国王介绍些小道消息、奇闻逸事。君臣在深宫之内对天朝上国大皇帝可以肆无忌惮地品头论足，因此留下了一些相当真实的评价。比如对继位初年的乾隆，一位使臣做出这样的评论：“政令无大疵，或以柔弱为病”，“政令皆出要誉”。另一位则说：“雍正有苛刻之名，而乾隆行宽大之政。以求言诏观之，不以论寡躬缺失，大臣是非，至于罪台谏，可谓贤君矣。”（《朝鲜李朝实录》）这些史料，显然因其情境的特殊而具有与中国史料不一样的价值。
丹津班珠尔出身于十八世纪西藏最为出名的贵族家庭多仁家族。他身为首席噶伦，由于在1788年至1792年间西藏与廓尔喀的冲突中处理不力，被乾隆召到京城予以处罚。在《多仁家族史》中，他对这次朝见“文殊师利大皇帝”的经历进行了描述。
1792年，也就是乾隆五十七年秋天，他们一行四人经过长途跋涉来到北京。9月22日晚上，理藩院衙门的两位侍卫前来通知明早觐见。
东方发白之时，丹津班珠尔被带到皇宫中门过道上等候。太阳升起时，大皇帝及随从驾到。丹津班珠尔记述道：“皇帝高高坐在外裹黄毡的八人大轿上。抬轿的八人同上述徒步人员的装束一样。皇上身着一件黑貂皮大氅，华丽而珠光宝气。尊容很像普觉寺的上师强巴的样子：长脸，一副威严状，一见就会让人情不自禁地充满敬意。”
皇帝的轿子到了他们附近时，稍稍停了一会儿，和他们做了简短的谈话。皇帝问丹津班珠尔说：“你是不是班第达之子？”接着问扎西顿珠，“你这胖子是不是班第达之子的同事？当噶伦的？”然后，又问两个汉人是不是四川成都府人氏。最后，皇帝特地招丹津班珠尔到跟前来问道：“你会不会汉话和蒙古话？”他回禀说：“汉话只会几个词，拼成句就不懂意思了，而蒙古话说得不太好。”皇帝在轿上摆摆手，用蒙语说道：“可怜可怜，来来，到这儿来。”于是，他走近轿子跪下。
乾隆皇帝对丹津班珠尔在藏廓冲突中的经历深表同情，表明丹津班珠尔的罪责将会予以赦免，但是他不宜继续担任噶伦之职。皇帝又说，你等藏人可暂时合住黄寺，由朝廷内库拨给薪俸，等新年盛宴之后再回西藏。
对乾隆皇帝的宽宏大量，丹津班珠尔深表谢意。大皇帝面展笑容，点了点头。
这是藏文资料中关于乾隆皇帝音容状貌最详细的一则。
所有关于乾隆皇帝外表的记载中，英国人所作的是最详细传神的。
大约在丹津班珠尔到达北京的同时，马戛尔尼使团也正从英国出发。
乾隆五十八年（1793年）七月底，英国使团抵达承德，在这里觐见了八十三岁的乾隆皇帝。
这一天英国人半夜两点就起床了，梳洗穿衣。在万树园边上的一个小帐篷里，他们等了两个多小时。直到太阳出来，园中响起了音乐声。那位欧洲人心目中非常神秘的东方大君主终于要出现了。“太阳刚刚出来，从远处传来音乐声和人的吆喊声，说明皇帝快要驾到了。不久以后，皇帝从一个周围有树耸立的高山背后，好似一个神圣森严的丛林中出来。”
英国人描述说：“皇帝坐在一个无盖的肩舆中，由十六个人抬着走，舆后有警卫执事多人手执旗伞和乐器。皇帝衣服系暗色不绣花的丝绸长褂，头戴天鹅绒帽，形状同苏格兰军帽有些相似，帽前缀一巨珠，这是他衣饰上所带的唯一珠宝。”
皇帝所过之处，所有人都纷纷下跪。英国人也没有机会仔细打量这位亚洲的主人。匆忙中扫了一眼，唯一的感觉是皇帝精神矍铄，远远比他的年龄年轻。赫脱南说他只有“五十来岁，动作敏捷”，“风度翩翩”。
皇帝在万树园中的大幄前下舆，缓步走入大幄。英国使臣随即进入，跪在宝座之侧。借这样近距离接触的机会，英国人终于得以观察这位地球上统治着最多人口的君主。马戛尔尼的回忆录，虽然经刘半农翻译成半文半白，读起来不太畅快，但仍然可以看出乾隆的风貌：“余静观其人，实一老成长者。形状与吾英老年绅士相若，精神亦颇壮健，八十老翁，望之犹如六十许人也。”
巴罗的记述更为传神：“八十三岁的乾隆毫无一丝龙钟老态。有着一个身体健壮、精神矍铄的六十岁人的外表。他的眼睛漆黑，目光锐利，鼻子鹰钩，即使在如此高龄，面色仍相当红润。我估计他身高约五英尺九寸，腰板极其挺拔。虽然八十三岁的他既不算肥胖也不算强壮，但不难看出他曾经有过一副强壮的体魄。他的精力充沛，一生的操劳都没能令其衰弱。像所有的满族鞑靼人一样，他热爱狩猎，从不错过每年夏季举行的操练……他头脑的活力和思维的敏捷也不逊于他的身体。他心思缜密，行事果断，所以似乎无往不胜。”
乾隆皇帝情商很高，善于与人打交道，虽然在为人行政中常有暴烈苛刻之举，但礼仪性接触中极少会给人留下不良的印象。副使斯当东回忆觐见皇帝的一刻说：“自始至终皇帝看来非常愉快自如，绝不像外间描写那样阴郁沉闷。他的态度很开朗，眼睛光亮有神。至少在接见特使的整个时间，他的表现如此。”
礼节性拜会完成后，宴会就开始了。三位英国人以及他们的翻译被邀请坐在“皇帝左手一张桌子前的坐垫上”。英国人注意到，“皇帝进餐时候，意态非常舒适，表现胃口极好”。“皇帝在整个典礼中对英国客人的照顾心情始终未减。在饮宴时，皇帝命执事官从自己桌上取下盛馔数色送至特使桌，宴会完毕，皇帝命人召特使等至御座前，各亲赐温酒一杯，有些近似马德拉的次等酒。皇帝问及英王陛下的岁数，特使据实回答。皇帝说，他今年八十三岁了，身体仍然很健康，希望英王陛下也能同他一样长寿。他看上去确是很健康，不像已经统治国事五十七年之久的样子。典礼结束后，皇帝精神矍铄地从宝座上走下，健步走上肩舆，毫无衰老状态”。
虽然这次出使惨败而归，但是奇怪的是，英国使团的成员们无一例外地对乾隆印象良好。通过与中国官员的大量交谈，他们这样总结他的性格：“他头脑的活力和思维的敏捷也不逊于他的身体。他心思缜密，行事果断，所以似乎无往不胜。他善良爱民，就像在所有面对臣民的场合所显示的那样。他在灾荒时期减免赋税，救济饥民，同时对他的敌人睚眦必报，残酷无情。急躁而固执，有时候使他断事偏颇，处罚过严。”
这一总结，考诸中国史料，应该说相当准确而深刻。
乾隆时代，宫中仍然生活着许多万里远来的传教士。除了对红毛人的体味有点讨厌外，皇帝对西洋人的诚实、认真、不慕名利十分欣赏。和康熙皇帝一样，他对那些身怀异能的西洋人总是很尊重，教士王致诚回忆说：在给皇帝画像的时候，“天气很热。他（皇帝）发了慈悲，让王致诚脱了帽子坐着作画”。不要以为这是不值一提的细节，因为在通常情况下，“在皇上面前只能跪着或者站着，即使工作也不例外”。
传教士们对皇帝的印象也大抵很好。汪宏达说：“皇上高大英俊，而且和善，又令人肃然起敬。如果说他对臣民很严肃，我认为那不是他的性格所致，那是因为对于中国这样幅员广阔的帝国，他无法以其他方式来维持他的统治，尽他的责任。因此大官们在他面前都要发