Chapter 12 3. Relatives of the Qing court

The relatives of the Qing palace have a characteristic, the Manchu nobles have always followed it.The Guerjia clan, whose ancestor should be Fei Yingdong, one of the five founding ministers of the country; the Niu Hulu clan, whose ancestor should be Eyidu, who was one of the five founding ministers of the country; .Mongolian nobles such as the Borzigit family, who are descendants of Genghis Khan, and the Arut family.The nobles of the Han army, the Tong Jia clan, influenced the politics of the six dynasties of Tianming, Tiancong, Chongde, Shunzhi, Kangxi, and Yongzheng, and the Nian clan influenced the political situation of the Kangxi, Yongzheng, and Qianlong dynasties.However, the foreign relatives threatened the imperial power and ended up with capital crimes.Suo'etu was like this, and so was Nian Gengyao.Take Nian Shi as an example to illustrate.

The imperial concubine of the year.Concubine Nian of Emperor Yongzheng was the daughter of Nian Xialing, governor of the Han Army in Hunan, and the younger sister of General Nian Gengyao.When Emperor Yongzheng was Prince Yong, the Nian family was the side Fujin and lived in Shizong's hidden residence.In the first year of Yongzheng (1723), Emperor Yongzheng, who ascended the throne, conferred the title of imperial concubine Nianshi.How can Nianshi be favored by Emperor Yongzheng? First, from the point of view of promotion: Nian's clan went from side Fujin to concubine, to noble concubine, and then to imperial concubine. This is the only special case among all the empresses and concubines of Emperor Yongzheng.

Second, from the point of view of nobility: "The Four Spectrum of the Qing Imperial Family Concubines" records that Emperor Yongzheng had nine concubines during his reign, including one empress, one imperial concubine, one imperial concubine, two concubines, three concubines, and one nobleman.The honor of the Nian clan is only inferior to that of the empress Ulanara, and the Ulanara clan is the descendant of Fujin under the decree of Emperor Kangxi. Emperor Yongzheng prides himself on being a filial son, so naturally he must obey the imperial father's will.Uranara had no children.

Third, from the point of view of fertility: Nianshi gave birth to three sons - Fuyi, Fuhui, Fupei, and one daughter. He was one of the concubines of Emperor Yongzheng who had the most children. Fourth, from the perspective of illness: In November of the third year of Yongzheng (1725), Concubine Nian became seriously ill. Fifth, from the perspective of evaluation: Emperor Yongzheng said: "The noble concubine Nian is gentle and gentle, and she is respectful and cautious. When I was in the vassal mansion, I was very respectful and cautious. Before the queen, I was careful and respectful, and my servants were generous and peaceful. Huang Kaojia was dignified and precious, and was named the prince's side concubine. After I came to the throne, the noble concubine devoted herself to the important affairs of Huang Kao and the concubine, and she was able to praise the internal affairs." ("Records of Emperor Shizong of Qing Dynasty" Volume 38 )

Sixth, look from behind: Emperor Yongzheng "stopped court for five days" after the death of the imperial concubine.Just after the full moon, Emperor Yongzheng dealt with Nian Gengyao, announced ninety-two major crimes, and ordered him to die.But Concubine Nian's father, Nian Yaling, was exonerated.This is for the sake of the emperor and concubine.At the beginning of Qianlong, it was also a standard to bury Tailing. (Volume 214 of "Manuscripts of Qing History Biography of Concubines") The rise and fall of the family every year.See the rise and fall of the Nian family from Nian Gengyao, the elder brother of Concubine Nian.Nian Gengyao's father, Xia Ling, was a member of the Han army with a yellow banner.With a background in translation and writing, he is an official (division level) and a doctor (bureau level).In the 22nd year of Kangxi (1683), he was granted the censor of Henan Province, and later moved to the minister of the Ministry of Industry (deputy ministerial level), and was promoted to governor of Huguang (provincial and ministerial level).Retire later.Nian Gengyao progressed smoothly on the official career paved by his father.In the thirty-ninth year of Kangxi (1700), he was a Jinshi, entered the Imperial Academy, served as an examiner for Sichuan and Guangdong provincial examinations, and moved to the cabinet as a bachelor.Only nine years later, he was promoted to governor of Sichuan.In the Sichuan-Tibet area, the place is not stable, and there are often wars. Nian Gengyao changed from civil to military, and he was given the seal of General Dingxi, and made many military exploits.Emperor Kangxi asked him to concurrently serve as governor of Sichuan and Shaanxi, but he resigned.At this time, Nian Gengyao's mind was still clear.

Emperor Yongzheng succeeds to the throne, summons General Yunti of Fuyuan to return to the capital, and orders Nian Gengyao to manage the general's printing affairs.Later, the Taibao was added, the third-class public was granted, and the second-class public was granted.Soon, Qinghai was pacified, and Nian Gengyao gave a report on the aftermath of Qinghai: paying tribute every three years, adding guards to govern, no more than 200 temples, no more than 300 lamas, building walls and forts outside the border, and building Datong River. The general army, as well as the people from the five provinces of Zhili, Shanxi, Henan, Shandong, and Shaanxi, went to garrison fields, etc., and discussed.In October, Nian Gengyao entered the pilgrimage and bestowed double-eyed feathers, four dragon suits, yellow belts, purple bridles, and gold coins to make his son Nian rich and noble.This was the period when Nian Gengyao was most proud, and it was also the period when Concubine Nian was most favored.

Nian Gengyao became an official under Prince Yong's family, and was especially favored by Emperor Yongzheng.Emperor Yongzheng rewarded Nian Gengyao with food such as fresh lychee, new tea, mid-autumn cake, fresh jujube, deer tail, medicine such as Ping'an pill, Taiyi ingot, Buxin pill, Zijin ingot, literary toys such as poetry fan, Sanjiu inkstone, imperial book Ci fan, clothing decorations such as Ertuan Longbu gown, robe gown, enamel double eye feathers, others such as hand towels, Western toys, Dongzhu, shotguns, self-sounding watches, enamel cups, enamel snuff bottles, etc.Emperor Yongzheng asked the manufacturing office to make four treasures: one for Prince Shangyi, one for Uncle Longko, one for Nian Gengyao, and one for himself.It can be seen that these three people were the confidantes of Emperor Yongzheng at that time.Emperor Yongzheng made the decision to adopt Nian Gengyao's son Nianxi to Longkoduo as his son, and changed his name to live.Emperor Yongzheng had a special relationship with Nian Gengyao. Emperor Yongzheng commented on Nian Gengyao's "Zou Xie Ziming Biao Zhe": "The two of us will be an example of knowing each other through the ages, so that future generations will admire and salivate." ("Nian Gengyao Man Han") Compilation of Memorials, page 276)

However, Nian Gengyao was extremely talented, took credit for his favor, and was arrogant and indulgent.When passing by, guide forward and backward.When entering Beijing, the governor and governor were ordered to kneel down to see him off.Arriving at the capital, Minister Wang greeted him in the suburbs, arrogant and rude: "On the day of entering the capital, the minister knelt and received him outside the Guangning Gate. He rode his horse past the year and was not moved." ) In terms of locality, Mongolian princes and son-in-law Abao must kneel when they meet.Even Nian Gengyao's servants followed him to "ascend to heaven"——Sang Chengding, the official chief envoy, and Wei Zhiyao, the official lieutenant general.

In February of the third year of Yongzheng (1725), when the sun and the moon were united, and the five stars united the pearls, Nian Gengyao wrote in his congratulatory book, "Take care at night and do things in the morning".What's going on here? "Book of Changes Qian" said: "A gentleman works all day long, and he is vigilant at night, and there is no blame." The meaning of the previous sentence is that a gentleman should "strive for self-improvement all day long, without stopping"; the meaning of the next sentence is "common worries , always be in danger"; the result is "there is no blame" - only then can there be no disasters and mistakes.It was later extended to "be vigilant in the morning and in the evening", which means self-improvement early and prudence late. The meanings of "chaogan" and "xiti" are parallel, with "chaogan" in front and "xiti" in the back, the logic is smooth and better.It's okay to turn it upside down.Emperor Yongzheng is purely looking for faults here, picking bones in the egg.

Emperor Yongzheng was dissatisfied with Nian Gengyao, and sent a signal: "It's a pity for my kindness, it's a pity for my talent, it's a pity for my extraordinary achievements, it's a pity for a famous person who has been famous for thousands of years, and it's a pity for the reunion of the monarch and his ministers who have been together for thousands of years." Begging for crimes: "I know my sins very well today. If the master is merciful and repents, I beg the master to forgive the minister. I am not old, and leave this dog and horse to serve the master slowly; if the master wants to enforce the law No matter which one of the crimes of the minister, you can ask the death penalty. How can the minister get it back. Apart from surrendering his life and earnestly begging the master, the minister has no way to survive. He fell to the ground and wailed, hoping that the master would be kind, the minister was sobbing .” But, it was too late.

In April, Emperor Yongzheng said: "Gengyao's impeachment was improper, and he sent soldiers to build Nanping City. He did not spare the people and caused panic and troubles. Instead, he surrendered and rebelled. Qinghai and Mongolia were famine, and they could not be heard. Idle play and fainted , can not be re-elected as governor, but instead be appointed general of Hangzhou." Yue Zhongqi was appointed governor, and he was ordered to return the seal of General Fuyuan. In December, Nian Gengyao was arrested in the capital, where his charges were discussed: Nian Gengyao committed five crimes of rebellion, nine crimes of deception, sixteen crimes of usurpation, thirteen crimes of rebellion, six crimes of arbitrariness, and taboo Six crimes, four crimes of cruelty, eighteen crimes of corruption, fifteen crimes of corruption, all ninety-two items should be eliminated, and relatives should be seated.He ordered Marsai, the minister of the guards, and Aqitu, the commander of the infantry, to order Nian Gengyao to commit suicide in prison.Nian Gengyao's father Xialing and brother Xiyao seized the official position and exonerated him; his son Nian Fu was beheaded;Zou Lu and Wang Jingqi, Gengyao's behind-the-scenes guests, were killed one after another, and their relatives were put on armor as slaves. Why did Emperor Yongzheng kill Nian Gengyao?There are two different views: one is that Nian Gengyao helped Yinzhen seek the throne, and clamped down on the fourteenth son of the emperor, Yunyu, in the northwest. Gengyao took credit for his pride, arbitrarily arbitrarily arbitrarily arbitrarily powerful, formed a clique for personal gain, and took the blame for himself.The truth of the matter is a mystery, and the lessons of history are worth thinking about. Foreign relatives rely on imperial power, sages follow the law, work hard to improve themselves, and be vigilant and self-disciplined; greedy foxes pretend to be tigers, self-satisfied, and self-defeating.Although the former did not have so much wealth and power, they lived in peace and landed safely; although the latter possessed huge wealth and power, they acted recklessly and brought blessings and disasters.Know the book and uphold the propriety, work day and night, and live a safe life, and your children and grandchildren will be peaceful.