Chapter 35 Han people rise to power

In the years when Yuan Xiaosi had a taste of youthful sorrows, the Qing dynasty of Cixi and her son also had a bit of prosperity. Wars ended in most areas, and social and economic development made small progress, known as "Tongzhi Zhongxing" in history. The most important sign of Tongzhi Zhongxing is that the civil strife was finally resolved and the foundation of the Qing Dynasty was preserved. In 1864, the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, which had been established for fourteen years, officially collapsed. After another five years of hard work, in 1869, Zeng Guofan, Li Hongzhang, Zuo Zongtang, Shen Baozhen, Zeng Guoquan and other Han Chinese took turns to fight, and finally wiped out almost all the Nian Army and the rest of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.

These Hanchens were lucky. The only non-Han who performed vigorously in the pacification of the chaos, Seng Gelinqin, a royal family and aristocrat, did not persist until the moment of final victory. The gutter capsized and died in the hands of the Nian army. . So far, the huge rebellious foundation created by the two macho men, Hong Xiuquan and Zhang Luoxing, has been wiped out. These Han officials have made such extraordinary achievements, of course Cixi will not treat these heroes badly. Among them, Zeng Guofan was promoted to the governor of Zhili, a first-rank bachelor, and a first-class marquis; Jiangsu governor Li Hongzhang was promoted to the governor of Liangjiang, and a first-rank co-organizer, and a first-class uncle; Zhejiang governor Zuo Zongtang was promoted to governor of Fujian and Zhejiang , First-class Earl...

Some people may not understand the difference between the governor and the governor, so I will explain the governor, governor and the admiral who are easily confused here. Generally speaking, an admiral is the highest military officer in a province. According to their responsibilities, they can be divided into land admirals and naval admirals. They are roughly equivalent to the current commanders of the army and navy of the provincial military region. The governor is the highest official of a province's "civil affairs", which is equivalent to the current governor and secretary of the provincial party committee. He is in charge of administration, justice, and even cultural and educational examinations, but he cannot command the army unless the governor also serves as an admiral.

The rank of the governor is much higher. He can govern multiple provinces, including both civil and military affairs. His power is equivalent to the governor and admiral of several provinces. If the province under the governor’s jurisdiction also has a governor and admiral, the governor can issue orders to him. . In the Qing Dynasty, there were only nine top officials of this level.The nine governors are the Governor of Zhili, the Governor of Guangdong and Guangxi, the Governor of Liangjiang, the Governor of Huguang, the Governor of Fujian and Zhejiang, the Governor of Shaanxi and Gansu, the Governor of Sichuan, the Governor of Yunnan and Guizhou, and the Governor of the Three Eastern Provinces (also known as General Fengtian).

In particular, the governor of Zhili, the head of the nine governors, has roughly the same functions as today's governors of Hebei, Shandong, and Henan provinces, secretary of the provincial party committee, and commander of the capital garrison, with considerable power. These positions look very attractive, but they are very difficult to obtain.If the officials of the Qing Dynasty did not have any special merits, such as conquering the world with extremely high risks, and saving the emperor with extremely high difficulty and few opportunities... To survive until the retirement of the second rank, it is already an honor for the ancestors.

Just talking about the position of governor, he is already a first-rank official, not to mention that these few have also received the long-term meal ticket of the title, which shows their great contribution. Here I want to focus on Zeng Guofan.After Lao Zeng destroyed the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, he actually disbanded the Hunan Army that followed him through life and death, and only retained the Hunan Army Navy, and the ownership of the Navy did not belong to him—Zeng Guofan took the initiative to adapt it into the Yangtze River Water Division. Division, sovereignty belongs to the imperial court.

Since then, the huge meritorious team of the Hunan Army has been slowly falling with the wind like leaves in autumn. Zeng Guofan rose up alone to quell the war, but after the event was completed, he disbanded his direct line of troops regardless of merit or wealth. Why did he do this? After careful deduction, it is nothing more than keeping a low profile and not leaving an excuse for the court to be jealous.Zeng Guofan's courage to cut his wrists and his cautious way of serving as a minister can be seen. However, Zeng Guofan would never have imagined that his behavior became one of the reasons for the fall of the Qing Dynasty.