In the fifty-first year of Kangxi (A.D. 17 12), after the Prince was abolished for the second time, under the pressure of ministers, Kangxi had to respond to the matter of storage. That is to say, in the fifty-sixth year of Kangxi (A.D. 17 17), he did two things: one was to formulate a ritual system for princes, and the other was to formulate princes and the court.
Kangxi said emotionally in the imperial edict: "When I was young, I was in excellent health and never got sick. With a flick of a finger, I am now nearly seventy years old and have been in office for more than fifty years. It has been more than 4300 years since the era of the Yellow Emperor. During this period, at least 300 emperors ruled in the world. Of these people, I should be the longest in office, right? (Later, Qianlong had a chance to surpass Kangxi, but it is estimated that considering this imperial edict of Kangxi, he would be the emperor's post-Zen position for Jiaqing for 59 years and be the emperor's father himself. If it really counts, Qianlong is the longest and longest-lived emperor)
After twenty years as emperor, I didn't expect to live to be in office for thirty years; After 30 years in office, I did not expect to live to be in office for 40 years. But now, this is his fifty-seventh year in office. History books once said that there is a "Five Blessingg" in the world: First, longevity; The second is wealth; The third is health; The fourth is goodness; Fifth, a happy ending. In Five Blessingg, the last one is probably the most difficult.
Now I'm getting old. All my sons, grandchildren and great-grandchildren add up to more than 100. Many children are blessed, and the world is still safe. Even if I haven't completely reached the point of changing customs and providing for others, it will be my decades of hard work and efforts. Over the past few decades, I dare not slack off for a moment, which can be summarized by more than just the word "hard work"!
Once upon a time, many emperors died short-lived, and later generations of historians and scholars often satirized them for their greed for wine, debauchery and corruption. Some wise masters even tried to find fault with others and said they were useless. What I want to say is that most of these people are easy to talk to. In fact, the real reason why many emperors died early is that the affairs of the country are too heavy, and most of them are exhausted! Unlike ministers, emperors do what they want; If you don't want to do it, you can die, or you can apply for retirement when you are old, go home and have a lot of children and grandchildren, and enjoy family happiness. But what about us emperors? How can there be such a blessing? ! I can only work hard all my life without a day's rest!
Since Kangxi was seriously ill in 47 years, I feel that my energy is not as good as before. I've been in a trance for years and I'm very tired. When there are many things, I often feel exhausted. I'm afraid I'm old now and often get sick. It's really a pity that if something happens one day, I can't say what I want to say. So, wouldn't it be better to sum up my life while I'm still conscious?
No one in this world can live a hundred years, and those emperors are very taboo about talking about "death." In the end, they didn't even have a chance to write a will. Later generations look at the posthumous edict of the first emperor and always feel that it is not what they want to say. This is all because they were insane when they were dying, and finally let others write. So I can't be like them. I want you to know what I want to say. The man's life and death are uncertain. What are the taboos and fears?
Liang Wudi is a hero in history, but he was persecuted by Hou Jing in his later years and died in Taicheng. Emperor Wendi of Sui Dynasty was also a master of English. Because of his son Yang Di, he came to no good end. There are many precedents in history in which candles and axes kill the king, all because they are not prepared in advance. Now, if any traitor tries to establish a brother by using his power when I am dying, thinking that he will gain prosperity in the future, he will never tolerate it as long as I have a breath!
Recently, ministers called for the establishment of Chu Jun for fear that I would die suddenly one day. It's human nature to be born and die, and I'm not afraid. How can I forget such an important event as Li Chu? It's just that the monarch has a great responsibility, and the world power is in one hand. If I can put this burden down and have a good rest, of course I will be happy and relaxed, but the question is, is there any way to let me put this burden down?
Whenever I see the old ministers who have been with me for many years applying for retirement because they are old, I can't bear to let them go, and sometimes I can't help crying. You people still have retirement days, but when can I rest? When I was 57 years old, I had several white beards. Someone once gave me a black beard medicine (hair dye? )。 I said, how many emperors have been able to grow white beards since ancient times? By then, I'll really have white hair and beard. It's a long story! Now I look at this court. When I first ascended the throne, there was no minister. Even those ministers who were later promoted are now mostly gray-haired and senile. It seems that I have been in office for a long time and should be satisfied. For so many years, I have been ranked first in the world and have universal wealth. In my opinion, if this throne is deserted and prosperous, it is just a passing sight. In my lifetime, if the world is peaceful, I will be satisfied.
I say so much, just hope you can serve me, don't forget my repeated exhortations. Besides, I want nothing more. I have been preparing this law for ten years. Even if there is any will in the future, what I want to say is nothing more than these heartfelt words. Now I have told you without reservation, and I won't repeat it in the future. "
Kangxi's words were very emotional and made those ministers cry. This is basically Kangxi's self-evaluation of his ruling career. After nearly sixty years as emperor, Kangxi finally admitted that he was old and his time was running out. In the imperial edict, Kangxi reviewed his life and spoke frankly about life and death, which is commendable. Kangxi was worried that if one day he died suddenly and someone colluded with one of his sons to kill the king and usurp the throne, he would not die a natural death. To this end, he gave his eldest brother and ministers a vaccination in advance, and severely warned those evil people not to use their brains on this issue.
However, despite Kangxi's sincerity, the problem that ministers are most concerned about ... the problem of establishing a prince has not been solved. This most important issue was ignored by Kangxi intentionally or unintentionally, which disappointed the ministers. It seems that Kangxi still wants to live a quiet life for a few years, and he doesn't want to make his last few years restless because of this.
Kangxi was always tortured by illness in his later years, but he was opinionated and never gave up. In the fifty-fourth year of Kangxi (A.D. 17 15), Kangxi's right hand suddenly refused to listen to his orders, but he was afraid that the chamberlain was in power and never let anyone write for him. In desperation, Kangxi had to try to approve passbooks with his left hand. In the winter of the fifty-sixth year of Kangxi (A.D. 17 17), he was seriously ill and his feet were so swollen that he could not even stand up. Although it was a little better in the next few years, I went out hunting every year, but more often I could only watch others shoot.
The older he gets, the less he wants to stay in the palace. He is eager for a wonderful life outside. Hunting around became his favorite activity. Even if he can't aim at his prey with a bow, as long as he stands in the vast desert, he will open his arms, face the northwest wind and breathe the air beyond the Great Wall, as if to let him go back to the past. Kangxi, the old man, still refuses to admit defeat!
In October of the sixty-first year of Kangxi (A.D. 1722), winter seemed to come very early. In the huge palace, Kangxi walked restlessly, and endless loneliness and boundless loneliness weighed on his head like dark clouds, which made him dizzy and helpless. He suddenly decided to go out for a walk and get some air!
But where can I go? This summer, he took a large group of people to Jehol and hunted outside the Great Wall. I'm not used to going there again at this time. Perhaps, go to a closer place, Kangxi thought. To tell the truth, he has made old bones more and more fragile. So, Kangxi decided to go hunting in Nanyuan outside the city for a few days to relieve his irritability.
Before he left, Kangxi and his party went out of Beijing to hunt in Nanyuan. Entering the vast world outside the city, Kangxi relaxed a lot. The outside world is good, there are no mountains of memorial halls, and there is no need to set up reading glasses to see these tasteless things. Here, there is only dust and hay everywhere, and our team's hunting flag is whistling in the wind.
The wind is blowing harder and harder, the road is dusty, and the fallen leaves roll over the almost bare treetops. The hunting party seems to be affected, and the pace of travel is much slower. Kangxi looked up at the sunset in the west, like blood, and seemed to become ferocious in the dust. He closed his eyes, stroked his forehead and asked himself, Why are you here? What is this place? Suddenly, Kangxi felt at a loss, as if there was a helpless force approaching him, which made his eyes dull, distracted and his feet trembled. In a trance, his heart suddenly sank, his chest jumped and his head swelled, and everything around him suddenly became strange, vague and out of control. ...
In the sixty-first year of Kangxi (A.D. 1722), on the evening of1month 13, the British monarch Kangxi finally finished the 69-year mileage and died suddenly in Changchun Garden.
Let's follow the relevant records and see how Kangxi spent his last few days.
According to the records of the sage of Qing Dynasty, Kangxi and his party hunted in Nanyuan on October 21st in the sixty-first year of Kangxi (A.D. 1722). Kangxi returned to Changchun Garden on the seventh day of November because of his physical discomfort. Yongxianlu records that Kangxi returned to Changchun Garden from Nanyuan on the seventh day of November and fell ill the next day. Kangxi also sent a message saying: "I feel cold occasionally. I am sweating today. From the tenth day to the fifteenth day, you should rest and fast, and you don't have to play the throne. "
From this point of view, Kangxi returned to Changchun Garden on the seventh day of November. But from the seventh day to the thirteenth day, in less than a week, Kangxi died suddenly. Then people will ask: what disease did Kangxi get and how did he get it?
First of all, judging from the onset time, Kangxi should have been infected while hunting. Considering that it was early winter at the end of 10 in the north at that time, it was the time of season change, and it was easy to catch a cold (especially for the elderly and children). It is estimated that Kangxi caught a cold when he was walking in the wind, and he was already uncomfortable during hunting, so he would rush back to Changchun Garden from Nanyuan. This can correspond to Kangxi's own "occasional cold".
After returning to Changchun Garden, Kangxi's condition worsened. He said in the imperial edict that "I will sweat today", which shows that his cold at that time (assuming it was a cold) was already very serious, and it seemed that he had symptoms of headache, fever and sweating. Because Kangxi was in poor health in his later years, but he liked to be pampered (for example, he refused to see a doctor when he abandoned the prince), his real condition may be more serious than he described, and there may be other complications, but Kangxi himself did not know or didn't want to talk about it.
In addition, judging from the words "I am sweating today", Kangxi himself did not pay much attention to this disease. However, Kangxi seemed to realize that the attack was threatening, so he said, "On the tenth to fifteenth day of the first month, you should rest and fast, and you should stamp a seal, but you don't have to start work." From this point of view, it shows that Kangxi was already very weak at that time and decided to rest for a few days without watching the paper.
In the next few days, although Kangxi didn't read the paper, there were still some things to explain. For example, on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month, Kangxi asked Mei Yin Zhen to go to the Temple of Heaven in the southern suburbs as his winter solstice gift. The day of sacrifice was 1 1 month 15, and Kangxi attached great importance to the gift of offering sacrifices to heaven. This time, because he couldn't stand up, he asked Yin Zhen to take his place. The reason why Yin Zhen was allowed to go may be because Yin Zhen has experience in this field (he also went to Shengjing to pay homage to his ancestral grave last year), or it may be because Kangxi attached importance to Yin Zhen and thought that he was the most suitable person to salute instead of himself. Therefore, Kangxi also specially told Yin Zhen to go to the fasting palace first to show his sincerity to God.
It is estimated that Yin Zhen also saw that the old father was very different this time, so after he went to Lent, he sent eunuchs and guards to Yingchun Garden every day from 10 to 12, and he was also worried that something would happen to Kangxi. But Kangxi's answer to every greeting is "I feel a little better", which means "I feel a little better today" in vernacular Chinese.
In Kangxi's character, this sentence does not necessarily mean this. A man who loves to be brave in everything will never say that his condition has deteriorated unless the situation is critical. Therefore, the sentence "I am a little better" may be understood as Kangxi's condition has not improved, but it has not deteriorated.
Sure enough, in the early morning of 13th, Kangxi's condition turned for the better. He felt that he was really going to die this time, so he made a fool of himself on 13 (around 3: 00 in the morning 1 3: 00) and ordered Yin Zhen, who was in the wolf's den at that time, to be called to Changchun Garden (let Yin Zhen come ahead of time, maybe Yin Zhen is outside the city, and the journey is a little long, but it is also likely because he is located in Yin Zhen).
Before Yin Zhen arrives, Kangxi will be in Beijing for one hour (from 3 am to 5 am), including three elder brothers, seven elder brothers, starling, Jiu Ge, ten elder brothers, twelve elder brothers and thirteen elder brothers.
After the buddy arrived, Yin Zhen arrived at Changchun Garden at around 4: 00 a.m. (9: 00 a.m. 165438+ 0: 00 a.m.) and rushed into the bedroom to meet him. 13 During the day, Yin Zhen always goes in three times. What Kangxi said to Yin Zhen is unknown.
At a quarter of an hour that night (from 7 pm to 9 pm), Kangxi died.
As for the specific time of Kangxi's death, the records in Records of the Sage of Qing Dynasty, Records of Yongxian and Outline of the General Records of Qing Emperor were all engraved on the 13th, and so was Records of the Great Righteousness edited by Yongzheng himself. There should be no problem at the time node, and it is also a fact that Kangxi's condition deteriorated sharply on 13. Perhaps the most controversial thing is that Yin Zhen went to Kangxi's bedroom during the day on 13th, and what they did and said between them, because there was no record, also led to many rumors.
Anyway, Kangxi has passed away and finished the last journey. As for what happened later, it was beyond his control. Looking back on Kangxi's extraordinary life, he ascended the throne at the age of eight and lost his mother at the age of nine. With the support of my grandmother sourdrang queen, her achievements in stabilizing the throne, defeating Ao Bai, pacifying San Francisco, unifying Taiwan Province Province, and cleaning up Mobei and the country people are enough to go down in history. Kangxi has been diligent in governing the country all his life and can be called a rare generation of English masters for hundreds of years.
After Yin Zhen (later called Yongzheng) acceded to the throne, ministers went to posthumous title and said to Kangxi, "He was a wise and diligent man, generous and respectful, honest and virtuous, and became a great emperor", and the proposed temple name was "Holy Father". Yongzheng stabbed his middle finger to show filial piety and circled the word "xian" with blood. Thus, Emperor Kangxi became the holy father of the Qing Dynasty.
Kangxi's final resting place is called Jingling, which is about two miles southeast of Xiaoling Mausoleum in Shunzhi. In August of the first year of Yongzheng (AD 1723), Yongzheng wrote an inscription for Jingling. At the same time, he asked Prince Cheng Yunzhi (third brother), Wang Yunyou (seventh brother) and academicians who are good at calligraphy to write one for the ministers to evaluate. Of course, those ministers are not fools, saying that Yongzheng wrote the best and finally used his.
Due to the early death of Queen Hersaizhhala, Jingling broke ground in the 15th year of Kangxi (AD 1676) and was completed in the 20th year of Kangxi. The first three Empresses of Kangxi, Hersairihara, Niu Kelu and Tong Jiashi, have put their tributes in the underground palace, and the door of the underground palace has been open. They have been waiting there for the arrival of Kangxi for decades (the earliest buried Hesse Rihara has been dead for nearly half a century).
"The sound of geese breaking Hengyang dies, and the sound of fish sinking into the sea is hard to believe." Kangxi probably didn't expect that his three queens died so early, but he lived for such a long time (from the Qin Dynasty to the Kangxi period, there were not many emperors who lived to be over 70 years old, only Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty and a few others). It was not until September of the first year of Yongzheng (AD 1723) that Zigong of Kangxi was transported into Jingling and the underground palace was finally closed.
Sadly, the Jingling of Kangxi was stolen twice during the Republic of China. The first time was 1928. Bandits from Sun Dianying carried out crazy excavation in the Qing Dongling. The second time was just finished in War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression. Some bandits took advantage of the chaos to dig the Dongling of Qing Dynasty again, and the Jingling of Kangxi was also destroyed.
After the excavation of Jingling, it seems that it has not been cleaned up. In addition, the soil in Jingling is watery. Every rainy season, there is one more person in Jingling Underground Palace. In other words, the bones of Kangxi and his concubines may still be soaked in mud from time to time.
After all, through the ages, an emperor died like this, which was probably unexpected by Kangxi.