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Weng Tonghe (1830-1904), courtesy name Shuping, Pingsheng, with a famous trumpet sound, late No. Songchan, layman of Ping'an, was born in Changshu, Jiangsu Province. The son of the great scholar Weng Xincun. In the sixth year of Xianfeng (1856), he was a Jinshi. He successively served as Minister of the Ministry of Hubu, Yushi of Zuodu of the Duchayuan, Shangshu of the Ministry of Punishment, Ministry of Works, Ministry of Hubu, Minister of Military Aircraft and Minister of the Prime Minister's Affairs Office. He was a famous minister at that time. The leader of Qingliu. During the Guangxu Revolution of 1898, he resigned from office and returned home. After his death, he was given the posthumous title Wengong. Weng Tonghe was Guangxu's master, and he "had to give advice when things happened." Guangxu "had to ask Tonghe about everything, and he relied heavily on him."
On April 27, 1830, the tenth year of Daoguang reign in the Qing Dynasty, Weng Tonghe was born in Luoquan Hutong, Shihuma Street, Beijing. The Weng family has lived in Changshu County, Suzhou Prefecture (today's Jiangsu Province). Weng Tonghe's father, Weng Xincun, had a courtesy name of Erming, a nickname of Shenzhong, and was a Daoguang Jinshi. He once served as the Minister of Rites, the Ministry of Households, the Ministry of Industry, the Master of the Hanlin Academy, and the Bachelor of Tiren Pavilion. He served as the chief master of the upper study room and taught Prince Gong, Prince Chen, Prince Hui, and Prince Zhong. In his later years, he served as the master of Emperor Tongzhi and was an important minister in Daoguang and Xianfeng dynasties. Weng Tonghe's mother, Xu, was born in a bureaucratic family. She was proficient in "Poetry" and "Yi" since childhood, and was familiar with the Five Classics. She was especially good at reading history books. After Xu's marriage, because Weng Xinchun had been an official in Beijing for a long time and did not go home often, she took care of all the housework alone. Weng Tonghe has four brothers and sisters. The eldest brother has the same book, his courtesy name is Zugeng, his name is Pharmacy, he was a Daoguang Jinshi, and he was appointed as the governor of Anhui. The second brother, who has the same title, once served as governor of Shaanxi and Hubei, and acted as governor of Huguang. The two brothers both had certain knowledge and skills, and Weng Tonghe was deeply influenced by them. The two sisters are also very smart. The eldest sister Shouzhu is especially smart and can never forget her poems and books. Weng Tonghe is the youngest of the siblings and is loved by his siblings. Before Weng Tonghe was four years old, his father served as academic administrator in Sichuan, Jiangxi and other provinces. The whole family followed him, and their life was not stable. During this period, his mother and eldest sister taught him to read the "Three Character Classic" and "Poetry of a Thousand Families", and recite dozens of Tang and Song poems as well as poems by recent people Wu Meicun, and he began his enlightenment education. When he was six years old, his father returned to Beijing to take up a post, so Weng Tonghe entered a private school. In the first two years of the private school, his homework was tutored by his eldest sister in the morning and evening. His "Four Books", "Five Classics" and "Mao Shi" were all taught by his eldest sister herself.
When Weng Tonghe was eight years old, his father resigned and returned to his hometown to support his elderly mother, and he also returned to his hometown. He spent his youth in his hometown. After living in the countryside for more than 10 years, Weng Tonghe took advantage of the large collection of books in his home and kept in mind the famous saying of Dong Yu from the Wei Dynasty that "in order to learn, you should have more than three years" (winter means more years, night means more days, and rain means more sunshine). , immersed in reading all day long. During the Qingming Festival, the spring was warm and the flowers were blooming. Many children of other families wore red and green clothes and went on outings. However, except for visiting the tombs of his father and brother, he never left the study. In summer, when the temperature rose and he was sweating profusely, he still couldn't let go of the book. When mosquitoes started to appear, he put an empty jar under his desk, put his feet in it, and kept reading. In the severe winter, he would hold a copper stove and chant non-stop. He has read and browsed more than a hundred kinds of works by the pre-Qin scholars, the Eight Great Masters of the Tang and Song Dynasties, and others, thus laying a solid intellectual foundation. When Weng Tonghe was nine years old, he took the Boy's Examination and was admitted to the County Travel Academy, where his father was the speaker. Here, he often gathered with his classmates to discuss knowledge. Weng Tonghe talked about the laws and regulations of the past dynasties, especially the "Li" of Zhou. He believed that the principles taught by Zhou Gong and Confucius could also be applied today, and the scholar-bureaucrats were determined to follow Zhou Gong and Confucius as examples. His comments were often criticized by his classmates. Weng Tonghe insisted on his own opinions and often argued with them red-faced.
While studying at Youwen Yuan, Weng Tonghe also interacted with calligraphers from Changshu and Zhaowen (divided into Changshu County in 1724, the second year of Yongzheng's reign, and merged into Changshu in 1912), and became friends with them. friend. Studying and studying the inscriptions on inscriptions laid a certain foundation for his later success in calligraphy.
Due to his intelligence, hard work in study, and the influence of his family, Weng Tonghe gradually became famous in the countryside. As he himself said: "The young and talented are the best."
< p>While living in the countryside, under the guidance of his father and brother, Weng Tonghe began to practice eight-part essay, preparing to study and become an official. Just as he was making progress in his official career, the first Opium War between China and Britain broke out in May of the 20th year of Daoguang (1840). In June of the 21st year of Daoguang's reign (1841), the British invading army marched north from the coast of Guangdong and invaded Wusongkou Fortress, the gateway to the Yangtze River. The south of the Yangtze River was shocked, and people in the south of the Yangtze River moved away with their families. Weng Tonghe and his family took refuge in Suzhou (now Jiangsu).In Suzhou, Weng Tonghe visited Duanyuan, the former residence of Fan Zhongyan, a great statesman in the Song Dynasty, and the ancestral temple Baiyun Temple. He engraved Fan Zhongyan's famous saying of "worry before the world's worries, and rejoice after the world's happiness" in his heart. Three months later, the family returned to Changshu and lived a peaceful life for less than a year. In May of the 22nd year of Daoguang (1842), the British invading army invaded the Yangtze River. The defenders along the river collapsed and the people fled for their lives. Weng Tong and his family fled again and took refuge in Nanxiang, Changshu, Diaozhu and crossed to Weijiabin. Diaozhu Ferry is not far from the former residence of Qu Shixiang, the anti-Qing hero in the late Ming Dynasty, and only a few miles away from Yulianjing in Tang City where Gu Yanwu lived in seclusion. At Diaozhudu, his father once again told him the story of Qu Shixiang and Gu Yanwu's heroic resistance to the Qing Dynasty, which further germinated his patriotic thoughts.
Weng Tonghe's brother Weng Tongshu was impeached by Zeng Guofan and Li Hongzhang for "praising thieves" during the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom War. Weng Tonghe became a lifelong enemy of Li Hongzhang. Western law, naval training, and railway construction were all hampered by Weng Tonghe, who was in charge of the Ministry of Household Affairs. "Therefore, Li Gong was trapped in the border area for twenty years, and there were many suspicions and slanders, but he was not able to carry out his ambition."
Before the Sino-Japanese War broke out, Li Hongzhang, like Chiang Kai-shek later, advocated seeking international mediation and trying his best to avoid war. Weng Tonghe, on the other hand, tried his best to take the lead in the battle. On July 14, Li Hongzhang sent a telegram requesting to withdraw troops from Korea, but the Qing government refused. Weng Tonghe advocated adding more troops and "mobilizing troops from the three eastern provinces and Lushun to go to Korea quickly."
On August 1, China and Japan declared war at the same time. On the 17th, after Weng Tonghe read Li Hongzhang's "electric message saying that the Russians intend to raise troops to drive out the Japanese" at the military aircraft office, he "strongly stated that Russia cannot reject it, nor can it join forces. The main thing is that our troops can defeat the Japanese, and we should not wait for foreign aid and neglect it." On September 16th, Pyongyang fell. The next day Weng Tonghe criticized: "Hefei (Li Hongzhang) is lagging behind in everything, and it cannot be said to be a delay", prompting Emperor Guangxu to issue an edict to "pluck out the three-eyed feathers and remove the yellow mantle". The Battle of the Yellow Sea broke out on the 17th, and the Beiyang Fleet suffered heavy losses. Weng Tonghe felt that "the front line of the Yalu River is in danger, and even the Bohai Sea is in danger." On the 21st, he suggested that "it is better to mobilize troops from the three eastern provinces, urgently set up a large grain station, send high-level managers, and build earthen forts on the banks of the Yalu River, among other things. "On October 14, when Weng Tonghe learned that the British envoy Ogner proposed that the great powers should work together to promote Sino-Japanese peace talks, but Japan would have to ask for military expenses, he was extremely indignant. In front of the Empress Dowager Cixi, Weng Tonghe accused Chen Ougana of being disgusting. ”, urging continued fighting. On the 24th, the Japanese Second Army landed at Huayuankou. The next day, the First Army forcibly crossed the Yalu River and captured Jiulian City, Andong (today's Dandong), Fenghuang City and other places. On the 31st, when Weng Tonghe paid a visit to Emperor Guangxu, he "explained the critical situation in the capital, please do not delay for a moment." On November 3rd, Weng Tonghe was supplemented by the title of Minister of Military Aircraft.
On the 8th, Weng Tonghe learned that Jinzhou had been lost and Lushun was in urgent need. He immediately asked Tang Renlian to send reinforcements to Lushun and agreed. On the 22nd, Lushun fell, and Weng Tonghe was "filled with anger." When the Qing court sent envoys to Japan to negotiate peace, Weng Tonghe and others still advocated recruiting the Hunan army and using Liu Kunyi as its commander to avert the crisis. The Qing court adopted his suggestion and appointed Liu as the imperial envoy to control the armies inside and outside the pass.
At the beginning of the 21st year of Guangxu, the Japanese army stepped up their attacks, and Gaiping fell on January 10th. On the 14th, Weng Tonghe expressed his opinion on the peace proposal: "I dare not submit to the peace proposal, but this matter cannot be suspended. The envoy has been sent and is staying, for fear of Peter's excuse, and my peace proposal is just trying to get his greedy kiss." When you go out, make preparations first. Fortunately, few people pay attention." In order to encourage the officers and soldiers to fight bravely, Weng Tonghe proposed the suggestion of "offering extraordinary rewards and not being inferior to others to build morale for the officers and soldiers." After Rongcheng and Weihai Nanbang forts fell, Weng Tonghe felt that "the overall situation was corrupt, and he was anxious and angry, as if he was drowning in fire." On February 2, Weihai Acropolis and Beibang forts were lost, and Weng Tonghe cried out, "I am extremely angry and ashamed! Kou Shen "Yes, what if?" he sighed. At this time, he also learned that the negotiators sent by the Qing government to Japan were unreasonably driven to Nagasaki by the Japanese government, and he lamented that it was "almost humiliating." On the 13th, the Qing court reassigned Li Hongzhang as the plenipotentiary minister to Japan for peace talks. On the 22nd, when Guangxu met with Li Hongzhang, among the military ministers, Sun Yuwen believed that he "must cede territory as a matter of course", while Weng Tonghe said that he "cannot hold on". On March 2, Li Hongzhang again talked about ceding territory, but Weng Tonghe firmly opposed it, stating that "Taiwan has absolutely no reason to discuss it."
On April 3, Weng Tong and Li Hongzhang read the ten terms of the peace treaty in Li Hongzhang’s phone call, and they felt more and more that “the lump in their chests has not yet been settled.” The next day, Weng learned that Emperor Guangxu hoped that the peace talks could be concluded quickly and that he would "strengthen the platform and not lose it." He pointed out that if the platform was removed, "I might lose the hearts of the world from now on." After the signing of the Treaty of Shimonoseki, Weng Tonghe "strongly stated that ratification cannot be hastened."
On the 19th, Weng Tonghe received a call from Taiwan such as Qiu Fengjia, "full of blood and tears". Weng Tonghe felt guilty and felt like he was "standing in the world without a face." Once again, "Strongly urge that approval should be delayed" in order to seek emergency solutions. At this time, there were many petitioners, among whom "Dashu said that the peace treaty should be destroyed." Although Weng Tonghe disagreed, he still believed that "the public opinion cannot be falsely accused, and the human heart cannot be lost." On May 2, Emperor Guangxu approved the Treaty of Shimonoseki. On the 8th, representatives from China and Japan exchanged contracts in Yantai. The Qing government decided to cut off Taiwan within a time limit. On the 17th, Weng Tonghe "went to tears when he saw the Taiwanese people's public telegram."
In the 24th year of Guangxu (1898), Weng Tonghe co-organized the bachelor's degree as the Minister of Household Affairs and advocated reform. On June 16, Guangxu issued an order to Weng Kaique to return home. After the 1898 Coup of 1898, on December 4, according to Zhu's edict, Weng was dismissed from his post, never to be used again, and "handled over to local officials for strict control." He died at home in 1904. In the first year of Xuantong's reign, he was reinstated as an official and given the posthumous title of "Wen Gong".
From the time Weng Tonghe became famous in 1856 during the imperial examination, until he returned to his hometown in 1898, he held important positions in the capital for 42 years. The minister of the Ministry of Finance and the Prime Minister's Yamen was the advisor of the Tongzhi and Guangxu emperors. He was appointed military minister twice and directly participated in the decision-making of the Sino-French War and the Sino-Japanese Sino-Japanese War. , only 3 people). He was a rare incorruptible person among the important officials of the Qing court. He served as an official for 42 years. From the official position to the prime minister, after he resigned and returned to his hometown, he had to rely on his disciples and old friends to support him. But he was hardly a good politician. Ronglu, who was once sworn brother to him, wrote a note to Shaanxi governor Lu Chuanlin during the Sino-Japanese War of 1894. He once commented on Weng Tonghe, saying, "Changshu (referring to Weng Tonghe, because Weng is from Changshu, Jiangsu Province) is cunning and cunning. It is incredible. Hefei (Li Hongzhang) is willing to be a villain, but Changshu is still a hypocrite." Pan Zuyin, a close friend of Weng Tonghe, once said of Weng Tonghe, "Although Shuping is the emperor's teacher, he specializes in doing things skillfully." These evaluations may not be objectively accurate, but they are certainly not based on nothing. Weng Tonghe was not open-minded and courageous enough, which greatly reduced his political ability in a high position. In the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1894, he took the lead in the battle, not because he knew himself and the enemy and was sure of victory, but because he was the instinctive reaction of all the intellectuals at that time who held the idea of ??a great country. Japan had always been regarded as a "small country" Look at it and don't take it seriously at all. Especially when his opponent Li Hongzhang tries his best to advocate for peace, his main battle will become more determined. Weng Tonghe was known as the leader of the "Southern Qingliu", and he relied on the rare local feudal officials to make friends, mostly Ci Yuantaijian and Hanlin "Qingliu". These people initiated discussions that were clear-cut and impassioned, but they were all Beijing officials without strength and authority. Official scholars talk big words and empty words, but they are unable to do anything practical. Therefore, as the leader of the "Imperial Party", the force he led seemed to have many wings, but in fact it was weak; the so-called "Imperial Party" headed by Guangxu was actually just a very fragile and loose political group. , and was swept away by the tide of history.