Late at night on November 13, the 61st year of the Kangxi Dynasty of the Qing Dynasty (1722 AD), the Changchun Garden on the outskirts of Beijing was heavily guarded. A middle-aged man dressed in black walked into a cloister led by a group of soldiers.
Walking through the cloister, the man came to a large bed. Lying on the bed was none other than Aisin Jueluo, the supreme ruler of the Great Qing Empire. Xuan Ye. And the man kneeling in front of Xuan Ye is the future Yongzheng Emperor Aisin Jueluo. Yin Yu.
At this time, kneeling in front of the Kangxi Emperor with Yin Yu was Longkodo, who was then the governor of the Nine Gates of Beijing. Everyone knelt motionless, waiting for the Kangxi Emperor to name his successor.
In the end, it was declared the winner of this thrilling throne legend. But this result surprised the other princes. Because a few years ago, Yin Yu was still a son who was constantly accused by his father Kangxi.
Now, Yin Yu has suddenly become an emperor, and everyone has some difficulty accepting. Old Jiuyin Yu and several other princes shouted in Changchun Garden.
So, why didn't the Kangxi Emperor like his fourth son in the first place? How did Yin Yu ascend to the throne step by step from a prince who was not favored by everyone?
It all starts with Yin Xuan's childhood experience.
I. The "fourth son of the emperor" in an embarrassing situation
On October 30, the 17th year of the Kangxi Dynasty, Ai Xin Juela. Yin was born in the Yonghe Palace in the Forbidden City in Beijing. At this time, Yin Yu's biological mother Wu Ya was still just an ordinary harem woman. But she was soon canonized by the Kangxi Emperor for giving birth to a prince
Among the many princes of the Kangxi Dynasty, each person's status was highly related to the family lineage of his biological mother. For example, the backbone member of the Eight Masters Party, Ai Shin Kyoro. Because of his identity, Yin Zheng saved a small life in the later Yongzheng Dynasty.
Because Yin's mother is the famous Wen Xi noble concubine Niu Hulu clan. And Yin's grandfather was the auxiliary minister of the early years of the Kangxi Dynasty, Qibilong.
Therefore, even if it is due to political considerations, Yongzheng will most likely not do anything to his younger brother. But Lao Bayin's mother is just a humble woman from Xinjiku. When Yong was cleaning him up, he didn't have to think about the impact anymore.
However, the Yongzheng Emperor was not the original successor in Kangxi's mind. According to Kangxi's vision, he originally planned to pass his throne to the eldest son of Empress Hesheri Shi, Yinren.
But Yinren, who has been the prince for more than 40 years, has repeatedly shown some outrageous actions. The prince's various behaviors forced the old father to start thinking about another successor.
The Yongzheng Emperor grew up in the palace of his adoptive mother Tong Jia, which also accumulated an invisible amount of political capital for his future ascension to the throne of the emperor.
You know, the Kangxi Emperor's biological mother is also the daughter of the Tong Jia clan. Therefore, the political status of the entire Tong Jia clan in the Kangxi Dynasty almost reached the point of power tilting to the opposition. At that time, people called Tong Guowei, the head of the same family, "Tong Banchao".
Therefore, being able to grow up next to his adoptive mother Tong Jia, the resources and characters that Yongzheng has been exposed to since childhood are by no means comparable to other ordinary princes.
However, the Yongzheng Emperor has not been virtuous since he was a child, which is undoubtedly a minus for the Manchu emperor who "won the world with a bow and horse".
When Yongzheng was 16 years old, he once went with his brothers to the Confucius Temple in Qufu to worship Confucius. But during this sacrifice, he clashed with several brothers.
At this time, Yin Rong, who was the crown prince, actually beat the fourth brother severely regardless of the influence. At that time, Yin Yu did not stand firmly, and fell directly to the steps, and fell into a coma below.
In the thirty-fifth year of the Kangxi Reign (1696), at the age of 19, Yin Yu followed his father to conquer the army under Gardan. As a result, both the eldest and the third elder captured a large number of enemy soldiers in the battle. Only Old Siyin Yu was alone, and he did not make any military merits.
It is precisely because the old Siyinhe has not shown too strong a side since he was a child, that the Kangxi Emperor was not optimistic about his fourth son at first.
In the forty-first year of the Kangxi Reign (1702), when the emperor wanted to confer knighthoods on his princes, the eldest and third elders who had previously made meritorious achievements on the battlefield were given the title of county king. At this time, Yin Yu had to be knighted with Lao Ba and them.
But even so, Yin Yu never gave up the idea of competing for the position of crown prince. Since he couldn't compete with the other brothers in terms of force value, Yin Yu wanted to be able to overtake on a curve at the cultural level.
During the Kangxi Emperor's several "southern tours", Yin Yu accompanied him as the accompanying prince. Afterwards, Ying Zhen deliberately imitated his father Kangxi's calligraphy font and wrote praise verses for the Kangxi Emperor.
However, Yin Yu's method did not seem to have worked for the Kangxi Emperor. At this time, Yin Yu was often sent to do some thankless work, which also made him confused for a while.
Second, the protection of the "deposed prince" is favored
The real turning point in the famous nine-son conquest in the last years of the Kangxi Dynasty came from the dispute between the deposed princes in the 45th year of the Kangxi Dynasty (1708).
Because the second elder, the Crown Prince, who had been the crown prince for more than 40 years, was suddenly abolished by Kangxi, and for a while, the position of the Crown Prince was vacated. This position naturally became the object of coveted by the princes.
At that time, the most competitive people were neither the fourth nor the eighth, but the old three who seemed harmless on the surface. Because this third brother completely crushed Yin Yu in terms of cultural level and bow horse riding and shooting.
And just when everyone thought that Yin Yu had no hope, a mistake made by Big Brother Yin Yu provided Yin Yu with a golden opportunity.
It turned out that the eldest brother Yinyu pretended to promote the eighth brother Yinhe as the crown prince in front of the Kangxi Emperor. But in fact, he wanted to make himself the new prince. The Kangxi Emperor had long seen through this eldest son's mind, but he just saw through it and did not say that it was broken.
Just after the second brother Yinren was deposed, the Kangxi Emperor ordered his eldest brother Yin Yu to be in charge of Yinren. Who knew that the eldest brother directly showed a tyrannical attitude, and even "killed intent" against Yinren.
Because the eldest brother has abused the second brother for a long time, the eldest brother is afraid that this matter will spread out and have a bad impact on himself. Therefore, the eldest brother sent someone to find Yin Yu in private, hoping that he would keep the matter secret.
But Yin Yu directly told the news to Yin Yu of the Eighth Master Party at this time. The latter suggested that the enlistment directly tell the Kangxi Emperor the news, so as not to make the second brother feel wronged again. Therefore, Yin Yu broke this layer of window paper.
Seeing the endless struggle between his sons for imperial power, the Kangxi Emperor's heart instantly became cold. Therefore, he simply abolished the title of Big Brother and announced to the world that he would never make Big Brother Yinyu the crown prince.
After the eldest brother was out, the Kangxi Emperor's eyes slowly shifted to the four brothers. Compared with his three older brothers, Yin Yu has rich experience in running non-governmental errands. This is exactly what is needed for future reforms.
But at this time, Yin Yu still showed more restraint, at least on the surface, he still maintained a friendly relationship with Baa Ge Yinhe.
In the 48th year of the Kangxi Reign (1709 AD), the Kangxi Emperor gathered several elderly princes together and asked them to build a villa of their own near Changchun Garden.
First, it can be convenient for their father and son to enjoy themselves at any time when they go on an outing. Second, it can also enhance the friendship and affection between the royal brothers.
At this time, Yin Yu directly stood up and asked that his villa be built next door to Yin He's house. Regardless of whether he was sincere in doing so at this time, he at least let the Kangxi Emperor see his side of uniting his brothers.
At this time, there were many disciples of the Eighth Master Party represented by Yin Yu, and only the situation of privately befriending ministers appeared. In the eyes of the Kangxi Emperor, this was absolutely intolerable. Therefore, by this time, the eighth son of the emperor, Yin He, was basically eliminated in the overall situation of seizing the enemy.
However, in order to ensure that the power in his hands could be smoothly transferred, the Kangxi Emperor still needed to help Yin Yu remove some hidden dangers on his way to the throne.
In order to achieve this goal, the Kangxi Emperor specially gave his 14 sons to love Xinjuela. Yin Yu made him a general and asked him to take his army to the northwest to fight a decisive battle against the rebels.
This move by the Kangxi Emperor was equivalent to driving this son who could fight good battles from the center of power. At this point, there were almost no obstacles on Yin Yu's road to the throne. All he needs to do next is quietly wait for the day when power is handed over.
3. There is a thrilling "handover moment"
On the evening of November 13, the 61st year of the Kangxi Dynasty, Yin Yu suddenly received news from the palace, asking him to immediately go to Changchun Garden to meet the Kangxi Emperor.
At this time, a trace of uneasiness flashed in the applicant's heart, but he still pretended to keep up with the footsteps of the people. Perhaps, at this moment, he is not far from inheriting the great ruler.
Passing through the cloister of Changchun Garden, Ying Zheng saw the Kangxi Emperor lying on a hospital bed. At the same time, the Kangxi Emperor also knelt his favored heavy minister Zhang Tingyu, and the governor of the Nine Gates, Long Keduo.
As long as these two people are present to testify, then the Kangxi Emperor's plan to pass on the throne can be smoothly implemented. Moreover, Ronkodo has nearly 20,000 soldiers and horses in his hands, and can control everyone in the capital at any time.
After everything was arranged, Kangxi ordered someone to call Yin Yu. In the presence of Longkodo and Zhang Tingyu, the Kangxi Emperor announced his decision to pass the throne to Yin Yu. At this moment, Yin Yu and the others had already cried, and the room also broke out into a burst of crying.
After a while, several key members of the Eighth Master Party were also taken into the room of Changchun Garden by the eunuchs. Longkodo and Zhang Tingyu announced in their presence the Kangxi Emperor's will to be located in the Four Brothers.
Eight Brother Yinhe and Nine Brother Yin Yu, because they were too emotional, shouted at Ronkodo and the others on the spot. At the critical moment, Zhang Tingyu and others made a move to stop this farce in time.
Seeing that the big orange was irretrievable, Yin Yu and Yin Yu and the others knelt down to the new emperor one after another to show their submission. But no one knows whether they were really willing to follow the Kangxi Emperor's will or simply feared the military power in Longkodo's hands.
After Yin Yu succeeded to the throne, because the Kangxi Emperor did not leave a posthumous photo in time when he passed on the throne. The so-called posthumous edict was still written by Longkodo and Zhang Tingyu in Manchu, Mongolian, and Han scripts on the second day of Yongzheng's accession to the throne.
Therefore, to this day, some people still question the legitimacy of Yongzheng's succession. Some people even began to say that it was by killing his father that Yong ascended the throne. The Kangxi Emperor's real favorite successor was his fourteenth son, Yinhe.
Even after Yongzheng's death, all kinds of rumors about him continued to circulate in the world. For a moment, many people couldn't tell which was true and which was false. There are even people who believe that Longkodo, who was born in the Tong Jia clan, is the culprit who helped Yongzheng usurp the throne.
How credible are these claims, and how intrinsically related they are. Perhaps this can only be left to later historians for examination and analysis.
The Yongzheng Emperor's ruling policy and strategy, and the various aspects of the impact of the Yongzheng Emperor's new policies on the Qing Dynasty's rule, is another question.
Bibliography:
"Kangxi is Spread to the Yongzheng Examination because of his favor for Qianlong - Yongzheng seizes the right to distinguish the righteousness" Zhang Yuxin
"The Secret of the Suspicious Case of the Qing Palace (Series 3) Yongzheng Seizes the Woman" Shi Yuxin
"From the ups and downs of Zhang Tingyu, the status of Han scholars and doctors in the Qing court in the Yongqian period" to pay respect
"The Relationship between Kangxi's Last Words and Kangxi's Last Edict: Questioning the Legitimacy of the Yongzheng Emperor's Succession" Jin Hengyuan
"A Hundred Years of Mystery: Kangxi Lichu and Yongzheng Succession" by Feng Boqun