In addition, there are also records of Concubine Zhen being granted death by Empress Dowager Cixi in the "Qing Bais Lei Chao". After liberation, "The Palace Weekly" also interviewed Tang Guanqian, the eunuch who witnessed the murder of Concubine Zhen. Tang Guanqian also confirmed that it was Empress Dowager Cixi who ordered the killing of Concubine Zhen, and the person who carried out this order was the eunuch Cui Yuguì. After the fall of the Qing Dynasty, Cui Yuguì also frankly admitted that he pushed Concubine Zhen down the well on orders from Empress Dowager Cixi. He also said:
"I will never forget that incident. It was the most tragic event I have ever experienced. Looking back, I admire the 25-year-old Concubine Zhen. Her words were sharper than knives. Facing death, she didn't tremble at all. I don't deserve to die! The Emperor didn't let me die! You can run or not, but the Emperor should not run! These three sentences made the old Empress speechless, so she could only be brutal. After staying in the cold palace for three years, she still spoke these words, which is really amazing." (from "Palace Maid's Memoirs")
Cui Yuguì thought Concubine Zhen was extraordinary, and naturally, Emperor Guangxu cherished her more, and his love for her was indescribable.
Emperor Guangxu might forgive Empress Dowager Cixi for imprisoning him for ten years after all, as Cixi was nominally his mother who raised him in the palace and helped him ascend the throne. These "benefits" offset the ten years of imprisonment, but Guangxu would absolutely never forgive Cixi for killing the woman he loved. Even an ordinary man would feel heartbroken when unable to protect his beloved woman who met with a calamity, and as Emperor of the Great Qing, Guangxu was unable to protect his beloved woman, probably every time he thought about this matter afterward, Guangxu's heart was bleeding. To say that Guangxu did not hate Cixi, no one in the world would believe it.
When Concubine Zhen was killed, she was only 24 years old, exactly at the age when life was flourishing, but she fell victim to Empress Dowager Cixi's cruelty. When Guangxu learned of Concubine Zhen's death, he was "extremely sad and angry, even trembling" (Huang Hongshou: "Historical Events of the Qing Dynasty", Volume 67), "He hung the old account of the concubine in a secret room, often pacing before it, crying silently." (Wang Shunan "Legacy of Emperor Dezong") This is a normal reaction for any man, and the hatred for Cixi from this moment forward would never fade away.
After Concubine Zhen's death, many people mourned for her. The author of "Anecdotes of Emperor Guangxu", Yun Yu Ding, wrote the "Falling Leaves Poem" to mourn Concubine Zhen, the poem reads:
A leaf falls into the golden well,
Lonely beside the jade palace.
Branches remain unbroken,
Reflecting sunlight with brilliance.
Water flows with sorrow,
Gone with the silk robes and broken intestines.
How like the grass by the marsh,
Still resting with mandarin ducks.
During his childhood and youth, Guangxu was treated harshly and unkindly. The coup d'état of 1898 confined Guangxu, and before fleeing westward, Empress Dowager Cixi harmed Concubine Zhen. After returning, Guangxu was still detained in YingTai. With all these events, how could Guangxu not hate her? His hatred towards Cixi was deep, lasting, and unforgettable. This was normal. On the contrary, if Guangxu didn't hate her and forgot all the deep hatred when she showed slight kindness, that would be abnormal.
However, although Guangxu hated Cixi, with his straightforward personality and upright character, he would never defame or insult Cixi after her death, let alone desecrate her corpse. After all, they had that maternal-son relationship. But Cixi was a malicious woman, naturally judging others by her own standards. She herself committed the act of desecrating corpses, so how could she not be wary of others doing the same to her?
(2). Early intentions of killing, constant plans
After the coup d'état of 1898, Cixi realized that just this coup made it impossible for Guangxu and her to reconcile again. So from then on, Cixi began plotting to depose Guangxu. This plan was not implemented due to various reasons, so Cixi had to maintain the status quo temporarily. The reason for maintaining the status quo was that Cixi was confident that as long as she was alive, Guangxu would not escape from under her control. Therefore, she was not in a hurry and could slowly think of ways and wait for opportunities. When the Eight-Nation Alliance approached Beijing during the year Gengzi, and the Qing army failed repeatedly to stop the foreign troops, Cixi felt trapped and prepared to commit suicide. At that time, she decided that Guangxu must not live. This is recorded in "Jingshan Diary", with the following content:
On July 18th, foreigners became increasingly close. General Yu Lu's troops suffered three major defeats in Beicang, Yangcun, and Caicun. Yu Lu fled into a coffin shop and then committed suicide. Li Bingheng arrived at the west river on the fourteenth day, trying his best to gather troops. However, Zhang Chunfa and Chen Zelun both refused to fight, so Li took poison and died. Ronglu entered the palace and reported this news to the Empress Dowager. Both the emperor and ministers cried together, blaming the disaster on the princes and Boxers, which led our country to this situation. Ronglu was an extremely smart person, and from then on, he no longer exposed his foresight. The Old Buddha (referring to Cixi) said: fleeing is not as good as sacrificing oneself for the country, and the emperor should do the same.
The most important part of this record has two places. One is the last sentence: "The Old Buddha said, fleeing is not as good as sacrificing oneself for the country, and the emperor should do the same." This means that at this point, Cixi had already decided that if she were to die, she would definitely not leave Guangxu alive in the world. It can be seen that killing Guangxu was not a temporary decision at the time of death, but a consistent policy - Guangxu was not allowed to escape her control. If she were to die, she would definitely take Guangxu with her, not giving him the opportunity to rule alone.
Another important part of this record is "Ronglu was an extremely smart person, and from then on, he no longer exposed his foresight." Ronglu had always opposed using the Boxers to attack the foreign legations, believing that doing so would cause great trouble. Cixi, however, did not listen to Ronglu and acted arbitrarily, declaring war on twelve powerful countries simultaneously and ordering the Boxers and the Qing army to attack the foreign legations. The situation eventually got out of control, with foreign troops advancing step by step towards the capital city. At this moment, facing Ronglu, Cixi must have felt both shame and guilt. If Ronglu declared that he had foreseen everything earlier, even though it was not meant to criticize Cixi, proclaiming his foresight would be enough to make Cixi feel ashamed and even develop hatred or killing intent towards him, which is called "anger arising from shame." Ronglu was very smart and carefully avoided touching Cixi's sense of shame.
When the Eight-Nation Alliance entered the capital, Cixi hastily fled westward. Then realizing that the old methods wouldn't work anymore and the country must reform to find a way out, at this time, Cixi naturally felt ashamed and guilty when facing Guangxu. Of course, Cixi could never show her shame and guilt in front of Guangxu. Even if she showed some regret in front of the ministers, such as what was written in "Records of the National Changes of Gengzi": "The Empress Dowager often saw the officials and frequently wept, taking responsibility. Ministers requested new policies, and she adopted many of them." That was a need to win back the hearts of the people, a working method, and certainly not because Cixi truly repented and decided to reform and strive for strength. Additionally, Cixi's "weeping and taking responsibility," pretending to deeply repent, was also one of the ways to cover up her shame. Guangxux did not carefully nurture Cixi's shame like the cunning Ronglu did, for example, this segment in "Modern Miscellaneous Sea" records what happened when the foreigners left and they returned to Beijing:
Not long after returning to the capital, the ministers discussed raising funds to rebuild the Zhengyang Gate Tower. Guangxu said: "Why not leave this sign of ruin as a warning for us all." However, Cixi supported the ministers' proposal. She also summoned external performers to perform plays. Guangxu said: "At such a critical time, how can we afford to watch plays?" A small eunuch overheard and angrily said: "What did you say?" Guangxu quickly replied: "I was talking nonsense. Please don't spread it."
Such a truth-telling Guangxu probably often unintentionally made Cixi feel ashamed. Cixi supported the ministers' proposals to rebuild the Zhengyang Gate Tower, aside from her preference for luxury, it was probably also due to a reverse psychology of protecting her shame. Guangxu lacked Ronglu's cunning, and Guangxu also hated Cixi too much. Although he tried to hide it, the hatred from the bottom of his heart was hard to completely conceal. It would inadvertently show up in small matters, constantly stimulating Cixi's sense of shame and evil, making her remember that she must not let Guangxu go. Thus, when she knew she was dying, the first thing she thought of was to kill Guangxu first.
Three. Guangxu's failure in concealing his talents