In the late Qing Dynasty, the ancient empire was in turmoil, and the thesis of "semi-colonial nature" was not groundless.
Great powers invaded, and wars continued.
Countless treaties and land cession threatens forced the Qing court to retreat.
However, most Chinese find it difficult to understand the significance of this turbulent upheaval.
In the deep palace and quiet countryside of the imperial capital, there are still remnants of the glorious memory of the former "all nations come to court".
The woman leaned on the coffee table, her movements were light and delicate, and she was charming.
She was wearing a cheongsam and her hands were easily placed on the table.
The bun is high on the head, making the curve of the neck visible.
The face is dignified and beautiful, and there is a trace of loneliness and sorrow in his expression.
She held a book in her right hand, and her mind seemed to drift into the distance.
The coffee table and stool are made of mahogany, dignified and exquisite, and the years have left mottled marks on it, exuding a quaint texture.
Such old objects are rare nowadays, and those that are well preserved are even rarer, and they must be worth a lot now.
The unique flag shoes worn by the women's feet, with wooden soles and slightly higher heels, add to the whole outfit.
Thinking about the situation of many banner families at that time, it is inevitably embarrassing and emotional.
The sorrow on this woman's body may be the pain shared by the entire nation.
Warm sunlight filtered in through the window, spilling into this small examination room.
It is a clinic that specializes in eye diseases.
In front of the desk, there was a middle-aged man with short blond hair.
He was looking attentively and was examining the patient's eyes.
The patient was a scholar in a dark robe, and he was sitting upright across from the man.
The man held a pair of silver-gray instruments in his handThere are two pieces of glass attached to it, and it looks extremely intricate.
He fine-tuned the position of the machine and motioned for the patient to look ahead: "Look here, sir." ”
The scholar's eyes widened obediently, waiting for this strange "optometry" ritual.
The Qing Dynasty was in its twilight years, and Western civilization was quietly infiltrating the land.
Railways, telegraphs, Western medicine. All kinds of new things have injected infinite vitality into this ancient country.
It's a very different world, but it's just as exciting.
On a cold winter day, four merchants sat on the side of the street and roasted the sun to keep warm.
Their faces were all swarthy and they were wrapped in thick cotton clothes.
The bitter cold of the north hits the bone marrow through the thin fabric.
But there wasn't a single pedestrian on the street.
They chatted with each other, their voices echoing in the white sky.
It should have been a good time to go out and shop, but no one wants to leave the oven in such weather.
They lament the current situation, business is cold, and money bags creak.
The midday sun glows golden and sprinkles over this stretch of rice paddies.
An old farmer with a wrinkled face sits on a ridge and smokes a cigarette leisurely.
On his feet were shabby straw sandals, and his bare belly was exposed.
The old man had an ivory pipe in his mouth, and green smoke spilled from between his sparse teeth.
He swallowed slowly, squinting as if he was savoring something.
This leisurely demeanor was very inconsistent with his poor dress, and even more incompatible with the tattered and barren scenery around him.
People can't help but wonder, how did this old man be born in such an environment and grow fat and big-eared?
Is there really any treasure hidden in his rice field?
Maybe this is the legendary "harvest of the heart"!
Although this old man's family is poor, he hides endless fun and satisfaction in his heart.
At noon, the blazing sun scorched the clearing.
Several of the torturers stood at the dilapidated execution desks, anxiously awaiting the arrival of the three quarters of noon.
The desk is a rudimentary, triangular wooden frame, with a blackened top and legs, and a cobweb of dust in the corners.
Several prisoners paced around the table, occasionally wiping the sweat from their foreheads with their coarse cloth sleeves.
"Why isn't it time yet, it's really roasting a person.
One of the torturers muttered quietly, looking up anxiously at the position of the sun.
A few people next to him also whispered in response, anxiously waiting for the arrival of noon.
It is an ancient temple main hall.
A monk dressed in blue-gray robes stands between two young women in white nun robes.
Behind the trio was a huge incense burner.
They stood side by side, taking pictures.
The monk has a happy smile on his face, the nun wearing glasses on the right bows her head and smiles a little shyly, and the nun on the left looks up at the camera with a dignified expression.
The hands of all three were hidden in the wide sleeves, making it impossible to see the movements.
Considering that in Buddhist temples, it is rare to see both sexes in the same room.
This **, the scene presented is quite special.
We don't know if there is some kind of special relationship between the three of them, or simply to leave a rare collective memory.
In the conservative social atmosphere of the time, this is undoubtedly a striking combination.
A landlord's wife, dressed in a blue-black cotton suit and wearing a black hat, was walking vigorously through the alley.
Despite her small feet, she walked calmly and behaved confidently.
He was followed by a young maid carrying a delicate soft-topped suitcase.
On both sides of the alley, there were several ragged people, looking sluggish and dejected.
They sat or stood, their faces tired, very different from the servants behind the landlord's wife.
The arrogance of the landlord's wife in her swaggering posture formed a strong contrast with the crowd on both sides.
This old ** seems to solidify the true portrayal of the class disparity in that era.
The clothes and demeanor of the landlord's wife were commensurate with her prominent social status, and the common people on both sides of the alley could hardly hide the hardships of life even if they were standing.
Several middle-aged men in coarse cloth shirts are carrying a brand-new cedar coffin.
They looked serious, and marched slowly and orderly.
The surface of the coffin is painted with black lacquer, which is simple and simple.
Several men carried two long bamboo poles across the coffin, carrying wooden beams on their shoulders, carefully carrying them to the village.
The trail is lined with weeds, and it seems to be a remote path leading to the mountain village.
There were no other villagers to see on this path, except for the middle-aged man and the little boy carrying the coffin.
The procession carrying the coffin in the shade of the trees, together with the gazes of children, makes for a unique picture.
In the ancient rural culture, prepare the longevity after you in advance and put it at home.
It is considered to be a practice of longevity, not a bad omen.
This simple coffin actually carries the villagers' yearning and expectation for a better life.
Through the lens of a foreign photographer. 、
This turbulent alternation reveals the bizarre real China.
We have seen the scene of the agitation and blending of Chinese and Western cultures, and we have also seen the imminent demise of the feudal dynasty step by step.
The wheel of history is slowly moving forward in the long river of time and space.
Each ** is a vivid footnote, providing us with a precious vision for peeking into the late Qing Dynasty**.