Since Qin Shi Huang ascended the throne, the Chinese nation has entered a long period of feudal imperialism. More than 2,000 years of time, although it seems to be a long time, but it is like an instant, and the pages of yellowed ancient books seem to be telling the past of history, full of emotion.
It turns out that time never stops for one person, even for a moment, it always pushes everyone forward, forward, and forward, until the end of life.
At the beginning of Qin Shi Huang's accession to the throne, he had a dream, he looked forward to the eternal country, and longed for the Qin Dynasty to be passed down for thousands of years. However, the trajectory of history did not go his way, but gave him a painful blow - the country fell apart, and the Qin Dynasty lasted only two generations before it came to an end.
However, if Qin Shi Huang had known underground, he might not have felt much regret. Because, although later dynasties have pursued eternal stability and eternal inheritance, in fact, none of them have been able to do so.
As the founder of the feudal dynasty, Qin Shi Huang will forever be recorded in history; As the terminator of the feudal imperial system, Pu Yi will also be remembered by history.
Compared with the glory of Qin Shi Huang, Pu Yi's life is a little sad and helpless, and his life is a drama full of tragedy. Pu Yi ascended to the throne at a young age and gradually grew up in wandering, but because of his special status, he became the plaything of many people and forces.
Pu Yi went through a thousand difficulties and dangers, tasted the ups and downs of life, and finally saw the dawn under the sunshine of New China, and under the light of socialism, he finally became an ordinary person.
Emperor Guangxu was seriously ill, and the Empress Dowager Cixi was looking for the best person for the Qing Dynasty, and finally chose Puyi, who was only three years old. However, when Guo Moruo invited Pu Yi to be his assistant, Pu Yi replied lightly with five words, expressing the warmth and coldness of the world.
When the news came, the alcohol palace fell into chaos, and the young Pu Yi was even more crying and unwilling to leave the house.
If Pu Yi had the opportunity to choose again, he might not be willing to become this emperor. What can a child do in turbulent times? It's better to live a plain and happy life.
However, once he sat in that position, he could no longer live the life of an ordinary person. After Guangxu's death, Pu Yi ascended the throne and became emperor, but what he faced was not the supreme imperial power, but endless wandering and hardship.
Puyi's throne was not yet fully stable, and the Empress Dowager Cixi died the day after Guangxu's death, and the future of the Qing Dynasty was not predictable at that time.
Pu Yi's attention was only focused on the cricket in the crockpot, and as for the outside affairs, he didn't pay attention to it. On October 10, 1911, the Wuchang Uprising broke out, and when the news reached the Qing court, it caused a shock.
However, Yuan Shikai, who was the most able to control the situation at this moment, wanted to seize control of the Beiyang Army. Under these circumstances, the demise of the Qing court was already inevitable. In order to induce Yuan Shikai to quell the rebellion in the south, the Qing court was forced to make continuous concessions, and finally surrendered the entire world.
After Yuan Shikai grasped the power, he ordered the Beiyang Army to attack the revolutionary army in the south, and the civil war between the north and the south fell into a stalemate for a while. In order to end the war as soon as possible, Sun Yat-sen was forced to make a secret agreement with Yuan Shikai, as long as he could make Pu Yi abdicate, he promised to let him serve as the big **.
Yuan Shikai was keen on power, so he not only put pressure on the Qing court, but also put forward generous abdication conditions, with both soft and hard means, the Empress Dowager Yulong later exercised imperial power, and issued an abdication edict in the name of the empress dowager, making Pu Yi officially abdicate and the Qing Dynasty completely ended.
Although Pu Yi was sincerely invited to continue living in the Forbidden City for a while after his abdication, it was no longer his belonging. As the situation became more and more volatile, Pu Yi could not even gain a foothold in the capital, Beijing, and had to move to Tianjin.
There, he met a very different world. At that time, the Japanese invaders were ambitious, and they saw that Pu Yi's identity could be exploited, so they continued to advocate his emperorship, which made Pu Yi have the illusion of restoration.
During his seven years in Tianjin, Pu Yi wandered among various forces, and the Western powers respected his position, but few really helped him to restore him as emperor, and only when there was political need did he think of this lonely emperor.
After experiencing the ups and downs of the world, Kenji Dohihara of Japan approached him, claiming that they were going to establish a new country, and the emperor could only be Puyi. Pu Yi was overjoyed by the news, and almost without any hesitation, he accepted all of Kenji's conditions and headed for the Tohoku.
Japan launched the 918 Incident, quickly occupied the three northeastern provinces, established the puppet state of Manchukuo, and Pu Yi also became the puppet emperor of this country.
Pu Yi was captured by the Soviets on the eve of Japan's surrender, and after five years in prison in the northeast, he was extradited back to China and sent to the Fushun War Criminals Management Center. In 1959, he was pardoned and freed.
Because of his special status, ** gave him preferential treatment, transferred him to the botanical garden, and then arranged for him to enter the ** Museum of Culture and History. At that time, Guo Moruo was studying the historical materials of the Qing Dynasty, and was very happy with Pu Yi's arrival, and sincerely invited Pu Yi to become his assistant.
Although Pu Yi did not make any achievements in academics, his identity gave him a chance to make a living in the ** Museum of Culture and History.
Guo Moruo knew this clearly, so he invited Pu Yi as an assistant in order to obtain first-hand information from his point of view, because the history of the Qing Dynasty can be regarded as Pu Yi's"Family matters", and some of the information is still written in Manchu, which Pu Yi can easily interpret.
In order to get Pu Yi's help, Guo Moruo showed great sincerity and promised to provide a high reward. However, when Pu Yi received the invitation, he did not immediately agree, but politely declined him in five words: "I don't understand Manchu." ”
As the former emperor of the Qing Dynasty, did Pu Yi really not understand Manchu?
It turned out that Pu Yi didn't really understand Manchu, but out of consideration for his own identity. When he was very young, he systematically studied Manchu, and although his attainments were not high, they were convincing enough.
However, he refused the invitation on the grounds that he did not understand Manchu. This is because he knows very well that he is no longer the emperor of the Manchu Qing Dynasty, but an ordinary person under New China, with a special identity.
All these changes are full of the hot and cold taste of the world. Therefore, we only need to think a little to understand his choice.
He politely declined Guo Moruo's kind invitation, in fact, in the final analysis, he wanted to completely free himself from that unbearable past, he was no longer obsessed with the throne, and he no longer regarded himself as the emperor.
He had only the desire to spend the rest of his life in peace. If he accepts Guo Moruo's invitation, how will he face those past events? From the moment he was pardoned, he was ready for the future.
Similarly, in marriage, he did not choose a Manchu woman, but chose an ordinary Han woman to spend the rest of his life, which was also one of the ways he protected himself.