Opium has spread rapidly in the country since the Qianlong Dynasty, resulting in a large number of smokers. In order to curb this phenomenon, in the 19th year of Daoguang (1839), the Qing court enacted extremely strict legal measures.
Article 39 of the Statute for the Suppression of Opium clearly stipulates that the principal and accessory offenders who open tobacco parlors, grow opium poppy, manufacture and sell opium face the death penalty and other persons involved are sentenced to death by hanging and imprisonment.
In the Qing Dynasty, tobacco bans on eunuchs in the palace were severe. If you smoke tobacco, you should admit your mistake within one month to seek forgiveness; And those who collect cigarettes, once they are verified, will also be severely fined.
For those who smoke in the womb, they will be sentenced to death by hanging. Even if there are regulations, but in actual operation, the phenomenon of eunuchs smoking big cigarettes is still repeatedly prohibited, and finally even in the palace ** big smoke house.
In order to solve the cost of tobacco addiction, some theft gangs chose the big tobacco house as a stronghold, entered the Forbidden City many times, and stole the copper characters on the plaque of Donghua Gate, the copper nails on the city gate, and the copper tiles and animal heads on the ridge of the palace.
There were even cases where two gangs shoplared at the same night in the palace and fought a big fight.
Xu Zhixiang, a eunuch in the Ministry of Internal Affairs, entered the palace since he was a child, and after many years of misery, he was transferred to work as a guard of honor. In the palace, he had nothing to do all day and began to smoke opium, and his addiction to cigarettes was so great that it was jaw-dropping.
Located on the south side of Donghua Gate, the Luan Yiwei Yamen is managed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, which is responsible for managing the affairs of the emperor and empress, such as the honor guard. Xu Zhixiang opened an opium smoke house in the Yamen of Luan Yiwei to make a profit from it to support himself.
Most of the porters and coolies who were employed in the palace rested and smoked cigarettes there. In June of the sixth year of Guangxu (1880), Yuan Dama and Yuan Li.
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9. Liu Si and others smoked a lot of cigarettes in Xu Zhixiang's smoke shop.
Yuan Dama worked hard every day but couldn't make enough money, and he was addicted to smoking, so he came up with an idea to discuss with everyone to steal the bronze characters on the plaque of Donghua Gate at night, and then sell it for some money.
Donghua Gate is the east gate of the Forbidden City, and the Manchu and Han characters on its plaque "Donghua Gate" are cast in pure copper, and the weight is very considerable. At that time, everyone nodded in agreement because of their addiction to smoking, and Xu Zhixiang also expressed his support, after all, the copper characters they stole would eventually be consumed in the palace.
On the night of June 28, they gathered at the Smoke House, successfully climbed up the gatehouse with a centipede ladder made of ropes, and succeeded in stealing four Manchu and Han bronze characters. After that, they sold the stolen copper characters to Hou Shanxiang, the owner of the Delong Copper Factory, and from then on began to frequently steal objects in the palace and sell them.
In August, they infiltrated the Tung Wah Gate three times and went up to the city by the horse road, successfully stealing four door nails and four copper tiles. On December 28, they once again successfully climbed the ridge of the Taihe Palace, stealing the beast's head and bronze exercises.
On the tenth day of the third month of the seventh year of Guangxu, they once again succeeded in stealing the money and gold and silver bills in the Longkou treasure box. On December 28, Yuan Dama, Yuan Lisan and five others prepared to steal again, but they found that Lian Mao'er, Han Laoxi and other groups were already on the gatehouse, so the conflict sparked.
Yuan Dama injured Han Laoxi with a wooden stick, and he was also stabbed with a knife. In the end, under the persuasion of their accomplices, the two parties returned to the smoke house and sold the stolen copper characters to Hou Shanxiang.
During November of the eighth year of Guangxu, Yuan Dama and others continued to commit thefts, and because they forgot to pack the centipede ladder in the last theft, they left the crime scene, thus exposing the entire case.
When the news reached the Qing court, it caused great dissatisfaction, so it ordered the Internal Affairs Office, the Yamen, the commander of the infantry army, and other relevant departments to jointly investigate. After a period of investigation, the case was solved.
In this case, Yuan Dama and others stole and stolen goods many times, but Hou Shanxiang, the owner of Delong Copper Factory, knew that these items were stolen goods from the palace, and still melted the copper characters without fear and ** again.
In view of the seriousness of the case, the case was transferred to the Penal Department. After the theft ring was caught, they revealed information about other people. After the interrogation of the Criminal Department, it was finally decided to sentence Yuan Dama, Yuan Li'er, Wang Wu and others to the punishment of beheading and deciding in accordance with the provisions of "those who steal and obey the imperial property by taking advantage of the public opinion and obeying the law of the proposed beheading".
And Xu Zhixiang, as a eunuch, not only smoked opium, but also opened a tobacco shop in the Luan Yiwei Office in Donghuamen to attract thieves. Therefore, according to the provisions of the "Prohibition Ordinance on the Intention of Beheading a Prisoner by Smoking Opium Smoke within the Forbidden Gate", he was sentenced to the punishment of beheading the Prison Prince.
Because of the seriousness of the case, the Criminal Department asked the emperor to execute Xu Zhixiang immediately. Other persons involved in the case were also sentenced to the punishment of beheading.
Although this case had a wake-up call effect on the eunuchs in the palace, opium was still very popular in the inner courtyard of the deep palace, and many eunuchs could not extricate themselves. Their life in the palace was dull, and at first they were addicted to gambling, but then opium became their choice to spend time and relieve stress.
Although severe punishment could not stop their opium addiction, the opium smoke in the palace did not disappear until the fall of the Qing Dynasty.