Cixi saw the light bulb for the first time and exclaimedElectric light
Under the feudal system of the Qing Dynasty, people's thinking was still ignorant and backward. Although the Qing Dynasty had a glorious Kangqian prosperous era, due to the policy of closing the country to the outside world, the level of science and technology and culture was backward, and eventually declined.
During Cixi's reign, she enjoyed luxury, intervened in court affairs, and even interfered in the succession to the throne. However, even such a powerful woman has moments of embarrassment.
When she first saw the light bulb, she shouted two words that are still used by people today, so what are these two words?
Cixi's life was truly magnificent. She was born in the Yehnara clan and has the qualifications to be drafted into the palace. Sure enough, she was successfully promoted to the emperor's Lan nobleman and gave birth to the only prince.
As the saying goes, the mother is more expensive than the son, and Cixi's status in the palace also rose, and she eventually became a concubine. When Xianfeng was seriously ill, Cixi was allowed to review the recitals for him and express her opinions, which caused dissatisfaction among many ministers, but they could only dare to be angry but did not dare to speak.
While the sails of history were still sailing calmly, the British and French forces suddenly launched a large-scale attack on China. Before they invaded Beijing, Cixi and Emperor Xianfeng fled to Rehe together.
However, Emperor Xianfeng's condition deteriorated rapidly in Rehe and he died soon after. His only son, naturally, inherited the throne. Cixi also naturally sat on the throne of the empress dowager, and at the same time began her road of listening to politics under the pretext that Emperor Tongzhi was young.
In the face of the eight ministers left by Xianfeng, Cixi canceled their identities on different charges and methods, showing her power. At first, Cixi was able to do some practical things for the country, but in the later period, she completely fell into the abyss of greedy pleasure.
After the death of her son Emperor Tongzhi, even the next successor emperor needed her consent, and she chose the young Guangxu Emperor in order to control the power and achieve her own desire for power.
Driven by her greed, the Qing Dynasty gradually declined. Although the Qing Dynasty was already a big country in the East, due to the policy of closing the country to the outside world, many foreigners hoped to trade with it, but these fresh foreign goods could only be understood by dignitaries.
Cixi was the most powerful person at the time and received many gifts from foreigners. However, due to the backwardness of thinking at that time, Cixi was not interested in these foreigners' items, and even compared with the seemingly novel thing like a camera, she was afraid that it would take away people's souls.
This situation reflected the backwardness of the Qing Dynasty at that time, and those in power, including Cixi, were no exception. However, under the persuasion of the female officials and the influence of more and more dignitaries using cameras to take pictures, Cixi finally agreed to use the camera to record her appearance.
Although she was nervous at first and didn't know how to pose, at the suggestion of a female officer who had a lot of dealings with foreigners, she learned to shout "eggplant" when taking pictures, which became a popular saying for taking pictures.
The Empress Dowager Cixi had a habit of shouting eggplants when taking pictures, and what really made her embarrassed was when she saw the light bulb for the first time. At that time, Prince Gong invited foreigners to present Cixi with a very practical novelty - light bulb.
Light bulbs, which seem ordinary today, were a rarity in those days. As a result, when Cixi saw the light bulb lit up, she immediately subconsciously shouted "eggplant", because when the camera took pictures, it would also flash suddenly.
Cixi mistook the camera for an eggplant, which made everyone present laugh. Although everyone didn't show it for the sake of her face, there was still a lot of discussion about it in private.
After all, as a symbol of the supreme power of the Qing Dynasty, how can it not be funny that you can't even tell the difference between a camera and an eggplant? After Cixi realized her gaffe, she sat there quietly and stopped talking, and this meeting can be said to be foreign.
However, the word "eggplant" has been passed down because of this, and to this day, people still say the word "eggplant" when taking pictures. Because these two words can make people naturally raise the corners of their mouths, making ** more vivid and natural, without appearing deliberate.
Therefore, the word "eggplant" has been passed down to this day.
Under the rule of the Qing Dynasty, we were not directly involved in it, and we could only learn about it through historical records. I can't fully understand it, but I can get a general understanding.
Cixi mistook the light bulb for a camera, and this incident reflected the backwardness and ignorance of the people of the Qing Dynasty at that time. This cannot be blamed on them, because the policy of closing the country to other countries has led to exchanges and development, but the Qing Dynasty is content with the status quo.
However, closing the country can only bring about the reality of backwardness and being beaten, which is also a manifestation of the incompetence of the Qing Dynasty and the lack of long-term strategic vision, which leads to the invasion of the country and the plundering of goods.
In order to earn the respect of others, we must first make ourselves stronger, not afraid of falling behind, but to improve through continuous communication and learning. Only in this way can we remain invincible in a highly competitive environment.
Let's work together to continue to grow and develop towards a more brilliant future!