"Hide one's humbleness and show benevolence"

One spring in Daoguang's later years, he ordered his princes to accompany him to Nanyuan for hunting. Hunting was an activity that the Qing Dynasty respected as a traditional martial art, and it was usually a test to test the prince's riding and shooting abilities.

According to the records of this hunt left in the literature, Yi was indeed very skilled in martial arts and got the most prey during the hunt. But Yi just stood aside and didn't fire an arrow.

It turns out that Yi knew that he was not as good as Yi in riding and shooting, so he asked his teacher Du Shoutian to give him a clever trick. Du Shoutian warned Yi: When my brother arrives at the paddock, he must not fire a shot or an arrow, and he must restrain his men not to capture an animal. If the emperor asks why, just say that now is the spring time when birds and animals are gestating, and you can't bear to hurt them, and you don't want to compete with your brothers in this way.

Yi followed the plan. Sure enough, Emperor Daoguang was very happy after hearing this and praised: This is really what a man with an emperor's mind says!

"Hide one's humbleness and show filial piety"

Another time, Emperor Daoguang summoned Yi and Yi to ask for advice, just to ask them their opinions on state affairs. After receiving the order, the two asked their teachers for advice. Yi's teacher Zhuo Bingtian is talented, a successful young man, serious in his work, and good at talking. He told Yi: If the emperor asks you, "You should tell me everything you know and say everything you want." But Du Shoutian warned Yi: When it comes to discussing state affairs and government affairs, my elder brother cannot compare with Liu Ye Yi. There is only one strategy at this time: as long as the emperor says that he is about to die, before he asks you what to do with the country, you just lie on the ground and cry.

Yiyan obeyed the advice, and his performance made Emperor Daoguang deeply aware of the child's benevolence and filial piety.

In the 30th year of Daoguang, Emperor Daoguang, who had been troubled by internal and external troubles for many years, finally came to the end of his life, and the battle for the throne between Yi and Yi also came to an end.

Let’s take a look at the secret archives of the Qing Palace where Daoguang passed the throne. This is the only set of precious objects related to the secret establishment of the throne that has been preserved to this day. There are four copies of the edict in the box.

Establish a copy of the imperial edict. It said in both Manchu and Chinese: "The fourth son of the emperor Yi Zhu was established as the crown prince." It also wrote in Chinese: "The sixth son of the emperor Yi was granted the title of prince." On the inner wrapping paper was written "Daoguang 20 "June 16, 6th year" and signed by Emperor Daoguang. The outer wrapping paper has "Wannian" written in Manchu and also has a signature. It can be seen that the prince was established in the 26th year of Daoguang, which was four years before Daoguang's death.

There are also two testaments explaining what should be done after death. An envelope is written "Handwritten by the Minister of Military Affairs and Air Force" and has a seal and signature. There is a seal on the other package, stamped "Daoguang Zhibao" and the word "sealing".

In addition, there is a copy of Zhu Yu in the box: "The fourth son of the emperor, Yi Zhu, has been established as the crown prince. How can your ministers wait for me to say that they all praise the general and put the national economy and people's livelihood first, without mercy." Others." This Zhu Yu was written by Emperor Daoguang himself in Shende Hall of Yuanmingyuan before his death on the 14th day of the first lunar month of the 30th year of Daoguang. The writing was very sloppy.

Emperor Daoguang's imperial edict determined the status of Yi and Yi. From then on, Yi wore a yellow robe and became Emperor Xianfeng, while Yi bowed his head as a prince. The brothers' status has changed, but the struggle has not ended.

After Yi became emperor, Prince Gong Yi was careful and cautious. He once gained the trust of Emperor Xianfeng and served as the foreman military minister. However, in the fifth year of Xianfeng, Emperor Xianfeng was greatly unhappy because Yi repeatedly requested that his biological mother Xiaojing be granted the title of concubine.

There is a saying in "Qixiang Story": In 1855, the fifth year of Xianfeng, Emperor Xiaojing became seriously ill. When she was dying, Emperor Xianfeng went to Visiting the imperial concubine who had done a great job in raising him, when he walked to the door of her palace, he happened to see Yi walking out of the door, and the two brothers met there.

Emperor Xianfeng asked casually: How is E Niang's illness? Yi replied: "Alright! It seems that I can rest in peace until I can wait for the title of Jin." In a hurry, Emperor Xianfeng was noncommittal and just said "oh, oh" twice. Unexpectedly, after hearing this, Yi immediately went to the military aircraft to convey Xianfeng's decree. The Ministry of Rites then issued a memorial, asking the imperial concubine to be named the Empress Dowager Kangci.

Emperor Xianfeng was very angry about this, but because he had given the impression that he had agreed to go out, he had no choice but to approve it. Nine days later, on the tenth day of July, Empress Dowager Kangci died of illness.

It was time for Xianfeng to vent his grievances. On July 21, Emperor Xianfeng expelled Yi from the military aircraft department on the charge of "negligence in handling funerals", dismissed him from other important positions, and never reused him again.

At the same time, Xianfeng also lowered the level of funeral ceremonies for his adoptive mother, the Empress Dowager Kangci, creating a special case for the funeral of empresses in the Qing Dynasty. The empress dowager's mausoleum, Mu Dongling, is also very special. It is not together with the emperor's mausoleum, but with the tombs of the 16 concubines. However, a wall is still used to separate the tombs of the concubines, and yellow tiles are used to show the difference.

This kind of treatment, which is different from the queen and the concubine, vaguely reveals Xianfeng's intention: he wants his younger brother to know that there is a difference between the emperor's biological mother and his adoptive mother. Xianfeng warned his younger brother: Stop trying to take the throne of the emperor.

In this way, Yi finally defeated Yi and secured the throne.