by Poon, Alice;
With the consent of the Court, Shunzhi therefore ordered that Dorgon’s corpse be exhumed and flogged in public, that he be stripped of all Imperial titles, that all his property be confiscated and that his adopted heir be stripped of the right of inheritance. Without Shunzhi’s explicit instruction but with his full knowledge, Oboi went ahead and ordered the corpse to be decapitated, cut to pieces and fed to the vultures.
Shunzhi had long harbored a deep dislike of his hubristic uncle, who had slighted him, the true Emperor, in every possible way. The news of the corpse mutilation gave him visceral delight and assuaged his long bottled-up resentment towards Dorgon. He used Oboi’s argument that the Emperor’s authority must be manifested at every opportunity as an excuse to purge all Dorgon’s followers.
When news of this reached Bumbutai’s ears, she was heartbroken, but thought it best not to interfere. She was well aware that there was a need for the fledgling Emperor to consolidate power in his hands at this critical moment. She was also still suffering under the crushing weight of a sense of guilt towards Shunzhi over his father’s unnatural death. Desolation pushed her to find refuge in solitude in South Park. Her only solace was that when she attended to the embalming of Dorgon’s corpse, she had found the pink bundle still firmly ensconced in his stiff cold hand. In her solitary moments in the Park, she would recall that scene again and again as if she were indulging in a guilty pleasure.
That day, alone with the corpse, she had the luxury of draining her repressed tears as she washed and embalmed the huge lifeless body with incense and white cloth. Alternate pangs of remorse and deep grief jabbed at her heart like serrated blades. She wanted to scream out her pain but the sound had lodged itself in her throat.
With a trembling hand, she had carefully removed the pink packet which was glued by congealed blood to his icy hand. A weeping candle lit the morbid chamber and kept her company. It gave her an idea…
Watching the letter and the lock of hair disintegrate slowly in the flame, she had a strange sensation that part of her was turning to cinders and melding with the smoke, wafting into the underworld to join her Dorgon. She then stopped weeping and murmured to herself: “Forgive me, my love. My empty shell must carry on. The subjects of Qing need it to work for them.”
On leaving the mortuary, she had the pink kerchief with her. The kerchief with Dorgon’s blood on it.
With the help of Oboi and Suksaha, Shunzhi spent most of the next two years persecuting Dorgon’s favorite Court Ministers, military followers and supporters until no remnant of his influence remained. Oboi had been a loyal follower of Hong Taiji’s and had in secret always resented Dorgon’s rule. To reward Oboi for his help, Shunzhi appointed him Chief Commander of the Imperial Guards. Emboldened by this appointment, Oboi went on a vendetta to eliminate those who had ruffled him in Dorgon’s days.
As Oboi gained more of Shunzhi’s trust, he saw fit to get rid of Scholar Lin, a rival who had been a favorite Minister of Dorgon’s and had wielded great influence on policies in Court. Being an impetuous person, Shunzhi decided to trust Oboi’s judgment and without consulting his mother ordered the execution of Scholar Lin. By the time Bumbutai heard the news, it was too late. Less than six months after her wedding, Siu Mui became widowed. Bumbutai couldn’t but feel desolate about her maid’s tragic fate. She had wanted so much to give her a happy life, but Eternal Blue Sky had other plans.
Towards the end of the eighth year of his reign, Shunzhi let Oboi persuade him that Ajige had to be taken out in order to quash any hope of a usurpation of power by his followers. He assigned this unpleasant job to Jirgalang.
One afternoon in the tenth lunar month, Jirgalang visited Ajige in his prison residence. When Ajige saw his uncle, he thought that Shunzhi had at last found it in his heart to release him. But Jirgalang had stashed inside one of his sleeves a small vial filled with arsenic-laced wine. On entering the lounge, he stuttered in an awkward way:
“It has been a while since you and I had a good meal together… Let’s eat, drink and chat.” He signaled for the manservant who had followed him into the lounge to lay out a sumptuous meal. As the dishes were being put on the table, Jirgalang couldn’t help fidgeting as he was not used to such playacting.
“Yes, Uncle, it has been a while,” said Ajige. “It’s good of you to come. I was hoping you might have some good news for me …” Had he been a more observant man, he would have detected Jirgalang’s flitting eyes as he spoke. The latter avoided giving an answer and turned his eyes to the dishes.
Jirgalang was glad that the aroma of the hot dishes distracted them both for a while. On his signal, the manservant poured more wine into Ajige’s goblet. In the next while, they were able to enjoy the food. When they were half-way through, Ajige casually said:
“Did you come on your own, or did someone send you here, Uncle?”
“I, … I came on my own…. Have this tender piece of stewed pork, it’s been cooked to perfection.” As he put the piece of pork into Ajige’s bowl, he poured him more wine. The two continued to eat and drink, while reminiscing about the old days on the battlefield.
At the end of the meal, Jirgalang nervously pulled the vial from his sleeve and placed it on the table. In a blink, Ajige realized what was up, His eyes dilated, hegave out a beastly growl and jumped up from his seat.
“Damn them!” he shouted. “How dare they?” He knew it was the Shunzhi Emperor and the Empress Dowager who were behind this. Jirgalang called in his four burly guards who had been standing vigil outside the lounge. They pounced on Ajige and subdued him.
“Ajige, either you drink it peacefully, or I will have to force it down,” said his uncle. “It’s your choice. Try to understand that it’s all over for you. I promise you that I will take care of your household …..”
Before Jirgalang could finish, Ajige wrested free from the guards’ grip, grabbed the table with both hands and overturned it, sending porcelain dishes, bowls and goblets crashing onto the floor. The vial somersaulted a few times before rolling to a stop, unbroken. The guards rushed forward and pinned the frenzied prince to the floor. Jirgalang walked over and picked up the vial and removed the lid. As the guards pried their prisoner’s mouth open with a spoon, Jirgalang poured the venomous liquid into it. Ajige choked, his temple ridged with pulsing blue veins. There was a pause, then he went into a violent convulsion, foaming at the mouth. Another moment and his body was rigid, his dead eyes wide open.
With Ajige gone, Jirgalang was expecting to be able to resume his Regent status, if only to reward him for all the help he had given to the Shunzhi Emperor and his mother. But the Empress Dowager had a different plan. She was afraid that Jirgalang would only follow in Dorgon’s overbearing footsteps were he to become Regent again. On her instructions, Shunzhi issued an edict commanding all Court Ministers and the Chiefs of the Upper Three Banners to henceforth report to the Emperor direct, entirely bypassing Jirgalang’s authority.
A little later, the Empress Dowager found an occasion to reassure Jirgalang in private. She looked him in the eyes and said gently:
“The Emperor is still too young and inexperienced. I need you to be my eyes and ears about State affairs. No doubt you understand that the Private Council is meant as a check to Shunzhi’s powers, and I rely on you in particular to apply that check. Jirgalang, know this: you are the only one in Court I completely trust. You will not fail me, will you?”
At one stroke, she dispelled any hard feeling he might have felt and made him a loyal ally who would remain faithful to her until his death. Bumbutai knew that in order for Shunzhi’s authority to be undisputed, it was important to arrange a marriage for him, whereby he would be seen to have attained true adulthood. She had always set her heart on her brother Wukeshan’s youngest daughter as her first choice of daughter-in-law candidates. As a Mongolian Princess from the Borjigit clan, she had the duty to see to it that the Qing Imperial lineage would continu
e to evince the close bond between her Mongolian Borjigit clan and the Manchu Aisin Gioro clan.
Wukeshan had always known this to be his sister’s cherished wish. With that in mind, when it was just a few months into Shunzhi’s reign as a real Emperor, he chaperoned his daughter all the way from Inner Mongolia to Beijing, just as he had accompanied Bumbutai and Harjol to Mukden all those years ago.
When Shunzhi set eyes on this cousin of his, he was rather charmed by her fair complexion and pleasant disposition. But one little incident took place which would turn his attraction to distaste.
On the day the welcoming banquet was held, a maid-in-waiting unintentionally spilled a little wine onto the honored guest’s sleeve while pouring it into her chalice. Thereupon, the Empress-to-be flew into a fit of nasty temper and shrieked out a peremptory demand: “I want the maid flogged right this moment. Pain will teach her to know her proper place and to be more careful next time.”
The Empress Dowager tried to calm her down by ordering the maid to retire at once. But her niece was too used to being pampered to let her request go ignored. She continued to throw her tantrum in full public view. It was only when she saw Shunzhi’s expression of distaste that she quietened down.
After that, Shunzhi purposely delayed the wedding and focused instead on the more urgent Court matters at hand. He would not allow his Court officials or his mother to cajole him into changing his mind. Knowing full well that this was a political marriage, he saw he had little option but to comply with his mother’s wish in the end. Still, he thought it a good idea to humble his bride-to-be a little bit by making her wait. He also hoped the delay would send his mother this message: “I am no longer just a puppet. I am a true adult Emperor capable of setting my priorities. You see how dedicated I am to State affairs.”
In fact, the young Emperor had such a lot to grasp that he actually couldn’t afford to lose any time in catching up with his learning. In the first days of his reign, he felt completely overwhelmed by the load of Court documents, many of which were written in Chinese. To ensure he could understand them he spent his leisure time studying Chinese books on history and governance. He also developed a voracious appetite for Confucius’s Analects and his philosophical teachings, as well as for Chinese classical literature.
He developed the habit of reading all afternoon and evening, and well into the early morning hours before retiring to bed. Surrounding himself with young, well-read scholars, he drew pleasure from leisurely discourse with them about Chinese art and literature.Well aware of her son’s learning efforts, Bumbutai showed her encouragement by occasionally dropping in on his literary gatherings as an observer. At the end of one such session, she said casually: “Fulin, I’m very pleased with the remarkable progress you have made in your Chinese lessons. Are you as proficient in the Jurchen and Mongolian languages these days?” That hint, ever so gently put, was enough to remind Shunzhi of his origins.
One of his first efforts to make his mark was to proclaim a fight against corruption in officialdom. He knew this was a major cause of the Ming dynasty’s collapse. Believing that harsh rules and stiff penalties for offenders would be the best medicine for the ailment, he lost no time in promulgating rules and penalties to support his new policy. But well-intentioned as it was, the campaign was executed selectively, thereby deepening factional strife and stoked the back-stabbing in Court. Manchu Bannermen and the Han literati whom he had come to favor formed into two main rival camps.
Shunzhi found himself relying more and more on his favorite eunuch Wu Liangfu for gossip about the activities of the various factions. He knew there were pitfalls in relying on such information, but could think of no better way. Ironically, he had earlier declared a strict ban on eunuchs meddling in Court affairs.
In Bumbutai’s eyes, his life was as yet a book of blank pages in which much was to be written, be it good or bad. In trying to guide him onto the right path, she had to strike a balance between respecting his status and keeping a watch over him.
That summer, Bumbutai had barely recovered from her grieving over the loss of Dorgon. Her son’s decision to delay his wedding annoyed her a bit at first, but she came to understand her son’s intentions. She was delighted to see that he was maturing and was proving to be an industrious and open-minded Emperor.
One evening, Shunzhi came to visit her in Dorgon’s mansion. She was in the garden reading the Spring and Autumn Annals when he entered through the gate, unaccompanied by guards or eunuchs.
“Mother, I have come to pay obeisance to you. How is your health? Are you eating well and sleeping sound?”
“Fulin, I’m so happy to see you!” she exclaimed. Bumbutai’s face lit up the moment she saw her son. “I haven’t seen you for two months. Why, you’ve grown even taller. Let me take a good look at you, my handsome boy.” She urged him to sit beside her on the stone bench, her gaze never leaving his face, flushed from the hurried walk over to her.
“Mother, I have ordered for Cining Palace to be completely renovated. It’s going to take a couple of years. Then you’ll be able to move back in and we will be close to each other like before.”
“I would love to live closer to you, my son. But I don’t want any lavish trimmings for my residence. Just some repainting work would be good enough. Don’t put a strain on the Court’s coffers, because such resources can serve as a lifeline for our subjects in times of deprivation.”
“You are the Empress Dowager. Your Palace should at least be properly furnished. I will try to be thrifty about expenses.”
He stood up. “Mother, I have come to ask for your advice on picking an adviser for myself at Court. Do you have any suggestions?”
“Fulin, have you thought of promoting the Jesuit, Schall von Bell? The Director of the Imperial Observatory. He seems to be an intelligent and learned man. I have heard of him making accurate predictions about sun and moon eclipses with his new calendar. Knowledge is a powerful tool, never forget that. And it is important that we are receptive towards new knowledge and foreign cultures. This priest is also noted, I am told, for his moral principles of humility and compassion. He could be a good teacher for you.”
“Mother, you always have wise counsel for me. I have also heard many good things about this foreign priest’s work. I am sure I can learn much from him.”
She smiled. “I know you have been enjoying reading Chinese literature and history. Have you ever considered having the Chinese Four Books and Five Classics translated into Manchu, so that our Manchu subjects will be able to read them too?”
“Mother, that is an excellent idea! Thank you for suggesting it. I will get that done as soon as I can. It’s a good way to promote cross-cultural understanding. I think Manchus and Mongols should learn well The Analects of Confucius too.”
“I agree with most of the teachings in The Analects, especially those about the virtuous qualities that a ruler should cultivate. The problem is that self-seeking rulers try to twist those well-meant teachings into tyrannical tools to oppress their subjects. I am also inclined to disagree with the grading of people as Confucius proposes, but I suppose the imposition of some kind of hierarchical order is necessary for a nation as immense and diverse as China.”
“Yes, Mother, as a ruler, I need a means to manage our subjects. Confucius’s ideas of filial piety, loyalty to senior ranks and submission to authority help us a lot in our governance.”
“Son, authority is not about foisting your will on our subjects. It’s about earning their respect and trust through your candid words and benevolent actions. You must remember that you are first and foremost a human being like any other person, and as such, you are not infallible, and you must be humble enough to admit it and to open your ears to your Court. The greatest wisdom of Confucius’s teachings is in this advice: do not do unto others what you do not want done unto yourself.”
“I will learn to be humble, I assure you, Mother.
”
“It is unfortunate that prejudices misguided your Uncle Dorgon, and some of his actions caused the Hans to suffer unspeakable afflictions. You must now try to make amends at all costs and put them on equal footing with the Manchus and Mongols.”
“Mother, I understand what you mean and I will do my best.”
“So when are you going to have your wedding? I don’t mean to pressure you. But don’t you want some company at night time, my son?” She patted him tenderly on the back of his hand as she posed the question casually.
“I was actually going to ask for your approval for a date one month from now….”
“Oh, that will make me so happy, Fulin. I’m giving you my blessing right now. I must admit that I need an auspicious occasion to cheer me up. Now I have my precious son’s wedding to look forward to.” She couldn’t help but give her son a motherly hug. She had an urge to kiss him on the cheeks too, but feared that it might be too unbecoming and so restrained herself.
“Mother, I wanted to say that I am so sorry about the awful things that were done to Uncle Dorgon’s corpse. Oboi acted without my permission….”
“Son, you don’t have to apologize. I know it’s not your fault. I had been aware of the animosity between you and your uncle when he was alive. He had his reasons and you had yours. Now that he’s gone forever, Fulin, all hatred must end.”
“Yes, I know that, Mother.”
The wedding went ahead smoothly as planned in the lunar month of August. It was the most imposing of Imperial weddings ever held by the Aisin Gioro clan. The Hall of Preserving Harmony was chosen as the venue with its spacious main hall because the guest list was a long one and included many Mongolians from the Borjigit clan who came all the way from Inner Mongolia just to attend the wedding.
Among the vast quantity of valuable wedding gifts received were thousands of Mongolian horses from the clan. The bridal garment took a team of fifty seamstresses a full month of day-and-night work to finish on time. The outer full-length vest was made entirely of gold-thread brocaded satin with two phoenixes on the front, while the inner wide-sleeved gown was of crimson silk richly embroidered in floral pattern. The bridal headdress was of golden silk fabric studded with gemstones and golden tasseled hairpins. It was the most elaborate and ornate bridal garment ever made for an Imperial bride. The wedding feast and the Empress titling ceremony straddled three days, during which the largest number of guests ever entertained passed through the Hall of Preserving Harmony.
