BU BU JING XIN
EPISODE 25
|
RUOXI RESUMES HER TEA-MAID DUTIES: A STERN WARNING BY LI DEQUAN TO BE CAUTIOUS 
Li Dequan exits the palace and talks to Ruoxi alone. He warns her
to be cautious and not to talk out of turn nor repeat her previous audacious
behaviour, if she does not want to be punished again. He hopes that doing
laundry work has not washed her brains out. Now is the opportunity to get back into
the good graces of the emperor.
She concurs. But almost
immediately, she crosses the line and asks a question that should not be on
her lips. Her curiosity has gotten the better of her.
‘There’s a question on my mind. Who
do you think the emperor favours, Yinzhen or Yinti?’
What she wants to ferret out of him is whether Yinzhen is going
to ursurp the throne or not. She wants to know exactly what kind of a man
that she has surrendered her heart to.
‘Haven’t it not been ingrained in
your head what I’ve just emphasized? We are servants, everything that occurs in
the palace is none of our business.’
But Li Dequan knows that she is tight-lipped about what is shared with
her so he tries to satisfy her curiosity. Apparently, he knows his place and is
not going to give her a straightforward answer. He says he has vague ideas about the
emperor’s candidate.
‘The emperor would only divulge
the contents of his succession decree at the very last moment.’
|
KANGXI AND CONCUBINE DE: CONVERSATION ON THEIR PARENTING SKILLS
Concubine De visits the Kangxi emperor and they discuss their two
sons, Yinzhen and Yinti. Yinti has continued with the war in the Northwest.
She makes the suggestion that the emperor recall Yinti from
his military duties so that he would not be that worried about him.
‘Yinti is braver than the other
princes,’ he says, with pride lighting up his face.
The emperor has enormous confidence in Yinti. He compliments
her on her parenting skills.
‘This is your contribution to
the imperial family.’
He asks her who she prefers. Concubine De puts on a pretense
and gives a vague and cautious answer. They, she explains, are both her
biological sons, so she has no preference.
But viewers are aware of her playing favourites and of her
unfair preferential treatment of Yinti. Yinzhen probably feels neglected or
abandoned.
‘You are overly strict with
Yinzhen. That’s why he’s more quiet and reticent.’ She admits she lacks
guiding skills.
‘As a father, my sins are
greater. If the child is not brought up right, it is the father’s fault.’
Most likely, when the emperor thinks of his lack of
parenting skills, he is reminded of his second son, Yinreng, whom he has personally brought up and trained.
‘Unfortunately, the ruler is
different from the ordinary man, who after work, can sit under a tree and
tell stories to his children. There are times when I wonder whether the princes are
really filial to me or whether it is just pretence as they are eyeing the throne. At this point, it doesn’t really matter if it is true or fake. But, I do care for their future. I just hope
they won’t fight amongst themselves and destroy each other for power.’
|
THE DEATH OF THE KANGXI EMPEROR: LONGKODO PROCLAIMS YINGZHEN AS THE NEW EMPEROR
Kangxi falls ill and could not get out of bed. He informs
Longkodo, a military officer and younger brother of one of his consorts, that
he wants Yinti to return to the Capital.
His intention is to station Yinti permanently at the
capital. They must carefully consider his replacement.
The viewers wonder why Kangxi has not decided earlier to bring
Yinti back. His early return would have changed the succession scenario.
Yingzhen is in contact with the emperor every day. As the viewers have already known, he is familiar with Sun Tzu's 'The Art of War' which he applies in politics as
well.
He is waiting for the right moment to strike, to make his move.
He plays, ‘Go’, the
highly complex Chinese board game, by himself.
  The image projected is symbolic of the moment. A player needs to be calm and patient while waiting for the right moment to strike.
(It has been said that success at ‘GO’
requires the tactic of the soldier, the exactness of the mathematician, the
imagination of the artist, the inspiration of the poet, the calm of the
philosopher, and the greatest intelligence.
The ‘Go’ player is like ‘a tiger lying patiently in wait for its prey.’
One of the most important skills required for
strong tactical play is the ability to read ahead, which includes considering
available moves to play and the possible responses to each move.)
The Imperial Physician deems that the end is near.
Longkodo sends out orders for the soldiers to surround the Qianqing Palace (the Palace of
Heavenly Purity), the Kangxi emperor’s palace.
‘Without my permission, no
one, including the princes, can leave or enter the palace.’
Li Dequan also orders, upon Longkodo’s pressure on him, that ‘None can leave or approach the palace.’
 
The emperor, on his deathbed, had confided in Yinzhen that he had already commanded someone to draft the imperial mandate to install Yinti, the Fourteenth Prince as the new emperor. His Imperial Father also pleads with him to work with Yinti with all
his heart to run the empire.
 
Yinzhen writes the word ‘Calm’ on his calligraphy paper.
Someone sends word that the emperor is dying. He thinks to
himself, ‘Win' or 'Lose’ will be
determined by this moment. He writes another word, ‘Action’.
The moment of truth has arrived. He has to take swift action to win the throne.
In the presence of Longkodo, Li Dequan, Ruoxi and a few others, the
Imperial Physician feels the pulse of the Kangxi emperor and then, declares that he
has passed away. All present drop to their knees in the rarefied confines of
the deceased emperor’s bedroom.
Longkodo, the commandant of the Beijing gendarmerie (military and
police duties), proclaims that Yinzhen is the next emperor. He declares that
the Kangxi emperor had mandated it just before he passed away.
Incredulity and suspicion sweep across the chief eunuch, Li
Dequan’s face. He seems crestfallen because he knows the truth and is aghast
with the proclamation. It is impossible for him not to know the name of the
successor since he has been the emperor’s personal attendant.
Yinzhen’s timing is perfect. He seems to know the exact moment to
make his grand entrance, dressed in his black clothes, a sign of mourning. He
kneels in front of the bed of the deceased emperor.
Longkodo makes a pretense of informing Yinzhen that before the
emperor passed away, his Imperial Father had confided in him that he, the Fourth Prince is
similar to him in many ways, and therefore, he had decreed that his fourth son should succeed him.
He puts on a show of kowtowing to Yinzhen and hailing the new
emperor.
Has there been a conspiracy?
The shocked audience is hushed and there is no voice of dissent.
Perhaps it is a surreal experience for them. They are in a dreamlike state.
Ruoxi, alert to the situation, quickly kowtows to the new
emperor. Then, the rest of the attendants follow suit.
Li Dequan, startled out of his shock, is the last one to do so, and this has not escaped the notice of Yinzhen.  
(Some historical
evidence has suggested that Yinzhen contacted Longkodo months before the will
was read in preparation for his succession through military means, although in
their official capacities frequent encounters were expected.
There is a widely circulated legend that Yinzhen modified Kangxi's will by changing key Chinese characters specifying the heir to the throne. The best-known rumour was that Yinzhen modified the phrase "transfer the throne to the Fourteenth Prince" (Chinese: 傳位十四子→ shísì) to "transfer the throne to the Fourth Prince" (Chinese: 傳位于四子 → yúsì) by changing the character shi (十) to yu (于)
Historians
remain divided on whether or not Yinzhen 'usurped' the throne. However, the
majority of evidence points to Yinzhen succeeding the throne legitimately
(although with political and military manoeuvring deemed necessary by the
situation)
In 2013, an
exhibit in Liaoning's Archive Bureau unveiled the Kangxi Emperor's
succession will for the first time, and the exhibit finally disproved any
notion that Yinzhen changed his father's will.)
|
THE YONGZHEN EMPEROR ASCENDS THE THRONE: THE SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST - SEALING OFF THE PALACE, EUNUCHS AND MAIDS - INDIVIDUAL CONFINEMENT AND MILITARY PRESENCE
The situation is such that viewers can call it ‘the survival
of the fittest.’ The one who is fittest in body, mind and soul would ascend
the throne.
Yinzhen wants the news of the emperor’s death to be contained.
Nobody is to disseminate the news.
Those who were at the emperor’s deathbed are whisked away and
escorted out of the palace and confined separately in different rooms. Ruoxi’s
room, one with a simple mattress, is far more spartan than any room she has ever
seen in the Forbidden City.
Ruoxi does not know how Yinzhen is enthroned. She is glad that
she does not have to witness the conflict of the princes before Yinzhen’s
ascension to the throne. She does not rule out the possibility that his claim
to the throne is illegitimate.
Those who were with the emperor on his death throes were put
under individual detention for 7 days.
All the princes and those present are dressed in their
mourning black collared white clothes.
Longkodo insists that Yinzhen be enthroned first because of
the unrest outside the Capital. An empire, without a leader for even a day, is vulnerable
to attacks. But Yinzhen wants to perform the funeral rites first.
 
His brothers from the Yinsi faction - Yinsi, Yintang and Yin’e
object to his ascension to the throne because they know
their Imperial Father, and Yinzhen and Yinti’s mother favour the latter. Everybody
knows Yinti was the previous emperor’s favourite. To them, it is impossible
that their Imperial Father would make Yinzhen the successor. How could he have
changed his mind on his death bed?
 
Li Dequan is ordered to publicly repeat the late emperor’s edict.
  
The three princes publicly dispute his claim to the throne.
There is a war of words between the three princes and the lackeys of Yinzhen.
Standing up to defend Li Dequan, Longkodo declares that both
of them were at the emperor’s side in his final hours.
 
Suddenly, to the consternation of the Yinsi Faction, the marching sounds of the military
are heard. The Han Chinese Qing general, Nian Gengyao, has arrived with his
army to congratulate the new emperor.
The princes are helpless because the military has been called in
to ensure the enthronement is not interfered with.
It shows the politically shrewdness and preparedness of Yinzhen. The military manoeuvring is necessary considering the confrontational attitude of the princes. Yinzhen must have expected conflict over his succession to the throne and the military has been called in to exact submission from the intransigent factions.
And Yinzhen is smart enough not to push the opposing faction
into a tight corner. Following Sun Tzu’s war philosophy, he declares that
Yinsi, Longkodo, Yinxiang, the 13th Prince, as Prime Ministers.
Shocked, Yinsi could not defy him nor refuse the appointment, but is forced to kowtow
to Yinzhen and accept his fate.
The enthronement of Yinzhen as the Yongzheng Emperor seals the fate of the Qing princes.
(The Yongzheng Emperor (1723–1735) was Kangxi’s fourth son and his
successor. Because he was already 44 when he ascended the throne, his reign
was a short one. Like his father, Yongzheng was able, conscientious, and
hardworking.)
|
OPPOSITION AGAINST THE YONGZHENG EMPEROR
Later, when the three princes, Yinsi, Yintang and Yin’e discuss
the issue, they realise too late that they are helpless without the backing
of an army in the capital. They have been ignorant of the strategies and
preparedness of Yinzhen!
Although it has been obvious that their father had favoured
Yinti, things has not been as smooth as they thought it would be. Their Imperial Father had made sure Yinti has the backing of the army by making him the
General-In-Chief in charge of the Northwest border pacification campaign, but
fate has played its hand.
The Kangxi emperor had failed to recall Yinti well in advance before
his death. He should have replaced Yinti with Nian Gengyao and recall his son earlier. This was the mistake made by the Kangxi emperor had he
wanted Yinti to succeed him.
He was too complacent, and so were the princes from Yinsi’s Faction. Unlike Yinzhen, Yinsi has
not surrounded himself with military men who are on the same page with him. He
is not politically shrewd and has overrated himself as a leader.
The Yinsi Faction has underestimated Yinzhen.
Yinzhen has shown himself to be a strategist: wise, analytical, incisive and well-prepared,
and he knew his strategies inside out. That has got him the throne. It is the
true test of a leader. Yinzhen is like the lion ready to spring and he has
swallowed the Yinsi Faction whole.
It is impossible to turn back the clock. Longkodo has proclaimed
the emperor’s edict. Li Dequan has validated it. The Imperial declaration has
been disseminated throughout the country.
But, the Yongzheng emperor’s only hurdle is Concubine De, his Imperial Mother who would never endorse his ascension to the throne. What she
has expected did not come to pass.
Yinsi consoles his brothers that there are opportunities in the
future to eliminate Yinzhen but they are not ready for the Yongzheng emperor’s
future actions. It goes without saying that Yinsi is woolly-headed, and lacking in intelligence, something that the
Yongzheng emperor is not lacking of.
Yinsi has always believed he could shape his own destiny and he
is not a prisoner of fate. He has tried to create his destiny, but he realises in the
end, he could not fight his fate.
As for Yinzhen, he has been politically shrewd
and well-prepared. It is in his years of preparation and his moments of decision
that his destiny has been shaped.
The question here is not whether Yinzhen had usurped the throne or not.
The point of view presented in this 2011 drama is that Yinzhen has ascended the throne illegally, as shown by his father’s last whispered conversation with him, and the various suspicious incidents that have occurred thereafter. 
True enough, Concubine De, has been thinking about the matter, and has
summoned Yinzhen to her residence. Since the issue is of great political
importance, she is straightforward and accuses him of usurping the throne.
‘The emperor could not have
passed the throne to you!’
Yinzhen does not have an easy task of placating her.
‘We are both your biological sons.
Mother, why do you favour Yinti? Do you think I cannot be a good
emperor?’ he
retorts with indignation.
In her wrath, she smashed the white jade birthday bangle that he
gifted her to smithereens.
She declares that she is the Kangxi emperor’s concubine and it is
her responsibility to carry out his posthumous wishes.
‘The imperial throne belongs
to me. It is absolutely legitimate,’ Yinzhen defends his claim.
‘You know better in your
heart whether it is absolutely legitimate or not. I want to tell you
this: Even if the entire world
recognises and accepts you as the emperor, I will never do so!’
The Yongzheng emperor walks off.
  |
DAWN OF A NEW ERA – THE WRITING’S ON THE WALL: BESTIAL CRUELTY - VENGEANCE AND PUNISHMENT - DISMEMBERMENT OF OFFICIAL 
After seven days, Ruoxi and the others are released from their
detention. The Kangxi Era had ended and the Yongzheng era has begun.
  
When Ruoxi is allowed to return, the situation has changed.
After the Yongzheng emperor has ascended the throne, he makes the decision to live in the ‘Hall of Mental Cultivation’ (Yangxin Dian), not the ‘Palace of Heavenly Purity’ or Qianqing Palace, his Imperial Father’s palace, which later became his audience hall. 
Yongzhen has requested that Yinxiang personally escort Ruoxi to
his palace but she wants to groom herself first.
She soaks in a bath tub filled with red flower petals. She avoids the
Yongzhen emperor and goes directly to bed. She has mixed feelings about him.
What is she scared of? For how long will she avoid him?
‘When I couldn’t see him, I
yearn for him. When I see him, I cannot wait to escape.’
She goes to sleep but he comes to her.
‘Do you want me to light the
lamp?’ he asks.
‘No, this is good enough.’
He lies down beside her. She is shocked but he reassures her
that he is just tired.
‘I want to just sleep next to you,’ he says. 
She pulls the blanket over them, and he places his arm around
her. ‘I have yearned for this moment for a long time. Just the two of us, being with each other.’
Yingzhen has sacrificed her in the past but he has paid the price. But, now
that he has achieved his goal, he has finally fulfilled his promise to her. They are finally together.
She tells him she wants to see Yutan and he promises to see to it.
When Yutan comes to visit her, she is shocked that Yutan does not want to leave the palace although she has come of age. She wants to stay back to serve Ruoxi. Those who want to leave the palace cannot do so, but those who can, refuse to leave.  
Why does Yutan want to stay back? Viewers will have the answer
later on.
|
REVENGE AND PUNISHMENT
In this drama, the Yongzheng emperor has been demonised. In the episodes to come, viewers would be
able to judge whether the negative description is justified or not.
The members of the Yinsi Faction are not planning to blindly follow the
dictates of the new emperor. The Yongzheng emperor does not want a protracted conflict. In order to warn Yinsi against rebelling, and also,
to wear down his defences, the Yongzhen emperor has launched a brutal crackdown
on his enemies.
Yongzhen proves to be a man of no mercy and no compassion. And
he makes sure that Yinsi is present for the punishment of those who had betrayed
him.
He tells Yinsi and Yinxiang that he has obtained some horses
from Northwest China, and slyly informs Yinsi that he has a 'special' gift for
him. No one would have expected the horror that lay ahead. They mount the
steps to a balcony that overlooks the palace courtyard.
 
An official is lying on the ground. Each of his limps has been
chained to a rope to the leg of a horse. He is to be punished by dismemberment.
Then, on the Yongzheng emperor's orders, the four horses are whipped to gallop in opposite directions. The prisoner's body is ripped apart by the horses. The official had previously, by his act of treachery and trumped-up charges against Yinzhen, caused Yinxiang to be placed under house arrest for ten years. The brutal punishment serves as a horrible warning to Yinsi and his sympathisers.   |
