Over the past two days, I read Journey to the North and Record of Imperial Favor—diaries written by two renowned local physicians who traveled to Beijing to treat the Empress Dowager Cixi. The two authors chronicled the same events from different perspectives, offering a truly eye-opening read.
First, the accounts make it abundantly clear that Cixi was by no means a foolish or incompetent ruler. She possessed keen judgment, sharp political instincts, and a remarkably clear mind. She wielded power with skill and deliberation.
Moreover, Cixi worked tirelessly to stabilize the Qing dynasty and address the myriad internal and external threats it faced. Her dedication to governance was genuine and relentless.
Throughout these accounts, officialdom during the Guangxu era appears relatively clean and effective—far from the corrupt and decrepit image often portrayed. The officials of rank three and above who appear in these texts were men of extraordinary insight and capability. The principal shortcoming, viewed from today’s perspective, was the thoroughness of their policy of keeping the populace in ignorance. Ordinary people had extremely limited understanding of the broader world and modern technology. Ma Pei, author of Record of Imperial Favor, was already past sixty yet had never heard of machines. When he first rode a Western steamship and witnessed the steam engine in operation, he called it a “miracle.”
It must be acknowledged that during the decades of Cixi’s rule, the Qing regime remained relatively stable and even made steady progress, carrying out numerous reforms including the Self-Strengthening Movement. Cixi herself was likely a person of genuine principle and broad vision. The relentless vilification she has suffered in popular culture has created a deeply distorted public impression. In recent years, the historical reassessment of Li Hongzhang has gained wide acceptance—his case has, in effect, been reconsidered. So when will Cixi receive her fair evaluation in history?
中文原文 / Chinese Original
这两日读了《北行日记》和《纪恩录》，是两位地方名医赴京为慈禧治病时期写的日记，两本书的两位作者从不同的角度记载了同一件事，让人大开眼界。
首先，从文中描述可以明显看出，慈禧太后绝非昏庸无能之辈，她不仅明辨是非，而且直接敏锐，善用权谋，思路十分清晰。
再者，慈禧太后为了清朝政局稳定，解除内忧外患，真是尽心竭力，十分勤政。
通篇看来，光绪时期的吏治尚为清明，并非腐朽无能，书中出现的三品以上官员无论见识、能力均非常人能比，如果从现在看弊端的话，就是他们的愚民政策运行的非常彻底，老百姓对整个世界格局和现代科技的了解非常有限，《纪恩录》的作者马培之年逾花甲，竟从未听说过机器，第一次坐西方轮船，见识了蒸汽机的运转，称之为”奇迹”。
不得不说，慈禧执政的几十年，清朝政权是比较平稳的，而且稳中求进，开展了洋务运动等多项改革。慈禧本人应当也是深明大义之人，民间的丑化着实太多，给民众造成了许多非常不好的印象。这些年来，李鸿章的问题已经大家已经基本认识到了，已经算是翻案了，那么慈禧呢，什么时候历史上能给她一个公正的评价？
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