Yuan's life

Yuan's birth is mysterious. According to legend, during the Kangxi period of the Qing Dynasty, there lived a Yuan family outside the north gate of Jiaoqiao Town, Changshan County. This family moved here from Zaoqiang, Hebei Province during the Hongwu period of the Ming Dynasty. After coming here, they lived by farming for generations, and their lives were very dull. Later, there was a man named Yuan in this family. This man is strong, honest and upright. When you are free, you sell food, do some small business and subsidize your family. Because his family was poor and lived by selling food, he was not married in his thirties. One spring, he went to a rich man named Xu's house to buy food and stood in line at the door. It was very hot, so he opened his clothes and showed his chest. When the rich Xu Man walked to the door, he found the young man and found seven Zhu Shazhi on his chest, arranged in a very strange shape, just like Ursa Major in our astronomy, which is China's Big Dipper. The rich man surnamed Xu has read a photo album. He knew that this man was "pregnant with Beidou, he must have a son" and enjoyed all the splendor. After seeing this young man, I was amazed, so I called him home and asked about the situation at home. Finally, I decided to betroth my little daughter to him and asked him if he agreed or not. This Yuan is over 30 years old and his family is very poor. The rich man gave his daughter to him, which was certainly welcome, and this marriage became like this. Everyone in the village laughed at the rich Xu Man, who was old and confused, how could he betrothed his daughter to such a poor man. A year later, the rich man's daughter became pregnant and gave birth to a child. Yuan's family was very happy. On this day, an old man came to the door, carrying a wallet on his back and begging. Yuan called him home and gave him food and water. The old man, satiated with food and drink, said, "Your family wants a baby." Yuan was very happy when he heard this. Shouldn't this be his father-in-law's words? Set the banquet at once and let the old man sit in his seat. He said: "You are not only a precious child, but also bring wealth to your family." Yuan asked, "where is wealth?" The old man said, "Go three feet south from your east window and dig three feet down, which is the wealth your child brings." Yuan immediately sent someone to dig up according to what the old man said. Digging and digging, a big water tank appeared, saying, what's inside? Gold and silver treasure, pearl agate! Yuan has never seen so much wealth in his life. He quickly said to the old man, "alas, our family can't afford so many things." Let's keep some and take the rest away. " The old man said, "This child is the reincarnation of the God of Wealth. This is the reincarnation of Shen Wansan, the god of wealth who lived in Henan in his previous life, who came to your home. It turned out that when there was a flood in Henan, Shen Wansan's family was flooded, and all the gold and silver in the family were put into a big barrel. Then he floated with the tank and the river, and a huge wave floated over. When he comes, separate the man from the jar. When Shen Wansan woke up, he was holding a jar edge in his hand. " While speaking, the old man took out the edge of the urn from his pocket, then put it on a pair of dug-out vats and assembled it together, which satisfied the facts and was true. This Yuan Yun steamed and wanted to thank the old man, but the old man disappeared after excusing himself, so he couldn't find it.

Yuan named this son Yuan, Yuan, which was later Yuan. When Yuan Jia made this foreign fortune, he bought land extensively and repaired houses. It is also said that after Yuan became an official, Yuan's family became rich. When he was a magistrate in Liuzhou, the magistrate's yamen was the place where King Wu Sangui hid treasures in the Qing Dynasty. Once, when he was digging a mouse hole, he found a treasure hole in Wu Sangui. Wu Sangui is a famous vassal state in history of qing dynasty. He hoarded wealth in the southwest, supported soldiers and respected themselves, and contradicted the court. Later, I wanted to be king on my own. Later, things failed and were destroyed by the Qing government. Therefore, his wealth is unknown. It is said that Yuan Fang Jing found his treasure and secretly transported it to his home. This is also a legend that the Yuan family became rich, which has no historical records and cannot be verified, but it is very popular among the people in our country. In Yuan's grandson's generation, there appeared another capable person named Yuan Shoudong. When Yuan Shoudong came here, the political and economic status of the Yuan family reached an unprecedented peak. Yuan has five sons, his third son is Yuan (Fu), and Yuan Shoudong is his eldest son. Yuan Shoudong was smart since he was a child and knew the four books and five classics by heart. Work for nine years and take the provincial examination. What do you mean after the exam? The exam is not held in the countryside. After obtaining the provincial examination, you should participate in the province. If you pass the provincial exam, it's called a juror. Then a juren goes to Beijing to take an exam, which is presided over by the Ministry of Ritual. This is called an exam. If it passes, it is called Jinshi. Finally, the exam presided over by the emperor was called palace examination, and then he personally delineated who was the top scholar, who was the top scholar and who was exploring flowers. When Yuan Shoudong was in Qianlong for nine years, he took part in the provincial examination and won the first place in Shandong Province. But then an accident happened, and I went to Beijing for an exam and failed. Generally speaking, it will take another three years, because the imperial examinations in the Qing Dynasty are held only once every three years. But Yuan Gu is rich, and when the children grow up and start to be an official, they will donate a tribute according to the family practice, pay the money and go directly to imperial academy, and then embark on his grandfather's road to being an official. After arriving in imperial academy, he quickly stood out and was awarded "Cabinet Secretary" and Secretary of State. With Ji Xiaolan, everyone has watched TV and seen Ji Xiaolan with a sharp mouth and copper teeth. That's him. They formed a literature club together, just like the literature lovers association in the school now. They discussed poems and songs together, so Yuan Shoudong learned a lot. The emperor found this talent and sent him to the military department. Later, he was awarded a doctor's degree in the department of literary selection of the official department. The official department is equivalent to the current Central Organization Department, and the doctor is the head of a department, which is responsible for the assessment and appointment of officials at all levels. That official has done a good job and achieved great success. He is in a fog and needs to be demoted. The official department has the final say. So many people go to Yuan Shoudong's back door to please him, curry favor with him and give him gifts. However, Yuan Shoudong is an impartial person and never bends the law. Sometimes when officials are found to be bending the law, they dare to expose them boldly, so the annual assessment is first-class, which is equivalent to the advanced workers now. It is advanced every year, so it is quickly promoted and reused. The emperor sent him to Jiangxi to supervise the remonstrance and put him in charge of salt affairs. As illegal salt was rampant in Zhejiang at that time, after Yuan Shoudong arrived, he made a strict inspection of all stations, set up sentries at all intersections to strictly investigate illegal salt, and formulated many strict laws and regulations. It turned out that some salt merchants, officials and corrupt officials who made a fortune by selling illicit salt paid, handed in or confiscated all their money in accordance with the new regulations as long as they were related to salt affairs. In a short time, Jiangsu and Zhejiang salt affairs were orderly and the atmosphere was positive. The emperor was very happy. He said that Yuan Shoudong did have the ability to handle affairs, and was later promoted to a provincial judge in Guangxi, with the same level as his grandfather Yuan, secretary of the Political and Legal Committee, in charge of local public security. During his tenure in Guangxi, his grandfather died and Yolanda died, so he went back to his hometown for three years, and returned to his hometown in Jiaoqiao to honor his grandfather. Three years later, he returned to Beijing to report. At that time, Emperor Qianlong cherished this talent very much and said, Yuan Shoudong, don't go to Guangxi again, just stay with me and use it at any time. During this period, he was appointed as an imperial envoy five times to investigate and deal with corrupt government officials, some of whom were higher in rank than him. However, he did not perform his duties in his post and was corrupt. When the emperor heard someone complaining, he appointed Yuan Shoudong as an imperial envoy and gave him a sword, which enabled him to fight against the emperor and the common people, with great power. Every time Yuan Shoudong went, he made an unannounced visit, and the cases he handled were watertight and irrefutable. Many officials were executed on the spot, so people in many places called him "Yuan Qingtian". His position in the imperial court is constantly improving. Emperor Qianlong said, let's promote it again! First, he served as Minister of Finance. What is the position of Minister of Finance? There was no prime minister in the Qing dynasty, so the power was in the hands of ministers. The ministers of these departments are all equivalent to the current Vice Premier the State Council, who is the Deputy Prime Minister in charge of civil affairs in the State Council. This position didn't last long. Later, he was appointed as the minister of punishments, equivalent to Vice Premier the State Council and Dean the Supreme People's Court, because all the trial cases were in the hands of punishments at that time, regardless of several departments of public security and procuratorial organs. At this time, the power was already quite heavy, and the emperor gave him a very special treatment, called riding a horse in the Forbidden City.

In forty-four years of Qianlong, when he was governor of Zhili, Emperor Qianlong personally wrote a poem for him. The stone tablet carved by this poem is now preserved in Baoding City, Hebei Province. This poem is written like this:

The overseers are also responsible for civil affairs, with heavy responsibilities and simple resources.

In the middle place, you have been diligent and have to rely on the river to guard against it.

In order to protect Gyeonggi from bandits, it is necessary to repair the practice hall.

The shogunate is changed twice a year, which is beneficial to save worry and materials.

What does this poem mean? It says that Yuan Shoudong is both civil and military, and you can recruit soldiers to fight abroad and manage state affairs internally, and you are responsible for the details. I have given you too much responsibility, and I value you very much. The responsibility is very great, so I specially chose you for this position. In recent years, you have changed a lot, and many lakes and rivers have been flooded. You are good at blocking defense, and you do a very good job in river affairs. Now I want you to be responsible for such a big responsibility in Zhili. When you get there, don't worry too much about building this building. That is secondary. Protecting the safety of the capital and the emperor's family is your primary task. If the shogunate changes twice a year, just say, look, I'll transfer you here and there this year, which will make you change positions several times a year, so that you can select talents for the court and find capable officials to govern the country. Therefore, this poem can be seen that it has both praise and entrustment to Yuan Shoudong.

Therefore, it was highly valued by Emperor Qianlong. After Yuan Shoudong's mother died, he had to worry about it for three years according to etiquette. When he returned to his hometown, the emperor asked him:

You are filial, but you can't destroy it and satisfy it. You are good at keeping rituals and keeping fit. Being a minister for your country is filial piety.

Say your mother died, I know you are very filial, but you can't ruin your body because of this. You should not only observe etiquette, but also keep healthy and become a pillar of the country. This is your greatest filial piety. He has not been worried for three years, and the emperor has informed him to come back to work. The Yellow River in Henan Province is in an emergency and disaster is about to happen. I can't find a second person to replace you. what do you think? Yuan Shoudong immediately rushed back to Beijing, and Emperor Qianlong greeted Yuan Shoudong at Lugou Bridge. On the bridge, when I saw Yuan Shoudong, his face was not very good. I said, look at your face is still very weak, you'd better go back to the department to recuperate; If you are tired, where can I find a good governor to replace you? I don't think you look well, so I'll go back to your governor's office to recuperate. If you are really tired, you can tell me where to find someone who can replace you as governor. Yuan Shoudong was very grateful to the emperor for his esteem. He went to work with illness, went to Henan construction site with illness, led the masses, built dams and dikes, and fought floods and rescues. After returning, Yuan Shoudong died of illness in less than a year. The emperor was very sad. He gave the Prince Taibao a gift to clear his heart. After his death, he was given a birthright called Qing Xigong. As we know, Fan Zhongyan and posthumous title are both writers. Yuan Shoudong was called Qing Jigong and was called into the Immortal Temple. Throughout the dynasties, there must be a fairy hall, that is, a good minister and general of the country. After death, they will enter the Immortal Hall as a memorial, which is equivalent to entering the Babaoshan Revolutionary Cemetery now. Finally, it was allowed to build a memorial hall for him in Jiaoqiao to commemorate him and bury him with the gift of a maharaja. His funeral was conducted according to the treatment of the princes of the Qing Dynasty. At the top of the tombstone, there are two dragons playing with pearls. This kind of monument is called the bibcock monument. In ancient times, only princes and nobles could set up bibcock tablets, so after Yuan Shoudong's death, he enjoyed grief and honor.