The Amazing Ways Empress Dowager Cixi Relieved Her Sexual Loneliness

In 1861, Emperor Xianfeng died in Rehe, leaving Empress Dowager Cixi, who was only 26 years old, a widow in the prime of her youth. However, she "became honored by her son" and launched the Xinyou Coup that shocked China and the world, thus reaching the peak of her political life and becoming the empress dowager of the Qing Dynasty who "ruled the country from behind the curtain" for forty-seven years.

Cixi was Cixi after all. Since she had the ability to reach the pinnacle of power, she had the means to survive the 47 years of loneliness and solitude.

In fact, Cixi's sexual loneliness had already begun when Xianfeng fled to Rehe. At that time, Xianfeng indulged in sensual pleasures and was obsessed with his new love, causing Cixi to fall out of favor on the dragon bed. Cixi was lonely and bored, so she practiced painting and made great progress. Later, when she was in power, she gave her paintings to her ministers as high-end gifts. She was very good at painting orchids and bamboos, and writing cursive script quite well, all thanks to the practice she had during her period of falling out of favor. It was not that she was confident about her second half of life and was determined to abuse her power. In fact, during the period when she fell out of favor, her mood was extremely gloomy. She once told her confidants that she would spend the rest of her life painting.

Before his death, Emperor Xianfeng was still on guard against Cixi. He once summoned Empress Xiaozhen, who later became Empress Dowager Cian, and told her that Nara could not be trusted at all and that if anything serious happened, she would make the decision. "If he is truly obedient and has done nothing wrong, you should always be treated with kindness and courtesy. If his misconduct is obvious, you can summon the court officials and announce my decree: sentence him to death immediately to prevent future troubles." However, Xiaozhen was weak and indecisive, and had no ability to restrain Cixi.

After the Xinyou Coup, Cixi, because of her son's status, jointly ruled the country with Empress Dowager Ci'an

At this time, Ci'an's status was higher than Cixi's, but she had no real power. I can only sigh and feel sad. Ci'an's clothes were simple, as if she was poor, and she gave in in everything; however, Cixi was extravagant and loved to wear theatrical costumes. The eunuch An Dehai took the opportunity to make huge profits and instigated Cixi to build a theater and recruit famous actors from the north and south. An Dehai's instigation was exactly what Cixi wanted, so she ordered An Dehai to handle the matter immediately and spent the long lonely night.

After the death of Emperor Tongzhi, Ci'an and others originally wanted to make Prince Gong's son the successor to the vacant throne left by Tongzhi, but Cixi was interested in her nephew, Zai Tian, ​​the son of Prince Chun, who was Emperor Guangxu. After Emperor Guangxu came to power, Cixi's power reached its peak. In the sixth year of the Guangxu period, when offering sacrifices at the Eastern Mausoleum, Cixi disregarded etiquette and ran to the front to stand shoulder to shoulder with Ci'an. Ci'an rebuked her, thinking that she was just a concubine when Emperor Xianfeng was alive, but she started a loud argument with him in front of a large crowd at the mausoleum.

The next year, Ci'an passed by a palace in a sedan chair. Li Lianying, the chief eunuch under Cixi, was playing with falconry and ignored Ci'an's approach. Ci'an was furious and couldn't help saying, "Where is the ancestral teachings of two hundred years? It was defeated by a brat..." Ci'an went to Cixi to argue, but Cixi turned her head away and ignored her with contempt.

Cixi was lonely and bored, and spent her days chatting and feasting with actors, or claiming to be sick and not attending court. Ci'an was tolerant and generous, and would condescend to visit Cixi's residence to discuss matters when she had them. One day, she went there very early, and Cixi was caught off guard. "The attendants all came out unexpectedly, and Ci'an also shook her hand to stop them from making any noise. When she was about to enter the bedroom, the curtains were heavy, and she seemed to smell a smell like the smell of milk. When she entered, Cixi was lying on the couch, and a man dressed like an actor was stroking her skin and patting her waist, with very obscene intentions. Ci'an was not easily angered, but she was filled with indignation..."

When Cixi was arrested, she knelt down and cried bitterly, saying that she had changed her ways.

Ci'an immediately ordered the actor to be executed. This matter was leaked by the descendants of the actor named Jin who was sentenced to death. Ci'an thought that if she did not punish Cixi in this matter, Cixi would be grateful; but Cixi was already filled with murderous intent and just pretended to be calm. Ci'an liked snacks and desserts. Cixi saw this and pretended that the people had donated delicious food to her and asked the empress dowager to taste it. Just after finishing the meal, it was time for her to meet with the military minister, so she went out to attend the court. The person who came to meet her was Prince Gong Yi, who assassinated Ci'an. Fearing that people would suspect her, Cixi forged Ci'an's will, imitating her tone vividly, diverting the conversation and cleverly clearing herself from the matter.

Cixi was a woman with mixed interpersonal relationships and was unfathomable in her cunning. Her court often indulged high-ranking officials, especially those close to her, in doing bad things, holding their handles and threatening them, aiming to break them down mentally and make them feel desperate, and then generously rescue them. At this time, the high-ranking officials could only be grateful and serve as pioneers for her. Cixi was an expert in magic tricks, taking advantage of human weaknesses to manipulate people.

Li Lianying, the eunuch favored by Empress Dowager Cixi, used to smuggle saltpeter and sulfur before entering the palace because of his poor life. He was nicknamed Pixiao Li. Later, he was caught and imprisoned for selling saltpeter and sulfur. After he was released from prison, he made a living by repairing shoes. His good friend Shen Lanyu felt sorry for him and brought him into the palace to be a eunuch, where his hairdressing skills were noticed by Cixi. After Ci'an's death, Empress Dowager Cixi became unscrupulous. Li Lianying was promoted from the hairdressing room to the chief eunuch of the harem. He had great power in the court and the country, and he accepted bribes for personal gain and did all kinds of evil. Even a senior official like Zhang Yinhuan had to bow before him.

On Li Lianying's 40th birthday, Cixi bestowed on him precious items, dragon silk, characters for happiness and longevity, etc., which were of the same standard as those given to high-ranking officials. "From the military council to the governors, everyone celebrated. The accumulated bribes amounted to tens of millions. After Empress Xiaoqin passed away, Prince Regent Zaifeng also coveted the bribes and thought of ways to seize them, but he was protected by Empress Longyu and was unable to do so. When he died of illness, the funeral ceremonies were as lavish as those of a great hero. An Dehai was guilty of the most, but the outcome was very different. Some were lucky, some were unlucky."

There is not enough evidence in history books to support the rumor that Cixi had an affair with the eunuchs An Dehai and Li Lianying. Li Lianying was known as "Little Li the Comb" and was appreciated by Cixi for his beautiful hair-combing skills. His duty room was not far from the Empress Dowager Cixi's residence. Sometimes when the Empress Dowager came to visit him, Li would cover all eight chairs that Cixi had sat on with yellow cloth. The Empress Dowager Cixi indeed praised him for his loyalty and attentiveness and trusted him more.

At the end of the Kangxi reign, it was stipulated that the highest rank of eunuchs was fifth, and the lowest was eighth; in the seventh year of the Qianlong reign, it was changed to "not exceeding fourth rank, and this shall be a permanent rule." When Cixi was in power, she broke the ancestral system and awarded Li Lianying the second rank. Over the years, Cixi continued to favor Li Lianying. The two often sat together to listen to operas. Whatever Li Lianying liked to eat, Cixi would save it for him during meals. Li Lianying was an extremely intelligent, considerate person, and kind to other people. He was not as arrogant as An Dehai, so he was able to have a good ending.

But even if there was an ambiguity between An Dehai, Li Lianying and Cixi, it was impossible for an actual sexual relationship to occur. Because if they were not castrated and were fake eunuchs, this matter could not be hidden from anyone. In the Qing Dynasty, the inspection of eunuchs was particularly strict. After becoming a eunuch, they had to undergo a physical examination by the Ministry of Punishment every other year. However, eunuchs such as An Dehai and Li Lianying did make their own contributions to helping Cixi overcome her 47 years of sexual loneliness.