The back of the rebellion was now broken; but an alien race, called
in to drive out the rebels, found themselves in command of the
situation. Wu San-kuei had therefore no alternative but to
acknowledge the Manchus definitively as the new rulers of China, and
to obtain the best possible terms for his country. Ever since the
defeat of Li by the combined forces of Chinese and Manchus, it had
been perfectly well understood that the latter were to be supported
in their bid for Imperial power, and the conditions under which the
throne was to be transferred were as follows:--(1) No Chinese women
were to be taken into the Imperial seraglio; (2) the Senior Classic
at the great triennial examination, on the results of which
successful candidates were drafted into the public service, was never
to be a Manchu; (3) Chinese men were to adopt the Manchu dress,
shaving the front part of the head and plaiting the back hair into a
queue, but they were to be allowed burial in the costume of the
Mings; (4) Chinese women were not to adopt the Manchu dress, nor to
cease to compress their feet, in accordance with ancient custom.
Wu San-kuei was loaded with honours, among others with a triple-eyed
peacock's feather, a decoration introduced, together with the
"button" at the top of the hat, by the Manchus, and classed as
single-, double-, and triple-eyed, according to merit. A few years
later, his son married the sister of the Emperor; and a few years
later still, he was appointed one of three feudatory princes, his
rule extending over the huge provinces of Yünnan and Ss[)u]ch'uan.
There we shall meet him again.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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