(Mixed success and failure: Li Hongzhang | Patriotic? Serving the country? Harming the country? Traitor?)
What role did this complex figure who could never escape the shadow of history play in the political arena of the late Qing Dynasty? Especially today, his life's honors and disgrace will still bring us many new thoughts. It is no longer appropriate to characterize the merits and demerits of this extraordinary figure as a "traitor". He lived in an era where "blind men ride blind horses and approach deep pools in the middle of the night." But he was a "one who holds a candle to show off". He took the imperial examination as a young man, joined the army in his prime, was a feudal lord in his middle age, and engaged in foreign affairs in his later years. Li Hongzhang had too many brilliance, as well as endless embarrassments and loneliness! It is not appropriate to overflow with praise, and it is not a scientific attitude to arbitrarily denigrate this important minister of the late Qing Dynasty out of righteous indignation or even prejudice.
