Becoming Yongzheng

He is the Forbidden City's biggest star today, and his story is the “university” where countless Qing palace dramas and transmigration dramas of later generations get their lessons.

Diligent, suspicious, cold, devoted… We seem to know this complex Yongzheng well. And with Qing palace dramas appearing one after another, this emperor has also been successfully made into a familiar old friend. But what was he really like? And what was that history truly like?

This book gives a detailed account of the life of Yongzheng, “the most representative autocratic ruler of modern China,” and the true face of his reign, hidden in the shadow of the “Kangxi-Qianlong Golden Age.” Drawing on extensive historical research and systematically organizing relevant archival documents, it offers a unique perspective on the historical figures of a turning point in the Qing Empire.

Yongzheng himself is brought to life in particular through vivid portrayals of other historical figures. Looking through the eyes of outsiders and listening to the words of others, the book offers an overlooked portrait of Yongzheng alongside the familiar, clearly defined image of him. Meanwhile, the Yongzheng era, which followed Kangxi and paved the way for Qianlong, comes gracefully into view.